#but damn spike pretty chill with his son running off doing god knows what in space without telling him

[just-absolutely-super]

well that was a very quick resolution

[madleeindifferent]

Have Mercy On Me

Title : Mercy (Part One)

Pairing : Dean X Reader, slow burn

Word Count : 3632

Prompt : You have always had an unusual gift of foresight that has helped you become one of the best hunters in the region. When you started working with the Winchester’s everything was smooth sailing. Until you started catching a few feelings for the oldest brother and now, as new nightmares are haunting you day and night, you wonder if this is a sign or a warning of what is to come.

AN: sorry I’ve been inactive for a while, I’ve been writing for other things and this blog took a backseat. Anyway, here’s something to celebrate Halloween and spoopy season and *sobs* the end of supernatural. It’s inspired by the conjuring 2 so check out this scary scene to see where I pulled from if you dareeeee😈 lots of love to y’all! Hopefully this will be a pretty long, slow burn kind of series. Carry on my wayward sons and daughters!

You ran through the rain, your hair plastered to your face, your gun in your hand, as the wind tore at your skin. Your boots slipped in the mud and you caught yourself on one knee, scuffing it up and stumbling back to your feet without missing a beat.

“Help!” You heard the little girl scream again and it made you run faster.

I am coming! You wanted to shout it, but you were so close that you didn’t have the energy to waste on a word. You squinted through the rain and saw the dark shape disappear in the rain in front of you, hurrying down the muddy path that led toward the towering dark mansion on the hill.

“Help me!”

“No!” You took off down the path, your heart hammering and your lungs screaming for air as you ran as hard as you could.

“Y/N! Wait!” You heard the voices behind you but you didn’t slow down.

You burst through the front door with a grunt and the instant you were out of the rain you could hardly see. You raised your gun, the dark surrounding you.

“I know you are here!” You shouted, your voice echoing in the mansions dark halls. The creature was here, you knew it, you could feel it, dark and heavy in the silence. And all you could think was that you had to save the little girl.

You pushed your wet hair out of your face and took a step deeper into the dark.

“Y/N…”

You whipped to the side as the dark, raspy voice echoed in the dark beside you. “I see you...I know what you are afraid of…”

You whipped around the corner just as a black, clawed hand reached out and snatched you by the throat. You let out the start of a scream, but the sound was cut off when the hand closed your windpipe. You let out a grunt as the shadowy figure lifted you feet off the ground, your boots dangling uselessly. Your hands flew up to grab the wrists, clawing frantically but the skin was hot as coals against your fingertips. You whimpered in panic as the figure leaned close, too dark for you to see anything except for those two silver orbs of eyes inches in front of your own, unearthly and focused on your soul.

“I know what you fear the most…Y/N.”

You struggled in the grip of the monster as it turned your head to the side. For a moment, you had no idea what you were looking at, and then you saw a tall figure step out of the shadows. It took you a moment to recognise the broad shoulders and bow-legs in the dark. “D-Dean?” You ground out, your voice nothing more than a whisper.

Dean looked up, and the tiniest glow of light touched his face, lighting his green eyes. They were locked on you, teary and sincere. “I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“Dean!” You clawed at the hand around your throat, kicking and coughing in desperation, struggling to get away.

“Y/N...”You felt the hot rancid breath of the creature on your face as you could only watch helplessly as Dean was thrown backwards into the dark with a soft thud. “Dean!” THe next moment you heard the rip of flesh and fabric as his entire body was torn down the middle by a huge, unseen spire.

“No!”

“Y/N!”

You woke up with a jolt, swinging a fist upward as hard as you could until it connected with something solid above you.

“Ow! Son of a BITCH!”

You felt a huge weight leave your body and you looked up in the dark to see a huge shape fall off the end of your bed. You lurched for the light at the side of your bed and flipped it on with a gasp. Dean let out a hiss of pain, holding his nose with one hand as he blinked up at you against the light.

“Dean? What the hell?!”

“What?!” He shot back just as loudly, jumping to his feet beside your bed, still touching his nose delicately. “You punched me in the face!”

Instantly you felt a wave of guilt and relief simultaneously wash over you. “Whoops.” You grabbed your hand and felt the throb in your knuckles. “Sorry.”

“Damn, Y/N…” Dean stood next to you and checked to see if his nose was bleeding.

“Maybe you shouldn’t shake me awake next time.” You snapped, climbing out of bed.

Dean let out a grumble, sitting next to you on the bed. “What was I supposed to do, let you lay there and cry in your sleep?”

You flushed and grabbed a drink from the faucet in the bathroom of the shitty motel you were staying in, trying to calm yourself. You glanced up at your reflection in the dirty mirror. You had to admit, you normally weren’t a huge fan of your appearance, but after the week and a half you and the boys had gone through with that Wendigo hunt, you looked even worse than usual, dark rings under your eyes, a line of healing scratches on your forehead and cheek and two long bruises on your throat where the monster had grabbed you.

“Hey…” You blinked up at Dean’s soft voice, as he stepped behind you out of the dark, his green eyes intent on yours in the mirror. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah…” You let out a sorry excuse for a laugh, your smile tired. “It was just a dream.”

Dean kept looking at you, coming up behind you until he was close enough for you to feel the heat of his body behind you. You swallowed hard and looked away splashing water onto your face to move your attention away from how tall he loomed over you in the bathroom, his breathing soft and steady behind you.

“Want to talk about it?”

You let out a soft breath, ready to shake off his compassion. He always was so quick to be at your side when you faced even the smallest inconvenience, and if you were honest, nightmares were not a stranger to either of you. He was your best friend after all, so it was not out of the ordinary for the two of you to sit awake on some nights with the lights on just to keep each other company and forget about the terrors of the night.

“Where’s Sam?” You asked, changing the topic.

You and the boys had a deal that you would switch off whoever had to share the bed every night out on a hunt. You and Dean had been the unlucky ones this time, but you did notice that the other bed was completely empty. Well, if you would call it unlucky. In fact, a part of you loved sleeping next to Dean. God knows it was the closest you ever would get to him.

The number of nights you would lie awake next to him, staring at the ceiling until you heard his soft snores fill the room next to you were too numerous to count. But you always loved how warm and safe you felt with him just inches away from you. Some nights you’d even turn in the middle of the night and just stare at him. He always looked so tense and angry when he was awake, but when he slept, all those angry thin lines carved into his brow would disappear and he’d even smile a tiny bit, completely relaxed in his sleep. It was a side of Dean that most people would never see.

“He went out for a jog. I guess he’s still a little on edge from that hunt.”

“We all are…” You sighed, running a hand through your sleep-battered hair. “What time is it?”

“Almost 8.”

“Jeez it’s late.” You turned to him with a tired smile. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“Because, you have a tendency to punch people in the face when they try.” Dean scoffed coming a few steps closer to stand next to you and examine himself in the mirror beside you. His hip bumped yours and you flushed, looking up at the two figures in your mirror.

Damn, how could one person be so attractive at all times? His hair was standing up at every angle from sleep and he had a long gash across his forehead and a bruise on his jaw but he still looked like he belonged on a JamesBond movie set. Your eyes flickered between the two of you and you felt yourself deflate at how the pair of you didn’t look like you belonged together. Different leagues.

You sighed and turned to him with a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry, okay? Let me see.”

Dean smirked as you turned and took his face in your hands and examined his nose delicately. He let out a tiny puff of a breath as your fingers ran lightly over the bruise on his jaw. “Sorry.”

You mumbled, and he stilled under your touch, his breathing slowing. You tsked softly and let him go. “You’re fine.”

“You aren’t too bad yourself.” Dean grinned widely at you and you rolled your eyes.

“Funny.” You hummed turning back to the sink to pull your hair up into a messy bun.

Dean chuckled and then you saw his eyes flicker up to yours in the mirror. “Are you alright?”

You looked down at your hand. “I mean my knuckles hurt a bit but--”

“I mean about your dream.”

You hesitated and took a deep breath. Dean was quick to take your dreams seriously. Both of the brothers were to be honest, too many of your dreams had been premonitions of the future for them to ignore any. You used to believe you were a bit of a prophet, but now you just thought that your dreams were a way of discerning spirits. It was one of the gifts you had that made hunting with the boys easier.

“I…” You turned and looked at Dean for a moment, and the vision you had of him, run through by a huge spike ran through your mind, sending chills down your spine. “I think we need to take a break.”

Dean narrowed his eyes. “What did you see?”

You almost said it, “I saw you die,” but at the last moment you shook your head. There was no need to scare him, especially since you had just wrapped up an entire week-long hunt. “I just think we need to stop hunting, just for a little bit. I can’t sleep anymore.”

Dean’s face changed, his features softening. “Okay. I think I can talk Sam into a mini vacation.”

You cast him a tired smile. “Really?”

Dean narrowed his eyes for a moment. “Well, actually, you should tell him, he’s more likely to listen to you.”

You let out a soft laugh and you felt your heart tug at how your voice still shook a little too much. Damn nightmares…

“Hey, come here.”

You looked up to see Dean opening his arms to you, his green eyes soft. You let out a soft breath and stepped into his chest, holding him tight. As you buried your nose against his chest, he wrapped his arms around you,breathing into your hair. You listened to the sound of his heart beating in his chest.

“It’s alright.” Was all he said, and it was enough. You closed your eyes and just stood there, holding each other in the dark of the room..

“I don’t know why…” You murmured softly, “But I am scared.”

“Of what?” Dean asked.

“I don’t know. I just have a bad feeling that something is going to happen and…” You shook your head. “I don’t know. Maybe I’ll lose you and Sam.” Your voice came out more strangled than you anticipated and you had to swallow hard to just keep yourself from crying.

“Hey now, come on…” Dean’s fingers moved and you felt them under your jaw tilting your head up so you had to look up at him. He gave you a sweet smile, an expression that he reserved only for you. “Sam and I can take care of ourselves.”

You blinked up at him, unable to speak. “You’re my best friend, Dean.”

“You’re mine too, sweetheart.” Dean’s smile softened and his eyes flickered over your face. “We’ve got each other. Nothing’s ever gonna change that.”

You didn’t mean to, but your lips fell open in a soft sigh of relief. He was right. You had each other. Always, and no force of heaven or hell could take that away.

You looked up into his eyes, green pools of warmth that you could float inside of for all of eternity if he let you.

Suddenly you felt how close you were, where his hand was resting on the curve of your hip and your heartbeat jumped into your throat. He was so close that you could smell the scent of his aftershave mixing with the mint of his toothpaste. You hoped he couldn’t see you blush.

Dean’s gaze flickered, and for a moment you thought rested on your lips. Your heart was beating so loud you were sure he could hear it. He was so close but you couldn’t help it...you wanted him closer still. You felt yourself leaning forward just a tiny bit, his fingertips tracing the skin of your jawline, coming up close to your lips. Your heart was beating so fast that you could barely breathe as you felt pulled closer and closer into his warm chest, his fingers spreading across your back, pulling you towards him as your eyes flickered closed.

“Hey guys!” The sound of the door swinging open made you jump in surprise, almost helping out loud.

Dean pulled back, rolling his eyes so hard that his head literally whipped around at his younger brother as he stood in the doorway. “Come on, Sammy. You gotta be kidding me!” Dean grunted, scooting a few inches away from you on the bed. You chuckled to yourself, struggling to calm your thundering heart as the blush slowly worked its way off your face.

Thank God for Sammy, always bursting in at just the right time before you could say or do anything you might regret. You tucked a strand of hair back behind your ear as you looked back up at Sam, who just quirked his eyebrows at the two of you.

“Am I interrupting something?” Sam shot at his brother. He didn’t even flinch as Dean crumpled up his paper cup from the side table and tossed it at Sam’s head, missing by a few inches before it bounced off the back wall. “Mature.”

You almost laughed too loud at Sam’s question. You and Dean had always only been just friends. Now, there was a certain level of sexual tension, you had to admit, but that was because he was Dean Winchester. The man just oozed sex. The fact that you flirted every once in a while had nothing to do with the fact that you secretly adored him; it was just because you were a woman and he was Dean. Everyone had that same spark with him. The only difference was that you had been traveling together for almost a year now, hunting with the boys had become a regular part of your life. You may just be one of the billions of women attracted to Dean, but you were the only one who could say that he was your best friend.

“What’s up, Sam?” You asked, sitting up and pulling your hair into a messy bun,

“Well…” Sam sat on the end of your bed between you and Dean with his laptop open and you heard Dean grumble out loud as his brother bumped his shoulder.

“Sammy, I swear to god, if you are about to send us on another hunt I am gonna punch you in the eye.”

Sam let out a sigh and cast you a quick glance. You attempted a small smile but you had to admit you were glad Dean had jumped the gun on this one. He did take your concern to heart you had to give him credit.

“Look, I know we’re all tired…”

“Good, end of discussion.” Dean got up and sauntered to the duffle bag he had tossed to the corner of the hotel room and dug out your shared bottle of Tennessee Honey.

You and Sam watched him sulk away before you cast a quick look at Sam’s laptop. “What did you find?”

Sam gave you a sympathetic smile and you snuggled closer to him, reading over his shoulder. “It may be nothing, but I wanted to run this by you.” He turned the laptop toward you and you narrowed your eyes at the flashing headline.

“Woah…”

“Yeah. The media is all over this case.”

You looked at the report. “Ghost Terrorizes Family in Old Farmhouse.”

“Pfft.” Beside you, Dean flopped down with a groan of annoyance on the other bed, taking a quick swig of the whiskey. “Look, if they’re writing newspaper articles about it, then its not a real ghost.”

“But, get this.” You read the bold words on the laptop before Sam scrolled down and clicked a link.

At first it was a silent recording. Then an adult man spoke. “Is anybody there who wishes to communicate?”

You sat quietly next to Sam as the recording bussed quietly for a moment. Dean took another drink, uninterested. Suddenly the voice spoke again, “Jane, are you alright?”

There was a soft growl, like an animal growing agitated and then a soft voice, the voice of an old man came out of the silence, raspy and cold. “Jane’s not here right now. She’s asleep and I am talking.”

The voice sounded like a creature that had crawled out of a grave and still had gravel stuck in his throat.

You heard the reporter clear his throat uncomfortably. “What is your name then?”

“You…” The sickly old man voice spat out soft and slow, “don’t belong here.”

“What is your name?” The reporter asked, his own voice quaking a bit. You narrowed your eyes at the sound of discomfort in the man’s voice. “My name is Edward Bla--”

“Eddie Blake.” The old voice rasped out, cutting the reporter off with a savage chuckle. “I know who you are.”

“Well, then what do we call you?” Edward Blake asked, his voice quiet.

“Get out of my house!” The old man’s voice suddenly shouted.

It made you flinch and Dean turned on his own bed, shooting you both a confused look. He squinted up his lips and shook his head, “Touchy old shit, am I right?” He shot you a dorky smile, waiting for you to laugh but you just rolled your eyes.

“What is your name?” The reporter asked.

There was silence for a moment, and then, “Knock knock.”

“Very well, who’s there?”

“Bill...Bill...BILL.”

“Bill who?”

You and the boys sat very quiet, the recording was still except for static air. “My name is Bill Wilkens. And I am seventy-two years old.”

The recording cut off after that and Sam sat back.

“He sounds so confused.” You mumbled. “Is he senile?”

“Who do you think was speaking in that recording?” Sam asked.

Dean shrugged. “I don’t know, a delirious old man? Gollum maybe.”

“That voice was coming out of an eleven year old girl...”

You looked up instantly, your heart stuttering in your chest. Something about that sent chills down your spine. You glanced over to Dean but he was staring at the floor, thinking.

“Apparently, they tried to get the church involved and a priest was sent to urgent care. After that the case became a media frenzy. ”

You raised a hand to your lips in shock.

Dean let out a soft sigh. “What do you want us to do, Sam?”

Sam let out a soft sigh before he cast his brother a sympathetic glance. “Look, I don’t think it's anything. I think it’s just a publicity stunt, the local papers are all over it, the house is basically a tourist trap. But, I think we should just check it out, just to be safe.”

“Sam, it really doesn’t sound like anything but a good ventriloquist act.” You mumbled softly.

“I thought so at first. But the thing is, this mother...she called Jody.”

That made all of you stop. Dean sat up a little straighter. Sam shrugged, “Apparently they are looking for help and she did some digging and heard of us.”

“That’s impossible.” Dean snorted. “No one’s ever heard of us.” He said, pointing between the three of you.

“Jody said we better check this case out. Despite what the papers are writing about, this family is really scared.”

You shot Dean a quick look. He was already staring at you. Part of you already knew that your argument from the morning didn’t stand a chance. You and the boys were never ones to shy away from a family in need, despite how scared you were deep down.

You let out a soft breath. “When should we head out?”

You saw Dean stare at you but you didn’t look at him.

Sam shrugged and handed his laptop to Dean so that the older brother could scroll through the article. “Look, it’s probably nothing, but I just think we should give it a quick sweep through. Just to be sure. If it’s nothing we’ll turn around and go straight back to the bunker. But if it’s not...then there is a family out there who desperately needs our help.”

End of part one

[afterspark-podcast]

G1 Episode 37: Transcript

[This can also be found on AO3!]

[Stinger]

S: I imagine he's the one who was going and getting food but he was probably getting, like, ramen noodles.

[Intro Music]

O: Hello, and welcome to the Afterspark Podcast, an episode by episode recap of the generation 1 Transformers cartoon.  I'm Owls. 

S: And I'm Specs.

O: Today, we're going to be talking about episode number 37: Blaster Blues. Let's talk about giant robots today, shall we? 

