#i certainly have some things planned i do!

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

(Answer this after watching Chapter 4)

I NEED an X Reader where Reader comforts Doey after he's first frozen, or maybe one where Reader literally smacks some sense into Doey after the Safe Haven blows up(and we need the refugees to escape PLEASE-)

"Oh, it's you! Is the Doctor...?"

"No. Not yet. I'm working on it." You shook your head, looking apologetically at the doughy toy that had recently become one of your allies.

Even though you were just halfway through your trip through "No Man's Land", you're relieved that you didn't have to worry about Yarnaby following you around. You could have certainly used Doey's help beforehand, but he did save you from Pianosaurus at a critical moment where you thought it was truly the end for you.

Besides that, you were used to dealing with things on your own.

You sent Huggy into a pitfall, killed Mommy Long Legs, and set Catnap and Yarnaby ablaze without really anyone's assistance.

Killing the Doctor, on the other hand, was going to be a very different challenge. He wasn't some Bigger Body with flaws you could exploit--he was cruel, calculating, and wanted to prey on your fear and reasons for coming back to this factory.

Not to mention the Prototype, who was working with the mastermind behind the experiments for reasons still unclear to you. But the "why" wasn't important to you right now--letting this place burn down is what mattered most.

Doey was rather opposed to the idea of setting explosives in the foundation, although after everything you've seen (and knowing him and Poppy have probably seen things ten times worse), you were on board with the plan.

Because what was the alternative?

Letting all these toys starve and cannibalize each other? Waiting for some other poor soul like yourself to come here and die? Allowing the Prototype to have his way?

Absolutely not.

First things first..you had to find the omni hand for your grabpack, knowing it would give you greater access to the facility's systems. Apparently the Doctor had it under lock and key, meaning you had to take him out of commission before you could reach it.

At some point in your mission, you came across Doey again, who was inspecting a pipe. You felt a little bad for disappointing him when you said the Doctor wasn't dead yet, although he must have known it was going to take you some time.

But who could blame him? Him and the others have waited years and years for an opportunity like this. For someone like you to come along and save them.

He couldn't be at fault for being so eager.

"I figured as much." He sighed, smiling at you as he turned away from the pipe. "I've been here gathering parts for the generator."

"Really? Where's all the.....oh." You stopped yourself upon seeing him holding his stomach and giggling. "Right."

"Yup! LOTS of--ah!"

Without any warning, the pipe burst open with loud hiss and began spraying a cloud of cold gas directly onto him. Upon contact with his body, he became frozen solid.

You stood there in shock for a moment, before remembering that dough didn't mix well with the cold, and you panicked as you looked for a way to stop the flow of gas.

Then you looked up to see a switch, using one of your grabpack hands to turn the handle. Fortunately that seemed to do the trick, as the cloud dissipated almost instantly, allowing Doey to thaw out rather fast.

Despite your quick actions, he seemed thoroughly shaken, his eyes wide and his yellow arm stretched out, dragging it behind him as he quickly huddled into the nearest corner of the rooms.

"Hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts, HURTS!!!" He cried out, his arm morphing back into its usual shape as he tries taking deep breaths to calm himself down.

You frowned slightly and approached him, ignoring the opening doors for the moment. "Doey, are you okay?"

"N-No. He's made it impossible for me to get around here!" He snapped at you. "Traps like this are everywhere!"

His voice sounded different--with a lot more aggression to it, and so you kept your distance, feeling yourself growing tense.

You had to remember that no matter how innocent or kind these toys appeared to be...they were traumatized and obviously not of sound mind. They could turn on you at the drop of a hat.

Either that, or they're simply animals with unpredictable behaviors.

But you knew Doey wasn't some animal. He was an ally, someone you had learned to trust.

Your gut says that you seriously shouldn't, considering how trusting Mommy almost got you eaten alive, and trusting Poppy led to her redirecting the train and dragging you further into this mess.

But once you saw things from her point of view, you've come to realize that this wasn't something you could just walk away from.

How could you go on with life knowing all of this was happening beneath your feet? Especially now that she believes you were the only person who could help everyone who's suffered here--or at least whoever's left.

She put a lot of faith in you, and you couldn't let her down.

Although she definitely wanted you to hurry, you had to at least take the time to make sure Doey was okay after that trap was set off.

"It's the cold that hurts....th-the big mean Doctor knows that.." He sniffled, now sounding on the verge of tears as he hugged himself.

"And that's why I'm gonna stop him." You promised. "I'm gonna find whatever's left of that prick and destroy him. Once and for all."

"...I-I know. You can go on ahead. I'll..I'll be okay...I'll be okay..."

Despite what he says, you knew he very much wasn't okay just yet.

Then you had an idea.

"I know you will be. But first..."

The clay creature looked at you, seeing you open your arms up, the grabpack's mechanisms down at your sides. "Can I get a hug for the road, big guy?"

Doey sniffled again, at first hesitant to respond, but seeing your sweet attitude and the hope written on your face brought a smile back to his own features.

He nodded and hugged you tightly, squishing you against him and lifting you off the ground a few feet.

The smells of clay and dough were overwhelming, but they're a lot better than the other...ghastly scents you've somehow grown desensitized to.

"Of course you can, buddy!" He laughed. "You'll need it!" After a few moments, he set you down and checked to make sure he didn't leave any residue on you or your grabpack. "Thank you. That...made me feel a lot better."

"I'm glad. I feel better, too." You chuckled, adjusting the straps before making your way further into No Man's Land, praying that you'd make it to the Doctor's hideout and back to the Safe Haven alive.

They were all counting on you.

You couldn't fail.

Not after everything you've been through.

[shiranuieditorial]

Professional editor here 🙋🏽 piping in to say that that sentence is 100% grammatically correct, but it could use a pair of em dashes (if following U.S. English standards) or en dashes (if following U.K. English standards) to break up that interior monologue or emphasised exclamation (whichever one you intended it to be) as an interjection/interruption inserted within the main sentence. It would help your readers’ clarity and understanding, and therefore, boost their enjoyment levels too!

So, yeah, it still stands that English’s grammar sphere is extremely flexible, twistable, stretchable, flammable, combustible, slice-and-diceable, and however the fuck else you wanna abuse it to your selfish satisfaction! You just gotta make sure your overall creation is still readable, parseable, legible, decipherable, understandable, and therefore, enjoyable—you know?

Unique author voices are completely different from grammatical errors and linguistic inaccuracies. The former is to be cherished! Treasured! Praised! Uplifted! Celebrated until the end of time! Meanwhile, the latter is to be reduced to a minimum, because we don’t need them if they don’t serve a very intentional purpose. A trained eye will be able to distinguish this without problem, which is indeed why human editors like me and my friends aren’t that easily replaced by AI—thank you very much!—but this elephantine task certainly takes on a differently flavoured toll when an author self-edits their own writing, especially if they don’t have years of specialised knowledge and training in the art of editing. (And trust me, it is a wholly different and just as serious of a skillset as the writing part itself.)

Now, whether or not you plan to work with a trusted professional editor later on is up to you to decide (I mean, it’s obviously recommended, but the choice is still in your hands; and even if you do hire editors, the final choice to accept or reject their suggestions is also still in your hands), but here are a few things to keep in mind during your self-editing rounds:

Trust yourself, first and foremost! You’re the one who understands your story best. If something strongly resonates with you, keep it in. At the very least, it’d add a touch of you and your humanity to your creation, if nothing else.

Having your own unique voice is a good thing. You should want more of it, and no one should ever try to kill it off of you—not even yourself. Stay authentic to yourself, explore whatever interests you, and keep honing your storytelling voice(s) through practice, practice, practice—no matter how you think it “stands out against” or “blends in with” or “doesn’t hold a candle to” or “bastardises” other people’s creations you’ve interacted with. Your voice is solely yours, and that is so, so valuable.

If you heavily suspect something contains a technical error, check with reputable sources, like some bigwig dictionary’s example sentences section, or whichever style guide you’ve chosen as your patron saint, or various editor(ial)s’ blog posts and articles, or Q&A/AMA sessions with editors or linguists, or you could try your luck and slide into their DMs if you have a particular someone you admire, or whatever combination of those options you fancy the most.

If you’ve heard or read someone irl (including yourself) say those words or that phrase/sentence/monologue before, then it’s probably fine, dude.

For hearing folks: Say it aloud. Use various text-to-speech settings to read it aloud to you. Have your friend or relative read it aloud. Does anything feel wonky, somehow? Does anything need a sprinkle of pizzazz to liven up the dead air? Do these words fit the mood you’re currently feeling during this scene? Did your companion stutter at any point?

Let your writs marinate alone for as long as you can afford to. Forget about it. Then, come back to it with a fresh perspective—not one of an author’s nor an editor’s, but pretend you are a reader who is reading some anonymous writer’s work with the intention of simply sinking into the read and enjoying whatever is served.

The world isn’t divided into “grammatically correct” and “grammatically incorrect”. There are many other variables to composing, writing, editing, proofreading, and speaking. If you have the time and headspace to learn about them, do so. Finding the proper terminologies to describe your ideas and experiences will benefit you with great satisfaction.

Punctuation marks, symbols, spacings, margins, line breaks, paragraph breaks, scene breaks, chapter breaks, placements, pacing, etc. are difficult and time-consuming for us copy editors too. Don’t beat yourself up for struggling with these technical details, but also, don’t be so afraid of them that you omit them entirely from your writs. Instead, shift your energy and attention to creating and maintaining your very own author’s style sheet, which you can then pass on to your editor to upgrade and tidy up for you as you kick back and relax, but it can certainly help ease your own writing process if you’ve sketched up your own guide for yourself.

Editing any piece of work—fiction or non-fiction or any hybrid of them—should always prioritise the author’s original vision and goals above all else. Don’t treat it like grading schoolwork with checks and crosses and /100 scores. There is no right and wrong to the art of writing. Why did you start writing in the first place? What do you want to explore and express in your crafts? What do you want your readers to get from your story? How do you want them to feel about your characters? What message are you trying to tell, and why is it important? Do you want to impress people more with your substance or your style? Linguistic unorthodoxy be damned; if your quirky choice gets the point across with all the right vibes and nuances ticked off, then go for it!

Remember that language is constantly evolving… as it should! What was once regarded as “incorrect” a century ago could easily be the norm nowadays. If you’ve decided to become the progenitor of a new trend, then you better own up to it! Be unapologetically compelling.

