#best I can say is those with rotors start spinning but that’s not all of them

[quibbs126]

I like it when artists have Optimus, when flustered, has smoke coming from his smokestacks (I butchered that sentence but you get what I’m saying)

I need something similar for other characters, most importantly Megatron since he’s usually the one I see causing Optimus to let out smoke

Best I can suggest right now is steam coming from his cannon being “overheated”, but it might just look like he’s ready to fire instead. Hmm

[jcmarchi]

Safer skies with self-flying helicopters

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/safer-skies-with-self-flying-helicopters/

Safer skies with self-flying helicopters

In late 2019, after years of studying aviation and aerospace engineering, Hector (Haofeng) Xu decided to learn to fly helicopters. At the time, he was pursuing his PhD in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, so he was familiar with the risks associated with flying small aircraft. But something about being in the cockpit gave Xu a greater appreciation of those risks. After a couple of nerve-wracking experiences, he was inspired to make helicopter flight safer.

In 2021, he founded the autonomous helicopter company Rotor Technologies, Inc.

It turns out Xu’s near-misses weren’t all that unique. Although large, commercial passenger planes are extremely safe, people die every year in small, private aircraft in the U.S. Many of those fatalities occur during helicopter flights for activities like crop dusting, fighting fires, and medical evacuations.

Rotor is retrofitting existing helicopters with a suite of sensors and software to remove the pilot from some of the most dangerous flights and expand use cases for aviation more broadly.

“People don’t realize pilots are risking their lives every day in the U.S.,” Xu explains. “Pilots fly into wires, get disoriented in inclement weather, or otherwise lose control, and almost all of these accidents can be prevented with automation. We’re starting by targeting the most dangerous missions.”

Rotor’s autonomous machines are able to fly faster and longer and carry heavier payloads than battery powered drones, and by working with a reliable helicopter model that has been around for decades, the company has been able to commercialize quickly. Rotor’s autonomous aircraft are already taking to the skies around its Nashua, New Hampshire, headquarters for demo flights, and customers will be able to purchase them later this year.

“A lot of other companies are trying to build new vehicles with lots of new technologies around things like materials and power trains,” says Ben Frank ’14, Rotor’s chief commercial officer. “They’re trying to do everything. We’re really focused on autonomy. That’s what we specialize in and what we think will bring the biggest step-change to make vertical flight much safer and more accessible.”

Building a team at MIT

As an undergraduate at Cambridge University, Xu participated in the Cambridge-MIT Exchange Program (CME). His year at MIT apparently went well — after graduating Cambridge, he spent the next eight years at the Institute, first as a PhD student, then a postdoc, and finally as a research affiliate in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AeroAstro), a position he still holds today. During the CME program and his postdoc, Xu was advised by Professor Steven Barrett, who is now the head of AeroAstro. Xu says Barrett has played an important role in guiding him throughout his career.

“Rotor’s technology didn’t spin out of MIT’s labs, but MIT really shaped my vision for technology and the future of aviation,” Xu says.

Xu’s first hire was Rotor Chief Technology Officer Yiou He SM ’14, PhD ’20, whom Xu worked with during his PhD. The decision was a sign of things to come: The number of MIT affiliates at the 50-person company is now in the double digits.

“The core tech team early on was a bunch of MIT PhDs, and they’re some of the best engineers I’ve ever worked with,” Xu says. “They’re just really smart and during grad school they had built some really fantastic things at MIT. That’s probably the most critical factor to our success.”

To help get Rotor off the ground, Xu worked with the MIT Venture Mentoring Service (VMS), MIT’s Industrial Liaison Program (ILP), and the National Science Foundation’s New England Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program on campus.

A key early decision was to work with a well-known aircraft from the Robinson Helicopter Company rather than building an aircraft from scratch. Robinson already requires its helicopters to be overhauled after about 2,000 hours of flight time, and that’s when Rotor jumps in.

The core of Rotor’s solution is what’s known as a “fly by wire” system — a set of computers and motors that interact with the helicopter’s flight control features. Rotor also equips the helicopters with a suite of advanced communication tools and sensors, many of which were adapted from the autonomous vehicle industry.

“We believe in a long-term future where there are no longer pilots in the cockpit, so we’re building for this remote pilot paradigm,” Xu says. “It means we have to build robust autonomous systems on board, but it also means that we need to build communication systems between the aircraft and the ground.”

Rotor is able to leverage Robinson’s existing supply chain, and potential customers are comfortable with an aircraft they’ve worked with before — even if no one is sitting in the pilot seat. Once Rotor’s helicopters are in the air, the startup offers 24/7 monitoring of flights with a cloud-based human supervision system the company calls Cloudpilot. The company is starting with flights in remote areas to avoid risk of human injury.

“We have a very careful approach to automation, but we also retain a highly skilled human expert in the loop,” Xu says. “We get the best of the autonomous systems, which are very reliable, and the best of humans, who are really great at decision-making and dealing with unexpected scenarios.”

Autonomous helicopters take off

Using small aircraft to do things like fight fires and deliver cargo to offshore sites is not only dangerous, it’s also inefficient. There are restrictions on how long pilots can fly, and they can’t fly during adverse weather or at night.

Most autonomous options today are limited by small batteries and limited payload capacities. Rotor’s aircraft, named the R550X, can carry loads up to 1,212 pounds, travel more than 120 miles per hour, and be equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks to stay in the air for hours at a time.

Some potential customers are interested in using the aircraft to extend flying times and increase safety, but others want to use the machines for entirely new kinds of applications.

“It is a new aircraft that can do things that other aircraft couldn’t — or maybe even if technically they could, they wouldn’t do with a pilot,” Xu says. “You could also think of new scientific missions enabled by this. I hope to leave it to people’s imagination to figure out what they can do with this new tool.”

Rotor plans to sell a small handful of aircraft this year and scale production to produce 50 to 100 aircraft a year from there.

Meanwhile, in the much longer term, Xu hopes Rotor will play a role in getting him back into helicopters and, eventually, transporting humans.

“Today, our impact has a lot to do with safety, and we’re fixing some of the challenges that have stumped helicopter operators for decades,” Xu says. “But I think our biggest future impact will be changing our daily lives. I’m excited to be flying in safer, more autonomous, and more affordable vertical take-off and-landing aircraft, and I hope Rotor will be an important part of enabling that.”

[221bsunsettowers]

Buck/Eddie: I Can’t Get Enough of This Kind of Love (Part 2 of the Good News on My TV Screen Buddie AU series)

In just a few days, Buck has been in his second helicopter crash, been rescued by his boyfriend and their friends, witnessed people almost dying at a bug eating competition and the largest charley horse possibly ever, seen a woman with a high heel through her face at a child's beauty pageant, and had his beloved Eddie tell him he loves him for the very first time while tripping on laced brownies.

So there's that.

In which news reporter Buck is an integral part of the events from the episode 2x06 "Dosed".

(Amazing fanart poster by the amazing @jemmalynette! )

(Thank you so much to everyone who left love and kudos and comments for the first story in this series! In my head, the first story was a one and done that I had a lot of fun writing, and then all the requests to make this a series inspired me to do exactly that!

If you haven’t read the first story in the series, I would recommend doing that first, so you get the background of news reporter Buck and firefighter Eddie, and how they first meet and get together. You can read the first story here )

I Can’t Get Enough of This Kind of Love (can be read on Ao3 here)

Carefully placing the box labeled Dishes on the kitchen counter, Eddie immediately went back outside, bending down to grab the next box. "You really want me to like you, don't you?" Maddie's voice came from behind, and Eddie spun around, meeting her stare with a hopeful smile.

"Honestly, Maddie, I really like your brother, so yes please," Eddie answered promptly, and Maddie's gaze softened. She stepped forward, and patted Eddie on the shoulder as she walked past him and into her new home.

"Excellent answer!" Maddie called back, and Eddie felt arms wrap around him from behind. He leaned back into his boyfriend's embrace, smiling as Buck planted a kiss behind his ear.

  "Evan!" Maddie yelled out the window, "you can make googly eyes at your boyfriend later, he wants me to like him and my furniture isn't going to move itself!" She smirked as Buck blushed and walked over to the couch, bending his knees and grabbing one end as Eddie dutifully grabbed the other.

"Googly eyes, maybe when you stop making googly eyes at Chim," Buck muttered under his breath, and Eddie laughed as they moved in tandem up the stairs.

"I'll tease Chim relentlessly at work if that helps," Eddie promised with a wink, and Buck grinned mischievously, nodding his head.

"We've got a helicopter crash, a news station was doing a traffic report," Bobby explained as the fire truck screeched to a stop and everyone quickly hopped out. Eddie noticed the rest of his team shooting worried glances at him, but he waved them off with a grateful smile.

"Buck never does the traffic reports," Eddie assured them, as Bobby called them into a quick huddle. "He told me he paid those dues a few news stations ago."

"Um, Eddie?" Chimney said hesitantly, facing the helicopter and extending a finger to point at the back window. Turning, Eddie met Buck's gaze, could see from even this distance how he was working hard to keep his breathing even and his body still.

"Fuck," Eddie breathed out, feeling his heart stutter in time with the still-spinning rotors.

"Eddie, you going to be okay on this one?" Bobby asked softly, laying a comforting hand on Eddie's shoulder.

"Buck needs me, Cap, I'm on it," Eddie promised, forcing his focus onto the job at hand. "We need to watch for dynamic rollover, when we start getting them out the weight of the copter could shift."

"Okay, Chimney, you're going to pull Buck out first, make sure you're keeping an eye on the balance," Bobby ordered as they moved towards the helicopter.

 "Eddie, can you shut down the helicopter?" Eddie opened his mouth, about to argue that he should be the one to get Buck out, but then he sighed, nodding, knowing he needed to trust his captain to get Buck out of there quickly and safely.

  Still, Eddie couldn't keep his eyes off Buck, lunging forward as the helicopter rocked, but then Chimney had Buck back on solid ground, and Eddie was next to the pilot, stabilizing the balance and shutting off the engine. The second he had the pilot out and in Hen's capable hands, Eddie spun around and grabbed Buck in his own grasp, pulling him into his arms.

Eddie gripped onto the back of Buck's shirt, tugging his body as closely as possible. Buck nestled his face into the crook of Eddie's shoulder, and Eddie swayed them gently from side to side, pressing his lips against Buck's temple. "You're safe, sweetheart," Eddie murmured into Buck's skin. "I've got you."

He could feel Buck nodding and pulled back just enough to see Buck's face, running a gentle finger over a small cut on his boyfriend's cheek. "Let me check you out," Eddie insisted, leading Buck over to a bench and kneeling in front of him.

"You can check me out any time," Buck bantered back with a mischevious smile, and Eddie laughed, shaking his head as he squeezed Buck's hand.

"Sounds like he's just fine!" Chimney called out with a smile, patting Buck's shoulder as he made his way over to where the pilot was sitting.

"No comments about how you're hotter than just fine, or how much you like me kneeling in front of you," Eddie commanded, pointing a finger at Buck, who shrugged and grinned,  Eddie smiling back in relief. "You scared the shit out of me," Eddie whispered, leaning in to cup Buck's face in his hands, laying a soft kiss on his lips. "Let me make sure you're okay, please?"

"Yeah," Buck whispered back, resting his forehead against Eddie's, "yeah, of course." Pulling out his penlight, Eddie shined the beam into Buck's eyes.

 Nodding in satisfaction, he took Buck through the rest of concussion protocol, checked for any other injuries, and cleaned out the small cut and bandaged it. Next to him, Chimney and Hen were finishing checking the pilot, assuring Buck he was completely fine.

"What were you doing on traffic anyway?" Eddie asked, sliding up to sit next to Buck, wrapping an arm around his shoulders as Buck leaned into Eddie's side.

"Oliver called in sick last minute, so I offered to sub in," Buck answered, sighing in relief as Eddie moved a hand to the back of Buck's neck, rubbing at the tense muscles. "I definitely didn't expect to be in my second helicopter crash." As Eddie's hand suddenly stilled at Buck's words, Buck bit his bottom lip, meeting Eddie's wide-eyed gaze. "If it helps, I clearly survived that one too?" he offered up hesitantly, and he heard poorly-concealed laughter coming from the rest of the team's general direction.

  "Can't say I didn't know what I was getting myself into," Eddie sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head, before leaning in to kiss Buck softly. "Let's try to keep helicopter crashes off the agenda, yeah?"

"No subbing in for traffic again or chartering a romantic copter ride for the two of us, got it," Buck recited with a smirk, and Eddie rolled his eyes, nudging Buck in the side before hopping off the bench.

  "Any chance I could get you to come back with me to the fire station so I can keep an eye on you?" Eddie asked hopefully.

"I would love that, but I have to get back to work," Buck said ruefully, gesturing at the news van that was already pulling up.

  Eddie sighed, leaning forward to rest his forehead against Buck's. "Text and call me when you can, please? Just let me know you're doing okay?"

"Of course," Buck promised, sneaking another quick kiss in before heading towards the van. Grabbing the door handle, he turned around. "Be safe out there, babe! And thanks guys!"

Eddie had gotten a myriad of selfies from Buck in the hours after the helicopter rescue. One at his desk, captioned I promise I'm watching out for papercuts. Another getting ready to go in front of the camera, Taking proper electrocution prevention steps. The pictures continued rolling in, Eddie laughing fondly at each one, saving them to his photos because he couldn't resist. Any picture of his boyfriend was one he wanted to have, even when said boyfriend was being a glorious little shit.

His phone trilled out "Breaking News!" again and Eddie quickly clicked on the new picture, a smile spreading across his face as the photo revealed Buck standing in front of the fire station, captioned Practicing fire safety. Shoving his phone in his pocket, Eddie hurried down the stairs, skipping the bottom step in his haste.

"Surprise!" Buck called out with a grin, hurrying forward to meet Eddie, throwing his arms around his boyfriend's neck before leaning in for a kiss. Eddie's arms looped around Buck's waist as he held him close, both men smiling broadly.

"This is a great surprise," Eddie proclaimed, brushing a curl of hair away from Buck's eye. "Did a story fall through?"

"Actually, a new story came up," Buck grinned, grabbing Eddie's hand and interlacing their fingers. "C'mon, let's go upstairs, I want to talk to everybody about it."

"Hey Buck!" Chimney met the two at the top of the stairs, grabbing Buck's hand and pulling him in for a quick hug. "Since we have a chance now, what kind of wine does your sister like best? I'm going over to help her move more of her stuff after work."

"Red, and make sure you bring some popcorn too," Buck answered with a wink, patting Chimney on the shoulder. "Maddie could eat popcorn all day every day and be very happy about it."

"Thanks!" Chimney called back as Buck made his way around the kitchen, greeting everyone else before moving to the coffee maker. Placing a filled mug in front of Eddie, Buck sat down holding his own mug (the one Eddie had brought from home for Buck to use whenever he visited the fire station). Leg brushing against Eddie's, Buck took a sip of coffee.

"Before I say anything else, I just want to make sure you guys know you can absolutely say no to this," Buck began, meeting the eyes of everyone else around the table. "You don't have to give me a reason, and I won't take any offense, I promise." Turning to Eddie, Buck interlaced their fingers. "Including you babe, okay?"

  Waiting until everyone had nodded, Buck continued. "My boss knows I'm dating someone from the 118, and after that helicopter rescue this morning, he came to me and told me he wants a story done on a day in the life of the LAFD heroes of the 118. I told him I have to be the one to do it, because I don't want anyone else twisting up the story in any way, and that you guys have to be okay with it or it isn't happening."

There was silence for a minute, and then Bobby spoke. "You know, normally I would absolutely say no to this," he said with a sigh, leaning back in his chair, "because a reporter could get in the way, could create their own narrative that has nothing to do with the truth, or could even use someone's pain or cause harm themselves. But Buck, you also know I trust you. I believe that you will do this truthfully and put the safety of others above the story."

"I will, absolutely Bobby," Buck vowed, blushing at Bobby's words. "I would never spin anything to make you guys look bad, and I would never put anyone in danger or show them suffering, I promise."

"Of course you wouldn't," Eddie said proudly, slinging an arm around Buck's shoulders and pulling him in close. Buck beamed up at him, leaning into his side.

"We all trust you, Buck," Hen said, and Chimney nodded, and Buck smiled bashfully, glancing down at where his and Eddie's fingers were now intertwined on Eddie's thigh.

"So it's okay to start tomorrow?" Buck asked hesitantly, and Bobby let out a gentle laugh, nodding.

"Absolutely, Buck, we'll see you then," Bobby responded, just as the alarm sounded, and the rest of the team leapt to their feet.

  "I especially like the part where you'll be at work with me all day," Eddie grinned, leaning in for a quick kiss, which Buck eagerly returned.

"Me too," Buck grinned back, squeezing Eddie's hand before letting go. "Stay safe, sweetheart."

The next day saw Buck arriving hand in hand with Eddie, each balancing a carryout tray of coffees in their free hand. "You know we already love you two, right?" Hen teased, plucking the coffee with her name on it from the tray and taking a grateful sip. "But please feel free to keep the caffeine coming."

"I'm ready for my close up!" Chimney announced, dramatically leaping into the room, arms flourished. He grinned as everyone laughed, before taking his coffee as well.

"Since you're so ready, Chim, why don't you come for your interview first?" Buck gestured downstairs, eyes twinkling mischeviously as Chimney followed him. "We can start with you telling the story about how you got  your nickname..."

By the time the round of interviews was over, Buck was near tears. He would swear he heard his cameraman sniffing as well. Every story the 118 had told him had broken his heart and lifted him up, all at the same time, and when his friends and boyfriend shared what were the best things about being a part of the 118, Buck was honored all over again that they had welcomed him into their family.

A sudden alarm jolted Buck out of his emotions and back into the present, and he quickly followed the team as they raced towards the fire truck and flung themselves in, settling into their seats.  "You mean I can't just ride on your lap?" Buck pouted teasingly, as he ran to the driver's side of the news station van.

"You've taken a ride on my lap plenty of times, Buck," Eddie murmured into Buck's ear, "and I'm sure we can arrange another ride when we get home tonight." Smirking, he planted a quick kiss on Buck's lips before joining the others in the truck.

"You gorgeous bastard!" Buck yelled at Eddie's retreating back, Eddie's snort of laughter making Buck smile as he buckled his seatbelt and started the car.

"Whoa!" Buck's jaw dropped as he took in the crowd, and particularly the monitor lizard, in front of them. "Did you know monitor lizards have long forked tongues just like snakes?"

"Ah, a fan!" the woman nearest the lizard exclaimed, clapping her hands as Chimney darted out of the way. "His name is Claude, and the winner gets to take him home. Do you want to give it a try?"

"I'm okay over here, thanks," Buck responded quickly, as he took in the rest of the scene before him, namely the man struggling to breathe. As the 118 made their way over to the man, Buck made sure he and his cameraman stayed out of the way.

Chimney and Hen both flinched as they knelt down beside the man. Buck had the cameraman swing the camera away as soon as he realized the patient was in clear medical distress, instead having him film the other competitive eaters at the table, which unexpectedly included the woman with live cockroaches crawling back up out of her mouth.

  As the man began breathing again (and consequently began throwing up live crickets), the camerman got footage of the saved patient and the 118 loading him into the ambulance. "Did you know Joey Chestnut once ate seventy four hotdogs in ten minutes?" Buck piped up eagerly, and Eddie grinned, giving Buck a quick peck on the lips as he hurried towards the truck.

"You are so smart, babe," Eddie said proudly, Buck beaming as he slid back into the driver's seat of the van.

  "Even live bugs erupting out of people's mouths can't turn you two off from kissing, huh?" Chimney called out as he started up the ambulance. Eddie shook his head, offering Chim a proud grin and a wink as he drove off.

After rescuing a body builder from the largest charley horse anyone there had ever seen, the fire truck and news van pulled back into the station, Buck hopping out to join the 118 as they headed towards the kitchen.

"You did good, kid," Bobby said with a smile, squeezing Buck's shoulder as he passed. "You put the people above the story." Buck ducked his head, blushing, as he did a pleased little hop on his way towards Eddie.

"He's right, babe," Eddie grinned, tugging Buck into his side, planting a kiss to the top of his head. "Just like the day we met."

"Thanks, baby," Buck said with a bashful grin, turning his head to steal another kiss from his boyfriend, before squeezing his hand and pulling away. "I've got to get in a call to Taylor and give her an update before the next call."

"I'll be waiting on the couch," Eddie promised, and Buck winked at him before striding away, already pulling his phone out as he headed towards the bench right outside the station.

"Want a brownie?" Hen asked Eddie as she walked over, holding out the last brownie on the plate.

"Thanks, I'm starving," Eddie answered, grabbing the brownie and taking a bite. "Are there more treats on the table for Buck? He's just calling in to his boss."

"There are plenty of delicious snacks left," Hen promised as she settled into a chair. "Just not any more of these between you, me and Bobby."

"As  long as there's sugar," Eddie laughed, looking fondly over towards Buck, who had now hopped up onto the bench and was skipping back and forth across it as he talked into his phone.

The next call brought them all to another unexpected venue, this time a child beauty pageant. "Is that..." Buck asked, trailing off as he stared at the reason the 118 had been called.

  "A woman with a high heel stuck in her face?" Chimney responded, shaking his head as they made their way towards her. "Yes, yes it is."

  The little girls were all swarming around Buck, who had crouched down immediately and was now occupied giving out smiles and high fives to the giggling children. So it took him a bit to notice that Eddie and Hen were definitely not acting like themselves. Eddie was staring down at the kids surrounding Buck with a look of shock and some terror too, his eyes wide and his body frozen.

"Eds, you okay there?" Buck asked, carefully rising to his feet and laying a hand on Eddie's arm.

"Are we giants, Evan?" Eddie asked, dragging out every syllable, before getting distracted for a minute trying and failing to see his own tongue. "Or are these the tiniest ladies ever?"

"Um, they're definitely kids, babe," Buck responded, eyes squinted in confusion even as he couldn't help but let out a laugh. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Your hair is glowing," Eddie breathed out in awe, holding his hands out over Buck's curls. "It's making my heart warm." Buck blushed, reaching for Eddie, who just kept making grabby hands at Buck's head. Buck quickly gestured to his cameraman to stop filming, before turning to Chimney.

"Hen's doing it too," Chim answered, just as confused, as he finished up with the injured woman and watched her be taken out on a gurney. Both men turned to see Hen poking a balloon, giggling with delight each time it bounced back at her.

  "They are definitely tripping," Athena said matter-of-factly, coming up from behind them, having finished putting the high heel attacker in handcuffs. Hen hurried up, beaming as she took in Athena's face before delightedly informing her she smelled like love. Athena calmly nodded her thanks before radioing in for RA backup.

"The brownies," Chim said suddenly, turning to Athena. As Athena pressed him for more information, Buck heard Eddie start loudly crying, and ran to his boyfriend's side.

"I don't like this," Eddie blubbered as a police officer gingerly handcuffed him.

"Hey, hey sweetheart, it's going to be okay, I promise," Buck promised, cupping Eddie's face in his hands reassuringly, Eddie leaning into the touch. "Just breathe, I've got you."

Eddie sucking in air and puffing out huge dramatic breaths was definitely a sight Buck was tucking away for later, to tease his boyfriend with when it wouldn't make Eddie start crying more. Athena shook her head and sighed, exchanging a fondly exasperated look with Buck before explaining to Eddie and Hen what had happened.

"We don't want you to hurt yourselves or anyone else," Athena finished, as Hen was beginning to reach for her for another sniff and a hug.

"Yeah, yeah I like that idea," Eddie choked out. As Athena helped guide them towards the door, the backup RAs rushing in, Eddie tugged back towards Buck.

  "I've got you, let's get you somewhere you feel safe," Buck said gently, squeezing Eddie's arm in reassurance.

"I love you, beautiful Buck," Eddie whispered into Buck's ear, before planting a sloppy kiss on Buck's cheek and letting himelf be led away, a stunned Buck following silently behind him.

Stumbling out of the bunkroom a few hours later, Eddie blinked at the bright lights, sighing gratefully as Buck pressed a large glass of water into his hands. After Eddie downed the entire glass without stopping, Buck refilled it and joined Eddie on the couch.

  "Are you feeling okay now?" Buck asked softly, as Eddie placed the now-empty second glass on the table and leaned his head onto Buck's shoulder.

"Just got a headache, dry mouth, and an overwhelming sense of humilation," Eddie huffed out, burying his face in Buck's shirt. "I can't even imagine what came out of my mouth."

"You don't remember, huh?" Buck sighed softly, and Eddie quickly lifted his head to look at him.

"Buck, please don't tell me I said something horrible to you," Eddie said quickly, grabbing at Buck's hands. "I was out of my mind, I had no idea what I was saying."

"That's what I was afraid of," Buck mumbled, staring at the floor. Eddie tugged at his hands until Buck looked at him again, and Eddie's eyes grew wise as he took in the pained look on Buck's face. Reluctantly, Buck pulled away before responding. "Eddie, you told me you love me."

"Shit, that's what I was afraid of," Eddie sighed, scrubbing his hands over his face. The whimper that slipped past Buck's lips, the sharp intake of shaky breath, and the footsteps quickly retreating had Eddie snapping his head back up, yelling "Buck!" as he saw his boyfriend's back moving further and further away.

Sprinting, Eddie reached out and grabbed Buck's hand, planting his feet and refusing to budge an inch as Buck tugged half-heartedly. "Eddie, please," Buck whispered, fixing his gaze on the floor. "I can't watch you walk away, okay?"

"And you think, what, that I want to watch you walk away instead?" Eddie was fully aware how much of himself he was putting on display, but he kept going, fingers under Buck's chin to tilt his head up and meet his eyes. "I meant I didn't want the first time I said it to be while I was out of my mind on laced brownies surrounded by tiny beauty queens."

  "Wait, Eddie, what..." Trailing off, Buck's breath hitched, his wide watery eyes staring into Eddie's.

"Turn the camera on," Eddie said firmly, gesturing to where the cameraman had left his equipment while he went to grab food with the crew. Buck opened his mouth, but Eddie gently lay a finger across his lips, shaking his head. "Please trust me, and turn the camera on. Point it right at me."