S: Sure.

O: And today, we open upon a rock concert with incredibly generic rock music playing.

S: And kind of a lot of pink. At least on the, uh, the screen that we paused on because, like, they’re super security in that masculinity, but it was very colorful.

O: There is also a lot of strobing going on in this scene and I wonder if this would get an epilepsy warning if aired today? Which just feels kind of weird when you're watching 80’s media because that wasn't really a thing yet?

S: Well, I mean it's good that we know about it now.

O: True.

S: Yeah, making sure that people don't have- people with medical conditions don't spontaneously have them- happen is, you know, you don't want it- 

O: Definitely-

S: You don’t want-

O: -a good thing.

S: You don't want to trigger anyone's debilitating medical condition.

O: Right. I didn't- kill- okay, tangent: I still can't believe that the Incredibles 2 movie had a scene that was- apparently- needed a strobe warning and they didn't have one in there and I'm, like, this is freaking 2018 or whatever! What the heck?

S: I think I know which one that was.

O: I do too.

S: But, I mean, Into The Spiderverse also definitely had a lot of that.

O: Well, to get back to this.

S: Yeah. [Laughter] Blaster is enjoying that concert with Spike and Carly. 

O: The- and they all lament that the other Autobots aren't there but through the power of broadcasting, they don't need to be!

S: Blaster can share the joy of rock music with the world!

O: Or the Autobots, at least.

S: Whether they want him to or not.

O: Cosmos seems quite happy to have some music to fly around to, though. Even does a little loop de loop. 

S: What's important is that he's having fun. He probably doesn't get a whole lot of entertainment up there.

O: No, no, he doesn't., my poor son.

S: Mm-hm.  And at the Ark, Optimus and Sparkplug are trying to get some target practice done with Omega Supreme.

O: Omega Supreme, as I believe this is his first appearance in the G1 cartoon, is this, like, ginormous Autobot with an incredibly complicated transformation.

S: Oh, he is, he- he has such a complicated transformation- he literally goes to pieces: splitting into a rocket, a rocket base, and a tank in vehicle mode. 

O: I mean, why have one when you can have three? [Laughter]

S: Don't ask how he goes anywhere in vehicle mode.

O: Oh, we'll get to that. [Laughter]

S: Yep and all of this is suddenly interrupted by some unprompted rock music, except we know better.

O: And we- we have to assume this is playing through Teletran one because not only does Optimus hear it but Sparkplug can hear it, too.

S: And he reacts to it mightily.

O: As does Optimus, neither of them really like rock music, apparently. 

S: Yep. Jazz has some taste, though. He seems, like, super happy and starts boogy-ing down. 

O: That's cause Jazz is awesome, duh.

S: Elsewhere, at an observatory, a scientist is trying to make contact with extraterrestrials.

O: This just kills me. They have aliens on their- their planet! This is well-known information. He should probably just drive over to the Ark if he wants to contact alien life but- no! 

S: Yeah, it's a little bit, um, a little bit pointless when they can literally just go interview the giant robots that are already there.

O: He appears to be giving a lecture to other scientists and, possibly, the press about his new invention that would allow such contact with extraterrestrials. 

S: He just needs to grab a megaphone and shout, “Hey! I have energy!” and the Decepticons would turn up. Though, I have a thought that he doesn't think that Transformers are robots- er, aliens because they're robots? Maybe he's just thinking organic life?

O: I don't know but he could also just paint the entire building purple. That would certainly get the Decepticons there, too. 

S: Oh, it would, it would. Ah, and speaking of the Decepticons, look who's here! 

O: [Laughter] Shocker! Megatron begins talking to the scientist from the roof where Megatron, Starscream, and Thundercracker have landed and the guy's like, “Ah! A response. Where are you?”

S: They’re completely ignoring the time- well, that it would still take a lot of time for this message- message to traverse the void of space and then, you know, get a response back.

O: He's a world renowned scientist, Specs, world renowned! 

S: Is it a really small world?

O: [Laughter] No, it's just a cartoon in the 80s. 

S: Oh indeed. Megatron proceeds to dick with a guy saying to the- something to the effect of, “Oh, much closer than that.”

O: Starscream gets impatient and ruins his fun by just blowing shit up, though.

S: Yeah, and Megatron is just not happy with Starscream because he could have destroyed the “Voltronic Galaxer” which is, apparently, what today's, um, fancy, schmancy tech gadget is called, and what the scientist was, apparently, using to try and communicate.

O: I think he calls it a “Galaxer” in in the show but don't quote me on that. [Laughter] 

S: [Laughter] 

O: Anyway, the scientist manages to be pretty fly for an old guy, dodging a blast from Starscream and then running off yelling, “Help!”

S: Hm, back at the Ark, Blaster continues to annoy his teammates. Jazz continues to dance, clanking all the way.

O: The scientist’s plea for help comes in over Teletraan and everybody tells Blaster to shut up before they leave. 

S: No one appreciates him.

O: Nobody- Blaster was unappreciated in his time.

S: Yeah. We get a series of shots showing us a bunch of toys- I mean, um, characters transforming. 

O: Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Trailbreaker, Hound, Ratchet, Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, Mirage, and Bumblebee. And poor Blaster seems rather put upon- he just wanted to show his friends some tunes.

S: He wants to share the love.

O: That hard rockin’ love. It's all right, he'll get to enjoy some music later. 

S: Mm-hm. And now, back at the observatory, the scientist gloms onto his device shouting, “No! Anything but this!” 

O: I'm really, truly, not sure what he hoped to accomplish here as Megatron just can easily pick the entire damn thing up.

S: Taking the dude with him or with it.

O: To which, Megatron just sort of tips the guy onto the ground, much like I would do a bug that I found in my kitchen.

S: Yeah, or a mouse that you found crawling on you. And then all the Decepticons fly off to a rendezvous with Astrotrain.

O: Astrotrain is another new character- he is a Decepticon triple changer that turns into both a train and a shuttle. He is, of course, purple.

S: Yep, Megs opens a cargo hatch [in Astrotrain’s train mode] and shoves the Voltronic Galaxer in before rejoining the two seekers.

O: And then, Astrotrain turns into a shuttle and all the Decepticons get inside. I'd ask why they did it like that but I already know the answer. They needed to show the kids that he could be a train and also be a jet!

S: Yep.

O: My head hurts.

S: And then they blast off into space as the Autobots arrive at the observatory.

O: The scientist tells the Autobots they are too late and Optimus questions how the- what the device could do and the scientist says something about “unscrambling communications.”

S: Ah, god, has the military been funding this guy's stuff? 

O: I don't know! He seems pretty unconcerned about any other applications of his device. I think he's legitimately just wanted to talk to aliens. 

S: He could have just called up the Autobots. I mean, he obviously had their number. 

O: Obviously, but the Autobots head back to base after this since they can't really do anything when the Decepticons aren't there.

S: Yeah, they're a bit, uh, a bit difficult for a bunch of ground pounders to, uh, chase something into space.

O: True.

S: Optimus is then seen communicating with various other Autobots who are monitoring for Decepticon activity but no one has seen or heard anything. 

O: And they have also, apparently, sent Blaster into space jail, as he's just sort of chilling inside Cosmos as Cosmos is flying around in space.

S: Well, at least he's with one of the two Bots who actually seems to appreciate his musical taste.

O: He does lament that he can't get any radio stations all the way out here, though. 

S: Well another mark for Cosmos needing some entertainment. 

O: Definitely.

S: And for the Decepticons base of the week, apparently, they've built one on the moon.

O: And, apparently, they stole the Galaxer to jam the airways on Earth!

S: Cosmos moves in closer, landing in Megatron's direct line of sight. 

O: Oh, Cosmos- good at subterfuge, you ain't. 

S: Yeah- Astrotrain goes after them and manages to capture Cosmos.

O: Complete with violently magenta abduction light as he pulls Cosmos into his hold.

S: This is going to be, like, the first of at least a few weird int-interactions between Astrotrain and Cosmos.

O: You're right, you're very right. 

S: Yeah, poor Cosmos, Astrotrain knocks him out a weird amount- he renders him not able to do anything. 

O: [laughter] Yeah, that's- that's true.

S: I hadn't made that connection until now. Oh gosh, um, so Megatron decides to get, uh, personal when they are dragged back to base calling Cosmos, “A useless piece of scrap.”

O: I don't know how the hell I'm gonna slap the shit out of a 40-foot robot but I'm about to give it a good, ol’ try!

S: Both bots are welded into place. Cosmos having been regulated to a power booster and Blaster be either being used to control the, um, the doohickey or separately to scramble the audio signals.

O: I feel the need to point out there should be some consent here. It's really not cool, guys...

S: The Decepticons are villains- they don't care about their enemies. It's not like they've got the Geneva Convention.

O: There's what? There's no war Geneva Convention, Specs? [Laughter]

S: Well, no, they just don't have Geneva.

O: [Laughter]

S: All right, a Geneva equivalent. The device takes hold and we see an airport lose communication with various planes that are coming and going, um-

O: Some planes-

S: -so much death.

O: Yeah, yeah- but some planes take some rather evasive maneuvers to avoid other planes. I swear, some of them are moving like fighter jets and I can't even.

S: Yeah, the skies are also, you know, pretty clear- so the pilots should be able to see and make decisions.

O: But what about the drama of almost hitting another plane? They would never do that!

S: They need their pilot's licenses ta- suspended.

O: [Laughter] I mean, you're not wrong. 

S: Elsewhere, on some train tracks, some workmen are trying to clear the- clear the tracks of some debris. It might be a fallen tree but it's debris and except they can't radio tri- the, uh, train that's coming before it hits the fallen tree and derails.

O: And then explodes!

S: I'm afraid that cow catcher is not terribly useful.

O: But surprise, surprise they can't radio the fire department because, of course.

S: You know, with all these radios not working I'm getting some fucking flashbacks to the live-action movie.

O: No, no it's too early in the year to have to think about the live-action movies! No!

S: It is not too early to get prepped for that.

O: [Laughter] Nooooo!

S: Fortunately, Red Alert and Astrotrain are nearby-

O: [Laughter] I think you mean Inferno!

S: [Laughter] Yes, you're right!

O: [Laughter] Red Alert and Astrotrain would be quite the pair, wouldn't they? I’m sorry.

S: I think they'd be trying to murder each other.

O: Right?! They were just out for a walk, apparently. Anyway, sorry, go ahead. 

S: Fortunately, Red Alert and Inferno are nearby and ready to take on the problem which, um, Red Alert tries to deal with by, you know, shooting the fire out.

O: Thankfully, Inferno does something a little bit more productive and I think they were trying to have Red make a fire break but the way they did it made like zero sense.

S: Yeah, though I have seen something where, apparently, you can shoot, like, some sort of carbon that’ll release? Maybe it's not carbon or something. Maybe it was CO2 that would release and smother it? 

O: Hmm, that does make sense but that definitely isn't what that looked like.

S: Yeah. Megatron has taken control of the airwaves, as he's heard on the workmen's radio immediately before Red and Inferno are attacked by Ramjet and Thundercracker.

O: And suddenly, in the mountains, there's snow! I want snow, Specs.

S: Well, we'll have it soon.

O: Not soon enough.

S: Yeah. Some forecaster is trying to warn motorists by broadcasting over the radio.

O: Which, just like everything else, obviously doesn't work.

S: At the Ark, Optimus drives in with his trailer and yeets himself forward while transforming once arriving in the, you know, the Teletraan room on Optimus: Action Hero.

O: The Autobots realize what's happening and they all head out and try to help.

S: Ah, the goody two shoes that they are.

O: [Laughter]

S: They arrive on the snowy mountain and, uh, just have snow tires they can swap to, instantaneously.

O: Of course!

S: They must- [Sighs] I wish we had that sort of tech.

O: That would be nice. Hoist manages to save a car that falls off a cliff with his like little grippy tow claw thing.

S: Yep. Oh, Hoist the savior we deserve. 

O: I, too, would like to be saved by a very polite, vaguely British Autobot.

S: Yep. Prowl is helping evacuate people from their cars who are then taking refuge in Ratchet because Ratchet apparently has seats now.

O: Convenient snow tires, convenient seats, convenient everything today. 

S: Yep. Trailbreaker runs up to a car, generates a force field, picks it up, and puts the force field over the car to prevent it from, uh, being impacted by a pile of snow landing on it.

O: Oh my god, that's made of energy, right? How does that work? How can-

S: Weird, weird bullshit. 

O: It doesn't make any sense.

S: Yeah, I- it's weird, weird bullshit. I don't know, because it makes about as much sense as all the Autobots flying through space in his forceshield.

O: [Sighs] Touche.

S: And, as with before, the Autobots hear Megatron on the radio and are immediately attacked by Ramjet and Thundercracker. 

O: I'm going to assume that this is after they just attacked Red and Inferno or this makes very little sense. You know, just like everything else that keeps happening.

S: Either that or there's a Thundercracker look-alike running around which- possible? I don't know. The Autobots do their best to cover Ratchet, who's still housing some of the humans but eventually, uh, are blown away into the snow.

O: Elsewhere, Optimus is directing air traffic like a freaking traffic cop. 

S: Spike and Carly are listening to Megatron on the radio, realizing he's on every frequency. 

O: Ramjet and Thundercracker show up, yet again, shooting Optimus and Powerglide.

S: So, being shot, since Powerglide’s speeding towards the ground with Carly and Spike inside along for the ride and then Carly and Spike grabbed some emergency jet packs and put them on Powerglide's, um, exterior and then he's able to land safely. 

O: Well, that was not the direction I thought that was going to go in at all.

S: Me, neither. 

O: Which, I mean, kudos for them to trying to save their friend but, that being said, I don't think that should have worked because they are still in the air and the wind speed alone should like made that very difficult to open like his cockpit or whatever and try to put the jetpacks on the outside.

S: Yeah, I mean, then again, Spike is apparently superhuman and easily able to pick up and use giant robot guns. Also they're at a low enough, uh, altitude that, like, they wouldn't go through decompression.

O: Decompression wasn't actually what I was worried about. It's still that Powerglide would still be going fast, at least, to some degree because he's still up in the air and-

S: That's true.

O: That was actually more of what I would be, like, the jet pack should have like, gotten ripped out of their hands before they could attach them to him.

S: Oh, I know, it's just I'm trying to use a suspension of disbelief right now.

O: [Laughter] Yes, let me just turn my entire brain off because that's the only way I'm making it through this episode.

S: [Laughter] Yeah, I mean, I've seen that episode of, I don't know, Aircraft Disasters about when the [a] cockpit [window] blew out on a major jetliner and they nearly lost one of the pilots.

O: Yeah. Over the radio, Megatron wants ALL of the energy before he'll return the airwaves to the humans. Blaster, somehow during all this, manages to play the rock music from before clueing Carly into that he is on- he's in the Decepticon base and she is, somehow, from this, able to figure out they're on the moon.

S: I think we have to assume that there might have been some location data embedded in the transmission. Either that or there's some special Carly- foo going on.

O: Which, I mean, it's Carly- sure there- there you go. I will suspend my disbelief for anything Carly wants to do. How about that?

S: Yeah, and then Powerglide’s, like, “Oh, no I'm not a damn spaceship!” 

O: The one thing Powerglide can't do.

S: [Laughter]

O: But he does manage to grab, you know, the knocked out, unconscious Optimus with his tow cable from the air- dragging Optimus- still unconscious and extremely undignified, behind him, at least until the jet packs start to go out. 

S: Had we noted that Optimus had been knocked out before this? Because I don't remember that. 

O: I said- I think we said that they were attacked but, uh, not that Optimus specifically got knocked out. 

S: Okay- it's just because, yeah, that image of him being dragged, undignified, through the air is just really funny. [Laughter]

O: [Laughter] It was very funny to behold.

S: The Autobots on the mountain dig themselves out of the snow when they receive Blaster’s communique and head out to drop the humans off. Presumably somewhere safer than a giant, driving Decepticon target.

O: Yeah, that is Ratchet. Uh, Powerglide manages to get Optimus to where Omega Supreme is and Carly attempts to get Prime up and moving again.

S: Omega Supreme says they should go to the moon to save their friends and stows Prime away inside him.

O: They argue that they can't communicate with anyone right now due to Megatron's interference, anyway so they should at least try something.

S: In the very next shot, Carly and Spike are magically in some space suits and they board Omega with Powerglide. And these are color-coded space suits. 

O: Of course, it's the 80’s. Megatron finds out that Blaster is transmitting this music and goes to blast him but Omega Supreme lands and distracts him just in time. Okay. Remember before, when we said Omega Supreme splits into three pieces? Uh, only one of those pieces went up to the moon.

S: But, somehow, all of them are there when he transforms back into a robot. 

O: So either they fly or they're all just like Optimus’ trailer. 

S: Yeah or he's got some way of, like, picking them up and combining them all with his shuttle form. I don't know, man. Don't ask. Megatron gets mad but Omega just picks him up in one hand.

O: He's so tiny in comparison! [Laughter] 

S: Yeah, if he's treating him like a- oh god, it's like that Mars Attacks comic where Megatron gets shrunken.

O: [Laughter] Yeah, it is. He's about- he's so tiny.

S: Yep, Astrotrain looks on like, “I don't know what anyone expects me to do here.” And Optimus  is just sort of lying on the ground on a pallet in the background while Powerglide just sort of hangs out and watches all of this go down. 

O: [Laughter] Just like, “No, no- we just need to get Omega to the moon. We'll be fine!” Astrotrain transforms into his train mode and trips Omega, making him drop Megatron.

