#but i needed to dissect this bit like a frog

[cryptocism]

Here’s my thing about the twist at the end of IWTV season 2 (spoilers obvi)

The magic system that IWTV has is for flavour. It’s spice, it’s zest, it’s a lil bit of seasoning that gives the storytelling a fun supernatural kick. 

We are not given exact metrics or data for how exactly the Vampire Powers function, just examples of some that can manifest (pyrokinesis/telekinesis/telepathy/flight/mind control/etc) and that Vampire Powers get stronger as they get older. eg. Armand can walk in the sun – but is he immune or just resistant? How old does a vampire have to be before they can take a midday stroll minus immolation? Is there a time limit? An intensity where they could still be injured? Does the effect lessen if they have some shade like an umbrella or a large hat–

IRRELEVANT!!! The Vampire Powers are for SPICE and these kinds of nerdy-ass questions about scope and scale in this magic system does nothing for the characters or the story. You do not need to know the exact range or power of Louis’ Fire Gift in order to cheer and clap when he burns down the theatre. Lestat’s Cloud Gift doesn’t need a follow-up explanation on how high/fast he can fly in order to be devastating when he uses it to do a domestic violence. This isn’t Fullmetal Alchemist, this isn’t Mistborn. This magic system is SPICE, and getting into specifics about the powers and how they work distracts from the wonderful twisty soap opera of the gay vampires doing war crimes to each other.

So my thing about the twist is not that Armand was willing to let Louis die, and it’s not the reveal that Lestat was actually the one who saved Louis.

My thing about the twist is that it relies on a magic system that wasn’t built to support that kind of major end-of-season plot point. And the consequences that the resulting ambiguity has on Claudia, the greatest tragic hero of all time.

So the Mind Gift. 

Armand has that shit on lock. He’s shown using it extremely competently even before the San Francisco memory-alteration reveal. He’s the only member of the coven who clocks Louis’ recognition at Lestat’s name, he notices the “presence” in Louis’ mind when Louis hallucinates Dreamstat, he knows when Louis is lying to him about Claudia’s involvement in Lestat’s murder, when he tells Louis and Claudia to close their minds before his conversation with Madeline he says “I’ll know it if you haven’t.”. He’s able to knock out the entire coven in one scene, although it’s unclear whether that’s the Mind Gift or a combination of telekinesis and the time stopping(?) thing. Plus of course mind-wiping memory-alteration courtesy of the San Francisco saw trap.

Armand is the oldest vampire in the show so far, we know vampires get more powerful with age, and his previously shown competency with the Mind Gift means that when he says he compelled an audience full of people into banishing Louis, it’s a believable addition to his powerset. 

And, consequently, when he says “it took all my strength” we can guess that he’s lying his ass off. Daniel points out Armand saved Louis and not Claudia because he was trying to reveal the reasoning that everybody except Louis already knows. To quote Assad Zaman: Armand doesn’t give a fuck about Claudia.

Lestat on the other hand.

His one and only use of the Mind Gift (besides the generalized telepathy all the vampires share) is when he mindfucks 30ish soldiers out of his townhouse in the 1900s. His ears bleed about it – and we can pretty confidently interpret orifice-bleeding as a kind of catch-all for mind-powers being difficult. And then we don’t mention it again for a season and a half because the magic system is for spice and Louis is more concerned with other shit.

Until Daniel brings it up in his Big Reveal, and this piece of evidence allows for the truth to come out and Armand to be exposed as an opportunistic liar. Scene is played out brilliantly, Louis puts a crater in his wall via his ex-husband, good stuff.

HOWEVER

This twist has the consequence of shifting the focus of the story. The central question has changed slightly. Instead of the reveal being who killed Claudia, the narrative focus is now on who saved Louis.

And despite my love of Daniel’s reveal scene, despite my love of the Louis/Lestat reunion scene, “who saved Louis” ends up a weaker thematic question.

Claudia is the whole fucking point. Claudia and the way her fathers failed her. Claudia and the tragedy of her narrative doom. Claudia and the ways she never escaped that child’s body in that burning house, no matter how much she tried.

My thing about the twist is that it takes our previous understandings of Armand and Lestat’s respective power and agency in that scene from this:

Armand: Could’ve Prevented It (Chose Not To) Lestat: Genuinely Could Not Have Prevented It

To this:

Armand: Could’ve Prevented It (Chose Not To) Lestat: Could’ve Prevented It (Chose Not To)

And then doesn’t interrogate or explain further. There is no one that says to Lestat, “You saved him, but why didn’t you save her?” 

And look I can understand I’m meant to extrapolate that Lestat used all his strength to save Louis and therefore didn’t have enough juice to do the same for Claudia (his ears bleed about it and everything)

But they sprinkled so much doubt on Armand’s “it took all my strength” excuse and then immediately showed Lestat as much more powerful with the Mind Gift than previously assumed, and so I’m left with too many unanswered questions.

This is where the narrative puts too much weight on a magic system that wasn’t built to support it. The audience is aware, vaguely, that the older a vampire is the more powerful they are, but we aren’t actually given tangible comparisons between Armand and Lestats respective abilities circa 1949. Lestat is shown or said to have all of Armand’s same abilities by this point, but besides Armand being older, he’s never shown outmatching Lestat in power, and so we never get a real sense of Lestat's limitations.

I should mention that, on its own, this wouldn’t be a flaw. Like I said the magic is here for spice and zest and we don’t need Armand and Lestat to have a wizard battle in order to understand that Armand is probably nebulously more powerful.

But when you hinge a plot point on Lestat’s magical abilities and their limits, I would like to know for certain whether Lestat genuinely couldn’t have prevented Claudia’s death or, like Armand, simply chose not to.

If it’s the latter, it counterintuitively makes Lestat a much less sympathetic character, when (as far as I can tell) the purpose of the twist is to make Lestat more of a heroic figure, since post-reveal there are no further interrogations of Lestat's choices.

And I’ve read wonderful meta on Lestat choosing to let Claudia die and then regretting it forever: if he loved her more she would’ve suffered less, if he loved her less she might not have suffered at all, etc.

But none of this is given any focus in the show because besides Lestat’s single heartbreaking line about Claudia looking to him in her last moments. There is no illumination on whether Lestat’s inaction was due to personal choice or lack of ability. There’s no solid evidence in the show to swing it one way or the other, the magic system is too soft to support a solid conclusion about it.

And. Claudia was sentenced before Louis. So even if Lestat only had the ability to save one of them, he still made the conscious choice to save his strength for Louis.

Which is also not necessarily a flaw. Lestat making the choice to save Louis over Claudia would be an extremely compelling road to go down. My issue is that the show has changed the central question from who killed Claudia to who saved Louis and is now pretending that that road doesn’t exist.

There is no indication that Louis feels any kind of way about Lestat ostensibly choosing him over their daughter. There’s no indication that Lestat had any hesitation about his choice, despite his sadness at her death. I can interpret Sam Reid’s acting choices in the final scene as Lestat not realizing how much Claudia meant to him until she looked at him “like a child looking to her father” but by then it was too late – but that would still be speculative.

Giving Lestat the agency to save Louis and Claudia during the trial both puts too much pressure on a magic system that can’t support it, and puts wind-drag on Louis and Lestats reunion: what should be the emotional climax of the show.

And look to be clear: show good. I’m obsessed with show. 

But the structural integrity of the final twist makes me feel like an OSHA inspector in an otherwise competently made building that doesn't have railings on the stairs.

They don't establish enough information wrt the magic system so that Lestat’s sudden ability and subsequent assumed limitations can reasonably track. They don't interrogate the consequences of giving Lestat the choice to save his daughter and then him proceeding to Not Do That.

I don’t think it’s out of character for Armand to choose his coven over Louis considering his habit of clinging to the familiar even if it sucks. I don’t think it’s out of character for Lestat to choose Louis over Claudia considering both Lestat and Louis’ habit of doing exactly that.

But you cannot ask the question “Who killed Claudia? (or, through inaction, allowed Claudia to die)” the entire season and then answer it with “Actually, Lestat saved Louis!”

It shifts the focus, it muddies the theme, it relies too heavily on a magic system that is supposed to be vibes-based and most importantly it treats Claudia like an afterthought when Claudia is literally the entire fucking point.

Claudia isn’t even the main character in her own story, the most tragic of tragic heroes, only someone’s first choice in the moments before her death, and neither she nor the woman she loves can do anything to change their endings. Louis and Lestat’s realization of all the ways they failed her is meant to be the emotional catharsis of the show, but it rings hollow, because the consequence of the final twist serves to render her narratively and metanarratively another round in Louis and Lestat’s stormy romance and un-asking its own central question.

[neverendingford]

.

[strange-creature-222]

OUUGHHH THIS IS MAKING ME THINK SO MANY THINGS OH MY GOD/POS

@lilywithcatears you should read this pls pls pls

I found myself thinking of Jekyll today and wondering if it causes him physical pain to have to fake a smile. To what extent is Henry Jekyll, pleasant doctor and sophisticated upperclass gentleman a painful mask he has to wear and does the discomfort ever feel physical?

I was at the local aquarium today (this is the perfect time of year to go because it's open but there are no tourists so it's never crowded and admission is cheap) hanging out and doodling on one of the benches while I watched the fish. I had on headphones to listen to an audio book and to provide a buffer between myself and anyone who might try to talk to me and I had been looking forward to relaxing for a couple of hours when a family walked up and the father waved his hand in front of my face to get my attention. The minute they started asking me questions about what I was drawing I was filled with what I can only describe as intense dismay.

Obviously the family being present isn't in of itself an issue, it's a public aquarium, it's aimed at families and parts of the aquarium are geared specifically at children, but the family noticed me drawing and stopped to talk to me.

I reiterate that this was not something they did wrong, they were just being friendly, but I was really not prepared to have a conversation and I found the whole ordeal to be...well an ordeal. They were interested in what I was drawing (a sketch of Henry Jekyll because he's been on my mind off and on) and just the thought of having to explain who this character was, hoping they got it, and having to potentially explain why I was drawing him felt overwhelming.

And it was, they did not know who Henry Jekyll was, they were vaguely aware of Jekyll and Hyde but weren't the type of people to read classic literature and had never heard of the musical or actually seen for themselves any movies featuring the character. The mom commented that he looks like "a Disney villain from back in the 90s" which...fair assessment, I can't pretend I don't see why she would have thought that. The older kid was probably the most interested and wanted to see more of my drawings which made me really uncomfortable but I let him look through my sketchbook anyway because his parents kept saying he was interested in drawing and he loves art and I felt too anxious to say no.

I made small talk with the parents for a while, all the usual, "what's your name, where you from, what's your job?" (I hate those questions, they are usually the least interesting things about any people, myself included) and I wondered if this is what Henry does on a regular day. Has ordinary conversations with reasonably nice people and feel completely like a fish out of water the whole time. I felt pretty terrible about it too, I didn't have any hard feelings or resentment but the whole time I was thinking "Stop touching my things, go away, please fucking leave so I can get back to my audio book and my drawing. I just wanted to sit with the fish for a few hours because it's supposed to be quiet here this time of year."

No one ever seems to catch on that physically talking to people is an effort for me. I've gone my whole life and no one has ever noticed that I'm anxious or uncomfortable in situations where I have to speak out loud because I've gotten good at faking small talk and I know how to make my voice sound pleasant.

It's strange because I express myself easily enough in writing and I like messaging with people over text but the minute I have to be verbal with people I don't know I feel like I'm putting on an immense effort. I have to consciously choose a tone, figure out what words I want to say, be ready with an explanation in case I'm asked questions and I have to do all of it in real time on the spot. It feels like improve, like I'm constantly doing an improve routine and I know most people would say "Just be yourself!" But myself doesn't want to be doing this at all. Myself wants to be drawing and looking at fish. Even as a child I was never very social, I liked to doodle or daydream or build with my lego sets. I got reprimanded a lot for being too quiet. So I made myself more talkative and learned how to hold conversations. I learned to blend in but it's so tiring at times and I can swear when it's at its worst it feels almost physical. The discomfort becomes a suffocating "texture" on my skin and in my brain and I have to keep pretending like I don't notice it because every time I try to articulate how I feel people don't understand it. It's just not a thing they experience.

So I just keep "acting normal," and wonder if there's something wrong with me, like I'm operating on a different frequency from the people around me and I'm the only one on that frequency so other people don't even know it exists. It's...incredibly isolating at times. Even my partner doesn't seem to hear the world as loud as I do or experience the "texture" it's just a strange THING that I'm stuck with by myself. I wonder if it was the same for Henry Jekyll? Except instead being of too quiet he was too loud, too boisterous, threw tantrums, didn't know when to stop rambling about anatomy and weird gross medical facts. So he learned how to cover it and move through life pretending to be interested in everyone else but keenly aware they could never share his interests because his favorite subjects were too grisly and if he started talking about diseases he'd put everyone off. I head-canon Jekyll loves what he does, but he doesn't love it for reasons a doctor should, he doesn't care that much about healing the sick, he cares about conquering illnesses, he likes to learn about symptoms, he enjoys the disgusting viscera of his work. But he can't let on that this is what he enjoys about his work because that's not noble or heroic, it's something most people would find creepy of him. So he buries it and pretends he cares about curing the sick. He pretends he enjoys talking to people who don't know anything about who he is or what he does but they think they do because they are aware of doctors and understand that medicine exists. All the time he loathes it, it exhausts him and he can't even indulge in activities he enjoys to blow of steam because he enjoys things like brawling, doing drugs, and fucking. All things a man of his status shouldn't be seen doing. There's an image people associate with Henry Jekyll and it's an image he can't afford to tarnish...

but it's not really HIS image, it's just a buffer he keeps up to make himself more palatable. I wonder if that ever hurts him physically, if the mask ever feels like a "texture" muffling him.

there are times when I feel like it's no wonder he wasn't repulsed by Hyde when he first saw his reflection. Because I can only imagine by the time Hyde showed up he was already completely burnt out on being Jekyll.

[penkura]

where you belong [3/10]

Summary: As Luffy's big sister, you've viewed it to be your job to see him become King of the Pirates in place of your absent parents, even as you try to find where it is you belong in the world. You never really expected to draw the attention of Trafalgar Law in the process.

Pairing: Trafalgar Law x Fem!reader

Warnings: Discussion of feelings of abandonment, age gap relationship (four years), brief secret relationship, mentions and heavy refences to sex, mentions of alcohol, typical One Piece stuff. Other warnings to be added if needed.

