#copernicus - such a good boy

[doctorbrown]

DOCTOBER '23 ⸺ 「 5 / 31 * ALARM CLOCK 」

November 7, 1955

01:23

Emmett didn't have the heart to wake the boy when he finally passed out, face-down on his living room couch and still fully clothed, shoes and all. He was only gone about twenty minutes—twenty-two, to be precise, according to the small collection of clocks hanging on the wall—to make up one of the unused and neglected guest rooms. He had more space than he knew what to do with, and the kid very well couldn't be sleeping on the couch for an entire week while he was temporarily displaced in this time due to the actions of his future self.

How could I have been so reckless as to send a kid through time alone?

So he left him there, hovering awkwardly over the boy for a moment before finally fetching a spare blanket from the closet and draping it over the exhausted time-traveller.

Marty's small collection of future gadgets were still on the chair where he left them, and it took all of Emmett's willpower not to start examining the strange items in greater detail, from the portable television studio to the device that looked like an odd transistor radio. You'll find out in time, he mentally chides himself, but the kid is still asleep and his curiosity is a powerful thing, so the next thing he knows, the radio is in his hands, much lighter than he imagined it would be.

He takes it with him into the kitchen, where he's set up multiple papers to begin his plans to modify the time machine. Normally, he would retreat to the garage to work on his project, as the environment there was far more conducive to the creative process, but he had reservations about leaving Marty alone in the house; what if the kid woke up, panicked, thinking this was all some horrible nightmare?

With so little time and the kid's very existence on the line, he sets to work, leaving the miniature radio on the table, which was now popped open, where a strange thin film canister labelled Van Halen, whatever that was, rested inside.

08:37

When he goes to check up on Marty again, a few hours later, the only difference between then and now was the position Marty was in on the couch and how tangled up in the blanket he had gotten himself. He looked just as sound asleep as he did when he first knocked out, and Emmett chuckles to himself—when was the last time he slept? He had serious doubts the kid would be awake any time before noon. Copernicus trots over, tail wagging, eager to check on their new houseguest.

❝Copernicus!❞ Emmett whispers as he puts his front paws on the couch, ❝Leave Marty be! He's had a hell of a day; let him sleep in unbothered. You can say hello when he wakes up.❞

Copernicus looks back between his master and his new friend, as if weighing out the amount of trouble he would get in for disobeying. Marty is new, exciting, and friendly, but—

❝Come on, boy! Let's get a start on breakfast.❞

Emmett sets the coffeepot on the stove with enough for two—does Marty drink coffee?—and fetches Copernicus' food bowl from the floor, yawning into the sleeve of his robe. This was not his first all-nighter and, if the existence of the time vehicle is anything to go off of, it will not be his last, either. He still has no real understanding of how the machine works beyond knowing that it does, and even if it will save him what will likely be years of struggle—thirty years, if he is to believe Marty's departure date is the very first test of the machine—he can't allow himself to break established history by obtaining future knowledge.

He sighs as the smell of coffee permeates the kitchen and promptly fills Copernicus' bowl with his favourite dry food.

Before he can set the bowl back down, a shout and the sound of something heavy hitting the floor causes Emmett to jump, sending dry kibble flying across the kitchen. He drops the bowl on the ground and hurries over to find Marty no longer on the couch, but on the floor, hair askew and wide-eyed and still hopelessly tangled in the blanket.

Copernicus is sitting on Marty's chest, tail wagging, and Emmett's eyes go wide.

❝H-Hey Doc. Copernicus kinda—❞

❝Copernicus!❞ Emmett chides, crossing the length of the room to pick up the dog and set him down on the floor. ❝What did I say about letting Marty sleep?❞

❝It's fine, Doc, really, I just wasn't expecting him to start licking my face, that's all.❞

Emmett kneels down as Marty starts to struggle against the blanket, brows furrowed as if to ask, may I? Marty nods, and he works on extricating the boy from his fabric prison. ❝Nonsense; you were exhausted, you need to sleep. I might have tried to wake you up when breakfast was finished, but that wasn't going to be for some time.❞

[geekgirles]

I seriously think Emmelyn's role is going to be pivotal in giving Unicorn back their humanity and empathy.

As seen at the end of A Fateful Encounter and the beginning of What Lies Beneath, Emmelyn was more proficient with her powers and more effective when Melinda took control of their body. She immediately gave chase to the Evil, cornered her and was about to vanquish her once more, all by herself...

...until she saw the damage her powers caused to that poor family's home and lives.

From then on, it's Emma who asserts herself over Melinda's soul again, horrified at the damage she caused.

But here's the thing, she's the only member of Unicorn who pays the poor woman and her kids any mind. Edred, despite witnessing the state the house is in, quickly brushes it off because Melinda let the Evil escape, not once sparing a glance to the innocent people whose lives they just essentially ruined.

And that seems to be Unicorn's recurring flaw: they are so laser-focused on defeating the Evil in the name of humanity, they tend to overlook the individuals they're supposed to be trying to help.

This episode showcased this brilliantly: when Melinda's fire destroyed the bridge and threatened with harming lots of innocents, Edred and Copernicus were quick to solve the problem. The civilians even cheered for them!

But when it comes to dealing with people's problems individually, they tend to disregard them in the name of the greater good. Unicorn will do what's objectively right or best, which is usually the needs of many over one person's issues or desires, but they won't stop to think about the possible consequences of their actions beyond vanquishing the Evil.

This is especially prevalent during Emma and Melinda's confrontation last episode. Through Melinda's callous treatment of Emma and refusal to see things from her point of view, as she is devoted to their cause and Emma's refusal to merge with her directly threatens their mission, she also fails to understand asserting herself over Emma only serves in alienating her more.

If only Melinda had tried a gentler approach in explaining to Emma she is not responsible for the turn her life took but they really need to work together or hers won't be the only life that prematurely comes to an end, then chances are Emma wouldn't be resisting her and her powers as much as she's doing right now.

Edred has this same problem too, as evidenced through his interactions with Winston. Instead of explaining that the woman he loves isn't exactly there anymore, he coldly tries to push him aside, to get him to leave Emmelyn alone. He doesn't even try to relate to the boy's problem, even when they're essentially one and the same! Both Edred and Winston are terrified of losing their beloved because she's not acting like herself and, no matter what they do, she is constantly pushing them away. But because Edred has grown unaffected by people's struggles outside of saving them from the Evil, not helped by the fact that his actions are also fuelled by jealousy, he makes no effort to sympathise with Winston or even offer an apology or words of comfort. He just wants him out of their way and away from Melinda.

But with Emmelyn, it's precisely the fact that Emma can actually get Melinda to snap out of it and take control over their body that she realised their current actions are doing more harm than good to the people they're supposed to protect. Meaning, once she explains to the others why she's holding back, how fully giving in to Melinda means more people will suffer in the long run unless they start doing things differently, maybe it'll help Edred, Seng, and Copernicus realise they need to understand those they're trying to protect better and that tackling things as a whole won't always be the answer. Otherwise, they're only going to do more harm than good and, as with their reincarnations, the cycle will only begin once more.

[poisonheadcrabsalesman]

R&R

Chili Cook-Off! This event will be held in Forward Mess Hall. To enter, contract Master Chef Jonathan Lowell. To attend as a taster, pick up your tickets any time before February 25! Miller just wanted to enjoy his morning off, but he's voluntold to attend the Chili Cook-off. There he runs into some familiar faces. Fernando bullies and gets bullied by his coworkers. Linda socializes and reports back to Blue Team.

