#even immediately after her death nobody remembers who she really was

[autism-swagger]

You ever think about how we're never going to see Jackie ever again? Like. The real Jackie, not everyone else's versions of her. Every time we see her in season two and beyond (if she even shows up after season two) it is/is going to be Shauna's version of her, who is so intrinsically not Jackie. Even if she's just talked about, it's not going to be Jackie. Nobody knew or remembers her, not really. Not her own parents, not the other Yellowjackets, certainly not Shauna.

Y'know that saying about how you die twice: once when you physically die and once when you're mentioned for the last time?

You ever think about how Jackie died both deaths at the same time?

[reneesghostinthelivingroom]

Poker Face

|| Sevika x genderless!reader

|| Warnings; reader gender up to you, drunk/gamble mentions, injured Sevika with blood/bruise/cut mentions, brief swearing, fight mentions, brief sex hints if you really read between the lines, death but no actual death mentions, hurt/fluff/comfort

|| Summary; when Sevika comes back from her fight with Vi, reader patches her up.

Requests closed!

Started; December 18th

Finished; December 18th

Anon Request; Sevika x reader and reader is taking care of her after the fight with vi or just a bunch of Fluff moments between them

~~~

Normally, Sevika took a while to get home. That was common in her line of work. Silco usually had her days booked. Today was different. She was supposed to just be going down to gamble, maybe have a few drinks. She promised she would be home early. Spend the night with you. But there was no sign of her; you wondered if maybe she had gotten into another fight. Whatever it was, it was keeping her late hours. You were starting to worry.

Another hour went by before Sevika stumbled in. At first, you thought maybe she might have been drunk. Completely wasted. It was only when you walked closer to help her that you realized what was wrong. Blood dripped from the side of her head, her cheek was busted, lip and nose bloody, even a little cut above her eyebrow. You could only assume that she probably had some good bruises on her back and stomach too. She did get in a fight.

"Woah, fuck. What'd you get into?" You asked, helping her to the couch where she could sit down and relax. Eyeing her with worry, checking to make sure she didn't have any injuries that needed immediate attention.

"Ran into Vi," Sevika grumbled. Your eyes widened a bit at that. Vi? As in Vander's kid? You always assumed she kicked the can. Wasn't alive anymore like the rest of her family. Vi was someone that if you knew her, you knew she would be alive. Vi wasn't the type to keep a low profile.

"Vander's Vi?" You asked, double checking that she wasn't talking about someone else. You knew Vi. Of course, you'd been with Sevika for a while so you knew everyone she used to back in the day. Vander's crew. Heck, you'd even babysat for the man before.

"Yeah. Still hot headed as ever," Sevika scoffed. You sighed, wondering where she'd been all this time. How she was doing. Clearly, Vi was doing well if she could fight Sevika.

"She really got some good hits in on you," you murmured. Cupping her cheek. Fingers brushing against the mark there. Sevika leaned into your touch. Enjoying the warmth," do you remember where the first aid kit went?"

Sevika shrugged, you had half a mind to wonder if she did actually know and had just hidden it on you. So you couldn't patch her up. Your eyes narrowed, studying her but Sevika had a damn good poker face. Even you hadn't learnt to read her just yet," Sevika."

"Yup?" There. That response was all you needed, it was just something about how she said it that seemed to tip you off. Like she was fighting a smirk in her voice.

"Where is it?"

Sevika rolled her eyes, staying quiet for a moment longer before answering," under the bed."

You sighed and left her for a moment. Going to search for the first aid kit. Sure enough, it was stuffed under the bed. Right where Sevika had said it would be. You pulled it out, opening it to make sure you had the things that you needed. Then returned to your girl. Who was up and moving again. Setting the first aid kit down, your hands went to your hips. Watching her as she moved about the kitchen," Sevika."

She looked back at you with a smirk, you walked over and dragged her back to the couch. If Sevika really wanted to fight you she would have. But, truthfully? She kind of liked being pulled around like this. Well, only if it's by you of course. Nobody else would have even been allowed to touch her.

Once Sevika was finally down on the couch, you straddled her lap. Which caught her off guard at first and she raised a curious eyebrow at you," don't go getting ideas. It's just easier to reach your face like this," you muttered. Earning a laugh from Sevika when she saw your blush.

Your hands moved delicately. Cleaning the spots, getting the blood off her face, etc. Working carefully to make sure you got it all and that you didn't add to the injury. Sevika stayed quiet, letting you do your thing.

Soon enough, the last patch was placed on. Just above her eyebrow," do you have to put the patches on?" Sevika asked.

"They help. I don't want you getting dirt or something in there," you replied. Hands now trailing her back and front, studying her face for any sign of a wince. Sevika kept her usual expression but you had a gut feeling that at least something had to be there," take your shirt off for me."

Sevika smirked at that and pulled it off without much complaint. You studied her body. A place you'd seen a million times before. Turns out, you were right. She did have a bruise on her back. Pretty big one, too. You pressed it, trying to see how bad it was. Sometimes when it came to Sevika, an injury would look worse than it actually was, "does this hurt?"

"No," she replied. Honestly, you believed her. You got her ice anyway, though.

The rest of the time was spent cuddling. Enjoying dinner together, relaxing in the quiet night. Something that was much needed for Sevika after her fight with Vi.

[eu-ca-tas-tro-phe]

my favorite percabeth moments because there’s so many i need a list:

- “you drool when you sleep” iconic. first percabeth line and it’s perfect (like them)

- seaweed brain & wise girl are iconic ofc, but when thalia calls percy seaweed brain and he’s like “it’s only okay when annabeth calls me that”

- when annabeth fell off the cliff and percy had to be held back by the hunters to stop him from going over after her

- when annabeth was in danger and all he could think about was saving her and he joined the quest without permission to do so and all he cared about was her

- when aphrodite visited percy and he said she looked like annabeth. you’ve gotta be shitting me.

- when aphrodite told him that they’re the first interesting love story in ages and how she’s invested in their love story. soulmates for real.

- when percy and annabeth danced at the school and then later on olympus he said they never finished their dance and they danced again

- how percy and annabeth had movie plans and sally said it was a date and percy panicked and said it wasn’t a date

- WHEN SHE TAKES A KNIFE FOR HIM AND HE STANDS OVER HER BODY SWINGING HIS SWORD AND SCREAMS “NOBODY TOUCHES HER!” when men go feral over seeing their love hurt it always slaps, my favorite micro trope.

- then when all he does is get her to safety and drags will to heal her and then everyone knows to give them privacy and she tells him “you’re cute when you’re worried”

- how they’re always hugging and telling each other to be careful and always worried about each other

- how annabeth is in danger and just knows to throw her dagger in the water and percy immediately is there and just takes everyone down

- how he thought of annabeth to tie himself to humanity when he bathed in the river stix

- how he jumped into tartarus with her (sorry but my roman empire is how she fell because of her hubris and him his loyalty, like their fatal flaws really dragged them to hell)

- percy jealous of luke and annabeth jealous of calypso and rachel

- annabeth kissing percy in the forge before percy blew it up

- the “don’t i get a kiss for good luck? it’s kind of tradition, right?” afterwards too, like the fucking rizzzzz my dude

- annabeth not knowing who the prophecy meant (percy or luke) by “lose a love to a fate worse than death”

- also when percy asked annabeth about the last line in the prophecy and she started to cry and held out her arms and he hugged her and told her it’ll be okay

- the whole camp being like fucking finally (mood) when percabeth finally kissed and then threw them in the lake to have “the best underwater kiss of all time”

- annabeth breaking the rules and sitting next to percy at lunch

- the fact that after hera wiped his memories he still could remember annabeth

- their reunion and “they kissed, and for a moment nothing else mattered. an astrid could have hit the planet and wiped out all life, and annabeth wouldn’t have cared”

- them falling asleep together in the stables on the argo

- both of their reactions when the other one was offered immortality and them turning it down for each other

- percy having a picture of annabeth in his school binder like guys they weren’t even dating yet😭😭😭

- him holding up the sky for her and then them having matching white streaks in their hair afterwards🤍

[shkudss]

Ma Txe’lan

Masterlist

Summary: you have an argument with Aonung after putting you life in danger

Warnings: mention of death, curse words, pregnancy

A/N: I’m not sure if I have to tag people from my previous work, but I did it🥺 If you don’t or do want to be in a permanent taglist, please let me know! I hope you like this one💕

Txe’lan - heart

Since you and Aonung officially got mated you didn’t have a lot of arguments. And if you had ones they weren’t really serious. Mostly they happened because you liked going out somewhere without letting him know about it and Aonung got really worried when he couldn’t find you. That was always the most serious case. You thought that it couldn’t get more serious, both of you are so understanding and hearing that you don’t have reasons for a huge argument. You were so wrong.

Today was the normal day. You were going to hang out with Tsireya and Sullys as usual. You all have fun, swim and collect pretty shells. Aonung was supposed to be with all of you, but his dad asked him and Neteyam to help other warriors to hunt. They couldn’t say no, moreover, it was an honor for them to be invited by the Olo’eyktan. You were used to it, so you let him go leaving a little kiss on his lips.

“Don’t get in trouble while I’m gone. Stay safe, okay?” In fact, Aonung was the one who is always worried about you. He knew you won’t do anything that puts your life in danger for fun. But he also knew that sometimes you don’t really think about potential consequences and that’s what gets you in trouble. “And what’s more important, don’t listen to Loak” you laughed at this. His expression was extremely serious when he said this. For you it wasn’t a big deal. What might happen? “I’m serious, y/n.”

Aonung looked straight into your eyes and you sighed understandable. You know that he worries about both of you.

“Please, take care of you too.” He gently places his big warm hand on your belly. It became his habit since you found out about your future baby.

“I will.” You put your hand over his and squeeze it a little.

He leaves a soft kiss and goes to his parents’ marui to join other warriors. For you this event was normal and you didn’t worry about it, but for Aonung, whose protectiveness increased twice since that evening when you found out about your pregnancy, it was a big deal. He didn’t want to leave you alone for long.