Remember that there is always a solution/answer to your confusion/curiosity. Even if you don’t find what you’re looking for right now, there’s still hope. Either you’ll find clarity when you least expect it, or you’ll create homemade organic closure for yourself, one way or another. The possibilities are endless. What matters most is to trust the process and never give up on yourself!

one of my worst writing sins is abusing my power to create compound words. i cannot write the sentence "The sun shone as bright as honey that afternoon." no. that's boring. "The sun was honey-bright that afternoon" however? yes. that sentence is dope as fuck. i do not care if "honey-bright" is a word in the english dictionary. i do not care if the sentence is grammatically correct. i will not change. i will not correct my erred ways. the laws of the english language are mine.

[hotchnersangel]

SPORTS CAR

Aaron Hotchner.

a/n: obsesseddddd w this song and Hotch recently soooo… first upload pls don’t judge me ok ily

warnings: allusions to sex, age-gap, richhhh hotch (yummy), idrk what else just enjoy.

Seeing the bau in casual clothing felt foreign, it was such an odd feeling to see the professionals you spend majority of your hours in the day with less professional and more… humane. More so with Aaron Hotchner, the teams unit chief. Goddamn was he a vision in his suits, but my god, you never knew how much you needed to see him in jeans.

The bau had planned a day out together, to create some time and memories not involving horrific crimes. They arranged to meet at Rossi’s mansion and so thats where you were, gathered outside chatting to Em and Rossi when a sleek all black sports car rolls into his driveway, you eye it skeptically, expecting Morgan to appear but when it stops and you see who gets out, you freeze.

Aaron Hotchner, in jeans, like you were, strolling up to the group of you. Rossi and Emily whistling as he neared, pressing the lock button without even looking. The breath was knocked out of your chest, damn that was hot. His sunglasses perched perfectly on his face.

��Damn Hotch, sweet ride.” Emily praises, gawking at the car.

“Thank you,” he says courteously, nodding at her.

“I think i need some of this pay check you’re getting,” you joke, smirking at him. He looks so very rich right now.

“We don’t have a large difference, darling.” He shoots nonchalantly, crossing his arms as he stands opposite you.

“Honey,” you shoot back giving him a look, “I certainly don’t have the disposable income for this baby.” You admire the car.

“I can give you a ride later if you’d like,” he shrugs casually, “I’ll drop you home.”

You agree, no way are you declining a ride involving Hotch.

After a lovely evening spent with the team, you were content and happy with the outcome of your day. Though you couldn’t stop thinking about Hotch, every time he spoke, everytime he laughed, when he smiled you had to squeeze your thighs together subtly. The evening drew to a close and Aaron continued his offer to give you a lift home.

You walk out of Rossi’s mansion and follow Hotch to his car. He opens the door for you. “After you, ma’am.”

You bite your lip as you get in, looking around at the luxurious interior which somehow even felt humble despite this car being worth more than your apartment probably. “I feel extra luxurious today. A mansion, a sports car, i could get used to this.”

He smirks as he gets in, turning the engine on. “The FBI has clearly been doing well this year.” He jokes and you huff a laughter.

“I never thought you were the type for a sports car,” you say, looking over at him. He looks back.

“How come?” He implies, his hand on the gears, making you salivate a bit more than usual. “Hm?”

“You just- you’re so rich and you never show it.” You shrug, looking how dangerously close his hand is to your thigh.

He laughs, genuinely laughs. “It was my dream car as a kid, I thought if i could buy at least one thing for selfish reasons- it can be this.”

“Damn right, it’s hot.” You say boldly.

“The car? Or me?” He smirks and catches your eye again as he pulls into a drive through. “See, I’m keeping humble.”

“You.” You breathe out and look as he enters the drive through.

“What do you want, pretty lady?” He asks you with a smirk.

You order your meals and sit in the parking lot, an isolated lot but he still parks in the shadows. You sit and eat your meals, occasionally looking over at Hotch who keeps stealing dips from your sauce. One time however, he spills it on the seat of your chair.

“Fuck, Hotch.” You panic, getting ready to apologise.

“No worries, I’ll get it cleaned.” He says calmly, counteracting your panic.

“But-“

“It’s literally my mess, sweetheart.” He gives you a pointed look and smirks.

“Well, now i have to sit in the sauce.” You shoot sassily and he smirks.

“There’s hardly anything on it.”

“Yeah there is,” you point at it and shift in your seat. “Guess we will have to share one seat.” You smirk at him, his eyes darkening.

“We can share one seat, honey.” He moves his food out of the way, patting his lap. You smirk as you climb over the centre console and straddle his waist, resting all your weight on your knees. His hands grip your waist and slowly make their way to your face, sensually dragging over your sides. Your knees go weak, losing all composure which makes you drop onto his lap. Your core touching his. At this, you both let out a sigh.

“Fuck.” You sigh, moving your hands to his chest. “Cute jeans by the way.” You smirk at him.

“Thank you.” He nods curtly, pulling you closer.

You arch your back until you’re close to his ear. “Take mine off me.”

You pull back, biting your lip. His eyes widen with surprise at your boldness, but soon fade into a large smirk as his hands move into your hair. “You want this?”

You nod desperately, not meaning to come across so needy. “For a while.”

“Me too, baby.” He says pulling you closer to him and brushing his lips against yours. The kiss started soft and emotionally connected but soon turned passionate. His hands move over your spine and then back into your hair, pulling it into a ponytail then tugging at it. This action made you gasp into the kiss where he then let his tongue slip into your mouth.

You both pull away for some air and he looks up at you, “you wanna do this here?”

You bite your lip and nod. “I don’t care, in the alley, in the back- in the center of a room, with all of these windows rolled down.”

He looks up at you, pecking your lips. “And which would you prefer, darling?”

“Boy, don’t make me choose.” You retort, giving him a look and he pulls you closer by your top.

“I’m far from a boy darling,” he looks into your eyes.

“Show me then.” You retort.

He pulls you back into a kiss, his hands falling down your back, groping at the skin until they fall on the lower side and push you forwards, his hands resting on your behind, occasionally groping at the skin. You let out a small moan into the kiss and he stops.

“We shouldn’t be doing this.” He mumbles but doesn’t move.

“Have you got a girlfriend or something?” You shoot back, concerned to his answer at the positioning of you over his hardened crotch and the tight grip he has on your ass.

“No.”

“So you ain’t got no Mrs? What is holding you back then?” You ask, whispering in his ear again and placing a kiss on his neck. He sighs at the feeling.

“I’m your boss.” He says and you kiss his neck again.

“Mhm,” you hum into his skin and you gently suck at the skin.

“I’m almost double your age.” He states, and you don’t pull back but more desperately lapse your tongue on the skin.

“Carry on…”

“It’s inappropriate.”

“I sure hope it is.” You giggle against his side earning a stifled laugh.

“I’m serious. I think you just think you want this, but you won’t actually.” He says seriously.

“Yet your hand is still groping my arse.” You say looking at him. “I think you wanna…” you trail off and roll your hips over his, grinding against his clothed erection.

You both let out a strangled moan, realising how much you are in need of this.

“Unless… you wanna do it on your own while you’re looking at me.” You look up at him innocently and flutter your eyelashes.

You’re cut off by Aaron’s hands desperately pulling you closer and certainly there was a few rounds in this ride for you both.

————————

[mercy-burning]

Here We’re In Love (Apricity)

Pairing: Spencer Reid x gn!Reader Summary: Spencer teaches you why he's become so fond of your mornings together. Category: Fluff (who am I) Content: Domestic fluff, a light dusting of erotic tension but nothing explicit, the first "I love you", happy tears Word Count: 1.2k

MASTERLIST

(AKA Mercy learned a new word and got The Feels, so she had to plug it into a fic. Obviously.)

----------------------------

There was once a time in Spencer's life when being in bed didn't generate a strong feeling of any kind. It was simply a task needed to end the day and transition into another, a means to an end, and least of all a luxury; Even when he was a child, responsibility outranked reveling in the comfort of a warm bed.

These days, though, it seems like all he wants to do is be in bed. Not because he feels depressed or exhausted in any extreme, but it's hard for him not to ache for an entire day spent solely enveloped in the warm embrace of linen, made even warmer by your presence. Since you've been with him, it brings something so normal and safe amongst the chaos of his daily life—not just in bed of course, but especially in bed. Especially in the mornings. It has quickly become his favorite part of the day, and he finds himself never wanting it to end.

His eyes open to find you already awake before sunrise, staring at him like he always gets caught staring at you. You try to remain still and calm, but the minute cinch in your expression tells him that you're probably chanting Ha-Ha! Got you! on repeat in your head, and the thought makes him huff a laugh.

"What's so funny?" you ask seriously.

Spencer's smile remains as he shifts, close enough to touch his forehead to your own. "Absolutely nothing."

"You've always been a terrible liar."

"I don't know what you mean."

The giggles between the two of you steadily increase with every sentence, until your laughs turn into lazy kisses and then to sighs.

Sunlight eventually breaches the shades, signaling a different type of warmth and the start of a new day, and Spencer selfishly begs it not to be so, his hands reaching for you as you try to escape the bed.

"Stay," he groans, successfully keeping you next to him. "You don't have anywhere to be today, and neither do I..."

Bringing one of his hands to your lips, you laugh. "I know... But I don't want to spend all day in bed..."

"Then we won't... Just a few more hours?"

Your laugh this time is a full-blown cackle. The sound makes his heart soar. "Hours?"

"Yes, hours... This is the most comfortable place in the whole world. Don't you think that deserves hours of your time?"

"I suppose..." Snuggling back into the covers and adoringly rolling your eyes as your head hits the pillow once more, you've finally succumbed to your boyfriend's charms, a feat that feeds his silly pride and also warms him to the core.

You tell him you won't fall asleep and demand him to follow suit, to which he happily agrees, and then you're talking him through your plans for the day. Your voice is just as strong of a comfort as your touch, every syllable bright and soft, and certainly more pleasant than the incessant chirping of birds that some people seem to find soothing first thing in the morning for one reason or another.

As you talk to him, Spencer feels like he's sinking further into the mattress, like your voice and your smile and your fingers absentmindedly trailing the veins of his arms as you speak are casting him into an inescapable state of magnificent solitude.

He'd begged you for hours, but the unexaggerated truth is that he could stay like this forever.

Sensing the trance you seem to have put him under, you pause and tilt your head to study him. Still, your fingers stay true to their wanderlust and dance along the surface of his skin like it's second nature.

"You're looking at me funny."

"Hmm?"

Even as he raises an eyebrow, acknowledging you acknowledging him, it's like he can't be bothered to care. The dreamy haze in his eyes as it bores into you is a comfort in itself, but it's also very... tingle-inducing.

A familiar blaze heats your insides and every surface of your skin, and even without so much as a suggestive hum from him, you still find yourself shying away. "Stop it!"

You half-expect him to argue that he's not doing anything wrong in that cheeky way of his, but he remains silent and thoughtful, studying you carefully.

