#but her bloodwork is good enough she doesn't need one

[hafwen]

They had scheduled my mom for a blood transfusion today but they did the preliminary blood work and her numbers are good enough that she doesn't need one!!!

[vaspider]

Hello friends!

Mila had her most recent vet appointment this past week, which was just bloodwork, and I have incredible news:

Her bloodwork right now looks like the bloodwork of a completely healthy dog. Not only are there not presently any "free-floating cancer cells" in her blood, as there was before her first vet appointment, but her CBC (Complete Blood Count) looks like that of a healthy dog.

For now, anyway. We know it's temporary, but she looks really, really good right now.

Her left eye, which was sunken in because she had a lymph node pressing on the nerve, looks almost entirely normal. We can't actually feel the lymph nodes in her neck at all. She's started dancing for her dinner again.

We've had to institute First Dinner and Second Dinner, and she also has breakfast AND lunch right now, because she's just hungry ALL THE TIME. This is a factor of the steroids, of course, but we indulge her because she needs to put some weight back on, and she's doing just that -- in the past two weeks, she's put on a pound and a half, which pushes her back above 60 lbs. Luckily, she's been able to go back to her regular food rather than the extremely expensive soft food, but she also gets fresh veggies, the occasional half of a dried fig (which she loves because they are so chewy and sweet, but which she can't have very much of because they are so very sugary), and ham, because it's the cheapest lunch meat and our dog doesn't have to keep kosher -- she just has to eat more protein and get more pounds back on. HaShem wants me to take care of my dog. :P

Her fur is shiny again, we can barely feel her ribs when petting her -- like, we can feel her ribs in a normal, 'there are bones under there somewhere' fashion, not in a 'oh no, she's lost so much weight' way. She's been play-bowing at Cap again, and seeking out me, and Cat, and Evie for love, and not just Emet.

We know this is just temporary. We know we'll be lucky to still have her around come 2024. But for right now, we can enjoy the beautiful fall weather with a happy girl who was very content to sit out on the porch last night, watching the neighborhood with Emet and me while I pitted plums to make more jam from the wild abundance of our neighbor's plum tree.

We have enough on hand right now for one more treatment, which will happen October 3rd, and final expenses. (I keep making sure we have enough to cover her final expenses so that she doesn't have to suffer because we can't afford to make her suffering stop.) I'll shake the virtual can again when we need it -- right now I just want you to see what your help has given us.

Today it's 72 degrees and sunny, and Mila has spent most of her day snoozing on Emet's lap in the basement.

What more can you ask of life than that?

We would not have had this day without you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[localplaguenurse]

Hey.

uwu

Thinking of doomed to die ver for the boys

I was thinking of cancer like as in either Jason or Oli got it, like sure it can be cured but there’s no guarantee it’ll be gone for good, it’ll most likely come back. So they would spend the last couple years,months, and days doing everything they always wanted to do together before the unavoidable happens.

Well Ivy, you're (hopefully) asleep rn as I'm answering so idk if you'll see the notif for this being answered first, or my discord messages.

I don't think I explicitly told you this, and I don't know if you put the pieces together yourself, but Oli's creator is @wretchedshade, who actually had cancer herself. She's beat it since, and she actually just got her bloodwork done again and she's still in the clear.

As such, I had her help in writing this out. This is all based on our instagram messages. I'm also going to put a "read more" here because while it won't get into the nitty gritty details, cancer is not fun. Actually got a little emotional typing it out rip-

Content warning: cancer and cancer treatments, referenced smoking and drug/alcohol usage, mentions of depression and suicide

Oli would more than likely develop lung cancer. He was a smoker for a while and he did start quitting around the time he and Jason got together, fully ditching the habit once the two brought Alice home. It's stage two cancer because Shade wants to be nice, so he'd be doing light chemo and taking medication. She wanted to make it stage three like hers was where he needs emergency surgery, heavy chemo, possible radiation.

Since it's the lungs though, which are delicate, he'd have to do chemo/radiation to shrink the cancer/tumors down before they have to actually go poking around in there and making the really hard decisions.

