#er s6

[allfallsdown]

The madness of a memory, which busies itself among forbidden things.

Pairing: John Carter/Lucy Knight, John Carter/Abigail Lockhart (if you squint). Word Count: 2,250. Rating: The M rating is for swearing, descriptions of death, gore, and one vague nod to Abby's alcoholism. Summary: On Valentine's Day in 2000, Lucy was stabbed and killed by Sobriki. Carter was never attacked, and, instead, he worked on Lucy in the last moments of her life. Many things were left unsaid. Two years later, he visits her grave on the anniversary of her passing. Abby holds space for Carter to work through his feelings of grief and guilt to see what's on the other side. Before you dive in: Carter and Abby are just friends with tension at this point, there's no Susan/Carter. Excerpt:

The gate looms in the distance, rising higher into the black of night, the closer he approaches. He can’t help but think it’s a mouth grinning wide with thousands of meaty, metal teeth. It’s more than that. Iron fortified into an eternal prison. He wonders how people might react if he showed them his fear—this place, this gate, and what it forces him to acknowledge over again and over again and over again.

I think I should give up the ghost, (don't hurt me, don't hurt me)         In your arms.  (don't hurt me, don't hurt me)

Carter stands at the nurses’ station, drumming his fingers anxiously against the counter. The nurses bustle continuously around the reception desk. They are bees buzzing around their hive—protecting their territory—except instead of emitting a monotonous hum, hospital gossip and patient information wafts lazily around his head. She is sitting at one of the charting stations with a thick, file open in front of her.

“Abby.”

She stares up at him from her seat, rubbing the tension out of her eyes. He says he’s leaving now. There’s no “where” or “why” or “coffee and pie later?” Barely even a goodbye, which is unusual for him, at least the version of him that she has the privilege of knowing.

“Okay,” she sweeps the hair that’s falling across her eyes behind her ears, while offering him her heavy, speculative gaze. She hopes it comes off as understanding and not prying, but these days any look between them could be gleaned through a thousand different lens.

He gives only a sad smile and nod as his response.

Abby glances towards her coworkers, but none of them seem to suspect Carter’s behavior. Was he acting strange or was she just hyper focusing on him? She decides the answer is both, but what she can't see yet is that Carter is her favorite book: impossible to put down, worn and comfortable in her hands.

“Excuse me, I have a Valentine’s Day delivery for Haleh. The instructions just said to bring it to the ER reception desk.” A man stands on the other side of the counter, staring down at her expectantly.

“Oh. Well, I’m not Haleh, but I will make sure she gets it.” The man nods in appreciation, and hands her a heavy glass vase, teeming with red roses. The cloying scent floods her senses almost immediately. It’s too much, which has always been her issue with fresh flowers, but especially roses.

These would be better dead.

Her throat closes momentarily, thick with sudden and unexpected emotion. Something is wrong. Something is rocketing to the forefront of her consciousness with dizzying speed. She knows where he’s going. She brokenly laughs to herself, otherwise she will start crying. It’s bitter tasting, and burns the entire way through like the heartburn she gets after drinking too much wine.

Frost covers the pavement and roofs of the parked cars. His feet crunch loudly as fat flakes of snow drift lazily to the ground. It takes him fifteen minutes, and the slow repetition of his steps helps to momentarily quiet his brain.

It’s almost midnight. He’s grown up in Chicago. It’s in his blood—whether he likes it or not. He may be a spoiled rich kid, but working at County has made him more street-smart than most. Those few souls he passes seem to determinedly avoid his gaze.

The gate looms in the distance, rising higher into the black of night, the closer he approaches. He can’t help but think it’s a mouth grinning wide with thousands of meaty, metal teeth. It’s more than that. Iron fortified into an eternal prison. He wonders how people might react if he showed them his fear—this place, this gate, and what it forces him to acknowledge over again and over again and over again.

Abby had asked him three separate times, during their time together at work, if he was okay. Carter had given a vague, non-answer in response; each time she brought it up. In a moment of weakness, he now wishes he had asked her to come with him. (She would have without hesitation; and he knows it.)

He takes a deep breath—the deepest one he has taken so far today. His hand reaches for the metal latch--it’s freezing--hand stinging painfully, he draws back in surprise. The cold helps to ground his body to the physical plane, but does nothing to soothe his racing thoughts.

It’s a short walk, two consecutive lefts, and—one, two, three—he counts the stones, letting his fingers drift lightly over their rough tops. He stops abruptly in front of the third stone in a row that stretches along the dirt trail.