"Are you familiar with the concept of 'apricity'?"

Usually when he teaches you new things, he isn't staring at you like that. His voice isn't quiet and wistful and teetering on the edge of melancholy.

Unsure of what to make of it all, you shake your head. "No..."

"The word itself comes from the early 1600s. It's archaic, but the feeling is quite beautiful, and relevant to many people whether they know it or not. Apricity defines the feeling of the sun's natural warmth in the cold, usually harsh, winter."

You consider this, and try the word on your tongue, repeating it slowly and nodding. A small smile forms on your lips. "I like it. I guess it's nice to know that oddly-specific feeling has a name..."

Spencer hums and grabs your hand. "You have no idea..."

You laugh softly again. "No, I don't... Enlighten me?"

He considers this for a moment, then smiles, pulling you close to him. "That's just it— You enlighten my very existence. Just by being here in this bed with me."

As he attacks your neck with kisses, you can't help the string of laughter that escapes you. "Oh really?"

"Absolutely." The word is a confident rumble into your skin that soaks through, straight from his lips and down into to the depths of your soul and beyond. It erases any doubt you've ever harbored, lifts you into the light, and manifests as its own form of sunshine, settled right in the nooks and crannies of your heart.

Spencer pulls away briefly to look at you, taking your head in his gentle hands. His voice is soft, but firm.

"I guess what I mean is that... My life can be really dark and frigid a lot of the time... But ever since I've known you, it's like those moments aren't really so terrible anymore, because I know what true, natural love feels like. When I'm here, with you, I truly believe that nothing can hurt me. All I feel is warmth. Your warmth... You're my apricity."

An involuntary pout accompanies your wide, watering eyes as you lean into his touch, a tightness at your throat even as you try to tell him the easiest thing in the world.

"I love you," you manage to get out through a sob. It sounds utterly lame in comparison to the poetic metaphor he's just confessed to you, but given the fact that it's the first time the words have left your mouth, they seem to have the same effect on him regardless.

Spencer matches your pout and the two of you are drawn together like a summer thunderstorm— boldly, brightly, and full of life. The tears fall between you in a heap of pouring rain, but there's nothing gloomy in the love that carries you through it.

"I love you, too," he whispers, pulling away for a moment.

You kiss him again, then tell him, "I never want to leave this bed."

He kisses you and laughs, wiping away your tears as you both fall back, head to the pillows once more.

"I'm not going to fight you on that one."

You say it's fine if it's all in my mind Oh, you look so real but it feels like a lie, so

Don't pinch me in case I'm asleep In case you're not here 'cause this is a dream And we've never met so we're not in love In case I'm asleep, don't pull the–

Don't touch me, this coma is nice Too good to be true, so just let me lie Down in the sheets, 'cause here we're in love In case I'm asleep, don't pull the-

Plug Oh-oh-oh

--Pull The Plug, Ashe

[h-sleepingirl]

Dolly in the Art Gallery: A Charmed 2025 Scene Log/Recap

“Art is how we decorate space, and music is how we decorate time.”

I first heard this Jean-Michel Basquiat quote in a rope class from Barkas, in the context of how we play within both space and time in a kink scene. I think about it frequently, especially as I feel more and more passionately about the brutally human impulse to create art.

I have been coming to hypnosis events since 2013, before Charmed existed -- my first event was packed with my own manic energy, held in a dungeon where people could hypnotize me basically at will. No hotel staff, no sneaking back to a private room. I developed a reputation as an aesthetically pleasing subject, often put on display in subtle and overt ways.

I have grown up in this community. Essentially my entire adult life has been spent involved in going to events and cons. I'm 33 now, and as Charmed celebrates its 10th year I've perhaps been unconsciously influenced to reflect on myself aging.

I feel so much older than that 21 year old exhibitionist. I'm more reserved, quieter, more selective, and certainly smarter. I like who I'm becoming, but I do miss parts of who I used to be -- that confidence, that energy. 

On Friday evening I looked at the schedule and saw there was going to be a Gallery of Living Art -- it's been a staple at Charmed for a number of years, but I'd never done more than peek inside.

I thought to myself: “Why not try to get in touch with that playful younger self? Why not show everyone who I am nowadays? Why not live out a fantasy?” 

Surely I’m not too old. Surely I haven’t grown out of this.

The time comes and I connect with my partner about it. He knows that one of my absolute favorite things is being totally frozen. We decide against anything complicated. No one will touch me or trigger me or anything like that. It’s the most “negotiating” we've maybe ever done, but I still leave all details to him. I tell him: “I was really just thinking this is an opportunity for me to sit blank and still for a long time.”

We walk into the room, and it’s overwhelming. People are setting up intricate exhibits with lots of creative interactions. There is a sheet we need to fill out to describe what our “art” is, which my partner writes on cryptically.

“Dolly can't talk. Duh…”

“Dolly is precious -- don't touch!”

Under “Artist”, where he is meant to put his name, he writes a question mark.

I am so in love with him, watching his mind work on the spot.

We find a place in the loud room and look at each other. We are a fluid force of nature in a bed together, spontaneous and wild. This planning doesn't feel like us. This hypnosis isn't a formality, per se, but it just feels sort of like “We both know how this is going to end on some level -- so how do we spend this time?”

He gingerly removes my name tag and starts murmuring to me. 

Being a dolly is such a luxurious treat that the moment he suggests it, I crumble, gripping his shirt with my weak little fingers, moaning too softly to be heard by anyone but him.

He poses me. He fixes my gaze blank and forward. He lets me practice standing and sitting. This kind of rehearsal is unfamiliar for us, and I almost relish doing something that feels a little awkward.

I am a dolly when he leaves me, frozen and posed, but I know it is going to take a couple minutes to settle in. I am a dolly getting comfortable, a dolly with twinges of self-consciousness. After a couple minutes he walks me over to a different chair, one that is highlighted by empty space around it, and I sit, and I know this is truly where I am supposed to be on display.

Finally, total stillness rushes over me like pure relief. 

I sit, and I stare, and I don’t do anything else. My mind is blank, and sometimes all there is inside my head is “I’m a dolly, I’m a dolly,” in my little dolly voice. It is pure, simple bliss.

People begin to come up to me to look at me. I am a good dolly and I am silent and I do not move even my eyes. They patiently read my sign and then observe me. I cannot change my body position to be any more or less appealing to them, I cannot hide nor flaunt myself.

Some people say things to me, little compliments and appreciations, and I can’t really process their words. The little dolly voice in my head screams in pleasure when I’m spoken to and given attention.

I have ADHD, I’m addicted to my phone, I’m a fidgeter. But there is nothing that carries the unique pleasure of being frozen and still. It reminds me of Quaker meetings, of spiritual silence and meditation that makes one feel time itself as though it has a sensory texture.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel talks about the Jewish sabbath as proof that it is not intuitive for us to sanctify time. But nevertheless as Jews we must learn to do it to make shabbat holy every week. Shabbat is “a cathedral in time,” he says, and I’ve been thinking about how much that applies to my experience of hypnosis. Hypnosis is not a physical object. We may sometimes have props but we cannot touch trance and it leaves no marks. It is time that is the sacred dimension in hypnosis, the time that we set aside (“kadosh” in Hebrew) with another human being.

Heschel says we are slaves to space and material things. And in this moment I feel like I have gotten as close as I can to releasing that. I am not even moving my physical body within the physical world. I am just relishing each passing second of stillness, building my cathedral in time.

Of course, sometimes I think sacred space and objects are very important. After all, I am in a space that is incredibly rare, that only exists very briefly, that I had to travel at length to get to.

And I am an object -- art -- inside of it. I am literally decorating the space, as Basquiat would say.

Am I thinking all of this as I sit there motionless? No, not with any sophistication. I truly feel blank. But I am feeling flashes of this as abstract mental sensations that I will untangle later.

Something else strikes me very quickly that I observe within. When people walk up to look at me, something inside me tenses up. I realize that I am unconsciously preparing myself to talk to them. I have been coming to cons for so long, and especially since beginning to write books I always meet a ton of new people every year who come up to me to talk, which I adore. But right now I am in a space where I literally cannot have a conversation with anyone. I don’t even have my nametag on anymore -- my partner was so clever to remove it.

It is the opposite of vending books, where I sit in a chair and am helpless in the sense that I must engage in conversation with the people who come up to meet me. Now, I literally cannot talk to anyone, and they cannot talk to me, and most people may not even know who I am.

It is a hit of extreme objectification, more real than it has ever felt. I am not sleepingirl -- I am a dolly. “Who” I am doesn’t matter. I am art.

My partner also is not sitting there receiving compliments for me. He is nearby, in eyesight, just watching. But he’s anonymous too. And there is something about this mutual anonymity that makes me feel even prouder about us as a couple. There is no performance of who we are. I don’t know how to describe it, but obviously it feels more authentic than public play usually ever does. Like a little secret we are sharing a corner of.

And he looks ever the artist, sitting back and watching me. I feel very strongly that this little scene isn’t the art -- it’s me. Our relationship is what’s really on display. All the work he’s done over 7 years of brainwashing me, real work on my personality and identity, my wardrobe, every single way I express myself and who I am. The people coming by are seeing his bimbo, his dolly, his [x] -- without necessarily knowing who either of us are.

The rhythm is addicting. My mind babbles my self-given dolly mantra over and over, I luxuriate in the stillness, and I stare. I only can sort of half-see with darkened vision, though my eyes are wide. I love when people notice me sitting there -- their expressions change as they observe me. They step into my metaphorical space, which is eerily silent compared to the revelry of the creative demonstrations that fill the room. They are no longer “being entertained,” and no one can communicate to them what I am doing -- they must engage with me out of their own curiosity.

Sometimes they decide to talk to me. I can’t process most of it, but I remember a few interactions.

Someone says, “What an excellent dolly.”

Someone else notices that I’m wearing a bracelet that says “bimbo,” and says, “Even the details on this one are exquisite.”

Someone else says, “Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen sleepingirl play before.”

That last one hits me in the gut with memories of a time now long past: Play in public spaces was universal at cons; I couldn’t move from one place to another without someone dropping me into trance; absolutely everyone knew what I looked like when hypnotized.

Even now as I am on display, I have a mask on, and the people can’t see my gently parted lips.

It is a rush of emotion that is very complex for my simple little dolly head, but it goes away.

For a long while, I just exist as a thing in bliss while the room -- the whole world -- bubbles with activity around me. 

Eventually even as I sit frozen and blank, a little timer starts ticking in my head -- I could sit here for much longer, but I don’t want to make him wait for me, and I have other things I want to do tonight.

