#but with oomph

[pikahlua]

MHA Chapter 408 spoilers translations

This week’s initial tentative super rough/literal translations under the cut.

1 "与一"と名付けたのは自分に最初に与えられたものだったからだ "よいち"となづけたのはじぶんにさいしょにあたえられたものだったからだ "Yoichi" to nadzuketa no wa jibun ni saisho ni ataerareta mono datta kara daHe named [his brother] "Yoichi" because [his brother] was the first thing given to him.

tagline 1 自分のものにならないのなら… じぶんのものにならないのなら… jibun no mono ni naranai no nara... If he won't become his...

tagline 2 No.408　努努‼︎GANRIKI　堀越耕平 ナンバー408　ゆめゆめ‼︎がんりき　ほりこしこうへい NANBAA 408  yumeyume!! ganriki   Horikoshi Kouhei No. 408 Relentless eyes*!!  Kouhei Horikoshi (*Note: This chapter title is as interesting as it is incomprehensible. "Yumeyume" is a word that means basically "more, extra, whatever it is but PLUS ULTRA," and "ganriki" is something of a meme Horikoshi loves and uses a lot in MHA that refers to eyes bright and extra detailed to the point of being distracting or over-defined. It can refer to the eyes or even just the "power within the eyes" or one's gaze. All together it's basically just some nebulous sort of concept of eyes that are bright/sharp with dreams or effort or toil or just EYES, BUT EXTRA.)

3 弟が彼の元を去ってから おとうとがかれのもとをさってから otouto ga kare no moto wo satte kara Since his younger brother had left him,

4 約２ヵ月が経っていた やく２ヵげつがたっていた yaku 2kagetsu ga tatte ita about 2 months have passed.

1 所有物を奪った青年と目が合うも おとうと��うばったせいねんとめがあうも otouto (kanji: shoyuubutsu) wo ubatta seinen to me ga au mo He met eyes with the young man who stole his younger brother (read as: property), but

2 彼の眼球は生まれつき薄膜が張ったように艶がないので かれのがんきゅうはうまれつきうすまくがはったようにつやがないので kare no gankyuu wa umaretsuki usumaku ga hatta you ni tsuyaganai no his eyeballs were lackluster from birth, as if they were covered with a thin film, so

3 その瞳に青年が映り込む事はなかった そのひとみにせいねんがうつりこむことはなかった sono hitomi ni seinen ga utsurukomu koto wa nakatta the young man was not reflected in those eyes.

1 僕が「与えた」筈の異能が消えていた ぼくが「あたえた」はずのいのうがきえていた boku ga 「ataeta」 hazu no inou ga kiete ita The meta ability I definitely gave him had disappeared.

2 「他人から奪ったモノ」「隷属させる為に奪ったモノ」はいらないと拒み続けた与一に無理矢理与えた力… 「ひとからうばったモノ」「れいぞくさせるためにうばったモノ」はいらないとこばみつづけたあいつにむりやりあたえたちから… 「hito (kanji: tanin) kara ubatta MONO」 「reizoku saseru tame ni ubatta MONO」 wa iranai to kobami tsudzuketa aitsu (kanji: Yoichi) ni muriyari ataeta chikara... The power he forcibly gave Yoichi, who kept refusing, saying he didn't need "something taken from others" or "something stolen in order to enslave"...

3 こんな事は今までなかった こんなことはいままでなかった konna koto wa ima made nakatta This sort of thing has never happened until now.

1 いや…与一に"異能"がないのは僕の力で確認している いや…よいちに"いのう"がないのはぼくのちからでかくにんしている iya...Yoichi ni "inou" ga nai no wa boku no chikara de kakunin shite iru No...I'm confirming with my power that Yoichi does not have any meta abilities.

2 自我も芽生えぬ頃に「奪った」かと思っていたが… じがもめばえぬころに「うばった」かとおもっていたが… jiga mo mebaenu koro ni 「ubatta」 ka to omotte ita ga... I thought I stole it before I even had a sense of self, but...

3 僕の"異能"が認識できぬ程に小さく機能しないゴミが検査で見つかった ぼくの"いのう"がにんしきできぬほどにちいさくきのうしないゴミがけんさでみつかった boku no "inou" ga ninshiki dekinu hodo ni chiisaku kinou shinai GOMI ga kensa de mitsukatta I found upon inspection a piece of trash that was too small to be recognized by my meta ability.