When he finally left your marui, you remembered that you wanted to see Ronal and ask her about the baby. Since it’s your first time being a mother you had a lot of questions and she was the only one who could answer them since nobody but her knew about this. You wanted to keep it as a secret for as long as possible.

“Hey, we want to go to see Payakan. Loak wants us to meet him.” Tuk came out of the blue as usual. “Come with us!”

You weren’t sure if it’s a good idea for you since Aonung asked you to stay safe. Going out of the reef, even though you’re Metkayina, can be dangerous for pregnant woman.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea…”

“C’mon! We’ve done this so many times, everything will be fine. And today is a special day, Payakan really wants to meet you all. Neteyam and Aonung will join us next time.” Loak was really excited about it, his eyes were almost shining, so you couldn’t say no.

“Okay, tulkun boy” you rolled your eyes sarcastically.

The closer you got to the tulkun, the more clearly you could see this red pierced thing. You didn’t understand what’s going on, but Loak found out quickly.

“Sky people did this! They’re coming, we need to take it out of him!” He was panicking, because of the fear for his spirit brother.

You immediately jumped on him and tried to help Loak to take it out, but nothing helped. Kiri and Tsireya joined you. Tuk started screaming and you got really scared.

“They’re here! Hurry up!”

Your heartbeat increased twice. You were afraid that it might be your last day, skypeople can do anything with all of you.

“Dad, they’re here! They shot Payakan and want to kill him. We’re trying to save him.” Loak used his neck microphone to call Jake.

“What?! Who’s there?” He was with other warriors and you knew Aonung hears everything.

“Me, y/n, Tsireya, Kiri and… Tuk.”

“Get out of there, now!” Jake immediately replied with worried tone in his voice.

“We’re will get out this thing and immediately go back yo the village.”

You tried to pull another time, but it didn’t help. Then you saw ilus and finally had the right idea. Guys tied the rope to your ilu and you tried to pull it all together. In less than a minute you managed to get it out. This GPS arrow was in your hands and you knew that they can detect you. And that’s why you tried to swim as far as possible from you village so that everyone will stay safe, especially Tuk. You just hope that other guys will go back to the village and you will manage to get out of this situation.

You don’t know how, yet.

“Oh Eywa, please help me!” You mumbled while trying to avoid corrals and plants. You also knew that right behind you there’s this huge machine chasing you and you don’t have right for mistake. The last minute your Ilu got so scared that it just left you the moment you lost your bond.

You have to survive for Aonung and the baby that you carry right under your heart.

You had no choice but to hide in the huge plant that had some air inside. You’d been swimming for too long to get them far from village. Before finding this plant, you threw that red GPS, hoping that they won’t keep chasing you after this.

Aonung’s pov:

“RDA are hunting for Tulkuns. Payakan is shot, they’re trying to save him.” Jake explained situation quickly while all men went back to the village.

Only question that Aonung had was about you and he didn’t want to know the answer. But he has to.

“Who’s there?”

“Loak, Kiri, Tuk, Tsireya and…” Jake looked cautiously at him before saying the last name. “Y/n”

“Fuck. I have to go there now.” Aonung raised his speed and changed direction straight to the reefs.

“What are you doing? Y/n is with them, they can handle it by the time we will come. She’s strong.” Tonowari tried to calm down his furious and anxious son.

“She’s pregnant.”

That’s all he said before leaving everyone in shock. When he got closer to the end of the reefs, he met Loak and the rest of the group except for you.

“Where’s she?” He was furious. In fact, he was scared deep inside. “I asked where is y/n!” He raised his voice like his father does and it shocked everyone. Nobody knew he can be that serious.

“She was distracting RDA. She’s supposed to come soon.” Loak said this like nothing serious happened, but Aonung’s face said that he fucked up.

“If something happens to her, I’ll kill you.” He pointed to his chest angrily and left without saying any other word.

***

You tried to calm down and make no noises so that RDA won’t find you. You’ve been staying here for too long and it seems that you won’t get out of here soon. Tears start to come, panic slowly takes over you.

“Aonung, I miss you.” You whispered starting crying. The thought that in the morning it was your last kiss with Aonung and you didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to him. You were supposed to have a baby and live a happy life, but it’s going to end today.

With the side vision you notice something moving towards you and you moved to the side, trying to save yourself. You wiped your tears and tried to pull yourself together as much as possible before RDA soldier will come for you. But before you could do or say anything, the familiar head appeared right in front of you.

“Aonung?” You were surprised to see him. He sighed in relief that you’re okay and right after it he got really serious.

“What the hell are you doing?!” He knew you must be stressed out, but couldn’t help it. “It’s been only a couple of hours and you already in trouble. Loak is supposed to protect everyone, not you!”

“I’m the eldest in our group, I had to take responsibility.” You didn’t want to have this conversation now, but there was no choice.

“Take responsibility for you own life first! How can you be a mother if you don’t know how to take care of yourself?” You didn’t expect him saying this and it hurt you. You lowered your head, not willing to continue this argument.

“I want to go home, Aonung.”

“Wheres your ilu?” He was still angry and you didn’t try to calm him down as usual. You also needed support. More than him.

“It got scared and left.” Your voice was really quiet.

“Okay, let’s go back home.”

Luckily, RDA left you and your way home was quick and safe. However, the tension between you two was almost visible. You hated it. It was the first time such thing happening in your relationship and you didn’t know what to do.

“My child, are you okay?” Ronal was the first one who noticed your arrival and came straight to you. She hold your hands, examining all your body for any wounds you luckily didn’t have. Everyone in the village looked at you with worry. Now they know about your baby.

“I’m fine, just got stressed a little. Thank you.” You slightly squeezed her hands and gave a tired smile.

“Okay, go rest then. If you need anything, just let me know.”

You nodded and Aonung took you to your Marui. All that time he didn’t say anything and that stressed you out even more than sky people.

“Aonung?” You asked tentatively, trying to catch his gaze.

“What?” His voice was sharp and it really made you upset. He never talked to you this way.

“Please, say something.” You tried to touch his shoulder, but he didn’t let you do this. You bit your lip, to stop yourself from crying, and sit on the floor. Otherwise, it might be hard for you to stand during the tornado that’s about to happen.

You needed his hug and love now. All you want now is to feel the warmth of you husband’s heart and body. He’s the one you could be vulnerable with, but now it’s not working.

“You want me to say something? I have a lot of things to say.” He looked at you seriously towering over you. “What did I ask you when before leaving?”

“Don’t get in trouble…” you felt like a little child who gets scolded by their parents.

“Don’t get in trouble. Which word in this sentence you didn’t understand? Do you even know how I felt when Jake said you’re chased by sky people or when I met Loak and others without you? You’re having our baby and you’re still acting like a 15 year old you. I thought we overcame this problem, but turned out we didn’t.” You were about to loose your last piece of calmness. Aonung is the most important person in your life, that’s why he’s the one who can either hurt and heal you easily.

“I thought I can loose you and you didn’t even think about it. You didn’t think about how I would feel myself if I see you dying or wounded. I could loose not only you, but our baby.” And this was your last straw. You broke in tears, letting out all emotions you suppressed until this moment.

You were crying, sobbing and shaking. Re-living that situation and remembering Aonung’s words again and again.

How can you be a mother if you don’t know how to take care of yourself?

I thought we overcame this problem, but turned out we didn’t.

I could loose not only you, but our baby

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want this.” Aonung immediately sat down right in front of you, trying to calm you down. “I was scared that Tuk and other would get hurt. I didn’t want them to be captured by sky people.” Your eyes were full of sorry. This broke Aonung’s heart. “I know I don’t think think about the consequences in the moment, but I don’t do these things for nothing. I have reasons to act certain way and I’m sorry that I make you worry, but I also got really scared. I also thought that today might be the last day I kissed and touched you. I was scared to loose you too. But I don’t regret doing this and I would do it again if I have to. I better safe four lives for mine, than save my life for four others.” You tried to explain everything, sobbing and crying, while Aonung hugged and tapped your head softly. He knew he shouldn’t have to scold you. The first thing that he must did was to comfort you after that stress you’d gone through.

“I’m sorry, ma txe’lan, I’m sorry.” He whispered same words, while hearing you crying. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there and help you. I’m sorry I didn’t think about your feelings and pressured you.”

You didn’t want to say anything, focusing on his soothing voice. With all tears your stress and tension in the body and mind were relieved. You two were still in each other’s hands, listening to your breathes, enjoying each others warm bodies. You’re alive. You’re still together. You’re still going to have a family.

“You’re my txe’lan, y/n. You own my life. If they take you from me, then they take my heart. Please, don’t let anybody do this to us.” Aonung was sitting and hugging for from behind, placing his head in you neck crook. It was your favorite pose, as you both could feel each other completely. “Can I…?”

“Yes”

You knew what he wanted to do. Some Navis think that young couples mostly love to feel each other sexually, but it’s not your and Aonung’s case. You enjoy your sexual journey with him, but the most precious moments are when you feel each other. Sitting in such pose in your marui or at the beach at night, looking at the sky and having tsaheylu. You don’t have to use it only during the adult time. You can use it just to feel your partner. And that’s what you do now.

You both need this, you need to make sure that you’re alright. Aonung takes your and his braids and makes a bond. Shivers go through your body. You feel his heartbeat, his breath, you don’t need words anymore.

You’re the one

You live in each other

You will be the one even the afterlife

“I see you”

————————————————————————

I couldn’t tag those who are in red :(

Taglist: @elegantkidfansoul l @ijwsbdinp @universal-s1ut @myh3artt @lynbubble @jjkclub @kenzi-woycehoski @marvellover4 @ssc7514 @stvrligghtt @johfaam @simplecole18 @flavaliz @chrisbelle @bajadotcom @jak3suiiyscvmslvt @a--1--1--3 @roxannedaybreakermidnight @aonungmyaddiction @neteyamsmate4life @boilingpots @fanboyluvr @zilena9 @maxie8life @makiis2mk @damscore @yeosxxx @imnyira @neytirisblog @adaiasafira @lovedbychoi @oceanstar19

[mxtxfanatic]

You know, I don’t think I’ve ever written a meta on Madam Yu/Yu Ziyuan before? 🤔 Let’s change that!

