#don't get me wrong i'm thrilled they're canon

[angel-of-the-moons]

Small Surprises

Moon Knight System (Marc/Jake/Steven) x Single Mother!Reader

TW/CW: Some mentions of past childhood abuse, cheating partner, mostly fluff

A/N: Like the Symbrock one I did, this one will be one whole fic with a few times skips here and there! This fic will also explore a bit more into the autistic side of Steven as a character, based off my own experiences with my autism, tics, habits etc! Also, once again, featuring snippets of the hobby headcanons done by @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction! (I love those headcanons so much they are canon as far as I'm concerned asdfghjkl)

Taglist: @chrishy973 @katitakenway @queerponcho

EDIT: Part 2 is out now!!! Read it here!

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Another droll day at the museum, the same disinterested customers and more nagging from Donna. Honestly, Steven was lucky he got his job back at the museum--though he only surmised it was due to the fact nobody else wanted to work for Donna--but he was grateful for the extra income.

And it definitely helped provide a distraction from Jake's night activities for Khonshu, as well as Marc's from time to time.

But of course, even though it provided a distraction, it wasn't much of one.

That is... until the day a poofy mop of curls bounced into the gift shop, eagerly looking at the wares within with big sparkling eyes. The child couldn't have been older than four--maybe five--as she happily looked at the myriad of items available.

Contrasting to most of the little girls he's seen come in (which, were admittedly few) she didn't immediately run over to the cheap horse figures with the chariots or even the cat plushies.

She went right for things like the plushie scarabs, the statues...

This of course had Donna proverbially chewing her nails as she watched the unaccompanied minor scamper about the gift shop.

"I'm going back to do inventory," She warned Steven. "If she breaks anything, it's coming out of your pay, Stevie."

Steven ground his teeth when she called him that, and waited for her to walk away before muttering. "What little you do pay me, you bloody old biddy."

Steven fixed his name tag and walked up to the little girl, crouching next to her as her chubby little face scrunched in what appeared to be distaste.

"Hey there, poppet. What's got you upset, eh?" He asked, his big brown eyes meeting hers as she crossed her arms with a huff.

"They don't look right!" She complained.

"Oh? What doesn't look right?" Steven asked patiently, a warm smile on his face.

The child pointed to the small canvases and posters of the various Egyptian gods. Namely the ones of Bastet and Anubis, and in particular of the two, one of the canvases depicting Anubis surrounded by shrieking souls and flames.

He himself had raised a complaint with that depiction, as after his own time in the Egyptian afterlife (alongside Marc, and unbeknownst to them at the time, Jake) he knew the afterlife was not like that. While they hadn't met Anubis himself, they were guided and weighed by Taweret.

But he wholeheartedly agreed that the artwork of Anubis was entirely wrong, and frankly, offensive.

"'Nubis isn't like that." She said, stomping her little foot. "He's nice!"

Steven raised his eyebrows at her, tilting his head as some stray curls fell over his face. "Oh?" He asked. "Then tell me little one, how is Anubis?"

"He's--!" She scoffed, rolling her eyes in the typical fashion a child does when they feel like they're explaining something painfully obvious to an oblivious adult.

"He's a good dog-man." She says to him. "He doesn't mess with skulls n' stuffs! He's nice, he helps people who might get lost when they die."

'That's a hefty subject for a kid.' Marc's voice spoke.

"No kidding." Jake remarked. "Where are her parents?"

Steven meanwhile, was positively thrilled that one so young understood that Anubis, while being the god of death, was not evil. And... naturally this sent him into info-dump mode.

"Why, yes! Anubis is good." He held up a finger as the little girl looked at him, awe on her face that he understood what she was saying and was willing to actually talk about it.

"He guided souls once they left their earthly bodies." He explained, grabbing a small replica of an Egyptian temple front. "Once their hearts were weighed, if they were good, he would help guide them to the afterlife. If they were bad..."

"They got ate by the crocko-lion!" The girl finished with a gasp.

Steven suppressed the urge to laugh at how she described Ammit. Jake and Marc meanwhile, held no such compunction and were laughing their asses off.

"I like this kid." Jake said as his laughter died down.

"Yes! They did. But did you know they also had to be judged? Not just with the scales?" Steven grinned at her as she bounced on her heels, the palms of her hands rubbing on her coveralls as she listened.

"Now that subject is very lengthy...." Steven leaned over on the flats of his shoes and plucked a small book about the Egyptian afterlife and mythos and showed it to the little girl. The cover was emblazoned with raised gold print; with images of sarcophagi, and motifs scattered on the front and back.

"But it's always worth a good read." Steven continued. "Now, if you want to know someone else who sometimes assists those who've passed on?"

The little girl plucked the book out of Steven's arms, nodding, her eyes tracking the way his mouth and hair moved. Not once did she make eye contact, instead settling for staring at other features instead.

Steven could understand, sometimes looking into people's eyes was... oof. It was difficult and frankly sometimes it made him uncomfortable, made his palms itch and the hair on the back of his neck tickle.

He stood up, and walked to another shelf, the little girl trailing behind him, the book looking three sizes too large for her tiny body as her little light up sneakers squeaked on the waxed linoleum.

Steven reached down, then, and grabbed a plaster statuette of a familiar feminine shape sporting a hippo head and kneeled back down, showing it to her.

"This is Taweret." He beamed proudly.

"She's the nice hippo lady." The child peeped, staring at the statue with rapt attention.

"Yes! Yes, she is! Very nice." Steven chuckled. "But she's also the goddess of motherhood and children, did you know? She protects women when they have their babies, and helps them."

The little girl nodded, "Yeah, I read a thingy 'bout her! She's--"

"Victoria! Oh my god." A breathless voice called from the front of the shop.

The moment Steven lifted his gaze, he could feel his heart catch on his throat when he saw you. Even Marc and Jake went quiet as you approached.

You were wearing some faded-out jeans and a t-shirt with a faded band logo that hugged your figure very nicely. You had a backpack slung over your shoulders and the keychains dangling from it tinkled and clacked as you moved, rushing to scoop up your child.

Steven could easily see that Victoria got her looks from you, those gorgeous inquisitive eyes, her nose, hair texture...

Jake had to give him the mental equivalent of a slap to stop his gawking as he stood up awkwardly, wiping the hand not holding the statue on his jeans as he gave you what he hoped was a charming smile, but judging by your wariness, you obviously weren't thrilled at the sight of your daughter talking to a strange man.

Steven was about to speak up, but Victoria did so instead for him, not reading the tenseness in the situation.

"Steven's my friend!" She beamed, holding the book in her pudgy little fingers, showing you. "He knows about 'Gyptian stuff, too!"

Steven blinked, feeling a blush creep up on his cheeks as you looked at him, raised eyebrows. It took him a moment of awkward glancing away to realize Victoria knew his name because she read his name tag. He hadn't once said it to her. Hell, he only knew her name because you said it when you ran in!

"Ah... Yes. I work here, in the gift shop. Egyptology is a major... um." He struggled to find a word.

"Hyperfixation?" You sigh, the tension easing from your shoulders as you smile tiredly.

"Oh! Yes. I s'pose!" He said, blinking his big doe eyes at you.

"Yeah, Victoria is... well." You chuckle, propping the young child on your hip with practiced ease. "She's obsessed with the stuff! I swear, the stuff she can shove into her noggin with how much she knows of ancient Egypt, it feels like she was born in the wrong era, I'm telling you!"

Victoria smiled happily and snuggled into you, rubbing her cheek on the soft fabric of your shirt with a content hum, almost like a happy little cat.

You didn't pay any mind to her as she rubbed her face on you, instead conversing with the man in front of you.

"Ah... A little scholar to be, eh?" Steven laughed awkwardly.

"Hah, more like she already is one. With everything she knows, I swear she outpaces me in the IQ department." You sigh fondly, brushing a stray curl from your daughter's face.

Steven's eyes anxiously tracked your movements, how your fingers curled, the way your eyelashes brushed your cheeks when you blinked, the way your foot tapped on the floor...

"I'm surprised she talked to you. She's normally very introverted." You hum softly, raising those drop dead gorgeous eyes to lock with his before he awkwardly dropped his eyes to your lips whilst you spoke.

"But then again, if you started talking about this stuff with her, it's no surprise. I'm the only person she talks to about it because nobody else understands."

You noticed his Steven was looking anywhere but your eyes, and how he nervously licked at his lips, his fingers wrapped around the statuette in his hands tapping idly.

"Oh! She's a lovely little conversationalist. Rather well-knowledged as well!" Steven replied, looking at Victoria again, who grinned as she once again rubbed her face on your shirt.

"Honestly, she's more learned than half the adults who try to talk to me about Egypt." He huffed out a chuckle.

His eyes dropped to the picture of Anubis that initially offended the child. "We got into a little debate about how inaccurate those pieces of Anubis are."

"Oh, don't get her started on those inaccurate artworks... She despises them!" You laugh softly.

"Oh, I fully understand why! It's so offensive!" Steven gasped. "Especially to a culture! Anubis is not an evil god by any means!"

"Oh yeah, believe me... we watched a movie the other day and she had a meltdown because they made Anubis the bad guy. She was so distraught it took thirty minutes to calm her down." You smile with infinite patience at your little girl.

"Oh, poor little dear! But I can totally understand that." Steven smiled, finally locking eyes with you as he reached some level of professional comfort with you.

"Mommy, can I get em?" Victoria peeped, interrupting you before you could get another word out.

"Hm?" You hummed at her, raising an eyebrow.

"The book and hippo lady!" She replied, holding up the book.

"Hippo Lady?"

"Yeah!" She said, sounding a little exasperated, pointing to the statue Steven clutched in his hands. "Her! Tawar!"

"Taweret." Steven chuckled softly at her mispronunciation.

"Tawww--" Victoria frowned as she tried to get the word out. "Tawweret."

"Close 'nough. I'm sure she wouldn't mind." Steven smiled warmly, holding up the statuette.

"All right, all right." You laughed, following Steven to the counter so you could check out, having another nice chat about what he and Victoria discussed. He even tossed in a little keychain that held a preserved scarab beetle in epoxy, much to Victoria's delight!

What you didn't know as you left the shop, was how positively smitten he was with you already.

That was your first meeting with Steven Grant.

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A few weeks crawled by, and every other day you were at the museum, letting Victoria lead you by the hand as she animatedly discussed what every object or picture meant, and you struggled to keep up, making mental (and a few digital) notes on what she was talking about. Of course, she insisted that after every tour, you stopped to say hi to her new "bestest friend" Steven.

You were thrilled that you found someone who operated on the same wavelength as your daughter, knowing that it was hard for her to make connections with other children, let alone adults. But Steven and Victoria took to each other like ducks to water.

And hey, he seemed harmless enough. Cute, too, beneath that mop of curls. You even started researching more just to be able to tag into the conversations between your daughter and her unlikely friend.

Today, you were at the local grocer and Victoria decided that she wanted to walk with you instead of riding in the trolley on her tablet like she normally did. You were happy, but ensured she kept her noise cancelling headphones over her tiny ears to make sure she stayed comfortable.

You had picked up a pack of steaks to examine the cuts when Victoria slipped your hand free of hers and darted off, squealing, "Steven!"

You almost dropped the steaks when Victoria darted down the aisle and wrapped her arms around the legs of the man she ran towards.

One minute Marc was looking at a box of matzahs, the next, he had a child clinging to his legs.

His whole body froze as he looked down, immediately going rigid as the little girl looked up at him, babbling something he didn't quite understand because of how quickly she was speaking.

He did make out the name "Steven".

"Uh--" He said awkwardly.

"I'm so sorry!" You say, hastily bringing the trolley up to the two. "She just got excited to see you, and..."

Your brows furrowed as you looked at him. He looked like Steven Grant, but he didn't feel like Steven Grant. His normally messy curls were combed back neatly, his flannel hanging open with the sleeves rolled up and T-shirt untucked from his pants. His big brown eyes were wide, looking at you with a face that simply pleaded "Help me".

"Uh..."

"I'm... Marc." He said in an unmistakably American accent.

"Oh. Oh!" You lean down and scoop up Victoria, hastily plopping her in the trolley, willing yourself to ignore her little wobbling lip as you messily search up her favorite video to watch on her tablet to prevent the simmering meltdown you could see just beneath her surface.

"I'm... I'm sorry. You just look like someone we know from the museum, and..." You sigh, rubbing your hands together as you cringed.

"Steven, yeah..." Marc said, giving a stiff smile in return as he dropped the box of what looked like crackers into his basket looped over his elbow.

"You..."

'Play it cool, Marc...' Jake's voice softly warned.

"We're, uh, brothers. Triplets. All identical." He spat out with haste.

"Oh! Well... That's... That explains the looks, huh." You smile, hoping to ease the awkward tension. His explanation didn't sit well with you for some reason, as to why he suddenly blurted it all out. But you chocked it up to him trying to explain to avoid upsetting Victoria.

"But, yeah. Um... Your brother, Steven? He and Victoria are like, best friends now. She looks forward to seeing him whenever we're at the museum." You chuckle softly.

Marc's eyes soften as he smiles, giving Victoria a gentle look. "Yeah, uh, Steven's told me about her. She's a smart kid, huh?"

"Oh, yeah. A real genius." You smile at her as she starts tapping away at her tablet, selecting one of her drawing apps and beginning to scribble.

"Sometimes I can't keep up with her."

"Hey, that's good. She'll go places." Marc replied.

Your smile falters a bit. "Yeah, if people will give her a chance..." You mutter.

Marc was about to ask what she meant, but he kept his mouth shut, watching as Victoria was engrossed with her tablet, her little feet wiggling and tapping on the sides of the trolley as she moved her mouth silently, mouthing words to herself.

"She's... Eh." You rub the back of your neck. "She normally doesn't come to the store with me. She says she can hear the lights buzzing and it upsets her, which is why she has to wear her headphones. I mean I can't hear the lights or anything, but all I need to know is that she can..."

"Yeah, Steven is the same way sometimes. It makes him twitch so he has to wear headphones when we go shopping..." Marc said, frowning.

"Yeah. That's something I'm kind of amazed about. Victoria doesn't really have any friends outside of well, me... and your brother? Steven and her are just... man, they're like two peas in a pod!"

Marc stays quiet as you smile fondly at your child, and he notes the relief in your expression as you recount that your child was able to finally connect with someone. It warmed his heart to know that Steven was able to socialize with someone who shared the same mannerisms, even if she was just a kid.

His eyes flicked down to your hands as you put your hands on your hips, and noted the lack of wedding ring and a ring tan line.

'Focus, cabrón.' Jake snickered.

"She's autistic. It was a pain to get her diagnosed, but we managed. I could tell she was different. Namely how she would act with fabrics." You sigh.

Now that grabbed both Marc and Jake's attention. If Steven were aware and co-fronting, he was sure he would be rapt as well. Steven explained the fabric thing to hime a few times, but being in the same body it was still hard at times to understand that Marc or Jake could feel one thing but Steven could feel another.

"Uh... Fabrics? You'll have to forgive me, but..."

"Oh! It's a sensory thing." You explain, rolling your hand. "With her, it's fleece, or satin-like textures. They irritate her and make her fussy. As a baby I never understood why she flipped out when I would put her little socks on her until the doctor explained it when she was older. But for some people it's cotton, or microfiber... The way Victoria describes it is that it's, uh..."