S: He then transforms into a shuttle and flies off with Omega transforming and going after him.

O: But on the ground, at least someone here is using this time somewhat effectively as Megatron takes the opportunity to walk over and kick the unconscious Optimus on the ground. 

S: But Optimus is able to get back up and tosses Megatron across the moon. Optimus is just like, “What the fuck is going on? How did I get here?” 

O: The dude went to sleep on the ground, at an airport and woke up on the damn moon. 

S: Poor Optimus is going to need some explanations.

O: But right now he's like, “Big, gray, and ugly: must punch.”

S: [Laughter] Blaster manages to start affecting the Galaxer by initiating a feedback loop but Cosmos one-ups him and just shoots it. 

O: Why did no one disable his guns!?! Why is no one guarding them!?A

S: Because Megatron only brought, like, three people to the moon and sent two of them back and also overconfidence.

O: Yeah, that sounds right, rather- Yeah, accepted, yeah. 

S: Outside, Megatron and Optimus grapple and, considering they're on the moon, this must be really awkward considering lower gravity.

O: [Laughter] Well, it goes something like: Blah, blah, blah- I still have enough energy to conquer you!! Do you now, Optimus? Do you? Do you? 

S: Optimus manages to get the upper hand. While in the air, Astrotrain taunts Omega.

O: But Omega just transforms back into robot mode, grabs Astrotrain and then chucks him into space. 

S: Megatron flies off and the rest of the crew heads into the base to help Blaster and Cosmos. 

O: Blaster advocates that they should keep the moon base now that they have it. 

S: Cosmos seems kind of happy with this. He wants, you know, some company.

O: So Optimus tells Blaster, “Yes,” but also adds, “remember your volume, like any capability, is also a responsibility.”

S: Blaster's like, “I'm gonna totally ignore you,” as he immediately hits one of the buttons on his chest. Uh, presumably, he's supposed to be playing music but there's no music playing. 

O: And that's- that's the end of the episode. So join us next time for a Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court! Did you know magic was real in this universe? Yeah, neither did we. 

S: Neither did the robots from outer space, either.

O: Nobody- nobody saw- no one ever expects the magic inquisition. So, if you have seen any of our Let's Plays, uh, my husband Chezni will be joining us on this episode, too, because it's his favorite and it is definitely quite a doozy. So, I believe we have some fanfic recommendations for today. 

S: Okie dokie, alright. So our fanfiction recommendations today are “Hobbies Shared” by Merfilly. It's a G1 cartoon related- it's in the G1 cartoon continuity, it's rated G, it's Gen. Uh, there's no pairings and the characters are Cosmos and Blaster and, in summary, “Cosmos shares something with Blaster.” And, uh, the theme for that is music appreciation and it's a one shot that's drabblish. It's pretty short. It's also restricted access on AO3, so you have to have an AO3 account to- to read it. It was pretty cute.

The second recommendation is “Mechs Like Them” by eerian_sadow. It's also G1 cartoon, rated G, Gen though it could be potentially pre-slash. There's no official pairings but could be a prelude to Blaster/Cosmos and the characters are Blaster, Cosmos, and Tracks. In summary, “Blaster can't stop worrying about Cosmos.” And it's post Blaster Blues is the recommendation or reason for the recommendation. Theme. Something. And it's a one shot. So that concludes the two recommendations for this week.

O: And I should have some fanart for us today, so uh, my recommendation for today is Pell From Hell. I don't know why they named themselves that but I am down for it. They have a Tumblr and a Twitter and, just a warning, they have not been active since 2018. However, the art is very cute. And today we've linked some really cute ones. Uh, we- we have a Knife Megatron, which is amazing and I- what? This is based off a cat gif, isn't it? 

S: Yes, it is. My first thought when I saw the name was- is it- is it that thing with the baby holding a knife running- or the kid holding a knife running [around a pool] and they're like, “What are you holding?” “A knife!” and it's like, “No!” 

O: [Laughter] No!

S: I was thinking that with Megatron. 

O: [Laughter] 

S: But yeah, the smug cat works perfectly for this.

O: Right? Even though it's Lost Light Megatron and, therefore, one of the lesser smug Megatrons but still funny!

S: Yeah, but, I mean, this would be like being confronted by a bunch of Autobots.

O: [Laughter] Yeah, and then we have some cute, uh, mistletoe christmas-y, uh, Dratchet, uh, where I think Ratchet just wants some tea and Drift is trying to get a kiss.

S: Yes, that is cute.

O: And our last one is the Soundwave family. Uh, it looks like Rumble and Frenzy are about ready to fight and Soundwave is just dealing with his unruly children.

S: And Ravage is separating them.

O: And the birds are like, “Oh, dear god, why?”

S: Yeah.

O: Not that i can really blame them.

S: Looks like Buzzsaw is super annoyed. 

O: Yeah, very grumpy. He’s a grumpy birb. Anyway, we'll be linking to all of the cute images and their Tumblr and Twitter.

S: And that about wraps it up for us today.  Remember to check us out on Tumblr or Pillowfort as Afterspark-Podcast for any additional information, show notes, or links we may have mentioned.  You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter at AftersparkPod (all one word) and various other locations by searching for Afterspark Podcast such as AO3, iTunes, Spotify, and Youtube, just to name a few.  And feel free to send us questions on Tumblr, or Youtube, or AO3!  Till next time, I'm Specs.

O: And I’m Owls.

S: Toodles

[Outro Music]

[snkpolls]

SnK Chapter 117 Poll Results

The chapter poll closed with 1325  responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

RATE THE CHAPTER 1,235 responses

Isayama continues to please. In fact, “Judgment” is the highest rated chapter this year with 62.3% selecting the highest possible rating. In recent month, only chapter 112 scored higher.

Honestly, just incredible

Excellent Chapter although it did favor the action over plot continuation. I really just want information rather than awesome action. I'll just have to do my waiting but the action is very enjoyable.

Finally a great action chapter which does a good job showcasing Erens new abilities.

Fuck yeah, Shiganshina3.0 with an entirely new field of play. Excited to see how the new teams play out.

It was nice to have another action-heavy chapter after being without one for so long. The only downside is they feel way too short.

god I love this manga so damn much

Seeing Marley invade Paradis with those planes is absolutely chilling. It's a whole new era for the Walldians

We're in the Endgame now

GIVE ME NEXT CHAPTER

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT? 1,292 responses

With 30% of the vote, the moment when Eren reacts to Reiner’s attempt to eat him takes the top place for favorite moment. Following up with half as many votes is Zeke’s arrival as he displays his big brother complex. In third came Eren’s defensive use of the Warhammer Titan’s power.

The most memorable moment was definitely Eren's scream of sheer determination and will to live as he was ripping Reiner's jaw apart, in a complete rejection of the self-loathing and fatalistic mindset his old nemesis was seemingly trying to push onto him.

It was nice to see eren harnessing his titan abilities and proving that he is a strong character

Eren ripping half of Reiner’s face off was neat

Reiner vs Eren was very repetitive and shonen typical and just there to show how 'badass' Eren had become. Besides, the Marleyans are getting too much screentime at this point. The only cool thing was Zeke's entrance.

I loved the fight and zeke's onii-chan part uwu

I thought it was neat that it was confirmed that the Shifters' Titans have brains that control the Titan, rather than the Shifter controlling it themselves. I still want to know more about the Titan Chemistry Research Department, and all of the in-universe info about how Shifters interface with their Titans.

Onii-chan saves the day.

When Pieck took Gabi in her mouth? 👌👏 And that cannon?? 😍😍😍😍 And when she finished putting on the cannon and stood up in all her majesty I just straight up died. I also loved seeing Eren use the War Hammer to make back spikes, that was so neat.

WHO WAS THIS CHAPTER���S MVP? 1,288 responses

With lots of characters joining the fight this chapter, who was the MVP? The overwhelming majority at 62% think Eren fighting off three titans on his own earned him the title.  Pieck was also a popular choice, at 16%.  Magath rounded out the top three at 8.9%

EREN MVP WON ALONE AGAINST 3 TITANS

Magath is a great leader. We need to see more of him.

I was so happy to see Zeke! And that phrase, ahh!

Hugs for Reiner. Poor guy can never win a fight :( And love Pieck for being the MVP, as usual!

porco did nothing wrong shout out to my boy porco

Eren is collecting Titans like they're limited edition Pokemon cards

It's time to stop confusing Gabi with Eren. Gabi proved to be actually smart.

Magath is the MVP of this chapter and anyone who says otherwise is delusional.

My wife Pieck was very cute and smug.

Zeke's arrival was so sick. Oni-chan

Not gonna lie this chapter was fire af. Kinda surprised about Magath being a legend, but it may have been a mistake for him to not kill Eren.

Zeke showing up at the end was hype.

PIECK AND PORKY ARE THE BEST.

the mvp award should go to the jeagerists for getting themselves killed in the stupidest way ever

WHICH JAIL CELL EXPRESSION WAS THE CUTEST? 1,290 responses

Our quick glance at the 104th was enough to know they are alive and well for now. We wanted a fun way to ask about their stunned expressions at the noises they assumed to be the rumbling. Mikasa’s was declared cutest with 27.4%, Armin was second with 23.1%, and 16.9% didn’t want to play along.

"Which jail cell expression was the cutest?"What?

GET MY FUCKIN SONS ARMIN AND MIKASA OUT OF THE FREAKING JAIL THAT SHIT JAEGERISTS PUT THEM.

I hope Onyankopon will rescue everyone in jail.

Just get Falco and the prisoners out of there, they'll get titanized/crushed

WHICH EREN VS. REINER FIGHT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE SO FAR? 1,288 responses

Reiner and Eren’s practice fight in training has served useful, as they’ve fought as titans no less than four times now.  36.9% selected the fight from last chapter as their favorite bout, with 26.9% choosing their first rumble.  23.4% loved the recently animated Shiganshina fight the most, and only 12.8% chose the brief Marley exchange of blows.

Anime-onlies and manga readers collectively screaming about Eren vs Reiner in Shiganshina... You've got to wonder if this was planned somehow.

Eren vs. Reiner identical non-productive fights are getting boring.

I Want More Eren Vs Other Shifters

Reiner VS. Eren 4.0 is now a thing ladies and gents. But we now have a new fighter which is big bro Jaeger.

Eren vs. Reiner in a fearsome battle in the middle of Shinganshina that culminates in Reiner seemingly gaining the upper hand before his head is blown off by an outside force. Am I talking about the most recent manga chapter, or the most recent anime episode? You decide ;)

It's about time Eren's and Reiner's fight ends. Give us a conclusion, Isayama

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT REINER ORCHESTRATING ANOTHER ATTACK ON SHIGANSHINA? 1,288 responses

Although about 50% of respondents thought it was at least somewhat understandable that Reiner brought the fight to Shiganshina again, a good chunk of votes trended toward pretty neutral or unsure about whether Reiner is a hypocrite or not.

He sincerely believes Eren is miserable BECAUSE he's projecting his own emotions onto Eren but also needs to consume the Founder as Magath mentioned

He wants to do something right because the only thing hes good at is getting his ass whooped.

Honestly, all I can say about Reiner is that his isna big hypocrite.

Reiner should win a battle in his life, please Isayama.

He's definitely projecting, but lowkey if he eats Eren he finally gets to die, because they'll give the Founder to another Warrior.

People should really stop assuming that just because Reiner & Co. are deserving  of sympathy, they are right. Downtrodden as they are, if they win they'll still destroy Paradis without a second thought, and all the blatherings about stopping the 100 years cycle of violence, are just that, and justifications after the fact.

I thoguht Reiner would kick Eren's ass but whatever

Reiner should really give up fighting Eren... he always loses. Unless he likes getting his arse kicked, I don’t know why everyone just lets them fight over and over again.

REINER DON'T GO DOWN THE PATH OF ZEKE PLEASE

WHY DO YOU THINK EREN CHOSE TO FIGHT, RATHER THAN LISTEN TO YELENA AND GET AWAY? 1,285 responses

Yelena wanted Eren to run, Eren wanted to fight.  But why?  38.4% think he’s trying to protect those in the building, 25.8% think he believes running to be pointless, and 16.8% thought he just wanted to fight his best sparring partner, Reiner, once again.

"Until my enemies are destroyed," remember?

All of the above

He doesn't care what she thinks. Eren will do what Eren wants

He feels confident enough in his ability to shut that shit down by himself. He's also visibly pissed at Reiner for messing up with his plans by pushing for this surprise attack and wants to end him personally.

He's fought him three times already, might as well just fight him a fourth time.

I think it's both that it's pointless to run and he wants to protect those in the building. For the former, he knows Marley will just keep on persisting and will do everything they can to find him, so escaping is pointless. As for the latter, he cares about his close friends that are still inside and thus doesn't want them to get hurt, so for their safety, he wants to be the one to take on Marley by himself.

If you don't fight, you don't win.

I think this chapter proved that Yelena wasn't the one who "manipulated" Eren like some people claimed first, because he refused her order and choose to fight instead of "run away" or "trusting her plan".

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT GABI REVEALING THE ROYAL ZEKERET™ TO MAGATH? 1,289 responses

The Marleyan forces have finally zeroed in on what the true Zekerets are, all thanks to Gabi.  52.2% of readers forgot that Gabi was aware of the royal blood situation, and 22% didn’t expect it to come together this way but liked how it ended up.

Forgot she heard it, if this is what all her buildup has been leading too... 🤢

Honestly thought Pieck figured it out in chapter 116 with her line of questioning so I assumed they already knew or at least had their own doubts about the use of the FT Power but this makes sense as well.

I'd forgotten about it. But I think this confirm the fact she was here during EMA conversation will also be important

I kinda expected her to do so, but still I am glad she did it !!!

She has now served her role as a plot device. Please go permanently off-screen now.

Miscalculation brought back

MAGATH SAYS HE WANTS TO END THE HUNDRED YEARS OF RESENTMENT. WHAT DO YOU THINK HIS INTENTION IS? 1,277 responses

General Magath is the leader of the enemy forces, but seems to have good intentions in mind.  What’s his true goal?  The large majority of respondents, at 45.6% think he wants to wipe out the Eldians on Paradis.  21.7% think he wants to liberate Eldians, and trailing that at 20.4% is the idea that all he wants is the Founding Titan.

Chances are he's wants to wipe them out, he seems to care about the ones under his command, but he seems loyal to Marley first.

He just wants to end the war, he is a good man

Can't know for sure. He is sympathetic to his comrades but Marley has always pushed for more power so that may continue their imperialistic goals. I highly doubt Magath will make a complete 180 and will begin giving countries their own autonomy. Most likely, he will use the FT to further this effort in accumulating resources. No one should wield the power of FT. Too strong!

He wants to liberate Eldians AND annihilate Paradis

He probably wants to change Marley's policies and stop with the imperialism + Eldians-as-weapons, but he also seems willing to use Paradis as a scapegoat so far so I'm rooting against him.

He wants to protect Marley and introduce reforms. It’s noble in theory but I’m wondering if he was manipulated by Willy as per of a larger plan. He’s inspired by the Helos legend but he knows that it’s a lie. He has sympathy for Eldians in his own country but whether he wants to save all Eldians remains to be seen.

I think he wants to destroy the Eldians on Paradis but he also wants to persuade the higher ups in Marley to treat the Eldians more humanely

No clue. He doesn't seem like a genocidal maniac, but I don't think he'll allow Paradis to get off that easily.

Is it too optimistic to hope that he wants to change Marley's ways and to bring peace?

Why is "wiping out all Eldians" an option when he said he wanted to bring marleyans to the wars instead of the Eldians? I'm not completely sure about his intentions with Paradis but it's clear he cares for Eldians and he's ready to do anything to save Eldians and his own country.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF PIECK’S NEW WEAPON? 1,279 responses

The Cart titan has been said to be versatile, and we’ve seen many upgrades and attachments, with this chapter being the biggest of them all.  Most of respondents, at 53.6% thought it was super awesome.

...How did they put it on so quickly?

Further cemented the Cart's place in my heart as best titan

I worry about Pieck. She is intelligent, fast and dangerous with her new weapon. That why Zeke may try to eliminate her fast.

I'm not into guns or gunfights so I don't really care.

Bitches love cannons

It’s a very powerful weapon but it requires time to reload. That a considerable weakness.

It's beautiful

so creepy i had a nightmare about it

PEW!

BIG DICK ENERGY

REINER DOESN’T HAVE FACIAL HAIR IN TITAN FORM. YOUR OPINION? 1,291 responses

Isayama pls!! It’s impossible to know why Reiner’s beard keeps disappearing. It could be a quirk of his titan biology or perhaps the Golden Week crunch meant cutting a few corners. Either way, only 8.7% where glad about the omission.

reiner's facial hair come back pls

WHO BEST REPRESENTS HELOS, “THE HERO WHO WILL SAVE THE WORLD”? 1,282 responses

Helos was a hollow statue, but will there be a hero for the current generation?  32.2% don’t believe so, but 35.5% think Eren will fulfill that role in the story.  12.3% think Reiner will become that hero to the world, and 10.8% feel it’s Magath.

Armin, mark my words

It's between Magath and Reiner. Magath because it has been nailed on him since he was mentioned, and Reiner because he's a half-Marleyan who wants to put an end to Eren's genocidal ways

Erwin/Levi...doesn't matter they're dead/dying, at this point I feel like they were the only ones capable to save the world. I'd say the 104th too but then, look where they are too.....

Heck, going by what's happening I have a sneaky feeling it's gonna be Falco.

Most likely Armin. Him being a "hero saving humanity" was foreshadowed already in RTS

I think resemblance between Helos and Levi isn't incidental.