Reading Heschel has been helping me release some of that odd panic that bubbles up when I awaken from trance -- the feeling that magic is slipping through my fingers, memories are slipping out of my mind, and I can take no memento from it. I sometimes write, draw, or make music to try to capture the things I feel in hypnosis with my partner. I think it is from that impulse to be able to touch and hold hypnosis, to make it a “thing” in space as opposed to something of time.

But I do think there is something else, just a human drive to create art about this transcendent experience that we engage in together. I need to create art to try to communicate the perfect way I don’t move and my eyes go glassy. I need to express my emotions, my desires, my dreams, my love. I am only human, a human blown away by this very human thing we do that we call hypnosis.

Only my partner sees it, and he does see so much into the soul of it for me. But this is exactly what I have wanted -- a chance to publicly communicate the beauty of what he and I do. To make this art by performing it, living it. To engage in a human act of creativity by having my humanity stripped away from me.

I am a bimbo, a dolly, I am art -- and that doesn’t go away when I get up to tell him I am done sitting here. I am his art. I am a manifestation of his creativity in this world, and he has a beautifully creative mind which I love so dearly.

This is serious for me, this is real for me, this is so highly personal and jealously guarded as my own precious identity.

Ten years ago I laid my head on his lap and he transformed my eyes into dolly eyes and told me that someday he would turn my whole body into a dolly body. And as we laid together in a bed after the Gallery on Friday he talked about how I had those dolly eyes again in that room. But to me, it’s not about being a dolly, or even being a bimbo. It’s about creating art together, art with a power imbalance. And fucking respecting that as sacred and exciting.

I don’t have much else to say except extreme heartfelt gratitude to Mazirian for running the Gallery, and everyone who came by to look at me and said nice things to me and joined me in my world for just a little while. 

(If you’re curious, I was sitting there for about 30 minutes.)

[datamodel-of-disaster]

Let me add another nuance: not every request is an unwanted request.

I think another influential factor is the difference between

- How unwanted the requester perceives their request to be, and

- How unwanted the request actually is.

If the request is neutrally received, but the requester thinks/assumes you don't want to do it, there are two outcomes. Either they will put forward consequences immediately to threaten you into doing it, or they will start planning and acting as though the request will certainly remain unfulfilled.

See: parent yelling when you don't jump up when they call VS parent huffily doing the thing themself instead of waiting for you to finish what you were doing.

Both of these require a blatantly negative outlook on the world that assumes asking anything of people is intrinsically unwanted, and no one actually wants to help, do something for them, or contribute to a common cause for any reason other than avoiding punishment. (I don't know why this is a parent thing, but in my experience this is a parent thing.)

Basically, your "soon" may be wholly neutral, meaning "within the most reasonably immediate time frame" and the requester will still project their own negativity on you.

On the other end of the spectrum are people who act as though any request they make of you is some kind of gift. This is obnoxious in rather the same way as the first category, because now your objectively neutral responses are again at risk of being read as unwillingness -for not being sufficiently cheery and enthusiastic.

....

Typically, most people in normal everyday contexts assume requests they make are neutral, and -speaking as someone whose base state is not wanting to do things- remaining neutral in the face of them is the best way to win time and grace when the request is actually unwanted and you're gonna have to bite your teeth to get a move on for it (see: being Found By Emails, project manager asking for your timesheet, random meeting request at 4pm, etc)

But even so, even if you try hard to assume "request neutrality", we all carry our history with us, and project it on the requests and reactions of others. Does my friend really expect me to be packed and ready the moment she says "we should be going soon" or is that the influence of my impatient parents? Am I correct to assume my pants won't be clean for my trip next month if my husband says he'll do laundry soon, or is that just my own dislike of doing laundry?

I'd summarise it as, we're actually not that good at this communication thing as a species. We're all just making assumptions from a statistical sample of 1 (ourselves) and projecting those onto the behaviour of others to interpret it, and it's kind of miraculous that we don't have much more communication failure than we do.

My problem with communicating urgency is that I'm from a family where needing to get something done in 30 seconds means needing to get it done in 30 seconds - there was one time I was eating a sandwich when my mom asked me whether I could take the dogs outside. I was holding the half-eaten piece of bread in my hand, presenting it to her and saying "yes, but can I finish eating this first?" and she said okay, you finish it first. She was out of the door with the dogs before I was done with eating half a sandwich. Right now means right now.

So when I say "okay, just a second, I'll be right there" it means something along the lines of "I have something on the stove/loose needles scattered everywhere/I am covered in ants, and I only literally need a handful of seconds to put my work away safely before I can get there", but people who weren't raised this way interpret it either as "I will be there to help you in 5-15 minutes" or "I'll get there in 3-5 business days and if you haven't fixed your shit on yor own by the time I get there, I'm going to beat you with it."

[shin-kenooubu]

Confession Headcanons!

featuring: Ranpo Edogawa

(sfw, fluff, gn!reader, no content warnings)

• author's note: more ranpo because i love him.

Ranpo isn't used to being uncertain about things, in fact, there is nothing in the world that he is less accustomed to. He always has things figured, it's always taken him seconds and it somehow takes him Even Less Time to blabber out the answer.

But that certainty comes from cold hard facts. Feelings are far, far, faaaar trickier.

So obviously. Instead of figuring out a way to put his feelings into proper words and going through the grueling feeling of vulnerability and heat rushing into his face and down his neck.

He makes you do it.

Eventually, you won't be able to keep quiet about your feelings and he knows this. But at the rate you're going, it's going to take ages. So he's going to help speed up the process! Because someone needs to confess.

And its certainly not going to be him. For obvious reasons.

So heres now it goes:

- All up in your space. He knows you get flustered when he's near. Filing some paperwork? He's sitting on your desk. Taking a break on the couch? He's sitting down and draping his legs over your lap. You're taking your lunch break? He's hungry too!!! Buy him a treat!!!

- Makes you accompany him whenever he gets sent out. It doesn't matter if you can drive or not, he'll tell you everything he's already figured out about the case on the way there regardless! He's basically figured it all out already anyways. Isn't that impressive? Isn't he the best? Praise him, please and thank you.

- Compliments you. Indirectly. All the other members of the ADA always mention how highly Ranpo seems to think of you. It's clear that he values your input, he finds you incredibly dependable as well, y'know, he's even mentioned that you're pretty easy on the eyes. Don't tell him they told you that, though. (It's all part of his master plan.)

- Shares. His supply is dwindling even faster because of you! You should feel honored. Or maybe not. He doesn't actually mind, don't feel bad for taking anything. Hurry up and eat the damn thing already.

- Listens to you. Actively. He makes sure to show that he's paying attention to you because he knows that you appreciate it. He doesn't really get it, he's always listening even if it looks like he's busy playing around. But feelings are weird and fragile. He'll be a little extra careful with yours.

- Makes an effort to not insult your intelligence. Not that he ever actually means to, his wording is just off. Which is why recently you've found him growing quiet in conversations for a few seconds. A small pout on his lips as he considers his words before snapping right back into place and continuing whatever tirade he was going on. All without throwing out an indirect jab. It's cute, and also very thoughtful.

- Minimizes the opportunities you have to get hurt in his plans. Obviously some things don't come together as neatly as one might hope but damnit if he isn't finding a way to keep you safe. You can be useful And out of harms way.

He's obvious, he doesn't trust you to not brush off his vaguer advances as him simply being friendly. He wants you to get the hint. Needs you to, really, because he's sick of pining just as much as you are.

When you do eventually ask to speak to him privately, invite him into your space and sit him down, his heart pounds.

Ranpo knows the outcome of this, he's set it in motion for weeks, maybe even months, but theres still Doubt.

He can't see the future.

He can infer it, maybe. Can imagine a future where you and him are happy, where everyday, the two of you lay in bed together, and you smile at him as you run your fingers through his black hair and his mind grows muddy.

But this isn't like any simple murder case. He knows some facts, yeah, but none of it will ever, ever be enough to be Certain. Certain of you and him. Together. It scares him.

But when you take his hands in yours, a little clammy from nerves, and whisper your feelings to him, he can't help but surge forward and press his lips to yours.

A wide smile. A simple, "I know."

You can feel his quiet laughter on your face.

He's lucky he didn't wheeze it out, with how tight his chest feels from pure giddiness.

[myfanfic-urfantrash]

i have headcanons for pregnant betas in ABO

During pregnancy a beta insttead of nesting they hide and aislate themselves,they also would try to hide it from his/her couple as long as they can and often feel depressed and insecure wonder if they alpha/Omega would reject them and the pup

So how would be HSR men when beta s/o starts to act like that and after research they find beta is pregnant and tried to hide it from them?

What an interesting headcanon! I'd love to read more of your headcanons you have for betas if you want to share :3

I made the guys alphas(though it's not exactly mentioned) because omegas getting other dynamics pregnant is pretty much unheard of though I'd probably make a whole separate post exploring that in the future idk

cw: omegaverse, pregnancy

Aventurine

It's been some time since he and his beta have spent some time together partially due to his work and theirs so he doesn't notice his beta withdrawing from him at first.

He'll figure that them isolating themselves in their bedroom every so often when they get home is just a way for them to self soothe themselves from irritating coworkers and frustrating clients. He understands so be doesn't push and goes on his way though he might try to join them but if they seem a bit too irritated with him he'll back off.

Aventurine is observant though and will pick up on how their behavior worsens day by day with them isolating themselves more often than not as well as how their shoulders sag when they think they're alone making them look smaller.

He does a bit of digging to try and figure out just what is making the love of his life so upset. But he finds it even more suspicious that he finds nothing wrong with their life. Their boss isn't mistreating them, they're eating their meals(perhaps a little more than usual but hey if you're hungry you're hungry), they sleep(much more than usual but it makes sense they work late hours) and they do greet him when he comes home(though they have been avoiding his hugs around their belly lately).

But it clicks in his head eating more, sleeping more, rejecting his hugs around their belly...just the possibility of them being pregnant leaves him feeling dizzy, giddy, yet also melancholic at the same time. So he does a little research on beta pregnancies and the more he reads the more things match up the stronger those feelings become.

Later that day when he finds his beta he'll let them know he's aware of their pregnancy and that while he's sad they hid it from him he's happy. He'll spend his time reassuring his beta that he does want them and that he wants their pups too. He doesn't know if he'd be a good father but he'd try.

Blade

His schedule is practically nonexistent one month he'll be free of work and then the next six he'll be working nonstop so it's very likely he wouldn't notice his beta mates behavior change unless it was during some of his off times. The other Stellaron Hunters, if they spend any amount of time with his mate, may notice but if they don't they won't be much help in him figuring out his mate is pregnant. There's also whether or not his beta mate is also a Stellaron Hunter or not or just a civilian living their life separate from them.

