#grandma moreno

[yourstrulylightstar283]

My rewriting of headcanon for la familia Moreno

Missy, Anita and Marcus Moreno love cats and kittens as well and they're not allergic to them. They also still love dogs and puppies and they're especially fond of chihuahuas. They love rabbits, bunnies, dolphins, orcas, penguins, pandas and red pandas too. They even love elephants, tigers and monkeys.

They love caesar salad with bacon, caesar salad with turkey bacon chicken caesar salad with bacon and chicken caesar salad with turkey bacon.

Their favourite flowers are peonies, tulips, roses(Including red, pink and blue ones), pink carnations, deep red carnations and sunflower.

They love gardening flowers, drawing, painting, reading, swimming, cooking and even baking(Though Marcus still can be distracted like his introduction scene in WCBH.).

They still believe in Santa Claus and they're very proud of it.

For disclaimer, I don't own the Morenos and We Can Be Heroes.

The headcanon and the concept of it (c) @yourstrulylovely52(Me)

[yourstrulylightstar283]

I adore la familia Moreno! 😀

Pedro as Marcus Moreno in We Can Be Heroes (2020)

[coulsons-fullmetal-cellist]

Has anyone else done this?

[cinnanmonn]

🥛 𝑀𝐼𝐿𝐾. 🥛

𝑌𝑎𝑛! 𝐹𝑎𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑟 𝑥 𝐺𝑁 𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑣 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟

TW: Lactation, suggestive content, groping

Wow. For this summer, instead of spending time with your friends or having fun, your parents forced you to help at your grandparents barn.

You had already planned to make this summer the most memorable and enjoyable moments of your life, only to be shattered by your parents threatening to cut off your allowance if you don't help out.

Well you weren't even sure you could make this summer that good because of your budget. You tried to save up for this moment!

Well maybe next summer.

Your allowance was a big part in helping you pay your rent, because you literally cannot support yourself with small part-time jobs.

But they even promised a paycheck, so you had no choice, really.

➹➹➹

You knock on their door, after a few moments your grandma opens the door, greeting you sweetly.

"Oh dear, come in! I'm so glad you were able to come. Haha, we've been understaffed here so you helping is so thoughtful! " she says, as she leads you to the living room.

"It's alright, ma. I'm glad I could at least help. " even though you were lowkey doing this because your mother was paying you.

"Hahaha! Your old man is alseep right now. He's pretty tired, today."

She gestures you to put your things on the couch, you do as told as you sit down. The couch was comfy, despite being worn out it's still in good condition.

The room was colorful, filled with pictures and other vintage things. Mostly broken.

You wait as your grandma gestures you to come into a room.

"Here! The room your mom used to have. Unpack all your things and take a rest, baby. "

"Alright." You smile at her as she closes the door. You quickly open up your stuff and unpack all your things.

You shove your clothes in the old wardrobe and place your other stuff on the stand near the bed.

Wow, the room looked so old. You sigh as you lay on the bed, taking off your shoes.

Your gonna be here for a good 3 weeks. Hahh, you really wished there was something interesting to do, didn't you?

Sadly, there's no internet or signal here, so it's gonna limit your entertainment. Plus, you don't really know people here, since the ones you used to know nearby moved out.

You decided to take a little nap before anything, after all the travel was pretty tiring.

➹➹➹

You woke up in cold sweat, you hear knocks on your door as you sloppily get up and open the door.

Woah.

There stood a tall man, no matter your height he looks real tall. There stands a moreno with a buff looking body and.... The most plump chest you've ever layed your eyes on.

"Um.... Your grandma told me to grab go grab you for dinner. " he shifts uncomfortably at your weird gaze. Maybe you weren't tall enough because you didn't even held eye contact with him.

You were looking at his chest with a tight shirt, wow I hope the buttons would rip off.

You give yourself a little pinch to get back on your senses.

"Oh yeah... You are? " you say, awkwardly as you look away from him.

"Um... I'm Isagani. "

"Oh ahahha, I see. Alright can you please move?"

He flinches as he walks farther away from you, so you could walk towards the dinning room.

He walks in front of you, giving you a mouth-watering view of his ass.

DAMN.

I bet it's jiggly. (💀)

As the both of you reach the dining room, your granddad approaches Isagani and puts his hand on his shoulder.

"Isagani, this is my lil' grandkid. Take care of 'em alright? "

"Oh! Yeah of course, pa. " he awkwardly smiles. You grin in embarrassment. Wow this feels so awkard. Your grandma walks into the room, with a tray of your favorite food.

Your eyes light up, you quickly sit down and get ready to eat. Isagani sits next to your granddad while your grandma sits next to you.

"Dig in, of course I had to make your favorite for today! " your grandma says, smiling proudly.

"Thanks a lot, ma. I'm sure I'll enjoy it here. You smile as you ate.

➹➹➹

As soon as you finished your meal, you went to the bathroom and took a warm bath. It felt so calming, maybe your stay wouldn't be so bad.

Especially with such fine looking specimen being here. You laugh to yourself at the thought. You were already enjoying this.

You hop off the bath and walk towards your room. You remove the towel as you start wearing your undergarments.

When suddenly, the door opens.

"Did you get your-" you quickly look at him. Isagani is wide eyed at the sight he saw. Before you could speak, he quickly closes the door and speaks up. "I'm so sorry! I didn't know!! " he says sounding nervous as you could hear him run off.

You couldn't even get a singular word in. But to be perfectly honest, you don't really give a fuck if they were hot enough.

I'm definitely gonna tease him with this.

Those were your thoughts as you fell asleep.

By the next morning as SOON as you ate your breakfast, you were ordered to milk some cows, with the help of Isagani.

He wouldn't even look at you, while he talked.

"So first of all... "

"Hey."

"Yeah? "

You pull his chin to make him face you, making his face go red. "U-um... Uh... "

"You act like that as if you haven't seen me nude." His eyes widen at your words, he could feel himself get more flustered with how you said it.

"It's not like that! I swear! I'm not interested in high-schoolers, I'm like 27! "

.....

"I'm not a high-schooler. I'm 25." He looks at you, surprised. "Really.... You look like, 20."

"20 year olds aren't high Schoolers. They're also in collage. "

"They are? "

"Yeah never mind. " this conversation was going nowhere. Wahh, you really can't focus when you look at that chest, he's even sweating, making his chest puff up and down at how hot it is.

You had a devious thought, as you suddenly pull him to you. "Hey... You wanna feel good real quick? "

"W-what..? " you smile at his Innocence. "Wanna make out? Well not here, somewhere hidden. "

He quickly gives distance to you as he waves his hands. "We can't! Grands are gonna find us! "

You sigh, "not unless we get caught, c'mon, it's my revenge after you saw me all vulnerable. "

He hesitated, but his eyes shows that he was tempted to. In the end, he ended up following you to the back of the barn. You push him against the wall.

He whines at the sudden impact, as he pathetically looks up at you. "Your so cute.. " Your words make him go red, as he touches his face and think deeply about your comment, you give him a sudden kiss, you make him look up to face you by grabbing on his hair.

You grope his chest, making him squirm. You pull away as you quickly pull off his shirt. "H-hahhh..." He gasps for air at how rough your treating him.

Meanwhile, you were absolutely dazed. His tits are such a cute color of pink, you immediately go ahead and squeeze it, while your mouth bites on his bud.

"He screams out a moan, trying to keep himself quite by covering his mouth with his hand.

"Shut the fuck up, slut. " you wince, as you continue to bite and grop his chest. You lick on it, earning a few moans from him.

You kept lapping until suddenly, you could feel a substance on your mouth. You pull away to see both his buds, leaking with white liquid.

Hot damn. He even lactates? How's that possible and that's so fucking hot.

"I wanna eat you out. "

You say before suckling on his sweet tasty bud. "Ahh..! F-feels weird... Nghh.... " he attempts to quite down his moans, as he could feel his pants get tighter.

You rub on his clothed shaft, earning moans from him. You twist his little buds, milk coming out of it endlessly. You lick it up as you continue lapping his tits.

"I feel.... Ahh!! Something..gonna come.. A-ahh.. ". Is he gonna come? That so cute. With his tits? You couldn't help but go faster and faster as his moans get more frequent.

"S-something.... Ahhh... Ngh....!! " You watch as he cries out, a wet spot visibly on his crotch.

"Wow, you came with your tits like a whore. ". You grin at him. As you give him a little kiss on the cheek.

He whines as he wipes his tears. "What.... Now? " let's get you cleaned up alright? We don't wanna get caught. Le's go. " I help him up as I sneakily lead him to the river so he could wash up a bit at least.

♡-------------------------------------------------- ♡

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚢 𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝚜𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚢 (ू˃̣̣̣̣̣̣︿˂̣̣̣̣̣̣ ू) 𝚒𝚝'𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚒𝚍𝚔, 𝚙𝚕𝚞𝚜 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝙸 𝚍𝚘 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚜 𝚒𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚝𝚜 𝚒𝚝 𝚜𝚘 𝚒𝚝'𝚜 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚢 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚕𝚘𝚕

𝙱𝚝𝚠 𝚝𝚢𝚜𝚖 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚖 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚒𝚕𝚢 (^з^)-☆𝚌𝚑𝚞!! 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝙸'𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚢𝚙𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚏𝚏𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚜𝚘 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚜𝚞𝚖 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚢𝚝𝚢 ♡♡♡

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Moments in “Fast X” that I felt was bizarre even for this franchise (THIS IS ALL SPOILERS):

1) Pete Davidson randomly shows up just to be Pete Davidson.

2) Jason Momoa’s performance felt like they just told him to act like Hisoka from Hunter x Hunter. Or just a Jojo villain in general.

3) Letty and Cipher get sent to Antarctica, where Gisele just shows up at the end in a submarine despite clearly dying in the 6th one. That’s LITERALLY how the movie ended.

4) They got Alan Ritchson (the guy from Reacher) to play a buff CIA agent who hates barbecues and families. Also, maybe this is just me, but I felt like he was also Jason Momoa’s love interest? I just got the vibes.

5) The weird shot of the camera following Vin Diesel’s muscles which led into the car’s engines.

6) There was a 15-minute sequence where they chased a nuclear bomb that was rolling around the streets of Rome.

7) John Cena using three tequila bottles to power his mini plane.

8) Tyrese taped millions of dollars on his shirt and was just carrying that around the whole movie.

9) Rita Moreno was randomly there as Vin Diesel’s grandma.

10, EDIT) I forgot one other moment. Because F9 retconned Tokyo Drift, there was a sequence where the Agents of SHIELD (I know they’re the “Agency”, but it was basically Marvel’s SHIELD) are reviewing footage of their previous missions. One mission featured clips from Tokyo Drift.

[bigtits-potatoships]

He most certainly is.

I’m Brazilian, I’m latina, I’m not hispanic.

This google definition is correct: “Latin America is a cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages—languages derived from Latin—are predominantly spoken” which is why people born in Spain are not latinos. Because they aren’t. From the latino region. Which basically starts from Mexico all the way until Argentina including most countries in the way.

And for Brazilians most of what takes us to define who is white and who isn’t is the color of the skin, not their original country or region.

In my country I’m a white person, but for people from other countries I’m just a light skin latina/brazilian, whilst Ariana Grande (before she entered her Korean fase) would be considered brown (actually the correct term would be morena) because that’s the color her skin was.

It’s not a racist thing, it’s just different.

In Brazil for someone to be considered a black person is not enough that they have light brown skin. If they do, there’s a name for that “moreno” or “morena”, regardless of where they come from.

If you are from spain and you have white skin you are a white spanish and if you have black skin you’re a black spanish and in the middle you are moreno.

The rules for asian people are different tho, you are always your nationality. If you are from india you are indian, china chinese etc.

This is just a commentary of how things can end up being different according to different cultures.

Americans are strangely confident that their utterly bizarre ideas concerning ethnicity are universal, and then they get confused when that's not how things work.

Like apparently as far as they're concerned, the spanish are latino but italians are white, despite of ranging in the same colours and speaking languages so similar that I can vaguely make sense of italian by understanding the basics of french and spanish, and they're baffled when J.K. Rowling manages to be racist against white people.