Helos was proven to be fake, seems they indicate there will be no real hero

Honestly? Fuck it. Nicolo. I'm all-in on this.

Jean the Stallion

I don't know who, but not one of those three that's for sure... Historia? Where are you, our queen?

My Boi Reiner is super awesome here! He shows signs of becoming the new Helos!

Helos was a fake. There was no true Helos. It was just a story, so saying another Helos will save them makes no sense as Helos was just a facade in the first place.

EREN’S EXPRESSION AS REINER ATTEMPTED TO EAT HIM WAS INTENSE, BUT IT ISN’T THE FIRST TIME WE’VE SEEN THIS. WHICH PANEL DO YOU THINK BEST CAPTURES EREN'S TENACITY? 1,286 responses

Based on the overall results, it appears that Eren’s expressions seem to get more and more intense as the series unfolds. Over half of the fandom feels that his most recent expression of resolve has been the one that best captures his tenacity. At a distant second, his expression as he transformed in the basement at the festival takes second place.

EREN IS A GOD

God, I want to punch Eren in his shitty smug face so hard.

Eren's defiant glare cleansed my skin, reaped my crops and impregnated me with 13 babies!

Finally we see Eren having a different expression, showing more of a human side we have been missing lately

I’m gay for eren

God, I'm just dying to see Eren's endgame.

Love Eren! He's awesome! The best hands down! And I can't wait to get inside his head! I know it'll make me love him more! Lol

IS EREN’S EXPRESSION AS REINER TRIES TO “PUT HIM TO SLEEP” TO END HIS SUFFERING EVIDENCE THAT EREN OPPOSES ZEKE’S EUTHANASIA PLAN? 1,282 responses

Almost 40% of respondents believe that Isayama’s placement of these panels was a deliberate way for him to clue us in on Eren’s opposition to Zeke’s plan. 27% don’t want to trust the panel placement just yet and feel it could very well be misleading. 21% feel that he’s simply showing his determination to see the plan through at all costs.

I'm not sure but it was really freaking cool

Eren's determination to fight, win and live!

He is mad because he is fighting to save his friends and future generations. So yes.

didnt notice this before, but yes this is a good theory

I don't even know how these two thing could be related lmao. He just wants to finish the fight so he can proceed with his plan. He can't do that by being eaten by the enemy

Eren didn't hear Reiner's words, so we can't say

Zeke's euthanasia plan requires Eren regardless of the ideals behind it.

I think whatever Eren's plan is, he is determined to do whatever it takes to not die before accomplishing it

It's pretty obvious he wants to unleash the Rumbling on the world. Idk why this is even a question.

I don't think it has anything to do with eren's thoughts on zeke's plan and more to do with his anger at reiner and marley

I feel like people may be looking too deep into this somehow

I actually didn't think of that! Now that you mention it, it's possible.

It's pretty obvious without this that Eren completely opposes Zeke's euthanasia. What I think is more interesting to think about is Reiner's previous question about what Eren "gets" from living any longer: what exactly pushes him to go to such lengths for whatever goal he has now? His country? His friends? His freedom? His family? All of those?

WHAT IS REINER'S MAIN REASON FOR WANTING TO EAT EREN? 1,285 responses

Eren isn’t the only one who’s attempted to eat more shifters, and this time he’s on the receiving end. Did Reiner purely want to eat Eren for tactical purposes, or does he truly want to save Eren from the curse of a cruel life? Most readers at about 60% think Reiner’s just projecting his own thoughts and worldview onto Eren.

All the options above I think. Reiner thinks he knows Eren, but he clearly forgot one important thing: Eren is stubborn and once he's in his rage mode, he will never back down!

Both C and D.  He truly thinks Eren is in misery, BECAUSE he's projecting. Can't have one without the other.

Eating Eren is just a part of Marley's plan but I think it's the revenge that motivates him.

He has nothing left except his role as a warrior fighting for Marley. And he is determined to fulfill this role to the very end

I think he may be projecting his own misery into Eren but he doesn’t realize he’s doing it so he automatically assumes that Eren is in misery. Or it could be that he believes all shifters are going through the same thing he is and are suffering

He just wants to have his job done: eat Eren, become a hero and die.

WHAT WILL EREN GET "FROM LIVING ANY LONGER"? 1,282 responses

When Reiner attempted to end Eren’s life, Eren fought back against the idea his life holds nothing but pain.  What is the light at the end of the tunnel for him?  37.6% believe he’ll end up saving his people on Paradis, and 23.7% expanding that to saving the world.  17.9% think Reiner is right and he’ll only find more pain, and only 8.8% think Eren will go on to destroy the world.

Become Lelouch

Bring his 4D chess plan that somehow liberates the Eldians in a way that's different from what Zeke, the Yaegerists, the other Paradis military members and Magath are planning.

destroying the world to free Eldia from the oppression and probably to build a "future" for Historia and the child, which means to be the only ruling race

He'll save at least his friends, and hopefully help to save the world. by destroying its current foundation, and that includes the Eldians of Paradis

Eren just wants to catch 'em all... JK. He'll put an end to the curse of Ymir - Eldians will no longer be able to turn into titans.

He will destroy the world, cause this is probably his thinking of freedom for the eldians on paradis, but it will give more sacrifices and victims and more pain for others, like Connie who actually suffers, cause Sasha dies, because of Eren's selfishness.

A beautiful wife and their newborn baby

Eren wants to save the Eldians in Marley and Paradis

He will save his friends and future generations of Eldians. Eren doesn't care about himself, he cares about others.

Weird combination of protecting Paradis, those he holds dear and being willing to destroy the world for it.

I really hope world peace and a life in harmony without the titan curse although I'm scared it won't have a happy ending.

F R E E D O M

WHAT EMOTION DO YOU THINK BEST DESCRIBES EREN’S EXPRESSION WHEN ZEKE APPEARS? 1,285 responses

Onii-chan is here, but how does Eren feel about that?  So many interpretations from the same panel!  The most popular answer at 36.3% was astonishment, followed closely by worry, and then relief.

He actually called himself onii-chan

Realization that everyone who drank the wine is screwed

A complex mix of all the above

Surprised, I think he didn't expect Zeke to be there cause of Levi

He somehow feel relieved because he was lacking stamina, but at the same time I think he worries of lives of his friends and people who will end up as titans, if Zeke screams.

Mixed feelings. Relieved that he is saved, but sad because he's ultimately going to betray such a great onii-chan

i kept staring at this panel bc it's been so long since we've seen such a vivid expression on eren's face; it's kind of hopeful too?

This chapter really illustrated how well Isayama can draw facial expressions to convey the characters thoughts

God Eren you're so sexy when your facial expressions are ambiguous

ZEKE'S APPEARANCE IS A SIGN TO EREN THAT LEVI MAY HAVE BEEN DEFEATED. DO YOU THINK EREN CARES? 1,286 responses

Eren and Zeke planned to meet up here, but that would have to mean Zeke escaping Levi, likely in a brutal way.  Now that that’s happened, does Eren have regrets?  55.8% feel he cares about Levi to some degree, 27.1% feel that Eren cares about his mentor a lot, and only 14.2% don’t think Eren cares about the manlet one bit.

He cares, but it was a calculated risk like all the others he's been taking lately. I think he's still shocked that Zeke made it there though.

From where I stand on Eren’s decisions, I think he cares. But I feel like since we don’t know what his plan is yet, we can’t really fully answer this

Hard to tell, since he’s been treating his friends like shit, why would he care more about his mentor?

He knew what could happen to Levi and his men during Zeke's escape but he still agreed on a meeting time and place with his bro, not to mention the Jeagerists openly called him their "biggest threat" and were ready to finish him off. So Eren's definitely accepted the possibility of Levi becoming a casualty.

I don’t think Eren really cares about Levi, I think he’s worried about Zeke turning the Shiganshina people into Titans.

I think he still cares but tries to numb it all down and not care anymore. so he might be fooling himself, deluding himself...I think he did the same with his friends. Thinking that there's a higher goal and that it's all worth shedding your friends aside for it - I think he might be trying to convince himself of that.

In this situation there is no time for him to care about Levi.

ZEKE IS NOW CLOSE ENOUGH TO TITANIZE THOSE INFECTED BY THE WINE. DO YOU THINK HE'LL DO IT? 1,285 responses

It was nice knowing you, Pixis. Now that Zeke has joined the battle within the walls of Shiganshina, it’s not looking good for anyone with a red or black cloth tied around their arm. More than 80% of respondents believe that those who drank the Zekejuice will soon be turned into titans, while only 19% choose to remain hopeful about their fates.

I would say Zeke titanizing everyone who drank the wine is inevitable, but the fact that Falco ingested the wine keeps being brought up. Zeke isn't aware. I feel like he has to know about Falco's state before any decisions are made. Whether that helps or not, we'll find out. After all, Zeke was shown to be close to Colt, who's Falco's big bro. Big brother feelings resonate with Zeke. It's a 50/50 chance imo.

Yeah, with Zeke joining the fray and all those soldiers that ingested his spinal fluid locked up, I expect Zeke will scream and turn Falco + all, if not most, of the spinal fluid-infected Paradis soldiers into Pure Titans next chapter. From there, Zeke will give Eren the Pure Titans needed to attack Marley's forces in Shingashina right now.

IS THIS THE FINAL BATTLE? 1,282 responses

Now that the fight has started, how many think it’s the last brawl?  About ⅔ at 66.2% think the story will continue, whereas ⅓ at 33.8% think the story will end when this battle does.

Honestly this better not be the final battle. Marley vs Paradis is too black and white, I need a large commentary on the human condition

This really does feel like the final multi-titan battle. It might not technically be the final fight, but this feels like the RtS of the post-Marley arc. It's the climactic battle we've been building towards

People can say whatever they want, but everything indicates to me that Eren will become the last antagonist for the final war against the whole world.

This specific fight may not be the final battle but I have a feeling there are more to follow right here. Poetic really, that the series began in Shiganshina and will end there.

WHAT WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO SEE NEXT CHAPTER? 1,289 responses

117’s come and gone, on to 118!  The most popular answer, at about 30% want to see this fight continue more than anything else.  23.3% would like an update about Levi and Hange, 16.2% want the 104th in action, and 11.7% are at the altar of Annie.

please god either of the blonde best girls would be nice.

Armin and Annie joining the battle

I want to see what happened with Hange and Levi and also information on Historia. I also kind of hope to see Eren double cross Zeke.

Eren's plan, Levi, Armin being the genius he is , Annie, Mikasa fighting

Erwin. There is nothing I want more and idc how unreachable my dream is.

Continuation of the battle, and maybe Armin using his titan power to jail protect everyone in the jail cell. If Eren could partially titanise to protect himself, Armin and Mikasa from canon ball fire back in the first arc, Armin could do the same!

Bertolt. More Bertolt.

Some scene where Eren or someone reflects on all those lost, because honestly, it's my only chance of seeing Mina in the main story one more time.

I'd love to see all of them (except Floch), but in the context of what's going on right now, I think it'd be cool to see Annie join the fight just because it's been so long she's been in that crystal, and with practically every Titan in Shingashina right now (not to mention the recent Annie teasing), she's the only one absent from the fight, and I want to see her participate. I also expect to see Zeke using his scream next chapter, because it just feels like the perfect opportunity for us readers to see the Founding Titan in action again.

Floch, 104th, Annie, Yelena, Zeke, Eren, (no levi dont care about him)

I want Mikasa to shine, and I want to see Historia again

WHERE IS MY FUCKING EREN FLASHBACK YAMS, I NEED THE SAUCE PLD

I'm sick of Eren and I don't care what happens to him.  I want to know what happened to Levi.

All of the above, but fuck floch

I'm expecting Zeke will scream next chapter, and Falco will be the among the ones that will turn into a Pure Titan

Is it too much to ask for all of it?

Onyankopon FREE MY SONS AND DAUGHTER. FREE ARMIN AT LEAST.

AT THIS POINT, AROUND WHICH CHAPTER DO YOU EXPECT THE MANGA WILL CONCLUDE?

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE CHAPTER?

Overall..pretty amazing chapter...just want to know the aftermath of zeke's arrival at this point.

Zeke is best boi and I needed that onii-chan panel in my life. My depression is cured.

Greatest Titan Battle yet!!! And Eren is easily the best character in Attack on Titan and one of the best manga protagonists ever!!!

Zeke loves eren and I think its so sweet, eren be gentle with him!

I want to see reiner getting his "revenge" over bertholdt's death , since we know that bertholdt was an important person in reiners life

FLOCH! Where is my lover? I don't have the power. On my side forever. Oooh Missing my Floch Lover!

It been a while since Isayama didn't shine with his drawing specially. The facial expressions and symbolism between some panels are so powerfull meaning and puts us in struggle to decoding it for a bit. One of the most deepest one (for me) was yelena saying "you're different from others Eren, you're special".

I do not foresee a great future for Eren as facial surgeon.

Marley and the warriors is so hypocritical. Porco's line really go to me because they attacked Paradis multiple times first. Hope  eren beats their ass.

This chapter was okay but I’m getting bored of Eren vs Reiner. Also, I would really like to see the 104th out of that damn cell and I would also like to never have to lay my eyes in Zeke or Floch ever again.

Intense and amazing in many ways, Marley FTW

Pieke and Gabi made me feel for them more than I expected.

In need of an update on Historia. Looking forward how Zeke and Eren fight together. Will they actually kill the warriors? Will those who are in the cell break free and come to stop the battle or join in? Did the Yeagerists manage to get their hands on Levi and Hanji??

THE GATE GUARDS DID NOTHING WRONG I WILL NEVER STOP FIGHTING - I WILL SCREAM THIS FROM THE HEAVENS. JUSTICE FOR THE GATE GUARDS

Isayama has gotten very good at action scenes hot damn

I guess Reiner was right with saying that Eren is the most unreliable person who's entrusted with the coordinates and the power of the founding titan, because it could be possible that Eren will use this power for the bad.

I think 104th will escape and Chad style Dab on Marley and pop their airships to end up losing Connie and then get 99999x Thunderspears to create their own rumbling because Eren didn't have the coordinate after all.

Now we need Wack a Mole Eren

I was really hoping porco would eject out of the jaw titan when he was skewered, and retransform only to get nearly killed by Eren either impaling him or using him as a meatshield against Magath.

Where's mah boi Levi and Hanji at?

we were blessed with so much eren this chapter and i’d like to thank not only god but also jesus

Pieck has the biggest dick in the city. Take that Eren's WHT spears.

I really like how the Attack Titan screams so loudly it causes Gabi and Colt to resort to shutting their ears. Pretty sick xD

I sad-cringed at the "oni-chan" comment so much man. Poor Zeke

I think it was a well written battle in the sense that there was still a good amount of tension because Eren wasn't just effortlessly slaughtering the warriors. Instead he defiantly held his ground while outnumbered, outgunned and surrounded which imo showcases his strengths - tenacity and willpower - best of all.

I want all 9 titans to come together in an epic all-out brawl! Please make it happen Isayama!

If Pieck and Zeke don't engage in an Artillery duel next chapter, I'll be sorely disappointed.

This is just the begining of beautiful friendship - 104th and Marleyans. You shall see the truth soon ;)

When I finished the chapter I started crying because of what Reiner said while he was trying to eat Eren. In my opinion, Reiner has been such an accurate depiction of suicidal ideation that it's scary. It's just really painful to see, but I'm glad it's done so well and I really commemorate Isayama for treating it respectfully. I suppose I hope Reiner gets to see the kids again before he dies. At least... give him one last smile before he has to say goodbye.

I am most looking forward to see if Mikasa joins the fight or not, we still don't know what she thinks about Eren now!! And I want to know what Armin figured out, and I really want to know where the FUCK Historia is, and I really really want to know what happened to Levi and Hange. In that order.

Very good and well rounded, comedic moments were funny and not forced, Fights looked great as expected. Unique twist seeing new anti titan weaponry but enjoyable to see it being used.

This chapter really illustrated how well Isayama can draw facial expressions to convey the characters thoughts

It was an artistically beautiful chapter, as has been the norm recently, and I am so excited to see more.

It's so cathartic to see Eren finally let loose again

Magnificent, but seriously when is Annie coming back

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 1,236 responses

This chart changes ever so slightly from month-to-month.  While Tumblr is up a few percentage points, Reddit continues to bring nearly half of all respondents. Thank you again to everyone who participated, regardless of what platform you are on!

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 151: The Reason Heroes Wear Capes

Previously on BnHA: Mirio caught up with Overhaul and his final group of henchmen. Overhaul was all, “oh it’s that guy who couldn’t save Eri last time!” and Mirio was all, “that’s why I’m here this time.” Overhaul’s henchmen Sakaki and Nemoto appeared and tried to take out Mirio by giving him vertigo and hitting him with some fresh truth bombs, but Mirio shrugged them both off and kicked their asses. Then he ran over to Overhaul and roundhouse kicked the guy carrying Eri in the face while phasing his foot right through Eri, and Eri went flying out of the guy’s hands and into Mirio’s arms. Overhaul was all, “WHAT THE FUCK,” and Mirio was all, “I know I’m weak!” and the audience was all, “UH, YEAH, NOOOOOOOT REALLY THOUGH.” Anyway, so he caught Eri and was all, “everything’s fine now,” and I can’t fucking believe he’s going to die after all that. Or something else horrible is going to happen to him. I can’t fucking believe it, Mirio. Because right now it sure does look like he’s got this.

