In light of my recent Asclepius and Apollo musings, I feel like it's the perfect time to post this, actually.
How do you build a human being?
Bold question. Foolish question. But a question it is all the same.
The memory of his father’s consternated expression is still bright behind his eyes, that unusually furrowed brow, the tension in his gentle jaw. He didn’t falter in his setting of Asclepius’ broken shin, hands perpetually steady and sure, but he hesitated for a conspicuously long moment as though reluctant to give an answer. In this body, he resembled Orpheus something fierce. The same flaxen curls of his hair, the same delicate eyelashes that stand stark against the dark brown of his skin. Often Asclepius wondered if his elder brother was nothing but a body built to suit their father’s preferences. The subtle wrinkle of skin around their eyes when they smiled was the same, and the steadiness of their hands, the soothing power of their presence.
And Orpheus did not bleed like Asclepius did. The blood in Asclepius’ veins were as red as any human’s, any mortal’s, but Orpheus seemed not to bleed at all. Even when he’d suffered the same fall down the crumbling cliff as Asclepius had. Even when his skirts had ripped and jagged stone sliced into his shanks.
Even so, Orpheus was unmistakably alive. His eyes were rich with grief fresher than any blood spilt from the worst of Asclepius’ wounds, his counsel too, was tempered with the wisdom of a life well lived. So even at the apex of his most perfect, inhuman beauty, Asclepius never once doubted that his brother was a human being. Just that he was more divine construct than flesh and blood. Just that their father had built for himself a son that would not break as easily as all the others.
His father stayed silent for so long that Asclepius assumed it would be one of the million questions that would go unanswered. Then, just when the last of his bandages had been wrapped -
“A human body is easy to build,” he’d had that faraway look on his face as he spoke, like he was speaking to the horizon. Or a version of Asclepius that was not quite here. Such things happened from time to time. “Any flesh would do. From men, or animals, or even monsters. Any flesh would do.” Their gazes had locked then, and Asclepius would never forget the flecks of gold which swirled in his father’s blue eyes, the weight of divine words rattling at the boundaries of their mortal apparatus, “But the breath of life, a living soul? That is beyond your means as a mortal man. You ought never seek it.”
(Asclepius would remember these words when he revives a man for the first time at the age of nineteen. He’s surprised to find that his father is wrong for once. Souls are easy to source when they’re already eager to return to their mound of flesh.)
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hi!!! could you write aaron x bau! reader, where jack accidentally finds a positive pregnancy test in the bathroom or somewhere in a drawer before reader gets a chance to tell aaron)))🫶🏻
tells
omg omg i could cry 🫶🏻🥹 cw; pregnant bau!reader, mentions of pregnancy symptoms, a ton of fluff <3 wc; 1k
"Hi sweetheart."
Aaron's eyes rose as you entered his office, before returning to the files laid atop his desktop, a paper in his right hand. His stare had lingered momentarily, so he noticed the bag in your hand. "Heading out?"
"Yup, gotta pick up Jack." You replied, hoping you sounded somewhat normal, given your current circumstances. You felt as if your voice was borderline squeaky, in that attempt to remain normal, while also resisting the urge to bounce on your toes. "You coming with?"
On another note, you were so incredibly thankful to be leaving early; overwhelmed with nausea, back pain, fatigue. Ginger ale had been within arm's reach all day, an achingly long day. Laying in bed had never sounded more appealing.
"No, I wish I could. There's a few consults I need to look over before tomorrow. It shouldn't take too long, though." He got up, inching towards you, "I can, however, spare some time for you."
Your nose scrunched in amusement, leaning up to peck his lips, "You're too good to me."
He chased your lips, murmuring into the kiss with a soft smirk and teasing you right back, "I do try."
After the two of you pulled away (and a whistle echoed outside from a passing Derek Morgan), you toyed with his tie, smoothing it cleanly against his torso. "Don't stay too late, okay?"
"I won't." Aaron kissed you once, twice more before retreating back to his desk. He held onto your hand for as long as possible, causing it to fall gracefully to your side. "I'll be home before dinner, I promise."
Instead of leaving, all you could do was stand there; staring at him, completely giddy. The secret you held, it made you feel a whole new kind of love when you looked at him. The father of your unborn child, the perfect addition to your family. A new love you had created together.
Aaron's gaze lifted, catching you ogling him, a confused smile forming on his face. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. Nothing at all." You shrugged, forcing your feet towards the door. "I'll see you at home."