Buck nodded, shaky, picking up the camera and resting it on his shoulder, turning so the lens faced Eddie, who was now sitting down on the couch. As soon as the light switched on, Eddie looked straight into it. "You once asked me what was the best thing about being a firefighter with the 118," Eddie said, voice strong even as he wiped the fresh tear on his cheek. "And I said it was the comradery, that that was what I missed from being in the military, and I had found it here, again, with this team."

Lacing his fingers together, Eddie rested his chin against his knuckles, keeping his gaze focused on Buck, who appeared frozen, all breath and words caught up in his throat, eyes glued on Eddie's face. "But that's not true. I do care deeply about the people here, the family I chose, but that's not the best thing about being a firefighter here."

"Then what is?" Buck whispered, hands gripped so tight around the camera his knuckles had turned white.

  "The best thing is that I met the love of my life," Eddie said, making sure his voice was loud and clear, that both the camera and Buck couldn't miss a single word. Eddie shrugged helplessly, letting out a watery laugh as he bit his bottom lip. "This gorgeous man refused to air someone else's pain to gain viewers, and suddenly I was watching the news way more than I ever had before, just to see his face and learn his name. Turned out his name is Evan Buckley. And he's the bravest, smartest, kindest man I've ever known. And I am so, so in love with him."

Buck sniffled loudly, and Eddie knew his own voice and face were full of the degree of emotion he only ever really showed around his son...and now around Buck. There wasn't any point in fighting it, especially not if it ever made Buck doubt how much he was loved.

"So Buck, you can use this video in the story, you can keep it for yourself if you ever need a reminder of how very loved you are, you can do whatever you want with it. I know I don't always say how I feel, and I'm sorr-" His words cut off on a surprised huff as Buck suddenly put down the camera and ran to the couch, bouncing onto the cushions and tackling Eddie onto his back, immediately wrapping his arms around him.

"I love you too, Eds, so much," Buck sniffled, wiping at his eyes, "and if this is you keeping your emotions hidden, I don't think I would survive having you turn them on full force." Eddie laughed, grinning up at Buck full force, before reaching up and pulling him down into a slow, tender kiss, one that Buck eagerly reciprocated.

When the special on the 118 aired, Eddie and Buck watched it snuggled up on the couch with Christopher, all three in their pajamas and surrounded by empty pizza boxes and popcorn bowls. Christopher giggled and clapped his hands every time he saw his dad, and patted Buck's cheek with a grin every time he heard one of Buck's voiceovers play over the images on the screen.

The special concluded with a montage of the 118, all explaining why they joined the station and what it meant to them. Eddie heard his sound bites about the military and comradery interspersed with the others, before the camera focused in on him again. "The best thing is that I met the love of my life," Eddie heard himself say, the image on screen changing to a video clip of Eddie hard at work on the scene of a car crash, the very first day and the very same place he and Buck had met.

"The best thing is that I met the love of my life too," Buck's voiceover rang out over the footage, before the video faded out to a wideshot of the fire station. "And he is a hero, surrounded by heroes. The 118 never hesitate, never put their safety over the well being of others. They spend long days and nights in harrowing conditions, helping people through horrific experiences, and these brave men and women never ask for anything but to know where the next emergency is. We all owe the dedicated members of the 118 far more than we may ever know. So next time you pass by a fire station, think about saying thank you, even though they will never ask you to."

Eddie couldn't stop smiling, pressing kiss to Buck's temple, who grinned up at him from where he was nestled into Eddie's side.

The video shifted to one of Buck, hanging off the fire truck by one hand, grinning mischeviously. "Just please, please don't bring brownies. Try a nice gift card instead. Trust me on this. This is Evan Buckley, signing off, thank you for watching."

Eddie's laughter rang out over the closing credits.

If you would like to be added to my Buddie fanfiction taglist and/or my Good News on My TV Screen taglist specifically, just let me know!

@dancer-me @buddie-buddie​ @perfectlynervousbeard​ @i-had-bucky​

[dragonrajafanfiction]

Tokyo Tower (End) The Script is Rewritten

*waggles eyebrows* Hinted at in the chapter Butterfly Effect, little decisions lead to huge consequences. :)

"Is the King General's legacy?" Chisei's back was against Tachibana’s.

The deadpool in front of you has not only evolved a snake tail, but even evolved a pair of membrane wings. In the legends of countless ancient civilizations, the difference between ordinary beasts and gods and demons is the power of flight.

These Deadpool have very little human to them; they are far closer to wild dragons, dancing in the air.

The legendary dragon deadpool has appeared in the world.

 "Go back to the elevator!" Chisei shouts to you. But he himself suddenly burst past you, sword executing a swift arc of twisted light.

 The flying beast in front of you folded its wings like a raging gargoyle and lunged at you with its blade-like claws, but hit Chisei’s longsword before it could pounce over the railing and cut you open.

The sword made a rhythmic whoosh-whoosh sound, brightly spinning out of Chisei’s hand and through the air like a helicopter's rotors, before stopping suddenly, firmly grasped in your hand. You draw your claw dagger. “Those words give me Deja vu. You were saying?”

Having lost Onimaru to you, Chisei draws his remaining sword Dojigiri as a deadpool pounced from the top of the tower. Just as it neared reaching him, it cracked in half. Dojigiri had split its body in two and with the sharpness of that sword, the wound took a few seconds to show.

Another Deadpool swooped up from below the observation deck and swung its tail at you. You might not be an expert swordsman but you swing the blade automatically in the manner of a slashing dagger, only this dagger was much longer. The blade cut so easily through the deadpool, like a carving knife cutting a fresh ham, severing through the skin and muscle fibers smoothly, the bones cracking in pathetic resistance. You’d never felt anything cut through dragon tissue like that. Your eyes sharpen and widen with the thrill of killing! You swing again and the head goes flying off!

“Leave these to me! You go back to the elevator!” You call, your voice filled with a mocking sort of laughter. Your hair is flying in the rain as you run off to confront your next victim who slashes at you and collides with the sword blade. You roll and parry and sidestep, dancing with each opponent until you find an opening and then you go in with Onimaru, stabbing through and cutting out, leaving grievous wounds with it. The long sword forced a bit more distance from your opponents than you were used to, so your claw dagger served more as a parry weapon, than your main killing blow, punishing those who dared reach inside the hitbox of Onimaru to get at you with a lost finger or a cut wrist.

You dance back into the observation room to join the others. Sakura and Bondarev were gathering what little weapons were strewn across the floor.

“The elevator isn’t on the floor any more!” Bondarev shouts. “I do not know who is summoning the elevator below but they took our weapons!”

You turned toward the voice briefly, but had to turn back to fend off another attacker. Every instinct told you that was BS. There was no one else here unless Caesar and Zihang were coming up too. Bondarev was a military man and a strategist, not some old coot in a sweater waiting to retire. You still remember him on skis, his sleeveless shirt showing immaculate physique while he stood in minus 3 degree weather with a wind chill of minus thirty-three. LIke some Siberian Heracles. And now he had taken dragon blood to bolster his aging strength, not to mention give himself a significant healing factor.

He was delaying for some reason. Was he still trying to kill you? It would be wise to assume so. You’re not getting on the elevator. You got a very bad feeling that Bondarev was not going to let you leave this tower alive.

Chisei Gen also retreated into the room and swung his long sword clean, throwing away the black blood on it. The three of them regrouped, Sakura holding a sword with both hands, Bondarev holding the blunt end of a two-meter-long European lance, the tip of which resembles a crescent moon.

"Come on!” Chisei beckons to you. “Crow and Yasha, they will think of something."

You see the shock and dismay in his eyes when you back away and shake your head.

He tries again. “MC! We need to put aside our differences right now!”

“Some things cannot be put aside I’m afraid.” Bondarev sighs sadly. “I killed her best friend in Black Swan Bay. She was young. Barely a woman. I have no right to ask her to fight by my side.”

You sneer at his performance. Then you rudely and sharply cut through his bluster with facts. “If I get on that elevator, he’s going to kill me. The same way he killed her. He won’t kill you. At least… not directly. He’ll manipulate you into dying, giving up your life by choice. That’s how it works… right Bondarev?” You look at him directly. “How can a master spy like you not know your precious asset would be here to save you?”

A very dark shadow obscures your face and when you look up, the sky above the glass ceiling is seething with deadpool. The deadpool let out a shrill whistle and swoop down as if the black mountain of clouds hanging overhead had collapsed.They smash that glass ceiling all at once and come flying in, their jagged bone wings snapping violently open. 

You roll and flee the group waiting for the elevator, putting as many deadpool as you can between yourself and Bondarev. Z’s words to you ring in your ears. He said, ‘your ride will be here shortly’, right before Fingel came crashing out of the sky. He wasn’t referring to leaving with Fingel, he meant your alternate way out that was waiting for you, waiting for this moment. The rope that dangled from the Tokyo Tower saved Fingel from death. And it would save you too.

In the distance came the sound of a bell tolling twelve o'clock at midnight. The sound of the bells are unusually cold to the ears, and Tokyo seemed to be transformed into a ghostly medieval city in this rainstorm, with the bronze bells on the churches roaring and the devils laughing wildly in the shadows.

The deadpool creatures no longer have hands. Judging by the puckered scars at the joints, they appear removed by some kind of surgery, replaced with curved metal serrated scimitars granting them a long reach but no grappling ability except for their prehensile tails. So long as you target their wings, they wouldn’t be able to climb back up the tower very easily. That fearlessness that moved Chime Gen to praise you in front of your peers takes hold of you again.

The beasts chase you like seagulls, creeling, getting in each other's way and bunching up. You slide like a baseball player under a canopy of razor sharp blades and jump up behind one, slamming Onimaru into its back and dangling from the hilt to cut the wings off the other beasts. You brace yourself on it, like riding a rodeo show horse. The monster beneath your feet heaved and rolled, howling in pain but was more occupied with defending itself from being overwhelmed by its own brethren than attacking you.

You were eye to eye with them in mid air, using the deadpool dagger to cut into their wings, tearing the membranes. You stab into the space between the joints and the biomechanical working of the muscles is so strong, it nearly wrenches your dagger from your hands. The deadpool creatures with damaged wings start to fall from the sky, unable to keep up their flight but they still have the strength to glide back onto the platform.

You twist the sword and leap back onto the platform to regroup. One beast rears up to battle but then its head snaps back to the sound of a distant rifle. You dash in to slit its throat. You grin! Somewhere on the roof of a far building, Mingfei was still there with his sniper rifle! You calculate in your head. You know he was shooting before. You make a conservative estimate for his ammunition and assume he still has your rifle and ammunition as a back up.

This was good news because reinforcements were arriving on the Deadpool side. More of them are climbing up over the railing, their scales shimmering. In addition to the dragon-like Deadpool, there are more of those snake-like Deadpool from Genji Heavy Industries, and they are all converging on the observation deck. 

The demon hordes of Herzog and Bondarev had amassed against you.

A buffeting downdraft came from above. Huge black shadows descended from the sky. The support from Crow and Yasha in the form of helicopters finally arrived. The elite of the Executive Board of Japan stood on the landing gear and fired. Intense firepower pinned down the group of Deadpool.  The helicopter’s heavy rapid-fire machine gun poured out a rain of bullets without a care in the world -- or a care for you for that matter! You’re forced to take cover from their reckless rain of bullets that could easily kill you as much as they beat back the Deadpool! 

You snarl in your heart, cursing Bondarev again. The helicopter slowly approached the observation deck. The Executive Board's plan was apparently to open the way with a barrage of bullets, allowing their three leaders to jump directly onto the aircraft.

 "Follow me!" Through the broken windows and heaving mass of bodies, you see Chisei bend down and pick up one sword after another. These blades began to spin in midair. He could wield them without touching them! He used these blades to open the way. Deadpool could not approach him when the royal blood was burning.

The Hydra members were inspired by the leader's godlike bravery, and the Gatling machine guns roared even louder as the barrage of bullets drove Deadpool and you to the sides, leaving the way for Gen Chisei and the others, but pushing you farther away from your rope! You wished you had a ballistic weapon in your hand right now so you can shoot Bondarev! He seemed to realize that, like the King, you were betting on an alternative and was forcibly moving you away from your desired position.

Chisei didn’t seem concerned for you any longer. Who knew what that snake whispered in his ear to wipe away your warning words. The helicopter lowered the ladder and approached the observation deck, and the men stopped firing to wave desperately for Chisei to jump up quickly.

A new black shadow shot out of the observation area like an arrow, having taken a mighty leap, and bit the hanging ladder. The men on the landing gear were stunned. They didn't even think that these ferocious beasts had such intelligence. They seemed to be completely suppressed by the rain of bullets, but in fact they were waiting for their chance to attack!

For a bloody meal, these things are happy to trade their lives. A second black shadow swooped out of the tower and latched onto the first one’s tail. The men’s eyes are wide with terror as they shoot at the deadpool who had bitten the hanging ladder. But the battered Deadpool didn't let go. Its mutilated face seemed to be wearing a maniacal grin as more and more of them bit its tail, hooking their bodies upward with their metal blade appendages. One black shadow after another swarms into the cockpit, the men’s guns still roaring, but to no avail. They could not expel those who had come to feed. The helicopter had become their coffin.

Chisei watched in silence as the helicopter moved away from the observation deck, like a wounded eagle going to find a place to heal, but it didn't get very far before it lost its balance and plummeted toward the square.

The helicopter landed in flames.

With no helicopter and the elevator taking its sweet time getting here, Chisei took quick stock in the situation. Bondarev was still limping next to his guardian Chisei, sticking close to him. If anything happened to Chisei, you’re not sure how you would face Chime ever again. But so long as that viper was next to him, your survival couldn’t be guaranteed. So you keep your mouth shut about the rope and keep your distance.

You’d have to find a way to separate those two, not only physically but mentally, but time was ticking. There were too many enemies, not enough weapons. From this high in the air, you couldn’t use your Soul Skill. It was too wet inside and out to use fire. So long as those deadpool were swimming all over this place, there was no way you’d be able to use the rope and escape scot free. You had to beat these things to escape!

You hear a sudden low, melodic snarling.

Chisei recited the long lost language and his Soul Skill, Majesty, was released, expanding slowly, the borders glowing with a faint luminescence. He walked to the center of the special observation deck where his ability could just about cover the whole area. This was Chisei’s coup de grace. While it was overwhelming, he would be as weak as a baby later. But this would be your last chance!

You rush toward the staggering deadpool, a whirling dervish with twin blades. Black blood splashed in fountains and ran like waterfalls off the observation deck. This was no time for finesse or art killing. You fell on them like a mad beast while they could not move. How long did Majesty endure the last time you saw it? Around 30 seconds to a minute? This would be a greater fitness test than anything you had experienced in Black Swan Bay. You had to kill, de-wing or disable dozens of deadpool in 30 seconds.

It was an incomparably bizarre scene. The deadpool were prostrate on the ground, unable to even lift their heads, inert pieces of meat for you to slaughter. The floor tiles cracked and they sank inch by inch into the concrete floor platform.

What world would Renata think of you now? Or even the loving father version of Dr. Herzog that you used to believe existed? You imagined them watching the clock, cheering you on. Vera applauding and whooping, saying you can do it. In your head, these fantasies seem to be extending the time longer than thirty seconds, but you try not to think about it. Every second lost would never return. You had to take every one and kill two or even three deadpool per second and not think about the clock.

Then it was over. A deadpool hissed at you and swiped out one claw. You leap back and sever it at the same time. You look towards Chisei and Chisei looks back at you. He opens his mouth to speak but vomits red. You look around as the deadpool raise their upper bodies even as their lower heavier bodies are still stuck. They’re so insanely ravenous that they pull hard, and in their attempt to drag themselves, pull their own bodies apart! Their naked vertebrae, stripped of flesh, dripping black, gives the scene the new appearance of a zombie apocalypse as they crawl forward, cutting you off from the elevator. But they’re still weak. You can still kill them.

You shake your head at Chisei as he gazes at you from across the gap. It shocked you. He should be concerned about Bondarev. That man had his invisible shackles around his mind, but he hesitated. He wanted to save you. But you knew that the minute you were ‘saved’, you would be in the clutches of Hydra and that was the end.

You would take your chances with the deadpool horde. 

Chisei finally turned back, staggering and near collapse. The deadpool slithered after him, slowed, but still active.  He was still making an effort to support what you felt was a malingering Bondarev when suddenly Bondarev fell to the floor, pulling Chisei to the ground. 

Majesty released further and the beasts were starting to attack closer to full speed! You’re dodging and slashing and Mingfei was still firing to give you back up support, but if Chisei didn’t leave now, he would die. Time was truly up!

You gasp, momentarily torn. If you left the edge of the tower now to go help Chisei get to the elevator, you’d be completely committed to that route with Bondarev. But if you lost Chisei…

Chime’s cry echoed in your mind. Brother!

You chew your lip hard and turn to go back to the Observation deck to help! But as you do you see that someone else is carrying Chisei!

Sakura Yabuki had leaped up and grabbed Chisei’s arms and carried him on her back. She didn’t look that strong but she was. Apparently, she’d tired of his delay and was hauling him like a sack of potatoes to get out.

Now you just needed to secure your own escape. The half bodied deadpool were no match for your twinblades and you laughed at cutting them down like mere chickens. You felt free to expend the last of your energy doing this. Your escape was now guaranteed. You’d run the gauntlet and once again come out the winner!

Surrounded by corpses, you look around. There were no more deadpool coming. You straighten in confusion. Was it something you said?

As one swarm, the deadpool abandoned you to chase something else and your heart twisted in despair and tears sparked from your eyes. You screech in desperate fury! “No! Chisei, you idiot, you didn’t! You didn’t sacrifice yourself for that MAN!” 

You scream at the flying figure above you. The person, however, was not Chisei. It was Sakura! Using a ballistic grapple hook like Batman, she was soaring over the top to the observation deck through the broken windows!

You stomped your foot in a fury! That Bondarev siren song of suicide! What was she thinking? Did Sakura not think you might have a way out? Did she figure that you were giving Chisei a way out by killing yourself? You weren’t like everyone else in the Japan Branch! You didn’t give your life away like them!

Sakura didn’t deserve to be used as food for Bondarev! 

Sakura was climbing to the top of the central spire of the Tokyo tower, the huge radio tower on top of the observation deck, while being pursued by every deadpool in the tower. Just like in the elevator shaft, they ignored you completely, sweeping by and slithering and trailing drool. Once they got to the base of the spire they started to kill each other to be the first to climb up while suppressive fire rained down from Sakura’s last remaining gun. 

Lu Mingfei shifted his focus from you to the tower in support of Sakura. You follow her trajectory closely the way she climbed, the way she was lining herself up with you on the top of the tower. She was lining herself up close to you. 

You feel a slight shiver and your eyes widen. She really did believe in you. She believed you had an alternate way out!

She’s now standing up at the top of the radio tower and bows deeply in thanks to Mingfei for his support. 

She was going to jump and that whole horde was going to follow her down into the void. Your heart is beating. A spotlight was on you. You had only one chance at this. You slip Onimaru into your belt. You climb the safety railing as she takes her leap of faith, a wave of black scaly bodies falling in a beautiful, horrible arc. 

You throw yourself off too.

At the critical moment, your bodies align and your eyes meet. You sweep up with your claw dagger. The hooked claw rends the bloody fabric that the deadpool found so irresistible. Then you wrap that arm around her slender waist  and reach out for the rope you knew was there, the rope that had saved Fingel not too long ago from the same fate. 

The sudden stop pulls your shoulder out of its socket and your arm nearly releases but by then, Sakura has recovered her senses and grabs hold of you before you can fall, clinging to the rope herself.

The tattered wet and bloody clothing continues the rapid descent Sakura should have taken had you not been there. Had you not climbed the steps. Had you not loved Ruri Kazama enough to obey his words and not Caesar’s.

The deadpool continued their fall after the clothing and you could hear the disgusting continuous splatter of their bodies slamming into the concrete and bursting apart in an ebony fountain.

Sakura Yabuki supports you and helps you cling to the rope. She’s completely topless and her body is warm against yours in the cold rain.

“I have to ask you, because I don’t understand. Why save me? Chisei killed the man you loved. It would have been easy to let me fall. Let me die. To let Chisei feel the pain you felt that night. Some would even call it justice.” She gasped out the words. 

You’re both shivering and out of breath.

You stare at her with frigid eyes. “I don’t know what justice is, first of all.” You snap, angry and desperate, your emotions swirling in a hurricane in your mind. “And second of all, I didn’t save you because of Chisei.” Your eyes sparkle in the dark with unshed tears. “Third of all, I’m sure he is feeling what I felt that night, because he thinks you’re dead right now. But unlike Chance, you will come back!”

Sakura Yabuki sobered. She didn’t know you, but you had the feeling she was listening closely and understanding.

So you continue, each sentence a shouted exclamation above the rain’s metallic rhythm on the tower struts. “I didn’t come here with morals or life lessons that teach me mercy. I’m no better than he is.  I was raised by Dr. Herzog for God’s sake! Chisei Gen was raised by that child-murderer Bondarev! We both kill first and ask questions later. Our father figures just tried to rip each other’s throats out! It shouldn’t surprise anyone that we’re going to hurt each other, so don’t think I care for him! The only true difference between us, in truth?” You pause, your eyes wide.  “I just hang out with better people! Caesar, Chu Zihang, Lu Mingfei, and Ruri Kazama. They’re my world. I will do things that will please them. So I look better. But I’m not better!”

Your voice lowers to a dull snarl in her ears. “I could have just walked away, easily! I could be eating a warm bowl of ramen noodles, right now!” Your snarl turned to a soft bitter laughter. “But Chime… Chime would never have forgiven me if something happened to his brother because I did that. I could have let you fall. But Chance is gone. I might have another chance… at love. That is.” You again crack a brief joke. “But Chime wouldn’t want me to hurt his brother by letting you die.” 

Your laughter takes hold of you, but it’s painful. It was just a way to stop from crying. “I’m only here because of my boyfriend. You heard that right. It’s so stupid.” You shove Onimaru back into her hands. “Here, take his dumb sword back. I don’t want it.”

Sakura looked down at you and a small smile graced her features. “Fair. Still, I must thank you. Farewell. Until we meet again.” Sakura Yabuki slid down the rope, speeding down the rest of the way down from Tokyo Tower. You see her land and she’s gone in the blink of an eye. 

[saiilorstars]

Falling in Temptation

Previous chapters • Sequel to Stars Dance •  Fairy Tale Memoirs (Companion story)

Ch. 20: Happily Ever Now

Fandom: Doctor Who // Pairing: 11th Doctor x Female OC

Chapter summary: Avalon and the Doctor finally go out on their first date. As happy as they are to be together, they both can't help but think of the future that's coming for them both.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel​ [If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message!]

Avalon had just emerged from her bathroom wrapped in a towel after a long, relaxing bath. She could still smell the lavender scented bath bomb she'd used. She just loved the scent so much! She made it to her closet when she heard a small noise from her door. She peered around the closet door and saw a folded, old looking, paper on the floor.

"What?" she crinkled her nose and walked over to pick it up. In doing so, she found a second smaller paper under it.

At first glance she knew the first paper was made to look old. There was a laced purple bow keeping the paper folded and, as beautiful as it was, Avalon pulled it off and opened up the paper that turned out to be a letter.

My dearest Ava,

It has come to my attention that we have not had a first date. It's frankly ridiculous that I have the most amazing woman at my side and I haven't taken her out on date! I would love to spend one whole day with you and no one else . If you agree, then I shall await for you in the console room in one hour.

Yours truly,

The Doctor.

Avalon felt her entire face warm up after reading the letter. She checked the second smaller paper and found it was a P.S. She had to laugh.

P.S. If you accept, dress for heat. Literally. It's going to be like summer.

She looked up at the ceiling with a dreamy smile. "Did you see him write this for me?" It was silent for a few seconds but then Avalon heard a light hum. "Well, my Fairy Tale Man just wins for today." She folded the letter again and brought it to her vanity desk and checked herself in the mirror. "I have a lot of work today, don't I?"

The TARDIS hummed and Avalon would dare to say it was an outraged hum.

She giggled and looked up at the ceiling. "You are far too kind to me, you know? I still don't understand why but I'm happy about it. Now," she turned away from the vanity desk and brought her hands together, "I have one hour to make myself look gorgeous. No wet curls-" she wrapped a stark wet curl around her finger, "-and towels! And I absolutely need stunning clothes! Can we do it!?"

The TARDIS hummed loudly, making Avalon laugh again.

"I'm taking that as a yes! Let's do it!" Avalon determinedly marched for her closet to start searching for those out-of-this-world clothes!

~ 0 ~

The Doctor was making endless rounds at the console trying to wait like he promised. He was sure the TARDIS was laughing at him with all the humming she was doing. "Very lovely dear, absolutely lovely," he scowled at the rotor. "I know you can't help favorite Avalon but do remember I have known you for centuries. I deserve a little encouragement from you." And right now he could use all the encouragement and support he could get. He was about to go on a date with Avalon, their first date, and he had no idea if she would like what he set up for them. He'd covered his basis and made sure that Amy and Rory were nonethewisers about it. They and the Sapling were off at a beach to enjoy their day. Today was going to be all about him and Avalon, just them.

It was nerve-wrecking.

"You are 909 years old, get a hold of yourself," the Doctor berated himself. He would try not to think about the insane age gap between him and Avalon but right now he needed to remember his age. He couldn't be this nervous over a date - he'd done a lot more than just date in the past so why was this one date different?

Because it's Avalon you idiot. The Doctor came to a stop and deeply exhaled. It was Avalon. The girl he was head over heels for. The girl he was in love with and who had no idea about it.

Somebody cleared their throat and since the only people in the TARDIS was him and Avalon, the Doctor quickly spun around to find his ginger.

Don't spin so fast! That's not cool! It was then that the Doctor panicked as he realized that he needed to learn how to be cool, desperately. He always said that he was cool but Avalon tore that to pieces each time she came into a room looking all...well...the way she looked right now.

She really took his suggestion of wearing something for summer. She'd chosen a khaki, tie-front, peekaboo dress with thin spaghetti straps. Its skirt was just a bit flared so it wasn't tight, although the bodice seemed to be just right.

Once the Doctor felt his face heat up he knew it was time to look away, literally anywhere else...but his eyes drifted back to her each time. He caught sight of her legs and suddenly the heat was there to stay.

She'd paired her dress with pink, suede lace up sandals with just a hint of a heel. Her hair was left in its natural curly state with one jeweled rose clip at the back of her hair holding the bump on top of her head. Her curly hair was sometimes her worst enemy.