Lucy Elizabeth Knight

March 11, 1978 – February 15, 2000

His fingertips dip into the grooves created by the writing etched into the smooth stone surface; as though he was reading a slightly skewed version of braille.

Carter can’t miss the irony of the attack happening on Valentine’s Day. It was one, big slap in the face. John had never truly cared about celebrating it to begin with, but now he can only see it as a reminder of loss, both his and Lucy's. The crystal clarity of his memories hits him in full force, his body thrumming with an uncomfortable tension.

Luka had run by him adjusting the stethoscope hanging loosely around his neck, “Carter, we need you in trauma two, now!”

It had been a slow day, suture kits and paperwork circling in an endless circuit. Standing in the hallway, he had hurriedly donned the necessary P.P.E. and pushed his way into the--already crowded?--trauma room.

“What do we got?” he flexed his fingers in the latex gloves, rocking slightly on his heels. His mind and body were keying up for trauma, in a way that was very different from the rest of his job as a doctor.

It wasn’t until they had lifted the patient—“one, two, three!”—, transferring them onto the table from the gurney, that his eyes had turned to the person laying limply in front of him.

His eyes had landed on her, and he had immediately been struck by the amount of blood—oh, fuck, the blood;—there was too much of it. It made his stomach cramp sharply. He had frozen as it traveled up the length of his gloves, staining them a deadly solid shade up to his knuckles and then higher and higher.

THISISLUCY had been the only thing he was capable of comprehending. It had played like a scratched C.D. skipping and looping through his mind, it's only purpose to drive him mad—LUCYLUCY.

He had watched as she crashed, as the defibrillator had been wheeled over and the paddles shoved into his hands. He will never be able to wipe from the inside of his eyelids, the image of her lifeless body snapping with tension, each time the electricity shocked her. He had become frantic as he prepped the cart again—eventually it had to work, right?

Lucy was too young, too kind, too talented, too beautiful, (too perfect for him).

At this point, Carter lost any sense of time—had it been two minutes or two hours since they started working on her? Luka touched his shoulder cautiously. He still startled.

No words exchanged. Only a glance at the wall clock. “Time of death…21:25.”

The others in the room were in shock, silent and still as stones. This was the first time one of their own had been lost; stolen from them right under their fucking watch.

He hid inside the empty exam room, where the staff sometimes took naps during or between shifts. No one had followed him, afraid to barge in on his explosive grief, and catch a piece of shrapnel.

Why hadn’t he been smart enough, fast enough, fucking good enough to save her? If only they had found her body sooner. The chest and abdominal cavities looked as though they’d been passed through a grater. Carter felt a wave of nausea shock through his body.

For three years, he had been her resident and mentor and…and...no.

At first, they had fought constantly, but soon he looked forward to their banter. He had enjoyed watching her find her path, find herself. He had enjoyed, even more, when she kissed him with quiet confidence--despite the consequences.

“I’m a doctor…you’re a student,” he had begged her. The closest they had been to something. Something that would have broken his moral code, yet secretly, he had wanted it, wanted her. Looking back, he had needed those words for his own benefit, as well. Negative reinforcement for the both of them.

Don’t fall in love with your—impossibly smart and funny and infuriating--med student. It had to be written in stone, or, at least in the fine print of the Hippocratic oath. He bent over the waste pail and dry heaved until he feared passing out. His chest ached painfully. She was gone.

Carter has lost count of the number of times she has crossed his mind since then, even years later. The most senseless violence claimed her, body and soul. Sometimes, it’s the big stuff that gets caught in the sticky web of his brain. Lucy's life-plan erased--(did it include him?) Other times, it’s a less obvious kind of hurting--a song that reminds him of her, or a recurring patient at County, who mentions being treated by her years ago. Thinking about this all now, stings him deeper than the winter wind, buffeting him as he kneels in front of her grave.

The flowers that adorn her headstone are covered in a thin, translucent dusting of snow, which shimmers in the light from nearby streetlamps. Red petals peak out, gleaming like fat rubies. Carter stays until he fears frostbite.

He doesn’t pass a single soul on the walk back to County General. His car is still parked on the street, now covered in snow. Silently, he begins cleaning it off with a brush.

The sliding of the entrance doors; the crunching of feet through snow. A moment of silence.

“I remember, Carter. You know you can talk to me about what happened…about her.”

He doesn’t turn around--continues wiping the brush over his windshield in slow, methodical strokes.

