#card clones need to get some new identity cards | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

brucewaynehater101 · 7 months ago

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man, my *pressing ask only to go wait holy shit!!* is getting out of hand

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Ranger and DigiDestinedhood hammers home to the team that as good as saving people is, secret identities are a paaain, but a nessecery pain

But they would never trade it for the world

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Tim arguably has it easier than everyone else when it comes to identity shenanigans. He has no powers, and thus no expectation to become a hero himself.

Inheriting Drake Industries and maintaining it will be a chore. However, if he plays his cards right, he can get digimon on his playrole to act in his stead when he can get away with remote work

The company still has motives to profit, but when it comes to it's non-profit organization and welfare departments? Policies to keep them at top quality are aggresively enforced.

It will also heavily invest in technology, particulary regarding the internet in ways that benefit his team's mission and the digital world

A good percentage of remote workers aren't even physical, but nobody except seven needs to know that

Plus Drake Industries will grow like never before. He can spout loads of bullshit to the press as to how but his team knows the truth

The Digital World and his Digital employees

The Batfamily are the main source of his worries, but he's got things under control

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What Tim doesn't have to worry about is passing for (wholly) human. Becoming a Power Ranger of the Digivision negated his 100% human percentage, but minus some scares and precautions here and there, nobody will realize he's an unordinary human boy

He can provide support and even ways to help them hide their more extraordinary traits, employ Digimon support, but there's only so much he can do

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Thorn can't help being frightened whenever Luthor is their foe, when Superman is front of him congragulating on a job well done

When Superman questions his frozen still state, he just says that he's a huge fan and can never believe it when he sees the super

"But I understand that I should see the man under the cape, not just the symbol, and I'll do my best to do so."

And he thought just seeing them on the screen or in the distance was bad

It's a frightening, but easy to take of the kryptonite when in Ranger form, and his friends and people are in danger, and embrace his powers to save the day, clumsy as he is at it

It's going to be a long time coming when he stops wearing kryptonite under his clothes, in his pockets outside of training, no matter how much better his body feels without it, and let himself be witness to so much agony in his civillian life

When Superman asks Data Ranger is also a Kryptonian?

When Superman stares down Thorn with both of them knowing full well they know that the other knows that they know?

"You're my clone"

Thorn can taste his death through the very kryptonite he's indulged a life's comfort in. Compared to what's more likely?

He'd much prefer that

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Speedster metabolism is a straight up liability when you're trying to keep yourself secret

Bart wasn't pretending he didn't exist persay, just one of the more instrumental parts of himself

The Flash family was sniffing around since news about the Vaccine Ranger and the speed force first popped up. Please stay away thank you. And thank you Batman paranoia!

Sucked how the most crash parts of his life circled around to being mode--- oh hey his favorite store just opened!

Bart had to be very, very careful not to speed. Which was utterly mode in his books but it's crash in the long run

Tl;Dr?---he liked this time and world's slang---Tim is having him and Thorn live at his place since they're homeless otherwise, and the press sucks! But living with Tim comes with a rad allowance he can spend on all the food and snacks he wants

Tim was working on getting revolutionary food preservation tech and other tech and GMOs made so Bart would never want for anything that satiated his hunger and taste buds again

but for now he'd have to settle for shopping

"How many parties are you buying for?" the cashier asked

"I've made it a career," he jested

And if he used the speedforce to give him a tip of bills adding up to hundred with a note of "keep the change :D --signed party boy"?

Sue him, Gotham was mode!---No offense Tim---people needed all the help they could get here

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Cassie arguably has it harder than the rest of her team from a certain view

What's stopping Zues or anybody else affiliated with him in anyway from flying down from the heavens and declaring her own divinity for everyone to hear?

What's keeping her from being forced into a spotlight or duties at the wave of a hand?

Pouring through texts for anything---anything!---that could conceal demigodhood, she mentally noted down anything that boosted luck as well. Knowing anything, she'll need it

She looked up to see that the digimon helping her were barely making more progress than her

So much for the ✨Age of Information!✨ she thought

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Tl;Dr --- The Digital Division don't want their civillian identities compromised because it could compromise their allies

And they aren't to inclined to willingly share their identities to anybody outside of the Digital Division

If they manage to not compromise their allies, the prospect of being forced into another superheroism identity and thus be forced to juggle three secrety identities is something they don't want

Also rip Thorn with his unreliable narration. Lies and mental illness are a bitch!

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Hey maybe the team expands the Digital Division to have its own social worker department of sorts aimed at helping the community

Maybe it's the start of the digital world and real world coming together as one, or maybe a different approach is taken

One must wonder the public and real world's reaction to the existence of the digital world

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Also Bart and Terriermon would probably use a bunch of Digital World slang in the future addition to real world future slang, where as the present Digital World uses their own terms, another way of displaying their displacement in time

Also Tim would probably have Bart and Thorn stay at the Drake Manor since they're a bit homeless and maybe he arranges Helena and his parents to meet if they haven't already so Cassie can have an excuse to come and stay over whenever

Thorn and Bart staying at Tim's place is great! I like the addition here of the Digital Division kind of treating other heroes as pests. They are basically trying to shoo away anyone who's trying to figure out their identity.

I bet Batman is going nuts. He can't really track/follow them into and out of the digital world. Maybe he tries to get Oracle to help? Wonder how that would go.

I'm also vibing with the digital employees and Tim continuing to be the CEO for D.I.

Overall, the concept is cool as hell!

#dc comics #tim drake #dc universe #bart allen #dc au #cassie sandsmark #kon el kent #thank you for the ask!!!!

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inventors-fair · 9 months ago

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Golden Groups: Subtype Winners ~

Our winners this week are @horsecrash, @izzet-always-r-versus-u, and @misterstingyjack!

@horsecrash — Mirage Guardian

Deserts already stand out among nonbasic land types as having the strongest mechanical identity, with a particular focus on sacrifice and graveyards. Couple that with their strong flavorful identity—after all, most people know exactly what you mean when you say "desert"— and there's a lot of room for interesting designs. This, then, scores high in both categories, being a payoff that both mechanically slots into the existing archetype gracefully, and one that does it in a way that's so uniquely Desert. The targeting on the second ability being so unrestricted seems like it would inspire a lot of creativity, and the fact that you can trigger it on opponents' turns and wield it as a disruption tool opens up a lot of deckbuilding questions that I'd really love to answer. Great stuff!

@izzet-always-r-versus-u — Eriette, Weaver of Hexes

As it turns out, Auras are prolific enough that they've developed subtypes of their own. That's what gives us this strange little case of double-dipping, but the star of the show is very much Curses. Curses operate on a bit of an odd axis, but ultimately fit into the overarching theme of doing bad things to your opponent that staple negative Auras like Pacifism codify. Eriette herself is no stranger to negative Auras, but this version goes off in a bit of a different direction that I think makes it very interesting. Beyond the focus on Curses that original Eriette didn't much care for, the drain being one-and done rather than focusing on stockpiling could encourage more fast-and-lose enchanting, and her more aggressive body could lend credence to suiting her up with some Auras of her own. Additionally, extending the reach beyond creatures and into permanents in general opens some doors, in particular to black's rather nasty suite of land Auras. Overall, you've created a card that feels like a completely natural extension of a character and their themes that also plays in a completely different way, so bravo!

@misterstingyjack — Oru, Regenesis Architect

Does this even work? I honestly don't know if this works, but I so desperately want this to work. Transforming tokens is obviously still a very new and thus unexplored concept, but this sounds enough like something that should work that I'm more than willing to look the other way, because hoo boy, this is a beautiful piece of work. Right away, the flavor here is exquisite, evoking the classic trope of growing clones in a lab, and Incubators are the perfect fit. I love how the discard feeds the second ability, but the alternate cost means you can simply choose not to if what you want to copy is already in the yard but you still need an Incubator. I love how you only ever get one transformation out of a card, encouraging you to keep churning through your deck for the best specimens, becuase there's only so much genetic material to go around after all. I love how the clone keeps the distinct Incubator shape, sacrificing none of the type's unique identity and really selling that they're a Phyrexianized doppelganger rather than just the creature brought back to life. It's just all so good!

Runners will be up shortly, so hold tight! @spooky-bard

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom magic card #inventor's fair #commentary #winners #subtype contest

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liugeaux · 10 months ago

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About that TMNT Re-Boot ...

Over the past couple of months, IDW has announced a variety of new TMNT comics coming to shelves this year. Here's a quick and dirty breakdown of the ones I want to talk about.

TMNT The Flag-Ship book Soft-Reboot - Ongoing by Jason Aaron

TMNT: Nightwatcher - Ongoing by Juni Ba

TMNT: Mutant Nation - Ongoing by Tom Waltz and Sophie Campbell

Other stuff was announced, but I really want to focus on the in-canon stories. The IDW line has been chugging along since 2011 and it contains some of the best portrayals of many TMNT characters and possibly the strongest Turtles story ever. When Jason Aaron's reboot was announced as a soft reboot incorporated into the existing story, it was both exciting and troubling.

He's a big name (or so I'm told), so giving him an already-established world in which to play, doesn't seem ideal. For example, he's continuing a story with a dead Splinter and a post-good guy Shredder redemption arc. Krang is dead, Chrell is dead, Rat King is 'dead', Bishop is dead, and most of the TMNT rogues gallery is not in a soft-reboot-friendly place.

Of course, the world of comics always finds a way to resurrect or retcon characters when needed, but is Jason Aaron willing to jump through the hoops needed to make an unlikely character return digestible, or will we get a "somehow Palpatine returned" situation? I love the IDW continuity and I'm excited it persists; I just hope the creative team properly respects the tales that came before it.

IDW's tactic here feels like a grand "let's meet in the middle" compromise. I don't know the numbers, but the way I understand it, IDW was happy with the sales performance of the Sophie Campbell Mutant Town/Reborn Era stuff. That's evidenced by them immediately signing her up as a writer on Mutant Nation. Many older fans either didn't like her run or felt alienated by it. Despite issues 101-150 being polarizing, apparently, someone has been buying them.

It looks like IDW sees this new 3-Ongoings setup as a way to keep the success of the current run by shifting those readers over to Mutant Nation and pitching Jason Aaron's reboot as a way to ensnare new and older readers. This has the potential to be a real 'have your cake and eat it too' situation.

The only wild card I see here is the Nightwatcher book and depending on who the Nightwatcher is, it could serve very different purposes. IDW is publically keeping the identity of the vigilante Turtle (whose non-canonical origin was 2007's TMNT film) a secret. Fans have 2 prevailing theories, Nightwatcher is Jennika the '5th Turtle' mutated in the books of the original IDW ongoing book, and Nightwatcher is Future Raph a mysterious Raphael who debuted in the 2023 Annual.

Of course, we must mention that it could be any of the four original turtles, but they'll likely be too busy in Aaron's reboot to pull double duty. Vigilantism doesn't seem to be Venus' vibe, but she is a turtle, so she can't be disqualified. Then there is always a chance that Nightwatcher is a Slash clone or a simplified Metalhead, but both are heavy long shots at best.

From Jason Aaron's mouth, we know IDW has 'big plans' for Jennika, and she will not be part of the core team in the reboot. That leaves 3 options I see for Jenni's character:

She gets de-mutated. - Previews for issue 149 suggest that through QNA and Armagon, de-mutation is possible in the IDW universe. (I'd say this outcome is unlikely because of the energy they've put into cultivating her as the '5th turtle'. After spending 5 years building Jenni's audience, it doesn't make sense to turn her human again.)

She is the Nightwatcher - We've already seen her take the role of a peace officer in Mutant Town, so her throwing on a suit of armor and becoming BatTurtle isn't too far-fetched. (With Jenni being the lead in the Nightwatcher book, she would bring her own audience and backstory to an otherwise mostly blank slate of a character. It's not a bad call.)

She is the lead character in Mutant Nation - We know Jenni can lead a book, and we know Campbell and Waltz are comfortable writing for her. (The various creative teams could tell countless stories of Jennika fighting for mutant-kind in-universe and never have her interact with the Core-4, outside of carefully timed event series.)

As cool as Future Raph would be as the Nightwatcher, they would need to do a lot to earn whatever story they tell. Basing a brand new ongoing on a mostly unexplained character seems riskier than most of IDW's typical tactics. If Future Raph does end up being the Nightwatcher that leaves options 1 and 3 on the table for Jenni's character. One point in favor of him being the Nightwatcher is that he was recently introduced and his story was left WIDE-OPEN. Obviously, the writers want to do something with him.

I'm about 50/50 right now on who I think the Nightwatcher is between Jennika and Future Raph. Assuming the character stays in NYC, I guess it just depends on which of the two Jason Aaron wants his rebooted TMNT to interact with the most.

As for Mutant Nation, there is a laundry list of characters that could lead the book. Everyone from Alopex to Leatherhead to Bebop and Rocksteady to Venus. My money is on a Mutanimal-like team of freedom fighters. This means Sally, Hob, Mondo, Herman, Ray and others from that team will likely play a big part in the story. With Campbell involved, the various townsfolk of Mutant Town will definitely show up, but the bigger question comes from the de-mutation reveal in the preview for issue 149.

With a huge population of mutants not wanting to be mutants and there being a way to become human again, does this become a central plot point of Mutant Nation? What will become of Lita (Pictured Above)? She was supposed to become a Timestress with Renet. Does her de-mutation change that? Is it permanent? So many unanswered questions and so much still to announce.

It has been a long time since the future of TMNT comics was this exciting and as the kids say, 'I'm here for it'.

Edit: As of 4/24 IDW issue #150 has been published, effectively ending the story of Volume 1. Now that it has concluded there's a mysterious wild card when it comes to what turtle could be the Nightwatcher. In #150 Donatello had created 3 clone children using QNA, and one of those looked to have the same build as the promo images of the upcoming Nightwatcher. That character survived the finale so, I guess you can add that to the long-shot odds.

#tmnt #tmntidw #teenagemutantninjaturtles #teenage mutant ninja turtles comics #tmnt comics #idw comics #tmnt40th #tmnt mutantnation #tmnt nightwatcher

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gojekclonebytesflow · 6 months ago

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A Comprehensive Guide to Launching Your Own Gojek Clone

In today's fast-paced digital world, super apps like Gojek have revolutionized the way we access multiple services through a single platform. Gojek’s success has inspired many entrepreneurs to create similar all-in-one apps, leading to the rise of Gojek clones. If you're looking to launch your own Gojek clone, this guide will walk you through the essential steps to get started.

Understanding the Gojek Clone Concept

A Gojek clone is essentially a multi-service application that combines various services such as ride-hailing, food delivery, grocery delivery, and more into one platform. The concept leverages the convenience and efficiency of having multiple services accessible from a single app, which significantly enhances the user experience and operational efficiency.

Key Features of a Gojek Clone

To successfully launch a Gojek clone, it’s crucial to understand the key features that make these apps attractive to users. Here are some must-have features:

1. Multi-Services Integration

Your Gojek clone should offer a wide range of services such as ride-hailing, food delivery, grocery delivery, courier services, and more. Integrating multiple services in one platform is the core value proposition of a Gojek clone.

2. User-Friendly Interface

An intuitive and easy-to-navigate user interface is vital. Users should be able to access and use the services effortlessly.

3. Real-Time Tracking

Real-time tracking for deliveries and ride-hailing services enhances transparency and trust among users.

4. Secure Payment Gateway

Ensure that your app supports multiple payment options, including credit/debit cards, digital wallets, and cash on delivery, with robust security measures to protect user data.

5. Ratings and Reviews

Incorporate a system for users to rate and review services. This feedback loop helps maintain service quality and user satisfaction.

Steps to Launching Your Gojek Clone

1. Market Research and Planning

Before diving into development, conduct thorough market research. Identify your target audience, analyze competitors, and understand the demand for various services in your region. This will help you tailor your Gojek clone to meet market needs effectively.

2. Choose a Reliable Gojek Clone Script

Selecting the right Gojek clone script is critical to your app’s success. Look for a script that is customizable, scalable, and comes with essential features pre-built. Ensure the script provider offers post-launch support and updates.

3. Customize Your App

Customize the clone script to reflect your brand identity. This includes app design, color schemes, logos, and service offerings. Personalization helps differentiate your app from competitors and builds brand recognition.

4. Development and Testing

Work with a skilled development team to build your app. Rigorous testing is essential to ensure the app functions smoothly across different devices and operating systems. Test for bugs, user experience issues, and performance bottlenecks.

5. Launch and Marketing

Once your app is ready, plan a strategic launch. Use digital marketing techniques such as social media marketing, influencer partnerships, and online ads to create buzz around your app. Offering promotional discounts and referral bonuses can attract initial users.

6. Continuous Improvement

Post-launch, continuously gather user feedback and analyze app performance. Regular updates and new feature additions based on user needs and technological advancements will keep your app relevant and engaging.

Conclusion:

Launching a Gojek clone is an exciting venture that can tap into the growing demand for multi-service platforms. To ensure success, you need a reliable partner who can provide a robust and customizable Gojek clone script. Bytesflow Technologies stands out as the best choice for this. With their expertise in developing multi-service apps, comprehensive post-launch support, and commitment to quality, Bytesflow Technologies ensures your Gojek clone not only meets but exceeds market expectations. Trust Bytesflow Technologies to bring your vision to life and lead your venture to success.

By following this comprehensive guide and partnering with Bytesflow Technologies, you're well on your way to launching a successful Gojek clone and making a mark in the booming super app industry.

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stormikitty · 3 years ago

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A conversation from the Batpham discord:

this au’s been done before but… danny phantom au where halfas have to die somehow to transform

they regrow a new human body so there’s just danny corpses everywhere

Bonus: dc crossover where people keep finding Danny Fenton dead when he’s obviously still alive

Just leave the corpse there. It's better not to ask

Sam and Tucker have to help him dig a hole

Lol freeze the bodies n dump them in the ocean when in gotham. They start fishing up his bodies and at first mr.freeze to blame but then it appears to be same kid.

Bruce thinking its clones of robin. Lol mixing twin au into this

the bats run into this kid that looks nearly identical to Robin dragging a corpse that also looks nearly identical to Robin through the streets

does Danny just…generate new clothes for his bodies?