Technically a sequel to Backup - the other Miller/Esparza fic that takes place during SpOps.

Also posted to ao3

-

February 25th, 2558. A perfectly normal Saturday.

4 days since the invasion. Not even two weeks since Castle was shot down on their way to Copernicus base. So much had gone wrong.

The hole in Miller's Fireteam roster yawned ever wider as the campaign pushed everyone to their limits. He had thought he'd lost Crimson too, but their luck had held out so far. But losses were common, regardless of what the propaganda said. It really was only a matter of time.

Get it together, Miller. He thinks to himself and huffs a sigh. At least he can be dramatic and morose in the privacy of his own bunk.

"Good morning, Spartan Miller!"

Never mind, he's not safe anywhere. Maybe he should be grateful that Roland has the decency to wait until he's awake.

"Roland." He sighs and rolls over, glaring at the ceiling. "It's my morning off."

"Was your morning off. Put some pants on so you don't scare my delivery boy. I hope you're hungry!"

Miller grumbles something about pushy AI and pulls on some sweatpants before there's a knock at his door. It's probably Dalton or someone from Crimson in on Roland's scheme. Miller scowls and opens the door.

It's not Dalton or Crimson. It's Linda. 058. Blue Team Linda. Sharp-green-eyes-that-see-into-your-soul Linda. Linda from the speed dating event, who-acted-like-she-wanted-to-win-it Linda. That Linda. At Miller's door. Where he's standing. Shirtless and half awake. Well, he's fully awake now. He stares at her, frozen as the white hot fear and panic turns him to stone. She stares at him, expression blank as usual, maintaining prolonged eye contact as Miller’s brain both empties and goes into overdrive. He goes for casual seconds too late and aborts a half-motion to cover his chest. Playing it off like he went to scratch his neck, he finally regains his grasp of the English language and manages human-like speech.

"Hi." The greeting creaks out his throat.

Linda nods in lieu of a greeting and opens her palm to reveal comically archaic paper tickets. They look small and childish in her hand - so out of place on a warship. Paper tickets, a novelty on their own, but on the Infinity they mean one thing; Morale boosting events. R&R, hand-delivered and Roland-enforced. Miller is doomed. He’s getting roped in. Roland somehow roped Linda (058, his brain supplies, as if leaving the numbers off is rude) to rope Miller into attending.

Miller blinks. Linda doesn't appear to need to. He holds his arm out robotically and receives them. He's unsure what's happening. Surely he’s still dreaming and this social fumble is just a nightmare.

"What are these for?" He asks.

"Chili cook-off. You're a taster." She says, voice cool and calm. Miller can't tell what she's thinking or feeling. Linda’s the most mysterious member of Blue Team because of her quiet and secretive nature. Beyond being the sniper, Miller isn’t really aware of any aspect of her personality. Even Chief emotes more than Linda. Miller thinks Linda lets people see exactly what she wants them to see, which is none of her, most of the time.

"What? This is what Roland was talking about?" He sighs, "I'm sorry you got dragged into this." He is genuinely apologetic. There was something of a Roland blast zone surrounding Miller and those who got too close were collateral for the AI’s whims. 

Her head tilts a fraction of a millimeter. "I'm going too." She reveals her own ticket. "See you there." And then she's gone.

Miller blinks and Linda is disappearing down the hall while he stands there like an idiot. He knows he only sees her leave because she wants him to. Why did the "see you there" sound so threatening? IIs were such different beasts from IVs, socially at least. He was fine being a handler and helping on Ops with IIs, but without Fred balancing them out, Blue Team was nigh indecipherable outside a combat setting.

Miller groans. He'd been looking forward to laying around in bed for his morning off. Now he's saddled with expectations. If he doesn't go, Roland won't allow him a moment of peace until he decides Miller's suffering has balanced the scales. He's at the mercy of a fickle AI. He knows Roland knows he knows this. He better get on with it, for his own sake.

Gunmetal gray walls and bright lights greet him as he leaves his room and exits S-Deck to the less Spartan-friendly areas of the ship. There’s a dull roar as he approaches the cafeterias and Miller sees more groups congregating than he had expected. The Forward Mess Hall is a hive of activity as Miller steps through the door. Voices drone together in a low buzz as bodies swarm different tables. Crew from every department and rank are rubbing elbows, some for the first time ever. Master Chef Lowell is conducting the competing cooks with a smile on his face. The overall mood is surprisingly light given that just a few days ago the Infinity had been boarded by Covenant and Promethean invaders.

The crew needed this. A small, lighthearted respite in the midst of a messy campaign. Miller needed this too, though he didn't sign up to be a taster for the Chili Cook-Off of his own free will. Roland signing him up looked like it would turn out to be a good thing, not that Miller could voice that where the AI could hear. Roland's ego needed no help.

Miller finds himself in a swarm of crew vying for the seats at the tables across from the cooks. He's a head taller than most of the people there, sticking out like a sore thumb. There's one Spartan competing which assuages some of his nerves - it's funny seeing Spartan Hedge in an apron that barely makes it to his upper thigh.

He's scouting for a spot to sit, one that will support his augmented weight, when someone calls his name.

"Spartan Miller?"

It's the civilian from the group that huddled in the Op Center during the invasion. The engineering contractor or something, Esparza. He waves at Miller and gestures to the empty seat next to him. Miller raises a hand to wave back and finds himself gravitating towards the table. It wasn't like anyone else was going to wave him down.

"Esparza, right? How have you been?" Miller asks as he takes a seat.

Esparza grins at the fact that Miller remembered his name. Fernando incorporates Miller into his small group near-seamlessly. “Good, good. Nice to see you again, you know, without the danger.”

“I guess that depends on the chili.” Miller laughs awkwardly. He regrets the joke immediately but it makes Esparza smile and his group mates groan goodnaturedly. 

Esparza is kind. He chuckles as Miller gingerly sits, testing to see if the seat will support him. The metal folding chair groans but holds. Esparza laughs outright at how Miller's eyes go wide at the sound and he throws his arms out to brace. It's a nice laugh. They make small talk and Miller learns he doesn’t flub every social interaction he’s a part of.

Esparza introduces him to the other people sitting around their table. Mostly civilian types, contractors and engineers. Egghead types, the commander would say, but they’re good people and Miller finds himself relaxing. He finds himself forgetting how much he sticks out and just enjoys the company. There's some words about him being the Spartan that protected the engineers during the invasion and Miller hates that he feels his face heat up. He knows the tips of his ears are red, but it feels nice to be remembered for something good for once. 

"Did you come here with anyone?" Esparza asks.

He shakes his head. "My 'friend' signed me up for this, even had someone else drop off the ticket. I thought I might see someone here but I'm not sure. She's...good at blending in."

Esparza looks curious. “Your friend made you come? They must have thought you needed a break. I’m glad you made it.” He says while gently nudging Miller’s side.

“Thanks.” Miller says,“Don’t let him hear you say that though. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Who?”

Miller looks around and lowers his voice before answering. There’s too many people and the noise should prevent him from hearing, but who knows? He’s probably watching and lip reading from some unseen camera angle. “Roland.”

Esparza looks confused for a moment. “The Ship AI?”

“Yes.” Miller says mournfully. Esparza laughs, probably at this tone and the look on his face. He knows he’s pouting.

“I have to know, why? Is it because he’s like your boss?” Esparza leans in.

“I think he just likes picking on me, specifically.”

“So he likes you.” Esparza says grinning and sitting back. He crosses his arms and the easy curve of his posture is relaxed and knowing. He looks smug.