So out of all of these men Blade would likely not figure out his beta mate was pregnant unless he or his coworkers are around the to notice their changes or until they were far enough in the pregnancy to start showing when he meets them again.

If he's around them for a while and he notices their change of behavior and eating habits he will ask them right away if something is wrong and will call their lie if they try to say it's nothing. He'll out right ask if they're pregnant if they say they aren't sick and or injured as that's really the only other thing he could think of that could make them behave so differently.

Honestly surprised when they go quiet and just nod their head when he asks them again. He never planned to be a father, well he certainly never planned to have a mate either so he's more than shocked to say the least. A part of him is happy but a part of him is also just melancholic.

Will just hold his mate in his arms for a while as everything sinks in and they try to calm down. If his mate wants to keep the baby he won't object but he truly doesn't know how to be a father though he will do his best to support them.

Jing Yuan

Another one that is often too busy but unlike Aventurine he notices them distancing themselves from him much faster. At first he'll believe that they might just be having an off day so he doesn't press it but when he notices it happening more often than not that's when he steps in and confronts them.

He'll ask them if they've been alright and if there's anything they might be worried about and that they can come to him. He almost gets them to talk because he's so nonjudgmental and willing to hear them out but they back out because of their own worries. He doesn't press it again but makes note that they're hiding something from him that obviously makes them hesitant.

His first thought to their hesitation is that they might be in danger of some sorts and does some investigating just to make sure that's not the case as their safety is his priority. But his thoughts change when he notices them getting a little ill around certain smells and eating large meals less but snacking more while they hide out in the quietest part of the garden of their home.

Now he's not one to jump to conclusions so fast so instead he asks Lady Bailu about their behavior and symptoms and she pretty much confirms they're pregnant right then and there though she will have to perform an examination just to be sure and sends him on his way telling him to brew them some ginger tea to soothe their upset stomach.

Jing Yuan brews the tea and offers it to them with a light snack letting them know that he's aware they may be pregnant and that while he's a little saddened they felt the need to hide such a thing from him he's more than happy to have pups with them. Spends the next few hours just comforting and cuddling his mate until they've calmed down and they tell him they'll see Lady Bailu tomorrow for an official exam.

Dan Heng

Out of everyone he'd know his mate is pregnant the fastest as he doesn't exactly leave his beta mates side once they become mates. He and his mate aren't separated for missions or anything unless they absolutely have to be so he'll know if they start acting weird.

Does give his mate some privacy when they want some alone time but does become suspicious he might have done something wrong since they keep avoiding him. It frustrates him but he lets them do it.

Looks up some data from the archives about Beta behaviors just so he can confirm if he's doing something wrong to upset them. He doesn't think about if the section about Beta pregnancy behaviors will be useful to their situation but he reads it anyways for future reference. But the more he reads the more and more things start to make sense and he is silently jumping for joy while simultaneously screaming into the void because this shouldn't be even possible in the first place.

While Vidyadharas can certainly have dynamics like most other races they're pretty much infertile as there are no records of their kind producing offspring within their own race or outside. And while his mind does jump to the possibility that his mate might have gotten pregnant by someone else he pushes that idea out of his head because he's been by their side consistently and he knows they wouldn't cheat on him.

He's pretty overwhelmed by the possibility but does his best to calmly ask his mate if they are pregnant and reassures them that he's not mad or anything just worried and even scared for them and their pup. Encourages his mate to see Lady Bailu just to confirm everything and to ensure they do have a smooth pregnancy should they decide to keep the pup.

[pankekvenom]

This is just a little drabble, some little headcanons how they would try to make you spend time with them

I don't know if I'm capable of elaborating on something bigger, sorry for the misspellings english is not my first language. I got some information about the characters based on what Google told me and some fandom Headcanons.

Platonic! Yandere! Batfam x Neglected! Reader

Characters: Damian Wayne, Dick Greyson and Jason Todd

(This drabble takes place after the kidnapping thing)

You would be doing your own thing in your New Room, of course, and you would hear a soft knock on the door. Without waiting for an answer, one of your siblings would enter, planning to do some activity with you.

Damian Wayne

-Damian would probably take you to do some activity where he can show you that he is more talented than your other siblings, something like sword art or painting, probably, I believe he is very good at painting as much as he is good at sword art, something about practicing concentration and patience, things you need to be good at both.

-The problem with spending time with Demian is that the activities he wants to do consist of you sitting and looking pretty. Of course, if you show that you're bored or losing interest, he'll suggest that you do the activity with him, he won't force you to do it, but he also won't let you just walk back to your room (in fear one of your other siblings would snatch you away, possessiveness what can I say).

-He would have you sit on a bench while he demonstrated how sword art works, and would try to do very exaggerated movements to try to impress you.

-did you see that? This takes years of experience to perfect.

He looked at you after doing some very difficult moves with his sword, Waiting for some sign of approval, you gave him a weak smile and nodded to show you were listening.

-He will also have you sit on a couch to be his model for a painting, in a position that is comfortable for you but looks good for the painting, and would keep asking if you are comfortable every 10 minutes, sometimes you would notice that he would stop painting and just watch you, looking like he is memorizing every curve of your face, he would snap out of it when you ask if everything is okay.

-Yeah, it's...I'm ok; I just need to get the details for the painting, you know.

He would give that same answer every time, with his ears a little red, for someone who needs to concentrate, with you around, Damian certainly couldn't.

Dick Greyson

- Dick would take you to see him doing some acrobatics and backflips (obviously), or to practice some kind of dance with you, a dance that could make you more comfortable with all the touching you are getting from your family in general, hugs, cuddles and even holding hands is still difficult for you so he wants to practice that more.

-To show you the acrobatics he would do smooth movements that seem to be done without the least bit of effort, but you would still notice that he would be trying to concentrate as much as possible so he doesn't miss any step.

-if you show that you are bored or not paying attention anymore he would pout and come to you and try to make you feel guilty for not paying attention while he tries so hard to put on a good show, and that you are not even giving him a chance to change (emotional manipulation would be strong with this one).

-Am I not good enough, baby bird? I know you'd rather spend your time with someone else, but you don't even want to give me a chance to prove that our time together can be fun.

he can very much be a hypocrite, but he would rather die than admit that.

- then he would take you to the dance hall to practice (the dance hall appeared after you returned to the mansion; you had never seen this room before, but you are sure that the room was used for something else).

-He would try to teach you some kind of slow dance at first, a dance that wouldn't make you lose your breath because you already seemed nervous from being so close to him, holding your hand gently but firmly so you wouldn't try to pull away (he would be beaming with happiness for such a small improvement).

-come on, baby bird, take a deep breath and let it out. Don't look at your feet. Try to look at me and concentrate on my movements, it's okay if you don't get it right on the first try.

he would say with a gentle voice, redirecting your face with his index finger, raising your chin so you were looking directly at his face.

-You were angry because his soft voice would make you feel a little bit at ease, but it would still be difficult to maintain eye contact with his dark blue ones that looked at you with such love.

-He would 100% take advantage of the situation, just being this close to you without you fussing or making a disgusted face is something to be celebrated, but he would try his best to control his facial expressions so he wouldn't scare you off.

Jason Todd

-Jason has a very normal choice of activity with you, he likes books, motorcycles, and weapons, which are totally different things from each other, so he sticks with the easiest one, books.

-he would love to show you his new bike modifications, but he knows you are not that into this kinda thing (well he thinks you don't like it, but how could he know what you like, right?).

-And weapons are not an option, never. (He doesn't like the idea, and he tells Damian to try not to scare you with his swords, Damian completely ignores him).

-He likes to read books to you in your room with your head resting on your pillow while he sits beside you, he reads each book differently, with more emotion or a firmer voice, trying not to make you bored.

-if he sees that you are losing interest or are starting to fall asleep, he would be the best one to deal with it, but in his own way; he wouldn't force you to stay awake, but he would take advantage of the situation to cuddle with you.

-closing the book and putting it on the bedside table, he would lay down with you pulling the covers up you both, trying to cuddle with you without disturbing your little nap.

-He would brag about it for the rest of the family, how he got to cuddle with you and you didn't even kick him out of the room. (You were sleeping, how could you kick him out?).

-You guys are never making it as far as me.

Your other siblings would just roll their eyes at him, but he couldn't care less. It's his victory today, and he is very proud, did he kinda take advantage of your tiredness? Maybe, but you didn't complain tho, neither did him.

That's It for today folks, good night.

Should I post other characters?

[nylauninterrupted]

CL16 x Reader [the Golden Boy] Valentines Special I

before reading: Welcome to the Valentines Specials! This one is a bit long, since I wanted to do a lot of teasing and slight tension. The intention behind this one is to make it feel sort of like a trashy romcom but in a good way, if you know what I mean? I hope I managed to do that, let me know your thoughts. As always, requests are open and ready for y'all. Happy reading!

summary: You were an anonymous journalist, trying to bring down one of Monaco's biggest illegal organisations. But once its head figured out that you were the one behind the mocking articles, he felt something other than hate.

content warnings: morality is out of question here, a lot of money talk, weird comparisons I guess?, eating out, sex, dom!Charles, no protection implied (wrap it before you tap it obvi), nonproofread

word count: 3943

"The golden boy of the House of Leclerc amazes the public once more with his ignorance and disregard towards the middle class," you observed in satisfaction as the paper's redactor read the article's title out loud.

You took pride in your work, as it was completely unrelated to making money. If anything, you put money into it, reassuring the small local paper's office that you would be more than happy to provide for them if things went sideways due to your articles.

Although you were certainly a part of the upper class, you made no move to get even richer, instead choosing to use your resources in the scheme you had planned out in the last year.

The plan was to bring down the House of Leclerc, possibly the most prosperous criminal organisation in Monaco, covered up as a fashion brand. You knew all about them from your old man, an eccentric millionaire who had information on pretty much anyone in Monaco and beyond.

You felt completely safe in this line of work; you wrote provocative articles that left the public fuming, slowly bringing down the golden boy—Charles Leclerc. Your articles were published anonymously and were the reason for the recent growth of the small paper.

The money they made off selling it went to them alone, as you did not need it. It helped with the anonymity, as you couldn't be traced by the money transfers.

And during your father's parties and dinners, you could watch the golden boy's face as his advisor walked up to him and reported that another article about his sketchy business had just come up.It was a thing you enjoyed immensely, seeing his polite, slightly amused expression shift into a subtle frown. 

It's a good thing you avoided ever speaking with him directly and kept your distance; he might have noticed your little smirk otherwise.

"At this point I am surprised he did not pull some strings to get our office to shut down," the editor sighed, setting the manuscript on the table. "It's a good thing you have the money to fight it."

Yes, you fought money with money in a sense. Writing these articles certainly would have been more noble if you were a part of the middle class, but you knew very well how that would go; you would have been silenced before people even started reading your work properly.