I imagine he does but if has anything in his pockets he has to fish it out of his corpse’s pockets

Danny actively robbing his own corpses because he left his keys on one of them

I find it more funny if he has to strip his corpse clothes n all. So he has to becareful not to die too bloody

Danny, out of options and cornered by the bats who spotted him dragging his nearly-naked corpse through Gotham: well there’s only one way I’m getting out of this snaps own neck and turns into phantom, who flies away invisibly

The bats keep running into Robin clones who keep casually killing themselves and it’s a whole conspiracy, because they’re all wearing the same slightly blood-splattered outfit and clothes keep going missing off the corpses, plus the whole casual death thing

If he forgets something on him does he have to go grave robbing for it

Amg imagine danny drops his wallet is how they find out danny's identity like in a hurry to grab clothes n flee

Its not a liscense or anything but a gift card to nasty burger with his name on it

Danny’s wallet contains that nasty burger gift card, three dollars and four cents, a bunch of bandaids hurriedly shoved in and a monopoly get out of jail free card he uses exclusively on walker

Walker hates that card b/c somehow it's binding

Ghost zone dollar mixed in

Danny's like "aw man I forgot my wallet ... Wait I forgot my wallet"

Danny gets found by the bats them tossing back his wallet

the bats just going “damn, you live like this?” and putting a couple hundred in his wallet

Danny like "wait? Where's my get out of jail free card?!"

Jason begrudgingly handing back the card after everyone looks at him

They add money too it XD

Danny: you don’t understand I need my get out of jail free card to get out of jail

Walker is slowly approaching from the distance

"when did a wimp like you start going to jail?"

"Well, you see, it all started when I was 14..."

walker “FINALLY MY OPPORTUNITY”

Becomes a jailbreak

The leaving behind corpse au but Danny just dump them down the sewer and Killer Croc has to contact Batman bc he's very concern abt the littering of human bodies

At first it's like Oh hey free food

But then the Free Food just piling up

One after another

And it's all the same damn corpse everytime

"This is no longer favourite food."

"Batman, there's the same goddamn corpse piling up in my sewers. It's concerning."

Killer Croc goes around asking other rogues if they have been dumping the body

He has to give some to Ivy for her plant

free food that already tastes like weird burnt meat.

Bruce starts the Danny Fenton Memorial Graveyard

where all the graves are just Danny

(It all becomes Danno on the 3rd of April. Everyone is afraid.)

Danny dumps them down that one hole one time, and when he gets back the body disappear, so he just keep doing it

he can't even tell who it is, the face matches a "Daniel Fenton" but the kid is very much alive (supposedly) so batman looks into his medical records, finds a weird electrical accident that looks weird, and stakes out his day to day life for a few weeks but the only thing that's evident is that this kids sense of schedule is sporadic and he'd be batman's hardest follow if danny were losing him on purpose but clearly he isn't.

....what would happen if Ra's got his hands on a Danny corpse

He probably wouldn't find anything that'd interest him

Cause ya know, it's just a corpse

If he finds several of them tho

Killer Croc: I do not control the speed at which the body got dump into my sewer

Batman thinks someone took his DNA for cloning experimentation at some point and that's why.

Except the DNA from the bodies doesn't show any signs of cloning, and in fact, present themselves as the origianl, all of them, they're all identical and the original body.

Batman's gonna eat his cape this case makes no fucking sense

what if he brought danny-body to life only for it to be like:

- body is unstable and unresponsive and melts into goo resembling the Lazarus pit

- turns the body into a controllable mindless undead zombie

- danny get's double vision like he's using a poorly constructed duplicate or something

Danny zombies....

Ra's: observe my new indestructible undead hoard

Phantom, standing next to the league: bro what the fuck???

Phantom, in ghost speak: "I did not give you permission to do that."

Phantom, in ghost speak: b̶r̷o̵ ̷w̷h̸a̶t̵ ̶t̸h̴e̶ ̸f̸u̷c̴l̷?̶?̵?̴

The Danno Undead Army just takes one look at Phantom and start angrily walking towards him

screaming undead noises

and he's like

"I'm sorry I didn't give you guys proper burial I didn't have time!"

Nono, Phantom counteracts with the original Danno. He is superior. Now he controls the Danno army.

Phantom: sorry but uhh No, i'll be confiscating those, they're part of my domain

Ra's: what? but I made them undead

Phantom: they were already undead before you messed with them.

Ra's: ... what do you mean they were already undead? they were just dead!

Phantom: nah, see, they were the dead remains of what was already undead. they're the dead-undead.

Ra's: ... and you know their origin?

---(all eyes turn to danny)---

Phantom: ..... yeah, and i've been trying to fix it but other ghosts in gotham kept inturrupting me from doing that.

Batman: why do they all match a "Daniel Fenton"?

Phantom: don't worry about that

Batman: If you want, I could give them a proper burial ground.

Phantom: I would like that very much...

all the dannos approve

"Welcome to the Danny Fenton Memorial Graveyard, solely for all your Danno needs."

--- the Phandom post april 3rd; aka the "alright gang, that's a wrap" project.

Sometimes, space and time warps around there, but, you know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

"Disclaimer: This Graveyard has no affiliations to the Fenton parents,"

god if ectoplasm has anti-bacteria properties and instead of decomposing he just shrink like a mummy

literal walking stick

The graveyard could expand for Dani bodies if she does the same thing here

Vlad's is not allowed ever

Vlad gets no such niceties

he has a whole castle and is rich

he could do that himself

danny finds a secret hallway with two rolls of coffin, all of them have Vlad in it

they're in the vampire position

Count Vladcula

the movie

This is all copied and pasted from a conversation on the crack channel of the Batpham discord.

Here's some doodles by @crispywonderlandwombat

#danny phantom x dc #batfam #bruce wayne #danny phantom #dp x dc #yes #danny-danno corpse crack

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ashintheairlikesnow · 3 years ago

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Any Questions?

For @whumptober2021 day 10, I chose alternate prompt 14: Battlefield

CW: BBU, Whumper POV, referenced torture, referenced pet whump, recorded past torture & some ableism

Follow-up to I Did Not Sign Up For This and part 2 of the opening salvo of Speak Out.

Michael belongs to @card-games-and-pain

Her phone rings, and Karen frowns at the number. The CEO never calls her at home, at least not on her days off.

She glances up at the clock - middle of the afternoon on a Saturday, no special time really - and then picks up the slim black rectangle, swiping her thumb up, placing the screen against her ear.

“This is Karen Renford-” His first sentence has her back straighten and her heart skips a beat.“Sir? What do you mean-”

He cuts her off again. Karen is up and out of her seat by the time he’s spoken two full sentences, heading for her home office door, past the broken cane she’s hung on the wall.

By his third sentence, she’s halfway down the stairs, running even, her breath caught in her throat. There’s an unfamiliar feeling setting her pulse to thrumming, a hummingbird’s wingbeat trapped in her wrists, her throat, behind her ribs.

She hears Peter’s bedroom door open. “Madam?”

She ignores him. His footsteps - and Michael’s - are soft behind her on the stairs as she makes it to the landing, glancing to the side. Sebastian is in the kitchen working on a complicated marinade for tomorrow’s dinner, and he doesn’t look up from his focus on his work.

She catches sight of the top of Dex’s head. He’s lying on the couch, taking a break. He needs them more and more, as his body shows the effects of his two decades with her. For some reason, lately, she’s been allowing it.

Maybe she’s getting soft in her old age.

“Dex, turn on the news,” She says quickly, and he shifts into immediate motion, sitting up and nodding, picking up the remote. None of his motions are fast enough and the CEO is still shouting in her ear.

“Dex, channel five! Now!”

His hands shake at the tone in her voice, but he manages to obey. The screen flickers on.

“-proof that WRU lies,” A youngish man in his thirties is saying, staring directly into the screen. He smiles, wide blue eyes in a pretty face, black curls in a sort of artful disarray around his head. Karen vaguely recognizes him, but can’t quite remember why.

He stands next to a redhead who also seems familiar somehow, and there are athletes sitting at a long table on either side of him, still wearing their nation’s colors, holding photographs. Karen’s eyes scan the photos in their hands and the strange, unpleasant feeling within her intensifies.

She can’t identify it. It’s like disgust, or repulsion, but somehow entirely different than either of those feelings.

Her heart feels like it’s racing within her, her normally calm pulse a hummingbird’s vibration. Karen finds her breath catching, hitching, and when she looks down her hands are shaking.

What is this?

The black-haired man pauses, and his identity clicks into place - Owen Grant’s missing pet, the Vincent Shield clone who has been gone for… what, nearly ten years now? Has it been so long?

The young man pauses, tilting his head to the side. “My name was Liam Harker,” He says, taking a deep breath. He is holding tightly to the hand of the redhead next to him. “My name was Liam Harker, and I did not sign up for this.”

There is a sudden roar from the journalists at the press conference, shouting questions rapid-fire, gasps of shock, indignation.

Dex, sitting next to her, claps his hands together three times, so loudly Karen jumps.

She never jumps.

Peter, Michael, and Sebastian run into the room, standing just behind Karen’s pristine white couch, staring wide-eyed at the screen as the chyron along the bottom of the press conference reads ‘WRU LIES’... PET LIBERATION INTERRUPTS 20XX SUMMER OLYMPICS… AKIO NAKAMURA CALLS SURPRISE PRESS CONFERENCE TO REVEAL UNTOLD SECRETS OF CORPORATE GIANT WRU…

“What the fuck is going on, Karen?!” Timothy Rahm is shouting but his voice seems oddly tinny and far away, as if her phone isn’t against her ear but maybe all the way across the room. Karen’s mouth opens, but she can’t think of an answer. “I thought we sponsored the goddamn Olympics teams!”

“We… we do, Tim,” Karen says, her mind racing. She sees a total lack of reaction on Dex’s face, and Sebastian’s - and terror on Peter’s. Poor sweet dim Peter, who knows only that something has happened that is terribly wrong, and is likely too stupid to understand what.

Karen ignores that she herself doesn’t quite understand yet either.

She also ignores that Michael’s expression has nothing to do with fear and is instead one of barely contained glee.

The redhead steps back up to the podium, his long fingers closing on either side to hold himself up. He looks scared in a way the other man didn’t. He waits while the uproar begins, slowly, to die down. Reporters start to go quiet, one by one. The gymnast beside him - Akio Nakamura, it must be, he was favored to win the gold and sure enough, he’s wearing his gold medal right now - leans against him and gives him a nudge.

Karen can tell he’s mouthing, or saying, you can do this.

The redhead’s voice shakes much harder when he speaks than the other’s did. “I, I, I didn’t sign up, either. I’m, um. I was… I was, was, was just… I was s-sixteen when my, when, when my aunt told them to to to to-to take me.”

Karen’s eyes close, slowly, but then she forces them open again. She can’t not watch this.

On the screen behind him, the image shifts to a photo of the redhead much younger, smiling, in a professional gymnastics uniform. Next to him is a woman, clearly his mother, with an arm around his waist, smiling brilliantly. On the other, what must be his father - they’re nearly identical - arm around his shoulders. The father’s eyes are focused somewhere off to the right and he’s not smiling, but there’s a warmth in him nonetheless.

“My parents were-...” The redhead’s voice catches and he looks down, his fingers working at the podium. He looks up again. “Murdered. When, when, when I was, um, fifteen. I went to live with my, my, um, my aunt who w-w-worked-... Aki, I can’t, I I I I can’t, I can’t do th-this-”

Akio Nakamura slides an arm around him and holds tightly, whispering into his ear. There’s a rush of whispering among the reporters, so loud it’s audible through the television screen. A girl holding a photo of a young man looks over, her face gentling, and then she stands, walking around behind the two to the other side of the redhead, laying her hand over his. Next to her, a young man wearing a Canadian uniform takes her hand and stands as well.

Karen’s stomach sinks as, one by one, every single person at the table stands up and holds onto one another. The countries they represent are incredibly varied, and WRU’s activities are not legal in all of them, but they have one thing in common that Karen recognizes immediately:

They are countries where WRU’s Acquisitions teams operate.

The redhead looks up.

“Fucking high-definition television,” Karen whispers. She can see the tear tracks on the redhead’s face. Which means so can anyone else watching, nationwide. “Tim, call in the PR people.”

“I’ve already done that-”

“We’re going to need incredible reputation management, Tim.”

“I realize that, Karen.”

“Someone’s going to need to go to prison. At least ten someones.”

He goes quiet, then. “Couple of handlers?”

“Maybe, let me think, just give me a moment, please, Tim-”

“My aunt,” The redhead says, suddenly, more strongly than he’s been speaking. “My, my aunt sold me. To WRU. I was, um. I was seventeen. She sold me on my birthday.”

The image behind him shifts again. Same boy, a little later, in a WRU intake video, sitting at a table. There’s no sound, but she can read what’s happening well enough. In fact… she’s in the video.

Karen stares at herself - she’d never liked that haircut - and exhales. The source of her pounding heart, the shakiness in her limbs, becomes suddenly clear to her. She’s so rarely felt it that she didn’t recognize the emotion at first.

She’s afraid.

The boy on the screen is asking a question. The handler behind him grabs him by the scruff of the neck like a dog and shakes him violently. Says something. The boy cringes away, his hands moving up onto the table in the room. His fingers move, some kind of rhythm. The handler takes out a black stick and smacks hard into them.

Even though she can’t hear the sound, Karen knows exactly what that cry of pain showing on the boy’s face must sound like.

There’s another ripple of sound through the reporters. A sudden burst of clicks.

The redhead swallows so heavily Karen can see his Adam's apple move. “I was seventeen. I, I, I’m, um, my, my aunt had custody of me. It was my-... she, um. She drugged… me. On my birthday. And sold me to, um, to to WRU. I was seventeen. I was scared. They, they, they locked me up alone for, for… I don’t… I can’t, um, remember exactly how long, but no one-... talked to me, no one would, I asked for her, for my aunt, for… anyone. And, and, and then… then Governor Oliver Branch came to-... to see me.”

The image changes again. It’s security camera footage from one of the training rooms, and shows the same boy being restrained, his arms locked into cuffs above his head, thrashing and screaming on his back on a padded table.

A door opens, and the late Governor of their state steps inside, caught clearly on camera. Clear, recognizable, undeniable. And there’s Karen alongside him, letting him in. Gesturing to the sobbing, screaming boy with a smile.

Yes, Karen thinks as she watches. This feeling is definitely fear.

“I think we’re going to have to go further than a couple of handlers,” She murmurs.

“I should fucking say so,” Timothy snaps. “How the hell did anyone get a hold of this footage, Karen?! I thought our networks were totally encrypted!”

“They-... they are. We need to speak to IT-”

“We need to speak to everyone!”

Another photo of the younger version of the redhead, wearing a soft blue collar and matching sweater, sitting on an enormous bed with dark covers and sheets. He gives a faint, trembling smile to whoever is holding the camera.

Then another photo, later, the boy curled up against a woman with a brown braid that Karen also knows, only this one she doesn’t have to stretch to remember.

“Who is that? I know that woman,” Timothy says in her ear. “Who is in that photo-”

“Natalie Yoder,” Karen says, quietly.

“... why do I know that name?”

“She came up with our slogan. Then she quit and joined the pet lib movement.”

“Is she behind this, Karen? Can we take care of-”

“Not if it’s on live television, we can’t. We can’t pretend it was an accident or a coincidence if we move right now. And I don’t think she’s doing this, I’ve been following that woman for twenty years, this isn’t her style. No…”

Her eyes go to the gymnast, Nakamura, who is smiling encouragingly at the redhead. Karen’s always had good instincts and she trusts them now, as she sees the Nakamura boy look at the others standing behind the table.

“I think we’re looking at outside involvement entirely,” She murmurs, making a note of the Nakamura boy’s face.

“My, my, my name is Christopher Stanton,” The redhead says, leaning forward into the microphone. “But it wasn’t before. My aunt told everyone I, I killed myself, she told my my my friends, my-... she told them I killed myself. But… but I was never dead. I was, was, was always here. I’m… I’m still here.” His jaw works, and he breaks into a hitched sob, swaying back and forth, back and forth.

Unfortunately, he doesn’t start crying enough to stop this little production from going on.

“My name is Christopher Stanton,” He says, loudly, his hands moving to tap on the podium as he stops rocking. “And, and, and it’s Tristan Higgs. I was Tristan Higgs. I’m still here, and I, I, I got my name back, and we can, we, we all can get our names back. They say they take everything away, and… and, and, and they… they lie. WRU lies.”

He steps back, and the girl who has been standing next to him, wearing Iran’s Olympic uniform, steps up to the microphone. The image projected behind them changes to a young man with a serious face and dark, dark eyes, a bit of stubble around his jaw. In the photo, slightly grainy, he sits in front of a fountain, wearing a button-up shirt and loose pants.

The girl speaks with a clipped, controlled ferocity that can’t quite hide the sheer depth of fury in her eyes. “This... is Bijan Ahmari. He went to study at university in Tehran to be a doctor. He has three sisters and a brother, he is studious and creative. He was last seen getting into a taxi outside a restaurant after dinner with friends three years ago.”

The image shifts to what is clearly the same young man, slightly later, in the trainee outfit, sitting on an exam table in the WRU clinic, smiling with an expression of charming warmth that doesn’t reach his eyes. He wears a black leather collar that even in photos looks as soft as rabbit fur.

He must be asked something, because his look changes slightly, glancing to the side as if checking for what he’s meant to say, before his mouth moves in the direction of the camera.

“This,” The girl says, her voice going slightly lower but no less strong, “is what Bijan Ahmari looks like now.”

There’s a pause.

“Shit,” Timothy says, voice suddenly flat. “That’s Marcus Dolan’s Romantic.”

“Who?”

“The tech guy. Built that Get Together dating app, sold it for a billion dollars or something.”

“I thought he was married.”

“He is. Officially. That’s still his Romantic. Fuck, how did they-... They’re onto something, Karen.”

“Can we claim we didn’t know?” Karen asks the question in the same flat tone. Her pets are restless, except for Dex’s perfect stillness and fascinated stare at the screen. Peter and Sebastian have moved close to one another. Michael stands behind Peter with his arms around him, resting his chin on the top of Peter’s head. When Sebastian leans against them, they put arms around him in turn.

