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hiemaldesirae · 4 months ago

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thinking of a witch/fae radiostatic au after rereading some of my guilty pleasure fandom fics hhhhhnneuhg

basically the gist of it is, unseelie king alastor gets kidnapped by witch vox's village and now vox needs to figure out how to keep alastor from dying because his death means the rest of the court coming for blood while also trying to make sure the fae king doesnt try and fucking eat him or something. oh also they knew each other before.

Vox's mother always used to say, there's comfort in routine.

Perhaps that's why Vox finds himself redoing the same three-card spread over and over, despite always managing to get the same results. He chews on his fingernails as he frowns harder, reshuffling once more.

"Whatcha doing?" Angel Dust, the only other witch in the village, pops up behind him, startling Vox, who sighs and relaxes once he realizes who's behind him. "I thought you were busy helping the healers, man. Are you just doing tarot readings while we're working ourselves ta' the bone?"

Vox frowns, pressing his lips together.

He doesn't have anything against Angel, really, it's just difficult talking to people who aren't Vel or Val. And maybe it's more difficult talking to Angel because of his relationship with Val, but that isn't something he's willing to admit in front of his best friend's boyfriend. "Well, I got basically put on house arrest today because apparently, the fae they brought back was so strong they didn't trust me not to get too interested in them and throw the whole plan off."

"Couldn't they've least stationed ya with the healers? You can serve that house arrest after we make sure no one's dead," Angel groans. "I mean, didya see the state everyone came back in?"

He had. Vox had watched with white knuckles as they'd brought Velvette and Valentino's unconscious forms across to the healers lodge and tents, doing and redoing protection spells around their home and the village wards. He had wanted to help as soon as he'd seen them, but the village chief had ordered for him specifically to stay home.

So he'd busied himself with tarot cards. But it seemed even that wasn't working out for him, because...

"Oh, shit. This is... a pretty fuckin' bad spread, ain't it?"

"You tell me," Vox grouses. He shuffles the cards again and tries another time, only for those same three cards to appear again as if mocking him. Three of Swords. The Tower. And of course, Death.

Now, of the three, death was probably the most positive card of the spread. All it meant was change- not necessarily as dark as its name. But the tower and three of swords... well. Those only spelt out foreboding fates.

"What didya even ask?"

"It's about the fae they brought in." Vox taps his hand against the counter before starting to reorganize his cards. No sense in leaving them out now, after all: their message had been clear and simple. This was a mistake. You're all fucked. "Apparently, they're on par with royalty. Which as you can probably guess, isn't very well known for their kind tempers. So I was doing readings to try and see what might happen from keeping them here, and..."

Angel grimaces. "So... you're saying that we're fucked, basically?"

"You can do your own reading if you want," Vox says cryptically as he stands up, stretching his limbs. "Anyway, I'm going to go and strengthen the protection shield on the village wards. Not much else to do while I'm stuck here, anyway."

"Right... well, guess I'll see ya round then."

"Mm, see you."

When Angel leaves, Vox breathes a sigh of relief. He unclenches his hand to regard the skeleton key he'd stolen from the chief hours earlier on complete autopilot, hardly even realizing he'd taken the damn thing til he'd gotten back home and started performing frantic readings.

It was the key to the village cellar, a place located on the edge of town. Vox, Val and Vel lived closest to it- which worked out well, considering of the three of them, two were part of the village's elite fae hunting brigade and the last was one of the villages only two witches, and the more experienced one at that. He supposed, given the circumstances, that the fae who'd beaten his friends to a pulp was probably down there. And, well... Vox was nothing if deathly curious.

So that night, on a half moon, Vox quietly exits the house, being sure not to accidentally trip an alarm on the way. He makes his way to the outdoors cellar and unlocks the door, making his way downstairs into a damp and cramped room. His eyes are immediately drawn to the large iron cage hanging in the dead centre of the room, sucking in a breath as he takes a small step back. The cage is impressive, but what's inside of it...

A mass of shadows writhe and twist around a restrained figure, dispersing slightly around where the fae's eyes must be. Vox flinches back when a ghostly grey-black hand reaches out for him, its dark tipped claws so sharp he's sure the fae could have sliced him to ribbons had they not been restrained by their shackles and prison.

It serves its purpose: Vox is immediately and incredibly intimidated. Having said that, he came here for a reason, and he's not so much of a fucking coward that he'd simply flee with his tail between his legs at the first sight of an adverse reaction from the captured faerie.

"Hey, uh... I know you probably don't believe me- and you probably shouldn't, honestly, but- er, I'm here to help you. As much as I can, anyway." Vox raises his hands up in the air as he moves slowly toward the cage, keenly aware of the fae's fixed gaze on him all the while.

He reaches out and slowly, cautiously, places a small, dead rabbit on the precipice of the cage's platform. It was one he'd caught with a trap that afternoon, under the excuse of storing away fresh meat for Velvette and Valentino when they returned- but, well, there were other animals he'd caught, too. They wouldn't miss one tiny rabbit.

The shadow cloaked faerie regards the mound of fresh meat for only a second before jerking forwards and swallowing it whole.

Vox watches with rapt attention, mesmerized by the faeries brutality. He almost doesn't notice when the fae turns to address him, voice raw and scratchy and deeper than the ocean. "What did you do that for?"

"Cause..." Vox worries at his lip.

He doesn't really want to lie to the fae- he's not dumb, alright, that'd be a practical death wish, even if he was lying with good intent- but he's also not so sure how it will react to being told he only did it out of curiosity. Because he wanted to see just what it was that his reading deemed so dangerous to their little town. "I guess... I wanted to see what was so strong that they took down half the village guard."

The fae startles at this. The shadows surrounding their cage shrinks back a little, finally unveiling enough of their appearance for Vox to put a face to a... well, for Vox to get a good look at them.

Dark reddish brown hair with black streaks at the edges sharpen into pointed deer ears, with two short buck antlers growing from the fae's head. They have deep crimson eyes, tinged with flecks of bright green- it pairs well with their skin, a deep, rich brown that reminds Vox of rich autumn soil at the harvest. He's... pretty sure this fae is a man, but appearances can be deceiving, and he's not quite keen on being cursed for assuming blindly.

"Hm. Well, you weren't among the host that came to attack me, were you now?" The faerie's eyes narrow as Vox stutters out a faint no, babbling out excuses to lead them away from the conclusion of him being a witch (and thus always placed under pseudo-house arrest when time comes for a fae hunt). "Then, you don't realize what a mistake your village has made, do you, dear?"

Vox pauses. "What do you mean, mistake?"

The room's temperature drops almost the moment the question falls from his lips, and Vox pulls his cloak closer to himself as he distances himself from the cage, willing his arms to stop trembling as he watches. The shadows around the fae pull close again and coalesce into a cape of sorts, rising above the faerie as they entwine themselves around the fae's head, almost like- almost like-

A crown.

"Oh, shit."

The Unseelie Fae King gives Vox a tight lipped smile. "So, do you see now?"

Well. At least that answered what the tarot cards were trying to tell him.

#now i dont know much abt tarot and wiccan culture besides the very surface so i hope none of this is offensive #i just got a little silly #Sighs heavily #i just know someones gonna clock exactly what fic i was reading and i ... sigh. look i fantasize about cannibalism #what were you expecting from me . Hm.#chai writes #ran rambles #hazbin hotel #radiostatic

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wolfnight2012 · 2 months ago

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EPIC!Polites had to die

(Hear me out!)

Anyways, i talked a bit about how Polites literally moves the plot in EPIC ( here) but this time I'm sorta gonna mirror the arguments.

So, this is all gonna come across as Polites favoritism, but (though you don't have to agree with what I say) know my arguments are taken straight from the text.

So, why does Polites have to die?

Because EPIC cannot happen without his death (for two reasons)

Number One

As I state in my linked post, Polites is the only person Odysseus is shown to listen to.

Odysseus changes his mind/his actions 3 times in Act 1.

Zeus: Odysseus would not have killed that infant if Zeus did not tell him to. Zeus tells him the infant will kill Odysseus' loved ones in the future & with a heavy heart, Odysseus acquiesces.

Tiresias: Odysseus would not have become the monster if the prophet had not told him he would never get home + Penelope was with a murderer.

Polites: at the end of "Open Arms" Odysseus starts to seriously consider Polites' words (that's why he sings Polites' words "Greet the world with open arms" back to him.) Thats also why that's the moment Athena chooses to come berate Odysseus. Odysseus has been guilt-ridden since Astyanax, but Athena chooses this moment, when Odysseus is with Polites & listening to him, to tell him he's "forgotten to turn off [his] heart."

One of these instances is not like the other.

Unlike with Zeus or Tiresias, Polites is not threatening Penelope/Odysseus' family.

These are also not the only instances of someone trying to change Odysseus' mind (or trying to tell him what to do)

Odysseus disregards Athena's instructions to kill Polyphemus & when she doubles down on his recklessness/disappointing actions, Odysseus essentially tells her to fuck right off.

Odysseus refuses to give Poseidon a real apology (not saying it would have saved his crew or not, but Odysseus clearly thought it would, hence him playing along)

Odysseus doesn't allow himself to be tempted by Circe in order to save his men (not saying this is a bad thing btw!!)

And then there's Eurylochus.

Eurylochus, notably, tries to reason with change Odysseus' mind a whopping Five Times in Act 1.

Full Speed Ahead: "We don't know what's ahead"

Remember Them: "Captain, we should run"

Storm: "Captain, we will capsize with these waves, our fleet will fail"

Luck Runs Out: (literally the entire song)

Puppeteer: "Think about the men we have left, before there're none"

And Odysseus listens a total of zero times.

And yet, unlike with "Luck Runs Out" when Polites tries to tell Odysseus to change his behavior/his mind/his way of thinking, Odysseus puts up a lukewarm resistance at best AND he sincerely considers Polites' words.

Number Two

Out of all the characters we've been introduced to this far (up to the Thunder Saga) Polites is the one who knows Odysseus best (AND the one he is closest to)

I know we only have 2-3 songs to establish Odysseus & Polites' relationship while Polites is alive (though he does very much haunt the narrative, even up to "Suffering" as Jorge recently-ish informed us) but OH BOY, is it Thoroughly established.

Full Speed Ahead:

The joy in Odysseus' voice when he greets Polites vs the more professional affection given to Eurylochus' entrance.

Not only the fact that Odysseus chooses Polites out of 600 men to scout the island with him, but that he choses only Polites. Either he can trust his life to Polites' skill as a warrior OR (more likely imo) he wants some alone time. And he feels he can be alone/himself with Polites.

Open Arms:

Polites immediately knows something's up with Odysseus but (unlike Eurylochus in "Luck Runs Out") he doesn't say anything in front of the crew, rather waiting until they're alone on the island. Either Polites has more tact than Eury OR (more likely imo) he knows Ody--enough to know he doesnt respond well to being called out in front of others or how to best approach a conversation about his mental state

Polites correctly calls out that Odysseus is tired of war (which Odysseus confirms in "Just a Man"), that he's stressed out ("Look at how you grip your sword, enough said"), and that something is eating at him ("I see in your face there is so much guilt inside your heart")

Odysseus never gets defensive with Polites or shuts down him down (unlike in "Luck Runs Out") despite the fact that Polites IS calling Odysseus out, (Just Like Eurylochus in LRO!) The most we get is a half-hearted/unconvincing "I'm fine, Polites" which makes ME think Ody isn't trying too hard to convince Polites, either because he knows he can't get one past his best friend or because he doesnt want to wear a mask, not around Polites.