Note: Hahaha almost 7.3k words, I'm so sorry. I almost completely removed this chapter, but I wanted to do a little bit more showing Law and Reader's relationship. :) If you'd like a song to listen to as you read, Clock Strikes by One OK Rock is what I was listening to as I wrote parts of this. 💚

Taglist:

@pinksaiyans | @sukunas-play-thing | @spiderlily-w1tch-blog | @mineymak | @valen-yamyam16 | @shimmerxc | @luffy0s | @fluffybunnyu | @laws-wife-things | @crmnic | @eyes-ofhell | @hopelesslover06 | @nyfwyeonjun | @extremely-ashtridic | @idk67876 | @mysweetmagicworld | @lorelexi-main | @pandabiene5115 | @shakysif | @bern87

[Ch. 1] ● [Ch. 2]

Law takes his time telling you about his childhood and time with Corazon. He doesn’t want to overwhelm you, especially knowing how you react when Ace is brought up, he’s not sure he can deal with you crying over the things that have happened to him. He also needs the time to work out his own feelings, trying to keep from choking up himself when he remembers everything, even though when it happens you quietly take his hand to try and provide some comfort, like he's done for you.

He never shakes your hand off his, just pushes down the pain and tears and keeps talking to you.

He starts by telling you about his family and life in Flevance. His mother and father, how wonderful and brilliant they were, how much they loved him. His little sister Lami, who adored him more than anything in the world, she always wanted him to join her during the festivals in Flevance. He loved his family more than anything, they meant the world to him back then. You smile when he tells you about the first time his parents let him take Lami to get ice cream, by themselves, and how she dropped hers, so he had to share with her.

While he doesn’t remember too much, he does tell you about his friends from the church nearby. They’d all been classmates too, spending their days going through normal classes and sometimes the boys, Law included, would catch frogs to dissect and gross out the girls. He remembers all the festivals, the neighbors he’d pass by every day, the old lady next door that always tried to get him to eat bread for some reason.

Law tries to make it easy for you, the first day is only about his family and friends. Nothing about the destruction of Flevance yet, he takes a bit to get there, and it affects him just like it does you, it still does to this day.

He really does try to keep his emotions in check, but once he begins to remember how it felt to see Lami sick with the white lead disease, he starts to struggle with keeping his voice steady.

“I…I was horrified when we realized she was sick,” Law has to stop and take a breath, swallowing down the tears he feels trying to slip out, “I didn’t want to watch her die.”

Nodding, you don’t say anything, you don’t want to interrupt his thoughts as he works them out and how to voice them. You just grip his hand a little tighter, which Law returns before he continues, reliving when his home was destroyed by the World Government.

“I left the hospital after I found my parents were dead, I was going to find the nun who had told me some Marines were going to sneak us kids out, so we could get Lami and go,” you can already tell where this is going, while Law grits his teeth remembering everything as vividly as he does, “She had been killed too, all my friends from the church…the hospital was burned down with…with Lami still inside…”

“Law…I’m so sorry…”

“I escaped in a mass of corpses, I had to get out somehow. That was the only way. I, eventually, I found Doflamino and his crew, and worked to join them when I was ten.”

Both of you quiet, you’re trying to take everything in, and Law is trying to get past his feelings again, he hates talking about all of this. Every time someone new joins his crew, he waits a while to make sure they’re trustworthy before he tells them anything.

But he believed you should know, even though you aren’t staying forever, and now you’re slowly learning everything.

You know when he’s done talking for the time being once he becomes quiet, you’ve noticed that about him over the last several months, allowing you to hug him though he doesn’t return it. He does appreciate it though, you don’t ask him to tell you more than what he’s ready to, taking it all at the pace Law sets for this.

“It’s getting late,” you hadn’t even notice until Law brings it up, but it is starting to look dark outside, “Everyone will be back for dinner soon.”

Law can’t help the slight smile that comes to his face when you sniffle a bit and nod, rubbing at your eyes with your sleeve. He didn’t fully expect you to start crying but he’s also not surprised, he figures it must bring out your own feelings of protectiveness and sibling love towards Luffy. Once he stands, Law holds his hand out to help you up which you gladly take, but you pull him into another hug that, this time, he gently returns.

“Thank you, again, for trusting me…”

“I hope you won’t betray that.”

“I would never!”

Law laughs a bit at your shocked expression, while you smile and kiss his cheek, something you’d started doing more recently. He’s gotten more used to it; it doesn’t affect him the same way it did the first time. He likes it, but tries to make sure none of his crew are around to see it, to avoid any kind of teasing that may come from it.

“See you at dinner, Law!”

“Mm-hm.”

Watching you leave before going back to his desk, Law thinks that went better than he could have expected. He expected more tears from you than he got, but he’s glad he didn’t have to spend several minutes calming you down before you left. He has to take some time to relax himself after dredging up those memories, but maybe next time he’ll tell you some happier ones he remembers, not just about his family but about Cora-san too.

~~

Before he even has the chance to tell you about his time with Corazon, Law is hit with several nightmares, all flashbacks to that night, something he never expected to happen. He believed he’d gotten past it all, but it seems the thought of telling you everything was causing it all to resurface and disturb his sleep (not like he gets much anyway).

He's good at hiding it though, you don’t question the dark circles under his eyes, even if they look darker to you lately. He tells you it’s nothing when you ask, convinced that’s enough for you even though you give him a skeptical look before going on your way. Law thinks you’re going to let it go, he can take care of himself. He’s handled this before on his own, before his crew came to be and he had friends to help him.

He can handle it again, he swears he can.

But it gets worse, especially after Law does tell you about Corazon, everything they went through to save him, and how his savior died to protect him. It keeps you up some nights afterwards, thinking about it all more than you should, and you know that wasn’t Law’s intention. He wasn’t trying to upset you or garner sympathy, it was simply his life story, and he felt like you needed to know. Like he wants you to understand why he’s started the plans he has, with stealing the hearts of other pirates to become a Warlord, the rest of his plans he won’t tell you about for whatever reason.

It probably would be strange to outsiders, but you’re surprisingly okay with it all. You aren’t a permanent member of the Heart Pirates, you don’t need to know all the details.

Still though, you feel like something is off, not with you but with Law and how you two are now. You’ve noticed how tired he is lately, he almost seems to doze off during the crew meetings he lets you in on, at least until someone says his name and it wakes him enough. He still seems to yawn more than normal, it’s what led you to be standing in front of his office door so late tonight, you want to make sure he’s doing okay or see if he needs anything. You feel nervous and you’re not sure why, while you quietly knock on the door and wait to hear if Law calls you in.

When he doesn’t, you open the door and call for him.

“Law? I was going to make some tea and was wondering if you want any…”

You don’t get a response since he’s asleep at his desk, your first thought being that at least he’s sleeping. You’re glad to know that until you realize it is not a peaceful sleep and he seems to be having a nightmare from the distressed look on his face.

Oh that makes so much sense.

You had hoped it was just the stress of everything going on that was keeping Law from sleeping, not that he was having his sleep disturbed by nightmares. Of what, you don’t know yet, but you feel the need to wake him.

“Law? Hey,” you’re quiet as you set your hand on his shoulder, hoping that wakes him, “Law, wake up. You’re having a nightmare.”

It does work to wake him, but also startles Law to the point he nearly knocks himself out of his chair when he wakes and sits up, eyes wide when he looks at you but not really, you know he’s still waking up.

You mostly know that when he barely whispers ‘Cora-san’ and it makes you realize what he’s been suffering from in his sleep. The memories have come back fiercely and it makes your heart ache for him knowing everything he’s gone through.

You’ve suffered worse than you let on.

Once his eyes focus and Law sees it’s you with him, he worries he’s let things slip about the nightmare, especially when he sees how concerned you look.

“What…[Y/N]-ya, what…what time—”

“It’s after midnight. I was checking to see if you wanted tea but,” he doesn’t say anything but you watch him as he rubs at his eyes with his sleeve, you wonder briefly if it’s sleep or tears he's trying to get rid of, “I noticed you weren’t sleeping well…are you okay?”

No I’m not.

“I’m fine, don’t worry about it.”

“Are you sure?”

Law nods, waving your hand off his shoulder before turning back to his desk.

“I am.”

He’s certain you don’t believe him, based on the face you make as you nod, before shaking your head.

“You don’t really expect me to just accept that answer, do you?”

I wish you would.

Before he even responds, you take his hand and pull him up out of his chair, which also surprises him though he is still waking up fully

He doesn’t even fight when you start to drag him towards his bedroom, or when you get him in there and tell him to change for bed, you’re going to go make some tea for the two of you real quick.

While he does get ready for bed, he doesn’t expect you to stay long after you return with the drinks. He fully expects you to hand his over and leave, going back to your room to sleep, not for you to climb into his bed beside him and give him a smile like you’re wanting to talk before going to sleep. Law just stares at you for a moment, before he speaks.

“Do you want to talk about something…?”

“Hmm? Oh, um! Well, I…was going to stay with you tonight.”

“…why?”

You become quiet, Law halfway expects you to decide to leave, telling him goodnight before doing so. You don’t need to stay, he’s fine on his own. He’ll get over the nightmares again soon, he’s sure of that.

“I have nightmares too…about Ace…”

He really shouldn’t be as surprised as he is, but he never thought you’d be struggling like this too. With the fears that come from having witnessed such tragedy and the resulting pain, perhaps he should’ve expected that though. After all the times he’s held you through your breakdowns over Ace’s death, he should’ve known you’d be having nightmares too. But you’ve hid it so well, you’ve handled things all on your own once again, just like he has.

Maybe it’s time we both accept some help.

“Sometimes I…,” you bite your lip before shaking your head, “The nightmares, are about if you hadn’t saved Luffy. So…let me help you tonight, Law…just for a bit?”

“…okay…”

Law isn’t sure how long you two stay awake that night talking, all he knows is that, eventually, he wakes up to someone knocking heavily on his door but he’s not able to move at first. You’ve got his head held against your chest, still fast asleep yourself, no signs of waking but he’s nearly frozen in place when he realizes what’s going on. It takes a moment or two for Law to decide what to do, internally yelling at himself about how on earth this happened and how does he get out of this without someone thinking something scandalous is going on.

He's lucky enough that you release him and roll over in your sleep, he doesn’t have to figure out how to get out of your arms on his own. Now it’s a matter of getting out of his bed without waking you, he doesn’t want to interrupt your own sleep. The knocking stops eventually, Law hears someone mumble to themselves, they’ll probably come back later but he’s got to get out of bed now. He has a chance to get out before you wake or someone catches you in his bed. He quickly slips out, grabs some clothes and goes to his bathroom to change, taking a deep breath and letting out a sigh.

This…isn’t going to be good in the long run is it?

Law isn’t looking forward to having to wake you when he goes back to his room, but he’s lucky enough that you’re gone by the time he gets back. You definitely woke up and had the same thought he did, sneaking yourself out quickly without making any noise. When you see him again at breakfast, you don’t say anything but give Law a smile that he returns with a nod.

No one else knows or finds out, much to the relief of you both, and Ikkaku doesn’t question where you’d been the night before.

While he hates to admit that he did need someone that night, Law can’t deny the fact he’d slept better with you there than he had in months.

+!+

A few weeks later, the Heart Pirates are throwing a party for their captain. Law’s birthday has come around and while he’d tried to tell him no party they still threw one together, even dragging you into the planning though you didn’t need to be asked to help really. When you heard it was his birthday, you were happy to help, having a couple of gifts put away for him as a thank you for all the help he’s given you the last year and a half or so. It's not a lot, just two small things you think he’ll appreciate, even with Ikkaku and Uni telling you he's going to love both gifts, it's hard to think that much about them.

Law, although he said no parties, is not one to deny his crew a night of rest and relaxation. He does try to stay in his office most of the evening, but Penguin and Shachi are able to drag him out long enough to have a drink and let everyone wish him a happy birthday. He’s truly grateful for all of them, thanking his crew with a slight smile. He ends up settling beside you for a bit after Shachi hands him a drink, not pushing you off when you lean against his arm and give him a smile.

“Happy birthday, Law.”

“Mm, thanks.”

While you take a sip of your own drink, Ikkaku catches your eye and gives you a wink, which makes you roll your eyes before Law sets his hand on your shoulder, nodding for you to follow him out of the common area up on deck. Ikkaku makes sure to pass you the wrapped gifts you have for Law when you walk by her, it makes you nervous to keep them behind your back when you both sit on the deck to relax away from everyone. You can still hear them shouting and laughing, a few already a little wasted but it makes you and Law smile.

“You crew loves you a lot.”

“Yeah,” Nodding, Law takes a sip from his drink before setting it down, “I love them a lot too…what’d Ikkaku hand to you?”

“…how the—”

“I’m not blind, you know,” his smirk only makes you pout, as you take the items out from behind you, “Neither of you are good at hiding things.”

“Fine,” you sigh heavily as a joke, but still smile as you hold the wrapped items out to him, “A gift for you.”

Law quiets as he stares at the gifts you have in your hands, before he finally takes them from you. The happy yet nervous smile you have tells him you weren’t really ready to give these to him, but Ikkaku seems to have forced your hand. You don’t seem mad about it though.

“…you really didn’t have to get me anything, I wouldn’t have been offended.”

You shrug a little, knowing it’s really not much, but it still makes you smile to see Law just a bit flustered by it. He obviously wasn’t expecting anything from you, but of course you surprise him once again. It seems like almost everything you do lately endears you to him even more than before.

What a mess we’re creating.

“I know but, I wanted to. As a birthday gift and to thank you for everything,” you watch while he starts to open the smaller gift, heart rate picking up out of anxiety, you’ve never felt so anxious giving someone a gift before, “It’s really not a lot, I just…I thought you’d like these…”

Law isn’t at all surprised to find a coin in the small box, he figured that must’ve been it, he’s so familiar with that size of box and the small sound it made when he picked it up. It’s nothing fancy, but it’s from Foosha Village, your hometown, it has to be one you’d brought with you as a keepsake. The port engraved on one side and the Goa Kingdom on the other, he can pick out the tiniest manufacturing errors and possible imprints on the small coin. It’s special though, he didn’t have one from there in his collection yet and you’ve added to it, how kind of you. He knows if you wanted to, Luffy would take your whole crew back to your home for a visit and you’d pick up another coin or two, you likely aren’t worried about giving one up.

Seeing his face light up a bit at it as he thanks you makes you smile softly, at least until he goes to open the other wrapped gift. You bite your lip out of worry and fidget a bit, not a single thing going unnoticed by Law who almost asks what’s wrong but realizes you’re just nervous for whatever reason. There’s nothing to be nervous about in his mind, until he sees what else you’ve given him, and it causes him to freeze up, which leads to you defending your gift to him.

“I…I found it in a bookstore on the last island…the shopkeeper didn’t want to sell it to me, but I was able to sneak it into my bag and get it out of there. I remembered everything you told me and…I just…”

It's a book about Flevance, the country’s history and culture, everything about the white lead export, the festivals they held, the little bit that was assumed about white lead disease itself. All of it there in his hands now, he didn’t know such a book existed. He would’ve thought any and all traces of Flevance had been destroyed by the World Government, including books detailing the country itself. But they missed one, the one you’d been lucky enough to find and steal from the bookstore, that you thought you should give to him so he had a piece of his home again.

When he doesn’t say anything for several minutes, you start to bite your lip, wondering if you’ve made a mistake. He flips through the book quietly, not making known what he thinks at all.

“I��”

“That’s my sister and I.”

