#headcanons and impressions

[fighting-these-demons]

Alright to Spare OP of the Clown Motel Post

Hello Internet Stranger looking up G Gundam on Tumblr dot com!

This is an idea for a Horror Alternate Universe involving Queer Non-Canon Relationships between the characters of the series.

It is based on the idea in the post that is linked above.

If you are not looking for this content please scroll on.

If you ARE looking for this content - and you're ok with reading my and other's Headcanons for this Alternate Universe I've haphazardly spun up -

Then go ahead and feel free to:

Check The Tags Of This Post For The Pairings

and click the Read More below!

Also the majority of the brainstorming is happening in the replies if you're so inclined.

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So I have 4 possibly 5 ideas so far:

1) Middle of Nowhere Nevada or Alabama or Nebraska outside the Gundam Fight Zone - No Gundams To Save You Now Boys

2) This is Post-Divorce for Domon and mere months before the next Gundam Fight.

3) Domon and Chibodee were exhausted and possibly close to a confession before the terrifying clown music kicks in.

4) Only One Bed - Used for Commedic and also Horrific Effect when SEVERAL Clowns pop out of said bed (it was not immediately visible that they were there.)

Is it a trap door to the underground lab they're being produced in? Did the guys not notice a misshapen pile?

I can't decide if the clowns are Ghosts, Aliens (Like IT), or DG related somehow. Like someone got ahold of some samples and are using then for nefarious purposes -namely to build an army of deadly mindless clowns operated via mind control that have gone rogue somehow.

I will say I didn't initially picture Kyoji having anything to do with this but he is my favorite darling meow meow and thus I'm happy to incorporate him into any G Gundam thing I do.

5?) Maybe Kyoji is along for the ride trying to help them research whats going on? Maybe they get separated when Kyoji is dragged off

Or a noise startles Chibodee and he bolts with Domon hot on his heels trying to stay together but they didn't notice Kyoji was trying to read something on the counter and when he looks up he's alone like "You've gotta be fucking kidding me"?

Tagging mutuals I was brainstorming with already that may want to write something with this:

@thedragonchilde @amplexadversary

[spacedustpan]

Sparrington Nightmare Life Line

-------------------------------------------------So wouldn't a Sparrington headcanon/AU where Jack has vivid nightmares and James thinks to twine their hands to give him a life line be wonderful???

😭💖

With everything Jack had been through and how wonderfully creative he is I can see him having vivid dreams and nightmares!

[fighting-these-demons]

Also, a headcanon is still a headcanon whether it's for the actual Canon of the show itself, or if it's a headcanon for an AU or What If situation.

And anything thats not specifically within the bounds of canon and conforming to the narrative is IMO an AU. Now it can be a Canon Conforming AU certainly, but it's still an AU.

My headcanons for characters and how they feel and react changes based on setting and circumstance, because setting and circumstances are life and mind altering.

A person's lived experiences builds them and changes them throughout their life.

How Blorbo feels and thinks and what blorbo believes in Canon with only Canon Events taken into consideration

Is likely different from

How blorbo feels and thinks and what blorbo believes in a canon-divergent/altered timeline/altered setting situation.

Would blorbo 1 be as much of an asshole or fuck things up because they couldn't manage to trust someone if their trajic past was altered? If their parents were better people or if they got the help that they needed from someone when they needed it? Would they lean more into the softer and more open pieces of their personality that we only see towards the end of the media?

Different headcanons for different situations just makes sense to me.

And at the end of the day, a headcanon is a personal interpretation of the media.

And personal interpretations are always going to be infinitely varied because how a person absorbs available information and the conclusions they draw from it are (once again) influenced by their own personal life experiences and personal circumstances of their existence.

Two people can have wildly different interpretations of the same canon scene and dialogue for this very reason.

And that's part of what makes fandom fun! It's interesting to see how other people see and interpret the media in ways that yoy never have before!

It also leads to clashing due to people having vastly different interpretations, values, moral frameworks, life experiences etc. Because sometimes you'll see an interpretation that you completely fundamentally disagree with and makes your head spin.

want to be clear that if i ever talk about a headcanon and then later discuss a headcanon that is directly contradictory to the first one, that’s because headcanons exist in a quantum state where they are all simultaneously true and not true up until the point where i discuss it in detail, in which case that is the one that is true in that instance. schroedinger’s headcanons

[fighting-these-demons]

Kuwameshi Firefighter AU.

But it's not ABO - Yukina and Keiko have bonded over comics and are both avid Shojo Josei and BL doujin/fanfic fans.

They're the ones desperately trying to keep it together in the checkout line after they point out the mug to Yusuke whose English isn't good enough to pick up on the fact that the mug doesn't translate to "Firefighters are Hot!" And is purchasing it for Kazuma who has recently become a firefighter.

Kazuma will absolutely understand what it means and die a little of embarrassment.

[spacedustpan]

I've spent all day imagining an au with Shizutan and Kuwahi to Shooting Star by the Bag Raiders.

I have a comic and an amv in my head.

General context for headcanon:

Most of it is on the Shizutan side if things and the most significant bits are pre-series.

The Shizutan is pretty fleshed out in my mind (as far as my typical headcanons go) and involves past family involvement with yakuza, spirit world sdf, demon world cartels, and the ever continuing theme of rivals you didn't know you were in love with dying unexpectedly young.

Sakyo is trans and has history with Shizuru and Botan in school and eventually the yakuza. Shizuru/Sakyo was definitely still a thing during the Dark Tournament and is Even More Tragic Now.