((arguably!!)) Odyssues only goes to the cave/trusts the lotus-eater's information because of Polites (which is another instance of him being swayed by Polites or of the affection he holds for his friend being strong enough for him to want to please him)

Survive:

Polites' death is what causes Odysseus to freeze up/go into shock. Odysseus stops captaining his men & leaves them orderless (despite their pleas for him to resume command) solely because Polites dies (and we do have confirmation on this given that in the last live-stream, the stage directions during "Remember Them" tell us Odysseus is still staring at Polites' body up until Eurylochus snaps him out of it)

[edit]Underworld:

Odysseus becomes overwhelmed by the accusing voices of the underworld & starts to spiral (arguably starts having the beginnings of a panic attack)

Polites' voice snaps him out of it (listen to the change in the music/soundscape from "I keep thinking of the infant from that night" to "This life is amazing"

There is audible relief/hope in Odysseus' first "Polites." I hesitate to call it joy, but everything does become lighter

However, Polites CAN'T offer Odysseus comfort/support, since he's not really here/he's just a spirit stuck in his deathloop

Odysseus' 2nd "Polites" sounds dejected/small when he realizes Polites can't interact with him/stay

He was hoping for comfort/support! He heard Polites & the screams IMMEDIATELY quiet! His mood audibly lifts! Polites is canonically Odysseus' emotional/mental support, as seen in "Open Arms" (check out my super long post analyzing "Open Arms" lyric by lyric here) and by how we are shown/told he's noticeably changed in the Ocean Saga (both by Eurylochus suddenly doubting Odysseus + the lyric "Everything's changed since Polites)

So, why do I think Polites had to die to keep the EPIC plot as is?

Well, given the information we have (and including no further speculation or headcanons) we know five things:

Odysseus trusts Polites

Odysseus cares deeply about Polites

Polites can effectively tell when something is bothering Odysseus

Polites can call Odysseus out without getting shut out/down

Polites can get Odysseus to listen/change his mind

Which tells me, Polites could have likely prevented everything past the blinding of Polyphemus.

We KNOW Polites' death is a large part of what causes Odysseus to shout out his name ("My friend is dead") but beyond that:

If anyone is going to tell something is eating at Odysseus in the Ocean Saga, it's Polites. (No other crew member tries to figure out how Odyssues is doing mentally/emotionally OR figures out what's bothering him beyond "Everything's changed since Polites") If Polites is alive, Odysseus isn't carrying all the weight on his own, because Polites will notice & reach out

Polites has a track record of getting Odysseus to listen. If they need to talk to him, it most likely wouldn't be Eurylochus stepping up if Polites lived

Odysseus trusts Polites. If they still get the windbag, Odysseus is letting Polites take a shift

If Polites lives, the plot of EPIC is diverted during the Ocean Saga at latest. Either Odysseus isn't made reckless with grief/anger & thus doesn't reveal his name. Or he doesn't become isolated/succumbs to his stress (and thus allows doubt to sow within the crew) because Polites is there to reach out. Or he trusts the windbag to Polites & they make it home to Ithaca.

Polites has to die to cement Odysseus' downward spiral.

Thank you for coming to my tedtalk.

#wolf's posts #epic: the musical #epic meta #polites #*odysseus voice* you doomed them! you doomed them ALL polites!!#jk #but also like...we have confirmation of polites haunting the narrative up to the thunder saga!!#his death literally seals the deal on odysseus' fate #odysseus #epic the troy saga #epic the cyclops saga #epic the musical #musicals

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puhpandas · 1 year ago

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Rabbit Burrow

(5180 words) part 2 (1 found here)

Tony Becker, one year after surviving the attack from GGY, tracks down Gregory post-SB. But he has to get through Vanessa and Freddy before he can get to Gregory.

Its only after Tony has run through the interaction with Vanessa ten times over that he realizes she never told him how she knows Gregory.

He'd been nothing but restless since she left. His eyes have been darting to and from the digital clock on the end table on the other side of arm of the couch, and his brain has been so scattered, all he can focus on is the awaiting reunion.

The baking show has long since switched to a new episode since he last checked the TV. Tony's worried that at this point, his fingers will start bleeding if he keeps picking at them like this.

The only saving grace in a long chunk of nothing-but-anticipation is when Tony's phone buzzes at 6:01pm, right when he had started to gather his thoughts and began plan out the reunion in his head like remembering a speech.

Ellis: dude where r u????

Ellis: yr mom said u arent home and she keeps asking me if ur with me and where u r

All Tony does is sigh. He cant even find it in him to feel bad that his Mom and Grandma are probably worried. All he can think about is how his arms are shaking and his stomach feels floaty.

He types back with thumbs that have peeling skin on the edge of the fingernails.

Tony: Remember how I covered for you that one time?

Tony: I need you to cover for me. If you need to tell her that I'm with you and I'm staying over do that. I just need any excuse.

Ellis: yea i remember but why?

Ellis: if a guy covers for u u can at least tell him what the deal is

Tony: I'm doing something really important. I can't tell you all the details yet.

Tony: I just need you to trust me. Please. It'll help me out a lot, Ellis.

Tony: I promise I'll make it up to you next time you need something.

Ellis: dude didnt know it was that important

Ellis: dont worry then. u know i can tell a mean lie when i need to

Tony: Dude thanks. That's a big relief. It wont be in vain.

Ellis: my services will not be for free tho

Ellis: i will need something in return

Tony: What do you want?

Ellis: for u to buy me a cookie next time i see u at lunch

Tony finds it in him to roll his eyes at that. He smiles a bit, and right as he goes to send back I'll buy you two, Freddy Fazbear makes some sort of clunking sound.

Its enough to make his already fluttery heart clench and himself almost fly off of the couch. He jerks and yelps and can only stare Freddy Fazbears black eyelids phwip open, and his pupils glow..

They're blank, though, like they're on but Freddy himself isnt. His body whirs and shifts slowly, as if running a diagnostic, and after his ears wiggle, theres a clear difference.

Tony just sits rigid as a board with eyes wide as saucers as Freddy doesnt notice him right away. He just takes the jump cables off of his ears and sets them on the carpet, and moves his torso to face the window.

Which Tony is blocking. Since hes on the couch sitting directly next to the animatronic.

Theres a staring contest with a distinct lack of breathing for all but a few moments, before the small black plastic pieces that are Freddys eyebrows tilt downwards.

"Wait wait wait!" Tony holds out his hands, but Freddy doesnt get off the couch and attack him like his fears. Freddys eyes dont leave his once, and it reminds him too much of those few times Freddy would stare him down and be hot on his heels in the Pizzaplex during the GGY debacle.

Freddy pauses, not even so much as twitching as he burns an LED hole into him. Tony tries to get over the unease and stutters out, "Um, Vanessa trusts me. I talked to her. She told me to stay here."

For a fleeting moment, Tony believes he somehow said the wrong thing and that Freddy is now going to grab him and beat him into a pulp like he feared back at the Pizzaplex all that time ago. But during the rigid silence, the glow in Freddys eyes flickers for half a second, and some sort of beeping sound emits from a hidden speaker.

"I have just contacted her." Freddy finally breaks the tension, and Tony sighs at how his voice does not sound aggressive. In fact, Freddy hadn't spoken at all when Tony had been afraid of him last year. "You are telling the truth... my apologies."

"Theres no issue." Tony manages when Freddy looks so undoubtedly apologetic theres no doubt that he's not genuine. He scratches the back of his neck. "...I guess I wouldnt be too keen on a stranger being in my house when I wake up either."

"Yes," Freddy nods, and his ears bob at the motion. Theres a split second of silence where the baking show Tony hasn't caught a single second of is the only noise in the room. "so that begs the question; why are you here?"

Tony jerks. "What?"

"You are a stranger in my house, like you said." Freddy points out, not unkindly. "I would appreciate knowing why. Even if you already went over it with Vanessa."

"Oh. Well. I dont know what all Vanessa told you, but... I'm here for Gregory."

Freddy doesnt immediately turn distrustful or wary like Vanessa had. Probably because he already knows Tony is a friend. "She said you were an old friend of his." Freddy confirms. His "So, you are the boy Gregory talks to much about."

Tony doesnt really know how to respond to that. He grabs a fold of fabric from the arm of his jacket in-between his fingers. "Uh...yeah."

"I'm sure you've already talked to Vanessa. So I wont beat around the bush." Freddy says. "But Gregory has tried so hard to remember you."

Tony brows furrow. "...She said he has dreams sometimes. And that's how he knows I-- we exist."

"Yes." Freddy nods."But she probably did not tell you that he tries to figure out what reminded him of you, so he can continue to keep dreaming."

Tony's eyes widen, and he picks at his fingers. No. Vanessa did not mention that. She said nothing about Gregory actively searching for Tony around his life to see him in his dreams.

Freddys LED eyes dim, and his ears and eyelids droop in a clear sign of upset. "It breaks my heart. To see Gregory try to gather the broken pieces of his memories." His eyes stare at the couch cushion below them, before they dart up to look him in the eye. "You were obviously very important to him, if he searches like this."

"He is to me too." Is all Tony can manage. He's suddenly getting a sense adjacent to deja vu.

"Its clear that he is." Freddy is still looking him in the eye, but somehow, Tony feels like he's smiling at him. "If you came all this way to see him."

And he really did come a long way, didnt he? He took a bus to a different county. He spent hours and hours scouring the internet for any mention of Greg after he suddenly up and went missing as soon by the time Tony had recovered enough to look for him.

Greg has searched too, apparently. Tony cant help but be aware of. Even after losing his memories.

"What is your name?" Freddy suddenly asks him.

"Tony Becker." Tony answers easily. "I guess he doesnt remember my name, huh?"

"No. But he has tried. Believe me when I say that." Freddy says. "He wants to know more about his life before what happened more than anything."

"...You think he'll be happy to see me?"

"There is no doubt, Tony Becker."

The last time he had seen Greg, it was in a dusty back room with a knife in his back.

But despite that, it isnt what Tony thinks when he thinks Greg. When he thinks of Greg, he thinks of the sleepovers and the days Greg would show up at school one day with his hair different lengths. He thinks about how He, Greg, and Ellis would Vs. eachother on the air hockey machine. He thinks about the stories they'd come up with in creative writing.

When he thinks of that afternoon at the Pizzaplex, he doesnt think Greg. He thinks GGY. Maybe its that first inkling of separation that got him here.

Theres been a stretch of silence while Tony soaked it in. The rain outside has slowed, and the sun peeking through the gray clouds shines through the window, white lines on the coffee table like the blinds are a stencil.

"But the truth is... I do not think Vanessa feels the same." Freddy suddenly says. "She wants to protect him from the awful memories. I do not have to deal with them like she does, but I assume they... that they haunt her."

His ears droop. "I believe that she does not want Gregory to have to as well."

"So shes trying to keep them from him?" Tony asks, a brow raised. "But that's his choice, isn't it?"