Avalon slowly made her way up the glass stairs to the console and nervously stopped a few feet from the Doctor. "I got your letter..."

The Doctor took one deep breath in and smelled her lavender scented perfume. Amazing. He was also aware of her soft pink lips were enhanced with a shade of lipstick that...that made him want to forget everything and just kiss her all day. "Yeah..." When he realized that wasn't at all cool, much less suave, he shook his head and started again. "I meant yes, that-that was...that was me."

Dammit. He wasn't getting it right, was he?

Avalon blushed when she remembered the letter's words. "I've never been asked out on a date through a letter..."

"Is that...is that not cool?" the Doctor blinked, panicking all over again. He intended on being different when it came to their relationship and he thought, since Avalon loved everything classical, that an old-fashion letter might be better than him stammering out the question. At the very least it could be more memorable.

Avalon sweetly smiled and leaned forwards to kiss him on the lips. "That was very sweet," she tapped his lips afterwards. "Very romantic."

"That...is what I was going for," the Doctor nodded, slowly finding his voice again. "I will always try to be like that, my princess."

Whether she wanted to or not, Avalon blushed again. It was ridiculous, she knew, to get all these butterflies in her stomach at a word that almost anyone would use on their partner. But, when the Doctor used it, she could almost believe that she was a princess. It didn't sound cliche at all. It had meaning.

He has saved you plenty of times, she reminded herself.

She stepped closer to him and drew her hand over his chest. "And what shall I call you? My knight in shining armor? My prince?"

"I like the first one, makes me sound cool." The Doctor grinned smugly, especially when he remembered that's how Avalon had dreamed of him. "Yeah, I'm your Knight in shining armor."

Avalon chuckled. "Not like you haven't been one in my dreams..."

"Was I? I totally forgot," the Doctor feigned surprise. "Didn't cross my mind one bit..."

"You're too modest but I'm not going to get into that right because somebody, I'm not pointing at anyone..." Except Avalon did just that with her excitement sparkling in her eyes. "But somebody promised me an entire day that'd be all about me."

"W-well that wasn't...I said to us..." the Doctor pointed at himself and Avalon, and though she seemed to nod that she understood...

"Right, about me," she slowly went around the console, brushing her hands over the controls.

The Doctor playfully rolled his eyes at her, figuring he wasn't going to get anywhere with her and honestly...who cared? He wanted to spend the entire day with her so maybe it was just about her. "I've found the perfect place for you, my dear Ava," he went the opposite way around the console, soon meeting her halfway. "And the best part of it is that we won't have any interruptions."

"Oh, and why wouldn't we want any interruptions?" Avalon played innocent so nicely that the Doctor almost believed her, almost. "Are you planning on doing something...?"

The Doctor truly hated how quickly the heat returned to his face but he'd taken one look at her dress again, specifically at the exposed shot he got of her midriff, and it was all downhill from there. She was teasing him so subtly and yet so obviously, he absolutely hated it. So why was his body almost on fire?

"Fairy Tale Man?" Avalon stepped closer to him and brought her hand up his arm 'till it came to rest on his shoulder. "You were saying?"

"R-right, uh...I meant to say..." the Doctor did his best to look only at her eyes but she still somehow made her innocent gaze so flirty. "I want a proper date with you where there's no danger, no aliens...except for me," she chuckled, "And especially, no interruptions from beloved Pond 1, Pond 2 and our dear Sapling."

Avalon swayed her head in agreement. It sounded very nice. "It has been a bit constant, huh?"

"YES!" the Doctor nearly shouted, "I love them, I really love them but every time we're in our little moments...they come in and interrupt us. Like, last night, when we were watching a movie and...we got...distracted," Avalon blushed but remain silent as he continued, "They almost walked in!" the Doctor frowned, "Or how about when we were in the archery room and we were having a little moment...and they almost caught us! Every time I want to kiss you or just be alone with you for a while they come in and I'm tired of it! And the Sapling! He's too innocent to figure out that sometimes we just want to be alone."

Avalon laughed when she remembered the time the Doctor had tried to explain to the Sapling that his Mother and Father wanted to watch a movie by themselves and the Sapling had asked 'why?' which then led to a very comical stammering from the Doctor. But as funny as it had been, Avalon felt like the Doctor was right. Of course it brought out another issue they hadn't yet come up with a solution for.

"We could just decide to tell them, you know," she said and immediately felt the Doctor stiffen under her hand. "What?" she laughed. "Too scared to face Amy and Rory?"

"Well...yes...honestly..."

And she didn't even know the half of it. The Doctor knew that Rory had expressed his support for a relationship between Avalon and him if it ever arose, but it didn't stop the Doctor from being scared that there would still be a part of Rory that would reject the relationship. After all, Avalon was no longer a friend, she was his granddaughter. Of course Rory would want his granddaughter - his only grandchild - to be with somebody safe. And he...was not safe. Which also brought the idea that maybe even Amy would disagree now that she knew Avalon was her granddaughter. It wasn't just them, it also went back to Avalon's father - now uncle - who they would eventually have to tell. How would Ryland react to his only brother's daughter having a relationship with the man who was surely responsible for Oliver's death? He would have every right to be against it. Only River Song would, seemingly, be in his corner but that didn't stop the Doctor from feeling the guilt. River wholeheartedly agreed with it, even pushed him towards her daughter, but he was the reason River was far away from Avalon in the first place. He'd done so much to the Ponds and of course he would choose to go and fall for one of them.

Of course.

"Doctor?" Avalon gently called since he'd fallen deep into his thoughts. "Hey," she noticed his face had gone pale and that couldn't be right, at least not over facing Amy and Rory. "So what if Amy and Rory don't agree? Even if they didn't agree, which I highly doubt to be honest, why would it matter? It's not their relationship, it's ours."

"I know," the Doctor lowered his gaze with a weary sigh. It was all so jumbled up.

"Are you sure it's just about them?" Avalon decided to ask what she'd been suspecting for a few days now. "Or is it that you're not quite sure about me yet? Because...because I'm not like you? A...what did you call it? A Time Lady?"

The Doctor's eyes snapped up to meet her nervous pair. "That is never it, Avalon. Don't you...don't ever think that, alright?" He cupped her face and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, only parting enough to talk. "You are perfect the way you are. I would never think any less of you because you're different. Hell, I like you more because you're not like me. My people...they weren't the best, least not in the end. You're not a Time Lady, you are better."

"Alright, you don't have to kiss up," Avalon playfully rolled her eyes in an attempt to be casual but the truth was she was close to tearing up. "Actually, you could kiss up if you'd like. Kiss here-" she tapped her lips, "-and here-" she moved her finger to her nose, "-and then over here..." She tapped both of her cheeks.

"As tempting as that sounds - and it's really tempting - I would much rather go on our date. What do you think?"

Avalon nodded her head. "Take me away, Fairy Tale Man!"

"Gladly!" the Doctor grabbed her hand and pulled her to his side.

~ 0 ~

"If I trip, I'm going to kill you," Avalon so romantically warned as the Doctor guided her with his hands over her eyes.

"Don't you trust me?" he planted a kiss on her cheek for good measure.

"Of course but I also trust that you're very clumsy and frankly I'd rather not trip because my idiot of a boyfriend - I mean our relationship that's still yet to be labeled - tripped over his own feet."

"I'm still looking for the right label, don't you worry," he promised and finally stopped them right where he needed her. "Now are you ready?"

"Yes! You're lucky I haven't bitten you!"

"Well, to be honest, biting me isn't really much of a punishment anymore," the Doctor cleared his throat and thanked the stars that Avalon's eyes were closed so she couldn't see his blush.

Avalon smirked. "Duly noted. Now please take your hands off my eyes so I can see!"

"Right, I really hope you like this place." The Doctor took in a deep breath then finally pulled his hands from her eyes.

Avalon was quick to open her eyes but she was initially blinded by the sun. She shielded her eyes until her vision could adjust and when it did, she was mesmerized.

She was standing on a marbleized ground, the 'backyard' of the building behind her. She didn't waste time studying that because what truly took her breath away were the botanical gardens in front of them. She stepped forwards, her eyes landing on the large squared pool - that couldn't be deeper than five feet - in front of them with an aisle down the middle leading to what she imagined were the other gardens. She could see two sets of staircases on either side after crossing the aisle. The green gardens, as well as smaller lakes and pools, seemed like they stretched on forever.

"Where are we?" She turned to the Doctor, her eyes dazzling with excitement at the prospect of everything else she'd yet to see.

"This is the Gardenia Style," the Doctor extended his arms to his side. "A relaxation retreat for anybody who needs it. It's the best one in the Andromeda galaxy."

"A retreat? I don't...I don't really see anyone," Avalon said after taking another scan of the place but it seemed pretty empty.

"That's cos there's nobody here. They owe me one."

Avalon snapped her head in the Doctor's direction, eyes wide. "So they just...they just let you close down the place? What...because you asked?"

"The head of the place is an old friend of mine. I explained the situation and I asked her if it was possible to give me a day."

"And she said 'yes of course I can shut down my very profitable business just for you!'," Avalon folded her arms, her lips curving into a smile that threatened to laugh. "Doctor, you can just get people to do that!?"

"Well, I...yes?" the Doctor scratched the top of his head. It was something that he did get to do at times but he never took advantage of it either. "I helped her a long time ago when she was having an, uh, infestation problem..."

"Oh, so you saved her ass and now she owes you? Typical," Avalon turned away from him to gaze at the beautiful scenery. "My Fairy Tale Man just saves so many people, huh?"

"So do you like it?" the Doctor moved to stand behind her, his arms cautiously slipping around her waist. He thought it was the perfect place for Avalon because of its fairy tale nature. He was anxious to show her a few special places the gardens had to offer, but he wouldn't do any of it if Avalon didn't like it.

"I love it!" Avalon exclaimed and leaned her head against his chest, tilting it up to show him her grin. "You chose perfectly."

"Anything for my Ava," he kissed her on the lips. "My princess."

Avalon felt the dozen butterflies fluttering in her stomach at his new name for her. Yeah, he could keep calling her that for as long as he liked.

"C'mon!" the Doctor unwrapped his arms around her to take her hand.

"What are we going to do?" Avalon laughed as he led them down the small steps towards the pool aisle.

"Anything we want! We have the whole day!"

Indeed they did.

~ 0 ~

Avalon was eager to see everything, but the Doctor was right in that they should start with lunch. And as if to prove her point, her stomach decided to grumble only seconds after the Doctor proposed the idea. So he led her towards the spot where lunch had already been served for them.

Avalon keeled over at the chosen spot. They would be having lunch in a gazebo right in the middle of a beautiful lake. The Doctor led her down the boarded bridge up to the stone gazebo decorated with red poppies, her favorite flower.

"This is amazing," she couldn't keep her mouth from falling each time she looked. She gazed over the lake where flowers lazily floated down their direction. She then turned her attention to the table that was truly set with everything they could possibly eat.

"I'm glad to see you like it," the Doctor's voice pulled her eyes off an odd blue slushy-like content inside a bowl.

She turned around with a wide, soft smile. She walked up to him and looped her arms around his neck then kissed him. "You are wonderful. This entire place, the parts that I've seen is all wonderful. But you know...just because I love fairy tales and I call you my Fairy Tale Man doesn't mean you have to do all this for me. I really would've been just as happy with a picnic or a date in the TARDIS."

The Doctor could see her genuine honesty in her eyes. His hearts swelled knowing that she would be satisfied with something simple so long as they were together, but it didn't mean he could stop himself from enchanting her with everything he could get his hands on. "I just really like impressing you," he said, bringing one of his hands to stroke her cheek. "And I think you deserve only the best."

"You gave me the best thing that happened to my life nearly two years ago when you came back for me. Although, one could say that you only came back for me because Lena asked you to." Avalon casually played with his bowtie while she oh-so-innocently asked her question, "Would you have come back for me if Lena hadn't said anything?"

"Without a doubt," the Doctor had the answer within the second she asked it.

She raised her eyes, dropping her hand from her bowtie. "Really?" There were no more innocent games when she asked again. She had been the last one the Doctor came to pick up after the Atraxi incident, who's to say he wouldn't have changed his mind about her if Lena hadn't needed her. "I was in jail the last the time you saw me. You helped me because Lena asked you to. If she hadn't said anything, would you have still helped me? Would you have come back for me like you came for Amy?"

"Of course I would have," the Doctor once again answered her as soon as she asked. He thought these were rhetorical questions, but River's warning came back to mind. Avalon was a strong girl but every now and then she needed reassurance from people around her. "You helped me when you were seven and you did impress me, Avalon. I have never met another child like you and most certainly another woman like you."

A bright pink blush bloomed across Avalon's face, nothing stopping the big grin on her lips though. "I can say with the utmost certainty that I have never met another man like you."

That was music to the Doctor's ears. He leaned down to kiss her, practically meshing their lips together. Avalon's arms around his neck unwinded slightly to touch his hair. She'd learned fast that the Doctor loved getting his hair touched, stroked and tugged on. Who was she to deny him his bit of pleasure when he was so attentive to her likes? She kissed him fervently and let her fingers stroke through his hair for as long as he wanted because really...who would interrupt them? The flowers in the lake? Nobody. That was the best part of this place. They could kiss for as long as they liked, wherever they'd like.

~0~

"Okay, what is that?" Avalon laughed as the Doctor picked up the odd blue gushy stuff in a bowl.

The Doctor seemed to like it judging by his grin. "Oh, you'll love it!" He scooted his chair closer to hers with the bowl in hand. "Try it."

"Right, but you haven't told me what it is," Avalon pointed out, "And I'd rather not be poisoned."

"Oi, you think I'm poisoning you?" the Doctor made a face.

"Payback for what I did."

Even if it was a joke, the Doctor didn't like it. "I would never," he whispered earnestly. "Because you know I forgive you for everything, not like I had to though." He reached over to her and gently tucked a curl behind her ear, though it kept sticking back out. He smiled at her so kindly that Avalon teared up.

"Oh God I will never forgive myself for it," she shook her head.

"Ava, don't think about that stuff. You're here now and you're okay. I won't let anything happen to you, never again."

Avalon smiled through her tears. "Okay, let's try that gushy stuff then." She tried her best to eat it without letting it spill on her dress. They collectively laughed when she slurped it up. "That's ladylike for sure!"

"What'd you think?" the Doctor handed her a napkin.

"I love it! Kind of like blueberry!"

"Excellent, then I know you'll love Akhaten!"

Avalon shot him a confused smile. "Aka-what?"

"Akhaten, you'll love it! It's a planet with a big ole market place and a beautiful sun."

"I'd love to go there," Avalon's smile widened with excitement.

The Doctor chuckled, "I'll take you one day, I promise."

Avalon beamed. Something about making plans for the future made butterflies appear in her stomach. It also made her want to push away all thoughts about Lake Silencio even harder. She couldn't let that future happen. In fact, now she was thinking about the moment a lot clearer. A lot of the Doctor's behavior was beginning to make sense. He'd been a lot nicer to her than what their relationship back then entailed. He didn't even get mad at her for stealing a Milan fashion dress! That should've been her first clue that he'd been a future Doctor. My Doctor wouldn't get so mad at me right now...

"Hey Doctor, what would you think of going back to Milan again for fashion week?"

"I think I would die of boredom 2 seconds after we get there," the Doctor answered with an honest-to-God straight face.

"Well, how about if I nicked something kind of pretty for me?" she arched an eyebrow. "Maybe something kind of sexy?"

That definitely got his attention. "Uh, well..." He cleared his throat, obviously finding nothing to do with himself in the moment. "I-I would think...they...they probably wouldn't miss one silly little dress..."

Avalon smiled widely. The Lake Silencio Doctor was truly a future version. He'd been this Doctor she had in front of him, the one who cared for her so much that he couldn't find a label to describe just how much he felt for her.

"Ava, what's wrong?" the Doctor reached to clear off a tear rolling down her cheek.

She quickly blinked the rest away. She had teared up without noticing. "N-nothing. I'm happy, I'm very happy right now." She took his hand from her face and held it tightly in hers. "You have no idea how much I care for you, Doctor. I'm almost upset that you haven't come up with a good label for us just so I can use it right now."

"I am trying," he assured her. "I might just have to create a new word for us. That is how much I care for you." Avalon chuckled but there were still tears welling in her eyes. It puzzled the Doctor deeply. "Why are you crying, Ava?"

"These are happy tears," she tried to argue but he had come to know her that well now.

"No," he cleared more tears off her face with his free hand. "They're sad tears. What is making my Ava so sad?"

Avalon felt so stupid for ruining their date, but she couldn't stop the tears. He was right, they were sad tears but they were also fearful tears, and even happy tears. She was an outright mess. "I just..." She sniffed and let go of his hand to dry her face completely.

The Doctor pushed his chair back to stand up but Avalon beat him to it. She got up from her chair and easily slipped onto his lap. She pressed her lips to his for a sweet, long kiss. The Doctor truly had no idea what was going on but he would never refuse the chance to kiss her.

A few minutes later, Avalon pulled away but only slightly. She smiled at him but the Doctor could still see that same sadness in her eyes. He stroked her cheek with the back of his hand.

"Tell me what's wrong, Ava, and I'll make it better. I'll always try to make everything better for you."

"Really? Anything?"

"Anything."

Don't be stupid. Avalon took his hand stroking her face and gave it a kiss. "Can you promise me something?"

"Anything." The Doctor was willing and ready which did, admittedly, give Avalon a teeny-tiny bit of hope that maybe this time they could change the future.

"Promise me that we won't end. Promise me that you'll try to stay at my side...at least until you get tired of me."

The Doctor thought it was silly that she'd want to hear this but...if she needed reassurance he'd give it to her. "I promise. I promise to stay at your side..." Until Time would say otherwise and Time had already spoken, he was just too much of a coward to tell her the truth. He made it a routine to check his biography from the Teselecta every day, reminding himself of what was to come in 200 years. Perhaps he was ridiculous for thinking that he could change the future, but having Avalon with him right now, asking him to stay at her side...it created a powerful drive to make it so.

He couldn't fathom not being with her.

She was still holding onto his hand when he maneuvered his fingers to stroke her skin. "I promise that I will be at your side until I die." That was a promise he could keep.

Avalon took in a shaky breath. 'Until I die'. She had been at his side when he died.

"Why don't we finish lunch and then I can show you the rest of this place, hm?" the Doctor asked. He wanted to rid her of those tears ruining her usual clear blue eyes. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed each of her fingers. He was glad to see her smiling by the time he kissed her pinky.

Avalon ultimately nodded her head. She shouldn't waste such a beautiful day on horrid thoughts. "Okay, but one more thing...do I have to get off?"

The Doctor hook his head, grinning almost immediately. "Not at all. But you might have to help me eat..."

Avalon swayed her head then reached for a few grapes on a nearby bowl. She held one to his mouth and watched him take it off swift and easily. She then dropped one into her own mouth and smirked at him.

How the hell can she make that look so seductive? The Doctor figured he wouldn't get that answer, so the least he could do was take advantage of every moment it happened.

~ 0 ~

After lunch, the Doctor got to lead Avalon through the gardens. He had shown her the smaller pools which, unfortunately, he did not allow her to dip her toes in. She rolled her eyes at his excuse that, while being true, was still annoying.

"So I get a cold, what's the big deal?" she was only letting him hold her hand because if not, there was a good chance she'd get lost in the maze they'd entered.

"The big deal is I don't know how aggressive that cold might get and I don't feel like seeing you get a cold. I am the Doctor, remember? My patient is not getting sick on my watch."

"Patient?" she shot him a side-glance. "Is that all I am?"

"Still working on a label my love."

Avalon's head turned in the opposite direction when she felt a blush cross her face. Whenever the Doctor would say 'my love' to her, her face automatically went all warm. She was choosing to ignore the tingle - as best as she could - that was going down her back.

"Not upset are you?" the Doctor noticed her gaze had become stuck on the bright green bush walls.

"No, course not," Avalon finally gave him a well needed look a few seconds later. "I have to say, I love this maze...one could get lost in it forever, huh?"

"No, not really," the Doctor shook his head. "It's not that big."

"Still, a maze? Gardens? Lakes? Doctor, I really love this place," Avalon turned to him with a smile to match what she felt. "I'm curious to see where you might take me tomorrow, on a normal day?"

"Well, 'normal' isn't exactly the word I'd use for us. But to answer your question, I'd take you anywhere you'd like."

"Really? Anywhere?"

"Anywhere. My only rule is that it has to be exceptional for my Ava." The Doctor took her hands into his, intertwining their fingers together.

"Even if it's outrageous?" Avalon bit her lower lip with anticipation. "Could I ask to see something outrageously exceptional, then?"

"Of course. Name something, I dare you."

Avalon hummed while she thought about such an outrageous place that even he couldn't make it happen. "I got it. Can you take me to, I don't know, Neverland?" That had to be impossible for him to reach.

"I'd make it so," the Doctor gently tugged Avalon to him, smiling at her soft laughter. "I would!"

"It's from a movie, Doctor!"

"Doesn't mean I can't find a piece of it somewhere up there," he tilted her chin up to the sky. "Cos that's the best thing about traveling in the TARDIS, Ava. Somewhere in the galaxies, in one small corner, there might be two little stars and we'd only have to go to the second star on the right."

Avalon stared at him with twinkling eyes. "You would make it so even if you couldn't," she said quietly. The Doctor only gave a light shrug, but it was done almost automatic, like an instinct. He didn't know if he could ever find the place but he would try to find it for her. "Second star to the right," she whispered.

"Those are our plans for tomorrow then," the Doctor swooped down to give her a kiss. "Can't wait to see what we come up with for the day after."

Avalon laughed and allowed him to pull her down the maze. "You're going to get us lost!"

"I will not!" he huffed. He stopped them at an intersection and Avalon swore he looked at each path more than what a person who knew what they were doing had to. "I've been here a bunch of times!"

"Oh, who with?" Avalon raised an eyebrow at him, genuinely curious who had had the privilege of seeing this beautiful place.

"What?" the Doctor registered the question a few seconds after choosing to turn to the left. "Who did I...? Oh! I, uh, I think I showed Donna!"

"You don't remember?" Avalon made a face at him, almost looking offended on behalf of Donna.

"Well, it was such a long time ago!"

"But you said Donna used to be your best friend, how could you forget that you came here with her?"

The Doctor came to a slow stop and looked at her. "I do have 900 years worth of memories, Ava. My head's not that big, despite what you all say. Plus, a good chunk of my memories are with the Sapling."

Avalon rolled her eyes and allowed him to finish their way out of the maze. She gave him his credit for finding the way out in five minutes, although she suspected that Donna had played a huge part in finding the way out because Avalon swore that the Doctor had mumbled some type of mnemonic to help him find the way in the end.

"What a beautiful sight," she remarked once they were on the other side. The maze had led them out on a new grassy terrain with a cliff ledge.

The Doctor brought Avalon towards the edge so she could see the waterfall gushing below into a river. Where that ended, Avalon had no clue, but it all looked amazing. The sun was making the water shine a golden shade that Avalon didn't want to look away anytime soon.

"C'mon Ava," the Doctor had to eventually drag her away from the edge. He was a bit afraid that in her attempt to look further below, she might fall. He'd love to make a dive himself but Avalon didn't know how to swim. That would probably be a problem.

"But I want to keep looking," Avalon complained with an arm gesturing at the scenery.

"We can do that, just not right at the edge!" The Doctor brought them back a decent amount from the cliff and then sat down on the grass. He patted the spot beside him and flashed her a smile. With a roll of her eyes, she sat down. As soon as she'd gotten comfortable, the Doctor moved again.

"Doctor, what are you...?" Avalon laughed when he made himself comfortable with his head over her lap. He shifted far too much, making it a show until he finally found his spot. "Are you good now?" Avalon looked down at him with another laugh.

"Oh yeah," he nodded but a few seconds later Avalon noticed the quick dart his eyes did to the opposite direction.

"What is it?"

"Um, your, uh..." he coughed in an obvious manner of awkwardness. "It is a beautiful dress you're wearing, Ava."

Avalon blushed when she realized he'd gotten a little glimpse through the hole of her dress below her chest. She pressed her dress and cleared her throat. "Sorry. You can look now."

The Doctor suspected she wasn't very sorry, and if he was going to admit silently then he wasn't sorry either. You are way ahead of yourself, Doctor. Calm down.

"I bet your mind just rushed with new thoughts, didn't it?" Avalon smirked.

"Oh, shut up!"

"Alright, alright, I'll let it go because you're doing so good today."

"I am?"

"Mhm," Avalon started stroking his hair, much to his delight.

The Doctor was sure that she had the most gentle fingers. She was a writer so maybe that had to do with it. But there's no explanation for the way she makes me feel when she touches my hair. Several times the Doctor had to swallow a moan. He wasn't sure if Avalon knew what she caused, but either way he couldn't ask her to stop. It felt too good.

"Don't fall asleep on me, Fairy Tale Man," Avalon chuckled when a few minutes had passed by and the Doctor hadn't opened his eyes.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" the Doctor cracked one eye open. "I heard from Amy about your little tricks at your sleepovers. You drew all over her face and you had the audacity to scribble a little 'sincerely Ava' under." If he had, had the slightest doubt that his Ava could pull off something like that, the confirmation was all in Avalon's smirk. "You are one bad girl."

"And yet you don't sound the least bit upset about it," Avalon bopped her nose over his roguish lips.

"I do like myself a bad girl, especially the gingers. They're the feistiest!"

"Are you speaking from experience? Have you dated another ginger like me?" Avalon scrunched her face as soon as she realized what she asked. She placed her finger over his lips before he could answer her. "I'm not sure I can handle the long list you have of significant others." She raised her finger from his lips and sighed. "That doesn't mean I would want you to forget about them, though. I mean...I'm not gonna be one of those people demanding you forget every other relationship you've ever had."

"I thank you for that, and it's the same for you, you know," the Doctor reached up to her face and stroked her plump pink lips. "But that doesn't mean I'd like to hear who else had the privilege of kissing these lips."

Avalon rolled her eyes. "Many have had the fortune but none will have it now but you. I hope you extend me the same courtesy."

"You know it."

"I hope so because I know your track record, mister. Almost every companion has had a piece of you!"

"That was...that's...I didn't do anything!"