Botan and Shizuru and Sakyo were classmates and punks and were on a fast track for yakuza life especially since Shizurus father was already involved in the yakuza and (unknown to Botan and Sakyo) spirit and demon world affairs.

Botan's(former name Misora- Sora for short with loved ones) mom was similar to Yusuke's and Sakyo had a single father that had a penchant for beating him.

OK so here's the headcanon Background:

Shizuru and Sora/Botan were childhood friends via family yakuza connections often playing and babysitting Kazuma together but when Sakyo moves to the area from Tokyo in their last year of elementary school Shizuru develops a massive crush on him. Sora/Botan is, of course, upset because she loved Shizuru and was already in her life first. (What Shizuru didn't realize yet was that she loved Sora/Botan too. And she doesn't think Sora/Botan's feelings are genuine. She thinks Sora/Botan's affections and hurt are friendly/familial instead of romantic.)

As they go through middle school and their friendship deteriorates they start gangs of their own and Shizuru and Sora/Botan are always duking it out over some stupid bullshit argument. Sakyo seems detached but sees how much they actually love each other and can't find any reason to choose either over the other. They both have their good points.

Of the two of them only Shizuru seems interested in him but Sora/Botan gets very pretty in middleschool and uses that to her advantage to flirt with Sakyo purely to piss Shizuru off. Sakyo enjoys it of course because he likes both of them and Sora/Botan IS very pretty. They're both so very kind at heart and spend a lot of time with him which keeps him out of the house. He's always crashing at Shizuru's or Sora/Botan's.

There's a reason that Koenma thinks Kazuma would be a better Spirit Detective than Yusuke. He admires Mr. Kuwabara's work and depends on his intel. They've worked together for years since Mr. Kuwabara was a teen coming into his own psychic powers and their comraderie has only solidified since The Incident with Kazuma's mother.

One day the spirit world and demon world information dealing and undercover work Mr. Kuwabara is doing comes to a head in the worst possible way and a group if demons come after his family AGAIN.

When trying to kill the Kuwabaras via an attack on their home: Sora/Botan, who lives in the neighborhood, hears the explosion and sees the flames. She runs out of her apartment and does her best to run in and rescue the Kuwabara siblings. She makes way for them to escape the house fire but she can't get out herself. Caught by the collapsing second floor.

Shizuru and Kazuma can hear her dying pleas and her thinking of how much she loves Shizuru  and how she doesn't regret dying to save her but that that does regret never telling her how she feels. Sora/Botan hopes that Shizuru can be happy with Sakyo even if he is a rat bastard. He'll always be a friend and Shizuru deserves to be loved like the moon and stars.

It's just so loud. The anguish and pain and anger slams through both of the Kuwabara siblings. It's deeply scarring for them both. Not to mention seeing her immediately as a ghost before they're both dragged off with their father by the SDF.

Separating them before they can interfere with the reaping that suddenly and unexpectedly needs to take place.

Kazuma's memory is wiped by his father and one of his associates but since Kazuma is so young and Mr. Kuwabara is also very deeply affected by the incident he accidentally wipes everything of Sora/Botan from Kazuma's memory.

Shizuru chooses not to have her memory wiped. She wants to remember Botan forever. Which is again very upsetting and traumatic for Mr. Kuwabara and Shizuru. They can't even grieve her loss with him. She was like a second daughter to Mr. Kuwabara and a sister to Kazuma. They can't really explain why they're so upset so they have to settle on the familiar pain of the loss of their mother which is ALSO related to spirit world and demon world dealings but Kazuma doesn't know the details behind his mother's death. Mr. Kuwabara and Shizuru had decided to keep Kazuma out of other worldly issues as much as they could after they lost Mrs. Kuwabara.

After Sora/Botan's death, Shizuru and Mr. Kuwabara shut in on themselves and cut themselves off from human connections abruptly. Shizuru drops out of school that year (first year of High School) and goes for a cosmetology license to move on with her life and make the extra cash needed since their dad is throwing himself into his work and staying away from home more often than he's around.

Sakyo is never given information about Spirit and Demon world and isn't aware of the Kuwabaras psychic powers. He's aware of their nightmares and their seeming clairvoyance but that's mysticism that's easily explained.

When Shizuru pulls back from Sakyo she's furious with herself for somehow convincing herself that Sora/Botan's affection and love for her was anything other than romantic and she regrets how her feelings for Sakyo hurt Botan. She of course doesn't SAY any of that to him and just sort of shatters their friendship with a fight and cuts him off cold despite how much she still loved him. She's really going through it and not coping well at all. Shizuru blames herself for Sora/Botan's death and the misery sge assumes Sora/Botan dealt with for the last 4 years that shes was alive.

Shizuru has gotta focus on taking care of Kazuma. She doesn't have time to waste on a crush that wasn't going anywhere and only hurt the most important person in her life.

Sakyo has essentially lost both of the only people he actually gave a shit about in the space of a week and he was already on track to join the yakuza anyway. He joins and throws himself into it to dull the pain and stay away from home, while funding his transition. He helps with various yakuza front work as opposed to street brawling which he was never fond of anyway. He's always been the man with a plan.

Sakyo eventually gets more involved in the inner workings of the organization and through a series of betrayls ends up at the top. Working with Demon cartels and making contacts with Tarukane and the Toguro siblings.