“We can, but I don’t know how well it’ll play.”

The Canadian steps up next. A girl appears behind him, smiling over her shoulder, with a cascade of blond hair. “This is Jennifer Kelly,” He says, his own voice catching slightly. “She ran away from home when she was sixteen. WRU claims she signed up two years later, but we know better.”

The image changes to the same girl, walking down the street, several years older. Small children hold her hands on either side of her, dressed in private school uniforms, their faces carefully blurred to keep them unrecognizable. If it weren’t for the collar around her neck, she’d look like a nanny.

Then a young woman wearing a South Korean uniform speaks, leaning forward into the microphone. “Park Si-Yoo,” She says, and there’s a photo of a Korean girl at a restaurant with friends, making a peace sign into the camera, all of them smiling brightly and leaning their heads together, steam from the grill set into the table in front of them rising around them. “She was having a very hard time with depression, anxiety. She disappeared at age twenty-one. At first, when the police say they found her body, we believe them.”

The photo changes to a shot of the same girl in training, dull-eyed staring directly into the camera, her hair chopped into a blunt bob. She has the shock collar on.

Her shoulders are hunched, defensively, and she is slightly turned away, as if she had been trying to move back and was forced back into place.

“Now we think the body was a false one.”

One by one, they speak. There are photos of young people, and then photos in training, or shots taken in secret on the street. One by one, and Karen’s sense of fear seems only to grow. There has been resistance, of course, from the very beginning. But this is… this is entirely new.

This is organized, global, this is…

“This could ruin us,” Karen whispers.

Now Akio Nakamura steps up to the podium. On one side, the redhead - on the other, Owen Grant’s pretty runaway.

“A few years ago,” Akio Nakamura says, his voice clear and strong, “my best friend’s parents were murdered. The murderers were never caught or charged. We only know who they were because they were later killed themselves, and the DNA matched. After what happened, my family offered to take Tristan in, but his aunt was given custody and refused to allow us contact.” Akio swallows. He swallows again. “We tried-... maybe we didn’t try hard enough.”

The redhead leans over, leaning his head against Akio’s. Nakamura swallows, hard, steeling himself for the rest.

“She took him out of therapy, she stopped giving him his ADHD medication, she pulled him out of school. When she found out he was complaining to us about it, she took away his phone. And then... then one day, she told us that he ran away. Then, later, that he had killed himself. When Joanne Botham told my mother that Tristan was dead by suicide, he was… he was still alive. Not only was he still alive, he was in her apartment, probably on the other side of a wall, needing just-... just someone to know he was there.”

The Nakamura boy looks over the crowd of reporters, inhaling deeply, exhaling again. He’s trying to stay calm, and Karen wishes he would break down, the little wretch. Lose his ability to do this, to poison a nation against her. “Can you call someone and have them cut the broadcast-”

“I could, but it’s the goddamn Olympics, Karen, if we cut nobody else will. If it bleeds it leads, right?”

And here is WRU’s jugular being slit, on live television, with a silent enraptured audience.

“The ratings,” Karen says heavily, “are going to be spectacular.”

Timothy gives a bitter laugh in response.

“I mourned my best friend for years. And when I was mourning him - when I dropped out of gymnastics, when I dropped out of school for a while, when I… when I dropped everything… he was still alive. But he was living in terror, and pain, and fear. Joanne Botham sold him to WRU for a nice finder’s fee, a good little bonus-”

Behind him, the image projected is now a very familiar bit of paperwork. Karen swallows against the sight of the finder’s fee and bonus paid to employee Joanne Botham, Joanne’s signature… and Karen’s.

“And once they had tortured, and traumatized, and terrorized him into obedience, WRU sold him to Governor Oliver Branch, who kept him tied to his bed or locked in a room or-or under his d-d-desk-” Akio’s voice nearly breaks on the surge of anger. “And WRU knew. They knew and they lied, over and over. And that’s not an exception. It’s the rule. They lie.”

“They tell us we wanted a better life,” Kauri Grant says, leaning over so the mic picks his voice up. “They tell us we asked for it.”

“They tell us,” The Iranian girl says, leaning forward herself, “that our family members did not want their lives any longer, that they handed them over happily. That Bijan had simply decided it was to difficult to be a doctor and chose to be this instead.”

“They tell us it’s a fresh start,” The Canadian says. “That they helped Jennifer get off drugs, and who are we to stop her from living a better life?”

“They tell us that our family, our friends, the people we lose… that they are happier this way,” A German athlete says. “That my friend’s cousin would rather live this way than any other.”

“They, they, they told me…” Tristan leans forward now. “They, they told me I wanted to disappear. But I didn’t. My, my, my aunt wanted me gone. I wanted my, my life. I wanted my life. She took it away from me.”

“I need to make some calls,” Karen says, her mouth barely moving. “We need to call Joanne Botham and get her in.”

“Start with her?”

“Start with her. WRU cooperates every step of the way to get her imprisoned. Then we start working our way through the edges.”

She has to hope Timothy doesn’t decide she needs to go to prison to fix this, too.

Timothy’s voice is low, emotionless now, strategizing. “I need to speak to Marcus and tell him to hide his Romantic and to do it now. I’ll call you back. We’re in the deep shit now, Renford.”

“I can see that.” She hangs up. However, she doesn’t dial any numbers right away. She just stares at the screen. Somehow, she can’t look away.

“WRU will now pretend,” Akio Nakamura says, “that they don’t know about this. It’s an aberration, it’s not normal, it’s not part of their business model. Their executives will say it’s a problem lower-down, not their idea, not something they signed off on. But their own executives know damn well what happens, and when they say they don’t, they’re not just lying to us. They’re lying to all of you. They tell you your children ran away, that they didn’t want to live at home anymore. Sometimes, they tell you that your child is dead.”

A photo pops up on the screen behind him now that has Karen’s eyes widening, her cell phone dropping to thump on the rug beneath her feet.

Dex’s lips move, mouthing a name, and he leans forward. Sebastian gasps.

The photo is of a young teenager with curly brown hair, running down a soccer field in a high school uniform colored dark blue and sky blue, a number across the chest and stomach. A small article from a local newspaper about a Tennessee boy gone missing while walking home from practice. A smiling school photo printed in blurry black and white.

PRESUMED DEAD, FOUL PLAY SUSPECTED.

A photo beneath it of the boy’s family, a woman and man and siblings, holding each other while they weep.

Then... a photo of the same boy in training, covered in bruises, with a black eye and busted lip, shock collar locked around his neck. He stands next to a handler who has a hand laid heavy on the back of his neck. He’s... short.

God, he was always so short.

“That’s me,” Peter whispers, and yet it feels like a scream. “Michael, that’s-... that’s me-”

“I know,” He whispers, just loud enough for Karen to hear. “I know, Petey, I know.” His whisper goes vicious and triumphant. “And now everyone else knows, too.”

“Fuck,” Karen says, and drops to sit on the couch herself.

Her legs won’t hold her up any longer.

“We don’t know what happened to all of the people we’ve gotten this info on,” Akio says, voice flat but strong. “But we’re still working. And we’re going to find them all, and show WRU that they can’t just steal people any longer. They can’t play this game. They can’t keep taking the ones we love away from us, and taking us away from the people we love.”

Akio Nakamura steps fully aside, and now the two runaways stand side by side before the podium again, equally framed. Behind them, the photo shifts to a shot of the two of them as they must be now, in regular clothes, sitting on a ratty old plaid couch and laughing.

“We took our lives back,” Kauri Grant says, voice firm. “We lost so much, and we can’t reclaim all of it, but we took back so much you told us we’d never have again. I learned how to say no.”

“I, I, I learned how to read,” Tristan Higgs says, a little hesitantly. “I went to, um, to college.”

“I learned how to write,” Kauri Grant says. “I write again, like I used to-... I write.”

“I learned how to, to love someone.” Tristan Higgs smiles, shyly.

Kauri looks right at the camera, and Karen gets the feeling he speaks directly to someone. “I learned that I am worth being loved.”

Tristan looks over at Akio Nakamura, and then back. “I got my, my, my best friend back.”

“I make the decisions about my life now.” Kauri smiles, but it’s grim. “And I'm never letting someone else decide who I am, ever again. I know who I am.”

“I, I know who I am, too.” Tristan takes a deep breath. “We learned, um, we learned how to say… how to… how to tell you that we don’t want this. We don’t want them, the, the people who buy us.” His shy smile widens. Karen hates him. “We don’t want you.”

“We don’t want to show you any respect.” Grant’s smile is pure poison now, and Karen wonders if he’s always been so dangerous, and she had been too fooled by the feeling that that pretty head was empty. “And you’re going to discover that this isn’t it. We’re not done.”

“We’re still here,” Tristan Higgs says, so loudly now that there’s a burst of low feedback from the microphone. “We’re not dead. We’re still here and we, we want our lives back. We want all of us to have their lives back. To stop having to hide. To stop, to, to stop running. And we’re not stopping until we, we, we’ve freed us all. We’re still here. You c-can’t… you, you can’t erase us.”

Kauri Grant - Liam Harker - takes Tristan Higgs’s hand, and raises it high.

“This is a war,” Kauri says loudly. “And the pets are finally ready to take WRU down to the foundations.”

Once more, he gives that winning, winsome smile.

“Any questions?”

@burtlederp @finder-of-rings @endless-whump @astrobly @thefancydoughnut @newandfiguringitout @doveotions @pretty-face-breaker @gonna-feel-that-tomorrow @boxboysandotherwhump @oops-its-whump @cubeswhump @whump-tr0pes @downriver914 @whumptywhumpdump @whumpiary @orchidscript @nonsensical-whump @outofangband @eatyourdamnpears @what-a-whump @grizzlie70 @mylifeisonthebookshelf

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sparktober · 3 years ago

Text

Sparktober Bingo 2021!

Back for a new generation: Sparktober Bingo!

Instead of coming up with an Atlantis-specific list of prompts, I compiled a bunch of 2021 -tober prompt lists into one google doc here. (Links to original prompt lists are on the google doc.) Add in a list of Atlantis episodes and...

How to play:

Choose a “flavor” from the prompt sets below the cut, then paste it into this fandom bingo card generator.

Adjust your browser size til it looks right and take a screenshot, or use the html script if you’re familiar with using html on tumblr. Tag @sparktober if you want us to reblog it so everyone knows you’re playing!

Sparktober Bingo Rules:

Complete a row/column, corners, or a blackout of your card by November 1, or not! Update as you go.

All fan-works are allowed: art, edits, fic, meta... bonus points to anyone who picks the “sprinkles” flavor and goes full mid-aughts by filling their bingo cards with 100x100 pixel icons.

You are allowed to pull multiple cards until you get one that inspires you, and you can also go through the prompt list of your choice in advance to pull out squicks or things you absolutely won’t write. I recommend not googling unfamiliar words from your work computer.

Use the prompts liberally! Episode titles can be treated as the episode or as generic prompts (e.g. “Epiphany” can be for an episode-related fic or a prompt for an epiphany of your choice).

Flavor descriptions:

VANILLA: Gen prompt lists from Fictober, Inktober, Trektober Gen, and Trektober Trek.

CHOCOLATE: Zesty prompt lists from Trektober NSFW, Kinktober, and Whumptober. The multiple-prompts-per-day from Kinktober and Whumptober have been broken into individual prompts.

CANDY CORN: Fall / holiday themed prompts from TUA-tober.

SPRINKLES: Atlantis episode list (in order, in case you only want to copy certain seasons), along with characters and a few Atlantis-specific prompts.

TWIST: All of the above! (You can also manually mix and match different flavors, of course.)

Text blocks to copy into the bingo card generator are below the cut. Enjoy!!

VANILLA

CHOCOLATE

A/B/O; Soft; Anonymous Sex; Penetration with Object/s; Sleeping; Intercrural Sex; Restraints; In/Under Water; Group Sex; First Time; Possessive Behavior; Dry Humping / Grinding; Overstimulation; Roleplay; Rimming; Stretching / Fisting; Power Imbalance; Food Play; Fingering; Body Worship; Sex Work; Voyeurism / Exhibitionism; Safewords; Technology; Oral Sex; Omorashi / Wetting; Crying; Underwear / Lingerie; Friends with Benefits; Pain Kink; Dirty Talk; Trick or Treat; All trussed up and nowhere to go; Talking is overrated; Sticks and stones may break my bones...; Trust fall; I've got red in my ledger; Touch and go; My spidey-sense is tingling; Coughing up a lung; Rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated; Oops, I did it again; Just keep swimming; It'll be fun, they said; That's gonna leave a mark; Under pressure; Feed a cold, starve a fever; On a need-to-know basis; Field care 101; The doctor is in; Just a scratch; Lost & found; That's where the blood's supposed to be; They made me do it; You break it, you buy it; One down, two to go; Hide & Seek; You will go down with this ship; “I'm fine, I prom...”; It's (not) just in your head; All work and no play; Digging your grave; Hurt & Comfort; “You have to let go.”; Garotte; Taunting; “Do you trust me?”; Betrayal; Bruises; Helplessness; Pneumothorax; Presumed Dead; Hospital; Adrift; Torture; “This is gonna suck.”; Crush injuries; Delirium; Recovery; “Please don't move.”; “Now smile for the camera.”; Bitten; Trunk; Bleeding through bandages; Cursed; Auction; Self-induced injuries to escape; Escape; Fallen; Passing out; “Good, you're finally awake.”; “You're still not dead?”; Major character death; Disaster zone; Barbed Wire; Choking; Insults; Taken Hostage; Misunderstanding; Touch Starved; Numbness; Exotic Illness; (Blind) Rage; Flare-Up; Drowning; Made To Watch; Burns; Beaten; Fever Dreams; Scars; Hemorrhage; Doctor Visit; Bleeding; Trapped Under Water; Pressure; Demon; Ransom; Flashback; Flight; Waterfall; Vertigo; Nightmares; Too Weak To Move; Left For Dead; Trauma; Bound; Gagged; “Who Did This To You?”; Pushed; Broken Nose; Hunger; Blindness; “Definitely Just A Cold”; Tears; Ice Chips; Dehydration; Begging; Cauterization; Force; Bees; Aftermath; Dread; Cpr; Stabbing; Solitary Confinement; Blood-Matted Hair; Obsession; Pursuit; Revenge; Hiding; Trap Door; Collapse; Panic; Overworked; Ghosts; Prisoner; Losing Control; Threats; Caning; Mercy; Forgotten; Head Injury; Screaming; Comfort; Self-Sacrifice; Trapped; Near-Death Experience; Regret; Tragedy; Battlefield; Anxiety; Gore; Petplay; Bimbofication; Panties & Lingerie; Bondage; Double Penetration in 2 Holes; Breeding; Humiliation; NTR; Incest; Emeto; Omorashi; Free Use; Crossdressing; Public; Three (or more) some; Daddy & Mommy; Double Penetration in 1 Hole; Distention & Cockbulge; Xenophilia; Shotgunning; Watersports; Pregnancy; Lactation; Waxplay; Grooming; Human Furniture; Feet; Prostituion; MacroMicro; Spanking; Cockwarming; Glory Hole; Somnophilia; Body Modification; Temperature Play; Leather; Size Difference; Sounding; Stockings; Tentacles; Medical Play; Stripping; Orgasm Denial; Master & slave; Scissoring; Titfucking; Frottage; Knifeplay; Formal Wear; Breathplay; Fisting; Pegging; Scat; Beastiality; Fucking Machine; Tickling; Boot Worship; Bukkake; Collaring; Foodplay; Non or dubcon; Feederism; Sensory Deprivation; Oviposition; Clone & Selfcest; Exhibitionism & Voyeurism; Impact Play; Sadomasochism; Bloodplay; Praise Kink; Body Swap; Sweat; Branding; Massage; Role Reversal; Armpit; Masturbation; Inflation; Sex Toys; Burnplay; Menophilia; Stuck in Wall; Deepthroating & Facesitting; Dacryphilia; Hate Sex

CANDY CORN

Birthday; Sick Day; Autumn; Candles; Plaid / Flannel; Leaf Piles; Sweaters; Baking; Cinnamon; Pumpkin Spice Latte; Carnival; Movie Night; Candy; Graveyard; Black Cats; Goosebumps; Pumpkin; Party; Monster; Ghosts; Witch; Vampire; Traditions; Magic; Mask; Haunted House; Trick; Treat; Costume; Monster Mash; Halloween

SPRINKLES

Rising Part 1; Rising Part 2; Hide and Seek; Thirty-Eight Minutes; Suspicion; Childhood's End; Poisoning the Well; Underground; Home; The Storm; The Eye; The Defiant One; Hot Zone; Sanctuary; Before I Sleep; The Brotherhood; Letters from Pegasus; The Gift; The Siege Part 1; The Siege Part 2; The Siege Part 3; The Intruder; Runner; Duet; Condemned; Trinity; Instinct; Conversion; Aurora; The Lost Boys; The Hive; Epiphany; Critical Mass; Grace Under Pressure; The Tower; The Long Goodbye; Coup d'Etat; Michael; Inferno; Allies; No Man's Land; Misbegotten; Irresistible; Sateda; Progeny; The Real World; Common Ground; McKay and Mrs. Miller; Phantoms; The Return Part 1; The Return Part 2; Echoes; Irresponsible; Tao of Rodney; The Game; The Ark; Sunday; Submersion; Vengeance; First Strike; Adrift; Lifeline; Reunion; Doppelganger; Travelers; Tabula Rasa; Missing; The Seer; Miller's Crossing; This Mortal Coil; Be All My Sins Remember'd; Spoils of War; Quarantine; Harmony; Outcast; Trio; Midway; The Kindred Part 1; The Kindred Part 2; The Last Man; Search and Rescue; The Seed; Broken Ties; The Daedalus Variations; Ghost in the Machine; The Shrine; Whispers; The Queen; Tracker; First Contact; The Lost Tribe; Outsiders; Inquisition; The Prodigal; Remnants; Brain Storm; Infection; Identity; Vegas; Enemy at the Gate; Ronon Dex; Teyla Emmagan; John Sheppard; Carson Beckett; Elizabeth Weir; Rodney McKay; Jennifer Keller; Samantha Carter; Aiden Ford; Radek Zelenka; Kate Heightmeyer; Evan Lorne; Laura Cadman; Kolya; Chuck; Peter Grodin; Steven Caldwell; Lantea; Ocean; Ancient(s); Richard Woolsey; Athosians; Daedalus; Wraith; Nanites; Asurans; Genii; DHD; SGC; Stargate; Earth; Antarctica; Ascension