His eyes narrowed suspiciously, playfully. He absolutely didn't buy it. "Okay, drive safe."
-
"Hi." Jack greeted, climbing into the backseat and shutting the door behind him. He struggled the smallest amount, his backpack weighing him down.
"Hey Jackers," You twisted behind, offering a warm smile, "have a good day?"
"Yeah." He verified, and left it at that. He simply settled in, buckling up.
While you had thought you were the one being strange, he was definitely more so. As you took the route home, he remained quiet in the back, rather than being his usual talkative, wanting-to-tell-you-everything-about-his-day self. You peered at him in the rearview, observing him.
He didn't look pale, so hopefully he wasn't coming down with something. He didn't seem upset - his eyebrows always pinched together in worry when he was. Even this morning during breakfast for instance, he seemed far away, off in his own world. If you didn't know any better, he looked on edge, but in a jittery, seemingly excited way. Antsy, and oddly familiar.
"You okay?"
Jack nodded, keeping his eyes out the window. His absorbed expression indicated the gears continuing to turn in his mind.
"Did something happen today? You're awfully quiet."
"I have a question."
You stopped the car, arriving home, turning around in your seat again to fully look at him. "You know you can ask me anything. Whatever's on your mind, nothing's off limit."
His eyes lit up, hopeful yet quizzical. He quietly and timidly asked, "Am I getting a baby brother or sister?"
You blinked at him, surprised, as that was the last thing you expected to come out of his mouth. But you couldn't stop the small smile tugging its way onto your face. Not only because you were happy, of course, but you also didn't want him thinking he had done something wrong. "What makes you ask that?"
"I wasn't snooping, I promise. I went into your bathroom to look for some floss - Dad said I could, said it was in the top left drawer - and I saw it, it said pregnant. But I didn't mean to see, I swear."
Your expression softened sweetly, a gentle laugh escaping you too, "It's okay buddy, that's completely on me. I didn't do a very good job of concealing it at all."
An adorable, boyish smile pulled at his lips, the words leaving him shyly. He could infer the answer, but he needed the actual confirmation. "So... am I?"
After a moment's silence, letting the suspense linger, you confirmed, your heart bursting as you did. "You are."
"Yes!" He nearly shouted, immediately unbuckling his seatbelt and throwing his arms around you, as much as he could with the obstacle of the driver's seat. His arms mainly reached around your neck.
You laughed gleefully, your hands raising to his arms, squeezing them gently - a makeshift hug for the meantime. Tears dared to spill down your cheeks, overwhelmed with emotion.
He released the embrace, sobering for a moment and the realization beginning to fully set in. "I'm really getting a sister?"
"It could be a boy too." You arched a brow, grinning.
"Yeah," he matched your smile, buzzing with happiness. "And I'd love that too. But, I think it's gonna be a girl."
"Well, we'll just have to wait and see." You shrugged coyly, "It's still quite early, so we won't be able to find out for a couple weeks."
"Weeks?" He whined painfully, but it faded as fast as it had appeared. "I'm so excited. I can't wait."
"You wanna know something else?" He nodded profusely. "You're the only one who knows."
Jack's eyes brightened more if it were possible, in both exhilaration and shock. "Seriously?!"
For the meantime, it was a special secret, shared just between the two of you. You could've sobbed right there, between his genuine sweetness and excitement. And the hormones.
Regardless, he was going to be the best big brother.
"Dad doesn't know?"
"Not yet. I was brainstorming how to tell him, how to tell you, but you were just too quick for me." You flashed him a teasing grin. "That means you have to help me come up with a fun way to tell him, and quick, because I think he's onto me. Deal?"
Jack held out his pinky, interlocking it with yours. "Deal."
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I got up at 1 am just to draw an idea for Human!Bill design that sparkled in my head, so i'll make it quick.
(Sorry for bad eng, I haven't talked with anyone for 1 year)
So. Soon I will post more art with this AU.
Well, as every "A different form, a different time" AU it's just Bill, just having his redemption arc. In my head the methods of theraprism haven't worked on him well and therapist decided that if he talks a lot of Pines family, than he need to face his problem face to face. (Ba dum tsss)
And then Axolotl delivers Bill in brand new totally fully human (which is very uncomfortable for Bill for obvious reasons) body and leaves him under the wing of... SOOS. Why Soos? I think It's something around May, so both twins are not in Gravity Falls right now, plus Soos and Melody won't kill him immideatly.
Of course when Bill first woke up in the fleshy meatsack he was screaming and trying to get his powers to work, or tried to escape this body but nothing worked. But! We're talking about the design, right? So!