Yu Ziyuan is a petty ass spiteful bitch who never loved Jiang Fengmian, showed no care for her only daughter Jiang Yanli, and cared for her only son Jiang Cheng only insomuch as he was a reflection of herself. There is not a singular nice thing she has to say to or about Jiang Yanli in the text, not even on the eve of her death. Towards Jiang Cheng, her “defenses” of him are all backhanded comments on how he isn’t better than the son of the woman she, herself, is jealous of, that he is unlikeable because he is her son, and that even his own father doesn’t want him. Jiang Cheng already feels unloved by his father from Yu Ziyuan’s perpetual harping before Wei Wuxian is brought back from Yiling, so this insecurity cannot be laid at his feet. On top of that example, people also like to claim that Jiang Fengmian was a “bad father” to Jiang Cheng because Jiang Cheng only remembers (which is already suspect because jc usually only conveniently remembers things that make him a victim) his father holding him a handful of times, but as for his mother? The only time he remembers her hugging (and kissing) him is when she knows she was about to die. He is 17 and has never been hugged by his mother in living memory. But she loves him (allegedly).

As for her (alleged) love and pining for Jiang Fengmian:

Of course, she was Jiang FengMian’s wife, and used to cultivate with him as well. Naturally, she should be called Madam Jiang. But, for some reason, everyone had always called her Madam Yu. Some people guessed that it was because she didn’t want to take on her husband’s surname due to her assertive personality.

…

Madam Yu came from the prominent Even after she married Jiang FengMian, she had always been out on night-hunts, not overly fond of staying at the Jiang Sect’s Lotus Pier. On top of that, where she lived at Lotus Pier was different from where Jiang FengMian did. She had her own area, where only she and a few of the family members she’d brought from the Yu Sect lived.

—Chapt. 51: Courage, exr

She refuses to be known as the Madam of the Jiang Clan. She refuses to integrate her people into her husband’s home. She refuses to stay in the same place as her husband in their home. She refuses to even be in their home except to prepare for nighthunts. And when she’s home, she only picks fights, claims that she’s the only one who sees what’s “really” happening but nobody listens because they don’t like her or what she has to say, then leaves again. This is not a woman that cares about the clan she married in to. This isn’t even a woman that cares about her immediate family. So why is she even here?

This culminates into the “petty ass bitch” part:

The entirety of the cultivation world knew that third lady Yu had cultivated together with Jiang FengMian when they were young. Jiang FengMian’s character was gentle, yet Yu ZiYuan’s personality was harsh. The two didn’t share too many interactions. Thus, although their backgrounds matched, nobody associated the two as a pair. Later, ZangSe SanRen came from the mountains, passed by Yunmeng, and happened to become friends with Jiang FengMian. They had even night-hunted together on multiple occasions. Both thought highly of each other. People supposed that it was very likely for ZangSe SanRen to become the next mistress of Lotus Pier.

However, soon afterward, the MeishanYu Sect proposed an alliance through marriage to the YunmengJiang Sect.

—Chapt. 56: Poisons, exr

Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan knew each since they were young and had many interactions, but they were incompatible because of Yu Ziyuan’s volatile personality. Nobody considered them a pair despite being a perfect match on paper. Neither of them wanted marriage; neither clan proposed or pushed it. However, the moment another woman appears that is universally loved and is suspected to be made into the new Madam Jiang, suddenly MeishanYu wants to pressure Jiang Fengmian into this ill-fated marriage? The story makes it clear that the proposal only came into existence after Cangse Sanren became a rumored option—not during any of the other times Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan had met and parted without a care, not when Cangse Sanren first descended—while only Jiang Fengmian opposed the marriage. And who does Yu Ziyuan have a massive inferiority complex to, so much so that she’s willing to abuse the orphaned son of the woman to make him indebted to her family? Cangse Sanren.

Yu Ziyuan wanted to marry Jiang Fengmian not out of care or love but out of a petty desire to “prove” that the position of Madam Jiang was hers, only. Even if it meant consigning herself and another person to a loveless, violent marriage. From beginning to end, Yu Ziyuan was a person obsessed with her reputation and what she felt was “owed” to her as the daughter of cultivation clan leaders, and this led to the destruction of herself and her family.

Anyways, that’s all, folks!

[bitchinbarzal]

missing you, quietly — luca fantilli

warnings; mentions of death & suicide. read at your own discretion.

-

Nobody really remembers what happened that night. They were up by three in the second period, everyone was happy.

Someone, an officer administrator came out onto the bench and called over coach. He walked off and spoke to her before he returned, his face was white.

Nolan noted the whispers of the staff and he looked concerned but before he could ask what was going on, Naurato called the officials over.

They huddled up and mumbled to each other before the officials announced

“The game has been stopped per request of Michigan, all remaining minutes will be played after a period break”

Nobody knew what was going on as they traipsed back to the locker room.

“Coach what’s going on?”

He stood in the middle of the room and cleared his throat “We were just contacted by a member of campus police. A student has been killed on her way here this evening by a drunk driver”

There were immediate mumblings of who it was.

Brandon turned to Ethan who dropped the stick in his hand and scrambled for his phone. The sudden movements caught everyone’s attention.

“Ethan, buddy don’t-“ “No! No, it’s not her!”

Coach watched him as Ethan called you again and again with no response. Tears streamed down his face and coach sighed

“The student who was killed this evening was y/n”

Everyone walked to console Ethan while Luca sat in his stall, mouth opened and heart beating at what felt like a million miles a minute.

They never went back out to play. Michigan forfeited the game.

The days and weeks following your death were nothing short of painful and silent.

Ethan went home to be with his family in this time but ultimately it was decided the Edwards would hold a funeral for you in Michigan, that’s where you felt at home.

Luca didn’t talk much to anyone. Adam had made comment about it once or twice but their mom simply said “Luca’s an empathetic boy, Adam he’s probably just feeling sorry for his teammate”

He wasn’t. He was heartbroken over the death of the love of his life.

Luca attended the funeral service and sat in the back row, waiting until everyone had left to then approach the front and mumble through his tears

“I miss you, so freaking much baby”

He consoled Ethan on occasions, listening to him tell everyone nobody knew what it was like to be this upset. While Luca hadn’t lost a twin and he wouldn’t know that feeling, he so desperately wanted to shout out how he did know the sadness because he was sad too!

He didn’t. He stayed quiet.

Luca thought that by three months past your death, it was all over. He didn’t have to bite his tongue during commemorations of your life.

That was until the team were suiting up for practice one Wednesday morning.

"how you holding up, Eddy?"

Ethan shrugs "My moms still hysterical everyday but the police dropped off her phone to me on my way here" he says, waving your iphone around in his hand.

"You look at it?" Mark asks, slipping his jersey on.

"Nah, I don't know her password"

"It's you guys' birthday" is all mark replies, earning a skeptical look from Ethan but it works and Mark smiles

"She always let me use her phone for the aux in the car'

Ethan stands and scrolls through your phone. Your background was a picture of you and him on his draft day, the devils jersey in your hand while you looked so proud.

A few texts from friends and family members gone unread; mom, dad, even one from him he sent late the night you died begging you to call him and say it wasn't true.

then he landed on a text thread from 'my love

he clicked on it, eyebrows furrowed. There were messages sent since you died.

call me, tell me it isn't true

baby please, please be ok

I love you, come home

There were more he read through, still no idea who this person was. He clicked on the contact and dropped the phone, causing everyone to look over at him.

Ethan looked up, eyes scanning the locker room until they landed on who he'd been looking for.

"You son of a bitch! You were fucking my sister!"

Ethan storms across the room, out to hurt someone when he was held back by Adam, Luke and Mark

"Ethan stop, he was not!" Adam yells.

Luca gulps "Yeah... I was"

Everyone stared at him, he felt as if the walls were closing in on his chest.

Adam steps forward, protecting his big brother “Back off Edwards… I mean it”

Ethan scoffs “You were seriously fucking my sister? Dude what the fuck is wrong-“

“I was not! I wasn’t just- Jesus, fuck Ethan she’s dead stop being so fucking vulgar!” Luca screams, throwing his helmet across the room.

The rest of the boys take a few steps back.

“I wasn’t just fucking her, she’s not some puck bunny you dick! She was my girlfriend!”

Ethan scoffs “no, she would’ve told me”

“No, she didn’t want to because she was scared of how you’d react… clearly she was right!” Luca snaps, shoving past him and leaving the locker room.

Ethan stands with his chest heaving still “Can you believe him?”

Nobody speaks until Johnny stands up “You didn’t hear him Eddy, he screamed and cried that night I thought he was actually going to be sick and he couldn’t breath”

Ethan’s glare snaps to him “So you knew?”

“y/n used to tell you she was coming to study with me but instead they’d go out together” Johnny sighs “She liked him a lot and she didn’t wanna tell you because she was scared it would hurt the team”

Ethan doesn’t respond

“Luca tried to kill himself when you went back to Alberta”

At that, Adam’s head snaps to his teammate and Nolan goes to speak when Johnny continues “I found him real early in the morning with way too many pills and he was just scared and alone, he grieved her death for far too long all alone”

“Ethan, you aren’t the only one who was hurt when she died don’t be so hard on him, he’s already beating himself up too much already”

Luca didn’t speak to anyone for the following days, Adam had left food for him and his mom tried calling along with Nolan but he didn’t talk to anyone.

Ethan sat with your phone watching as the notifications came in from Luca, texts confiding in you as if you were on the other end still. It was when Ethan read the text;

you’re the love of my life, I’m feeling pretty lost without you.

That he knew, Luca had been suffering in silence.

Saturday came and the team were facing off against Ohio state for the first time since the night you died.

The teams had prepared a ceremonial jersey for Ethan to receive with your name and number on the other side. The girls team, your team were in the stands to watch too.

Luca was there early to avoid being in the room with Ethan.