[iluvstrawberry]

A Little Help Goes a Long Way

Marcus Moreno x (fem!) Reader

Rating: Explicit (MDNI) - 1.9k

Tags: romantic smut, also smutty smut, creampie and (slight) breeding (my loves!), slight daddy kink

Summary: With the heatwave taking up Marcus' focus and making him neglect his own well-being, his ever-supportive girlfriend decides to take matters into her own hands... and other openings.

Also cross-posted to Ao3

So excited (and nervous) to post this!! It's my first foray into the Pascal Boys Universe (do we call it the PBU?)

Thank you @pedgito @amanitacowboy and @chaotic-mystery for hosting this event and the amazing (!!!) moodboards!

And most importantly: Thank you to anyone and everyone for reading! Besitos!

A week the heatwave had lasted and according to the newscasters, it wouldn’t let up for yet another.

A small blessing was the fact that it was a dry heat, humidity only served to make the air feel that much hotter.

But even this small blessing came with a caveat. Marcus had been absent from home for each day of the week, often until the early hours of the morning. The heat increased the chances of fires spreading all over the forest keeping the heroes and their leader on high alert. 

Luckily, something like this hadn’t happened yet. He had taken every precaution, having heroes on patrol and firefighters on standby 24 hours a day. But even so, Marcus had not been able to relax since the heatwave began. 

His caring nature had been what endeared him so to yn, but too often this side of his character took a turn to the self-sacrificing, making him forget about his own well-being. He had been so wired that he had not had sufficient rest in days. This streak, yn was determined to break. 

With Missy at her Grandma’s for the weekend, she had made use of the shaded daybed next to the Moreno’s pool. The sun was slowly descending, shedding an orange-golden light over the garden. But still, the heat of the day didn’t let up, as she reclined. Marcus was busy in the kitchen with preparing their dinner, not accepting her insistent offer to help with a ‘This is the first time this week I have the time to cook for you. Let me, cariño.’

She could hear him pottering away, and as she heard him set the table, she set her plan into motion as well. 

Tugging her bikini top down, just so her nipples were close to being exposed, she called to him: ‘Marcus, baby! Do you mind helping?’

Her boyfriend, unaware of her intentions, took her bait and made his way from the open kitchen glass door to where she lay.

“Sure thing, what do you need?” Marcus asked, his voice a mix of curiosity with a hint of the exhaustion he seemed wont to ignore.

Yn turned her head, letting her eyes lock with his, and gave him a slow, inviting smile. “I think I need a little help relaxing,” she said softly, her tone carrying a hint of playfulness. She adjusted her position slightly, allowing the setting sun to cast a warm glow on her exposed skin. Slowly, her legs fell open.

Marcus’s eyes widened as he took in the sight of her. Already, he was taking unconscious steps toward her. “Yn, what are you up to?” he asked, a grin forming on his lips despite his weariness.

“Just trying to remind you that there’s more to life than work,” Yn replied, reaching out to gently tug him closer. “You’ve been so tense and overworked. Let me help you unwind.”

He sighed, the tension in his shoulders beginning to melt away at her touch. “You always know how to get to me,” he admitted, stepping closer until he was standing right beside her.

“Good,” Yn said, her hands moving to trace patterns on his arms. “Because you deserve a break, Marcus. You’ve done everything you can to keep everyone safe. Now, it’s time to take care of yourself. And let me take care of you.”

Marcus leaned down, his lips capturing hers in a kiss that was both tender and hungry. Yn responded eagerly, pulling him down onto the daybed with her. They kissed deeply, passion igniting between them like a spark in the dry summer heat.

As their kisses grew more fervent, Yn’s hands moved to unbutton his shirt, pushing it off his shoulders. Marcus, in turn, let his fingers dance along the straps of her bikini, pulling them aside to expose more of her soft skin.

Yn softly pushed his fingers away. ‘Nu-uh. No touching me yet. It’s your turn first.’

Marcus held his hands up in mock surrender and let Yn take off his linen shirt and trousers. She wasn’t surprised to see that he had forgone underwear.

‘Too hot for you?’, she grinned up at him, taking him in hand. Marcus whined.

‘Says the one wearing practically nothing. Please, cariño, don’t tease.’ 

That wasn’t her intention, so without hesitation, Yn leaned down to draw her tongue up his length. She moaned at his salty taste, taking his head into her mouth, suckling, while her right hand took to massaging his balls. Marcus groaned, one of his hands coming up to bury in her hair, the other drawing up her body, teasing one of her nipples through her top. 

Without missing a beat, Yn drew back. Marcus protested immediately ‘No. Come on, cariño, I am letting you take care of me. I just need something to occupy me.’ 

Though she tried, Yn couldn’t resist him when he looked at her with huge brown eyes, his length glistening with her spit and his precum. She changed her position, lying down on his chest so that her slit was right in front of his face. Without conscious thought, Marcus gripped her hips, inhaling her scent. His nose drew up and down the wet patch of her panties. Yn moaned, gripping his length again. Before she started sucking him a again she said: ‘If you take it off, maybe you’ll find something to occupy you.’

Marcus didn’t hesitate at the opportunity and undid the bows at the side of her panties. They fell open and Marcus quickly threw the offending garment off, while she took off her top. What greeted him, was one of his favourite sights. Yn, open and wet, her folds near dripping with desire. He quickly licked up her slit once, making them both moan.

‘Cariño, I can’t believe I’ve missed this the last few days. Let me apologize.’ And with that, he buried his face in her.

Yn tried to continue licking him but the way he pleasured her made her incapable to move.

She laid her head on his thighs and simply moaned, spasming when he switched from fucking her with his tongue to suckling on her clit. And then, he wet one finger and slowly slid it inside her - and stopped.

‘Cariño?’ he slowly tapped the small cylinder inside her. ‘What’s this?’

Yn lifted her head, eyelids heavy with desire. ‘Surprise!’ she breathed. ‘Guess what it’s made of.’

Marcus’ eyes glittered. Yn got no voiced answer but then the small metal cylinder began vibrating inside her. She choked and her whole body went rigid. With his powers, Marcus moved it directly to that special spot inside her and increased the vibrations. At the same time, he went back to sucking at her clit. Yn couldn’t move, couldn’t think. She pressed her eyes closed and let Marcus do what he wanted. And then - white hot light exploded behind her eyes when she fell off the precipice.

But there was no catching her breath. Marcus kept the vibrations coming, torturing her with pleasure, slipping in two fingers beside the toy to fill her up more. The trembles of her first orgasm hadn’t had the chance to stop, before she came a second, more powerful time. Marcus could feel her body pressing so tight around his fingers, her wetness spraying out of her pussy and drenching his neck and face. And still, he did not let up, licking up the wetness from around her opening. At her whining, he at least decreased the vibrations, though only slightly. And then she started begging.

‘Please Marcus ‘s too much. Please, daddy, I can’t. I need you now, daddy.’ 

That word. Marcus growled when he heard it. They didn’t often make use of it, only when she was near desperation from lust did she get into this headspace. And Marcus loved it. Without effort, he turned her around, sitting her on him so that she straddled his hips, right above his cock. She nuzzled into his neck and he took her face into his hands, gently making her look up at him. Her eyes were glassy with pleasure.

‘Yeah? Too much cariño? Need daddy to make it better? Need daddy to fill you completely?’ She could only nod weakly and wiggled her hips.

Marcus could feel her wetness on his cock. Without hesitation, he lifted her bottom with his one hand and lined himself up with the other. Slowly, he let her slide down his length until he was completely seated inside her. They both moaned at the sensation of being completely joined. With the cylinder inside her, she was even tighter.

‘You ready, baby?’ Marcus breathed, which Yn answered with an enthusiastic whine.

For what he had in mind, Marcus changed their positions, rolling them around until he was on top of her, and brought her ankles to rest on his shoulder. He kissed one and then slowly withdrew from her pussy - and slammed back into her. From there, he set a fluid rhythm, riding her hard. Each time he entered her completely, his cock kissed the entrance to her womb, making her whine with pleasurable pain. Their bodies were slick with heat and he could hear their combining wetness each time he moved. Nearing the end, he put his powers to use, and started vibrating the metal inside her. With the way he moved, it touched Yn’s spot consistently and she screamed out her third orgasm of the evening. Marcus could barely hold on, her tightness choking him, the vibrations making him lose all control.

‘Where do you want it, cariño? I’m so close!’ he whined. Yn clasped her hands around his face and drew him into a wet kiss, more tongue than anything.

‘Inside me, want to feel you. Want you to fill me. Make me yours.’ With those words, Marcus lost it. He slammed inside her one last time and with a deep grunt, released all inside her. Yn moaned when she felt liquid warmth fill her. 

All strength seemed to leave Marcus and he became boneless, pressing himself to Yn in a tight embrace. 

After catching their breath, they couldn’t ignore their apparent stickiness any longer.

“Let’s move to the pool,” Yn suggested breathlessly.

Marcus didn’t need to be told twice. He scooped her up in his arms, carrying her the short distance to the pool’s edge. With a playful splash, they both slipped into the cool water, their bodies still entwined.

The water was a perfect contrast to the lingering heat of the day. Marcus’s worries and exhaustion had completely faded away, replaced by the sensations of Yn’s body, her touch and the rhythmic movement of the water around them.

The heat of the day, the stress of the week, all seemed to dissolve in the cool, refreshing embrace of the pool and each other.

They continued to float lazily, wrapped in each other’s arms, the stars beginning to twinkle in the evening sky above. Yn rested her head on Marcus’s chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her ear.

“Thank you,” Marcus murmured, pressing a kiss to her damp hair. “I needed this more than I realized.”

Yn smiled, her fingers tracing idle patterns on his skin. “Anytime, baby. Anytime.”

They stayed like that for a while longer, enjoying the peace and tranquility that had been so elusive. In each other’s arms, they found the closeness and relaxation they had both been craving.

[thosewickedlovelies]

Private Eye | Tim Rockford/Marcus Moreno x F!Reader

Rating: T for Teen

Summary: You're a detective assigned to the strangest case this apple pie America town has ever seen. Enter: Marcus Moreno, alias Tim Rockford. Will you and your secretly super-powered partner be able to solve this case and the mysterious thing brewing between you?

Tags: vague murder(?) mystery; workplace romance; this is about detectives even though acab 😔✊🏻

Word count: 2,214

Note: Despite making fun of his name, I do still enjoy writing for Tim 😂😅 So here he is! This will eventually (hopefully) be a fun(?) series involving late night paperwork sessions, sneaking around a cool old mansion in the dark, and those intriguing powers of Marcus's...

Masterlist

No matter how many times you’ve been here, the mansion’s long, twisting hallways were never as unnerving as when you were alone in them at night. The shadows seemed to skulk closer than they were able to with your partner by your side. Now they skitter and warp, growing in the corners of your vision, as distance stretches between you. You stare after him in outrage and disbelief.

“Rockford!” you hiss.

He doesn’t answer, and you’re forced to nearly jog to catch up with his long stride. 

“Marcus!”

He whips around suddenly, and for a fleeting instant he’s caught in the moonlight slanting through the tall, narrow windows. Fury glitters in his eyes. In all the various stages of stress you’ve seen him, his jaw has never been clenched this tightly. His livid expression brings you up short.

The next thing you’re aware of is a searing pressure around your wrist as Marcus’s hand encloses it in his blazingly hot grip, dragging you, stumbling, until you reach one of the manion’s many now-familiar closets. The door slams behind you, and all you can see is darkness.

“I told you not to use my name onsite! You know it could put us in danger!” Marcus’s voice has dropped to a scalding whisper. 

“Well, what else was I supposed to do? You weren’t listening to me,Tim!” You place a scornful emphasis on his alias. “You were the one who said we can’t just go stomping around- that we don’t know who we’re dealing with, we have to be careful. You can’t just throw all that away.”

There’s a long, tense silence. You can practically hear Marcus’s internal combustion, a roaring fire of frustration spitting and discarding replies, the pressure rising all the while.

The tension clamors and builds. Marcus takes a long, long inhale- and then releases it, a great gust of a sigh so deep it ruffles your hair in the small space. 

Something creaks. You picture him leaning against the shelved walls, or maybe a serving cart. This old mansion was built with a plethora of butler’s pantries, and some of them still contained evidence of when this place actually employed a butler. 

There’s a squeaking sound that could only be the wheels of a serving cart as it’s pushed aside.