Today on BnHA: Overhaul activates his disassembly quirk and shreds the floor into bits and then reassembles it as a bunch of spikes. Mirio is able to phase through them while hoisting Eri out of harm’s way, but he’s super pissed at Overhaul for putting her at risk. Overhaul is unconcerned and says he can just put Eri back together again if she does get hurt, and that he’s done it many times before. Obviously this is the worst thing anyone’s ever said ever, and Mirio is enraged, but between dodging the spikes and dodging the bullets Overhaul’s last henchman Chrono is firing at him, it’s hard for him to fight back. So he wraps up Eri in his cape in order to confuse the bad guys, and then warps over to Chrono and knocks him out. He then punches Overhaul square in the jaw, which has been coming a long time and is super satisfying. As Mirio continues to whale on him, Overhaul has a flashback to when he tried to get his boss to follow his jerk plan and his boss was all, “no thanks that’s fucked up.” Meanwhile Nemoto wakes up in the adjacent hallway, crawls on over, picks up the case of Quirk-be-Gone bullets that Overhaul throws to him, and takes aim.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 183 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.) 

I don’t like this side text

it’s so confident. why you gotta jinx us like that manga

you guys Overhaul is staring at Mirio and Mirio is shaking a bit

I hope that’s a rage/adrenaline tremble. I don’t think it is. but I don’t like him being nervous. but he’s all alone with the Big Bad and now he has this little girl to protect and he already fucked up once and she’s counting on him and he can’t let her down and omggggg. TENSION

Overhaul is beckoning Eri back and threatening to kill Mirio. “how many times must I tell you before you understand?”

hey what the fuck

kay. maybe it is a rage tremble. bc I’m starting to feel the same way just a little. I really need this asshole to never talk to this little girl ever again. Mirio, get her out of there!!

Eri’s panicking but Mirio’s telling her not to listen to him

Overhaul’s continuing to push all of my rage buttons and gggerhfrrrffghk

my god he’s the worst. almost makes Endeavor look like father of the year in comparison

he says Eri is cursed and her actions are destined to kill people. actually he specifically says “every single one of your actions is destined to kill people.” because what better way to keep an innocent child in line than to manipulate her with guilt and fear sdflkhs wow this man is evil

--!!!!!!

OH MY GOD FINALLY

AHHHHHHHH

I LIKE THAT THE TITLE HAS EXCLAMATION POINTS ON IT THIS TIME BECAUSE THEY SEEM APPROPRIATE. MIRIO, RUN

holy SHITTTTT

I HAVE VASTLY UNDERESTIMATED THE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF OVERHAUL’S QUIRK. HOLY FUCKING SHIT

okay, so quick tactical rundown: the main problem here is that Mirio can’t use his ability to its full extent while also carrying Eri. what he should do is put her down for a sec and use his “warp” ability to fuck up Overhaul’s shit real quick. he was insanely fast while he was tearing class 1-A apart, and I feel like he could do it before Overhaul would be able to do any serious harm to Eri

because the thing is, Overhaul can’t kill Eri because she’s his cash cow. but I absolutely believe him capable of hurting her. which is why speed is of the essence

however I don’t think he’s going to be willing to risk it, which is why I think he miiiiiight be screwed

oh hey, Overhaul is casually confirming that yes, he’s totally willing to fuck Eri up if need be

jesus fucking christ. pretty sure you could show this page to fucking All for One and he’d be like, “holy shit that dude’s evil”

like, while Shigaraki Tomura was chilling on a couch on the beach, this guy was torturing a six-year-old and coldly reminding her that if she ever tried to ask someone for help, they would die and it would be her fault

just... I don’t even have words. I feel like Overhaul traveled to BnHA from some seinen manga and doesn’t realize we have certain rules here about what lines it’s okay and not okay to cross

anyway, here’s Mirio’s response to that

like, I obviously feel the same way, and it’s obviously more horrific for him to hear because he’s living it and doesn’t have the luxury of reminding himself it’s fiction. so I don’t blame him

but also I really need him to just keep his cool now omg, because she’s counting on you dude! fff and also I’m counting on you to not die because I love you. and also I really need Eri to not be traumatized anymore because holy shit please protect this sweet angel

anyway, so Overhaul’s continuing to do his Fullmetal Alchemist bullshit, and asking Mirio what he’s going to do if Eri gets hurt. because presumably they, unlike him, are not capable of putting her back together

clearly the only solution is to not let her get hurt!

“you can’t phase your way out of here while holding onto her” fuck me he’s figured it out

we need Aizawa stat. but who knows how long it’ll be before he catches up omg. they were in that maze for five hundred years

aaaaaand Overhaul’s sealed the path with his quirk

okay I feel like now is a good time to call bullshit on Overhaul’s reassembly power. this is too damn much. why is he allowed to reassemble matter in different fucking forms than the original. what the hell is the limit on his power then. you’re telling me Twice has a limit of two copies and Toga has to drink liters of blood in order to get any prolonged use out of her quirk, and here comes fucking Overhaul who can disassemble one thing and reassemble something completely different as long as it’s made from the same material. and he can even do ranged attacks, and he can manipulate this giant fucking room the size of a school gymnasium, and he doesn’t even seem to be tired?? jesus christ

then again, Todoroki Shouto can create a mountain of ice out of literally nothing in like .02 seconds. so maybe I’m really just mad because he’s so damn evil and I need someone to punch him in the face already

anyway, meanwhile this remaining henchman is aiming a gun at Mirio. because apparently he’s still conscious. so now it’s two against one, and they both have ranged attacks, and Mirio’s gonna have to dodge them both while not being able to fully phase his arms or hands

SON OF A BITCH

STOP GIVING HIM POINTERS

now Mirio’s turning around and hiding behind his cape which seems like a really bad idea??

okay first off, that closeup of the gun firing reminded me that guns are always censored in anime, and now I’m wondering how kooky this arc is going to look when it gets animated, because it’s pretty gun-heavy. hmm. gotta go back and see if we’ve had any other scenes with handguns already prior to this arc

(ETA: nothing comes to memory, but I admittedly haven’t gone back to check the anime yet with this in mind)

and second, Mirio’s cape isn’t bulletproof, and all this does is make it so that he can’t see where the bullets are coming from. and if he phases, he risks letting Eri get hit

so like I have no idea what he gains from a move like this. any thoughts??

but anyway he got lucky at least

OH!!!

nice!!!!!!

shit, this is why he’s the hero and I’m the person reading this and running my big mouth. it never occurred to me he could use that to hide Eri so that he could spring this move

and at first I was like WHY DIDN’T HE HIT OVERHAUL, but then I thought maybe that’s not such a good idea to get that close to a guy who can splatter you with a touch

so now I’m thinking he should grab this guy’s discarded gun and fucking shoot Overhaul instead. but I somehow can’t picture him doing that. even though it would be perfect and the safest way to dispatch him and nonlethal while still being poetic justice

but now I see the gun has been knocked away

so on top of being insanely overpowered, Overhaul is also great at thinking on his feet

OH SHIT, AGAIN

HIS TRADEMARK ATTACK FROM BEHIND MOVE! DEKU SAW THROUGH IT, BUT OVERHAUL WASN’T FAST ENOUGH OH SNAP

I CAN’T FUCKING BELIEVE MIRIO PHASED THROUGH HIS HAND AND STILL HIT HIS FACE. I KNOW HE DID THE SAME THING WITH ERI IN THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER, BUT THE TIMING IS STILL UNBELIEVABLE AND IT’S LITERALLY LIFE OR DEATH IF HE DOESN’T GET IT RIGHT

LOOK AT THIS!!!!

I’M READING THIS ON DEC 20TH, SO CHRISTMAS IS STILL FIVE DAYS AWAY, BUT SUFFICE TO SAY THIS IS JUST WHAT I WANTED

I always think of the cape montage from The Incredibles, which is a whole lot of reasons to not wear capes. and meanwhile Mirio gives just this one very specific reason to wear them which I have to assume doesn’t come up very often

but I gotta say, he sells it

the henchman guy is running to pick up his discarded gun. hey Mirio, you wanna warp over here and punch him again

that works too

shit the gun is in pieces now. well at least it can’t be used against him

meanwhile Overhaul is back on his bullshit, but Mirio’s warping again

fuck yessssssss

I KNOW WE JUST SAW THIS, BUT MY GOD, IT’S STILL JUST AS SATISFYING THE SECOND TIME. HELL, MAYBE EVEN BETTER, BECAUSE THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S NOT JUST A ONE-OFF

naturally the other shoe is still waiting to drop though. what’s it gonna be. does Overhaul have a gun of his own? he seems the type who’d do that. or will he catch Mirio off guard somehow?

fuck, I’m getting nervous now. things are going too well

Mirio he’s a germaphobe so you should just sneeze on him. see what happens

Eri’s watching in awe as Mirio screams that Overhaul won’t ever lay a finger on her again

“you lose, Chisaki!!”

what in the hell is this

no amount of sympathetic flashbacks can make me feel sorry for you, dude. I feel fucking confident saying that. I’d wager real life money that I don’t have

present day!Overhaul is telling Mirio not to call him by that name and saying he threw it away

and now we’re flashing back again, but Overhaul is already a young man now

he wasn’t a babyhaul for very long huh

he’s talking to the old boss and they seem to be discussing how the family is getting weaker

Overhaul is requesting the boss to reconsider “the plan I talked to you about before”

but boss isn’t having it

tell that to those assholes who fought Tamaki for like three whole chapters

holy shit the plot is twisting all of a sudden! we’re back in the present!

Nemoto (the truth serum Reborn guy from the previous chapter) is crawling toward Overhaul slowly

I’m sorry, the main takeaway I got from that is that Mirio’s been at it for ten minutes already, and where are Aizawa, Nighteye, and Deku, again??

and Nemoto is having a flashback explaining why he became Overhaul’s right hand man

apparently because other people kept lying to him, and he wanted a friend he could trust. because nothing sums up Overhaul’s general vibe better than “trustworthy friend”

so now he’s all “I must walk with him!!!”, and I want you all to know that I’m thumping my head on the back of my desk chair and rolling my eyes very exasperatedly. for fuck’s sake where did Overhaul fucking find all of these assholes

and I know I said I wanted Nemoto to stick around, but that was for shipping purposes!!! not Mirio-killing purposes! what the fuck!

what the fuck guys!

you’re telling me Mirio did ALL OF THAT SHIT and yet he couldn’t stop Overhaul from throwing a case of bullets at Nemo?

and Nemo had time to load his fucking gun and everything, and Mirio was what?? just standing there??!

I’m sorry, Mirio. you are so deserving of being the next Symbol of Peace. but it’s not you and it won’t be you, and the reason is that you’re not the main character, and so you don’t have the power of always somehow winning the day no matter what, and shit like this happens to you that you don’t fucking deserve. it’s not you, sweetie. it’s the plot

oh man

 BONUS:

 FA’s doing another omake corner with pages from the character book! 8DDDD just what I needed after this stress

lookit this. lookit

so peaceful. even though Deku’s stressing me out just a tiny bit because who the fuck reads standing up. sit down and relax

then there is a page of Horikoshi being excited over his book, and then a page of the characters as cute little stickers with catchphrases

and I need someone to explain Todoroki’s catchphrase to me. because what

isn’t this the name of Mr. Burns’s teddy bear

like, the others make sense! Deku’s is all “smash!!” and Katsuki’s is “boom!!” and Ochako’s is “float” with a little heart. so now tell me. wtf is bobo. that’s the word my Puerto Rican mom and grandma used for “pacifier” when my siblings and I were little. it’s weirding me the fuck out

(ETA: 

yes google. that’s exactly what I meant. todoroki bring your own beer.)

on an unrelated note, I was wavering on whether to post Aizawa but I think I have to

just because. he has no arms and it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen

and now we’re moving on to Kirishima and Mina’s profiles, but I’m thinking I’m gonna just do a separate post on the kids’ profiles at some point, so I’ll skip this for now. anyways that was fun

ACTUAL BONUS:

so now here’s the omake from the actual volume!

my takeaway from that paragraph about Sakaki is that Horikoshi is probably always drunk while writing this series and that sure explains a lot

someone needs to smack the Nemoto inside of Horikoshi’s head. fuck the stupid masks. these guys would have been at least 10x more interesting without them (not an exaggeration; the bar was so low that even something as small as that would have improved them drastically)

actually, now I kind of wish he’d gotten to fight Nighteye. salaryman vs salaryman. maybe get Iida in on this too somehow. battle royale

[waywardrose13]

Switched

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: Fucking witches...

^ That’s all you’re going to get;) ^

Prompt: Switching bodies

Also written for @spnfluffbingo : Square filled- Cuddling

Warnings: Witches/hex, language, some angst, a fight, Dean’s a dick, period talk, Sam’s a bit rude, fluff, crack!fic

Word count: 3027 (My fics have been longer than usual lately. Good thing or bad thing?)

A/N- Woah, first crack!fic. Calm your tits, I know it’s a bid deal (Not really). Anyway, I wrote this fic for the lovely @squirrel-moose-winchester‘s crack fic challenge (happy early birthday!). My prompt was switching bodies, which I had a lot of fun with. I hope you guys enjoy, find it humorous or even hate it, whatever. Love y’all:)

    Your limbs felt heavy against the wooden armrests of the chair, the witch’s lips by your ear, her whispers low and tickling your skin as she held your head against her mouth, the spell spilling from her lips. Your eyes were glazed over, the world tilting as you began to slip into unconsciousness.

    She had popped up out of nowhere. You and the brothers had been hunting a witch- a trickster copycat more like- when she had sprung up from the shadows, grabbing you before the boys could notice. And here you were.

    She was sly and downright annoying. She liked to pull pranks and trick people through her hexes. She turned a man into a potted plant, twins into a kit-kat bar and made one woman wake up as a man.

    Now as she whispered a hex into your ear, you couldn’t help but wonder what the hell you would turn into. Fear bubbled into your stomach as you tried to move away but found it near impossible just to raise a finger, your body feeling as though cement had been poured inside of you and hardened.

    “Y/N!” You heard Dean yell. His name was on the tip of your tongue, but you couldn’t find your voice. The door to the room burst open just as the witch completed the verse, the redhead standing up straighter as the men rushed in. Dean’s eyes landed on you, his face going hard, nostrils flaring.

    “Hello, boys. I was just finishing up with girlie here,” She said moving your hair off your shoulders.

    “You bitch,” Dean growled. She scoffed.

    “Real mature, Winchester.” Her heavy Georgian accent was accentuated with each word, her voice dripping honey as she smiled at them. She was a looker, one of the many ways she lured her victims in; long red hair in ringlets hung to her waist, wide blue eyes and a bright smile highlighted by cherry lips. She was a young witch and Dean couldn’t help but wonder why she had gotten into messing with people in the first place.

    “What did you do to her?” Sam asked, worried hazel eyes locked on your dazed form.

    “Oh nothing yet, baby. I haven’t finished the hex quite yet. But she’ll especially like this one, I promise.” She moved around the chair, walking slowly towards the men. Her hips swung with each step, a seductive smirk on her lips as she made her way to Dean. They were both captivated by her, an almost siren power rolling off her in thick waves. Before they could react, she had blown purple dust into Dean’s face, giggling before dashing from the room. He grunted, falling to his knees as Sam took off after her.

    “Dean?” You murmured, finally coming out of the haze. He looked up at you, blinking and letting out a sneeze.

    “Yeah sweetheart.” He got up, shaking his head a bit. “I gotcha.” He helped you out of the chair. You wobbled a bit but stabilized quickly.

    A gun shot was heard in the distance and you and Dean shared a look. Sam came rushing in soon after, a small splatter of blood across his neck.

    “She’s dead.”

    ***

“I feel fine, Dean,” You said sighing. He ignored you, his hands lifting your chin, looking this way and that way, his eyes roaming every inch of your body for anything that could say you weren’t “fine.”

    “We don’t know what that witch did to you,” Dean said. “For all we know, you could be internally bleeding and we wouldn’t know it.”

    You furrowed your brows, glancing over at Sam who rolled his eyes and sighed in exasperation. “Dean, chill. She’s fine. The witch is dead. Whatever she hit you and Y/N with probably went away with her.”

    “Yeah, maybe you’re right,” Dean murmured. He let out a deep breath, standing back up from his crouched position in front of you. “I just get worried.”

    “I know you do, baby,” You said, patting his cheek lovingly. “But I’m a big girl. I’ll be fine.”

    He kissed your forehead before collapsing on the bed, groaning as he sunk into the springy mattress.

    “Alright. I’ll see you guys tomorrow. Remember- thin walls.” You laughed, nodding Sam farewell as he left you and Dean’s motel room, heading to his own.

    “You going to sleep?” You asked, changing into one of Dean’s t-shirts and climbing in with him.

    “Yep,” He grunted. He sat up, shrugging out of his clothes and laying back beside you, slinging an arm over your waist and pulling you close to his chest. You tilted your head up, his lips pressing firmly to yours.

    “I love you,” You whispered. He hummed, kissing your jaw.

    “I love you, too.” He nuzzled his face into your neck, sighing contently.

***

Your eyes fluttered open, a yawn escaping your lips. You rubbed the sleep from your eyes and pulled away from the body sleeping beside you, rolling out of bed. You stumbled a bit, feeling heavier than normal. Perhaps you had gained weight? You shrugged, not thinking much of it and trudged into the bathroom.

    You closed the door softly behind you, your hand running to smooth your long locks back away from your face. Your heart leaped when you felt the soft, short hairs upon your head. Whipping towards the mirror, your eyes- or should you say Dean’s eyes- widened, a strangled scream erupting from your throat.