4 形成時の栄養不足によって形にならなかった因子のようなもの… けいせいじのえいようぶそくによってかたちにならなかったいんしのようなもの… keiseiji no eiyou busoku ni yotte katachi ni naranakatta inshi no you na mono... Something like a factor that did not take shape due to lack of nutrition during its formation...

5 まさか…動いたのか…？ まさか…うごいたのか…？ masaka...ugoita no ka...? It can't be... Did it move...?

6 リーダーあの敗戦の時ーー リーダーあのはいせんのときーー RIIDAA ano haisen no toki-- "Leader, at the time of that defeat--"

7 AFOには触られてないんだよな？ オール・フォー・ワンにはさわられてないんだよな？ OORU FOO WAN ni wa sawararetenainda yo na? "you weren't touched by All For One, right?"

8 しつこいなブルース shitsukoi na BURUUSU "You're so obstinate, Bruce."

9 結果だけ伝えろ けっかだけつたえろ kekka dake tsutaero "Just tell me the results."

10 「あの日以降全身に違和感」…よく気付いたよ… 「あのひいこうぜんしんにいわかん」…よくきづいたよ… 「ano hi ikou zenshin ni iwakan」...yoku kidzuita yo... "You noticed it well...how since that day something's felt out of place all over your body..."

11 因子が２つある… いんしが２つある… inshi ga 2tsu aru... "You have two factors..."

12 生来のものと…出来損ないのような小さいものが せいらいのものと…できそこないのようなちいさいものが seirai no mono to...dekisokonai no you na chiisai mono ga "Your innate one, and...a small, seemingly useless* one." (Note: FYI this term, "dekisokonai," is the word Izuku uses in DvK1 to tell Katsuki that his "Deku" name won't always mean "useless.")

1 ……なんとなくそうじゃないかと思ってた ……なんとなくそうじゃないかとおもってた ......nantonaku sou ja nai ka to omotteta "......Somehow, I was thinking that was the case."

2 与えた"異能"が消えたのは…足りない部分を補う為に取り込み…「奪った」…！ あたえた"いのう"がきえたのは…たりないぶぶんをおぎなうためにとりこみ…「うばった」…！ ataeta "inou" ga kieta no wa...tarinai bubun wo oginau tame ni torikomi...「ubatta」...! The [reason] the meta ability I gave him disappeared...was because he took it in to make up for the missing part... [He] stole it...!

3 僕は兄さんを止められなかった ぼくはにいさんをとめられなかった boku wa niisan wo tomerarenakatta "I couldn't stop my older brother."

4 僕を生かしてくれた ぼくをいかしてくれた boku wo ikashite kureta "[You]* kept me alive." (*Note: Yoichi is likely speaking to AFO in this frame as implied by the art.)

5 他人が玩具やゲームにしか見えてない ひとがおもちゃやゲームにしかみえてない hito (kanji: tanin) ga omocha ya GEEMU ni shika mietenai "He saw other people as nothing more than toys or games."

6 もしほんの少しでも他人を思い遣れていたらーーーー もしほんのすこしでもひとをおもいやれていたらーーーー moshi hon no sukoshi demo hito (kanji: tanin) wo omoiyarete itara---- "If [you]* could be even a little considerate of other people----" (*Note: Yoichi is likely speaking to AFO in this frame as implied by the art.)

7 俺の中に与一の意志が おれのなかによいちのいしが ore no naka ni Yoichi no ishi ga "Yoichi's will is inside me."

8 まだ在るのか まだあるのか mada aru no ka "So it still exists?"

1 与えるも奪うも あたえるもうばうも ataeru mo ubau mo "Whether giving or taking away,"

2 世界一優しい力になったかもしれないのに せかいいちやさしいちからになったかもしれないのに sekai ichi yasashii chikara ni natta kamo shirenai noni "it might have become the kindest power in the world."

3 涙を出せば狼狽させられるから出した なみだをだせばろうばいさせられるからだした namida wo daseba roubai saserareru kara dashita If I shed tears it would make me flustered, so I shed them.