“I’m sorry. You’re right, and I’m sorry. It’s just…this fucking house, and this case. The evidence keeps piling up, but it’s not leading anywhere. I can’t get anything out of the knives or the needles, and the damn grandma…”

Marcus growls his frustration. 

In the utter blackness of your surroundings, the sound breathes goosebumps down the back of your neck.

You swallow, trying to think to professionally. “I know. I’m as frustrated as you are, okay?” 

That probably wasn’t strictly true. Marcus’s superpowers were best described as metalbending enhanced by modern-day science, but even he was struggling to glean any insights from the many knives and knitting needles you had in evidence for this case. He’d built his career on cracking strange cases like this; with his powers stymied, it must feel like groping in the dark. 

You take a deep breath of your own. “I’m sorry for using your name. I know you told me not to; I just couldn’t think of how to get you to stop.” 

Marcus sighs again, but this time it sounds less burdened, like some of his irritation has dissipated. 

“I know you understand the danger if my identity was revealed. I just…had to remind you. I’d never be able to forgive myself if something happened to you because of me."

A sound like his shoes scuffing against the ground, a sense of movement in front of you- what is he doing?

His deep voice is much closer suddenly. “Detective?” 

You’re grateful he can’t see you jump. “Yes?”

It takes your body a half second longer than your brain to realize that what’s touching your arms are Marcus’s hands, so this time he definitely knows you jumped. You almost immediately relax again, however. No matter how long he’d been wandering around this drafty old house in the cool of night, Marcus always managed to be radiator-warm. With your upper arms in a gentle grasp, he strokes soothing paths with his thumbs.

“Please don’t think I’m questioning your abilities. Just- you have be careful using my real name. No matter how much I enjoy hearing it from you.”

His tone drops to a velvety murmur. Your pulse kicks up. Is he…?

Your breath hitches. You scour the darkness for any glimpse of Marcus’s expression, but are only able to perceive the faintest hint of his silhouette. Blindly, carefully, you lift your hands until they find his chest.

“I’ll be careful.” Your voice comes out remarkably steady. 

“By the way…remember how I told you my powers extend even to things like blood? How when I concentrate, I can do things like…sense your heart rate.” Beneath Marcus’s nonchalance lurks a damning amusement. 

You still, although it’s not the mention of Marcus’s powers, but rather that of your traitorous, stuttering heart that’s provoked a sudden sense of danger. Blood rushes to your cheeks, doubtless confirming his guess.

Marcus chuckles softly. “Something making you nervous, Boss?”

You swallow hard against your dry mouth. “‘Nervous’ isn’t exactly the word.”

“No?” 

Marcus’s suit jacket brushes your front as he rustles closer, and your fingers instinctively curl around the lapels.

“No. Maybe.”

His presence fills the dark, enclosed space. The smell of Marcus pricks at your nose, his deodorant losing out to the exertions of a day of work and two hours of mansion-haunting. You fight the urge to inhale it. Your knees wobble, at risk of giving way.

Marcus takes your hand and guides it higher up his chest. “Me too,” he admits. “See?”

His heart thuds beneath your palm, beneath his ever-present layers of shirts and the firm pectoral beneath. It’s a comfort to find that it beats nearly as rapidly as yours- but not quite, the calm, confident bastard.

“Can’t see much of anything, actually…” It’s low-hanging fruit, but you manage a weak laugh.

Marcus snickers. “Fair enough.”

His breath hits your cheeks first, and then his nose bumps yours. You gasp quietly. It’s still too dark to see, but you can feel him- the shape of his body against yours, every nervous shuffle as he presses as close as he hasn’t dared in the weeks since you’ve met. 

“What about now?” he murmurs. 

“I think so,” you whisper.

Deep within the house, a door slams.

You both freeze. The tip of your nose digs into Marcus’s cheek; his mouth hovers against yours, your lips barely brushing in an agonizing almost-kiss. Your hands now clutch at each other, every muscle tense and listening.

A Few Weeks Earlier

“Someone else is here,” Marcus breathes.

---

“Detective, meet Agent Tim Rockford. He’s a federal investigative liaison who’s been assigned to assist us on this case.”

You blink. “A what?”

“Just think of me like FBI, but freelance,” the man- Agent Rockford- interjects smoothly. He extends a hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” you say slowly.

A freelance federal investigator? Like…a government-approved private eye? What is this, a noir film?

Surveying the grounds again, you snort to yourself. It might as well be. An utterly nonsensical mystery, set in an enormous mansion that could have easily been the setting of an Agatha Christie investigation? The spooky elegance of rundown old money infuses everything about the place, from the overgrown hedge garden to the mildewing paint of the building’s front turret.

Yeah, you’ve definitely seen a murder mystery setting like this before.

“Take Agent Rockford through the crime scene and get him up to speed. Report to my office before you go home, both of you. There’s been some developments we need to discuss.” Your captain strides back to her car, boots crunching on the gravel roundabout. The fountain in the center, filled with stagnant water, blocks your view of her driving off. 

The agent in question is looking around curiously- or at least, you assume it’s curiosity. It’s hard to say for sure with his eyes semi-obscured by a pair of dark lenses. They’re set in a common, unremarkable frame, matching the unassuming aura exuded by his brown pinstripes and polite posture.

“Well, Agent Rockford, let me show you around.” Maybe his job title will make more sense as the day goes on.

“Please, just Tim is fine.”

The man uses his long legs to step neatly ahead and open the door for you. You give him a look, but his smile appears genuine, not condescending- as far as you can tell. 

“Right. Well, as you can see, we’ve got gardens to either side of the driveway, which wrap all the way around the house. There’s a couple greenhouses, sheds, and several other entry points to the house, all with locks intact. I’ll take you through the gardens on the way out.”

Only after you finish speaking do you enter the house. “Thanks.”

Rockford pulls the door shut behind him without comment, but you’re sure you spot his mouth twitch.

The entry foyer is brightly lit by a vast chandelier twinkling high above. It illuminates the corniced ceilings, the grand central staircase with gracefully curving banisters, the shiny granite floors. It’s clear that effort was made to preserve this piece of the mansion’s grandeur, if little of the rest of it. 

“Wow.” Rockford is openly gaping, neck craning to take in the view overhead and throughout the polished space. 

It’s strangely endearing; you would have guessed from the gray flecks in his scruff that a man of Rockford’s experience would be hard to impress by now.   

“Yeah. It’s a shame we’ve had to scuff this place up, but, you know. Crime scene.” You gesture wryly, apologetically to the dust tracks and footprints dirtying the marble floor. 

“Is the whole house like this?” Rockford adjusts his sunglasses, still looking around. Why doesn’t he take them off?

“More like it used to be like this. The last generation or two of the family wasn’t big enough to need the whole house, so they closed off most of it. The rest is a few years away from caving in.”

Rockford nods. He’s looking closer at the details now- the painted portraits and original wood finishings, the evidence tags in the room beyond- and you can see his professional mind beginning to turn.

He turns to you expectantly. “Lead the way, Boss.”

--

Whatever you thought a ‘federal investigative liaison’ might be, it wasn’t Rockford- Tim, as he kept insisting. He was sharp without being obnoxious, respectful without being spineless, and, as you discovered, making your way back through the station, funny. As Tim pulls a face at your least favorite colleague’s diminishing figure, you think: maybe this case won’t be such a drag after all.

“Captain. You wanted to see us?”

“Yes, come in. Shut the door, please.”

Sitting at her desk, your captain shuffles aside the paperwork she’d been doing and unlocks a drawer to retrieve another file folder.

“Rockford. I trust my detective brought you up to speed?”

Tim nods, his face strangely grave. “Yes. I’d like to be honest with her, if you agree.”

“I think at least one other person should be aware. And she’s one of my best; you can trust her.”

Your captain’s praise doesn’t quite mollify your irritation at being talked about like you aren’t there. You’re opening your mouth to interject when she squares her shoulders to you.

“Detective. My apologies for the subterfuge. The agent here will be your partner and federal arm in this case- but Tim Rockford is not his real name.

“This is Agent Marcus Moreno, from a classified branch of the FBI which trains super-powered individuals in investigative capacities.”

You stare, dumbfounded.

“All that means in practice is that we’re detectives, just with super powers,” Tim- Agent Moreno- adds hastily. He awaits your reaction with a thin, anxious smile.

Your stunned gaze slides to him.

Oh. He’s removed his sunglasses. 

Well, that’s…distracting, frankly. Clearly visible for the first time, his eyes are a lovely shade of brown, and round and shiny with sincerity- utterly incongruous with the rest of his ‘generic jaded detective’ look.

“It was my decision not to tell anyone at first. It’s safer that way- it’s hard to know who to trust with this information, being classified and all. But since we’ll be working together so closely, I think it’s better for us to be open with each other.”

Well, that changes things. Or does it? It’s not your first time working with the FBI, but it is your first time meeting an agent with superpowers. Like a freaking Heroic! 

And you’ve seen the danger they face. Seen them targeted by all manner of enemies. You remember the shock and terror on their faces when one of their identities was publicly revealed- and the terrible, gaping hole left when that particular hero vanished afterward. 

Maybe you can understand Moreno’s desire for discretion.

You stick your hand out to the anxious agent sitting beside you. “Nice to meet you, Agent Moreno.”

Thanks for reading! Find more on my Masterlist ❤

His relief is palpable. He accepts your handshake with a boyish smile. “Please, just Marcus is fine.”

[bettsfic]

okay hear me out.

there's a movie out right now called 80 for Brady, and it's about four women who are diehard tom brady fans and want to see him in the superbowl. i was wary but my grandma really wanted to see it so we took her, and i was probably the youngest person in the audience by at least a decade.

i was prepared to be made uncomfortable by the glaring misunderstanding of how fandom works, but uhhhh it was great??

jane fonda's character openly admits to writing explicit RPF fanfiction (it's one of the first lines of the movie), and instead of attempting a realistic portrayal of fanfic writing, it's instead this very funny idealized/absurd version where jane fonda's character's fanfiction has been published, is widely loved, sold at the NFL stadium, and the football player it's written about loves it so much he carries it around with him everywhere.

the movie read to me like a portrayal of fandom by writers who have at some point been in fandom themselves, or at least very aware of it, (they also wrote booksmart) and thus Get It. it was a very sweet and earnest story about four adult women forming community over a shared interest, and i'm so glad i went to see it.

and rita moreno's character hallucinates herself as guy fieri.

[callsigndragon]

Make it Spicy | 6. can we talk?

Pairing: Chef!Mickey x Chef!Reader (called Pepper, not use of y/n)

Summary: we need to talk

Warnings: all the fluffs. (the plot thickens)

A/N: ignore the timestamps it's giving me a headache agh. ALSO. Camila's faceclaim (Mickey's grandma) is Rita Moreno, and Susie's faceclaim (Pepper's grandma) is Sigourney Weaver bc i love her. That doesn't mean that reader's white, for all we know reader could even be adopted. If I show any picture of Pepper in which color skin is showed in any way, just remember that these pictures are used as examples, and they do not mean anything else.

If you want to be added to the taglist, comment down below

Comments, likes and reblogs are welcome and appreciated

Masterlist

@purplevortexx

@shrimping-for-all

@savagejane1

@dhwanishah09

@blackwidownat2814

@et-homephone

@roostersforevergirl

@xoxabs88xox

[all-the-things-2020]

Year of Fandom Crossovers: July

Title: “Not All Heroes Wear Capes”

Pedro Character: Marcus Moreno

Fandom Crossover: Star Trek TNG

Warnings: description of panic attack, loss of a loved one

Word Count: ~6800

Summary: Lt. Marcus Moreno is posted to the Enterprise after a stint at Starfleet headquarters. His daughter Missy is eager to go but is he ready to return to space after losing his wife?

@yearofcreation2023

All Starbases smelled the same, of filtered air and the faint tang of electronics, freshly cleaned carpet and stale coffee. Marcus had grown used to the natural scents of his home in San Francisco: the slight tang of salt from the ocean, the resin of pine and redwood trees in the sun, the spicy-sweet smell of chaparral. It smelled of life and comfort; the Starbase smelled of bureaucracy.

“Check it out, Dad,” his daughter Missy said, dragging him toward a viewport. “You can see all the ships docking from here.” She peered out the transparent aluminum window, her breath fogging up the surface. “Which one is ours?”

