#can we just talk about darwin for a second. i need to get this off my chest

[hershelwidget]

TWO MORE TO GO

Caleb and Darwin have arrived!

Finished these two in record time! I also had them in more dynamic poses to make up for how out of character the other two were (cough cough Beast)

Caleb possesses the Gup-C, while Darwin has the Gup-D! Much like the two before them, they borrow some design points from their main drivers, but it is a lot less obvious now.

Face closeups!

(oh whoops lmao i didn't think darwin would be so close- ah well)

Next up is Emma and Felix! They will be the last of these for a while... At this rate you'll at LEAST get snippets of Emma's design by the end of the month.. I am struggling very hard with Felix :(

[sunnyie-eve]

6 | Honestly

Series: Significant

Paring: Colby Brock x Original female character

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.9k

| MASTERLIST |

~

Today the guys were filming a video with TFIL and Penelope was tagging along since she had nothing to do and they didn't want to leave her home alone.

"We're here today with Sam and Colby and their lovely friend Penelope. And we let you guys pick what we do today. What did you choose?" Elton asks the guys.

"We're gonna break into a mall." Colby tells him and they talk about it while Penelope looks up at the bum trying to figure out how she was going to get in there.

Climbing in wasn't so hard once Colby found a spot so Penny just followed him. Then the others climb on over. Walking around to find a way in they lose Penelope as she wanders off on her own.

"Where did Penny go?" Heath looks around.

"What?" Colby looks around confused, "How did we lose her?"

"Now we gotta backtrack." Elton groans.

As they walk around they find her walking towards them, "I found a way in." She lets them know.

"You just disappear on us." Colby speed walks towards her.

"I did. And being far from you guys I could still hear how loud y'all were being." She laughs leading the way.

"Can you even climb up there?" Elton asks her looking at the entrance she found.

"I was in gymnastics for thirteen years and they had us rock climb for fun during the summer at times. I can do it." She forces a smile as Colby climbs up then she goes second.

Walking to the center of the mall, Penelope realizes what mall they're actually in since she only knew it from the inside.

She gasps rushing to stand on the escalator, "Just me? Now, how's a blind man find his way into a place like this all on his own?" She says a line from her favorite TV show.

"What?" Sam says confused.

"Really? I have the season on repeat all the time because it's the best." She walks towards him.

"Teen Wolf. They filmed here for the mall fight scene where Penny was going to lose her shit if they really killed Derek." Colby tells him making Penelope smile.

"And this is why I love you." She pats his back, "You pay attention to me." She laughs.

They walk around more to explore more Penelope gets a text from Darwin saying it was an emergency so she tells him where she is so he can pick her up.

"Everything okay?" Colby sees her.

"Darwin said it's an emergency so I told him where we are." She sighs, "Umm, I'm gonna head back out. I'll be okay so don't worry."

"Are you sure?" He stops her from walking off, "Is it a serious emergency?"

"I don't know how serious but he said it's an emergency so..." She shrugs her shoulders.

"You're really gonna leave us?"

"Colby, my boyfriend needs me. And since that one little tiff, we haven't been as great as we once were. Plus we had another little one last month about you again. I apparently spend more time with you guys than my own boyfriend." She explains to him.

"You live with us of course you do." He laughs.

She just looks at him before leaving the group and heading back the way they came from. Getting out was a little difficult but she managed to do it alone. She waited a good five minutes before Darwin pulled up.

"What's the emergency?" She jumps up from sitting.

"My brother got in an accident and I need your help taking things to the hospital." He tells her.

"Okay." She gets in not understanding why she had to help. If it was super important to help him why waste time getting her.

Penelope knew something was slightly off when they got to his place and he was no longer rushing nor getting things together.

"I thought you needed my help?" She watches him in his kitchen.

"You passed the test." He smiles.

"Excuse me? I passed the test?" She repeats super confused.

"Yeah, if I don't ever text or call saying I have an emergency I'll know you'll drop what you're doing to help me. You passed the test." He kisses her cheek as he goes to the couch.

"So you lied? You made me leave what I was doing to test me?" She turns to face him.

"Yeah, it lets me know I'm important to you. You'll leave the guys for me."

She just stares at him looking for something to watch on TV and she starts to think about things, "How did you get there so fast?" She walks into his view.

"I was out and about." He lies to her.

"You still got there way too quickly. Were you stalking where my phone was at?" She pays attention to his body language.

"Ahead of time, yes. Just because if you did say yes I was there on time so you wouldn't have to wait outside too long."

"How long is ahead of time though, Darwin?" She raises her voice a bit.

"I don't fucking know. I saw where you were and I went towards you." He huffs then gets confused seeing her heading for the door. "What are you doing?" He watches her.

"Going home. I'll have Kat pick me up since you tricked me." She leaves his place calling Kat and she says she will be there as fast as she can.

When she does pick her up Kat takes her home and stays over with her to talk about why she called her to pick her up, "Wait, so it was just to test you?" Kat asks as they sit on Penny's bed.

"That's what he told me. He's like; you passed the test. So I told him to explain to me and he told me it was a way to let him know I'll drop what I'm doing to help him." She explains to her, "Should I mention he was stalking where I was."

"No! What the hell is wrong with him?" Kat shouts, "He doesn't like the guys right?"

"Well, he's okay with Sam it's Colby he has a problem with. But... I can't believe him." Penelope groans, "You know, he used to be so good. What the hell happened?"

"Some guys are just, ugh." Kat gives her a sad smile.

"Yeah, but you got lucky with Sam." Penelope rolls her eyes, "I've only ever dated two guys and they both suck. I actually really liked Darwin but now, I don't know. What do I do?" She whines.

"Okay, let's break everything down. Starting with the very first problem; you living with the guys." Kat pats Penny's leg, "Does he still think you should move?"

"Yes, he still tries to slide the tiniest hints but it's still noticeable."

"And the real problem deep down is because of how Colby is with you?" Kat asks so Penelope gives her a thumbs up. "And you and Colby have talked about it?"

"Yes, Kat. He understands he's a bit overprotective."

"A bit? Okay..." Kat giggles, "So he still has a problem with him?"

"Yes. When he came over to apologize for the first time, he said he thinks something happened between the two of us, because how we were acting odd."

"How were you acting odd?" Kat wants to get to the bottom.

"We each looked embarrassed. I know my reason but not his. We fell asleep watching a movie... I had a dream and then woke up to the door."

"What type of dream?" Kat watches her get embarrassed, "Penelope!" She shouts, "Do you have a crush on your best friend?"

"Would you shut up!" Penny covers her mouth, "What if they walked in quietly without us knowing. And no but yes at the same time. It's this little crush that just sits in the back of my mind and won't go away. BUT, nothing is ever going to happen." She explains as Kat smiles.

"What if secretly he likes you too and is scared or embarrassed to say it? What if he had the same dream as you? That's why he was embarrassed as well?"

"Impossible." Penny laughs.

"No, Penelope. Colby is way too protective of you for there not to be something there deep down. Hell, maybe he doesn't even know how he really feels?"

"Can we not? Colby is just my friend. He's my best friend. I don't want to lose him. He and Sam are the only guys in my life that I'm scared to lose because without them... I'm alone." Penelope tells her getting upset.

"What are you gonna do about Darwin?"

"I don't know. It just seems to get worse as time goes on." She hides her face into a pillow, "I want it to work but..."

"Colby would you please stop complaining for the love of god!" Sam shouts entering the apartment so the girls walk out. "Oh, hey Babe." Sam smiles.

"Penny asked me to pick her up." She tells him.

"Why? I thought Darwin had an emergency?" Colby rolls his eyes not trying to hide it.

"It was a test." Penelope rolls her eyes going back to her room while Kat explains to the two.

Kat ends up staying a little while to hang with Sam so Colby goes to Penelope's room to see her on her phone, "Am I interrupting you?" He whispers.

"No, you can come in. What up?" She sets her phone down.

"Kat explained everything after you came back in here." He enters her room shutting the door behind him.

"Do you think I should break up with him? Honestly." She sits up as he sits on the end of her bed, "You're my best friend and I want you to tell me how you feel about everything."

"You guys just have your moments but it's up to you not me. You make your own choices."

"Colby, I asked you to be honest with me. Stop lying to me right now. Forgot the whole, you need to mind your own business and back off some. I want the truth, please." She gets annoyed with him.

"Honestly, fuck him. He's becoming a dick and now stalking you when you aren't home. And truthfully I don't believe he trusts you deep down. He said he doesn't trust me but that means secretly he feels the same about you. If he doesn't trust me it means he thinks I can steal you from him. Guess what, it takes two to tango." Colby tells her, "I get that you guys were great before actually getting together but as soon as you guys did it started to have its problems. I don't want you to go through crap."

"I hate dating." She covers her face not wanting to cry.

Colby moves to sit next to her to hold her, "Hey, maybe the third time is the charm." He chuckles then stops letting out a sigh, "I know you really loved him."

"Who knows, I never said I love you to him." She tells him.

"I thought you guys say that?"

"No, I say love you and he said love ya so..." She looks at him.

"Maybe that's another sign for you." He gives her a sad smile, "I just hate seeing you like this."

"And I appreciate you really care." A tear falls.

"Of course, I love you and you don't deserve this shit." He wipes it away.

"I love you too." She hugs him happy she has him in her life.

[stormoflina]

Thoughts about tonight's LIVFUL:

- Second-half fc, handsome fc, injury fc, but never bottle fc 😽

- Okay, still gotta admit, i was going through it in the first half, one of our worst 45 minutes we have played this season. Still, the boys powered through it, Klopp's subs were fantastic, Darwin and Cody won us the game.

- But of course let's talk about my man, our man, the one and only Curtis mf Jones. The way he stepped up today is incredible, even is his stats won't show it in the first half, he was bossing (the still very weak) midfield around, working his socks off, shielding the ball. And that second half? THE GOAL?! What a magnificent goal that was, oh my! Curtis is a special, special player. It's a tight draw with Darwin, both deserve MOTM imo.

- Darwin!! Anyone who dares to slander this man after this game should go to get his eyesight checked, because he won us the game today. He completely changed our pace, our play, started creating chances. We had 1 shot in the first half. Then comes Darwin on and bumm. Idc if he misses his tap-ins (ok, I do, he needs to improve on that), but his influence is astronomical. He's a Red through and thorough, we need him.

- Cody is the true stepson of our squad, ngl. He rarely gets played in his preferred position, yet he still manages to deliver. Very happy for his goal. 🩷

- Virg wasn't his sharpest today, but I'm not gonna say anything bad about him. He was sick just a few days ago, who knows if he even healed fully. He probably insisted to come and play, with how many injuries we have...

- Bradley was so good! There were times when I thought he was the best player on the pitch. Incredible performance from a 20 year old.

- I feel bad for Harvey. I think he was one of our better players today in the first half, tried his best. Thought it was a bit harsh when he got hooked with Grav, but clearly Klopp knew what he was doing.

- Grav tho... I think this was his worst performance so far. I know he's more of a project signing and still so young, didn't play football for a whole year in Bayern, I understand that, and it's not his fault that we signed him in a transitional year, than decided to do a title charge and all, but gosh, it can be so frustrating. He has great potential, but right now, I think he is our riskiest player in the whole squad. Sometimes he has such great moments, like that one dribble against Rodri, but when he is bad, he's BAD bad. What's most frustrating about him is that sometimes it feels like he just gives up too easily and doesn't even try - like with tracking back, or when he loses the ball. Clearly this is something that can be coached out of him, but when you are in a semi-final, I found it a bit mental to just pull your hands up in the air and watch the opposition take your ball.

- Klopp is so funny, I love that old german man.

- Hopefully for the second leg we can have most of our players back and play less of a heartattack type of football. 🤞🏼

[coffeestainedcamera]

Continuing to play through the new Penacony patch, maybe I'll finish up tomorrow after CPA exam cramming. The minibosses en route to the final boss are so annoying. Anyways, spoilers follow and I'll put translations into alt text. The Sunday vs Robin debate is just so interesting to me.

Also, I'm on team "would rather buy merch than in-app purchases" but got Robin! Idk how to actually play her yet but that's an issue for later! Anyways.

Yeah, so her elder brother is my favorite antagonist in this game so far. He's proposing something utterly disgusting, out of his savior's complex that imo kicked into overdrive after she almost died. But it was probably showing blatantly enough to her for a while before that, hence mail that was described as "pleasantries".

On its face, I understand the impulse of obsessively wanting to protect your sibling. They're your whole world, but at some point, they start to make their own choices. You might not understand them (like my little bro's interest in compsci) but if they're not hurting anyone, I think you should respect them.

So I get the horror of finding out little sis went out to a warzone to provide humanitarian aid and caught a stray. But this was ultimately her decision.

My personal take is that repressing free will is dictatorial behavior. I don't care about the "strong protecting the weak" excuse. And it was particularly dirty to start the dilemma game with the "hatchling" story, as that one really panders to this line of thinking imo.

In this case, I really do think that taking the wildlife to a rehabber is fine. And I suppose the Family would have enough resources to get the bird consistent veterinary care and everything else it needs. But this is still an animal, and we are talking about dilemmas involving free will of those who can talk and explain their thoughts to others. It's like one of those "appeal to emotion" arguments my history teacher warned about.

The man in the second dilemma deserved to get turned in right away. He's a monster.

I never considered anything but the "support" option for Robin's choice, but still had the lead speak with the party members, as to decide without consulting is some Sunday behavior.

And with that, we get the monologue.

Yeah, he went full Social Darwinist. There is no other description for a rhetoric that assumes that the strong should decide the happy life for the weak, particularly when he fails to provide a definition for his two categories. It comes off particularly heinously because this is a planet inspired by 1920's US, I suppose.

The party would need to track down Welt to answer his questions because I mean, some of the anti-equal suffrage comics we saw in history class sure were following that "women and ethnic and racial minorities don't know what's good for them" thinking. Also, man really bandied about this ideology in front of someone who would be stuck in a sanatorium back then.

For your consideration:

And so, it makes sense for Firefly in particular to tear this unholy lovechild of Social Darwinism and Messiah Complex a new one. Because ultimately, escaping from the flaws of free will is not going to address any of the issues. Yeah, sure, stay awake to power the Matrix where no one is terrible, but what happens when you croak due to sleep deprivation? Everyone goes back to failing in the same, or new and horrible ways! Or dies if the unplugging goes badly!

So yeah, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

[barry-j-blupjeans]

"Can I be honest for a second?" Magnus asked, which was always a good way to start a conversation. Lucretia paused, her hand stalling over the drawing she had been doing of him. Magnus was sitting cross-legged on her bed, trying to figure out the Fantasy Rubik's Cube that Taako had given him earlier. Lucretia had no plans of telling him it was enchanted to never be able to solve.

"If you want to be?" Lucretia said.

"I'm..." Magnus glanced over his shoulder as if someone would be listening in on them. Lucretia was pretty sure that if anyone wanted to do that, they would have given up fifteen minutes ago when Magnus started yelling at the Rubik's Cube. "I lied. On my application."

Not so subtly, Lucretia opened to a new page in her journal.