He wonders idly if there was something more to the Kuwabaras until he ends up getting information from a secondary contact of Mr. Kuwabara's that confirms they're all psychic and information brokers. He pieces together that the fire wasn't a normal house fire and starts to blame Mr. Kuwabara for Sora/Botan's death and Shizuru's misery. Nothing would have happened if he'd kept out of demon cartel affairs.

When Sora/Botan died, Koenma of course pulled every string he could to make her a reaper. They didn't have a plan for her and weren't expecting her but after Sensui there was no way to swing for Spirit Detective. It'd be better to bide his time and wait for Kazuma to grow into his powers. So Koenma did what he could, but for bullshit red tape reasons the opportunity to be a reaper came at the cost of Sora/Botan's memories.

Botan can't remember her life as a human before she became a reaper. She thinks that she's from a different time period. These are false memories implanted upon her agreement to training and reaper work. She also looks completely different color palette wise (blue hair based off of her human name and pink eyes based off of her favorite flower peonies which is what she's now named after) but has all the same features.

The day Shizuru walks into Kazuma's room and sees Botan standing there she nearly has a heart attack. She'd recognize Sora anywhere. She immediately gives them space. She's not even sure what excuse she uses. She just knows that she has to get away. As time goes on, it's clear that Botan doesn't recognize or remember her. She tells her dad about it and he catches her up on Sora's enlistment as a reaper, what she had to give up to achieve that, and how Koenma has been favoring her as an assistant.

Shizuru is of course eternally bitter about Koenma seeing as he's managed to bring so much misery upon them all whether he means to or not. But she can't help how grateful she feels to see Sora/Botan again even if Kazuma has managed to get tied up in Koenma's bullshit now.

She sees how much Kazuma loves Yusuke and sees what she had with Botan in the past and she can't help but be happy for him that he got everything she wanted. She wishes him the best and lets him follow his path no matter where it leads him. She can only hope that he makes good choices and that his team will have his back.

Kazuma is the last person Sakyo ever expected to see again, much less fighting demons with an energy sword. Kazuma doesn't recognize him of course. He was so little and after a "head injury" during the house fire as a kid he doesn't remember much from around that time. Plus Sakyo looks markedly different as a grown man. Similar enough if you knew him pre transition or knew what his father looked like, but Kazuma wouldn't have any frame of reference.

Sakyo is shocked but has Toguro go after Kazuma with an invitation for Yusuke to the Dark Tournament after a quick assessment of the situation at hand. He's always been great at observing and reading people after all. If Kazuma's invited to the Dark Tournament, then there's no way he won't see Shizuru again. Of course she'll be there. Kazuma is everything to her. So he waits. What he doesn't expect to see is a girl with blue hair and pink eyes that's the spitting image of Sora when she passed.

Then the events from the Dark Tournament play out largely unchanged. Sakyo dies at the end of it all. No matter how much they love each other they took different paths. There was no way to rejoin. It was always meant to end this way, but they got to see each other again if only for a brief moment in time.

The rest of the series also passes largely unchanged from cannon. Shizuru takes her time to heal and become comfortable with Botan as we know her now. Botan reminds Shizuru of what Sora was like when they were kids. Of what Sora might have been like had they never gotten involved in delinquent activity as teens. She's just as sweet and bubbly as she was beneath all the bravado. It's easy to find herself relaxing into a warm if slightly detached friendship. She tries to keep Botan at arm's length because she doesn't know if she can keep a handle on her feelings for her.

Also Genkai knew more about the Kuwabara family that she never let slip during the series for a Variety of reasons. She ultimately got what she wanted and needed out of the tournament that she ran -seeing Kazuma- but ended up training Yusuke because of course with Koenma's interference of giving Yusuke powers and awareness of demons the little shit won the damn thing. And he clearly cares about the Kuwabaras so why not? She's still dead though. (More an au of the manga timeline vs anime timeline.)

ANYWAY GETTING TO THE SONG PART NOW

As much as Koenma is a little shit, after everything that happened with Genkai and Toguro and Mrs. Kuwabara and Shizuru and Botan and Kazuma almost dying he has a whole fucking lot to make up for and he keeps trying to do his best to make it up to this family that keeps defying fate's plans and exceeding Spirit World's expectations. He has a huge soft spot for them.

So one day when she's scheduled to have her human form changed to more closely match with Kazuma and Kurama's current age range, he also returns Botan's memories to her (somehow through a loophole he and George have been working on hunting down for years) and of course the first thing she does is fly to Shizuru with a little radio like Kiki's delivery service playing a song only her and Shizuru (and Kazuma) would recognize. It's a spirit world radio and it's amplified while transmitting on a psychic frequncy specific to the Kuwabaras.

It's a familiar tune from a Sci-fi show they watched together as children while babysitting Kazuma. (I sorta envision it like Star Trek I assume someone had brought Star Trek to Japan by the 80s.)

Shizuru hears it, thinks it might be kazumas stereo but it sounds like its inside her mind. She extends her senses outside while she looks to the sky, and she senses that Botan is flying overhead.

Shizuru instantly knows that Sora/Botan remembers their past. She jumps out of bed, scrambles into boots, a jacket, and a helmet running out of the house, and hops on her motorcycle to fly after her as Sora/Botan flies through the skies above Sarayashiki. They're heading towards a place by some train tracks near the beach that they used to brawl at in middle school for their bigger fights. Shizuru's thinking the lyrics to herself a she rides. Botan has always been the shooting star that she couldn't quite catch up to. She'll be damned is she doesn't catch her this time.