"Oh, I'm sure!" Avalon would've bantered more with him if he wasn't reacting so serious. He should know by now that this was just her way of being. "Calm down, Fairy Tale Man. I'm just pulling your leg."

"Well, can you pull my hair instead?" the Doctor didn't hesitate to respond with. He short her a smirk and pointed to his unkempt hair.

"You are so..." Avalon wouldn't be able to find the right word to describe him and she wasn't going to spend all day thinking of one. She let her fingers once again run through his hair and smiled when he saw the satisfaction on the Doctor's face. "Can I ask you something?"

"Always."

"I, uh...you know that I know about your past, perhaps not all of it but a good amount. You don't have to answer if you don't want to, I would really get it..."

"You're rambling, Ava," the Doctor opened his eyes to see her struggling face. "What is it?"

"I know about your last love, your most recent last love." Soon as she started with those words, she felt the Doctor's body stiffen. "There's no resentment, Doctor. Never. I'm only curious about her. Rose Tyler was her name. Kovarian mentioned her a lot. She said that Rose unintentionally helped the Daleks break through the walls of the universe."

"She had no idea what she was doing," the Doctor said quietly. "She wanted to come back to this world..."

"...to find you?" Avalon smiled softly at him, truly bearing no type of anger or resentment like she said. "I can admire that. She broke through parallel walls just to find you. Must have been one hell of a love story."

"It was," the Doctor said after a minute of struggle. He wasn't used to talking about his past with anyone, much less to think about people like Rose, people that had meant a lot to him.

"You can always talk to me, Fairy Tale Man," Avalon whispered and the Doctor wasn't sure if she was doing it on purpose or subconsciously, but her fingers found a gentler way of stroking his hair. "Is there something you want to tell me about Rose Tyler? Let somebody new in on her memory?"

The Doctor smiled. My Ava. "She was sweet, she was young - she was your age when we first met. Nineteen. She worked at a shop and...she didn't really know what she was doing with her life."

"I felt that," Avalon chuckled. She never knew what she was going to do with her life before the Doctor returned to Leadworth.

"Travelling helped her find her way. But then she got pulled into a parallel world. She almost died but she was saved. Being stuck in that parallel world was better than for her to have died in the Void with the Daleks and Cybermen."

Avalon fingers stopped between the Doctor's hair. "The Daleks and Cybermen..." she whispered. She closed her eyes when the memories tried coming back. "Kovarian showed me so many pictures of that battle...I can't...I can't believe it..."

"I'm sorry," the Doctor said, feeling guilty he was bringing back the things she wanted to clearly forget.

"No, no, you're good. I...I wasn't even there, I mean...I wasn't in the eye of the storm where it happened. But you were...you were there when your friend got lost. I'm so sorry it happened."

"It started a lot of things," the Doctor said with a saddened smile. Losing Rose had been one of the most terrible days of his life, but it truly did start different stories afterwards. "I met Martha soon after - actually, I met Donna before and then Martha but then I found Donna again."

"Lucky her," Avalon resumed with her gentle fingers gliding through his hair.

"Yeah...no...no, she wasn't. It was fate. I met her to lose her as well."

"You always say that I remind you of Donna," Avalon said, unable to keep her curiosity hidden. "Why's that? Besides the ginger thing of course. That doesn't automatically make us twins or something."

The Doctor chuckled. "I know. You two shout at me the same way, the only difference is now I can kiss you to shut you up. If I did that with Donna she'd kill me. She made it very clear to on her first day in the TARDIS that she did not want anything to do with me beyond friendship."

"Did she shout it?"

"A possibility."

"Alright Donna," Avalon smiled.

"I wish you could have met her, Avalon. I think out of everyone I met before you and the Ponds, you would've gotten along with Donna the best. She could be reckless and fun when she wanted to be. She grew to become confident, to love who she was. She was brave as hell and so sympathetic to others. She had some very good snaps and comebacks too. She even gave me my own nickname like you did. Spaceman." Just remembering the many times Donna would call him 'spaceman' made him long for the times with his best friend. He'd love to have Donna around so she could meet Avalon and no doubt make fun of him for taking so long to open up about his feelings.

Avalon tilted her head in thought. "Spaceman...I like it. Not as much as Fairy Tale Man but...she had taste." She looked down at him to find him lost in thoughts, no doubt about Donna. "You really miss her, huh?"

"Yeah. If I hadn't had to wipe her memories, I'm sure she would still be here. She would be making endless jokes about the fact we had a cosmic tree child."

Avalon laughed. "You think so?"

"I know so!"

"She sounds great, Doctor, really. She and Rose do. I'm so sorry that you lost them."

The Doctor sobered from his own laugh but when he smiled, it was no longer sad. He gazed up at her and met her lovable sea-blue eyes. He finally sat up and shifted to sit beside her, facing her, with one arm going over her lap to rest on her other side. "I lost them but I have you now. I did love Rose, I won't lie - not that I could - but I lost her a long time ago. And I understood why. She wasn't for me. She wasn't...mine. You are. And Donna's gone, my best friend, but I found new friends. I have Amy, Rory, and my sweet baby sister Lena. I have all of you now."

Avalon's eyes glistened with tears. "Why do you always make me tear up dammit?"

"I'm sorry, dear," the Doctor rubbed his thumb over her cheek.

"They're happy tears, trust me," Avalon said, this time genuinely truthful. "I'm happy that you're happy. Let's me know that I'm doing a good job here."

"Of course you are. No matter what you do I'm happy, so long as you're by my side." He leaned closer to her, purposely pausing just in front of her lips to give her a heads up of what was coming. "Are you happy?"

Avalon felt like that was a ridiculous question to ask, but she humored him. "Very. I wish I could thank Rose and Donna, and everyone else who came before me, for saving your ass so you could be here with me."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "You just couldn't help yourself, huh?"

"No..." Avalon giggled. "I'm really bad."

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed before kissing her. God knows what else she might say.

~ 0 ~

"Hey Doctor, I just realized, how come you didn't tell me about your other friend, Martha Jones?" Avalon asked once the pair were out of the maze and cliff altogether. They were in front of a rectangle-shaped, 2ft pool. Avalon noticed the stone flower statues lining the middle of the pool.

"Oh, uh, cos I'm saving her for a better moment," the Doctor said, flashing her a mischievous smile.

"What are you up to Fairy Tale Man?"

The Doctor turned to her, letting his mischievous smile widen even more. "Confession time?"

"Always!"

"Back when I was looking for you, I actually had some help from my old friend Martha. I thought we might pop back to see her and you can meet her."

Avalon nodded excitedly. "I'd love that! You think she'd like me?"

"Of course she would," the Doctor said, preferring not to think about how Martha had implied this relationship was coming. He'd just have to suck it up and admit she was right sooner or later. "And, I guess...we could get our mutual old friend...Jack..."

Avalon had heard the name perfectly despite how low the Doctor had muttered it. "Jack!? Oh my God, I'd love to see him again! I haven't seem him in such a long time!"

"Please...try to look excited..." the Doctor's face was completely flat while Avalon practically bounced at the idea of seeing the old immortal man.

"I am!" Avalon laughed, not noticing his expression yet. "I love Jack! He just gets me and my weaponry interests!"

"Oh, well...so long as you're happy, I guess..."

Avalon rolled her eyes when she finally got his disdain. "Oh Fairy Tale Man. He's my friend! I"m allowed to have friends that are men!"

"Yeah, but Jack just loves to flirt with everyone and so do you! I dread to think of what it's gonna be like seeing you flirt with him!"

"Jealous?" a sly smile took Avalon's face. The Doctor huffed and looked away. "I guess I should keep my mouth shut about my actual previous boyfriends, then?"

"Yeah!"

"Did you say no? I heard 'no'!" Avalon turned away with her hands clapped together. "Let's see, oh! How about my very first boyfriend? Ah, Leo. I liked Leo a lot. You know he took me on a date to the ice cream parlor!"

"Gah," the Doctor waved her off. "Pales in comparison to all this!" He flapped his arms to his sides, gesturing to the beautiful gardens around them.

Avalon kept her back to him but was smirking. She was getting a rile out of him and it was the most hilarious thing ever! "I had my first kiss with him too! I was fifteen but, eh, nothing wrong with a late bloomer! Then there was Benjamin. He was such a sweetheart," Avalon brought a hand over her chest. "He wrote poems for me!"

The Doctor let his arms fall to his sides. He was about to shoot her a comeback but he could tell, even when she wasn't facing him, that she'd started to truly reminisce about her past, just like he had. He couldn't be mad at that. "Did he write them well?" he asked suddenly.

Avalon turned sideways and nodded silently. "He uh...he actually asked me if I..." she chuckled, "He asked me to our school dance in a poem. It was such a cheesy poem but I was so excited cos it was my first school dance." She didn't exactly make the best reputation for herself in school so having a guy actually write her a poem just to ask her out to a dance was beyond her. It still warmed her heart. "Mum took me out shopping for a dress, she tried her best to make this-" she grabbed one of her curls, "-decent, and she let me wear her special lip gloss. Benjy...he was one of the sweet guys."

"Benjy..." the Doctor repeated though there was a light laugh that slipped through his lips. "Then I like him for being thoughtful."

"Really?" Avalon set a hand on her hip. "Cos a minute ago you looked ready to yell."

"Well...you deserve some good memories too, and if 'Benjy'-" the Doctor brought his fingers to the air for quotation marks, "-made you happy then I'm happy too."

"He did," Avalon nodded. "And then a year later he had to move to Scotland. I hated Amy so much..." There, the Doctor laughed. "Her stupid country took away my Benjy!"

"Oh, Ava!"

Avalon sighed, waving him off. "That was my first real break up. I was so sad. Took me forever to get over him. But then I dated again, met Jordan. He was a bad guy..." She smirked and the Doctor had to keep himself refrained from moving when she started biting her lip. "He had the black leather jacket...oh! I had some good times with him."

"Really?"

"Mhm. He was a good kisser."

"So what happened to him, then?"

"Dumped me for some other girl," Avalon scowled.

"Oh," the Doctor wasn't expecting that answer, least not yet. "I'm sorry..."

Avalon shrugged. "Wasn't my first, wasn't my last. I had a couple more boyfriends after that but I don't think they were very meaningful."

"No more 'Benjy's'?" the Doctor asked her, a tiny smile quirking across his lips.

"A few but...I don't know, some of the guys were just boring and others wanted things I didn't want. I think only ever liked Benjy. We dated for a year until he moved. My last boyfriend, the one that dumped me the night you came back for me, remember?"

The Doctor nodded. He remembered her face full of tears. Now that guy deserved all his hatred. No one should make his Ava cry.

"He was fine. We were fine but...I wanted to find Lena and he thought I was getting obsessed. He couldn't handle it so he broke up with me." Avalon exhaled deeply, letting her shoulders once again awkwardly shrug. "I didn't have epic love stories like you did..."

"But they're your stories," the Doctor moved up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Mm, and I wouldn't change them," Avalon pecked his lips and turned around to watch the pool, resting her back against his chest.

The Doctor couldn't help think about her words for a moment. They were the same ones River had told him back when Avalon had escaped the TARDIS to visit her in Stormcage.

His thoughts were interrupted when the sprinklers of the pool turned on. Avalon yelped when the drizzle of water and mist fell over them. She turned around and buried her face in his chest. "Not my make up!"

The Doctor laughed and hurried them away from the sight. "C'mon, Ava!"

They ran down the gardens, only stopping here and there to admire. One part of the gardens had a field dedicated to statues. There was no pattern nor order, just statues meant to be admired by the guests. They were gorgeous...only Avalon found one that reminded her too much of the Silence, so the Doctor quickly changed venues. But funny thing was, after they left the statues, they forgot all about it.

"Is the sun setting already?" Avalon asked as they began nearing the building where the TARDIS was. The sun was getting covered by clouds and actually...there seemed to be a lot of clouds suddenly.

"I'm afraid so," the Doctor lamented like her that their day was coming to an end.

"Still, our day together was rather nice..." Avalon side-glanced him. "Right?"

"Truly." The Doctor brought her hand to his lips for a kiss. "The first of many." Avalon beamed. She would love to see what else he could come up with. "C'mon," he led her down the pool aisle to return to the front, but Avalon let go of his hand midway. He turned back to see her gazing at the two pools. "Ava?"

"Are these like...sacred pools or something?"

"What? No, no, they're purely here for aesthetic reasons."

"Ah..."

"Why?"

Avalon smirked at the water, giving the Doctor about a second to realize what she was thinking before she actually did it.

"Avalon-"

Avalon hopped into the water, splashing the water around her. The water only reached to her ankles but it was enough for her to have fun wiggling her way through it while splashing.

"Avalon! Get out of there! You'll get sick!" the Doctor called to her in vain.

"Don't be a spoilsport!" She called and kicked some water his way. "I can't swim so this is as close to a pool as I'll ever get! C'mon!" She walked towards him, ignoring his refusals, and splashed some water his way.

"You are childish!" He stepped his boots hard on the ground to get rid of the water they now had.

"And yet you're smiling! C'mon!" She reached down and pushed more water in his way. "We're about to leave anyways! One more shenanigan!"

The Doctor exhaled and finally looked at her. Shenanigans. That was literally what they did most and it was always so much fun and...spontaneous. He couldn't plan around Avalon because even when he did - like this entire place - she always did something out of his plans. And he loved it. She brought him the thrill he didn't know he needed.

"Coming, Fairy Tale Man?" Avalon backed away and twirled about in the water.

The Doctor thought she looked beautiful. She looked happy. It was nothing compared to Berlin, or after. His Ava was happy...and she was calling him to her side, right where he once told River he'd love to be. Almost like he was in a trance, the Doctor hopped into the pool. Avalon was still twirling when the Doctor reached her. He picked her up midspin from behind and heard her laugh as he gave her another spin.

"Gotcha my dear!" He planted her feet back on the ground but kept his arms locked around her waist, only offering her space so she could turn to face him.

"Couldn't resist, could you?" Avalon cheekily smiled at him.

"I could never resist you."

"Smooth," she rolled her eyes. She danced her fingers along his chest until they came to rest over his shoulders. "Is this the end, then? Has our date come to an end?"

"Not quite, there's one more thing we have to do."

"What is i-"

The Doctor swooped down for a surprise kiss then hurried out of the pool. His feet splashed the water all around until he made it to the cement ground. "But you'll need to get out of that pool!" He called back to the ginger still in the pool.

Avalon laughed. "Why? What are you doing?" She watched him dash for the TARDIS and because she was overly curious, she listened to his words and walked out of the pool.

She raised her head to the sky and saw the clouds getting darker. Maybe it was a good thing their date was ending because it looked like there was rain coming. Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft tune that started from the TARDIS. It only took Avalon a few seconds to recognize it. He'd chosen to play Once Upon A Dream for her.

She laughed just as the Doctor came out of the TARDIS. She wouldn't even bother with his smug face - he deserved it this time. "That's my song, our song..."

"Our first dance," the Doctor hurriedly hopped down the steps to join her by the pool.

"How could I forget?" Avalon sighed in content. It'd been the first day she felt genuinely happy with him. He'd taken her to meet Mary Costa and she'd become a singer to the very song now playing.

"Would you like to dance, princess?" the Doctor held a hand out for her.

"There's nothing else I'd like to do, my knight in shining armor," Avalon did the familiar bow of a princess then took his hand.

The Doctor gently pulled her up to him and set his free hand on her waist. Avalon gripped his other hand that held hers and rested her free hand on his shoulder. The two descended into a slow dance. They were so into their moment that they completely ignored - or perhaps they didn't even hear - the thunder cracking in the sky.

"Now it's a perfect date," the Doctor murmured beside Avalon's ear.

She slightly tilted her head in the opposite direction, smiling so widely it could possibly crack her face. "It was a perfect date from the start. I have never had somebody go through this much trouble just for me."

"You deserve everything, Avalon," he pressed a kiss to her cheek.

She doubted that she did. There was no denying that her background involved a lot of running from the law. She liked the running too, the adrenaline. She made some bad choices in the past and it seemed like she would continue doing the same. There was a part of her that feared her bad choices would lead her to Lake Silencio. What if I'm the one in the astronaut suit? What if the Silence weren't done with me? Avalon screwed her eyes shut in terrible fear. She couldn't let that happen. She would rather die than ever become a weapon for them.

"Ava?" the Doctor gently called her name. He didn't know what was running through her head but he figured it couldn't be good if it had her squeezing her eyes shut. "Are you okay?"

Avalon opened her eyes and smiled lightly. "With you? Always."

This time they heard the thunder roar but Avalon gripped the Doctor to their spot. She wasn't ready to leave yet. "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream. I know you! The gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam..."

The Doctor smiled. Of course. They couldn't leave until the princess sang her song. And he loved this princess' voice as much as he loved when she stroked his hair. They danced together as Avalon's melodic voice filled the air.

"Yet I know it's true the visions are seldom all they seem. But if I know you, I know what you'll do..." she laughed when the Doctor dipped her, keeping their faces close together. "You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream..."

The Doctor brought her back up but kissed her midway, unable to help himself even if it caught her song off. Avalon didn't seem to mind. She moved her lips with his for as long as she could, or they could...

Thunder cracked one more time before the rain started. They parted from their kiss only slightly to look at each other.

"But if I know you, I know what you'll do. You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream..." Avalon finished with the biggest smile on her face.

The water was thinning her curls, flattening them to her face and body. She watched the droplets of water drip from the Doctor's strands of hair over his forehead. She reached her hand over and gently moved his hair to the side.

"Singing and dancing in the rain, now we have the perfect ending to the perfect date," she said, laughing when the Doctor gave them another sway of a dance. "I will never forget this day, Fairy Tale Man." She leaned over and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck the more they kissed.

A kiss under the rain was truly the last bit they needed before they could leave such an enchanting place.

When the Doctor heard actual lightning strike, he knew it was time to go. Still, he reluctantly pulled away from Avalon but she wasn't letting him go. "Time to go home, princess."

Avalon smiled and nodded. She had dressed for heat, not rain. "Okay." She unwinded her arms from his neck and let the Doctor guide them towards the TARDIS. Neither of them noticed a small, truly minuscule, device had been placed on one of its sides. When the TARDIS dematerialized, the bug device flashed to life.

"The time has come to collect the rest of my memoriesssss." The Scream emerged from the building's back door. He raised a handheld device in his hand, a tracker of his own unique kind, and watched it. "I will follow youuuu Doctor. I know exactly how to take what's miiiiine."

[optimusphillip]

OptimusPhillip Reviews 23: Studio Series 22 Dropkick

While I do have a lot of nostalgia for the early Michael Bay movies, I cannot deny that Bumblebee was a far superior film. As a result, it’s hardly a surprise that some of the first Studio Series figures I sought out, and to this day the ones that I seek out the most, are the ones from Bumblebee. And now that I’ve secured all four toys of the film’s main villains, Shatter and Dropkick, I think it’s high time I gave them a review, starting with Dropkick in his helicopter mode.

Helicopter Mode

Just like in the movie, Dropkick transforms into a Bell AH-1W SuperCobra attack helicopter (thank you, TFWiki). While there sadly aren’t many clear shots of Dropkick in helicopter mode from the film, he is a near-perfect match for the pictures I was able to find of the real AH-1W. Almost every panel line, vent, fin and light is present in some form on this figure, which is very impressive. They even included details like the small fin under the tail and the upward angle to the forward gun, which probably could’ve been left off and no one would notice. In fact, I was confused by some of these details before looking up the real helicopter, but I’m just so glad that they took the time to carry everything over. There are some imperfections, owing to his nature as a transforming robot figure, but even then he’s pretty clean overall. Though he seems a little tail-heavy in this mode, to the point where he’ll occasionally have a hard time sitting flat on his landing skids.

The helicopter is primarily done in a light gray, also like the movie. However, there’s also a lot of extra blue details, which aren’t present in those few shots I am able to make out. Also included are a pair of jolly roger decals on either side of the nose, which can be seen on his other modes in the movie, though I can’t tell if these are movie accurate in this mode. Aside from those, the only other details are pretty basic: safety warnings on the intakes, and Air Force decals on either side of the body. It seems the rest of his paint budget went into painting more gray onto the body and nose pieces, which are both cast in clear plastic to create the look of a glass cockpit. While it’s probably not the most movie accurate deco, I personally really like the way he looks.

Of course, being a helicopter means that he retains some functionality in this mode. The tail rotor is pinned into place and can spin freely, as one would expect. The main rotor is also pinned into place, but there’s too much friction for it to spin freely. Instead, you have to be constantly pushing them to keep them spinning. I don’t exactly know why, I’m sure there’s a reason, but it’s kind of annoying. Aside from that, you can remove the missile launchers from under his wings, since they’re just mounted on 5mm pegs. This means that you can also mount pretty much any other weapon you want underneath, just in case the stock parts don’t appeal to you.

Conversion

Dropkick’s conversion scheme is actually quite a lot of fun. The way the legs fold up to form the underside of the helicopter can feel a little clunky at first, but after a couple tries it becomes simple enough. The part I really like is how the entire leg and torso assembly rotates around. After that, the tail section splits apart and does some pretty clever folds to turn into the robot arms, which are then locked into place by folding down the chest piece. Unfortunately, the intake sections can kind of get in the way at times, especially given how loose they seem to be. Once the arms are done, just position the main rotor and the intake pieces correctly, and we're done.

Robot Mode

Onto robot mode, and this is the part where the figure starts to lose me. I don’t know when in the film’s production cycle this toy was designed, but this figure bears only the most tenuous resemblance to the CGI model from the film. The most glaring inaccuracy is the almost complete lack of visible car parts, aside from the taillights on his knees. He’s missing the wheels on his arms, the door wings, the headlights on his chest, all major details of his character model. Sure, you could argue that the intakes on his back are supposed to mimic his door wings, but they don’t really work for that. Even the rotors on his back are in the wrong spot.

Then we get to his proportions. In the movie, Dropkick was big and beefy looking bot, looking almost like a bodybuilder. This toy couldn’t be further from that. His limbs are lanky and thin, with almost no muscle definition aside from the kibble on his calves. Not only does this make him even less accurate to the movie, but it makes him look almost frail, which just doesn’t feel right at all for a Decepticon warrior. I know that the Bumblebee toys had a bit of a troubled production, but these are details that go back to the concept art. Aside from that, my best guess is that these are concessions made for the sake of the vehicle mode, which I can somewhat accept, but is still very unfortunate.

At least the head design is accurate. The three stripes of silver grating on his cranium, the triangular mouth parts, and the beady red eyes under the arched brows are all present from the movie design. There is some slight overspray on my figure’s forehead ridges, but I’d still say the head sculpt is the best part of this robot mode.

At least he’s decently well articulated. Ball joints in the neck, shoulders and hips, bicep and thigh swivels, 90 degree elbows and almost 180 degree knees. You can definitely get some awesome poses out of him, though strangely for a flyer, he doesn’t have a hole for a flight stand anywhere on him. Still, I’ll give him points for posability.

Lastly, we come to his weapons. The missile pods from helicopter mode transform into a pair of handheld Gatling guns. 5mm handles means that they can be given to other figures if you so choose. They’re alright, I guess, but they’re nothing like his weapon in the movie. Still, it’s a clever reuse of a vehicle mode part, though I wish they’d included his movie weapon.

Backdrop

Dropkick’s backdrop is labeled by the package as “Autobot Pursuit”, but it doesn’t really resemble any scene from Bumblebee. In fact, it looks very similar to the one that came with Studio Series Thundercracker, who bears Dark of the Moon branding. This really confuses me, since the inaccuracies with the figure can at least be attributed to either being based on an earlier model or concessions for the sake of transformation. Here, though, there’s no reason not to just use a scene from Bumblebee. Even if it was a placeholder of some kind, they could’ve changed this at any time at what I assume would be little cost. Why they chose this backdrop of all things is beyond me.

Okay, enough negativity. Since he’s so slim, Dropkick in robot mode actually has a really nice footprint for the base here. Even with his legs spread out for a dynamic pose, he fits on the base with no difficulty. The only challenge is keeping the rotors out of the way of posing without bumping them into the backdrop. The same can’t be said of his helicopter mode, however. It’s so long that it’s almost impossible to sit him down on the base without having the sides folded all the way out. Still, he is thin enough to fit on the base without hanging off the front, and his landing skids are short enough to fit easily. Just don’t expect to compact the sides with him in helicopter mode.

Final Thoughts

As harsh as I’ve been on this figure, there’s very little actually wrong with him. His helicopter mode is well detailed, his transformation is lots of fun, and his robot mode is well articulated. What kills it for me, though, is the inaccuracy of it. Studio Series is all about screen accuracy, so seeing a figure under that banner that resembles the movie design so little is a major letdown. If you’re specifically looking for a good representation of Dropkick, the only real appeal I can see with this figure is the helicopter mode itself, since that’s definitely where he most resembles his movie self. Aside from that, you’d probably be better off hunting down his remold as AOE Drift. However, if you’re just looking for a fun Transformer to mess around with and don’t care about screen accuracy, he’s actually pretty good and I would recommend him.

[strangcrdoctor]

📂 📂

Okay sorry for this big long-ass tangent, but we’re going there. Because apparently I deleted my previous detailed headcanons post about Stephen’s watch collection, but since I need to bring it back around I’m gonna. Bring it back around. This is a mix of what’s featured in the exact MCU canon as well as what I personally have added for my own amusement. 

So first and foremost we’ll talk about his watch drawer in the film, because I read a hilarious article at one point pointing out that it’s actually not ideal for watch winders to be stored horizontally instead of vertically, and all of Stephen’s watch winders are horizontal. The reason that it’s not ideal for watch winders to be stored horizontally is because winders are designed to keep automatic watches wound and on-time perpetually in spite of not being worn. Automatic watches are a subset of mechanical watches - the primary two categories being quartz (run on battery) and mechanical (run by mechanically winding the mainspring) - that instead of needing to be wound at the crown are wound by a freely-moving internal rotor, which winds the watch by spinning and generating kinetic energy to wind the mainspring rather than needing to be wound by hand at the crown like a traditional mechanical watch. (Most automatics also have a manual-wind function at the crown, but not all do.) Now, given that, winders that are set up horizontally have a harder time moving the internal rotors because slow side-to-side motion doesn’t generate as much momentum on those internal rotors as up-and-down motion does. The reason being, the rotor is oriented to the shape of the watch case, which is usually flat against the case back. If a watch case is oriented horizontally on a winder, the winder usually doesn’t spin fast enough to generate any movement of the rotor and therefore doesn’t wind the watch. If a watch winder is oriented vertically, and the watch therefore spinning on a vertical axis, the rotor will naturally turn as the winder turns following the pull of gravity, and will generally keep the watch wound which is the point of the winder. QED: Stephen Strange, in spite of being a big watch aficionado, apparently doesn’t even have effective watch winders which fucking cracks me up.