“I thought about asking you to come with me.” He hopes it’s not too much honesty, but he’s too emotionally drained at the moment to analyze that any further.

He feels her gloved hand ghost his shoulder for the briefest moment, and then she pulls away.

“I would have," she nearly whispers.

He finally turns to face her, “No, I know. I know.” He can’t control the small smile he gives her.

The ambulance bay lights create a blinding silhouette behind her. It isn’t until Carter steps closer, that he sees snow clinging wetly to the high points of Abby’s face and hair.

“Do you want to talk?” her face pinches in concern. “I’m off. Coffee and pie? Maybe going somewhere that isn’t going to result in my eyelashes freezing off?” She’s rocking on her heels, arms crossed tightly around herself, in an attempt to stave off the cold.

Carter nods slowly, but purposefully.

It’s a slow and careful trek through the snow to Doc Magoo’s. Neon lit signs throw flashes of color against the snowy ground. A bell chimes above them as they walk through the door, and, immediately, Carter feels grounded. Something about this place, coffee and pie. Their ritual calms him in a way he doesn’t entirely understand yet.

As they head to their table, the only waitress working this late hour smiles at them. Within a few minutes, they are both clutching their steaming mugs of coffee like a life line. The waitress delivers Abby a hefty slice of blueberry pie, and then silently disappears behind the counter.

There’s a length of comfortable, learned silence between them. It flows so easily from one second to the next, yet both of them are scared to break it. Carter takes a bite of her pie—“you’re lucky we’re friends”—and sips on his drink for a few minutes.

“I think I was in love with Lucy,” he says quietly, but steadily. “I’ve never told anyone before. I never even got to tell her.”

“I’m so sorry, Carter. It’s so fucking unfair...for both of you.” She brown eyes never leave his and smolder with fiery indignation.

His voice cracks slightly, “Yeah.” The second heaviest breath he’s taken so far today.

The sky creeps to orange by the time he’s finished talking. Slowly, slowly, some of the guilt, regret, and pain, he had buried away with Lucy’s memory is brought to the surface. Abby does very little talking. Instead, she holds space for him. He talks about the past, but also, even more painfully, about the future Lucy never got to create for herself.

When he needs a reprieve from talking, she lets him eat her pie and smoke her cigarettes. Each hour that passes, he feels less heavy, almost physically lighter.

“Thank you.” Carter yawns, grabbing her hand on the table and squeezing it tightly, like a buoy.

(He’s hanging on for dear life, his demons threatening to drown him.)

She traps his hand, tangling their fingers in an impossible knot; they stay anchored together.

(She’s hanging on for dear life, her demons threatening to drown her.)

The title is from Edgar Allen Poe's, "The Pit and the Pendulum."

The opening lyrics are from "Give Up the Ghost" by Radiohead--LISTEN TO IT WHILE YOU READ THIS!

Wanna hear a secret? Half of this was written 20 years ago, when I had to do a character study for a high school writing class. Originally, I had Chuni play the nurse, but when I changed it to Abby, the inspirational flood gates opened, and I just couldn't stop writing.

I really hope you enjoyed this, even though it's super angst-ridden, there's still a bit of hopefulness at the end.

[onefail-at-atime]

Can we take a moment to appreciate the people who are working to save Carter and the connection that he has to all of them?

Luka. His future rival. His mentor. One of his best friends. Carter left his work and girlfriend behind to go back to Africa because he couldn't stand the thought of Luka not receiving a proper burial. He wanted to honor his friend and ended up saving him in return.

Abby. Their relationship may have been one rollercoaster hill after the other, but in the end, they were better for it. She was there for him when he struggled in recovery and when he lost his son. He supported her decision to go back to school and went as far as to pay her tuition.

There's something beautiful about knowing that Luka and Abby are able to put aside their differences and still be there for Carter when the unimaginable happens in Season 11.

Lydia. She and Carter may not have had the closest of relationships, but she was a nurse who say him go from an MS3 to a returned attending when she herself came back in Season 15. It could have been any other nurse or someone like Malucci, but they gave Lydia that position beside him.

And then there's Jing-Mei. Those two bickered and drove each other nuts as med students. They went up against each other as residents. But at the end of the day, they were there for each other. She was the one who called him to her when she struggled after the birth of her son. I'll always treasure that friendship.

Carter whump, ER S6 E14

This is the episode where they show NO mercy to my boy so I put all the clips together for ease of viewing

[azureandcrimson]

Tears.