By the time warmups had come and gone nobody had spoken to him. All a little concerned.

When the puck was ready to be dropped the lights dimmed and the announcer read

“Three months ago, when these two teams last played we lost a member of our Michigan family — y/n was a star hockey player, daughter, student and twin to one of our own. Tonight we gift her jersey to her twin brother, Ethan. To honour her by the people who love her most”

Ethan skated forward to collect the jersey and thanked those who gave him it. He placed it on the bench and the game got underway.

You were seemingly controlling the score for the team that evening because when the game finished 7-2 everyone said

“Hey look, seventy-two joined us this evening!”

Luca smiled, headed back to the locker room remembering back to you telling him how you got your number as you were all but one minute older than Ethan so you had a number one before him.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he walked back to his Stall only to find a maize jersey staring back at him.

Edwards

72

Luca didn’t speak, his fingers grazed the number before he looked back to Ethan, who was already staring at him with a soft smile.

It wasn’t much and nothing was going to fix this but it would be a little better now Luca didn’t have to miss you quietly.

[atyd1960]

The more I think about it the more I'm confused about Snape's so called "redemption arc":

We don't know much about his years at Hogwarts outside of the time James hanged him from his underwear and he called Lily a Mudblood, but we know that:

1. He had a disdain for Muggles ever since he was born or at least ever since he was 10 y/o bc that's when he meets Lily and Petunia and treats the latter like garbage.

2. He was friends with Mulciber and Avery- known death eaters, especially Mulciber who we know was particularly close with Baldy due to the time he came to Hogsmede with him for his job interview with dummydore.

From that we can assume that he was a witness and a participant in A Lot of hate crimes against Muggle Borns ever since he was a minor. One of which was the time Mary was the victim.

3. We know HE invented the spell James used to hang him from his panties, which must mean that he used it against others, probably muggle borns, and his DE friends must've used it as well.

4. We know he invented the spell Sectumsempra to use against his enemies?? (Sorry it's been a while since I read the books I don't remember the exact quote.) and his enemies are almost certainly the Marauders. Also maybe his dad but that's a discussion for another day.

5. We know he was one of Baldy's dearest death eaters, even tho he was a Half-Blood with no status and no connections, which means he definitely did a lot of horrific things to Muggles and Muggle borns and the members of the Order of Phoenix.

6. We know he heard Trelawney's prophesy after eavesdropping in a bar, and immediately ran to Baldy with it. He knew that by telling Baldy about the prophecy an innocent baby will be killed, and he didn't give a shit. I cannot stress enough how much that information in vital for his character. Taking a baby's life so that Baldy might give him a sit closer to him by the table. And nothing would've happened to him if he shut his mouth and didn't go to Baldy. He didn't have his life or even his status\loyalty on the line. He just sacrificed this anonymous innocent baby for kicks and giggles.

7. The only point in which he cared about his actions was when Lily's life was on the line. This wanker really didn't care that he just gave Baldy (a man who made it his life' mission to kill Lily and the likes of her) a reason to kill Lily's son and husband, who were practically her only source of joy while she fought against his people in the war. He just wanted the girl he slurred and stalked and mistreated in high-school to live with all her friends and family dead. And thought he was doing something good. I don't even know how to begin to describe how fucked up that is.

8. He went to Dummydore and asked him to save her. After he got her, her husband and her kid to be under an even worse constant death threat than they were before because of Lily's blood status and their participant in the order. And after he spent the last 3-4 years killing Lily’s friends and the people who share her blood status.

9. That was also the point in which he offered himself to be a double spy right?? Again real heroic of him to risk his life after all the shit he did because he was in love with a girl whose life he ruined. He never cared about all the shit he did and all the people he murdered and he never actually wanted to help innocent people or do good by the world or even by Lily.

10. After Baldy died for the first time and the first war ended, Harry had nobody left, and Dummydore put him with Petunia and Vernon. Snape knew better than anyone else what the Dursleys will do to Harry. He knew everything, and he didn't do shit. Not only did he not do shit, but he also made things worse for Harry by bullying and harassing him since the moment he stepped foot in the castle.

11. Extending on the last point- Snape bullied, harassed, abused, mistreated and discriminated against students at Hogwarts ever since he started teaching there, I'm not gonna start elaborating on all the times he did those things because that would take a different essay of similar length.

12. If Voldemort chose to go after Neville instead of Harry, Snape would live and die as the most loyal Death Eater ever

So to conclude: am I really expected to forgive him because he loved Lily and had a hard time with James when they were 16 and he spied for Dummydore for a bit?? Being a loser in middle school and then becoming a double spy doesn’t make up for… anything. Especially since he never stopped being a terrible person.

[set-wingedwarrior]

I should have known that people would have acted annoying about the Team's reunion and, after the dumb takes I saw, here I am to make a breakdown of their reactions in relation to the context because that's defenitely how my psychology majoring is supposed to be used apparently

Before I dig specifically to each character I'd like to remind people that, like Weiss herself said, everything happened so fast. It's not just that the time itself wasn't that much. In between the fight and them trying to find each other in the Ever After it would have been, what? An hour?

It's been 2 years for us guys, for them it isn't that much time to justify the super touchy and hugs reunion like we got in V5, or V6 in Argus, or V8 when they meet back (except for Blake, but I'll get there). You all need to remember that media in general for stories like this aren't your fluffy fanfic full of feelings and hugs and kisses all the time.

Now, welcome to my psychology class! First on our list, our one and only traumatized team leader child, Ruby Rose.

"Why didn't ruby rush to hug her sister?"

Well, let's see it from her point of view; actually, we litterally saw it at the start of the episode! We saw how fast everything went from her eyes!

She had to go in fight mode in a fucking instant because, differently from Blake (who was trying to jump after Yang) and Weiss (who was busy stopping her), Ruby has been attacked immediately by Neo after her firt attempt at her life failed. She didn't even have the time to process what happened because she was already fighting for dear life!

Our brains are very resourceful machines that always try to save energy (it's why stereotypes exist, it's our brains identifying stuff by one thing to not think about it too hard), and considering how complex and crippling the feeling of loss is, and how much it takes to process, in a life or death situation our brains would just shut it down.

Because we're all different people it might not work the same for everyone, but Ruby is a trained fighter, she's a huntress, her body and mind falling in fighting mode is actually the most logical reaction in the given situation because it falls both on habit and instinct.

And given that she didn't even have the time to process the the thought that Yang might have been dead (even during the fucking fall she had to fight Neo still, give my girl a break!!), it's very reasonable that despite the frustration and stress of everything else in the Ever After, she wasn't too worried about Yan'g safety. Because she never got time to even think "I lost her" that she got in the very same situation. So, "If I fell and I'm here and I'm okay, then Yang is too, she must be fine".

Besides, Ruby did run towards her after fighting the thing!

Yang just interrupted her with her "Dammitt! You're not supposed to be here!" before Ruby settled to get near her and "If you thought we wouldn't come for you then you must have forgotten who raised me", so any argument about them not caring is just really dumb.

In conclusion, considering that she found out that her sister was probably okay before her brain could have even processed the concept of her loss, and all happening in a very short spawn of time, it makes 100% sense that Ruby wouldn't need to jump in her arms and cry or whatever. They're in a weird place but they are okay and that's all that matters (before Ruby will discover the horrors of what happened after she fell and the horrors of her quickly approaching breakdown, but that's for another time!)

Blake on the other hand.

Blake is the one that speed into action the moment she saw Yang fall. When chaos wa around nobody went to attack her, she saw Yang disappear in the void. Now, she got to feel the loss, the pain, the weight of failure because she failed to save her!

And her first reaction was to fucking jump after her. Because she couldn't fail, she couldn't lose her, she must save her! And Weiss had to drag her up the platform herself to stop her from doing so because they had a job to do and Blake was blinded by pain!

Then, she got blinded by rage. It wasn't her fault, it was Neo! And Cinder! And I think that in that moment of emotional disregulation it's reasonable to think that Blake wasn't acting for the good of Mantle, of the plan, or anything else. We all saw it in her eyes, it was pure rage, she wanted revenge! And that's completely reasonable in that given moment. She saw the love of her life DIE because of them, OF FUCKING COURSE SHE'S BLINDED BY SUCH POWERFUL EMOTION.

As you can probably already tell, Ruby and Blake's actions are dictated by very different feelings! Even if the action itself, fighting, is the same, the mindset and motivations differ completely!

So, what happens when she meets Yang again? That after the danger is over (because it's not like she dropped everything, they fought the thing and waited for the situation to calm down and be safe. She also waited for Ruby to say her things first tbf) she fucking runs to tackle her!

Because Blake actually got to see and feel the loss! She thought she had lost her! She thought that she died because she wasn't fast enough! So, even regardless of the romantic feelings (that obviously play a part because come on, they've been inseparable for volumes now, it's obvious that she would have felt it all that harder), it makes sense that Blake's the one to feel pure utter relief in seeing Yang still alive! And she'd need to go to her, feel that she's there with her!

Now, probably the most complex one to explain: Weiss.

In a way, she's middle ground between Ruby and Blake. Weiss wasn't attacked right away either, but she had to jump in action to stop Blake. That means that she stopped to see what was happening and at Yang's "death" she just assumed what Blake was about to do or else she wouldn't have ad the time to stop her (we saw how fast Blake was)

That means that, in some way, she got to take in what was going on before going in fight mode, but she still didn't get to process it herself because she needed to act on the others' behalf. Where Ruby was litterally just hanging in there and Blake was blinded by her pain, both of them against Neo, Weiss saw what happened and told to herself "I must keep going with the plan, I must protect who's left, I can't let Yang''s sacrifice go to waste" and went to fight Cinder alone (until Penny arrives).

Weiss during the fight is the one more "emotionally stable" (more like she efficiently locked them to be functional in the fight), she's well aware of what is going on and doing her best. In this mindset, she got to fight but also to see more clearly everything that is happening.

She's also the one who stayed there the longest. She's the one who saw the worst because she's been there long enough to witness more horrors, but despite the awareness she didn't get the time to really feel them. When does she though?