Even worse considering all that, Stephen has approximately (as far as we are shown) at least 10-12 watch winders in that drawer. Watch winders of that size, shape, and assumed quality usually run $150-$300 apiece. So do that math, and that’s not even the watches. That’s the winders. THAT DON’T DO WHAT THEY’RE SUPPOSED TO.

Alright, next up, Stephen has some other pretty major investment pieces in that drawer from what we can see. So I will leave it to an obsessive watch article online that identified Stephen has also got another Jaeger LeCoultre, a Grande Reverso in rouge, which started on the market at $35k, a Tag Heuer Monaco chronograph which depending on the vintage/model could range from $5k-$15k, and a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona which usually range from $20k-$80k. What the others are I can’t really determine and an official list was never released, but just know that Stephen had all of his winders full, and at the going rate of his collection, that’s uh. To say the least, one very expensive collection. I will also add to that list that it looks like Stephen has a very traditional field style watch on a NATO strap, which based on the dial and case size is probably at least WWII vintage or designed to be reminiscent of it, and likely to be hand-wound rather than automatic, but is nonetheless a true collector’s piece given the interest antique watches still have in the luxury sphere. My personal headcanon regarding that more antique looking watch is that it was his grandfather’s - that is Eugene Strange’s father - field watch he wore at the Ardennes in 1944. It has some shrapnel dents in the casing, but Stephen has kept it in excessively good condition. And even when he liquidated the rest of his collection, he kept that one and put it into storage with what few personal effects he wanted to keep.

Now for Stephen’s watch from Christine, the Jaeger LeCoultre Ultra-Thin Perpetual. Which, ladies and gents, I have held a Jaeger LeCoultre Perpetual, and they are gorgeous. Regardless of this movie, having worked in the luxury watch industry for 8 months I learned a hell of a lot and got quite a bit of personal taste for myself, and that included my respect and value for the fact that JLC’s are worth their money. Jaeger LeCoultre is still comparatively a very small company that specializes and in very Stark-esque fashion has designed some of the best advancements in modern watch movement making. Their pieces are constructed in-house from top to bottom, and wear like iron. They’re the McLaren of the watchmaking world: bent on functional superiority, craft, and style. Stephen’s JLC is an automatic with what is called a perpetual calendar function, which means it has complications for marking day of the week, day of the month, month of the year, year, and moon phase. In automatic watches this is especially spectacular considering each complication - meaning each one in that list above is its own complication - is an added mechanism that feeds off of the primary chronometer movement and automatic rotor. JLC also specializes in some of the sleekest multi-function automatic movements in the world, which is what makes so many functions in an ultra-thin automatic so impressive. It is also a watch that bottoms at $20k, which means that Christine Palmer ain’t no poor bunny, honey. It also means that their relationship isn’t just some shallow thing. If Stephen Strange wasn’t worth her time at all, Christine wouldn’t have even bothered to give him that gift, let alone engrave it. It also shows how much Christine knows about Stephen because of all the watches Stephen owns, the JLC does suit him the best. Sorry guys but this sucked up 8 months of my life and I still love it in some small way but lord can I not shut up about it apparently.

But as one parting shot across the bow about Stephen’s JLC, even when the crystal was cracked in the course of the film, JLCs come with extensive warranties. And given the year of the film and when that particular model was released, it’s immeasurably likely that the watch is still under warranty. (Also let’s be real - if Christine dropped $20k on this bitch boy’s watch, she would throw in that 5 year warranty plan.) Which means that since Stephen didn’t get the crystal repaired, at least not by the end of the film, it’s not because he necessarily couldn’t afford to. Crystal replacements are always covered in watch warranties, so more than likely, for sentimental and deeply symbolic reasons, Stephen elected not to replace the crystal because it being broken has its own meaning to his life now. Which isn’t, you know, totally damn heartbreaking.

Alright, last bit and I’m just adding this as an aside - I also headcanon that Stephen has a pocket watch from his grandmother’s line, a Tavannes chronograph that she carried during her own service in WWII, and it’s the only other watch he kept from his collection aside from his grandfather’s and the JLC from Christine. Stephen maintains an obsessive love for timepieces, but unless otherwise gifted one, doesn’t have any means or plans to re-start a new collection... 

Though, he has made it a personal project to restore every clock and watch stored in the Sanctums, which for him is just as satisfying.

[garryspolicememories]

                                       Policing Memories of

                                 Garry Crawford Circa 1962

                                                 Part XV

     When I first arrived in Wawa in the Spring of 1971, to the best of my recollection there were no civilian radio dispatchers. I believe it was sometime in the next year or so that they started hiring dispatchers. I mention them because they are the unsung hero’s. They are the lifeline for the field officer. They are the ones who would answer the phone and get the necessary information that could mean life or death to so many. The caller in a domestic dispute, or life defining incident. The Officers who would be dispatched to know just what they were walking into. The information they received and dispatched could make all the difference. They received little or no training. They worried about the civilians and their officers on the road. They knew what was happening, where the dangers were and did what they could to support us. If they had not heard from an officer for a certain length of time you would get a check call. At the end of the day, they had to take all of these pressures home with them and they were not to speak to anyone about them. Please remember them and thank them where you can.

     I am listing the names I remember in the early days, some of them moved on the Sault Ste Marie and other Districts. I apologize for any I have missed or have mistakenly listed. These are the ones that come to mind. I thank you all for having our back. Olga McCluskie, Joyce West, Ray White, Roly MacDonald, Dave Doucette, Mullen, Kathy Toop, Rose O’Hearn, Marilyn James. I can remember so many times I would have conversations with these people that were so helpful. The smart ones would ask a question in a very diplomatic way, so often they would make you take a  second look at your decisions and adjust accordingly.

      Linda Skorniak was our secretary and filled in, in so many ways. Brian Ringrose was one of the custodians who was our chief cook on some of our larger bush searchers. Without his volunteering we would have had a pretty hungry group. He always added to the espirits of the group

     I have to tell a little story that comes to mind when I think of Linda Skorniak. One day I was working in the back end of the Constables Office. Linda was also in the office at that time. A lady came in to the front desk and on seeing me she asked Linda if I was Corporal Al Jordan.

     Linda replied: No Al Jordan is a really good looking guy. I forget just what the lady wanted, but between the two of us we satisfied her query and she left the office. I then said to Linda: Linda I overheard what you said to that lady about Al. If Al is the really good looking one, what the hell am I. Linda kind of stammered then replied: Oh you are a more rugged looking guy. To this day I am still trying to understand whether that is good or bad.  I do know I appreciated Linda.                                

         The Sinking of The Edmund Fitzgerald

     The Edmund Fitzgerald was an American Great Lakes freighter that sank in a Lake Superior storm on November 10, 1975, with the loss of the entire crew of 29. When launched on June 7, 1958, she was the largest ship on North America's Great Lakes, and she remains the largest to have sunk in Lake Superior. This occurred in Canadian Waters Off Whitefish Point. The following day there were many OPP members involved in walking the shoreline in search of debris or survivors from that wreck. No one was ever found from the wreck. Gordon lightfoot wrote his song: The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald a couple of years later which most Canadians can recall.

     During the summer of 1977 we received word at Wawa Detachment that a human leg bone had washed up on a small beach on the west end of Michipicoten Island. Michipicoten Island is located in Lake Superior about 60 km off shore from Wawa.  A request was submitted for the use of a force helicopter. Permission was given and an OPP helicopter piloted by Norm Kerr was dispatched to Wawa. Ed Zelionis District Dive Master, Bud Brennan of DHQ Identification Branch and myself, proceeded to the scene. A human leg was recovered, all of the bones were still attached with the exception of the last little toe appendage. A search was made of the beach and shallow water area for further items. Ed and Bud remained at the scene while Norm and I flew to the West End lighthouse where I arranged with the light keepers to make periodic searches of the beach should further remains wash up. The beach was quite narrow. On our return to the beach from the lighthouse, Norm made his round out over the water. He then drifted the helicopter sideways at an altitude of just a few feet. His intention was to set the helicopter down as soon as we were over the beach.

   When Ed had completed his dive he had removed his wet suit and left it lay on the beach to dry. We had not noticed it and as we edged closer to the beach, the rotor wash started to lift the wet suit. The danger being, if it was to lift either into the main rotor of the tail rotor, it could result in serious consequences. Norm attempted to back away from the wet suit. As he did there was a very loud bang. We were parallel to the beach; which meant the back up action moved us down the beach. There was a dead spruce tree that hung out over the beach. We had hit it. Norm and I both had mikes on. I remember when I heard the bang, Norm said: Do you know what that was? My reply was very quick. Ya sit her down, sit her Down.

I had to laugh afterwards as Norm is an excellent pilot and he did not need me to tell him what to do. All I could think of was, we had hit with the tail rotor. Damage to that would cause the helicopter to start to spin. Spinning and crashing you don’t stand much chance as the jolt when you stop usually breaks your neck. Needless to say Norm did a good job of recovering and did set the helicopter down on the beach. I remember examining the main rotor. It had several small wrinkles in it at one point. Norm advised it was fit to fly and we were able to return to Wawa. Before we left Bud Brennan took a photograph of the three of us sitting on the beach. If you look carefully you can see the white end of the overhanging spruce tree behind the helicopter. The photograph from L to R shows Ed Zelionis hugging his wet suit Lol, Garry Crawford and Norm Kerr the pilot.

     We did not have DNA analysis available at that time, so there was no way of making a definite determination as to where the leg had come from. It did make a lot of since that the there was a high probability that it came from the wreckage of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The extremely cold water of the lake would explain the remains surviving intact for that length of time. The counter clockwise circulation of the lake current would explain how it ended up on that small beach so far out on the lake. An examination revealed that the find was from a man estimated to be approximately 65 yrs of age.

     Lake Superior is extremely deep, however the currents are effected by weather to great depths. I remember another case where a fishing boat had sunk and Ed Zelionis had recovered the bodies. The boat had sunk in excess of fifty feet of water. I believe it was a month or so later Ed was approached by the fishing company to assist in recovering the boat. The boat had been relatively undamaged when Ed made the original recovery, however when he returned to recover the boat. There was extensive damage where the boat had rolled over several times on the bottom.

     A Typical Drowning Recovery In 1970’s

     Prior to the mid 1960’s most under water drowning recoveries were made using Dragging Irons. These were lengths of pipes with short lengths of chain attached that had large treble hooks attached that we use to refer to as Sturgeon Hooks. Where a search area was identified a series of parallel passes would be made dragging the irons behind a boat. The hooks would hopefully snag on the victim allowing his recovery. They were quite difficult to use as they snagged on everything they passed over.

     In the latter part of the 1960’s the OPP decided to form Underwater Recovery Teams. I think it was George Orser from Kenora who travelled around doing the testing and selection for the job. I remember I was a very strong swimmer and wanted to try out for the group. When they did the testing for the Sudbury District Members, I attended but was not allowed to take the test, mainly because I had no experience using scuba equipment. The main part of the original test consisted of putting on the tanks mask etc. Diving to the bottom in about fifteen feet of water removing mask and tanks. Then putting your mask back on clearing the mask and repositioning the tank on your back. I thought I could hold my breath long enough to do all those activities even if I didn’t use the scuba. George justifiably rejected my opportunity. Little did I realize at that time just how much scuba diving required you to know.

     In later years I did obtain some knowledge of that occupation. I also learned that scuba diving should not be done by the faint at heart or the fool hardy. There are numerous dangers to be aware of. As an example most people that have not taken up the sport do not realize that a lung full of air from a tank of compressed air at 30’ doubles its volume at surface. So if you are working at 30’ and your tank went empty, then you returned to surface holding your breath you would seriously damage your lungs or worse. The deeper you dive the more the expansion and the greater the danger. One must always keep breathing as you come to surface or exhale if out of air as the air you have increases as you come up. Working for extended period at depth requires you to use a careful formula to avoid air in your blood or what they call the bends which can also be fatal.

     I remember in the mid 1970’s receiving a call at Wawa Detachment that there had been an alleged drowning on Hobon Lake, south of Franz, Ontario. I proceeded via a bush road to Hobon Lake with Ed Zelionis and one other District Diver whose name I can not recall at this time. Our equipment consisted of about a fourteen foot outboard boat with a 15 hp motor. The two divers; diving equipment including extra tanks. About 150” of ½” rope. A large number of javex bottles with string attached. Two diving fins which were made out of 5/8” plywood. They were approximately 2’wide and a 1’ deep, with straight sides and back, curved from the centre area down back to the sides. There was a slot cut from the front centre almost to the centre of the board where there was a hole to attach one end of the tow rope. There were hand holds cut about centre on both sides.

     The first thing one does when attending a body recovery site is to try to make an educated guess as to just where the body may be. This is done considering where the person may have entered the water, plus taking into consideration the water temperature, wind direction, current, What they may have consumed etc. and body buoyancy. Any of these things can effect where the body may be. I have seen cases of fast water where the body is recovered right at their point of entry and others where they were recovered twenty miles away. Usually one starts at the established point of entry plus and you work your way down stream or downwind from that point. I say plus because there is always that chance that your information is a little incorrect and the person entered the water upstream or upwind from where your information led you to believe.

     In the recovery at Hobon Lake, the occurrence involved a Native man who had allegedly fallen out of a canoe about half way up the Lake. We started taking into consideration where the canoe came on shore and working upwind from that point. I ran the boat. We attached one end of the rope to the back corners of the transom, placing one rope on each side. Each of the divers took one of the fins on the end of the rope and was dragged behind, using the fins to take them up or down and side to side. The visibility of the water dictated just how wide a strip we could cover on each pass. Hobon Lake is a long narrow lake. So we started at centre of the lake and worked towards the shore on the side where the canoe had been found and upwind. I dropped off Javex bottles as I proceeded south in this case. The attached string had a weight secured to the bottom which anchored the bottles in place as I dropped one. This gave me direction and reference. As I reached a point where I would return, I would similarly mark it and make a parallel return pass. We had to be careful as there were fallen trees etc, on the bottom that I could not see. A close watch was kept on the diver’s bubbles. I remember on one pass having to stop as one of the divers had been pulled into a down tree that tangled up his line. We had completed about ¾ of the selected area when the body was recovered. I remember that with all of the diving equipment, and the three of us there was no room in the boat for the deceased. We placed him in canoe and towed him down the lake to where we had left our truck. We then carried him and the canoe up to the truck and placed him in the box of the truck, wrapping him in an emergency blanket. The body was then transported out the bush road to Dubreuville; where we were met by a local undertaker. Who then transported the deceased in his hearst to Wawa. I mention this as in so many cases during my career I was either party to or actually involved in a strange method of removing a deceased. In some cases it was in the box of a pick up truck, others holding them upright on a snowmobile, tied to a stretcher then lowered out a window. In one case before snowmobiles I remember using and old army truck that had a mounted A frame and no box. We wrapped the deceased in a mattress wrapping chain around to hold everything in place. Then laid it over the front fender like a deer. There was no disrespect meant. It was simply a matter of making do with what we had. I also remember a skier who froze to death being brought out frozen in a sitting position in a helicopter. These were things we had to do.

     A question I remember being asked by people who witnessed some of the macabre situations that we were involved with was: What do you do at the end of the day? My answer was always the same. As police officers, you do what you have to do. If you are lucky and have a clear conscience. You do what everybody else does. You go home cook your supper, go for a walk or cut the grass. You enjoy your family, the same as everyone else.

     If you wish to read my previous submissions, they are all stored at the following URL: <garryspolicememories.tumblr.com>

[timelord-winchester-22b]

Driving lessons

So here we are with another of my requests from my ever so lovely littluns. Seriously guys, I love you all. You’re awesome. Eleven with prompts 160 “Do you think you could teach me that?” and 46 “Can I kiss you right now?”

Word count:1659

You ran hand in hand with the Doctor into the Tardis, laughing. He let go of your hand as you both shut the doors tightly behind you.

“Oh, they never saw it coming” You breathed, still giggling. The Doctor laughed again.

“Never saw it coming” He agreed, bounding up to the console with you right on his heels. He flipped a couple switches and pressed a button or two as you took off. You watched him a moment, hesitant to word the question in your mind. But what was the worst thing that could happen. He could say no. That was the worst thing that could happen. And how would that be any different than if you’d not asked at all? With that in mind, you leaned over the console slightly to speak to him.

“Doctor?”

“Hmm?” He didn’t glance up, still looking down at the console as he continued to pilot the Tardis. You hesitated again but pushed forwards.

“Do you think you could teach me that?” You asked in a rush. The Doctor looked up at you, surprised.

“You want to learn to fly the Tardis?”

“I mean, you don’t have to. It’s fine if you don’t want to. Really, I-“

“No, I’d love to” he told you genuinely. You smiled.

“Really?”

“Yeah! Of course! Come ‘ere” He waved you over and you moved to stand beside him. “Now be warned, flying a Tardis is certainly nothing like driving a car. Especially with only two of us, there’s a lot of running around”

“What do you mean, with only the two of us?” You asked, frowning slightly. He paused.

“Well, you see, a Tardis is usually meant to be flown by six people” he explained. You looked over the console, understanding when you noticed there were six separated panels.

“That’s why she’s always rockin’ about” You realized.

“Yeah, that’s why” he agreed, not meeting your eyes and straightening his bow tie, something you learned meant he wasn’t telling you something. That or he was trying to protect his pride. You realized in this instance, it might very well be both. Smothering a smile, you did your best to listen to him as he explained the ‘basics’, which actually included a whole lot of techno-babble you didn’t understand and were sure you didn’t need. You just nodded along.

“-and that should do it” He finished. You nodded. “Did you understand any of that?”

“Nope” You answered instantly. He huffed in annoyance and you could tell he was thinking hard about ways to explain it to you while also trying to keep from offending you.

“Alright, well, fine” he waved it off, moving to the opposite end of the console. He fiddled with something as he continued. “You don’t need to know how it works I guess. Let’s see…” He flicked one last switch with a very Doctor-ish flourish and did a spin before running back around to join you again from the other side. “Now, first thing’s first, co-ordinates. But today we’ll have a bit of an aimless fly about” He shook his head, as if he was mentally shaking the thought of co-ordinates away. “So! You know that first one I presume”

You placed your hand on the biggest lever adorned with lights that usually marked the beginning of his running each time. You glanced over your shoulder at the Doctor, who was standing a few feet behind you, letting you work off what you knew. He gave a nod at your questioning look. You looked down at the lever under your hand, knowing this was something much bigger than he made it out to be. You knew he’d had many a companion before. But how many of them had flown the Tardis before? You didn’t think many, going by his surprise when you asked him to teach you.

Taking a deep breath and grinning, you tightened your grip on the dematerialization lever, yanking it downwards with a shout of ‘Geronimo!’ that made the Doctor’s grin light up like a Christmas tree.

“Now the spinny thing on the next panel- no the other spinny thing!” He called to you. The lights in the console room started flashing wildly.

“I did the spinny thing!” You insisted. He moved, standing beside you to fix the lights.

“Wrong spinny thing, this one here” He explained, pointing out another further along the panel.

“Ooh” You breathed out, nodding. “I see” He did the spinny thing himself before pointing to another cluster of buttons.

“Blue, red three times in three seconds, green. One after the other” He ordered precisely. You nodded, counting in your mind as you did so. The Tardis shook slightly and you glanced around in worry. “That’s alright, just the usual turbulence” The Doctor assured you. “But you wanna know something?”

“What?” You asked, checking the monitor.

“You’re flying the Tardis”

You froze, looking at him in shock. You’d not even realized you were still working until he looked pointedly down at where your hand was steering. You laughed suddenly.

“I am! Oh my god I’m flying the Tardis!” You cried excitedly, jumping up and down. The Doctor laughed at your enthusiasm, running over to another panel to take care of something there. The Tardis shook again and you frowned slightly, glancing at the blue switches closer to the rotor. The Doctor hadn’t mentioned them in for you to use or even in his techno-babble speech, but something told you those were what you needed. You reached out and flicked a seemingly random three of them upwards and two down and the Tardis became still. You looked around, confused. It didn’t help that the Doctor was doing the same.

“What…” He moved to the monitor, looking at it with a frown. “We’re still in flight, how…?” His mouth fell open as he seemed to realize something, looking up at the ceiling in that way that you both did to talk to the Tardis. “Oh, you…” He trailed off again, huffing annoyedly as he practically sulked over to where you were.

“What did you touch?” He demanded poutily. You frowned slightly, pointing towards the blue switches. You huffed again and did a round of the console, muttering to himself about the Tardis and River Song and ‘blue boringers’.

“Was I not supposed to?” You asked hesitantly. He waved you off to mutter a moment more before standing right behind you. He reached over to put the switches back and the Tardis hummed in complaint as the room shook again.

“The stabilizers” He muttered, making you grin as you realised what he was upset about. “The Tardis showed you the stabilizers” You bit your lip, trying and failing to hold in a laugh. He glanced at you, pouting again. “Stop it” he whined.

“Alright. I’m sorry” you conceded. You turned to him only to find he was standing a lot closer than you were expecting. Your breath caught as you realized his hands were still on the console, essentially trapping you between himself and the machine. He’d gone unusually silent also and you wondered if that meant he’d noticed.

The Tardis landed with her usual whooshing sound but neither you nor the Doctor gave her the grin you gave every other time. You barely noticed.

“I think that may be enough for today” You whispered, afraid if you spoke any louder you’d scare him off.

“Yeah” He agreed just as quietly. His eyes flickered down to your lips and you briefly wondered if breathing as little as you were would be a problem. “C-could I… I mean, would you mind…” He struggled a little. You moved a hand to rest on his chest softly, effectively cutting him off. His eyes moved between yours, as if he was looking for an answer to his unasked question.

“Can I kiss you right now?” He asked softly. You didn’t respond for a moment, still wondering if this was some kind of amazing dream you’d wake up from any moment now. Not trusting your voice, you nodded. He stared at you another moment, as if waiting for you to say no all of a sudden. Then he moved forward quickly, almost catching you off guard as his lips met yours and started moving expertly.

You could faintly taste custard on his lips and found yourself wondering why you’d never imagined that would happen. But god, he was a good kisser. Of course he was, you corrected yourself, he’s over two-thousand years old. You shifted so one hand rested on his shoulder while the other grabbed at the material of his bow tie, keeping him right where he was. That was rather handy, you realized. Perhaps you should use that more often kissing him. Because there was no way you were going to let this be a one-time thing. One of his hands moved to your waist and a moment later his other hand left the console in favour of your loose hair.

When he pulled away you found yourself realizing it had all been mere moments. But it was the best moments of your life. You laughed and he looked worried for a moment until you shot him a smile, letting him know you weren’t laughing at him. He smiled in return and soon was laughing along with you.

“I’m gonna go ahead and guess that was two thousand years of practice right there” You got out through laughter.

“Just about” He admitted, suddenly looking nervous. You smiled coyly before going on.

“How ever am I going to catch up?” You asked innocently. He smirked in return when he realized what you were doing.

“You just need practice” He told you, leaning in again. You grinned triumphantly as your lips joined once again.

And all because of that question that had been hovering in your mind. It was a good thing you asked, because this was certainly not the worst thing that could have happened.

Tag list : @dekahg

[natilepoop3]

I Have a 2006 Buick Lucerne, While Driving with AC on, a Message Come Out That Says Turn AC Off, Car Is Overhe?

If the overheating problem is being caused by the AC then change your thermostat as that is the most likely problem. Note: This is assuming that you have appropriate level of coolant and its not leaking, proper working fans that spin fast enough and spin when they are suppose to, no blown head gasket, no clogged radiator and a good radiator cover that holds the pressure required. • Other Questions Is radiator cleaner safe to use?

deposits of crud or corrosion could be sealing a potential leak. You run the risk of having a leak develop. A regularly maintained car had nothing in the cooling system that needs any cleaner.

Now if you have a nasty cooling system that hasn't been maintained then cleaning out any corrosion or build up will very likely cause a leak so I wouldn't put any cleaner in it. ------ 1997 grand am question, about removing the frame on top of the radiator? The Grand AM does not have a radiator cap, it has a pressurized resivor.

This means that the resivor is a full part of the cooling system, and not just a place for overflow. The cap on the resivor is threaded onto the resovor and is sealed just like a standard radiator cap, this is where all the filling/top offs are done, there is no radiator cap, but there is a resivor cap. Many vehicles are like this.

------ I can't get heat in my 92 GMC Sonoma, what should I do? Ive had a lot of problems with after market thermostats, even though it new dosent mesn its good, i reccomend going and buying a dealer (chevy) theromstat and then try it again, also your radiator could be stopped up and not cirulating properly, dont use the dexicool antifreeze long term i know it to stop up radiators i went through the dsame probs you are, try having the radiator recored or replace it, i bet it will work ------ wat would happen if i cover my front grille of my car will this do any harm to it? Depending on the vehicle it can absolutely do harm.

Some diesel vehicles in the winter will cover their grills with a finer mesh to limit the cold air going through, but most gasoline vehicles require the airflow. When the car is stopped, if the coolant heats up too much the radiator fans will kick on and pull the air through forcefully. If air cannot get in, the engine will overheat ------ should i buy this used car?

What year is it? If it's a '94-04 S-10, I'm not surprised that it needed a transmission seal or a valve cover gasket. Especially if it's a V6 with the automatic.

If it's an older S-10 then there will be less to go wrong, but if you do buy it make sure the seller throws in a free water pump. If the radiator needed re-coring, chances are the water pump is the next to go. ------ What is the best cleaner to clean bugs off a radiator?

I've never known anything that was considering good in removing bugs from a radiator. I drive a semi and I assure you that my truck is covered in bugs. I simply wait for them to literally dry out and then you can brush them off.