TWIST

“I need you.”; “You have no proof.”; “I’ve waited for this.”; “Fine, I give up.”; “I’m not saying I told you so…”; “Didn’t we already have this conversation?”; “That could have gone better.”; “This is it, isn’t it?”; “There’s no right side to this.”; “It’s so quiet.”; “I swear, it’s not always like this.”; “You keep me safe.”; “The things you make me do…”; “Your information was wrong.”; “I like that in you.”; “Not this again.”; “I’m with you, you know that.”; “This was not part of the plan.”; “I feel strange.”; “That’s what I’m known for.”; “What did I say?”; “No promises.”; “This time, do what I say.”; “Is this supposed to impress me?”; “Do you know what time it is?”; “I’m sure this has never worked, ever.”; “You could have died!”; “I don’t have to explain myself.”; “Why are we whispering?”; “Don’t ruin this.”; “Take me with you.”; Crystal; Suit; Vessel; Knot; Raven; Spirit; Fan; Watch; Pressure; Pick; Sour; Stuck; Roof; Tick; Helmet; Compass; Collide; Moon; Loop; Sprout; Fuzzy; Open; Leak; Extinct; Splat; Connect; Spark; Crispy; Patch; Slither; Risk; Meet-Cute; Amnesia; Age Difference; Pining; Sick Fic; Fake Relationship; Accidental Meeting; Epistolary; Secret Identity; Historical AU; Nightmares; Monster Hunter; A/B/O; Reunion; Soulmates; At Pride; Angst; Seasons; Fix-It; Coffee Shop; Movie Plot AU; Kid Fic; Actor's Other Crossover Work; OT+; Getting Together; Only One Bed; Pirates; Making Up; Forbidden Relationship; Tattoos; Halloween; Prime Directive; Lower Decks / Background Characters; Away Mission; Ship's Bar; Aliens Made Them Do It; Observation Deck; Crew with Family; Holodeck; Science Crew; Character Survives; Headcanons; Diplomacy; Decontamination; Trek Crossover; Replicator; Worldbuilding; Redshirts; Sex / Love Potion; Medical Crew; Transporters; Medbay; Interspecies Relationship; Mirrorverse; Uniforms; Mutiny; Stranded on a Planet; Rec Room; Academy Era; Second Contact; Command Crew; Off-Duty; Soft; Anonymous Sex; Penetration with Object/s; Sleeping; Intercrural Sex; Restraints; In/Under Water; Group Sex; First Time; Possessive Behavior; Dry Humping / Grinding; Overstimulation; Roleplay; Rimming; Stretching / Fisting; Power Imbalance; Food Play; Fingering; Body Worship; Sex Work; Voyeurism / Exhibitionism; Safewords; Technology; Oral Sex; Omorashi / Wetting; Crying; Underwear / Lingerie; Friends with Benefits; Pain Kink; Dirty Talk; Trick or Treat; All trussed up and nowhere to go; Talking is overrated; Sticks and stones may break my bones...; Trust fall; I've got red in my ledger; Touch and go; My spidey-sense is tingling; Coughing up a lung; Rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated; Oops, I did it again; Just keep swimming; It'll be fun, they said; That's gonna leave a mark; Under pressure; Feed a cold, starve a fever; On a need-to-know basis; Field care 101; The doctor is in; Just a scratch; Lost & found; That's where the blood's supposed to be; They made me do it; You break it, you buy it; One down, two to go; You will go down with this ship; “I'm fine, I prom...”; It's (not) just in your head; All work and no play; Digging your grave; Hurt & Comfort; “You have to let go.”; Garotte; Taunting; “Do you trust me?”; Betrayal; Bruises; Helplessness; Pneumothorax; Presumed Dead; Hospital; Adrift; Torture; “This is gonna suck.”; Crush injuries; Delirium; Recovery; “Please don't move.”; “Now smile for the camera.”; Bitten; Trunk; Bleeding through bandages; Cursed; Auction; Self-induced injuries to escape; Escape; Fallen; Passing out; “Good, you're finally awake.”; “You're still not dead?”; Major character death; Disaster zone; Barbed Wire; Choking; Insults; Taken Hostage; Misunderstanding; Touch Starved; Numbness; Exotic Illness; (Blind) Rage; Flare-Up; Drowning; Made To Watch; Burns; Beaten; Fever Dreams; Scars; Hemorrhage; Doctor Visit; Bleeding; Trapped Under Water; Demon; Ransom; Flashback; Flight; Waterfall; Vertigo; Too Weak To Move; Left For Dead; Trauma; Bound; Gagged; “Who Did This To You?”; Pushed; Broken Nose; Hunger; Blindness; “Definitely Just A Cold”; Tears; Ice Chips; Dehydration; Begging; Cauterization; Force; Bees; Aftermath; Dread; Cpr; Stabbing; Solitary Confinement; Blood-Matted Hair; Obsession; Pursuit; Revenge; Hiding; Trap Door; Collapse; Panic; Overworked; Ghosts; Prisoner; Losing Control; Threats; Caning; Mercy; Forgotten; Head Injury; Screaming; Comfort; Self-Sacrifice; Trapped; Near-Death Experience; Regret; Tragedy; Battlefield; Anxiety; Gore; Petplay; Bimbofication; Panties & Lingerie; Bondage; Double Penetration in 2 Holes; Breeding; Humiliation; NTR; Incest; Emeto; Omorashi; Free Use; Crossdressing; Public; Three (or more) some; Daddy & Mommy; Double Penetration in 1 Hole; Distention & Cockbulge; Xenophilia; Shotgunning; Watersports; Pregnancy; Lactation; Waxplay; Grooming; Human Furniture; Feet; Prostituion; MacroMicro; Spanking; Cockwarming; Glory Hole; Somnophilia; Body Modification; Temperature Play; Leather; Size Difference; Sounding; Stockings; Tentacles; Medical Play; Stripping; Orgasm Denial; Master & slave; Scissoring; Titfucking; Frottage; Knifeplay; Formal Wear; Breathplay; Fisting; Pegging; Scat; Beastiality; Fucking Machine; Tickling; Boot Worship; Bukkake; Collaring; Foodplay; Non or dubcon; Feederism; Sensory Deprivation; Oviposition; Clone & Selfcest; Exhibitionism & Voyeurism; Impact Play; Sadomasochism; Bloodplay; Praise Kink; Body Swap; Sweat; Branding; Massage; Role Reversal; Armpit; Masturbation; Inflation; Sex Toys; Burnplay; Menophilia; Stuck in Wall; Deepthroating & Facesitting; Dacryphilia; Hate Sex; Birthday; Sick Day; Autumn; Candles; Plaid / Flannel; Leaf Piles; Sweaters; Baking; Cinnamon; Pumpkin Spice Latte; Carnival; Movie Night; Candy; Graveyard; Black Cats; Goosebumps; Pumpkin; Party; Monster; Witch; Vampire; Traditions; Magic; Mask; Haunted House; Trick; Treat; Costume; Monster Mash; Rising Part 1; Rising Part 2; Hide and Seek; Thirty-Eight Minutes; Suspicion; Childhood's End; Poisoning the Well; Underground; Home; The Storm; The Eye; The Defiant One; Hot Zone; Sanctuary; Before I Sleep; The Brotherhood; Letters from Pegasus; The Gift; The Siege Part 1; The Siege Part 2; The Siege Part 3; The Intruder; Runner; Duet; Condemned; Trinity; Instinct; Conversion; Aurora; The Lost Boys; The Hive; Epiphany; Critical Mass; Grace Under Pressure; The Tower; The Long Goodbye; Coup d'Etat; Michael; Inferno; Allies; No Man's Land; Misbegotten; Irresistible; Sateda; Progeny; The Real World; Common Ground; McKay and Mrs. Miller; Phantoms; The Return Part 1; The Return Part 2; Echoes; Irresponsible; Tao of Rodney; The Game; The Ark; Sunday; Submersion; Vengeance; First Strike; Lifeline; Doppelganger; Travelers; Tabula Rasa; Missing; The Seer; Miller's Crossing; This Mortal Coil; Be All My Sins Remember'd; Spoils of War; Quarantine; Harmony; Outcast; Trio; Midway; The Kindred Part 1; The Kindred Part 2; The Last Man; Search and Rescue; The Seed; Broken Ties; The Daedalus Variations; Ghost in the Machine; The Shrine; Whispers; The Queen; Tracker; First Contact; The Lost Tribe; Outsiders; Inquisition; The Prodigal; Remnants; Brain Storm; Infection; Identity; Vegas; Enemy at the Gate; Ronon Dex; Teyla Emmagan; John Sheppard; Carson Beckett; Elizabeth Weir; Rodney McKay; Jennifer Keller; Samantha Carter; Aiden Ford; Radek Zelenka; Kate Heightmeyer; Evan Lorne; Laura Cadman; Kolya; Chuck; Peter Grodin; Steven Caldwell; Lantea; Ocean; Ancient(s); Richard Woolsey; Athosians; Daedalus; Wraith; Nanites; Asurans; Genii; DHD; SGC; Stargate; Earth; Antarctica; Ascension

#sparktober is coming #sparktober #sparktober bingo

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pocketramblr · 3 years ago

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eject, 1/5

“Overhaul, the League is going to be here soon.” Hari reminds his boss even as he carries Eri into the work lab and sets her on the chairs. He’d disagree with the other man, but still obey him. He was one of the only two who could ask Kai to reconsider an action, if only indirectly.

There wasn’t time to really start a session today. Not if Kai wanted to get anything done with Eri, or if he didn’t want to be late to the meeting.

But if he wanted to make the villains wait, no one would blame him. Not after the disastrous first encounter with them.

After Kai had agreed to go with Twice, followed of course by Hari, Mimic, and the Nine Expendables in secret, they’d ended up in a damp, dusty warehouse that wasn’t suitable for a bunch of truant graffiti artists to stash pot at, let alone the nation’s top terrorist organization to hide in.

But his boss had always been someone who had been able to make something useful and powerful from anything, and Hari was sure this would be no different.

Even as he hid in his crow’s nest and watched through his scope as Shigaraki made a fool of himself and one of his members lunged forwards with a large metal stick.

The cost for touching Kai was high, and finally brought some satisfaction to Hari.

The League shrieked and howled at the sight of a member after being Overhauled, and the ignorant girl who’d asked about the Yakuza from the start was up in a flash, knives glinting and teeth bared as she cried out for her big sister.

Something about that was almost familiar, from someone who’d been raised to consider his fellow criminals his brothers.

Though, more familiarity came from the way his heart raced at the sign of a threat.

While the girl would be easy enough for Kai to stop with a touch, a launched knife thrown at point blank range would be harder to stop with his quirk.

So Hari acted instead, aiming and shooting and hitting the girl in the shoulder before he could go from one blink to the next.

The injector bullet went into her skin, and she flinched back, holding to her weapon as she tucked into a fish roll to get back from Kai and the shooter- and the thing that had just emerged from the side of her arm.

“NO, BIG-SIS MAGNE!” Twice screamed before asking in a different tone, “How the hell, did he clone Toga-chan, does he have a quirk like mine?”

The so called clone- actually a quirk phantom- stood and looked around with wide eyes.

It did look a lot like Toga- same clothes, same stature, same everything.

“Woah.” It said, looking at the kitchen knife and metal straw it held in either hand. “This is new.”

“What.” Shigaraki said, seemingly as torn as Twice was between the two main issues at hand, even if it was far below the surface of his scratchy voice and his hand-covered face.

The quirk phantom looked to him as he spoke, then followed his gaze back to the fallen comrade. “Oh! Oh, Magnetism…”

It moved and knelt by what was left of the woman’s body, then placed the straw in its mouth and began to suck, while its free hand moved the knife to her thigh and carved a shaky cut. Good placement, for all it needed to be deeper and faster to get more blood out without needing a straw.

Twice shrieked.

“What are you doing, Fake Crazy?” Tomura demanded. “Where did that even- what’s your quirk?” He looked at Kai, then upwards. “Or perhaps I should ask what the quirk of the guy who just shot her is.”

“Not our quirks.” Kai shook his head. “That’s hers. I’ve just removed it from her body. I wouldn’t recommend she drink any blood before they merge back together. Besides being disgusting in every way, she might not be able digest it like she normally does without that filthy quirk of hers in her body.”

The quirk paused in slurping blood to turn it’s head slightly, glaring at Kai.

Hari tensed, preparing to switch guns. The phantoms didn’t seem all there, but there was something solid in them, and it’d give Kai time at least if it attacked.

“Why are you- that’s big sis.” Toga stared at the phantom as if seeing for the first time how wrong it all was.

The phantom looked back at her, then sighed. “Hime-chan, this is the last of her. If we don’t take this now, we’ll never get to see her again. Do you have any vials?”

Toga slowly nodded and moved to collect the blood.

The League all was focused on watching the girl and her quirk pick over the corpse- all but Shigaraki, who looked between the phantom to Kai.

“Removed from her body.” He repeated, sounding interested. “I see. Well, get out of here. I’ll call you with my answer.”

“See that you do.” Kai always had to have the last word as he pulled a business card out of his pocket and dropped it, then spun on his heal to leave.

Hari had waited until he was out of the building before he got out of his crow’s nest.

Shigaraki had eventually called the Hassaikai as he said he would- interrupting another session with Eri, actually- and decided to send some allies to join them as phase one.

Now, they were due to meet them in ten minutes, but Kai had still called Hari to bring Eri to the lab at the usual time.

“Yes.” Kai moved to another cabinet. “But we’ve only managed to perfect three permanent bullets. Each requires a week of work, and I’m not going to be delayed further by Shigaraki’s forces.” He removed a white injector- shaped not unlike an epipen.

He flipped the cap up, then jammed the needle into his forearm.

Hari’s mouth dropped open behind his mask.

A shadow shifted behind Kai, changing shape and color until another stood next to him- this Kai looked younger, like he had in his late teenage years. He wore lab clothes, his white button up shirt rolled to his elbows, an apron over him, and a simple facemask rather than a bird themed one.

He had no gloves on.

It was so interesting, how different people’s quirk phantoms sometimes looked like them, sometimes looked different. Hari, personally, thought it had something to do with how a person perceived their quirk. How important it was to them. Hence, Rappa- and that Toga villain- were nearly identical to the phantom. A slave to their quirk. It was comforting in some way, to see that Kai wasn’t.

Not that he’d ever dare vocalize that, but still. It helped him relax as Kai looked over the phantom. This dream his oldest friend had was one he didn’t think would get this far, but now he knew it wasn’t merely because an itch pushed Kai to break down and build up whatever was close to him.

No, this plan was all Kai’s.

And knowing that made it easier for Hari to believe in it.

Kai looked over his phantom, gold eyes harsh, then nodded.

“Good. Today we need to take the stabilizing samples from-“

“I know what we need to do.” Overhaul cut Kai off. “I have done it before after all. With you.”

Blinking, Kai seemed like he didn’t know how to react to that. Hari had been a bit taken aback too, no one talked to the boss like that, but it was almost nostalgic too, coming from what looked like a younger Kai’s lips.

“I will need to test overhauling a few things first, this form is different.” He- It, Hari reminded himself, it- looked at its bare hands.

Kai slowly nodded. “Of course. Chrono will assist you when you begin, I’ll go meet with the League.”

The phantom, which had been picking up small pieces of equipment and overhauling them out off and into shape, looked up sharply at that.

“You’re meeting with the League. Without me.”

“Yes, we just said-“

“Without me. You’re quirkless, right now.” Overhaul’s voice was not confined to sounding young, apparently, as he looked at Kai like he was dense. “And you’re going in alone, after you killed one of their members.”

Kai was quiet for a moment, for two, for three. Hari felt the danger build, and swallowed.

Then Kai nodded. “Ok, I’ll take Chrono. Ask Saito or Yamada as assistants when you get to the post-settlement stage.”

With that, he left, and Hari, as ever, followed him.

As the door shut behind them, Kai spoke again. “Chrono. Under no circumstance are you to shoot Toga with the eraser bullet again. I do not want to deal with two of that filth running around my home.”

“Of course, Boss. And if Twice decides to just do that on his own?”

“Then keep Twice from using his quirk.”

“Yes, Boss.”

#im writing a 5+1 thing #got the first two done today!#but now i have to work on lesson plans and hhhng #so i want to post this part now #and serotonin later #quirk ejection idea #my fic #my writing #'why are there nine expendables' bc its the eight plus that one that got decayed in canon #I'm gonna say hari gets a uhhhh 60% on his quirk analysis grade #maybe 65% if I'm grading generously #.... which i tend to #but anyway speaking of grading time for me to go that

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thevindicativevordan · 4 years ago

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On Supergirl

Figured I should put up my thoughts about Kara in the wake of her first film appearance being announced, and the final season of her TV show fast approaching. Short version is: Kara is very cool and DC needs to stop messing with her.

My Introduction to Kara

I was introduced to Kara the way most millennials/Gen Zers were I imagine, via the Loeb Superman/Batman arc which brought the traditional Kara Zor-El Supergirl take into Post-Crisis continuity, after years of DC attempting to have a “Supergirl” without violating the editorial mandate that Kal needed to be the literal “Last Son of Krypton” (an example of one of the dumb ways DC fucked Kara over). Story goes that one day Dan Didio was in line at the Superman ride at Six Flags (I love that ride even though it’s stolen my glasses every time I’ve ridden it, even when I left them in a locker!). The ride had signs that talked about various Superman characters. Didio was reading the entry for Supergirl where it talked about her not being Clark’s cousin but instead some weird merge of alien shapeshifter, angel, and human girl, and he realized how fucking stupid that was, and he went back to the office and told Loeb to bring Kara back.