(It's my AU so Shizuru gets a motorcycle 🏍 she'd be so cool riding one come on)

The Kuwahi is admittedly less detailed....

On his end, Hiei is using the Jagan to check that Kazuma is home and considering saying something to him.

When he establishes the connection he hears the song starting. It's one Kazuma shared with him as a favorite of his. One Kazuma had listened to since he was a child. Playing it on his stereo with the window open so Hiei could listen from the tree outside his window one warm summer evening.

Hiei thinks that might have been the first night that he started having feelings for Kazuma.

Kazuma's sentimental speeches have gotten to him somewhere along the way and he's developed his own sentimentality. He's developed a love of music. Listening outside Kazumas window to whatever he plays for him.

Hiei's grown an appreciation for so many things in life that he'd long let die by the wayside. Kazuma revived them. He only started putting the pieces together when he couldn't put down his anger at Yukina rejecting Kazuma for her one-sided love for Keiko (of course I worked that in here. If we're still doing ultimately doomed Yaoi then let's toss in some ultimately doomed Yuri while we're at it too y'all 🤷‍♀️.). It was bad enough that Kazuma had to hide his pain and resignation at The Detective's proposal to the girl, did his own sister have to fall for her and break Kazuma's heart too? Were Kazuma's declarations and patience and kindness not enough?

Before Hiei started the connection, Kazuma had been up thinking about his feelings for Hiei and how they'd been growing since he'd let go of Yukina. How close they've gotten as teammates and friends. How he's slowly grown to love him over the years but isn't sure what to do about it.

Kazuma feels a familiar psychic connection and starts to hear the music. He assumes that Hiei is the one sending it. That's new. Typically when Hiei contacts him via psychic connection it's an emergency message or communication of information over long distance during a mission.

Hiei sends a few short words telling Kazuma that he's deeply important to him and asking Kazuma to follow him. The emotions conveyed in the connection make it clear that its some form of love and longing and not just the comraderie they've always had. Kazuma looks out the window and sees Hiei fly off the roof ringed in moonlight against a backdrop of stars. He jumps out of bed, into some shoes, and is down and out of the door chasing after Hiei as he feels the distance grow in their connection. He ends up singing the lyrics in their connection while chasing Hiei across town and through the surrounding forest as his own half of this confession. Hiei has always been a shooting star to him. He just needs to catch up.

Both chase scenes are happening at the same time because universal timing I guess lmao. Also Kazuma and Shizuru didn't notice each other leaving because they were so caught up in the moment lmao. Shizuru got out the door last and didn't hear Kazuma running out because she was scrambling for her boots and jacket.

Kazuma also has a motor cycle for the record it just wouldn't make sense to ride it where he's chasing Hiei.

Idk what do you think Shizutan and Hieibara shippers do I have anything here?

I can't write so all I can do is give a rundown of scenes. 🤷‍♀️

If someone likes this and wants to write or draw this please by all means! 💖 I give this AU headcanon freely. I don't have the skill or talent to write or draw anything with it.

I just wanted to at least share it in case it made someone else happy to think on.

I think I'm calling this the Tragic Biker Shizutan AU since the Kuwahi is more of an afterthought.

[choccy-milky]

seb about to learn every language there is 📚📚

[fighting-these-demons]

Still REAL. Still True.

[cheralith]

childhood bestfriend!kaiser who specifically always demands his managers to reserve a spot for you at every single one of his games.

you always go to support him, with him insisting he needs you there as some sort of “lucky charm” (he won’t actually admit he thinks those superstitions are bullshit), so imagine his shock when he finds out that your seat is empty on the day of one of the most important games of the season—the game that will decide who gets to compete in the german cup.

it’s ten minutes before the game starts and despite his coach’s pep talk to the team, all kaiser can focus on is your empty seat and the absolute betrayal you’ve bestowed upon him, your supposed “best friend.”

he hasn’t realized it—nor will he admit it if he ever were to come to such an epiphany—stubborn as he is, but the reason as to why he does so well in games that you’re present at is because of the fact it gives him more motivation to win and impress you rather than just solely being dependent on the faces of despair from his opponents. a unique sort of euphoria that he gets whenever he can spot you jumping up and down in your seat with his number #10 jersey on, that your praise belongs to him and him only.

so when he steps out on to the field and sees that your seat is still collecting dust, he seethes silently to himself, gritting his teeth, pissed that he even called you his best friend to begin with. because what sort of friend doesn’t show up to one of the most important games in germany’s football?!

he’s still planning to win, of course. he’s michael kaiser—he’s famous for doing so. and he plans to use all his rage that you’ve caused to do so, just in spite of you.

because he’s michael kaiser, number ten of bastard mündchen. he doesn’t need your help. he never did.

(see, what he doesn’t know is that you’re simply home sick with a cold and that you’re still dressed in his jersey, just also with a sweater and bundles of blankets on top to stay warm, but regardless, you’re still watching and cheering him on from behind the tv screen. you’ve sent him some texts and voicemails telling him so, but none have received a reply back yet and you can only imagine what this drama queen has in store for you once he wins the match.)

[sofiaruelle]

🌸The SDV gurlies in their Flower Dance outfits🌸

I wanted to keep it coquette/cotteage-core but i played around too much 😅😅. I still tried to keep it all cohesive to the theme of the event but with some my headcanons on their outfit choices lmao (like Abigail’s fit is mostly borrowed from someone or Haley fersure made Emily make her something new from scratch, etc.)

theres some other outfits under readmore that didnt make it to the final.