"And despite it all and the constant pain, nausea, breathing problems and losing his hair, Oli still has a smile on his face bc even though he's been told his chances are good, if something does go wrong he doesn't want his husband and daughter's last memory of him to be how much he suffered." - Shade

Jason would refuse to cry in front of Oli or Alice. He needs to be their support system. Alice is young, she doesn't fully understand why this is happening and is scared she's going to lose her papa, and Oli's the actual cancer patient. The cancer patient doesn't need to console the healthy man and tell him everything's going to be okay, because Jason's not the one with cancer. He saves his tears for when no one is around and for the day Oli gets cleared.

If it were Jason, it would more than likely be pancreatic cancer, possibly even leading to liver cancer. While his main and worst addiction was cocaine, he was also a really heavy drinker during his band days. Even in the years after leaving the band, he still struggled with alcohol and binge drinking every now and then whenever he had a really bad day.

Regardless of the stage of cancer and if he is/isn't going to make it, he's pulling out his "bucket list," something he whipped up back when he was a suicidal teenager who thought he was going to go out in a drug fueled blaze of glory like all the other rockstars he admired did. It's a dumb list of dumb shit, but he picks out a few activities that he thinks are still fun or doable, and he does them with his friends and family so that regardless of where he winds up, they'll think of the fun times before the shitty ones.

It would also be one of those instances where he actually talks to and tries to spend time with his dad. Hell, it might be enough that his dad finally stops being a bitter bastard and gives Jason's "nontraditional" family a chance. Jason got his spite and temper from someone, but even his dad knows this is not a time to be a bigot when his first and only child is sick.

He also doesn't want anyone making comments about his hair. No jokes, no remarks, no pointing out bald spots. Jason's favourite part of his appearance is his hair, and he was devastated hearing he'd lose it during his treatment. What lessens the sting is him and his daughter picking out chemo beanies and wigs for when he finally goes bald. It also helps to make Alice less worried about everything, and is a nice bonding experience during a really difficult situation.

Alice kind of exists in my head in a perpetual limbo of either baby or small kindergartener, maybe a teenager. I'm picturing her being 5-6, still really young. She's a sweet child and loves her dads dearly, so when they get a call about a fight at school, it turns out it's because she started hitting a kid that made a comment about whichever dad has cancer. Jason's "talk shit get hit" mentality is genetic. She felt bad because she doesn't like hitting people, but other than that she refused to apologize to the other kid.

[helly-watermelonsmellinfellon]

Y'all thought you'd finally gotten a break from hearing about my real life woes?

Shit's been going down!

Last time I wrote anything it was about being out of money and nowhere to stay. We got a donation, it helped us a lot, and coupled with the ladies at the front desk of the hotel keeping this room at $65 a night for us, we've managed to extend our stay.

The problem:

Step-dad got the knee surgery. He had to get a bunch of 'fragments' removed from his leg, and a few other things, but overall not much work was done. He still needs a total knee replacement. He was whining about his pain for days and refused to wear the brace thing they gave him which has compartments for gel packets.

A few days ago he called his son like he does every damn night, to bug him about shit, and found out he was working on a house with one of step-dad's former employers. A guy who notoriously doesn't pay people, never does things over the table, and spends his days on the go so cops can't track down a specific location of his. Dude lies through his teeth.

Suddenly, step-dad is able-bodied enough to drive back up to PA and now help out on the construction of this house? Like 8 days after knee surgery? Where he claimed he couldn't walk and was in too much pain?

He's been gone for almost a week. The van is gone. We have nowhere to go, no way of know when he's coming back because he's avoiding making calls, and the occasional $20 he has his son send over every other day isn't enough to feed three people who have to order delivery from the local supermarket. Legit, it's too far for Bethy or I to walk, so we'd have to get food delivered, but there's a delivery fee, and now a gas fee because of rising gas prices. And he somehow doesn't get that?

"I gave you a total of $40 in 7 days, how can you not make it work?"

Half of that goes to paying fees and tips for the drivers! That isn't enough!