Years later I would also be standing in line at the Six Flags Superman ride (probably at a different park location but who knows?) as a youngster and would read the new Supergirl sign that trumpeted that Superman had a cousin who shared all his powers, an update reflecting the new Loeb origin. I thought she sounded pretty cool, made a note to see if my library had any Supergirl stories next time I visited, then got on the Superman ride and promptly lost my glasses like an idiot because I wanted to take them off while I was riding and pretend I was changing from my “disguise” into Superman mid flight. My dad grounded me for this afterwards, but it gave me a funny story to tell at family get togethers and isn’t that what Six Flags is all about?

A month later (and with spiffy new glasses), my mom dropped me off at a new library next to where she worked, and they had one of the best Superman collections I’ve ever seen to this day. I was in heaven and while reading every Superman book I could find (I couldn’t check them out because I didn’t have a card, my mom’s card didn’t cover the area the library was in, and my mom wouldn’t have checked them out anyway since comics were “too violent”), I found the trade collecting Kara’s new origin. I read it and I thought both she and Superman were really cool, and Batman was a punk who had to beat Darkseid by cheating, the loser. Turner’s art to my young eyes was the best I had ever seen, and the panels got engraved into my brain.

I still get downright nostalgic whenever I see Turner Superman or Supergirl stuff. I also got my parents to rent the animated movie adaption of the Superman/Batman arc from Blockbuster (remember those?), and that sealed the deal. Seeing Kara hold her own against Darkseid convinced me she was as cool as her cousin. Next time my mom dropped me off at the library next to her workplace, I went looking for Supergirl stuff to read. I found the first volume of her new volume by Joe Kelly taking place after the Loeb arc and dove in.

It was... weird. 5 years later I might have enjoyed it but at the time I was majorly put off. Kara took a secret identity for a day and then ditched it because it was “stupid” and the kids bullied her. She was always getting into fights with Kal, and there was this weird plot that I couldn’t follow about how her dad had sent her to kill Kal, maybe or maybe not? Also she could grow crystals which I thought was dumb, and said she was stronger than her cousin which I couldn’t buy for a second given he looked like he was carved out of marble, and she looked like she relied on sunlight instead of food. I put the volume back on the shelf and kinda gave up on reading the character after that for a while.

I followed her via the DC wiki updates just like I did Superman, and everything I read seemed dumb and convoluted. She was split in two, moped around a lot, made out with an alternate version of her cousin, and basically just flopped about the same way the rest of the Superfamily did during the 00s. Nothing made me think I had made a mistake dropping Kara until I read the latest update to her wiki page.

I was super into what I was reading about the Busiek/Johns era of Superman online. Lex was back and making a big revenge scheme that involved all the other Rogues! Old Superman Rogues were getting revamped and made cool again! Johns reintroduced Brainiac and made him a big threat, with Kal and Kara teaming up to fight him! Busiek was revamping Prankster and telling big ambitious Superman stories! For the first time in a long while, the consensus on the Internet was that Superman was good again. My “home” library had zero Marvel books and no Superman or Batman books, all their DC stuff was Flash or Green Lantern, mainly written by Johns. Insane to think back on now. My hopes that because Johns was involved with Superman, Superman books would show up at my library were fulfilled. They started bringing in Busiek and Johns collections, and someone there also ordered Sterling Gates’ first volume of Supergirl, and I checked everything out since I was old enough to have my own library card, and my parents were worried more about the violent video games I was playing rather than comics.

I read everything and loved it. I also really liked Gates’ take on Kara. She was still an imperfect teenager but she wasn’t insufferably angsty or constantly fighting with Kal. She was going to give the secret identity another try and Lana had “adopted” her. It’s funny remembering how I enjoyed all that given my current thoughts on how Kara should work, but it was great at the time. I liked Gates introducing new foes for Kara, some classic Superman Rogues adapted for her like Bizzarogirl, others crafted specifically for her like Reactron. Gates’ basically rekindled my enjoyment of Kara the same way Busiek & Johns rekindled my enjoyment of Superman.

Of course it ended terribly like everything Superman-related seems to.

I’ve got a whole post I want to do about New Krypton and what came after. In short that is the most blatant example of “hitting the reset button” that I’ve ever seen. All the potential got wasted, and afterwards everything except Lex’s Action Comics stuff just didn’t appeal to me. Gates got booted off Kara for Nick Spencer who ended up leaving himself later, a promising Teen Titans line-up with Kara on it didn’t happen, and the last proper Pre-Flashpoint Superfamily story was a crappy team-up with Doomsday against Bigger Doomsday (thank God for Cornell’s final Luthor/Superman confrontation at least). When news of the reboot arrived, I was honestly happy. The Superline needed an enema.

Controversial opinion time: I liked New 52 Supergirl. It’s weird because a lot of the stuff I hated about Kelly’s run was here, and a lot of the stuff I loved about the Gates’ run was not. This was angry, moody, emotional Kara again, fighting with Kal and not fond of Earth. But I was in my teens at this point, and I didn’t want happy go-lucky Superman or Supergirl. I wanted my heroes angry, scared of the future, ready to go out there and smash some cars. Morrison’s Action Comics was 100% my jam (still is once I really understood the deeper meaning beneath the work) and this Kara felt like a natural fit for this universe. Plus we got Asrar on art and that guy made it damn pretty to look at, lots of cool science fiction stuff going on, even with the dumb H’el storyline.

I loved all the new Rogues Kara got. I loved her new Fortress under the ocean. I loved how traumatized she was by the loss of Krypton, that she wanted more than anything to go home, that her cousin was like a stranger to her since they had been apart for so long. I found all of that incredibly relatable. A lot of the New 52 Supergirl stories might have been schlock but it was my type of schlock damnit, and I enjoyed it!

I kept with her New 52 series all the way through the Red Daughter Saga (which I loved). As someone who grew up on Johns GL (since that was the only comics my home library had), seeing a Supercharacter join a Lantern Corp was the hypest thing ever. I loved the finale about Kara finally letting go of her anger and losing the ring while smashing her foe into the sun, it was incredibly cathartic for me as an angry teen myself. I finally stopped following her series sometime after since I was no longer enjoying the Superline or really DC as a whole. It wasn’t until I heard that New 52 Superman died and the “old” Superman was back, that I checked back into DC.

DC Rebirth & How I Think Kara Should Work

I did not enjoy Supergirl Rebirth, and I think I’ll talk about my problems with it alongside how I think Kara as a character should work since the two are related. A pet peeve of mine that has formed over the years is this: I don’t like it when Superfamily members get turned into Clark clones. Kon wearing glasses and going to Smallville High. Kara going to high school and being involved in journalism. Jon more or less being written as a copy of his dad personality-wise. I hate that kind of stuff because it’s boring. What’s the point of a Superfamily if everyone is just copying Clark? It also doesn’t fit the characters especially in Kara’s case. Why the hell does she want to be a journalist? Were there journalists on Krypton? I don’t remember ever seeing one! Shouldn’t she want to be, I dunno, a scientist? That seems to have been the El family tradition, wouldn’t she have been groomed for that?

This one-off by Shea is honestly the only acceptable outcome for Kara going into journalism for me. She realizes she’s just copying her cousin and switches to something she wants to do. So Orlando copying the show, which already basically turned Kara into an expy of her cousin, just did not appeal to me at all. What had worked for me under Gates way back when was not clicking for me this time. I wanted to see Kara embody the principles of the S-shield in a different way than her cousin did. So I really enjoyed when Rebirth ended and we moved into the Bendis era with Andrekyo relaunching the title as Kara in space.

Kara in space has always felt like a good fit for me. Unlike Kal I’ve come to believe that Kara really shouldn’t be all that fond of Earth. For him it’s home, but for her it’s just where she ended up after her real home got destroyed. I think Kara works well as a sort of nomad, occasionally making stops back home to Earth to check on her cousin, but otherwise? She’s more comfortable out in space than she could ever be on Earth. Out in space she can be Kryptonian (which is what she should think of herself as in contrast to Clark being torn between his Kryptonian biology and human upbringing, and Jon/Kon identifying as human), be her true self, not have to pretend to be human to fit in. Kara founding a moon refuge was one of the best ideas for her that I’ve seen, I would love if DC made her Future State refugee center on the moon canon. I’m excited for more Kara adventures in space with the upcoming Tom King story.

Also love that her and Krypto are getting tied together, if they don’t want to use Krypto in Superman’s stuff, let her have him! Bring on cosmic adventurer Supergirl!

Personality & Other Traits

Kara to me should be more hot-tempered than her cousin. All the Superfamily members should have a temper in my opinion, I see that as the “Deadly Sin” of Superman and his family. But while Kal is like a simmering pot that will explode if it’s left cooking for too long, Kara is like dynamite. Light her fuse at your own peril because she will go off on you.

I also like the idea of Kara being rash. Kal’s got a maturity that came from over a decade of having to live with Lex Luthor constantly getting away with all his evil schemes. He’s patient because he’s been forced to be. Kara? If you ask for her help she’ll give it, but beware because she doesn’t really care about the long term impacts of her decisions. She’s an invulnerable teenager after all.

Really liked that Venditti Annual where Kara got tutored in history by a reincarnation of Hawkman. Kara having a passion for history is a neat trait, would be nice to see her teach Kal or Jon some Kryptonian lore, or have her lead a Kryptonian holiday celebration for the Superfamily because she’s the only one who remembers how to do it.

Sexuality wise I know a lot of people ship Kara and Lena on account of the chemistry between the two in the show. I haven’t watched the show myself but I’m fine with making Kara bisexual, the Superfamily could use some LGBT+ rep, and Lena hasn’t done anything of worth as a villain, so undo that and throw the two together. If we’re letting Harley and Ivy get away with murder I think we can let Lena off the hook too, undo the Ultrawoman weirdness and put the two together. Could be fun seeing the two building that moon refuge together.

All in all I think Kara is a great character who is a stronger embodiment of the immigrant experience than even her cousin in some ways. I hope King does a good job with her, she’s treated better than her cousin on the film side, and that overall the 20s are a better decade for Supergirl than the 10s were.

#supergirl #superman #lena luthor #krypto #dc comics

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peppersonironi · 4 years ago

Note

12, 21, 19

(Is this late? Oops. Sorry!)

12: Favourite character to write about this year

Stephanie Brown, easy. She's my spirit animal, so I might be doing a touch of projecting, but I honestly don't care. She's just pure chaos in the best way. Some of my favourite lines that I've written are for her. Such as:

"What's up bitches? I brought donuts!"

"My waffles await!"

"FEAR ME!"

"Welcome to Steph’s Glitter Bomb Palace, Where Snitches get Stitches™! So don’t tell Bruce or I’ll sic Jason on you."

She's also the character I've gotten the most comments on. People really seen to enjoy how I write her!

A close second would be Duke Thomas. Bliss, a fic I wrote for the 2020 Duke Week, was one of my favourites! Or maybe Damian? His dialogue just comes easy to me.

21: Most memorable comment/review

the batfamily exist:

everyone: is,,is that allowed?

On Code Orange (Batfam/Young Justice Crossover)

*Or*

I have wanted to read a DCU/MCU crossover for a VERY long time. This story is such a delight. Your characterisation (and for me an introduction to The Signal) was fascinating in the extreme. I loved the game playing and the fact that I could watch (open-mouthed) as Bruce Wayne enjoyed childlike fun with his children and Alfred(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) was the cherry on top of the icing on top of the cake. I look forward to your updates in a way that you wouldn't believe.

On Batfam/Avengers Crossover

19: Any new fics to start next year

Oh boy. So many. You know what? Here's a list. It'll be good to get these ideas out. Plus, you guys can tell me what you'd rather see first!

Gen/just Batfam

Crack fic based off this piece of dialogue (came from a convo between my sister and I): Tim reached forward and poked Duke's face. "You're right!" He exclaimed. "You really *do* squish like a block of wood!" Duke Centric.

Based on THIS Incorrect Quotes. Talia moves into the Manor because she's sick of Ra's. Featuring a bunch of good mom!Talia.

Based off THIS Incorrect Quotes. Jason runs for President as Red Hood. I have so many ideas! This'll be really fun.

Loosely based on THIS post. It explores Jason and Cassandra's relationship, and how it evolves.

Duke Thomas Big Bang Fic (can't say much, but it'll be great!)

Platonic (need to be certain you understand that. There were some misconceptions w/ my Discord server) Slow Burn between Tim and Damian. At the beginning the absolutely despise each other. But over time they realise their own insecurities, and how they don't actually hate the other. And by the end they fully admit and embrace their being brothers.

Reverse Robins with Damian as the oldest (I made THIS post talking about it a while back. But I've highly revised it.)

Reverse Robins with Duke as the oldest (I wrote THIS fic, but I think I want to change this into a series!)

Cassandra as Batman. Stephanie as Catwoman. Carrie Kelley as Robin.

5 Times Bette Kane was the mastermind behind the batkids' pranks without Bruce's knowledge, and 1 Time her brilliance was brought to light.

5 Times Duke thought that he couldn't possibly get any more siblings and 1 Time he met the cousins (AKA: Duke meets the extended family)

Birdflash

Birdflash in the JL/JLU universe (based off that one hexagon by @novaviis ! Super fun!). The league is inviting potential members to the Watchtower one day. Except Wally wasn't there during the choosing of said members. So he's completely shocked when his husband Nightwing shows up. They have to act like they don't know each other, which basically involves Dick flirting his butt off with Wally, Wally trying desperately to remain professional, Bruce digging in the corner, the rest of the League in varying degrees of disapproval and confusion (at least a couple have seen Wally's wedding ring. So that adds a while 'nother layer).

Young Justice soulmate au. Dick, and eventually everyone else, knows that Wally is his soulmate. Wally is oblivious. Lots of pining and angst in this one. Slow burn to an extent (depends on how long I make it). But definitely a happy fluffy ending in sight!

Batfam Meets Young Justice

THIS fic.

Duke gets yeeted into the YJ universe, and promptly passes out. He wakes up in the Watchtower, and breaks out of the confinement the Team has set up for him. Pulls shenanigans (some unwittingly) and used his powers. The Team and JL are confused, and panicking. Because this guy keeps muttering things about the Batfam. And he has a bat on his chest.

The Team break into some ancient temple after getting info on a new Supervillian plot. They find purple clothed woman draped across a throne. She talks, and they panic, as she knows all their secret identities. The only one who isn't, is Tim. He looks bored. Alternatively: Steph needs Tim's credit card to take his sister out on a date, and absolutely refuses to text.

While the Team is on a mission to stop Lady Shiva, a dimensional portal opens up and spits out a strange Robin (Damian) and what seemed to be a female Batman (Cass as Black Bat). This new dynamic due promptly defeats Lady Shiva and all the goons. The Team is freaked out, and 'apprehends' the dimensional anomalies, bringing them back to the Watchtower. Where the due promptly break and and start chaos. Featuring "Toxic" by Britney Spears. I will not explain why.

The Watchtower gets a sudden emergency message from the Batcave. They accept, to find a stranger calling himself Signal panicking about Robin being missing. They all look at Tim, who ignores them, and says that he doesn't know where Robin is. Some naming shenanigans occur.

(Not sure if this fits here, oh well) Set in Season One, Bruce is tired of Clark's attitude towards Superboy, and adopts the clone himself. Not sure how far this'll go, but at least goes through Dick's time as Robin. (Based on THIS Tumblr post)

(Also iffy on placement) a continuation of one (not sure which? Probably Damian as older) Reverse Robins fics. It's a retelling of Season One of YJ, with Dick as Robin. Nightwing (Damian) feels protective of his brother, and so takes on the role Black Canary had in the show, training the Team. But as time goes on, he ends up being more of a big brother to the group. Cameos from the rest of the Batfam as well! And an Identity Reveal (including finding out Dick and Dami are brothers) at the end!

Batfam Meets the Justice League

Cass takes over being Batman for a bit, because Bruce was an idiot and broke his leg. This happens to line up with when the Justice League reach out to the Dark Knight, in order to extend an invitation to the league. They eventually meet Bruce as Batman, and are confused as to why he is so tall. And male.

Joyfire

Lian accidentally reveals her three parents' relationship by calling Bruce 'grandpa' over dinner.

Museum Heist

THIS fic

Operation: Seduce Nightwing. Based on a post for an ATLA ot3, Wally and Artemis realise silumaneously “Hey, we kinda have the hots for Dick” and decide together to see if he likes them back. Which involves a heck ton of over the top flirting, and shenanigans. The Team is sighing on the sidelines at their idiocy. Dick is internally combusting and thinking “Do they like me back? I’’m not sure.”

5 times Dick and Wally fought over being the middle spoon, and one time Artemis had had enough.

Set in Season 3 (but ignores some canon), Bart is kidnapped by some mad scientist obsessed with the Speed Force. The Team mobilizes, and gets Bart back from the evil base. But when they get there, they find Wally West freed from the Speed Force. He and Artemis reunite, and everyone is happy. They prepare to leave. Then the Pick-up Squad arrive in the bioship, and Dick gets out. Everyone is expecting Dick to give Wally a hug, because hey, he's his best friend! What they weren't expecting was him to run forward and pull the speedster into a passionate kiss. They go back to the Watchtower, and some more stuff happens.

Soulmate AU where the first thing your soulmate says to you after they fall in love with you is tattooed on your body.

Post Season Two Get Together. Starts with Artemis living with Dick as opposed to Will. Might be Slow Burn? (They come pretty close to kissing) Eventually Wally comes back. Arty and Wally are back together. They both live in the same house as Dick, for convenience. Then some more Slow Burn happens. Maybe some Birdflash moments. Arty tells Wally she kinda had a thing for Dick. Wally admits the same. Maybe a touch more Slow Burn. They Eventually get together.

Batlantern

AU where Bruce met Hal back when he first came back to Gotham. Fic goes through how their relationship evolves over the years (up until current time, when Damian is 13). I'm considering a relationship reveal with the Justice League.

Hal's interactions with Bruce's kids.

Green Lantern Corp acting protective of Hal when Bruce comes to Oa. This was an ask that I got, and I'm holding off on writing it till I get as much into on the GL's as possible, as all I know if their characterization comes from that animated series, and Guy Gardener's (Hilarious!) parts on Young Justice.

Marvel

Like 3 different versions of the Peter Parker Field Trip to Stark Tower Trope.