After she saw all of her teammates, her family, die. When she's almost completely alone. Only her Penny and Jaune left, Cinder towering them while she's using Gambol Shroud, everything she has left of her family, to try keep fighting. Because at that point there's less chaos, less things to prioritize her focus on, the evacuation is done, she just has to not let Cinder get Penny's powers.

We didn't see Weiss and Blake finding each other, but my guess is that either there was a hug off screen or, more likely, she kept it together because they logically needed their weapons and teammates back first. She then chooses to stay focused (and cheer for Blake, bless her), and work, and shuts down every question about what happened because she knows that talking about it would break her down and be a distraction from their objective.

Which is why she doesn't speak until they're all together: withouth a distraction, she's crying before she even got to start.

The pain added up and got to her, and I'm pretty sure that Ruby's big reaction wasn't just because of the news on their own, but also the feelings Weiss was letting out while telling them (you know when you feel someone is feeling bad even when they don't tell you nor openly act up on it? And you still feel deeply bad/uncmofortable?).

I got overboarded here, but in short Weiss didn't act too clingy in the reunion either because she was busy staying focused first and then dealing with EVERYTHING that happened earlier and that she needed to tell them. Like, after getting both to Blake and Ruby, Yang's safety was basically 100% sure anyway, so. And, again, everything happened so fast.

It's been 2 long years for us. Not for them. So, to the people who have been complaining, you're just projecting your own personal feelings on them and then calling it bad writing when they're not acting like you feel right now.

Class dismissed.

[crushedsweets]

Awhile back you answered an ask on how other creeps would respond to Toby's death, and I was wondering how they would respond to Kate death?

IM PUNCHING THE WALL. ALRIGHT. warning for death and grief and mourning . . .

im gonna set this after she starts staying at the proxy cabin and becoming friends with more people, rather than rotting in the mines. im also imagining they find her body in the forest, nobody was there when she died.

tim and brian would have a heavy heart about it. sure, they had massive issues with her, but even by time shes 25+, they still kinda see her as a little kid. she was 14/15 when they met her, and she acted like a feral animal till she was like 17. brian got her a job on the farm, tim helped set up a room for her. they'd help toby set up a grave, but overall they dont go out of their way to mourn her - toby has that handled

which.....guides me towards toby... they've known eachother since they were 17-19, and they are like siblings. when she was in the mines, toby would always bring her food and even dragged a whole mattress there. thats his little sister (she is older than him..) and he had always been so so so protective of her. he loses his shit, screaming and throwing shit. is never home, spends so much time at the mines. chops down random ass trees just cuz he needs to exhaust himself enough to stop feeling so much pain. it feels like losing lyra again. he sets a grave up for her, puts her body in it, carves some stuff into a wooden cross he made from a tree he cut down, lays hella rocks all over. him and nina spend a good chunk of time together. nina has never seen him cry until this. eventually, after he's gone for days, he comes back to the cabin and just rots in his bed almost catatonic. clocky has to come collect him

whiiiiiiich now brings me to clocky. she'd find out from nina, since she'd already be in her own apartment by now and tobys not gonna tell her. she'd immediately get nina, get jack, go to the cabin, and try to console toby and nina the best she(and jack) can. has to learn to bite her tongue when tobys mouthing off cuz hes mad she's trying to help. she doesnt really have time to mourn kate at first, until maybe a week goes by and tobys finally eating again and clockys just sitting there and starts bawling cuz kate was her friend too and she had to immediately go into caretaker mode.

nina. screams and cries and needs to have people with her all the time, no matter what. she doesnt feel safe alone cuz she just wants to curl up and die so so so bad. she makes toby take her to the grave(he doesnt want to but he knows kate would be pissed if he wasnt at least a little nice to nina after this) and she just sobs. she holds toby and tries to be like 'its okay its okay its okay' but neither know who shes comforting. she'd print as many pictures she got of kate as possible (not a lot) and try to scrap book it and try to memorialize her like that. just hold photos and pictures and have them in her apartment and cry. give a photo to toby with a letter written on the back telling him how much kate loved him.

similar to if toby died, jack would try to host stuff. make dinner for them all, invite them over, give everyone space to eat and remember her. he'd go with toby to the grave as well, but he's less assertive with his care compared to clocky. less 'get the fuck up, this is making you feel worse' and more 'you know you can come over right? its not good to stay home alone'. toby would come to see him a lot, too. . .

toby would have to take on a lot of her patrols, so he'd bump into ann and lulu a lot. . . ann would tease him a bit like 'ooo is katey in trouble? whyre you here, handsome?', till he smacks the shit out of her w the handle of his hatchet and he grumbles something about her death. ann would shut up after. she'd be bummed out that kates dead cuz she liked her, but not mourn. lulu wouldn't be able to process it. ann would tell her, lulu would cry, then a day later she's asking when kate's coming to visit.

i dont think anyone else would really be impacted, though... jeff/dina didnt like her, she wasnt close with ben, never even spoke to jane or liu... lazari would cry and draw pictures of her, but she'd be okay shortly after, esp cuz jacks okay.

[roguekhajiit]

I think everyone remembers that one celebrity death that really affected them more than others.

For me, it was Chester Bennington. I remember driving at the time when I heard the news on the radio. I didn't want to believe it at first. It had to be a hoax, a prank, someone had to be lying. As soon as I could park, I had to Google it before I could believe it. Chester was gone. Never again would I hear his voice on a new song.

For years, I couldn't listen to a Linkin Park song because Chester's voice was the one that got me through years of abuse and then the years of struggling with PTSD. Every time I heard a Linkin Park song, I remembered that the person who that voice belonged no longer walked the earth. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I could hear one of their songs without immediately skipping past it.

Finally, seven years after Chester Bennington's death, the band has a new vocalist; Emily Armstrong.

The group had only just released one single with Emily as the vocalist, and already haters are taking to social media to express their displeasure. "The Linkin Park of Temu," one hater said while another was gentler with their criticism, "I'm getting more Paramore vibes than Linkin Park." Others couldn't wait to dig up her past to find a reason to hate her.

Even still, there are those who have already begun to compare Emily to Chester. She doesn't sound like him. Of course, she doesn't because nobody except the haters wanted a Chester sound-alike. It's insulting to his memory. You can try to replicate greatness, but you can never truly replace it.

Stop comparing Emily to Chester. It's unreasonable to expect her to perfectly duplicate his one of a kind sound. Instead of expecting more of the original, we should be looking at this as what it is; a new chapter for Linkin Park.

[deathmetalunicorn1]

Ok, ok... I have one request with ror! I have been waiting for this. Also, really loves your writings, it made my day

This is basically my most recent experience. Child reader have severe allergic to peanuts and her family (the entire ror team) know this and warned her school prior, to avoid her getting allergic reaction during school times. One day, there was an event at school, where all the ror attend it since reader is performing with her class and want them to come and parents/family members were invited.

After child reader performance, she immediately went to enjoy lunch with her family and she suddenly got the urge to eat something sweet. This led her to go by the food stall, which was run by a few parents and teachers, who sells baked goods, drinks, etc to the students and parent. Child reader bought some cookies after the mother that sells it confirmed there was not peanuts, only for the reader to get instant allergic reaction!

Thankfully, her family reacted fast and inject her with her epipen. When the mother was confront, she responded with "Allergic doesn't exist. Children uses it as an excuse to be picky!"

How will the ror react to this, especially when reader is crying because she is terrified since it has been long since she got a horrible allergic reaction?

When I first read this request, I got so pissed off! I hate people who have this mentality, those who are willing to put the lives of others at stake to prove an asinine point that usually ends up with someone getting hurt, sick, even killed, which ends with them getting arrested. As someone who has a food sensitivity myself (not really a food allergy, but I have to watch how much gluten I eat in one sitting or risk messing up my stomach for a few days) I hate it when others think that we’re just being picky, or we use that as an excuse for who knows what!

-Your family learned young that you were severely allergic to peanuts, hives and throat swelling with a risk of death if you were even come into contact with peanuts.

-You learned a lot about this too, learning what questions to ask so you wouldn’t risk the chance of having a reaction, as you had a few times in your life where you had been rushed to the hospital, and hospitals scared you as it scared your family seeing you in one.

-For the most part, it was pretty easy to avoid peanuts or things with peanuts, as you all got to know what things have and don’t have them, it was just outside of home where you had to be careful, like at sleepovers or at school.

-It was Parent’s Day at school, and you were so excited to be performing with your second-grade class, as you would all be singing, and your class had been practicing so hard!

-There were so many things happening at your school, pony rides, a huge bake sale, a bounce house, and you got the chance to show your massive family around your school.

-Your class preformed, and you couldn’t help but grin, seeing your whole cheering section cheering loudly for your class, but mainly for you, as your family was a staple around school, everyone knew about them because nobody else had such a huge family.

-After a few more performances, there was a break, and a large snack table was set up, filled with baked treats, extra stuff not a part of the bake sale, and all students were allowed to go up and get a treat.

-You saw one of your friend’s mom manning the treats and she beamed at you as you ran up, “You all did so well Y/N! Tammy said you were all working so hard and I can see that it was hard work paid off! What can I get for you?”

-You looked at the treats, eyeing the different things available before you paused, remembering the rule, “What doesn’t have peanuts in it? I have an allergy.”

-She just smiled, directing you to some cookies, giving you a napkin and you headed back towards your family who was watching you come over.

-You bit into the cookie and as soon as you swallowed the first bite you knew it had peanuts in it, your throat swelling as you instantly paled.

-Loki screamed out your name as attention quickly went to you, seeing your having an allergic reaction, a severe one as Brunnhilde grabbed your Epi-Pen from Eve, jamming it into your thigh.

-A teacher was on the phone, calling for an ambulance and instantly several of your family members stomped over to Tammy’s mom, demanding to know what she was thinking giving you peanuts.

-Hades spoke, his rage barely contained, “Why did you give her something with peanuts? She told you she has an allergy!”

-Her mom didn’t look bothered in the slightest, rolling her eyes, “Allergies are just something kids use now to be picky!” Hades leaned in close, seeing the school nursing guiding in the paramedics, who had been nearby, waiting for an injury on the bounce house, “She could die because of you- you deliberately poisoned her!”