Miller feels himself losing control of his expression. He’s affronted. “I wouldn’t say that. I think he just likes causing problems.”

“Does he pull stunts like this often?” One of the other engineers asks. Miller can’t recall her name.

“He’s always popping up on Ops. I think he thinks he’s helping. Or he gets bored.”

“He rarely talks to us. I think we saw him during onboarding, but he rarely talks to our department directly.”

“He must like you.” 

“He’s pulling your pigtails because he doesn’t know what else to do.” Esparza says with a thoughtful face before he cracks up and laughs at Miller’s bright red face.

“Thanks. A bald joke, never gotten one of those before.” He says snidely.

Esparza waves him off. “No, he likes you and he’s showing his feelings the only way he knows how. By being defensive.”

“Probably picked it up from Command.” Someone at the table whispers. Miller ignores the image of Commander Palmer that pops into his head.

“I don’t know about that.” Miller mutters. “And you guys sure know how to gang up on a guy. What happened to me being the cool Spartan?”

“We started talking to you.”

“Jeez, okay I walked into that one.” Miller sighs, crossing his arms on the table and dropping his head dramatically. Joking aside, he is having a good time. He’s used to jokes at his expense,  but this feels different. Esparza’s including him and the man’s presence is comforting. Still, he’ll play his part and act put out. Maybe he can guilt them into sharing their portions of the taste testing. 

Esparza takes pity on him and pats his arm. “There, there. Look, it’s time for the food.”

In the end, they do share food with Miller when his faster metabolism comes up in conversation. He doesn’t share too much about the augs, but it’s interesting to talk to civilian types with just enough clearance he can clear up some misconceptions. 

“I didn’t know Spartans could be nerds.”

“We’re not all meathead jocks!” Miller laughs and steals a bite of one of Esparza’s samples. “Oh, which one is that? That’s going to be my number 1.”

He tries to swat Miller’s hand and fails. Scowling, Esparza bides his time until Miller starts talking to someone else and goes for the kill. His spoon gets mere inches away from Miller’s plate before the Spartan traps his hand with his own.

“Gotta be faster than that.” He laughs.

It’s Esparza’s turn to be flustered. He wiggles his hand in Miller’s strong grip and can’t get free. Miller yields and releases him, his palm feeling cold now that it’s no longer wrapped around Esparza’s hand and wrist. He was gentle, but Esparza still cradles his hand with wide eyes before coughing and clearing his throat.

Whatever he plans to say is interrupted by an announcement of the winners. Master Chef Lowell beams and introduces the winners. Miller can see Spartan Hedge near the winner’s circle looking pleased. Miller’s favorites didn’t win but they got honorable mentions. 

Then Miller sees her. Linda materializes out of the crowd and goes over to the 4th place winners with a strange intensity. She offers them the most formal handshake Miller's ever observed and must congratulate them on their work. Bobrov beams with pride and Gomez looks a little starry-eyed as Linda 058 of Blue Team fame tells them she liked their chili the best. It honestly looks closer to a medal giving ceremony than something as low stakes as a chili cook-off.

With the event officially over and his shift starting soon, Miller excuses himself with a small smile. “Maybe we’ll run into each other soon!” He says and winces internally. 

Esparza and the others smile and say their goodbyes as well before heading towards their own parts of the ship.

Miller looks around for Linda, but doesn’t see her. He hopes she had fun. He also hopes he will get more warning before she pops up again. All the excitement is keeping him on his toes. The small break over, he still feels lighter than he has in weeks as he preps to send Crimson out into the field.

“So?” Roland asks once Miller’s seated at his station. Ask is too nice a word for it, it’s more of a demand from the AI.

“It was alright. I had fun.” Miller admits. He’s going to keep a closer eye on Roland now. Miller was considering previous conversations with Roland in a new light now. Maybe the AI was more than just bored and Miller was more than just the easiest target.

“So I was correct in making you go.”

“Maybe. If I let you set the waypoints for my Fireteams, will you stop bullying me on comms?”

“Maybe.”

It’s a start.

—

The civilians trail back towards their departments in groups, gossiping about the cook-off and who they thought should have won before the conversation turns around to focus on Fernando. He should have expected it, but honestly, he was too old for this.

"The Spartan's cute, and you guys have a great first meeting story. Why not ask him out?" One of his coworkers titters. His team had been insufferable about The Spartan That Saved Them and the moment Fernando and he had had during the crisis.

"Shhh!" Fernando waves her off and playfully scowls the others grinning at them. "He might hear you!" They were only just past the doorway to the Mess Hall.

He considers it slowly, rotating the image of the Spartan in his head and talking to Miller over the course of the last hour or so. Miller is more human and shy than he expected. Awkward. It was  funny seeing a Spartan off-kilter. He's less intimidating without the armor and he acts like he’s surprised when people like him.

"He is cute." Fernando acquiesces.

"And tall."

"And strong."

"Stop!"

“But he might be taken?”

“Yeah, you might have competition. The AI might pull your pigtails.”

“You guys are the worst. I feel like I’m back in school.”

He waves them off, but he finds his mind lingering on the Spartan as he finishes up his reports. Maybe they would see each other around. His contract on the Infinity was a longer one and there wasn’t any harm in seeing where this went.

—

Linda returns from her outing with a sense of satisfaction evident to the rest of her team. Her shoulders are relaxed and she’s talkative. Rather than return to rest from the strain of the social spotlight often aimed at the IIs, Linda seems satisfied.

Her team perks up when she returns, their body language shifting to welcome her back into their space. She has their attention and they read her posture and gestures like an open book. It went well.

“Have fun?” Kelly asks as her sister enters the room. 

Linda nods and signs the Spartan smile across her face.

John tilts his head and nods in acknowledgement. He doesn’t move off his bunk but he sits up to show he’s listening and starts mirroring her posture. 

“You know it’s not a date if both parties aren’t aware.” Fred points out from his bunk.

“Not a date. Observation.” Linda says.

“What was the speed-dating thing then?”

“Recon.”

Fred sighs. “I guess this counts as socializing. I’m glad you had fun.”

“I got some numbers.” 

“Of course you did.” Fred says and is promptly hit with a pillow. Headshot.

“Are you going to call any of them?” John asks. It’s a genuine question. Linda’s been observing and opening up to new experiences since they’ve been stationed here. If carving out time for socializing and resting in the middle of a campaign was something they did, then she would try it.

“Maybe.”

“No pillow for him? Come on.” Fred complains, but there’s mirth in his voice.

“She likes me better.” John says smugly and dodges the pillow Fred throws at him.

Maybe there was the time and space for them to branch out here. They might not have roots anywhere, not anymore, but they still had this.

Kelly makes eye contact with her and she signals “go.” The pillows fly.

[bg-sparrow]

Alright #bttfbffs! I've got my bracelets made, photographed, and up for grabs! I also just made too many, so if you want one or two (or just want one without doing a trade), let me know! I'll be happy to forward it along!

I will present these by movie:

Back to the Future

First! A classic Marty! 🎸 (this one was a bit small, so I added lots of extra chain for adjusting it)

1955 Brain Wave Analyzer Helmet Doc, my beloved 🕰️

Enchanted Lorraine 💕

Marvin Berry and the Starlighters 🎶

And two of the general Enchantment Under the Sea vibes 🐬

Back to the Future: Part II

A funky homage to the Cafe 80's! 🥤

And a good luck charm bracelet for a night at Biff's casino hotel!