[thesuperiorrobin]

Dress to impress~

“what are you doing?”

You hear damian ask, his bedroom door creaking open as he enters with a towel in hand. He had just gotten in the shower and for the past fifteen minutes you had made yourself comfortable on his bed with Titus rolled on your side and his head right on your belly.

“Playing dress to impress” you turn your phone to show him your screen, and he sees the model and the outfit you had created “wanna join me?”

He lets out a scoff, as he dries his hair with the towel in hand. You watch as he throws it away somewhere in his room after he is done and he climbs on his bed beside you—finding a good position as you subconsciously leave your upper body up, letting Damian place his arm over your neck. “I have no interest in playing a stupid dress-up game made for children”

You frown, squirming away from his grasp as Titus lets out a whine from the sudden movement “Just say you don’t love me no more” you huff out leaving the male beside you stunned.

Damian rolls his eyes, leaning over you as he grabs ahold of his phone from his nightstand “Fine I’ll join”

~~~~

“Eighth place again?!”

You don’t avert your eyes away from your phone screen, smiling as you see your model up on the podium for what may be the 100th time. Damian on the other hand—was angered with the results in front of his face.

“I’m just better” you laugh. “I even voted you five stars cause I felt bad cause I thought that would help you, I guess not”

“And I’ve been voted you one star every time” he mumbles under his breath, but see as you two were shoulder against should you heard it loud and clear.

“Excuse me!?”

[fighting-these-demons]

HIEI DOES NOT HAVE A MOTORCYCLE BECAUSE HE DOES NOT NEED ONE

HIEI DOES NOT HAVE A MOTORCYCLE BECAUSE HE DOES NOT NEED ONE

HIEI DOES NOT HAVE A MOTORCYCLE BECAUSE HE DOES NOT NEED ONE

I AM NOT ADDING ANOTHER MOTORCYCLE TO THIS AU JUST BECAUSE OF A LICENSE PLATE

The post for context:

[spacedustpan]

I've come to an impass because now I'm trying to nail down motorcycles for the characters that ride them and I'm trying to find period accurate ones loosely compatible with the riders heights instead of just popping them on modern ones because it's important to me.

[starmocha]

Oh oh oh since we're sharing pregnant mc hcs, how about one where they got a bit carried away, they did it, she got pregnant, he "died", by some miracle she didn't lose the baby, she's an excellent, doting, badass mom. then when he comes back he finds the love of his life with a little 1 year old baby girl that could be considered mc's perfect clone except for the eyes. the eyes are his. IMAGINE THE ANGST THE HURT THE TEARS THE LOVEEEEE!!!!!

🫵 are you guys using my Caleb-addled brain to sneak around my “I don’t take requests” condition. /lh 😔 this is who I am now, I guess. I see Caleb, I cave… 🥺

Endless Summer

It was an ambush, another attempt on his life.

It was the thirteenth time in three months, as a matter of fact. Caleb had thwarted all of the previous attempts with ease, always on guard, untrusting of those who claimed to have vowed their loyalty to him as their colonel.

As you learned, you couldn’t trust anyone in Skyhaven, much less the Farspace Fleet. Dark secrets surrounded this seemingly elite entity and though it appeared like the place ran like a machine with perfect precision and efficiency, there was still an insidious side that Caleb refused to let you see.

It wasn’t just his life they were after. They were after yours as well, using you as the ultimate pawn to get to him. Little do they suspect, while you may be his greatest weakness, you were also his strength, his sole reason to persevere.

This was to be a fatal lesson for many to learn.

It was supposed to be a celebratory banquet, thrown in honor of the Farspace Fleet’s Colonel’s latest achievements. There were no deceptions by the hosts, but a traitorous group seized this opportunity to trap the young colonel and all doors within the banquet halls locked, keeping many of the guests hostages in the process.

Within the center of the room, Caleb calmly eyed all of the familiar faces that loomed overhead on the second floor as all around, innocent guests rushed to the exits, banging and screaming for help. He tried to push you away, get you to safety.

They were after him, after all. You didn’t need to be in the crossfires.

You didn’t have time to react, hearing that first gunshot that led the way for the onslaught of bullets.

Something in Caleb snapped that night. The barrage of bullets that came at him and you from all directions would have taken down anyone, but they all froze midair only because of his Evol freezing them in their track and keeping them suspended as if time had frozen at this very moment. He soon, however, learned it was merely a distraction.

Ca…leb…

The moment he saw the crimson blood seeping from your side, that knife pulled out quickly, and you were falling, eyes closing, as he ran toward you yelling your name. His Evol flared out of control, the gravity in the room suddenly immensely heavy, as dozens of men were pulled to their knees in futile struggles.

Open your eyes, he pleaded, his uniform soaked with your blood. His face twisted in pain, a million thoughts rushing through his mind, all of the memories of the past resurfaced in quick successions. All of those years of smiles and laughter that transitioned to pain and distrust only to slowly return to some semblances of the past were now coming to an end before his very eyes. He couldn’t lose you like this, not when he had promised that he would make things right again, to be the man that you deserved. Please…please…

You struggled to breathe, the pain unlike anything you had experienced in your life. As he watched you teetered closer to death, he was filled with wrath, an anger that could not be calmed by any forces in this world.

Caleb held his hand out, and a gun laying on the floor levitated before it rushed into his grip from across the room, and without a thought or any remorse or even hesitancy, he fired bullet after bullet into each man’s head, a clean shot straight through the center, not flinching even as the surrounding guests screamed and huddled to the floor, covering their ears from that violent, horrid sound.