"Scratchy." Marc murmurs.

"Exactly!" You snap your fingers.

"Yeah, Steven is the same way. Though he's not like that with satin, he usually prefers cotton--the super soft kind? Or silk." Marc nods, shoving one hand in his pocket.

"Yeah... It's thankfully easy to shop for her, she prefers cotton and soft microfiber. It's why she rubs her cheek on my shirts or pants. Some people mistake it for being affectionate--and don't get me wrong sometimes it is--but usually it's a grounding thing." You sigh softly. "It helps her calm down."

"Ah... Sounds hard. What about her dad? He know how to handle it?" Marc asked curiously.

He immediately felt bad when he saw how your expression fell, and you glared at the ground.

"He skipped out on us while I was pregnant. I caught him in our bed with someone I thought was my best friend the day I found out she was a girl." You spit, angry and full of venom.

Marc cringed. "God, your best friend? In your bed? That's a whole extra level of degeneracy..."

"I know! Ugh! I swear, if he wasn't stronger than me I would have stabbed him that day!" You groan.

Marc rocks his head back in shock at the admission. "You were gonna stab him?"

"When you're five months pregnant, hormonal, tired, and sore and walk in on your fiancee doing the deed in your own bed? Yeah, emotions get high." You run a hand through your hair, smirking as you looked back at him.

"Grabbed the knife right outta the block and lunged at him. Chased em both half naked out of my flat."

'Shit, I'd be in love. That sounds sexy as hell.' Marc could just imagine the grin that would be spread across Jake's face at that.

Marc laughed, unable to contain himself, both at the retelling of your story and Jake's remark.

'You got problems, Jake.' Marc shot back mentally.

'Pot, meet kettle...'

'Touché...'

"So it's safe to say, he's out of the picture, huh?" Marc says, his laughter dying down into a soft chuckle.

"Oh yeah. Had his parental rights severed, and kicked his sorry.... well. I tossed him out and told him that my "best friend" could deal with him and his lazy antics, considering I pay for the flat."

"Yikes. Sounds like a real dirt bag."

"Oh yeah, he was. I have no idea what I saw in him, to be honest... And knowing that Victoria isn't "normal" like other kids, I feel like he would treat her badly, or... hurt her." You say, shaking your head.

"Hey, if he shows up and does that just call me." Marc grunted. "I hate it when people do that crap to kids. I'll knock his teeth down his throat."

The words slipped out before he could stop them, and the weight of them almost made them feel oppressive as glimpses of his abusive childhood shone through. The memories of his mother swinging her arm down, the crack of the leather belt, the red, bloody welts in his skin...

'Ay, hermano. Come back, don't think about that.' Jake's voice said gently, urging that door in his mind shut. 'That's not your life, anymore.'

Marc blinked and looked back up at you, his eyes locking with yours. And the concern on your face... he felt so undeserving of it. He wasn't sure why, but...

"Ah... I mean... Let's just say I have experience with that sort of thing. So I'm..." He struggled.

"No, no, I get it. My dad was a piece of shhh..." You cringed as the word almost slipped from you, casting a short glance to Victoria, making sure she couldn't hear you. "Er. He was bad. So yeah, I totally get you."

"Oh... Sorry, people get weirded out when I..." He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Disassociate." You finish for him. "I used to do the same thing when it came to my dad. It gets easier once you're free of it, I promise."

The soft, sweet smile you give him was strong enough to make his heart jump into his throat.

'Wow...'

'Ask. Her. Out. Steven won't do it, so you do it!' Jake urged him.

Marc choked suddenly, coughing awkwardly to clear his throat at Jake's further commentary.

"You okay?" You ask him.

"Y-Yeah, I just... Uh..." He cringed again. "It's... allergies! I've been dealing with them since we dusted the flat, and... Yep. Allergies."

You chuckle softly at him as Victoria tugs on your sleeve and whispers in your ear.

"Oop, mama duty calls. It was nice meeting you, Marc." You grin, giving him a short handshake.

"Yeah... You too." Marc replied as you walked off, giving Victoria a wave as she peeked over your shoulder as you push the trolley away.

'Allergies? Smooth, Marc. Really smooth. How the hell did you ever bag Layla with romantic skills like that?' Jake sighed sarcastically.

'I swear Layla probably only married you for your dick, man. You're so BAD at romance.'

Marc knew Layla did love him, at one point but with all the drama of being Moon Knight, it quickly snuffed that relationship... They were still close of course, but they'd never open up to another intimate relationship again. Which was fine, none of them minded particularly.

Especially not now. Not now that there's a cute single mom with and adorably--scarily--smart little girl on her hip to occupy those thoughts.

And that... was your first time meeting Marc Spector.

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Now, meeting Jake was different. Completely different. You technically "met" Jake weeks after you met Marc and built a rapport with him.

One night, Jake was sitting in the window, munching on some saltines he'd spread with sunflower butter as he read some old knitting patterns in a book he'd picked up at a resale shop.

He thought he could knit something for both you and Victoria and have Steven give it to you, it would be a good way to start actually flirting, to hopefully open up that door for all of you.

But of course... well. He knew Steven was way too shy to ask you out on a date, and Marc was too chicken shit and awkward about the subject to bring it up himself.

And so, it fell upon Jake Lockley to find a way to get closer to you, two. He understood that many single mothers found it tricky to date, especially with a child like Victoria. It would require immense levels of trust to get past those walls you would have put up to protect both you and Victoria, especially after you'd told Marc about Victoria's biological father fucking your best friend the day of your ultrasound.

He could just imagine how your poor face fell when you closed your front door, hearing the ridiculously high-pitched, false moans and the squeaking of the mattress as that miserable excuse of a man was having his way with your supposed "best friend"...

All while your hands would have clutched the pictures of your unborn baby girl, tears bubbling up in your eyes as you screamed at them while they scrambled to cover their shame.

And then.... as you told Marc, you would have grabbed the knife and the rest was history; bidding goodbye to that cheating bastard and woman you once trusted.

You were strong, loving and oh so patient with your daughter and her needs. Jake found your whole being attractive, honestly. He hadn't seen you angry, but he just knew you were a badass if you wanted to be.

He chuckled as he picked up his knitting needles, and began to loop the soft, thick yarn through each line. He was sure to pick yarn that wouldn't upset Victoria and her sensory issues, so he picked the softest yarn he possibly could, selecting enough to make the both of you matching jumpers.

Victoria's would be a little big, to allow for comfort and her to grow into it as she wore it. He could just imagine how adorable she'd look with the sleeves hanging over her little hands, squirming and giggling as you two played together--

Jake's hands stopped knitting.

Shit. He had it down bad for you, too.

When he looked down, that's when he noticed the green laser pointed right at him...

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You were there, simply cleaning up the mess from dinner as Victoria happily colored on her dry erase board, drawing the shapes and hieroglyphs she saw in the book Steven selected for her.

She had been quiet and engrossed in her little art project for so long that you jumped and almost dropped a plate on the floor when she squealed loudly.

"Mommy, it's Steven! Or Mister Marc?"

"Huh? What?" You looked around your flat, for some reason your brain told you to look inside instead our our the window where her little finger tapped the glass excitedly.

"No, there!" She insisted. "Over there!"

You walk over to her and lean down, looking out the window.

And sure enough, across the street, in the building across from yours, an apartment had the curtains open with the lights on.

In one of the windows, at a desk, sat a man. The streets were close enough together that you could make out some details. The shadow of a mustache being the first thing you zeroed in on, and then the immaculately slicked-back hair.

He looked like he was... knitting? This man, who looked like Steven and Marc. Marc and Steven both mentioned on different occasions that they had a brother named Jake, maybe this was him?

And wow! So close by, too!

Victoria waved her arms, trying to get her attention, but the man was so absorbed in his task that he didn't notice her try to get his attention. When her little disappointed sniffles could be heard, you snap your fingers.

"I got an idea!" You say, dashing to the end table by the front door and rummaging through the various keychains you'd accumulated. It was a guilty habit of yours, you found.

But then you pluck up the laser toy and run back to the window. It takes shaking it once or twice for the green light to illuminate, but when it does, you shine it directly through the window and at the man's chest.

Then, he looked up.

You break out into a happy grin when he spots the two of you, and Victoria giggles with unabated glee as she waves some more, her whole tiny body moving with every shake of her overly excited hand.

You see the man smile back and he waves at the both of you.

"Hey, baby, why don't we use your board to say hi?" You suggest, rubbing her shoulders.

"Yeah!" She giggles, grabbing the board and erasing her painstakingly re-created drawings from the book, and messily scrawled the word:

Hi :)

The man laughed and looked around until he grabbed a notebook, scribbled something with a marker, and held it up for you two to see.

Hello

You chuckle as Victoria hands you the board, knowing that your writing is neater than hers is, and with how excited she is, she was bound to mess up.

You quickly and clearly write something down and turn the board to face the window.

Steven or Marc?

He smiled at you and scribbled back.

Jake

Marc n Steven told us about you. Hi!

They've told me a lot about you, too.

"That's Jake, honey. Remember what I said? How Steven and Mister Marc look alike? He's the same way." You explain to Victoria.

"Oh." She sighs. Poor little thing seemed dejected that once again, she misidentified someone as her "bestest friend".

You lift your eyes as Jake showed what he put on the notepad next. It was a badly drawn cat with a happy face on it.

You can't help but laugh and grin, nudging Victoria to look at what he drew for her.

"It's a kitty!" She gasps, snatching the board from your hands to draw pictures for him.

You spent much of the evening that night with Victoria and Jake drawing pictures back and forth, writing messages until he ran out of paper.

That's when you put down your phone number and told him to text, to make it easier on Victoria.

Victoria, upon realizing this, dropped her board and snatched your phone, starting a video call with Jake and chattering his ear off. He seemed to take it in stride, engaging with her. Not on the same level as Steven, but something about how he handled it gave you the impression he had experience with kids, or even worked with kids.

He didn't talk down or dumb anything down for her, he spoke to her calmly and clearly like he would anyone else, and the fact he was so sweet was endearing to you.

He was even teaching her little words in Spanish. For some reason, she liked to repeat the word "cat" because she liked how it sounded, and it was "funny".

That was how you met Jake Lockley.

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It was now half a year since you'd indirectly met all three "brothers" and quickly, the pressure was beginning to mount on them to reveal the truth to you as their crush developed more and more into full infatuation with you and your darling girl.

But they still hadn't asked you out, yet. They'd come close a few times, but it was never when Jake was in control so Marc and Steven backed down at the last possible moment. Every time Jake was in control it wasn't a "good moment" for them to propose a date with you. But now?

It was late in the year, the harvest festival being over with and the holidays around the corner with Christmas, as usual, dominating all others. Snow and ice encased everything. It came early this year, and Victoria couldn't be more thrilled. (She could build snowmen with her friends, Steven, Mister Marc and Mister Jake!)

You and Jake would text, and he gave in and told you that he, Marc, and Steven all actually lived together and he would "let" Steven or Marc use his phone so he could video chat with Victoria and you.

You didn't know the boys all shared the same phone regardless.

It was nice having a social life again, even if it was small. Outside work and ensuring a comfortable upbringing for your little girl, you'd forgotten how nice it was to have friends. Even if those friends consisted of three identical, quirky brothers who lived in the flat across the way.

The day was coming soon, for when they would have to confess to you about the true nature of their identities. And the three unanimously agreed that they would tell you about Moon Knight.

For your safety, and Victoria's. They didn't want you to agree to date them (if you ever would) only to find out they snuck out in the dead of night to do the bidding of some creepy ancient bird god who could frankly do with a wardrobe update...

They just didn't anticipate that day to be today. Of course, Steven would rather have broken the news to you over a nice dinner in the corner booth of a quiet restaurant. Or even on a nice walk through the park...

But no. No, it had to come out when you decided to pull out your phone and go through your texts or the day as Victoria sat in Steven's lap on the couch of your living room.

Jake had sent a meme earlier in the day, of a little cat wearing a sombrero and you chuckled. You sent a meme back in reply, of a snail holding some maracas on some drawn-on arms.

That's when Steven twitched when the phone in his back pocket vibrated and chimed with a silly little ringtone.

You blinked at him as he fished it out of his pocket, careful not to knock Victoria off balance as he checked it. He awkwardly cleared his throat and gave you a strained smile as he set it on the coffee table in front of you.

"You okay..." You say, eyeing the very familiar phone. They could just have the same model and case...

"Oh, yes, just an email alert, luv. Don't worry 'bout it!" Steven chirped, quickly shifting his attention back to Victoria as she practiced her reading from the book in her hands.

You squint at him suspiciously. Your finger hovered over the send button when you selected another silly little image...

But you decided to call instead.

That's when a song began to chime. One you recognized very well as Steven's favorite song...

♫"Lonely is a man,

Without looove~"♫

'God damn it, Steven! You forgot to put it on silent again!' Marc's panicked voice shouted inside their headspace.

'Ay, hermanito, not now!' Jake groaned.

Steven began to sweat profusely as Victoria handed the phone innocently to him, urging him to answer it, not making the correlation with the song, or your phone number...

Steven shakily held the phone to his ear and answered.

"H-Hello..."

"Steven." You deadpan, raising an eyebrow and tapping your finger on your arm.

'Shit shit shit shit.' Marc hissed.

'Busted.' Jake almost sang.

You look at Victoria, hesitant to interrupt her time with Steven, but you wanted answers. Why is it that none of the men ever agreed to all meet up in person to hang out? Why did you only ever see one at a time? Yes, work was a convenient excuse, but every single day?

And then there's the phone!

Yeah, you weren't letting Steven wiggle free from this talk, even as Victoria pouted and trudged back into her room to play with her toys.

You almost feel like a cop in a bad movie, the way you lean back with your arms crossed, almost like you were an interrogator in a police precinct.

Would this make you both the bad and good cop?

You felt so bad, knowing that this kind of behavior would only freak Steven out, so you relaxed your jaw and posture, leaning away from him and giving him breathing room as his sweaty hands began to pat nervously in the memorized tune of that specific song that was just playing.

"I'm not blind, and I'm not dumb... So start from the beginning." You sigh. "I don't want anything to come out and upset Victoria, but I have to know who I'm letting around my little girl."

Steven licked at his slightly chapped lips, taking his bottom lip between his teeth briefly.

"Okay..." He peeped.

'Just take it slow, Steven.' Marc urged him gently.

'I can take control, if you want.' Jake offered.

"No, that's too much right now." Steven muttered aloud, without thinking.

You tipped your head to the side. "What's too much?"

Steven jumped and covered his mouth, his big doe eyes wide as can be, like he's a little boy who was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.

He despised awkward situations like this. He could never tell what to say to keep someone happy and to avoid them getting angry with him...

"Steven, I'm not mad. I'm honestly confused. Please... Just... Tell me everything, okay? I just wanna know some things." You say, leaning forward to put your hand on his knee, your ever so patient eyes sweet and understanding.

Yeah, those eyes were his undoing.

"Do you know what Dissociative Identity Disorder is?"

🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒

Whatever you had originally expected to hear from Steven, finding out that he, Marc and Jake all shared the same body was a lot to absorb. Especially after Steven blurted out about their superhero alter ego that apparently did bidding for an Egyptian god?

Steven expected you to be mad, braced himself for it, but instead, he and his two headmates were knocked entirely off center when you made the remark that if Khonshu ever got to be too much for the boys, they should lock him in a room with Victoria and her never-ending questions.

That would shut him up for a little while, surely.

Another thing you weren't expecting was the date proposal from Steven (and of course Marc and Jake).

You hesitated, at first... But...

They were so kind and sweet. They already have shown so much care for you and your daughter... And you were honestly happy to realize that you weren't crushing on different guys, that your feelings were no longer awkward and conflicted.

Or wait, were you crushing on different men? Yes they were completely different identities, but they shared a body, and... oh, this was gonna take time to learn more about.

Your first date was for later that week. Steven informed you it would be Jake, taking you out, as he felt like a "bloody awkward fool" and was afraid of messing it up, and Marc was just as bad at those social situations.

But you agreed, and when the date rolled around, you and Victoria were bundled up, all ready to go to the charming little Italian restaurant somewhere in town where apparently Jake was friendly with the employees there.

Victoria skipped in the snow, struggling to match her pace with yours, making sure her footsteps were measured so her prints mirrored yours exactly as she walked on her little tippy toes.

As you approached where Jake had his car parked, he smiled, his mustache quirking up as he scooped Victoria in his large gloved hands, laughing when she dragged her fingers over his hairy upper lip, comparing the stache to a caterpillar.

You stifled a snort and covered your mouth as you watched Jake buckle Victoria into a booster seat in the back of his car.

"Where did you..." You blinked. You fully intended to run back to your flat and grab the booster seat you owned, but you were surprised to see Jake already had one. A rather expensive-looking one, at that.

"Ay, cariño, you didn't think I'd let the little chiquita ride unprotected, did you?" He smirked at you, his dark eyes glinting mischievously.

"But, I have one. You didn't have to..."

"Hey, if it makes it easier, I'll be happy to foot the bill." Jake hummed, leaning in to check Victoria's buckles as she played on her tablet, snow-caked shoes kicking lazily as she did.

Normally, Jake was insane about his car. He always made sure his fares cleaned their damn feet off before getting inside. But for you two he willingly made the exception.

"Now, c'mon mamacita." Jake grinned at you once more as he enabled the child lock and closed the door on Victoria's side. "We got lunch to get to, right?"

🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒

You couldn't remember the last time you were on a date. Actually wait, you could. The night you got pregnant. One of the only times Victoria's sperm donor was ever romantic with you, and he proposed the next morning after.

Yeah, you knew how that story ended.

But now it looked like a whole new book was being written right in front of you, as cliché as it all sounded.

Jake had treated you both well, engaging happily and drawing with Victoria on the activity mat the restaurant provided as you sipped your glass of red wine, watching; your heart was fluttering in your chest as you watched how happy she was interacting with them.

After a while, he went back out to his car and returned with a sparkly red gift bag for the two of you and you immediately felt your heart lurch up from your chest and into your throat.

He knitted the two of you matching jumpers. A mama cat and her kitten, of course, he managed to do it in an Egyptian style, much to Victoria's glee as she ripped off her regular jumper in favor of the one Jake made, immediately rubbing her face on the sleeve with a happy giggle.

You couldn't help but smile warmly as Jake helped her pop her head through the top, and you decided to slip yours on, yourself.

God, it was almost surreal how Hallmark it all seemed. Not one, but three men interested in you, a lonely single mother. All three men who adored your daughter and treated you both with respect. All three men, who shared the same body and nighttime secret.

And you found yourself falling just as hard, and somewhere in the back of your mind wondered if--if--you had met them first... would they have been Victoria's father(s)? Would they have rejoiced in your pregnancy? Gone to your appointments, held your hand in the delivery room? Would they have helped the doctors weigh and print Victoria for the very first time?

Your mind was knocked out of the what-ifs when your phone jingled, catching Jake's attention.

"Oh, it's Victoria's pediatrician. I have to take this." You sigh sadly, not wanting to step away from the cozy atmosphere in your booth.

Jake smiled at you and winked, "Go ahead and take it. I got her handled."

You smiled back, hoping the flush to your face wasn't as obvious as you feared as you got up and answered the call.

Jake continued to play and draw with Victoria, letting her explain how some of her learning games worked, what apps were her favorite, and who her favorite cartoon characters were.

Honestly, if anyone thought Steven was great with Victoria thanks to their same autistic traits? Jake was good simply because he was a natural with kids. Marc was, too, but he was a bit stiff and nervous. He needed to be eased into it just a bit more.

"Hey.... Psst. Mister Jake." Victoria whispered to him, blinking her big, bright, gorgeous eyes up at him.

"Yeah? What is it, gatita?" Jake hummed at her, grinning.

She waved her hand, urging him closer as she whispered conspiratorially, cupping her hand over his ear, "Look where Mommy's standing."

Jake lifts his gaze to find you among the crowd of people, where you stood on your phone, talking to the doctor about Victoria's upcoming appointment. He tracked where Victoria was pointing, and that's when he saw it: the mistletoe.

He knew immediately what Victoria was hinting at.

"That means you gotta kiss my Mommy." She whispered to him again.

"Oh, I do, huh?" Jake teased, poking her in the side. "And what if I don't?"

"Then Imma make you!" She squeaked and giggled.

"Oh, dear, then in that case I definitely have to do it, eh?" He chuckled.

"C'mon." Jake said, scooping Victoria up and holding her on his hip. "Let's go give another present to your wonderful mamá."

As they got closer to you, he caught the tail-end of your conversation.

"...yeah. Next Wednesday at 3pm. See you, then, Doctor Wilson. ...Of course! Happy holidays." You say cheerily, ending the call.

When you turned around, you saw Jake holding Victoria against him as he walked closer to you.

The sight really shouldn't have taken your breath away the way that it did...

But if you thought your breath was taken before? It was entirely robbed from you as Jake leaned in, wrapping an arm around your waist as he tipped his head down to kiss you, his mustache tickling your nose and upper lip.

You were so taken aback that you didn't hear the whooping and laughing from the workers of the restaurant as the scene unfolded in front of them, congratulating Jake.

Victoria squirmed and squealed and laughed and laughed, rubbing her face on Jake's leather jacket as your lips finally parted and your jaw dropped.

"What's the matter, mamacita? Cat got your tongue?"

🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒

God, dating those men was the best decision you ever made. Even with them being Moon Knight.

They were kind enough to always say goodnight to Victoria before they went about their business, giving you a soft kiss before whichever one was in control of the body departed.

You had only been dating a short while, it was now entering February and you were all spending more and more time together. Marc, Jake, and Steven had all spent the night once or twice in their own time.

Nothing sexual happened, but it was so nice to fall asleep with someone wrapping their arms around you. It was even better to wake up and see Victoria snuggled onto his chest, his arms caged around her protectively, flexing when she made any movements as his unconscious body ensured she wouldn't roll off of him and--god forbid--onto the floor.

It was a few days before Valentine's, and Marc had spent the day with you and Victoria. He had gotten much more comfortable around her, falling into a natural and gentle routine unique to them. Just like she had with Steven, and Jake. And above all, they handled her autism well.

Steven was exceptionally good at helping distract her during her meltdowns, whereas Jake could cradle her, singing little songs in Spanish as he rubbed her back. Marc would start by talking to her in a low, gentle tone, urging her to just breathe, and talk, explaining what was upsetting her and what would work best to help her calm down from it.

But right now, Victoria was in the midst of a battle against sleep.

"Don' wanna sleep." Victoria sniffled into Marc's jumper.

"I know, babydoll, but you'll feel loads better once you do, mkay?" He murmured quietly to her as he padded, barefoot into Victoria's almost obnoxiously canary-yellow bedroom.

"I can make some apple pancakes for you in the morning, hm? How's that sound?"

He dodged the minefield of toys scattered about and chuckled softly at the shelf where her little ancient Egypt memorabilia sat meticulously organized alongside her books and drawings on the subject. A half-finished paper sarcophagus lay on the desk in the corner, a project Steven had started with her two days ago that they intended to finish together.

Marc laid her down and she nodded, rubbing her eye. "Okay..." She mumbled in agreement.

Marc picked up the plushy scarab that Steven bought from the gift shop and handed it to her, tucking her in all nice and warm.

"There you go." He said softly to her, kneeling next to the bed. "Snug as a bug in... well. Blankets, right now, huh?"

He grinned when Victoria giggled groggily at his pun, squeezing the beetle plush she named "Digger" and snuggled under the blankets, her feather lashes brushed her cheeks as she began to drift off.

"See you in the morning, babydoll." Marc said softly, giving her a kiss to her forehead before standing.

His finger had just flipped the switch to turn off the lights in her room, so only the salt lamp dimly illuminated her bedside, when he heard her peep as she rolled over.

"G'night daddy."

He felt like his heart stopped beating as he shakily closed the door, dragging his suddenly very heavy feet through your flat as he made his way to your couch, the weight of that word landing on his shoulders.

He felt like Atlas, carrying the world on his back as he dropped down onto the chocolate brown cushions.

You walk over, having finished dishes from dinner, wiping your hands on a tea towel. Upon seeing his shell-shocked expression, you sit next to him in concern as he covered his face with his hands, his arms shaking and skin pale.

"Marc, sweetie, what's wrong?"

"I..." He said, his voice breaking.

You lean in, reaching out to brush a hand through his mop of curls, letting him take his time. Maybe Steven or Jake was trying to front? You've seen how taxing it could be on them when it happened so suddenly. One time Steven had seized control in the kitchen from Jake and he fell and cracked his head open on the counter! Poor Victoria cried when she saw how much he was bleeding, scared that he was dying.

It took a lot of hugs and kisses to convince her otherwise...

"She... God. Fuck." Marc swore softly, sniffing. "She--she called me daddy."

Your jaw dropped and you gawked at him. Was Victoria already so attached to him? To them? But then again, she's never had a father figure, before, either, and suddenly having not one, but technically three men in her life doing all the things a dad should do? You can understand why she would--hell, why you would...

He dropped his arms and you could see the beginnings of tears clump in his beautiful eyelashes, heavy weights of emotion settling deep in his chest.

He looked up at the ceiling, trying to blink the tears away. God, he didn't deserve all of this. He didn't deserve this... this domesticity. Guys like him just didn't get to have a life like that. Not with everything he's had to do as a soldier, a mercenary... in Khonshu's name.

He didn't deserve such a beautiful woman, or the idolized gaze of her sweet and innocent baby girl.

'You're too hard on yourself, Marc.' Steven said to him in their headspace.

'Yeah, hermano...' Jake murmured.

"Marc, honey..." You say, leaning in and adjusting your position, so your head lay on his chest. You spread your hand over his heart, feeling how it hammered in the muscle of his chest.

"I just... What the hell did I do to get this?" He asked softly, bringing his arms around you to bury his nose in your hair.

"Well, I think it all started the day a certain little girl wiggled free of me and ran into a gift shop..."

Marc chuckled, squeezing you tight.

"Would you want us to?" He whispered. "Would you want us to stay? Would you be okay with that? I know it's soon, and--and I'm not saying we move in or anything like that, but..."

"I think it would crush Victoria if I ever shoo'd you boys away, honey." You assured him, tipping your head up to give him a sweet kiss.

You feel the tension slowly bleed from his body and his expression softens into a heartbreakingly sweet smile, his dark eyes sparkling with a warmth that you haven't seen before as your lips parted.

"Then we'll stay. As long as you both will put up with us." He said to you, his voice so quiet you almost couldn't catch his words.

"How do Steven and Jake feel about her calling you daddy?" You smile slyly.

Marc grins and drops his head back with a laugh, listening to the bickering of his headmates as his anxiety ebbed away.

"Oh... They're arguing over who Vicky is gonna call daddy next."

"We need to think of nicknames for you guys so she doesn't confuse you." You laughed with him.

Your laughter was cut short when you heard Victoria's door click open, and out she waddled, blanket clutched in one arm, Digger firmly squeezed into the crook of her elbow and her thumb was in her mouth. She only sucked her thumb when she was frightened, or severely anxious.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Marc asked, shooting to his feet even before you could, at her side in a split second.

You joined him and put your hands on her shoulders, looking into her drowsy and not-entirely-awake eyes. "Did you have a bad dream?"

She shook her head, mumbling something around her thumb.

"What is it, kiddo?" Marc inquired next.

She pulled her thumb out of her mouth with a pop.

"There's a bird-man in my room."

[doctorbitchcrxft]

I Know What You Did Last Summer | Supernatural Series Rewrite | Dean Winchester x Fem!Reader

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Fem!Reader

Warnings: canon violence, canon gore, depression, anxiety, derealization, depersonalization, girl just all the warnings go here man put 'em all here

Word Count: 3829

A/N: GUYS. FAKE PLASTIC TREES. (ive been thinking about Dean and y/n with this song for days). GUYS. YOU DON'T GET IT. (they're dragging me back to my padded cell). FAKE PLASTIC TREES BY RADIOHEAD. FAKE

Mobile Supernatural Series Rewrite Masterlist

Supernatural Series Rewrite Masterlist

Supernatural Series Rewrite Playlist

Uriel had been oddly quiet, and you didn’t like it at all. “No news” wasn’t exactly “good news” when it came to angel business. 

You knew he was always around; almost like a shadowy, blurry figure in the background of a wide camera shot. Not exactly present but ominous and threatening. 

Dean wasn’t pushing you any further, which you were thankful for. There were certain things the two of you just didn’t talk about. While you weren’t exactly thrilled about the two of you bottling things up, it was all you knew how to do anymore. There were feelings so complex you couldn’t find the words to attribute to them. 

You couldn’t even remember the last time you touched your journal. It was your way of checking in on yourself. If there was a large gap of time between dates when you’d written, you knew something had gone horribly wrong during that time. This was probably the longest you’d gone without writing your thoughts down. There were just simply no words. 

Perhaps the word was grief? It was a different kind of grief than the one you’d felt when he was gone. This kind was a sickening nostalgia. You missed the innocence in his eyes when you’d first met him, and you missed the way you immediately felt comforted and safe around him. However, not even he could keep you safe from the hungry animal you’d become; a rabid dog fighting for a cause you didn’t necessarily believe in. 

There were moments you’d get pulled into your own thoughts and couldn’t pull yourself out no matter how hard you tried. While you’d gained a little of the weight back you’d lost during Dean’s time in Hell, you still felt hollow. The color had returned to your face, sleeping was a little bit easier, but there was no light behind your eyes. Even despite those little improvements, you knew that Dean could see right through them. He knew you better than anyone. You couldn’t hide the ache in your jaw from clenching your teeth in your sleep. You couldn’t hide the way you’d flinch at the screams in a horror movie on pay-per-view. He saw each and every one of your weaknesses, and that terrified you. 

The thing to pull you from your mind this time was Sam dropping the pool cue he was using while trying to hustle a group of drunk college guys. He seemed to have tunnel vision as he headed toward— ‘Ruby?’ you thought. 

“God fucking dammit,” you breathed out. You chugged the last bit of your beer, and then headed to the brothers standing near the demon. 