2-part Crossover with the Batfam (they exist in the same universe), where the Avengers go to a Wayne Gala, and interact with the family. The second chapter involves them heading out the next night to try and contact Batman.

THIS fic.

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rosaliestark01 · 5 years ago

Text

Like Father, Like Daughter

Tony Stark x Daughter!Reader & Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Requested by @ritiizzxxx : Hey I have a request can u do it where reader is Tony Stark's daughter and he has kept her a secret n when she was 15 and graduated from MIT and started creating her own tech then Tony decided to let the world know about her daughter. and also can u add some scenes where she's being sassy and sarcastic my father with all the Avengers.

Warnings: Swearing (maybe more than usual), fluff (kinda), and a bit of violence.

A/N: I’m not 100% sure if this was what you wanted, but I really hope you like it. As usual, I don’t own any GIFs and credit for the GIFs go to owner.

“Tony Stark, is it true that you have a daughter?”

“Is it Y/N?”

“Is Y/N Vulpine?”

Tony should have known that sending you to college at a young age would have major repercussions. You were already an intern at Stark Industries and after graduating at the top of your class at MIT at only fifteen year years old, he should have know that people would start to suspect something.

You majored in Physics and Engineering, just like him, but you also had a Masters degree in Business and Finance. Obviously, people would make the connections between you and him, but he never expected people to make the connection between you being Vulpine.

“What are you working on?” You looked up from your work station to see your dad walking up to you.

“Just something that analyzes an opponents fighting style and predicts their next moves and what their weaknesses are,” you say. You knew that you dad had created something similar, but not to exactly like this.

This automatically analyzes the way an opponent fights and tells you the best way to beat them in any area of combat. It would alert you if their form was ever off and would tell you the best way to use their weaknesses to your advantage.

Yep, you were definitely his daughter.

“I’m planning on installing it into mine and Peter’s suits so that we don’t repeat what happened in Symkaria.”

“What happened in Symkaria?” You freeze, suddenly realizing what you let slip. Your dad wasn’t supposed to know about Symkaria. You and Peter had agreed not to tell anyone about it because they’d probably never send you on a mission to a foreign country again.

“It was a disaster and you don’t want to know.” Your dad seemed to accept that before clearing his throat.

“So, listen. I am so proud of everything you’ve achieved,” he says. “You’re tough, smart, amazing, and-”

“What did you do?” You eyed him suspiciously. He tended to go overboard on compliments whenever he wanted something or did something he wasn’t supposed to.

“What? Nothing. I was just going to ask how you felt about the public finding out who you really are.”

You thought about it for a second. You were ready to let the world know that you were Y/N Stark, but at the same time, it could cause major problems. Just like how Peter’s made up name is Spider-Man, your is Vulpine. Vulpine was meant to be mysterious, mischievous, and somebody nobody knew anything about.

It made thing a lot easier when nobody knew who Vulpine was. You didn’t have to worry about people coming after you or your friends. Not that you couldn’t handle it, but the last time somebody found out who you were was a disaster.

“I’m not really sure how I feel about it,” You say thoughtfully. “I’m nervous that if they find out I’m your daughter that they might find out about me being Vulpine.”

“I know.” You knew that he understood where you were coming from. He had stopped trusting telling people that you were his daughter after someone had tried to use you against him. “I’m nervous about that too.”

“Y/N, the download is complete,” you AI says in a gravelly voice.

“What was that?” Your dad asks. “Did you make your own AI?”

“Yes, I did and his name is Cas,” you giggle, knowing that that your dad would know what you were talking about. Modeled the voice exactly like it sounded on TV.

“Like that guy on TV?”

“Yep.” You become serious again, because you needed to turn the topic back to the serious conversation you were having with your dad. “Anyway, before to tell the world that I’m your daughter, we need to figure out how to keep my Avenger identity a secret. People can’t know that Vulpine and I are the same person.”

Your dad had ended up setting up a meeting will all of the available Avengers. That included Clint, Natasha, Steve, Bucky, Sam, and Peter.

“We could say that Vulpine went on a vacation?” Clint suggests. He earns a few looks from people around the table for suggesting something so out of character for Vulpine to do.

“Why would Vulpine go on a vacation?” Peter speaks up. Out of everyone in the room, Peter knew the most about you and Vulpine. You were partners after all. Besides, Vulpine definitely didn’t seem like the vacation type.

“I don’t know?”Clint said as he looked at you nervously. “Even mischievous superheros need breaks.”

“Right, because that wouldn’t be suspicious at all,” you say. Around the table you see Nat, Steve, Sam, and Bucky nodding their heads in agreement with you. Under the table, Peter gently squeezes your hand.

“I thought it was a good idea,” Clint pouts.

“What about a look alike?” Peter asks. “While Mr.Stark introduces you as his daughter, we could have a look alike do something on the other side of the city.”

“That could work if we find someone who looks like me”, you say, nodding your head thoughtfully. “Wait a second!”

“What?”

“Peter, remember when we went to that Fleetwood Mac concert in California?” You ask. Peter smiles as he remembers the time the two of you spent in California. It was good timing because there weren’t any looming threats, Peter’s school was on break, and crime in New York had been pretty nonexistent while you were gone.

Excuse me, but when was this?” your dad asked. You really need to be better at keeping these things from your dad.

“Yeah, and we made clones of ourselves so that nobody would notice we were gone for a whole week!” Peter, ignoring your dad, says excitedly. You couldn’t blame him. You and Peter had a really great week.

“You made clones of yourselves?” Steve finally pipes up.

“They’re more like interactive holograms that we downloaded our daily routine and personalities into.”

“Definitely her father’s daughter.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” you smile.

“Normally, I would ground both of you for running off for a week” Your dad starts. “but I’m impressed so I’ll let it slide.”

“Peter and I will probably have to go digging through my lab to find them first, but I’m sure we could get them ready.” You look at Peter, making sure he was okay with that.

“Great. You two do that. I’ll go schedule a press meeting.” The meeting pretty much broke up the second your dad left the room. You and Peter walked hand in hand to your lab that was right across from your room. You usually kept it pretty neat and tidy... except for the storage room.

It took about twenty minutes longer than you expected and Peter had to do most of the heavy lifting, not that you minded.

“I just realized how useful these could be,” you say as you and Peter begin to set up the ones modeled after yourselves. “Just think of all the prank we could pull everyone.”

“They could also be useful on missions. Like decoys,” Peter tells you. You may have graduated college when you were fifteen, but sometimes you wondered who the actual genius in this relationship was.

“Pete, your a genius!”

“Says the girl who graduated from MIT when she was fifteen,” Peter blushes.

“Says the boy who is way smarter than he let’s on,” you say back to him. Sometimes it was like he didn’t know how smart he really was. You knew for a fact that he is probably smarter than all of his teachers combined.

“Enough flirting! Just find your freaking clones!” Sam yells as he walks past your room.

“After what happened in Symkaria, I can flirt with whoever I want!” You yell back. Yeah, Symkaria ended up being a disaster, but at least it was the push you and Peter needed to confess your feelings for one another.

“But just me, right?” Peter asks.

“Just you.” You plant a soft kiss on his cheek before the two of you get back to work.

The next morning, you and Peter sent your “clones” to Brooklyn while you and Peter went to the press conference that your dad had set up. You couldn’t believe how crazy these reporters were asking. It was a lot of one talking right over the other so you couldn’t understand a single thing any of them were saying. Finally, your dad had somehow managed to shut them all up

“You all ask if Y/N is my daughter, and it’s easy to see why.” Your dad gets started on the speech that Pepper had made for him, but then he puts the cards down, planning to talk for himself. “She is gifted, talented, probably smarter than me, and an overall amazing person. She has created tech that I have never even thought of and she’s been an intern at Stark Industries since she was only eight years only. Y/N Stark is my daughter.”

“Is Y/N Vulpine?” a blonde reporter asks. That causes the other reporters to stark buzzing out questions too before your dad quiets them again.

“Y/N is not-” Before he could finish, you spot an all too familiar looking face. Freaking Symkaria.

“Fucking shit!” You say, letting your frustration out before the Symkarian guard pulls out a sword and approached you and your dad with it. Peter tries to stand protectively in front of you (you’re pretty sure he just wants to get back at the guard for what he did) but you push Peter away. He doesn’t have his web shooters or his suit.

Luckily, you were trained by both Nat and Bucky. Each time the guard swung the sword at you, you were able to dodge it with ease. Working around the guard as he kept swinging at you, you sneakily removed his belt. After you had it, you wrapped it around his hand that he held the sword with, effectively causing him to drop his weapon.

“You will never get away with what you did.” The guard hisses out at you with his German-like accent. “Prince Adonis will have his revenge.”

“Seriously?”You dad asks looking amused. “Whatever happened to ‘the world must never know’”

“That was before I was attacked,” you shrugged. There was no way in hell that people would believe that you and Vulpine were two separate people now. You literally just disarmed a Symkarian guard on live TV. “Would you like to do the honors?” you ask you dad, giving him permission to tell the world.

“The truth is...” he begins but you decided, for dramatic effect, to interrupt him.

“I am Vulpine.”

A/N: Again, I’m still not sure if this was what you wanted, @ritiizzxxx , but I hope you still like it.

#tony stark x daughter!reader #tony stark x daughter reader #tony stark x platonic!reader #avengers #avengers x reader #avengers reader insert #peter parker x avenger!reader #the avengers #vulpine #peter parker #peter parker x reader #tom holland peter parker #peter parker x reader insert #peter parker x stark!reader

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lovelyirony · 4 years ago

Note

Title: I wish i could forget you

Tony Stark was not supposed to be in the car when Howard and Maria Stark attended a Christmas holiday party for another company. In fact, Hydra had wanted him to stay home.

Unfortunately, Tony had ticked off Howard a bit too much, and so here he was in a tuxedo that was a bit too big, uncomfortably shiny shoes, and a temper that was close to blowing.

Thank god they were almost home.

When a car crashes, one almost can’t believe it. Tony can see the outside blurring, and he can hear glass crunching, and he hears things that he really doesn’t want to hear. He is fairly sure that Maria screamed.

A metal arm.

Huh.

Well, not the most typical. He also doesn’t think that the man knows he’s here.

Howard and Maria Stark are killed. Tony feels like shit because he couldn’t do anything. His forehead is bleeding and he didn’t want to move out of fear for himself, which seems selfish, but also maybe a survival instinct?

God, his bow-tie is still constricting air flow.

Once the man turns, Tony realizes that he wasn’t the target. They probably had no idea he was in the car, whoever “they” were.

He gets out of the car. The car door creaks, and the man whips around.

His eyes widen.

“You--what?”

The voice is surprisingly American.

Surprisingly? He’s not sure why it’s surprising, it’s not like an American can’t kill just look at history, but still, Kind of surprising.

"What, wasn’t supposed to be here?” Tony rasps out. He realizes now that he’s basically sent himself a death sentence as the man surges forward.

“What are you doing here?”

His eyes are piercing. Also very, very familiar with some photographs that Peggy has on her mantle and her desk.

James “Bucky” Barnes. Son of a bitch.

“What are you doing alive?” Tony asks. “I thought you were lost in a ravine in Europe somewhere.”

“What--huh?”

“Ravine. In Europe. You know who you are, right? Is this some kind of sick...what did they do to you?”

“I do not know what you are talking about.”

His eyes get cold again.

“Who are you?”

“I am the Asset.”

It is now that Tony realizes that every single shitty sci-fi book is probably right, and his disdain of “wacky science” and “magic” have all been for nothing, because here is Bucky Barnes, who apparently has no idea who he is.

Then Tony gets knocked on his ass. His body slams against the icy road, and Barnes is rushing towards a motorcycle.

And he’s alone. He can’t breathe, all the wind knocked out of his chest. He thinks he broke a couple of ribs.

No one believes him. At all. SHIELD brushes it aside.

“There’s no way Barnes could be alive. You were probably just seeing things,” they tell him. “Would you like us to find you a therapist?”

“No,” Tony says, and they ask why. He laughs, sipping on his water. “SHIELD has so much loyalty to itself, I’m afraid I’d be compromised.”

“Therapists aren’t supposed to divulge any information,” Nick Fury adds carefully. “And we’re a secret-keeping bunch. Nothing goes out that comes in.”

“Unless, of course, it’s necessary,” Tony drawls, staring at Fury. God, the leather outfit...that’s weird. “Then I’m out in the open, Nicky. And what fun is that unless I get to show off an outfit in full-coverage?”

“...I’ll have an agent escort you home. We’ll have guards overnight.”

“Don’t bother.”

“And why is that? Think you can handle it by yourself?”

“Fury, my family has made a career out of thinking a lot of things. You’re not being as detrimental as you think.”

He finger-waves, grinning and winking at agents on the way out.

Now comes paranoia. This is welcome, actually, because it’s allowing him to work up new security measures and hack into various security cameras around the world to see if he can find Barnes.

It’s like he’s a ghost. And fuck, maybe Fury was right. Tony doesn’t like that, but that may be it.

Merry fucking Christmas.

Years go by, and Tony keeps a tiny ear to any news about mysterious deaths that can’t be explained. A man that glows in lamp-light, has no identity. He’s not sure if it could be Barnes. God knows he’s no longer seventeen, and Barnes--it if it was Barnes--would be way older. He should’ve been an old man in 1991, but he wasn’t.

It kind of reminds him of the conspiracy theory that Walt Disney was kept cryogenically frozen, which is just ridiculous, because as far as he’s concerned, you’d need a bit more to you than just regular skin and bones.

And this is where it hits him.

Barnes was experimented on when he was captured by Hydra. Peggy told him that Rogers told her that he was repeating his dog tag number over and over, as if someone was trying to take him over.

Yeah, you’d need a bit more.

Like a fucking super soldier serum.

This then delves into Tony realizing that if Barnes is flash-frozen, then...well, could Rogers have survived? He always thought his dad was crazy, but a broken clock is right twice a week or however the hell that saying goes. He never used it, he wasn’t a broken clock.

(He was broken, but he’s not going to compare himself to a clock. Perhaps Model-T.)

They find Rogers. Tony realizes Howard did his math completely wrong for years, and probably never let anyone look at it because he was a World Super Genius. And a Colossal Dick.

Steve Rogers is one tough cookie to crack. Tony chips off some of the ice and puts it in a glass of scotch.

“Do you really think that’s the most appropriate thing to do?” Phil Coulson asks.

He’s shocked, but mainly because Tony has seen his Cap collection, and that man has so many limited edition cards and lunchboxes that it’s a bit crazy. But at least he knows how to decorate with it and not have it look like an absolute nutjob swept into his house and did it all in red-white-and-blue.

“Phil, my darling, when have I ever done anything the appropriate way?” Tony asks. He stares at the face that’s emerging out of the ice. “Besides, what else are you going to do with this ice, hm? Besides melt it all off?”

Steve is a miracle. Every scientist on earth wants to poke and prod at him.

Tony breaks him out of SHIELD in a week, because he swears to shit if one more scientist asks to take blood samples “to see how going under Arctic temperatures affects the bloodstream” (and also take DNA for cloning) he’s going to lose it.

Fury yells at him for two hours.

Steve flips Fury off from the couch, where he’s been channel-surfing for the better part of three hours.

“You’ve already corrupted him,” Fury scowls. “Rogers, we need to talk--”

“He’s retired,” Tony says.

(Steve is not, technically. Hasn’t said anything. But Tony is putting him on mandatory retirement for at least a year.)

“What’s...what the ever-loving fuck is that?” Steve asks.

An infomercial. For an automated chair. Mostly used for old people.

Tony grins.

“You wanna see how fast I can launch you out of one?”

“I’m going to say yes. Professionally.”

Ten miles an hour, and Steve goes flying across the room into a pile of pillows.

It’s not the end-all solution. God knows Steve calls him “Howard” and asks where a lot of nasty food is, and sometimes can’t tell the difference between what his brain is seeing and what is actually there.

But Tony gets him help. And Steve goes to art school.

It’s all very funny, actually. Steve rants about “modern art” and how “if he could kill any concept it would be abstract expressionism, what the fuck.”

Tony buys and then donates a Rothko in his honor.

Steve fumes, but finds it hilarious.

Then, there’s the attack on New York.

Norse god of mischief decides to end New York, blah blah blah.

Captain America reappears, everyone loses their shit, and Tony almost dies.

Then he gets four other roomies besides Steve, and he has to make a chore chart. Ugh.

Barnes reappears in France. Tony gets a fairly good image, and Natasha stills.

“You know about Winter Soldier?”

“Barnes? Yeah.”

“You know who he is?”

“James Barnes. At least, I think. He tried to kill me, wasn’t very successful at it.”

Steve overhears.

This leads to a chain of events that ends in Steve not coming to family dinner because he’d rather sit in his room and listen to Green Day or Glenn Miller or whatever the hell gets him even more upset.

“Listen, Steve, I’m sorry. But up until this picture? I was only about sixty percent sure I wasn’t full of beans.”

“Why is that the phrase you use?”

“What, full of beans? Bruce says I have to work on my cursing. Apparently, children are impressionable. Who knew?”

It’s not a total success. Steve still doesn’t like that Tony didn’t outright tell him, but Tony isn’t going to tell Steve that he has the mental stability of a single cashew.

So begins the hunt for Barnes. Which actually isn’t too bad.

He’s in DC. Not for any political clean-up, unfortunately. He’s trying to kill Fury. Tony doesn’t know why, at least until he looks up Pierce, who’s technically, mostly retired from SHIELD.

And yet still uses most resources that technically? He needs more than one authorization from multiple people.

God, people are getting bad at covering their tracks. Used to be harder to catch and see if someone was doing dirty deals.

(Okay, not like he can talk because Obie was...well, no use in discussing that now. He needs to focus.)

Nat and Steve are bad at lying. This kind of surprises him, because Steve is usually a successful liar. He’s convinced Clint that it’s not him who keeps eating his peanut-butter-fudge ice cream, but Thor.

And Natasha used to be Natalie Rushman. Then again, Tony was poisoned during that one, so that might just be on him.

Helicarriers go in the water.

Tony’s working on making sure most of the information doesn’t reach the general public, although he can’t stop it all.