-A couple of police officers, seeing the group, were quick to approach, hearing this, “Is this true? Did that child tell you about an allergy and you knowingly gave that to her?”

-She was in hysterics, “She’s lying- you’re all lying! There’s no such thing as allergies!!” she was quickly placed in cuffs and taken away as you were being taken away, Tammy and her father watching nearby, Tammy in tears to see you being taken away while her dad was furious, seeing what his wife had done.

-You had to spend three days in the hospital, in a coma after you nearly died, as you weren’t getting oxygen into your body. Tammy and her parents visited you, with her mom being watched, seeing the state you were in.

-Tammy couldn’t help but tear up, “Mommy- why did you hurt my friend?” Seeing all the judging and angry eyes on her quickly had her mother embarrassed, wanting to run and hide, but her husband made sure she knew the severity of what she had done, keeping her there, making her look at your little body in the hospital bed.

-Her mother had to attend classes, to show her that allergies were a real thing, showing the signs and symptoms, including death, to educate her, and she had to pay your hospital bill, something she wasn’t pleased with, and she was banned from baking at any school function again. Her reputation also took a hard hit, losing most of her friends and Tammy was upset because none of her friends wanted to play at her house anymore.

-You were well cared for, healing and soon you were back on your feet, playing with Tammy who came to visit with you.

-It became a thing at school to regularly educate not only the kids but parents and families as well about allergies, especially food related allergies, because so many had been scared for you, seeing how badly you reacted.

-Good education and knowledge is what kept not only you but others safe and it was up to everyone to make sure everyone was safe.

[artist-issues]

Your words and your posts have been incredibly disheartening for me to see. My mother left the church. She is not an apostate, but she did question the church’s teachings in secret. She completely left faith when I was born. I have congenital heart defects, which I was born with. I nearly died on the operating table. For this reason, my mother and I do not believe in God, who is said to be all-powerful and all-benevolent. My mother is a wonderful person. She risked her life in the Covid-19 pandemic as she works at a hospital. If anyone deserved to live in an eternal paradise, it would be her. Your LGBTQ+ views have also upset me. My oldest friend, who I have known since before I could even remember, is transgender and gay, and have been more supportive to me as a disabled person than any Christian has been. I’m only 18 years old, yet I know that you chose faith over experiences with the wonderful parts of humanity. Respectfully, please reconsider your views on gay and trans people.

I truly appreciate how thoughtfully and respectfully you typed out this message. It is clear that these matters mean a lot to you and I'm going to go ahead and assume that you aren't speaking out of any kind of hate.

I would just offer you a counter-perspective, and maybe by understanding where I'm coming from, you can see that I'm not speaking out of any kind of hate for people, either. I'm half blind. I was born that way. My twin sister and I were taken by emergency cesareans-section when we were incredibly, dangerously premature. My twin was given no chance of survival; the cesarean was just meant to give me a 50% chance of survival. At the time, my mother was recently married to a 19 year-old drug dealer after her own father abused and abandoned her and her mother. She'd been living apart from the faith for years, rejecting God to follow the occult or whatever political party had hear heart at the time. My father hated God.

But when my sister and I were fighting for life for weeks on end, and nobody was sure if we would live or die, and they had to bring us home with heart monitors because our hearts would literally stop beating several times a night, my mom realized how helpless she was to do anything to save us. And she prayed. And we lived. Both of us. Not only that, but my father, at 19 years old, addicted to drugs since the age of 13, narrowly escaped death and gave his life to Christ. After a whole life of having no social skills unless he was high, doing whatever he wanted to whoever he wanted, and caring about nothing but himself, now he is a Pastor (bi-vocationally; he is also a tradesman working with his hands) and has given me and all my family, and many other families, everything we have in our lives through his dedicated and faithful life. He and my mother have been happily married and serving God with their whole lives for almost thirty years now.

And not only them, but me, my twin sister, my younger sister, my little brother, my grandfather (who was an actual killer and drug addict as well) we all know God. We all have a relationship with Him. And that's the biggest most wonderful gift He gave us, out of all those wonderful things He did for us. Saving my life, my dad's life, my twin's life, changing who they were and making them new people.

I'm not telling you all that to like, compare disabilities or traumas or whatever. That would be ridiculous for lots of reasons. But I'm just trying to be honest.

It's not a religion or a system of beliefs that I've subscribed to. It's not a social flag I live under. It's not something I do just because my parents or the people in my immediate community have shown me. It's because He's real, and He showed Himself to me—when it's just me and Him, and nobody else's opinion or say-so matters— and it's all really true—everything the Bible says. And He's so much better, and so much more benevolent, than anyone on earth can describe to you.

And, at the same time, when you understand who He is, and who we are...the question isn't "how could a good God let anyone go to Hell instead of paradise?" The question is, "how could He let any of us live after what we did?" It's hard. But seriously, just play pretend with me for a bit, if only to "understand my perspective." Pretend there was a God, all-powerful, endlessly loving, in fact, Love Itself. The love that was His very nature spilled out so much that He created—created beautiful, amazing, complex creatures who were intrinsically full of worth and light, and made to reflect Him, that Love, back to Him, and share in it. A big happy family.

And then those creatures from the dirt committed cosmic treason and said "screw You, I don't care if You created me and I don't care if You love me or want to be in relationship with me: I want to be You. I want to call the shots." And those creatures from the dirt basically did the cosmic version of climbing in their father's lap to spit in His face, and go stab each other over fleeting pleasures in the gutter because the mansions He was offering them wasn't as good as pretending they could be gods of their own lives.

That's the story. Thats what happened. Read Genesis, if you have the time and if you're of the heart to. And because of what we chose, we got twisted up. I'm sure you read that, in my posts. So even the thing we were made for—love—got mangled up inside us and we can't express it the right way anymore.

He would've been justified in wiping us out. Starting over with new creatures. We were His creation. He gets to decide what we are and what to do with us: we betrayed and insulted and defied our rightful King. But He's not like that. He had no reason to--no obligation to--but He chose to do the work and make a way for us to be back in relationship with Him. And He chose to do it by subjecting Himself to unimaginable torture and darkness, which would have been ours by right if He hadn't taken it for us.

I know that you love your mom. It is plain to see. And I understand the feeling. But if you really get to know the God of the actual Bible, instead of just the memes and the flawed people who try to explain Him—if you really get to know Him, between you and Him, you'll see that He actually loves your mom more than you do. And He loves you more than you, or anyone, does. Because He knows you both better and more intimately than you even know Yourselves. He made you. It'd be like an author getting to dive down into the story and tell their characters everything about themselves.

That's the kind of love we were made for. The kind of love that is there even though you don't deserve it, even though you're not entitled to it—the kind of love that would die for you while you're still hating Him.

I mean just stop and think about it, clear your brain of everything everyone has ever told you about LGBTQ+ and all that. And just think: can you love someone wholeheartedly and still know they're in the wrong? Even when they wholeheartedly believe they're right? Even when they're hurt by you believing they're in the wrong? Of course you can. Anyone who's had a loved one with a self-destructive habit, like alcohol addiction or an abusive lover or just a toxic personality trait or two, can relate to that common sense. They can say, "of course I love you. That's why I'm telling you to stop doing this, it's hurting you, it's not good for you, I know it doesn't feel that way, but it's the truth."

So if you believe that there are some circumstances where that applies, what makes it so unloving for this hypothetical God, who knows the best thing for your friend and knows your friend better than you do, to say so about being LGBTQ+? Why should LGBTQ+ be any different?

Well, the answer, of course, is that you don't believe it is true that it's wrong. Because, if we rewind, you don't believe in God. But you just told me that you came to that conclusion kind of...after feeling hurt by Him. You almost died, first , then your mom chose to leave Him behind and go ahead and live as if He doesn't exist. And you did, too.

But let's go back to playing pretend. If God exists, then He didn't act how you think He should've, as an "benevolent" God: He didn't do YOUR version of "good." So you abandoned Him. (We're pretending like He exists, from your perspective.) He didn't do your version of good, you feel mistreated, so you walked away from Him.

But He would never do that to you. If He's the kind of person the Bible says He is, He doesn't treat you that way. When you (humanity) didn't do His version (which is the only real version, since He invented it) of good, He didn't abandon you. He totally could have. But instead He made a way for your relationship to get fixed. But you have free will. So He's not going to force you to love Him and accept the gift. If you want to continue for all eternity without being with Him, you can. He gives you that option.

But then don't wonder why people who choose that option don't get "eternal paradise." Because according to the Bible, that's all heaven is: getting to be in relationship with God forever. Fully who He made you to be. If you don't want that, He won't force it: in fact, He couldn't. It wouldn't be just, and He is always just.

The truth is, after what we did to Him, none of us deserve anything from Him. I didn't deserve to survive in that ICU. Neither did my sister. Neither did my father or mother or grandfather. None of us should be allowed to inhale another breath; we're the King's people who betrayed Him and tried to steal His throne. But He is so good that instead He turns around and adopts us.

I know this is rambly. But you messaged me so genuinely, I just sort of wrote this as if I were sitting down and talking it all out, one word in front of the other, with you. I don't know you. I know these are very hot button topics, and very personal issues; but like you, I think they're of the utmost importance.

So I will keep considering the LGBTQ+ and transgender issues—but you have to understand that I'm in service to the King, so to speak. I love Him, He loves me, and He's my God. When I consider any part of reality, it's impossible to do so without Him as the center and standard of truth. Without Him, who gets to decide what's right or wrong? Just me. And on my own, I am inconsistent, selfish, ruinous. But I'm not on my own. And in the meantime, I'll ask you to consider God, the real God, of the Bible. Not what a church of whatever denomination tells you—not to start with. Not what I tell you, or anyone tells you. Just what He said about Himself, straight from the Bible. Let Him speak for Himself. Thanks for reaching out.

[allwormdiet]

Interlude 1

Time to meet the parent.

Scion is so fucking weird. Like even being spoiled on what his deal is, what a fucking wild introduction to the world's first superhero. Absolutely buckwild. Naked golden man just floating above the ocean looking depressed. What a way for the world to be changed forever.