So he called this morning demanding mom cancel his upcoming appointments. The bypass and the other knee surgery he's got coming at the end of April and beginning of May. He's not coming back for who knows how long now. Had a whole list of excuses on why. Step-bro's wife has had no problem narking to mom about him on the side.

He's acting like this situation is just too stressful for him to be in and he can't take being here anymore. HE'S THE REASON WE'RE IN THIS MESS! Mom and I had a stable home for almost two decades. His big mouth is what fucked that up for us. He is continuously the reason for why we haven't had stable residence in almost 6 years.

Yet he acts like this.

And the icing on the cake! The money he's been getting is what he's bummed off his son.

The employer who never pays people and dodges cops all the time? He hasn't paid them for anything despite all the work they've apparently done on the house. And now both are making excuses for him despite how this is what the man does.

So we're stranded now. We have no guarantee of money or lodging. No way of leaving if we have to leave. He's not coming back for his doctor appointments so they have to be cancelled. I scheduled my own doctor appointment that is very needed and now that has to be cancelled. Bethy has bloodwork scheduled because they have to check for a history of cysts before they can give her some kind of medication, but that's got to be cancelled. And now none of that can happen.

If Bethy's case worker comes around again and finds out that he's not here and he's been gone with the van, off working, when he told her to her face that he can't move and therefore can't work, we're going to be in so much trouble. She spent the last 4 months bothering him about working and now he can do it? For apparently no payment?

He doesn't realize how bad it looks to be stranded with no money and no transportation when you have a state case worker watching your every move? Someone who is meant to make sure your daughter is safe in your hands and you can be trusted to keep her while you are battling homelessness?

I complain about him constantly but have always tried to maintain his few good qualities as not totally terrible and him as still better than my sperm donor as a person. Yet what can I defend in this? How are you almost 60 and this fucking dumb? It's hard for a outsider to not see this as malicious. I can't talk this down of make it seem less bad.

I'm sick of trying to make it seem less bad.

[the-broken-truth]

Broken-Style Remix: Platonic Yandere Bruce Wayne + Bat-Family & Dakota

Broken: Hey, @anxiousnerdwritings have given me permission to make one-shots of their images and letter; of course, I am not claiming this work as my own - it's a simple remix to an already great piece. This one is inspired by one of my favorites.

@anxiousnerdwritings's version: LINK

Quick Note: Dakota is not Talia Al Ghul's Daughter in this - she's the result of a one-night stand Bruce had with another woman named Marissa Blake when he was 27 years old; thus making Dakota 16 when they first met & Damian 10 years old. Dakota lives alone but she has a great relationship with her mother, who works at a video game company as an animator while Dakota works at a local cafe as a barista.

SUBTITLE: BLOOD TIES [PART 1]

[Around 8:45 A.M. - Ms. Sophia's Cafe (Dakota's Place of Work]

Dakota watched the cup on the table in front with intensely focused sapphire eyes as her right hand moved to place the shape of a creamy leaf on the surface of the latte for the customer that made it. Dakota moved the flow of the cream from the bottom of the shape upward to complete the look of the leaf with a smile before she placed the cream container down and gently picked up the cup and walked over to the counter.

"One cream latte for Mr. Brian." She called out.

"What would be me." A man in a business suit said as he walked over and took the cup, taking a sip and smiled, "You Lattes are still the best tasting ones around here; I can see why Ms. Sophia keeps you around, young lady." He praised.

"Thank you, sir. Please, have a pleasant day." Dakota said with a bow of her head. Mr. Brian wished her a good day but not before tipping her $50 in her hand and went on his way; Dakota smiled at the tip before siding it in her apron pocket and went to serve the next customer.

Dakota Blake - a 16-year-old - has been working as a barista in Ms. Sophia's Cafe for about 5 months now and the business has been doing a lot better with her advice on the ratios of coffee-sugar-milk/cream. Dakota also made the pastries in the morning from her Maternal Grandmother's Cookbook who happened to own a famous bakery that is now owned and ran by her aunt - her mother's younger sister.