"Oh?" she said.

"Not like, a big lie," Magnus said. "In fact, it probably doesn't even matter anymore, because technically it's not a lie anymore. But I feel bad about it. And I figured that no one can really kick me off the ship anymore, with the resets and everything, so!"

"You've intrigued me," Lucretia said. "Go on."

"I'm not actually twenty-two," Magnus said. "Or, I wasn't. I'm twenty-one."

"I already knew that," Lucretia said, slightly disappointed. She was hoping for something like "I killed Greg Grimaldis before Lup got the chance to" or "last cycle when I said I didn't steal your hair conditioner, I actually did, I'm so sorry, I'll buy you some more" or even something like "It's actually me that's been eating all the dirt from Merle's greenhouse, I'm just letting Merle take the blame."

Maybe the lack of drama is something she should be thankful for what with the yearly apocalypse.

"What!?" Magnus said, dropping the Rubik's Cube. "How??"

"Davenport had me do background checks on everyone before we left," Lucretia said. "You lying about your age is not the worst thing I found on you, Magnus."

"Well now I wanna know what was the worst thing you found," Magnus said, leaning forward.

"You got kicked out of your middle school football team because you punched your teammate. That also got you suspended."

"Darwin deserved it and I stand by that," Magnus said, lifting his nose into his air. Lucretia chuckled. "What else you got? Anyone else get suspended? Ooh, ooh! How old are Taako and Lup actually? Because they said they were four-twenty but I think they're just fucking with me."

"I can't disclose that information," Lucretia said. Magnus groaned, rolling his eyes. "But one time Barry got detention for throwing a pickle in someone's face and hitting them in the eye."

"Oh hell yes," Magnus said. "Give me more."

"Merle's got a criminal credit on the account that he has repeatedly tried to steal various plants from different areas, including the IPRE's director's office."

"Sounds about right!"

"Taako was one admitted to a hospital for severe burns on the same day Lup conveniently nearly got arrested for setting a store on fire," Lucretia said, getting into it now. "Davenport's got six older siblings and four younger ones. Merle got caught eating mulch from Fantasy Home Depot's garden department. I'm actually nineteen. Barry is banned from a Fantasy Party City in a town called Redwater because-"

"Wait, wait, wait," Magnus said. "Repeat that again."

"Barry got banned from-"

"No, the one before that," Magnus said. "You're nineteen?"

"You just told me you lied about your age too!" Lucretia said. "If anything, I was just following your lead."

"I added six months to my age!" Magnus said. "Not- not-"

"Four years," Lucretia said before she could stop herself. Damn. She needed to stop talking.

"How the hell did I think you were twenty-three," Magnus said, staring at her. "You look so young!"

"You told me literally yesterday I looked like I could be thirty," Lucretia said drily.

"That was a joke," Magnus dismissed. "Luce. Lucretia. Oh my gods."

"Magnus, please-"

"You let everyone make fun of me for being the youngest for the past six years!" Magnus said, throwing his hands up into the air. "Six years, Lucretia! And you never thought to help me once?"

"It was pretty funny," Lucretia said.

"It was not," Magnus said. "I can't believe you. How could you do this to me?" He turned his head away dramatically. Lucretia rolled her eyes. "I feel like I don't even know you anymore, Lucretia."

"I think being the youngest is more of a mind frame at this point," Lucretia said. Magnus huffed. "And you just proved my point, thank you."

"I'm gonna tell Dav," Magnus said.

"You can't," Lucretia said.

"I can," Magnus said, delightedly. He started to get up from the bed.

"You won't," Lucretia corrected. "No one will ever believe you."

Magnus paused, halfway off the bed. He narrowed his eyes at Lucretia.

"You're nineteen," Magnus said. "You can't tell me what to do. I'm older than you." He was grinning again. "I'm your superior now, Luce!"

"I'm not sure that's how it works," Lucretia said, but Magnus was already launching himself towards the door. She sighed, watching him throw it open and run down the hall. There was a faint shout of the word "nineteen!" and a very loud yelp from Barry that followed.

Lucretia turned back to her journal and continued to draw. Maybe she'd be able to sketch in peace before someone else burst in here.

[dear-wormwoods]

Thoughts as I’m rewatching Return of Covid:

The newscasters at the beginning say the pandemic started 38 years ago, so that means the characters aren’t quite 50, more like 47-48. Did they say 50 in Post Covid? Gdi South Park, these details matter to me!

Man, Token’s so cool.

Darwin IS there and even has a line, so I guess they didn’t actually forget about him.

Kyle’s shocked face when Alexa and Stan are interacting. Is having an Alexa not typical in the future because they’re Like That? Is this his first time seeing one in action?

I do think Cartman genuinely loves his family, but his obsession with Kyle trumps that. He is so single minded about it - blaming Kyle for the time travel idea even though it was clearly Kenny’s and Stan wants to do it just as much, and implying to his wife that Kyle’s mission is solely to prevent them from meeting.

I actually love Vic Chaos. The way he talks is a nice callback to Butters’ Bottom Bitch. And I love the idea of him funding Kenny.

Okay so… did Randy time travel? Or were him and Kenny working together and Kenny tried repeatedly to stop him from fucking the pangolin? I like the idea of Kenny’s time traveling attempts following 11/22/63 rules where the past actively pushes back against changing, but since it was easy for the other guys to change the past then I’m just left confused.

Sad that Craig and Tweek got taken out so early in the episode. Also, Cartman literally hasn’t changed at all and I love seeing his true colors re-emerge.

Again, the way Kyle says ‘Stan?’ when he’s given his own Alexa, genuinely scared. As he should be.

Okay but the manager of Denny’s Applebee’s Max looks more like adult Cartman than Cartman does. Like he’s perfect. The fuck?

Kyle’s fucking eternal optimism. I love the dynamic between that and Stan’s cynicism.

Why does South Park have its own airport?

I LOVE the gag of Cartman standing slightly off screen and surprising Butters by saying ‘Butters.’ I’m so happy they used it in this special.

Also love the idea of Kyle using the Alexas to get information on Stan’s health.

Cartman could have easily just destroyed the machines, it’s not like Stan and Kyle could have replicated Kenny’s project. But again, he’s got Kyle tunnel vision - his dream of killing Kyle is more important to him than the possibility that going back to kill Kyle might somehow result in him never meeting Yentl.

That Token/Kyle moment though.

Randy forgiving Stan only to turn around within seconds and blame him again, lmao.

“Make sure that Stan and Kyle don’t get to this altar.” I just… Cartman must know how that sounds right? Like, ‘Vic we can’t let them get married!’

The fight between Cartman and Kyle is so good. Stan knows better than to step in, even though Kyle is getting his ass handed to him.

Cartman has done such a thorough job of poisoning his family against Kyle, but it also makes sense that Yentl and the kids would blame Kyle for seemingly ‘changing’ Cartman. They don’t know it’s just his true colors coming out, they’re all ignorant to the kind of person Cartman is on the inside. It’s just frustrating seeing people in fandom, who should know better, blame Kyle as well.

Of course Clyde was the expert who told him never to get vaccinated. What a fucking idiot.

Stan jumping in the chair right after Clyde to try to save Kyle… love that.

“You regret this day for the rest of your life!” and “You lose everything when you lose this friendship!” makes me so emotional. The fact that they know they’re miserable without each other, that they can acknowledge they need each other to be successful and happy…

I understand why they chose to keep it simple and fix everything with the Heather Williams thing, because it would have taken a whole other special to really hash out the real issues in their relationship but… God, what I wouldn’t give for an emotional Stan and Kyle showdown where they lay everything on the table and really TALK about the deterioration of their friendship and how they really do love each other enough to work on it. That’s too heavy for South Park though, I get it. That’s what fanfiction and RP are for I suppose.

That being said, Stan and Kyle apologizing was cute and the song choice was perfect.

Okay but how does the pandemic actually end? Sure the weed makes everyone forgiving and stuff, but Covid still exists lol. Maybe it’s still going on in the fixed future too and people are just ‘reacting better’. Who even knows. It’ll be interesting to see if the next season will act like the pandemic is over or not.

The way Kyle just RUNS into Stan’s arms.

But seriously how did Kenny get his funding if Butters is just a waiter?

It does seem like the show is trying to tell us that if Cartman gets his perfect life, no one else can, and vise versa. And that makes sense, given that he’s the antagonist. He was the antagonist the entire episode, on top of being the antagonist in general, and his ‘sacrifice’ was only because of his family’s convincing, so that he wouldn’t be ‘like Kyle’. He saved Kyle, yes, but it was from a plan of his own making. I understand why Cartman got nothing in the end, and I also understand why Cartman fans are upset by it (though blaming Kyle or saying Kyle ‘stole’ his perfect life is going too far). I kind of still wish he and Yentl ended up together again though, because she sold me on that. Maybe it’s not too late for them though - they could still meet. She could help him get back on his feet. Cartman’s life could still start anew!

I liked the ending more this time than the first time. There are still a lot of ways to interpret it and places to go with it. I’m pretty invested in the shitty future though because of the angst potential, but the fixed future has a lot of potential too!

Overall I really fucking loved the Post Covid specials. I kind of hope they’re done with future stuff though, as much as I love the adult designs and all the possibilities there… I think too much of a good thing would start to spoil it, y’know? But yeah, 10/10, will rewatch obsessively.

[imherongraystairstrash]

Hi, whenever you have time can you write something about Thomas and Alastair please? Literally anything that isn’t angsty or sad. Fluffy/happy because after COI my heart needs to feel happy again. Thank you💞

Ohh, what a good request! I’ll confess that I was a bit nervous to write this because I didn’t know how I’d compete with COI! The first four bits of dialogue are references to a video Morgan Adams made with her friend, Trinity, because I literally watched that scene and thought “Thomastair” and I just loved it so much that I couldn’t not include it. Also, this is in modern language because I liked how it sounded better. Anyway, I hope this makes your heart feel happy!!

Characters: Alastair & Thomas (fluff)

...

“We’re experiencing life.” Thomas said, poking at the logs with a stick to get the fire to burn brighter. 

“This sucks.” Alastair said, his marshmallow drooping over the fire. 

“No, it’s called life.”

Alastair stared at the fire for a second before saying, “Life sucks.”

Thomas snorted and Alastair looked up and smiled softly, clearly proud that he made Thomas laugh.

Thomas got up from his crouch and sank down next to Alastair, stretching his feet out. Alastair considered his legs before saying, “how the hell did you grow so tall during your travel year? What did they feed you in Spain?”

“I didn’t grow that tall.”

“You were the size of an elf and now you’re taller than the Eiffel Tower.” Alastair said.

Thomas stared into his dark eyes for a moment and narrowed them. “Your marshmallow’s on fire.”

Alastair turned his gaze to said marshmallow. “Ah, an accurate representation of my life so far.” 

Thomas rolled his eyes fondly and reached to grab Alastair’s hand, who took it instantly. Thomas was focusing on how he was playing with the Lightwood ring when they heard the crack of a twig behind them. He and Alastair exchanged a quick glance.

“You don’t think it’s dangerous, do you?” Thomas whispered. “If not the sensor would have picked it up, right?” 

Alastair shrugged, looking in the direction of the sound. “It can’t be my sleep paralysis demon.” He whispered back, “I have to be lying in bed about to sleep for it to be that.”

“You sleep just fine when you’re with me.” Thomas pointed out.

“Exactly. The times I can sleep,” Alastair said, not looking away from the spot, “it’s because you’re there.”

Thomas stared at Alastair’s side profile, the fire casting shadows on the panes of his beautiful face. 

“Pay attention, Lightwood. We could be about to die.”

Thomas sighed. “At least I’d die with you. If we go down, then we go down together.”

“Listen here; I can make jokes about death, but when you do it, you make me sad, so stop.”

“What?” Thomas whispered intensely, “How come you can make me sad with jokes about death, but I can’t make you sad?”

“Are these the kinds of conversations you too have when you’re alone?” Matthew asked, coming out of the shadows.

“You bastard, why did you take so long to come out?” Thomas demanded

Matthew’s jaw dropped in surprise. “I let you take your sweet time. And for your information, I’m already ou—”

“He meant the woods, idiot.” Alastair said.

“Oh, right. Yeah, I was just being dramatic.”

“Lies! His shoelaces got stuck on a branch.” Lucie said. “I saw it.”

Matthew stuck his tongue out at her.

“Anyway, I came to report that we’ve heard no signs of the demon we’re looking for.” Lucie said, popping a marshmallow in her mouth. 

“Yes, we haven’t either.” Matthew said, “Though I came here to get away from Grace and Kit.” He shuddered. "They won’t stop gushing over Darwin’s theory of evolution or something. If I wanted to listen to science talk, I would have just stayed home and asked Father for flirting advice.” 

“Your camp is sad,” Lucie said to Matthew, taking another marshmallow. “Cordelia and I are trying to see who can fit the most grapes in their mouths. I was winning too, but James said to stop or we’d ‘choke and die’ or whatever. Anyway, I’m off to find Jesse.” Lucie said getting up to her feet and skipping away happily. 

“I’m going with her.”

“Let me guess, ‘to protect her’” Thomas said.

“Angel, no. I need her to protect me.” Matthew said. “You haven’t forgotten that she can command the dead, have you?” He didn’t wait for a reply, sprinting away to catch up to Lucie.

“I’m disappointed to say that that wasn’t intolerable.” Alastair said with a frown.

“It’s called getting used to it.” Thomas smiled at Alastair. 

They seemed to have a moment where they lost themselves in each other. Thomas looked into Alastair’s stunning dark eyes, his incredibly long lashes and caramel skin. He liked the way the same strand of silky black hair always seemed to fall across his forehead and into his eyes. And the way Alastair always reached up to push it back. This time, Thomas reached out first. Instead of pushing it back though, he brought it to the side so that his fingers grazed Alastair’s cheek. Alastair’s eyelids softened and he looked down briefly before looking back up at Thomas.

“I never meant to make you sad.” He whispered. 

Thomas shrugged. “As long as what you say about yourself are jokes. Besides, you can never make me sad, because I know you never mean to hurt me.” Thomas said with a smile.

Alastair looked at him, his eyes dancing. “I love you, Thomas.”

“I love you too.”

“You have horrible taste in—”

Thomas cut him off by pressing his lips into a kiss. Alastair’s lips were soft against his own. They kissed slowly and softly as fire crackled in front of them. Thomas felt that part of him was burning from the fire, but his entire being was burning for Alastair. 

Alastair hummed against his lips as Thomas ran his hands down his chest.

“Don’t insult my taste in men, because mine’s the best in the country.” Thomas mumbled into his lips.

Alastair smiled. “What did the world do to deserve you.” He didn’t mean it as a question; Alastair kissed him again before he could even register the words.

He ran his expert hands through Thomas’ hair. Thomas had seen those hands close around fighting spears and he’d seen those hands bandage his own when he burned them during patrol. He’d seen those hands play Chopin’s Nocturne, flying through across the keys to play the different notes. He’d also seen those hands play the songs Thomas had written, bringing life to Thomas’ innermost thoughts, bringing them into existence. Thomas’ songs either coaxed a smile out of Alastair, or brought tears to his eyes.