4-8 嫌がる事と望んでいる事を操り貶めそうやって手中に収めてきた いやがることとのぞんでいることをあやつりおとしめそうやってしゅちゅうにおさめてきた iyagaru koto to nozonde iru koto wo ayatsuri otoshime sou yatte shuchuu ni osamete kita I took possession of that which I hate and that which I desire through manipulation and degradation.

9 なのにおまえは nanoni omae wa But you

10 思い通りにならない おもいどおりにならない omoidoori ni naranai did not go the way I wanted.

11-12 ただ欲しいだけなのに ただほしいだけなのに tada hoshii dake nanoni I only* want [you], but (*Note: He's not saying he wants Yoichi and nothing else but that the only thing he feels is desire in this situation. You could read the "only" here as "simply" to have it make better sense.)

13 追っても おっても ottemo even though I chase

14 追っても おっても ottemo and I chase,

1 すり抜けていく すりぬけていく surinukete iku [you] slip through the cracks.

1 おまえのせいだ omae no sei da "It's because of you,"

2 駆藤‼︎ くどう‼︎ Kudou!! "Kudou!!"

3 駆藤！奴の血縁は絶やした！それだけじゃない奴に近しかった女も子どもも疑わしきは全て！ くどう！やつのけつえんはたやした！それだけじゃないやつにちかしかったおんなもこどももうたがわしきはすべて！ Kudou! yatsu no ketsuen wa tayashita! sore dake ja nai yatsu ni chikashikatta onna mo kodomo mo utagawashiki wa subete! Kudou! I eradicated his blood relatives! Not only them, but all the women and children and anyone suspicious who were close to him!

4 もし奴の血ならばーーー もしやつのちならばーーー moshi yatsu no chi naraba--- If [Bakugou] has that guy's blood---

5 あの時何か感じるものがあった筈！ あのときなにかかんじるものがあったはず！ ano toki nani ka kanjiru mono ga atta hazu! I surely would have felt something back then!

1 ー眼が！あの時はまだその眼じゃなかった‼︎ ーめが！あのときはまだそのめじゃなかった‼︎ -me ga! ano toki wa mada sono me ja nakatta!! --His eyes! Back then, he didn't have those eyes yet!!

2 ただの空似だ ただのそらにだ tada no sorani da It's just an accidental resemblance.

3 だが今確かに駆藤に似た意志が だがいまたしかにあのおとこににたいしが daga ima tashika ni ano otoko (kanji: Kudou) ni nita ishi ga But right now, there is certainly a will similar to that man's (read as: Kudou's)

4 時空を超えて じくうをこえて jikuu wo koete transcending space and time, and

5 僕を阻んでいるのだ‼︎ ぼくをはばんでいるのだ‼︎ boku wo habande iru no da!! it's blocking me!!

1 "ワープ"で強制的に引き剥がそうにも転送可能ポイントは "ワープ"できょうせいてきにひきはがそうにもてんそうかのうポイントは "WAAPU" de kyouseiteki ni hiki hagasou ni mo tensou kanou POINTO wa Even if I were to forcibly remove him with a warp, the transferable points are

2 すぐ近くのオールマイトか弔の位置しかない…！ すぐちかくのオールマイトかとむらのいちしかない…！ sugu chikaku no OORU MAITO ka Tomura no ichi shika nai...! only the positions of nearby All Might or Tomura...!

3 これ以上交戦し体を小さくするわけにはいかない‼︎ これいじょうこうせんしからだをちいさくするわけにはいかない‼︎ kore ijou kousen shi karada wo chiisaku suru wake ni wa ikanai!! I can't afford to engage in battle any more than this and make my body smaller!!

4 弔の元に辿り着いても とむらのもとにたどりついても Tomura no moto ni tadori tsuitemo Even if I reach where Tomura is,

5 彼は既に僕を拒否しているのだ争いは必至 かれはすでにぼくをきょひしているのだあらそいはひっし kare wa sude ni boku wo kyohi shite iru no da arasoi wa hisshi he has already refused me. A fight is inevitable.

6 "譲渡"を成立させる為余力を残しておかねばならない "じょうと"をせいりつさせるためよりょくをのこしておかねばならない "jouto" wo seiritsu saseru tame yoryoku wo nokoshite okaneba naranai I must leave enough energy to make the transfer happen.