Do we think Macaque's forgotten how to cry? In most of the scenes we've seen Macaque in pain or losing in a way. It almost looks like he want's to cry.

Like, I know in these scenes he probably didn't because LBD was there but he was litterly hyperventilating.

But in this scene, he genuinely looks so frustrated and possibly on the verge of tears and he knows what's coming for him because he failed again. But also in Season 5. When Mk and Wukong went and tried to sacrifice themselves. He obviously wouldn't cry because he was trying to convince Mk not to go. But he looks so actually worried and scared for him.

Everyone was crying after that (Except NeZha and Li Jing of course) once Mk was brought back. We know Mk and Macaque aren't as close as Wukong and Mk are but the point still stands on how worried he was for both of them and the fact that Mk was the first person to possibly put faith/believe in Macaque in years. Every time he should/or at least somewhat have hints of tears in his eyes. He doesn't. He's shoved down tears so much sense his death. He's forgotten how to cry. Or he's holding his emotions in so much he's forgotten to. Either way. He holds his emotions in to much. WILDBRAIN STUDIOS. MAKE MACAQUE CRY AND ECLIPSE DUO/SUNDIAL DUO/SHADOWPEACH HUG IN S6 AND MY LIFE AND SOUL CONTRACT ARE YOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Bonus: He looks so genuinely scared/terrified.

[alitgblog]

haven't played the new episodes yet but this is what i imagine is happening in the main villa rn

[butterfly-bandaid]

When you watch a need episode of a TV show and something dramatic happens and you're like "i gotta log on and see what the tumblr girlies (gn) think of this"

[fluffypotatey]

Did u saw the leaks of lmk?

do you mean the new lego sets? because yes

[kunepie]

Ohhh Ozzy I'll definitely have you soon💕

[doug-and-carol-ftw]

Okay.

Here I am, rewatching ER again, because of them, my babies, my everything: Doug and Carol. It‘s so great to watch their story, from S1 to S5, how they started from the bottom, Carol dating Tag (blah) and then Shep (vomit coming in), until Doug *finally* kissed her on that porch (sigh). All the kisses and love they shared (I will not mention Greg Powell), deciding to have a baby together (OMG!!!). In five seasons, we never got to see them going to the cafeteria, so whyyyyyy are they going, when Joi is there and collapsing and starting a totally bullshhhhh storyline? Whyyyy (bawl). Okay, I‘m watching Doug leaving for the 467,986th time and still I bawl my eyes out at her "I don‘t want to wake up alone tomorrow". What comes after, just breaks my heart. I‘m happy for Carol that she is pregnant with Doug‘s twins, I‘m happy that their last name is Ross, I‘m happy that he sent her those Animal Crackers. But to be honest…I don‘t understand S6 Carol. I just dont.

She doesn’t want to wake up alone, without him. She planned a family with him. Still she doesn’t go with him, doesn’t see how heartbroken he is, ho much it hurts him. She stays in Chicago because of work and her friends. There is an episode in S6 where Kate is sick and Carol brings her to the hospital. Everybody is like 'oooh' and 'aaaah', 'look at you, you lost some weights', stuff like that. This should be friends? Not visiting her and the babies at home, to offer some help or anything? Just sseing them now just because Carol came to the hospital with them…that’s so saaaad!

And that Luka storyline. I always try to tell myself, it’s okay. She will be with Doug eventually. It‘s okay.

But it isn‘t. I hate everything about that Carol/Luka storyline. Whyyyy does he have to be there when she‘s giving birth? Why is he even at her house, grilling steaks and what about that damn snowflakes? Cruising through Chicago with him, eating Hot Dogs in the stadium, Carol, what did you think you were doing there???? Kissing him on the top of that shit car? Really? Crying about hating your life because even Keery could see that nothing is right. Ugh. Oh Carol…whyyyy didn’t you go with your true love to Seattle, so he could be there while you’re pregnant, while you give birth, share everything with him. S6 Carol breaks my heart. You can clearly see that she wants to be with Doug. So why do I have to go through this for a whole season? (Ok, I know why, because Julianna still had her contract…whatever). He fuc… sent you Animal Crackers! How was it when he came to see the twins? Ugh.

Such Sweet Sorrow is clearly the best episode in S6. Thanks to Mr. O‘Brian for telling Carol about soulmates. Thank you for waking her up. Of course her speech to Luka about loving Doug since she was 23 and so on was *puking rainbows* but whyyy just now? Why not when Doug was kissing you, telling you the he loved you and went away? Ugh. I know.