Now he felt those hands, tugging and caressing his hair. Both boys smiled as they kissed each other, perfectly content with being in the presence of the other. Perfectly content with, after all these years, finally kissing someone they loved and being kissed by someone who loved them. 

Thomas fought back a groan and pulled Alastair closer when the sensor next to them buzzed. 

They broke apart, instantly on their feet, weapons in hand.

“Let’s get this over with.” Thomas sighed.

“Yes, let this be revenge for interrupting us.”  

“That sounds like a good plan.”

Alastair was tightening his leather gauntlets when Thomas spoke.

“Alas?”

Alastair glanced at him in response.

“How about we don’t immediately tell the others we killed the demon?”

Alastair tilted his head to the side before understanding what Thomas meant and grinning fiendishly. “I like the way you think, Tom. Now let’s kill this demon so we can get back to what we were doing.”

Thomas blushed and nodded. As he ran into battle, Alastair beside him, he did so with a smile. 

...

Tagging: @tsccreatorsnet @atla-lok143 @hitheresomeoneusingthus @rinadragomir @youngreckless @autumnangel20 @julemmaes @cupcakesandkittens @no-scones-allowed @fictionally-fantastic @stxr-thxif @writeforjordelia @itsdaughterofthemoon @jordeliasupremacy @cordelia-cardale @will-effing-herondale @axoloteca @heronstairs2014 

*I’m soooo sorry for spamming you all with two fics in like, less than two hours, I swear I didn’t mean to!!

**If you want to be on my tag list, or if you changed your url recently and your not in the tag list anymore, let me know! Oh, an if you asked to be on the tag list and you’re not on it, please tell me (I’m very absentminded haha)

[newtonsheffield]

This doesn’t have anything to do with what you’ve written recently (I would know I’ve read it all and loved every second of it) but I haven’t been able to get the idea out of my head for days…. How does Edwina deal with her grief of losing her dad? Like those days even years after it happens where the grief and pain hits you like a train all over again? How does Matthew help?

Ohhhhh we love this!!

I have only very tangentially discussed Edwina’s grief over her father’s death and I think, despite being younger than Kate, she deals with it a little better. Mostly because she allows herself to be comforted in a way that Kate never did. And Edwina feels everything a little more loudly and openly than Kate. Which is healthy don’t get me wrong, they’re just different people. But I think like you said, there are still days when you miss someone that’s not there anymore and it hurts just like it did when it first happened

DJ play the theme song 🎶 Eddie and Goose, Eddie and Goose, two little sunshine kiiiids🎶

It had been more than 10 years since Thomas Sheffield and dropped to the ground in the kitchen right in front of his youngest daughter clutching his chest as she screamed for her mother in a blood chilling manner. 11 years actually, since he’d been smiling, laughing in the hospital room as he said Katie’s coming back for no reason. She works far too hard. And then he’d clutched his chest again, and he was gone. Right there in front of her eyes as doctors tried to revive him, her mother’s arms tight around her. And Edwina could still remember the way the room had smelled, and everything had gone very still as the doctor said I’m very sorry for your loss Mrs. Sheffield.

And Their father’s final prediction had been true in the end, because Kate had spent the next seven years of her life looking after them all. Everyday after his death Kate had sat in Edwina’s room, and held her tightly to her chest while she cried, and then when Kate had gone back to University, because she had to finish her last few months, her mother had taken over. Forcing Edwina to eat, forcing her to talk about the hole in her chest that seemed to have been punched right through it. And then one day, the hole had started to heal. As if by magic, she could think about him, and smile, time slowly stitching up the wound. But of course there were days when she missed him so much she could hardly breathe, like when she’d graduated from school and University, or the day Kate had gotten married, and Edmund was born. Edwina could picture his proud smile so clearly, the same as when she’d won her first figure skating competition and he’d picked her up and spun her around Well Done Koala Bear, I’m so proud of you! Echoing through the rink. And she knew exactly what her father would have been like at Kate’s wedding, his eyes brimming with tears as he spun them all around the dance floor in his manic way, clapping his new son in law on the shoulder proudly. And though they were all used to getting by without him, they shouldn’t have had to.

Edwina had not brought up her father with a single one of her previous boyfriends, not a single one of them had asked beyond Where’s your Dad? And her usual response of He Died when I was Young. But this year she desperately wanted it to be different, desperately wanted to have someone to hold her hand the same way Anthony held Kate’s as they stood by his grave, his hand on her back, soothing words whispered in her ear. But how could she ask Matthew to do that for her? To hold her like Kate had when she was just a child (though she hadn’t thought so at the time) and wipe her tears and force her to eat when she didn’t want to? It wasn’t fair to him. So she said nothing, and he saw her fall apart anyway.

“Eddie, are you…?… I’m sorry I need to check in, we’re okay right?” Matt said three days before the anniversary of her father’s death, not 5 months into their relationship, and Edwina had to actively tell herself not to flinch away from him.

“We’re fine, honey.” She said quickly, though her voice sounded a little hollow, and she knew that Matthew heard it too.

“Okay, well if something is bothering you, you know you can talk to me about it. Right?” He said gently, his fingers interlocking with hers, his eyes soft.

“I’m fine.” She said, hoping to convince herself as well as him, but she doubted she’d even convinced Darwin. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, seeking comfort he didn’t even know he was giving to her. And then he said it.

“Sure thing Koala Bear.” And she knew he meant it as an endearment, she’d told him her Dad used it. He was being sweet. But it made her flinch.

“Please don’t call me that.” She managed to get out, her heart hammering, her tears stinging her eyes and then, humiliatingly she burst into sobs. Right there on his sofa. Her shoulders shaking as sobs were wrenched from her chest, tearing at her lungs on the way out. Ugly, horrifying things. And yet, Matthew Bagwell stayed rooted in place, his arms wrapped tightly around her, even more tightly than before, murmuring softly in her ear You’re okay, get it all out, I’m so sorry, I love you so much. Until her breathing evened out and the tears stopped rolling down her cheeks so heavily, falling like a mist over the room.

“Fuck, I’m so sorry.” She felt herself say, wiping at her eyes, embarrassment and shame clawing at her chest.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s okay to miss him.” And he said it so gently, as he used his own handkerchief to wipe at her eyes, his hands so steady and sure. “I miss my dad too. I mean he ran off to Newcastle with a waitress but even so.” His smile a little sad.

“He Umm… it’s been 11 years this week.” Edwina said softly, unable to look him in the eye, her voice still shaking. “And sometimes I just… really miss him. Like when Kate got married and Greg walked her down the aisle, and he didn’t ever get to see me do anything with my life. Just before it happened, I yelled at him, because he wanted me to help him cook and I didn’t want to and then he collapsed in the kitchen. I think about that all the time.” She’d never told anyone that before, not even Kate who she was so afraid would blame her, but Matthew’s arms around her felt so safe she couldn’t help it.

“It wasn’t your fault, Eddie.” He said gently, his hand on her cheek, forcing her to feel it. Silence engulfed them as she relaxed against him, unable to help herself.

“Tell me about him. You all talk about him with so much love, what was he like?” His voice was still soothing as he ran his finger’s through her hair.

Edwina felt a smile come to her lips, unable to fight it. “He was the best. He was kind of… goofy and silly, and he made terrible jokes and refused to stop calling us by our nicknames even though we tried to beg him to. Katie was Peanut and I was Koala Bear. I think about how I begged him to stop, and now I would give anything to hear him call me that again. Just once.” Tears stung at her eyes as she said it, Matthew hummed.

“I know he would be so proud of you. Because you are the most incredible person I have ever met.” His eyes burned hers again for a moment before he cracked a smile. “Kate’s okay too, but her husband is kind of even more terrifying than she is. They have a cool dog though.”

Edwina felt laughter bubble in her chest despite herself, comfort seeping into the very core of her along with the silence.

“Can you come with me to see him this week?” The words had slipped passed her lips before she could stop herself, too relax as always around him.

Matthew smiled gently. “Of course I will.” And Edwina closed her eyes knowing she’d never been more thankful for anything in her life as she was for Matthew Bagwell.

And three days later, Anthony greeted Matthew with a respectful nod, as though he recognised, despite everything, that Matt was there for the same reason he was. And she knelt beside her father with Matthew’s arms wrapped tightly around her and said

“Dad, I’ve met someone, and I love him very much.”

[darwindrawz]

✨The first fandom I was ever in: an incredibly emotional infodump by Darwin✨

Ahem,

When I was but a little smol child, like maybe four? My mom took me to see the very first “How To Train Your Dragon” movie in the theatre. Up until that point, I was a hardcore fan of only three movies in this order: Cars, Toy Story, and Finding Nemo. Owen Wilson practically agreed to be my other dad when he decided to voice Lighting McQueen. He raised me. I didn’t want to watch anything else.

My mom wasn’t super sure I was ready for it, since it was rated PG and this was 2010 when five year olds weren’t watching movies like Jumanji or whatever little kids like these days (I sound like such a boomer I know lmao). But she was determined to find other movies to watch with me, because “You’ve Got A Friend In Me” can only be heard so many times before it begins to gnaw away at one’s brain and rip apart their soul.

So one fine sunny day, she loaded me into my (Cars themed) car seat, and drove me to the theatre behind the Sams Club in Cookeville Tennessee. I remember being excited, because I loved dinosaurs (I still do), and my mom had told me and my brother it was a movie about dragons, and they were kind of like dinosaurs I guess.

We got our popcorn, and our overpriced soda, and we seated ourselves in the moist, sticky pit that was the Cookeville AMC. After five hours of ads and trailers, the movie began.

And I was instantly hooked.

I was deathly quiet the whole movie, hanging on every line and every scene. I giggled, I clapped, I adored Toothless and his big puppy face. And when we left the theatre after an hour and a half of the greatest movie I had ever seen in my four years of life, my mother held my hand in the way to the car and asked me what I thought.

I said: “Can we come back tomorrow and see it again?”

And we didn’t. Because movies are fucking expensive and it was the Recession. BUT, she did manage to find it on Blu-ray at Walmart a few months later, and I watched the heck out of the DVD. I learned everything I could about everything. I learned the different dragon’s elements, their behavior, and their habitats. I drew crappy kindergarten fanart of Hiccup and Astrid and the other dragon riders.

I was, in every sense of the word, in the How To Train Your Dragon fandom.

Four years later, when I was eight, the second movie came out. I was ECSTATIC. I begged my mom to take me to see it the day it came out, which meant skipping school that day to go watch a movie about vikings and big scaly monsters. She reluctantly agreed, and I suited up.

And by suited up, I mean I put on my Toothless hat (it is what it sounds like), HTTYD t-shirt, Uggs (to look like a viking, duh), and bootcut jeans.

And once again, I was not disappointed. If anything, the second one only improved upon what the first movie had laid down, building on this intricate and beautiful world like delicately assembled lego set. This time though, I was more able to fully appreciate just how amazing these movies were. Before, it had been more of a “big dragon bois go brrr” type deal, and this time it was more like “these movies are a marvel of modern cinema”.

My involvement in the fandom only grew from there. I didn’t yet have access to the internet, but I participated in any way I could. I read all the books, I owned both special edition dvds, I collected action figures and charts and maps and literally every Berk related thing I could get my grubby little hands on. I talked the head off of anyone who allowed me to speak for more than two seconds.

Off topic, but in case you’re wondering, my favorite dragon is Cloudjumper. This wonderful mans:

So years and years went by. They didn’t release another movie, but I was fine with that. I had all the HTTYD content I needed, and with my newly granted access to google at the age of eleven, I was able to converse with other people who loved the franchise as much as I did, thus sparing my parents and little brother a lot of headaches.

Years went by, and I grew up. I grew up with How To Train Your Dragon. I didn’t think anything of it; it was just sort of always in the background, every present as I grew into the wonderful nerd I am today.

And then one day, as I was scrolling through undoubtedly some top 10 new movies website of some sort, I came across an ad that made me the happiest I had been in years. The happiest I had been since I finished the last movie.

They were making a new How To Train Your Dragon movie.

I ran screaming to my parents, barely able to form English sentences as I tried to convey what had happened to make me harbor the spirit of a rabid raccoon. I remember the looks on their faces. They glanced at each other, clearly amused at my antics. But they had grown used to this dragon-fueled obsession of mine, because it had been the only constant fandom in my life for ten years.

I showed them the article, and I remember seeing a look of confusion pass over my mother’s face as she pointed to a sentence on the screen of my phone. “It’s going to be the last one.” She said.

Honestly, I know it may sound silly and immature, but I think that was one of the saddest moments of my life.

How To Train Your Dragon. My friend. My best friend, even. The two amazing movies that had introduced me to the very concept of a “fandom”. They had always been there for me. When I was sad, I would watch them. When I was happy, I would watch them.

Hell, I watched them after I broke up with my first boyfriend while crying and eating chicken nuggets.

They were... they are... one of the greatest parts of my childhood. They always will be.

So the day finally rolled around that we all geared up and went to the theatre. A nice theatre, this time. I felt it was appropriate we went to a nice theatre, though, because this felt weirdly like a last dinner with a good friend before moving somewhere far, far away. This time, it wasn’t just my mother, my brother, and I. My dad came too. I guess he knew how important it was to me.

My mom loaded me up with snacks and soda. You would think we were going to a freaking LOTR marathon from how geared up we were to see this movie.

I remember distinctly as we sat down, my mom handed me a packet of Kleenex. “Just in case you need it.” She said with a sympathetic smile.

I did need it.

The movie was, as they always were, fantastic. I couldn’t critique it if I wanted to, though I know some sick horrible people have tried to. I enjoyed myself, I really did. It was funny, it was witty, it was action packed and heartwarming. It was... well... it was How To Train Your Dragon.

And then the ending rolled around.

I remember the feeling of dread that washed over me as I realized what was happening. When I realized that Hiccup was going to leave Toothless. I knew it was the right thing to do, but I couldn’t help but project myself into Hiccup, as I so often did while watching those movies. I felt what he felt.

He was leaving an old friend behind. His best friend. And he didn’t know if he could see him again. He could remember him, sure. He could look back on all the fond memories and smile. But he couldn’t make new ones.

And as the movie drew to a close, and I heard people stirring around me as they sensed the imminent end as well, I began to cry.

That was the first time I ever cried in a movie.

I cried and cried and cried, and I kept crying as the movie went off and the credits rolled. My mom hugged me, and my dad said things like “maybe there will be more one day” and “they’ll find a way to milk the franchise”.

I didn’t cry during a movie that much until two years later when I watched Endgame, for reference.

And I know it’s such a silly thing to do, to remember a movie series like it was a person you grew up with. But it really felt like that for me.

And I think that’s what all fandoms should feel like to their fans, whether they stop making content or not.

An old friend.

If you ever hear me talking about How To Train Your Dragon, don’t make fun of me for being as in love with it as some people are with things like Star Wars or Harry Potter. It’s my fandom, my original fandom, my best friend and my constant companion in life.

So yeah. I love How To Train Your Dragon. Always have, always will.