7 …と思っていたがもういい… …とおもっていたがもういい… ...to omotte ita ga mou ii... "...or so I thought, but enough..."

8 おまえを殺すのもゴールも譲渡も… おまえをころすのもゴールもじょうとも… omae wo korosu no mo GOORU mo jouto mo... "I'll kill you, [reach my] goal, and [do the] transfer..."

9 一括だ いっかつだ ikkatsu da "all at once."

1 来る くる kuru "[Here it] comes."

2 全因解放 ぜんいんかいほう zen'in kaihou Unleash all factors

3 "全ては一つの目的の為に" "オール・フォー・ワン" "OORU FOO WAN (kanji: subete wa hitotsu no mokuteki no tame ni)" "All for the sake of one goal (read as: All For One)"

1 押し通る おしとおる oshitooru "I'll push through."

2 あの膨大なエネルギーを推進力に…⁉︎ あのぼうだいなエネルギーをすいしんりょくに…⁉︎ ano boudai na ENERUGII wo suishinryoku ni...!? "He's using that huge amount of energy for propulsion...!?"

3 一気に総取りするつもりだ…！ いっきにそうどりするつもりだ…！ ikki ni soudori suru tsumori da...! "He plans to take everything all at once...!"

4 ……赤ん坊にまで戻るぞ！賭けに出たか！ ……あかんぼうにまでもどるぞ！かけにでたか！ ......akanbou ni made modoru zo! kake ni deta ka! ......He'll return to being a baby! He's taking a gamble!

5 避けろ少年ン!!! よけろしょうねんン!!! yokero shounenN!!! "Dodge, young man!!!"

6 バカがてめえんなもん BAKA ga temeenna mon "You really are such an idiot."

7 勝てるわけねーだろ かてるわけねーだろ kateru wake nee daro "There's no way you can win."

tagline しかし、確かに、希望を見据えてーー しかし、たしかに、きぼうをみすえてーー shikashi, tashika ni, kibou wo misuete-- However, certainly, looking toward hope--

[sunlit-mess]

collab with an art friend 🖤🤍

[queenerdloser]

that mark (very recently!) was so fucking pissed about helena using the wrong name for gemma that he went to immediately do experimental brain surgery as a giant fuck you and then DIDN'T anticipate his innie self getting pissed when he got helly's name wrong really underlines how much mark doesn't think his innie loves helly and also doesn't consider his innie to actually be him at all.

[paper-starz]

PLAYTIME REDESIGNS!

It’s the three versions of beloved dough man! From his original 50s version, to his rebooted 80s and 90s versions!

I had a bit too much fun with these guys. Especially 90s doey, it’s so much fun to draw his expressions!

Rewritten lore under 👇

Doey D. Doughman was Playtime Co.’s second major commercial success! Hitting the toy aisles in the 1950s, “Doey Dough” became the toy marketed towards schools across the nation, teaching kids how to be creative and imaginative. With Playtime Co.’s original recipe, kids won’t have to worry about forgetting to close the lid on the can, because the dough can’t ever dry out!! Here, we see Doey’s original design, a fine and charming fellow marketing the four original colors of “Doey Dough”: blue, red, orange, and yellow!

Luckily, Doey’s Dough expanded its color selection by the 1980s, and with it, Playtime Co. redesigned their beloved mascot! Now he’s sporting a bea-U-tiful rainbow vest, showing off the wonderful new colors! Once again, profits soared! Playtime sold nearly 8 million cans of Doey Dough in 1982 alone, and with that amount of profit meant that there were a LOT of fans.

Playtime Co. was receiving hundreds of letters per day of kids asking when they’re going to see more of their beloved dough man? With so much demand, it would’ve been stupid of the company not to capitalize on that! So on 1984, “Doey the Doughman” series was released out onto the public, and boy did the public adore the lovable living doughman. More than 40 million viewers tuned in to watch Doey teach them the wonders of one’s own creativity, of joy, kindness, and friendship. From there, more merchandise got released, from plush toys to books!