“Ooh, great,” Dean was saying sarcastically as you walked up to the group. “Intel from demons; reliable.”

“Girl named Anna Milton escaped from a locked ward yesterday,” Ruby replied, ignoring Dean’s comment. “The demons seem pretty keen on finding her. Apparently, some real heavy-hitters turned out for the Easter-egg hunt.”

“Why? Who is she?” Dean asked. 

Ruby shrugged. “No idea. But I'm thinking that she's important, 'cause the order is to capture her alive. I just figured that whatever the deal is, you might want to find this girl before the demons do.”

Sam sighed. “Look, maybe we should check it out.”

“Actually, we're working a case, but thanks,” Dean said curtly.

“What case?” Ruby scoffed. 

“Uh, we've got leads, big leads.”

Her face was unchanging. “Sounds dangerous.”

You held back a snort. That was funny, if you were honest. 

“Yeah, well, it sure ain't goose-chasing after some chick— who, for all we know, doesn't even exist— just because you say she's important,” Dean snapped. 

Ruby held up her hands in surrender. “I'm just delivering the news. You can do whatever you want with it. Far as I'm concerned, I told you, I'm done.”

When she’d told you the address of the hospital Anna escaped from, the brothers moved toward the car. You turned back to Ruby one last time. “You should probably know you’re making a mistake leaving me alive,” you said evenly. 

The demon scoffed. “Why?”

“Because if you step even a little out of line, I’ll come back for you.”

“Ooh, scary,” she snickered. “What are you gonna do? Call your angel friend?”

“I’ll lock you in your body and tear you limb from limb,” you replied, completely serious.

That seemed to shake her resolve a little bit. You turned on your heel, walking out of the bar. It was then you noticed Dean was watching the entire interaction from the door. 

You blew right past him, trying to ignore the way he was analyzing your every move. 

****

The next day, you spoke to the psychologist who was head of Anna Milton’s case. She actually was a real person; a journalism major that had gone schizophrenic two months ago. You’d flipped through multiple pages where she’d drawn in detail the two scenes you’d witnessed of seals being broken. 

Then, you went to her parents’ house.

“Mr. and Mrs. Milton?” Dean called as he knocked on the door. 

Sam then called, “We're from the sheriff's department. We just wanted to ask you a couple of questions.”

Dean pushed the door open that the lock had been broken off of, and you drew your gun immediately. 

“Whoa, Elmer Fudd, relax,” Dean quipped, seeing as you’d already cocked it. While that comment normally would draw a smile out of you, you were too on-edge to even fully register it. You brushed past him into the house where a trail of blood led to the living room. 

“Oh, fuck,” you breathed out, taking in the bloody mess the Miltons’ living room had been turned into. The throats of both people had been cut, but that wasn’t what disturbed you. What disturbed you was the fact that you felt almost nothing while you looked down at them. The empathy had seemingly been drained from you. 

Sam spoke up next to you, and you flinched. “Sulfur. The demons beat us here. Whatever the deal is with this Anna girl—”

“Yeah, they want her. They're not screwing around. Alright, so, I'm Girl, Interrupted, and I know the score of the apocalypse, just busted out of the nut-box... Possibly using superpowers, by the way. Where do I go?” 

You picked up a photo on the mantle, then noticed something. “It’s the window of Anna’s church. She drew it in her notebook. Let’s go.” You dropped the photo back on the ground, and the two brothers stared after you in confusion. “She’ll be there.” “Wait, (Y/N), how do you know?” Sam asked. 

“Trust me on this one, huh?” you asked, patience thin. 

“Trust you? I don’t even know who you are anymore!” Sam protested.

“I’m still me, Sam, relax, man.” You continued marching forward.

“(Y/N), stop!” Dean yelled. 

You swung around, raising a fist. Then, when you saw Dean’s horrified face, you recoiled. Your throat immediately felt like it closed up. It felt like the breath had been punched out of your lungs, and the look on Dean’s face broke your heart. 

“I— I’m sorry,” you muttered. “I’m sorry. I don’t— I didn’t know it was you. I got scared. I’m sorry.”

Dean looked like he didn’t recognize you. He’d been looking at you like that a lot recently. 

****

No one had spoken on the drive to Anna’s church. The silence was tense, as were your shoulders. The two people you loved most in the world seemed terrified of you; like you were a bomb about to go off at the slightest touch. 

You didn’t know whether you wanted to crawl into Dean’s lap and cry or run away again. Everything just hurt. 

Then, you noticed someone walking up the stairs through the stained glass window of Anna’s church. Before the Impala was even in park, you were out with your gun drawn. You didn’t give the boys a chance to question your actions and headed into the church. 

You silently crept up the stairs, locked in on your target. 

When you reached the top step, you could see a redheaded girl staring out the front window you’d driven up to. 

“Anna,” you said plainly. You still held your gun but aimed it at the floor. 

She spun around, looking terrified. 

“I’m not gonna hurt you,” you told her. “I’m tryin’ to help you, okay? My name’s (Y/N).” 

“(Y/N)?” she repeated. “(Y/N) (Y/L/N)?”

You momentarily were gobsmacked. “How’d you know that?” You cocked your gun, still aiming it at the floor. 

Anna flinched. 

“Just answer the question,” you said. 

“Whoa, (Y/N),” Dean warned, and for the first time, you noticed the brothers were behind you. 

“Dean—” you returned, cutting your eyes at him. 

“Dean. The Dean?” Anna asked. 

She was beginning to annoy you. 

“Well, yeah. The Dean, I guess,” he chuckled, straightening up. 

He was acting like his old self again, and that sent a pang of jealousy through you. Just those few words, and it seemed like he had that same jovial energy he did when you first met him. 

“It's really you,” Anna said dreamily. “Oh, my god. The angels talk about you. You were in Hell, but Castiel pulled you out, and some of them think you can help save us. And some of them don't like you at all.” She looked past your shoulder at the younger brother. “And Sam; Sam Winchester. They talk about you all the time lately. I feel like I know you.” She then realized you were still standing there. “I feel like I should be afraid of you,” she said. 

“Aren’t you?” you asked, somewhat afraid of her answer. 

“Yes,” she replied honestly. 

It did hurt you a bit to hear that. “Me too, kid,” you sighed. Immediately, you felt Dean’s eyes on you. You cleared your throat, realizing you’d said what you had aloud. “So, you talk to angels?”

She shook her head, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Oh, no. No, no way. Um, they probably don't even know I exist. I just kind of... overhear them.”

“How?”

“Sometimes, I just... hear them in my head,” she explained. “Not right this second, but a lot. And I can't shut them out; there are so many of them.”

“So you’re not schizophrenic,” you concluded. “You’re just… tuning into angel radio?”

She nodded, standing up a little straighter. “Yes. Thank you.”

“When did they start? You remember?” you pressed. 

“I can tell you exactly,” she replied, “September 18th.”

That date would forever stick out in your mind. “The day he busted out.”

“First words I heard, clear as a bell— ‘Dean Winchester is saved’,” she nodded. 

“Anna,” you began hesitantly. “You never said what they thought about me.”

“The angels?” she asked innocently. 

Solemnly, you nodded. 

“They don’t talk about you,” she said honestly. “I only ever heard your name once.”

“And?”

“ ‘(Y/N) (Y/L/N) no longer bites the hand’.”

“The fuck does that mean?” you asked, stomach dropping. 

She just shrugged, still on edge as a result of your hostility. 

Dean cleared his throat. “Well, at least now we know why the demons want you so bad. They get a hold of you, they can hear everything the other side's cooking. You're 1-900-angel.”

“Hey, um—” Anna stammered, “Do you know— Are my parents okay? I- I didn’t go home. I was afraid.”

At that moment, Ruby rushed in. “You got the girl. Good, let's go.”

“Her face!” Anna shrieked. 

“It’s okay,” Sam coaxed. “She’s here to help.”

Dean scoffed. “Yeah, don’t be so sure.”

Surprisingly, Ruby ignored him. “We have to hurry.”

“Why?” you asked, voice accusatory.

“Because a demon's coming; big-timer. We can fight later, (Y/N).”

“And, let me guess, you brought ‘em here?” you snarled. 

“I didn't bring him here. You did,” she said. 

Dean’s jaw tensed. “What?”

“He followed you from the girl's house. We got to go now,” she urged. 

“Guys,” Sam muttered. He pointed at a statue bleeding from the eyes. 

Your stomach dropped, anxiety gripping you. 

“It’s too late,” Ruby worried. “He’s here.”

Sam hid Anna in a closet while you readied yourself to deal with whatever was coming. You pulled your small iron-bladed knife out of your jacket as well as a bottle of holy water. 

“No, Sam, you got to pull him right away,” Ruby ordered. 

Your stomach dropped again. “Whoa, wait, you can’t do that—”

“Now's not the time to bellyache about Sam going darkside,” Ruby replied. “He does his thing, he exorcises that demon, or we die.”

Sam put the flask away and tried to exorcise the demon as soon as it entered the room, but it didn’t work. You breathed a sigh of relief. 

“That tickles,” the demon chuckled; his aura ominous. “You don't have the juice to take me on, Sam.” The demon chucked Sam down the stairs, and Dean took the opportunity to rush him with Ruby’s knife. 

The demon easily overpowered Dean. “Hello again, Dean.”

You tried to use the element of surprise on the demon, hoping that maybe you could overpower him that way. You stayed concealed behind a statue while the demon taunted Dean. 

“Come on, Dean. Don't you recognize me? Oh, I forgot,” he tsked, “I'm wearing a pediatrician. But we were so close in Hell.”

“Alastair,” you breathed out in realization, immediately losing your mind. You screamed bloody murder, running at the demon. You stabbed him straight through the back with the iron knife. 

Alastair grabbed your hair, wrapped it around his hand, and flung you to the ground over his shoulder. You yelped in pain but managed to keep your hold on the knife and pulled it out of his back.  

“You're gonna have to try a whole lot harder than that, girl,” the demon spat, standing over you.

Sam stabbed the demon with Ruby’s knife, giving you an opportunity to scramble away. Dean grabbed your hand, pulling you toward the window. As Sam ran up beside you, you made the split-second, executive decision to jump out the stained glass window. 

**** Although bruised and bloodied, you made it to a motel in one piece— mostly. 

“Are you almost done?” Dean grunted at you while you sewed up Sam’s arm in the bathroom. He’d cut it on part of the fence he fell on when he jumped out of the window after you. 

“I’m going as fast as I can,” you said. 

“Good, 'cause you know I got a dislocated shoulder over here.”

“Dean, I know. Stop,” you begged, patience thin. You used your teeth to help you tie off the end of Sam’s stitching and quickly wrapped it in gauze. He flexed his forearm painfully while you turned to leave the room and help Dean. 

He was hunched over the top of a table chugging a bottle of whiskey. 

“Gimme that,” you ordered. You took a large swig when he handed it to you. 

“So, you lost the magic knife, huh?” Dean called to Sam who was addressing some other wounds in the bathroom. 

“Yeah, saving your ass,” Sam replied. “Who the hell was that demon?”

“No one good,” you answered. 

Dean said, “We got to find Anna.”

You eyed him curiously, but you hoped he wasn’t paying enough attention to see your jealousy. 

“Ruby's got her. I'm sure she's okay,” Sam answered. 

You turned your focus to Dean’s shoulder. “Alright, c’mon. On three. One—” You forced Dean’s shoulder back into place with a sickening pop. He groaned, raising his arm above his head and rolling it around. 

“You sure about Ruby? 'Cause I think it's just as likely she used us to find radio girl and then brought that demon in to kill us,” Dean suggested to Sam. 

“No, she took Anna to keep her safe,” Sam argued. 

“Yeah. Well, why hasn't she called to tell us where she is?”

“Because that demon is probably watching us right now, waiting to follow us right back to Anna again. That's why he let us go.”

“You call this letting us go?”

“Yeah, I do. Look, killing us would've been no problem to that thing. That's why, for now, we just got to lay low and wait for Ruby to contact us.”

You pinched the bridge of your nose. “Okay, Sam, explain something to me.” You licked your teeth in aggravation. “Why the fuck do you trust a demon more than you trust me?”

Sam furrowed his brow at you, nostrils flaring. “I told you.”

You pursed your lips. “Not everything.”

He seemed taken aback. “How do you know that?”

You raised a brow. “Look at how you just reacted.”

Sighing, Sam admitted defeat. “She saved my life.”

“Care to elaborate?” you asked, tilting your head to the side. 

“Y’know what, (Y/N)? Back off,” the brunet snarled.

“Sam—” Dean warned. “Tell us what happened.”

The younger man huffed, sitting down on the bed. Then, he explained, “I… was hammered. These demons got the jump on me. Ruby was one of ‘em. She ended up killin’ the other one, and, uh, she told me she’d had to regain Lilith’s trust.”

“She tell you exactly how she did that?” you questioned pointedly. 

“No, but I don’t think that matters.”

“Why is that?” you pressed. 

“She was tortured down there, (Y/N), I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t be lying to me about that,” he replied. 

You rolled your eyes. “Well, excuse my skepticism.”

“Just… keep going, Sam,” Dean ordered dejectedly.

You folded your arms, turning away from the two men to calm yourself down.

“She told me she could teach me how to get rid of Lilith,” he said. 

Dean looked at him expectantly. “So? What'd she teach you?” 

“Well, the first thing I learned…” Sam trailed off. “I'm a crappy student. First time I tried, all I got was some smoke out of ‘im. Ruby ended up having to kill ‘im. I was pissed, she was… y’know.”

“Uh, wait, what?” you asked. “What does ‘y’know’ mean?”

Sam took a breath, then continued. “She told me the girl she’s possessing had checked out a long time ago. I, uh, I didn’t wanna talk to her about Dean being gone, and, uh, she kissed me.”

Your brow furrowed. “She kissed you?”

He chuckled. “That wasn’t all we did.”

You and Dean grimaced. 

“Yeah, uh, she said something like, ‘I know you think we shouldn’t, and it’s wrong, but the girl’s gone; it’s just me in here.’ And, again, I was pissed, needed an outlet, and, uh, I fucked her.”

Dean flinched. “Sam?”

“Yeah?”

“Too much information,” Dean said. 

He held his hands up in surrender. “Hey, I told you I was coming clean.”

“Yeah, but now I feel dirty,” the older one grimaced. “Okay, well, uh, brain-stabbing imagery aside— So far, all you've told me about is a manipulative bitch who, uh, screwed you, played mind games with you, and did everything in the book to get you to go bad.”

“Yeah, well, there's more to the story,” Sam said.

“Skip the full-frontal this time, huh?” you suggested. 

“Pretty soon after... that, um…” he trailed off. “I put together some signs: omens.”

“Saying what?” Dean prompted. 

“Lilith was in town. And I wanted to strike her first,” he explained. “I was ready to do a full-on kamikaze attack. I nearly killed her trying to get her to let me go.” He took a deep breath and shrugged. “Ruby came back for me. Whatever you have to say, she saved me. More than that, she got through to me. What she said to me... It's what you would've said. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be here.”

Then, someone knocked on the door. “Housekeeping.”

“Not now!” you and Dean called back in unison. 