“The Enterprise,” he said. “That one. Over there.” He pointed out a sleek Galaxy class cruiser docked on the far right side. 

“She’s one of the best ships in the fleet, Grandma said.”

Marcus nodded. The Enterprise was considered by many the flagship of Starfleet. People had turned down promotions, ships of their own command, to serve on her, to serve with Captain Jean-Luc Picard. It was a great honor — and a testament to his mother’s ability to pull strings — to be posted aboard her. Or so Marcus kept telling himself. 

“Why do we have to wait until 1900 hours?,” Missy lamented. “I want to see our quarters. This Starbase is boring.”

“The ship is undergoing maintenance,” Marcus explained. “No one can go aboard until it’s completed. Some sort of deep cleaning subparticle sweep or something.” He hadn’t really paid attention when he’d skimmed his orders that morning. “Look, why don’t we go back to our room and relax until it’s time to go?”

Missy shook her head, but stopped short of actually rolling her eyes. “I want to watch the ships,” she said. “They’re like big boats gliding into port.” 

He suppressed a chuckle. “That’s why they’re called ships, kiddo,” he said gently. This time Missy did roll her eyes, but she soon turned back to the viewport, entranced by the cosmic ballet outside.

Marcus sat on a bench nearby. The collar of his new uniform was tight and he resisted the urge to fiddle with it. He’d grown used to civilian clothes while working as a Starfleet liaison and had favored loose fitting necklines. Anything too tight reminded him of … he forced the thought away. No time for that, he chided himself. This is a fresh start. He fingered the lieutenant’s pips on his collar. Despite all the talk about new beginnings, this felt like a denial of the past five years. It felt like a betrayal.

************************************************

“Welcome aboard, Lieutenant Moreno!” Commander William Riker was too chipper for Marcus’ taste. He wondered what rumors had arrived on the Enterprise before him. “And you must be Melissa.”

“Missy, sir,” she said, all eyes as she took in the sleek lines of the starship corridor. 

“I stand corrected,” Riker said with a smile. “I’ve asked Counselor Troi to show you to your quarters, and get you settled in.” He nodded toward a dark-eyed woman dressed in civilian clothes who nevertheless had the poise and posture of a Starfleet officer.

“Please follow me,” Troi said. Her voice was slightly accented, something Marcus couldn’t quite place. Oh, right, he thought, half-Betazoid. His mother had sent him a dossier on all the senior officers on the ship, as well as the dozen or so crew members he was most likely to be working with. 

Missy had a thousand questions, which Troi answered good-naturedly. Marcus half listened, focused on keeping his breathing even and regular. The counselor was an empath and he didn’t want her to sense anything other than the usual anticipatory stress of beginning a new assignment. 

“These are your quarters. Missy, you’ll start school in the morning. That’s on deck 14. Do you know how to use the turbo lifts?” After an enthusiastic nod from the girl, Troi turned to Marcus. “And you, Lieutenant? Do you have any questions or concerns for me before I go?” 

“No, thank you, Counselor,” he said. 

Her eyes tightened a bit but she merely nodded and smiled. “Then I’ll see you both around the ship. Welcome to the Enterprise family.”

As the door slid shut behind her, Marcus let himself relax a bit. Missy ran around, checking out every inch of their new living space. Marcus sank into the closest chair. First hurdle cleared.

***********************************

“So, Counselor, what can you tell me about our new lieutenant?” Captain Jean-Luc Picard sipped at his cup of tea. Deanna enjoyed the emotions that emanated from the captain when he was indulging in a cup of Earl Gray. Cozy, she thought. It was not an emotion many would associate with the ever-so-proper Picard, but she knew he liked his little comforts as much as anyone.

“He is very guarded,” she said. “He didn’t speak much, but I know he was very aware of my empathic abilities. He was careful to regulate his breathing. This could have been a self-coping technique, which means he is healthily aware of his own emotions and seeking to control them in a novel situation, or could simply mean he is wary of me and trying to hide his anxiety.”

Picard nodded. “I hope bringing him on board won’t be too much extra work for you.”

“Don’t worry about that, Captain,” she said. “It’s my job to help everyone on board the Enterprise feel safe and supported. Most of our crew only need a little nudge now and then. It’s the interesting cases, like Reg Barclay or Lieutenant Moreno, that keep me on my toes.”

“Admiral Moreno personally requested this posting because of your reputation as a counselor,” Picard said carefully. “She is quite concerned about her son.”

“Understandably,” Deanna replied. “I reviewed his record and he was on the fast track to command. Three days from being tapped for a promotion to Lt. Commander.” She sighed. She didn’t always need to be near someone to feel their pain. “He suffered a profound loss, and it revealed an underlying emotional issue. I know the Admiral would have preferred he continued up the ladder, but as a healer, I have to hope that this will be better for him in the long run than shoving his feelings under the rug, so to speak.”

“I agree,” Picard said. “I have the utmost trust in your abilities, Counselor, and your judgment. We will take it slowly with Lieutenant Moreno. I’ve already spoken to Geordi and he’ll report any possible issues to you, as will Miss Moreno’s teacher. I hate to hover over a crew member like this, but I promised the admiral we will keep a close eye on him.”

“With any luck, it will be temporary, sir. I’ll work with Geordi and we’ll do our utmost to make the transition as smooth as possible.”

“Thank you, Counselor. Dismissed.”

Just before the doors closed behind her, Deanna felt a wave of doubt from the captain. She shook it off. Marcus Moreno was a good man who has simply lost his way for a bit. She was confident she could help him find it again.

****************************************************

The chief engineer greeted Marcus when he arrived on duty the next morning. “Hey, there, Marcus, I’m Lt. Commander LaForge, but pretty much everyone calls me Geordi. I like my team to feel comfortable and relaxed, but I expect everyone to do their best at all times.”

“Thank you, Commander,” Marcus said. LaForge tilted his head, his silver visor catching a reflection of the ceiling lights. “I mean, Geordi.”

LaForge smiled and clapped his hand on Marcus’ shoulder. “There you go. You’ll fit in nicely. Let me introduce you to the folks you’ll be working with to start.”

Ensign Nurik gave Marcus a polite nod and returned to her work, as befitted a Vulcan. Lt. Jamison, however, wanted to chat.

“So, any relation to Admiral Miranda Moreno?”

“She’s my mother,” Marcus said. “Are we starting with the first battery of circuits?”  He gestured toward the open panel in front of them. 

“Um, no, we’re already on the third one,” Jamison said. “Must be a real change being on a starship after being on Earth for so long. I only get back once in a blue moon and wow … you just forget what it’s like being on the planet you evolved for, right?”

“I can start on the fourth battery if you want,” Marcus said. “It’s inside the Jeffries tube, right?” He grabbed a tool case and headed for the tube before Jamison could reply. He wasn’t here to share his life story; he was here to do maintenance and make sure the ship was safe and ready to respond to whatever the captain might ask of her. 

“Yeah,” Jamison’s voice was already muffled by the wall of the tube. “Go ahead and get started in there.”

Marcus opened a panel and began carefully testing the array of circuits he had exposed. It was grunt work, tedious and routine, but it needed to be done carefully and properly, so he focused on it. It was cramped in the tube, but he was alone, with a task before him, so he was satisfied.

A few minutes in, he heard someone at the tube entrance. Please don’t be Jamison.

“I will only disturb you for a moment,” Nurik said softly. “I have completed the second battery and will commence on the sixth one. It will be more efficient, and comfortable for both of us, if we hopscotch.”

Marcus smiled. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Vulcan use that term before,” he said, scooting over to give her room to pass by him.

“I have picked up several human colloquialisms working with Lt. Commander LaForge,” Nurik said simply. “They are often more efficient when communicating with humans, in my experience.” She paused behind him. “I believe you find Lt. Jamison as intrusive as I do. He is a fine engineer but he needs to work on his people skills, as Mr. LaForge would say.”

“You don’t call him Geordi?”

Nurik raised an eyebrow. “Humans are altogether too familiar with each other. I understand that it creates a sense of camaraderie, but I cannot bring myself to address him by anything but his title.”

“So I should call you Ensign Nurik at all times?”

“While we are on duty, of course,” she said, settling in front of the sixth battery. “Off duty, if our paths cross, you may address me as Nurik. It is logical that we will become friends.” 

She opened the panel and went to work. Marcus did the same. It was quiet in the tube, but it was a companionable silence. He liked it.

*******************************************

Missy did most of the talking at dinner. It was good to see her so enthusiastic about her new classmates, her teacher, and being on board a starship. “Dad, there’s a holodeck! And we get to use it for physical fitness once a week! Like, we can go rock climbing or play Parrises Squares …”

Marcus cut her off. “Wait, they let you play Parrises Squares in school?” Holodecks had safety features that should prevent any injuries, but even so, it seemed dangerous.

“Well, a sort of modified version,” she admitted. “So we can learn the basics. I promise it’s safe.”

He wanted to say no, to charge down to the schoolroom and tell the teacher that Missy could not participate in anything so risky, but he saw in her eyes that she wanted desperately to fit in. She was a social creature, like her mother, like his mother. He might be content with a quiet evening after a day of meaningful work, Missy wanted friends. She wanted to belong.

“I suppose your teacher wouldn’t allow anything too dangerous,” he said. “But be careful.”

“I’m always careful, Dad.” He gave her a Look. “Well, most of the time.” She ducked her head, probably remembering a few of her more recent escapades. She was a good kid, just a little too eager to jump in if she saw an opportunity to be helpful or to distinguish herself from the pack. Like her mother. The thought made his heart clench and he left the rest of his dinner untouched. 

****************************************************

“So far, so good, Captain,” LaForge said, leaning forward in his chair. “Moreno seems to be fitting in well with his team, especially Ensign Nurik. Jamison gets on his nerves a bit, but he has that effect on everybody. I’m trying to sand off his rough edges, but it’s an uphill battle.”

Troi nodded. “I know Marcus is holding back a bit in our sessions, but I’m not sensing anything troubling from him. He’s still settling in. His daughter is thriving, according to her teacher, and I have definitely felt less anxiety from him when discussing her.”

Picard leaned back. “Would you say that he’s ready to be put into the rotation for away teams, Geordi?”

“Not just yet,” LaForge said. “I’d like to see how he does in the new training simulations Data and I have been working on. Sort of a controlled environment to see how he responds under pressure.”

“Agreed,” Picard said. “I do appreciate everything both of you are doing to ensure that Lieutenant Moreno is successful here. It’s not just because of his mother, I assure you. I’ve looked at his record, and he has the makings of a fine officer, a good leader, but he needs our help to get there.”

“We’ll do our best, sir,” LaForge said.

“I feel it in him as well, Captain,” Troi said. “He’s just afraid to step out of the safe place he’s built for himself. Once he can do that, his potential will blossom again.”

LaForge chuckled. “Sorry, Deanna, but the idea of Marcus Moreno as a flower just doesn’t quite jibe with the man I’ve been working with.”

****************************************************

Marcus was lying on his back in a Jeffries tube, replacing some junction boxes. It was boring work, but he’d volunteered for the job. It was nice to get off by himself now and then, without the constant need to come up with small talk to pacify Jamison. The man wasn’t really nosy, he just liked to talk — constantly. If you ran out of things to say, he’d start asking questions, which could quickly get too personal for Marcus’ liking. So, he kept abreast of the latest political and scientific news, as well as the sports standings. Jamison was a rabid springball fan and had been on the Velocity team at the Academy.

His comm badge pinged. “LaForge to Lieutenant Moreno.”

“Moreno here.”

“Marcus, remember that simulation you and Nurik did a few days ago? The one with the melted fuses?”

“Of course.” It had been a tricky problem, where a false move could result in the complete loss of the system involved, but also requiring speed to complete repairs before the temperature of the system reached critical.

“Well, we have a similar situation down on Talus IV. We’re on route and should arrive in about thirty minutes. I need you and Nurik on the away team. Report to Transporter 

Room Three.”

“Aye, sir.” So, this was it. His first away mission. He’d been on board the Enterprise for almost two months now and save for a few minor hiccups here and there, things had been going smoothly. He swallowed around the lump in his throat. Time to face his first real hurdle.