    Somehow, you had ended up in your boyfriend’s body. Your now long H/C hair was short, light brown and spiked up by sleep like a hedgehog. Your E/C eyes had turned to a crisp leaf green, the flecks of gold you had loved inside his eyes now inside yours. A light coating of stubble graced your face, your hand coming up to rub over it, feeling the prickly strands against your larger, callused hands.

    “Dean!” You bellowed, his voice coming from your mouth. You walked back into the room, watching as Dean- or, you- woke up, E/C eyes blinking awake. Dean sat up, rubbing his face and squinting at you.

    He jumped into action seeing himself standing at the foot of the bed.

    “Son of a bitch!” He reached under his pillow, fumbling for the gun that wasn’t there. He cursed to himself, eyeing you warily.

    “Where’s Y/N?” He asked.

    “I am Y/N you jackass,” You growled, downright scary as Dean. “Take a look at yourself.”

    Dean furrowed his brows, scoffing. “Right.” You rolled your eyes- or- Dean’s eyes.

    “I’m fucking serious, Dean. I woke up in your damn body and you woke up in mine.”

    “What?” He got out of bed, rushing past you into the bathroom, a squeak falling from his mouth as he stared back at you. “How the hell did this happen?”

    “I uh…” You thought for a moment, eyes widening in realization. “The witch.”

    “Shit!” Dean grumbled, slapping his hand down on the counter. “I can’t be a chick. I can’t be… Shorter than you!” He turned to face you, your face staring up at you with a horror stricken expression.

    “Oh yeah,” You said smiling. “I’m taller than you now! Awesome!” You moved closer to him, almost a head taller than him now. You laughed loudly, placing your larger hands on his shoulders. “Who’s the tiny one now?”

    A knock sounded on the motel room door, the knob rattling as a key was being put into the hole.

    “Morning,” Sam said as he entered the room. He tossed his pair of room keys onto the small table, watching as you and Dean emerged from the bathroom. He noticed your horrified faces and he chuckled. “What? Is Y/N pregnant or something? Wait, are you? I have noticed your stomach has been a bit rounder.”

    “Oh wow. Thanks, Sam,” You said bitterly. His eyes flashed to yours.

    “I wasn’t talking to you. And you can’t get pregnant, moron,” Sam said.

    “Oh great. Now I can get pregnant,” Dean grumbled. His eyes widened, looking up at you. “Are you pregnant? Am I pregnant?”

    “What? No! And fuck you, Sam!” You said angrily. “That really helps a woman’s self esteem, her best friend saying she’s getting fat.”

    “Hey now. I didn’t say she was getting fat,” Sam said defensively. “And I wasn’t talking to you, Dean!”

    “I’m pretty sure you were saying she was getting fat,” Dean said. Sam’s look of utter confusion made you laugh. One that was quickly dissipated when Dean sent you a glare.

    “I didn’t say she was getting fat!” Sam said. “And why the hell are you talking about yourself in the third person?”

    “I’m not,” You said.

    “Yeah, she’s not. ‘The hell is wrong with you this morning?” Dean asked.

    “What the hell is wrong with you two this morning?” Sam said loudly.

    “You’re the one who called Y/N fat!” Dean said.

    “I didn’t call… Wait… What?” Sam asked.

    “The witch’s hex went through after all,” You said. “I’m Y/N.”

    “And I’m Dean.” Dean nodded, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

    Sam stared at the two of you in disbelief, his eyes flicking between the two of you. He looked like he was gonna scream.

    And then suddenly he laughed.

    A full body, throwing your head back laugh. You sighed, crossing your arms as you watched the youngest Winchester laugh his ass off at.

    “Oh my god. That’s fucking great,” Sam said, wiping a tear from his eye.

    “It’s really not,” Dean said.

    “Oh, it so is,” Sam laughed. “Isn’t your period due, Y/N?”

    You thought for a moment, a smile spreading across your face. “Holy shit, it is.”

    “What?”

    “You’re gonna have your first period!” You said slapping Dean on the back. He lurched forward at the force of it, a grunt escaping his lips.

    “No I’m not,” Dean said. “We’re gonna find a way to fix this. And fast.”

    “No, can’t we wait until next week?” You asked, sending a wink at Sam. He chuckled and shook his head.

    “Hell no!” Dean growled. You and Sam looked over at Dean, his face- or, your face- scrunched up angrily. Now you understood why the boys never took you seriously when you got angry. You were kinda cute.

    You and Sam burst out laughing, Dean rolling his eyes. He groaned then, his hand pressing to his lower abdomen, causing you and Sam to laugh harder.

    “It’s not funny!” He said.

    “It’s pretty funny,” you replied.

        ***

    The drive back to the bunker was awkward to say the least. Dean sat in the passenger seat as Sam drove, having to move the seat up too far in your body. You were incredibly amused. Although it affected the both of you, it was the best thing to have happened in a while.

    First, the waitress at the diner had hit on you. Which, of course, you weren’t interested in because of Dean, but he finally realized how you felt when girls would flirt with him left and right and he’d do it right back in front of you.

    Next, men addressed you more. Usually as a woman, you tended to not be noticed or addressed as much as the brothers. Your hand was always in Dean’s or his arm was always around your waist, and men would speak to Dean directly. It was worse when you three were working a case.

    “You sure you wanna go in there, little Miss?” “How are you supposed to go in there with heels? Why don’t you just wait out here?” “I’ll give you the keys, but I need to speak with you privately in my office.” It pissed you off, and when you expressed those concerns to Dean, he brushed you off, telling you that was silly, to man up. Heh, sure.

That’s rich.

It hadn’t been your idea for the two of you to switch bodies in the first place, but you wouldn’t deny it felt good to prove to Dean what you meant.

    You had to show Dean how to use tampons, which was a chore. He had complained through the whole process, and then refused to let you show him how.

    “Dean, it’s my body,” You had said. He had crossed his arms, staring defiantly up at you.

    “And for the time being, it’s mine and that’s just weird,” He answered.

    “That doesn’t make any sense! I’ve literally seen every inch of my body millions of times. Why can’t I show you how this works?” You had asked.

    “Oh my god, get out.” He had pushed you out of the bathroom, an amused smirk on Sam’s face.

    “I assume it didn’t go well?” He asked. You scoffed.

    “No.”

    For days, Dean had avoided you. It was getting quite annoying, honestly. He usually just locked himself in your shared room, making you sleep in your old room. The bed was too small for Dean’s body, and it started to piss you off.

    Sam found a reversal spell, and had left to get the needed ingredients, leaving you alone in the bunker with your boyfriend in your body.

    “Dean, open the door,” You called, knocking. He ignored you, like usual, but you just banged on the door harder. “I swear to God, Dean. If you don’t open this door, I will break it down.”

    Silence.

    Taking a step back, you raised Dean’s foot, kicking the door. Something snapped and you were able to push it open.

    “What the fuck?” Your voice exclaimed from across the room. You found him, clad in one of his t-shirts and a pair of your sleep shorts.

    “What the hell, Dean,” you growled. You stalked over to the significantly smaller body, towering over him for the first time. He craned his neck to look at you, jaw set. “I don’t know what your fucking problem is. I gave you space, I tried to help you. But you’re being a dick.”

    “Well, sorry,” Dean said holding his hands up. “You’re the one who got us into this in the first place.”

    Your brows raised. “Me?! It was the fucking witch, you dick! You think I wanted this?”

    “She said you would!” He shot at you. “Now leave me alone.”

    “Why are you acting like such a bitch?” You yelled. He glared at you.

    “I don’t know. Maybe being in your body, I picked up some of your tendencies,” He snarled. Eyes widening, you took a step back, hurt flashing across your face.

    He realized his mistake, his face softening. “Baby, I’m sorry… I didn’t mean-”

    “Go to hell, Dean… Again.” You turned and stalked out of the room, not in the mood anymore to break the news about the cure.

        ***

    You and Dean sat at the library table, a chair between the two of you, arms folded, sour looks on your faces. You were still pissed at him, and he hadn’t said a word to you since the earlier talk- which was normal now, you supposed, seeing as he rarely talked anymore anyway.

    You watched as Sam made the cure, carefully mixing each ingredient before dividing the gray liquid into two cups.

    “Alright,” he said. “Bottoms up.”

    Not sparing Dean a second glance, you snatched the cup, tossing it back quickly. The metallic taste took you by surprise and your shuddered.

    “Mutatio autem revertimini, quod est bonum novi.” Sam read the words as Dean finished his cup, face scrunching into one of displeasure.

    You flinched as your ears started ringing, your hands coming up to grip your head.

    “Jesus, Sam,” Dean said. “The hell did you do?”

    It all happened quite fast actually. Suddenly the pain had stopped, your eyes fluttering open to find yourself in a different spot then you were before.

    Looking up, you locked eyes with Dean, who was in his correct body. You narrowed your eyes at him, getting up from the table.

    “Thanks for the help, Sammy,” You said over your shoulder, stalking to your old room and away from Dean.

    You didn’t think you could contain your temper around him at the moment.

        ***

    “Y/N?” Dean called through the door. “Let me in, would ya?”

    You rolled your eyes. “Leave me alone, Dean.”

    “You’re acting like a child. Just open the goddamn door.”

    “No!” You said. “You can’t tell me what to do. Fuck off.”

    You heard a bang against the door. Dean must have rested his forehead roughly against it.

    “Come on, Y/N,” He said. “I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry. Really.”

    You sighed, getting up from the bed and opening the door. He stumbled a bit at the loss of support but quickly regained his balance, giving you a soft look.

    “I can finally look at you again,” he murmured, cupping your cheek.

    “I’m still annoyed with you,” You said. He let out a breath.

    “Come to bed?” He asked. You grumbled under your breath, flicking off the light and grabbing his hand, letting him lead you down the hallway into your shared room.

    “I love you,” He said as you turned away from him in bed. His hand found your hip, thumb rubbing softly on your exposed skin where the shirt had ridden up. He moved closer to you, pressing himself into your back, your body automatically curling into his. You could practically feel his smirk.

    “Shut up.”

    “I didn’t say anything.” He sounded amused.

    “You were thinking it.”

    “How could you possibly know that?”

    “Because I know you… And I’m smart.”

    He snorted. “Well, you’re pretty dumb to be with me.”

    “You got me there.”

    “Hey!” He laughed, tickling your side. You giggled, his lips pressing into the side of your neck. You could feel his smile against your skin.

    “I missed being able to touch you,” He said. You hummed, grabbing his hands in yours. He took a deep breath, tangling his legs between yours and resting his face in the crook of your neck.

    “Love you,” He murmured into your skin, lips tickling you.

    “Love you too,” You told him. “Even if you are a dork.”

    “Am not.”

    “Are too.”

    “Whatever.”

    You smiled, letting yourself finally fall asleep in his arms.

Enjoyed the story? Let me know here! Feedback is loved and greatly appreciated! Wanna get tagged in future stuff? Fill out this form! Wanna request something? Read the guidelines and send me an ask!

Forever Lovlies:

@jennalyncarrigan1230, @mogaruke, @kittyk26, @waywardsepticeye, @luciferslucille, @cookiecakeslive, @wheres-my-cheese, @supernatural-strangerthings-1980, @sunnysaysbookreviews, @nyxveracity, @raining-murder, @just-a-supernatural-sister, @hi-my-name-is-riley, @thehufflepuffblog, @donnaintx, @pisces-cutie, @waywardnerd67, @waywardbaby, @alexwinchester23, @jotink78, @kamoochlalives, @mersuperwholocked-lowlife, @impatient-witch, @sandlee44, @blackcherrywhisky, @ain-t-bovvered, @assassinofmasyaf, @supernatural-crazed-girl, @gh0stgurl, @theenigmaticwordsmith, @docharleythegeekqueen, @choosemyname, @1800-fandoms, @spnskinnyballs

Jensen/Dean beans:

@aubreystilinski, @whimsicalrobots, @dean-winchesters-bacon, @polina-93, @mirandaaustin93, @gigglesandwags, @akshi8278, @craftythecollectionsheep, @sasquatch5, @adoptdontshoppets, @thisismysecrethappyplace, @fangirl-forevers-world, @rawritsmolly

Fluff Bingo Tags:

@fangirl-forevers-world

[peterporkerpeter]

Code Red P.VII [Peter Parker x Avenger!Reader]

SUMMARY: When the Avengers are given the mission to acquire a deadly weapon in the possession of a suspicious professor, Y/N must attend a gala in order to charm the professor’s quite dangerous son. Her date to the gala? None other than her crush: Peter Parker himself. That’s bound to make for an interesting evening

CONTAINS: mention of sexual harrassment (for like only a hot sec), blood, swearing, ANGST, FLUFF, peter parker crying oof

WC: 4.000 

A/N: i’m so proud of this chapter, it is my favorite one yet and i really hope that you guys like this one. i was listening to some good tunes when i was writing and it got me really in the zone lol. this chapter is extra long bc i was feeling like a generous bitch so i hope yall like it. im literally screaming. hope you have a great day/night! :) Also, some people have mentioned that the tag list isn’t working for them! I’m so sorry about that, and if i’m being honest i have no idea how to fix it lol

| ONE | TWO | THREE | FOUR | FIVE | SIX | EIGHT |

Y/N SLAMMED HER DOOR shut, violently throwing her heels onto the mattress. There were several things she needed to do, the first being to find a new, fresh pair of clothes to change into. Breathing heavily, Y/N shimmied out of her red dress, now stained with dark crimson splotches. She ferreted through her closet, ignoring the bursts of pain from her worn wrists.

She settled on a comfortable cream sweater and a pair of gray sweat pants, feeling better already. She rolled up the sleeves and headed for the bathroom, where she dunked her head down towards the sink, flipping on the faucet. It took a century and a half to get majority of the makeup off her face without irritating her fresh wounds too badly, the water turning a mixture of red, black, and brown.

Y/N patted her face dry, relieved that her skin could finally breathe. The cuts still stung like a bitch, but she couldn't care less. She was home in her room, clothed in something comfortable and no longer in imminent danger for the rest of the night. It was a breath of fresh air to her, not just her skin.

She tried not to think about the way she had treated her team earlier. She knew she was acting mean and impulsive, but the words kept spilling out of her mouth before she could stop them. She just couldn't bare standing in that living room after brushing close with death a handful of times. And her head—God, her head. It would not stop pounding, like someone was driving an ice pick straight into her skull.

The mere thought of Axel's face caused a tremor to spike in her heart. She glanced in the mirror, eyeing the injuries he'd given her as some sick present. The coldness in his eyes still left her afraid. She felt like an idiot, too. She knew something was off, but she still insisted with continuing with the mission regardless of her countering intuition. In some twisted way, she felt like part of it was her own fault. Maybe that's why she acted out—because she was ashamed.

She felt a chill run down her spine, Axel's ghosting touch still grazing along her leg, his hot breath nipping at her ear. It felt like he was on top of her, smothering he beneath him until she couldn't breath. She felt like she was drowning. She didn't want to think of what else a sadistic asshole like him was capable of. She just hoped her team would deal with him.

Warm tears poured down her cheeks, and she buried her face in her hands, wishing she could just stop thinking for a minute.

Y/N swallowed, shaking her head. She sniffled, then started to tend to her wounds.

THE TEAM ARRIVED HOME fourty-five later, completely drained and exhausted from the demanding evening. It didn't take long for Fury to send in a clean up crew and detain Axel. His father still remained in the wind, but there was no knowing if he was going to be charged for anything or not—at least not by S.H.I.E.L.D. considering the weapon was nowhere to be found. Peter had managed to create a pretty accurate cover story for the gem, not wanting Y/N to get punished for dealing with it on her own accord. He trusted that she knew what she was doing, and he would ask her about it later, just not when she was so vulnerable and upset.

Everyone was concerned for Y/N. She hadn't sent a message or any word at all regarding whether or not she was doing all right. Then again, they didn't really expect to hear from her. They knew she was in a quite sensitive state of mind, and they understood. They've all been where she is at some point in their lives. Pain was inevitable. Only time could tell when Y/N would finally realize that.

"Can we not come in tomorrow?" Clint grumbled rhetorically.

"Is Y/N asleep?" Wanda asked. "Someone needs to make sure she's patched up after the beating she took. And we need to make sure those wrists aren't infected."

"I got it," Peter muttered.

"The other guy looked worse," Natasha grinned sheepishly. "That broken coffee table in there? She slammed him down on top of it with her hands tied. She is a badass, and she'll get through this."

"She shouldn't have to," Tony murmured. His guilty conscience continued to give him a difficult time throughout the night. He knew he wouldn't sleep tonight—not with where his thoughts were. Not with the image of her wrists rubbed raw and bleeding engraved in his mind like a tattoo.

Tony turned towards Peter, whose eyes were beginning to droop. The poor kid looked utterly broken down, but he pushed through. All he wanted to do was see Y/N. The older man clasped a hand on his trainee's shoulder. "You did good today, kiddo. Honestly, the teens saved the whole day with this one. You both kicked some major ass. Props to you."

Peter shrugged, fingers tightening around the bag of Chick-Fil-A absentmindedly dangling from his grip. "Doesn't matter. Thanks, but . . . it doesn't matter. I-I don't know why she was so upset with you guys, if anything when I got there she just seemed sad—"

"And that's a normal response to a traumatizing situation," Natasha shook her head. "It's expected to lash out, especially out of shame or embarrassment. And she's still just a kid, Peter. She didn't have her powers, just what she knew from what we taught her. She was scared."

"She will come around tomorrow," Steve added. "Let her rest. Let her eat. It's best to leave her be. Someone will go in and check out her—"

"I can," Peter interjected. "She'll talk to me."