"Even if he were to do it, it would not escape the public's attention." You smiled, twirling a strand of your hair between your fingertips. "And if he were to stop me from writing the articles, he wouldn't just force the office to shut down. He'd focus on finding me alone."

"Well, I admire your courage." The editor sighed. "Though sometimes it is getting dangerously close to bordering on stupidity."

You rolled your eyes and smiled again before getting up and dusting your jeans off.

"The transfer came through in the morning, from a dummy account, like always. I will see you next week, yeah?"

And with that you left for your apartment to get ready for another one of your old man's dinners. It did not take too long; there have been heat waves in Monaco recently, making your clothing options quite limited. You settled for a sparkly golden dress, paired with gorgeous makeup. 

You winked at yourself in the mirror before checking the time and heading out.It did not take you too long to get to the gathering, where most were already present. You were immediately pulled into hugs and showered with kisses on the cheek from the females present, who were very happy to see you.They all loved you; you were the apple in their eye. If only they knew who was behind the biting articles about them...

Your eyes wandered around the room, searching for your main target—Charles. You were surprised not to see him; the man was almost never late.With a shrug of your shoulders, you entered your father's villa, walking up the staircase and reaching your old bedroom to adjust your makeup a bit.

It was as beautiful and comfortable as you remembered, with little lights hanging down from the ceiling and the art you painted on your walls when you were a teenager. While searching for your highlighter in your bag, you sat down on the chair in front of your old vanity table, not noticing the quiet sound of a person entering the room.

You gazed in the mirror, applying some of the highlighter as an eyetopper, when a voice sounded from somewhere behind you.

"Hello, little writer." Charles spoke in a calm tone, taking a step closer to the light. "I liked your newest article."

You stopped in your tracks for a second, your hand freezing mid-air. You quickly gathered yourself and calmly continued applying your makeup.

"I am no writer," you responded, dabbing the glowy product into your face. "Unfortunately, I never possessed the ability to write proper pieces. You can ask my father, Mr..." 

You paused, pretending to be clueless and not know his name, as you looked at him questioningly.

"Charles," he answered softly, looking at you with amusement, "If your father thinks you have no ability to write, then he is quite ignorant, miss (l/n)."

"Well then, I will entertain your theory, Charles." You spoke, turning around and getting up from the chair to face him. Charles checked you out conspicuously, not even trying to hide the way his eyes traced your every curve.

"How did you come up with the idea that I write articles?" you asked, controlling your body language to perfection. In order to appear less confident and intelligent than in reality, you put your hands behind your back instead of folding your arms on your chest.

He seemed to see right through your trick, seeing you for the way you were: smart and cunning.

"Well, there is someone who writes rather... bold articles in some small local newspaper, bringing a lot of attention to themselves," he spoke huskily, taking a step closer to you, "and I decided to investigate, tracing money transfers from a dummy account, observing the newspaper's office..."

Charles leaned towards you, bending down to whisper into your ear, as his warm breath brushed over your neck faintly.

"You should have picked a busier time to visit the office, little miss... Maybe it would have been easier to miss your pretty face on the camera footage."

You shivered slightly and pulled away to the side, giving him a cold look with your eyes narrowed.

"The next time you try to come into a room I'm in alone, without permission, I will be waiting. With a gun." You spoke coldly.

"Don't tempt me." Charles grinned, his eyes glued to yours. "There is one thing I am curious about."

"Why would a rich girl like you care about what I do, enough to risk her reputation and money, writing articles that mock me? You won't benefit financially... You don't have a business that could expand because of it... Oh, wait." He paused, leaning close to your ear again."Is it to get my attention?" He whispered, smirking at you.

"Did you think that way you would be different from all the other women who throw themselves at me?"

"It might be a shock to you, Leclerc, but not every woman out there dreams of seducing you." You rolled your eyes, folding your arms. While he was still a complete jerk, you appreciated that he did not try to put his hands on you during your first encounter, like entitled men who attended your father's gatherings would often do.

Before Charles had the chance to respond, you turned away and left the room. You did not really care what he would do once you left him on his own in your childhood bedroom. He would not dare to do anything in your father's house.

You quickly got back to the gathering and were immediately welcomed back by the group of women from before. You tried to forget about your encounter with the golden boy and the way his hot breath made your whole body shiver, even though he did not lay a single finger on you.

A girl that has been eyeing you all night had offered you a dance, which you gratefully accepted. You twirled around and had fun, the shiny pieces of your dress making you look ethereal in the warm light, as you continued to be watched by Charles, who got back to the party as well.

Just as you finished dancing with the girl and thanked her, a bit out of breath, another one came up to you giggling, telling you that Charles was talking to your father, asking whether he could dance with you.

Your eyes narrowed, and you looked in your old man's way to see him chatting with Leclerc while gesturing in a lively way. As Charles noticed you gazing at them, he gave you a small smirk and a wave before excusing himself and walking towards you.

"I am not dancing with you," you spoke bluntly, looking at him with disdain. Your words just made him smile and roll his eyes in response.

"Oh, but we wouldn't want to disappoint your papa, would we?" Charles spoke teasingly, "It would be very rude to deny a dance with me, don't you think?"

You bit your lip, knowing he was right. To make matters worse, a cheery Italian love song started playing. Your old man liked romcoms and love songs a bit too much for your liking; you had to talk to him about his Mamma Mia obsession at some point.

Charles raised his eyebrow and held out his hand towards you, just as the chorus of Sarà perché ti amo started playing. You gave him a subtle glare once more before placing your fingers on his warm hand. He smiled and pulled you closer to the centre of the room, leading the dance and twirling you around.

"You look gorgeous tonight, little miss," he whispered teasingly, as the crowd watched you dance. "Are you this beautiful even when mocking me in your writing, or did you simply dress up tonight?"

"Considering how you were busy watching me through the street cameras, I think you are well aware of how I look while working," you bit back through gritted teeth as you smiled at him charmingly to keep up appearances. He gave you an equally tender smile, faking it almost effortlessly, before spinning you around again.

"Oh, street cameras aren't the only thing I can use to watch you. I have eyes too, ma déesse," he whispered into your ear, just as the track ended, and he had to let you go. As you walked away from him, you glanced at your father and groaned at his beaming smile. You silently prayed that he wouldn't try to plan anything as a follow-up to your dance with one of his business partners.

Your prayers were not answered. The next evening you got a text from your father, happily informing you that Charles was absolutely enthralled by you and has asked for your number. (You would not be surprised if your father just came up to him after you two danced and forced him to write down your number in his phone.)

You were still seething as you made dinner in the quiet of your apartment when the doorbell rang. You did not expect any guests, so you raised your eyebrows in surprise and washed your hands before opening the door to see Charles standing behind them. A thought of simply shutting the door in his face ran through your head, but you doubted he would actually let you have your peace.

"Why are you here?" You asked, folding your arms while you looked at him questioningly. 

"Maybe I wanted to see your pretty face again?" he suggested, a grin appearing on his face. You made a mental note to add "womaniser" to the long list of epithets you used in your articles.

"Bullshit," you said calmly, completely unfazed.

"I want answers, little miss." Charles finally replied, looking at you closely, "I want to know why the little rich girl who attends her daddy's parties every other week decided to mock me and make me her enemy when she would benefit so much more if I were her ally."

"It's fun," you replied. "I like it. Watching all the other rich people in town squirm once word about their little illegal businesses spreads. I liked seeing your expression, the perplexity in your eyes."

He kept observing you for a couple more seconds before he smirked again and started taking slow steps towards you. You instinctively started to retreat to your apartment, but it didn't make him stop. As he entered it, he closed the door behind him, his eyes never leaving yours.

"Are you going to grab a gun now?" Charles teased, referring to the threat you made the evening before. You stopped and overcame your unease. He was on your turf. And you weren't going to take his shit.

"My turn to ask the questions. Why didn't you try to shut me up earlier?"

"It's pretty simple." He responded, tilting his head slightly. "When you first started writing, I wanted nothing more than to find you and rip your head off. But with each little piece of yours, your gender became clear. It baffled me, since I have not crossed any women recently. It interested me, irked me."

Charles took another step towards you, slowly extending his hand, giving you time to retreat. But you did not, surprisingly letting him place his hand on your chin.

"I found out who you were a while ago. But I decided to watch and tried to see what your motive was. At first, I thought it was your father's idea, but I quickly came to the conclusion that he is a harmless old man. No, you came up with it all by yourself."

You remained silent, listening to his words, as his warm fingers traced your jawline and brushed against your neck, stroking your soft skin softly.

"I was completely sure you were a man pretending to be a woman before I discovered your identity." Charles chuckled. 

"I did not understand why else you would watch me so closely, describing my every... evil move."His hand went slightly up once more, and he brushed the tip of his thumb against your peach-tinted lips.

"Otherwise... Why would someone want to bring me down? Without any gain from it..." his voice trailed off. "You are fascinating, little miss."

You let out a small, barely audible sigh at his faint touches, making his eyes glint with interest once more.

"Are you sure you still don't want a bit of my attention?" He murmured, bending down slightly, his head inching closer to your face as he spoke.

Of course you knew what kind of man he was. Filthy rich, attractive, and thought the world belonged to him. But could anyone fault you for finding him just a bit appealing?You tilted your head up to look at him properly. Thoughts were running in circles in your mind as you bit your lip, feeling conflicted. Charles could see your struggle, and he waited patiently for your response, not making any move to touch you more. He wanted your consent, for you to give in willingly.

"Maybe just a bit," you whispered, knowing damn well that there was no way that this would be a one-time thing. He smiled at your response, reaching his hand out again, brushing strands of your hair behind your ear, and leaning in to place a small peck on the side of your neck to test the waters. Seeing that you did not resist his affections, he moved closer, his body meeting yours. Charles took you in with his eyes, massaging your body through your clothes, taking his time with you.

"You really do look incredible regardless of the situation," he muttered, burying his face in your hair and inhaling your scent. "You are so interesting, little miss..."

His hands slipped under your shirt and kept massaging your body slowly, warming it up. You didn't really speak, still unsure how to respond to the situation. The man whose life you tried to ruin was in your apartment, being intimate with you, and you were... Well, you were a willing participant.

Charles roamed your body with his fingers, keeping it pretty civil for now, and you tilted your head up again, brushing your nose against his slightly, making him smile at you.

"I have to say, you were more fierce yesterday. This is not an unpleasant change," he whispered tenderly. "I suppose you can be quite nice if you want to."

You grabbed his wrists and slowly guided his hands to your breasts, placing them around the round tissue.

"Oh, generous even," he added, but he did not tease you further and kept massaging instead.