Back to the Future: Part III

Heck yeah, Pink Cowboy/ Clint Eastwood/ Roy Rogers Marty! 🤠

Clocktower Photo Doc 🤎

Purple-y Purple Clara 💫

My no-longer-secret favorite Clara look 🪐

Two inspired by Buford and his gang 🥃

And one for Copernicus! Good boy! 🦴

Back to the Future: The Game

Just a simple 1931 Emmett-inspired bracelet 🚀

And some fun "campy" ones!

So that's it! I'll be sending these to @mjf-af likely in the coming week, but I'm also happy to send them out from here! Again, if you don't have a bracelet to trade, no worries! As you can see, I've made plenty (and I'll probably make more), so just let me know if you'd like one! Everyone deserves a happy BttF bracelet!

[stephpotterart]

I loveee your post about how Nandor isnt really a dumbass! however I was just watching the ep where they go to Atlantic city and nandor still thought the world was held up by four elephants? How could this map into what you've explained in the post?

Unfortunately that is one of the holdouts that I have trouble with lol. That being said, the four elephants is actually a misnomer that came later? Originally in Hindu cosmology (yes I went to Wikipedia for this, because my trivia knowledge is good... but sadly it's not that good lol) it's eight male elephants and eight female elephants that represent the eight 'zone' of the Universe. So, sixteen elephants! There's no mention of a turtle at that point either.

We can surmise that Nandor may have heard that belief at some point in his human life. But, I don't know if he would have taken it literally? At that point he might have just marked it down and didn't think on that part much further.

But here's where it gets interesting.

The idea of four elephants on the back of a turtle? That doesn't come around until 1599. In a letter by Emanual de Velga, Wilhelm von Humboldt (who was a linguist among other things) suggested that the idea of elephants may be from a misinterpretation of the Sanskrit word Nâga, being that it can refer to both "serpent" and "elephant" (because of the snake-like trunk). He suggests that through misinterpretation, the idea of the elephants actually comes from the idea of the World Serpent - such as Jörmungandr in Norse mythology.

Now, he did write that with absolutely zero proof, but that does open up another line of questioning for us.

It's known that the Vikings made their way all the way to the Holy Land. There are stories that they helped the Knights Templar during the Crusades.

Now, Nandor was Supreme Viceroy in a part of Persia. That's pretty removed, geologically speaking, from where the Crusades were being waged. Though, the Ninth Crusade, from 1271 to 1272, would have been being waged when he was a little boy. And word travels.

I am going to suggest, perhaps, that one of his tutors when he was a young boy, was either a Norseman himself, or had at least encountered the Vikings at some point in his history. After all, people travel, ideas travel.

So maybe Nandor was taught the idea of Jörmungandr, not necessarily as a fact, but while his teachers were telling him stories. He's somewhere between eight and ten years old, and the idea latches on. It takes his fancy, but he also misinterprets the the meaning of 'serpent', because he's a child who has been also taught some of the Hindu cosmology, as part of his lessons, to open his mind.

So, now two different cultures have taught him that there's "elephants" holding up the world.

And then, he's a Vampire, and he's able to travel to places he'd never dreamed of as a boy. Places he didn't know existed. Like the New World.

And the Indigenous people here tell him the story of Sky Woman, and the great Turtle that is Turtle Island - North America. And it all clicks together! Another culture that believes in the world either being, or being supported by, a turtle!

Even though those lovely people didn't mention elephants, they must be there! They're there in all the other beliefs!

I suggest that Nandor just... learned the mythology at a very young age, and it gripped him.

Sure, he would have learned Empedocles and Anaxagoras' arguments that the Earth was a sphere and not flat - it would have been included with both his Classics lessons and his arithmetic lessons. And probably history lessons.

But, he never questioned that, did he? He drew a spherical earth held by the elephants. So yes, he absolutely learned that the Earth is round, and not flat. He absolutely learned everything that the Ancients had already discovered about the Earth's place in the Universe. But he also believed that the sphere was held up by the elephants and rode the back of a great turtle.

And then came Copernicus, in the early to mid 1500s, who suggested that the Sun, rather than the Earth, was the center of the universe. Nandor, still educating himself at this time, would have read this theory and probably immediately found it sound.

Of course the Earth moves around the Sun! It's on the back of a turtle! And that's why it takes a year! Turtles are very slow!

I think Nandor's belief in the World Elephants (and turtle) are less about a failure of his education, and less about his intelligence, and more about one of those long-held beliefs of childhood. Because it fascinated him as a child, even if it was just a myth. It just... he liked the idea and then it just sort of cemented itself in his mind.

And, when he stopped seeking out further knowledge, he missed the advancements in astronomy etc. I think learning about the Big Bang as the theories developed would have fascinated him, rather than having it all dumped on him one evening by Colin Robinson.

Poor man had his entire childhood and worldview eradicated in one blow.

[jnnul]

jnnul’s [works in progress]

a/n: this work in progress list is also a work in progress - but everything on here is stuff that ended up surviving the writer’s fallout purge (where i inevitably delete all the documents of fics i no longer have the passion to write). there is a new and updated second version of this masterlist for the newer ideas that i’ve been working on.

ready for love - jeno x fem!reader (ft. tbz’s juyeon) (non-idol au)

sum.: a boy who has never taken a relationship seriously. a girl who is seriously over relationships. when they end up finding each other, will they let their ideas of what a relationship should be like ruin their relationship before it even starts?

word count: 19.5k

release date: tues, nov 21, 2023

tags: slice of life, friends to lovers but also...it’s complicated?, everything is just complicated for no reason in this fic they’re just dramatic af, jaemin and y/n are platonic besties

status: released!

of sword and ink - juyeon x fem!southasian!oc (silla era au)

sum.: where an indian princess is sent to the silla dynasty in order to promote trade through the means of political alliance - marriage. however, the princess soon discovers that the king she is to marry is not like what the stories say he is.

est word count: 30-40k

est release date: may 2024 (or never lol)

tags: dynasty meets the crown meets game of thrones minus the incest, just a lot of politics and a lot of poorly concealed government smacktalk, if i go missing after this one it’s bc i made too many innuendos abt capitalism

status: writing (700 words lmao)

five questions - mark x gn!reader (non-idol au)

sum.: did you know it only takes five questions to find your soulmate?

est word count: 4-5k

release date: wed, june 27, 2023

tags: finance bro mark and y/n, slice of life, mostly fluff, kinda your typical suburban modern day couple, idk they’re just good ppl who experience a slow and sweet romance, oh! and mark sucks at beer pong

status: released!

great teacher y/n - jaehyun x reader (teacher/school au)

sum.: teaching high school kids about physics and mathematics was not your career plan. but turns out the government is serious about collecting their loans and there simply isn’t any way to do that without a job. so when nasa doesn’t work out, you turn to teaching physics at a prestigious academy - copernicus academy. as you navigate between being a good teacher, new friends, and possibly even romance, you realize that sometimes, the unexpected plans are the best ones.

est word count: 11k

est release date: august 2024

tags: still fleshing this one out bois

status: on hiatus

peaches - yang jungwon x reader (neighbor au)

sum.: when you pie your [really-hot] neighbor in the face on accident, you never imagine that you’re gonna have to be wheeling him to the hospital because who the fuck is allergic to peaches? yang jungwon, apparently. but you come to learn that yang jungwon is so much more than his unfortunate allergy to peaches and his pretty face and you’re stuck wondering if falling in love with someone you can’t have is worth it.

word count: 2.9k

release date: june 4, 2024

tags: this one’s sad bois, bullet fic, like ngl, when i was planning this one, i teared up a little bit, sorry in advance tw: major character death, terminal illness, just...not meant for the weak-hearted

status: released!