Thank you, George and Julianna for this happy ending for Doug and Carol 🥰🥰🥰

[justalexx-things]

It really was the best time of my life 💛

[kunepie]

PLEASE!!! I LOVE IT!! AND IM SO MAD AT THE END OF THE EP!!!

FUSEBOX KNOWS THIS IS THE TYPE OF SHIT I LIKE :''))) THE LOOKS! THE LONGING! THE YEARNING! STOOOOOP

[all-pacas]

When do you think choreman started becoming friends?

Define friends, lol.

Maybe S7? It's surprisingly hard to say.

Foreman openly and loudly dislikes Chase for the first three seasons, and makes no secret of it: he thinks Chase should lose his job in Control even before Chase goes to Vogler, and later backs it up to House, he tells Chase in S3 that he doesn't like him, and Chase tells a patient in S1 that Foreman hates him. They have some moments of coworker friendliness (teasing Cameron together, mostly; there's some off-screen sharing of gossip back and forth), but there's absolutely no indication they like one another or even respect one another much. We even see them both try and reach out to the other (Foreman to Chase in Socratic Method, Chase to Foreman in House Training and Family), and these efforts be summarily rebuffed.

It's useful to compare their relationships to Cameron to see what I mean: Foreman and Chase are just fine at pretending to get along for the sake of their jobs, but that's baseline coworker stuff. By contrast we see Foreman repeatedly engage Cameron in philosophical debates he really seems to enjoy; he gets a bit protective of her about her crush on House; they have several real, sincere conversations — his calling her out about her commitment issues in Insensitive, for example, is very much Foreman being sincere with her and kind. He apologizes for being a jerk. He tries to frame his critique as a good thing.

The same goes for Cameron and Chase. She talks to him about her crush on House, apparently in some detail; he's the first one she tells, and is already in the loop when Cameron starts pushing her feelings. They're also quick to defend one another, professionally and over personal issues, and, while their eventual relationship kind of obscures their "friendship," they always spend time together, there's entire episodes where Chase is just found in the ER: they clearly enjoy one another's company.

Another thing I find interesting (we'll return to Choreman in a second, I promise) is a throwaway line of Thirteen's in S7. Finding out House said she was in rehab, she complains it really limits her social options with the guys. In particular, she complains, without being able to go out drinking, she and Chase will no longer be friends. Obviously she is joking, but Thirteen is also implying she and Chase do go out drinking sometimes. Nice for them. Not all that deep. More than Choreman ever gets. Sure, we see in S1 they go out for a hosted dinner and drinks… but Cameron is there. We never, ever hear of the two of them hanging out as friends.

This trend continues through S4-5: Foreman has a brief stint in S4 convinced Chase is wildly jealous of him and running the firing betting pool as some sort of revenge plan, which is a) funny as hell and b) still not friends. S6, Foreman hires Cameron and Chase back on the basis of I know I can work with you, not friendship; he fumbles the ball pretty fucking hard with Chase post-divorce, and is no more successful (arguably less) at reaching out to him than any of the others. He takes no interest in Chase's obvious depression except to tell him to get over it. S7, they continue to clash: Chase seems to develop a new hobby of trolling Foreman on purpose, which he's actually been doing since S1 and is quite good at. There's no indications the two kept in touch during the S8 gap, and when they have a personal conversation at the end episode five, the most we get is Foreman calling Chase "one of my best doctors," which is so funny, I love that he can't even compliment Chase without making it a compliment towards himself first.

I sound like I'm focusing more on Foreman here, like I think Foreman hates Chase and Chase is innocent. I actually don't think Chase likes Foreman any more than the reverse! It's just that Chase is a more passive person by nature. He's not as overt with his disrespect, because that's just not his style. But we see that as late as S7, Chase really doesn't respect Foreman much: he calls him out pretty thoroughly in Massage Therapy, and generally delights in undermining Foreman's authority.

For another tangent, let's look at Taubman. I wouldn't say the two particularly get along in S4-6; they have a similar we're coworkers vibe, and that's perfectly fine. But by S7, we really see them become friends. It isn't subtle. Taub and Foreman like one another a lot. They are good friends, unlikely as it seems. They enjoy living together and playing video games and spending time. Just like the earlier Cameron examples, there is none of this from Chase and Foreman. We never hear about them hanging out without a buffer.