Law finally speaks up again, having stopped on a page for longer than you noticed, pointing out one of the pictures printed on it. You lean in just enough to look, smiling at the picture he’s showing you. The boy is obviously Law, he has the same grin you’ve rarely seen, and the girl has her brown hair tied into small pigtails, smiling just as widely next to him. You hadn’t really read too much of it, just getting an idea of what Law’s hometown was like, but that picture makes you realize how happy he was back then.

“She’s cute.”

“I think,” he interrupts your thoughts and makes you look at him again, “that was during a summer festival. Lami would’ve been four, I remember buying her ice cream and playing a game to win her a stuffed rabbit…she didn’t let go of it for months.”

“She looks like you.”

“No, she doesn’t,” Law scoffs, but chuckles a bit, flipping to another page, “I forgot a reporter had taken our picture then…these are my parents….”

It's another picture from the festival, but this time just his parents are shown, probably having been nearby to make sure their children didn’t wander off. Now you see why he said Lami didn’t look like him, she was a carbon copy of their mom. You never would have guessed those pictures were in that book, or that Law remembered when they were taken.

“…you look just like your dad.”

Nodding, Law closes the book and sets it to the side. He’ll read it fully later, those pictures and the small flip through he’s done are enough for tonight. He has to push those emotions down for now and doesn’t push you away when you give him a hug that he quietly returns, thanking you.

Neither of you moves or says anything for a while, before you look up at Law and speak.

“Hey, Law?”

“Hmm?”

“…tell me that I haven’t misread all of this.”

Law is stunned into complete silence, more frozen than he was earlier, when you lean up just enough to press the softest kiss to his lips, it’s almost like it doesn’t happen but he knows it does. You’ve actually kissed him, his feelings aren’t unrequited after all! The fact you think you’ve misread everything he's said and done the last few months, he just wants to sit and tell you everything now. How he’s been stressed about telling you, he wasn’t sure you really felt the same.

But now he is! The confirmation he’s been looking for despite the fact he was already certain you felt the same. With the way you’ve spent so much of your free time together he should’ve realized it sooner, how everything just led you both to each other every time. Its unreal that this is happening, that you’ve taken that first step to change your relationship with him. He really did think it would never happen, you’d both be forever pining, or the feelings would fade.

Honestly Law’s relieved you decided to take the chance, he wasn’t sure how or when to do it himself. He’s not used to this, what should he even be doing now?

Maybe he should be kissing you back, Law realizes a moment later, when you pull away just enough for him to see the disappointed almost sad look on your face. He’d gotten so caught in his thoughts that you must think he doesn’t feel the same, all because he was so distracted he didn’t think to return your kiss.

“Sorry,” Oh you sound so sad, it nearly breaks his heart to hear your voice, to see you looking away from him, “I…I shouldn’t ha—”

“Don’t,” Law nearly whispers it, moving both hands to hold your face and makes you look at him, “Don’t apologize.”

A barely audible ‘okay’ is your response before Law properly returns your first kiss, letting you slip your arms around his neck while he moves one hand to your waist to bring you a little closer to him. He knows this could be a misstep, that you may come to him in the morning and say you’d drank too much, that it shouldn’t have happened. But for now, he’s going to ignore the thoughts that tell him to stop. That he can’t be doing this, you’re a rival captain’s older sister, it’s not going to work out no matter how much he hopes it does. It doesn’t matter to him, not right now.

All that matters is you.

You and him, right now, with your hands in his hair, his arm around your waist, and his other hand stroking your cheek. It’s almost too much to believe it’s real but it is, he doesn’t know how he got so lucky. To be able to receive your affections and return them. Part of Law wonders if this was your plan all along, to get him away from everyone just to kiss him, even though he’s the one who led you away, but he thinks you didn’t plan this part at all, it just happened.

But it’s okay, he doesn’t mind. Not everything has to be planned down to the letter. You certainly weren’t in his plans.

This really might become a mess down the line, but does that matter? Just for a bit, he’ll ignore everything going on around you, Law will briefly ignore his plans just for a few moments tonight. For the several minutes you two spend in a silent confession of feelings that had built up over the last few weeks, he’s going to ignore reality.

Until you softly push him away, Law wonders if he did something wrong, only to see you give him a shy smile.

“Happy birthday, Law.”

He laughs slightly, shaking his head before kissing you again.

“Thank you, [Y/N]-ya.”

You really can’t wait to tell Ikkaku about this.

+!+

Eventually Law walks you to your room, your gift to him in one hand while you hold onto his other one, fingers laced together and stroking the back of his hand with your thumb. You two haven’t fully decided what you are yet, you’ll discuss it later, he’s promised you that. Even if Law would like to sit and talk things through with you tonight, it’s late and there are things to do the next day. The rest of the crew might be hungover and sick in the morning, but they’ve got to get a move on to the next island, there are more hearts to be collected.

Once you’re back to your room, Law kisses you once more for the night, thanking you again for the gifts, before he heads off to his office. He tries to hurry so you don’t see the pink blush on his face, but you already have, you just don’t tell him. You simply say goodnight in return, going into your room and leaning against the door with a dreamy sigh and smile on your face, which Ikkaku picks up immediately when she sees you from her bed.

“So…how’d it go?”

“I kissed him.”

“What?!”

“And he kissed me back…for a few minutes.”

“Holy shit, you got Law to make out with you?!”

Before you can say anything else, Ikkaku tells you to wait, jumping out of bed to grab your arm after she locks the door and drags you to her bed, making you sit down. She quickly goes to her dresser and pulls out a small wine bottle she’d hidden from the boys and joins you back on her bed with it.

“How long have you been hiding that?”

“Doesn’t matter! Tell me everything!”

The alcohol burns but Ikkaku’s giggling at your retelling of what happened with Law makes you smile and giggle in return. She looks like she’s reading a slow burn romance novel while you tell her everything that’s happened, giving Law his gift and kissing him, how he returned it and said you’ll talk about things later. She rolls her eyes a bit at that but the few yawns you give tell her that was probably the reason why he said that.

Once you finish telling the story, you sigh again and fall back on her bed, still smiling while Ikkaku watches you.

“That was my first kiss…”

“Really??”

“Mm,” you nod a little, thinking back and knowing that’s true, “I wonder if it was his too.”

“Probably. Captain hasn’t shown interest in anyone before, I’d be surprised if he’s ever kissed anyone that wasn’t on a dare.”

You look like you’re thinking, but Ikkaku smiles before she takes a drink of the wine and lays beside you.

“This is so cool, you and Law. I knew there was something there when I saw you two working together.”

“Oh please, I doubt he’s liked me that long.”

“You never know! Imagine he’s liked you since Amazon Lily!”

“Now that’s way too far back!”

The two of you stay up laughing and talking, the few worries you have about what’s next dissipating as Ikkaku tells you everything she’s noticed that led her to believing Law liked you, it makes you so much happier to know your feelings are reciprocated.

After he makes it back to his office, Law nearly collapses on the ground, his energy spent and his emotions going haywire.

The gifts you’ve given him, the kiss you shared, he doesn’t know how to fully process all of it. It’s so foreign to him, he doesn’t think he’s felt so happy since the time he spent with Cora, he’s sure he hasn’t felt this loved since then either, even though he’s sure you’re not in love with him yet.

Law sets your gifts on his desk, he’ll put them away in the morning, placing his face in his hands to try and stop the blush he knows is there and the smile that he can’t seem to wipe off no matter how much he tries to. He tries to calm himself down, tell himself this isn’t a big deal, maybe you will come by in the morning and tell him it was a mistake, but he hopes and prays you don’t.

I can’t believe she kissed me. I didn’t expect that…

“Heeey, Law, I’m heading up for night watch,” Penguin knocks on the doorway a bit, stepping into Law’s office as his captain just nods, making him raise an eyebrow, “Something good happen, Cap?”

“Yeah…yeah, something good happened.”

+!+

It takes a few weeks still for Law to ask to take you on a date, but you waste no time in accepting the offer. He tells you not to let it out to anyone, but you may have slipped up and told Ikkaku when you asked for her opinion on what to wear. The two of you sounded like schoolgirls with how you were giggling and chatting over the fact Law actually wanted to take you out for a date, your feelings aren’t one-sided, he really does like you back! It only feels so strange to know that because of how Luffy and Ace would chase off boys that liked you way back when, even if you liked the boy back, your brothers couldn’t stand the thought of one of them taking you away. None of them were good enough for you.

You think Ace would’ve liked and approved of Law. Even though he’s older than you, if they’d been able to meet, you’re sure Ace would have liked Law, liked the fact he’s also a doctor, and that he makes you happy so far.

The night of your date doesn’t really go as planned though. Everyone except Ikkaku, Bepo, Law, and you are off the ship, exploring the town you’re docked near, Law had sent them all out with a day off and stayed on board along with you to get ready for your date and make sure no one was going to find out about it. He’s not ready for the teasing that’s to come and wants this to stay as secret as possible.

Once you’re dressed and ready, you expect Law to come get you from your room like he said he would at the time he’d told you, but he’s late and you start to worry when it gets later and later.

Had he changed his mind and decided to stand you up? No, no Law would never do that, if he didn’t want to go out with you he would’ve said so, he probably never would have asked in the first place.

Right? Right. Law wouldn’t leave me without an answer.

Again you’re at his office door, knocking to see if he answers and once again, you receive no response. He hasn’t left the ship you know that, Ikkaku said she saw him in his office just a few minutes before he was supposed to come get you, so what happened?

“Law? Are you ready to go?” Still no response, so you decide to again let yourself in, you aren’t prepared to see Law is still in his office, but appears to be passed out on the floor, it actually scares you.

“Law!! What happened?!” You hurry over and make sure he’s still breathing, relieved to find he is, before checking him for a fever. “What the hell, Law, are you all right?!”

What a way for your first date to start.

~~

Law never wanted you to know just how nervous he really was about your first date, he kept it all to himself. He only let Penguin know about it by accident, to get some advice that he thought might be helpful, but his friend only ended up telling things not to do. He rolled his eyes and gave up on that, only asking if it was normal to feel like he was going to be sick at the thought of taking you to dinner

“Yeah for a first date, that sounds normal, Cap.”

“How do I get rid of it?”

“I…well…go on the date and see?”

Yes, very helpful advice. It didn’t help with the constant dizzy feeling he had, though Law thinks that may have been slight dehydration from his nerves causing him to forgo all water and food that day. He really didn’t want to risk actually throwing up before or during your date and grossing you out.

Unfortunately, all of it hit him at once when he was leaving his office to go get you, causing Law to realize how badly he’d neglected himself that day, and the day before, as he passed out without the chance to call for someone’s help.

But when he opens his eyes a while later and sees you giving him a worried smile, he knows he’s screwed up. He blinks a few times, barely registering that he’s laying down on the couch in his office, he knows he hit the floor. He can feel the pain in his head from it, yet he doesn’t mind too much feeling your hand in his hair or his head in your lap.

“Hey, you.”

“[Y/N]-ya…?”

“In the flesh.”

“What…what happened…?”

“You tell me,” giving him a concerned smile, you gently run your fingers through Law’s hair while he looks up at you like he’s thinking, “You were late coming to get me, I was worried you’d changed your mind…when I came to see what was up, you were passed out on the floor. Bepo helped me get you here.”

“I…I don’t remember,” he shakes his head a bit before sitting up, finally remembering what it was and groaning, “Wait, yes I do. I was about to come to your room, when I started to feel dizzy. I…guess I passed out…”

“Do you have a fever? Are you feeling okay? We don’t have to go out if you’re sick, Law! We can do it another day.”

Law really doesn’t want to admit the reason for his dizziness and sudden fainting, once he realizes what caused it all, he doesn’t want you to feel bad about something you couldn’t control. It’s all on him for stressing out so much about the date, he just wants to impress you. He's never done this before, dating isn’t in his skill set.

“…Law?”

“Don’t worry about it, I’m fine.”

He gets up so quickly you don’t have time to stop him, but still follow and grab his arm.

“Hey, talk to me,” you make him turn to face you, smiling softly even though he doesn’t look at you, he’s keeping his eyes on the ground, “Whatever it is, I won’t be upset. If you want to postpone, that’s fi—”

“Why do you even like me?”

“What—”

“There’s nothing good about me,” Law moves to pull away from you, but you keep your grip on his sleeve, not letting him get away, “I’m not a good person, you deserve someone who is. You deserve someone who can make you happy, not…not me…I can’t do that…”

The silence feels deafening, when you don’t respond right away. He’s sure you’re rethinking all of this now. His birthday when you kissed him, the few times in between then and now where you’d stop him to kiss his cheek and he’d return it with one to your forehead, how he’s walked you to your room each night, and the few times he’s let you share his bed for the night. When he finally decided to ask you on a date the other day, even though you gave him the brightest smile he’s ever seen from you, he doesn’t believe you could be happy with him.

Who could ever be happy with him, with someone who’s seen so much death in his life, at only twenty-five, when he’s bent on avenging Cora and stopping Kaido?

Why would you want anything to do with that?

“I…am happy, though,” you move to hold Law’s hand, placing your other on his face to make him look at you, “I like you, Law. I really do and I feel happy when I’m around you, you can ask Ikkaku. I tell her all the time how much I like you, how much I want to be with you.”

“You don’t—”

“I’m not lying. I don’t know what you’re thinking about us, and that’s okay right now, but I…I can see myself with you now and in the future. I promise, Law, you make me happy, just by being you.”

Law doesn’t have a chance to say anything before you kiss him, trying to convince him of your feelings being real. He’s hesitant to return it but does so after a moment, before you pull away with a smile.

“…you look nice.”

“Thank you…you do too.”

“I…I was going to take you to dinner.”

“Oh yeah?”

Law nods, wanting to explain better, before you start to sit down, still holding his hand to bring him to the floor with you. When he tries to speak, you just shake your head.

“It’s my turn to ask a question.”

“What about—"

“Will you tell me about your tattoos?”

Law doesn’t pull his hand away from you, while you continue hold it and gently run your finger over the cross on the back of his hand, he has to fight not to just intertwine his fingers with yours.

This isn’t how he thought your first date would go. Not you finding him passed out from stress and turning it into simply talking. He knows already he’s going to make it up to you with a proper date at the next island.

“For my family, and for Cora-san…” he points first to the ones on his hands and forearms, placing his free hand on his chest to point out the one for Corazon though you could’ve guessed that.

Humming, you nod, Law brings his other hand up to softly tuck a piece of hair behind your ear before cupping your cheek and watching you lean into his hand.

He really is very sweet.

“For your crew?”

“My jolly Roger on my back.”

“…what about for you?”

Law takes a deep breath but doesn’t say anything for a bit. He keeps holding your hand, staring at his own, wondering if he should admit it or not. What will you think? Will you decide you don’t want to bother with him?

You probably read the book you gave him, the one about Flevance, he could tell the book had been read. It didn’t go into detail about his home’s destruction, chalking it up to the white lead disease and scarcity of resources, but he wasn’t surprised when he got there himself. The government would never admit wrongdoing, they’d never allow their involvement to be published.