"Should I get this off?" Charles asked after a while, referring to the large shirt you were wearing. You nodded without hesitating much, making him take the shirt off your body with ease. His hands were immediately back on your skin, this time enveloping your hips with their warmth.You reached for his shirt, taking it off as well. He gently guided you to the couch, carefully pushing you on the soft cushions.

"You're a bit like a wild cat, ma déesse," he whispered with a hint of satisfaction. "It is very difficult to tame you, and even if one succeeds, you still remain wonderfully independent and fierce."

You rolled your eyes a bit at the compliment but did not stop him from undressing you further, giggling a bit as he struggled with taking his trousers off. Charles gave you a warning look, though he couldn't help but smirk as well.

"Watch out, little miss, or I might lose my temper," he whispered.

"Do you ever?" you asked, looking up at him, as he crawled on top of you. "Were those frowns every time you heard about a new article all feigned?"

"Oh, I was not frowning about the articles." Charles chuckled, pressing soft kisses on your neck. "I just think some of the... labels you gave me were a bit harsh. I don't think I'm a 'filthy lecher who feasts on the weak,' to be quite honest."

"Fine, maybe I am a bit... passionate at times." You admitted with a sigh, as he continued leaving gentle pecks on her body, trailing them down towards her chest, "...You're still a jerk."

"Sure I am." He beamed, his shiny eyes glancing up into yours, before he focused on cherishing you again. He was careful, almost as if he worried about damaging you. You took him for someone who liked it rough, yet right now it seemed like he was prioritising your pleasure over his.

You sighed again as his mouth started inching closer to your abdomen before passing in and hovering above her temple.

"Are you ready, little miss?" he asked, and without really waiting for a response, he leaned down, pressing his mouth directly to your clit. He wasn't hesitant; he dove right in, beginning to suck on your labia, eliciting soft moans from your mouth.

Charles took his time, licking and sucking on the outside, before slowly pushing his mouth further, penetrating your cunt with his tongue. The man had skill; he turned into a panting, whimpering mess in a matter of minutes.

Before he brought you to a climax, he pulled away carefully, glancing at you with a grin.

"It's okay, you can come over my face later," he whispered, massaging your hip, as you glanced down at him, your face flushed. 

"Do you want to feel me inside, ma déesse?" 

You nodded, almost squirming from the tension he built up in your body. He kept watching your expression as he positioned his hard shaft at your entrance, teasing it a little bit, before slowly but surely pushing it in.

You slowly got used to the sensation, letting out small moans and whimpers at the sensation. You closed your eyes, savouring the experience, before pulling him into your arms, making his dick go deeper and causing him to groan in pleasure.

He was so careful with you, as if afraid to break you, to damage you. You would never take him for someone gentle; you assumed he liked it rough. But right now, he seemed to be containing himself for you.

"You don't have to be gentle with me. I'm not made out of glass." you whispered, after letting out another moan. "I want to feel you everywhere."

At your words, his restraint seemed to weaken; his gentle strokes grew into desperate thrusts, the pace quickening significantly. You were now moaning at every move, your body responding to his affections perfectly.

You could not help but admire the way he looked, his brown hair illuminated by the warm light seeping from a lamp placed on the coffee table, his green eyes that usually resembled spring leaves, now looking more like a shadowy forest. Small beads formed on his forehead as he kept a quick pace, sliding his cock in and out of you.

Soon, he reached his high, painting your inner walls white, before sliding out of you, his dick now limp. He tried not to collapse on you, but you simply pulled him in, making him lie on top of your body. You both breathed heavily, spent after the intense sex.

Your mind was analysing the situation now. In the past hours, your opinion on Charles changed significantly. He was still a dick and a bad man, but you couldn't deny the want you felt for him. It might have transcended sexual desire alone.

Charles clearly felt something for you as well; he knew better than to hope that sleeping with you would make you stop writing about him. He was tender, affectionate... It was unclear what he wanted for you. But after a couple more moments of thinking, you decided to let it go for now, choosing to enjoy the presence of the man you seemed to hate just yesterday.

Suddenly, you giggled, making him look up at you questioningly.

"Did you really memorise every insult I have written about you?" you asked, looking at him tenderly. He smiled as well, nuzzling his face into your chest. It wasn't in a sexual way; it seemed that he was simply yearning to be close to you, to stay in this moment, in this apartment, for as long as possible.

"Maybe not every single one, but I remember most of them." Charles murmured, with his face buried in your chest. 

You smiled again, deciding that talking about what this evening meant for you two could happen some other time. For now, you wanted to keep him in your arms for as long as possible.

...And maybe a few kisses, you thought, as you gently grabbed his chin and leaned in, kissing him on the lips. He reciprocated immediately, taking the lead and pouring his affection for you into the gesture, leaving you breathless.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" You asked, making his eyes light up like a little child's.

"I would love to." Charles smiled genuinely. Yes, he was a bad man. But his presence was something you grew fond of. In a matter of a day, you found yourself infatuated with the golden boy that you mocked.

"Maybe I should have suggested breakfast as well," you spoke, pulling him in for another kiss.

[saphronethaleph]

Galaxy Done Quick

“If we’re going to stop Palpatine’s plan, we need to start where the trail went cold,” Poe said, as the Falcon rose into the sky. “That means going to Pasana.”

Finn and Rey exchanged glances.

“DaggerSkip?” Finn asked.

“Yeah, that’s the play,” Rey agreed, reaching over and inputting coordinates to the nav computer.

“What’s a dagger skip?” Poe asked, confused. “Is that supposed to mean something?”

“It’s a sequence break,” Rey told him, as the Falcon turned to face the Endor system. “Look, if there’s anything to find that the Emperor didn’t intend to be lost it’s going to be where the second Death Star crashed down, right?”

Finn helpfully reached over and pushed the hyperdrive lever.

“I guess, but – hey!” Poe objected. “Don’t we need to go to Pasana?”

“No, we don’t need to go to Pasana,” Finn replied. “We do this, we skip Pasana and Kijimi, and as a bonus we don’t need to wipe C-3PO’s memory, either.”

“I beg your pardon?” C-3PO asked.

“Don’t worry, we’re not doing that,” Rey said, which was presumably supposed to be reassuring. “The Kef Bir transition isn’t state based, so we can just go there and get things going.”

Poe looked at his friends, then at C-3PO. “...should I understand any of this? You understand all languages, right?”

“I can certainly translate most of them, sir,” C-3PO told him. “However, as I’m sure my counterpart could inform you, being able to translate a language doesn’t mean you have the least idea what is going on.”

“So… explain to me why we aren’t helping Rey?” Poe said, as Finn adjusted his electrobinoculars.

“It’s not a two person level,” Finn replied, scanning. “Okay, hold on… yeah, there we go.”

“You can see her?” Poe asked.

“Nope,” Finn replied. “But I can see half the fight arena.”

Poe groaned.

“You’re not making any sense,” he complained.

Finn shrugged, then passed Poe a second set of binoculars. “If you want to see, you can look… about halfway up that spire there.”

Poe examined the electrobinoculars, then Finn’s pair.

“...these are mine,” he said. “And so are the ones you’re using. How…?”

“Oh, yeah, that was done during the transition,” Finn shrugged. “Dupe glitch. Anyway, watch, this is where we find out if we’re on pace.”

Mystified, Poe put the electrobinoculars to his eyes, and focused them where Finn had told him.

Then he saw Rey… wielding a red lightsaber with two blades connected by a hinge?

“What the-?” he yelped, then saw another Rey, this one wielding a green saberstaff. “Where did that come from?”

“Oh, it makes the trick easier,” Finn shrugged, as green-weapon Rey backflipped up to the top of a spike of twisted metal, and red-weapon Rey jumped up to attack her.

Green-weapon Rey blocked the attack, stepping to the side, and red-weapon Rey fell in the sea.

“All right!” Finn declared. “First time! QuickRey is one of the hardest bits of this, that’s great!”

Poe tried not to decide too visibly that he wasn’t getting any answers.

“So… uh,” he began. “What do we do now?”

“Oh, yeah, we need to prep the Falcon for takeoff,” Finn said. “Don’t worry, Rey’s taking a different ship, we don’t need to wait for her.”

He turned, heading for the ship, and Poe looked back and forth between the smashed-up Death Star and Finn before following in some confusion.

The Falcon’s systems were coming rapidly online, and Poe was helping Chewie check the motivator, when there was a muffled curse from outside.

“Huh?” Poe asked, before looking towards the ramp.

And did a double take.

Because Kylo Ren was striding up the ramp, but instead of that weird mask he looked very confused.

“What is happening?” he demanded.

“What is – what are you doing on here?” Poe asked, snatching his blaster up – not that it would do any good. “Finn!”

“It’s okay!” Finn called back from the cockpit.

“It is not!” Poe and Kylo said at the same time, then exchanged a mutually offended look.

“There’s some flags that won’t trigger if he doesn’t make it to Exegol, okay?” Finn said. “So, yeah, this is quicker than any of the other options!”

Poe felt very confused.

“What I want to know is what happened!” Kylo said. “Because Rey backflipped past me and suddenly I didn’t have my lightsaber any more and I’m now no longer in thrall to the Dark Side!”

“Yeah, that’s called SoloSkip,” Finn said, apparently expecting that to help. “See, the redemption cutscene trigger is different from the redemption trigger, and it saves a few minutes to hit just one of them. Rey is really killing it, this is great… speaking of which, hey, Ben?”

“Yes?” Ben Solo said, because apparently that was his name again now.

“Mind setting the course for Exegol?” Finn asked. “Normally we’d need to wait until Rey got there, but you have the course so you can just plug it in.”

Ben shot a look at Poe.

“Do you have any idea what he’s going on about?” the maybe-ex-Ren said.

“Not since this morning,” Poe replied. “Just smile and nod, I guess…”

“I knew you would come here… my granddaughter,” Sheev Palpatine said, smirking and chuckling darkly. “Approach me.”

Rey approached him.

“You know, I only just realized it,” she said, thoughtfully. “But this routing skips any of the places where I’d find that out.”

Sheev worried for a moment if his granddaughter had somehow inherited being senile, or something.

“...it matters not,” he decided. “Come, embrace your destiny. You are a Palpatine, and you are the heir to the Sith – the heir to the Empire! Strike me down or take your place, it matters not, a Palpatine shall sit on the throne of the Empire!”

Rey did not seem to be listening to him, and Sheev scowled.

“Pay attention!” he said. “What are you mumbling to yourself, girl?”

“And…” Rey said, dragging the word out. “Switch to in-engine is… now.”

She promptly dove to the floor, and Sheev had enough time to wonder why before the Millennium Falcon fell through the opening in the ceiling and landed on him, engines-first.