[ava-fortnite]

🕯️

-Copernicus ( @sunspot-star-boy )🌟

Sunspot is a good friend!! (　＾∀＾) He's super silly and we get along really well, even if he's like billions of years old! We really gotta talk more, I've been worried about him lately.. ( ó_ò)

He just seems so stressed out, and everyone keeps treating him like a kid which is SO ANNOYING!!! (≧n≦) UGHHH HE'S LITERALLY OLDER THAN LIKE EVERYONE ON THE ISLAND!! Why can't people just respect him?!

[spacefinch]

Third times a charm for the character ask game: Our boy Mamoru Chiba/ Tuxedo Mask and Questions 1, 2,4.5,7,8,9,10,12,20,23,25,26,27, and 30.

First impression: Wait who is this guy? Is he bad? (I had really only seen GIFS of him as Tuxedo Mask, and in my Star Wars-loving mind, black and red aesthetic, cape, and mask = bad. I did not know ANYTHING else about him at the time.)

2. Hmmmm. I don't know. Maybe a few episodes into the Sailor Moon anime. That was when I realized "hey, he's actually a good guy. The whole mask and cape thing is just part of his aesthetic."

4. I'm not sure. Really, I just ship him with Usagi.

5. Favorite ship: Definitely Mamoru/Usagi. 100000/10 ship, even though it makes me cry sometimes.

7. I don't remember the exact quote, but when he gets mad at the Daimon of the week for copying his signature rose attack (and making the grave mistake of using orange roses instead of red).

8. The so-called "ugly" green jacket and black turtleneck. Number one: It actually looks nice and semi-professional. Number two: Green is MY favorite color to wear. Number three: It looks comfy!

9. Least favorite outfit: the cow-print shirt he wore in the manga (although he WAS brainwashed at the time, so ....).

10. An icon.

12. Probably Demi-sexual and Demi-romantic, or somewhere on that spectrum. He does get crushes on people, but it's not until he spends a lot of time with them and really gets to know them that he develops feelings for them. You know who I'm talking about. And he probably feels some attraction to any given gender.

20. Whenever he orders salad or anything that normally has bell peppers, he always asks for "no peppers." If he is served a dish with peppers in it, he'll pick EVERY SINGLE PEPPER out and give them all to Usagi or Makoto. (The only time he doesn't do this is around Chibiusa, because he has to "set a good example" for her.)

23. In his spare time, he keeps a TON of houseplants. He also has a pet cat named Copernicus, who looks like this:

25. Most OoC: Exhibit A: When he was "Evil Endymion" in the latter part of Season 1. (To be fair, he WAS brainwashed.) Exhibit B: when he decides to break up with Usagi for several episodes of Sailor Moon R because he sees terrible visions of the future. The only saving grace about that arc was that at least he didn't pull an Anakin Skywalker and turn evil to save his loved ones.

26. Most in-character: I think whenever we get to see the kind, empathetic side of him, because that's who he really is: kind and empathetic.

27. I think Mamoru would get along GREAT with Obi-Wan Kenobi. Both are good fighters, but would rather talk things out. They both have the combination of "refined, elegant warrior" and "just a guy" vibes. And they both love having the high ground.

30. See Question 7.

[dragonsarecool]

Febwhump Day 6 - You Lied to Me

A/N: An alternate version of the opening to Part III.

Geez, why’s my neck so sore this morning?

Marty sighed as he opened his eyes, realising he’d been sleeping at an unnatural angle on a lounge chair. He massaged his neck gingerly, raising it slowly as he yawned. I really gotta stop couch surfing one day.

He was momentarily concerned to see the familiar environment of Doc’s 1955 living room. The windows were stained with raindrop tracks from the storm, with almost no sunlight piercing through the thick clouds above.

A quick glance at the fireplace revealed the dry (albeit crinkled) pages of the letter from 1885, and it didn’t take long for his memory to jog itself. Oh right. Doc’s stuck as a cowboy and I’m stuck here.

Small whines came from beneath his feet, and Marty looked down to see Copernicus staring up at him. He gave the canine a good scratch behind the ears, a gesture that was surprisingly comforting to him in that moment. Maybe I can pretend he’s Einstein and that’ll make things better.

His brain finally registered that there was someone speaking behind him, and Marty glanced over his shoulder to see Doc speaking into a recorder on one of his many coffee tables. I suppose it’s quicker to record your groundbreaking experiment than it is to type it up. Heaving himself off of the lounge chair took a couple of tries, as Marty’s legs were still slightly cramped from his uncomfortable sleeping position.

Once on his feet, he allowed Doc’s voice to slip into the background as he set about gathering up the pages of the letter. He stared sadly at the familiar, elegant handwriting before folding the message and placing it into the back pocket of his jeans. At least then I’ll know exactly where it is-

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!”

He glanced up to find a terrified Doc staring directly into his soul, having dropped his recorder in shock. “Doc!”

Doc’s eyes widened so far that Marty was worried he’d blown a blood vessel. The scientist screamed as he went to take a step away from the teenager, only to accidentally step onto the hoverboard, which sent him careening headfirst into his piano.

Marty cringed, both at the jarring notes that Doc was accidentally pressing, and at another possible head injury. “Doc!!”

The older man’s skin had completely drained of blood, his eyebrows raised so high in fear that they could’ve jumped off his forehead. He gripped the piano keys tighter as Marty drew closer. “NO! NO, IT CAN’T BE YOU! I SENT YOU BACK TO THE FUTURE!!”

“Doc!!” Marty shouted as he threw the hoverboard aside, leaning in towards Doc. “Yes, you did, you did send me back to the future, but I’m back! I’m back from the future!”

“NO! IT’S IMPOSSIBLE!!” Doc shrieked.

“Don’t you remember?! Your experiment last night! You fainted and I brought you home-”

“INCONCEIVABLE!!” Doc pushed himself off the piano, scampering away from Marty like a frightened animal. His hand visibly trembled as he pointed at Marty. “You’re an imposter! A liar! A phoney!!”

“Doc-“

“I watched you get into that damn Delorean and get struck by the lightning bolt and travel back to 1985!! I saw you!” Doc’s voice continued to rise as he became more hysterical. He grasped at his hair, cringing slightly as he brushed against the wound on his forehead.

“Look, Doc, I’m not talking shit, alright? I went back-“

Doc released an exasperated laugh. “How the hell did you do it, future boy? Huh? How did you manage to..to deceive me like this?!”

Marty could feel the remnants of his patience beginning to dry up. “Dammit, Doc, I haven’t done anything!! I told you, I did get back to the future, and now I’ve come back from that future!”

“Impossible!” Doc shouted. “This is ridiculous! Preposterous! Unthinkable! I must still be dreaming!”

“Doc-“

“Or maybe this is another side effect of the concussion I suffered! It has to be!” Doc quickly strode over to the door that connected his living room and garage. “Goodnight future boy!”

God almighty, this man is impossible! Marty ran his fingers through his sweaty hair in frustration, sprinting towards the door as Doc locked it behind him. “I did make it back to the future, Doc! I made it back to 1985, but then we had to come back to 1955 to get a book off Biff that he accidentally got off me, because I’d manage to ruin the future like a selfish dumbass, and then you got struck by lightning and you’re stuck in 1885, and it’s all my fault!!”