"That is how I feel." Freddy agrees, looking at him again. It's starting to become less uncomfortable. "Listen, Tony Becker. I may not know for sure, but I feel that Vanessa is afraid to let you near Gregory. Seeing you will make him remember so much."

His mind immediately jumps to a thousand implications at that."If shes scared, what does that mean?" He asks. "She'll make me leave? She'll change her mind?"

"I do not think so." Freddy assures. "But my point is that she has been trying for so long to keep Gregorys memories under wraps. It is not with malice, but this is why I ask you this."

"Gregory has long since chosen to remember, even if Vanessa does not want him to." Freddy says havent left his once, and Tony doesnt look away, either. Freddys pupils suddenly appear brighter in a way when he speaks again, "To keep them from him after he has already made his choice would be cruel. Which is why I would like you to help him, Tony Becker."

Tony hasnt forgotten how Greg fought for him that day at the Pizzaplex. He hasnt forgotten how all that mattered was Tony escaping. Not if Greg would get in trouble. Not if something would happen to him.

Gregory has, though. Greg has forgotten a lot of things.

But if seeing Tony in danger that fateful afternoon made him remember himself enough to fight, and win against mind control?

Tony can fight for Greg's memories, too. Even if it takes another year.

"He deserves to remember his old life." Freddy says. "Vanessa has told me that his parents are dead. Any life he had before is nothing but a faint memory." He hums, melancholy. "But it's one I want him to remember."

Me too Tony almost says. Because all Tony has wanted throughout this last year is his friend back.

"Greg was one of my best friends." Tony says quietly, eyes downcast. He counts the threads in the couch cushion. "I want him to remember me and Ellis and... everything. It's why I'm here."

"I have not been able to help him, no matter how much I've wanted to." Freddy responds, sounding sad. "But I am glad you are here. Now Gregory truly has a chance of obtaining what hes been chasing for so long."

"Me too." Tony replies, not knowing which exactly hes responding too.

"So," Freddy pauses. "what do you say?"

"I'll do it." Tony responds immediately. "But... I just have to ask. Why do you trust me so much? Vanessa wouldnt even tell me anything until I answered her riddles."

Freddy hums. "It is exactly as you said." Freddy answers. "You earned Vanessa's trust. So in turn you have earned my trust. I trust Vanessa to trust you."

Tony doesnt respond, for a moment, just taking that in.

The amount of faith you have in someone to trust them that much. To know you can rely on them. To have no doubt...

Tony glances at the hallway he can see just over the back of the couch and down the hall into the room with the slightly open door, with the pens and pencils and bed and desk, and wonders how tightly wound the people in this house are with eachother.

"...Then I'll return the favor." Tony smiles. "You're friends of Greg's, and, well... I was friends with him, once upon an time. And he still seems to think so." He holds out a hand. "Any friend of Greg's is a friend of mine."

Freddys ears wiggle, and his eyelids come up in a way that make him look overjoyed. "Any friend of Gregory's is a friend of mine." Freddy repeats, shaking Tony's hand. "We are in this together, now. We will have to be there for Gregory if he remembers not so great things."

"And for the great things." Tony smiles, going over the few months worth of memories of their three amigos friendship he has in his head. "Its worth it, I think."

After all, if Tony's found a way to seperate killer Greg with his Greg, then he thinks Gregory probably can as well.

"I'm glad we have that settled." Freddys ears wiggle, and his eyes do that dimming thing again for half a second. "Because Vanessa has just contacted me and let me know that she is almost back with Gregory."

He makes some sort of choking noise. Theres a thousand things on the tip of Tony's tongue in seconds. His eyes blow wide as saucers, and he twists his back to look at the clock that reads 6:34.

He immediately feels like someone dumped a bucket of ice water on his head. He stutters, trying to gather his thoughts, and eventually gets out "How long?!"

"Soon." Freddy smiles. "It wont be long, now. It seems all the work you've done has paid off."

Tony cant find it in him to move his mouth after that. Just too rigid. It feels like theres electricity buzzing up his skin and a wildfire in his chest. It feels like he cold start floating like a balloon at any moment.

He doesnt respond to Freddy, after that. He just twists his body to face the front door (his back twinges. maybe he shouldn't slouch over his laptop and desk so much) and waits.

A few minutes is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Not really when its put up against the year he's taken to track Greg down. But its somehow more agonizing waiting now when he knows Greg is in arms reach, instead of it being uncertain if he'd ever see him again.

It's not uncertain, now. Is the thing. Greg is on his way, and Tony, for once, doesn't even know what to think. All he can do is sit there and be clammy and impatient.

Freddy chuckles. Tony ignores it. He burns a hole into the front door just across the living room, only hearing his own jumbled thoughts and roaring in his ears over the baking show on the TV.

Its Winter right now. So by 6:45, all the light outside has darkened into pitch blackness. The residential street lights outside the apartments make the raindrops on the window glow. The TV is still going in the background.

Freddy is as still as he is, joining him in watching the door as restless as a bored puppy. Listening to the ventilation inside of Freddys inner workings is the only thing that reminds Tony to breathe.

After multiple agonizing minutes, Tony jerks when the slam of a car door is heard distantly outside the window.

"Are you ready, Tony Becker?" Freddy breaks the silence. Looking back at Freddy is the first time Tony looks away from the door. "We do not know how much he will remember at first. It may be messy. It may not."

Messy is definitely a word he would use to describe a lot of the things that have happened, here. So he just nods, a tilt of his head. "I'm ready."

"He is ready, too." replies Freddy.

And that's all that's said until the doorknob begins to rattle.

All that Tony manages is a strangled gasp before he's bolting off the couch, almost tripping over Freddys legs. His converse slide on the laminate wood, and he stands there. In perfect view of the door.

His legs feel cold and his chest airy as he watches. He waits for movement, and cant help the tremble in his hands when the deadbolt unlocks. He can hear voices. Only because hes straining his ears, but he can hear a high pitched voice muffled and faint behind the door.

The doorknob rattles, and Tony watches as the deadbolt unlocks from the inside. His heart stutters in his chest when he hears voices outside, and he can pinpoint one of the pitches as Greg's.

"Come on, Vanessa. Were home. Now tell me what the suprise is!"

"I think you'll want to see it for yourself, Greg."

"Its inside? Well what could it possibly be if you wont even give me a hint--"

The knob twists, and the door creaks open. Its steady and agonizingalmost as if it's in slow motion.

And there he is.

Theres the pale skin and short stature and blue clothes. Tony isnt breathing when he just looks, and sees the boy he'd been searching for so long right in front of him.

He has raindrops in his chocolate brown hair. Greg doesnt look away from Vanessa while he walks in, at first, but Vanessa looks away from Gregory. She meets his eyes, and Tony doesnt have it in him to dissect what the look could mean.

All he cares about is how Greg follows her gaze.

He stops in his tracks, his mud stained Pizzaplex brand sneakers planting him firmly in place.

It's like everything else falls away when Greg meets his eyes. Huge, amber eyes that grow as wide as saucers when they see him. Theres a dark jagged scar wrapped around his cheek that makes it to his nose that wasnt there before.

The silence is deafening, as they just stand there and stare at eachother. Tony thinks he isnt breathing. Theres electricity shooting up his spine. His fingers twitch and tremble. Greg just stares, mouth agape.

Tony's own twitches, and he smacks his lips together, testing if he can still speak at all. His legs are rooted to the ground as he says, just above a whisper, "Greg."

Greg's face shifts ever so slightly, and it's only now Tony realizes his eyes are a bit faraway. Like he's...

Remembering something.

In an instant, they dart and blink, and Greg is looking at him again.

Tony dares to break through the water by taking a step. He never tears his eyes away from Gregory's own.

At some point, Vanessa moved away from the door and somewhere else in the house.

Which means the coast is clear when Tony takes a step, and then another, and Greg is meeting him in the middle.

Hes almost sprinting when they crash into eachother like waves. Immediately, Tony wraps his arms around Greg tight, and Greg clutches back just as desperately.

"Tony." Gregory says breathlessly. Tony can feel Greg's hair brush against his cheek and his hands ball up his jacket. "Its you. That's your name. You're the..."

"The one you've been dreaming about?" Tony chuckles, and to his suprise, it's a little wet. His legs ache from pushing himself into the hug so much, but he ignores it. "Yeah. Me and Ellis. Your friends."

"Tony and Ellis." Greg repeats, and Tony could cry at how it's the same voice in all of his memories. A few things are different; Gregory's face has changed a bit, and so has his hair and clothes. But all of the things that made him Greg back then are still here.

"I--" Greg stutters. "I tried so hard to remember anything about you. I was gonna track you down, I hope you know. Cause you're the only things I remember about..."

"I know, Greg." Tony replies. Greg pulls away from the hug, and Tony still has a grip on his shoulders. "They told me everything."

He jerks his head towards Freddy and Vanessa, and when Greg looks over at him, Freddys ears wiggle and Vanessa does a small little wave.

"Some suprise." Gregory chuckles, wiping at his dry eyes. "Jeez, its just-- I just remembered so much. Just by seeing you, and--"

Greg's eyes turn a little misty as he looks in Tony's own. "We were friends." He says. "And I forgot you for so long."

"It wasnt your fault." Tony smiles slightly. Greg still has to look up at him a bit, like he did last time Tony saw him. "Freddy and Vanessa told me you tried your best to remember us."

Gregory nods, glancing over at them. "I did." He says. "I wanted to know what triggered the first dream so bad. But... I never figured it out."

"I guess it doesn't matter now." Tony says. "I'm right here in front of you, and you remember now. Ellis'll be really glad to see you, too."

Gregory chuckles. "I missed him." He says. "I missed you, too."

"Me too." Tony replies, and it doesn't feel like those two words can encapsulate how much Tony has felt the past year. "Ellis really missed you as well. He still is. You don't know what happened to him when you went missing."

Gregory ducks his head, eyes downcast. "I wish I did."

Tony eyes Freddy from the corner of his eye, and he nods. Tony looks back towards Greg. "I can tell you some stuff, if you want. Vanessa said something reminded you of me one day." He smiles. "I can try to help remind you of stuff enough to remember more."

Gregory's head shoots up, and to Tony's suprise, tears gather in his eyes. As quick as they come, he ducks his head, using the sleeve of his navy jacket to wipe them away. "Yeah." He sniffs. "That'd be great."

"I'm glad you guys reunited." Vanessa pipes up to their left. "But, Gregory, I think you should go take a breather. I wanna talk to Tony anyway."

Greg doesnt answer for a second, but eventually he nods, smiling at Tony as he peels himself away. Tony takes note of how the tooth Gregory had been missing last year is still gone.

Tony watches him go, and his eyes dont leave his back until the door to his room shuts.

"Kid," Vanessa grabs his attention. She gestures to sit down on the couch, and he moves over, sitting in-between Freddy and her. "that went well. Really well."

Tony just nods, not able to shake the trembling in his fingers and the floaty feeling in his chest.

"It doesnt seem like he remembered anything bad." Vanessa points out. "He couldnt have. He wouldn't be so calm if he did, trust me."

Tony remembers Freddys words about how Vanessa grapples with the things shes done, so he does. He nods again, and Vanessa smiles. "So that's good. Listen, kid. If you can somehow have Gregory remember his old life without any of the mind control murder stuff, that would be the best case scenario."