'I wonder if auntie needs any help at the bakery this weekend for Berry Rush Week. I'll make sure to stop by after work.' Dakota said as she handed a Blueberry-Creme Muffin to a woman who wished her a good day and left; with no customers and everyone sitting, eating, drinking, or using the Cafe Wifi to do their work, Dakota began making sure everything was properly stocked and then began to wipe the counters when boss - and the owner of the place - walked up to her with a smile on her face.

"Good Morning, Dakota Dear." Ms. Sophia said as she walked in front of the corner before Dakota.

"Morning, Ms. Sophia. How are you doing today?" Dakota asked with a smile.

"I should be asking you that, Dakota - did you have to go to the doctor yesterday?" The older woman asked.

"It was nothing serious, Ms. Sophia; it was just a check-up and some bloodwork done." Dakota explained.

"Dear, you know you can tell me anything if something isn't right; also, what did I tell you about addressing your godmother all proper-like?" Ms. Sophia asked with a raised eyebrow and her arms folded.

"God-Ma, please..." Dakota groaned.

"No - just because I am your boss doesn't mean that you can get all business-like on me. I was your Godmother before I was your boss and that should never change." The woman said while pointing at Dakota.

"Yes, ma'am. I just wanted to make sure everyone knew your cafe was a professional place - no one wants to hire teens anyway if they held me call you anything except my superior, they might blacklist you and you might lose business." Dakota explained but her Godmother scoffed.

"Child, if I was worried about a few people not wanting to buy from me, I wouldn't have said anything to you; our regulars are enough to keep us miles above water that they would never turn their backs on us." Ms. Sophia said as she placed her hand on her goddaughter's shoulder.

"Okay, God-Ma. I'll unwind a bit." Dakota said with a smile.

"Good." She said. She was going to open her mouth to speak again when the front door opened - causing the bell to ring. "Hello, Welcome to Ms. Sophia..." She went silent as her eyes laid on the man standing in the doorway. "M...Mr. Wayne?" She questioned.

That's right - the man that just entered the small cafe was none other than the Multi-Millionaire: Bruce Wayne. He stood there in his high-end suit while scouting out the place with his piercing blue eyes...until they locked with Sophia's and Dakota's. He wanted over to them but kept a respectful distance away when he cleared his throat to speak.

"Forgive me for intruding but I need to know...is there a Dakota Blake working here at the moment?" He asked.

"That...would be me, Mr. Wayne." Dakota said as she looked at the man with confused eyes while he looked at her with wide eyes, "Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Wayne?" She asked.

"There's something I have to tell you but...we need to talk alone." Bruce said as he looked into Dakota's eyes with his own.

"Talk about what?" Dakota asked.

"It's... It's a personal matter. Can we please just speak alone, Dakota?" Bruce asked - he almost sound desperate in Dakota's ears.

"Alright." She looked at her godmother, "God-Ma, can we use the meeting room in the back?" Dakota asked.

"Of course, dear. Call me if you need anything." Sophia before she switched places with Dakota.

"Follow me, Mr. Wayne." Dakota said as she began walking into the 'Employees Only' Area with Bruce following behind her. Dakota opened the door and walked into a room with no windows, a long gray table with 5 chairs. Dakota walked over to one and sat down while Bruce closed the door and took a seat in front of Dakota.

"What is it you wanted to talk to me about, Mr. Wayne?" Dakota asked as she folded her arms.

"Yesterday evening, I received a call from a doctor at Gotham Medical Clinic and he gave me some...interesting information." Bruce began.

"And what was that information?" Dakota asked.

"Before I tell you, answer me something - were you at Gotham Medical Clinic yesterday?" He asked.

"I don't know what information that is of yours but yes - I went for a check-up & to get some bloodwork done." Dakota asked.

"And...your father - is he present in your life?" Bruce asked.

"I don't know my father, Mr. Wayne. It's been my mother and I since the day I was born, she never needed help from my father and never contracted him, and I sure as hell don't need or want anything to do with me." Dakota said, she took note that Bruce looked a bit hurt at that.

"Marissa really didn't need help, huh?" Bruce asked.