There are screens that you can get that are easy to remove and clean instead of letting them get into the vanes of the radiator. Give that a try ------ What happens when bike engine is covered with a water which is covered by a box? That would be called a 'water cooled engine' .

they usually have a radiator to exchange the heat from the water surrounding the combustion chamber and a mechanical water pump to transfer the waste heat into cooler air passing threw that radiator allowing accurate temperature control under sustained continuous use under varying load conditions . Unless you have any thing other than a new 2014 Harley Davidson.the idea has been around in commercial use far longer than a century now!

------ Can I put a couch next to a radiator? its summer time now,,right? so not to worry.

anyway a radiator will never get hot enough to start any fire. But in the winter when you need the heat you have to keep the couch about a foot away so the heat can radiate about the room. Also keep the winter drapes short so's it wont divert the heat up the wall.

Hope this helps answer your question. ------ How to replace Valve Cover Ground Cable on 2000 Honda Civic Si? Anyplace on the engine block will do it - I always thought the valve cover was an odd place for it anyway.

An alternative is to get a battery negative cable that has an extra lead to screw down to a chassis ground near the battery. That wire (in either location) provides the engine ground. If it is not making contact all sorts of weird electrical things happen ------ Recently installed 12v Bosch horns on my Accord.

I don't think that there would be any problem at all since horns found on civics (atleast those sold here in the Philippines) are installed in the same general area behind the grill and just infront of the radiator and airconditioning unit. Actually, I was thinking of replacing my stock bosch horns with FIAMM horns. They're longer and would probably be installed in the same place as my stock ones.

Peace. ------ How do I fix a radiator leak I know is in my engine? This is known problem with those engines.

I would check the timing cover on the inside. When the timing chain guides break, the chain rubs the inside of the timing cover and rubs a hole into the water jacket. Most people think that its a blown head gasket.

Aftermarket water pumps also may wear a hole in the timing cover from the impellers rubbing through. I recommend factory timing components and water pump ------ My 2006 Chevy Malibu isn't heating up right.Any suggestions?

first id check to see if thermostat is opening and closing and if its really cold put a box flap infront of radiator just dont cover the whole thing just a small part like the flap of a box works great to close off some air should help it heat up back east or up north but most likey its thermo stuck open if it doesnt get hot or it takes a long time its open and stuck ------ Anyone have any information from start to finish about a 93 Ford Tauru? The fan relay tends to go bad and is located on top of the radiator under the plastic cover. Remove the plastic top cover located around the top of the radiator.

If your going to keep the car, you might as well just buy a new fan relay and replace it. If it doesn't fix the problem, you'll have a spare if needed in the future ------ Engine overheated & will not start plus spark plugs are covered in oil. Sorry to hear, but it sounds like a blown head gasket.

Check for water or a white film on the plugs also, and if and when it does start again, look for steam coming out of the exhaust, lots of it, it may just be something simple due to it overheating. But I would be real careful, and try a junk yard for a used part like the hose. No duct tape.

. that's a shame. ------ Hi name is Jay I have a 98 Oldsmobile intrigue and I do a little work on my own.

Sounds to me Jay like your converter is plugged up. How's the acceleration? Sluggish.

Try a night drive and when it acts up, wear some old clothes and check out for an orange glow in front of the converter. Careful you don't get burnt. If it isn't that, you have a cracked head or bad head gasket and it isn't showing up yet, so watch for white smoke.

good luck. ------ Cannot find radiator bleed valve? Can anyone help?

Pictures included!? Higher pressure in boiler could be sign of many factors including air bubbles in the system.

Air comes in from where water is leaking out. So find that location. Radiators or pipes leading to radiators must have air vents to let air out.

Boilers have valves for fill or drain. If none of the above helps, the only way would be to loosen (not open) the union next to the radiator valve to let water to leak out. ------ What Does the BMW Maintenance Program Cover?

The initial 4yrs/50K miles warranty and maintenance would certainly cover those leaks. Other than that they also cover brake pads and rotors, oil change, drive belt, brake liquid, and more. For more information see: http://www.

bmwusa.com/standard/content/owner/bmwultimateservice/default.aspx The extended CPO warranty (6 yrs/100K miles) doesn't cover maintenance costs beyond the initial 4 yrs/50K miles and has some limitation on warranty compared to the initial period as well.

------ what is the plastic thing holding up my lower radiator hose? my cars a 1995 3.4 camaro?

Take a picture, and take it to any Auto parts dealer, show them the picture and explain it what it is. They can usually pull up pictures (maybe). I did this before because there was a missing cover piece at the bottom of my transaxle, they identified it for me and it was called an inspection plate.

Your piece that snapped must be called "radiator hose support" (just a random guess) ------ i need help changing my radiator on my 2000 volvo v70se? Drain rad. plug on bottom of radiator,remove fan and shroud,unplug wires, usually two screws.

may have to disconnect top hose first. remove top and bottom hoses on rad. disconnect trans.

line on side of rad. if auto trans. May have to remove plastic cover over rad.

Should be a bracket at top each end remove, then lift out. Reinstall reverse order make sure tangs on sides go into slots in frame ------ 95 12v cummins oil leak location? start fresh, pressure wash the engine.

It will not affect the engine like it would a gas engine, i do it everyday. Pressure wash every thing, the radiator, engine, the under carriage, oil pan, transmission, the works. Make sure fliuds are ful land drive it.

Possible casues: powersteering mounting gasket, front crankseal, blowby/roaddraft tube, oil pan gasket. if youneed anything , email me dieselskidz28@yahoo.ocm.

happy turkey day. alan ------ Anyone else have steam radiators throughout their house and a baby? This might sound bad, but most kids will burn their hand(s) at least once when they are little.

So sometimes it might take your kid that one time to put his hands on it and know that some things do burn. Not unless you are watching your kid 24/7 it will most likely happen. I would suggest not using them and getting the space heaters instead.

They are inexpensive and don't cost much to run them ------ How much should it cost to change radiator in 2001 chevy impala? There is a price estimate book we use in my dealership I will quote you the cost.To replace the radiator in a 2001 impala that also covers coolant,clamps,and a new radiator cap parts and labor a dealers cost is $737 plus tax.

Independent shop price for the same repair is $531 plus tax. These prices will not be off by more than 10%.Best of luck with your impala ------ is hitting a deer covered under "basic" insurance?

.or do I need collision/comp? If you have only liability or "basic" coverage, it pays nothing for damages to your own vehicle, under any circumstances.

Liability covers damages and injuries caused to others by your insured vehicle. Submitting a claim soon after changing your coverage would set off all kinds of red flags at the insurance company. You could be investigated and prosecuted for fraud.

Are you sure you want to do that? ------ Does spray painted Styrofoam help heat a house? Well, most spray paints will melt styrofoam so there's that problem.

It would be better to cover the styrofoam with foil, and quite frankly, as the radiator shouldn't be getting hot enough to affect the wall behind it you could just put the foil on the wall. I suspect the result would be negligible as most of the heat is already just going up, not so much out. ------ Reasonable radio antennas range from1 centimeter to5 meters in diameter.

What frequency range does this cover? 1cm is communications and radar. 5 meters is communications.

1 cm is about 18 GHz. 5 meters is about 56 MHz. These are estimates, so give or take a few MHz.

We use 3 cm radar on ships (9GHz) and 10 m in ham radio, which is about 28 MHz. And it isn't diameter that is important, although at high frequencies that isn't true, but the length of the antenna is important for good transmission. ------ Does using a piece of cardboard in front of you radiator really allow your car to heat up faster on cold days?

You are correct. Your thermostat will remain closed until your engine reaches the right operating tempature. Your cooling fan only comes on when your engine reaches a specific tempature, and this is well after it warms up.

The cardboard will only help if your thermostat is stuck open all the time. At that point just spend the 5 bucks and replace the thermostat instead of messing with a big peice of cardboard

[choices-and-more]

An Assassin’s Latent Desire to Love  - Memoirs from Estela’s Personal Journal (cont.)

Book 2, Chapter 13

We were shoved as prisoners by four Arachnid soldiers.  In truth, they were our friends who had to give the impression that they caught us.  We had to play this ruse in order to fool Rourke.  I was about to be placed in a stasis tank filled with the tachyon fluid that was used on Rourke back at the hotel, along with our other friends.  Mouse and Fiddler were about to shove Jake into the tank, when four other Arachnid soldiers came by and took the camera out. It was Taylor and company, and we all escaped without incident, but not before placing the soldiers within the tanks and filling it with the green tachyon fluid.  Craig knocked Fiddler out with the laser cannon he took from one of the MASADA labs.  From Hydrodynamic Stasis, we descended to the Theoretical Prismatics Laboratory, where Jake found his Catalyst Idol, a howling wolf, surrounded by security lasers.  He was able to bend the lasers and short circuit them, successfully retrieve his idol, and present it to Taylor.

We are one step closer to home.  The Island’s Heart was ready, and Zahra input the coordinates of our campus.  All we have to do now is to cross the Lernaean Gate, and we are back in Hartfeld.  Before we made it through the portal, I was having second thoughts.  I swore revenge for my mother’s death, but she wanted me to live peacefully and happily.  I now understand why she wanted me to stay in San Trobida – away from Rourke and Lila.  With Taylor by my side, we jumped through the portal.  Our bodies were being dissolved like molecules as we passed through this white light.  Suddenly, we found ourselves back...

Book 2, Chapter 14

We already reached home – but it no longer was.  The scene of what was once Hartfeld University, the college we all studied in – it was destroyed in a volcanic eruption.  All our classmates and schoolmates are dead, including those from The Freshman and Sophomore levels. Other places of interest are all gone – from my home of San Trobida, to New York, London, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, to Cordonia, Berry High, Northbridge, and Westchester.  Even the oceans are now an inferno.  The famous ship Ember of the Sea had not only sunk to the bottom, but everyone on board had been burned alive by the intense fiery sea of lava.  Not a soul was spared from this kind of hell.

Taylor found a strange amber-like armor which enabled him to determine how each and everyone of us would react.  He wore it just as expected. Beyond that, there was nothing left of Hartfeld.  We had to go back to La Huerta - back to the MASADA Complex, but the portal was already gone as Varyyn had already left for Elyys’tel.  To make matters worse, a tsunami of lava was about to splash down on us.  Taylor successfully made contact with Varyyn, informing him of the danger.  Fortunately for us, Varyyn was still trapped in MASADA, evading the guards.  Diego held Taylor’s hand to communicate with Varyyn. Quickly, he rushed back to Theoretical Prismatics and pressed several buttons to open the portal, but there was something missing.  Then, the only other choice we had was to call on Quinn to open it from our side, and activate the Heart.  We all made it back, but Aleister was getting discouraged about the events unfolding before him.

As we had to find our way back to the gondola, we came across another amber statuette in the shape of a priest with the head of a snake.  This was Aleister’s Catalyst Idol.  Just as we were making our escape, Rourke suddenly appeared in screens and monitors all over the complex.  He had learned of how we Catalysts managed to evade Rourke and his Arachnid mercenaries. 

Rourke had one final trick up his sleeve  – his son, whom he manipulated into thinking that he would jeopardize his plans of controlling time by aiding the Catalysts. Aleister, now having second thoughts, decided to betray us.  

Book 2, Chapter 15

Like father, like son - no thanks to Aleister, he sold us out to his father.  The Arachnids had us all surrounded, but Taylor wouldn’t go down without a fight.  He gave me a huge morale boost – to go down fighting or die trying.  Aleister wanted Grace spared, but she refused and wanted nothing to do with him anymore. She was escorted off together with Aleister, leaving me, Taylor, and the rest.

We were shocked even more about that bastard Rourke – he even made a fool out of his own son.  He had Lila do all his dirty work, and if there would be any loose ends, there would be no stopping Rourke from tying them up. Now that I think about it, my Catalyst Idol had already predicted that Lila would eventually be an expendable asset, and Rourke would not hesitate to kill her off.  As the Arachnids were motioning for Lila to make her move, she turned around and shot the soldiers point blank. She gunned down an entire room full of Arachnids, but one of them got to her as she was struck with a bullet wound.  She was starting to limp down to her knees.  Diego reached out to her, and she was already bleeding.

As I shouldered Diego aside, I took the gun and aimed it at Lila, getting ready to kill her for the death of my mother.  She already knew that her day of reckoning would come, and was even begging me to pull the trigger.  She was telling me to get it over with.  But Taylor, being the only person who I cared for deeply, as well as my conscience and sole voice of reason, told me to let it go. 

Looking back on that night I spent with him, he told me that justice will come for both Rourke and Lila.  Karma had already set in, and it came for her.  She makes one final stand to stop the Arachnids at the cost of her own life.  That would be her way of atoning for the sin of killing her best friend - my mother.

Sneaking our way within, Raj tripped over some wires, and dropped a mysterious device which contained the same tachyon fluid which Rourke used. Zahra said that it was a one-way transponder which we couldn’t use in reverse, such as warning others about our situation, as that would cause a temporal paradox. Sean decided to say farewell to our loved ones using the device. Taylor was right – by saying goodbye, we would have no regrets about what would happen if we would not be able to prevent the apocalypse.  Everybody took their turns – Diego, Raj, Sean, myself, Quinn, Craig, Jake, and finally Zahra.  As I passed the device to Michelle, she refused, as she pushed her loved ones away and that no one would care for her.  After Craig’s turn, he passed the device to Taylor, but he never needed it.  After all, his family are all that he has, especially me.  As I took my turn on the device, I wanted to bid farewell to my Tio Nicolas, my uncle and mentor who helped me in this mission.

As we finally reached the gondola to escape the complex, we were stalled by the Arachnid operative known as Mouse.  He had a jetpack which he used to evade our attacks.  Taylor ordered Diego, Raj, Michelle, and Varyyn to escape ahead.  We fought off Mouse with everything we got, and I was able to sweep his legs.  Jake was about to crush Mouse’s face when he discovered that the operative was his friend Mike. Mouse attempted to suffocate Jake when Taylor stabbed a screwdriver into the jetpack’s fuel compartment, thereby causing it to leak and sputter weakly. Mouse fell off without even recognizing Jake or Taylor.

We gave Rourke a taste of his own medicine by destroying the complex. Aleister, Grace, and Rourke escaped in another chopper, and Zahra hacked into the security systems operating MASADA’s processing towers.  We rushed our way into the heliport, but what we found was a chopper which we thought was a hologram.  It turned out that it appeared to be phase shifting and La Huerta was no ordinary island.  Taylor then recalled the garbled message back at the humvee – and it occurred to Jake that he had already turned himself in. Using the transponder, Jake repeated the message – and the helicopter was now real.  We had an escape vehicle – and some company. A group of Arachnids fired upon us, and Craig used the chain gun to beat back our foes. As our chopper left the port, the MASADA towers overheated and everything slowly sank to the bottom of the sea.  Lundgren, being armed with a powerful exoskeleton, flew in the direction of the helicopter and tore down the door.  He wanted his Cuban cigar back, as Jake was already smoking it.  Zahra electrocuted Lundgren using the wires from the cockpit, but not before being grabbed by him, and both fell into the open sea.  Just as we were about to rescue her, we were fired upon by Tetra, who was carrying a missile launcher. Quinn made one last stand to protect us from a direct hit on the chopper, but the tail rotor was shot and we were about to crash.

I had to grab Taylor and prevent him from falling off the helicopter. However, the chopper was spinning dizzily and we couldn’t stop it. He slipped and fell off, and I was feeling heartbroken.  How can I live a life of being alone again?  I desperately need him.

I may have been separated from him physically, but I knew deep within my heart that he is alive.  I will find him even if it takes me to the ends of La Huerta. Come back to me, Taylor.  You’re everything to me now.

Book 3, Chapter 1

So it has begun...the volcano is erupting.  Mount Atropo is finally raging.  Right after the Arachnid chopper went down, Jake and I had to split up from Sean and Craig.  Luckily for Taylor, he had been rescued by Yvonne, and together with Uqzhaal, they escaped the fiery lava of the volcano.  Just as he was trapped in the excruciating smoke, I arrived just in time to rescue him. The island is experiencing a cataclysm where time will be ripped apart thanks to Rourke tampering with it.  The past and the future are colliding.

The island was spilling lava all over the ground, and three time rifts were opened  Jake went into the first, I the second, and Yvonne the third  Taylor joined me within the second time rift, and we found ourselves within a space station, where the Earth is now a no-man’s land, and Rourke’s legacy kept his name alive for more than 800 years.  I later realized that I was getting cozy with Taylor, as his arms were wrapped around my waist, and mine around his neck. It was just like in the Observatory where he and Sean were in each other’s arms. As we were having a moment to ourselves, my eyes caught wind of a spiral-like emblem, which was Rourke’s symbol.  I hated Rourke for having murdered my mother, taken my family and friends, and destroyed everything.  I was pounding my fists into the symbol, venting my fury, but Taylor was able to calm me down. He held me in his arms, and my anger slowly melted away.  

Before we returned to the present, Taylor gave me a kiss – something I had wanted for a long time.  I let my tongue slip into his mouth, dancing around with it.  I’ve missed him so dearly, and I wanted more than anything else to be in bed with him.  From the time we made love in The Celestial, the Jeweled Cave, the Elysian Lodge, and before crossing the MASADA - I not only desire to kiss him, but I also want him to strip me completely.  And I mean, not just my clothes off, but also my virginity.  For now, I am willing to wait for that, and when it comes, I am ready to give myself to him.

A mysterious specter appeared before us as we reached Colonnade Cove in the northern shores of the island. The specter was observing me, and it handed something to Taylor.  It was a photo which I had kept in San Trobida, and it showed my mother, my uncle, and me. The photo was burned along with my home, but it was apparently saved.

After seeing the future which could have been, I have changed entirely.  I am no longer ruled by anger, vengeance, and hatred.  I am now resolved to fight for a future for everyone. This is my goal now, as shown in my Ember of Hope, where I told my uncle that I wanted to start a family.  As for Taylor, I will not lose him again.  I may have lost my mother, but no way will I let Rourke take everyone away – not only my friends, but also the most important person in my life – my soulmate.  I will protect him like my own flesh and blood, and am proud to be called his soon-to-be wife.

[drdiandralp]

Does NASCAR Need Practices?

The COVID crisis has forced us to think outside the box. Three months ago, we wouldn't have considered midweek races, racing without fans or racing without qualifying or practice. Now, those things are not only possibilities, they're necessary. Last Sunday at Darlington -- the first race back from the COVID-induced break -- was widely hailed as a success. Although the second race was marred by rain, both races went fine, even without qualifying or any practice. Which raises the question: If the Darlington experiment was so successful, do we really need practices?

Does Darlington Prove We Don't Need Practices.

You hear me tsk-ing, right? Because you know how I feel about making arguments based on one race, or even two. But the reason we can't make the argument based on Darlington is even strong: These were far from typical Darlington races. That's not to say they weren't successful. We were ready for racing and even non-NASCAR fans decided to give it a try. The problem is that both races were run under extraordinary circumstances, and the circumstances were different. The first race back came after drivers and crew had long layoff periods (plus no practice or qualifying). The first race back came after drivers and crew had long layoff periods (plus no practice or qualifying). Teams were working in shifts that didn't allow for their normal routinesThe second race was delayed, then rain-shortened, which always adds a little extra sense of urgency and puts more emphasis on strategy. The Data You can look at yesterday's post for the data, but here's how these races differed from an 'average' Darlington race. 'Average' is being in the middle two quartiles of races from 2000-2020 Higher percentages of cars finished on the lead lap: 60% vs. about 42%Sunday's race had a smaller-than-average number of drivers who led the race, which Wednesday's race set a record for most number of drivers leading.Green flag passes per lap were on the low side Sunday and much lower than usual on Wednesday.Wednesday's race set a record for percentage of race run under caution: 26%. The average is 14% Sunday's race was 19.5% cautions.There was only one green-flag pass for the lead that wasn't during a restart on Sunday vs. 5 on Wednesday -- and Wednesday's race was shorter.If you thought there might be more accidents and spins Sunday because it was the first time back in the car in awhile, you'd be wrong.There were 5 accidents and 2 spins on SundayVersus 7 accidents and 1 spin on Wednesday, despite being more than 100 miles shorter. That's a record for accidents per mile at Darlington.

Neither race makes a strong case for -- or against-- eliminating practices. But there are other reasons. We'll look at the pro side first.

Reasons to Eliminate Practices

The two biggest reasons for eliminating practices are to save money, and because they don't add anything to the racing. Money Cost-cutting was a priority in NASCAR before COVID. They've introduced 'enhanced schedule' weekends and limited the number of people each team can bring to the track. They've also instituted limits on wind tunnel testing and on-track testing tests, and trimmed Speedweeks. Saving Money on the Road Dave Caldwell estimated that it takes 2000-2500 people to put on a NASCAR race without fans. If we take the middle of that range (2250 people) and assume an average hotel room rate of is $100 (which a low estimate, but some people share rooms), staying one less night would save almost a quarter of a million dollars. If you could do that for half the races (18), that's $4M dollars saved. A side benefit of fewer nights on the road is that you're saving wear and tear on your people. Constant traveling is exhausting. Saving Money in the Shop Eliminating practice eliminates practice crashes. Without practice, there's no need for a backup car. That save the owners money on cars and personnel. Racing Quality If practices don't improve the racing, why have them? Technology Does Everything Practice Does I've written a lot about the technology that has become commonplace in NASCAR. Tools help engineers devise optimal setups for different tracks, crew chiefs determine pit strategy and drivers prepare for tracks they've never run before.

High-quality simulators give drivers a near-reality experience. Programs can be tailored to each track and each driver's style. Data from previous races helps drivers understand what works for them. And what doesn't.Computer modeling tools range from computational fluid dynamics for aero to suspension simulations that tell you how the racecar will handle in any corner.Hardware simulators, such as seven-post rigs, engine dynos and wind tunnels give real, hands-on measurements that can validate the computer simulations.Artificial Intelligence strategy programs are starting to become common because they can take the entire history of the track and every can on it and give you probabilities of how far you'll get ahead if you take two tires vs. four. History. Teams get so much data from their own notes, plus access to everyone's data from the track. They are accumulating terrabytes of data and computer specialists to analyze it. NASCAR could have one-day practices when a track repaves or re-configures, but otherwise, teams have plenty of tools to use to set-up the car. And they could be given the chance to make changes after qualifying. Eliminate Practices? Yes. So there you have it: Eliminating practices would save everyone money, would save stress on people, and, because we have so much good technology, the racing will be just as good.

Reasons to Keep Practices

Now let's take a look at the arguments on the other side. Money It's hard to argue with saving teams money, especially now, but let's look at the impacts of those savings. Teams may have to let go some employees, but the impact outside NASCAR is significant. Fewer Opportunities for Interaction Less time at the track means fewer opportunities for sponsors to hold events. Television time is an important component of why businesses sponsor NASCAR, but it's not the only one There would also be less time for fans to meet drivers. NASCAR prides itself on its accessibility, but there are a finite number of things you can do in a finite amount of time. Impact on Tracks

Less time at the track decreases the amount of money tracks can make from food and beverage sales, and camping rentals. It's less money for the people who work at the tracks. A number of tracks have invested money in areas that give fans access to the garage without getting in the way of the work. There won't be too much to watch if there are no practices.. Souvenir haulers will have fewer hours for sales. Impact on Local Economy Decreasing the amount of time at the track also takes money from the local economy. That might make cities and municipalities less welcoming. Less need for hotel rooms might decrease the prices, but might also drive hoteliers near some of the more remote tracks to shutter their doors. Racing Quality I can't argue with the appeal of showing up and 'racing what you brung'. It's old school in the best way. But there are some other considerations Team Sports Need Practice Say you arrive to play doubles tennis in an important tournament and, instead of your regular partner, you're suddenly playing with someone you've only played with a few times before. That's Chad Johnston and Matt Kenseth. Or any new crew chief/driver combination, including rookies. Crew chiefs manage drivers the same way drivers manage tires. There's a big difference between talking strategy over lunch and the pressure of a race. Some drivers really do become different people when they put on their helmets. Crew chiefs become different people when they're up on the pit box, too. No practice means no time for drivers and crew chiefs to develop a relationship. It favors established teams and puts new ones at a disadvantage. You wouldn't send a group of guys who'd never worked together out to pit a car. Why would you take the same kind of risk with the rest of the team? Cars Need Shake Outs Before Racing Martin Truex, Jr. ran only 41 laps of the 2018 Indianapolis race before his left-front brake rotor exploded. Remember the Speedweeks when the vendor-supplied coating on engine parts failed and Hendrick Motorsports had to replace all their engines before the 500? Practice laps gives a team a chance to make sure there are no big problems. In addition to it being a safety issue, imagine the frustration for fans. You aren't going to be happy if you wait all year to see your favorite driver and he or she crashes out on lap 1 because someone forgot to tighten something. Even without race-ending parts failures, do you want to see races where winning is determined by how well you set up the car before you leave? If you're one of those people who wants races in the hands of the drivers, the best race is one where each driver has the car he or he wants. Computers Don't Race: People Do Every race engineer or crew chief has a story about setting up the car to be maximally fast according to the computer and it isn't. Maybe the driver doesn't feel confident enough in the car to push it. Maybe the driver just hates loose racecars. Every driver has different preferences -- some which change on a week-to-week basis. A large part of practice is adjusting the car, not only to the track, but to the driver. Larger Teams are Less Impacted by Eliminating Practice Smaller teams can't afford custom-developed suspension simulations and computational fluid dynamics. They also have less access to manufacturer resources than the larger teams. The more racing depends on technology, the further behind smaller, newer teams will fall. That's not a recipe for attracting new teams or manufacturers. Innovation Teams find new ideas from computer simulations and wind tunnels and such. But they rarely can afford to take a chance testing a new idea in a race. There's too much at stake. Computer output is only as good as the person who wrote the program and the data input. Sometimes (gasp!) even computers are wrong.

So The Answer Is...

The Darlington races, enjoyable as they were, don't prove that practices are unnecessary. But they weren't disasters, either, so they didn't prove that practices are necessary. The answer is (as in boringly common) probably a compromise. There's probably a schedule in which there is one practice, and then qualifying. Although the SiriusXM morning show guys this morning were talking about whether qualifying is necessary... TO BE CONTINUED... Read the full article

[cuddlesnowy]

Sonic and Tails in Castle Eggman Zone - Act 5

In the final installment of this adventure, our heroes are trapped in a confrontation with Dr. Robotnik himself! Can they escape the castle in time, or must every good Zone end with a boss fight? Read the gripping finale after...you guessed it....the jump.