Freddy whirs and straightens out a but, opening his mouth to speak, but he stops at the last second. "It wouldnt be unfair to Gregory if he wasnt remembering anything good, Fred." Vanessa points out.

"That is true." Freddy agrees. "There is no point in Gregory remembering anything harmful to him if avoidable. Vanessa knows that better than anyone."

Tony opens his mouth to speak, but pauses.

Not remember anything bad? As in he wouldnt be able to remember that day at the Pizzaplex?

How Greg had put himself on the line and fought for Tony's life? How he'd succeeded? How Tony always desperately wanted to see Greg again just to talk about it?

Words get caught in his throat, but he pushes them down and shoves his feelings aside. He just nods. "I'll do my best."

"Thanks." Vanessa says, and she sounds more relieved than Tony's ever heard anyone. She puts a hand on his shoulder, offering him a smile. "Really. Thank you, kid. I'd do anything for Gregory to never have to remember the same things I do."

Tony just nods again, finding that for the first time in his life, he has no words to say. "Yeah."

"I am sure you're dying to catch up with Gregory." Freddy smiles. "Go on, Tony Becker. We will give you both space."

Tony smiles, shooting up and shimmying past Freddys legs in-between the coffee table towards the hall. "Okay. Sure." He only lingers for another moment to say "Thanks!"

Its jet black outside when Tony passes a window, and by the time he makes it to Greg's room, the only light available is a small table lamp on the desk with paper strewn about. Greg sits on his bed, deep in thought, before snapping out of it when Tony walks in.

"Hey." Gregory smiles, and Tony grins back when he shuts the door behind him. He cant help how his eyes wander about the room, taking in every detail as he moves further into the room. His backpack is tossed on the floor beside his bed, and theres comic pages and drawings thumbtacked up across every wall. Theres a corkboard with blocky letters written on paper sheets scattered around, and his bedsheets have constellations on them.

Tony's eyes linger on the desk, where there are multiple comics covering every inch, some half-finished and some fully colored.

"You would draw comics when we were friends, too." Tony says, making his way over and peering at all of the different drawings. "I'd call them graphic novels. I'd write the story and you'd draw."

"I think I had a dream about that." Greg says. "We'd go in your room and brainstorm, right?"

"Yeah." Tony smiles. He looks at the dates scribbles in the corners of them all, and notices that most of them are recent.

"Its one of the only dreams I had." Gregory says. "It... it would make me so mad because it never went any different. And it had been the only indication you even existed for so long." He chuckles without humor. "The other dreams weren't much different, but, well, I was never really able to figure out how to trigger a new dream."

As he keeps looking, some of the older comics, like the ones on the walls and the underneath the piles of recent ones have dates from a few months ago.

It's like a tiny lightbulb goes off above his head. He turns to Gregory, asking "Do you remember when you had the first dream?"

Gregory pauses for a moment. "Yeah." He says. "It was a few months ago. The first dream I had was about us drawing comics in your room."

Tony smiles, finding the earliest date to be near October last year. Its February now. "Did you ever think the thing that triggered that memory was drawing a comic?"

Tony watches as the gears turn in Greg's head. Hes silent for a moment, before muttering, "No. I didnt."

Tony looks at the window on the wall by Greg's bed and watches as raindrops drip down the screen on the other side. Crickets are chirping faintly, and he can hear Freddy and Vanessa's voices muffled behind the door.

The days events catch up to him, and right as the first inkling of tiredness creep up on him, he says "So how about we try to make a comic together like the dream? Maybe it'll bring back some new memories."

Gregory is silent for a moment, and Tony watches as his eyes widen, and a grin gradually stretches across his face. "Okay." He says. "Yeah. Let's do it."

So it's in Greg's room, instead of Tony's, where they hunker down for the night and squish next to eachother on the same chair at the same desk and brainstorm a comic. Tony makes a point of calling it a graphic novel like he used to, because Greg would always say something about it, and unsurprisingly, this time is no different.

The only light is from Gregory's small table lamp shoved to the very corner to make room for more papers, and it's only when they have everything ready does Greg finally ask about the story.

"You said you'd write the story and I'd draw." Gregory says. His shoulder is pressed up against Tony's on the chair and his voice is loud in his ear. "So what's the story?"

Tony hums for a second, jumbled thoughts and ideas running course in his mind, then he gets an idea.

He grins slowly as it dawns on him. He glances over at Greg.

"You always liked nonfiction better, right?" Gregory says, voice up an octave like a question. "Real life stuff."

"Yeah." Tony confirms. "This is a real story."

"So tell me." Greg smiles, leaning back to get a good view of Tony. Tony himself does the same, and Greg is doing one of those lopsided smiles that shows off his missing tooth. "And I'll start drawing the panels."

Its only after theyve hunkered down does Tony really let himself revel in the fact that he found Greg, and he's here and okay. It may not be perfect, since Tony never really will be able to speak to that Gregory that saved him that day and thank him, but its content. Tony has his friend back, and he can't ask for any more.

He's long since decided on a story when he finally tells Gregory. He smiles softly, before saying,

"This story is about a kid named Gregory, who once hacked the school PA speakers and started beatboxing."

🔎🐰

Ellis: um so how long will i have to keep this up???

Ellis: would be nice to know

Tony: I dont know how long I'll be gone.

Tony: I'll buy you as many cookies as you want for this.

Ellis: we will negotiate when you come back

Ellis: for now ill uphold my end of the deal mr. becker

Tony: I'll uphold mine early.

Tony sent an image

Image ID: A boy with short dark brown hair and a green jacket angling the camera so by his head is a boy with pale skin and chocolate brown hair. The boy with dark hair is smiling and the boy with brown hair is looking suprised at the camera.

Ellis is typing...

ao3 link

#finally got this done #was struggling so if its evident #my bad lol #my fics #detective rabbit #bell boots #gregory #tony #ggy #tony becker #fnaf gregory #tftp #tales from the pizzaplex #twoshot #3 star fam #vanessa #freddy #ellis #pandas writes

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rajbow4ever · 10 months ago

Text

my rajbow hcs, copy and pasted straight from my tt cz what else do i post...

(some of these are in full grammar for some reason?? idk all of these were from various middle-of-the-night decisions)

raj: did figure skating for a while when he was younger but stopped because people called him un-manly

bowie: tries to persuade him to try it again

raj: goes to stroke every stray animal he finds on the street

bowie: 'babe that probably has 20 diseases...' lets him do it anyway because he wants to see raj smile

raj: can talk about his interests for hours at a time

bowie: thinks its the cutest thing ever and loves to listen

bowie: owns one of those small business jewelry shops online

raj: learnt how to make little beaded bracelets for it

bowie: naturally very good with instruments

raj: doesnt even know how to hold a guitar

raj: got banned from his local arcade for raging at a claw machine

bowie: claw machine pro (gives 80% of the prizes he gets to raj)

bowie: loves pointless internet debates like how many holes are in a straw

raj: doesn't understand a single one of them

raj: didnt think narwhals were real because they're like 'unicorns of the sea'

bowie: had to search them up to prove they existed

raj: chronic weezer fan (same raj same)

bowie: listens to whatever's popular most of the time, but he listens to a lot of upbeat stuff

raj: is able to notice if bowie gets stuck in his thoughts

bowie: is able to notice if raj is stressed about something

raj: Gives Bowie cool rocks he finds.

bowie: Keeps. Every. Single. One.

raj: Was shocked to find out most people can't down five burgers after a simple hockey game.

bowie: Is just ever-so-slightly terrified.

raj: Sleeps at 9pm, wakes up at 5am - but them goes back to sleep and waked again randomly.

bowie: Sleeps at 4am, wakes up at 10am.

bowie: Took Raj to watch one of his basketball games.

raj: Was just staring, absolutely ENAMOURED, IN AWE at him the whole time.

raj: Scared of birds (cassowary incident).

bowie: Scared of spiders.

raj: Attacks every spider he sees.

bowie: Scares away every bird he sees.

raj: Surprisingly a very good cook, but is banned from the microwave.

bowie: Also a very good cook (is not banned from the microwave).

bowie: Bought Raj star-shapes sunglasses to match with his heart-shaped ones.

raj: They became his most prized possessions ever.

raj: uses stupid words like "coolio" and "awesomesauce"

bowie: "what the FUCK are you saying"

raj: incredibly tactile, loves physical affection

bowie: always initiates it because he knows how much raj love it

bowie: worries sometimes because he thinks he's 'ruining raj'

raj: took after some of bowie's snark

bowie: is good at skating, but falls over a lot so he continues to do it just for fun

raj: genuine pro at skating, if you name it as long as it's on ice he can probably do it

bowie: monopoly demon. takes the money from everyone, wins everything

raj: fairest monopoly player ever but is incredibly competitive

raj: struggles with panic attacks every now and then, wayne usually helps but he's started letting bowie see him vulnerable too

bowie: taught him fancy breathing techniques (that i don't trust myself to name)

they play 2 player princess tycoon on roblox together

bowie: kills everyone

raj: actually does the tycoon

bowie: is a big fan of horror movies but screams every time something even slightly scary happens

raj: is terrified of horror movies but watches them with bowie (he hopes that bowie will get scared and latch onto him)

raj: hates talking to the waiters when ordering food

bowie: does it for him

bowie: had an emo phase when he was way younger

raj: found his old emo clothes "HOLY SHIT??"

raj: believes in ghosts n that stuff

bowie: thinks its the most stupid thing ever (secretly believes in them)

thank you for listening to my ted talk. next post scheduled for 2025 i think

#td raj #td bowie #td bowraj #td rajbow #rajbow #bowraj #is it bowraj or rajbow...#me personally im a rajbow liker #because it sounds like rainbow #raj total drama #bowie total drama #total drama #total drama reboot #td23 #td reboot #how different is tdtiktok to tdtumblr? only time will tell.

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mommyclaws · 10 months ago

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Opinions on Leopardstar? I haven't read leopardstar's Honor yet, not sure what happens there, but I've heard it's somewhat disappointing.

I was always somewhat angry that she never really mentioned Tigerstar after the whole Tigerclan thing, and we never really got to see how she felt about the whole thing, just that the people she sent to die really didn't like her.

A Shadow in Riverclan also kinda did the same thing where she gave a little pep talk and suddenly everything was ok for Feathertail, after she had horrible ptsd from Leopardstar

I want to like her but she's such a nothing character imo to actually have an opinion on because I think she was done pretty dirty, as Riverclan and her weren't really the focus of the series for so long

I consider myself a Leopardstar fan. I’ve been wanting to talking about my feelings/view on her for a while so i’ll put all my thoughts here!

The direction they took with her in canon is dissatisfying but she has alot of groundwork that gives her interesting potential. Her father is a medic- formerly warrior- who changed his position because he is against violence. She turns into everything Mudfur wanted to escape from. Too proud, itching for a battle, apathetic to the suffering of the other clans. And even if it was a let down, I can appreciate the authors at least tried to do more with her character than let her off the hook as easily as Blackfoot.