Now that all changed once the 90s began. You see, Playtime Co. wanted to be in the public spotlight again, and while they HAVE been releasing toys, with varying degrees of success, they weren’t as popular as Playtime Co. needed them to be. So, instead of creating a new, innovative toy that kids would love, the company repurposed its beloved mascot Doey, the one that taught kids about love and kindness since the 80s, into a brash, mean-spirited Doughman.

Playtime Co. was finally receiving the attention it so desperately wanted, but not the right kind of attention. Angry fans (both kids and adults alike) sent in hundreds of letters complaining about the awful new changes, some even refused to buy anything Playtime Co. related UNTIL they could fix this issue. This got so bad that it even started to affect PlayTime Co.’s sales, so with no other choice, Playtime Co pulled 90s Doey Dough away from store shelves and replaced it with the memorable 80s version. This era is often referred to as the “Playtime Company’s Doh-sastor”.

To this day fans often wonder why Playtime Co. decided on redesigning their once colorful and fun mascot to something “unoriginal”, “bland”, and “boring” compared to its predecessors. Perhaps this is due to the time period, where many shows at this time were a lot more “edgy” than the cute and pastel cartoons that came before. Perhaps we’ll never know!

Huggy, Kissy, and Doey redesigns

Yarnaby!

[hotvintagepoll]

Hello! Do you have a favorite winter recipe? I'm looking to expand my repertoire, because I've only lived in a climate that snows for a couple years, and I don't have enough cozy, bone warming foods!

PS - I keep having to feed my cat pumpkin puree because he has some tummy troubles but he will only eat it if I gently hand feed him with a spoon. Just thought you might enjoy that.

YES HERE IS JOYOUS SOUP

(i have never actually called it joyous soup but it's what i feel everytime i make it and i feel like everyone should make it)

This soup does not have a proper recipe because uhh, my mom is bad with recipes but ALSO this soup truly adapts to whatever you have in your fridge, as long as you have 1) some kind of oil or butter to sautee things with and 2) potatoes. this is the sam gamgee make-it-on-the-side-of-a-mountain-winter soup.

Step 1. Take your potatoes—6 is the ideal but 4 works—and chop them up rough. "What kind of potatoes?" Whatever they have on the side of the mountain, Sam. You now have a bunch of 1" potato chunks or discs (I like discs). I assumed you washed them first but if you forgot you can wash them now.

Step 2. Get your oil or butter sizzling. I use about two tablespoons of butter to start and add more as I go if the potatoes don't look fully covered. I am probably cooking the butter on medium.

Step 3. You're putting the potatoes in the butter. You're pretending to fry them. Watch them get all buttery and golden and a little brown and crispy. You're thinking, man, I could eat these as they are right now. You could do that. Don't. Add garlic and onions if you have them. Add lots.

Step 4. Just as you're like oh MAN these potatoes and garlic and onions look really good fried just like this, you're going to swamp them in water. You're going to stare at what you've done and thought you made a mistake. You have not. The water should just be covering the potatoes and now you've turned the water up to high, staring at your weird sad soup pot, that smells deliciously of butter garlic onions and potatoes.

Step 5. In another saucepan, you are melting more butter (or oil, or what have you) and figuring out what else you have in your cupboard. Carrots? Those can go in. Parsnips could too. Spinach works nicely. Any onions or garlic you forgot can be added again now. Mushrooms are fucking fabulous. Leeks? Sublime. The only veg you should be avoiding are the ones that are secretly fruits (no watery tomatoes or squishy cucumbers) or the ones that you think are insipid (celery).

Step 6. You're chopping all of that up as much as you like and browning it up in the butter. You're also adding whatever spices strike your fancy. I love salt, so that's always going in, but I usually add black pepper and cayenne, and then I get fruity with it and start adding in paprikas and cumins and turmerics or corianders and thymes and basils and parsleys. It all depends on what smells right to you combined with the steams you're making, and how much spice you want kicking you later.

Step 7. How are your boiled potatoes looking? Are they soft yet? Good. Can you stick a fork in them yet, and has the water boiled down to almost nothing? Excellent. How are all your buttery brown vegetables looking? If you want to give up the whole experiment and eat them right out of the pan, it's time to make another mistake and add all your gorgeous browned vegetables to your disastrous wet potato pot.