The elevator dinged, the doors sliding open to reveal the living room of the main floor. The kitchen was untouched, the cold granite countertops wiped clean the precise way they were before the team dispatched. Darkness embodied the room, silence enveloping the homey premises. Peter noticed the familiar outline of a girl standing outside on the balcony, her elbows resting upon the cement wall, eyes looking out amongst the humming city illuminated below.

"There she is," Wanda smiled fondly.

Peter's eyes softened, sparkling faintly in the darkness. A familiar warmth ignited within his chest, his lips parting slightly, curving up to form the faintest smile. It was soft like stardust. He was awestricken and intrigued and nervous. He noticed she was wearing a casual sweater and sweatpants, and she looked just as beautiful as she did earlier in her long, silk gown.

Y/N was nonchalantly manipulating a glowing line of orange tinted energy, watching cathartically as the color twisted to follow the smooth, fluid movements of her fingertips. She seemed at ease for the first time this evening since her and Peter shared their dance; he would give anything just to have her that close to him again.

He could still vaguely feel her lips pressed against his. He remembered the warmth that had curled around him like a cozy blanket afterward. The brokenness in her eyes when he last saw her hurt him more than he anticipated it would. He never wanted to see her like that again—bleeding, crying, fighting for her life. Never. He would do anything to protect her, even if that meant his own demise in the process.

Y/N glanced over her shoulder, exhausted eyes falling upon the crowd of people pouring in from the elevator. Her team looked entirely worn out from the intense mission, their bodies hunched and feet dragging wherever they wandered. Clint caught her gaze, the smallest of smiles creeping onto his face. He raised his hand into the air, offering the girl a wave. Y/N waved back with pursed lips and glittering eyes, then turned back around to face the open.

It was always a miraculous sight—the city. In the morning it was buzzing with light and intensity. Sunlight bored down on the cracked streets, cars lulling through frustrating traffic, people honking at their neighbors. The hues were of red and gray variety, shades of beige and powder blue adorning the graffitied walls and painted freight trains. Time was consistent during the day. It was never ending. It went on forever, and so did the people living within it. They got up at the same time every morning and hustled to work, took their lunch break at the bodega or crammed in their office, then went home and repeated the same damn routine all over again the very next day.

And then there was the nighttime, when blackness ascended over the city, and the tangerine sun slipped beneath the horizon. At night the city came alive. It was unpredictable and adventurous. You never knew what the city would do when the lights went out in the sky. Overbearing neon shades illuminated the large, glowing signs of theaters and cinemas, hotels and twenty-four hour diners. The streets were clearer, still littered with cars full of tired adults, hoping to get home to their beds for a few hours of sleep before they had to awake early the following morning.

Y/N could see herself in the city at nighttime, waltzing into unprecedented territories with nothing but a high adrenaline and a desire to see beyond vibrancy of its core.

But it was the transition from day to night that really got her—the part of the day when the stars were hardly out and the sun still managed to remain a glowing orb of glistening orange light in the sky. The stars were distant, like they were gently dusted across a canvas of baby blue, powdered on by a paintbrush like a Monet. There was so much going on in this hour, but the transition made so much sense to her. The more she watched and scrutinized the switch, the more she understood how much night and day were alike. As quickly as time moved during this period, it slowed. Time stopped here. Right on the skyline, the moment always stretching out to form a thousand more.

"Hey," Peter's voice broke her from the impenetrable wall of thoughts towering in her head. "I uh, I brought you food."

Y/N turned to face her friend, ignited eyes falling onto the bag of Chick-Fil-A dangling by his leg. A soft chuckle emitted from her scratchy throat.

"Thanks," the girl whispered. She grabbed the bag from his hands and set it on the nearby table. "How's the team?"

"Worried about you," Peter replied honestly. "And I am too."

"I'm just trying to not think about it at the moment. I've been trying to clear my mind," Y/N sighed. "I kicked that guy's ass, didn't I? Stupid Axel fucking Klein. Lucky you came when you did. I would've managed to kill him someway."

Peter shook his head. "No, you wouldn't have."

She cocked her head, furrowing her brows. "Yeah, you're right, I wouldn't have. But I wish I could. I wish I could kill him." A pause followed. The tension between them was thick—thicker than it ever had been before. She could taste it on her tongue. "So, what? The team send you out here because they know I'm a softy for you?"

Peter shrugged. "I-I volunteered. Tony bought the food, but I . . . I wanted to see you. I needed to."

Y/N stared into his eyes for a moment. They were soft and gentle, glistening like fragments of crystals. He somehow reminded her of the soft strum of an acoustic guitar. She found herself reaching forward for him, wanting to touch him during a circumstance that wasn't as vile and as graphic as the last. She wanted to touch him when she wasn't just about to immerse herself into a dangerous mission. She wanted to touch him when they were alone together with the unpredictable, haphazard rosy aura of the city during night.

"Peter," she whispered. She loved his name so much. She loved saying it. She loved hearing it. She loved hearing Peter.

Her hand caressed his jaw, the pad of her thumb gently grazing across the irritated cut on his cheekbone like the leaf of a swaying plant. She heard him release a shallow breath, his eyes flickering between the fragile placement of her hand and the bandages looped tightly around her damaged wrists.

"I thought I was going to die tonight," Y/N drew her hand away, feeling colder. Peter felt the same way. Peter always felt the same way. "I thought I was going to die in the hands of that . . . psychopath. You should've see the look on his face when he caught me in the car with his hands all over me. He looked so smug, so—"

"His hands were what?" Peter interrupted, anger flaring in his stomach. He ran his tongue along his bottom lip, red pooling in his eyes. He hated the guy. He hated him with every fiber in his body, and he wished he'd done a lot more to him than punch him a mere few times. No, he should've throttled him. He should've made him suffer longer, just the same way he did to Y/N. He should've—

"Peter," Y/N could sense his rage. She reached out to touch his hand, hoping to soothe the whirlwind of impulsive thoughts plaguing his mind. "He didn't do anything else. Not anything like you're thinking. He just had to get close so he could sedate me."

"I'm sorry. I-I wish I could've done more, Y/N, I—"

Peter's heart was racing. It was driving him insane, he had to tell her that he loved her. He couldn't wait any longer. He couldn't keep holding off for the right time—there was never a right time in the world to tell someone that you loved them, at least not in his world. In his world, death followed like a shadow with every risky move you made. In his world, witches were real and there was a living, breathing one standing right in front of him. There was never a right time for anything when he was Spider-Man, and there was never a right time for anything when he was Peter Parker because time always seemed to fade more quickly than it came.

Was now a right time to tell her? On the balcony of a tower overlooking the prospering, stagnant city below, right after her run in with death at the hands of some lunatic? He didn't want to take advantage of her, and he didn't want to scare her away. He would have to wait another day. He'd have to wait for the sun come up, then go back down again. Another day, another time, until finally it was the right time. Until finally he no longer had to wait.

"Peter, what are you thinking?" Y/N questioned.

"I-I—" the words were fading from his tongue. It was never the right time. "I don't . . . know."

Y/N tilted her head, perplexed by Peter's odd behavior. It wasn't like the boy didn't normally act odd, but now he was acting strange. He wasn't looking at her like a crippled, wounded animal or a damsel in distress desperate for a strong rescuer. He was just looking. His eyes were glazing over, but she didn't know with what. Was he sad? Angry? Frustrated with her? Tears leaked from his melancholy brown irises, slipping down his flushed cheeks. They glimmered like scattered fragments of moonlights.

"Peter, what's wrong?" she asked, her tone urgent and thick with worry. Her hands quickly moved to grab his arms, grounding him, letting him know she was there with him—as she would always be.

She waited patiently for him to respond, his sniffles filling the air. Peter didn't know why he was crying; he felt like complete idiot for doing so, but he just couldn't stop himself. The tears kept falling, streaming down his skin until they dropped from the bottom of his chin onto the ground. All he had to do was just feel her touching him, and suddenly he was an emotional kid. He wasn't Spider-Man or an Avenger. He was just Peter Parker. And Peter Parker had lost so much that the mere thought of losing someone else so important to him—he couldn't bare it. Not on top of the countless years of repressed pain and emotional baggage still anchored deep within his roots. Then to come too close to losing Y/N tonight . . . It was all too much to handle.

"Hey, Pete. You're okay. We're okay," Y/N's voice was soft like silk. Her hands ran soothingly up and down the length of his arms, almost as if she was warming him up after a long snowy day. "Talk to me, Pete."

"I-I just—I almost lost you tonight," he professed, and the words began to tumble out at the same rate as his tears. "And when I saw you in there, I just couldn't stop thinking . . . about what I would do if you . . . I just couldn't stop thinking. And-and thinking and thinking. And then I knew right then and there that I would never let myself lose you ever because I need you, Y/N. I need you more than anything."

Y/N's face melted, her eyes shimmering at his trembling words. They fell so seamlessly from his lips. Her stomach churned, empathy burning bright within her core. She felt the same way. She felt the same way about Peter Parker as he did her, and she felt the same way yesterday and the day before that and the day before that. She always felt the same way. She always would.

"I need you too, Peter," Y/N assured him strongly.

She grabbed his face, pulling him down so she could press her lips firmly against his damp cheeks. She peppered them along his skin, electrifying him with every touch, anchoring him further and further towards the ground, onto the winding road leading towards the glamorous city buoyant with tranquil life. She held him tight, and she would never let him go. Not now, not ever.

"No, Y/N! You don't get it!" he sobbed, pulling away. "You don't understand why I need you!"

"Then just tell me! Peter, tell me. Why do you need me?" Y/N cried.

"I-I'm in love with you," he proclaimed, standing in a pool of his tears. "I'm in love with you, and I almost couldn't save you."

Y/N was rendered utterly and profoundly speechless by Peter Parker.

The nighttime is unpredictable.

"W-what happens when I can't save you anymore?" he whispered, like if he spoke those words they would magically come true. Almost like a spell.

Her forehead wrinkled, desperation contorted onto her features. She didn't really care about what the city would feel like during the nighttime anymore, not when the transition of day to night was still fresh in her bones. Not when Peter Parker was telling her he was in love with her. He wasn't infatuated. He was in love. And that felt like time wrapped up in a perfect little bow.

Y/N placed her palm against his chest, feeling the rapid pace of his beating heart. She ran her hand up the back of his neck, Peter's eyes shining with her every liquid-like movement. He let his lids drop, wet lashes gluing together. She closed her eyes, gently pushing his neck down for his lips to meet hers. Time stops here. Her lips ghosted over his, her breaths quick and hot. Falling in love with Peter felt so painless, but suddenly she felt like she was on fire. Everything felt too real, too raw. Love seemed to operate quite frequently in the gray area of life.

"But you did. You can't think about the 'what-if's, Peter. There's always going to be 'what-if's." She whispered against his mouth.

Y/N closed the gap between their lips, the kiss soft and slow, her breath hitching dead in her throat. She couldn't grasp a hold on any of her thoughts as Peter gently reciprocated the kiss. She no longer felt any pain. She should've told Peter she loved him long before tonight. She should've told him she loved him before they left for the mission. She should've, but it just didn't feel like the right time. When did it ever feel like the right time? Time was more unpredictable than the city.

The kiss grew deeper, Peter's hand trailing up her body to hold her face delicately his calloused palm. He could feel her hands shaking like leaves on the back of his neck, her pants growing hasty as their lips entwined and tangled together. He could taste her so clearly now—something minty and reminiscent of cherries. It soon became his favorite flavor.

She pulled away, eyes still closed. She savored the moment for all of its worth. "Peter . . ." swift drawls of breath, "I love you too."

Relief and happiness fell from his lips in the form of unearthly laughter. A smile brighter than any sun or any hue covered both their faces before their lips collided once again. Peter's hands gently stroked down the length of her hair, taming the frizzy strands and smoothening the tousled pieces. Fits of laughter were muffled by the showering of intimate, fervent kisses. Peter basked blissfully in her ethereal beauty and slipped into a state of tranquility, knowing for certain that he did save Y/N, and she was here in front of him. Now. And it was the right time. He dropped his hands to her waist, allowing her to caress his angular jaw, her thumbs pressing affectionately into his cheekbones. The tears once wet on his face dried beneath the gasps of hot breath, and everything in the world seemed to succumb to the tenderness of their love for each other.

And even the city, as rambunctious as it was during the day, and as somberly alive as it was in the dead of night, seemed to sink into the earth, leaving time behind. Because when there was no time, there was no need to wait for the right moment. Not when the right moment could be every single one in a thousand.

Clint found himself walking across the living room at such a prime time. Somehow, he was always the one to walk in on Peter and Y/N, but this time, he did not interfere. He merely looked for a moment with a smile tugging at his lips, then proceeded towards the kitchen to fix himself a cup of coffee.

Tony soon joined him, hoping to find some leftover pizza crammed in the refrigerator. After all, he was going to be up all night—might as well not work on an empty stomach.

At first, he walked straight past the window, eyes casually glazing over the two figures passionately kissing on the balcony behind the sliding glass doors. As soon as the man hit the fridge, he had to backtrack, mentally rewinding what he actually saw. He relapsed his steps, Clint nonchalantly sipping on his mug, checking to see if the sugar-cream ratio sufficed.

"What?" That was the only word Tony could seem to coherently speak for the moment. He tilted his head to the side, pinching his eyes shut before reopening them again. Definitely not dreaming. "A-are they—?"

"Yep," Clint replied, pleased with his hot drink. He walked around the counter to join Tony staring at the balcony from the island.

"On the—?"

"Yep."

"Should I—?"

"Nope."

"Gross."

MASTERLIST.

TAG LIST: @reallyconfusednowpt2 @-thatgirloverthere- @mca-attack21 @high-functioning-fangirl02 @dragonfly-flowerbeds @zzeacat @maggieand-theferociousbeast @reanethefirst @shamelessbookaddict @southsidesserpent @enchantedrhoses @alienadvocate @bethanythebold @yuckybucky @uwu-sebastianstan @qwerty28392 @phanficblr @flopmalum @kinghiggins @sugarsweetkiss @light-up-shawn @dontfollowmegoaway @sheismental @toodeeptowake @yllwtaxi @lady-loki-l @printedpeterparker @yourwonderbelle @fandom-fangirl07 @toxicstress @rizamendoza808 @brokenobserver @katielbowen @lovable-hermonica @chaarrlieeeeee @eli-cya @peterfuckingbenjaminparker @sleepyreddie @sarahshersh @loricwizardbluetoastedcake @darling-parker @dat-one-goat @lovenderrose

[ostrich-on-a-rampage-blog]

I wrote another Be More Chill fic. Plenty sad. Plenty angst. No death. This time. Woo. Anyway...

Michael Mell readjusted his backpack straps, as he made his way through the halls of his high school. The night before, Michael and Jeremy had finally gotten past level 8 of Apocalypse of the Damned, which had led to a celebration, which had led to five gallons of Mountain Dew: Code Red to be consumed between the pair, which had led to a sugar high of incomparable proportions, which had led to the crash of a lifetime, which had led to them both sleeping through the alarms on their phone. Jeremy had rushed home to grab some fresh clothes and see if he dad could take him to school late, leaving Michael to make his way to school on his own. 

The halls were silent, as class was in session and Michael briefly contemplated just going back home and getting high. No one would notice. Except, last time he had ditched school, his mom had yelled at him and had commanded that Jeremy not come over for a week. It had been the first time in months that his mother had even bothered looking up from her computer to devote even a sliver of attention toward her son. For a moment, Michael considered whether it would be worth losing Jeremy for a week, just to have his mom remember his existence.

No, he’d just have to make it to his class, and stutter out some excuse about traffic in front of school, if the teacher ended up noticing his late entrance. Michael had nearly made it to his English classroom, when someone grabbed his backpack and slammed him into the row of lockers he had been passing. Michael groaned as his chin took the brunt of the impact, before turning to face his aggressor. 

“Michael,” the boy growled. He was a tall, gangly blonde kid with a perpetual sneer: Taylor Robbins. Rich and Jake would push Michael and Jeremy around, sometimes, but it was Taylor who truly made Michael’s life hell. Especially, these past three weeks.

“G’morning, Taylor,” Michael grunted. “You come here often?” he joked.

Taylor shoved him against the lockers even harder, and Michael tried to shift his weight to avoid the lock that dug painfully into the muscle beneath his shoulder blade. “Why don’t you just shut up?” Taylor challenged.

“And miss the opportunity to mock you? No way.”

“I told you to shut up,” Taylor repeated. Michael barely had time to notice that Taylor’s grip on him had loosened, before the bully’s fist connected with his nose. The force of the punch threw Michael’s head back, pounding painfully against the locker. His vision swam for a moment as his head fought against the effects of the fist and the locker. 

“Yeah, I heard you the first time,” Michael muttered. “Just not super great at following orders from dicks like you.”

Taylor leaned further into Michael’s space, his rancid breath nearly suffocating the other boy. “And here I thought you liked dicks.”

Michael groaned, chuckling softly. He should’ve realized. Even though Taylor had bullied Michael since he had started as a freshman, the attacks had just started increasing the past weeks. No, Michael was pretty sure he knew what had sparked the increased attacks. Nearly four weeks ago, Taylor had stolen his phone, going through all his texts and accounts. By the time Michael managed to get his phone back, Taylor must’ve managed to discover… something. Michael still wasn’t sure what had tipped Taylor off to his sexuality, but apparently that discovery was what had sparked the increase of bullying. “Oh, don’t tell me.... This is all because I’m gay? You’ve been making my life hell because--”

The second punch cut Michael off, startling him into biting his tongue. “I told you not to talk.”