But he thinks you should know. You haven’t walked away after hearing his story, his past, you’re still here with him. You look like you already know what he’s going to say, a sad smile now on your face as you look at his hand in yours.

“’Death’…for what’s marked my life since I was ten.”

He’s quiet, like he’s worried he’s going to scare you off, like he’s marked you for death just by developing feelings for you, allowing himself to entertain the thought of being with you. Everyone he’s ever loved has died, it could be the same for you if trends are anything to go by. It wouldn’t be fair to you, to Luffy, if anything happened simply because you’ve chosen to be with him, Law doesn’t want anything to happen to you. You’ve both been through things, of varying degrees, what could you want with someone like him?

Law tries to pull away from you, you’ve been quiet for so long now, he thinks he’s effectively squashed your feelings for him, you don’t want to be with him now, he's sure of it.

But you don’t let him get too far away, wrapping your arms around him and laying your head on his chest. Law isn’t really sure what to make of this. It’s not like before, when you’ve hugged him other times, you’re still quiet yourself though you nod.

“I don’t think that’s true anymore…not with this crew, this family you’ve built.”

“[Y/N]-ya—”

“I’d like to stay by your side and prove you wrong,” you tighten your arms around him as Law finally returns your hug, tighter than you even expected, “if you’ll let me.”

“…as long as you’ll have me.”

You both stay quiet for a bit, eventually you look up at Law and give him a soft smile before leaning up to kiss him again, which he returns without any hesitation this time.

It'll take some time for him to be fully comfortable and accepting of this, of the love and attention you’re ready to so freely give him, but you’re willing to give him that time.

Anything to make sure Law knows you aren’t going anywhere, even when you have to return to your crew. You’re not going to let him go very easily.

[genericpuff]

oh boy it's that time again

when rachel posts 'video progress' of her work and we proceed to dissect it like a frog in 9th grade science class

like ok first the caption of "is persephone the chicken and hades the egg" makes no fucking sense except to anyone who overthinks it and goes "wait is that a reference to the popularly-perpetuated version of the myth where persephone went down to the underworld willingly and hades didn't actually exist???" because if it is ima scream lmao

but MORE IMPORTANTLY-

Here's the transcript of what she's saying in the video:

"I think I've always wanted to write Hades' and Persephone's story because obviously I really like them. It's like very much a chicken and egg situation because I think in the beginning I thought that I was going to use a very abstract black and white style, and I realized it wasn't very enticing or fun for me, um... and I started drawing these very like vibrant characters and as I drew them I understood more about the story the more that I explored the art style, um and I guess an example of that is, y'know, Persephone is like a very bright color um, and the Underworld, is a very dark dark blue, and so when she says she really sticks out so it's just environmental uh processes like that that really helped inspire the direction of the story."

(despite her expanding on the "chicken and the egg" bit it still doesn't make sense imo lmao)

But what we're seeing isn't S1 LO, it's actually from S3 of LO:

But um... you notice anything interesting about the screenshot I just showed you?

That literally looks NOTHING like what we see in the final panel. At the VERY least I think this goes to show how overcooked it becomes in post-production, when they add the canvas layer and hypersaturate the shit out of the colors, but even the blending technique just isn't matching up?

A lot of what she's doing in this video also feels very... non-existent, like she's brushing her pen around but very little is happening so it feels more like her just putting down random brush strokes to try and make it seem put-together but really she's just kind of pushing colors around and/or doing nothing. Especially when, again, what she's painting here looks nothing like the final picture (so at best it's a lot of wasted work??)

And knowing what we know about the assistants drawing the characters separately so that Rachel can rearrange them in the final episode layout... I don't wanna call foul play here, but this feels like yet another attempt on Rachel's behalf to make her process seem more involved than it is by simply redrawing a scene for the performative aspect of it all. It's like the "sketches" in the books looking way too 'clean' for the final product and giving the impression that she just sketched over the final panels to make them look pretty enough for print.

I also wanna mention that for some reason she's drawing this on her iPad when she owns a Cintiq. It could be because she was drawing this while abroad in the US for her conventions last fall, but despite clearly being ahead of schedule, she still wound up drawing the final episode the night of-

Oh yeah and btw there are like a million clipping layers for what looks like just a simple drawing of Demeter. And this lines up with our previous theories about her using like 128549021809 layers for literally one character.

And aside from all that her commentary, as always, is very nothingburger, just a bunch of word salad. Like she's literally trying to explain LO's color theory as "well Persephone is bright pink and the Underworld is dark blue so she sticks out! That's all you need to know!"

IDK, I'm not coming to any sort of ironclad conclusion based off this one video, but it does feel like yet another desperate attempt to prove that she does work on LO and doesn't just leave it all to her assistants to do at the last minute. But like... she's kind of screwed in that argument either way, because even if she draws the majority of panels in LO, that just further proves the argument that she's stopped trying.

[five-rivers]

Neologism

For Ectober 2023 day 31: Ten Years! Last one for this year!

.

“Can you believe, Daniel, that it has already been ten years since we first met?” asked Vlad, topping off Danny’s wine glass.  

“I can’t believe that I’m hanging out with you after you tried to dissect me like a laboratory frog,” said Danny.  He was already a little tipsy.  Vlad’d had a party earlier.  A fancy one.  One that Vlad had invited Danny and his family to, for reasons unknown, and which Danny had attended for reasons unknown.  And now they were sitting on one of Vlad’s balconies.  Why Vlad felt the need to have so many of the things when they could both fly and walk through walls, Danny would never understand.  

“I never dissected you, my dear boy,” said Vlad, with an expansive gesture.  A bit of wine spilled from his glass.  He was drunk, too.  

“As if you could,” said Danny with a snort.  “I said you tried to dissect me.  There’s a difference, cheesehead.”

“No, no,” said Vlad.  “I never tried to dissect you.”

Danny rolled his eyes.  “Are you splitting hairs over whether or not you wanted to vivisect or dissect me?  Really?  Really?”

“I’m not splitting hairs, I’m making a cogent distinction!  And I never wanted to vivisect you, either.”

“What d’you call wanting to cut me up to figure out how I work, then?”

Vlad sniffed.  “Vivisection is strictly for things that are alive.  Dissection is for things that are not alive.  We are both alive and dead, and therefore such an act would fall under neither category.  Therefore, therefore, I came up with my own term.”

“What?” said Danny, drinking more wine.  Clearly, he wasn’t drunk enough to make dealing with Vlad painless yet.  If that was even possible.  “Vladisection?”  As much as Vlad mocked Danny’s father for his naming sensibilities (some of which were Mom’s fault, anyway), the names he came up with were much worse.  

Danny was never going to let him live Dalv down.  Seriously.  

“Divisection!” said Vlad triumphantly.

Danny nearly choked on his wine.  

“I considered hemisection and demisection, but hemisection is already taken.”

“By what?” asked Danny, phasing off the wine he’d spilled.  

“Something to do with tooth surgery,” said Vlad, waving his hand.  “Unimportant.”

“And demisection?”

Vlad ignored him.  “Divi.  A noble and little-used prefix, ideal for our purposes.”

“I don’t like how you’re lumping us together, there, Vladdie.”

“It accurately indicates that we are divided between two states, those of life and death.”

“I dunno that I feel all that divided.  I think that’s always been a you thing,” lied Danny.  He’d had his phases, back when he’d been a teenager.  He’d gotten over it.

“And, in a stroke of genius–”

“Kinda think that word’s overused these days,” observed Danny.  

“Let me speak Daniel.  It’s no wonder you’re getting a ‘B’ in Introduction to Relativistic Astrophysics and General Relativity.”

“Y’know what, I’m impressed you can even say that with how drunk you are.”  Danny sure wasn’t going to try.  He already bit his tongue too often, now that his fangs had come in.  

“As I was saying, in a stroke of genius, divisection also includes the first syllable from each of the terms that are so often misused in its place.”  Vlad nodded sharply, and drained his wine glass.  “I didn’t try to dissect or vivisect you, I wanted to divisect you.”

“I can’t tell if you’re serious or not,” said Danny.  

“I’m dead–” Vlad hiccupped, “--deadly serious.”

“You’re embarrassing, that’s what you are,” said Danny.  He leaned back to get a better look of the moon overhead.  “I really, really don’t know why I’m hanging out with you.  Divisection.  Can’t believe you tried to cut me up, and now you’re calling it divisection.  No respect.”

[theinfamousdoctorf]

You’ve officially convinced me to buy some cheap felt and make a few plushies how dare you /lh

That's excellent! But I would recommend working with cheap fabric over felt. Felt can be frustrating and it tears easily if you try to work it inside out. Also it's better sewn with strands of embroidery floss or thick crochet string. [I use a blanket stitch. Look at the jester shoes on my plushies to see how that looks.]

And as an aside; for anyone who attempts my DCA pattern- it's actually a decent first project because you'll learn how to -Work on things on the wrong side and turn them right side out. And add features by putting extra pieces into a seam. Which is basic plushie stuff. -Do a small amount of applique and see how you feel about it. [Some people find it frustrating.] -Sew buttons on. -The bare bones of how pants are constructed. -Use stuffing and make doll joints by leaving parts pinched/sewn and without any. -Make a crude ruffle. It's a nice quiet hobby that's fairly portable. And at the end of it you have a little guy. None of this pattern requires a machine and if the fabric you get is thin, then it'll just put up less resistance when sewn by hand. HOT TIPS - Do not sew hand-dyed-type batik fabric with a needle and thread. It looks like regular cotton but it's very dense. - Best place to get a sewing machine is Goodwill. Look for the heaviest metal machine you can find. Singer and Kenmore are the best. And places still exist to get them tuned up and fixed if needed. - When stuffing tear small bits of fluff and poke them into little crevices with a chopstick or similar. Don't over-stuff. Keep it light. - Ignore tutorials that sew stretch fabric on a regular sewing machine. You won't get good or durable results. You need a Baby-Lock sewing machine for stretch fabric. Turn your current t-shirt inside out and look at the seams. It makes a four thread seam just like that. - Slick fabric paint needs a minimum of four hours to cure. Don't try to cheat this, you cannot touch it until it's dry. If you're painting on something that's not flat; pin it to some Styrofoam like you're dissecting a frog to prevent accidents. - Always wash fabric before use. It's okay to stomp cotton/poly around in the shower with whatever soap comes off you hair and just hang dry. Don't use the finished edge of the fabric for anything. Just cut it off and pitch it. - Paper clothing patterns can be ironed flat on the lowest setting. Go quick and don't push hard. ALSO - You guys can always ask me anything if you get stuck! My grandma and my mother taught me the basics and I figured out quite a bit on my own. :)

[satuwn]

i have decided to randomly infodump about my lab rats as a way to motivate myself to: 1) revamp existing characters old refs and 2) DRAW THE GD REFERENCES OF THE REST OF THE BITCHES (this will probably take me ages still. alas), more rambly details abt the story and characters under the cut

the main characters: Dr. Kitty Whisker and her twin sibling Happy(tbd), Dr. Brainworms, Gummi (comic relief character mostly), Prof. Fuzzybottom(tbd) and Prof. Snakebite (previously known as prof. pinky, i need to redesign him more heavily)

the side characters (these guys may have side stories of their own but theyre mostly just an excuse for me to design more weird lab rats): Prof. Smartypants - ref to be finished, ferret with a brain of a human, she is my 'authors blatant self insert' into my own story lol; Fishsticks (drawn, a dissected mouse/frog stitched together), (the rest of these dont have names yet) a rat/chick hybrid with funy lil chicken legs, a rat/gator/shark hybrid she is punk and goth and she Bites, a mouse/cat dna mix with a surprisingly tragic backstory that im still working out, more tba

each lab rat represents usually an amalgamation of different experiments as the lab they are in is 'cheap' with their test subjects and likes to Repurpose old, usually failed experiments and do other stuff to them! honestly even if theyre a success they still end up getting experimented on more lol but they are still unimportant enough and the lab big enough where they can hide themselves away and have their own space w/o being actively searched for. ofc the world of the setting is based on our own reality but way more Hyperreal, i dont aim to represent logical feats of science bc a lot of these guys would defs be revolutionary (and impossible) irl lol. i will briefly run down what each main character is a result of but ideally id like to go into more detail when i actually. make the story more visual in whatever format i decide to do (probably experimental and non linear snippets, i dont think im smart enough for a full comic)

Dr. Kitty and Happy are twins! they were the result of an experiment where the scientists were testing if one species of rodent could gestate a different species of rodent just thru a little genetic modification. and that was Happy! he is actually a bunny born from a rat mother and with all rat siblings (one of them being Kitty) hes a bit smaller in stature than a usual bunny being more rat sized but other than that just a bnuuy! further experiments on them was how well skin grafting would work between different yet similar species. it worked for Kitty (hence the bunny ear) but not so much for Happy... both of them had separate experiments done on them also, altho Kitty was more rebellious of the two earning her the shock collar. Happy also had experiments on his fur to make it color changing like a chameleon, as well as some experiments to his eye (tbd)

Dr. Brainworms is actually a sapient amoeba/bacteria type thing, attached to a host body(that happens to be a hairless rat), this host body is her most compatible one as she Can overtake and control other bodies but they start to decay pretty quickly. her history is something she herself is trying to find out as her host body is its own mystery.. is she just an amoeba that gainted sentience? is her mind really her own? was this body maybe always hers? who knows!

Gummi is a jelly belly gummy rat candy brought to life, pretty self explanatory... but shes got a few mysteries of her own! like, why was she even created, for what purpose, i mean who could even do such advanced science anyway to bring an inorganic candy to life, and Why does she keep talking abt a scientist with green gloves when there arent any scientists like that around?

Prof. Fuzzybottom is a rabbit! she used to be just used for breeding new test subjects which left her pretty traumatized not being able to keep any of her children, she became infertile from the stress so she was repurposed for other experiments, like trying to turn her fur to naturally be an unnatural color, and to be more synthetic like faux fur (aka a living plush) she was also blind so they replaced her eyes with a plushy sleeping mask that actually has LEDs inside that are hooked up to her brain to see if they could restore vision thru cybernetics. in her original iteration she was even supposed to be half rat half bunny buut i felt it too much, might still reuse the idea tho! tbh i just wanted a bunny with cute rat hands :3

Prof. Snakebite is not even a lab rat originally, he was simply a pinky rat used to feed the lab snakes, but due to freak circumstances he was actually still alive and after being bitten by a venomous snake, the stress hormones in his little body make him develop rapidly especially in brain power. as he was still very tiny and fragile, he wasnt the best subject to experiment on, but he was fitted with a brain chip originally just to read and analyze his brain development as he was much more advanced in mind than in body (of an almost newborn). after escaping he would upgrade his brain chip to help him utilize more brain power but also lessen the burden on his tiny body that could not handle the strain. he and prof. fuzzybottom are always hanging around each other, fuzzy very often babying him or just helping him out by carrying him and helping him reach places or handle objects, while he begrudgingly tolerates her as she is useful to his needs. also cant admit he appreciates her actually awww

the rest of the side characters are pretty self explanatory, theyre mostly just various animal hybrids and crossbreeds and splices! smh only the main characters get cool powers and shit -_- aside from Prof. Smartypants, after having a ferrets body fitted with a human mind(who doesnt remember the human part almost at all. its just the advanced intellect from it) tries to figure out the weird body dysmorphia with Science Potions aka chemisty. but thats mostly just to give another one of my sonas shapeshifting ablities (go figure) so yah if u read this so far Waow o_o Thank U and also Pls Send me asks abt this. if u want <3 can be questions or just ur thoughts ig!! id love feedback pleas please plea

[unclewaynemunson]

@flowercrowngods got me thinking about the Munsons keeping an eye on Max when she moves to the trailer park and Wayne basically adopting her, and it wouldn’t leave my mind so this happened

Wayne had been sitting in the chair for so long that his butt felt like it was becoming one with the metal of the seat. He stood up again to pace back and forth, but it was still way too crowded so it only took him a couple of steps before he resigned himself back to his chair.