Barnes falls off the face of the earth, and Steve wants to go on another treasure hunt.

“Let him come to us, or figure himself out.”

“This isn’t a college kid going backpacking in Europe for a year,” Nat snaps. “He’s...you know who he is, who he was, and what he can do.”

“Counterpoint: we don’t know if he secretly really wanted to see traditional decoration of Ukrainian Easter eggs,” Tony says. “God knows that I want to learn more about that.”

“Is everything a joke to you?”

"Only on federally mandated holidays,” Tony says with a shrug. “But let him be. Steve, it’s one thing that he didn’t kill you. It’s another thing that he hauled you up from the Potomac. I’m not sure I would’ve done that because who goes up alone to a helicarrier?”

“Historically nobody,” Natasha says. “Most people don’t have any helicarriers.”

“God, this situation sucks,” Tony says. “What if. We potentially. Ignore all of it and have spinach and artichoke dip? Hm?”

“With toasted bread?”

“I’m not an animal, Steve.”

“Your penchant for four a.m. coffee while you don’t realize you’re singing songs from the seventies says otherwise,” he responds.

“Well well well, if it isn’t the punishment of you getting the aux taken away for a week,” Tony taunts.

“Oh, come on!” Steve whines.

“Nope, just you having to listen to more of Bruce’s questionable tastes.”

“Fuck.”

Barnes comes stateside. The only reason Tony knows this is because Jarvis says that he may have spotted Barnes, but he’s not sure.

“J, you’re the most advanced system in the world, not to mention my son, and you like to hack into the Pentagon for funsies.”

“All of that could not have prepared me for this.”

Barnes is wearing a neon green tank top that is advertising Coco Beach in Florida.

“Can I laugh? Or is that sad?”

“Multitask, Sir.”

“Oh, true.”

Barnes is not in New York. Tony has to near-about put an electric fence around the whole state so that Steve doesn’t go on a road trip.

Hell, Tony doesn’t even trust him to go to coffee alone, but that’s a bit much.

“We have to wait,” Tony says.

Sam Wilson is a godsend. Also the funniest man Tony knows.

He is also emotionally healthy and very perceptive, so he has been noticing that Tony is nervous.

Because how do you face the man who killed your parents? Technically?

“Are you talking to your therapist?” Sam asks. “Just thinking you should.”

“Sam, we’re working on my issues from 2007. Believe it or not, it will be taking a full year.”

“I don’t like that I can never tell if you’re serious.”

“I know you remember the tabloids from 2007, I wrote a mesh vest. Clearly, I need so much help.”

Sam snorts.

“Maybe. Hey, I’ll catch you later. Clint and I are gonna go try and find some questionable shirts to crop.”

“Did his little protege convince you? Bishop, right?”

“Kate, yeah. She’s convinced our public image will go viral or something. Good luck with helping Steve and Nat with your super-soldier hunt.”

“Thanks. Let me know if you find a shirt with my face on it. I want it.”

Sam snorts.

“Will do.”

Bucky Barnes comes to New York in early May. The springtime is slowly but surely fading off, sun approaching more and more. Tony is enjoying coffee on a veranda, and then suddenly his waiter is nowhere to be found and he’s not entirely sure if his visitor takes credit or debit.

“Can I help you?”

“Maybe. Depends on if you’re gonna kill me or not.”

“I think Steve would be a bit broken up about it.”

“Do you care what he thinks?”

“On this situation? Yes. When it comes to culinary choices? No.”

There’s a ghost of a smile on his face. Tony’s trying extremely hard not to remember shattered glass and a motorcycle on ice.

“Can we, uh, table this conversation? For later. Espresso and all that, plus the added bonus of our shared history, so...”

“Shared history?”

“You don’t remember?” Tony asks. Bucky shakes his head. “Ah. Then this is truly a comedy of errors. Maybe. Um. Listen, I, uh...I gotta go. You need to talk to Nat or Steve or hell, maybe even Thor. Is Thor a good option?”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Barnes, I can’t exactly face you right now.”

And then he jumps off a balcony.

A fucking balcony.

Jesus H. Christ, his therapist is gonna be so excited for their next session.

The suit wraps itself around him, and he can finally breathe, and he’s thinking about calling Pepper and see if she would like to schedule him a vacation for maybe anywhere but New York and Iowa.

“Why not Iowa?” Pepper asks. “They have good antique stores. I’ve gotten quite a few good finds for clothes.”

“I can do shopping retail literally anywhere else, absolutely not.”

“Spoilsport. Steve know you’re leaving?”

“I didn’t even really tell Steve what happened with my parents.”

“Oh, your therapist called. She sounded concerned, but also intrigued.”

“It’s because Sally almost became an employee of NASA and still has a soft spot for aerodynamics.”

“What exactly did you do when faced with Barnes?”

“Check the front tabloid page tomorrow, just tell everyone I’m out of town.”

“Got it. And Tony?”

Her voice is soft.

“Yes, dear?”

He can feel her rolling her eyes. Affectionately, of course, but rolling all the same.

“Be safe, and come back. You know Rhodey and I miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

A week is spent in Malibu. He really is thinking about selling this place. But for now, it suffices.

Steve texts him.

bucky’s back. holy shit

be back in a week. radio silence.

got it. no more messages from me. thor tells me to tell you that he broke the sink

:((((

And that’s it. He’s sitting in the house for a week, has already called Sally once and explained how his suit works, and then listened to her talk about how “his reliance on the suit to help him escape unfavorable situations is not exactly the healthiest but also none of my clients have had to face someone who is of weird standing.”

It’s no secret that Tony doesn’t like Howard Stark. Who would’ve liked that sorry excuse for a father, a man who was so cold-hearted the Arctic looked like a tropical paradise?

Maria was...Maria was different.

She wasn’t a good mother. No, she was never a good mother. But she tried, and she didn’t deserve her fate.

And then there was the question of Bucky Barnes. Who wasn’t Bucky when he was there, but still so damn recognizable.

It’s kind of like when there’s a movie about a famous person, and another person plays them. Like Tom Hanks, essentially. Bucky played whoever the fuck they get Tom Hanks to play and it’s similar: you see the resemblance, but it’s not it.

So yeah.

There’s also the little tidbit that things get complicated when you involve personal feelings and rationality, and really? Tony misses New York. A lot. And he’s not going to let someone else overtake his life just because he’s uncomfortable.

So he flies back to New York.

He’s in a bad way, Barnes is.

“He remembered you,” Steve says. “What he did.”

“Ah, there’s that.”

“He doesn’t have to be here,” Natasha says. “I have a couple of SHIELD safe houses to choose from.”

“None would be adequate to house something like me,” comes the response.

Barnes looks remarkably shitty, as if he hasn’t slept in eighty years. And maybe he hasn’t.

“Jail would be more fitting.”

Tony rolls his eyes.

“You are literally the most dramatic person ever, and Bruce threatened to take over the government because Thor ate the last croissant. Put those on the grocery list, Steve

“We’re not gonna throw you in jail,” he continues on. “Not because you happened to be used as a goddamned Swiss army knife. I have issues, sure, but I’m not going to be going all Hannibal Lecter or whatever.”

“Who the hell is that?”

“Cannibal. I realized that that’s a terrible comparison, please forgive me.”

“Why a cannibal?”

“Couldn’t think of anything else but Anthony Hopkins, the actor. My mistake. Point is, we’re gonna have to go through some channels, and I’m introducing you to BARF, as well as a new person who’s gonna rock your world.”

“I’m pretty much well-acquainted with vomit.”

“No, not that,” Tony says. “Although we can cover that through my 2005 edition of partying if we really wanna dig up some old magazine interviews. No, I’m introducing you to something that’s going to change your life.”

After that, Tony doesn’t have much to do with Bucky’s life.

He serves as a permanent guilt trip, nothing says “well, shit” much like being a permanent guilt trip.

Sally tells him that they should talk it out. Do all that “and how do you feel?” questioning that makes his skin crawl and his eyes ascend to the ceiling.

I mean yeah, they share a living space. Tony has seen Bucky laugh and smile with Sam, talk with Bruce about a really interesting article about regeneration of plant cells or whatever, and Bucky enjoys videochatting with Wakandan royalty.

(It also helps that Shuri is blunt as ever, but so blisteringly smart. He’s reading her paper on regeneration of nanotechnology, and it just...it’s the Pieta of research, that paper.)

But he never speaks to Bucky. Well, he does. But it’s more along the lines of “hey Barnes” and “how are you?” which aren’t exactly the Most Thought Provoking Statements Ever Made.

Summer comes swiftly, and about near with a vengeance. Tony’s dealing with a heat wave and trying to figure out if going outside is even worth it, and then he and Bucky are alone in the kitchen.

Tony was debating getting a couple of popsicles from the freezer. Bucky is considering sabotaging Clint’s smoothie that was supposed to be special for tonight, but that he’ll most likely forget.

“Hey,” Bucky says. “Um, can we talk?”

Shit.

He’s been avoiding this, officially, for a month. Potentially more if you’re going to count a few choice events that have been brought up by his psyche.

“Sure thing, buttercup. What are we talking about. Economy, world crises, the great debate on financial advice?”

“Isn’t the third thing just the economy?”

“We can break it down over coffee.”

“Mm, maybe another time. No, I’m talking about us. About how I--I kind of ruined your life.”

Tony blinks.

“You didn’t ruin my life. If my life was ruined you’d be hit with so many lawsuits that I could make the rest of your life look like the third circle of Hell, or wherever it is that people go nowadays in Dante’s eyes. No, you didn’t ruin my life.”

“I still killed your parents.”

“If you hadn’t, someone else would’ve. Believe me, there were about fifteen others in line. Sometimes, myself included.”

“You can’t not take me seriously,” Bucky stresses. “I still did a terrible thing. I just want to make sure you know that you’re being too kind.”

“I most certainly am not,” Tony says. “Being too kind would have me feeding you grapes.”

Bucky’s face blanks.

“Don’t. I...I don’t wanna take advantage of your hospitality. I don’t want to remind you of what happened.”

“You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t wanted,” Tony says. “Believe me. And if you want to leave, you’re free to leave. I don’t want to make you feel like you need to stay here.”

“I...I want to make it up to you.”

“Then use BARF and review it,” Tony says. “I’m serious. I need user feedback, and you’re the best candidate for it. Also, please try to convince Steve to wear neon yellow. I just want to see if he’ll do it.”

Steve wears neon yellow. Tony laughs so hard he cries.

Bucky smiles.

It’s a nice smile, really. It’s wide and happy and wow. That’s all worth it.

And then BARF. Bucky just gives user feedback, nothing else. Tony doesn’t want to know anything else, but they start talking more.

Tony finds out that Bucky’s been doing crosswords to catch up on current events, and he’s bought taped recordings of World Series games.

He loves antique stores. He visits them and brings home little trinkets that he remembers in his own house, or what he remembered. He watched old commercials from the fifties and sixties, laughed as he remembered the Sears catalogs that would come in the mail.

“Me an’ my sisters would beg my mom for new clothes from the catalog, and she never would. Always sewed our pants and skirts so damn well, I probably could’ve used them for the next ten years.”

Tony laughs.

“Well, I can’t promise I can sew. But I could give you some armor that could last you twenty years, if you want. Steve told me you’re thinking about doing some distance missions.”

“Just observation, no armor required.”

“Sometimes it’s the simple missions that get the worst hits,” Tony says. “Believe me, I know how it goes. So, do you want some armor?”

Bucky smiles.

“Sure.”

“I’ll need feedback.”

“I’ll give it all I’ve got.”

Bucky is a goddamned dream to design for. He knows exactly what he needs, what areas are most likely to be pierced, and also has a flair for the dramatic: he requests an Iron Man helmet be embroidered on the back.

“You’re really just trying to be sweet on me, aren’t you?” Tony teases.

“My master plan to gain your fortune,” Bucky teases right back. “I’ll waste it all on champagne pools and the worst-looking but most expensive shoes I can find.”

Tony laughs.

“Sugar, that’d be incredible if you could spend all of my money on that. I’d commend you.”

Bucky smiles, and it shouldn’t be as nice of a smile as it is, but here Tony is with his opinions and his concerning thought that maybe he wants to see more of Bucky.

In the morning, there begins a routine. Tony is always up at eight o’clock. It’s a rare lull in Avenger-morning-routines: Nat, Steve, and Bruce are all done, and Thor and Clint won’t be in until ten o’clock at the earliest.

(What can he say? Thor’s a god and Clint...well. He needs a lot of beauty sleep.)

Tony makes coffee, and Bucky makes them both breakfast. Says that officially, it’s to test and make sure that his prosthetic is still performing under optimal conditions.

(They both know that’s not it.)

Tony always says he pours too much water, makes enough for two cups.

Steve calls them out on it.

“You two are being weird,” he says. “And not like Thor and Bruce trying to reenact that one show about ghosts and unsolved things.”

“That’s their form of courtship, don’t be fucking rude,” Clint remarks. Natasha snorts.

“What, us being weird?” Tony asks, pouring a bit more coffee into Bucky’s mug. He always uses too much creamer and then won’t finish his coffee unless there’s more. “Why do you say that?”

“It’s because you both do couple shit,” Bruce says, breezing into the kitchen. “Also, Steve, lovely to see that you have volunteered to be the next guest on Avengers: Unsolved. We’re planning on using you as a guilt-trip in order to access files about aliens.”

“Truth will be found!” Thor adds. “But also, yes. Bucky, I thought you were taking him on a date to the art museum on Saturday.”

Bucky turns red. So does Tony. It really is quite inconvenient.

“I mean, we could go on a date there,” Tony says. “If you’re okay with that.”

“You’re doing this in public?” Natasha asks, eyebrows raised. “Hm. Would not have called that.”

“You owe me fifteen dollars,” Bucky says. “Not you Tony, quit looking at me like that. Yes, it will be a date on Saturday, I’ll wear a nice shirt. Nat said that I couldn’t do anything that surprised her.”

“Technically, Tony surprised me.”

“I thought dates were mutual events, hm? Fifteen dollars. I’ll use it to buy the best bouquet in New York.”

“The best bouquet costs over a thousand dollars,” Thor answers.

“Not questioning how you know that, but I’m scared of you,” Bucky says. “Then I will get the best fifteen-dollar-bouquet in New York.”

Tony snorts, smiling.

“I guess I’ll spray a bit of my perfume on my pillow then, soldier.”

“I’ll pick you up at noon sharp,” Bucky says, grinning. He finishes his coffee. “We’ll make fun of Steve’s art exhibit together.”

#lovelyirony writes #holy shit this was longer than expected #thank you to angel for this inspiration #winteriron #avengers as a family #personally i like the fact that thor and bruce are doing avengers unsolved and have to force different avengers on #natasha romanoff #bruce banner #thor #bucky barnes #tony stark #howard stark #maria stark #sally the therapist

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murdereraisuha · 4 years ago

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I wrote this for myself to try and organize my current theories on TWST, but I might as well keep this blog going even though I’m out of ideas for card maker memes.

This is basically a rant that starts out with theorizing about RSA, the Cater=Cinderella theory, and Split Card, but then spirals into a Cater character analysis.

For anyone who doesn’t know the Cinderella theory, it’s basically just Cater might have something to do with Cinderella because he has two bossy sisters, and during the ghost marriage there was this whole thing where Riddle needs to rescue Cater before midnight because of some Queen of Hearts rule.

Spoilers for Cater’s personal stories (including his halloween outfit story) and chat, and chapter 4 of the main story. Okay now let’s get into it. Over 1,800 words geez what am I doing with my life

Aight so Ace and Deuce don't have their unique magics yet and there is obviously Something going on with Cater so it really makes me think that we're gonna return to Heartslabyul somewhere down the line. We know there's gotta be more stuff with RSA, so that might tie into the Cater = Cinderella theory. Maybe we have a chapter focusing on RSA and Cater will be the main focus or ally for that. IDK man, I'm still kind of eh on the Cinderella theory cause it makes a lot of sense but we already have Mozus being the evil stepmother. Him and Cater are from the same hometown (?) but my concern is that if Cater is a main focus and he gets connected to Mozus then Mozus would also be in the spotlight which would be odd given how nothing seems to suggest that the teachers (except Crowley) getting bigger roles in the story. However, it could always be a situation like with Farena where Mozus is there and some sort of connection is briefly discussed but he isn't important and maybe someone else takes the role of evil stepmother in the story.

Ok idk so we're gonna go back to Cater. If the Cinderella theory is true, we gotta consider how exactly Cater represents Cinderella. Does he represent Cinderella in the way that he's twisted from her (ex. Azul & Ursula) or that he just takes the role of Cinderella for a chapter (ex. Azul & The Genie)? The fact that he uses dark magic points to it being the latter, that he really is twisted from a card soldier. However, we gotta consider 1. the nature of his unique magic 2. the plot of Cinderella. Though we know he has the ability to clone himself, we don't know how exactly this works. Are the clones identical, or do/can they have differences? In episode 1-15, the Cater clones all have slightly different responses ("はーい" "まかせて！" "おっけー♪") to getting ready to paint the roses. Given how clones don't exist in real life, it's impossible to tell whether this variation indicates actual differences in personality, is just due to the clones' slightly different experiences (like a sort of butterfly effect), or if it's just a decision by the writer so they aren't repetitive. Another thing to note is that in that same episode Cater claims that cloning himself is tiring. If this is the only source for this information, there's the possibility that it just was a lie to let him manipulate the 1st years into helping him paint. Finally, Cater's ability makes me think of Twice from BNHA. Can only the original Cater create clones? Or is he like Twice in that his clones can also make clones, therefore making it impossible for anyone, including himself, to tell who is the original?

What I'm getting at here is the possibility of Cater having clones that 1. stick around permanently and 2. are significantly different than him. This would create the possibility of him being twisted from both the card soldiers and Cinderella, but he is able to use his clone ability to split up those aspects of himself. One Cater is the card soldier one normally walking around NRC and who has dark magic, but then there's another Cinderella Cater who has light magic. Assuming this is what is going on, it would kind of connect to his two-sided personality, where he presents his bubbly, social-media addict personality to the world but has another, depressed, more private personality underneath.