"How do you know my mother's name? Just why are you asking me these questions? What business is it of yours to come into a stranger's workplace and ask them personal questions like that?" Dakota was getting impatient.

"Dakota... I'm your father." Bruce said.

The room was silent for a moment at the words Dakota just heard: Did Bruce Wayne - one of the richest people in all of Gotham City - just tell her that he was her father?

"What are you talking about?" She asked.

"That call I told you about - The Doctor called me and told me that he did bloodwork on a young lady who came there that day & when he ran the results in the database to make sure you didn't commit or was linked to any crime - while you weren't involved in any kind of wrongdoing, he found out that your paternal DNA mixed my DNA that was already in the system. He contacted me and informed me that I had a daughter... A 16-year-old daughter whose life I wasn't a part of." Bruce finished explaining.

"So what?" Dakota said.

"What?" Bruce looked at her in confusion.

"Even if you are my father - why did you come here today?" Dakota asked.

"I want to be there for you, Dakota. I wasn't there for 16 years; I missed out on so much and I want to make up for it." Bruce said.

"There is nothing to make up for, Mr. Wayne. My mother, aunts, uncle, grandmother, and godmother gave me everything I could ever need and want - I didn't need a father then I don't need a father now. From what I read in the paper, you have a blood son - Damian, right? You can take care of them if you want someone to care for so badly." Dakota said.

"Dakota, you're my eldest child and only daughter. Please, I want to give you the best possible life. As for Damian, I talked with him - he would like to meet his elder sister." Bruce said.

"As you can see, I have a great life and if there is something I want bad enough, I am going to work for it and get it myself. I don't need a father so respect my words. As for your son - my supposed 'brother' - he would be a stranger to me and I personally am not fond of strangers. Please, leave now." Dakota said as she stood from her seat and began to walk out of the room and back to work.

She watched as Bruce walked up to the counter and asked to pay for a Blueberry-Creme Muffin, he received it and paid, along long as tipping Dakota $100 as a tip before leaving the cafe with eyes on him.

"Dakota, what was that about?" Sophia asked.

"Apparently, I'm the Daughter of Bruce Wayne." Dakota said as she began wiping the counter again.

"You alright?" She asked her.

"Yeah, God-Ma. I already told him I didn't need a father then and I don't need one now and he seemed to respect that I had to say." Dakota said as 2 new customers came in.

"Okay, I'll be in the back. Call me if you need me." She said as she began walking away.

"Yes, Ma'am." Dakota looked at the customers with a smile, "Hello. Welcome to Ms. Sophia's Cafe. What can I get for you today?"

[Meanwhile - At Wayne Corparation]

"You spoke to her, Father?" - Damian said on the phone.

"Yes - she made it clear that she didn't need a father then and she doesn't need me now." Bruce said as he stood before the large window in his office - he could see the cafe on the corner from his place.

"She didn't know that you were her father until now, she may be well off, so was I but I was also unhinged and my anger was out of control. I didn't know that I needed you until I was with you and the same goes for my elder sister - she is the Wayne Heiress, she needs to be with us." - Damian said.

Bruce was silent for a moment.

"Damian, give the phone to Alfred, I need to talk to him." Bruce said.

"At once, Father." - Damian said as he handed the phone to the Wayne Family Butler.

"Yes, Master Bruce?" - The sound of Bruce's oldest friend asked.

"Alfred, I need you to look upon someone: Dakota Blaze - 16 Years Old - Works at Ms. Sophia's Cafe. I need to know everything about her: Where she leaves, who she hangs out with, her medical records, her educational progress, her finances, other family members, and their locations, her likes, her dislikes, what she does in her free time, any hobbies. Everything you can find, Alfred." Bruce said.

"I can find the information, but may I ask just what this is about and who this girl is, Sir?" - The butler asked.

"She's my daughter, Alfred, my first child. I'm sure she was produced from the one-night stand I had with Marissa during the event back when I was 27. I've missed out on 16 years of her life... I'm not gonna miss out on it anymore. She's my daughter and I need her to understand she needs her father." Bruce said.