• He is totally human. No magical powers, no omniscence, no additional features. The body is veeeery normal. Scarely normal.
• But! He has a triangular shadow. Not always, but when he is emotional enough. That's the only weird thing about him. That's also the only thing that could indicate him as HIM. The Dream Demon himself.
• He appeared with this orange prisonsuit, so Melody and Soos needed to find him fitting clothes VERY QUICKLY! As a result he has a Soos' oversized questionmark shirt, slim black jeans and old Wendys boots. Bill is totally upset with this.
• He is ginger. BECAUSE GINGERS DON'T HAVE A SOUL, his vessel tecnically don't have a soul inside, only dream demon, so it eventually got the red pigment.
• He looks like Alex Hirsch because they both are the most powerfull and insane beings in Gravity falls. But, I think that Bill has this... Piercing blue eyes, that is the opposite of yellow and reminds of his flames. (Of just yellow iris, i haven't decided yet)
• After a while Soos gifted him a "special worker shirt" which is basically questionmark tshirt with illuminati on it. After that he never wore anything exept this tshit.
• Also Bills hat and Bills bowtie are appeared with him as well, but the hat is too small for a human and bowtie has no ribbons to tie around a neck, so Melody just sued bowtie to his tshirt. That was a disaster
• Underneath the shirt he has a huge scar on his chest, which replicates the scar of his original form.
I really love to draw Bill as human as possible, because it is much more painful for him and for the others. Thanks for the reading and stay tuned! I promise to draw more of this silly loser guy :D
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Danny Fenton is fourteen when he dies. He's fifteen when he ceases to exist.
All traces of Danny Fenton just gone. No records, no photos, no memories. It's like he was never born. Naturally, without Danny to turn on the portal comes no ghosts, so no Danny Fenton also means the GIW never came to be. Time is carefully set back on Amity Park. There are no longer any ghost sirens, charms, merch, or cracks in the pavement from Vlad knocking him out of the sky or scorch marks on the side of buildings from Skulker's stray shots.
The Fenton's only have one child, a smart, ginger woman who's pursuing psychology in some top-league out of state college like Harvard or Yale or Brown. There's no little brother to keep her confined to the little town in nowhere Illinois where she was born.
Sam and Tucker never became friends, because there was no Danny Fenton to bring them together.
The Fenton's portal never turns on, so they focus their research on the ambient ectoplasm in the air around them. They become leading scientists in clean energy. Ectoplasm is the perfect resource; endlessly reusable, infinite supplies that never deplete, no negative effects on the environment.
Danny Fenton is no one. There is no Danny Fenton. There never was.
And the world is better for it.
Danny doesn't exist, there is no place for him, nowhere for him to go.
This was the only way to stop the GIW from starting a war with the Infinite Realms. It was the only solution.
It still hurts.
Danny is fifteen. He has no last name anymore, no family, no friends, and no home. He could live in the Ghost Zone, but he doesn't want to. He's still human, even if it's only half. He doesn't want to go. It feels final, like turning his back once and for all on all he knew and was.
So he does the only thing he can think to do and watches the stars.
In the frozen tundra, no one around for miles, Phantom lays in the snow and stares up into the speckled darkness. He doesn't move. He doesn't breathe. He stays so completely still he's entirely dead.
The snow doesn't bury him. The sun never rises.
It doesn't stop snowing.
Danny doesn't exist.
He's dead.
What is he supposed to do now? Go and be Prince of the In Between? He doesn't want to. He wants to go home. He wants to cuddle up with Jazz and play Doomed with Sam and Tucker. He wants to hug his dad. He wants his mum to sing to him like she used to when he was little enough they still tucked him into bed.
Maybe he just won't do anything. Maybe he'll just stay here forever, not Danny or Phantom and far from alive. Just nothing. He's nothing. Nothing and no one.
---
Nobody can see the sun.
It's still there, of course. All you need to do is leave the atmosphere and bam, there it is. On Earth though? No sign of it.
It's like they've fallen into an eternal night.
Best part?
It's caused by very powerful magic.
Listen, Batman has a lot of patience. A lot. But it's been two weeks of this, Zatanna's off-world, Constantine's only just answered his goddamn phone and the planet has collectively decided panic is the only course of action. He's been Bruce Wayne for a collective ten hours in the past fourteen days. It's ridiculous.
Thankfully it only takes Constantine a few minutes to track the source to somewhere in the Antarctic after he finally shows up.
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