It had been hours, but the chaos in the hospital still hadn't decreased one bit and he continued to be surrounded by all kinds of people in various stages of distress: crying on each other's shoulders, quietly staring at their own hands, sleeping with one eye open in a corner... There were probably more gnawed off nails and bouncing legs in one space than Wayne had ever seen before in his life.

'Is this seat taken?'

He looked up to find a tall man towering over him, gesturing with a pale hand towards the empty chair right next to Wayne's. Wayne couldn't quite place where he had seen him before, but there was something vaguely familiar about him: big mustache, neatly combed dark hair, a sharp nose and a mole on his right cheek. The look in his brown eyes was uncommonly kind, making Wayne suspect that the man had no idea who he was talking to.

But he nodded and gestured for him to take the seat.

'Who are you here for?' the man asked.

And that was all the confirmation Wayne needed that this man indeed did not recognize him as the infamous serial killer's uncle.

'Some family members,' he answered vaguely.

'How are they doing?'

Wayne tried to suppress a frustrated sigh; not because of this random man who showed him nothing but genuine kindness, but because of the situation – because of the fact that he had been sitting in this waiting room for hours on end and still hadn't been able to see Eddie or Max, no clue how they were doing beyond the information that both of them had been badly injured in the earthquake that tore apart his home.

'I dunno,' he said. 'They won’t let me see them.'

The frown that appeared on the man's face made him feel like he should explain himself. 'One of 'em is in custody and the other's not officially family.'

'I'm sorry.' The man looked like that explanation had sparked about a million questions.

'What about you?' Wayne asked quickly in order to avoid having to answer any of them.

'I've been lucky; I'm not here on any personal business,' the man answered. 'But I'm a teacher at Hawkins Middle School so I’m here for my students. I just wanted to help in whatever way possible. I talked to a lot of them, just needed a quick break to get my own head right again. Some of them have suffered truly terrible losses today.'

And Wayne finally realized why this man had looked so familiar to him: he had crossed paths with him almost ten years ago, back when Eddie was still in middle school; when the teacher didn't have that frown line between his eyebrows yet and before his own hair had turned gray.

'You're the science teacher, aren't ya?'

'Oh, I'm sorry, I haven't even introduced myself properly,' the man answered while holding out his hand. 'Scott Clarke. Indeed the science teacher.'

Somewhat reluctant, Wayne shook his hand; it felt so soft against Wayne's own rough calloused palm that he felt an odd sense of embarrassment wash over him.

'Wayne Munson.'

And exactly as suspected, Mr. Clarke's face dropped at hearing that name.

'You're Eddie's uncle,' he stated flatly.

Wayne merely nodded.

'They have him in custody?'

'He didn't do it.' The words almost reflexively fell out of his mouth.

'I know.'

And, well, that was pretty much the last thing Wayne had expected Mr. Clarke to say to him.

'What?'

'I know,' he simply repeated. 'I remember him crying when he had to dissect a frog in one of my lessons. And if I recall correctly, he got in trouble multiple times for violating the school health codes by taking sick birds inside the building.'

Wayne couldn't help but chuckle at that memory; he could still clearly picture a much younger Eddie, with shorter hair and chubbier cheeks, giving him a teary-eyed rant about how mean the school nurse was for refusing to patch up the near-dead pigeon he had carried to her office in his bare hands.

'I'm really sorry, Mr. Munson, for how this town has been treating your nephew.'

It sounded a little bit too genuine and all of a sudden Wayne found it difficult to keep looking into those brown eyes that were gazing at him so intensely.

He released a breath of relief when the nurse he had spoken to earlier walked up to him at the exact right moment.

'Mr. Munson, we finally managed to get a hold of Mrs. Mayfield. She's been stuck by the road collapse on the other side of the center, but she confirmed that you're family so you can go see your niece now.'

The words “family” and “niece” had Wayne stunned for a moment. He never quite knew whether Max's mother was okay with him and Eddie basically forcing themselves into their lives, couldn't get a feeling about whether the meals he delivered at her doorstep made her grateful or uncomfortable, whether she thought the Munsons to be meddlesome or appreciated their help. This was more of a confirmation than anything that he had been doing the right thing: this woman trusted him to look after her injured daughter when she couldn't. They were family.

'Are you alright, Mr. Munson?' A gentle tap on his shoulder made him realize that Scott Clarke was still sitting right beside him; he looked up to meet an inquisitive brown-eyed gaze.

'Yeah, of course, I'm – 'm fine,' he stammered, shaking off the emotions that had caught him off-guard and hastily standing up. 'I um, I'll see ya around.'

'Wait.'

Wayne didn't know Scott Clarke very well, but he could swear there was something resembling nervousness in his tight smile.

'I know someone who works here. I could try and ask if they're willing to help you get permission to see Eddie?'

Wayne grimaced. 'I don't think that's gonna work. They think him responsible for triple homicide. I saw they got two armed guards stationed at his door.'

'Well, we can always try; nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?'

And Wayne realized that Scott Clarke had something that he himself had unlearned many years ago: optimism.

He nodded. 'Thank you, Mr. Clarke.'

'Please, call me Scott.'

'Alright. Thank you, Scott. I appreciate it.'

'It's the least I can do.'

And while Wayne walked through the sterile gray hospital hallways, torn between hope and dread for both Max and Eddie, that nervous smile kept lingering in his mind, nudging him to shake the dread and for once choose hope instead. He needed it now more than ever.

[medichamcham]

A thing I love about the way you portray Giorose is that you see Rose for who he is, a flawed person who still wishes best for people, though often driven by paranoia. He is just Trying his Best, even if he is not the best person for the job <3

And Giovanni is a very intimidating and powerful man, but that also ends up shooting him in the foot whenever feelings get involved, because he is a hypocrite who works too hard on a false heartless image of himself. Gio needs to be a little bit cringe

🥺 🥺 that genuinely makes me so happy!! i try WAY too hard to portray giorose as believable as possible so that means a lot <3 <3

rose has a lot of issues but i do not believe these problems and questionable actions come from a place of real, intentional malice. he doesn't hurt people on purpose but his wealth and power does tend to factor an imbalance with the people he interacts with (might be something he doesn't realize himself, either?), along with his paranoia and impulsivity. you can very clearly tell he's an incredibly passionate and selfless person who places his trust and best interests in his community (even way back as a child, when he captured a cufant for his brother), and despite how successful he is as a businessman, i don't have the impression he's only in it for the money which is something most people assume.

giovanni is soooo interesting once you get past his Painfully Gen 1 Character Design and and dissect him like a dead frog in a laboratory. there's been some clear implications that he's not as confident nor as cold and apathetic as he wants you to think, which is something i adore about him and adds much more dimension to his character; as opposed to just make him a flat, boring stock villain who wants to rule the world. i would go even as far as to say there's something depressing about him if you think about it; because he was born to be the next team rocket leader, he's been groomed from the very start in order to handle the position and likely taught to maintain the impression of a stone cold leader at all costs, and without the organisation he's worthless. which could explain why he's so weird when it comes to letting down his guard and his obsession with power. him being born into a crime family means he's never led an ordinary domestic life and was never meant to have one. like he said, he is literally doomed to be a criminal.

[hermesserpent-stuff]

heeyyyy so ive been really into the Void Remy entering the x-men evolution universe. so with talking to @golden-buddle I lept forward a bit to write evo!gambit and void Remy in a ticking time bomb, so spoilers for the future of that fic.

tw: vivisection, invasive medical procedures, kidnapping, blood, nonconsensual drug use, human experimentation

Gambit is often described as a cat. His fellow thieves constantly are comparing him to one. He is always getting into places that he is not supposed to be, and can get his paws on just about anything anyone asks for. Plus he has some pretty mean claws in the form of sparking fingertips. 

Now Gambit is not too particular about what he takes. And not too particular about who he takes it from. But he does make sure to follow the rules of the Guild. The Thieves Guild has been a to him since… Well… forever. Before they had taken him in he had been growing up on the streets of New Orleans. But he knows he had been born to some woman out in the bayou who tossed him aside when she saw his devil eyes. Without the Guild, he would just be another swamp rat.

The city of New Orleans is in his bones while the swamp rests in his bone marrow. He is just as comfortable in both places, able to crawl across ragged rooftops and dance between the branches of the trees that suckle at the water of the bayou. He knows how to slink amongst the hidden dangers of the bayou. But of course the city is not super safe either with shady characters tucked into each shadow and giving the Thieves Guild space to thrive. 

Gambit likes being a thief; he is good at it and he can get just about anything he wants. There were some downsides in his day-to-day life that kept him from doing everything that he wanted. His reputation on the streets, which consisted mainly of admiration, hatred, or a mixture of the two depending on how much the person knew and whether or not he had stolen from them. His reputation and status means that people sometimes tail him or try to fight him. 

Being part of the Thieves Guild for so long also means he never had a chance to go to school. He knows what he needed to know to survive, like how to calculate numbers and evaluate things by sight. He could also read and write as well as any other adult, despite being seventeen, and could do better than most at the Guild to keep a clean ledger. Or as clean as a ledger gets in a place full of thieves. 

Gambit does not necessarily wish that he had gone to a traditional school.  But he might have missed a few details along the way, having not participated in the regular education system. While other kids had been learning to dissect frogs and how to do long division, he had been learning to pick pockets and locks, and how to sneak away with the biggest loot possible. He does kind of wish he had a little help with some of the bigger words he stumbles across in his beloved romance novels though. Jane Austin was a particular lady about her words. 

His adoptive father is… well it is hard to describe the relationship really. Gambit is thankful to have been taken off the streets and removed from the angry hands of those who called him the White Devil due to his eyes. But he knows his adopted father mostly took him in because of Gambit’s small hands and his ability to sneak into places that had smaller entrances. Much like many of the other kids in the Guild. Then, when his powers manifested, his adoptive had found even more use for him. Gambit is not entirely sure how to feel about that. 

Yeah, he likes being useful to the Guild, and being able to earn the right to stay in it, so as to not be alone with dealing with all the enemies he has surely made over the years. However, he is fully aware of the lack of love between his adoptive father and himself. They used each other, and no feelings were there. Not really.

If Gambit got captured, his adoptive father would only seek his return because his skills and powers were valuable. And if trying to get him back cost too much; outweighing the value of his skills and use as a thief to the Guild…

Well…

Gambit  just hopes that that day doesn't come.

He walks down the street looking at the hazy sky. It is hard to sess with all the lights on around him. New Orleans twinkles brightly around him. It is also hard to hear anything other that the lively beat of the street. Music and people fill up every nook and cranny present in the air. Thats alright with him. Theres not much up in the sky for Gambit and the sounds of his home city are a comfort. He would hate to permanently lose it. Or have gone without it. Gambit is not sure who he would be without Louisiana flowing through his veins and New Orleans pulsating through his heart.

Just another swamp rat he supposes. 

He slides into an alley and pulls himself onto a nearby roof. He relaxes up on the well worn sloped roof that is still a little slick from the rainfall t this morning. He looks down at the streets, the night alive with people. He stares at the crowd mind already registering who would be the easiest to fleec and who had their hands tightly wound around their wallets. 

And who is likely to get a little looser with their hands if they just had enough to drink. He shakes off the final thought. He hates dealing with drunkards. They always seemed to get a little too personal with him. Too… grabby. 

His thoughts move on as he intently stares at the heavy crowds and plays a game with himself of trying to spot his fellow Guild members. He is pretty good at it, able to spot most of them in a crowd, even though he is not supposed to be able to. They were supposed to blend in. As much as any one can blend in inside of a city like New Orleans, where it feels like everything is always just a bit to the left side of strange. 

Gambit is lost in thought and does not sense when someone else comes onto the roof like he normally would. He does however, notice the small, but human, bump come from behind him on the rooftop. Without turning around and looking to see who it is, he leaps. He is dashing through the street before he has time to really think about it. The Thieves Guild has lots and lots of enemies. So he does not need to know who is chasing him until he has a better vantage point on them where he could see them, and they could not see him. 

The pursuer is following. Gambit knows that he is following. There's a sound of people being pushed out of the way in the crowd behind him. It is more than a little familiar to him. People yelling because they are shoved out of the way because someone else was trying to get at a thief who just stole out of their pockets. It is a noise that a thief has to become familiar with if they want to fleece people in crowds. He keeps moving. Not wanting to be caught as he is not sure who is trying to catch him. Could be anybody. His adoptive father and the Theives Guild made lots of enemies; both within Lousiana and beyond. 

He sort of hopes it is from within the state because the beyond option… that makes it more likely to be an assassination attempt. 

Gambit takes a breath and keeps going. 

But they keep following.

And then…

They stop.

Or he gets away.

It is one of the two and Gambit is not too sure which it is. He decides it might be a good idea to head back to the Thieves Guild's main house and wrap up his nightly stroll there.  He walks on the balls of his feet, light and quick, ready for trouble as he weaves through the crowd. Each step is sure, like a cat prancing along a windowsill to reatch their favorite spot of sun. 

Then there's a prick of something on his neck as the alleyway that leads towards the secret entrance to his Guild’s home, and Gambit feels suddenly very sick. 

Something is wrong.

Something's horribly, horribly wrong.

His powers flare as he rips whatever it is out of his neck; lighting it up with kinetic energy and makes it explode, as he hurls it torwards where the angle of entry suggests that it had come from. There is somebody who dodges, their hand still holding a gun. They are trying to blend in as a tourist. Their face is too set, to be a tourist; roaming the streets and taking in the awe of New Orleans. No, no, this is someone who's come after Gambit. Specifically. For some reason. 

The world starts to blur.

They hit him with something. Something is now inside of him, making him break down, making him fall down. He pulls out his deck and releases more kinetic energy. But it is weak and he cannot aim with his vision swimming violently. Soon it is difficult to even light charges. He finds himself falling, unwillingly, heartbreakingly, down. He is asleep as his head slams against the ground. 