“I’ve got clean towels,” the woman answered. 

With your gun on the back of your door, you looked through the peephole and opened the door. 

The maid let herself in.

You scoffed, keeping the door open and hiding your gun behind it. “Couldn't you just leave 'em at the door?”

“I’m at this address,” she said, pressing a piece of paper into your hand. 

You shook your head. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Go now. Go through the bathroom window, don't stop, don't take your car, don't pass go. There are demons in the hallway and in the parking lot,” the woman explained. 

“Ruby?” Sam asked. 

The demon threw her hands up. “Okay, yes, so I'm possessing this maid for a hot minute. Sue me.”

“What about—”

“Coma girl? Slowly rotting on the floor back at the cabin with Anna, so I've got to hurry back. See you when you get there. Go!” she ordered. 

Without so much as a glance at either brother, you moved toward the window with all three duffel bags slung over your shoulder. 

****

“Glad you could make it,” Ruby said, back in her original body as you entered the cabin.

“Yeah, thanks,” Sam told her. He then looked over at Anna, who sat on the couch. 

“Yeah, I think so,” she smiled. “Ruby's not like other demons. She saved my life.”

“Yeah, I hear she does that,” Dean deadpanned. “I guess I... You know.” He looked down at the ground.

Ruby crossed her arms, turning toward him. “What?”

“I guess I owe you for... Sam. And I just wanted... y’know—”

Ruby smirked. “Don't strain yourself.”

“Okay, then. Is the moment over?”

Ruby nodded. 

“Good, 'cause that was awkward.”

“Hey, Sam, you think it'd be safe to make a quick call, just to tell my parents I'm okay?” Anna asked. “They must be completely freaked.”

“Anna—” you started. 

She turned to face you, concern overtaking her. “What?”

“Your parents are gone,” you stated matter-of-factly. 

“(Y/N)—” Sam said, frustrated at your apparent lack of empathy. 

“No, they’re not—” she hiccuped. “Why is this happening to me?”

“I don’t know,” Sam told her. 

Then, her face changed. She sprang up from her seat, eyes wide. “They’re coming.”

“Uh, who?” you asked. 

“Back room,” Dean ordered. 

Sam left to bring Anna to the back, and you readied yourself with your iron blade. 

“Where's the knife?” the demon prompted. 

You tsked. “About that…”

“You’re kidding,” she said. 

“Look, it’s your boyfriend’s fault,” you shrugged. 

“Thanks a lot,” Sam hissed at you. 

You glared back at him. 

“Great. Just peachy. Impeccable timing, guys, really,” Ruby snarked. 

With a violent rattle, the door burst open. 

“(Y/N),” Uriel stated, stepping into the room. Castiel wasn’t far behind. 

You stepped slightly forward. “What? What’d I do?”

“You want to explain why you have that stain in the room?” the angel snapped at you.

Castiel cut you off, keeping you from answering. “We're here for Anna.”

“Here for her like... here for her?” Dean asked. 

“Stop talking,” Uriel ordered. “Give her to us.”

“Are you gonna help her?” Sam asked. 

“No,” Castiel said. “She has to die.”

“(Y/N),” Uriel ordered, eyes icy. 

Your stomach dropped. 

“Kill.”

Series Rewrite Taglist: @polireader @brightlilith @atcamillanorrman @jrizzelle @insomnia-bookworm @procrastination20 @mrs-nesmith @djs8891 @tiggytaylor @staple-your-mouth @jesstherebel @rach5ive @strawberrykiwisdogog @bruhidkjustwannaread @mxltifxnd0m @sunshine-on-marz @big-ol-boat @mgchaser @capncrankle @chervbs @simpingdeadcharacters @nesnejwritings @stillhere197 @tearsforhan @take-it-on-the-run @iloveyou2mia @maxinehufflepuffprincess @ohgeehowdigethere @seninjakitey @berarenado @s0urw00lf @princessleahorgana @quarterhorse19 @isla-finke-blog @silverdoragon @karacaroldanvers @gayandfairycore @examishbookwyrm @star-yawnznn @real-sharena-h @fandomloverrr @metalmonki @onlyangel-444 @yu-winchester @benniwiththefanni @daisychaingirl @immagods @missmieux @yoongi-holland @littledebbieinabigworld

[zenithofstories]

so i've just finished watching all the first episodes, so i wanted to give my thoughts on the first Wild Life session:

-so much fun i love it so much. i'm so glad they're all still having fun and continuing the series, and that Mumbo and Lizzie came back, despite dying early in Secret Life (i was a tiny bit worried they might get a bit dejected and pass on this one). also thrilled Ren is able to play this time; he's a blast

-there is a lot of mistrust going around which is very curious to me. most of it stems from previous seasons and has no bearing on what was happening at the time. Pearl straight up telling Cleo she expected her to betray her; Mumbo and Skizz not trusting Martyn, and then Grian; and then not trusting that Martyn just wanted to use their enchanter; the huge immediate aggression towards Scar when he came out of the mountain into Grian, Skizz and Mumbo's base; Mumbo not trusting Skizz (his teammate!) when he asked for someone to pass him a diamond; Scott, Cleo, Pearl and Impulse assuming Joel stole their cows, probably more i'm forgetting. it's definitely obvious to me that these people have learnt how the games work and learnt from the pain (as we do). i'm very curious to see if the general server mistrust grows, and the impact it has on everyone and the people

-i love JImmy, Big B, Lizzie and Ren forming a dnd party and Ren (in true bardic fashion) has a guitar within reach and is willing to break into song at the first campsite (this honestly might be my favourite moment from all the life series at the moment. the guitar within reach, Ren's beautiful voice, how much the others thought it was great. fantastic vibes all around)

-i really want Scar and Martyn to team up. they are both instantly mistrusted, to the point that both of them (in their first episodes, no less) expressed that if people are going to treat them like a villain, then they may as well act like it. if the two of them team up to take revenge on everyone being mean to them in a new series i think they would be a force to be reckoned with

-Skizz and Mumbo is a fantastic team-up. both very genuine people who are so funny together

-i hope they get the lag fixed, or that it was just from the size-changing mod and they don't have to deal with it for the rest of the series

-Gem and Joel's partnership - in the early days Gem is going to be a fantastic counterbalance for Joel; help keep him calmer and curb his wild ideas. But once Gem gives in to her own urges... oh boy

-does Big B know that he can go caving with people? cause he seemed to be under the impression that he had to get geared out before he could make friends and it would suck if he ended up alone all the time because it hasn't occurred to him that he can go caving with people right at the start

-double life thought: i know most people count Pearl as the winner, but did Scott technically win as well? cause they were the last pair alive, and died in the same tick. it probably doesn't matter at all, but i wonder about it sometimes (especially in how it would affect Martyn's lore but that's not canon)

-i don't think Jimmy has broken the canary curse. i subscribe to the theory that cause Lizzie died in the End, the Watchers weren't able to perceive it and then he was the first to die in the Overworld (i'm not counting Real Life as canon; it happened and i enjoyed it but it wasn't a full series and they were deliberately playing it silly as an april fool's joke. very glad that Cleo won though. hope they get a full series win as well)

-i'm glad that Tango and Skizz (deliberately) didn't team together, but i kinda wish Tango had ended up in a different group. him, Etho and Bdubs are fun, don't get me wrong, but a whole lot of the fun of the series is seeing people interact and work with people they don't usually. Tango and Jimmy was a top tier pairing in Double Life, and Tango is hilarious. i would love to see him branch out more and work with some more people

-there is more than just the wild card. Grian said he wasn't going to explain it, and i didn't notice anything else happening (but i'm also not expecting it to be much until they get to the late game). i think that there will be a wild card that affects the players, and then also something that affects the world? we'll see, i guess

-now that everyone who has played is playing (i'm pretty sure? if i've forgotten someone i'm gonna be sad) who is gonna sub in if needed?

-i love Mumbo's "that was sub-one intelligence mate" when they all fell 🤣

-i'm not sure what the purpose of including the creakings or whatever they're called? nevermind i just looked it up and they're going to be in the game at some point. weird. i'm not sure how i feel about creakings coming to minecraft though

-very glad they've got six lives this time. it will both allow them to not worry so much about mistakes and accidents (as evidenced by Pearl) and encourage them to take risks, which will be fantastic

[kneelingshadowsalome]

We know Konig is more soft on women, but is it all women in general? For example, if some girl was hitting on him, would he be rough with her? Would he ever kill a woman? (if he's on the battlefield - I'm guessing he would if he had to). Is he chivalrous to all women or just his partner?

Yes, König is absolutely super soft to all women in general 🌸

The thing is, women are an exception, a beautiful, pure anomaly in König's worldview. He both worships them and views them as fragile. Women need to be protected from all harm. And at the same time... König goes feral every time he gets to taste and touch and fu–ahem, make love to a woman.

CW: Toxic!König. Sexism. Mentions of canon-typical violence and PTSD. Freudian madness.

Something just snaps, and he doesn't want to hurt his Engel... but he's a bit ADHD, and far too needy, goes a bit crazy every time he sees her. Women's soft skin and plump breasts and hot, wet, silky folds drive him insane. He just wants to drown himself in a woman, hide somewhere deep, somewhere safe, but can't because he's so big and has to act all tough. If he could, if only he was allowed, he would fall asleep every night with his cock buried inside that beautiful, warm, velvet softness.

So König's deeply embedded insecurity and attempts to seek safety are a combination that make him a little unhinged when it comes to women. That's why he can never get enough 😔 Also this man's horrible childhood has made him an adrenaline addict. Chaos is what he's used to, it feels familiar, so there's a risk that König might never settle into safety even if he finds it. He needs a high (which means he needs to kill and he needs sex.)

Female operators are skilled and tough in his eyes, and he trusts their abilities (kind of), but he would always keep a silent lookout, and try to keep them safe. Even if those women looked at him like he's a weirdo. He would always choose to help a woman over helping a man. Men can and have to survive on their own if a lady is in trouble. I know this wasn't asked but He would also never, ever hurt children.

If a woman tried to kill him (on the battlefield) he would be very professional about it. He wouldn't find joy in the killing, though. As odd as it may sound, König would prefer shooting to stabbing when it comes to neutralizing a female target. He wouldn't want to prolong their deaths, and it would make him extremely uncomfortable to knife a woman down. If he has to, he will do it, but the kill would be as quick and clean as possible.

The ones König has killed linger on the precipice of his mind as precious memories, sick fantasies made real. But the women he kills haunt him forever: those deaths sometimes give him nightmares. Especially if they brought even the tiniest bit of satisfaction...

...Because König does go into a mode when he's left with a firearm. He's so excited he sometimes drops mags simply because he's so enthusiastic. Thrill and anxiety mix when he's working, and he feels absolutely marvelous every time he fires a gun and gets to announce "Target down" in the comms. Better yet if he can go on a spree and destroy a whole room full of villains. Noticing later that one or some of them were women would give him a cold feeling in the gut and leave him with a worsening PTSD.

If a woman was violent in other circumstances, meaning outside work/warfare, he would simply seize them as gently and firmly as he can and try to calm them down. König thinks hitting women is just wrong. Even if they were trying to hit him (hitting on, as in flirting with him, now that's a different thing hehe. Not sure if this is what you asked, if so let me know!). It's unmanly and cowardly, and he would kill any guy who hits women, and kill them without mercy.

König's traumatic childhood has put him on a knight's quest to protect all women and children from harm. His mother has greatly influenced the way he sees women overall. At the end of the day, they're creatures who don't know how to defend themselves so he needs to save them.

But then again... These 'Knight in Shining Armor' fantasies should be taken with a grain of salt.

Because seeing a woman under him in a helpless state, looking back at him with cute, wet eyes while he's lodged deep inside is the best thing in the world in König's opinion. He would never deliberately go and hurt a woman... But why then does it feel so good when Engel squeals every time he goes a little too deep? (Always on accident, of course.)

[gnckholin]

okay I need to preface this with yes I like having representation and anyone who's been around my blog long enough should know that renarin is my specialest little guy him and him and rlain are very cute and if y'all really need it this is coming from the perspective of a queer man if you turn this into a pissing on the poor type deal I will simply block you but. now that I've had time to stew on it.

the rlainarin arc was a bit boring.

part of this is I think rooted in Brandon trying to be a Good Ally™ doing Good Representation™ and he worked a lot with sensitivity readers to make sure things are handled well but it just felt a bit... tokenizing? like they were in the spiritual realm as a bit of plot convenience but also it kinda felt like an excuse to keep them relevant enough to give them pov chapters. and it's cute! don't get me wrong! but also every other characters get emotional arcs about growing as a person and they got...trying to ask your crush out? it felt very out of place.

now you might be saying hold on! they're not primarily pov characters you can't expect as much nuance emotionally as someone like kaladin. and you're right! but let's look at the other supporting cast members here. jasnah gets the struggle of power and her entire attempt to keep thaylenah which results in a meaningful paradigm shift for her! navani gets to work on her connection with the sibling and uncover the past. we don't even really see much of relationship between renarin and glys much less rlain and tumi. sure they may have been good representation! but they were mediocre arcs. even in the discussions I'm seeing lately of favorite parts, it's not that people have disliked it it's just...nothing to write home about?

it also feels particularly weird to have an arc around "my family will think it's weird" when it's been pretty well established that alethi in general are like. fine with queerness. and sure you can say "well they're nobles" but at this point renarin is in line for 0 titles. dalinar was only going to give king of urithiru to someone who wanted it, jasnah planned on being the last queen of alethkar, there's literally no point? it feels a little love Simon. and yes absolutely in modern western culture people can feel weird about coming out to people who would be accepting and that's fine! but that's also rooted in real world homophobia which alethkar doesn't seem to have.

even when we compare with the other canonically queer stormlight character, it just kinda. . .falls flat. part of this is that shallan wasn't intended to be queer but honestly it feels like it reads well. she doesn't have to turn to camera and say she's different she's bisexual she can just be a person. she can fall in love with adolin she can get flustered around jasnah veil can call women hot and it's like. fine. and it feels more authentic to the setting! a lot of the rlainarin arc in WAT felt like it was meant to be educational. for cishet people. and like that's fine! but it doesn't make for an engaging character arc. I can't even say it really makes for good reading.

and look, I get it, we all like seeing them get flustered and worry about what the other one thinks and we all get to be excited when they confess their feelings and kiss but it just feels so tonally dissonant that like. I can't believe this was intended to fit into the main plot. it feels a bit patronizing - like look we have good healthy representation now! I'm doing so good at this! and genuinely from the bottom of my heart it's thrilling that the largest name in fantasy is willing to do this even more so considering the religious background he's writing from I'm not writing all this to say Brandon is a bad guy or secretly a homophobe I'm just saying. I wish we had more, y'know? something less feel good for the cishets for being good allies something with more of a real plot that engages with the themes of the series and whatnot. I'm looking forward to arc 2 (in like 10-15 years)! I'm looking forward to more rlain and renarin and their dynamic! I just hope it feels less. educational.

anyway a lot of this was directly inspired by verilybitchie's video on good representation it really helped me out my finger on why their arc felt a bit flat so please go check it out she's a great creator.