When the last traitor fell, Caleb dropped the gun with a clatter, and his arms wrapped entirely around you, pulling you closer to his body for warmth. Your breathing had weakened even more, but he could still save you. He hadn’t failed you. Not yet, not ever. You were going to live. He would make sure of it.

Even if he now realized you were safer away from him.

Colonel Caleb, you had only slept for four hours last night, the robotic voice of an OTTO said with some semblance of concern in its artificial vocal. It levitated after its owner as the young colonel adjusted his uniform. The robot continued, explaining, An adult man of your age requires ei—

“I’ve slept enough,” he interrupted firmly, ignoring the robot, whose monitor quickly displayed a digitalized look of concern. Caleb had thought often of shutting down the robot and dismantling it, but he could never carry through, remembering that he had purchased this robot for you.

In this cold, monotonous so-called-home of his in Skyhaven, Caleb had few things that reminded him of you. A few plushies you two had won together sat on his living room couch, some snapshots you two had taken together at a photobooth, and perhaps a few furniture pieces you had ordered to be sent directly to his home. You had been in the process of bringing warmth and life into this place when everything came to an abrupt stop.

If he hadn’t taken you to that banquet that night nearly two years ago, Caleb wondered how things would have played out. You wouldn’t have gotten injured that night, but he feared perhaps it would just delay that same outcome. That night, he found himself at a fork in the road, forced to make a decision that would change the course of both of your lives.

Keep you by his side, where he had foolishly believed you would always be safe under his protection, or, let you go, let you believe that whatever had happened that night, he was the one who had died, finally taken away by Death himself. It was better to let you believe he had actually died this time, to keep you from searching for him, to keep you far away from Skyhaven—to keep you from him.

Since that night almost two years ago, Caleb’s nightmares had worsened. He relived the dreadful night, but he had also had other terrifying dreams so horrendous, he would wake up screaming in cold sweats, completely disoriented, unsure if he was trapped within another layer of the nightmare, or if he was truly awake.

“She’s safe, she’s safe,” he would often mutter to himself, an attempt to convince himself that he had made the right choice, that setting you free was the only way he could keep you safe. As long as you lived, he would bear the weight of his sacrifice, even if it meant never seeing you ever again.

It was sunny in Linkon, not a cloud in the sky, and the weather warm and inviting, but to Caleb, it was a place he had forbidden himself from ever stepping foot in again, out of fear that your paths would cross. In all of those times since he had distanced himself from you, allowed you to believe he was dead, he had managed to avoid any reason to step foot in the place that was once his home.

When his adjutant, Liam, had informed Caleb that his schedule required him to attend a conference meeting in Linkon, the young colonel stiffened, the atmosphere in the room stifling almost as if he was using his Evol. He suppressed his initial instinct to yell, knowing Liam was well aware of Caleb’s situation and had in the past made the necessary arrangements to prevent him from having any reason to step foot in that city.

It seemed he couldn’t stay away from Linkon forever, so he resigned to this situation, still remaining vigilant in his stance. Linkon was a big city, and there was no reason for your paths to cross. He would make do with this troublesome situation for the time being.

Now, Caleb had intended to return to Skyhaven the moment the meeting ended, and yet, against his better judgment, he found himself wandering down familiar streets, lost in memories of happier times. As he walked, before his eyes, he saw the silhouettes of him and you as children running down the street after school to your favorite little vintage grocery store.

Caleb, you dummy, you can’t use your Evol!

Don’t blame my Evol because you can’t run fast on those short legs, pipsqueak!

Caleb chuckled. He couldn’t help it. The memories of those years seemed so much more carefree. He often wished to go back to that time when the only things that weighed on yours and his shoulders were school or silly childish arguments.

As he approached the old grocery store, closed just a few years prior, he was surprised to learn that it was now under new ownership. The familiar place of his childhood was now a small trendy café, popular with college students and young couples.

To his astonishment—and, perhaps, also relief—the vibrant hydrangea garden in the back remained. Bushes of the white, blue, and pink flowers bloomed in the garden, showing that its new owner took well care of the plants. They looked like the hydrangeas of his childhood, of those long summer afternoons that never seemed to end as he and you made this place just another secret hideout only you two would ever know. As he walked down a beaten path, distracted, he was stirred out of his nostalgic thoughts when he felt something bumped into his leg. He peered down, surprised to see a little girl in a light orange dress, the same color as the sunset he used to see in his airplane when he was a pilot, was clinging to his leg. He looked around, not seeing any adult in sight to indicate they were the child’s guardian.

He furrowed his brows, a little in annoyance, as he was not prepared to suddenly be grappled with the responsibility of a lost child. He knelt down lower, and immediately, he startled as he took in the little girl’s appearance, a near perfect carbon copy of you, but the eyes—he stared into sweet little violet eyes that mirrored his own, seeing his shocked face reflected in these orbs. The girl looked up at him with curiosity, the wind swaying her short bob while a little yellow chunky cartoon airplane hairclip held her side bangs in place.