[thewildsophia]

.Hello, Teen Crisis Hotline. Clone High//Van Gogh x Reader

Depressed!Van Gogh x Reader

A/N: I use depressed a bit loosely in this one so there’s no trigger warning.

Word Count: 2357

~~~~~~~~~~

When Joan had come to you asking that you help her out with the Teen Crisis Hotline you couldn’t say no. You weren’t the closest of friends, but the two of you had an unspoken rule that if shit were to hit the fan, you’d have the others’ back. Or in this case, if one needed help with something, the other would do what they could to help. 

If you were being honest with yourself, you were thrilled when she asked you to help her out. You had always wanted to do something to help those who are struggling mentally since you knew how serious and overlooked mental health was. 

Joan had specifically asked that you help out with the hotline the day of JFK’s party, which you quickly agreed to. It wasn’t like you were going to that party. 

But you figured she probably was going, despite her saying she wasn’t, to try and get Abe to notice her. Seriously, she could do sooo much better. 

It was a little past 7pm when you had gotten the first call. It was a female talking about how difficult her school work was becoming and how stressed she was becoming because of it. You talked to her for about 45 minutes, comforting her and giving her tips on how to stay organized and study. 

After that it was quiet for the next couple hours and you were doing school work during that time. Gandhi had forwarded a call to you around 10pm without a heads up and your phone began ringing. You answered it with a cheerful,

“Hello, Teen Crisis Hotline. How may I help you?” 

“Hello?” The person answered. Their voice was deep and slightly raspy, yet it didn’t sound especially masculine. 

“ Hello,” You greeted again, “Are you alright?” The person sighs before answering,

“For the most part, yeah.” Okay, definitely a guy. 

“I-Um,” The guy continued, “Am I on…speaker phone?” What was this guy talking about? 

“No, you’re not on speaker phone.” You responded. You heard the guy shift on the phone before saying, 

“Good, the last person I talked to had me on speaker,” You heard his voice crack, “There were a lot of people who laughed at me because of it.” You were pissed at Gandhi. You knew he was an ass that didn’t care about the hotline, but you didn’t think that he would do something as shitty as that. 

“Gandhi put you on speaker?” You asked, not even think about it.

“Yeah…” He sighed. 

“God what an ass,” You said before you even realized it, “I mean-I’m sorry that he did that to you. I can assure you that you’re not on speaker and I’m the only one here.” You corrected yourself. You heard the guy chuckle before saying, 

“No you’re right, he really is an ass.” You giggled to yourself before remembering what you were here to do.

“So, how are you feeling?” You asked. The guy was quiet for a while before answering you. 

“I’ve…been better,” He said, “It’s just…okay, I already have depression and for a while it wasn’t too bad; I was able to kinda keep it in check. Lately, however, it hasn’t exactly been that easy.” 

“Ah, I understand what you mean. Do you have any idea why it’s been getting worse?” You asked. He was quiet for a moment and you were worried that you had struck a nerve. 

“I do,” He began, “Ever since I’ve gone here, I’ve been kinda…‘harassed?’ I’m not sure if that’s really the best word but recently it’s been getting worse.”

“Would you mind telling me who’s doing this?” You asked when you thought he was done. 

“Um, yeah, I would. I-I don’t want to call anyone out.” He said. You were a bit upset that he didn’t tell you since you couldn’t help him if you didn’t know who was doing this to him, but at the same time you understood. 

“Okay, that’s fine, I understand. Do you…have any support? Like from your family or some close friends?” You asked. 

“Well, my foster parents are okay. They care about me and I know it, but I don’t think they really love me. As for friends…” He paused and sighs, “I’m not really good at making connections with people, so I don’t really have any friends; besides maybe the people I work with in class.” You were quiet, making sure he was done, before continuing. 

“Alright. I do want to know, how do you deal with this harassment?” You questioned and once again he was quiet for a moment. 

“I, uh, don’t really do anything? Like, if you’re asking what I say to them then I don’t say anything. But if you’re asking how I cope with everything…” He trailed off.

“How do you cope?” You asked him. You heard him shift again yet he remained quiet, “Do I need to be concerned?” You inquired after your mind had thought of the worst. 

“No, no, I just…I listen to music a lot,” He started, but you didn’t say anything to try and get him to speak more.

“That and, uh, I cry…a lot. Sometimes I just turn the lights off in my room and cry. It’s…comforting in a way. I don’t know how to explain it.” He choked out, his voice cracking a few times. 

“I understand what you mean,” You say, trying to comfort him, “Sometimes it just feels nice to let everything out. Personally something I do is get in the shower clothed and just…cry, letting everything out. I know it sounds odd but, for someone who cries to cope, this is one of the best pieces of advice I can give you.” You explain to him. You hear him chuckle on the other side of the phone. 

“I’ve actually heard that one before,” He said, and you imagined that he had a smile on his face, “I haven’t done it before though. Everytime I’m hit with one of those emotional outbreaks I’m just too tired to start a shower.” 

“It really do be like that sometimes.” You say with a dopey smile. 

“Yeah,” He sighed, “One of the only ways I was able to…to cling to my sanity was that no one known how miserable I truly am. But it would seem that I lost that since Gandhi put me on speaker phone.” He admitted with a sniffle at the end. 

You were quiet for a moment. 

“You’re lonely, aren’t you?” You quietly inquired. You heard him suck in a breath and shift again.

“How did you know? How could you tell?” He quickly questioned. 

“It wasn’t too hard for me to piece it together,” You began, “You said that your foster parents do care about you, but not in a familiar way which had probably created a border between you and them. You also mentioned how it’s difficult to form connections with others, so you most likely don’t have anyone in the school to talk to. The fact that you called the hotline in the first place also suggests this. Therefore, you probably spend a lot of time by yourself, and no matter how much of an introvert someone is, being alone for that long would eventually get…lonely.” You finished, waiting for him to say something. Maybe you went too far with that analysis?

“Wow that’s…impressive that you were able to determine that so quickly.” He said. 

“Was I right?” You asked curiously.

“Yeah, pretty much.” He answered. The two of you were quiet for a while before you asked him,

“Could you tell me your name?” This whole time you were trying to determine who you were talking to. Right now, you’ve managed to narrow your list down to four people: Issac Newton, Charles Darwin, Vincent Van Gogh, or Ludwig Von Beethoven. 

He hesitated for a moment before answering you.

“I’m Van Gogh, Vincent Van Gogh.” 

“Called it.” You said in your head, smiling. 

“I see,” You say, “I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you Van Gogh.” 

“The pleasure’s all mine.” Van Gogh greets. 

You thought about where to go from there until an idea pops into your head. A devious smile spreads over your face before you speak. 

“You know what I think you need, Van Gogh?” You heard him hum in question, “A little bit of revenge on Gandhi. I’m 97% sure that’ll bring your spirits up.” 

“What are you suggesting?” He asked, and you would hear the smirk in his voice. 

“You are an artist, aren’t you? Well, it’s your lucky day because I’m the clone of F/N L/N, one of the best acrylic painters in history.” You announce before continuing, “I’m suggesting that we make a…memorial of Gandhi, commemorating his work for the hotline.” It was quiet for a few seconds before Van Gogh asked, 

“What floor are you on?” 

“Floor 5, room 18. I have a shit ton of acrylics and spray paint. If you’ve got gouache, bring it.” You answered quickly. 

“Be there in 5 minutes.” He said before hanging up. 

You laughed as you quickly got your shoes on and gathered your spray paints in a duffle bag, putting your acrylics and brushed in a plastic container. You slung the duffle bag over your shoulder when you heard a knock at your door. You answered it, being greeted by Van Gogh in all his tiny glory. 

“You bring the gouache?” You asked while locking your dorm’s door. 

“I’ve got gouache, oil, and acrylics.” He answered with a smirk. You smiled and couldn't help the heat that rushed to your face. He was so adorable. Yet so…despicable.

“Got any complaints about stopping by that party real quick? It’ll be easy to get in there since it’s late and they’re probably hammered by now.” You suggested, glancing over at him to gauge his reaction. 

“Lead the way.” Was his answer. You did as you were told, the two of you making your way over to JFK’s house as quickly as possible. You snuck in through the back -- you had to help him over the fence -- and from there you two looked for Gandhi. 

Van Gogh had spotted him first; he was talking to Joan, something about screwing herself over. Joan had quickly removed his belt and Gandhi said something but you weren’t in range to hear it before she held up his boxers -- which you assumed to be his. His pants fell and you looked away as he was quickly…“exposed” by her. 

“Ah, good thing there was no one around to see that.” Was all you heard from him as he turned around and walked away. 

“Oh yes,” You heard Van Gogh say next to you, “No one, indeed.” He finished while looking at you with a smirk. You smirked yourself when it clicked in your head what he was planning to do. 

“I’ve got just the place.” You said while getting the two of you out of the party. 

Next thing you knew, you two were in front of a wall that the majority of students walked by when going from their dorms to the school. The two of you started on your painting and it took you close to three hours to finish it, but it was very much worth it. You and Van Gogh signed it at the bottom and had even taken Van Gogh’s photo with it. 

It was past 2am when everything was said and done, so the two of you made your way back over to your dorms. You walked with him to his dorm, chatting with him the whole time. 

It was weird; it felt as if you had known him for years, the conversation between you two coming so naturally, yet you had only known him for a few hours. 

When you had reached his dorm you asked, 

“Hey, what time do you leave to go to school?” 

“Around 7am, why?” He answered.

“Great, I’ll be here at 7 to walk with you,” You said while turning and making your way to your own dorm, “Goodnight, Van Gogh, see ya’ tomorrow!” You shouted back at him. Van Gogh smiled to himself, face warm.

“Goodnight, Y/N.” He said. You turned and smiled at him before turning the corner and heading up stairs.

Even after you had gotten back, set everything down and changed you couldn’t stop thinking about him. He was so lovable, how could anyone make fun of him? You figured people saw him as an easy target since he’s usually quiet and passive. 

But you’d make sure he’s treated better. That was your final thought before drifting to sleep. 

~~~~~~~~~

Staying true to your word, you made sure you had gotten up early -- only getting like 4 hours of sleep -- to walk Van Gogh to school. When you had made it to his dorm he was already waiting for you, and it was only 6:50am. 

The two of you made your way to the school, talking the whole way. Your conversation quieted down when you turned the corner that had the painting on it. 

There was a crowd of students laughing and taking pictures. Looking through the sea of students you saw Gandhi, slack-jawed and in awe. You quickly pointed him out to Van Gogh and the laugh that left his lips was a nerdy, yet adorable and just perfect to you. 

The two of you continued to walk by and people cheered for you both.

“See, look: they like you.” You say while nudging his shoulder. His face blossoms in this bright pinkish-peach color that you have never seen before and the same chuckle leaves his lips again. Your stomach did flips and your face felt hot. 

“Thanks, Van Gogh, Y/N!” You heard Joan yell from somewhere, but you were too focused on Van Gogh to care. It was his voice that brought you out of your dazed state.

“Thank you, Y/N, for helping me and all.” He said while rubbing the back of his neck. You cheeks were sore, but that didn’t stop you from smiling one last time.

“No problem, Van Gogh.”

[nataliedanovelist]

GF - Evolution of Pines

Ford attempts to give Mabel a science lesson.

~~~~~~~~~~

Takes place between Stanchurian Candidate and The Last Mabelcorn…

“BOB! BOB! BOB! BOB!”

Ford paused pouring his coffee when he heard the odd chanting coming from the living room, but then he heard the sounds of the television and he smiled to himself, guessing the kids were watching some program they enjoyed. Deciding he could take a tiny break from going over his old journals, he wandered towards the living room with the hot mug of coffee in his six-fingered hand.

He smiled at the doorway, seeing a young pair of twins share the big armchair, Dipper grinning and shaking his fists excitedly while Mabel knitted a new sweater with her eyes glued to the TV.

“Bob Dry the Science Guy!” The theme song and the kids finished, and the episode began.

“I’m going to take a wild guess and assume you kids are watching Bob Dry the Science Guy?” Ford asked, leaning against the armchair, greeted by an energetic man in a lab-coat.

“Yup!” Dipper answered. “It’s really good! He teaches about magnets, volcanoes, global warming, bugs, all sorts of things! You knew you were gonna have a good day at school when the teachers pulled out the old TV and the theme song plays.”

“He’s so funny!” Mabel laughed as Bob printed a picture of his parents to explain something and it exploded. “My favorite episode is when he talked about the desert and got chased by a camel.”

Ford watched the TV for a second as Bob Dry explained to his audience that when things copy, they slightly change, explaining evolution. He could definitely understand why both children would love the show, but his interest peaked and his smile crashed down when he heard his niece say, “Eh, I don’t buy it.”

Ford turned his head sharply, like a hunting owl, and managed to make a smile through his shock. “Wh-What do you mean, you don’t buy it?”

Dipper snorted and smirked, “Yeah, Mabel doesn’t believe in evolution.”

Ford swore he could hear glass break. “You… You don’t believe in evolution?”

“Not really.” Mabel said with a shrug, still watching the TV just as invested as she was a few moments ago. “I mean… monkeys, Darwin, it’s a nice story, I just think it’s a little too easy.”

“T-T-T-T-Too easy.” Ford repeated, swallowing hard and standing up. “Too easy? Wait, so, the process of every living thing evolving over millions of years from single-celled organisms is too easy?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

Once the shock wore off, Ford was actually quite amused. To him, this was simply a child misunderstanding the knowledge offered to them, like teaching a child that 2+2=4, not 22. He chuckled warming and moved around the chair to be next to Mabel and got on one knee to be closer to her level. “Mabel, evolution is scientific fact. It’s just as real as the air we breathe or gravity or…”

“Oh, don’t even get me started on gravity.”

Ford stared at Mabel, confused and startled and maybe even a bit amazed. “Y-You don’t believe in gravity?”

“Oh, I believe in it, I just… I dunno,” Mabel paused her knitting to better explain her idea to her stranger of an uncle. “Lately I’ve just been feeling pushed down instead of pulled down.”

Ford snorted a laugh, caught it in his throat, coughed into his fist, and took in and out a deep breath. “You know, Mabel, there are times I wish my mind was like what yours is right now, so clean, a blank slate, an empty sponge so ready to soak up new knowledge. It’s truly a wonderful time.”

Mabel gave a timid smile back as he walked away, but something about what he said rubbed the young girl a wrong way. Needless to say, she was too distracted about what he had said to pay much attention to Bob Dry.

~~~~~~~~~~

Later that night, Mabel petted Waddles in bed robotically, still thinking. Dipper came into the room in his shorts and t-shirt and turned off the main light, leaving only his lantern on, and she decided to ask her brother something.

“Hey Dipper, do you think I’m stupid?”

Dipper turned and stared at her. “What? No, of course not. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever met! No one can think of as many colors and games and escape plans as you can.” He stood next to her bed and asked, “Why? What’s up?”

“Nothing, it’s just…” Mabel bit her lip, hesitant to tell Dipper how she felt. But this was the first time since Ford came home that Dipper had paid her this much attention, so maybe she should seize her opportunity why she could. “When Great-Uncle Ford said those things it made me feel… stupid.”