[call-me-copycat]

BNHA Spoilers:

(Also this is just a complaint post, I'm not very good at explaining my thoughts so please don't try to argue :⁠-⁠( Feel free to add on thoughts but I can't argue )

I have to say I'm not too happy with the leaks, which is hard for someone like me to admit!

As an AceAro person, I was thrilled with the original ending and the fact that no ships were confirmed nor denied, because it left enough for the fans to work with while not shutting anyone down outright

I'm not really a fan of ships, I'll be honest, and I don't really like romance in anime (hard to avoid! I know!), but I never really saw anything wrong with people and their ships and whatnot, and I never minded analyzing some of them for some friends - it was all in good fun after all!

The pairs in the leaks felt like something out of character almost, it didn't feel very... Horikoshi Style I suppose

I do enjoy getting extra MHA content, I always always will, but it isn't a good feeling to me seeing these characters in this anime that focuses on motivation and inspiration and becoming Heroes eventually getting together and dating - I'm not sure, I guess it's the unfitting themes? Something about it unnerves me

I don't know, I've always been adverse to romance my whole life, I always preferred plot and writing instead of two characters getting together (if the plot and writing lead up to two characters getting together? I'm fine with that)

I've seen people saying Uraraka and Deku are canon and I have to say... I don't really feel comfortable with that

I can see it as cute, yes! But I feel that he didn't have as deep a relationship to her as he did with Bakugo (they're always themed around each other, and I found whatever relationship they have with each other very profound, as it ran very deep for a very long time)

Same goes with Toga and Uraraka - it happened over the course of the series, I got to see them learn and struggle together, I got to see them talk about their problems and desires and it felt overwhelmingly different than when it's Deku and Uraraka

I may be biased in the end, I have friends who ship Deku and Bakugo and I have friends who ship Uraraka and Toga, but I've seen some very informative takes that explain it a lot better than me why I think they're such good parallels to each other

I like that Deku and Uraraka are good motivators to each other, Uraraka inspired him in the beginning when he really needed it and he returned it to her as well - but I can't really see it as romantic? Then again, ignore that because I can't see anything in MHA as romantic

I dunno, I feel the romance really overtook the whole plot away from the ending and I'm devastated - that's all what everyone's talking about right now, no?

Deku and Uraraka

Denki and Jiro

The rumor of Bakugo being married (?)

Kinoko and Kuroiro are dating

That's not even all, there could be more that I easily missed

It feels very unsatisfactory, it makes it seem like Love was the entire meaning of the series My Hero Academia when it was not! I'm a big full-circle person, I would have adored a call-back! Something that alludes to the beginning of the series, like what they did with the cover

I want to see how Hero Society is, I want to see Deku and how he coped with the loss of OFA, I want to see Aizawa, I want to see Present Mic! How is he doing, I want to know if he's okay? Is Nezu still the principal? There are less demand for heroes since there aren't as many villains, I want to see that change and its effects! I want to hear more about Vigilante Heroes, and I want to see other Underground Heroes, I want to know more about the Quirk Doomsday Theory, and more about what the world was like when quirks first formed, and I would like to see Hisashi Midoriya! There's so much, see? I would rather talk about that and more over who's dating who ( ･᷄ὢ･᷅ )

It has its good moments, I will always love seeing the (former) class interact with each other, and I really liked seeing the new Hero Rankings, especially with some of the aged up designs for the characters - I can feel how much love Horikoshi has for these characters no matter what's going on in the series

I don't know, don't take me too seriously because I am a biased person after all - I've dropped one of my favorite book series as a kid because my favorite (the most competent) character died, and then every person in the book had gotten together with another person - it was a similar disappointment because it ignored the plot (it was a post-zombie apocalypse series) in favor of looking towards romance once more

Fairy Tail recently came out with their 100 Years Quest, and I know I dropped the anime early on as a kid (in favor of MHA ironically), but coming back to it only to see almost (if not) all characters together in a relationship, some with kids? I know, don't go near anime if you don't like the tropes, I've been told that before - I'm just complaining a little because I didn't expect to see it in MHA so I'm a little shocked

Nevertheless, I'm still looking forward to seeing the rest of the epilogue, I'm always a fan of Horikoshi even if I don't like some things (⁠；⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠）. It's still a treat for me to get more MHA content, I love the art and I love being a part of the fandom -

I'm sure some time in the future I'll even miss the shipping wars that went on lol

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

I know they’re NPCs we never see in canon, but do you have any headcanons for both sets of Harry Potter’s grandparents?

Well, there's things that make it into fics, though I'm not sure they really count in the fact that if people wanted to argue with me I'd just shrug and a lot of them are because it's useful for one story or another.

That said, we do know/can infer quite a bit about both sets even though we never see them. This is a lot like the Alphard Black case in that @therealvinelle and I subscribe to what we can infer/what makes for the best character for our purposes.

Euphemia and Fleamont Potter

We know a few things about James's parents without even venturing into the nebulous and hilarious realm of Pottermore. First, they died before Harry reaches the age of eleven and finds out about the wizarding world. Second, they took in Sirius when he ran away at sixteen, he canonically went to live with James and Sirius cited no friction with the Potters. Third, James is their only son. Second, James married Lily Evans, a Muggle-born. Fourth, there's no pictures of Harry with his paternal grandparents at any point.

Now, if we scrape from Pottermore, we get more details that shockingly don't contradict what we see of Harry's background that he's vaguely aware of in canon.

The Potters are noted to historically being the odd ducks and essentially the Weasleys. They were dirt poor, backwater, and ideas about Muggle-borns and Muggles that no one agreed with (that were per the examples JKR gave er not as enlightened as she intended). However, Fleamont struck rich when, as an able potioneer, he produced a hair product that sold like fucking crazy. Everyone bought this stuff. And so, the Potter wealth was born, and Harry inherits gobs of galleons and is stupid rich.

Fleamont and Euphemia are also noted as having a child very late. This is because JKR is hilariously bad at math and keeps making 13-year-old fathers unintentionally (in my personal opinion she should own it) but in this case she makes Fleamont born before 1909 and James in 1960, so he's at least 51, at least. It's noted that they had given up on expecting to have a child.

They're noted as having died of dragon pox late enough to see James and Lily married but died before Harry was born so around 1980 at >= 68.

We also have a brother of Fleamont, Charlus, who is younger and marries Dorea Black. They have at least one child who will carry the Potter name, who would be around James's age, who we then never hear of. They do not ever reach out to Harry throughout the series nor does Harry ever learn of them.

So, where does that get us?

We're looking at a newly wealthy couple who have been iced out of most Pureblood friendships for a long time, who despite having pro-Muggle views don't really know anything about Muggles and were Pureblood until Lily Evans entered the picture, who have a single son who they cherish deeply and will let get away with nearly anything.

These are the kinds of people who believe that they should have helped the Muggle chaps out in WWI (never mind that it was a war about nothing, and it'd be needlessly escalating it into a wizard conflict about nothing), who talk about promoting the Muggle-borns, gladly have Lily Evans over for dinner, but quietly aren't thrilled that James married her and are very thinly smiling during the wedding. They're the kind who don't mind alienating the Blacks when they enable Sirius running away (or, again, aren't thrilled about it but it's James's best friend) and it explains a lot of James's behavior that he's the beloved charismatic only child who does no wrong and expects things to work out for him.

Lily Evans's Parents

These we have a bit less on.

We do know that no mention of him was made on where to send Harry nor do we ever see them canonically when we do see Aunt Marge. They are given no mention.

We do know the sisters had a strained relationship due to Lily's magic but we got no indication that there was any issue with the parents even with Lily basically receiving no education and disappearing for most of the year.

@therealvinelle and I tend to lean towards that her parents died at the very least before Harry was born if not when she was in school. Given they both suddenly disappear and are unlikely to have died of plague like James's parents, we typically have had them die in a car accident as that's something that would take them both out at once and potentially fuels the Dursley's "your parents die in a car accident".

In our fics this has fueled Petunia's hatred of her sister, beyond resentment, as Lily was unable to save her father who sustained brain damage in the accident and had to be pulled off life support.

We imagine an early expectation was placed on Lily by her parents that she catch up with her Muggle schooling in the summer, when they realize she's learning nothing, but this slowly fades as the years go by and Lily ends up feeling very alienated from her parents and her family in general.

[arokel]

If you’re not swamped with requests, could I please have anything Bobby related with angst or hurt/comfort? 🙏🙏

Maybe Bobby is struggling to bond with the team because they’re very put off by his approach to rowing? (Like this guy sits and screams at them and critiques them all the time in the boat so it makes sense that they don’t like him at first, and Bobby gets it but the crew needs to fully trust their coxswain in order to be successful. And then maybe something happens and the team has to step up and be there for him, or alternatively Bobby does something that puts himself into harms way for them?

Honestly, feel free to do whatever, I’m happy so long as Bobby is in it 🙌

hey! sorry i went a slightly different direction than your prompt - i didn't think i could do it justice in a tumblr-sized fic <3 but this is at least in the spirit of it i think!

Befriending Al's Babies

Words: 1387 Rating: G Notes: this is book canon - aka Bobby, Chuck and Jim were in the varsity boat while Joe, Shorty and Roger were sophomores. Ulbrickson clearly had a soft spot for Joe's boat, which pissed off the varsity guys enough that Bobby created a specific chant about it - BAB, or "Beat A'ls Babies"

Bobby should be thrilled. They've got Rantz now, finally - Bobby knew he was the final piece long before Ulbrickson did, even though the prospect of working against Rantz's uneven technique doesn't fill him with joy - and the boat is flying. It's what Bobby has wanted, what he's known he could have, ever since he saw what that stupid sophomore boat could do last year and knew he could have made them even better.

But instead, there's something nagging at him.

"Alright, Moch, you've been frowning to yourself long enough," Chuck says, jogging slowly beside Bobby as they make their way up from the shell house towards campus. "Tell uncle Chuck and auntie Jim what's got you down when we should be celebrating."

"Why am I auntie?" Jim says. With his long legs he doesn't need to jog to keep up, even though Bobby is striding as purposefully and quickly as he can in the hopes of escaping any conversation.

Chuck is loping now, circling around in front of Bobby with a little backwards dancing step. "Because I don't want to be. Out with it, Bobby. You're no fun when you're moping."

"No one is fun when they're moping," Bobby mutters, but he knows when he's beaten. He keeps walking anyway just to make Chuck jog backwards for a little longer. "It's Morris and Hunt."

Chuck frowns, stumbles, and winces. Serves him right. "What's wrong with Morris? I like sitting behind him. He's steady, never crabs. And Jim likes Hunt, too."

Bobby doesn't want to have this conversation. He never wants to have any conversation about his interpersonal skills or lack thereof, but Chuck and Jim are his friends and they're trying to act like it, too. He can only keep pushing them away for so long before they stop. He sighs, making an about-face towards the water and starting to walk again. If he has to talk feelings, at least he can do it with something to look at besides Chuck or Jim.

"They're fine in the boat. They row well and they listen to what I say. But out of the boat... I don't know. There's something off, like they don't trust me or they don't like me. And I know I'm not exactly a likeable guy -"

"Shut your trap, Moch. Don't fish for compliments," Chuck says cheerfully. He winces a little with each step; he must have tweaked his ankle.

Jim is slightly more understanding, but that might just be because he's not dealing with a minor ankle injury. "Have you considered that maybe, possibly, they're still a little sore about you calling them Al's babies all last season?"

"That's - well - that's true, I guess," Bobby says. It feels like pulling a staple out of his thumb to admit it, but Jim has a point. He keeps walking anyway. "But I'm nice to them now. Outside of the boat."

"Right, because you've never held a grudge in your life."

That's true too, and ordinarily Bobby wouldn't be ashamed to admit that he can nurse a grudge with the best of them, but in this moment he's frustrated and a little bit hurt - both by Roger and Shorty's obvious distance from him and by his friends' ability to brush it off so easily as being all Bobby's fault.

He stomps down the grassy embankment towards the cut and doesn't check to see if they're still following. Maybe it is his fault; people often find his abrasiveness in and out of a shell off-putting. But that's just who he is. Roger and Shorty will just have to deal with it.

"Well there's nothing I can do about it," he says, once scuffing footsteps in the grass behind him have confirmed that he does still have a captive audience for his fit of pique. "I can't go up to them and apologize; it was just smack talk. If they're still mad then that's their issue to fix."

Suddenly there is a hand gripping his bicep to spin him around, knocking him off balance. He sets his jaw as he finds his footing again and glares even further up than usual at Chuck Day.

"Robert Gaston Moch. You can use your grown-up words and tell them hey, all's fair in love and crewing, no hard feelings. It's that easy." Chuck heaves a sigh and releases Bobby's arm, smoothing out the wrinkles left in his sleeve. "They'll like you just fine once you've cleared the air."

It's petty and childish to keep arguing back, but Bobby is petty and childish, and he's so damn frustrated that he can't just feel good about a successful practice, or at the very least sulk about it peacefully in his room.

"It's just that people don't like me, usually, and I'm an asshole most of the time and -" he says, ignoring how his voice has gone tighter with suppressed emotion. Then, even more suddenly, he is hoisted into the air.

Jim, now holding him bridal-style, shakes him gently, like a cat taunting a captive mouse. "Okay, into the lake with you."

"What -"

Before Bobby can question or protest, he's in the water. It's cold - colder even than it usually is for March, and for a second the shock of it leaves him unable to tread water. He recovers quickly enough to glare at Jim without betraying his momentary loss of control and paddles slowly to the bank, gritting his teeth against the icy pins and needles pricking his bare arms.

Jim grins, raising his voice just loud enough to be heard. "Are you ready to take it back?"

Bobby is even less ready now.

"You bastard," he pants as he clambers up onto the grass. "And people call me unpleasant to be around -"

"Haven't learned your lesson yet, I see," Jim says, deceptively pleasant, as he pins Bobby's arms to his sides and hefts him into the air again. Bobby tries to kick out and escape, but Chuck is immediately there to restrain his legs as well.

Voices behind them briefly postpone his soggy fate.

"Are we throwing Moch in the water now? Did we win something?" Roger Morris slopes into view, seemingly unfazed  by Bobby's torment. Then his dark brows come down in concern and displeasure. "Shit, he's shivering. Are you guys hazing him? Weren't you on varsity together?"

Bobby feels his face burning with embarrassment and anger despite the shivers. Of all the people to come to his defense, to see him when he looks this pathetic at the hands of his so-called friends - of course it's one of the two guys who currently like him least.

"I'm fine. I don't need anyone babying me," he says. He realizes his unfortunate wording immediately, but it's too late.

Roger grins. "That's odd; I thought we were the babies."

Bobby grits his teeth and looks away. He won't snap back. If Chuck and Jim are right, he'd only be making things worse. He can be the bigger person, even if his jaw hurts with how much he's holding back. It's not fair -

"Don't look so hang-dog, Moch, we know it was all just talk," Roger says, with an audible roll of the eyes. "We were just letting you stew in it for a bit before we forgave you all the way. You're too good of a cox to stay mad at forever."

"And Rantz?"

It's still spoken through gritted teeth; Bobby can't forgive that easily either. But he feels a little less cold anyway.

Roger shrugs. "Joe will forgive anyone anything, poor man. You can ask him yourself. Anyway, we're middle children now, just like McMillin and Day. We're all grown up and mature; holding grudges is beneath us."