Suddenly, she started tearing up, breaking Caleb out of his trance and for the first time in a while, he felt panicked, unsure of what to do. The girl started to cry and Caleb immediately lifted her up, her head resting onto his shoulder as he rubbed her back and soothed her.

He shushed her gently, his caregiver instinct reignited after years of dormancy. “Why are you crying, sweetheart?” he asked her gently, his soothing voice a complete opposite to the tone he used as colonel.

The girl sobbed. She looked so young, Caleb realized, surmising that she probably had barely started learning to speak.

“Are you lost?” he asked in that same tender tone despite knowing the child would be unable to answer him. He continued, ��You miss your mommy, don’t you?”

He rubbed her back again, wondering with trepidation if this child’s mother was who he thought it would be. For just a second, his heart stopped when he felt the little girl gripping the fabric of his uniform with her small hands. Quickly, he recomposed himself.

“It’s alright,” he whispered, his hand smoothed the back of her hair. “Let’s go look for your Mommy, alright?”

“Ma...ma…” the girl struggled to say. She rubbed her face against Caleb’s shoulder, and he smiled gently, unbothered that his once pristine uniform was now covered in a child’s snot.

“Okay, mama,” he repeated, “I’ll help you find your mama, sweetheart.”

When he was just about to turn around to head back to the café, he froze again, hearing a familiar voice he hadn’t heard in years. He could feel his heart beating against his chest, actually feeling every heavy thump as the seconds passed and the voice grew closer, a name cried out—the little girl’s.

The child in his arms wriggled, and cried louder, seeing her mother over Caleb’s shoulder. “Mama! Mama!”

Stiffly, Caleb knelt lower and gently set the girl down to her feet, barely registering as the child toddled passed him to her mother.

A completely different feminine voice called out, angry. “Were you trying to kidnap a child in broad dayli—”

Caleb stood up and turned around, his face pale.

“Cale…Caleb?” You stared in shock, feeling like you were seeing his ghost again. Again.

“Mama…Mama…!” Your daughter nuzzled her face against your chest as you held her. You broke out of your trance and instantly redirected your attention to your child. You quickly soothed her, well aware that Caleb’s eyes were locked on you, his face just as shocked as yours but for entirely different reasons. Once the little girl calmed down you passed her off to your companion, saying, “Tara, take her back to the café.”

Tara looked at you worriedly, her eyes darting to Caleb with suspicion. One look into Caleb’s eyes, seeing that same, perfect shade of purple, and the young woman quickly understood the situation. She nodded quietly and took the girl from you. “Come on, sweetie, auntie Tara is going to buy you a cupcake, okay?”

You waited until Tara and your daughter were out of sight. You couldn’t look at him. You wanted to look at him, to make sure your eyes were not deceiving you, to make sure that this was not an illusion, not a cruel, mocking figment of your imagination. But you couldn’t. You felt cowardly in that instance, being afraid of the truth. Afraid of his reaction. Of everything.

“You were…you were pregnant?” he questioned, feeling a wave of guilt washed over him.

Just hearing those words made you realized this was him. This was Caleb, the man you thought was taken away from you. Again.

Suddenly, you broke down crying and you looked up at him with tears running down your cheeks.

“Caleb, you dummy,” you sobbed, “You fucking dummy!”

He gasped, unprepared when you rushed at him and started beating his chest half-heartedly with your small fists as you continued to sob and curse him over and over again. He let you carry out your anger, let you punished him as you saw fit in this moment, but when the punches weakened, he gently grabbed your wrists, lowering them to your sides before his arms wrapped around you in comfort, his apologies immediate.

“Yeah,” he agreed in that ever familiar soft and gentle tone reserved only for you, “I am a fucking dummy.”

You sniffled against his chest, gripping tightly the lapel of his coat.

The afternoon passed slowly, initially tensed and awkward, but eventually all of the missing pieces of the puzzle fell into place, and you both struggled to come to terms with the picture of the missing years. You peered at the man to your side, seeing Caleb hunched over, his cap in his lap, looking much like a sinner struggling to come to terms with his wrongs.

“You didn’t know,” you whispered after a while, wanting to break this stifling silence. You reached for his arm, but he tensed before his shoulders slumped again.

“That’s no excuse,” he said, looking up at you. He started to reach for your cheek, hesitating at the last second, as if he was afraid that you would recoil from his touch. He started to pull back but you grabbed at his hand, guiding it to your cheek. He stared in shock as you nuzzled your face against his palm, and you gazed at him with glistened eyes.

“You’re not allowed to die again,” you scolded him. “Promise me that.”

He nodded numbly, his voice clear and steady. “I promise,” he said, repeating in a more hushed, firm tone, “I promise.”

He leaned forward, guiding your lips to his, his words still repeating in between breath. You let him drown you in his kisses, let yourself dizzied and relent to his feverish promises. When your lips parted, just a few centimeters, his warm breath grazed over your trembling lips before he pressed another kiss to your forehead.

“I’m sorry,” he said, “I... will you…”

You looked up, seeing the struggles in his violet eyes. He appeared to hesitate again, unsure of what right he had to seek your forgiveness, wondering if he was overstepping the boundary between the two of you.

You gently coaxed him, seeing relief washed over his guilty features. “Will I what?”

“Will you…let me make things right?” he asked, “Let me…earn your forgiveness. I…please…”

He almost wanted to say, I can’t lose you again but the words died at his lips. He, of all people, had no rights to utter such words in your presence. He looked so defeated, beaten down to the point he no longer recognized himself anymore.