Dipper had to take a second to remember what Mabel was talking about. “Oh.” And he sat next to her, legs dangling off the edge, to listen to her.

“Y’know, clean, blank slate, empty… I think… I think he thinks I’m dumb, and if the Author of the Journals thinks that…”

“Hey, hey,” Dipper put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. “I’m sure he doesn’t think that. He loves us, we’re great. And even if he does think you’re not very smart, he’s wrong. You’re brilliant! You’re super creative and always thinking outside the box. Who cares if you think a little differently or if you don’t believe in something others do and vise versa. I mean, you believe in gnomes and not a lot of people do.”

Mabel snorted at Dipper’s slightly pathetic try at a joke, but she was still grateful. “Thanks, Dip-Dip.”

“Don’t start unbelieving what you believe in, sis.” Dipper advised, making Mabel laugh, and they both accidentally started singing a cheesy song that always got people hyped.

~~~~~~~~~~

At breakfast, Mabel and Dipper were eating Stancakes with the chef cooking up one more batch for himself. They were joined by Ford, who held a rolled-up poster in his hands, and he grinned at the sight of the only female in the room. “There you are Mabel, I wanted to talk to you.”

Mabel perked up and smiled. “Really?”

“Yes,” He unrolled the poster on the table and her smile dropped when it was about evolution. “I wanted to show you the proof that we scientists have collected over the years that evolution exists…”

“Oh boy what did you do to unleash the beast?” Stan groaned.

“Ford found out Mabel doesn’t believe in evolution.” Dipper answered.

“This should be fun.”

“... so you see, they found these fossils all over the world, stretching back as far as four-hundred million years ago.” Ford explained as this poster showed the fossils and what they looked like in life.

“Uh, wow.” Mabel said, holding her chin in thought. “You can actually see it.”

“Yes! See, you can.” Ford said proudly, glad he could help his niece.

“Now,” Mabel looked away, giving this serious thought. “Who puts those fossils there, and why?”

Dipper snorted into his milk and Stan bit his lip when they saw the look on Ford’s face. “Mabel sweetie, I love you so much.” Stan said as he sat down to have some breakfast.

“M-M-Mabel, Mabel, listen to me.” Ford chuckled nervously as he put a hand on her shoulder. “What about… What about thumbs?” He held up his own and further asked, “We human beings have opposable thumbs, now how did we get those without evolution?”

“Oh!” Mabel gasped and removed her hand from her chin to slam a fist down at the table. “Maybe the overlords needed them to steer their spacecrafts!”

Ford pinched the bridge of his nose. “While they do, evolution…”

“Great-Uncle Ford, can I ask you something?” Mabel said sweetly, with eyes filled with wonder and sparkles.

Ford grinned. “Yes, of course, my dear. Anything you want.”

“Okay, so, wasn’t there a time when the smartest guys in the world thought the Earth was flat?”

“Uh… y-yes…”

“And, up until sixty years ago, everybody thought the atom was the smallest thing ever, until some dudes split it open and this whole bunch of other stuff came out?”

“Um… y-y-yes, I suppose…”

“Okay, so, one last question, Great-Uncle Ford,” Mabel said. “Is there the teeny tiny-est possibility that you and every other scientist could be wrong about evolution?”

Ford was absolutely dumbfounded. He looked at Dipper and Stan for some sort of assistance or reassurance, but they only peered at him, interested in what Ford had to say now. The aged scientist cleared his throat; his niece’s logic certainly added up, and with all of that said, he felt that he was obligated to swallow his pride and croak out slowly, “There is a teeny… tiny… possibility… that I could be wrong, yes.”

Mabel blinked and put her hands over her heart in shock. Ford was ready to apologize if he had accidentally made her feel that he was so strict and by-the-book that he wouldn’t have enough humility to admit he could be wrong, but his jaw dropped when she said, “I can’t believe you caved.”

“Wh-What?”

“You just abandoned your whole belief system…”

“N-N…”

“... I mean, I didn’t agree with you, gut at least I respected you.”

“B-B-But…”

“Oh my gosh, how are you gonna go to another science convention?”

“I…”

“How will you ever set foot in another museum or planetarium again?” Mabel gasped sadly. “How are you going to face the other science guys? H-How are you going to face yourself?” And she puckered her lips innocently at her uncle, feeling sorry for him.

Ford had absolutely no clue what the heck just happened or how to respond. Feeling numb and needing a moment to digest, he slowly rolled up the poster, but rather than carry it in his hand, he cradled it like it was his own first born son, and hurried back down to the basement with as much dignity as he could muster.

“That was fun.” Mabel said casually as she popped another bite of Stancake into her mouth.

[makaylajadewrites]

Part 9: Demons

Hi everyone, welcome back to the Bria Monique series! It's been quite some time since I've posted anything in this series, and although this is just a drabble/is kind of rough, I hope you enjoy!

Read on AO3 here

Summary: Spencer was not a stranger to having enemies. He had been dealing with them all his life and had them for as long as he could remember. Even as a child when he would walk down the street from his house to the bus stop a few blocks away, wearing his heavily scuffed Converse and old leather backpack that once belonged to his father, he was looked at like some kind of natural phenomenon. But the attention wasn’t always innocent and harmless, and he learned that the hard way through the ruthless bullying he suffered through his high school experience.

Tags: Hate speech, Homophobia, Potential transphobia, Bullying, Coming of Age

Word Count: 2665

-

Spencer was not a stranger to having enemies. He had been dealing with them all his life and had them for as long as he could remember. Even as a child when he would walk down the street from his house to the bus stop a few blocks away, wearing his heavily scuffed Converse and old leather backpack that once belonged to his father, he was looked at like some kind of natural phenomenon. The sensation of eyes on him was nothing new, because at first it had always been harmless, curious onlookers left confused and amazed at the sight of eight year old Spencer Reid, sitting in a Las Vegas public high school’s library soaking up the contents of a quantum physics textbook. But the attention wasn’t always innocent and harmless, and he learned that the hard way through the ruthless bullying he suffered through his high school experience.

To think that teenagers, some almost six years older than him, bullied him to feel a sense of power was sickening when he thought back on it, but he supposed it was a natural part of Darwin’s theory of evolution at play; survival of the fittest, and Spencer was far from the fittest. He was physically small at that age, as any ten year old would be, with knobby knees and too-small hands, but that only made him a primary target for bullies.

The goal post incidence would forever remain engrained in his memories, and even though it had been over ten years ago, Spencer would never forget the pain, humiliation, and shame he felt after that day. He had been so uncomfortable in his own skin, thinking things about himself that twelve year olds shouldn’t have to think. He didn’t like his body, and had come to hate it more and more as the years went by.

College should have been where the bullying ended, but it didn’t. Twelve - almost thirteen - year old Spencer trudged into his first ever class at Caltech with those same dirty Converse and his mother’s old peacoat since he was now tall enough to wear it without it going below his knees, and the looks were still the same. Some were harmless, others malicious; he told himself it was normal to be hated by those who didn’t understand him. He came to expect it, and at the tender age of fifteen, he began to realize another aspect of himself that would bring him hatred from others for the rest of his life.

Spencer was gay.

He didn’t know what exactly made him realize it. He had been sitting at the desk in his individual dorm room one day (since the university thought he was too young to dorm with another student) with an Abstract Algebra textbook open in front of him while he scratched out impossible equations in his notebook. And suddenly his hand seized movement, his eyes rose, and he looked out the window into the cool December air. A young man was walking across the street two stories below, with olive skin and unruly brown curls, and when he glanced up towards Spencer’s figure in the window. He smiled, and Spencer was breathless.

That was all it took. He had never thought about it much in the past, since he was so heavily caught up in his studies and more concerned with his education than anything else, but the minute those emerald eyes locked with his own, he was reminded of the fact that all human beings crave affection from someone, and in Spencer’s case, he just so happened to wish for it to be a man.

He was once again faced with self-deprecating thoughts, fearing the judgement that would certainly come his way should others know of his identity. He felt like he was constantly holding his breath whenever he went out in public, like he was one second away from screaming out to the world ‘I’m gay,’ just to get the pain and humiliation over with. He didn’t know much about gay culture, and as intelligent as he was, he didn’t know much about gay history either. So as well as doing research on his own, he took a course called Queer History the next semester. In that class, he met Ethan, and together, they explored their sexualities and Spencer had never been more sure of anything in his entire life. He was gay, and that was okay.

They drifted apart naturally, with no hard feelings or animosity, and even today, they remained friends, only contacting each other occasionally. Reid would sometimes pay his old friend a visit if the team ever traveled down to New Orleans, and seeing Ethan behind a piano always seemed to calm him. He was truly talented, and although many chastised him for wasting his intelligence in order to be a jazz musician, Reid couldn’t fault him in the slightest. He was doing what he loved, being who he loved, and that was all that mattered.

It wasn’t until Spencer met Derek that he began to think a little differently about himself. He had always had so many issues with his self esteem and the way he viewed his body, and even before their relationship turned into something more than a platonic friendship, Derek went out of his way to make Spencer feel better about himself. He called him ‘pretty boy,’ encouraged him to go on dates often, feigned jealousy regarding Spencer’s intelligence. When they became a couple, those efforts increased tenfold. Sometimes with no real reason he would compliment Spencer, throwing in pet names as a form of shared intimacy between them. They would make beautiful love together at night, writing poetry with their lips, composing symphonies with their joined bodies. He would wake up the next day in bed with Derek, and Derek would greet him with a deep voice that creeped over his skin like ivy, saying, “Good morning, beautiful.”

Over the years, those looks remained of course, but for the most part, he had learned to block it out, because he had proved time and time again, both to himself and others, that he was undeserving of needless judgements. He was fine the way he was, and while nobody was perfect, he had grown comfortable with himself. Of course he still had moments of doubt and he was still occasionally dysphoric of his body, appearance, personality, but Derek, ever the loving partner, would guide his thoughts in the other direction, and with gentle kisses and soft murmurs, Reid would feel better. Performing in drag definitely helped too, because a drag queen could not be a good performer if she wasn’t confident. But he lacked the confidence of Bria Monique in himself, and sometimes he wished he had merely an ounce of the confidence she possessed. But he was getting better, slowly but surely.

Which was why when he walked into the bullpen alongside Morgan on a seemingly normal morning, a sheer layer of lip gloss coating his lips and a dusting of pale pink blush over his high cheekbones, he nearly stumbled over himself when all eyes seemed to lock onto him. The whispers started, subtle in nature, but they pierced through his brain like a dagger, and not even Derek’s hand on the small of his back could erase the overwhelming sense of shame that swelled in the pit of his stomach. They knew. Word must have spread like wildfire, and it certainly didn’t help that most of the bureau followed along with the BAU’s cases, since they played out like a police procedural sometimes.

What bothered him the most though was that David Rossi stood just outside of his office, leaning over the railing and watching the scene play out like it was some sort of entertainment, a neutral, unreadable expression on his face. Spencer felt nauseous all of a sudden, and he couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so uncomfortable in his own skin. He pushed away from Derek, not with malice, but with the need to simply get away from prying eyes, and his closest refuge was the restroom just outside of the bullpen. He quickly found a stall and threw himself to the ground before that porcelain throne, dispelling the contents of his stomach into the bowl and feeling a sob force its way from his throat. He hardly even noticed Morgan who was there with him almost immediately after, holding his chestnut curls back with one hand and rubbing his back, just between his shoulder blades, with the other.

“It’s okay… You’re gonna be okay, baby,” Derek said softly to him, hating the sight of his lover crying so openly. “Let’s get you cleaned up… We can talk to Hotch about this, get it sorted out.” And while he knew that Derek was only trying to be reassuring, it still hurt like a bitch to become the focus of all of that negative attention once again. He didn’t say anything at first, reaching blindly for toilet paper which Derek was happy to supply him with before wiping his mouth and nose with it, using another piece for his eyes. Morgan managed to get him out of the stall and standing in front of the row of sinks, he was faced with his reflection, and he was disgusted with himself. He turned the water on, splashing it on his face and practically scrubbing the light makeup off of his face with his fingertips. He looked up slowly, catching the dark bags under his eyes and other imperfections on his face, and he broke down once again. People couldn’t accept him either way. Derek pulled him in, and Spencer melted into the embrace as sobs shook his shoulders.

“Do you want to go back home, Spencer?” Derek asked softly, pulling away to catch sight of Spencer’s tearful honey-brown eyes, and he gently cupped his cheek. His thumb caught a tear that was just beginning to fall past his bottom lashes, and with a sniffle, he shook his head. That would be like admitting weakness.

“N-No, I-I just… I just need a minute,” he murmured rather lamely, pulling away from Derek and pulling a few paper towels from the dispenser to dry his face and wipe away his tears. “Then we can… We can go talk to Hotch,” he said, his voice dropping in volume considerably when he said that, like it was embarrassing. It was, but it was what they should do. He felt uncomfortable, singled out, and while talk and gossip was bound to spread, he hadn’t expected it to be so obvious.

“Take your time, pretty boy. Deep breaths, okay?” Derek reminded him, rubbing a hand over his back yet again as Spencer leaned heavily against the edge of the skin, exhaling shakily and doing as Morgan said. He needed to calm down if he wanted to go out there again, but he wasn’t sure if he could ever face his colleagues the same way again. Eventually though, he managed to collect himself, and the two exited the bathroom and walked quickly to Hotch’s office, Spencer keeping his head bowed in shame the entire time while Derek escorted him with an arm around him the entire way.

Once inside, however, they weren’t expecting to see Rossi inside, sitting down in the seat in front of Aaron’s desk. The two seemed to be chatting amicably while Hotch filled out paperwork simultaneously, but both men raised their heads at the intrusion, and instantly, Hotch took notice of his youngest agent’s flushed face and swollen eyes. He said nothing though, giving either Spencer or Derek the opportunity to explain. Rossi looked on curiously, but he remained silent, paying special attention to the contact between the two men.

“Hotch, we’ve gotta talk, man,” Derek said simply as he closed the door behind them, “How did details of the case leak?”

Hotch was silent for a few moments, setting his pen down and sighing, “It was bound to happen, Morgan. It was getting a lot of attention from the media due to the social justice concerns that arose from it. We cannot control what the media does with the information they retrieve,” he said, folding his hands across his desk, “Nor can we control how others react to seeing such news.”

“So… what? You just want Reid to deal with it?” Morgan asked, narrowing his brows. Spencer stood awkwardly alongside him, glancing over at his partner since the anger was radiating from him in waves.