Michael took a moment to spit out some blood, before grinning cockily. “And here I was hoping you were going to get more creative with your threats.”

Taylor settled for an unintelligible growl--which, Michael was forced to admit, was more creative than simply telling him to shut up--before shoving Michael to the ground. His glasses fell off, and Michael wasn’t sure exactly where they bounced away to. At least, they would be free, Michael observed trying to shake the blurriness that seemed to encompass his head away. Michael groaned once, before Taylor kicked him sharply in the side. He tried to pick himself up, defend himself somehow, but Taylor kicked him once more, and Michael resolved to curl himself up, wrapping his arms around his head.

Suddenly, the onslaught of attacks stopped. Michael remained where he was, silently listening as someone’s sneakers squeaked against the linoleum. Then all grew silent. A soft hand on his shoulder prompted Michael to glance up. Despite the blurriness, Michael could clearly make out Jeremy’s nervous smile.

“Y-you dropped your glasses.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Michael muttered, accepting the eyewear. He avoided Jeremy’s worried gaze, pressing gently on the bruise blossoming on his jaw.

“So,” Jeremy started, drawing the syllable out, before continuing, “do you wanna talk about what happened? Why Taylor was kicking the crap out of you?”

Michael shrugged. He grinned weakly. “Guess I look more like a punching bag than I thought I did. Or a soccer ball. Do I look like a soccer ball to you, Jeremy?” 

“Oh, come on, Michael, I’m not an idiot,” Jeremy countered, sitting down next to his friend. “What really happened?”

For a moment, Michael considered telling Jeremy about… everything. But, he couldn’t. Jeremy was his best friend. His only friend, if Michael was being honest. And Michael was not willing to risk their friendship just to have someone to confide in. Odds were, Michael knew, that Jeremy wouldn’t care if he was gay. But, on the off chance, if Jeremy did care… No, it wasn’t worth it. “Nothing,” Michael muttered, pulling himself to his feet. He pressed a hand to his ribs when the motion pulled at his sore muscles, hissing softly. “It was really nothing, Jeremy. I just… want to go to class.”

Jeremy nodded hesitantly, before following Michael to class. “Okay, but, Michael, I just… I just want you to not get hurt. You know that you could tell me anything, right?”

Michael ignored Jeremy, making his way to the English class that was nearly completely over, now. He wouldn’t tell Jeremy. At least, not now. Michael knew that if Jeremy kept pressing, he would eventually give in; he gave in to anything Jeremy wanted. Just, not yet. He couldn’t, yet. “Don’t worry, Jeremy. I’m fine.”

“Michael?”

Michael glanced up in surprise, startled that Jeremy had finally decided to break the cold shoulder treatment that Michael had begun receiving. And for no foreseeable reason. Michael hadn’t even purposefully sabotaged one of their missions the last time they were playing video games. “Oh, my god, I’m so glad to see you,” Jeremy continued, as Michael started away.

“Really?” Michael challenged. “So you haven’t been avoiding me all day?”

“What are you talking about? I haven’t even seen you since--” Jeremy fell silent, lost in thought.

Michael was sorely tempted to just leave his friend behind, show him what it felt like to just be ignored, but Jeremy continued to stare, unblinkingly into the distance. “Uh, Jeremy?” Michael tried hesitantly. He waved his hand a little bit in front of Jeremy’s face. “Why are you standing there all creepy and stuff?”

Jeremy blinked a little, but didn’t react further.

“Seriously, what’s up with you?” Michael continued. “You’ve been acting shady ever since… since… It worked, didn’t it? Jeremy, that’s amazing!” Michael grinned widely. He had been doubtful initially, but this would be so insanely cool. “We gotta test it! We gotta celebrate! We gotta get stoned in my basement!”

Quietly, Jeremy whispered, “I already know what it’s like to be the loser. I should find out what it’s like to… not be the loser. I don’t wanna be special, I just wanna be chill as life will allow. So should I take the upgrade?”

Michael cocked his head in confusion. Nothing Jeremy was saying was making sense. He gestured to the parking lot where his beat-up red suburban was parked. “Jeremy, are you coming?” Jeremy didn’t indicate that he had even heard, Michael, choosing to shove past him. Michael stumbled to the side, rubbing at the shoulder that Jeremy had run into. “Jeremy?” Michael asked, confused. The SQUIP wasn’t supposed to turn Jeremy into a jerk. Just… just make him cooler. Michael’s face fell as he stated in the opposite direction of his best friend. Of course. Of course, the SQUIP wouldn’t want Jeremy associating with him. He wasn’t cool. Probably, had never been. 

Michael kicked the nearest locker, wincing as pain spiked in his foot. This had all been an awful idea. Jeremy should never have taken the SQUIP. Surely, there had to be a way to get rid of it. Michael’s brow furrowed. Right? Why wouldn’t there be a way to get rid of the SQUIP? But… what if there wasn’t? Or worse, what if Jeremy didn’t want to get rid of the SQUIP.

His stomach dropped uncomfortably. Of course, Jeremy would want to keep the SQUIP. He was transcending the social strata at an astounding rate. And what did Jeremy have to lose, by becoming popular? Michael? Well, who would blame him if he decided that Michael was not worth his popularity. Michael certainly wouldn’t.

It just… hurt. While Michael would be upset if his best friend just ditched him, he was hurt by more than that. After summers of hazy nights with fireflies floating lazily across the purple sky and the faint scent of freshly-mown grass and lemonade with too many ice cubes, after falls of blustering winds and leaves that crunched with each step and pumpkin spice hot chocolate that left foam mustaches, after winters of gray skies and dark clouds and pine-fresh trees and dares to lick icicles and snowballs slammed down the collars of jackets and gloves that always seemed to get soaked through much too quickly, after springs of bumblebees and birds that would hop along happily and grassy hills to roll down until they were too dizzy to stand back up and they would just lay there and laugh, after all those years, Michael could not deny that he loved his best friend. The best friend that had just shoved him away, as if he were nothing.

Michael slumped down beside the lockers, unwilling to go to his final class. He had lost everything. Michael snorted, rubbing at his nose irritatingly. “Now I’m both pitiful and exaggerating,” he muttered to himself. Maybe, if he just sat here, like this, Jeremy would notice him and realize… “Realize what?” Michael asked himself. “That he’s better off without me. That’ll work fantastically, you idiot.”

With a sigh, Michael burrowed his head into his knees. Michael wasn’t entirely sure how long he sat there, shaking with silent sobs, before a sharp kick to his side had him whipping his head up. Taylor Robbins. Of course. Because why would anything even remotely go well today? “It’s nice to see you, too, Taylor, but I’m kinda not in the mood to talk.”

“What’re ya doin’ out here all by yourself?” Taylor asked, spittle flying from his mouth.

Michael wiped some of the droplets from his face. Maybe it was the stress of everything that had happened and the heartbreak when Jeremy just shoved past him, but there was no filter between Michael’s brain and his mouth. (Or maybe, Michael just didn’t care what happened to him, now that he had lost Jeremy.) “Well, I don’t know, Taylor. You’ve got at least two brain cells, right? How about you try putting them together and seeing if you can figure something out. I’ll give you two hints. One, I’m sitting and two, I’m sitting. See if you can work that out.”

Taylor stared at him for a moment, and Michael fancied that he could actually see the rusty cogs spin and clunk as they struggled to interpret Michael’s heavy sarcasm. He must’ve figured something out, because the next thing Michael knew, Taylor had grabbed his sweatshirt and hauled him to his feet.

“I’m gonna beat the gay right outta you,” Taylor threatened.

“Look, I’m no expert,” Michael grunted, “but I’m pretty sure that isn’t how it works.”

Michael had thought that he had prepared himself for the pain, but Taylor proved him wrong. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the pain. But, he didn’t fight back. On some level, Michael figured that he deserved something like this. He was weak, dorky, uncool, gay. Michael had never been bothered by his sexuality, but he bet that Jeremy would have left him even further if he had known. Michael choked back a sob, unsure if it had to do with the suckerpunch to his stomach, or the blank look in Jeremy’s eyes when he left.

When Michael did manage to pry his eyes open during the onslaught, he noticed Jeremy making his way back down the hallway. Unable to help himself, Michael called out, “Jeremy! Jeremy, help!”

“What?” Taylor mocked. “Calling for your boyfriend?”

Michael ignored him. “Jeremy!” If Jeremy heard the calls, he gave not indication. Michael’s best friend walked away, without glancing once in Michael’s direction. It was as if someone had punched him, knocking the air right out. Or, wait. Someone had. Michael found himself on the floor--when did he end up there?--gasping for air as Taylor honest-to-God cackled above him. It was easier to ignore the continued onslaught of pain as his head began to swim. Michael stretched his hand towards where Jeremy had disappeared. “Jeremy,” he whispered, the name mangled when he accidentally bit his tongue. He closed his eyes, recognizing defeat when it pounded roughly against his battered ribs.

Jeremy was gone.

Taylor laughed.

Michael lost hope.

[taxicabmag]

A Story by Drew Pisarra

Arctic Chill

I may not look it right now but I feel really sexy. And whenever I feel sexy I think about sex. And whenever I think about sex, I think about my body. I just want to touch it. Or better yet, I want somebody else to touch it. But no one’s around at the moment so I’m going to think about something else. Let me see… Grandma, grandma, grandma. You know, sometimes it helps to think about old people to get your mind off of sex.

When I was in fourth grade I woke up one morning to discover my body was covered with bug bites. My arms. My legs. My belly. My chest. My butt. My back. The works. Seventy-two bug bites in all. I counted them. Afterwards I ran into the bathroom. “Mommy. Mommy,” I said proudly, “I think I slept with a chigger.” Mommy went to work but dropped me off on the way. That day, I ended up being the first boy with chicken pox at Pine Crest Elementary. After that, it’s all pretty much a blur. I cried to the song “Wildfire” when I it came on the radio and tried not to scratch or pick at the sores and the scabs while I sobbed. I was told not to touch my body or I would scar. So I shivered and sweated and stayed very, very still. It was truly awful.

Now when I think back to that little body, I feel… a sense of wonder? A little bit, I suppose. I don’t think about sex. That’s for sure. Do people think about sex in fourth grade? If I did, I thought very little. I was a late bloomer. Sex was an abstract concept for me for an inordinately long period of time. Nothing led to it for my teenage self. Not touching. Not kissing. Both of which I did with girls for years with no deep meaning. It was nice, yes, but not very unexciting. The first guy I kissed didn’t come until college—a dumb guy named Ken St. John, who was a lousy kisser with really thick, hairy legs. Whatever. His lousy kisses landed me in the college infirmary with mononucleosis. God, that was awful, too. Just thinking about it, I can feel the piss-proof plastic-wrapped mattress under my bare ass. Where was the bottom sheet I wonder. I was so weak I couldn’t read. So weary I couldn’t bear the TV. I sat up, bored, defiantly naked, and flipped through the latest issue of a magazine as if it were a picture book. What was it? People? Time? It wasn’t Life. Life was dead. At some point, I came across a creepy diagram illustrating the symptoms associated with a mysterious disease quite like my own but deadly. No test. No cure. Not then. You see, it was new. It was news.

When you’re sick, everything feels like a harbinger of doom so I asked the day nurse whether what I had could be what was on that glossy page. She looked at me as if I were crazy. But later, at shift change, I overheard her in the hall, telling the night nurse that in her twenty years of nursing—a lifetime to me—she’d never seen glands as swollen as mine. I let it pass. I got better. I moved on.

To New Orleans, in fact. There, I “came out” as a gift to my step-dad on Father’s Day. True story. I was hoping he’d reject me. But against the odds, he did not. Instead, he flew down the following weekend and told me I was loved, even if I were gay, even if being gay were kind of like being dead, even if it meant he had to get to know this new person who had taken the place of the son he’d loved who’d died,. That kind of thing. A real tough love, if you catch my drift. I appreciated the gesture. I smiled, said I understood what he meant, even though it hurt to hear it. We hugged when he left. Before he left, we got drunk. More than once. We bonded. What else was I to do?

Shortly after he jetted back home, I developed a polyp on the back of my throat. It looked like a mini-punching bag flapping back and forth whenever I breathed. I went to the ER where the doctor took one look and asked me if I were gay. Just like that. I was sent to an in-house clinic where a second doctor dismissed the initial diagnosis, gave me a pill, and sent me on my way. The next day the polyp was gone. I was fine.

I don’t know what came next. My best friend caught it. A neighbor’s brother had it. That French guy with the cock ring told me he was in remission – although he didn’t share that until after the act. One time, a woman at a gay pride parade came up to me and asked if I had it and told me how I could get free food. It was tempting. I was poor and thin. That was the same parade where a lady photographer told me I was beautiful from the nose up, but from the nose down, not so much. 1988 was a weird year.

It wasn’t until 1995 on the very first National HIV Testing Day (yes, there really is such a thing) that I took the damned test. I was living in Baltimore then. Believe it or not, there was a whole politics around that, too. The test, not the city. Like somehow finding out the results was necessary and a betrayal at the same time. You were supposed to not feel that bad if you got it and suffer from survivor’s guilt if you had not. They tried to make positive positive and negative negative as a way to eliminate any stigma. I still don’t quite understand all the nuances. What I do recall is running down the steps of the Chase Brexton clinic and dry heaving into the street with relief. Who knew you could vomit air? There was nothing there. It was, looking back, an empty moment.

I wanted to get away from it all. In an extreme way. As luck would have it, a guy I’d recently slept with had just gotten his pilot license. You sometimes learn such things during post-coital bliss. I rang him up and told him I wanted to go for a ride in the sky. He said, “Fine.” So we met at Wicomico Regional Airport where a plane was rolled out of the hangar. It was one of those old fashioned planes, with two sets of wings, a propeller, an open cockpit, and an open passenger seat behind that for me. It wasn’t exactly what I’d expected but I climbed in. The sound was deafening during take off. Shortly after that, he mouthed over his shoulder “Where to?”

“North,” I replied and pointed. North sounded good to me. He agreed. So we flew in a Northwesterly fashion up over Maryland then into Pennsylvania at which point, he turned and looked over his shoulder again, mouthing something I couldn’t figure out for the life of me but to which I shook my head and pointed north again. And so we continued, over the Canadian border despite all laws, and then on over Ontario, which is surprisingly big and bland. Eventually, there was nothing below but snow, nothing but white, nothing but nothing, until the plane’s compass was spinning like time gone wild. Feeling like a total rebel, I suddenly stood up in the back of the plane and started taking off my clothes. Everything felt too confining. So I took off my hat, unraveled my scarf and let it fly, pulled off my gloves finger by finger by finger by finger by thumb. I ripped off my coat. I stripped off my shirt. I slipped out of my t-shirt. I even started to unbuckle my pants but before I could get the belt undone the wind rushed at me, lifted me up by the armpits and… It wasn’t a wholly unpleasant feeling, this feeling of flying, of falling. I confess there was a moment of panic. How. The. Fuck. Was. I. Going. To. Land.

But I ended up grazing against this glacier and then just sliding down with nary a bump until I came to a complete halt. You’d think I’d feel relief. But my hips hurt and my elbow ached. Not 100 yards away, I saw this fairly large house. Not an igloo. A colonial of modest proportions as if it had been picked up by a tornado in Oz then dropped in the middle of nowhere. I may have been trying to get away from civilization but I was still glad to see it return. I walked the hundred yards or so to the front door and rang the doorbell. A little old lady appeared. I knew who she was in a second.

“Mrs. Claus,” I said. “I didn’t know you were alive. I didn’t even know you were real. I haven’t received a gift from or you or your husband in years.” She just smiled in that knowing way some old people have, her eyes twinkling, crinkling, then turned and hobbled back to the main room. I followed. “Child,” she said. Her voice was very pert I remember. “Child. Why not make do with some mistletoe.” Then she left. I didn’t know what she was getting at. I took a seat in the Lazyboy near the fire and began to thaw. Mrs. Claus returned from the kitchen with a silver tray laden with two steaming mugs of hotcocoa and a plate full of cookies. We ate and drank to the sound of Santa I suppose snoring in the room next door. When I’d finished the last of my cup I sensed it was time to leave. Mrs. Claus said Blitzen would take me home. Her final words to me, her voice still gay in the old sense of the word, “Dear… dear,” she said, “if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my work with my husband it’s the importance of presence.”

That was it. Cryptic to the very end! After all, what the hell did she mean? Where were my presents? Why hadn’t she asked me to spend the night? If there’s one thing that’s exasperating, it’s worldly wisdom from people who don’t even know you, especially old people. I mean, who was she to dole out advice? What did she know about my life? What did she understand about my fears? What did she think she knew about what had brought me there that night, about what I had been through? What did she know, an old lady living in the North Pole, off the grid, off the map…what did she know about what had transpired, what was to come, or even what was happening to me right then and there, in mid-air, flying in the dark on a deer bound for home? I’m still not sure, but God, I could sure use another cup of her hot cocoa today. That drink was totally spiked! I guess for now I’ll have another cocktail.

Drew Pisarra worked in the digital sphere creating and helping to guide online content on behalf of such iconic shows as Mad Men, The Walking Dead, and Breaking Bad. His work has been produced off-off-Broadway and appeared in Poydras Review, Plazm, and St. Petersburg Review among other publications. Publick Spanking, a collection of his fiction, was published by Future Tense.

Pictured: While the Jacaranda was blooming and crows were following me, Oil on board, 2016. By John Collins, Taxicab Magazine’s Virtual Artist-in-Residence.