He finished up the box he was working on and packed up his tools. He fumbled a little with the latch and stopped to look at his trembling hands. None of that. What would Mom think? He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 

By the time he reached the transporter room, Marcus’s whole body was shaking. He told himself it was just excitement, anticipation of taking part in his first away team for the Enterprise, but he was lying. Nurik greeted him with a nod, her face calm and focused as always. Marcus bit his lip, struggling to swallow as the lump in his throat grew larger. The muscles in his neck weren’t responding. He couldn’t swallow; he couldn’t breathe.

LaForge was briefing the team, but Marcus couldn’t hear him. His throat was rigid. He was choking, just like —-

“I’m sorry, sir, I — I can’t —.” He ran from the room, stumbling into the corridor, his hand clutching at his throat. If he just massaged the muscles a little, maybe then he could swallow, maybe then he could breathe.

“Marcus, what the hell?” LaForge was standing over him as Marcus bent double in the corridor. His vision was growing fuzzy around the edges.

“I — I can’t — I’m sorry, Geordi — I — I can’t — breathe.” His lungs hitched as he tried to pull in oxygen.

“LaForge to Counselor Troi. Transporter Room Three corridor, now.”

**************************************************************

Captain Jean-Luc Picard leaned back in his chair, his hands steepled in front of him. “Have a seat, Mr. Moreno.” He simply looked at Marcus for a moment. “I could have you brought up on charges of insubordination.”

“Yes, sir,” Marcus replied. “I know, sir.” He stared at the floor, unable to meet the captain’s eyes. He was ashamed of himself.

“However, it appears to me that your actions were not deliberate, that there was no malicious intent behind your refusal to join the away team,” Picard said. “And I do not believe in punishing someone for something they have no control over.” He leaned forward, his voice softening. “I know what it’s like to be haunted by a memory, Mr. Moreno. And I have no doubt you will be able to come to terms with it, given enough time and assistance.”

“But I don’t want to,” Marcus admitted. “I was perfectly happy in San Francisco.” He looked up, met Picard’s gaze. “Rejoining Starfleet was my mother’s idea, not mine.”

Picard nodded. “I gathered as much from her messages to me,” he said. “And while I do believe you have the right to choose your own path in life, I think your mother had the right idea, getting you to face your bete noir now before you became too entrenched, too set in your ways.”

Marcus closed his eyes. “I only did this because of Missy,” he said. “She … she was bored on Earth. She’s like her mother, sir. She wants the stars.”

“And you are a good father, and you are giving her the opportunity to try out her dreams,” Picard said. “I know this is hard for you, Mr. Moreno, but Counselor Troi and Commander LaForge and I are here to help you. I see the makings of a fine officer in you. Otherwise, I would gladly send you back to San Francisco. But I owe it to Starfleet — and to you — to assist you in becoming that officer.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You will return to your post in Engineering and continue your sessions with Counselor Troi. This incident will be noted in your record, but there will be no repercussions, no formal action taken. Dismissed.”

“Thank you, sir.” Marcus left the Ready Room, feeling the gaze of several bridge officers on him as he walked quickly to the turbo lift. He knew the rumors had already spread throughout the ship. Moreno had a breakdown. Moreno refused to beam down. Moreno was a coward. Moreno was unreliable. As the turbo lift doors slid shut, he rubbed his hand across his face. He wondered how much Missy had heard, and how much of it she believed.

********************************************************

She was sitting on the couch, reading on her padd when he came home. “Hey, Dad,” she said quietly.

“Hey. How was your day?”

She shrugged. “Okay.” She laid down the padd. “Counselor Troi came to see me. She told me about what happened. She said … you might not want to talk about it and that was okay.”

He sat beside her. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Only if you want to. I don’t need to know.”

“Yeah, you do,” he said. “Look, I just wasn’t ready for an away mission. I thought I was but my body knew otherwise.”

“Did you get scared?”

He took a deep breath. “Not exactly. It’s … hard to explain. You know how most animals have a flight or fight instinct, right? But when your body can’t decide, sometimes you freeze instead.”

“Is it … because of Mom?”

Marcus closed his eyes. “Yes,” he admitted. His hand crept toward his throat and he had to concentrate hard to stop it. 

“It’s okay,” Missy said, taking his hand. “We don’t have to talk about it anymore. I’m just glad you’re okay now.”

“You are the most amazing girl in the galaxy,” he said, kissing the top of her head. “So much like your mother.”

“But I’m like you, too,” she said, her voice small. “I get — frozen sometimes.”

“We all do,” Marcus said. “I just have a harder time getting unfrozen than most people.” 

“Grandma said you were so quiet when we first went back to Earth. I guess you were kind of frozen, huh? But you thawed out.” She poked him in the ribs.

“Yeah, I did,” he said, poking her back. “Now, what do you want for dinner? And don’t say hot dogs again.”

*********************************************************

“I’m fine, Mom,” Marcus said. His mothers’s image on the screen was slightly distorted, probably due to the nebula the Enterprise was currently studying. It was playing havoc with the sensors and most of Engineering had been working overtime to track down all the little anomalies. “Just had a long shift yesterday.”

“Well, don’t let them overwork you, mijo. If you have to name-drop me, do it.”

“I wouldn’t do that, and you know it. We’re all due extra shore leave because of it, so no one is complaining.” Except Jamison, but his complaints were more just a matter of speaking his frustrations with the situation out loud instead of keeping them inside like everyone else. 

“And how’s Missy? She sent me a message a few days ago about a report she’s doing for school, but I haven’t had a chance to talk to her.”

“She’s doing really well. Has friends and started a Kadis-kot club. You were right; she needed this.”

“So did you. Captain Picard forwards all the reports he gets from Lt. Commander LaForge and Counselor Troi.”

Marcus’ jaw worked as he held back a smart remark. “I wish you’d stop monitoring me like that, Mom. It feels like I’m back in school, trying to get a good report card. It’s bad enough knowing they’re talking to the captain about me.”

“Fine, I’ll tell him to stop sending updates. Forgive me for being concerned about my only son’s welfare.”

Marcus sighed. “I know you’re concerned, Mom, but please … let me do this at my own pace. In my own time.”

She leaned closer to the camera. “If you can’t participate in an away team by the end of your first year of service, Starfleet can recall you. In fact, I’ll make a point of it. You can’t waste time, Marcus. The Enterprise needs a crew member she can rely on. Missy needs a father she can rely on.”

“That’s not fair! I haven’t done one thing to jeopardize Missy.”

“Then why did she message me in tears after that panic attack you had a while back? Why did I have to reassure my granddaughter that everything was going to be alright, that her father isn’t crazy?”

Marcus stood up. “I talked with her. She’s come to a couple of sessions with the counselor. She understands, Mom, which is more than I can say for you at the moment. End communication.” He punched the interface with more force than was strictly necessary, but it felt good. No one could soothe him like his mother, but at the same time, no one could push his buttons faster. 

************************************

“You seem agitated,” Troi said, leaning back in her chair.

“I had a conversation with my mother earlier today,” Marcus said.

Troi laughed. “Say no more. I am very familiar with the stress of conversing with one’s mother. Mine may not be a Starfleet admiral, but she has her own very strong sense of importance. And parents often have a hard time seeing their children as independent entities.”

Marcus shifted in his chair. He could never quite get comfortable in it, which probably had more to do with his reluctance to be in therapy than any ergonomic aspect of the chair’s design. “She said something that made me mad,” he admitted.

“And what was that?” Troi’s voice was calm and neutral, as always. She was an excellent counselor, and he would have opened up more to her if he hadn’t known that her reports were landing on his mother’s desk.

“I’m not sure if I should confide in you. After all, she told me Captain Picard forwards all your reports to her.”

“I don’t reveal anything personal in my reports,” Troi said evenly. “Just my impressions of your emotional state. Counselor-patient privilege is very important to me.”

Marcus bit his lip. He’d been doing that less often but his mother’s words had brought the habit back. “She said … if I can’t go on an away team by the time I’ve completed my first year on the ship, she’ll have me recalled.”

Troi nodded. “And why did that make you mad? I would have thought you would welcome the opportunity to return to Earth.”

“Because Missy is so happy here,” he said. “She had friends back in San Francisco, of course, and she did well in school, but ….” He took a deep steadying breath. “I get up in the morning and she’s sitting on the couch in our living room, staring out the window at the stars. She keeps a log of every system the Enterprise visits and researches every planet, every nebula, everything we encounter. She wants to be a stellar cartographer. I can’t take her back to Earth.”

“But you’re afraid you won’t be able to stay on board the Enterprise.”

He nodded. “I don’t know if I’m strong enough to fix this, Counselor. I want to be, for my mother, and for Missy, but …”

“You have to be strong for yourself, Marcus,” Troi said. “Not for me, or the captain, or even for your family. For you. Don’t deny your true self just to please others.”

“So you think I should quit. Just give up, go back to San Francisco.”

“No, I think you should do what you want to do. Your mother and daughter will understand if you can’t remain on a starship. They won’t love you any less. I promise you they want what’s best for you. We all do. And we still believe that being an officer on this ship is the best path for you. But you are the only one who can make the final decision, and you don’t have to make it today. You have over five months left before the deadline your mother has given you. A lot can happen in that time. Look how far you’ve come already.”

“I want to try,” he said. 

Troi smiled. “Then let’s work out a plan to help you achieve your goal. I’ll request some holodeck time, so we can do some desensitization. You’ve done very well in the training simulations, according to Geordi.”

“Because I know they aren’t real,” Marcus admitted. “I appreciate the offer, Counselor, but I don’t think playacting on the holodeck is going to help me.”

***********************************

“I talked to Grandma today,” Marcus said over dinner. “She said you’d sent her a message about a school project.”

Missy nodded as she chewed a big bite of spaghetti. “Yeah,” she said when she’d swallowed. “We’re doing a project about heroes and I wanted to know if she still had any of those drawings I did when I was little, when I was obsessed with superheroes. Remember?”

Marcus nodded. He did remember. After her mother’s death, when they were still adjusting to life back on Earth, Missy had spent hours drawing and painting pictures of superheroes, men and women who used extraordinary powers to save others. Some were ancient Earth characters, like Wonder Woman and Spider-Man; others more recent creations like The Photon and Blue Bat’leth. 

“Did she have them?”

“Yeah, she’s going to send me some holoscans of them so I can pick out which one to put in my project. Ms. Karatha has been talking about how some heroes are larger than life, like story characters, and others are real people who do heroic things. We’re supposed to find an example of each kind in our cultural heritage, and also in a culture we aren’t familiar with. Kraathaa and I are collaborating; she’ll teach me about Andorian stuff and I’ll teach her about human stuff.” She pushed her spaghetti around on her plate. “We also have to write about someone we know who is a hero, but I’m kind of stuck. I haven’t been on board as long as the other kids, and a lot of them know people who did stuff on away teams or during a battle or something.”

“Well, being a hero isn’t always about saving people or winning a battle,” Marcus said. “What about Kraathaa? She was your first real friend here. She welcomed you right away.”

Missy shrugged. “But she didn’t have to overcome anything to be my friend. Being a hero means doing the right thing even though you’re scared, or you know the odds are against you.”

“You’ll think of someone,” Marcus said, his mind already wandering, latched onto her words: even though you’re scared. 

******************************************

“Count me in.”

Geordi LaForge was taken aback. Had he really heard Marcus Moreno volunteer for an away team? “Um, okay, Marcus. But are you sure?”

Moreno nodded firmly. “Yes. It’s routine work, no pressure.” He looked around the briefing table, meeting the eyes of every crew member. “I need to do this.”

Nurik spoke first. “I agree. And I will accompany you.”

“Me, too,” Jamison chimed in. “We’re a good team, you and Nurik and me. I know I talk too much, but between the three of us, we can handle anything LaForge throws at us.”

Geordi smiled. “It’s settled, then. Jamison, Nurik and Moreno will beam down to Beta Doradus V tomorrow and help the research team update their sensor arrays. Let’s get back to work, people.”

He watched as the delta shift filed out of the briefing room. Once he was alone, he pressed a button on his data screen. “LaForge to Counselor Troi. I have some interesting news for you.”