You took his hand, just like you always seemed to do, and you pulled him to his feet, to his surprise. He gazed at you questionably, his heart stopping at your words.

“Caleb,” you said his name so sweetly, “I want you to meet…our daughter.”

The summer air was warm even as the sky darkened, and stars after stars appeared above to illuminate the world below. The gentle breeze ruffled Caleb’s hair as he stared down at the sleeping girl in his arms. Maybe it was because she was still so young and impressionable, or perhaps she could already sense who he was to her, but the girl clung to him immediately, already feeling safe and protected in his presence.

His heart felt heavy, overwhelmed by guilt, a feeling of failure, and also of self-loathing, but as he gazed down at his daughter, another feeling stirred, just as intense but much more forgiving. He didn’t think he could feel such love as he did now as he peered down at the sleeping girl, nuzzled against him on his lap, peacefully slumbering away.

He wondered what she was dreaming of as he admired how much she resembled her mother. Hesitantly, he let his finger caressed her cheek, in complete, silent awe at how soft and delicate her skin was. He was almost afraid of hurting her, feeling a need to protect her just as he protected her mother. He looked up at you, his cheeks and ears reddening when he realized you had been laughing at his expense.

“It’s alright,” you told him amid your giggles.

“You’re laughing at me.”

“You deserve it, you big dummy.”

He let out a huff, in mock annoyance, but he agreed with you. “Alright,” he conceded, “I deserve it.”

“Do you want to begin your path to seeking forgiveness from us?” you asked him, a playful, teasing lilt in your voice, unmissed by Caleb as he raised a brow in curiosity.

“Just like that?” he questioned, confused by your leniency with him.

You nodded. “You still love me, right?”

“I’ve never stopped,” he said, his solemn words had you blushing against your better judgment, your heart quickening when he looked at you so lovelorn. You quickly composed yourself, returning to your mischievousness from seconds ago.

“You love her, right?” you asked, your eyes shifting to your sleeping daughter in his arms.

He sighed, mesmerized. “So much already,” he whispered, and again, you found yourself softening, touched by his sincerity.

“Okay, we’ll forgive you,” you answered, catching Caleb’s attention as he looked at you almost bemused by your easygoing attitude. “First step.”

“Which is?”

“You have to make us your specialty,” you said, laughing at Caleb’s look of complete bewilderment unfit for a colonel of his status. Clearly, you had blindsided him completely with this first condition. You clarified with a mischievous twinkle in your eyes, “You have to make your braised chicken wings.”

He stared at you as if not comprehending your words. You laughed and leaned closer to him, your head resting on his shoulder. “I ate a lot of braised chicken wings while pregnant,” you said, reminiscing to that lonely period in your life without his presence. You reached over and brushed your daughter’s flyaway hair out of her face, continuing softly, “But they weren’t as good as yours.”

Caleb let out a huff of breath, a soft, resigned laugh as he readjusted his arm, letting it wrapped around you as he pulled you closer into his embrace. He leaned over and kissed the top of your head. “Okay,” he answered, “I take it she also likes braised chicken wings then?”

You leaned into him, nodding once. “She’ll love yours more,” you said, and then looked up, your heart quickening again as you gazed into his beautiful violet eyes, grateful that your daughter had chosen to inherit this sole feature from her father. Breathlessly, you uttered softly, your words for his ears only, “She’ll love you.”

“And you?” he whispered back, that same hesitancy still prominent in his tone. He looked at you expectantly as he asked, “Do you still love me?”

“I’ve never stopped,” you echoed his words back to him, continuing in that same hushed tone, “I’ll always love my dummy Caleb.”

“Alright,” he said, his voice resigned, holding you just a bit tighter, as if he was afraid this was a cruel, taunting dream he would wake up from.

As Caleb watched your eyes closed, he looked down, eyes darting from you to his daughter, and he wondered if he deserved any of this. In the warm summer night, surrounded by the blossoming blue and pink and white hydrangeas, he silently apologized for his mistakes, promising that for the remainder of his life, he would become a better man, deserving of both of you.

Just like the little boy from long ago, once he had made a promise to you, he would never break it.

He swore it on his life.

[fighting-these-demons]

I FEEL SO VALID IN THIS CRACKER BARREL THIS MORNING!!!!!!

Thank you SO MUCH @thedragonchilde for sending this to me!!!!!

one of the best fics i've ever read, one that had me addicted to my phone and crying, wasn't even prose. it was a huge, casual, bullet-pointed outline with every detail of an au that the author never got around to writing in full. and it was amazing.

let this be a message to all you who want to write but can't do it "normally": write it! someone out there will eat it up. whether that be poetry, tiny drabbles, or bullet pointed list: your work is always worth it. your art (yes, art!) will alway deserve to have its moment in the spotlight. why? because you made it. even if it wasn't done in a traditional matter, it came from your brain and your creativity and that is amazing.

♡

[demigods-posts]

percy is an incredibly skilled sword fighter. and it's safe to say that he doesn't just train with riptide. because only training with his god-given weapon would be incredibly irresponsible (and annabeth would never let him develop that crutch). so i have to assume he proficient enough to hold his own with any elongated tool he can get his hands on. and it has to come in handy in the funniest way. like imagine percy and annabeth playing tag. and he just grabs the nearest paper towel roll and 🤺🤺 her hands to she can't lay a finger on him.

[egophiliac]

redesigning my headcanon for Sebek's parents, based on important new information (SCALES)

(you can't see it but they're both wearing crocs)