I said I thought S7 was the turning point. I was kind of lying, because there's not really any moment or evidence for this. But it's also true that after a while, Foreman lays off the animosity and stops blaming Chase for every error or conspiracy against him. Interestingly, they still never get any "bonding moments:" we see, say, Chase and Thirteen get a whole half episode in After Hours, and a friendship subplot in Now What and Private Lives; Foreman and Taub get a whole lot of bonding in Lockdown but also S7 generally. Foreman and Thirteen get subplot episodes; Chase and Wilson even get one in Private Lives. Chase and Foreman have the occasional shared subplot (Changes), but the focus on those is always them at odds or not getting along, not bonding. Did they ever become friends?

I think they respect one another. I think they have the sort of bond that comes of 8 years in the trenches of an incredibly difficult and demanding job. I also know they blatantly don't care about the things important to the other (Big Baby is a very funny and unsubtle example, where Foreman is worried as hell about Thirteen's drug trial, Chase is very interested in his relationship with Cameron, and neither could care less about the other's issues), don't socialize outside work unless there's a buffer, and continue to pretty fundamentally misunderstand one another for years of the show.

I know you're reading this and thinking "what about Dibala?" And I'm going to give my hot take here: I really don't think it was a huge gesture of friendship and love and trust. If anything, kind of the opposite.

Chase spends most of the Dibala arc pushing Foreman pretty hard to let him get away with it. You have to figure this out, you have to speak before the M&M, you have to lie. He drags Foreman way deeper into the coverup instead of taking any responsibility (or any active role in it — Chase does try, but he's not very good at it, and the burden lies mostly on Foreman's shoulders). Chase also lowkey throws Foreman under the bus for his marriage, using Foreman as an excuse to Cameron for why he's avoiding her, can't talk to her, etc: he also guilts Foreman into helping in The Tyrant.

Foreman helping anyway was a very kind thing to do, but I don't know how much choice he had. He was the one who signed off on treatment and charts. He was running the case. If Chase goes down, he's going down too: maybe Foreman doesn't go to jail for murder, but he absolutely loses his job and license. The episode is actually fairly quiet on what, if anything, Foreman believes about Dibala: where Cameron and Chase spend the whole thing debating morality, we don't really know if Foreman thought killing him was right or not. But by protecting Chase, he protected his career and ambitions… and, to be frank, if I'm Foreman and I think Chase is a lazy coward without morals already, I am not convinced Chase wouldn't try to pin the murder on me if I didn't help. Was helping Chase get away with murder still an altruistic (for a very given definition) thing to do? Sure. But it wasn't selfless. It wasn't love.

So when did Choreman become friends?

I don't know. Define friends.

[quitealotofsodapop]

This is set as a hypothetical between S5 and S6 but in the Stone Matriarch variants, the world did not cleanly heal from reality breaking twice over and thus some strange things have started happening. The most drastic of which being an incident in which the Noodle Gang and our favorite monkey ended up falling through time and space into another dimension set several millenia in the past when Wukong was approximately the same age as MK and still a very young monkey.

The most stark contrast, however, is that this world is a world in which the Great Floos never wiped put the Stone Monkeys. Meaning the young Wukong grew up with both his parents.

While everyone else is marveling at the new world and the changes within it, Wukong is having a bit of an existential crisis of his own upon realizing this is the life that had been stolen from him by a flood that happened long before he was ever even hatched.

Its the end of Season 5; MK has tried his best to spread the power of the Heavenly Stones throughout the universe.

When during their celebration party on Flower Fruit Mountain; a portal opens up and drags the gang all inside.

When they all come too - it's to Flower Fruit Mountain.

But not the one they know.

Many spears and swords are suddenly poised at the intruders. They are surrounded on all sides by monkey demons, all wearing plain island-style clothing made of natural materials. Cleary wherever they landed; they've alerted the locals.

Leading the scouts is an eerily familiar monkey - Wukong himself?!

However this monkey doesn't look exactly like Wukong: his eyes are a deep blue rather than gold, and he has a younger, somehow cheekier smile.

His smile only widens at the sight of the Monkey King.

???: "Shihou! You're home early! Wukong: "Who... who are you?" ???: "Ehh? Gege, are you ok? Or are you unable to tell your own brother's face from a horse's bum?" Wukong: "BROTHER?!"

This encounter quickly leads to the gang getting captured by the monkey scouts - who bring him to the Stone Palace.

But not the ruin Wukong refurbished in the early years of his kinghood.

It's THE Stone Palace.

Unweathered by time or nature. It's decorated with tapestries and statues of past warriors and rules. At the end of the entrance hall is an imposing stone throne - upon it sits a ginger-furred monkey.