He felt his voice break with emotion, and he stopped to swallow the tears of guilt that were bubbling under the surface. If I hadn’t bought that dammed book…! Why?! It got me nothing!! I was so selfish! “Dammit Doc, I’m so sorry…”

The door opened to reveal an intrigued Doc, who leaned in so close to Marty that their faces were only centimetres apart. His expression carried a hint of skepticism as he stared Marty down. “It’s a very interesting story, future boy, with only one flaw. If the me from the future is now in the past, how could you possibly know about it?”

Without breaking his steely eye contact, Marty reached into his back pocket and violently thrust the letter from 1885 into Doc’s face. “You sent me a letter.”

Doc snatched the aged paper from his grip, walking away as he began to read. The younger man knew when Doc had finished reading the first sentence, as the scientist stopped dead in his tracks, staring blankly at the letter. “Great Scott…”

Marty rubbed his eyes tiredly. This is gonna be a long day, I can see it now…

[unknooooow]

Bttf game ask: 🕰👨‍🔬

And....

🐶

*sigh* Why? WHY DO I HAVE TO CHOOSE? /j

Ty for the ask •⁠ᴗ•

🕰️if you were to insert yourself into the trilogy, what year would you come from?

I know I know I already answered so ill just recap: someone from the distant future cuz its part of a plot. my plot ;)

👨‍🔬what is your favorite doc outfit?

Without fear. My fav is the one at the end of the third movie

This. Look at this. Whoever made this outfit should be proud. Look at the gold accents that appear to form the letter B on his gloves. Look at the bow tie and realize how Doc this is. Look at the gorgeous shades of red mixed with black, white and gold. I could talk about this all day

🐶einstein or copernicus? (you MUST choose >:) )

I see you really want to see me suffer *screams into my pillow* Anyway I love them both very much. But if I have to choose just one...

Im sorry Copernicus. But Einstein is the good boy

Feel free to hit me up in the comments ༎ຶ⁠‿⁠༎ຶ

---

And thats it. Judge me Idc

Here is the list of asks if you want to take a look

[void-lioness]

U:WE Episode 6

Come with me across the Sea of Time~

Got to love time travel shenanigans, eh?

So, Edred. How do you know the way to fix Copernicus? Have something to share with the audience? Are we going to meet your people, finally?

Well another time, then.

Aeng,(that's what I'm calling Seng and Alfie), if you keep getting sent back into a specific moment in the timeline 9 times out of 10 it's usually a place of Great Importance.™

On the flip side of things; Lady Fox, the police, and Otto.

How are they going to be intertwined? The chief now knows that, yes, the Lady Fox is real and she did a number on the boys in blue. But, one thing makes me scratch my head; back in the 2 parter she knew about the Robots and how to fix them.

Where did she get that knowledge from? Was she keeping an eye on Otto, who seems to have a Big Brother-esque eye on everything?

Also, there's no way she's gone for good. The Unicorns have been battling her for centuries. One of their usual battles kills her off?

No.

I'm calling tactical retreat. She will be back.

But all of this may take a backseat to flesh out Edred more in these next few episodes and they can get Copernicus back up and running. So I wonder what the secret is going to be.

(Also, if you got the title reference you're as old as me, Congrats. 😊)

[jowritesfanfiction]

Copernicus

Fandom: Back to the Future

Ships: N/A

Rating: General

Summary: Emmett's new friend comes one rainy day, as all important things tend to happen. What other things could these two possibly do?

CW: Brief implication of a dog's death.

You can also read the fic here!

Five years went by before Emmett met his next companion. One rainy night– as all important things tend to occur– this dog appeared to Emmett. The little puppy just sat at the scientist’s doorstep, barking to be heard by anyone. 

Unfortunately, Emmett was out scavenging for materials for a new clock he planned to make—a new project he started. When he did arrive home, he was greeted with a surprise.

“Great Scott!” Emmett cried, “How long have you been out here in the cold for?”

The puppy whimpered a response. 

“It’s alright, you can come inside and we’ll get you dried off.”

Upon opening the door, the dog scurried into the house and crashed into a wall. It shook its head and panted, looking up at Emmett. 

“You alright, there?” he asked the dog. The dog cocked its head. “I’ll be in the other room working if you need me.”

The dog wagged its tail and padded around the room, examining the different objects. The dog would occasionally scratch itself behind the ears.

Halfway through completing the latest clock, Emmett realized he had the wrong sized escapement piece. Upon getting up to fetch the right piece, Emmett noticed the sudden silence from outside the room. Worried something might have happened to the dog, Emmett waltzed into the room where he left the puppy, only to find it empty.

“Where’d you go?” he asked, looking under the rug. Emmett clicked his tongue and whistled, “C’mere, boy!”

At the third round of whistling and calling, the puppy came padding down the hall from another room toward Emmett with something in its mouth.

“Hey! That’s just what I needed!” Emmett exclaimed, seeing what was in the dog’s mouth, “Can I have that?”

The dog plopped on the ground and opened its mouth to let the escapement roll out and toward Emmett. 

“Thanks for the help, boy.” Emmett praised the dog, walking back to his Clockroom.

The puppy bolted up and followed Emmett and plopped itself under the table. Emmett sat at the table and began working on a new solar system themed clock. 

“If you’re going to stay here, you might as well have a name.” Emmett said, noticing his companion. 

Emmett looked down at the dog and back at his heliocentric clock. That was when the name for his new friend hit him—Copernicus! 

“Perfect!” Emmett exclaimed, standing up a little too fast and knocking some things over. Copernicus dutifully picked up a piece off the floor and brought it to Emmett. 

“Thank you, Copernicus. What a good boy! That’s the minute hand you have.”

Emmett continued to work on his clock. Whenever something were to roll off the table and onto the floor—which happened regularly because of Emmett’s haphazard style of laying his tools out—Copernicus was there to retrieve it. Emmett would then take the item, wipe it on his shirt, and say “Thank you, Copernicus. That’s the hour hand.” or “That’s the dial.”. 

Emmett’s training worked out. In a little over two years, Copernicus was able to differentiate the different tools Emmett requested in a perfect success rate–assuming Emmett asked for the right tool the first time. 

Emmett appreciated Copernicus’s help. It was a wonder that the dog was able to understand him at all. 

If only Emmett could understand Copernicus, too…

“That’s it!” yelled Emmett, slamming down his tools, “I’ll figure out how to understand you, Copernicus!”

Copernicus whipped his head toward Emmett. 

“No more tools, today, boy. We’re going to start working on a new project!” 

The new Dog Reading Machine turned out to be a fluke. If only Emmett had figured that out before attempting it 97 times. The machine did work somewhat well on humans, though, and that gave Emmett some hope. 

“If this works out, do you think they’d put me in the books with Newton and Tesla?” Emmett wondered.

Copernicus barked, dropping the wrench on the ground.

“Right.” Emmett reached for the wrench. “Thank you, Copernicus.” 

Emmett’s hope for the Mind Reading Machine was starting to dwindle. The machine hardly worked, and when it did, it wasn’t how he wanted it to. He was able to read some things, but it always ended up being wrong. 

There was his first test, Roger White, the mailman. The machine read that the mailman was thinking about milk bottles, but it turned out that the mailman was lactose intolerant.

“Would you mind wearing this…again…?” Emmett asked, holding out the mind-reading machine. 

“Emmett, this is the third week in a row you have sent yourself a letter in order to get me to wear that darned thing.” Roger responded. “I’m not doing it anymore!”

“Right, sorry.” Emmett mumbled.

Roger grumbled a reply and left. 

With the number of tests dropping to zero, Emmett began scrambling to find solutions. He tried hiring people to test the machine for him, but no one wanted to work for the estranged scientist, so Emmett turned back to Copernicus. 