Step 8. You now have a lot of delicious stuff looking wet and sad in your potato pot. Pour in a bit more water (or veg broth, or stock if you have it) and stir that all up. Let it stew together a bit and combine flavors. Turn it back down to medium so you don’t scorch any of your nice wet veg things. If you're fancy like my mom, you get out an immersion blender here. If you're broke and possess your grandmother's food processor, like me, you're pouring that all into the food processor with the biggest blade you have and turning it into a smoothie. If your concoction seems oddly chunky you need to add more water.

Step 9. Wet sad potato smoothie is not much to look at but now you're adding CREAM. and CHEESE. and MORE SPICES TO YOUR TASTE. If you don't have cream MILK WORKS FINE. If you don't have cheese THAT IS OKAY. If you like your soup with chunks LEAVE OUT SOME OF YOUR VEG NEXT TIME and ADD IT IN HERE. At this point, you have a gorgeous creamy soup that's soft and luscious (that's the potatoes), includes all your favorite veg (that's everything you got out of the fridge), and can go in any number of taste directions depending on what spices you put in (I've made this with Indian spices, English herb garden spices, Mexican spices, Hungarian spices—every time it's delicious and works a different way).

Step 10. I hope you have a lot of bread because you're going to be dipping it in your soup saying :) man this is a nice soup :) and knowing you can make it whenever you have weird leftovers, as long as you have potatoes and butter. and what else does a person need in life than potatoes and butter?

enjoy your joyous soup <3 i may have forgotten several steps but as long as you follow -brown some veg -add water -add spice -blend the shit out of it, you can never really go wrong <3

[emahriel]

"But a bard can tell you all the rest. As for all the things they cannot... well. I shall just have to keep those for myself."

[idontmindifuforgetme]

guys does it not scare you that romance is actually dead like even at my age i don’t see anyone else having those whirlwind romances and just having fun w it. it all feels so trite & transactional

[drawnfamiliarfaces]

it starts to smell like spring

[vela-pulsars]

not enough stonjourner art out there

[rainbow-femme]

If you like the idea of a black Little Mermaid but aren’t interested in the new movie, please check out Once On This Island

Aside from the actual mermaid part, it has many of the story beats of the original Little Mermaid but set in semi modern day on a Caribbean island

The fact that the characters are black matters as the story deals with struggles of colorism, there’s a Voodoo inspired pantheon of gods, and in general the music is really good and in parts both funny and moving

[cykelops]

no adaptation of Sherlock accurately captures how mind boggling it is he didn’t care about astrology/nomy in even the vaguest of senses by substituting it with a contemporary spin and that really is a total waste. I need all modern Sherlocks to not care about something equally universal, vaguely relevant, and mostly harmless.

[skialdi]

🐰 x two. They’re standing back, watching Ace and Isuka bicker.

If you haven’t already seen, @captain-astors drew an amazingly cute piece of devil fruit bunny Deuce. Ironically my own oc, Fisk has a desert hare devil fruit so this idea was born. They’re cuties!

[helps-the-writing-brain-go]

⚡️In the Eye of the Tiger (Companion) 🐯⚡️

Tawny buries his head in the crook of Billy's neck and breathes in deep, committing his scent to memory.

The boy still smells of milk and powder under all that dirt, barely out of infancy if Tawny has anything to say about it; but fending for himself like a full-grown cub.

There's a burgeoning lice colony nesting in his hair and old blood under his fingernails and wafting off somewhere in the vicinity of his sleeves and tattered, too big jeans.

Scraped elbows and knees, most likely.

Untreated and stinging something fierce, most definitely, but the dear boy had said not a word.

"Do you need anything, little one?"

Tawny prompts his youngest charge yet.

Billy hunches in on himself, cradling the kittenish form to his chest and shakes his head.

Tawny rumbles disapproving, the thunderous sound made adorable by his new stature. Almost a purr really, which nearly elicits a smile from the boy.

"Are you hungry, perhaps?"

A shrug.

"Thirsty?" Tawny presses.

Another shrug, though Billy does lick his cracked lips, looking uncertain.

"Surely there is something-"

The magical tiger is soon cut off by a dual interruption in the way of a rumbling stomach, and a jaw cracking yawn quickly stifled in a faded, red sleeve.

Tawny grins like a cat that'd caught both the canary and gotten into the cream.