But it's not Sun Wukong.

It's a female monkey. Older than what Wukong had been when he took the throne. Her body adorned by a large red cape in harmony with multiple jade ornaments. At her side is a brunette male monkey of the same age, readjusting his spectacles at their guests. Guards and retainers, many of whom Wukong and Macaque know from their youth, line the room.

Wukong: "Mrs uh... Matriarch is it? We're a little lost - dimension wise. Where we were, the Heavenly Pillar was breaking and the lines between worlds thinned. We must have fallen through the wrong door." (*As Wukong speaks, the female monkey rises from her throne and walks slowly towards him. Her eyes narrow as she touches his scarf, comparing it to her cape. The whole room seems to draw in a breath.*) Shihua: "Where did you get this?" Wukong: "It was draped over the throne when I found the palace for the first time." Shihua: "Found? Have you not lived here your entire life?" (*A feeling of dread overcomes Wukong as he tries his best to explain*) Wukong: "When I was very young, none of us lived in the Stone Palace. But I accidentally rediscovered it when I fell through the waterfall. There was a plaque dedicated to whomever lived there before us, and a cape resting on the throne. I took the cape for my self when the troop crowned me King- er.. Matriarch." Ye Lin, concerned: "And what of your parents? surely they would not have let a mere cub rule?" Wukong, brow furrowed with sad confusion: "I... never had any parents. I was born alone atop of Flower Fruit Mountain from a lone stone egg. As far as I know, besides Macaque and MK here, I'm the only Stone Monkey there is." (*The two royal monkeys look at each other sadly. The Queen makes a deep sigh as she sniffs the stranger-king's scarf, offering it to her mate to inspect. The brunette monkey takes a sniff, his gaze widening when he recognises the scent.*) Shihua: "That explains it." Ye Lin: "What does, my Queen? How does this young man smell almost exactly like our elder son?" Shihua: "These strangers truly are from another world. Another time even. One where our people did not survive the Great Flood we weathered." (*every single jaw in the room is dropped from shock. The monkey marshals and generals quickly begin inspecting the strangers, grooming their fur and sniffing their effects. The Wukong-double from earlier looks positively smug*) Luzhen, excited: "So he IS Gege!!" Marshal Ma: "No little prince, I've already checked with the Celestial Realm. Shihou is still working off his sentence in the stables." Wukong: "Sentence? Stables? Oh sweet Buddha, you mean I'm still the bimawen?!" MK: "I mean! At least you aren't under that mountain!" Tang, covered in curious monkeys: "What year is this even?" Ye Lin: "I am unsure if our time keeping methods match yours - but the humans on the mainland have recently chosen a new Emperor. A man they call Taizong of Tang." The Monkie Kids, shocked: Σ(°ロ°)! Mei, looking on the bright side: "I can introduce you guys to my Grandpa Lie!"

Of course, now the Monkie Kids/Noodle Gang need to figure out why they fell through a portal, what has changed in this new world, and whether or not the infamous Journey to the West can even happen.

Its very fun AU to think about. A lot of sight-seeing occurs as Shihua glamours/hides the gang as her or her family's new retainers. :3

Au name ideas im thinking; "Stone Royalty au"? or something along those lines.

Btw for those wondering about the "reincarnation" aspect of Shihua's life... Guanyin still exists in this world. Bodhisattva is a keystone character who will find a way to exist. Even if it leaves Shihua mourning her twin who did not survive the Flood.

[ectogeo-art]

For the ask game: Julian jealous of imagined siskarak

Ooooh this one has been fun for me to write. It’s set during the s6 Defiant arc, and it’s all just misunderstandings and miscommunications and Garak and Bashir being in different headspace’s due to the anxieties of wartime. Garak and Bashir are roommates on the Defiant, getting closer to each other than ever, and then that abruptly ends bc they are needed in different places (Julian is on the Defiant and Garak is on the Starbase along with Sisko, so they can still see each other but it’s sporadic). It’s all Julian POV and he is trying to figure out how to start a relationship with Garak even though it would functionally be long-distance for awhile, but he and Garak both won’t state anything plainly so he just gets super jealous that Sisko gets to hang out with him all the time now. His frayed nerves make him paranoid and he knows he’s being irrationally jealous but like he has had no reassurance from Garak that they’ll get together and he just wants some sign from him.