Act 5

 Sure enough, moments after these words had left Sonic’s mouth; Dr. Robotnik strode into the room, looking incredibly pleased with himself.

“That was just too easy! Everything’s gone egg-sactly to plan!”

Sonic began squirming uncomfortably within the guard’s grip.

“Alright, you can do what you want to us, but please don’t start with the egg puns!”

Robotnik winced a little, not wanting his moment in the spotlight interrupted.

“Puns or no puns, Sonic, you and your little fox friend are trapped and your fun ends here!” Sonic stopped struggling, instead going with the flow. He was very used to the doctor’s dramatic speeches.

“Yeah, yeah, you caught me. But what’s with the whole castle thing? Even for one of your traps, this is weird!”

A big grin appeared below Robotnik’s moustache, “So, it’s exposition you want? Well that’s just what you’re about to get!”

“Hang tight, Tails,” said Sonic under his breath “this next paragraph is gonna be a long one…”

Robotnik cleared his throat and begun,

“You see, I’m sick and tired of always having my plans thwarted and my bases destroyed, it starts to get a little costly having to re-scheme and rebuild all the time, you know. It was high time to up my defences, and what better defence than a castle? If it’s disguised and out of the way, no-one can bother me while I get on with my work, and on the offhand chance someone does stumble in, well, my dastardly decoys and traps will soon take care of that! And just like that, my plans are safe from any meddlesome freedom fighters like you two! Perhaps I should have kept that last part under wraps, but there’s nothing you can do to stop me now, for your little castle tour is over! GUARDS! TAKE THEM AWAY! ….Heh, I’ve always wanted to say that!”

           “So much for trying to stall for time,” said an irritated Sonic, trying to break loose the bars of the cell he was now trapped inside. “At least it’s a better view than the dungeon, but still not my idea of comfort!” The cell door was guarded by another robot that didn’t seem to be keeping too close an eye on them, but still made any attempts to escape seem rather futile. Sonic and Tails had spent the last few minutes pulling at, spinning at and poking limbs through the jail bars and no new ideas had come to light. That was until Tails tapped Sonic on the shoulder. When the blue hedgehog turned, he saw his friend with a big smile on his face and brandishing a familiar sword.

“Tails, you’re on fire today!” cheered Sonic, once again impressed by the small fox’s resourcefulness. The blade slipped through the bars with ease, and within a few moments, Tails was able to slash at the lock, sending it clattering to the ground.

“Wuh-oh!” said Tails. The noise had alerted the guard who had turned to face them wielding a large lance.

“Leave this one to me!” Sonic called out, swinging the prison door aside. He speedily dodged all of the robot’s jabbing motions, and although its large shield made spinning into it a problem, a quick spin jump on the head soon put the knight out of commission.

“Just one more thing…” he added, taking Tails’ sword and lobbing it at a “hidden” camera in the corner, “Now Eggman can’t watch us break outta this joint!”

           The two had made their way back into the main hall and without Robotnik anywhere in sight they felt free to take their time. Tails watched on as Sonic paced up and down, a puzzled expression on his face.

“There’s just one thing I don’t get. If Robotnik really does keep his evil plans here, then how come we haven’t found them yet? We saw every nook and cranny of those dungeons, and nadda!”

“Do you think we have time for one more look?” asked Tails, ascending above the ground and circling the room. But it didn’t take very long for Tails’ tails to stop spinning, and quicker than usual, Tails descended back down, exhausted. Considering they had originally entered for shelter, it was no surprise really that this night was beginning to take its toll. Tails recalled their introduction to the castle and how they weren’t able to get anything from the banquet, let alone have a moment’s rest. It wasn’t just him. When Tails looked at Sonic, he could see it in his friend’s eyes. For once, Sonic was tired out too.

“On second thought,” he decided “Maybe we should take it easy for a few minutes…”

Sonic agreed, and after checking the coast was clear, he lead the way to the sleeping quarters. It was why they came here after all, and even if the situation wasn’t safe enough to sneak in some shut eye, the least they could do was put their feet up for a minute while Robotnik’s guard was down. Tails pointed to a small, yet welcoming room. A lit torch filled it with a warm glow, revealing a large double bed. Sonic, who hadn’t had the pleasure of trying out one of the castle bedrooms yet, took first dibs and dived onto the mattress. It seemed cosy enough, bar a strange crinkling noise from under the pillow. Feeling this was off; he jumped back onto his feet and fished something out from underneath. He emerged holding a roll of blueprint paper, which he immediately unfurled and presented to Tails.

“Talk about an anticlimax! He builds an entire castle fortress, and then goes and hides his secret plans under his pillow! Ha!” While Sonic couldn’t help but be amused at this turn of events, it was clear what had to be done next. There was no more time for lounging about, just to keep hold of the plan and get out of there! If they could slip away and decipher the blueprints, they could beat Robotnik at his game and put a stop to his next evil scheme before it was even in motion.

           With a single nod as their signal, Sonic and Tails sprinted out of the room and towards the entrance. Just before they reached their goal, the front doors slammed shut loudly.

“It’s no good, they’re locked!” cried Tails, pushing against them with all his might. It was clear that Robotnik wasn’t going to let them go that easily. Sonic grinned, all traces of tiredness now wiped from his face. The adrenaline of finding the plans was just the sort of energy he needed, and just the sort he liked.

“If Robotnik wants us to fight to the finish, it’s a fight he’s gonna get!” So far, Sonic had admittedly not been taking the adventure that seriously, but things had just got interesting. He turned to Tails and winked,

“Whaddya say? You up for an exciting quest?”

“Aye, Sir Hedgehog! Tis a most splendid adventure!”

“Okay, Tails, no more of that fancy talk!” insisted Sonic. Tails nodded, and the two set off again in the opposite direction.

           If the front exit was blocked off, the next step was to head to the back. Sonic bolted down corridors, tearing through any badnik which would get in his way, and Tails followed closely behind, helping out where he could. It wasn’t long before they reached the back door and the two skidded to a halt in the courtyard. They stood and inspected their surroundings. It was good to be back on grass again, but there didn’t seem to be any way out of the castle grounds from here. Castle walls lined with colourful flags formed a circle around the large patch of land and the few archways leading out were barred off. Raised above them were long rows of seating which on closer inspection were filled with onlooking robots. It was as though they had walked in on some sort of arena. But before they could turn back, their view darkened as an enormous shadow lingered over their heads, followed by an almighty roar. Looking above, Sonic and Tails saw an enormous dragon shaped figure descending. Of course, like everything else they had encountered, it was a fake, the engineering work of Dr. Eggman, but it was still an impressive and powerful looking beast, and no doubt the castle’s final trap. But what was an adventure without a battle to finish it off?

“We’re going on a dragon hunt!” called Sonic.

“We’re not scared!” replied Tails, as the two faced towards the now landed dragon, ready for action.

           No sooner than they had poised for attack, a stream of fire emitted from the dragon’s mouth, and Sonic and Tails were forced to dive in opposite directions to avoid getting hit. Sticking together during the fight was going to be tough work. As soon as the two could see each other again past the fire, they signalled each other with a serious nod and prepared for attack once more. Their synchronised spin jump was poorly timed however, as before they could make contact, the dragon took off again, leaving them to abruptly land, skidding to a halt along the ground to stop themselves overbalancing. Sonic frowned for a moment, before realising that he had flight on his side too.  

“Hey Tails,” he called out to his buddy, “Use your tails to take out the wings! I’ll deal with the flames!” Tails whirled up his two tails like a helicopter rotor and flew upwards after the dragon. His tails were moving at such a speed that whenever they made contact with the wings there was a loud scraping noise as sparks flew.

“I think it’s working!” Tails squeaked, barely making his voice heard over the noise. If he kept at it, the wings would soon be weakened enough to keep the dragon earthbound. Sonic meanwhile, was concentrating on his own safety, dodging and weaving past flames, which he soon noticed were being fired from a flamethrower within the “creature’s” mouth. As he jumped and ran, he could see the ground around him getting scorched, singeing the once green grass. He did not want to get caught up in those flames! While he was trying to figure out the best way of taking the weapon out, there was an almighty crash as the dragon came hurtling down to the ground, its wings now tattered and smoking and its means of flight now gone. Sonic jolted out of the way just in time and spotted Tails making a safe descent by the back legs.

“I did it-WAAAAH!” Before Tails could finish his sentence, a large green tail had attempted to hit him from behind. Jumping over it like a skipping rope, he managed to avoid the hit, only he was now the one behind. The tail swung back for a frontal hit, and Tails, barely able to register the first attack yet, wasn’t so lucky this time. He clutched hold of the robotic tail as it made contact so as not to be knocked down by its force, only this made the situation worse. The tail kept on moving with Tails attached, and the fox was left clinging on to it helplessly, trying not to fall. This feat was made harder by the fact that the dragon’s tail was swinging about viciously, attempting to fling him off into the castle’s walls. It was like a particularly intense game of bucking bronco.

“Sooniic! Heelp!” he cried out, already feeling dizzy.

“Hang on, Tails!” replied Sonic.

“I am!”

Sonic knew he had to get to the other side to get to Tails, but there was still the problem of the flames. Now, if there was one thing Sonic was good at judging, it was speed, and he could tell this dragon was not built for speed. He jumped up on the steps for maximum manoeuvrability and began to head towards Tails. Unfortunately, he was spotted, and the dragon began turning too, spewing out flames as it moved, forcing Sonic to run laps around the colosseum.

“Sorry about this, Tails!” he called out, imagining how hard the addition of circular movements must be on his friend. Sonic was right, however, the dragon was no match for his speed, and no matter how much it moved, the fire breath never caught up with the speedy hedgehog. Instead, when Sonic looked back, he saw that the flames had instead been accidentally taking out the robot bystanders, several of which were now in ruin.

“Aaugh! My beautiful bots, battered and broken!” called out a familiar voice. Sonic stopped and looked down at the dragon. Dr. Robotnik had just revealed his location! Sonic threw himself off the raised stairs, curling himself into a ball as he did so, and aimed for a crash collision course with the dragon’s chest. As he rammed into his target, Sonic kept spinning until a plate of green, scaly metal came off, revealing a window underneath. Inside, a rather frantic looking Robotnik was at a control panel, its various buttons, switches and leavers controlling the beast’s functions. He was surrounded by monitors displaying a feed of the surroundings.

The sudden damage to his vehicle had taken him by surprise, and he momentarily lost track of the tail’s control, leaving it to fall limp and drop Tails. It didn’t take long for Robotnik to recover however, and soon he was in full control again, grinning menacingly at Sonic.

“I’ll get you yet, hedgehog!”

The flamethrower started back up again at full force. Only now the arena had seen a lot of damage, leaving there less room to manoeuvre. Sonic had an idea. This could be used to his advantage.

“How’s your football skills, Tails?”

This wasn’t exactly the sort of question Tails, who was still recovering from the dragon ride, wanted to hear. He held his head and shut his eyes tight for a moment in hopes of getting his bearings back quicker. Sonic was going to need his co-ordination skills to be top notch.

“You see that rock in front of you? Pass it to me!” Sonic was pointing to a piece of rubble that has crumbled off the stairs earlier. Tails gave the thumbs up, and kicked the rock towards Sonic. He wasn’t sure if he was just strong enough to take it or if Robotnik had simply cheaped out on the stone, but thankfully doing so didn’t injure Tails’ foot. It was Sonic’s turn now, and going in for a running kick, he sent the rock flying.

“GOOOAL!” Sonic cheered, throwing his hands up in the air. The rock, as intended, had jammed up the flamethrower, which was now unusable. Robotnik slammed his fists down on the console in frustration. Not only had he been made vulnerable, but now his primary means of attack had gone.

            With Sonic and Tails back together and Robotnik almost powerless, it was time to finish this mecha dragon once and for all!

“Let’s do it, Sonic!” suggested Tails, confidentially. Now that the inner mechanisms were exposed, their synchronised spin jump wasn’t going to fail. The two leapt up for the final hits.

SMACK!

It worked. The mech began glowing red and smoking, vibrating heavily as it did so. There was no way it was in action anymore. Even above the sound of failing mechanics, Robotnik’s tantrum could be heard.

“I don’t believe it! I-I won’t! All of my traps! My castle! All for nothing! Why can’t I ever have nice things?!”

The source of the glowing became clear as the dragon went up in flames. Destroying a mech with fire attacks was going to have an explosive result. A moment later something burst out from inside. It was Robotnik in his egg-mobile, the dragon control panel still present.

“Too bad you’re too slow to prevent my impending escape! Mua ha ha ha!” The Egg-mobile rose upwards and began to leave the castle grounds. No matter how heated up their battles got, Robotnik always seemed to get away at the last minute. Tails began to run in hope of somehow catching up, but Sonic stopped him. Not only was their foe too far ahead, but the dragon fire was spreading rapidly. Soon the whole arena would be up in flames. It was simply too hazardous to stick around.

“We’ll just have to let Eggman one up us…as usual!” said Sonic, turning back indoors.

“Besides, we still have his plans!” piped in Tails in a sing song-y voice. As long as they could successfully escape the castle, all was not lost.

           It wasn’t long before the two had made it back across the castle to the front entrance. Unfortunately, nothing had changed from before, and the front door was still sealed shut.

“What now?” asked Tails. Even without Robotnik’s presence, he’d still managed to make things difficult. Sonic shrugged. There had to be some other way out. The question was where? It was then Tails spotted something he’d missed before. Along the far side of the floor, a single, open drain exposing water ran across the floor.

“Follow me!” Tails took the lead as he followed the water from room to room until he finally got results - the castle drainage room, where the drain became wider and deeper. It lead to a small gap which when Tails looked closely; he could see the outdoors through.

“It’s the way out!” he decided, before turning to Sonic. Sonic wasn’t smiling. Some of that bravado which he had before was now lost. If there had to be just one exit left, why did it have to be via the castle moat?

           It had been quite the underwater trek, and Tails airlifted Sonic out of the moat and towards land. The two were both soaking and dripping. Tails was feeling good. For such a strange adventure, he thought he had been particularly brave. As he stood on the grass and watched the sun rise, his excitement for all they had been through and achieved didn’t wane.

“What should we do now Sonic? Should we run back to my workshop and try to decode the blueprints? Maybe we could have a race back!”

Sonic gave a weak smile back, appreciative of Tails’ enthusiasm, but unable to give much in reply.

“Whoa there, lil’ buddy! It’s been a busy night. Whatever happened to hitting the hay?” Tails looked closer at this friend, wet and shivering from the cold. As the two made their way back into the woodlands, he couldn’t help but wonder; had Sonic actually been scared back there? Surely not! After all, he was the most noble (and the coolest) hero of the land!

 Zone Clear

[yumekuimono]

[WinterFrost] Everyone But Yourself Pt. 4/5

A/N: warning for non-permanent injury & a little bit of 30/40s homophobia

if you remember the deleted scene I posted a while back, the new and improved version is in here

They went to the Met for their second date, Loki casting a slight glamour over them both so that nobody would be inclined to recognize them. New Yorkers being what they were, it was unlikely they’d have been bothered in any case, but Bucky was glad for the privacy anyhow. Neither did he argue when Loki informed him that for the spell to extend best to Bucky they should remain in physical contact. He just linked their fingers together with a smile and let Loki lead.

They wandered through various galleries, taking their time. Loki snickered at the statues of Greek deities, and Bucky had to admit that he’d absorbed enough of Steve’s nattering about art theory that he couldn’t really complain about not understanding any of the paintings, even if he’d never be enthusiastic about them. They both quickly grew bored of the endless Western European Christian art. Then it became a quest to find the most interesting and obscure artwork from around the world. They ate lunch in the museum and only left when it closed. Outside, they wandered arm in arm down Fifth Avenue, their breaths steaming in the streetlights as it started to snow.

“It’ll be Christmas soon,” Bucky observed. “Do you have a winter holiday?”

Loki turned his face up to watch the snow fall. “Asgard celebrates Yuletide. The whole city is lit through the night, and it is a time of much feasting and merriment.”

“Sounds about right. D’you want anything?”

“Mmm, new daggers maybe, to replace those confiscated from me. Do you?”

Bucky huffed, his breath pluming. “Dunno. We never had the money for anything fancy when I was a kid. I just want you.”

Loki tugged them to a stop and leaned in to kiss him, nose cold against his cheek, but smiling. “You have me.”

They had dinner at a Chinese restaurant, warming themselves on thick hot and sour soup and cups of tea. Then they went home and chased the last traces of cold from each other’s skin, falling asleep in a tangle of limbs.

By the time the Avengers returned and the next mission came around, Bucky felt much better.

 -

Unfortunately, the next mission targeted  an illegal arms dealer supplying HYDRA, and word had already gone around that the Winter Soldier was with the Avengers. The team got bogged down fighting a swarm of heavily armed combat drones, and no one but Loki noticed James being separated out from the group until it was too late. The Soldier ran lost through corridors of shipping containers filled with contraband, trying to gain some breathing room to turn on the drones on his tail. And then, just as he reached a dead end, an explosion on his heels drove him hard into the door of a container, the metal clanging with the impact of his head. James crumpled to the ground.

Loki dove. He shifted in midair, coming down hard on the leading drone, his jaws crushing rotors and metal plating. Landing, he shook his head violently, further crumpling the machine, then tossing it aside with a sneeze when his teeth pierced the fuel cell. He growled at the swarm hovering before him as they assessed his threat designation, fangs bared and hackles bristling. Before their rudimentary AI could decide how to proceed, Loki sprang forward again, jumping up the side of a container to bring down another drone. This time when he landed he left an illusion in his wake, bullets and lasers passing through it as half a dozen targeting systems locked on.

Loki killed drone after drone, pulling out all his tricks. He cast illusions, made himself invisible, changed his shape, and teleported, slipping their targeting and taking them down from above, where they were vulnerable. He fought tooth and claw, snarling his defiance. By the time there were none left to threaten James, Loki’s sides were heaving and his mouth and paws bled from multiple lacerations. A bullet had grazed his shoulder. He stood guard over James, waiting for the next wave to come.

Instead what came was Falcon, and Loki held off until he was sure Wilson had spotted them before shifting. Concealing himself from sight, he hid against James, watching as Falcon came to a landing, scanning the area before he knelt at James’ side.

“Hey, Barnes, you with me?”

James took a long moment to respond. “…Sam?”

“Yeah. Looks like you went down pretty hard. Can you tell me what hurts?”

James blinked a few times, frowning, then licked his lips. “Head. Arm. The…the regular one.”

“Okay. Can you follow my finger?” Wilson held up his index finger, waving it slowly before James’ eyes. Then he felt gently at James’ right arm. “Alright, well it looks like you might be concussed, and your arm has a fracture. Hold on, and I’ll be back with a med kit.” He took off, relaying the information into his comm.

When he returned, Wilson efficiently strapped a splint onto James’ forearm. He confirmed the concussion, and dressed the wound on James’ head. Then he wrestled him into a carry, grumbling, “Jesus, you supersoldiers are heavy.” Loki dug his claws into the leather and Kevlar of James’ uniform, clinging on as they took off.

On the quinjet, Sam laid James down flat on a bench. Loki moved silently out of the way for JARVIS’ medical scans as Sam found a heavy orange shock blanket to tuck around him.

“Battle’s almost done, looks like. I can stay to monitor you or JARVIS can do it.”

“’M fine. You can go.”

As soon as Falcon had left, Loki jumped up on the bench, sitting at the uninjured side of James’ head. He was still invisible, but James turned towards him anyway, his eyes closed and face creased with pain.

“Loki kotyenok?” he whispered, his voice heavy and slurred.

Loki rubbed his jaw gently over James’ forehead above one eyebrow, then turned his face back in to nuzzle the spot. James sighed, and Loki laid down to take his weight off of his front paws, letting James lean his head on his back as he settled in to let his healing take care of his own injuries.

 -

Bucky’s head was throbbing, and the bench underneath him was spinning. His arm hurt, and when the team finally clambered onboard, the noise and the bright lights of the ‘jet powering up felt like they were stabbing into his brain. Loki was there though, Loki had defended him. Bucky had watched through swimming vision as a wolf he thought seemed larger than usual had torn through the swarm of HYDRA drones. He wasn’t sure if the part where the wolf kept disappearing and sometimes there were two of them was real or not, but it was Loki, so it probably was. He didn’t want to think about it too hard though, because his head hurt, and he was tired.

Sam got the team to quiet down and the lights around him to dim after a while, which was nice, but he wouldn’t let Bucky sleep. He kept waking him up. Sam explained it was necessary to monitor the concussion, but it still made him irritable. The first time, he opened his eyes expecting to see the black fur he could feel pressed against his face and instead found himself looking at the bulkhead of the ‘jet. He frowned, and made the mistake of asking, “Loki?” out loud.

“Your cat’s not here,” Sam reminded him. Fortunately he seemed to take it as confusion from the concussion.

When Sam had gone, Bucky glanced over to make sure no one was looking and then shifted onto his left side to further shield their view. Loki flicked into sight, blinked at him, and disappeared again. A raspy tongue licked his nose. Bucky smiled and leaned his forehead back against Loki’s side.

At the Tower he still wasn’t allowed to sleep. Sam said he had to be monitored for at least twenty-four hours, but at least he agreed to let JARVIS do it. In reality what this meant was that Loki took over as soon as they were back in their apartment, actually voluntarily interacting with JARVIS to do so. Even after he was off concussion watch, though, his sleep was restless, broken up and never feeling deep enough. He dreamed of being chased, running from HYDRA only for them to catch Loki instead, and Bucky would wake in a terror. When he was lucky, he would need to make sure that Loki was still in bed with him whole and unharmed, and Loki would let him cling without complaint. On multiple occasions though, he wasn’t so fortunate, and he nearly hit Loki, striking out on instinct while still half-asleep.

The second time Loki deflected a fist and folded him into an embrace, gently pinning his arms and murmuring “James” in his ear until he was awake, Bucky couldn’t hold back the tears. “I’m sorry,” he choked out. He wanted to say, “You’re not safe with me,” but instead he found himself curling his hands around Loki’s bare hips.

“I am never in danger from you,” Loki whispered, and Bucky cried harder because it wasn’t true. Even if Loki only meant he wasn’t in danger of Bucky hurting him, just by staying he was in danger from HYDRA, and the Avengers, and Thor finding out who he was and taking him back to Asgard.

He wanted so desperately to say, “Don’t leave me,” but the words stuck in his throat behind all the others he couldn’t say. Eventually, Bucky cried himself into exhaustion.

In the morning, he forced himself to bring it up again. Loki looked straight at him and said, “Yes.” Then he reached out and took Bucky’s hand. “But I take those risks knowledgably and willingly to be here.”

“Oh.”

They lounged around on the common floor for a few days, Bucky idly chatting with anyone who happened to be free, but everyone else was soon consumed with tracking down whoever had ordered the reclamation of the Winter Soldier. Ordinarily, Bucky wouldn’t have minded, but he was supposed to limit his mental exertion while he was recovering, which apparently included reading, and both computer screens and anything more than the lightest of workouts painfully exacerbated his symptoms. All of which severely diminished his options for how to pass the time. The boredom and forced physical idleness threatened to drive him crazy. Bucky suddenly realized what it must have felt like for Steve all those years ago. And while he wasn’t going to be getting into any fistfights he couldn’t win, he did sometimes feel like stabbing something.

Loki was the one who finally got him to rest as he was supposed to, persuading him into lying down on the couch with his head in Loki’s lap and his broken arm propped on his knees. Then Loki would card his long fingers through Bucky’s hair and tell stories. Some days he would simply read aloud, and Bucky would fall asleep to the soothing rhythm of his voice. Other days Loki would spin his own tales, long, fantastic things only parts of which were true, and Bucky would keep himself awake to hear every word. He loved listening to Loki’s stories, and especially to Loki telling them. After one day in which a well-meaning trickster had his lips sewn shut as punishment for his clever words, Bucky made sure to say so.

Loki had a face for when Bucky did things like this, praised things he used to be mistrusted for. Surprised, and quietly pleased, and a little vulnerable. As it turned out, making out with Loki was also allowed, and a very enjoyable use of his time.

 -

In all, James’ injuries kept him off duty for three weeks, and with not much else for him to do apart from occasional therapy appointments, Loki ended up keeping him near constant company. The time that James was usually away that Loki had begun using to search for the Casket of Ancient Winters was now taken up by telling tales to keep James entertained while he rested. Where once he would have resented the interruption of his work, Loki found he didn’t mind. Being with James made him happy. It scared him sometimes, just how much.

He’d never had something like this before, and he knew with growing certainty that he wanted desperately to keep it. And James would notice, in the hours they spent lying in each other’s arms on the couch with their feet tangled together, when too many teeth slipped in, and he would pull back to ask what Loki needed. Sometimes it was to pull James’ shirt off and suck bruises into his shoulder and collarbones. They would fade in a few hours, but he was always careful to leave them where they wouldn’t be noticeable, as much as he might want to the contrary. Sometimes it was just to stop, and be held, and let James stroke his hair. Sometimes he hardly knew what he needed, but that was alright because James was there.

By the time the Avengers had completed their latest mission in all of its drawn-out complexity, Loki had nearly forgotten that he was in hiding. It was strange to be a cat again when they joined the post-mission meal, which this time was large quantities of Thai food. He found himself repeatedly remembering that he couldn’t speak in this form, and having to remind himself of appropriate feline behavior. At least James seemed to be having the same problem, judging from the amount of times he appeared about to say something to Loki only to change his mind.

“Terminator, have you been talking to your cat?” Stark asked.

“I ain’t had much else to do lately since I got exploded into a wall,” James replied.

“You mean getting exploded into a wall was what finally sent you over the edge?” Barton asked faux-dramatically, eyes wide and mouth half full.

“No, I think that’s just what all cat people do,” Sam said, but James sat up.

“Are you questioning my sanity, Clint?”

That prompted a minor food fight, which was ended when Loki batted a spring roll out of the air and ate the shrimp out of it.

Barton turned to Natasha, flinging a hand at him. “The hell do you mean he’s not a birder?”

She just rolled her eyes. Internally, Loki agreed.