Jim turns a laugh into a cough.

"Oh, I like him," Chuck says, delighted. "Morris, I think you and I are going to be great friends."

He gently lowers Bobby's legs until Bobby's feet can find purchase on the ground again, and once Bobby is steady Jim, too, lets go with an encouraging back-pat.

"That's good to hear, because you've lost me as a friend after today," Bobby says sullenly.

Chuck pouts. "Aw, no, Bobby, I like you too. You're a likeable guy; isn't he, Roger?"

"We'll see," Roger says, but his faint smile goes at least a little way to soothing Bobby's wounded pride.

[brave-and-gentle]

Hey there! Read your fanfic "Second Chances", and can I say that I'm LOVING it so far!

Kinda curious tho; how would Mason and Jean react if, sometime after Jean and MC become "official", the happy couple realize they're expecting? How would they further react after it's revealed Jean and MC are expecting twins (a boy and a girl)? I feel like Mason would make an AWESOME big brother!

Hi anon!! <3 I'm so glad you love Second Chances, hehe. It's been my absolute favorite work so far.

Not a spoiler because OBVIOUSLY Jean and reader will be official *at some point,* but I think Jean would be absolutely thrilled to find out that reader is expecting! He's always wanted a big family, so when he and Mikasa got divorced, he thought it'd just be Mason and he'd have to be content with one kid - so the reality that he gets to expand his family with you would def be enough to make this full grown man cry. After so much heart ache (for both reader and Jean), it'd be a welcome change. He never anticipated having a blended family, but he takes it in stride and is excited for a future with you, Mason and your children together. As for Mason, hmmm, I think it'd depend on how old he was, you know?? If he's still pretty young, like under 10, I think he might be a little confused (blended families being complicated and all), but excited to have a younger sibling, especially since so many of his classmates have siblings. He might even ask Jean where the baby is coming from, which is enough to make his poor father spiral into a full blown panic. If Mason was older, my guess is that he might struggle with it a little more - maybe he'll fear that the new baby will take up all of Jean's time, that he'll be pushed to the side and forgotten, that Jean's just starting a new family without him, etc. But! I think once the baby (or babies) are here, I think he'd come around to it and be excited to be an older brother and show the little ones how cool the world is. Jean and reader would definitely need to give Mason some extra love and assurance in this case!

As for twins, I think at first Jean would be soooo excited, especially since again, he wants a big family. But then once the news settles in and he learns about how twins can cause birthing complications, he's freaking out a little bit, doing research on what can go wrong and how to make a pregnancy with twins easier on you - the man would literally be on his hands and knees doing anything and everything for you. Armin and Annie, who in my fic are actually expecting twins, would have to talk to him to calm him down, tell them about their experience, how everything will be okay, that he can't control everything, but here are some things that worked for them. Jean is lucky to have such good friends! Oh and of course he'd be thrilled to have a boy and a girl, especially a girl because I head canon that Jean is a hardcore girl dad at heart - even though he's a boy dad in this fic lol. I don't think Mason's reaction for twins would be a whole lot different than the above paragraph, but he'd definitely be excited to have a brother to play with, maybe he's a little less sure about having *a girl* in the house, but either way, I agree that he'd be the sweetest older brother once he came around to the idea!

Thanks for the Q and letting me yap about dilf!jean :)

[tyrantisterror]

Top ten favorite Orcs? Either specific characters or a given setting’s take on the species as a whole.

I'm not sure I have enough strong feelings about Orcs to really make an interesting list of ten, but what the hell I'll try.

Tolkien's orcs - not just LOTR orcs, but specifically orcs as written by J.R.R. Tolkien - are pretty high up there for me. I've probably mentioned this more than enough on this blog, but I'm still moved by the moment in The Lord of the Rings where we get this conversation between two orcs when their bosses aren't around, where both of them commiserate with each other about how shitty being drafted into Sauron's war is, how they long to go back to their simpler life as mountain bandits, and how, maybe, if they could find a way to escape being caught by their superiors, they could run off and find someplace far from the war to settle down together. Their names are Shagrat and Gorbag, and later in the book one of the heroes finds them among a pile of dead orcs, their dream of a simpler life tragically unfulfilled. I bring this up because, for all the flak Tolkien's cosmology gets for codifying the fantasy trope of "Always Chaotic Evil" races, there's a lot more moral complexity to his "evil" races than most people think. The orcs we meet in his stories are universally pretty nasty people - even Gorbag and Shagrat can't conceive of a simple life that doesn't involve killing people for their valuables - but it's very clear this is a result of the culture they are living in, which, if you get nerdy and read up on the Lore (TM), is one that has been specifically designed by the Middle Earth equivalent of Satan to turn all living things in it into tools of warfare - a world that exists solely to serve as a vast machine of industrialized conquest and mass murder. And it makes them miserable. Orcs don't like living this way, even though it's the only way they know how to live. They are at once victim and villain, and that's explicitly the canon way to look at them in the text. So it kind of sucks that their reputation in pop culture - and how they're presented in most adaptations, including good ol' PJ's film trilogy - is as one-dimensional evil henchmen, because they do have more going on than that in the books themselves, and it enriches the themes of the story when those dimensions are included.

The orcs in Rune Factory are probably my favorite from a design standpoint. I'm kind of neutral at best with the standard "green skinned humans with optional tusks" look of most orcs. There's nothing wrong with it, but it doesn't thrill me either, existing in the same nebulous space as, like, traditional fantasy elves, dwarves, and hobbit expies - I understand why they're classics, but they feel kind of boring when you've got other options on the table. So seeing these guys when I booted up my first Rune Factory game was a revelation - finally, orcs that look INTERESTING! And they're so cute, these gnarly little Jim Hensen/Brian Froud style pig people. And they'll help you water your plants! A+ Tier orcs as far as I'm concerned.

Dungeon Meshi found a good middle ground between "gnarly boar people" and "humans with tusks" that I really like, and while the orcs aren't given a whole lot of focus, what world building we do get about them is pretty great, taking a lot of the classic orc tropes and giving them that Ryoko Kui caliber thought and detail that makes them so wonderful.

What else... well, ok, my brain still categorizes these guys as "goblins" rather than "orcs," but since the two are more or less synonymized in both Tolkien and the Rankin Bass adaptations of his work, I guess I can include them. They're one of my favorite designs for goblins of all time, and since I generally like goblins more than orcs, I guess this makes them my favorite orc design by default? I just love them, nasty little toad people.

The 1980 Return of the King movie in particular is one of the few adaptations that keeps Tolkien's sympathy for the orcs in tact, with Frodo even having a dream sequence about living in a world where his run in with orcs is fully pleasant, each of them waving at each other as they cross paths, content to share a beautiful world together.

And while it adapts the parts of the text that take place after the deaths of poor Shagrat and Gorbag, it still manages to work in a moment where the orcs lament their lot in life by way of the infamous "Where There's a Whip There's a Way" song written just for the film. I know this song is generally viewed as "bad" and corny and whatever, fuck that, I unironically love it. It's my wakeup alarm for workdays. I am these orcs five days out of the week.

What else...

So, like, kind of a cheat I suppose, but the Darkspawn in Dragon Age take a lot of cues from Tolkien's take on orcs, right down to seeming like they're just always chaotic evil at first glance, and also being the product of Supernatural Crimes Against Nature by semi-divine powers. And indeed, in Dragon Age Origins you're basically given no reason to view them as anything but evil obstacles to destroy, especially when you learn the body-horror involved in how they reproduce (it's more in the vein of Slither than Goblin Slayer, for those unaware - grotesque but, thankfully, not in that way).

But the big ol' DLC for the same game, called Dragon Age Awakening, throws a big monkey wrench in that view of them. We meet Darkspawn who are capable of speech - ones that have been broken free of the evil hivemind their species is ruled by, and, like freed borg drones, are now at a loss of what to do with themselves. They are, like Tolkien's orcs before them, a people who were made for war and violence, and yet still crave something more than that when given the chance to think about it. It's something that hasn't been followed up on much since, sadly, but it's a damn cool take.

What else...

I'm probably the only person who still remembers this movie, especially with any fondness, but I liked the orcs in the Warcraft movie directed by David Bowie's son. They were given a lot of nuance and I honestly think their parts of the film were by the far the best. Actually I remember liking that movie a lot despite some of its pacing issues, I should revisit it.

Ok that's not ten takes but I feel like there are at least 10 designs on display here so I'm calling this done.

[pareidolla]

also I know I just sent an ask, and I forgot to slap this in that ask but uh.

you made me ship broken x cage.

like I did appreciate their dynamic earlier, but then you kinda just cemented it and suddenly I'm all over the ship now lolol. they're cute. they are so cute. just two wronged, traumatized people caught in the throes of depression and the futility of existence, yet managing to connect with each other despite it all, or perhaps because of it. I love them. they need therapy. they can hold hands on the way there as he cradles her severed head in his other arm. I don't even know anymore they are just so cute

also I'm gonna send everything I wanna say to you in the same ask so I'm sorry if this comes out a bit long lol. annoying kouhai nev strikes again /lh

the thing about not really self shipping despite the straight up simping. finally, someone gets it. (which is probably a little funny since I might be one of the many reasons behind that disclaimer. oops.)

do I love the thorn? yes. do I call her my wife on a daily basis? also yes. do I wish she was real? of course. would she even so much as spare me a second glance if she was real? probably not. and if she did look at me, it would most likely be because Someone is Being A Weirdo and she's appropriately being a little freaked out.

better for her that I don't exist in her life; she has enough to deal with already. just because I wanna kiss her, doesn't mean I wholeheartedly believe that I should be kissing her. there's a difference. I acknowledge her existence very much but she really doesn't need to acknowledge mine. It's a little embarrassing.

so seeing your post about Broken was actually kind of nice. someone else put it into words for once.

(that ain't gonna stop me from projecting either, though. why do I see the Voice of the Cheated as a small dramatic loud loser gamer boy with scars who swears a lot? because I am a small dramatic loud loser gamer boy with scars who also swears a lot. and he gets to be with thorn. so I live vicariously through it when I, say, make him trace along the edges of her pointed ears and clasp her scarred hands in his own.)

p.s. your art is fucking amazing and there is just something crunchy about your art style that I cannot quite place

p.p.s. I fucking thank this account for existing. everyone else has birdboy designs and it makes me feel like I am doing something wrong in this fandom sometimes. so at least there's another one here too even if you do it objectively better lmao

nevvey dearie hello again!! i apologize, but i'm holding your second ask in inbox jail for the time being. i want to draw something for it, but i'm not sure when i'll get to it (*gestures to the reqs, questions, bingos, ask game pile*)

i'm so glad to have someone else who ships cage/broken!! they're so darling i love them with my whole heart. i mentioned it already but i'd love to write something for them someday - i think their personalities could mesh quite well together and they'd have a sweet, mellow romance. prettiest couple in the construct fr

(actually i'm still debating on who's canonically the prettiest in my canon but shhhhh)

super happy there's someone else in the same boat as me haha. oh but please don't blame yourself for the disclaimer, it wasn't one person who prompted me into making it but several dozen small interactions i've had over the half-year. nobody can read minds, and it's normal to assume that if i express my desire to marry broken all the time then i'll be just as thrilled to hear broken reciprocates those feelings. like no one should feel guilty over it - i'm not mad nor do i hold any negative feelings to anyone lmao

the main reason for the post, arguably, wasn't even on this site; rather, it's because i've seen yume spaces where people can be so devoted to their yume that they block doubles or experience such strong feelings of envy/ discomfort that they feel nauseous. i respect and sympathize with them, but i don't relate to it, and i don't want anyone to think that only i'm allowed to like broken. like no i want you to like my boyfriend. the ao3 well is drying up please someone kiss that sad bird on the mouth!

and aww thank you dearie!! again i'm very flattered you love my artwork especially since you're so skilled yourself ♡♡ means a lot. and doubly-so on having someone else making shoujo anime designs makes me feel more confident in mine haha

AND MINE AREN'T OBJECTIVELY BETTER ❗️❗️❗️I HAVEN'T EVEN SHOWN MOST OF MY UPDATED BOYS YET ❗️❗️❗️ YOURS ARE SO DELIGHTFUL ALREADY ❗️❗️❗️ DO NOT SELL YOURSELF SHORT

[tio-trile]

Obligatory sorry if you're fed up with GO2 asks!

I'm a new fan of the show (like, a few weeks after season 2 came out a friend lent me their Prime acc to binge watch everything) and haven't read the book at all but!

It's like in S1 Crowley and Aziraphale exist in the world and in S2 the world exists for them kind of,, in S1 the point of view shifted almost constantly and at the end the plotlines converged together in a cathartic moment for all of our beloved characters, but in S2 it's just,, present Aziracrow and past Aziracrow,, which is fine, I liked that they showcased the way they were and are with each other but it would've been better if there were less of these moments.

Talking about these, I saw that a lot of people on Tumblr were excited to see Crowley as an angel and it could've been good but. I don't get why Aziraphale HAD to be here, or more like HAD to interact with him and remember/recognize him later, and I'm not really thrilled about the fact that Crowley is implied to be someone important! It just feels like Crowley and Aziraphale aren't equals anymore ; Crowley Always Knows Best he admittedly was someone pretty important in heaven before and he feels more Holier Than Thou than the literal angel he's with?? I get that he Fell so he already knows for sure that Heaven is corrupt but,, I don't know, I feel like Aziraphale lost agency and just Can't Do Anything Right anymore! (And Crowley Can't Do Anything Wrong anymore either??)

I found the flashbacks for ineffable bureaucracy quite adorable but it was all too sudden! It feels the Gabriel mystery just wasn't progressing at all during the season and at the last minute, ta-dahh here's an exposition dumb on what happened, no build-up for the now canon pairing. Not a big fan of amnesia in general but even less when the amnesic character just gets everything back for a dramatic reveal scene, maybe I would have felt like things actually happened in this season if Gabriel was slowly able to access some memories. We could have had the build-up of him and Beelzebub planning on escaping together in the flashbacks! (And I mean, I get that there was the fly and the song but,, It didn't really affect Gabriel/Jim so it doesn't feel,,, enough?)

I was completely indifferent to Maggie and Nina. Also could've worked better as a separate POV from Aziracrow. I just didn't get enough scenes to care for them or feel any chemistry. Nina was already in a relationship, and Maggie was just crushing on her. They didn't really get together at the end but they're involved enough in the idea of them getting together in the future to give Crowley love advice and for Maggie to wait for Nina. I just don't really get it? If the goal was Maggie and Nina getting together, then they needed more time and scenes. If the goal was that they would not get together because Aziraphale and Crowley were trying to force them to be, then why saying that they "only needed a little push," that Maggie is "willing to wait for Nina," why both give love advice to a guy they barely know when they barely know each other too?

Anyways, I really liked the show (and am still eager for a potential S3)! But I feel like Neil Gaiman's writing is missing a similar style to Terry's (though obviously I wouldn't know what his writing is like since I. Haven't read the book nor other books from this/both of these actually authors), and important reoccurring characters besides Aziraphale and Crowley.