“What do you want me to do, Morgan?” Hotch asked, clearly a bit exacerbated, “I believe the bureau is considering a mandatory seminar regarding discrimination and harassment in the workplace, but I can’t force them to do it.”

“Of course,” Reid said then, nodding his head a bit sheepishly, “I-I understand…”

“It came across as quite a shock, kid. No offense,” Rossi said, truly sounding genuine but the way his dark eyes roved over him made Spencer feel incredibly vulnerable. “It was, ah… shocking, to say the least. You can’t be surprised that people reacted the way they did.”

“David,” Hotch said warningly, but Reid was already raising an eyebrow, his expression turning into one made of both confusion and surprise.

“What does that mean?” Reid asked slowly, and Rossi simply raised his hands in exasperation as if it were clearly obvious to everyone.

“Oh, Reid… You have to understand how strange it is. Men don’t belong in women’s clothes, it’s just unnatural!” He exclaimed, and Reid shrunk into himself a little bit as the volume rose in the small office. Hotch rose from his desk slowly, catching Reid’s panicked eyes.

“I don’t think you get to choose what type of clothing someone wears,” Reid said simply, “People can wear whatever types of clothes they want to. I don’t wear women’s clothing in my casual life but I’m quite familiar with women’s clothing due to my hobby, which is not unnatural and is completely harmless.”

“Reid…” Rossi started, shaking his head, but Reid wasn’t finished just yet.

“Maybe you should come to one of my shows sometime. Then you’ll see how unnatural it is for me to feel comfortable in my own body and enjoy myself. You have no idea how many straight men have tried to take me home. I bet even you wouldn’t be able to keep your eyes off of me, David,” he said smoothly with an air of confidence, huffing a bit and glaring sharply at Rossi, making direct eye contact, something he was not known to do. In fact, Hotch and Morgan shared a look of surprise, and even Rossi was left speechless. Derek had never seen his lover like that before, but he was swelling with pride at seeing Spencer defend himself. Reid didn’t feel an ounce of regret for anything he said, and was in fact quite satisfied with himself.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to fix my makeup,” he said with no hesitation, turning on his heel and leaving even Derek in the office as he returned to the bathroom to do just what he said. When he emerged, pink gloss glistening on his diamond lips and translucent blush shimmering on his cheeks, he walked to his desk with his head held high, and even as the whispers continued around him, he sat himself down and got to work, just like he always did. Derek watched him from his own desk and Spencer’s eyes lifted to meet his gaze. He didn’t have to be afraid of judgement anymore, and even if Rossi couldn’t accept him, he would always have someone.

“I love you,” Derek mouthed, and Spencer beamed, feeling more content with himself than he had in a long time.

“As you should,” Spencer said aloud in response, looking down at his work and not missing the guffaw of laughter that came from his lover.

He may always have demons, but he would always have Derek too.

<-Part 8: What a Woman

[multi-fandom-imagine]

For the Assassin’s Creed ask meme... all of them 😂

I’m joking, of course. Do the ones you want to, I’m looking forward to seeing who is your favourite assassin 😉

A/n:....I’m gonna do it! Also all the video’s below are from my game play.

Favorite Historical Assassin:

100% Leonardo! I just love him so much and the relationship he shares with Ezio plus He is just so damn adorable.

annd Alcibiades....I romanced his ass so hard with Alexios.

Favorite Game:

I would say my favorite game would be between the second Assassin’s Creed { Ezio’s first game } Black Flag and Assassin's Creed III. 

Favorite DLC:

The Ripper DLC in Syndicate...100%. I loovve seeing a older Jacob and Evie and it’s awesome how the Incorporated Jack into the Assassin’s timeline. Though the whole Alexios going up against the Greek God’s was fun too.

Favorite Weapon:

The Hidden Blade, I love how each Assassin has their own blade.If I had to pick a favorite blade then I would go for Connor’s { His Pivot Blade is awesome}, Ezio’s and Jacob’s.

Favorite Supporting Character:

Adéwalé...man I just love this character, him and Edward had the best friendship, though I would also have to say James Kidd man both of their deaths broke me. 

Favorite Villain

Haytham Kenway and Crawford Starrick, I reaaally love these two. Hard not to like Haytham when you play as the man for half the game and Crawford is just amazing.

Least Favorite Game:

I’m sorry...but I would have to say Unity....I couldn’t even finish the game because of all the bugs. I did play the game on my Xbox360 so I may have to buy it for my PS4 to see if anything has change.

Least Favorite Protagonist:

Right now I would have to say Eivor...I mean I haven’t played AC: Vahalla much though I just think he is a bore.

Favorite Mission/Sequence:

I really love Assassin’s Creed III and all the mission’s in that game are really good{ dont know why that game gets so much hate }. Though the missions I enjoyed the most was the Battle Of Bunker hill and the whole Boston Tea Party Scene. I love how Connor just look’s at his father as he drops the tea into the Boston Harbor.

Odyssey  and Syndicate had a lot of really good Mission's two 

Best Quote:

“I see what you're saying Evie. We need The Rooks!”  

“You're not starting a gang called The Rooks!”

Favorite Plot Twist:

OKay....100% when Desmond kills Lucy....I just remember trying to stop it but once it was done...I just placed my Xbox controller down and walked off.

Favorite Modern-Day Assassin:

Shaun Hasting’s look at him...look at my boy! I just love him soo much.

Most Underrated Game:

Assassin’s Creed: III- Man I don’t get why this game get’s so much hate. 

Most Underrated Character:

Arno & Connor.

While I did not enjoy Assassin's Creed: Unity, Arno was still a great character.

Also Connor is just adorable....just look at these two amazing boy’s.

A game you think Ubisoft should remaster:

I’d like to see the original game get a remaster, it was the first so I think it deserves it the most.

Thoughts on the Movie:

We don’t talk about the movie.

F(uck), M(arry), or K(ill) with three AC Characters:

Fuck: Alexios

Marry: Ezio

Kill: Shay

Favorite Historical Setting:

While all the historical settings are amazing I would have to go with Odyssey or Origins.

The Greek and Egyptian gods are my favorite things 

Coolest Piece of Eden:

I’d have to say I’m stuck between the Apples of Eden,Spear of Leonidas and the Shrouds of Eden.

Favorite Historical Figure Cameo:

.

Syndicate had a lot of good ones like

Charles Darwin. Charles Dickens.

Favorite Female Character:

Evie! I love her so much

Scene that made you cry:

Achilles and Kidd’s death made me tear up but I think it was Phoibe’s death that really got me.

She was such a sweet girl and it was adorable by how much she looked up to Alexios and she was really part of his family. It’s heartbreaking, you can hear it in his voice by how much it broke the man and it stay’s with him through out the whole game.

It’s even worse when you see her in the DLC and Alexios has to send her away to the ‘heavens’ so she can be safe and happy.

The death Scene-

The Good bye scene from the DLC

Scene that made you laugh:

This mission...below { part of my AC: Odyssey playthrough }

Favorite Templar:

Haytham...I god damn love this man.

Favorite romantic relationship:

Alexios x Alkibiades

Favorite friendship:

Leonard and Ezio defiantly have the best friendship though I also love the relationship between Edward and his crew.

How many games have you played?  Which ones?:

Assassin’s Creed. Assassin’s Creed II. Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood. Assassin’s Creed III. {DLC included} Assassin’s Creed IV- Black Flag. Assassin’s Creed Unity. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate. { DLC included} Assassin’s Creed Rouge. Assassin’s Creed Origins {DLC -still playing } Assassin’s Creed Odyssey { DLC- Still playing.} Assassin’ Creed Valhalla { Currently Playing }.

[mondobuttrr]

High Rise: Invasion Review

Ok this review will have spoilers so if you haven’t finished watching the show or that you didn’t watch it and you want to don’t read this yet. 

So after watching the hyped-up High rise invasion I was left with disappointment. I feel the show was overhyped to the max. 

Story: So the story itself was interesting when I was watching it in the beginning so I don't have many complaints. The story albeit very similar to Darwin's Game and Future Diary was still unique in its rights. For example, the mask system is a very unique and interesting idea. However, in the short time span of the first season, it seemed rushed. The mask system (warning I will be explaining how the system works from my understanding so there might Be spoilers) has four different masks from what we saw in the anime. The masks also felt like it was complicated but lacked explanation. 

Mask Types 

The happy mask or the smiling mask. This mask has two eyes and a smile people with these masks are called angels. These masks can be controlled by people who are closer to god. 

The angry mask or the mask with a frown are referred to as guardian angels whom jobs are to stop the people who are closer to god 

The mouth less mask is the mask that can turn people into people closer to god

The mask with a smile and a star on the forehead I forget its name (I wasn't really paying attention ) so they get a power-up and become really bulky and more powerful than the usual mask user.��

Another thing about the story that I complained about was that I didn't really understand the separate realm and how people got there. I think this show is going to get a season two especially because of so many people watching it. So if there is a second season then maybe the world building will be better, because the foundation is there it just had minimal focus. 

Animation: This might be an unpopular opinion to some but I actually really liked this show animation. Sure it wasn't really mind blowing or original but I still liked it. The style looked clean and the character designs themselves looked great. The way the masks are drawn so that even with them on people still look so attractive is amazing. However it does has its flaws, one of them being the fan service. Now this isn't the animator’s fault they were probably just told to draw it but it is still going under animation. This is because there’s nowhere else to put it, so the fan service for a lot of people kinda ruined the show. It didn't ruin the show for me but I understand how it did for others. The fan service is so excessive every episode you would see someone’s underwear or bra or even both! For Example, Mayuko had her shirt ripped open for the majority of the show, and Yuri would always take off her shirt and we would see her and Mayuko’s underwear all the time. The show does this to most if not all their female characters and it’s really unwanted. 

Sound: Now I can't talk much about the sound of the show because I don't know much about shows’ soundtracks and how they should be. But when watching the soundtrack is boring they have a good sound sometimes but overall it’s forgettable. The opening and endings are ok they're not amazing but they're not bad either. 

Characters: So the characters this is my whole reason for making this review because the characters are written weirdly. I need to get my thoughts out on them because they confuse me, not like the characters are complex in any way they are just written weirdly. Let me explain so I will start with the main character Yuri Honjo. Yuri is the most boring main character I've seen in a while and that’s saying something. Yuri has one goal at the beginning that is to find her brother. But then her goal changes to trying to destroy this realm and bring peace, then it’s back to her brother and it goes back and forth. She is so wishy-washy that it makes my head spin how fast she switches up my gosh. Now, this isn't the worst thing about her but it’s definitely the most confusing and annoying. Yuri also is shown to be so perfect everyone thinks she is except herself and I hate characters like that. She reminds me of a Mary sue character, shes perfect she has no consequences for her actions everyone loves her who is not a villain and now she has powers that make her like op when she controls them. I probably would've like Yuri more if she never got the ability to be a person closer to god. But nope she got it and now a smidgen of her originality is gone. (I'm sorry about my rant on Yuri it’s just she bothers me so much) this is just how I saw her as a character and I know that my opinion is very unpopular you can like her if you want. Now on to the other characters so we have my favorite character Mayuko Nise. Mayu is a tsundere (I love tsunderes so I'm biased sorry) however she only has one goal and Yuri is very one-note. That goal is to protect Yuri no matter what, now characters who have a strong drive to protect others aren’t bad per se. It’s just that, that’s all there is to her she has no other goal she pulled a full 180 on how she was at first. Ok that was an exaggeration but still, I like her but she is a prime example of the problems with the other characters except for Rika and Sniper mask. The problem is that the characters seem so one-dimensional. Rika is another character I like a lot because his drive and personality are good and he just makes sense. Sniper mask contraindicates the statement I made before about the characters not being complex because he is complex. He is the most complex character now I also think Rika if explored more in the second season can be complex like Sniper mask too. Sniper’s goals wanting to know who he is his bond with Rika and how the world works are so well written. Now I will stop this super long rant on the characters like golly I wrote a lot. 

Overall: It’s ok. it was over hyped so my expectations were way too high that’s my fault but it’s still underwhelming. it is just a show with a concept that is seen over and over and over again and basic characters where most of them lack depth. The animation ok I like it a lot but it’s nothing special same thing with the character designs. Is it worth a watch yes is it worth a re watch you decide I just think this show was ok at best and meh at worst. 

[nitewrighter]

Heya, Mun!! :Dc

I absolutely adored the Thing fic with the fankids!!! And I was wondering if there would be a continuation/part 2/sequel to that fic? Or was the gang's leaving through the elevator them leaving to safety? I was just imagining them just unwittingly sinking deeper into the bowels of that lab for more terrifying encounters! I hope you're doing well!!! :DDD

(Referring back to this fic)

The elevator was supposed to be them going up to safety, but I think followup would be interesting...

----

Winston, Jack, Mei, and Mercy were all seated at the conference table, opposite of Marti, Aedan, Jaime, and Samir. A part of Aedan was relieved that the people looking at their debrief was mostly scientists, but it still made his stomach turn as Jack frowned at his tablet.

“...a blob,” said Jack Morrison, glancing up from the tablet that held the team’s debrief, “...you went into the Talon lab, and you were attacked by a blob.”

“A mass of nanites and human tissue, yes,” said Samir.

“A blob,” said Jaime.

“It’s unclear if it was attacking or attempting to communicate,” said Marti, not fully making eye contact with him. Jack’s wrinkled brow furrowed wincingly at her own words, lending further reality to the events described to him. Jaime had bullshitted him before, and Aedan and Samir both had a habit of launching off into multiple tangents that suggested muddled observation, but Marti had eyes on a mission that he could count on as his own--probably better than his own, with his age.

“Was--was this like back at Urdr, or--?” said Jack.

“You have to understand, this wasn’t a nanite amalgam,” said Aedan, “It had human DNA. In all likelihood, it had your DNA.”

“And Reyes’s,” Samir added in as Jack paled.

“So, what, this was a failed attempt before they made the woman that attacked you back in Japan?” said Jack.

“Andrea,” said Aedan.

Jack gave him an odd look, mulling over the name.  

“Her name is Andrea,” said Aedan.

“From the Greek ‘Andros,’ ‘of man,’” Winston chimed in, “Quite a clever name considering her--” Jack shot a look at Winston and Winston cleared his throat.

“Yes--We’re pretty sure the lab was the site, or a site, where they were attempting to clone you and Reyes,” said Marti.

“And you said you sealed the lab behind you?” said Winston, looking at Marti.

“We could open it again, with decryption,” said Marti.

“Don’t really want to do that anytime soon though...” said Jaime.

“And you said it apparently ‘fed’ on biotics and... biomass?” said Mercy, looking at her own tablet.

“Our working theory is that it must have consumed several scientists, forcing Talon to abandon the site,” said Samir.

“If it made it out, it could spell ecological disaster for the surrounding area,” murmured Mei.

“Well, that might be dependent on how... resilient it is,” said Aedan, “I mean, just outside that lab is unforgiving snowy peaks and glacial ocean. If it has human DNA, it might be subject to similar limitations.”

“So it can be killed,” said Jack.

Aedan paled.

“If it’s sealed in the lab, it could just... starve to death on its own, right?” said Jaime.