***********************************************************

Marcus hadn’t slept much, but he was up at his usual time to have breakfast with Missy before they headed off to school and Engineering. “We’re doing sculpture today for art class,” she said. “The little kids are using clay but we get to try laser sculpting. Back in the old days they used hammers and chisels, can you believe it? We saw some holograms of ancient sculptures from lots of different planets and it was amazing what they could do with primitive tools.”

“Those ‘primitive’ tools were the height of technology at the time,” Marcus reminded her. “Someday, people are going to look back on what we have and think ‘How did they ever live like that?’”

Missy shrugged. “I guess. But it’s still pretty cool what they could do back then.” She looked at the chronometer. “Oops, I have to go. See you tonight, Dad.”

He hadn’t told her about his away mission. She thought he was just going to spend the day on board the ship as usual. Maybe I should tell her, but I don’t want her to worry. He pushed his coffee away. The last thing he needed today was caffeine.

At 0900 he headed for the transporter room. Nurik and Jamison were already there, Nurik meticulously going over the toolbox she’d packed so carefully the day before. Transporter Chief O’Brien gave him a cheery “Good morning, Lieutenant,” as he walked in. 

No one acted as if this was anything out of the ordinary, but Marcus could feel the panic building inside him. He knew that O’Brien had been briefed by LaForge and Troi, possibly by the Captain himself. He knew that Nurik was watching him, looking for any minute sign of distress. And he knew that Jamison was biting his tongue, full to bursting with words but afraid to set him off. 

“Good morning,” he said. “Are we ready to go?”

Jamison smiled awkwardly. “I think so, if Nurik is done triple-checking her own work.”

“I am finished,” Nurik said. “And there is nothing inherently wrong with triple-checking one’s work. In fact, it is considered standard practice on Vulcan.” She turned to Marcus. “Are you ready to go, Lieutenant?”

Marcus took a deep breath. Even though you’re scared. “Yes.” He stepped toward the transporter platform. Every step was like moving through a strong current of water, pushing him backwards. His heart was racing, his breathing was erratic, his throat was constricting … he paused, took a deep breath and thought of Missy, gazing out the window at the stars, drawing meticulous diagrams of the places the Enterprise had visited. 

“Lt. Moreno?” O’Brien was quiet but concerned. Nurik and Jamison were already on the platform.

“Sorry,” Marcus said. He took the last few steps and centered himself on one of the circles on the platform. “Ready when you are, Chief.”

“Good luck,” O’Brien said. “Energizing.”

The transporter room dissolved around him and Marcus felt the familiar disorientation as the beam reassembled his body on the planet’s surface. There was always a moment when everything was simply wrong before the atoms snapped back into place. And then he was there, on Beta Doradus V and the research team was welcoming them, and he was following Nurik and Jamison into the depths of the facility and nothing bad happened. There were no power failures, no strange creatures appearing suddenly out of the mist, no rocks crumbling beneath their feet, no one being choked to death by tentacles that snaked out of the trees without a moment’s warning … it was all so mundane and boring that Marcus felt like laughing at himself. 

“You’re doing great,” Jamison said about three hours into the work. “I hope you don’t mind, but I looked up your service record and … I can see why you had a hard time. I mean, the last away team you went on — I can’t imagine …”

Marcus laid down his tools. “I couldn’t do anything,” he said quietly. “It happened so fast. Out of nowhere.” He shook his head to clear the thought. “We all know that things can happen fast, but to actually witness it, happening to someone you love …”

Jamison laid his hand on Marcus’ shoulder. “I hope I never find out,” he said. “And I hope it never happens to you again. To anyone.” He gave a half-hearted laugh. “We’d better get back to work or Nurik will be tattling to LaForge.”

“Yeah,” Marcus said. “And Jamison … thanks. For understanding.”

“Thanks for putting up with me, Moreno.”

********************************************************************

The research team invited them to lunch, which was served on a wide terrace overlooking the forest which surrounded the facility. 

“We like to get outside now and then,” Dr. Kemal explained. “But we’re so busy with our work, we forget unless we make it part of the schedule. So, we eat out here most of the time, unless the weather is really bad.”

Marcus took the seat offered him, under the hanging branches of a tree that provided dappled shade. One of the young research assistants, a girl barely out of university, sat beside him. He thought her name was Dina or Diana or something like that.

The conversation focused mostly on science and some mild gossip about the folks at the other research facility in the planet’s arctic zone. Marcus concentrated on his meal, which was delicious — he’d forgotten how much better fresh food was than replicated — and plentiful.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he spied something snaking down from the tree branch above. He was out of his chair in an instant, his heart racing. It was happening again. It was after the girl. He needed to save her. To his surprise, the scientists laughed.

“That’s just Simon,” Dr. Kemal said. She held out her arm and a long-limbed, long-tailed simian like creature slithered out of the tree and onto her shoulders. “One of the local creatures. They’re kind of like lemurs.” She scratched Simon’s head and the creature made a purring sound. “Simon was curious about us from the beginning, and he comes to visit most days. He’s harmless. Sorry if he startled you.”

Marcus sat back down, feeling a little foolish. It’s just a pet, he told himself. Still, he kept a wary eye on the branches while he picked at the rest of his lunch. He’d feel safer once they were back indoors and working.

*****************************************************

When they returned to the Enterprise, Counselor Troi was waiting. 

“How do you feel, Marcus?”

“Worn out,” he admitted. “I had a few … moments.”

Troi smiled softly. “That’s only to be expected. No one is ‘cured’ overnight. These things take time, but you’ve cleared the first hurdle and now it will be easier to build on that success.” She led him out of the transporter room. “I hope you don’t mind, but I let Missy know that you were on an away mission, so she wouldn’t worry if you didn’t get home on time.”

“No, no, that’s fine,” Marcus said. “I should have told her this morning, but I didn’t want her to worry about me.”

They entered a turbo lift. “Deck 8,” Troi said. “I’m off duty now, but don’t hesitate to contact me if you need anything. You did excellent work today, Marcus, professionally and personally. You should be proud.” The door opened and she stepped off the lift. “Good night, Lieutenant.”

“Good night, Counselor.” The doors slid shut and the lift continued on its way to his own deck. Things hadn’t gone perfectly — he was still beating himself up over the Simon incident — but they had gone well. He’d gotten onto the transporter platform without panicking, he’d performed his duties to the best of his ability, and his team had completed their work in the time allotted. Lt. Commander LaForge would compliment them at tomorrow’s briefing. And Missy and I can stay on the ship.

He was smiling as he approached his quarters. The door slid open for him and Missy popped up from the couch. “Dad! Welcome back!” She held up a drawing that said I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT in multicolored letters surrounded by stars and comets and planets. She giggled and threw her arms around him.

“I wasn’t gone any longer than usual,” he said. “You’d think I’d been gone for a month.” He hugged her tightly, giving himself a moment to blink back the tears that were forming in his eyes before he faced her again.

“Well, yeah, but it’s a big deal,” she said. “When I got the message from Counselor Troi I was scared for a second, but then I was so proud of you.” She led him to the table. “I made your favorite for dinner: tamales! They aren’t as good as Grandma’s, of course, but they’re pretty good for replicated.” 

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Marcus said. 

After they had eaten, Missy cleared the table without being prompted and pulled out her padd to start her homework. “Hey, Dad?”

“Yeah?” He was on the couch, his feet propped on an ottoman, eyes closed. It had been a long and exhausting day.

“I think I know who I’m going to do my hero report on.”

“That’s good.” Maybe he would take a nice hot shower before bed, to relax the tight muscles in his neck and shoulders.

“Want to guess who?”

“Um, I don’t know. Captain Picard?”

She snorted. “Like six different kids picked him. No … I’m going to write about you, Dad.”

Marcus sat up. “Me? But I’m no hero.”

Missy put down her padd. “Yes, you are. You went on that away mission even though you were scared to go. That’s pretty heroic to me.” She came to sit next to him. “I know you were thinking about Mom the whole time, but you went anyway. You did the right thing.”

“That’s not the only right thing I’ve done,” Marcus said softly. “I raised you pretty well, didn’t I?”

“You sure did, Lieutenant.” 

[forestgreenlesbian]

hellooo top ten reads of 2022 in no particular order (+ not including rereads of old favourites):

Our Wives Under The Sea, Julia Armfield

Luckenbooth, Jenni Fagan        

Cantoras, Carolina De Robertis

A Tiny Upward Shove, Melissa Chadburn

Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel

Time Is A Mother, Ocean Vuong

Light from Uncommon Stars, Ryka Aoki  

Marriage of a Thousand Lies, Sj Sindu

Who Will Run the Frog Hospital?, Lorrie Moore

Less Is Lost, Andrew Sean Greer    

special mentions:

Young Mungo, Douglas Stuart

In the Dream House, Carmen Maria Machado

A Certain Hunger, Chelsea G. Summers

Briefly, A Delicious Life, Nell Stevens

The Mercies, Kiran Millwood Hargrave

and some quotes from my top ten under the cut if you are looking for a little flavour. what did you guys read this year i am always looking for recommendations :~)

It’s not grief, [...] it’s more like a haunting. Our Wives Under The Sea

“Is it crazy to love someone you’ve only spent seven days with in person?” / “No, it’s crazy to love someone when you’ve known them for years.” Luckenbooth

It seemed, at times, that this was the only way the world would be remade as the heroes had dreamed: one woman holds another woman, and she in turn lifts the world. Cantoras

By then, Lola concluded that love was mostly wanting something you supposedly already had. A Tiny Upward Shove

She never dwelt on my lapses, and I couldn’t entirely parse why this made me feel so awful. There’s a low-level, specific pain in having to accept that putting up with you requires a certain generosity of spirit in your loved ones. Sea of Tranquility

Then it came to me, my life. I remembered my life / the way an ax handle, mid-swing, remembers the tree. / & I was free. Time Is A Mother

“That’s--” / “A violin from China,” she said without looking up. “Yes, I know.” / “No, I mean, it’s all in pieces.” / “Yes. So are we all.” Light from Uncommon Stars

There’s always a way out. You could be a ghost. I could be an empty chair. Marriage of a Thousand Lies

Everything would turn out fine. Or else--hell--it would burn. I only wanted my body to bloom and bleed and be loved. I was raw with want, but in part it was a simple want, one made for easy satisfaction, quick drama, deep life: I wanted to go places and do things with Sils. So what if the house burned down. Who Will Run the Frog Hospital?

“Thomas, why are you wearing a sweater when it’s so warm out?” / Thomas shrugs slightly and says, “As my grandma Cookie says, we’re all having different experiences.” Less Is Lost

also my bottom five if you care these are bad do not reccommend lol (not including dnfs):

Mexican Gothic, Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Under the Whispering Door, TJ Klune

The Midnight Library, Matt Haig

This Is How You Lose the Time War, Max Gladstone & Amal El-Mohtar

A Room Called Earth, Madeleine Ryan

[wasted-women]

ROUND 1 BRACKET LISTINGS

Welcome to Round 1 of the Wasted Woman Poll, the tournament to see which fridged woman deserved better!

Thank you everyone for your patience for Round 1 to begin. Now that the semester is over, I finished the list of match-ups for the Round 1 bracket.

There were 89 contestants for this tournament. Anyone familiar with tournaments knows that it doing a 89-contestant, single-elimination tournament would be annoying. Rather than cutting out 25 contestants to make it a 64-contestant tournament, I opted to use the format of a 64-contestant tournament, just with some of the poll in Round 1 (a majority of them, actually) being three-way polls with a single winner rather than solely two-way polls. So out of the 89 contestants going into Round 1, only 32 will go on to Round 2. Many of the listings in Round 1 will be characters from the same series going against each other, so that the future rounds will be more varied.

The tournament will be split into 4 sets of 8 polls each, with every poll running for a whole link. Below the cut will be the list of match-ups for each set and when the polls will premiere.

If there are any mistakes at all (spelling, if a character appears twice, if the media someone is listed under is incorrect, etc.) please let me know! I did double-check it, but I'm only human so errors do happen.