Yes, I agree with a lot of your points! And it's very interesting for me to hear that we share a lot of the same opinions although coming from different places -- being an older book fan and being a newer show-only fan. "S1 Crowley and Aziraphale exist in the world and in S2 the world exists for them" is exactly right, and similar to what I complained about not liking them "being the main characters". And I completely agree with that even if we see Angel!Crowley, Aziraphale doesn't have to be there, and also not liking that Crowley was somebody important before. And yeah, I've said it before but the Gabriel mystery and even the Nina/Maggie romance have potential, but ends up falling flat. Thank you for the ask! Apology accepted.

[cellard0ors]

It’s the 80’s. It’s a summer camp out in the boonies.

If there’s still wild boar running around in the canon time period of the game, what kind of critters and creepy crawlies might be just waiting to frighten or disgust the hapless couple?

No, in fact, that’s not a snake in Travis’ sleeping blanket. 😆

As a general rule, Travis doesn't have a problem with animals.

Give him a dog or a cat and he's more than happy to pet them and give them attention. Unfortunately his parents aren't fans of the simple pet type. No, his mother grew up on a farm and his father worked on one, so...

Farm animals.

Every year, every summer, farm animals were paraded around for the campers by one of the locals. And Travis - as a counselor - was supposed to help out. 'Supposed to' being the operative words, as the vast majority of them made him deeply uncomfortable.

The cows were big, the chickens mean, and the sheep...

The less said about the sheep the better.

Especially since one of them was always chosen as a camp 'mascot' - something Travis has never understood, much less liked. And this year is no different.

Brodie Mitchell from Miller Farms brings in this year's lot and like every year, the children eat it up. They 'ohh' and 'aww' as a parade of animals are brought to them to pet and learn about.

Bruce is a real winner here, as he makes sure to drop the word 'cock' into every conversation when asking about the rooster. The older kids snicker and the younger ones are lost as to why, and eventually David gets him to tone it down.

Nancy shows off some piglets and Angela seems at home with the cows which leaves Travis exactly where he doesn't want to be.

With the sheep.

Why can't they - just once - have horses? Travis could get behind showing off a horse. There was a brief period in time when he'd wanted to be a cowboy.

He was six and he'd watched a lot of westerns with his Ma and it was one of the few times they'd gotten along. Until he'd been fooling around with his toy rifle and accidentally broken a vase.

After that and his mother's subsequent... punishment for the destroyed item, he'd lost his love for the idea. But not for horses. He found them to be majestic beasts.

But none of the local farms felt comfortable bringing one, so he's out of luck and looking leerily at this year's collection of sheep. He has some note cards with facts and when Brodie comes over with the kids he'll help out, but Travis is still not at all thrilled at the prospect.

His heart, however, thrills as Laura suddenly appears to one side of him, "Hey."

It's a friendly greeting and he returns it, doing his best not to think back on how - just two days ago - they kissed. They kissed a lot. And now things between them are uncertain, but exciting and he has to do his best to act cool even though he feels like butterflies are clogging his throat, "Didn't think you'd be here."

"I'm here on a 'just in case' priority."

Travis simply nods, because he gets it. At the end of the day, animals are just that and one wrong move could result in an accidental injury. Hopefully nothing will happen. Although...

He takes a nervous peek at the sheep behind him, three of them in the makeshift pen, and Laura catches the action, her voice warm with amusement, "Um, you okay?"

He turns back to her and she gestures to the sheep, "You look like you think they're going to shank you."

He snorts, "They might."

"You don't like sheep?"

"Not particularly."

"Why not?"

He looks at them and then at her again before edging closer to mutter, "It's their eyes."

She's fighting off a smile, but he wants it to blossom, so he continues in a sotto tone, "They're shifty."

Laura loses the battle, grinning widely and Travis eats it up, "Seriously though - their eyes are kinda creepy to me."

"Well, they're rectangular." She explains, "Their pupils, that is. And you shouldn't worry too much because they have no upper teeth so, think you'll be safe from them biting. Not that they won't, but?"

He blinks in surprise, "You're a sheep enthusiast?"

Laura shrugs, "An animal one."

She says it in that way where it's clear she doesn't want to divulge too much, but he wishes she would. Oh, how does he. Travis wants to know Laura inside and out - mentally and physically and the physically took off quite a bit recently and just as he considers asking her about it a cavalcade of kids and Brodie arrive.

Laura just gives him another smile and a wave as she steps away so the presentation can begin but Travis watches her go, his heart aching a little. As if to commiserate with him, one of the sheep lets out a near sympathetic 'baa' and he looks at it with a frown.

Fun facts or no, sheep are just...not his thing. Maybe if he was a wolf, maybe, but...

Travis looks away from the sheep with a sigh. Who is he kidding? If he was a wolf, the last thing he'd hunt is a sheep. He'd much rather be the type to go after a Red Ridding Hood type.

And Laura?

Definitely the type.

[thelunastusco]

Also, like,

Regarding the whole "I'm not saying you shouldn't exist but I am saying you should be ashamed you do and your system should actively strive to make sure your existence is closeted so that it doesn't spread to other people because god knows fictives can't stop talking about themselves" kind of attitude,

We're not a popular system. We don't have a lot of friends, systems or singlets. We don't have biological family. We don't have co-workers and we don't really engage with community meetups or anything like that. We don't talk about ourselves all that much on our social media or in private. There's maybe five people (bodily) we'd consider good friends, and only two in our lives currently who we'd say know us intimately, one who isn't even part of the people-we-consider-friends group, lmao.

This isn't a poor me thing. Would we like more friends? Sure! Would we like to be more involved in the community? Yeah! Have we accepted things as they are? Pretty much. It is a "so where's this planet where fictives get to be seen for who they are?" thing.

We feel like most people, even systems, don't and wouldn't accept us as we are. We're older, we're reclusive, we're mostly fictives and a solid majority of those fictives are villains or grey moral types, we're adamantly proship/profic, we don't care what people do within their own system as long as no one is being harmed, and overall we just refuse to give a shit about origins or dx labels. It's just not a thrilling combination of traits for an increasingly younger + more sanitized community.

And usually, that's okay. But it does mean that once we pass from this world, there will likely be no one left who remembers us as we really were. It's a bit of a saddening thought, especially considering we're ALIVE and PRESENT on tumblr and people already get us so, so wrong sometimes, lol. (If we see one more "well they're endogenic in denial of their trauma" thing we're gonna start biting people.) We wish we could leave some little (positive) thumbprints, but also we're a system of over 700 people. And eventually, most people in history are more or less forgotten, we're not special in that regards.

But it also really goes against the idea that systems with fictives just can't stop talking about themselves or their sources. Even the people who know us better than anyone else in this world, don't know about everyone here. We just don't talk about things or people or sources unless it seems relevant. And even the people they know well, hate talking about themselves more than necessary.

We already closet our own existences.

And we shouldn't have to. No one we care about is forcing us to, but society as a whole tells us to shut up, keep your head down, don't share too much about yourselves. Pretend you don't exist. Don't be open, certainly not loud, about who you really are. And we're not the only system in the world like this. Some systems are bold and brave enough to be super open about who they are, and what they're about. We admire them. But if we had to guess, most systems are more like us, where we have maybe a handful of people who know us well.

Shame is a given as it is. The world as a whole doesn't even accept us as real. Most systems with fictives couldn't get MORE in the closet if they tried. Like, even if fictives turn to fandom spaces where they might be recognized most, (a) most fictives are different from canon and fandom perception, (b) some singlet people in fandom can get eerily entitled to a fictive's time and attention or get super creepy/intrusive with it, and (c) fandom is ultimately a sandbox where people play with their fictional Barbie dolls as a means of coping/escape and the presence of fictives can, sometimes, make things really uncomfortable for people. Valid. We, ourselves, don't want to take that away from people.

But fictives are then left to hide themselves and their identity. It's still a heavy, isolating feeling. The only time fictives really get to open up are to understanding friends, or systems who accept fictives; sometimes there's still this chasm because not all friendly singlets or systems will understand who a specific fictive is, where they're from, and who they are as a separate entity from their canon source. (And most don't have the time to sit and consume the source media + ask follow-up questions just to get a better idea, though hands down that's one of the most romantic things someone can do for a fictive in our opinion, lmao.) It's a lot harder to manage than some people seem to think. Especially in this age where there's so much disconnect and a lot of people in general are struggling to make/maintain deeper connections.

So where is this idea coming from that fictives talk about themselves so much? That they just can't help BUT talk about their source/s? That they have SUCH pull that they should be held responsible for the spread of the media source they're from?

Because as far as we can tell, it simply isn't a thing.

Why would it be, when most of the world isn't listening?

[ohwell-itsme-but-danganronpa]

Sayakxami: It's about ☆~traumatizing Kaito~☆ ^Kokichi, probably

me: me, also I wouldn't mind killing him in some sort of drastic manner, but making him an unwilling witness to all that gay shit will suffice I really like AUs where Kokichi and Kaito are brothers, they piss each other off so much, there's just so much for me to eat there the dabates, the fights for the bathroom, the anguish of witnessing the other's choices

Sayakxami: All I'm thinking is some weird drama in which it turns out they are, in fact, related Considering I wrote Kokichi's father cheating on his wife, aka Kokichi's mom it's quite possible, actually

me: oh my god, Kaito was sent off to the grandparents in the countryside because he's a scandalous bastard

Sayaxami: I went the "Kaito's memories of his parents being good" Damn would be even wilder if these grandparents were on his father's side They had no idea he had a mistress on the side. Or that he had a son with her. Or that he abused that son. Further with my general au, Kokichi tries to reach all family members of his Despair!Classmates, so he might actually find out abt it

me: his mom found out she's the side and they won't have a normal family and went "it's your fault, so you deal with being his single parent and having to look people in the eyes" and she disappeared but he never took a responsibility in his life so he sent him to his parents, and granny spoiled Kaito pretty much the same way cause he has that "was never told no before" quality to him in canon

Sayakxami: Definitely I think I borrowed it from a fanfic that Kaito's parents died in an accident Also, tbh, somehow, if Kaito's dad was good to him it kinda… hits harder Look at yourself, Kokichi : ) Kaito always has us by his side : ) You're alone Kokichi. And you always will be. : )

me: he got to be a fun dad when he was making an occasional visit, showing up to his parents house where's everything taken care of with a small gift and playing with the kid for a bit, and it's so easy since it's rare enough that his presence alone is like Christmas, being at home is a chore, and he's got his wife there to be taking care of everything and like, they're both weirdos on the spectrum, but Kaito's interests are something he can approve of and partake in, classic backyard father-son bonding; Kokichi is… difficult, has big emotions on a scale uncomparable to Kaito's tantrums and spilling enthusiasm, notices things like if you're not fully paying attention, he's too hyper, too sensitive and too into creative things that require real effort and the final nail in the coffin is that since Kokichi picks up on things easily he figures out that his father doesn't really care and distances himself as well, and the man doesn't put effort in after that because if it doesn't make him special and important then what's the point

Sayakxami: Not like that in my version. Kokichi as a kid is… unsettling, to say the least. He's bored, and so he is boring. He does very little, mostly observes Nothing really interests him, he doesn't emote, he's just… well, according to his parents, weird and wrong Big portion of Kokichi's early life was being that he was born wrong/shouldn't have been born at all/asking him if he's even a human But he is extremely smart & he finds out easily that his father has a different woman, a different child, that he'd rather return to them than stay here with Kokichi & his mom And, well, the guy in question is not thrilled by being found by a fucking toddler

me: my baby kich hcs are based off whatever issues I've had, so I don't mean hyper in the stereotype way, he is mostly quiet and nerdy, but restless, has bursts of energy and sometimes goes wild just like cats do, very bad at socialising and processing emotions, that's why they get Big and overwhelming

Kai: and here we have ADHD Kokichi vs Autistic Kokichi the hyperactive ADHD child who is just Way Too Much and the adults hate them for being like that, and the Autistic low empathy child who disturbs adults because they don't get why they're seemingly lacking many emotions ik that's not what either of you meant with those hcs, but damn does it feel close

Sayakxami: Well, he isn't low empathy at all, but I did think abt "autism vs adhd" joke, too, ngl XD

[strangeswift]

Mike is Graham.

MIKE IS NOT GRAHAM ok listen.

(for anyone clueless this in in reference to a byler but i'm a cheerleader au)

i Understand why you would think mike is graham. but let me tell you why that is wrong. putting a readmore bc i went off

ok first my arguments for will as graham. first of all you people always wanna make mike the edgy one bc finn is cool and he has long hair but listen up. will byers is the one who is into punk music and while they both hold anticonformist ideals will is the one who puts his money where his mouth is while mike is out here "trying to be as normal as possible" (finn's words) by getting a girlfriend, not wanting to play dnd anymore in s3, etc. meanwhile when he asks will if he thought they were never gonna get girlfriends and just play dnd for the rest of their lives, HE SAID YES. okay that is Bold as Hell and very much a graham move. he is still emotionally vulnerable and he still does art, two things that caused people to see him as gay in the past and yet he continues to do them bc that's Who He Is. graham is more masc presenting which would cause her to be seen as gay and at the beginning she is Unapologetically gay, which is way more will than mike. (i could keep going but i won't)

ok now here is why mike is megan. at the beginning of the movie she doesn't know she's a lesbian, she just surrounds herself with girls, and hangs up posters of girls (hello buff dragon poster + the superman obsession), and has a boyfriend she makes out with but doesn't enjoy it (hello mi1even). in My Opinion will realizes that he's gay before mike does (i know we all have different opinions on When he realized). plus i just strongly prefer mike being the one having a Big Gay Realization in fics. AND megan literally rescues graham HELLO PALADIN CODED MUCH SHE LITERALLY SNEAKS INTO THE GRADUATION AND RESCUES HER HELLOOOOOOOOO JUST LIKE MIKE IS ALWAYS OUT TO RESCUE WILL i am not calling will a damsel in distress by any means bc graham certainly isn't. in different ways they save each other. but the heroics are down to megan. WHICH. IS. MIKE.

now here's how the girls family lives would translate. so megan has parents that are avid church goers and they act as if they care So much for megan, but when push comes to shove they abandon her. that said, they're not as outwardly disgusted by her being gay as graham's parents are. graham's dad uses the f slur and is definitely the most lonnie coded of all the parents. but you might be asking "what about graham's mom. joyce would never go along with that" WELL GUESS WHAT GRAHAM'S MOM ISN'T IN THE MOVIE ONLY HER STEP-MOM. so in this universe something happened idk joyce lost custody or . died or something. (don't get mad at me she can't be megan's parents either they also suck. better to have her out of the picture altogether). ok back to megan's parents. so in the movie her dad cares way more about her than her mom does, her mom is just kinda there. so. switch it flip it and reverse it and that's ted and karen. ted is the disinterested father who only offers occasional unhelpful outbursts (i mean come on sitting there silently during the gay intervention then interrupting the dad's gentle speech by yelling "honey we think you're a lesbian" is so ted coded.) while Karen is more playing the role of megan's dad, who is supportive and doting and very "you can tell us anything" Except again, when it comes down to it, they abandon their child. (personally i don't think canon karen would kick mike out for being gay i do think she would Not be thrilled about it initially, but ofc any au needs allowances to be made)

ok that is all for now.