“With the artificial aging on clones and biotics basically shutting down decomposition on the clones that were still in their amnio-tanks, it’s not actually clear how long its been down there,” said Aedan. His gaze had become fixed on the wood of the table, “But based on how it reacted to our presence...”

“I think it was hungry,” said Jaime.

Aedan could feel Mercy’s eyes on him, studious, discerning, and he wanted to shrink into his chair and disappear.

“If the lab is sealed, I think we can assume it doesn’t currently present a threat to the surrounding area,” said Winston.

“So, we just stick a pin in the secret lab in Cordillera Darwin that has a cannibalistic human-nanite blob lurking around in it?” said Jack.

“Well, we could call in Interpol,” said Winston.

Aedan tensed in his seat at the mental image of a wall of armed agents of some unknown country fixing their sights on the blob.

“We still don’t know the extent of how much Talon may have infiltrated the UN or different governments,” said Jack.

Mercy shuddered, “Just as well, if the existence of such an organism becomes mainstream knowledge, it could kick off a biological arms race. Even governments who abhor Talon’s biological experiments may see the need to create their own... projects... to try and counter it.”

“Keeping secrets never went particularly well for us, either,” said Jack.

“Mei and I could test the waters with other scientists in our correspondence,” said Mercy, “Get a gauge on how desperate other countries might be with regards to Talon’s research...”

“We could have Athena re-direct one of our satellites to send us more regular updates of imagery of the area if anything changes,” suggested Mei, “I could set up cryo-mines to stop it without too much damage to the lab...”

“If it could be frozen...” said Winston.

“if I had some samples of it... just to get a better idea of what we’re up against...” Mercy started.

“Why are we against it?” said Aedan, his voice came out as a flinch. “It didn’t ask to be made, but now we’re talking about killing it like it’s--it’s-- some sort of infection!”

“We didn’t say we would kill it,” said Winston.

“Only that it could be killed--�� Aedan argued.

“It’s not an infection--” Mei started calmly.

“You said it was an ecological threat!”

“It consumes biomass---” Mei started.

“It has human DNA---” Aedan’s voice was overlapping with hers, “What, because it’s ugly? Because it’s a blob?”

“Even if it has intelligence, it’s highly likely that intelligence was also shaped by Talon’s brainwashing. If it’s smart, it could be as hell-bent on destroying us as that other cl--Andrea,” said Jack.

“But LaCroix came back from it!” said Aedan, “What, it comes into the world with no context except what Talon pumped into it and we just decide it’s a monster!? Let it be locked away in that lab or--?”

Aedan felt a hand on his shoulder and he glanced sharply over at Marti. “What?!” he snapped.

“...it tried to eat us,” said Marti.

“I--” Aedan inhaled and found his breath was short. Aedan wasn’t sure what he was arguing. He could remember the sheer terror of that thing pursuing him, the sheer horror that it came from an amnio-tank like he did. For a few mad flailing seconds he wondered if this was some instinct his mother implanted in him--an unconscious kinship with the monstrous, some mental building block for the world she wanted to build--no, no, too much speculation, too much spiraling. “I’m emotionally compromised,” Aedan said, standing up, “If you require further details on the debrief, you can call me but--I--I need some air.”

“Aedan--” Samir started as he stood up but Aedan was already out the door.

“...so... putting a pin in it?” said Winston, after a long pause.

----

David Bowie’s ‘Quicksand’ warbled through Aedan’s earbuds as he listened to the song on his comm and sat on the small bench in the Watchpoint garden. Aedan closed his eyes and took in the smell of upturned earth and orange blossoms on the ocean air. The sunlight glowed red through his eyelids, but he opened his eyes as he felt a shadow pass over him and startled slightly to see Mercy blocking the sun. He tensed a bit. “...is... there something you need, Doctor Ziegler?” he said warily.

“May I sit?” said Mercy.

Aedan scooted over and she took a seat next to him on the garden bench. A long silence passed between them.

“You know, we planted that olive tree over there when Rei was born,” Mercy said, pushing brightness into her voice and pointing at an olive tree with some canvas spread beneath it to catch the falling olives.

“Yes, she, um... told me when she gave me the tour,” said Aedan.

“Oh,” said Mercy. And they sat in silence a while longer. Aedan couldn’t recall a time when Mercy had ever actively sought him out, and she seemed too awkward to have any malice in her actions--not that it was really in character for her to go out of her way to be malicious to him, but he knew his presence in general made her uncomfortable, especially with regards to Rei. Mercy clasped her hands together in her lap.

“Aedan--” she started.

“Look--” Aedan started speaking at the same time but he caught himself and glanced down, “Sorry. You go first.”

“I... wanted to apologize for that debriefing,” said Mercy, “Of course it was standard procedure that those on the mission be present, and given the nature of the mission, it was important that you were there, but we should have taken more care.”

“I know... time sensitive,” said Aedan, slouching his elbows onto his knees.

“And... I apologize for the precedent I’ve set in how I’ve treated you,” said Mercy.

Aedan blinked. “What?”

“You threw all security and your entire future with Talon away to save Rei, but I still viewed you as a potential threat to us for months,” said Mercy.

“Well... that’s fair,” Aedan said a little helplessly, not really sure what to say, “I mean, given the history with LaCroix---”

“And we all rationalized it as that for all that time when it must have been incredibly lonely to you,” said Mercy.

“I was scared of it, too,” Aedan blurted out.

“What?” said Mercy.

“I--I was scared Mum put something in me. Something in my head. Some unconscious set of automatic orders that I would follow just when we’d all let our guard down,” his breath shook a little, “I even looked for it--Master Zenyatta helped me search for it in my head--some Shambali hypnosis thing--but it wasn’t there. But a part of me’s still scared of it,” Aedan threaded his thin fingers into his red hair, “Zenyatta said, maybe this fear is some... manifestation of having this-this consciousness just... propped up within me all at once. Like... I don’t have... the physical chronology so my brain keeps thinking there has to be something more and then jumping to the worst conclusion---” he curled his knuckles against his forehead, “Seeing that thing in that lab--Mum made me to prove that nanite organisms can survive infancy--and once Talon knew they could do that, they just started making....” His other hand unconsciously went over the point on his solarplexus where Andrea’s fist had torn out of him, “They just... started making...” He drew a steadying breath before letting his hand drop from his solarplexus.

He felt a gentle hand on his back and his head jerked over to look at Mercy. She was looking at him gently.

“I don’t know what I could say that could comfort you,” Mercy said quietly, “I wish I did.”

“Honestly I’m still kind of processing the fact that you’re even listening to me right now,” said Aedan.

Mercy snorted. “Fair,” she said with a slight nod before looking over at him, “Have you... mentioned any of this to Rei?”

“I’ve heaped enough clone hangups on her,” muttered Aedan, “And she’s scared enough about Mnemosyne nearly being used on her back in Urdr without me adding my anxieties to the list.”

“You shouldn’t think like that,” said Mercy.

“Like what?”

“Making yourself smaller and living with a problem rather than working through it,” said Mercy, “But... you could talk to me, or Genji, or Zenyatta about it. There was a time when Genji had a lot of anxieties about how human he was, as well.”

“Oh--Uh, thank you,” said Aedan, honestly more than a little intimidated at the prospect of talking to Rei’s father.

“You’re a part of this team, and you’ve proven that plenty of times,” Mercy went on, “And... we wanted you in that debriefing not just because you were on the mission, but I think... we thought you might know better than anyone how to deal with..”

“A giant cannibalistic human tissue nanite blob that we’re not even sure is sentient?” said Aedan.

“Yes,” Mercy caught herself, “But I don’t mean ‘deal with’ like--”

“I understand,” said Aedan. He paused, “I--I don’t want to kill it. Or hurt it. Not unless we have to, and not until we understand it more.”

“I agree,” said Mercy.

“Maybe it could even help you find that cure for Reyes,” Aedan mentioned offhandedly.

Mercy gave him a slightly shrewd look.

“I knew it crossed your mind,” said Aedan, he caught himself, “But--it can’t be a lab rat, either...” his voice trailed off a little, “I wonder if it’s in pain right now...Maybe it had been down there so long, the nanites in it couldn’t distinguish between loneliness and hunger...” 

A softness filled Mercy’s eyes and she tilted her head at him slightly. 

“What?” said Aedan.

“You know... your mother was always trying to push humanity to something... beyond human. I just think it’s very special that you try to see humanity in what we don’t understand.”

Aedan scratched at his temple blankly, weighing her words for a few long seconds. “Uh... thank you.”

Another pause passed between them, not uncomfortable, but both ruminating on passing over a threshold of mutual discomfort into a sort of cautious familiarity. 

“Does loneliness sometimes feel like hunger to you?” said Mercy, her brow crinkling slightly with some amused curiosity, “With your nanites?”

“Well, I don’t know if the connection is that direct, but sometimes I feel them... perking up when I’m with Rei, and I wonder if they’re responding to the biotics her body naturally--” Aedan realized he said the words ‘perking up’ and ‘her body’ regarding Rei to Rei’s mother, instantly caught himself, and noted that Mercy’s face had shifted from gentle curiosity to maternal alarm. He cleared his throat. “Er--I mean... it’s probably psychosomatic---It’s not like I feel the same around a biotic rifle---That is---nanites are--You know what? I’m going to stop talking.”

“Mm,” Mercy forced a nod, “Yes. I think this is a good point to stop.”

“Good talk?” said Aedan.

“Good talk,” Mercy huffed before standing up. 

“And--Doctor Ziegler?” Aedan said as Mercy started to walk away. She glanced over her shoulder at him.

“Thank you,” said Aedan, “Really.” 

Mercy smiled a little. 

[parkrstark]

with great power...

written for @whumptober2020  day 4: caged Peter has never been one to sit back when people are in trouble. Especially when they're people like him, mutants, and he can do something to save them. Tony tries to hide the list of missing mutants from him because he wants to keep him safe, but he doesn't understand. That's why Peter has to sneak out and do this on his own. What could go wrong?  4.3k ao3

"Wow, look at this. Nicholas Fury coming to me for help. Can you say please? Maybe do a little begging?" Tony grinned, enjoying the way Fury's jaw only clenched tighter. 

"I'm not asking you, Stark. I'm asking the Avengers. SHIELD needs help." 

"You know, I don't know...I think maybe if you were on your knees, groveling at my feet, I'd be more eager to help." Tony leaned back in his seat. He had the power in this conversation and he  loved that. Usually, Steve was the one that answered team calls, but he was training in the gym with Natasha. They hadn't expected a call from Fury. 

"Stark, people are missing.  Children are missing." 

And that snapped him back into reality. Children were always enough to make his blood boil, but ever since a certain 16-year-old started running around the tower, these cases hit a little closer to home. 

"What kids?" Tony was leaning closer to the screen. 

"You know Xavier's School for the Gifted?" 

The name sounded familiar, though he wasn't sure what the exact details were. "A school for mutants, right?" 

"Yes. A few kids have gone missing. It seems that it's connected to a lot of other mutant disappearances lately." 

"Like a serial killer for mutants?" Tony frowned. 

"We don't have any reason to believe they're dead." 

"You look into Ross?" Tony asked, thinking of that asshole first. Even after he failed to break the Avengers up with his Accords, he still tried to convince them that mutants weren't human and deserved to be incarcerated for it.

Of course that would have included locking Bruce, Steve, and Peter in the Raft, probably with shock collars around their necks. Tony refused to  ever let that happen. 

"Our agents close to him say he has no involvement in this." 

Tony nodded his head thoughtfully. "Yeah, and there's no boasting from his side. If he was behind it, he'd be all over it and being his typically asshole self." 

"We want your team to help find out who is taking these mutants and how. It has to be another mutant or someone very dangerous." Fury's voice was no nonsense as he warned Tony to be careful without saying a word about it. 

"Yeah. We'll start looking into it." Tony nodded his head. He wanted to bring these kids home. 

"Good. We sent the files to your servers. It's of the known missing mutts and their last known locations."

"I'll share it with the team. We'll do our best." 

"I'm counting on you, Stark," Fury said before hanging up, the screen now black.

This was a mission they could not afford to lose, not when innocent kids were in trouble. 

  "What're you guys doing?" Peter asked, walking into the kitchen where all of the Avengers were sitting at the table, reading over papers. 

It was the second Friday of the month, which meant he was spending the weekend at the tower for Avengers training and Mario Kart. 

"Working," Sam said, flipping a piece of paper over, not even looking up. 

"I thought we were supposed to be in the training room." Peter took a seat between Tony and Steve. He tried peaking over Tony's shoulder to see what he was reading, but he pulled the paper close to his chest. 

"None of your business, Spider-Baby. Go watch some TV. We'll be right in." 

Peter frowned. "Why're you shutting me out? I wanna help."

"Probably because you're a literal toddler," Sam said. "This is for the adults." 

Peter knew Sam had to tease him. That was his job, but it didn't make him feel any less frustrated. "I'm an Avenger too. Just last month, I saved your ass when your wings got clipped in the air. You're welcome, by the way." 

"I already thanked you for that, half-pint. Don't keep bringing it up. That's not cool." 

"Alright, children. Can we please stop bickering." Clint asked. "Sheesh. I feel like I'm home with my kids." 

"I just wanna help," Peter said, his shoulders sagging. 

"Don't worry about this stuff, son. It's not fun Avengers stuff. Just a lot of paperwork for an upcoming mission." Steve was always the weak-link. He never lied to Peter, always treated him like an adult, and always gave him a chance because he said time and time again, he was just like Peter. They were both once the little guy with powers and responsibility thrusted upon them and they were just trying to do good and protect people. 

"Can I go on the mission?" He gave Steve a big smile and didn't have to look behind him to know Tony was shaking his head, urging him to tell Peter no. 

"Sorry, kiddo. This one's a little too dangerous."

"But I've been training all the time with you and Nat!" 

"No is no, Pete." 

Sure, when Steve had Peter's side, it was the best feeling in the world, but when he didn't, it was the worst. Steve was stubborn as a bull and wasn't going to budge. 

So Peter turned back to Tony. 

"Mr. Stark,  pleeeease." 

Tony shook his head and looked down at his papers, meaning their conversation was over. Which, for now, it was. There was no way that Peter was going to convince them to let him join. 

So he sighed heavily, playing up the dramatics before standing up. "Fine! Keep it a secret then. I'll be in my room when you're all finally done with your secrets." 

 And that was exactly where he waited until later that night. It was almost 3 in the morning before FRIDAY told him that Tony had finally gone to bed. 

They had been working hard on those papers all night, and moved into the mission room to use the computers too. 

Peter climbed along the ceiling to avoid making the floor creak as he snuck into the room they had spent hours working in. Once inside, he gracefully fell to the floor, and glanced over his shoulder. 

"Can I help you, Mr. Parker?" 

Peter jumped slightly, completely forgetting about FRIDAY. "Just looking for the notes the team was working on today. I want to study up tonight to impress them." 

"Were you given permission to access these files, Mr. Parker?" 

Avoid telling a lie by asking a question. 

"Did Mr. Stark block me from seeing them?" 

There was a pause and then she responded,  "No, he did not." 

"Then, I guess I'm allowed to read them." Peter smiled. Tony would have locked him out if he  really wanted to hide them. He'd done it before. Not that that would have stopped him, just would have slowed him down. 

Another pause from FRIDAY like she was struggling to decide if Peter was allowed to see them or not. Thankfully, only a moment later, she was pulling them up. 