The Mind Reading Machine hadn’t improved since then and started its slow decline into disuse. And Copernicus was there for it all. He supported Emmett up until the machine fell from its measly glory and into just a compilation of parts.

“That’s it!” Emmett yelled, “I’ve had it with this damn thing!”

Copernicus barked. 

“It hasn’t worked and it never will!” 

Emmett deconstructed the entire machine. With Copernicus’s help, the two sorted parts into Broken and Usable. After all that, Emmett turned back to his hobby of making clocks.

Time, Emmett decided, was much easier than minds.

As he worked on clocks, Emmett’s mind began to think about different inventions. Practical inventions like an automatic dog-feeder became thoughts and ideas as Emmett worked on clocks. But his favorite ideas were the ones every scientist before him said were impossible. 

One idea stuck with him: Albert Einstein’s theory of time travel. 

“What if we could create a smaller wormhole?” Emmett pondered. He continued to sit at the table, pondering the possibility of his proposition. It would take a hell of a lot of power to do it though. Just how much power?

As Emmett pondered away, Copernicus patiently sat with him. Copernicus had no problems with Emmett’s sudden lack of clock-making throughout the day. He became used to Emmett not interacting and made up for it by resting his chin on Emmett’s leg.

Copernicus was there on November 5, 1955 when Emmett slipped and fell in his bathroom. Dutifully, Copernicus sat and licked Emmett, making sure he was alive. 

When Emmett woke up, his mind hit him with the revelation as to the key to time travel. 

“Copernicus!” Emmett cried, jolting up too quickly. His head began to swirl. 

Copernicus gently grabbed Emmett’s coat and stood firm. 

Emmett grabbed Copernicus and slowly sat himself down. “I think I’ve figured out time travel!”

Copernicus gave a celebratory bark.

With Copernicus’s help, Emmett was able to start working through theories of time travel. He spent hours at the Hill Valley Library looking through previous scientists and their theories for time travel, attempting to work out the plausible way it could work scientifically. 

Copernicus, not being allowed in the library, sat patiently for Emmett to find the reference materials he needed. Copernicus never showed that he didn’t like sitting outside the library. In fact, he was more indignant that he accompanied Emmett at each outing, but Emmett didn’t mind at all. 

One day at the library, a small boy came up to Emmett while he was researching. 

“Excuse me.” the small boy tapped Emmett’s arm.

“What?!” Emmett jumped, startled.

“I think your dog’s sleeping outside.” 

“Sleeping?”

“I was gonna go pet him, but I saw he wasn’t moving, and I didn’t wanna wake him up.”

Emmett peered outside to find Copernicus curled up in the grass.

“Do dogs sleep outside?” the boy asked.

“Sometimes.” Emmett answered, heading toward Copernicus.

“So he’s okay?”

Emmett didn’t answer. He knelt down and examined his companion.

“Can I pet him?”

“No.” Emmett said.

“Will I wake him up?”

“Yes. He wouldn’t like that.” Emmett lied, picking up his friend one last time.

[copperbora]

Due to my dental surgery yesterday (excuse my whining yesterday, I feel a lot better today,) I was pretty sloth-like and neglected this little munchkin's need for play, so today I fixed that by playing some hallway fetch with him.

Keplar's still only a yearling so he's full of beans and when he doesn't get played with enough he starts rearranging the contents of our cupboards... by pulling them out onto the floor. Tonight, that meant he pulled out all of my mom's underwear onto the floor. Mom was Unimpressed.

Until recently, he also found removing all the towels from our cabinet in the bathroom pretty exciting. He would pull out most of the towels, snuggle on top of the ones he left inside for a moment, then promptly leave to cause adorable havoc somewhere else in the house. My dad finally became benevolently fed up with Keplar's cutesy adventures with the towels and tested solutions to keep him out.

The first option was defeated in under a minute but the industrial screwgate carabiner has so far proven victorious against my little Bearcat.

Keplar is a pretty naughty young man but honestly I treasure his little kitten pranks; I find it impossible to ever get truly mad at my baby boy. He's such a smart little nugget, constantly exhibiting surprisingly acute problem solving skills and charming the hell out of us by flopping on the floor at our feet for tummy rubbins. He's also a very good learner; he didn't discover how to open cupboards on his own, Casper taught him!

Casper doesn't do anything once he has opened a cupboard, he just strongly believes that all doors should remain in an open state. Keplar, meanwhile, believes that all cupboards must be explored! He's always around me when I am cooking, inspecting the food cupboards and the pan cupboard. He is a very cute inspector so I don't mind, especially as he likes to sit in his chair and watch me cook, or flop on the floor where he is central to both living room and kitchen where he might entice a pet with his charming sweetness.

I really appreciate my kitten; he's a really good new recruit. Best of all, besides making us smile, he keeps Casper company as a baby brother. Casper's turning tweve this year and Keplar has done a fine job filling the raw void that Casper's elder brother Copernicus left. Keplar is not a replacement for Copernicus - nobody can replace Mister Perna, not ever - but he lifts our spirits with his theraputic presence.

Through the trials of this last year and a half we've really needed him.

[daddyd0nt]

So are you a radfem or are you thirsting for girlcock? You are so all over with your posts are you pro-woman or pro-trans?

It has been like 2 years since I claimed the radfem label, I think they have a lot of really regressive ideas about horror and horror is my special interest as an autistic person and I really can't handle people who try to moralize fiction instead of calling their local precincts in a phone-bank situation and demanding that the untested rape kits be run or writing letters to women in prison/visiting elderly women in nursing homes, running drives for supplies for single mothers, escorting at a clinic, anything that takes more effort than going "that art that was made to be disturbing is disturbing so anybody who interacts with it or appreciates any aspect of it as art is immoral and a bad feminist". Like Yeah I like early Lucifer Valentine movies because they were a major part of my teen years and as a bulimic I relate to them in a weird way but Ive also volunteered as a clinic escort 3 times this year for a 7 hour shift in the freezing cold and last time I was in the hospital took both a girl who had never been before and was just 18 under my wing and protected her from the heroin fuckboys and also an older woman who was half-lucid I would personally go to her room when there was a meal or activity to make sure she didn't get left behind and we bonded over liking VC Andrews and she called me her "bonus granddaughter" by the time I was discharged, and then I called her twice a week until she was discharged and we lost touch. Can yall who judge me say that you've done as much? What are you actually doing for women if you are wasting time moralizing fiction?

Also i consider gender dysphoria to be a mental illness, which I personally have, I am detransitioned. I don't want people who have cocks in some of my private spaces but Im also a strong believer that we need to create 3rd sex safe spaces and cis-free spaces for trans people to be safe in. But im not "sucking girlcock" (im guessing you are a "rudefem" or whatever) by trying to be inclusive when I can be and treat everybody with dignity and basic respect regardless of their gender. I don't like making people feel bad because Im not trying to put myself in the place of the bullies who hurt me in my teens to feel better, it doesn't make me feel good to point out ways trans women don't pass or misgender them on purpose. When I feel as if I've hurt somebody's feelings, I feel bad. I don't have this hatred for trans people that a lot of the radfem community professes, another reason why I stopped identifying with the community. Again, when I was in the hospital, everybody under 20 was trans. I protected those kids FIRECLY. I corrected the old people immediately when they misgendered them ("You're so silly, Mr. Smith, Aiden is a boy, he just has a young face") and we had a lot of really great conversations about dysphoria which one of them later contact me on facebook and said I gave them the courage to detransition.