ROUND 1A (Will be queued to be posted on Tuesday, December 26th between 12 PM and 1 PM)

Jiang Yanli (Mo Dao Zu Shi / Chen Qing Ling) vs. Wen Qing (Mo Dao Zu Shi / Chen Qing Ling) vs. Qin Su (Mo Dao Zu Shi / Chen Qing Ling)

Trisha Elric (Fullmetal Alchemist) vs. Misaki Unasaka (Buddy Daddies) vs. Madam Lan (Mo Dao Zu Shi / Chen Qing Ling)

Kaede Akamatsu (Danganronpa v3) vs. Kuina Shimotsuki (One Piece) vs. Akane Hyakuya (Owari no Seraph)

Maiya Hisau (Fate/Zero) vs. Four Masamune (Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam) vs. Safu (No. 6)

Sherry Polnareff (Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders) vs. Nobara Kugisaki (Jujutsu Kaisen)

Maria Robotnik (Sonic) vs. Captain Molly (Sonic X)

Serena, Rin, and Ruri Kurosaki (Yu-Gi-Oh!! Arc V) vs. Cyndia Crawford (Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters) vs. Amber (Pokemon)

Rachel Bronev (Professor Layton) vs. Anna Irving (Tales of Symphonia) vs. Grandma Rosiepuff (Trolls)

ROUND 1B (Will be queued to be posted on Thursday, December 28th between 12 PM and 1 PM)

Storm (Warriors: Dawn of the Clans) vs. Bumble (Warriors: Dawn of the Cats) vs. Bright Stream (Warriors: Dawn of the Cats)

Spottedleaf (Warriors: The Prophecies Begins) vs. Brindleface (Warriors: The Prophecies Begins)

Sky Young (Arcane: League of Legends) vs. Pyrrha Nikos (RWBY) vs. Allura (Voltron: Legendary Defender)

Lisa Tepes (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night) vs. Sara Trantoul (Castlevania: Lament of Innocence) vs. Julia Belmont (Castlevania: Nocturne)

Beru Lars (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope) vs. Padme Amidala (Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith) vs. Satine Kryze (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) vs. Tasha Yar (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

Bill Potts (Doctor Who) vs. Freya (BBC Merlin) vs. Mary Watson (BBC Sherlock)

Jessica Moore (Supernatural) vs. Mary Winchester (Supernatural) vs. Charlie Bradbury (Supernatural)

ROUND 1C (Will be queued to be posted on Saturday, December 30th between 12 PM and 1 PM)

Allison Argent (Teen Wolf) vs. Jenny Calendar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) vs. Amber Volakis (House M.D.)

Lady Marian (Robin Hood 2006) vs. Irene Adler (Sherlock Homes: A Game of Shadows) vs. Belle Gold (Once Upon a Time)

Tara Maclay (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) vs. Mako Mori (Pacific Rim) vs. Daenerys Targareon (Game of Thrones)

Cordelia Chase (Angel) vs. Darla (Angel) vs. Winifried "Fred" Burkle (Angel)

Julia Johnson (Walker) vs. Andrea Cantillo (Breaking Bad) vs. Lyanna Stark (Game of Thrones)

Kathy Stabler (Law and Order) vs. Joss Carter (Person of Interest) vs. Shannon Diaz (9-1-1)

Eo (Red Rising) vs. Evi Kholin (The Stormlight Archive) vs. Teresa Moreno (Sharpe)

Julia McCullough & Sarah Borden (The Prestige) vs. Rachel Dawes (The Dark Knight)

ROUND 1D (Will be queued to be posted on Monday, January 1st between 12 PM and 1 PM)

Laurel Lance (Arrow) vs. Vanessa Carlysle (Deadpool 2) vs. Eudora Patch (The Umbrella Academy)

Gamora (Avengers: Infinity War) vs. Natalia Romanoff / Black Widow (Avengers: Endgame) vs. Jane Foster (Thor: Love and Thunder)

Magda (X-Men: Apocalypse) vs. Frigga (Thor) vs. May Parker (Spider-Man: No Way Home)

Jean Grey (X-Men comics) vs. Jean Grey (X-Men: The Last Stand)

Gwen Stacy (Spider-Man comics) vs. Gwen Stacy (The Amazing Spider-Man 2)

Karen Page (Daredevil comics) vs. Holly Granger / Hawk (Teen Titans comics) vs. Mary-Jo Altman (Young Avengers comics)

Martha Wayne (Batman comics) vs. Sarah Essen Gordon (Batman comics) vs. Stephanie Brown (Batman comics)

Alexandra DeWitt (Green Lantern comics) vs. Sue Dibny (Justice League: Identity Crisis) vs. Lois Lane (Injustice: Gods Among Us)

[itsuki-minamy]

K - ONE YEAR LATER

CHAPTER 11: REISI MUNAKATA'S RETURN (BY TATSUKI MIYAZAWA)

* List of Chapters

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

A year has passed since then.

"Granny, I brought him!"

When David, the third youngest of her seventeen grandchildren, roared through the front door, Mariana Campos Moreno was dozing in an Equipalace chair woven from orchid fiber and upholstered in tanned pigskin.

She fell asleep in the soft breeze that came through the arched windows.

Beyond that, she could see a courtyard filled with blooming marigolds. It was a flower that her deceased husband loved so much, and even now that her limbs have become useless, Mariana takes care of it herself, not her daughters.

For a moment, Mariana thought with a confused head after waking up.

(Oh, yes. Didn't David say he would bring a lifeguard?)

David Moreno was a headache not only for Mariana, but for his entire family. Even after graduating from school, he was dizzy, and on top of that, he started associating with the young gangsters who ruled that city.

Mariana warned them that he wouldn't get better, but as expected, a larger drug cartel took notice of him, kidnapped her and her friends and nearly executed them.

He looks like he was saved by a single man in the middle of it.

To be honest, it was a shameful story, but David was actually alive, and that was the reason why he cut ties with the gangs. It is said that the benefactor had business with Mariana.

In that case, she should at least make use of her modest special ability.

"Here. I'm here!"

In response to David's youthful voice, the rasp in her voice made her smile wryly. It may not be long before "Day of the Dead" turns from mourning to bereavement.

Hearing that voice, David entered the small room where Mariana was.

"Grandma! Look, he's the "customer" you were talking about."

Mariana narrowed her eyes.

In contrast to the exterior, which shone pure white in the reflected sun, the interior was gloomy, and everything was covered in gray shadows.

"Sorry. My eyesight is bad these days."

All she knew was that a tall man was standing behind David.

"Hello. It's an honor to meet you, Madam."

The man said in fluent Spanish. Mariana was silent for a while.

"What's up, Granny?"

David said anxiously. Mariana stared at the man, then...

"First of all, let me thank you for helping my grandson. Thank you very much."

At her thanks, the man shook his head at her.

"It was a total turnaround. Not something to be thankful for."

It was an elegant and calm voice.

"I heard from David that you are the best tarot reader in Chiapas."

"Yes, I think I'm in the top three even in Mexico. I've told the fortune of a member of parliament, a soccer superstar, and an international actress. It seems you're looking for something."

"Yes.", said the man.

"I'm looking for 'myself' for a while."

Mariana closed her eyes and smiled.

"Oh."

She just rejected him.

"Such "extraordinarily big thing" is not for me, I can't predict it."

David rolled his eyes.

"Wait! Granny."

"I see. It's a shame."

She could tell by his distant way of speaking. Perhaps David, who wanted to have a relationship with the man, even a little, kind of forced him to come here. The man himself perhaps had not the slightest obsession with divination.

Mariana said.

"Also, I'm really sorry, but when I'm around a ridiculously big man like you, my remaining senses go haywire. I'm sorry, but could you go?"

She said it bluntly. The man showed a funny smile without getting angry at all.

"Haha, sorry about this. Have a nice evening, Madam."

He bowed politely and left the room. At the same time, David angrily approached his grandmother.

"That's terrible, Granny! Even though that person saved my life! Even though it's the first time I've met someone I can respect!"

Then Mariana yelled at her poor grandson.

"You, idiot! You will follow that person until you finish paying them for helping you. You'll never let him out of your sight. Here you go! Let's go!"

David's eyes sparkled. It was the first time that his life had meaning.

He turned and chased after the man, yelling loudly.

"Wait!"

She heard footsteps going away.

"Wait, Sir! Mr. Reisi Munakata!"

Mariana leaned back in the chair. The moment she saw his face, she knew.

"That man was a person with a "fate"."

In response to Slate's call, he became the "King".

He clearly realized who he was.

But now...

The Slate was also lost.

What is his current self?

Who is he?

Where should he go if he is not a "King"?

"I..."

Reisi Munakata wondered, and kept wondering.

At first, he toured the country. He gazed at the twinkling stars on the farthest island, he sat meditating in an ancient temple built in a surprisingly difficult place, he strolled through the dazzling neon streets and slept soundly in the total darkness of the virgin forest.

He met, he broke up, fought and saved many people. Reisi Munakata was just Reisi Munakata and he remained Reisi Munakata, but as a result, many people appeared who were impressed with him, who felt indebted to him, who took aim at his life, and who had love and hate for him.

A promising manager who had a heated argument with him about the future of the world temporarily entrusted the company to his subordinates and followed Munakata.

When a wandering genius violinist looked at Munakata, he came up with a tune, so he accompanied him.

Trying to kill Munakata, an assassin walked behind him trying to find an opening.

Munakata did not reject any of them.

Eventually, the Munakata pilgrimage left that country and spread out to sea.

China, Vietnam, Iran, France, England, the United States and Mexico.

Reisi Munakata continued his journey as the wind blew and his feet followed.

And he continued to be Reisi Munakata in all parts of the world. As a result, nearly 100 men and women of all ages followed Munakata.

A martial artist whose dreams had been shattered. An old man wobbling on his legs. A college student who wanted to become a photographer. There was even a former gangster. A chef who made exceptionally delicious Chinese food. Also rich people and poor people.

Their race, age, and gender were all different, but they all had one thing in common: they possessed some kind of supernatural power.

Munakata and his group finally reached the tip of Cape Horn, the southern tip of South America.

Munakata kept looking at the sea at the other end of a remote area where the wind was blowing. How long had it been?

Suddenly, an old man appeared from a gap in the trees and slowly approached.

"Are you Mr. Munakata?"

When Munakata smiled and nodded as he asked hoarsely,

"I have a letter for you. Look, I give it to you."

He gave him the letter. Then slowly he made his way back into the forest. Curious, Munakata broke the seal and looked inside the paper.

After,

"Listen everyone..."

Munakata looked back at his fellow travelers who had been watching the exchange.

"I have received a letter of complaint. It seems that it is high tide. Let's go back to Japan at once."

It was a somewhat radiant smile.

Fushimi Saruhiko was definitely cornering Kamimori Katsuya, the self-proclaimed Black Iron King, and his group.

Upon capturing Tamaki Genjo, the person who literally covered the organization with a veil of black mist, they lost their Strain ability and intriguing protection.

It was not a difficult task for Fushimi and the members of "Scepter 4" to individually contain the exposed members.

Fushimi and Awashima thought the incident would end soon, though the top favorite Kamimori was still on the run.

Nevertheless...

That expectation was immediately nullified by Kamimori's outrageous actions.

Surprisingly, he attacked the "Scepter 4" garrison with only a few of his subordinates.

An unprecedented outrage in which a Strain attacked a public facility staffed by elite members of the Blue Clan, the headquarters of Strain's anti-crime measures, the source of order.

The reason was simply to help his fellow prisoners.

"Fushimi, how are you now?"

Awashima's annoying voice could be heard from the other side of the PDA.

"I haven't been able to return to the camp yet either. At the moment, I was only able to contact Hidaka once, so I gave him instructions, but I don't know the actual details."

Fushimi's response was filled with a disgust that he couldn't hide.

"Yes. I'll be home in about ten minutes. Fushimi. Let's make those who did something so stupid pay a reasonable price."

"Of course, Lieutenant."

And they both hung up almost at the same time. They both felt their pride as members of the blue clan hurt.

According to Fushimi's style, "Scepter 4" was also underrated.

That was the expression.

The unfortunate thing for them was that Awashima and Fushimi were on duty, and Zenjo, Akiyama, and Benzai, Captain Class, who were excellent at swordsmanship, were also absent.

Currently, Hidaka is the only member of the special forces on the scene and seems to be fighting hard with a small number of members.

When the taxi he was riding in got stuck in a traffic jam, Fushimi finally jumped out and ran the rest of the distance on his own. Then, in front of the garrison, he suddenly had a bad feeling and braked.

That insight struck a chord.