It was just files of people. Kids, teenagers, adults...there was no connection between the demographics. Except...they all were listed with having a power of sort.

He stopped on a picture of a girl that looked about his age. She had fiery red hair and a smirk on her face.  Jean Grey. Telekinesis.  

That's when it clicked. 

He scrolled to another recent file.  Cyclops. Optic blasts. 

He felt his heart beating as he went to the next. 

Petra. Terrakinetic. 

Darwin. Reactive Evolution. 

Sway. Manipulate time. 

They were mutants. All of them. Just like him.

"FRIDAY, why were they studying these files?" Were they looking for a new team member? Did they not think Peter was good enough?

"This is a file of recently missing superhumans."

There were dozens and dozens of files. How were they all missing? And why didn't Tony ask for his help? These were  his people missing. He deserved to help. 

The sudden anger at the situation had him storming out of the room, not caring about how much noise he made. He went right to the hallway where all of their private quarters were. 

He started pounding on Tony's door. 

Not soon after, Tony opened the door. He looked half asleep but alert, dressed in only his sweatpants, but his repulsor was on his hand, pointed right at Peter. Once he realized it was Peter, his arm dropped to his side and the whining died down. 

"Jesus, Pete. You scared me. Everything okay?" His eyes looked Peter up and down, trying to see if he could see any blood probably. Peter had knocked on his door at late hours before with a wound from patrol. 

"They're mutants just like me."

"I'm sorry...what?" 

"They're mutants! And most of them are kids! Why are you hiding that from me?" Peter’s voice was nowhere near quiet. 

Tony glanced over Peter’s shoulder when he heard a door creak open. It was probably Steve, since he was right across the hallway from Tony. "Alright, bud. Calm down. We can talk about it if you want." 

He tried putting his hand on Peter's arm, but Peter pulled away. He didn't want to be babied. "No! You always try to push me out of missions. You say I need more training again and again. And usually, that's okay. I get it. I'm a kid. But you're icing me out of this one on purpose!" 

"Peter, just tell me what you're upset about. Please." Tony genuinely looked to be struggling with understanding Peter's sudden outburst. 

"I asked FRIDAY and she showed me." 

Realization dawned on Tony's face and he muttered, "Dammit. She's getting reprogrammed tomorrow." 

"You should have told me that mutants are going missing." Peter held his ground. 

Tony sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "Pete, it's too late for this. Can we please talk tomorrow?" 

"No! Mutants are missing and you wanted to hide it from me! Those are  my people, Mr. Stark!" Peter splayed his hand against his chest. "I want to help!" 

"Peter, I know--."

"No. You don't. You're normal. You can take off your suit and you don't have to worry about being... different."  Peter felt his eyes burning and he didn't know  why. 

"That doesn't make a difference. I'm Iron Man, whether the suit is on or not. Which is why I'm putting my foot down and saying you are not getting involved with this." Tony sounded tired and exasperated. 

"I can help! You can't stop me when it's my people they're hurting! I don't want to hide!" 

Tony's jaw clenched and he straightened his shoulders. His voice was low when he spoke again, "You're right, Peter. You're just like them. You are a mutant. But maybe you skipped the part where the files have said they are all  missing." 

"I know they're missing, Tony. Don't patronize me," Peter argued. He hated being the child.

"Don't patronize you? When you're acting like a  child?  Peter, I know you're upset, but how about you let those teenage hormones chill and  listen."

That comment only made his  teenage hormones worse. "I'm not a kid!" 

"You are!" Tony snapped back, unable to keep his voice quiet. "You're a child with mutant powers. Just like the other kids and adults that were taken. Did you stop to read how far back the first disappearance goes?" 

Peter didn't say anything, honestly caught a bit off guard by Tony's tone. 

"No? Well, don't worry. I've got it memorized. 2 years." 

Peter's eyes widened. 

"Yeah.  2 years. The first mutant has been missing for almost 22 months." Tony shook his head, a haunted look growing in his eyes. "I don't know what they're doing to these mutants, but I have an idea. I have many scary horrible inhumane ideas of what people would want to do with mutants." 

Peter had a few ideas of his own, but he didn't think of it as much as Tony did, apparently. He hadn't even thought of the details. He just knew his people needed help. 

"You're not helping with this case because tomorrow I'm calling May and you're not leaving this tower until we have this monster in custody." 

"What?" Peter practically shouted. "That's not fair!" 

"Pete," Steve's voice was behind him. He wondered how many of the others were watching. "Why don't you let him sleep. We'll talk about this tomorrow." 

"Tomorrow? Another night that those people are tortured! You need everyone you can get to help find these people!" Peter didn't turn away from Tony and hoped Steve got the idea. 

"I don't need anything!" Tony yelled, losing his temper finally. "I need you to stay in here, where I know you're safe! Because they're looking for mutants and you are a mutant. And while you think that makes you connected to them and somehow responsible for their safety, I think that it makes  you  a target! They will come for you eventually and I need that not to happen. Because I can't imagine losing you, and you being  gone for years." 

Peter stayed silent because he couldn't argue with that. He hadn't even thought about how it would affect Tony. 

"I went through this once already. I kept you safe then, and I'll do it again. But I can't do it alone. You need to help keep yourself safe." Tony's voice was soft when he finished his rant. exhaustion filled his voice, both mentally and physically.  

Peter nodded his head, lowering his voice as well. "I know you're trying to protect me, Mr. Stark. But I don't need protecting. I'm a superhero. It’s my job to protect others, no matter what." 

"No, Peter. That's where you're wrong. It's not your job to do anything but be a kid and go to school and go home to May at the end of the night,  safe." 

Peter shook his head. Tony didn't understand. "I'm grateful to have you looking out for me, Mr. Stark. But I'm not giving up on these people. They need someone to fight for them just as hard as you fight for me. I'm going to be that person for them.” 

“No, you’re not. You’re staying in this tower until we get this under control. I mean that, Peter.” 

“Mr. Stark,” Peter tried to argue again because that was just bullshit. 

“No, Peter. You’re staying out of this one.” 

Peter knew by the look on his face and the sound of his voice, he wasn’t going to win this. Not with Tony’s permission, anyway. So he groaned loudly, stamped his foot and stormed back to his room. 

He wasn’t going to just sit in his room and hide when mutants were going missing. He had some information like their last known locations. He could at least scout those areas and see if he noticed anything wrong. 

“FRI, can you keep this to yourself for now?”

“Keep what to myself?”

Peter grinned. “Exactly. Thanks.” He didn’t hesitate before grabbing his suit and getting ready. “Do me a favor and transfer that information to Karen before Mr. Stark locks me out.”

FRIDAY did so without complaint and Peter grinned as he saw the files glow up inside his mask. All of this was only possible thanks to Tony. Kind of ironic that he was using it against him now. 

Before leaping out of his window, he told FRIDAY, “Tell Mr. Stark or anyone else that comes to my door, that I don’t want to talk to  anyone tonight. Maybe tomorrow.” 

He’d be back in the tower by tomorrow and would act like he never even left. 

FRIDAY didn’t give him a hard time, but Karen sure did. The moment he was out in the suit, he heard her in his ears. “Peter, should you be out with this information?”

“Ugh, Karen. It’s fine.” He rolled his eyes as he swung through the streets. “I’ve been going out on patrol for weeks since all of this started and  nothing bad happened.” 

“I don’t think you should be out here. Mr. Stark has already programmed me to inform him if you try to sneak out.” 

“Don’t,” Peter warned. “I’m fine.” 

“Peter--.” 

“Karen, if you keep annoying me, I’ll just shut you off. Your company is good, but not when you’re against me too.” Peter felt his annoyance growing again, and he felt stupid for being aggravated at an AI. 

Karen hesitated and her voice sounded as soft as a robot’s voice could. “I care about your safety, Peter. So does Mr. Stark.” 

“Well,  I care about the safety of all those mutants. I can help, so I will. Either help me, or leave me alone.” Peter felt guilty for snapping at her, when she was only trying to help. She was always only trying to help him. 

“I want to help you in any way I can.” 

“Good. Then just...help me scan around these areas for anything suspicious. I have no idea what we’re looking for.” 

“Alright, Peter,” Karen replied, sounding unhappy to have to help. But she did anyway. 

 They moved from one location to the next around the city. They were running out of mutants from NYC to trace. He didn’t want to go back to the tower empty handed. Not because he wanted to show anybody anything, but because he felt like a failure in his own mind. 

“Seriously, nothing, Karen?” Peter groaned, falling to the ground in an alley. He had been scouring the city for almost two hours by now. There was nothing for him to find. He leaned his head against the wall and sighed. 

“You know, Kar...maybe Mr. Stark was right. Maybe I should have stayed put or at least  waited.” 

“I think that would have been the smart idea.” 

“Yeah, but then I would have just been laying in bed while they tried saving the day. And they weren’t even trying now! They were sleeping. The mutants need their help  now. Some of them 2 years ago!” Peter kicked his foot against some garbage by his feet. 

“In their defense, Peter, they were not aware of the disappearances until only very recently. And how are they supposed to search if they do not rest?” 

Peter groaned loudly. “Stop being so logical!” 

“It’s a protocol Mr. Stark uploaded into my servers.” 

Even though they had left things in an argument, Peter couldn’t keep a small smile off of his face. “What protocol is that?” 

"Common Sense,"  Karen replied, and Peter didn't know if she understood the slap to the face that felt like coming from Tony. “It’s used to give you a voice of reason so you don’t drive yourself crazy in your teenage tantrums.” 

“Teenage Tantrums, is that what Mr. Stark calls them?”

“Yes.” 

Peter sighed, giving in. “Well, he’s not wrong. I did lose my head back there. I shouldn’t have snapped. I shouldn’t even be out here. I just wanted to get away from it all. I felt so angry.” 

“You do not have to explain or try to justify your emotions to me, Peter. Your feelings are your feelings, no matter what. And they are valid.” 

Peter laughed. “Now, that you definitely didn’t learn from Mr. Stark. No way he’s that emotionally evolved. Not yet.” 

Karen laughed back. “It’s part of my programming. Mama Bear. He uploaded the transcripts of several parenting books for teenagers into my servers. This is from a chapter all about dealing with the ups and downs of teenage hormones.” 

“Lucky me,” Peter said. And maybe the words came out sarcastic, but he meant it genuinely. How lucky was he that he had a man, who had no responsibility to be the father figure he was? Tony was always there to help him, even when Peter proved him unworthy of his help time and time again. Peter had someone to care about him so deeply that he’d lock him in a room just from the slim chances he’d be kidnapped. And sure, that was a little overkill, but it was Tony. 

Not everyone had someone like to care about them. 

Tony could leave him at any time, and he didn’t. He chose to stay even when Peter made it  so hard. 

He pushed himself back up to his feet and sighed. “I’m gonna head back, Karen. See if Mr. Stark is still up.” 

“I think that’s a good idea,” she replied, sounding proud of herself. 

“Watch the attitude, Karen. You’re supposed to be like me, not Mr. Stark,” Peter reminded her. 

Before she could give him a response though, Peter went on full alert and he got into a stance ready to fight. His spidey sense was going off like crazy, pounding in the base of his skull. 

“Danger, Karen. Where’s the danger?” He glanced around the alley, searching for any sign of something. Thankfully, he had night vision on in the suit to make things easier to see in the pitch black. 

“Scanning for heat signatures around you now, Peter,” Karen replied, all business. “Shall I contact Mr. Stark as well?”

Peter shook his head. “Just give me a second. I can protect myself.” 

And he did when that first punch was thrown from the man that jumped down from a fire escape above him. He dodged the punch easily and brought up his fists to get ready to block the next punch. 

“You can fight,” the man said. “But you won’t win. They never do.” Then he stepped forward and Peter saw he was wearing some sort of suit with a mask that covered his entire head. He threw another punch and Peter dodged once again. 

“I don’t wanna hurt you!” He said, bouncing on his feet. “But I will if I have to!” 

“Aw, isn’t this cute?” He asked, to whom, Peter didn’t know. “He thinks he has a chance against us, boys.” 

“What--?” 

Then someone tackled him from behind and even through the suit, he could feel the hard cement run painfully against his face.”Woah, I thought there were rules in Fight Club!” Peter yelled as he rolled onto his back to avoid being jumped on. “Isn’t rule number one to have even and fair teams?” 

Another man jumped down next to him and kicked him right in the side before he had a chance to notice he was there. 

After he regained his breath, Peter wheezed, “No? That’s right. Rule number one is don’t talk about fight club. Sorry, boys. I’ll get the next one right. Promise.” 

“Shut up!” The first man rushed forward and Peter jumped to a wall to avoid him. 

Peter shook his head as he looked down at them. His heart was racing like crazy, and he was actually a little scared of these three men that seemed to have skill and a big grudge against him. Of course, whenever he was nervous, his mouth wouldn’t shut up. “You guys look cute in your matching masks and ugly armor. Are you starting a boy-band? I’d offer to join, but I’m not a good singer.” 

The men below continued to talk among themselves to try and figure out how to get Peter down. Peter ignored them. 

“You know the sound of nails on a chalkboard? That sounds a little like me. Except I’m like, a million times worse. Just ask Iron Man. He said I’m banned from Team Karaoke nights in the unforeseeable future.” 

Peter jumped from one wall to the other, webbing one of the men to the ground as he did so. “Oh, no I’m the bad guy here. I really didn’t wanna have to do this, guys!” He webbed another one the first guy he webbed up. 

He tried to web the last guy, who was the first one he had an encounter with, but he rolled out of the way, pulling something from his waistband. 

“Well, like that really old song goes, two outta three ain’t bad!” 

Peter didn’t even have time to laugh at his own joke because suddenly, the man had his hands raised and what he pulled from his pants was shining in the little light that was in the alley. Through his night vision, he could see it clearly. It was a gun and it was pointed straight for him. 

He jumped up in the air, doing a small flip as the man shot it. It didn’t sound like a gunshot, which Peter was thankful for because those always triggered bad memories with that. One gunshot and he was 14 again, covered in Uncle Ben’s blood as he held him, listening to his last breaths. Peter never did well with gun crimes during patrol. He usually saved that for the NYPD. 

“Missed me!” Peter mocked in a sing-song voice, perching on the railing of a fire escape. 

The man growled and Peter jumped, ready to dodge another shot. But the man expected that move and he shot directly where Peter was jumping to. There was no pain from it, and Peter had to stop and check himself over to see where he was hit--  if he was hit. 

And he was. There was a small dart sticking out of his thigh. Peter blinked as he pulled it from his skin. Then he glanced down at the three men. “Hey, Curly, you do realize that a little tranq dart won’t work on me, right? I’m not like your garden variety kidnapee that you can…” 

His quip was slowly cut off when he started losing feeling of all of the muscles in his face. He couldn’t move his lips to even say another word. His eyes darted to the men when he heard them all start to howl with laughter. 

Then he felt his hands slip from his perch and he was falling 3 stories down to the concrete below. Peter wasn’t sure if his vision went black went he hit the ground or just a second before. 

 When he woke up, he was crammed into a tiny cage. The room was dark with only a few lights on the ceiling, but he could easily make out what else was in the room. There were rows and rows of cages, all full of people and creatures. 

It wasn’t until he recognized a girl in the cage across from him that he put two and two together. These were the missing mutants, and he had found them...without giving Tony any indication at all where he was. 

“Oh, shit.”