Cancer and suicide are both hard things to grapple with, and they're both things that have rocked my family and loved ones. This, I dunno, incidental fucking gesture just feels so. I don't know what to call it, it just feels. Makes me feel. Whatever.

Again, just, that's gotta be so fucking weird for a superhero to just suddenly exist. No way people jumped to superhero first obviously, might as well have been the Second Coming for all anyone would know, but still. I want to know what it is that makes Scion act like a hero when his ultimate desires for Earth are. Pretty unheroic? Maybe there'll be an answer for that, and presumably it's more subtle in the long-term than just immediately going apeshit, but it's still a mystery to me, so I'm left with the speculation.

Feel like I've heard the name Vikare before but fuck me if I can remember the context. Setting that aside, there's something, I dunno, telling? In that the first capes were superheroes, that the villains came after. Even in a world that's as shit as this one, the first instinct people had when they realized they had actual for-real superpowers was to do good. That's honestly a bit less cynical than I was expecting.

It is interesting that the honeymoon period for heroes lasted not even half a decade, that's longer than I'd have expected. And I think this is the first time we hear the word parahuman, which is fun. "Para-" meaning alongside or distinct, they're not superhuman, they're not inherently better, they're just. Different kinds of human. That's a clever pick.

Whatever else can be said about Danny Hebert (and we are getting to whatever else can be said about Danny Hebert, gimme a minute), this is a really really really good way to immediately get us in his head and on his side. When someone isn't where you expect them to be, when it's the middle of the night and they're not in the house like they ought to, that's fucking terrifying. For a parent to realize their child has disappeared, I cannot even imagine.

And yeah, not far behind Danny being terrified for his daughter is this complicated tangle of longing-anger-guilt for his wife. His wife whose death has absolutely nothing to do with the lack of a cellphone I'm sure.

And I'll be the first to admit I was a lot like Taylor back in high school, although I had a friend group and the bullying was a fraction of a fraction of what she's dealing with. My wildest nights were spent in a too-hot garage drinking novelty sodas and playing RPGs with the world's crappiest Dungeon Master. But I'm distracting myself.

"I hope that my daughter's only source of catharsis hasn't gotten her kidnapped or raped or murdered in this godawful city in the middle of the night" is such a horrifying thought to have to grapple with. God.

Speaking of horror.

I know about the thing with the locker, and God what a nightmare. Like, obviously, number one victim here is Taylor, and it is a testament of immense moral character that she didn't kill anybody for that torture, but Danny takes silver in the aftermath. His daughter has been tortured, and nobody will punish wrongdoers, nobody will even say who it was. Taylor won't even say who it was.

Anger and futility juxtaposed again. Danny rages for his daughter but it's fruitless except for a settlement to cover the hospital stay, so all he can do is wait and hope that something changes for the better.

This is actually something I've always wondered about. Taylor goes to such extreme lengths to not tell Danny about her life, and I've never fully understood why. Like the cape stuff I get, or at least mostly get, but Taylor doesn't open up to him about the bullying in anything I've ever seen or heard, and I don't know what's stopping her. It hurts both of them in the end.

And here's Danny's failure, right? He doesn't commit. He's letting Taylor lie to him, he's letting Taylor think she's getting away with lying. That's... kinda useless.

Honestly the fucked up thing is that Taylor's already got that anger in her, Danny worries about hurting her and he's not WRONG to worry about that, but to some extent she's already got that same kind of smoldering emotion as he does.

And the fact that he's tried so goddamn hard to protect her from his anger, the fact that she's caught the edges of it anyway even if it's never been targeted at her, that's just so goddamn sad. The Hebert family makes me sad.

Current Thoughts

The thought I can't get out of my head is that Danny doesn't want to confront Taylor because he doesn't want to chase her away, doesn't want her to feel unsafe with him, but like. One day she's going to leave anyway, drifting apart from him as their lives grow so much more different from each other, and what she's going to remember is that he never tried to keep her by his side, that he gave up on trying to fight for her. And that's worse. That's so much worse.

[coraniaid]

I know India Cohen is a character who exists in the sort-of-canon tie-in books that were being published while the show was still on the air, but I think it's a shame that we never had any sort of flashback to or mention of the Slayer immediately before Buffy on the show (whether that was India herself or if they invented somebody else).

Was Buffy never at all curious about her predecessor? Even before meeting Kendra or Faith we know Buffy wondered a bit about what would happen if she was killed ("I know the drill: one Slayer dies, next one's called. Wonder who she is."), and we know she looks at the past Watcher's diaries and talks to Spike about the Slayers he killed. So then why the lack of curiosity about the girl whose death directly led to Buffy's own calling? What better place to start learning about what it means to be a Slayer than from her?

And was there nobody that previous Slayer knew who might have crossed paths with the Scooby Gang in the present day? If Buffy had died for good in Prophecy Girl, Angel and Giles and the rest of the Buffy's friends wouldn't have just stopped fighting evil on the Hellmouth entirely. Eventually, they'd have met Kendra (who would still have come to town as she does in What's My Line?) too. If Kendra had died, maybe they'd have met Faith too. Nikki Wood had a Watcher who mourned her and a son who grew up to avenge her. Didn't the Slayer before Buffy have anybody like that?

Imagine some vampire or demon or monster of the week showing up in Sunnydale because they have unfinished business with "the Slayer" and they've finally been able to track her down, only to learn that the Slayer they're looking for isn't Buffy but somebody long dead. Imagine an episode in Season 7 where we at first think we're seeing another Potential being attacked by agents of the First, only for her to reveal herself as the Slayer and the show to admit that this is a flashback to the distant past of 1994 or 1995. Imagine Buffy having to finish something that earlier Slayer started; getting a sense of what it must be like to be Kendra or Faith after spending time with people who remember the girl who died so that Buffy come become the Chosen One.

I mean, I sort of understand why the show never did this: it would be kind of depressing and involve introducing a lot new characters for a single episode (which is something the show really shied away from doing after the first three seasons). I know they probably left that to the expanded universe material for a reason.

It just feels a little strange that, watching the show, you could almost convince yourself that Nikki Wood was the last Slayer before Buffy (and indeed, that would have been a lot more consistent with the show's stated premise that there is exactly one Slayer "in every generation" than the later take that a new Slayer is called the instant the last one dies turned out to be).

[ladynicte]

Nico who has been deified after his death. Nico who's sure, after all this time, he's finally managed to let go of his older sister's death, of course, it still hurts, and of course, he will never forget her, but that fiery hatred and overtaking sadness, has finally been put to rest.

Nico knows and understands that his sister chose to move on without him, and that's okay, no it's never gonna be okay but he's made his peace with that too, and now, that he's an inmortal himself he never expects to see Bianca again.

Nico lives easy. He works for his father, he sleeps for a couple decades at a time, sometimes he goes back to Camp, takes care of some kids during their quests here and there, but for the most part, he's a chain-free roaming God.

And then, one day at Camp Nico meets her, a tiny little girl, with how long he has lived, time has become almost impossible for Nico to really track down anymore, but he's sure this girl can't be more than 10.

And something about her eyes, her dark, void-like eyes, and her long black hair, and her proud stance. It really reminds him of somebody else.

The girl is all alone, no little brother or older sister of her own, no parents either, apparently, she's a child of Hekate, but that really doesn't matter.

Something about the girl's every move, about the way she approaches the darkness without fear, about the way she approaches him, like she's known him all his life, the way she uses her whole body when talking.

It reminds Nico of Bianca. This girl's soul is just like Bianca's.

And Nico supposes it's no longer a fatal flaw, but he still doesn't know how to let go.

Nico immediately claims her on the spot, lets her sleep on the Hades Cabin, helps her out with everything, takes care of her for years and years.

It's the first time in centuries, that Nico as a God feels connected to his mortal side.

When the little girl cuddles against him, because she's had yet another nightmare about manticores and huge robots, while Nico quietly tries to hug her, and reassure her she's going to be fine, he even starts thinking that maybe his family has grown, yet again.

And then, she's send off on a Quest, Nico loudly protests against it, because he knows how those end.

Because, he still remembers waking up screaming and trashing, in the middle of the night, inside the Hermes Cabin, surrounded by strangers and shadows, as he felt Bianca's soul perish away.

But it's no use, the Oracle of her time had already issued her prophecy, this new girl, Rachel having long since passed away, who Nico feels almost comfortable cursing in the spot, just like his father had done so many centuries ago.

The little girl leaves, and Nico now has nobody to swear to keep her protected. Nico knows it's useless to try to convince her to stay, but he still does, it doesn't work, it never has worked

But truth is, she doesn't even look scared.

She's excited, and ready, and determined, and Nico has to wonder if this is how Bianca looked like, during her last week on Earth, too.

The girl leaves and she doesn't come back.

Nico thinks, it should be easier by now. It isn't, it's never gonna be it

Hades catches Nico roaming mindlessly around Elysium, after noticing his absence from The House, for what's either days, or years.

Hades mournfully reassures Nico that Bianca is not there anymore. No, not this time, not last time, not next time either.

After that, Nico chooses to abandon Camp fully, once again, he doesn't come back for another few centuries, until Hermes asks him for help getting his children to satefy at Camp.

Nico swallows the bile, that he's sure a Godly body like his own, shouldn't be able to produce anymore, shakes Hermes's hands, and tells his cousin his children will make it through, just fine.

Nico rescues the kids, regretfully send them off to live all cramped up together at their Father's Cabin forever, but one of the boys of the bunch, just has such dark eyes, like a black hole consuming souls.

And he stands so proud, and Nico just knows once more, and all at once, because he would recognize Bianca's soul anywhere.

In life, in death, at the end of the world, in a Hekate's daughter, in an Hermes's son, it doesn't matter, the person standing in front of him, is simply Bianca in another skin.

Bianca, being a wild hero once more, and Nico has to wonder if she can see him as clearly as he can see her.

Bianca is the only one after all, who has known him all his life, Bianca knew his name before it was even his own. Nico was born knowing her.

If she can see him, or if she can't, Nico doesn't even know which one would hurt more.