Now, getting into what I mentioned before about the plot of Cinderella, Cinderella normally looks like a humble servant. However, with the aid of the fairy godmother, she completely transforms herself into a breathtaking princess so she can go to the ball. However, once the clock strikes midnight, she transforms back. Basically, Cinderella has the ability of transformation, to have two completely different versions of herself. One version is her true, plain self, while the other is a flashy deception. This information strengthens what I just said about Cater's personality and clone ability.

Actually, just going into Cater's personality for a bit (yeah, “a bit” lol)... He has a big focus on always being presentable. In his lab coat, he seems pretty desperate to hide all evidence of his true self, claiming that he just failed at putting his magic in the depressed mandrake and then hiding all his other mandrakes aside from the fun ones. This desperation is similar to Cinderella's, with how she flees the ball in a hurry once it reaches midnight so no one will see how she truly looks once the spell breaks. Now, why do Cater and Cinderella behave the way they do? I don't remember Cinderella's exact motivations for attending the ball, but wikipedia says that she had to flee the ball because if the spell broke there she could get caught by her stepmother & stepsisters. What is Cater's "ball"? Well, because of his strong social media presence, his "ball" is basically everywhere, all the time. If something happens on social media that exposes his true self, breaking his "spell", not only can other students see it, but his sisters can also see it.

Cater hates sucking up to his older sisters, which implies that he has had to suck up to his older sisters and put up his happy front around them too. Just like how Cinderella can't afford to let her stepsisters realize her true identity at the ball, Cater can't afford to let his sisters realize his true self. It's honestly kind of sad; unlike Cinderella, whose stepsisters only showed up later in her life, Cater's older sisters have been around him and making him miserable for all of his life.

Kinda unrelated, but looking though Cater's chats, in the one he has with Trey they talk about the Queen of Hearts and her love for sweets, Cater remarks that he wants to have tea with her too, leading Trey to say that Cater would be unable to befriend her since they're in different social classes. Isn't this basically a genderbent version of Cinderella, just a commoner, wanting to go to the ball where the Prince is?

Now going back to Cater's personality. Even if he does fear his sisters, that doesn't seem to fully explain his 24/7 pep and focus on being magicammable. Now, what if we say that happiness=nobility. In Cinderella, she dresses up like nobility so she can remain in the ball where the actually rich people are. What if Cater is acting happy so he can fit in with the people around him, who are naturally happy enough that they don't need to fake it? Is this a fake it until you make it situation? At the end of his ceremony robes story, after he says he's tired and doesn't care about the ceremony, he says he's just kidding and goes back to talking about the selfies he took that day. Even though he's alone and wouldn't really get hurt for dropping his performance. It gives the vibe to me that his situation is not like Jamil's, where he's fully aware he's unhappy, deliberately acts otherwise in front of others, and tries to eliminate the cause of his unhappiness. Instead, Cater is trying to eliminate his unhappiness itself. He grasps onto magicam because if he fills up his account with pictures of a happy life, it's like he's actually living a happy life.

This idea I have of Cater trying to fit in also goes along with his focus on the current trends, like in one of his gym uniform voice lines where he panics at the idea of not knowing about a new popular game. Rather than making his own aesthetics or trends, he goes along with the crowd. Sweets and desserts are trendy? Then he'll take tons of pictures of them and say they're super delicious even if he actually hates sweet food. He disregards or evades his own preferences to create the appearance that he's just like everyone else, and he puts effort into staying up to date so he can maintain that appearance.

Moving on, I reread his halloween outfit personal story. Something that stuck out was the end, when Cater thinks that Lilia wouldn't understand what he's going through. Specifically, Lilia wouldn't understand his 下らなくてどーしよーもない feelings. According to jisho, 下らない can mean trivial/not worth bothering with/worthless, and it can also mean stupid/absurd/silly. Then, どーしよーもない (どうしようもない) means something that can't be helped, that has no way out of it. Doesn't this seem kind of odd? That he claims his feelings are just trivial then but also he can't help having them? Is this a contradiction? Or is it something like he believes that most people wouldn't have these silly feelings but he specifically is too weak to push past them?

For self-esteem though, he seems to at least be trying to boost it. Like in his gym uniform story, when he decides to just clone himself and have each one run 1 lap instead of him running 5 by himself, his clones all praise him for the idea. However, this could be a fake it until you make it thing again. The praise does seem a bit heavy-handed.

There's also the whole thing in the 2nd part of the story where he talks about all the shallow friendships he has made. He notes that he'd rather have a casual time with people rather than get attached. That plus his family situation... means he's really never had anyone to trust. Anyway, he then goes on to talk about how magicame is amazing for helping him maintain all these casual friendships. So there we have another reason for his social media addiction: not only does it let him create a picture of happiness, he can get tons of feedback affirming his happiness and serving as proof of happiness. How can he possibly be lonely if he has so many friends?

Both in his ceremony robes and halloween outfit stories have a moment where Cater is tired and admits he's tired but then downplays it. Yeah, the ceremony was tiring, but he got tons of great pictures out of it! Yeah, dealing with guests was rough, but at the same time all the halloween stuff was exciting! This sort of thing is a pretty common strategy for increasing the persuasiveness of an argument. By first agreeing (yes, he's tired) with the opposing view (he is not happy), he can then push his own view (he is happy) and point at his earlier concession as proof that he has looked at both sides of the issue instead of only looking for evidence of his own belief.

So basically what I'm getting here is that Cater Is Not Okay. Prevented from building close bonds with friends or family, he's reinforcing his isolation himself through his fervent efforts to never let anyone close and never let his mask drop. He's gone so far as to try and convince himself that he's happier than he actually is through self-deception and social media.

Alright that’s all I got for now see ya

#twst analysis #twisted wonderland #cater diamond #twst

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cruelfeline · 5 years ago

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The Hordak Bleatings Masterpost

The new and improved Masterpost! All of my ridiculous bleating in one place! Now with categories to allow you, dear friends and neighbors, to better marvel at the utter nonsense I get up to in my spare time. It shall be updated every so often/when I remember.

some of these categories may overlap or perhaps not be perfect; I tried; there was... a lot

Enjoy!

Biological/Medical Musings

A Fairly Comprehensive List of Hordak’s Clinical Signs

I Wrote Too Much About Hordak’s Arms

And Then Someone Asked About His Elbows So Voila

Someone Else Asked About His Eyes

Yes; I Did Measure Hordak’s Ears via Fuzzy Math; You’re Welcome

A Brief Word About Dentition

Some Sad Thoughts About Clone Lifespan

I Like to Headcanon that Clones Have Naturally Different Eye Colors

Counting Hordak’s Ports

Thinking About Terrible Ways Prime Could Institute Biological Control

Doing Very Fuzzy Math And Wondering Just How Young Hordak Could Be

Spending Way Too Much Time Figuring Out Whether Hordak is Left or Right Handed

Why Tiny Food is Probably Ideal for Hordak (a joke ask I essentially took Seriously)

Discussing Hordak’s Temper

Considering Whether Hordak Needs Oxygen

Discussing Whether Prime and his Clones are Genetically Identical

Hordak in Relation to Other Characters

Entrapdak

Hordak Can Get Close to Entrapta Because He Needn’t Fear Her

Discussing Entrapdak Age Discourse

Bit More Regarding Hordak’s Maturity vs. Entrapta’s

Hordak Didn’t Manipulate Entrapta… But Catra Did

Assessing that Unfortunate Moment When Hordak Snapped at Entrapta

Further Assessing Hordak Snapping at Entrapta by Noting When He Doesn’t

On Hordak’s Wardrobe Change

Entrapta Shushing Hordak is One of My Favorite Interactions

The Entrapdak Scene Was Also One of Self-Love

I Really Like How Entrapta Talks to Hordak About Failure

Hordak Tells an Actual Lie and Succeeds

Entrapta’s and Hordak’s Social Differences Help Them Connect to One Another

I Would Have Appreciated A Scene Where Entrapta Learns About What Happened To Hordak

Hordak Takes Strength From Realizing That Entrapta Came For Him

Hordak and Entrapta Just Like One Another, and I Enjoy That

There is a Huge Difference in How The Alliance and Hordak React to Entrapta Being on Beast Island, and it’s Jarring

This is Mostly About Catradora But Kind of in the Sense of Why Entrapdak is Better, so Here it Goes

Entrapta Didn’t Teach Hordak How to Love; She Taught Him How to Be Loved

The Soup Scene is a Condensed View of Why Entrapdak Works in Light of the Rest of Hordak’s Arc

Hordak and Entrapta Search for One Another Alone, and it Makes Me Sad

I Love How Hordak Scooches Over for Entrapta to Join Him on his Throne

Catra

The How-Catra-Manipulated-Hordak Masterpost

Watching Catra and Hordak Switch Roles in Season Three is Fascinating

Hordak and Catra’s Low Points Indicate Their Core Problems

Did Hordak Abuse Catra? Did She Abuse Him? The World May Never Know

Comparing Hordak and Catra in Terms of Consequences and Agency

Hordak and Catra’s Apparent Ages Likely Affect How People Judge Them

Why Doesn’t Hordak Subdue Catra?

Losing and Regaining the Will to Fight is Another Hordak/Catra Parallel

Sometimes I Wish The Show Would Focus Less on Catra and More on Hordak

Why Catra Besting Hordak Isn’t As Satisfying As Catra Besting Shadow Weaver

Hordak Exhibits Some Level of Trust in Catra Even in Season 2... and She Betrays It

The Difference in How Hordak and Catra Handle Relationships followed by Why They Are Like This

Some Brief Words on the Differences Between How Hordak and Catra End Up Driven to Destruction in Season Four

Musing About What I Actually Would Accept as “Hordak Abusing Catra”

I Think It’s Kind of Funny that Some Expect Catra to be Suspicious of Hordak Post-Canon

Two Scenes That Look Distressing Side-by-Side

Discussing How Catra and Hordak Start Off as Parallels but Later Deviate Due to Character Differences

Adora

How Adora and Hordak End Season Four Differently

Hordak and Adora Parallels

I Wonder if Adora Recognizes Some of Herself in Hordak

Other

This is Actually About Shadow Weaver, but Compared to Hordak, So…

Hordak Doesn’t Seem to have a “Rule the World!” Moment (compared to Shadow Weaver)

On Hordak’s Weird Interactions with DT

Watching DT Circle Hordak is Interesting

Let’s Compare the Circling Scenes, Shall We?

What Wrong Hordak’s Arc Teaches Us About Clones and Hordak

Wondering if Hordak Actually has Control Over the Etherian Horde (could he have stopped the war?)

Prime

There Is A Huge Difference In The Standards Prime And Hordak Hold Others Two Versus Themselves

Hordak and Horde Prime Handle Their Own Vulnerabilities Quite Differently

The Difference Between How Prime and Hordak Use Anger

The Moment Prime Touched Hordak’s Face is the Moment I Truly Knew That Something About Hordak’s Backstory was Very Wrong

Clone/Origin/Prime-Related Sadness

The Clone Thing

More Distressed Bleating about The Clone Thing

Hordak’s DMV Photo Disturbs Me

Hordak Isn’t Actually an Idiot About Disease Transmission

On Hordak’s Bodily Autonomy, or Lack Thereof

How Much of Hordak is “Hordak?”

I’m 99% Certain That Hordak Sucks at Lying Because he Literally Couldn’t

You’d Think Hordak would Think Things Through, But…

Hordak isn’t Really Proud of “Hordak” (with a bonus Adora mention)

Hordak Provides Excellent Fridge Horror

Hordak’s Behavioral Pathology Isn’t Actually Pathology

So! That Purification Ritual was Really Something

Despite Erasure, Hordak Remains Himself

The Clones Are Essentially Trapped By Prime And It Upsets Me

I Get Annoyed That The Clones Aren’t Discussed More By Our Heroes

Again, I Wish The Show Acknowledged The Clones A Bit More, Wrongie Edition

Wouldn’t It Be Swell If Prime Really Did Manage The Clones Like Livestock?

It’s More Emotionally Poignant That The Clones Are Individuals Rather Than Drones

Prime’s Doctrine Ensures Hordak Blames Himself, and it’s an Awful Control Measure

Hordak Probably Isn’t Dumb for Using Uninsulated Cables; Rather, Clone Sadness is in Play

Why I Can’t See Hordak and the Other Clones As Colonizers (unlike Prime) (also a whole convo thread)

Thinking About Clones and Self-Care

Each Clone Will Have to Realize That They Were Victimized

Wondering if Horde Clones Might Feel Anxious Sleeping Alone

Why Prime Might Encourage Some Autonomy in His Clones (spoilers: for cruelty)

Completely Arbitrary Classification of Clones Post-Prime!

Prime is an Actual God to the Clones and it is Terrifying

Canon Plausibility of Blanket Burritoing Horde Clones!

I Appreciate That, Despite Their Devotion, the Clones are Portrayed as Legitimately Suffering due to Prime

Catra and Adora have Happy Memories; do the Clones?; does Hordak?

Morality/Punishment/Redemption Related

Morality is (sadly) not a Universal Thing

Don’t Talk to me About the Reset as “Proper Punishment”

Why Hordak Doesn’t Just Become a Good Citizen

I Think About Hordak’s Choices a Lot

Hordak as an Abuse Mimic Rather Than Pure Evil

Looking at the Horde Child Soldier Thing From a Certain POV

Emotional Support is a Necessary Part of Healing

Hordak Was Forgiven Without Redemption, And I’m OK With That

Hordak’s Arc Speaks Directly to People who were “Raised Wrong”

I Wonder if Hordak Would See anti-Princess Propaganda as Propaganda

Semi-Intelligent Plot/Story Observations

Hordak’s Portrayal is a Function of Character Lens

Hordak Gets Very Legit Development in Season Four

She-Ra Isn’t a War Drama and Here’s Why

Hordak Suffers From a Distressing Lack of Agency

Hordak is a Weirdly Unenthusiastic Lord

The Season 4 Finale Reframes Hordak’s Vulnerability

Untangling Hordak’s Backstory in Light of What We Now Know

Why Hordak Getting Possessed is Narratively Good

Hordak’s Rebellion and Subsequent Possession Essentially Summarize His Story

There Are Big Differences Between Hordak and Prime’s Etherian Wars

It Is Pretty Unlikely That Hordak Would Have Pulled The Portal Lever

It Occurred To Me That Hordak May Initially Ignore FO’s Tech Because It’s Just Really Old

An Assessment Of The Villain Intro Cards, Focusing On Hordak

I Think It’s Silly To Blame Hordak For Everything - Especially When Considering Prime

Literally Just a Thread Explaining Why Hordak is Sympathetic

Some Words On Exactly How Terrible DT’s Reveal Was For Hordak

The Escalation of Hordak’s Situation is Really Something

An Anon Asks a Normal Question and I go on a Tangent About Hordak Compensating for his Inability to Innovate via Entrapta and Catra

There are Monumental Differences Between the Galactic and Etherian Hordes in Terms of Brainwashing and Agency

Thinking About Why Chipped Etherians May Not be That Sympathetic To Clones After All

Random Bit of Logicking About Why Hordak Calls the Princesses a Rebellion

Figuring Out Why I Find Hordak So Much More Sympathetic Than The Princesses

Brief Musing on How Hordak Might Face Antagonism From Both Sides Post-Canon

Hordak’s Story Touches on the Concept of the Imperfection of Authority

Someone Asked Me if I Found Hordak’s S5 Arc Satisfying

Discussing Whether Or Not Hordak Planned on Leading Anything After Conquering Etheria

Taking Apart an Abysmal Twitter Take Because It’s Fun

Talking About Prime’s Clone Troops v. Robot Troops

Talking About Hordak’s Emotional Age

Hordak’s S3 Backtory Being Part-Delusion Helps Emphasize the Inequality in Attachment Between the Clones and Prime

A Few Not-So-Nice Acts Hordak Commits That I Find Justifiable

Random Headcanons of All Sorts

Stupidly Cute, Pointless Headcanon #3825 (ears covered)

Stupid Pointlessly Cute Headcanon #4853 (yawning, with appropriate artwork)

Stupid Pointlessly Cute Headcanon #2938 (snoring)

Stupid Pointlessly Cute Headcanon #1423 (REM sleep)

Stupidly Cute, Pointless Headcanon #7845 (blushing)

Random Hordak-Related Thought #2935 (forearms)

I Like to Think That Hordak Does Cute Things in his Sleep

I Like to Think That Hordak’s Eyes Dim While He Sleeps

Literally Me Just Having Emotions

Thinking About the Stress of Maintaining His Image in the Horde

Why Hordak’s Trauma is Particularly Disturbing To Me (compared to Catra/Adora)

Catra Overcomes her Fear of her Abuser; Hordak Does Not

All of my Emotions over the S4 Finale

Hordak’s Goddamned Smirk Lied to Me

I Have Feelings about Hordak’s Enforced Self-Care

I Need Hordak to Know that He is Loved

Hordak Goes Pew Pew and It’s Cute

Watching Hordak Lift Things Makes Me Smile

Hordak’s Unreasonable Expectations Make Me Sad

Please Just Let Hordak Rest

A Sassy Post About People Complaining the Hordak and Catra are Forgiven

All My Words About That Hordak/Adora Scene

Hordak Taps the Asphyxiation Lever With Two Fingers And It Makes Me Happy

I Wonder If Individuality Felt Blasphemous To Hordak

Please Don’t Stab Clones In Their Ports, Thank You

Hordak Clasps His Hands And It Makes Me Anxious

Hordak Shaming Catra Mimics the Purification Room And It’s Disturbing

Watching Hordak Give Up Is Heartbreaking

I Worry About Hordak Handling Anxiety

People Being Considerate of Hordak Makes My Heart Smile

I Wonder If Magic Was Frightening to Hordak at First

Thinking About Hordak Progressing in Terms of Self-Care

Prime Never Calls Hordak by Name, not Even Once

Just Being Sad While Realizing the Sort of Life Hordak had to Look Forward To

Strange Fic-Like Things No One Should Read

Please Consider: A Concept Masterpost

Hordak Practices Eyerolling

Imp Hacks Up The Worst Color of Hairball

#hordak #masterpost #entrapdak #this post fills me with an exquisite mix of pride and abject horror

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