A shelf used to store materials suddenly flew out of a window on the second floor of the building, scattering glass and crashing to the ground right in front of Fushimi, causing him to collapse with a harsh sound.

"Let's do it!"

Fushimi looked up with a dangerous glint behind his glasses. Without hesitation, Awashima rushed over.

"Fushimi!"

She already had her hand on the hilt of the saber.

The two nodded to each other, breathing in unison, and tried to jump out of the main entrance.

And so...

"Oya."

They heard a nostalgic voice behind them and stopped involuntarily.

"It's going to be quite lively, isn't it? I've been sitting in the middle for a while, but do I have the qualifications to participate in this festival from now on?"

Katsuya Kamimori was just a simple man.

Tamaki, the superior officer, had told him to abandon him and escape the metropolitan area in the unlikely event of being captured, but he ignored him and retrieved Tamaki and his friends, boarding the "Scepter 4" base.

It was similar to raiding a warehouse where another group of criminals have a stronghold to help their fellow criminals who have been caught.

However, stupidity had to pay a painful price for the strategy devised by Fushimi and the young members of the special forces who carried it out.

The policy that Fushimi conveyed to Hidaka was simple.

In the first place, they were never to let Kamimori near the underground detention center (where Tamaki and the others were being held).

And until all the allies had the strength to do so, they would avoid starting battles as much as possible and build barricades and besiege the castle.

Fuse and Enomoto first.

Later, when Goto and Domyoji returned to his base, Hidaka finally decided to go on the offensive, neutralizing Kamimori's subordinates one by one and restraining them in turn.

Last time, he used the bitter experience of being pushed head-on by a god who boasted ridiculous physical strength. As a result, Kamimori had lost all of his companions and was trapped in a barricade in the middle of the second floor corridor and was left stranded.

Domyoji, Enomoto, Fuse, Goto, and Hidaka pushed him through the barricade, unable to move forward or back.

The shelf that fell in front of Fushimi had been thrown out of the window by the frustrated Kamimori, who was like a wounded bear.

"Dammit!"

Kamimori barked.

"You are dirty! Fight properly, blue clothes!"

His youthful face was dyed red with anger. Many had already decided. After that, it was a calculation how to reduce the damage and capture the god.

"I'm getting a little sad. I'll be your partner for a while.", Domyoji said.

"No, Domyoji-san!"

Hidaka hastily stopped him.

Although Kamimori has a finely chiseled face, he has a boyish face that could be mistaken for a teenager, with a golden shaved head and a white suit that he stripped off to reveal a bold patterned shirt.

Looking at his mischievous appearance...

"Well, even if he's the Black Iron King, he's actually an older brother who graduated from Yankee."

Fuse whispered.

"Perhaps they were abetted by the scheming Tamaki."

Enomoto nodded slightly. Nevertheless...

"But your reasoning is not completely unfounded. As long as the current measures against Strains don't change, I'm sure there will be more such people."

He muttered that under his breath, and the people around him heard that, his face was startled and he nodded his head.

People in the field felt it firsthand.

Some of the current Strains crimes are not due to malice on the part of the person involved, but rather a lack of social systems.

They were all silent for some reason.

"If you're a man, come right now!"

They were keeping watch as Kamimori yelled.

At that moment...

"Do you want a timer? So..."

They heard a very calm voice. They were all puzzled. A shadow was slowly approaching the scene of chaos, climbing the stairs.

"Let me be your partner."

Reisi Munakata, the "Blue King".

The boss of "Scepter 4", who had been absent for a long time, suddenly appeared with a smile on his face. Furthermore, he wore the uniform without any discomfort, and the sword belt was complete. Everyone was speechless at the sudden development.

With his hands folded behind his back, Munakata calmly passed through the barricade and stood in front of the divine guardian. Nobody had time to stop him.

Kamimori looked taken aback for a moment, but immediately...

"Oh! You are the boss of this place. What is it? Will you be the one with me?"

He said happily. Munakata agreed.

"Just like that."

Munakata immediately stopped Kamimori who was about to attack him.

"Let me ask you one thing. Why are you here?"

"Ah?"

"You should have known the risks. If you escaped like this, at least you alone would have been safe enough."

"......"

Kamimori lowered both fists.

He was silent for a while, then...

"No, seriously, I never thought of that. How can you abandon your friends and run off alone?"

"......"

Kamimori looked directly at Munakata. With a desperate expression that he wanted him to understand something.

"Well, just because I woke up with such a strange power, I got fired from the place where I worked so hard. I was so angry, but I didn't know what to do, so I was alone all the time. But Tamaki taught me what I should do. After that, the number of friends gradually increased and they started to follow me."

He cried.

"I'm a hopeless bastard, but if they call me king once, I definitely can't abandon my comrades, right?!"

"......"

Munakata had a smile on his lips and closed his eyes. And when he opened his eyes again...

"Your words touched my heart very much. It's alright. As the King himself, I will face you with all sincerity."

He put his hand on the hilt of the saber.

"Thanks!"

Kamimori joyfully clenched his fists. Munakata still had a soft expression.

"Munakata."

He drew his sword.

"Batto!"

Kamimori rushed forward without pause. Munakata swung his sword across it.

A moment later, the results came out.

A strange noise resounded and the entire building shook violently. Domyoji was the only one there that he could understand exactly what had happened.

"Oh..."

An admiration escaped from his mouth.

Munakata danced in the world of the speed of the gods, dodging the opponent's attack with a fine line, turning his body around and lowering the tip of his sword to directly hit the god's head.

Thus, Kamimori crashed into the ground, and the ground collapsed due to the impact. Kamimori was completely passed out as he was trapped in the construction material on the floor.

Munakata knelt down next to the unconscious Kamimori with a somewhat happy face.

"I'll tell you more when you wake up."

He patted him on the shoulder.

It was a spectacular sight.

After half a delay, the members of the special forces finally cheered and tried to approach Munakata.

But before that...

"Well done!"

"As expected of Mr. Munakata!"

"Good! Good! Munakata!"

People of different nationalities and ages climbed upstairs, jumped over the barricades and surrounded Munakata.

"Do not enter the garrison without permission!"

Fushimi raised his voice in anger and Awashima with a wry smile did the same.

The others were blank.

After that, Akiyama, Benzai, and Kamo, who had rushed back to their bases with Fushimi and Awashima, joined Munakata and gave a briefing in his own office.

By the way, Domyoji and the other members were busy cleaning up after capturing the divine guardians.

Meeting their "King" for the first time in a long time, everyone who stayed there was deeply moved.

Akiyama had a nostalgic face, Benzai had a smile on his lips, and Kamo had slightly teary eyes.

Awashima seemed relieved that Munakata appeared to be in good health. And Fushimi with a cold expression as if he dared to make up for it.

Munakata began to speak.

"Thanks to everyone, I was able to spend a very significant moment."

Then he added.

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I know it's been a burden."

He bowed his head courteously and deeply. On the contrary, everyone panicked.

"No, it's not like that."

"Please raise your head!"

Akiyama and Benzai appealed.

"Oh."

Fushimi took a deep breath and said wryly.

"However, it certainly was a burden."

"Fushimi!"

When Awashima rebuked Fushimi...

"You shouldn't say that to your boss who suddenly comes back to this place after wandering around. Being underboss was the hardest to handle."

"Is that so."

Munakata smiled.

"I made Awashima-kun do a lot of things. Thanks again."

He leaned in again. Awashima also blushed.

"It's my job."

She tilted her head back. Kamo asked when the atmosphere calmed down.

"So, Captain, what did you see and hear during this time?"

Munakata slowly said...

"The state of the world after the collapse of the Slate. The current situation of the growing and diversifying Strains. The changing species of humanity... that's the way it is."

The executives of "Scepter 4" kept their thoughts to themselves and remained silent.

Munakata suddenly remembered.

"Speaking of which, Fushimi-kun. You sent a messenger from Cape Horn to give me a letter. How the hell did you know I was going there?"

Fushimi smiled. It seems that Munakata's somewhat mysterious appearance was interesting.

"Don't you know who the head of the department is? It's easy. The head of the department causes various incidents and troubles wherever he goes, so if you look at the news from the overseas network, you can naturally read the route and date expected arrival."

"That's all."

Munakata nodded.

"Well, I thought the head of the department would definitely like that place."

Fushimi slightly averted his gaze and added that in a low voice.

"You read it, right?"

Munakata said with a smile. Fushimi asked back.

"By the way, you've been away for a while. Did you find what you were looking for?"

Munakata neither affirmed nor denied it.

Fushimi's face was dumbstruck. But before he could say anything, Awashima intervened.

"Captain. To me, the Captain will always be the Captain. That doesn't change, right?"

She looked at Munakata. Munakata accepted that sincere look with a soft smile. Then he turned his gaze to Akiyama, Benzai and Kamo in turn.

In response to that unspoken question...

"Eh..."

Akiyama expressed his personal opinion.

"To me, the Captain is someone to look up to and he leads the cause of this country. It's the same now as it was in the past."

"I respect you. I will continue to follow you."

Firmly, Kamo said that wistfully.

"From the moment you recruited me, my time has taken on new meaning. I pledge my unwavering devotion and loyalty."

Finally, everyone's eyes were on Fushimi. Fushimi looked a bit shocked, but he immediately flashed a fearless smile that was typical of him.

"Well, it's you, right? I laughed so hard. I don't understand why you picked them up. Aren't there about 100 people? Since you're the captain, you'll make a place for them, right?"

Munakata closed his eyes.

He was called by various names along the way.

"Boss. General. Don. Okayashi. Adult. And most of all... King.

In the past, he advertised himself to the Slate.

But now...

"The boss is... our King."

Everyone including Fushimi nodded at Awashima's muffled voice.

Munakata's eyes widened.

"That's right. Now, I finally understand the "me"."

It was the time when Munakata's journey ended.

He traveled, walked, met, talked, fought and traveled the world.

He looked at what the world was like now.

He thought about what the world would be like in the future.

When he got some answers and returned to Japan, he was able to understand Reisi Munakata better than before.

He was naturally satisfied with what he had to do.

Reisi Munakata was just Reisi Munakata.

It was easy.

Munakata, who had reached that state of mind, left his companions behind and headed for the person he should talk to the most.

A building that almost reached the heavens where the "Golden King" who once ruled that country lived.

Munakata smiled and looked up. Currently, a silver-white airship is moored there.

That blimp will never take off again.

It will continue in the twelfth chapter, "The World of the Future".

[nicollekidman]

YOU LIKE THE KING AND I? truly we are like this 🤞🏼

sometimes your grandma has a bunch of rogers and hanmerstein VHS’s in her basement and you watch all of them every year when you visit and that becomes a core part of your personality and yul brynner grabbing deborah kerr’s waist is the craziest thing you’ve ever seen in your life and by the time you find out yul was russian and RITA MORENO was tuptim it’s too late and any single chord of any single song makes you feel like romance is just around the corner in the summer heat

[alltheprettyplaces]

Boo! It's the Nice Ask Week Ghost 👻 What vibes would your dream house or apartment have? Would love to see example pictures :D

hi michelle 💖💖💖💖💖 thank you for the fun ask!!!

you know those houses that are all fun colors that make people go “you know that kills your resale value??” in a snotty voice? I want one of those

so I started looking through tabs/bookmarks I have saved for things I might want to buy when I finally have my own place. these are some prints I might have to get bc they’re soooo cute

and I’m sure I could find some full apartment shots in my blog of looks I love but since I’m eating breakfast while I answer this we get some google shots haha

colored cabinets in a kitchen, particularly blue and green ones mmmm and I essentially have a fully kitted kitchen waiting to find a home and (courtesy of mostly my grandma) pretty much everything I have for it is a light blue so halfway there already!

and because I literally just bought these less than a week ago

disco decor!!!! valentines and spring time decor is my complete weakness with the focus being pastels and flowers and shiny so starting now looking in the decor section of any store is trouble for me haha

and some overseas inspo from on the left the airbnb I stayed in in London two years ago those lights were an instant “oooooooo” for me. and on the right, ya take a girl to Venice for less than 24 hours and over 6 years later she still wants Moreno glass all over her whole house

actually!!! some more inspo is natacha’s house!!! I looooove how she incorporated color and her stained glass window??? need!!!

in short I think this can just be called a pastel princess vibe and I need it so badly right now!!!