--+

Remy hisses low and deep as they tie him down once more to steal more of his blood and do god knows what else to him. They pump him full of sedatives and he finds himself going limp.

“Well need to get a sample of blood without all these drugs blocking his system. Does the other one fight this much?”

Other one? They are torturing someone else. He lets out a weak snarl at the thought while his head is restrained and spacers are slipped into the back of his jaw to keep him from being able to bite down. They press something wet and slimy over his upper and lower teeth and hold it in place with some sort of plastic mold.

“Not as much hissing and more scratching over biting. His teeth are more normal. Despite their DNA being practically clones of each other.”

“Hmm. It will be good to have both dental impressions to compare the two.”

Remy stills his sluggish movements, trying to hear more. The ‘scientists’ take note.

“Hmm, thats interesting. Normally he is struggling until he passes out.”

A hand touches his face and a light scans his eyes. Remy huffs and scrunches his nose slightly. 

“So you’re interested in subject 0465? He is very similar to you. Maybe you've been cloned. Wouldn't that be fascinating…?”

Remy lets out as much of a hiss as he can with his maw forced open wide and spit slowly building around his tongue. He is forced to swallow and stop hissing for a moment. The scientist above his head looks over to the other one.

“Put in a request with upper levels, I want to test the two of them together. Limiting drugs in both. And maybe a pane of glass between the two test subjects.”

Remy finds himself slipping into a hazy miserable sleep. 

When he wakes up he is in another blank cell a fancy collar on his neck that has needles that push a constant drip of drugs into his blood. This one is a little different from some of the others. Not a testing room because there are no objects for him to pick up and light up. There is the normal glass the scientist love to hide behind and scratch things down on notebooks in place. But there is a second pane of glass dividing the room exactly in half. Someone is crumpled up on the other side, breathing deep and slow in a way that suggests sleep, but that could be faked. The person looks… small and thin; he is dressed in the same white itchy uniform. And same neck device as him. 

Remy slowly moves to the glass, drugs making him stumble. He sits down next to it and pulls his hair out of the loose braid that the ‘scientists’ let him keep. He shakily rebraids as he starts humming, eyes closing easily. It is a song he learned in the Void. He has no true lullabies, as Blade had been raised without lullabies, and Remy had been born in the void as far as he could tell. He hopes that music will make him seem more friendly. He would hate to scare a child more than this place likely already had.

“Pretty tune, monsieur.”

Remy glances at the kid and both flinch back as matching eyes stare at each other. 

“Hoo boy, now that's a mirror.”

Remy mumbles, hand going up on the glass. The kid slowly puts his hand on the glass over his.

“Mutant?”

The kid asks and Remy gives a tilted grin.

“Oui. Got eyes and kinetic explosions. And from what I heard from the tatailles, you got them too. I am Remy.

The kid’s eyes go wide as saucers and then narrow.

“They be makin’ you say this. You're another experiment. Another test!”

The kid snarls, but it lacks the bite of a feral or a vampire. Remy hates the distress of the little fledgling and croons softly. 

“Ah, petit, non. I am not another test; not willingly.”

He pulls out the hair band, mourning the loss for a moment. He lights it up and flicks it away as it glows pink and explodes.

Then his collar is alight with electricity and more drugs are dumped into his bloodstream. He screeches and hisses, curling in on himself and clawing at his own throat. He pants as the electricity dies down.

“Monsieur!! Monsieur!”

The poor fledging calls out, voice rippling with panic. Remy pushes himself back up and coughs. The room spins and he knows he has a limited amount of conscious time left. 

“Sorry, fledglin’. I'm passin’ out. I'm okay. Not your fault. All mine…”

And then it goes dark again. 

--+

Gambit paces his cell that he had been snatched from New Orleans. Seven steps one way. Spin. Seven steps the other way. A tiny cell that had started crawling into his dreams instead of the wonderful spices, lights, smells, and streets of his home. This place, this horrid place is run by some group saying they are Hydra and they seem obsessed with him and his blood. Well his everything really. 

He had been alone here, shoved full of needles and forced to display his powers over and over. He had tried to escape and had been knocked out each and every time and woke with worse and more invasive procedures. 

Then… Then he had met Remy. Or just glimpsed the man really. Someone who looked so much like him, but older and with a slightly different bone structure. He wants to meet Remy again. If only to not be alone anymore. Remy had been the first smile and friendly voice. The first voice that sounded anything like home. 

Home! Oh, how his heart weeps for beignets and jazz. He knows his adoptive father will not come for him here. The gear that this organization has is far too above the Theives Guild pay grade. He stops pacing and flops onto the stupid cot that is harder than a rock. He refuses to cry and sob, but a few silent tears do sneak out as he curls up on the bed. 

When Gambit wakes the next day he is in a new room with so many drug in his stystem that he thinks he might throw up if he moves. A hand is gently scratching and petting his hair and it calms him. The same singing voice that had stirred him once before is filling the room now.

“Remmmy?”

His mouth slurs heavily. A bright friendly chirp noise greets him. The noise is strange and Gambit blinks slowly up at the other mutant. He presses into the friendly touch that he had gone without for so long. Gambit shifts slowly to curl into Remy who gently moves his hands, mouth making noises that are just to the left of human. Gambit settles into a hazy calm as the drugs slowly start to fade from his system. Remy does nothing more threatening that shifting his weight slightly and petting Gambit's head, so Gambit decides that the man is trustworthy enough for now. As he regains some control over his limbs he shifts to be sitting up, shoulder to shoulder with Remy as they both lean against a wall. The room is blank aside from the peeping window for the scientists and the tray full of items that they normally told Gambit he had to explode. 

The older mutant still has an arm around his shoulders. Gambit pulls his knees up and rests his face on his knees.

“What do they want from us?”

Gambit murmurs. 

“Im not sure. I think it has to do with having similar powers? Or maybe our type of power… Desole petit.”

A popping whistle and Gambit blinks.

“Are you from New Orleans?”

“Me? Non. Remy from… nowhere. Nowhere I can talk about here. Real desert-like place though. Not a good place for raisin’ fledglin’s. My sire did it anyways.”

Remy says with a sigh. Gambit likes the sound of Remy’s voice. It sounds like home. And he would like to hear more.

“Tell me about your ‘sire’?”

He asks softly as his body keeps fighting the drugs that make him so drowsy. Remy hums and pulls Gambit a little closer. 

“Oui. My Papa is a strong man. He saved me from tatailles. He knew how to hunt and taught me as best he could.”

Remy rambles on, the accent warm to Gambit’s ears. There is also such an outpouring of love in the man’s voice. It must be nice to have a loving adoptive father.

“Mais, Remy has talked too much; I bore you, petit.”

The older mutant pauses and Gambit straightens from his comfortable slump as he blinks himself into looking alert.

“Non! Non. Its nice. I dont-” He hates to admit any weakness; terrified that it will be used against him because on the streets he knows that would be on the streets. “We might not meet for a long time if they don't want us to.”

He points to the window using his jaw. Remy tightens the loose side hug and nuzzles his hair.

“Alright, fledglin’. Remy keep talkin’. Next time, you be the talker, non?”

“Oui.”

--

Gambit holds onto the memories of his home and of the gentle words and warmth from Remy while he is strapped down to a table and his blood is drawing from needles in his arms, or he is forced to charge and discharge larger and larger objects. The scientists wear him out and dump him in the lifeless room, feeding him food that makes his horror and sadness all the worse. He wants to see the man again. 

He currently is doing a handstand with one hand in the air as he waits to see what the scientists want to do with him next, boredom nibbling at him. Normally, this is where he would get out a deck of cards and practice card tricks, or Solitare. But here he has nothing. He had tried asking a guard for a deck, but quickly learned that trying to talk to any guards is an action that leads to shock. So he had slowly stopped speaking aside from the questions they demanded out of him. And they shock him if he tries to refuse to answer the question. Some of them were horribly invasive. Questions that he barely wanted to answer for doctors on the rare instances of him getting checkups. 

He kicks his legs back down and shifts into a comfortable split.

“Subject 0465.”

His number. His evil sick number that is not him and he hates that he has to respond to it. Gambit lifts up his chin and narrows his eyes the door.

“Oui?”

They hated him speaking French. Apparently, most of the scientists here only knew English, German, and Spanish and they would complain about having to translate his responses or simply shock him till he re-responded in English. So naturally, he responds in french as frequently as feels natural. There is a huff of anger on the other side of the door and he draws his legs in from the split.

“Yeah, watchu want?”

He states and cracks his back. 

“If you dont give us any problems and run the obstacle course with no complaints, we will let you see subject 0464. Referred to you as Remy.”

He immediately straightens at the idea. Gambit hates how eager he is to get a friendly face that will not stab him full of needles and force him to do tasks. 

“Gambit will comply.”

He says and stands gracefully. He holds out his arms and lets them put cuffs on him without complaint. They take him to a new room he had not seen before. It has some sort of agility course set up. A rock wall that leads to a balance beam, monkey bars, a rope swing, and then a part of the course that is just poles. The scientist explains to the fidgeting seventeen-year-old that they want him to go through the course with no powers and no touching the floor. Fine with Gambit. He may have lost some of his muscle strength but he knows he will be fine. This could be no harder than racing along the rain-slick rooftops trying to get away with a huge score while the Assassins Guild or Rippers or some one else chased him down.  

He notes the timer but throws the thought away. A timer is not important to him right now. The cuffs are removed and he stretches his arms out and leans side to side. This is the longest time that he had been allowed to keep a clear hand and he kind of loves that his brain is able to spin like it always had. He shakes out his legs and then a start noise is played.

Gambit hauls himself up the rock wall, eyes dancing up the wall to plan out the best path heavenwards. He rolls a little and then steadies himself on the beam. Swinging up onto his feet, he practically dances across the balance beam. He feels excited to be doing something familiar, something fun. He cartwheels off the end of the beam, using the momentum to flip through the air and right himself as he grabs the rope. He swings over to the strange poles. 

It seems like each is placed slightly further away from the last. There is enough room on the top of each for him to crouch and fit his feet and the heels of his hands. He crouches as he studies the course, the tip of his tongue sticking out slightly. He could make most of the jumps easily, and if he keeps up the momentum the last two should be fine. He grins impishly, stands up, and thrusts himself forwards. Gambit flies across the poles and lands on the final one with a grin. He slips down the pole and bounces a little. 

The scientists are busy jotting things down like the time from the paused timer. Gambit takes advantage of their business and hops up on the balance beam again. He likes the feel of it. Like the ridge of a gable roof on the ledge of a building. He bends backwards and kicks his feet over his head. He hums happily to himself as he messes around on the beam, brain focused on the cartwheels and the pleasant challenge of not falling off. He overhears a bit of conversation between the Hydra ‘scientists’.

“Balance beam. Interesting. Subject 0464 was more attracted to the poles.”

So the other mutant had done the course too? Had… had they promised the same thing to him? A visitation if he did not resist? He kind of likes the idea of Remy wanting to see him. He smiles to himself and flips off of the beam and lands on his feet. 

“Alright subject 0465, time to go.”

Gambit walks over a little reluctantly but holds out his arms to be cuffed again. He is lead to another room. They undo his cuffs and shove him in. He blinks and sees Remy sitting on the floor against a wall. The adult looks up from staring at his hands and grins brightly at Gambit. But one of Remy’s eyes is covered in a white bandage. His left eye… 

“Petit fledglin’! Good to see you.”

Remy stays seated but opens his arms. They shake a little. The teenage part of Gambit rebels at the thought of just getting a hug. But another part of him that had not had a friendly touch since there last meeting screams to just accept it. He cuts a middle ground and settles on Remy’s right side where the other can see him. He leans into the side-hug that Remy has adjusted his arms to give. 

“Ooh, you lookin’ better mon petit.”

Remy slurs and gives a chirpy whistle. Gambit imitates the sound and Remy laughs.

“Aww, fledglin’ is happy to see moi.”

He nuzzles the side of Gambit’s head. 

“Those whistles mean things?”

Gambit asks, not pushing away the friendly nuzzle. Remy hums and Gambit can tell that the man is likely having a hard time thinking with all the drugs in his system. And despite that, it seems that Remy’s instinct is to be nice and care about him. 

“Oui. It's how my papa and I talked. Mm. Remy teach you when the room stop dancin’. Sorry, not much for talkin’. Diables took samples from my eye. No fun.”

He sighs sadly and Gambit winces. 

“Desole.”

“Mm. Non, fledglin’. You never say sorry for them.”

Remy tightens his grip and nuzzles a little bit more. Gambit pats his leg and then decides to speak.

“Seems it's my turn to talk the whole time, non?”

Remy laughs airly, resting his head against Gambit’s. 

“It’d be nice.”

“Mais, I was born in the swamp but my adoptive father picked me up after I got dumped on the streets of New Orleans. That's when I learned to be a thief. Gambit be a good thief. One of the best in the Guild.”

He slowly speaks, dancing around anything that Hydra cannot be allowed to know. Remy hums and gives different whistles and chirps during the talks and eventually falls asleep. Gambit settles in to rest beside him. 

--+

Remy stretches his arms forwards. He still has his left eye covered and he has a bone-deep hurt. They had taken some of his marrow and he still hurts. They are breaking him to bits.

“Subject 0464. Prepare to exit. You will be going through the obstacle course. Offer no resistance and you will be allowed to see subject 0465.”

Gambit. He hums and gracefully stands. 

“Alright.”

His movements are slow due to his pain. His time on the course is absolutely awful. As the scientist jot things down, he clambers up the tallest pole and balances on the top. He breathes deeply and hisses. Having lost vision from one of his eyes had made it harder to be sure of his jumps and his balance. He had managed, but he hates it. He wants… well he wants Blade. But honestly, he would love to see this universe’s Creed and Logan. He bites his lip and forces away the keening noise. He has a fledgling to look after until he finds a way to escape or they find him. It will be okay. He would make sure of it.

It is a little weird to run into this universe's version of himself. He had never run into any other Remys or Gambits in the void. He has a little bit of jealousy that Gambit actually has clear memories of Louisiana. But the emotion is easy to dump at the thought of the hurting fledgling. Gambit is stuck here just like he is, and from how the little one talked it does not seem that there was much in the way of love for the fledgling back in that city. Remy swings his legs down and sits on the top of the pole. He sighs and scrunches his nose. His bones ache.

“Alright subject 0464. Let's go.”

He slides down and stumbles a little bit as his body protests. He straightens and lets his hands get cuffed. As the walk the Hydra agent huffs and tugs at him complaining about his slowness. One of the scientists pipes up that perhaps they should wait to take his plasma in a few days rather than a few hours. Remy swallows and scrunches his nose.

He stumbles into the room and Gambit is there juggling the little wooden balls they had them explode. The scientists interrupt before Remy can say anything.

“Both of you take a ball and charge it. Compare your energies.”