I like her mostly in comparison to my dislike for Blackstar's character. He teamed with Brokenstar and Tigerstar, committed murders and didn’t protest to the abuse of his own clan. He does nothing to atone and doesn't even seem particularly remorseful but he's still rewarded by being made leader. Leopardstar was already in power when she made the decisions that cost cats their lives. Cats trusted her to protect them and her neglect threw them into savagery and death. Standing by to allow kits and her own deputy be slaughtered is GRUESOME. I read her as someone blinded by ambition, just another product of the code. She misjudged then got in over her head with Tigerclan and was willing to toss others aside to save her own tail. Maybe she truly is remorseful, but it doesn't change what she did. Nothing can.

Crookedstar's leadership was very relaxed and she considered him weak. He gave up land to Shadowclan, he could never keep Sunningrocks, he allowed Thunderclan to take refugee on multiple occasions, and all of the half clan cats he accepts are seemingly only because they're his kin. She had thoughts of making Riverclan powerful and feared once he was out of the picture, it's why she completely disregarded his dying wishes- She couldn't bring herself to respect him.

The politics of Riverclan change drastically with her nine lives. Closed borders and no tolerance for Thunderclan, not even Graystripe, who only wanted to be with his kits. Riverclan is strong. But it could be stronger, couldn't it? She and Tigerclaw served as deputies together, even if he was the enemy, she thought well of him. He is a fierce and respected Thunderclan warrior. Or so he was. While she initially thought it a red flag he was now serving Shadowclan, she couldn't disagree with him for leaving Thunderclan when she already had so much resentment for them and ruling Shadowclan, it was true. They had been weaken for many moons, it was Tigerstar who reunited them and made them powerful. So when he promises to make her clan just as powerful, together, she doesnt refuse.

She very consistently and vocally had a dislike for half-clan cats. She exiled Graystripe. She calls Featherpaw and Stormpaw liabilities. She banishes Stormfur and Brook. I think she has very genuine hateful beliefs but at the same time she’s horrified at what happened to Stonefur. That was a cat she was trusting to become the next leader of Riverclan. And he was killed for defending innocent lives. She knows she was wrong, she regrets it, she has nightmares about the bonehill. (<- This was confirmed by an author apparently!) but her attempts to “atone” are surface level and shallow at best. She wants to be forgiven without changing. She makes Mistyfoot deputy to show she’s better now, but what meaning does that position have after Stonefur was slaughtered? She apologizes to Feathertail and Stormfur, but they still feel like complete outcasts. They’re more friendly with their former clanmates in Thunderclan and Leopardstar later exiles Stormfur over a faked sign. I think her attempts were never to better herself or right her victims, but to relieve her own guilt. She’s always prioritized herself above others.

#Short answer? I like her as a complicated DISlikable character #people can do bad things they regret and still be a bad person #I think her leadership is interesting because despite how much she doesn’t deserve it- shes the leader. she gets to stay the leader.#and continues to make bad choices sprinkled with few and far between moments of apology #because she feels more sorry for herself and her guilt than the cats affected by it #warrior cats #txt #Leopardstar #infodump tag #thanks for the ask! you get. giant paragraph

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silentmoths · 2 years ago

Text

Just some Single Dad! Zhongli x Kindergarten teacher Reader things

I dunno, it was a cute idea and I'm writing it on the fly because my eyeballs needed a break from star rail.

not proofred, Zhongli x reader (tried to keep the pronouns gn but forgive if i missed a few and like, xiao referrs to them as mama at one point)

sfw

Zhongli who had adopted a young Xiao from an unfortunate situation shortly after he loses Guizhong. Was it a coping mechanism? absolutely, but he wanted, no, needed, someone to care for, to put his time into.

He loves Xiao, kid's his whole world. It takes him a little longer to learn to talk, and even then, he's very shy, very much a velcro toddler. Zhongli doesn't mind.

He does start worrying however, when Xiao reaches age four and the boy shows no interest in socializing, he doesn't really know how to play, other than with his dad, and while li does his best, he's no child, he doesnt know what the kids are into these days.

That and, while he's worked from home pretty much all this time, he's also feeling the itch to return to the office, perhaps talk to people who weren't four, but he also doesn't know how well Xiao will adjust to going to kindergarten, but he doesnt want to leave his son high and dry when he inevitably has to start grade school.

So, eventually, after much anxiety, he bites the bullet and enrolls Xiao into the kindergarten closest to his office, that way if he doesn't take it well, he can quickly swing in and take him, it's not like Director Hu would ever turn the child away.

He explains what kindergarten is, and what to expect to xiao, and of course the boy is all brave, puffed chest and hardened face (sometimes Zhongli wonders if he's let the boy watch too much ninjago) and tells his papa he'll be fine, he's a big boy and he can handle it, he can handle anything!!

yeah thats a fat load of crap, the boy is an absolute sobbing mess the next day at drop off.

to be fair, it's also a very near thing for Zhongli. he's not been without Xiao for an extended period since he adopted the boy four years ago, they've always been together, and seeing his son cry like that is almost too much to bear.

That is until someone kneels beside his son with a soft handkerchief with a little duck embroidered in the corner. they coo and gently dabs away Xiao's tears with a soft smile.

"oh dear...you must be Xiao." they greet softly, taking one of his little hands in their own and giving it a little shake. "I know new places can be scary, but it's ok. you trust your papa, dont you?" Zhongli is prepared to step in, to tell them that Xiao doesn't really talk much, but his son surprises him.

"U-uh-huh..." he wibbles, letting this newcomer dry his eyes.

"Well, you know your papa would never leave you somewhere he didn't think you'd like, right?"

"mhm..."

Zhongli watches as you smile, and he feels the shock settling into his chest. He knew you were certified in early childhood...but no one, not even the best paediatricians had managed to get a sound out of Xiao.

"Papa wont be very far away, how's about this...if you really really don't like it here today, papa is only a phone call away, he can always come and get you, yeah?"

Xiao turns his watery yellow eyes up to Him and Zhongli smiles, easily scooping the boy up when he raises his arms. "They're right little dove, I won't be far, and I promise to come get you if you are unhappy, if you can try to give it a try?" He murmurs.

Xiao, to his credit, sniffles and gives his papa a small nod, he's rewarded with a tight squeeze and a kiss to his forehead.

"that's my boy. Try to have some fun, hm? there's lots of toys for you to play with..."

"Mhm..."

Xiao surprises him yet again, when the teacher stands, he turns and stretches his arms out to them, never in all his years has Zhongli seen his child do that either.

To their credit, they take him with ease, settling him into the crook of one arm with a soft croon before looking to Zhongli with a smile.

"and you must be Zhongli? It's a pleasure to meet you." you greet, holding out your hand for him to shake. "It's quite normal for little ones to have the first day blues, I'm sure after morning snack he'll be just fine."

Zhongli can't help but smile, he had a feeling Xiao would be just fine.

It only takes a week before it's Xiao who's waiting by the front door, bouncing on the balls of his feet, waiting for him to unlock the car so they can go.

He hasn't stopped talking about school, about his new friends and of course his teacher. Zhongli has never felt so relieved to know that his son is adjusting quite well.

He runs into the room to greet you with a smile and a hug to the leg, seemingly only just remembering to turn and give his papa a hug and a kiss.

"Have a good day at work, Papa!" he coos happily as Zhongli picks him up for their usual farewell cuddle.

"And you too, little dove." his response comes easy as he puts his son down and watches him gallavant over to his little group of friends.

"And to think a week ago he was crying his little eyes out." you chuckle, Zhongli hums and nods before remembering he had something to mention.

"Ah, there is a chance I might be a little later to pick him up than usual, It will be before the centre closes, but I figured I'd give you some warning lest Xiao worry."

"Oh, no problem! even if you think you might be later than close, just call the centre before hand! I'll make sure he's safe." you smile at him, and he feels another sense of relief wash over him.

He does end up running late, much later than he'd expected. Adding in traffic, he knew the centre would be closed by the time he made it, and he'd called ahead.

He comes rushing into the room, full apology at the ready, and assurance that any acrewed late fee's would of course be paid in full without complaint but stops dead at the sight before him.

Xiao, asleep, on your shoulder as you hum a soft tune. He can tell his son had been crying by the redness of his cheeks, he must have been a bit anxious because of his lateness.

You spot him in the doorway and smile, slowly ceasing your song as you effortlessly grab Xiao's bag from his cubby, and a drawing from the art rack with practiced ease.

"How was he?" he whispers as he hooks Xiao's bag over his shoulder.

"An angel as always." you whisper back, attempting to pass Xiao to him, but you're stopped when she little boy whines in his sleep, burying his face into the crook of your neck with a content huff, little hands clenched into the collar of your shirt tightly. "Oh...seem's he's comfortable..."

"And he'll be cranky if you pull him away too soon." Zhongli sighs, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, perhaps it was his fault for indulging the little boy's need to be close, but who could really say no to that face?

"hm...ok, gimme a sec." you chuckle, shifting to hold Xiao in one arm as you quickly glide through the classroom, picking up stray toys and nudging little chairs back in beneath their tables with your foot, hitting lightswitches and locking doors with such ease that it leaves Zhongli impressed.

It all culminates with you both (plus xiao, still napping away) in the parking lot, everyone else was already long gone, and Zhongli finally bows his head to you.

"My most sincere apologies for being so late, I'll make sure the late fee is included-"

"Oh, no no, it's fine Mr. Zhongli." You wave him off "It was an honest mistake, and honestly, Xiao is such an angel, It's really no trouble. heck, before he started worrying, he was helping me clean up." you explain with a small smile, hand rubbing small circles into the child's back "You have a wonderful little boy, Mr. Zhongli, you've done an amazing job."

Zhongli blinks.

Perhaps it was just a combination of his stressing about being late, his anxiety about leaving his son to return to work, and everything else.

but that was also the first time someone had actually said those words.

He'd done a good job.

He'd raised a good kid.

He hadn't fucked up.

"M-Mr. Zhongli?" he hears you ask in a panic as he comes back to himself, he see's your wide eyes, worried as your free hand digs around in your jeans pocket, pulling out yet another handkerchief with an embroidered duck in the corner. "Are you alright? did I say something wrong?"

Only now does he realize he's crying like a damned fool.

"a-ah. my apologies" he mumbles, taking your handkerchief to be polite and drying his eyes "It's just...it's been a turbulent week."

Your face softens a little as you lean against the hood of your car. "First time leaving him?" you ask, he nods.

"I've not been without him since I adopted him..." He admits "And I was so worried he wouldn't take to school, or children his age..."

"He's doing wonderfully." you reassure "he's respectful and attentive, sometimes he can be a little bit of a tattle tail but he's thriving."

Zhongli chuckles, somehow he can see his boy, chest all puffed out, telling off other children for breaking the rules "That's...good to hear."

"Oh, hey Xiao...guess who's here?" He hears you mumble as Xiao finally shifts in your arms. Slowly Xiao turns his sleepy eyes to Zhongli and his soft little frown eases a little at the familiar sight. "See? told you the mean cars were just making papa a little late."

Xiao goes easy when you finally move to hand him back, snuggling right into Zhongli's shoulder with a content murmur.

"Thank you so much again for watching him after hours." He sighs "please, if there is anything I can ever do, let me know."

"oh you." you chuckle as you reach for your keys "Like i said, he's an angel, and it was only, what, fifteen minutes? I'm sure I'll survive." you joke with him before tilting your head to smile as Xiao. "Bye bye Xiao, I'll see you on monday, yeah?"