"A snack then, and then bed. There's a number of fine fabrics to make a comfortable den around, and oh, have I told you of the Cafe of Eternity? Just about everything you could think of to eat in there-"

Billy pulls himself to his feet at the feline's urging, gasping in surprise as Tawny leaps down, immediately growing in size beneath him till it is Billy sprawled on his massive, striped back.

His small fingers bury themselves in the tiger's thick fur, and Tawny allows himself a fanged smile out of Billy's eyeline as the boy curiosity kicks in and he begins to pipe in with questions on the Rock's facilities as Tawny pads his way through its winding tunnels.

Yes, he and the new Champion would be just fine.

[punchelf]

Comfort

“Loving you is like sinking into a warm bath after a lifetime of feeling cold down to my bones.”

Elftober, Day 26

[walkingstackofbooks]

I started writing a short thing ages ago about Julian's relationship with Garak being pretty toxic and his friends being worried about him - but it all being accidental on Garak's part because loving, adult relationships are new to him and understanding human feelings doesn't come naturally and he's just trusting and relying on Julian to say if something's wrong.

Meanwhile Julian's never had a healthy relationship either, so he's also not aware anything's wrong. He's like, in love and 'happy enough' but also too anxious to say if there's something he doesn't like in case Garak rejects him over it and he'll take Garak being a bit rough over not having Garak any day.

But I started it way too long ago to remember any of the thoughts I'd had on actual details, and now I can't actually picture the type of relationship and what's happening between them in order to finish it off 😅 So obviously now I'm spending time writing a different summary of it, rather than actually thinking about it, even though I'm sure I could probably find those red flags Garak's giving off if I let myself ponder a bit more....

(... if anyone does have any ideas for the red flags Julian's friends are spotting, I'd love to hear them - I'm definitely not above letting you doing my thinkign for me :P )

OH - and the main point of this is that Julian refuses to listens to his friends, meanwhile Garak's hearing the rumours and seeing the truth in them and starts worrying why Julian's so content to let himself be treated in a way his culture apparently ought to ahve to=aught him is "bad". It's supposed to end well haha

[1thesewordsaremyown1]

Courtesy of the spoilers and this post, a ficlet was born.

Buck stared blankly at his reflection in his bathroom mirror. The last time he had stood in front of a mirror in his formal uniform, he couldn't help but admire himself. He filled out the uniform nicely, and with his boyfriend beside him, teasing and flirting as they got ready to accept their medal, his face had been flushed with a happy glow. But now...

Now, Buck's face looked almost gaunt. He had dark shadows under his eyes, with the normally bright blue of his irises dull and rimmed with red.

Swallowing thickly, Buck looped the tie around his neck and attempted to knot it. Try as he might, he just couldn't achieve it - his fingers fumbled with the fabric, and no matter how many times he tried to shake them out, his hands couldn't stop trembling.

A dark shape emerging from behind him drew his attention away from his own reflection. Tommy stood in the doorway, sadness etched into his own handsome features. Stepping into the bathroom, he moved behind Buck, his arms reaching around his body to gently pull Buck's hands from the cursed tie.

"Here baby, let me get that for you," he murmured softly, and Buck allowed his arms to drop limply by his side. He watched as within a minute, his boyfriend's deft fingers had succeeded where Buck's fumbling fingers had failed.

Slipping his hands down to Buck's arms, Tommy gently turned Buck around to face him. With a final adjustment to the knot, he smoothed the tie down, his hands running over Buck's chest. Ordinarily, Buck would have given Tommy a coy smile and leaned heavily on some flirtatious banter at Tommy's hands on him, but on this occasion there was nothing sexual about this act - instead, it was comfort and reassurance through touch.

Tommy's hands moved up to cup Buck's face, and it was only when he felt his thumbs brush against his cheeks to wipe away the tears that he realised he was crying.

Closing the gap between them, Buck buried his face into Tommy's chest. In response, Tommy wrapped his arms around him, cradling his head with one hand and gently rubbing his back with the other. No words were said. What words were there to say? Instead, the two men stood in the middle of Buck's small bathroom, holding each other tightly, sharing their grief. Taking comfort in each other in these few moments of solitude before they had to head out and face the harsh reality that awaited them.

Bobby Nash was dead.