And meanwhile Garak is not really thinking about romance at all. He is too busy working for Starfleet and cracking codes and having lowkey breakdowns about being a traitor to Cardassia (kinda like in Afterimage but more like in Favor the Bold). He kind of has put his usual pining for Julian on hold both because he is reckoning with his role in this war and because he is pretty sure at this point that he has Julian on lock. Like, he thinks they are on the same page about wanting to date each other when they get the chance, so he can afford to think about other more pressing matters like how to defeat the Dominion without getting too many of his fellow Cardassians killed in the process of stopping them, and such.

It all works out in the end though. 💕 The draft is about 3k words, I just have to write the getting together conversation and then edit the whole fic for like cohesion lol, so it may take me anywhere between 1 month and 3 years to finish it. 😂

(Link to my WIP ask game post.)

Snippet below the cut.

He waited a few more days before calling Garak, not wanting to seem desperate.

He’d rehearsed it all in his head. “Hey, Garak,” he’d say casually, “my roommate is working a double shift so I have a bit of privacy if you want to…”

Here, he would give him a look and trail off pointedly and strategically, and then let Garak fill in the blanks however he wanted. If Garak just wanted to talk, they could talk. Debate their latest read with passionate banter like they were across the table in the Replimat instead of star systems apart.

On the other hand, if Garak wanted to finally do something more, something fueled by all their flirtation over the years and all the recent much more heightened tension from sharing a living space… Well, Julian was prepared for that too—he wore only his uniform jacket, and the rest of him was covered only by a blanket.

The sheets slid across his bare skin as he squirmed to be slightly more upright.

The video call connected.

“—have clearance for—�� Sisko cut himself off, straightened up, and blinked in surprise. “Dr. Bashir,” he greeted.

Sisko was standing behind a seated Garak and had been leaning over his shoulder, presumably in order to type something on the console that Julian’s call had gone to.

“Captain, I was, er, hoping to speak to Garak.”

“By all means.”

“Privately…”

He didn’t want to spell it out, both because it would have been embarrassingly unprofessional of him and because he was only half sure that he and Garak were on the same page about what kind of call this might turn out to be.

Garak made questioning eye contact with Sisko, who thought for a moment and then shook his head slightly.

Garak turned back to Julian on the screen. “I’m afraid now is not a good time,” he said with a sigh.

“I need to borrow him for the night,” Sisko said gravely. “It unfortunately can’t wait.”

An unfair jealousy coiled around Julian’s stomach and squeezed. The two of them shared secrets that he wasn’t allowed to know. The two of them needed to work long into the night with each other and could communicate with just a glance. He knew the importance of informational security in wartime, but Sisko and Garak hadn’t even given him the vague shape of whatever they were working on together.

“Of course,” he said stiffly. “I understand.”

After some brief goodbyes, Garak was the one who finally reached forward to end the call when Julian, frozen in place, made no move to.

[alitgblog]

so i learned that flo is a lifeguard and this is in fact just that one screencap from lilo and stitch

[hearts4magicalgirls]

Am iI the only one who thinks this

I'm sure we've all heard of unicorn of war, a famous Winx tuber who's opinions have widespread amongst the Fandom. They are also known for their s5 and s6 rewrites

Not I haven't watched them, only a bit of 6 but the bloom slander got old real fast. Bu5 that being said there's something I need to rant

TW: mentioned SA, spoilers for S3 and unicorn of wars s6 rewrite

Whether you like sky or not we all know the drugging incident in S3 was SA, forcing someone to love you by drugging them is sa. I supported diaspro in s1 and s2 bu5 S3 was crossing the line. And i can't believe people defend diaspro in this, she drugged someone to love them.... Hello?

Unicorn of war has bias against skloom and bloom herself. And to showcase this they decided to make diaspro and sky fall in love get married and etc willingly.

First of all. WHO THE FUCK MARRIES THEIR SA-ER

this trope actually glazed over the fact sky was assaulted and made diaspro look like a victim. She was until she decided drugging people was an answer.

Sccond of all, WHY WOULD SKY FORGIVE HER?

I hated this trope so damn much. Because it's gross and weird, I don't like skloom mich but I won't resort to shipping diaspro and sky.

No hate to unicorn of war but this was just plain weird and gross, I get shipping diaspro x sky and excluding the S3 thing in your rewrite but keeping it and still shipping?

[whiteboywhump]

coma

• 9-1-1 (S6 E11) ~ 9-1-1 Lone Star (S3 E2)

• Supernatural (S2 E1) ~ Alias (S3 E5)

• ER (S7 E12) ~ Supernatural (S14 E7)