"mmh...bye momma..." the little boy mumbles, already half asleep.

Zhongli can feel the way his cheeks heat, and he can see the way yours flush a rather pretty shade of pink before you laugh, trying to wave it off.

"o-oh that happens more often than you'd think!" you chuckle as you unlock the door. "H-have a pleasant evening, Mr. Zhongli."

Zhongli feels like a deer in the headlights. It was a simple mistake on his son's part, he probably just wasn't used to the concept of 'teachers' yet.

but even so.

"Same to you." he mumbles stiffly, bowinf his head once more before he turns and makes back towards his shiny black sedan, anu excuse to hide his red face.

As he's carefully clipping Xiao into his booster seat, the drawing you'd grabbed from the rack slips out of his bag, teetering on Zhongli's shoulder, and his face goes even redder.

Seems he might need to have a talk with his son, if the crude stick figure drawing of Him and His teacher holding hands, with Xiao holding Zhongli's other hand, was any indicator.

and yet, he cannot help but notice, that it was definitely your handwriting attatched to the little arrows pointing to each stick figure, meaning you too had seen this picture.

Zhongli quietly wonders what that might mean as he climbs into the drivers seat.

Taglist: @stygianoir @meimeimeirin @ainescribe @dustofthedailylife @rjssierjrie @crystalflygeo @angel-of-requiem Want to be added to the list? shoot me an ask~

#Silentmothwrites #moth is not silent #Zhongli x reader #Genshin Zhongli

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the-s1lly-corner · 11 months ago

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This may be specific but I also think it would be kind of cute

Okay so Eyeless Jack x reader who is like pretty intimidating looking and always keeps a stoic expression on and also really tall

Then he gets to know them and it's like "Oh you're not scary, just ✨️traumatised✨️" because they only show emotions to those they trust

Like they will glare at someone who said something mean then be all lovey dovey to Jack but still a little reserved cause they're still new to the whole "wow someone actually loves me"

Could you make 2 versions? One being platonic and the other being romantic (also reader just straight up denying that Jack is insecure cause how could he? He's the definition of perfection in their eyes)

Eyeless Jack x stoic!reader whos sweet to him (?)

i must admit it took me a little while to think of some ideas for this prompt, my apologies for the delay </3 i also wasnt too sure what to title this TToTT but regardless i hope you enjoy this! even through the struggle for ideas, i gotta admit, this idea is adorable esp since i personally write jack to be more self loathing mainly written as platonic but there is a segment at the end for romantic hcs ! easier than to write two separate full fledged sections!

uhuh light CW for implied SH on ejs part since the admin thinks that while jack is slowly descending into his whole.. demon thing hes physically and mentally fighting with himself to remain lucid; nothing explicitly written but id rather be safe than sorry

honestly i think it might take him a good hot minute to really let you treat him like hes deserving of anything more than a scowl, especially if he sees how you act around other people... because why him, of all people? there are people better for you

yet he doesnt stop you from coming to his cabin in the woods, he doesnt stop you from doing some work around the place so its safer and more habitable for him, he doesnt stop you from patching up his clothing and washing them. why doesnt he stop you? he knows he doesnt deserve it...

he almost hates the way you look at him sometimes, if you look at him with pity. like hes some lost dog needing someone to take care of him

he doesnt need help, hes been doing this whole thing by himself for a long time now and he hasnt needed anyone

and yet

he doesnt push you away when you go in to clean his face after a particularly nasty fight with himself

you even run a warm bath for him

its been so long since hes been warm

i like to think that he tries to seek you out when you dont come to visit him for a few days.. did something happen to you? were you hurt? sick? did someone do something to you? did you move away? where did you go...?

wont ever admit it but i think hes at least a little starved for a connection, sure hes a hermit and he was already closed off before he started turning into this man eating monster, but deep down he still has his human roots in there kicking, and humans thrive on connections... in the truest sense, he needs you. not sexually or carnally or romantically, he just needs someone to talk to him to keep him from going truly mad

finds himself thinking about you more than hed like to admit, even if he doesnt have any romantic feelings for you hes going to beat himself up. he came here to his silly little cabin in the woods to get away from people for everyones sake; only coming out when he needs to 'hunt'

its like befriending a stray cat, i think. they hiss and swipe at first but overtime they try to cuddle up to you if you give them enough time to build up that trust

admin likes to think he has pointed ears, and i think that they would twitch a little if he sees a smile forming on your face...

as for romantics....

i think he would look at where you walked off to, to go home... longing, almost daring himself to go after you or say something because he cant stand spending another night alone in the woods

leaves you gifts, anonymously, but leaving them none the less. if you ask if he was the one who left them hes not going to admit it, you can imply that you know it was him, but he will hold firm in his denial

building off of the ear idea, he totally gives himself away when he starts blushing... he looks like the type to have his blush reach his ears... not too mention the flicks dont make it any less discrete,,,

even he doesnt notice it, but he tries to make excuses for you to stay around longer during hang out sessions, stopping just short of offering to watch the grass grow

i think this would feed into his self loathing, though. in my eyes, jack was dragged into a human sacrifice unwillingly and unknowingly. his life was robbed away from him, he was robbed of ever having a normal life with you... you deserve better, he thinks. very heavy shit, you know? i think it leads to his mental state being even worse than before

god i had intentions of going into this with fluff but this just came out angstier than my middle school ocs TToTT

#creepypasta x reader #creepypasta x you #eyeless jack x reader #eyeless jack x you #eyeless jack headcanon #eyeless jack imagine #creepypasta headcanon #creepypasta imagine

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gold-rhine · 7 months ago

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Another thing I need to talk about in Kaeya's hangout is the fact that while Kaeya probably views himself as an outsider Lumine/Traveler views him as 100% a Mondstater. If Kaeya were to say that he doesn't have a home Lumine would look at him confused and ask genuinely how is Dawn Winery and Mondstat not his home??? Like they're both liked and loved by Mondstat but Lumine is loved for what she can do and what she does do for it while Kaeya is just loved for who he is because Mondstat and his family KNOW him. Lumine is loved for the idea that she is a hero and not the person she actually is by both the general public of mondstat ( and by extension Teyvat) and her friends there. They don't see her as a person with flaws and struggles whose still worthy of love ( only Paimon definitely does). Even Kaeya alludes to this by calling her a martial arts hero while she can't respond to that. She probably only views herself as a person who just wants their only family back. Traveler would probably view herself as the one without a homeland between the two of them. Like Kaeya (and by extension Diluc) have everything she could ever want it's so crazy tragic.

I disagree with you here, I don't think Lumine doesn't understand that Kaeya struggles with belonging or that she would just see him as just Mondstater. She asks him about Khaenriah (in his voice line), in Caribert he openly tells her about his complicated feelings on his roots in Khaenriah, how he tried to run away from Mond as a kid. She knows he keeps his bio father's writing. There is a hangout route with venti specifically about kaeya struggling to feel like he can be included with Mond ppl, and both venti and traveler are very tactfully supportive and understanding of him. Like, with Lumine's own grief about her lost kingdom, I do not think she would dismiss his identity as Khaenriahan and struggles that come with it at all just bc he's settled in Mond. Like, they both have heritages that come with complicated legacies, homes they can't go back to and families they've lost and they connect on that, it was established since his very introduction when he tells her he understand the pain of being separated from family. everyone always takes this like its just about diluc, but he literally ran away from dawn winery to khaenriah as a kid! crepus had to drag him back! he's still Alberich, this is a big part of his identity, and esp after Caribert, I think Traveler understand how much weight this carries.

also kaeya 100% doesnt think ppl in Mond *know* him and love him for who he is, not what he does. like, he structures his interactions around paying back with favors, he explains it very clearly to the guy he helps in hangout, and there are few ppl he considers friends, relationships with whom are not transactional, but even with that he struggles and tries to keep his distance (how he told jean it was traveler who organized party for her and not him). kaeya's trust issues are obvious and enormous, and traveler is aware of that.

#rhine talks

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fictionfixations · 4 months ago

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birthday bloom kalim

notice how much more azul speaks then kalim, cause azul's all flatter-y and like. the type to ig do ill deeds by walking circles around his prey and striking when they dont expect it (as in slipping in little things here and there that could make it harder to notice for example)

but kalims all honest and more to the point, so he doesnt need as many words to get there

oof

💀 kailm. sweetie...

admittedly i feel like his upbringing of basically being spoiled and kept as happy as can be from any stresses (as in yknow always being first in stuff and doing what he wants- remember that mention of kalim finding jamil during his break cause he asked the security guys to like idfk see th camera footage? or like. to find jamil. like. i mean. he was a kid but also that kind of screams of abuse of authority, but to be fair kalim was under the impression that jamil was his friend and would have no reason to think that jamil wouldnt want to play with him as much as kalim does. you see? because he's been able to see the world through sunshine and rainbows [in comparison to jamil being faced with the harsh reality and meant to be 'mature' enough to know what hes meant to do] it means he misses these cues, that he can be so oblivious to harmful intent. or like. being so positive that it could almost blind him? like

he wants to do his best to stay alive because. remember he mentioned that one time how 'what if [his poisoner i think] had a change of heart? it wouldnt mean anything if he was dead by then'. but thats under the assumption that theres. well. to put it bluntly, good in them and that they would act on it. i really dont know how to word it in a better way.

and. its not that its bad to view things in a hopeful way, its just that too much of it can be harmful.) only does him more harm

cause like. hows he gonna survive on his own? and i mean there might not be a situation like that. but like. by them raising him like that, it means that he doesn't know how to take care of himself.

and while he has servants and everything... im of the opinion that it would've been better to raise him self-sufficient. i mean spoil him as a kid ofc precious bby but also make it clear that he should also kinda be able to depend on himself too? like. like listen

make it clear that while he can trust other people, that they can also betray him. and i get that that creates trust issues, and also idk he probably already knows this in canon (its just that he wants to believe that they can change. and also because it just never occurred to him that jamil could turn on him since hes always been there)

cause. we know his other asim relatives have tried to hurt him. or well. maybe it was only mentioned in kalims' labwear vignette? i thinki it was that one.

so like. understanding that, and then giving him the skills to be able to manage on his own when needed to. not having to rely on other people all the time. cause i mean. well. this isn't the greatest lesson to teach but its like. the only one you can fully trust is yourself??

and i mean yeah he cares for himself (because so many bad things could happen if he died. or others could get hurt/punished because he died.) but it genuinely feels like hes only doing it for others and not for himself

maybe im puliing all of this out of my ass

but im STILL not over kalim talking about how frustrating/annoying it was to know that kalim only won because of jamil. that it was because jamil held back (also in relation to the truth of him always being chosen being broken, because it wasnt true at all. which i mean, if theres something that gets established in your head as what the truth is, finding that it isnt true at all is.. a lot. like. idk. that parents arent invincible, that they're human too.)

and then grim shoots him down with 'i didnt even get picked [to peform]! how do you think I feel?'

and kalim immediately apologizes. like

i swear this is like one of the only times i feel like kalims ever been outside of his happy 'im here for you if you need me' thing

or like one of the only times hes expressed his feelings (and probably knowing he's privileged, so not wanting to express his issues because he knows so many people have it worse than him ?)

and in all honesty. if he ever gets feelings talk about himself in book 4. i forgot a lot of it. and i think it mightve been partially because i knew the twist in advance so it just hurt me going through it knowing that they were wrong of who they suspected so. yeah.

uhmm. as you can see. i have a lot of thoughts about kalim. haha oops

#thoughts #twst #twisted wonderland #twst wonderland #kalim al asim #twst vignettes

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foreverautumn89 · 3 months ago

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""The California storyline was a waste of time and Jonathan is useless"" Pt 2

So according to them: Jonathan was useless and did nothing but get stoned this whole season.