It was nearing Christmas, so the Avengers put their activity on hold for the holiday. Stark bought a ridiculously large tree for the common floor, and everyone spent an afternoon decorating it. Loki entertained himself by climbing into the branches and refusing to move, watching haughtily from on high as they were forced to go around him and leave a spot bare of lights and tinsel. Of course he got down as soon as a picture was about to be taken. Rogers insisted on stringing popcorn and cranberries to hang on the tree, although he ended up having to make a second and third bowl of popcorn because the others kept eating it. Loki stole a spool of his string, chasing it across the floor until he could hide it when no one was looking. When Rogers finally noticed, Loki was across the room, casually lying on top of the Hulk ornament that was part of a handmade set of the whole team a fan had sent in, once again refusing to move.

Banner blinked down at him. “You know, Bucky, I don’t think I’ve known a cat that was as non-active as yours yet still made as much trouble.”

James laughed when he saw Loki squishing the Hulk-ornament’s head, but then Thor came over, reaching for him and declaring, “Not to worry, I shall soon solve the problem and free your tiny likeness.”

Loki fled into James’ arms.

On Christmas morning, Rogers dragged James out to a church service and then to volunteer with the homeless. James had complained bitterly about having to get up early on a holiday the night before, but ultimately went willingly. Still, Loki watched amused from the back of the couch as James wheedled extra coffee out of his best friend despite the fact that both he and Loki had been awake before Rogers had arrived so that Loki could transform. Loki used the time they were gone to prepare his own gift for James. The strength of his magic as he crafted the spell took him by surprise, another reminder of the depth of his feelings. He also took the time to surreptitiously rearrange some of the mistletoe Stark had positioned across the Tower.

James noticed immediately when he returned, stopping underneath the sprig that now hung in their entranceway. “Huh.”

“Clint, probably,” Rogers said, smacking a kiss to his cheek.

“Gross,” James complained, laughing. He danced out of the way of Rogers whacking his arm, and started pulling his scarf and coat off.

“I’m not the one that makes the rules.”

“Oh, yeah? Y’know this obviously means you hafta kiss Sharon today, too.” James waggled his eyebrows. “I know she’s invited to the party.”

Rogers blushed bright red, and stammered something about needing to go.

“No excuses!” James called after him as he fled into the elevator.

Loki waited until he was gone before he shifted, coming forward to place a hand in the center of James’ chest, pushing him back the two steps until he was once again underneath the mistletoe. James’ grin mirrored his own as he leaned in for a kiss.

“You were the one who moved that here,” he mumbled against Loki’s mouth.

“It’s possibe.”

After they’d spent longer than was strictly necessary beneath a plant on their ceiling, Loki showed James his present. James ran his thumb over the sigils sewn in black thread into the collar of his uniform jacket, then looked up at him.

“It is a protection spell. It will help keep you safe from injury or harm.”

“Oh. Thank you.” James kissed him again.

James’ present for him was a set of four knives, two small push daggers and two longer ones. All of them had his snake and wolf motifs worked into the hilt and crossguard, the patterns picked out with the help of JARVIS. They were beautiful, and, James assured him, of the highest quality. Loki loved them.

That evening the Avengers and assorted friends and partners gathered for dinner and then to drink bourbon-spiked eggnog while opening presents. Multiple people had thought it would be funny to get Loki catnip, so as a consequence he was happily flopped over James’ chest, purring loudly and getting fur all over the ugly seasonal sweater that Natasha had given variations of to everybody. Thor had a flask of Asgardian liquor, which meant that everyone was at least slightly inebriated by the time all of the presents had been opened, and the suggestion was made for dancing. Which led to a discussion of whether they all could dance.

“Shit no, Steve still can’t dance,” James snorted, scratching behind Loki’s ears.

“That can’t be true,” Sam argued. “I’ve seen him in the field. He’s got twinkle toes.”

“Yeah, but he ain’t got any rhythm. Seriously, Stevie, did those showgirls teach you nothing?”

“Bucky...” Rogers complained, his ears going red. Next to him, Sharon Carter giggled into her drink.

“What? It’s true.”

“Yeah, and you already make my dancing look bad enough. You don’t gotta go pointing it out.”

“How else ‘m I supposed to poke fun at you, oh Star-Spangled American icon?”

“Alright so Capsicle can’t dance, but I’ve heard you were a smooth one, Buckaroo,” Stark put in, lounging against Sam and already assembling the pieces of the kit Sam had gifted to him sans its instructions.

James grinned. “Four time Brooklyn Swing Champ.”

“You gonna prove it to us?”

“Last I checked you need two people for swing.”

“I can swing,” Natasha put in, holding out her hand. “Let’s see your moves, Barnes.”

Barton started a chant of, “Dance, dance, dance,” that Darcy Lewis quickly joined in on, elbowing Jane next to her.

James rolled his eyes, displacing Loki to stand. “Fine, fine, I’ll dance.”

A space was cleared and JARVIS started playing “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.” Loki watched as James pulled Natasha up and spun her gracefully around the floor and into several lifts to hoots of encouragement from their audience. James was comfortable with her, and Loki couldn’t stop his tail twitching. It didn’t help that the catnip was wearing off. Both of them were grinning when James pulled Natasha up from the final dip. There were claps and whistles all around.

“Well, that was fun,” Natasha commented, falling back into her spot on the couch.

“We should do that again,” James agreed. “I haven’t danced in too long.”

Loki climbed into his lap, demanding attention and rubbing all along his front until James started scratching his jaw again.

Pepper smiled, watching. “I think you’ve made your cat jealous.”

James scooped him up and cuddled him, nuzzling Loki’s head. “Aw, he knows he’s the only cat for me.”

Stark burst out cackling when it turned out that the sole function of his completed machine was to turn itself back off once turned on.

Much later, after there had been more dancing, and some of the guests had fallen asleep in the common lounge, prompting the rest of them to seek their own beds, James stopped him in their living room. “Were you really jealous of me dancing with Tasha, kotyenok?”

Loki huffed and avoided his eyes.

James pulled him close with one arm around the small of his back. “It’s only some fun between friends.” Lacing the fingers of his other hand together with Loki’s between them, he nudged Loki’s free hand up to his shoulder so that they were leaning into each other. It was much more intimate than the position James had held Natasha in, no space left in between their bodies. James brought his head close to murmur low into Loki’s ear, their temples brushing, “But this is all for you.”

He started dancing slowly, swaying them to imaginary music. Loki could feel the warmth of him all along his front. His eyes closed, and he turned to catch James’ lips, the shuffle of their feet stilling as they kissed. Leaning their foreheads together, Loki could feel James’ eyelashes and the fan of his breath across his cheek, the slight curve of James’ lips that still barely brushed his own.

“I love you, kotyenok.”

Loki smiled. “I love you, too.”

 -

Their third date was dinner. On a day between missions, they took an afternoon to cook together, something fancy that they wouldn’t otherwise make. As with most things, their experiences were vastly different, but somehow they balanced each other out and made it work. Bucky remembered various bowls of soupe à l’oignon from across France during the war, but this one was by far his favorite.

Loki returned from setting the table just as Bucky finished pulling the soup out of the oven where the cheese had been browning, slipping his hands around Bucky’s waist to embrace him from behind. When Bucky turned his head, intending to say something, Loki captured his mouth instead in a kiss. Bucky returned it, leaning back into him. Tilting his head against Loki’s, he sighed.

“James?” Loki murmured, kissing his jaw.

“Dunno, it’s just…” He searched for words. Finally he sighed again and twisted in Loki’s arms, looping his own around Loki’s waist and tucking his face into his boyfriend’s neck. He couldn’t help but smile at that, and Loki rubbed his cheek over Bucky’s hair, a vaguely feline gesture both affectionate and soothing.

“Times have changed, I guess. We didn’t ever talk about this kinda thing when I was a kid. It was… Well, a fella could get sent to jail for liking other men. I always figured I’d have to deny that part of me and just go with girls ‘cause I was lucky enough to like them too. But now I’m here and it don’t really matter. I can kiss you right in public if I want, an’ the Supreme Court says anyone can get married, and I just…never thought I’d get to see anything like this.”

Bucky fell silent, just breathing for a while.

“Dr. Nabavi told me it’s not considered an illness anymore, being gay. Or whatever. But sometimes I can’t help still worrying I’ll come off wrong or something, and people’ll know that I’m sick. An’ then I do something so stupidly domestic like kiss you when we’re cooking dinner and I don’t know how I’m not shouting it all over the rooftops because I can.”

Loki’s arms tightened around him. “Do you want to reveal our relationship?”

Bucky huffed. “You’re still hiding, though.”

“Even I cannot hide forever. And I do rather want to claim you as my own.” Loki’s voice carried amusement, and Bucky hid a smile in his shoulder. Loki turned to press his lips to Bucky’s hair. “We can begin to discuss ways to reveal my presence safely, if you would like.”

“Mmm. Later, though. For now let’s just eat dinner.”

 -

Loki woke on the morning of February 15th to thin winter sunlight and James’ skin sleep-warm against his own. They’d stopped bothering to count their dates by this time since living together blurred the line anyway, but last night would definitely have qualified, after James had quit teasing Rogers long enough to send him off to his dinner with Sharon Carter and they had declined to join Natasha’s action movie marathon. James shifted against him, his left arm settling cool at Loki’s lower back and his fingers starting to tease gently through his hair. Loki smiled.

“Good morning.”

“Morning.” James’ voice was scratchy from the night and still mostly-asleep. His fingers moved to rubbing circles just behind Loki’s ear.

Perhaps it was a side effect of spending so long as a cat, but that felt heavenly. Loki let out a quietly contented moan and settled closer, relaxing completely. If he had not already been disinclined to move, this would have convinced him.

“You really are my kotyenok,” James murmured, amused.

“I like when you pet me.”

James ran the pads of his fingers down Loki’s spine, and he kicked the sheet further down his back for better access to do it again. If he could get the transformation just right…

“Are you purring?”

“Mmm yes.”

James huffed a laugh, and tucked his nose into Loki’s hair, continuing to pet him. Neither of them noted the passage of time, content to stay as they were. Things felt soft around the edges, as though part of a dream, but one that Loki wanted to be completely awake for. After a while, though, James’ hand stilled at his shoulder.

“Loki?”

He cracked one eye open, peering up at James’ frown. “Yes?”

“How long will you live for?”

Loki sighed and shifted onto his side, facing James across the pillow. “I do not know truly. Why do you ask?”

“They did a bunch of tests, when they found Steve and they were defrosting him, to see if they could find out how he survived. They think with the serum, if he doesn’t get himself killed first, he might live for a few hundred years. What I’ve got isn’t so good as his, an’ I didn’t let them do anything so I don’t know for sure, but the best guess is I’ll live about the same. Maybe less by a century or so.” James chewed his lip. “You mentioned once you’re over a thousand.”

“Yes.” He stroked his palm briefly up James’ back and down. “The average lifespan for an Asgardian is five thousand years, but that is dependent upon regular consumption of the golden apples from the Yggdrasil tree which connects the Nine Realms. When a person has become old and no longer wishes to prolong their life, they may cease eating the apples each year and die a natural death in a century or so. There are, however, no accounts of anyone giving them up when they were as young as I am, and my own physiology is…complicated. It may be that my lifespan will be similar to yours.”

James blinked at him. “…You’re giving them up?”

“Yes. I went without them after I fell, and it is doubtful whether I would have received any while in prison. They are very closely guarded.”

“Are you… Is this because of me?” James whispered.

“No. It is for myself. I am done with Asgard.” He couldn’t help smiling then, reaching up to brush James’ hair back. “But I will not deny that it has benefit for our relationship.”

James pulled him into a kiss, heedless of the state of their breath. “I just… I really want this.”

Loki kissed him again. “As do I.”

[rachelbethhines]

The Antoine and Bunnie Retrospective - 131

“Hero to Zero In No Time At All” Sink or Spin I - Sonic the Hedgehog #150

Great, now I got that song from Hercules stuck in my head. 

Today’s story involves Sonic taking a sudden interest in the ladies. Only it’s not really Sonic, it’s Scourge the Anti-Sonic. He hits on a bunch of the women of Knothole, including Bunnie. 

I see Bunnie’s self esteem issues popping up again.

 Also, why do you care Tails? What does “Sonic” and Bunnie dating have to do with you? Do you secretly have a crush on Sonic as well? Or are you just a hard core Buntoine shipper? 

Now, logically you would think Bunnie would call things off here insisting “Sonic” go talk with Tails. But nope. 

Now there’s a pretty popular interpretation of this scene, suggesting Bunnie and Scourge had sex during the time skip. It’s an interpretation that I fully reject for several reasons and here’s why. 

I don’t give two shits what Penders’ original intent was, what he said after the fact, and/or weather or not he failed to deny this headcannon. At the end of the day I’m the one reading this. At the end of the day it’s my head cannon that counts when I’m reading. Not the one someone else came up with. And at some point you have to separate the author/artist from the work itself. 

If sex was the original intent it’s very poorly presented. Like, I was a full grown adult when I first read this scene and it didn’t occur to me that that was what the writer was trying to convey, and I highly doubt any little kids reading at the time would have considered it as well. 

I mean Bunnie’s not an idiot. Sure she makes knee-jerk decisions at times but sex on the first date seems pretty off. Especially when she was just berating “Sonic” for trying to make out after Tails got upset. What kind of sense does that make? Also, I’m no expert, but I don’t see any articles of clothing removed or mussed up hair or any of that messy stuff that comes with sex. It just seems like a leap in logic to me to automatically assume they did it, is what I’m saying. 

We’re not even sure if Bunnie can have sex. Like we do find out later she is physically intimate with her husband, but in what way or to what extant is still left in the air. This is in part due to comic’s target audience being children and also because Bunnie’s robotics have never been clearly defined in how they work. And granted there is an interesting discussion to be had about her cybernetics and how they effect her love life but I’m saving that for a future review when its more appropriate.  

This is still a kid’s comic! If Scourge did have sex with Bunnie it would qualify as rape because of false pretenses. Rape has no place in children’s media. Now I fully realize that Penders is oblivious to that fact and can’t tell his ass from his elbow, but the rest us know better. Why make yourselves more miserable then you have too by insisting this a thing that happened? The comic by no means shoves this interpretation down you’re throat, nor does it make any claims to be edgier than it is. If you see something that isn’t actually there than that’s all on you. 

Now a head cannon is still a head cannon, and you’re allowed to keep which ever ones you want. Even if it flummoxes me personally as to why you would keep this particular one. However for myself, personally, I just see it as Bunnie and Scourge making out and nothing more. Sure it’s still sleazy on Scourge’s part and it’s still a stupid decision on Bunnie’s end, but at least it’s something everyone can walk away from with some amount of dignity.  

Anyways now that that’s out of way, let’s get down to the real reason why we’re here. No doubt, if you haven’t figured it out yet, Ken Penders is today’s author and we finally get the reveal that “Antione” has been Patch all along. 

Also pretty convenient that you shaved off his goatee with that sonic spin as well.

Now this is where I was getting at when I said you have to separate the creator from the work sometimes. I’ve noticed a growing trend where people let what an artist did or say in real life retroactively ruin a piece of art that they once enjoyed. Does that mean we should give creators a free pass when they do awful shit? Of course not! By all means continue calling Penders out on his bullshit, don’t let anyone forget that Woody Allen is a pedophile and a rapist, and always let the Chris Brown apologists know they are in the wrong. But that doesn’t mean you have to stop watching Annie Hall if you like it, or that you can no longer sing loudly to "No Air". (Note: I hate Annie Hall and I enjoy “No Air” but I don’t really listen to Chris Brown regularly. I’m just providing examples) 

Nor does it mean you have to rip to shred every single thing Penders writes. I don’t care if Penders made a sexiest comment about Lupe once, I still think  "Lupe: Family" is a decent story. I don’t give a damn if he claimed Rotor is gay, I’m still going to headcannon him as ace anyways. And I will always defend Ken’s decision to retcon Evil-Antoine into Anti-Antoine. Even if the way he went about it was extremely douchey. 

Ya see, Penders didn’t “win out” because he had the best idea, he won because he went behind Bollers’ back and published this story before Bollers could even start on his original plans. Like, is that not the epitome of dickbaggery you’ve ever heard of? Hell yeah! Does that mean I wish Bollers got fair chance to tell his story? Hell no! 

I’ve discussed in length back in issue 137 why Bollers plans for Antoine were crap, but the long and short of it is; if Bollers had his way Antoine’s character would have been assassinated beyond repair. Years of character development down the drain all for the sake of cheap, forced drama. But with Penders idea, not only does it keep Antoine’s development intact but actually builds upon it; adding new backstory to potentially explore and new hardships for Twan to overcome and grow from. 

There’s also the added bonus of creating a new and very effective villain in Patch, while simultaneously giving Ant an arch nemesis. The fact that this all can be traced back to Scourge seeking revenge on Antoine for his embarrassment in #122 is just icing on the cake. 

Now that doesn’t mean this story is without flaws. I’ve already talked about Tails’ weird freak out and that poorly laid out scene involving Bunnie and Scourge, but there’s also an icky romance between Rouge and Locke (eww) made even worse by later writers trying to pair her with Knuckles, and a confusing lack of continuity. Like with Sally suddenly having short hair or this scene.....

Umm...Antoine was trapped in Anti-Mobuis for at least 6 months or more and Scrouge only just now got the idea to come over to Mobius and take Sonic’s place. It also took Patch several months to earn King Max’s favor. Why would Twan just randomly be in Scourge’s room spying on Patch? Shouldn’t the scene with Patch receiving the promotion from King Max be after the whole threatening Ant scene? Doesn’t that flow better? Or is Scourge just torturing poor Antoine by forcing him to helplessly watch Patch ruin his life. Yeah you know, I wouldn’t put it past him to do that. 

Oh man, does this mean Scourge has been forcing Twan to keep the disguise on this whole time? Like I just thought he did it as a way to keep the Suppression Squad from killing him out right, but nope apparently Scourge has been threatening him all for his own personal amusement. I guess that explains why he didn’t just run away or try to receive help from the good Doctor. That’s kind of horrifying, especially considering that he would have been forced to join in on the Suppression Squad’s escapades. And considering that they’re villains, well you can imagine that their idea of fun involves lots of violence.  

That’s sadly why we’ll never see Antoine’s time in Anti-Mobius fully explored. To do so would get very dark and disturbing very quickly. But still, my poor baby! 

The second story this issue is the second half of “The Chosen One” arc. The whole Tails is the Chosen One thing started way back in the Tails mini-series. Penders and company thought it would be a good idea to wrap up the sixth milestone by concluding this dangling plot thread and tying up the loose ends of the Zone Wars series. Not a bad idea in of itself, but it falls apart when the whole thing turns into a retread of “Night of a Thousand Sonics”. 

I can fully understand why someone would hate this story, but for me it’s one of those “so bad it’s entertaining” type tales.   

I mean just look at this! That is a thing of beauty right there! You couldn’t ask for a more shitposting meme worthy image even if you tried! 

Next week will do the usual 25 recap and then continue on with the Sink or Swim arc after that.  

[dipulb3]

2020 Acura NSX review: The softer side of supercars

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/2020-acura-nsx-review-the-softer-side-of-supercars/

2020 Acura NSX review: The softer side of supercars

It’s a wide boi.

Andrew Krok/Roadshow

Supercars are supposed to miss the forest for the trees. These ragged-edge cars focus so intently on high-speed performance and high-cost trimmings that they’re often tough to truly utilize on a daily basis, relegating them to weekend warriors at best. But not the 2020 Acura NSX. This Japanese scalpel is more than ready to rumble on a backroad, but it carries a softness that gives the car more than enough pliancy to make for a quality grocery-getter, albeit one that’s a bit over equipped for the task.

Like

Ever-present hybrid power

Impressive in daily driving

Never stops being fun

Don’t Like

Mediocre infotainment

Persistent windshield reflections

No Individual mode

Before I even get behind the wheel of the 2020 Acura NSX, I’m hit with that familiar kind of supercar weird-for-the-sake-of-being-weird-ness. On approach, the thin door handles pop out to greet me, which is a fun parlor trick. Thankfully, the doors open in the normal direction, as the NSX has absolutely no problem turning heads without bringing atypical hinges and butterfly doors into the equation.

With interesting angles in every direction, from flying buttresses out back to the aggressive front bumper, the NSX is like most other supercars in that it’s damn near impossible to blend in anywhere. Even beyond the show-off styling, my tester’s $6,000 Valencia Red Pearl paint job isn’t about to let that happen.

First impressions come quickly after sliding past the NSX’s door. Despite the body’s relative position to terra firma, the seating position is a little higher than I expect, giving me a greater feeling of normalcy than I encounter in, say, a McLaren or a Lamborghini. Visibility is quite good in most directions, with loads of forward sight (thanks in part to way-thin A-pillars) and superb blind-spot coverage from the mirrors that sprout from the body like antennae. The view out back is fine, considering there’s an engine a few inches behind me. Be mindful of the sun’s position, though: Too many direct rays from ol’ Sol and the front windshield begins to resemble a cheese grater thanks to serious reflections of the massive speaker grille below. It can be really annoying, especially in spirited driving or slow-speed neighborhoods where children and squirrels are likely to be in the street.

Overall, the NSX’s interior quality feels worth the $150,000+ cost of admission. Soft leather covers most of the dashboard, door panels, center tunnel and steering wheel, and what isn’t made from the smooth stuff is bedecked in carbon fiber (a $2,500 option) and satin aluminum. The small bit of piano black trim on the transmission controls, which should be very familiar to most recent Honda or Acura owners, is the only part of the interior that feels a little low-rent, and only then it’s because of its propensity to accumulate finger grime. The cup holders are small and only attach to a slot on the center console, but you can tuck them into the diminutive glove compartment when not in use. Other storage comes by way of wallet-sized slots in the door panels, a key- (and mask-) sized slot in the center console and a small hinged cubby against the rear firewall that houses the USB port. It’s tight, like many supercars, but there’s still a decent amount of room for my 6-foot frame to get comfortable.

Most mid-engined supercars throw owners a storage bone by way of front and rear trunks. But not the NSX — electric motors and other hardware live under the hood, so the only cargo storage is located aft of the engine. Not only is the trunk small, its proximity to the twin-turbo V6 means whatever goes back there has to be heat-tolerant. Put your bags of ice in the passenger-side footwell.

All of those silly concerns melt away from the second I push the start button. Just behind my head, the 3.5-liter, twin-turbocharged V6 growls itself awake before quickly settling into a quieter idle, something neighbors are bound to appreciate. A push of the Drive button puts the nine-speed dual-clutch transmission to work, which provides just a smidgeon of slip as first gear engages.

In the default Sport mode, the NSX proves to me that it can absolutely function as a daily driver. Despite lacking air or McLaren’s complicated hydraulics, the NSX’s static suspension is surprisingly comfortable, soaking up a wide variety of bumps and humps without unsettling the car or its occupants. The chassis’ inherent stiffness remains obvious, but the ride is far smoother than I went in expecting.

Small issues with the cabin disappear completely once the speedometer starts to rise.

Andrew Krok/Roadshow

Gear shifts are unobtrusive, and in low-rev situations, the V6 (which produces 500 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque on its own) is content to putter along quietly — if it’s even running at all. In Quiet mode, the NSX will use its small battery to operate like any other hybrid, silently hustling along under electric power alone — Sport offers electric-only operation, too, but in more limited quantities. The V6 cuts in and out with little, if any jostling in the cabin. It’s Prius smooth, in a good way.

Twist the mode knob to Sport Plus, and the NSX emits some sort of magic substance that causes me to forget about literally anything that isn’t the car or the road directly ahead of it. I feel the frenetic energy start to rise as the engine dramatically increases its volume at all times, even though it’s a little meh on the tonal front at lower revs. The V6 calls on the help of three electric motors — two up front, one out back — to generate a net 573 hp and 476 lb-ft. As you’d expect, the electric motors absolutely assault me with torque at a moment’s notice, and it’s really evident in tight corners, where the front axle helps pull me through as Continental SportContact performance tires grip the pavement. It’s easy to approach a corner with more speed than expected, but thankfully, it’s also easy to shuffle out the other side. Between those points, optional carbon-ceramic rotors ($10,600!) will scrub speed with both excellent modulation and impressive haste, over and over again. It’s impossible not to have fun in the 2020 NSX.

My only real gripe here is that I wish I could mix and match the modes. I get it, Acura put these modes together to make sure the car exemplifies whatever it’s after, but if I really wanted to daily drive this car, I’d want the engine constantly in Sport Plus with the suspension in Quiet. Why the hell can’t I have that?

You never really hear the NSX’s turbochargers spool up until you really glom on the throttle, then it’s all you’ll hear.

Andrew Krok/Roadshow

One thing that Acura has in common with every other supercar manufacturer is its middling-at-best infotainment system. Ripped straight from, oh, every single Honda Civic on the dealership lot, the NSX’s 7-inch head unit packs suction-cupped-Garmin-era graphics, just-OK response time and limited functionality. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are on offer, which means it’s pretty easy to ignore the standard setup altogether. The motif changes from red to blue depending on vehicle mode, but I kind of wish Acura could have put its own unique spin on this — or at least upgraded the 2020 NSX to the most recent (and prettier) version found on the Odyssey and other large adult Hondas. The gauge cluster is entirely digital, too, and while it’s weird that it’s tilted away from my eyes, it provides me with all the data I could possibly ask for. It’s easy to mess around with, too, thanks to super-simple scrollers on the steering wheel.

As for safety systems, you get… parking sensors. And non-adaptive cruise control. Want anything else? Buy a TLX.

With a starting price of $159,495 after destination, the 2020 Acura NSX is almost competing with two separate classes of high-performance vehicle. On the one side, you have the hardcore non-supercars like the Porsche 911 Turbo, the Mercedes-AMG GT R or, if you don’t need a six-figure window sticker, the mid-engined Chevrolet Corvette, all of which are excellent cars, but all of which lack the “What was that?” emotional appeal of proper supercars. Speaking of which, the NSX is positioned against some big names here, too, like the Audi R8 and, if you want to drop another $30k, the McLaren 570S. Those cars are more along the lines of the NSX, but they’re also a fair bit sharper than the Acura, too.

When a car is engineered with performance at the top of the masthead, comfort has to be put back ­­into it. Sometimes it requires complex components, other times it just doesn’t happen very well. But the 2020 Acura NSX does an excellent job blending daily usability and performance in a way that other supercars don’t. Does it leave a little bit of skidpad rating on the table? Sure. But I’ll be damned if you can find a more entertaining way to commute in comfort.