Remy blinks and realizes that he has never seen the kid use his powers. Remy slowly sits down against the wall and Gambit tosses him a ball, eyes alight with worry. A whistle comes his way, asking about how he is. Remy grins at the noise and croons to his fledgling. He is well enough. He lights up the ball and shows it to Gambit who tilts his head and scrunches his nose.

“Pink?”

“Got a problem with it, mon fledglin’?”

Remy jokes, throwing the ball up and forwards so it explodes a good ways away from them both. Gambit hums.

“Non. It's just different. I had thought I misremembered.”

Gambit grins and lights up his ball. It is a fiery-looking orange and it makes a slightly louder pop when it explodes.

“Mm, interestin’. Not as pretty as a card.”

Remy sighs. Gambit hums his agreement and slowly shifts closer. Remy recognizes that reaching out now might spook the child. So he stays still. Gambit shifts to slowly lay across Remy’s legs, slowly wrapping his arms around Remy’s chest. The kid rests his head on his shoulder. Remy slowly raises his arms and wraps them around Gambit who hides his face. 

Wet tears begin to soak his shirt and Remy croons softly. He tugs gently on Gambit’s legs so that he is cradling the kid, nuzzling the brown hair. He moves his hands slowly and sings low and calm. Gambit continues to cry. Remy notices the bandages around Gambit’s neck and can see new ones wrapping the entirety of both of Gambit’s arms. Remy forces down a hissing snarl, just trying to be a stable rock for the kid.

“The sorrow of the Elves is they live beyond their time. The tree of swords and jewels waits for me. Until the world forgets them, saving tales and rhymes. When shall I hang-. When shall I hang my own upon the tree?” 

The song is one that he had found on a random cassette that he unburried from a pile of rubble. The softness had attacted him even though he could never know its title. And the gentleness of the tune makes it a easy lullaby to sing softly to the crying teen who clings all the tighter.

“The sorrow of the Elves is that all they love must die. The tree of swords and jewels waits for me. Time withers all about them, yet the Elves it passes by. When shall I hang-. When shall I hang my own upon the tree?”

He gently breathes and tightens his own grip, nuzzling the fledgling.

“I'm alive. You're alive. It's okay right now.”

He whispers, the words familiar and dry on his tongue like the desert static of the void they were born in. He then slips back into the tune. Gambit slowly relaxes. And then the poor teenager falls asleep. Remy’s heart aches for him. The kid had a life beyond these walls that he had been stolen from. Even if the teen had no love for his adoptive father, Gambit clearly loved New Orleans and Louisiana. Remy had never had a place he loved. Sure he loves his roost, but that is because Blade is there. And lord does he miss Blade. If Gambit misses his city like Remy misses his sire despite being stuck in this other universe for so long, the kid must be hurting worse because it is so recent for Gambit. 

He presses a kiss to the poor kid’s brow. 

--

Gambit grins at Remy when he spots the older mutant in the obstacle course room. Remy’s eye is no longer covered and Gambit had seen Remy slowly recover over their semi-frequent visits. He whistles out the noise Remy had taught him means friendly hello. Remy lights up like one of Gambit’s cards and whistles the same noise back. Gambit ignores the growls from the guards who yank harshly on his cuffs as they take them off. Gambit immediately bolts towards Remy and only halts when the scientists yell at him and threaten him with a shock. Remy shoots an apologetic smile towards him. 

Both are instructed to walk to the start of the course and then are told they will be running one by one for comparison. Remy whistles and gestures for Gambit to go first. Gambit notices that Remy is keeping half an eye on the guards without directly staring at them. After cracking his back and shaking out his wrists, Gambit is ready to go. Honestly, he wants to show off a little. He launches himself up the wall and cartwheels across the beam. He launches himself at the rope and the leapfrogs from pole to pole. He slides down and does a handspring. There is clapping and Gambit grins and bows to Remy.

“Ah! Thank you mon ami!!”

He sings out glowing at the claps. He can feel the edge of desperation his brain, desperate for smiles and praise. He sidles up to Remy and pokes at his chest.

“Try and beat that old man!”

He smiles, feeling his energy flick through his body. Remy hums and clicks his tongue.

“Ah, Remy will do more than try, petit fledglin’.”

He says with a sharp smile and a flick to Gambit’s nose. Gambit makes a noise of mock offense as Remy shifts to stand at the front of the course. The teen finds himself whistling softly as Remy dances across the course. A lot of the moves are familiar to him, like a mirror that is just a little wrong. But it is silent, like a thief should be. When Remy finishes, Gambit lets out a cheer and the adult grins and trots back up to him. While the scientists record the results, Remy tugs on Gambit to clamber all over the course. Gambit shows off his ability to do back bends on the balance beams. Remy copies the move. Remy then flips off the balance beam and Gambit imitates the move. They do this all over the course, with one displaying a move while the other copies it. Gambit feels his muscles stretch and warm as he moves. Remy moves with as much grace as he does though it echoes more of a fox with elements of a cat where Gambit might be a bit more cat like. 

Gambit decides to start a new game. He taps Remy’s nose and cackles as he yells out tag and dashes away. 

“Ohhhh mon fledglin’ you dont know what monster youve awoken.”

Gambit cackles and dodges, shimmying up the wall to avoid Remy. They play this new game eagerly, chasing eachother back and forth along the equipment. A hind part of Gambit’s mind wonders why they are not stopping them. But he leaves it alone and decides to just enjoy the most fun that he has had in weeks. 

--+ 

Remy slowly runs his hand over the bandages on his chest, mind blank. They had cut him open. Sliced an ugly Y into his flesh. Two long cuts that stretched from his shoulder that meet at the top of his sternum and a third cut that drags down from that point to just below his navel. They had kept him awake during the… vivisection. They gave him pain medications and sedatives to keep him from squirming. Remy had kept his eyes closed and focused on words to a variety of songs and books to get his mind away. Far far away. He had accidentally blown up a few of the tools and gotten shocks 

But now he is lying on his cot in the corner, not sure what to do with himself. He had ended up keening to himself and blowing up the spare blanket accidentally. Now he is just focusing on keeping the charges in. 

A day passes like this. Then a second. The scientists try to stir him, shocking him when he makes no reply and simply having guards drag him out. They take more of his blood and put him into the obstacle course room. He simply sits down in front of the rock wall and keens low. He hurts too much to move. To think. They shock him and he slowly tries to climb the rock wall. He falls off several times and he accidentally lights up the wall while near the top. He lets out a shriek and yanks it back, arms shaking from the sheer amount he is trying to bring back in. Remy manages it and falls backwards at the top. Then he slips up again, the charge lighting up the rock wall and slowly spreading down to the floor. Bright pink sparkles as it starts to climb the walls of the room and the scientists begin to yell. They try shocking him to get him to comply, to get him to pull back the charge. 

He wants to. He tries too. But it all hurts. His brain spins.

“REMY!”

His eyes snap open at the fledgling’s voice. They brought his fledgling here?? Into danger?? 

Remy lets out a shrill whistle that means that he wants Gambit to flee.

“I'm not leaving Remy.”

Gambit says with all the determination and snark of a teenager. The kid quickly climbs the wall despite his still bound hands and settles on the glowing platform next to him. The kid shifts awkwardly and then whistle-chirps. One asking about touch that Remy had used fairly often with the fledgling. He registers the fearful look on the little one's face and realizes that if this place blows his little fledgling will blow up with it.

“Desole. I can't bring it back in.”

He whispers and Gambit's eyes are full of determination.

“Maybe we both try?”

A hand grabs one of his and the other touches the the glowing platform. Remy leans into Gambit who nudges him with his head. Remy slowly nuzzles while pulling the chargeback. A shared wince tells him that Gambit is also able to pull it in. The glow fades and Remy feels like a puppet with its strings cut. He slumps a little and Gambit shivers.

Aww, poor cold fledgling. Remy drowsily tugs the little one closer, laying down and curling around the fledgling. He nuzzles and makes chirps and whistles. 

“Frère aîné. It's alright. Im alright and you… we’re both alive.”

The fledgling clings, fingers winding around the horrible material that his uniform is made of. Remy breathes deeply, nuzzling. He gently sings and whistles to the fledgling that just melts against him.  

“Oh, what did they do to you frère…”

Gambit whispers fingers slowly moving the uniform to the side and touching the bandages. 

“Desole. Remy can't keep you safe. He want to. He want to real real bad. But Remy can't.”

Remy admits, crying. 

“It's okay. Gambit will be okay. You help so much already.”

Gambit whispers back pressing in tight. That night they put the two of them in one cell. Something about being able to discharge the blasts of each other or something. Remy does not care about the why. He just cares that he now has the ability to keep Gambit warm while they sleep and be there for the fledgling so much more. 

Remy nuzzles Gambit’s hair giving friendly chuffs and churrs. Gambit imitates the noises back to him. They curl into eachother and fall asleep. A nightmare startles him awake. He slowly pulls Gambit closer as he calms down from the nightmare. His chest is screaming in pain from the deep cuts. The collar slowly releases cold cold drugs into his system, numbing him from the neck down. The teenager shifts and wipes at Remy’s eyes. 

“Desole.”

Gambit whispers. Remy nuzzles his hair and sighs.

“Thank you, mon petit fledgling.”

He presses a kiss to Gambit’s scalp and slowly falls asleep. 

--

Gambit grins as he shows off a few tricks on the newly added monkey bars while Remy relaxes on one of the poles. 

“Good!”

Remy sings out and Gambit grins. He hooks his legs through the bars and hangs upside down. He stretches and shifts his weight easily. Remy is so free with his praise and is always kind to him. Sure, his adoptive father had praised his abilities. But there was always a tinge of demand and expectation that went along with that praise. Expectation to repay the kindness of the Guild… And Remy seems to have none of that expectation. Gambit pulls himself up and gives a bright chirp. Remy laughs and chirps back. He shifts and hops onto the pole close to Remy.

“Are you feeling up to tag?”

Remy asks and Gambit bites his lip.

“Your chest is still healing…”

He whispers back and Remy scrunches his nose.

“Fledglings need fun. And the drugs help with the pain.”

Remy smiles and Gambit puffs his cheeks.

“Why do you call me that, frère aîné?”

He asks, leaning forwards a little bit. Remy sighs airily, glancing to the scientists and guards. Then, Remy huffs irritably and crosses his arms.

“Lemme tell you a long story, petit. I don't be carin’ no more how they gonna take it. My Papa is… was a good man. A strong man. But a strange one. He could smell blood on the wind and hunted dangerous people. People with teeth that are sharp and dangerous and who lusted for blood. Vampires. My Papa hunted the bad ones who were killed without care and left blood splattered everywhere. Mais… My Papa was strange. His nose too keen, his teeth too sharp, just like the vampires he took down. Because there was another side to those creatures. Some were normal, decent. He was decent; more than decent. I love my papa. And he loved me, even if I wasn't a vamp like him. I was his fledglin’. His baby vamp. I love you, and I can't think of anythin’ closer I could call you. Because I care about you so much.”

“You… love me?”

Gambit whispers, eyes growing wide. No one had told him that they loved him. Loved him for him and cared about him. Normally… Normally the Guild only cared about him for his use. It is the reason that he knows no one is coming for him. 

Remy looks at him, a slight softness filling the eyes that are so much like his own.

“I love you. I worry about you and care about you. I would do just about anything for you.”

He says voice brimming with truth. Gambit swallows and looks away, not trusting himself not to cry if he keeps looking into Remy’s eyes. 

“I… I love you too. I'm glad I met you. I'm sorry about how we met mais…”

He whispers, terrified of his own words. He trails off not trusting himself anymore. Remy purrs and whistles merrily. Gambit looks back and grins happily at him.

[brineffxiv]

We're having a nice chat back in Anagnorisis when suddenly we're interrupted by a researcher. A seasoned researcher, by his title. Apparently, something has happened with one of the creations. A "lykaon".

The lykaon has been indiscriminately slaughtering other creations with no provocation. It sounds like this has been an ongoing problem, and it has finally reached the point where the researcher in charge of them has concluded they need to be reverted. This news seems to distress Hermes, and he rushes off to the scene of the incident. We follow him.

No sooner do we arrive at the scene of the slaughtered okyupetes than Hermes is off again. Meteion and I catch up to him just as he himself finds Doros; the researcher in charge of the lykaons.

Doros appears to have done his due diligence in determining the fate of the lykaeons: they are unsuited to any environment and must be reverted. Nevertheless, Hermes wants to ensure all avenues have been explored. Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus will accompany him to this meeting.

Meanwhile, I get to babysit Meteion.

Which isn't a bad thing. I like Meteion.

That's a Deep Thought, little bird. You're touching on a debate we still deal with in the real world, and one for which there are no easy answers.

Meteion wants to find a flower for Hermes, to help cheer him up after what will surely be a fraught meeting. We consider several less than ideal candidates - including a morbol - before once again stumbling across Elpis flowers.

Hermes apparently has a complicated relationship to the Elpis flowers, as they reveal his internal pain to a world that can rarely empathize. When I tell Meteion that I, too, have seen the flowers dark she asks to borrow my pain. She wants me to turn the flowers dark in front of Hermes, to show him that he's not alone.

OOF. Oof, I say. Dear reader, forgive me for forgetting which of you told me to keep playing, because there was some plot I could relate to. You were right. Ouch, right in the heart.

That night, with the meeting concluded, we lure Hermes over to the Elpis flowers and I get to work thinking dark thoughts. Meteion tells Hermes he's not alone, and that others feel sad too. And, while Hermes seems to be a bit off balance at how much Meteion has told me, he takes off his mask and asks to speak with me for a time.

Oh wow, Hermes, you have lovely eyes. OMG all the ancients are so beautiful! Goddamn!

Hermes is greatly distressed by what he sees as callous disregard for the lives of the creations under his supervision; death may be embraced by man as a reward, but no other lives are afforded that privilege. "Lesser" lives are brought into being and ended at will, with little regard for the individual experiences of the creation in question.

Hang on.

Was I supposed to feel guilty about Hythlodaeus making me the robe out of butterflies?! Hermes would definitely not approve of that.

I mean... I'm a level 90 leatherworker, and I harvest most of my materials myself. I can recognize and understand what Hermes is feeling without... necessarily agreeing with him.

But then, I am reminded - of all things - of school, and being required to dissect frogs. And I thought it abhorrent that we bring these creatures to life for the sole purpose of killing them. "Education" was such a paltry excuse, when a simple diagram would fulfill the same purpose.

I think, in the real world, Hermes would be a vegetarian.

What painful irony; that which so troubles you now your future self... future incarnation. It seems unfair to call Amon Hermes' own self. But regardless, that man will delight in brining upon others that which you so abhor.

You're not alone Hermes. Please remember that.

I get the feeling you've never opened up to anyone about this before. I think if you had, you'd find that you are not as nearly alone here in Elpis as you may think. On both fronts; your respect for the lives of the beings you tend here, and your feelings of sadness. Several of the sidequests I've been doing have touched on similar themes - there was a woman who did not wish for her mentor to pass on, and a group where we preformed a remembrance ceremony for deceased creations, among others. I wish I'd known these themes would come up or I'd have taken screencaps.