Right from the start this is stupid. Like I said on the last post, Jonathan didn't get stoned once he was left in charge, Argyle did, but Jonathan did not. Jonathan got high first two episodes at most, but once he was in charge of the kids-no he didn't.

Now about the Jonathan being useless part and doing nothing to help anybody or help save the world ext: All Jonathan did this ENTIRE season was take care of the kids in more ways than one.

So lets go over all of that:

-Get this one out of the way first: Jonathan is still being big brother to El and Will since the beginning and taking care of the kids and having Argyle drive them to school. And I mention this cause everyone is talking like Jonathan isn't taking care of the kids anymore when he is so...

-When El felt like a monster for smacking Angela with a roller skate, Argyle and Jonathan immediately tried to cheer her up and assure her that Angela would be fine and it was no big deal. And they didn't make her feel like a monster for it. They were understanding.

-Jonathan kept this from Joyce to protect El. He told her without telling her. It actually reminds me of the scene from 'A Christmas Story' when Ralphie got in the fight and he thinks hes dead like his dad is going to let him have it when he gets home and finds out, but the mom controlls the narrative so Ralphie doesnt get in trouble. She tells the dad but she makes it appear like it was not as it was. They told Joyce and Uncle Murray about the skate attack but they're like no big deal gonna be fine and didn't specifically mention it was El that did it. Jonathan protected El right there and told Joyce without telling her to protect El.

-The moment El was taken, Jonathan was on it running around trying to do anything and everything to save his little sister.

-Goverment comes in shooting at everything all willy nilly, Jonathan is being a human sheild once again making sure both Will and Mike are safe.

-Jonathan is the one who planned their escape and found them a ride and brought Argyle into it so they could go rescue El.

-Jonathan spends the entire season going through all this stuff to rescue his little sister El.

-Jonathan is there for Will and tells him he'll love him no matter what scene

-Jonathan going along with Mike's plan and believing in him going along with it so they could rescue El [going to suzie's] even though that would take longer and be a lot more stress on all of them and in the meantime, they could die since the goverment was hunting them now too. But he believed in mike and trusted him.

-People say El has her powers and didn't need saving but she did need help. Jonathan hit the horn to distract the morons attacking her. El was down on the ground, drained, and they were ready to fire at her and she would have died if it wasn't for Jonathan. It helped El and gave her time to get up find the adrenaline she needed and then take them down.

-Also here is the big one:

El has her powers and she may MAY have been able to save herself physically like others claim but its unlikely, but even if she had, thats not what her big issue was. See the whole season was El needing saved in a different way.

she believed she was a monster that didn't belong and the only person who truly loved her was dead. But big brother jonathan wasn't going to let her believe that. Right then, what El needed wasn't someone to rescue her psychically but emotionally. She needed a family to show they loved her no matter what with or without her powers. That they would save her and be there for her whenever she needed them. She needed people who were going to show her she wasn't a monster she wasn't a burden she wasn't unloved. She needed someone to show that they loved her and would do anything for her and Jonathan and the others did. That moment that El looks away from 'papa' to look at her brothers and Mike showed it. I don't remember what they were saying to each other, but I do remember El looking between papa and Jonathan and them and choosing them over him because Papa just wanted to use her for her powers, but Jonathan loved her no matter what.

[[And since thats another lie the fans tell I'll address that too-No Jonathan didn't only want to save El to use her for her powers thats obvious if you watched the show because the woman who talked to them about where El went told them it would take weeks/months for El to even get powers back. Meaning that Jonathan knew El didn't have her powers back and wouldn't for a long time. And Meanwhile, Jonathan was like fck that we're going to go save my little sister RIGHT NOW especially since I know shes with her old abusers: Hawkins Lab. Jonathan didn't know Papa was back fine, but they knew she was back with the bad guys Hawkins Lab who started this all and meanwhile another division of the goverment was out to get her. Jonathan knew El didn't have her powers and wouldnt have them back for a while so this narrative of 'Jonathan was only getting her back to use her for her powers' is total bs. He was doing it because he wanted to save her from Hawkins Lab or rather the new version of it.

-Another thing about when they came to save her: Even if El had gotten out and used her powers and saved herself as ppl claim she could have done without Jonathan anyway, she still wouldn't have gotten back to hawkins in time, been able to save max without him he came to rescue her, he got where she needed to go. Without Jonathan, El would have just walked from the Hawkins base, been caught again afterwards or at best would have made it somewhere else but she wouldn't have been able to help any of the others. -Jonathan is the one who got the surfer boy pizza guy to lend them the place so El could go in and save Max and did everything to set it up for El.

-And before that he was trying to convince the ppl on the phone to let them get to Hawkins so they could be there for Max showing much he cared for Max too because thats his little sisters best friend.

No Jonathan doesn't do everything on his own, BUT NONE OF THE CHARACTERS DO NOT EVEN EL! So why are his contributions to help/save/rescue ppl constantly overlooked and don't count while everyone esles do. It just doesn't make sense to me. So I don't understand how he is ''useless and just ''does nothing but smokes weed''.

#jonathan byers #st 5 spoilers #stranger things s5 #netflix stranger things #el hopper #mike wheeler #will byers #argyle stranger things #st 4 vol 2

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kylejsugarman · 3 months ago

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as a dedicated andrea crusader i must know, how does au^2 impact andrea and jesse's relationship? do baby and brock get along? i'm picturing it in my head and🥹🥹

ANDREA CRUSADERS UNITE, u are one of the ultimate andrea understanders 🥺 so their relationship is a little different in au squared!! around the time that jesse infiltrates the recovery group and actually meets andrea is the same time that demi moves back to abq and tracks him and baby down. he and demi have a weird, semi-formal relationship for a while before they start developing romantic feelings for one another and during that time, jesse dates andrea. any initial plans to just sell meth directly to her as a recovering addict and put together his own walter white-esque "fund" for his daughter instantly evaporate when he sees brock and realizes that andrea is also just a single parent trying to navigate addiction. they're so similar and jesse, having not encountered anyone in this specific situation yet, kind of desperately clasps onto her. he really likes her and she likes him, but a big part of it is truly just. jesse desperately wanting to be around someone who Understands. and andrea does understand!! she has support from her mom, but she had to figure out a lot of this child-rearing stuff by herself and sees a lot of her slightly younger self in jesse. the way he wants to provide the Best for his kid, but doesn't trust anyone else to give it to her. she feels the same way about brock a lot of the time, even though she knows now that its not necessarily them vs the world.

the thing about au squared andrea is that she realizes through observing jesse's behavior and his feelings about raising baby that he's a very sweet guy who is great to be around, but they are not on the same timeline and she doesnt really feel like "dating" is the right arrangement for them. andrea's not in a place yet where she wants to incorporate a romantic relationship into her life and jesse, god bless him, has an overeagerness to him that tells her that he's diving into this because he badly wants A Connection, which doesn't necessarily have to be romantic!! she talks to him about this and asks instead if they can just be friends, so that's what they become. andrea is his dear friend :') jesse still cares very deeply for her and brock and tries to spoil them both (if he's going to get baby a swagged out play mat, then its only fair that brock gets a sick new transformer toy and andrea gets memory foam slippers for after long shifts on her feet at work. u know. if he's already going to be out). brock adores him, but is initially less enthused about baby because well. she's a baby. she can't really talk coherently or play a significant role in his games and he can't use his toys with smaller, choking hazard parts around her, so he doesn't really know what his mom expects him to do with baby while she and jesse are talking. but he realizes that it's actually kind of fun to assume a "big brother" role (brock's a sweet kid :') he likes to be helpful) and teach baby things; she basically copies whatever he does after a certain point, which is extremely validating to him. plus, she's a pretty patient, docile little playmate, so she can play the role of "building that is on fire that the brave firetruck must extinguish" with tremendous skill. the highlight of his month is when they all go to the zoo together and brock gets to feed a handful of feed to one of the giraffes while baby looks at him just shocked and awed like :O

andrea remains a source of support and eventually befriends demi too, but as things get darker towards the end of the show (post-drew shooting), jesse withdraws a little from her to try to protect her. he already feels responsible for tomas being murdered and drew's killing just reminds him of how nobody, no matter how innocent, is safe from this shit. andrea and brock are too important to him to endanger, even if it means cutting himself off from a good friend. demi visits them a few times while jesse is in captivity just to be around Someone and so baby can play with brock, but it's weirdly uncomfortable and baby isn't acting the same without jesse there and demi soon worries too that the cantillos might become endangered through association with them, so she reluctantly withdraws. once jesse escapes and he and demi and baby make the trip to alaska, he still writes a letter for brock that he gives to ed, but he also writes one for andrea. he wants to thank her for the support she gave him, for guiding him and baby through so much uncertainty, for being such a wonderful woman and friend. "i hope baby grows up to be like u. i want to make sure she grows up to be like u." andrea never learns what became of jesse and baby and demi after the news breaks, but she keeps that letter in her nightstand drawer along with a messy scribble drawing that baby made for her and the ticket stubs from that zoo trip. she doesnt care what the news says. she doesnt care what the dea agents who come to question her think of jesse or their friendship. she knew him, the real him, and she will always love him.

#sometimesafantasybillyjoel #ask #syd squeaks #god. i am so fucking sorry for how long this got. i genuinely did not think i had this much to say #<- girl who always says way too fucking much #au squared #jesse pinkman #baby ayuluk #demi ayuluk #andrea cantillo #brock cantillo

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frenziedslashers · 2 years ago

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It's me (again) with another request for Ricky.

How would rick react to reader going on a run with someone he doesnt really trust yet? And they're gone longer than expected. How does he cope with the anxiety? How does he react when reader comes back with some injuries bc the other person was shitty and almost left them behind???

Safe and Sound;;

A/N: WOO, FINALLY HAVE AN EXCUSE TO USE THIS GIF LMAO hope you enjoy this homie!!

Pairing: Rick Grimes x Male!Reader

Warnings: Canon typical violence, Rick is a little unhinged, cursing, reader uses he/him pronouns

Rick couldn't believe it when Deanna told him.

"You did what?" He snapped, and the woman flinched. "They are all capable of making their own decisions, Rick. They asked for a job, and I sent them on a supply run that they all agreed to."

Rick was fuming. He couldn't believe that she had done this without going over it with the rest of the group. Glenn, Tara, Eugene, and Noah were all out there. Most importantly, you were with them. He cared for all his people, but everyone in the group knew he cared for you almost as much as he did his kids.

"You don't get to make that call for my people!" He snapped, pushing past the woman towards the gate. He was sick of listening to her and her bullshit. Claiming that her son and his friend would protect you all out there. How would they protect you when they hardly knew what was happening outside those walls? It was all one joke after another if you asked him.