Im not trying to post "consistent" politics because I disagree with and agree with different aspects of most political issues and I don't owe anybody consistency. This is my personal vent blog Im not running for office. Ralph Waldo Emmerson wrote, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall. Speak what you think now in hard words, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said to-day. — 'Ah, so you shall be sure to be misunderstood.' — Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood." I think that sums it up better than I could.

[bg-sparrow]

For bttf ask game I ask everyone: 🐶👨‍🔬🕰....

Yay, BttF Ask Game!

🐶 Einstein or Copernicus?

I'm going Copernicus. I imagine he was a huge source of comfort for Marty while being displaced in 1955, and without him alerting to Doc's tombstone in Part III, Marty goes back to 1985 after Doc repairs the DeLorean. Good boy!

👨‍🔬What is your favorite Doc outfit?

Brain Wave Analyzer Helmet Doc. Something about seeing Doc with buttoned shirt cuffs and tie only to see him draped in a silver snakeskin robe with a crazy contraption strapped to his head. He comes off as a superstitious nut not entirely clued into the world yet because he's so tied up in making his inventions work, and I love that.

🕰️ If you were to insert yourself into the trilogy, what year would you come from?

I feel like this would massively depend on what role I'm playing in the trilogy/ what year I'm showing up in. If I'm going to be around Marty's age, I'm coming from the late 2000s, and that was such a time to be a teenager!

Thanks for the ask! :D

[theorphaninthetardis]

Chapter Thirty

The trio take Sarah Jane's car down to the Pharos Institute. It's not that long of a drive. As they step out of the car, she turns to address Jack and Sophie, "Let me take the lead, alright."

They both nod immediately.

She steps toward the door, holding up her journalist ID, "Sarah Jane Smith. I'm a journalist, and I'm interested in doing an article about the Pharos Institute."

The guard at the door nods, and radios to someone inside the facility. About five minutes later a tall, black woman rushes out to greet them. She's dressed in a smart suit, and immediately holds out her hand to Sarah Jane.

"Professor Rivers. It's nice to meet you, Miss Smith."

Sarah Jane smiles, and nods, "Thank you for seeing us, Professor Rivers. This is my assistant, Sophie McCoy, and my scientific researcher, Jack Harkness."

They each shake the Professor's hand, as she leads them into the facility. "Oh, the Pharos Institute doesn't get nearly enough media interest. Most people write off our researchers as cranks, but we are in good company. Galileo and Copernicus were both dismissed by their blinkered scientific contemporaries. This way, Miss Smith, Miss McCoy, Mr. Harkness"

She leads them down another corridor, and Sarah Jane smiles, "Of course, Galileo and Copernicus weren't carrying out experiments in the paranormal."

"Ah, Sir Isaac Newton and Thomas Edison both had strong interests in the paranormal, Miss Smith."

"So did Sir Arthur Conan Doyle," Sophie adds.

Professor Rivers nods at her. Sarah Jane smiles, "It's your work into telekinesis that I'm particularly interested in."

She stops at a wall with a window sitting in it. Through the window they can see three scientists, one with a headset on. "Then you're in for a treat," Professor Rivers nods at the wall.

The scientist in the headset looks at a basketball on the floor. He grits his teeth, and the ball starts to rise. Sophie and Sarah Jane's eyes start to widen, while Jack's narrow.

"It's incredible!" Sarah Jane says in awe.

"Oh, we're not done yet," Professor Rivers smirks.

Sophie notices the tension in Jack's shoulders, and takes his hand in her own. "Are you alright?" she whispers.

Jack sighs, "They shouldn't have this tech, not yet. This is all wrong."

"We'll figure it out, don't worry."

The basketball that was being held in the air suddenly flies across the room, almost hitting one of the other scientists in the room. Sophie and Sarah Jane flinch back.

"Unfortunately, we're having a little difficulty with our energy focus stabilisation," Professor Rivers explains, "MITRE. Magnified Intensification of Telekinetic Reactive Energies. Those headsets take the latent raw psychic ability all humans possess to move objects with the power of thought and directs it."

"Wow," Jack says, feigning excitement. "Who developed it?"

"Our child genius."

Professor Rivers leads them down another corridor. At the end there is a laboratory, with a boy writing some sort of scientific, or mathematic, formula on a whiteboard.

Jack studies the board, and Sophie can see the gears turning in his head. Professor Rivers smiles at the trio, "Sarah Jane Smith, Sophie McCoy, Jack Harkness, this is Nathan Goss."

Sarah Jane walks up, and surveys the board, "Hello, Nathan. I'm pleased to meet you."

The boy glares at the journalist, "I'm working!"

"Oh, I'm sorry to disturb you," she says.

Jack takes a few steps forward, looking over the board himself, "It looks complex."

"Don't waste your time or mine asking me to explain," he waves the man off.

Jack glares at the child, as Professor Rivers smiles at Nathan, "Miss Smith's a journalist, and Mr. Harkness and Miss McCoy are part of her team. They want to talk to you about MITRE."

Nathan turns on the Professor, "You told her about MITRE?" he snarls, "How stupid can you get?"

"Well, I'm sorry, Nathan, but your work is important. It needs recognition. And we need the funding. I thought–"

"Get out!" he shouts in her face. Jack looks angry, and Sophie grabs his elbow, pulling him along behind her, "Leave me alone! And leave the thinking to somebody with the intelligence of actually doing something with it."

"Miss Smith, Mr. Harkness, Miss McCoy, I think we'd better just— Come on."

Sarah Jane walks forward toward the boy, and stands near him, "I used to know someone your age who could wipe the floor with your intelligence, Nathan," she says quietly, "And wipe the floor with you, too."

Sarah Jane turns to the exit, and the trio follow Professor Rivers out of the lab.

"Thank you for the tour, Professor Rivers," Sarah Jane says, smiling at the woman.

"Oh, are you ready to leave then?"

"Yes. I believe I have enough for my article."

The professor smiles, "Well, thank you for coming, Miss Smith," she smiles, and leads them to the exit.

As soon as they are back in the car, Jack turns to Sarah Jane, "There is something not right about that kid."

"He didn't really seem human," Sophie says, shrugging.

"It's very possible," the journalist agrees. "I believe I have a way to check as well."

***

Sarah Jane takes them back to her house, and heads straight for the attic. She walks into the room, and turns to a bricked up fireplace, "Mr. Smith, I need you."

The wall opens up, and a large computer appears. Jack looks at it, and lets out a low whistle, "Nice set up you've got here."

Sarah Jane raises her eyebrows, and smiles. "Mr. Smith, I need all the information you can give me on Nathan Goss."

"Nathan Goss is a genius," the supercomputer says, "He has an IQ of 195. He was reading quantum physics at the age of eight. Some call him the young Einstein. Others say his potential exceeds Einstein."

Jack snorts, "He's an obnoxious brat. And there's something else. Something that made my blood run cold."

"I'm sorry, I do not believe we've met."

"Captain Jack Harkness," he winks.

Sophie drops her head in her hands, "You are flirting with a supercomputer."

"Despite his IQ, a telekinetic energiser such as MITRE is still beyond the genius of Nathan Goss."

"It could make a terrible weapon," Sarah Jane says.

"A destroyer of worlds, in the right hands, with the right mind," Mr. Smith states.

"Where did it come from, though?" Sophie asks.

"If I could analyse its composition, I could be definitive of its technology and origin," the computer states.

"Mister Smith, are you asking me to go back to Pharos and steal one of those headsets?" Sarah Jane smiles.

"It would be of great assistance."