To wind up our heart-to-heart, Hermes tells me a secret: Meteion is one of many. Her sisters are even as we speak making their way from star to star, searching for other worlds and the life upon them. Hermes wants to know what those other beings live for.

I am... a little bit unnerved by this revelation. Oh dear. Especially when, as we are walking away, Meteion turns and looks skyward, as though she hears something... Hermes... Has it occurred to you that not everything you find out there will necessarily be... good?

I mean, the people that created Omega are out there somewhere. And Omega was just one of their weapons.

DID ALIENS CAUSE THE FINAL DAYS!?!?

In the morning, Doros has had an accident with the lykaeons; he's managed to take out four of them, but three have escaped. Hythlodaeus and Emet-Selch quickly locate the escapees and the two of them leave to take care of the ones that are flying above Elpis. Hermes and I are left to deal with the one hiding in the fields. So we do.

It was perhaps a mistake to give these creatures the power of flight.

Hermes is not dealing well with what we've been forced to do.

Hermes... This job is killing you. The responsibilities you are required to take on, the duty you are to perform... You are ill suited for it. And it's tearing you to pieces.

Emet, I swear to Zodiark if you say something insensitive... Hermes is having a wee bit of an emotional breakdown and the last thing he needs is your brand of conversation.

Oh right. That's why you're here; to offer him a different job.

I misjudged you. My apologies.

This is... perhaps not the place for it, but, in contrast to Hermes' pain, I think I am understanding why your future self looks back on the world now as a paradise. Not just because of the reasons you gave in the phantom Amaurot beneath the Tempest: it's because you are happy here. You are fulfilled in your purpose and duty, surrounded by those you love and who love you. You have friends and companions aplenty, and you are lauded and respected for the work you do. You see all of the good that your world and your people embody. What more could a man ask for?

In contrast, Hermes is-- Wait. It cannot be a coincidence that my path has led me here, to this time and place. I am here because something that happens here is the key to understanding the Final Days.

Hermes is experiencing anguish over what he sees as the wrongs of his society. He hates what is happening, feels alone in his suffering, and he's been experimenting with dynamis; the energy fueled by emotions.

Something Hermes has done, is doing, or is about to do is the key to the final days. Did he cause it?? That seems almost unfathomable. That a man as compassionate as Hermes would willingly cause what is to occur. But. Perhaps by accident?

Well, now I wonder. Is there not some dark part of Hermes that wishes to meet the same suffering that so pains him onto those he sees as having carelessly inflicted it? Whether deserving or not, if dynamis is purely fueled by emotion, not requiring logic or intent, he wouldn't necessarily need to mean to enact that, provided the correct vehicle, would he?

Satisfaction would certainly be preferrable than the fate that waits for all three of these men. Far preferrable than the "orgy of pain and suffering" Fandaniel will seek to bring. Everything that lives must one day die, Hermes. We can only hope that while we live, we live well.

Hermes, I would argue that your unique perspective is a shining example of why you should represent your people. You are seeing an issue that no one else is, and you are being offered one of fourteen positions with the power to work towards alleviating it. You have the choice to stay here in Elpis, where you will continue to suffer in silence, or to move on to Amaurot where you can actually make change happen. Take the job.

After his outburst, Hermes begs time alone to gather his thoughts. Hythlodaeus guides Emet-Selch and myself back to the Twelve Wonders, for what I presume will be the next leg of our tour. Emet-Selch appears to be deep in thought after what Hermes said... He admits to understanding, on a rational level, the sadness that comes when someone returns to the star...

Oh no, oh Emet... I wish you never have to suffer what you do.

[the-phantom-author]

Hasan Piker | High School Biology Teacher

For the anon 🎉 it's done. There a bit shorter than I'd normally do for hcs but I quite like them. Reblogs are welcomed, ask are open!

He loves it when you run your lesson plan down by him, like if you need to miss a day and plan on a substitute teacher, he adores it when you explain when you plan on having your students do that day to him as if he was the sub.

He also enjoys pre-watching shows/movies with you to male sure they're appropriate before you watch them in class. Even if it’s something as silly as a bill nye episode, he’s wanting to watch it with you.

He’ll come and help decorate the classroom with you. For holidays, or homecoming, or even just because. He comes down during your lunch and free period and hangs up banners, posters, fairy lights, just anything and everything. I had one teacher who had a small couch and bean bag chair. If your school lets you decoa=rate like that with furniture, he's there to help you put it together.

He enjoys hearing about the labs that you do with the kids, that being said he can never bring himself to hear about it into much detail, much less acth them. Like if you ever dissect things, in my class we did so with crawdads and frogs, he is not going to be able to hear more than a basic outline of what you plan on doing.

He will help you in whatever way possible when it comes to you bringing your work home. Like he obviously is not going to be helping you grade papers or anything, but he is bringing you your drink of choice and making sure you take a break to stretch and get some fresh air.

One of things that he takes pride in is his ability to de-stress you. Like he won't let you go to bed stressed out. If he thinks you are, be prepared for him to talk about it. And he genuinely wants to hear about it, whether it’s the students, the parents, or even the school board itself, he wants you to go to him and rant about it.

Is actually super careful with having you on stream, I don't even know what they watch out for teachers saying these days but when I was in school I knew they were under heavy watch on social media, so I know that he's very specific about the things that you do on stream.

He tries to wake up at the same time as you everyday, so that way you can both eat something together, and he’ll walk/drive with you to your school and he’ll go start his morning workout. But he also likes spending your lunch period with you. Whenever he can and your schedule allows it he’ll pick you up something to eat and take it to your classroom. He’ll leave when the lunch period is over but it helps both of you, gives you a bit of a break from the students and teachers and it gives him a little boost before the stream.

[crimeboys]

🌹? :3

Ranboo is less scary to Tubbo than charming. Weird charming. Like an ugly frog that turns into an even uglier prince. People prefer the frog sometimes. Tubbo does.

“Took you long enough. I packed, y’know. Still am. Just, uh,” he smiles, looking between Ranboo and the fish. “Got a little sidetracked, if I’m honest. Hey, this is how we met, right?” It was only two months ago. Tubbo hardly knows Ranboo when he thinks about it. He doesn’t think about it.

Finally, Ranboo’s smile turns genuine. “It was a bird, I think.”

“Right! Right, the bird. Weird talons.” He gestures to Ranboo with his gut-covered hands. “Like yours.” Self-consciously, Ranboo clasps his hands together to hide his talons. Tubbo doesn’t mean it in a bad way, though. Ranboo’s weird. Tubbo’s weird. Tommy’s weird too. He thinks they’ll get along and the three of them can be weird together. Hell, they find Wilbur too, they can make it four. But Wilbur is probably dead for real. He wasn’t built to survive. Not like Tommy. Not like Tubbo.

Tubbo continues, “Bit of a meetcute, if you think about it.” Ranboo scoffs out a laugh.

“I- I don’t know if I’d call it that.”

“Oh, you wouldn’t?” Tubbo complains as he wipes the fish guts on his pants and stands. He still hardly reaches Ranboo’s shoulders. At first it was intimidating. Then it was annoying. Now it’s just a little funny. “What would you call it, then? Since you don’t think I’m cute.”

“I never said that. I literally never said that.”

“Oh, so you do?” For a moment, Tubbo feels a bit normal actually. He’s just a dumb teenager flirting with another dumb teenager. Even though that other dumb teenager happens to be 7 feet tall and the least human person Tubbo has ever encountered and Tubbo’s pants are covered in dissected fish guts. And that other dumb teenager has promised to take him deep into the woods to find yet another dumb teenager who went after a dumb adult. Tubbo thinks this town needs better schooling, honestly.

“Is there a way to get out of this conversation?” Ranboo asks desperately.

“No,” Tubbo answers sweetly. He laughs as Ranboo untangles his hands to hide their face with a groan.

- from document titled “there’s something in the water”

[mannylikessims]

The True Story of the Villareal Family [2.5]

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Crickets chirped outside the Villareal residence, a mansion that lay nestled in the center of its own private island. A place so isolated, no one in the town of Windenburg could hear you even if you cried out.

“Dinner’s ready!” Hugo cried out.

After a few nights of rest, he felt refreshed enough to cook for the family again.

The Villareals assembled at the dining table, greeted by an entire roasted bass rubbed in spices and a caprese salad with a tastefully drizzled balsamic reduction.

“Oh, this looks great,” said Luna, glancing up from her phone. “Thank you, Hugo.”

“Yes, yes, what she said,” said Jacques.

Jacques had to be very careful right now after his failure earlier this week. He couldn’t risk his children becoming suspicious of him before his deed was accomplished. For everything to work out to his maximum benefit, he needed to plan the perfect accident.

It was just a few more days of pretending to be a normal father, he promised himself. Then he would be free to pursue his hobbies unfettered for the rest of his life.

If only Hugo would stop staring at him.

He cleared his throat. “So, offspring, how was school today?” Excellent question, he told himself. Very fatherlike.

“They brought some dead frogs to class for us to dissect today. It was upsetting,” complained Max.

“Aw, I remember when we had to do that,” said Luna sympathetically. “It’s pretty gross, isn’t it? I understand how you feel.”

Max huffed but ate his fish quietly, because, in fact, his sister did not understand how he felt. He wasn’t upset that they had to dissect frogs; he was upset that the frogs were delivered already dead.

“Offspring, how about we plan our next Family Fun Day, hm?” Jacques asked. Nicely slipped that in there, he thought to himself. Not suspicious at all.

“Ooh what if we went back to the Von Haunt Estate?” said Luna while Jacques resisted the urge to scold her for being on her phone during dinner. “That was so fun for everyone last time!”

If she had looked up from her phone, she might’ve seen Hugo giving her a dirty look. And she definitely would have seen her father’s face shrivel up like an angry prune at the mention of the Von Haunt Estate.

“Well, maybe we could if someone hadn’t gotten me banned from that cherished tourist destination.” He looked pointedly at Max, who was nonchalantly stabbing his fish, pretending not to notice his father’s ire.

The Von Haunt Estate used to be his favorite place to go to dress up as a knight and play chess. Used to be. Getting banned from his favorite establishment was the final incident that had triggered Jacques’ evil plans. Keep it together, Jacques, he reminded himself. It’ll all be over soon.

“I’ve got it!” he said, changing from scowling to beaming in an instant. “How about a Family Fun Day at the spa?”

His eyes grew as wide as their dinner plates. “Say, wouldn’t it be nice to sit in a sweltering hot sauna for the rest of your lives?”

The table went silent.

“What’s a sauna?” said Max.

“What, you don’t know? It’s a hot, steamy room, and if you stay in there too long, you–“

“Dad, spas don’t exist in our world.” Hugo suddenly interrupted. This was the first thing he’d said since they sat down – he’d spent the entire meal quiet with a glassy, faraway look on his face.

His father fumed. Another ingenious plan of his, foiled?

He slammed his fists onto the table, the tableware clattering. “Well, plum this!”

Luna gasped. “Dad, language! Not in front of Max!”

Jaques stood up and slammed his chair into the table, muttering under his breath as he stormed out of the dining room, the children watching him.

"Cheapskate Watcher. How dare she not have saunas?"

The kids were left alone in the dining room in an uneasy silence. Their father’s mood swings seemed a bit, well, swingier than usual.

Max was still grinning, however, because he had just learned a new word.

“Plum, haha!” he chuckled. “Plum, plum, plum…”

───────────────✦───────────────

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[winskzer]

𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗹.

—𝖺 𝗌𝖾𝗎𝗇𝗀𝗆𝗂𝗇 𝖻𝗅𝗎𝗋𝖻 𝗂𝗇𝗌𝗉𝗂𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖺 𝗌𝗈𝗇𝗀.

✰— 𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗋𝖾 : 𝗂 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝗇𝗈 𝗂𝖽𝖾𝖺

ᰔ— 𝗉𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 : 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍!𝗌𝖾𝗎𝗇𝗀𝗆𝗂𝗇 𝗑 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍!𝖿𝖾𝗆!𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋

ꔛ 𝖺/𝗇 — 𝖨 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗌𝗈 𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾.

ʚɞ — 𝗐𝖺𝗋𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌 : 𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗎𝗅𝖺𝗋 𝗌𝗐𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝖽 , 𝗄𝗂𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀

Seungmin was madly in love with you. He loved you like a puppy with no mother, seeking a slither of affection. Clutching a biology book close to his chest, he followed your figure from afar as you both made your way to the lab. You & seungmin 'coincidentally' had the same classes together. (he overheard your subject choices)

Somehow seungmin arrived to class earlier than you, and who would expect the pretty girl who's known everywhere, to sit next to the quiet kid who's stereotyped to have an ak-47 in his bag. You couldn't help but smile seeing seungmin in his oversized school cardigan, the sleeves pulled over his wrists. "Hey Minnie. " you spoke up as you put your book on the desk & laid out your highlighters & pens.

Seungmin turned visibly pink as he looked away through his bleached bangs. "H-hi.. " a muttered greeting fell from his lips before his eyes met yours. "Seungmin, you don't need to be so shy, we're good friends, aren't we?" You reassured his anxious soul , placing a hand on his shoulder. 'Good friends?' Seungmins heart leaped for joy, knowing you considered him one of your friends.

Then his brain finally registered that you were touching him. Did you want him to explode right there? Your soft finger tips grazing against his shoulder felt amazing to him. He couldn't move, his mouth was agape as he just took in the feeling. "You good?" You asked, wanting to know what was wrong. "Im fine" Seungmin said as he sat up, realizing the teacher entered class.

Biology was boring today, unlike the other days , like when you & seungmin dissected a frog. You didn't realize that seungmin had put his hand on the two bars between your chairs, & you placed your hand on his. Your initial reaction was to take away your hand & apologize, but instead you intertwined your fingers with his. Seungmin looked at you with wide eyes, but you just nodded.

After class, seungmin asked you, "why did you hold my hand?" You smiled, then sighed "because I like you seungmin, is it not obvious?" He froze. "You... Like me?" He said, as if doubting your confession & pointing at himself. "I believe that's what I said, Minnie. " you replied. "I like you too.. " he responded. Your eyes lit up and you smiled widely. "Wanna go for some ice-cream? It can be our first date." You queried , looking up at him. "I thought you'd never ask." He stated, cracking a smile.

You grabbed his hand and ran out of the school compound to the ice cream parlor right opposite. You both bought your favorite flavours, yours was chocolate, his was vanilla. You still held his hand as you both ate your treat together. Seungmin looked over at you, and then laughed heartily. "W-what? Do I look weird?" You asked, getting a bit anxious. "You have an ice cream mustache.. " he chuckled, then got a bit closer & wiped it off for you with a smile.

"Thanks Minnie" you giggled & finished your ice cream. Seungmin finished his as well, & you both were just looking at each other now. "Can I.. You know what, fuck this. " seungmin said before learning in and kissing you, his soft lips moving against yours with his hands placed at the back of your neck. Seungmin pulled away breathing heavily.

"what are we now?"