He wasn't going to be doing his job for the rest of that day, either. Not until you were all back safe and sound. Truthfully, this decision made him want to get you all out of here fast. Who was to say they didn't send his people out because they were disposable? They were strangers after all. That very well could have been their plan when Eric and Aaron drug them here.

Hours went by and Rick was still anxiously pacing the streets. Michonne, Sasha, and even Maggie tried to talk to him. Get him to go and rest inside. Or at least drink some damn water, but he wasn't having it.

"He's out there alone," Rick snapped, and Maggie frowned. "Glenn is with him, Rick. So is Noah, Tara, and Eugene. They will keep him safe, and you know that." The man sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Sorry," Maggie shook her head at her friends' apology. "I don't like this any more than you do, Rick. You just gotta trust them. They're our family, we know they can handle themselves." He nodded again, looking at Maggie with a smile. "Thank you," she nodded, handing the bottle of water to Rick before departing.

Another hour went by before you were home. The crew pretty beat up, and everyone was doing their best to hide that from Rick as he came stomping up to the door.

"Get out of my way," He sneered, and everyone did. These last few months had been harsh on him. It had been harsh on all of you, but he seemed to take it the worse. The longer out there in those woods, running camp to camp. The colder and meaner he got. You hardly even recognized him half the time.

"Rick," you called out, limping over to the man as he pushed through the crowd toward you. He embraced you in a hug that both of you needed. His grip was tight around you. One hand on your back, the other cradling the back of your head. Ricks eyes fell shut while he burried his face into the side of your head. Taking in your scent.

"Are you okay?" He asked when he felt you tremble in his grasp. He couldn't handle it when you cried, and hearing you just sniffle so close to his ear had him glaring at Deanna. His eyes narrowed, brows casting a shadow over his irises that made them dark as night.

His hand rubbed slowly at your back as he waited for you to calm down. He noticed that Tara and Noah weren't in the group. Aiden wasn't there, either. He hated to admit it, but he hoped that if he lost people. Then Deanna and the others at least lost one of their own. Even if it was her own son.

"Noah's gone," you muttered, and Rick kissed your temple. "If it weren't for Glenn and Eugene," you shuddered, "Nicholas would have left me back," you told him and noticed how every muscle in his body seemed to tense. You wanted to stop the man from raging out, but you couldn't bring yourself to care. Why should you stop him when Nicholas was just going to leave you to die back there? If anything, maybe this would teach Nicholas a lesson.

Rick nodded, looking down at you with such soft eyes. Such a contrast to how he looked at Deanna and the others that he considered strangers. He planted a kiss on your forehead while he muttered a soft "I'm glad you're safe," before pulling back away from you.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Nicholas backed up the closer Rick got to him. Deanna went to interfere but Glenn pulled her away. A wise thing to do with the look Rick had in his eyes. He didn't care who got in his way, he was on a war path.

Nicholas shook his head while Rick continued to get closer. "He- He's lying!" He snapped, and Rick snarled. The older male shoved the younger one against the wall. "You wanna repeat that to me, asshole?" He barked, and Nicholas cowered. "I wasn't, I was going to go back, I swear! They left Aiden behind!" Rick could hear a sob rip from Deanna, but he didn't give a damn. This was on them, not you guys.

"Glenn," Rick snapped, and Glenn cleared his throat. "Aiden shot a walker that had a grenade on its belt. It blew up, Aiden got impaled, and Tara is in the infirmary with a bag gash to her head. She's unconscious. Nicholas didn't listen and..." Glenn looked down at his feet. His heart was in his throat, tears brimming his eyes before he reached up to wipe his face with a sigh. "Noah is dead too, we lost one of our own, not just Aiden." He spoke, and Rick nodded. That was all he needed to know.

The former sheriff seemed to calm down. His expression softened and Nic thought he was free of whatever the hell Rick was thinking of doing to him. His grip loosened on his jacket, too. Maybe he was being let out free of harm? That was the understatement of the year, though.

His calm demeanor was simply the calm before the storm. His grip was quick to tighten again with one hand. The other arm winded back before his fist collided with the side of the blonde's face.

"You idiot!" Rick shouted, punch after punch to the man's face. It wasn't until someone pulled him off that he stopped, but he wasn't done there. His elbow threw back. Spencer took a blow to the jaw from the Sheriff. Nicholas took this as a chance to land a few blows on Rick. Blood smearing over your lover's face.

You stepped in, finally. You let him give Nicholas what he deserved, but you knew if you didn't stop him he would kill the man and maybe even Spencer. No matter how much you and Glenn wanted him dead, you each knew that wasn't the right thing to do.

Glenn pushed Spencer and Nicholas back with Michonne who had run over to the scene. You grabbed Rick by the shoulders while pushing him back.

"Rick, look at me, you need to stop this," you started, but Rick was still out of it. All he saw was red and he wasn't about to let you stop him. "He got our people killed," he exclaimed, and you nodded in understanding. "I know, but killing him won't bring Noah back or fix Tara," you spoke sternly, and he huffed.

"You could have died," his voice was a lot frailer than before. It sounded like what you imagined a flickering candle flame would sound like. Fragile, small, one simple blow and it would disintegrate into the night air with a string of smoke following behind.

"Rick, I'm right here," you told him, holding the sides of his face. Forcing the man to look you in your eyes, which he did. "I can't lose you," he muttered with wild and worried eyes. He looked so torn and broken. He was so tired, he couldn't rest. Not even behind these walls did he feel safe. He felt like he had to be up every waking hour to watch you, Carl, Judith, and the others. Who's to say they don't end up like Terminus? Or that they aren't worse than those freaks? No one was safe to trust anymore. Not even these people.

"I'm not going anywhere, not right now." You told him, giving his lips a quick kiss. Which he tried with desperation to deepen. He needed you close. He needed to be sure that you were here, but you'd save that for later. Right now you all still had an issue to deal with, and of course, Deanna and the others had to go and ruin your moods again.

"Oh, so your little friend there is your only worry, but my son died and you don't care?" Deanna snapped, and Rick tried to peer over your shoulder to shoot a glare at the woman, but you were quick to redirect his gaze to you.

"We lost people too," Glenn snapped back, but that only seemed to feed the flames of the fire. "If you weren't such a dick maybe you could have gone with them instead of Aiden and me," Nicholas scoffed, and Rick let out a dry laugh. The man ripped from your grasp to look at the other. Your whole group was beginning to wonder if Nicholas had a death wish.

"Me?" Rick asked while pointing to himself and fluttering his lashes. He was approaching the man again, caked in his own blood along with some of Nicholas and Spencers. He looked absolutely insane. Your eyes went wide when you noticed him reach for the pistol stuffed into the back of his belt under his jacket. "Rick," you called out, but he didn't listen.

"You mean... Me?" He asked, waving the gun around, and everyone took a step back. "I would have preferred I went out there rather than you good for nothing sons-a-bitches," Rick started in. "I don't think any of ya really know what goes on outside those goddamn walls. You all think it's all flowers and friends and sunshine, well it ain't!" He yelled, and Nicholas was looking around at everyone for help.

"You all think we're the crazy ones, but we ain't. You guys are the ones living behind a lie! A lie that everything will go back to the way it was!" He screamed with a laugh that followed, and before he could say anything more, Michonne hit him over the head and you were there to catch him.

Everyone fell silent.

You looked up at Michonne and nodded, silently thanking her for stopping Rick. You all knew he was right, but he was getting stupid. None of you wanted to deal with the retaliation of his stupidity, either. Not tonight, anyways.

"I'll get him back to the house. Michonne?" You told everyone, then looked over to your friend. Non-directly asking her to help drag your unconscious boyfriend back to the house.

"Hope I didn't give him a concussion," she spoke under her breath as you both hauled him off. You chuckled, shrugging your shoulders. "He shouldn't have pulled a gun out." You stated, the both of you falling silent once more.

---

When Rick did finally wake up he was alone in your shared bed. His eyes fluttered open while he tried to regain focus. The last thing he remembered was pointing the pistol at Nicholas, and then everything went dark.

"Carl, Jude," He called out, rushing into a sitting position on the bed. Scurrying out of the sheets as he remembered everything that happened. "Darlin'?" He called out when he heard hurried footsteps making their way down the hall to the bedroom door.

When the door opened his hands raced for the lamp on the nightstand. He only stopped his reach when he saw your figure in the door frame. Rick let out a breath he hadn't even noticed he was holding in.

"Sorry 'bout all that," he murmured, reaching up to run the back of his head. The man winced a little when he felt a particular sore spot. "Did someone...?" He went to speak, but you interrupted him as you came to sit next to him on the bed. Shutting the door behind you with a soft 'click.'

"Michonne hit you, you were being stupid," you sighed. He didn't say anything. He only nodded his head softly while dropping his hands to his lap. "I was gettin' a li'l dumb out there," he admitted with a soft chuckle. "Yeah, but we all understand why. We just wish you hadn't pulled that gun, Rick. You should have kept it hidden." You responded, and he had to admit. He was a little surprised. He expected you to tell him that he shouldn't have had the gun in the first place.

"I don' trust 'em." He told you, but you already knew that. Everyone knew that. Even the people of Alexandria knew that. "We know that, Rick. Known that since the barn, handsome," he leaned into your touch and your words when you reached up to run a hand through his hair. Kissing his shoulder before he leaned completely against you. He always felt like he was safe and sound with you. Like he was in another place, free from walkers, and bad people. With just you, the kids, and the rest of your little family.

"I was so scared I'd never see ya again," he murmured, and you shushed him. The both of you crawled onto the bed. Rick lying on top of you with a sigh. "Thought I'd never hear ya call me a dumbass again," he smiled and you rolled your eyes with a laugh. "I don't just call you a dumbass, I've called you smart, handsome, honey," you cooed, giving him a sweet kiss that he ate up like candy. He could never get enough of you, his smile wide.

"I know, I know, y'er sweeter to me than ya should be," he hummed before giving you another deep kiss. The man climbed further onto you, but you pushed his shoulders back. "Rick," you sighed, and he stared down at you with his concerned gaze. A soft and reassuring smile on your face while you reached up to stroke his cheek. "You smell."

Rick couldn't believe you, sneering while rolling his eyes. He couldn't hide the grin that broke onto his face, either. "Well, guess we better shower then," he hummed, leaning back in to press a chaste kiss to your lips.

"We?" You questioned, but he didn't give an answer. He only rolled off of you before grabbing your hand to drag you off the bed. "Rick!" You shouted, and he laughed. "Come on, Michonne hit me pretty hard, I shouldn' be standin' in that shower alone," he told you with a coy smile. His eyes danced with a mix of mischief and innocence. You couldn't say no to him, not now. Not ever.

"Fine, but just a shower. We have a meeting with Deanna," you told him, and he snickered. The man pulled you into the bathroom while shutting the door. Pressing you up against the sink with another kiss. "That's no fun, though," you shook your head, "Rick," you warned, but he could tell by your smile that he could get you to agree to a little more than a shower.

"Please?" He asked with a lip jutted out and those eyes that you just couldn't ever say no to. A sigh left your nostrils before you kissed his chin. "You're a pain in my ass, Rick Grimes." He knew he was, a soft litter of laughs leaving his and your own throat while you both got undressed. "Only yours, honey."

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