Time passes, and if Nico let's the boy sleep at the Hades Cabin, because the nightmares about manticores, giant robots, and magic are too much to bear, and he can't even scream in peace inside the Hermes Cabin, well, that's only Nico's own business to know about.

Nico realizes, after a few ages of Godhood, that The Fates like repeating their own stories.

Nico knows he hates all of them, deeply and purposefully.

The Oracle comes up to the boy, Nico is sure she must be a new girl, but all the girls Apollo chooses all look the same, and she is the same, she gives the hero the prophecy that will bury him.

And, it doesn't even take Nico a glance to know, that this is where that boy's life thread is cut.

Nico wants to sneer, this would be Bianca's third death, and if a hero dies three times they get the special prize, and yet.

Nico begs the boy to not go, because they both know he's not gonna make it back.

Bianca never has. Bianca never does. This is Bianca's fate. She was already dead before the story even began.

But the boy doesn't even break eye contact with Nico, as he tells Nico that he's very kind, and that he loves him too, but no way.

He's gonna go, and so, the boy does.

The boy leaves and he doesn't come back, and Nico has to crawl at his Godly skin, and remember the sensations, of back when there was human flesh, and blood running through his veins.

And that's just the thing isn't it, that Bianca is never going to stay by his side, because she doesn't want to.

[toriafiction]

Another WIP (I have too many 😭)

After a universe is obliterated, collapsing in on itself like when a star devolves into a black hole, the two neighboring universes shift and collide. However, instead of completely destroying one or both of them, the two are merging. This means that instead of having two Batmen in this newly developing universe, the two men merge. This new Batman now has new memories for his entire life that is a nice seamless balance of the two different men he used to be, and he is none the wiser that this even happened.

This is how it is for everyone.

That's not great, but it doesn't sound too bad, right?

Except anyone who doesn't have a double is just disappearing altogether. People like Stephanie, who in the other universe died in her first couple of days as Spoiler before she ever even met the Bats. Or Dick, who died that awful night with his parents in Haly's circus.

Dick and Steph blink out of existence, and nobody knows because their new memories smooth it out like they never existed beyond the point of their deaths.

For everyone except Jason. Why does Jason remember when nobody else does? Unbeknownst to them, it's because of how he came back to life.

When Superboy-Prime alters reality from the paradise dimension in which he is trapped—his punches against the barrier keeping him from the rest of the universe causes temporal ripples that create an overlap of parallel timelines (Hypertime). This is what brings Jason back to life (as in the paradise dimension, he survives the Joker's assault).

Jason is already overlapped by another universe, and as such, when these two try to merge it affects him differently.

He wakes up in the parsonage of a church he is now apparently the priest of with two complete and separate sets of memories. In one set, he is simply Father Todd. In the other set, he remembers everything.

He remembers the moment the two universes started to merge. He and Dick had just been going to bed after a light and playful night of patrol. The downright joyful mood had easily flowed into the bedroom as they settled in. It had been a warm and loving moment full of adoration.

Then, everything changed in a fraction of a second. Dick had seized up, his eyes going wide and alarmed. He desperately clutched at Jason, gasping his name. Then, he just seemed to fade away slowly. Jason tried to hold on to him, but his body had lost all corporeality. It was like Dick had become a ghost right before his eyes, and Jason had never felt so helpless.

Jason tries going to Batman and the rest of the family, but everything is all wrong, and they don't know him. Batman is Batman, but Tim is going by a name he never has before. Damian is nowhere to be seen at first, but a little research shows that he spent a couple of months with Bruce before returning to his mother. Babs is Oracle and has turned Batgirl over to Cas.

Jason has no idea what the hell has happened or how to fix this when no one will give him the time of day. None of his contacts know who he is, so they won't deal with him.

Jason decides to play it the only way he really knows how. Brutally hard. If they don't want to listen, he will make them.

Jason breaks into the cave and fills an inflatable bag with gear, including an unadorned base layer of armor for Batman. He and Bruce are close enough in size he can make it work. He throws the bag into the cave's waterway. Jason knows where it will come out, and he will get it later. Still, this is too important to fuck up, so he slipped a tracker in the bag as well.

Then, he stays to confront Bruce again. He had played it safe the first time. Jason had met Batman on neutral ground on a Gotham rooftop and hadn't mentioned knowing who they were. This time, he isn't holding back.

It's ugly. It almost immediately turns into a fight. Jason does try to get through to Bruce. He tries so fucking hard! He needs Bruce on his side, but Bruce isn't listening.

Why won't Bruce ever just listen to him?!

He doesn't pull any punches, and as things continue to devolve, he strikes hurt.

"It wasn't your fault when you lost your family the first time. You were a helpless child then. This time, it will be. Fucking fight for your kids, Bruce!"

Bruce is freaked out that anyone managed to not only figure out their identities but also to break into his most fortified sanctuary. There will be time for questions and answers as soon as he has the threat secured in a cell and some form of control again.

Jason is more than holding his own against Bruce until both Tim and Cas enter the fight.

Jason doesn't know why he does it. Nothing he has said has triggered anything with any of them so far. But when Tim darts forward, going low while Bruce goes high (he has no idea where Cas is, and that's terrifying), he just shouts it out.

"Robin!"

But it's not Tim who jerks and freezes in place. Jason knows that Tim had built a considerable part of his life on and around Robin. Tim has integrated Robin into the foundation of himself on many different levels.

Hell, how could Robin mean more to anyone other than the boys who had made and worn, fought and bled, and, in Jason's case, even died in those colors?

But Bruce slams into a complete standstill, and his expression is so tortured as if that single word has entirely shattered him.

Who cares about Robin more than the boys themselves?

Bruce's episode is enough of a distraction for Jason to make his getaway, and it confirms that somewhere buried incredibly deep, the memories still exist.

They all love Dick, but the truth is he's been more crucial in some of their lives than he has been in others.

Could Jason get to Damian? Would having Damian on his side actually be any help? Would it be more productive to stay in Gotham and keep pushing at Bruce now that he has gotten a reaction from the man, or would it be better to give him some time and space and let him come to terms with whatever he has just experienced?

There is no logical reason for it, but Jason feels a near-desperate sense of urgency. It's like there is a lurid red timer ticking down until his world explodes again. Some part of him wants to freeze under the pressure, indecision weighing down on him, but that has never been Jason's style.

It's knowing what Dick would want that actually makes up his mind. Jason has been doing mental gymnastics to avoid thinking about it, but what if this can't be fixed? Damian is with the League of Assassins, being hurt, used, and brainwashed. Dick would never forgive him if he didn't save their youngest bird. Jason would never forgive himself.

He fishes his gear out of the river it has floated its way into. He pulls the tracker, not trusting that he is the only one who can trace it. He picks up a discarded plastic soda bottle, seals the tracker inside, and flings it back into the river. Hopefully, that will tie up at least one Bat for a little while.

Next, he procures himself an old cheap laptop from a second-hand electronics store. He uses it to book himself a flight. With no resources and nobody willing to talk to him he'll have to fly commercial. It'll be much slower, make him easy to track, and just a pain in the ass in general. The only luck he's had so far is that his first flight will leave early in the morning.

While he waits he spends a few hours setting the laptop up to send each Bat a message every day for the next month. He does his best to make them both personal and meaningful. He doesn't want to lose any ground he's gained with Bruce, and he also wants the others to remember.

They were all trained in detective skills, and part of that is remembering important information such as dates. And if there is one thing a Bat can't ignore, it's a mystery or a puzzle. If he gives them something to solve, then they will be thinking about it, and if they are actively thinking about it, then hopefully they'll remember something. So, quite a few of the messages contain dates with tiny hints as to what makes them special, but Jason is careful to keep a mixture of pointed questions, statements, and memorable quotes or nicknames in there as well.

A lot of the messages end up being the same for everyone. He sends them all birthday dates and the designs of the many different Robin suits, as well as the Nightwing, Spoiler, and Steph's Batgirl suits. He also sends them all the date for the night the first Robin flew by Batman's side for the first time. He did the same for Steph's first night as Robin and Batgirl.

He addresses most of Bruce's messages to Batdad even though here he hasn't adopted anyone and is only fostering Cas. Tim still lives alone in Drake Manor. It really pisses Jason off, but he is already doing the best thing he can by trying to fix this broken world.

Some of the messages that Jason sends solely to Bruce include the date for when he first brought Dick home. The date for when he (finally) officially adopted Dick, and the dates for Steph's first night as Robin as well as her last. Some of the questions he sends Bruce run along the lines of, "Have you ever held a tiny bird close to your side tucked beneath a bat's wing?"

"Who's going to swing from your chandeliers now?"

"Does the manor feel dark and empty with only Cas and Alfie? Do you expect more people when you round a corner or enter a room? Do the halls ring silent, devoid of their bright laughter and the pounding of running feet?"

"Have you ever paused in front of a door in the family wing because you know somebody should be in there?"

He addresses some of Tim's messages to baby bird. He sends him the date that he filed on the batcomputer as the one he figured out that Robin was Dick Grayson and from there who all the Bats were. The date of his first night as Robin and the date that Steph "died" followed immediately by the question, "Has love ever hit you like a brick to the face?"

Some of the others just for him are, "Who taught you how to fly, baby bird?"

"Have you ever surfed on a train?"

"There is a special kind of weight to being the middle child."

"Rooftop tag, you're it."

"Get in the car loser, we're going shopping" would be her soul words."

"Do you want a hug? Doesn't matter, octopus hold engaged."

"Glitter bombs."

He asks Babs who the "Boy Blunder" is. If she was ever lonely when working with B during her Batgirl days. Who she spent her movie nights with. He sent her two shades of purple and asked which one was right. He sent her a lot of really bad but highly memorable puns and quippy one-liners.

He does this for each of them, including Alfred.

It never once occurs to him to send them anything about himself.

This is the majority of what I have for this one. I have a couple more vague ideas for it, but nothing as put together or comprehensive. Which is why I haven't actually written it yet. 😆

Once I have the full picture, I'll go at it in earnest.