"I'll do the research right away, Sir." - Alfred said just before Bruce hung up the phone. Bruce looked at the cafe again before walking to his desk and taking a seat before taking the muffin in his hand, breaking off a piece and plopping it in his mouth.

"... My daughter makes incredible muffins..."

[raitrolling]

C H E R A N, for ashe

C - Caregiver - How do they give/receive care best? Do they care for everyone or just a small number of people? How do they react to someone in need?

The way Ashe sees it is that he's a doctor, so of course he should be caring for others. He's always trying to offer a helping hand, would drop everything to assist an injured troll on the street, and is always checking to make sure the trolls he knows are eating well, drinking enough water, and getting enough sleep. He's concerned about everyone's welfare, and will step in to take care of anyone, basically.

At the same time, he's not as receptive to receiving care as he is giving it. He knows he's able to push himself a lot more than the average troll due to being undead, and which of his needs he's able to neglect without overly harming himself. He will listen to others when they tell him to take breaks and relax more, though.

H - Hero - What makes someone a hero in their eyes? Who is their biggest hero in life? Why? Do they consider themselves to be heroic?

Ashe doesn't really think about anything himself or other people do as 'heroic', since a lot of the time heroes are just doing the right thing and being kind to others. He obviously thinks highly of those who do that, but he also thinks that maybe things would be better if more people emulated those traits in general. Sometimes hero worship makes you forget that you're just as capable of doing the same things they can do!

For that same reason, he doesn't have any heroes in his life, but he does somewhat look up to Rotavh for helping him get to where he is today. But now that he's spent more time with him he just feels concerned about his wellbeing a lot of the time lmao

E - Entrepreneur - How do they make money? Are they willing to take financial risks? How do they approach making deals with others?

His clinic is the only source of income for him (given that he's still considered to be dead in Fleet records and thus his caste allowance was frozen), but he doesn't want to run it as a money-making business. I'd imagine that partnering up with the Crown Clinic has helped with the funding, as he receives all the referrals for bloodwork and any extra patients who need medical help when the other doctors are too busy. That deal was a mutual one, made on the basis that they had services the other lacked, and Ashe was content to work with Ullane as long as she continued to treat Cheran and the rest of her employees nicely.

He doesn't take financial risks since he's already bad enough with money lmao

R - Rebel - Do they follow rules, bend or break them? Do they find rebelliousness in others attractive?

Ashe is a bit of a rebel in the sense that he believes that everyone deserves medical care regardless of their caste or status, which is definitely an anomaly on Alternia. He's very stubborn about it too and will stick to his guns when confronted about it, which is definitely emboldened by the fact that he can heal from whatever physical injury someone may inflict on him in retaliation.

Like Lucy, he finds kindness and a willingness to care for others to be an attractive quality, which could be seen as rebellious behaviour depending on who they're caring for.

A - Advocate - How do they show their support for others? Are there any causes that they publicly support? Why?

He really likes to encourage others to the best of his ability, and wants to be as openly supportive towards his friends as possible. He will try and hype you up and offer to help you every step of the way, as well as be reassuring if those plans did not end up becoming successful. He'd want people to know that their efforts are never wasted, and sometimes just trying their best is good enough.

Like I said in the previous questions, he publicly supports good medical care for everyone. It feels like a no-brainer to him, shouldn't everyone get a chance to live a comfortable life?

N - Navigator - What’s their sense of direction like? Do they have a set path in life that they’re planning on following? What do they do if they’re knocked off course?

His sense of direction is decent, but he definitely prefers sticking to locations he knows than trying to navigate his way around an unfamiliar city. In those cases, he'd prefer to have a map on him or having written down the directions in advance just in case he ends up getting lost. He'd get a bit anxious if he did get lost, especially if he was meant to be at a location by a certain time.

He's already been knocked off the path he had intended to follow thanks to his own death, but he's managed to get back on track even if it does mean working as an unlicensed doctor while pretending he always had his degree. He does want to go back and finally finish that degree, but he hasn't really had time to sit down and fill out all the paperwork to fix up his Fleet records so he can apply for university again.