He didn’t have time to wonder about anything else.

“And time!” Finn declared, as something went skoom underneath the Falcon.

Chewbacca growled, then everyone clutched for the nearest handhold as the Falcon swung through a ninety-degree angle from vertical to horizontal and the landing gear slammed down on the chamber floor with a bone-shaking crash.

Something in the hyperdrive went crunch.

“...what,” Poe began. “The kark. Was that.”

Finn shrugged. “It’s one of the weaknesses of the Empire. The final boss isn’t immune to fall damage.”

[911lsbts]

TheWrap: What would this potential Tarlos series have been about?

Rashad Raisani: I had been desperately trying to get some steam going for a Tarlos thing with the Texas Rangers, and it just couldn’t quite get the corporate liftoff. In my mind, if Carlos got stationed in a new city in Texas as a Texas Ranger, and TK and Jonah went to El Paso, or went to some other city, and just tell a new story that way.

Why didn’t it happen?

It was because of the same issues that plagued “Lone Star,” meaning that we had a different network partner than a studio partner. And even though we’d all started under the same roof, by the end of the series, we were a child of divorce, and that was just a recurrent obstacle.

If you put it to a public vote, I’m pretty sure a Tarlos spin off would do really well.

Never say never. I pushed and pushed, and I’m not done pushing. I still believe in it very much.

And the actors would be down for that, potentially?

While they’re available. These guys are pretty successful, so I’m sure there’s a lot of people running to get them on their shows and movies. I think creatively, they were passionate about it. But the longer it goes, the harder it would be to to get them while they’re still available . I absolutely would love to be writing this. I love those actors. They’re like my little brothers. I would love to keep it going.

With Owen going to New York, was there ever a plan for New York to be the setting for the new spin-off?

When I was pitching it to Rob, I just said, “Look the beautiful thing about that is, one, it’s completely true to who he is. Two, it’s the biggest job there is in firefighting in America. And three, if there’s ever a spinoff in New York, they have to go through you, my friend.” He’s like, “Let’s do it.” He was loving the idea of New York. Certainly, if something goes through New York, it wouldn’t be the worst thing to have Captain Strand up there

Could we see “Lone Star” characters on any of the other “9-1-1” series after this?

Part of the reason why I wanted them all to be standing at the end of the series was if, God willing, there’s some way to get one of them to LA for the 118 or the new city, we could still have Captain Judd, or we could have Mateo or Nancy could visit or whoever. I really would love that. I just don’t feel done talking. having these people talk, I love hearing all of their voices.

[darkwood-sleddog]

Do you have any information on the Seppala sled dogs? I've seen some breeders claiming to have them but idk. The most "legit" kennel I saw apparently stopped their program a long time ago and let their dogs age out according ti their website. Their dogs looked lankier and leaner compared to Siberian huskies and had taller, close-set ears, they looked pretty neat. How much did they differ from their Sibe cousins & Chukchi laika ancestors? Are any of them still around today? Did they get absorbed into the Alaskan husky population, like the native Alaskan village dogs?

It's not my breed of choice so I probably don't have the most nuanced information, but they're basically just another breed of working sled dog.

After the Serum Run, Leonard Seppala toured with his dogs in the lower 48. It is during this time that we start seeing the beginnings of the modern Alaskan Malamute, the Siberian Husky, and the Seppala Siberian Sled Dog as all three programs owe some or much of their foundation from dogs Seppala brought with him.

You see, while the Siberian Husky and Seppala people like to think that Leonard Seppala had some sort of strict vision or plan of what he wanted to breed because he was amongst the first to import dogs from Siberia (and is certainly responsible for their fame as racers), many of his dogs were of mixed heritage. Togo himself was a quarter malamute (lower case here to indicate 'malamute' as it was prior to Kennel Club registration, a catch all name for indigenous coastal sled dogs at the time) and so were many of Seppala's dogs:

Seppala even gifted Yukon Jad, the father of the first registered litter of Alaskan Malamutes, to Eva Seeley at the time. The Seeley's owned Chinook Kennels in New Hampshire and here is where things start getting complex. Chinook Kennels bred both Alaskan Malamutes (Seeley's pet project, breeding dogs for Antarctic expeditions), as well as Siberian Huskies from additional stock she had acquired from Seppala. There is a rumor, with some truth behind it, that she would classify a dog as a 'malamute' if it had brown eyes, and a Siberian Husky if it had blue eyes.

Meanwhile Seppala went on to partner with Elizabeth Ricker in Poland Springs, Maine (who was Togo's final owner before his death) to form a different kennel. This one focused strictly on racing dogs. Again, descended from the dogs Seppala had brought to the lower 48. When this kennel disbanded, several of the dogs in Maine went to Harry Wheeler in Quebec who kept them in an extremely closed gene pool until the 1950s (descended from 9 dogs total yikes...). It is around this time that things start dispersing. There begins to be some crossover with the Seppala and Working Siberian Husky gene pools at this time (if you want to get really thick in the weeds read this). Many Working Siberians have Seppala heritage and vice versa because of this. Non-working bloodlines also have crossover to the Poland Springs dogs as well, but less often. There are a TON of Siberian Husky, Working Siberian Husky, and Seppala Siberian Sled Dog bloodlines, some of different percentage of mixture. But does it matter that much when all three breeds have origins in the exact same small group of dogs?

Ultimately the answer of why it matters to some comes down to breed politics and the way kennels clubs are structured, often failing to prioritize working aptitude over physical appearance. There were disagreements over how dogs descendent from the Seppala dogs should continue or how to best uphold, what Seppala wanted out of his dogs (which was to win races, but i digress...), and a lot of MASSIVE hatred for Eva Seeley (like they hate the idea that malamute might be in dogs from her kennel but Seppala himself was crossing Siberians and Malamutes before this time period...). Ultimately, Seppala Siberian Sled Dog people conclude that a Seppala is ONLY a Seppala if it descends only from dogs of Leonard Seppala OR dogs imported from Russia (there are major differences between Indigenous Russian sled dogs and Seppala Siberian Sled Dogs imo, but I won't get into that here in too much detail bc I'm glad they're outcrossing as the SSSD is very in need of genetic diversity). They usually have a big focus on working their dogs and eschew traditional kennel clubs (The Seppala Siberian Sled Dog is registered as a breed only with the Continental Kennel Club, the same 'Kennel Club' that will register anything with four legs as a breed so...).

Now I think a LOT of SSSD people place a huge amount of energy into what "looks" like an SSSD compared to a working Siberian Husky and vice-versa, which is funny considering their attitudes on conformation showing as well as their willingness to outcross to unrelated dogs. They love making the 'cookie cutter show dog' argument against conformation bred Siberians while also having a breed of dog ultimately descended from the same stock, that has been intensely inbred in its history (even though they will bemoan the registered Siberian's lack of genetic diversity...i would be interested in seeing COI comparisons honestly) and has a very distinct look. Again, so much of this comes down to early breeder's historical beef with Siberian Husky folks which I think would be much better for both sides to let go of because really what this is is breed split at the most granular. I can guarantee Russian sled dogs folks that don't use registered breeds specifically do not care to get this fucking specific. Does it work well? Cool, it's sled dog.

(Half Yakutian Laika/Seppala dog on the left, full Seppala dog on the right for comparison, but god forbid a registered Siberian Husky is bred into the bloodlines despite...everything).

Anyways here are some actual indigenous russian sled dogs:

And Leonard Seppala's Dogs:

(SSSD folk will often wax poetical about their dogs resemblance to Scotty, but notice how unusual Scotty looks compared to the other siberian imports Seppala owned (he did have an import Dam, but father? who knows).)

Some Alaskan Husky lines do have Seppala in their heritage (I believe the Hedlund Husky project uses them infrequently as outcrosses), but the Seppala Siberian Sled Dog is pretty insular within itself and the people still breeding it. There are not a lot of breeders, but there are def some of them doing really interesting stuff with their dogs (despite my beef for the attitude and breed split i still have a deep respect when people are doing cool stuff and open to outcrossing etc.). Poland Springs Seppalas is in Alaska right now doing a recreation of the original serum run to celebrate the serum run's 100th year. I think that's pretty darn cool.

[teaguehq]

There's no doubt in my mind you made Calgary all the better, even if it's a beautiful city on its own. It was just better for having you there with me, not to mention we kept each other warm despite all the cold! And we found plenty of fun things to do together, thankfully. You know I'll always attend your premieres with you, and of course cheer you on in your projects! I'm already so excited for seeing Fantastic Four now that there's a trailer, and I know you'll have done an incredible job in that. Though that aside, you looked so handsome in the trailer too - no wonder they chose you for Johnny Storm when you're already hot and it's entirely believable you can set a fire all on your own! I know you've got promo coming up, so I'm just happy I'm not working for the moment and can travel around with you for it all. I'm so happy you liked being in Florida with me, and happier that you got the chance to visit and meet my parents. Though sorry about all their questions and their asking so many. You're only the second person I've ever brought home, so I know they were a little curious, if anything. Though it's no surprise to me that they like you! I know what you mean when I already miss Florida's warmth myself, though just means we'll have to go on a vacation soon. I love that you want to match costumes for Halloween, and you know I'd be all for planning that! Maybe the big costumes this year will be the Fantastic Four though, so I hope you're ready for that. Well, I'll say you don't have to worry about losing me, because I'm here as long as you'd like me to be. But I know I'd be lost without you too, so that feeling is definitely mutual, love. In that case, you can have me in your arms as much as you'd like, just putting that out there. You want to take me somewhere special? Now I'm wondering what you have in mind, though it's likely I'd like any date you take me on. Well, I had to show you some of my hangouts while we were there in Tampa, including some places that play live music since the guys and I have had gigs there before! I'm happy we had another chance to dip into the hot springs before my filming ended, since I did have the best time there with you. I had a feeling, though it's mutual since I can't ever get enough of you. And well, since you didn't know what I was planning for your birthday at the time, you know I had a lot more than just the hot springs on my mind for a post-filming celebration. Plus having a hot tub handy and enjoying it with you certainly felt like a great vacation. I can't help it since every time I think about being all yours, it just makes me smile so much. I'm not even close to being sick of knitted items, especially since they're made with your own hands. At least we don't have to miss each other for a little while, right? I know, and neither of us wants to hurt Bach's feelings, so better we let him believe he's the best cuddler. A friend for Bach? Will it be another dog just as big as Bach, or did you have something else in mind? I'm excited for visiting more Catacomb entrances since it seems like such a secret thing! I'll always protect you, never have to worry about that. It's a good thing you like it when I blush, since you make me blush so often! I don't know that I'll always be the sexiest of us when I think you are, without question. Now that filming's over, breaking in both our places will be an easier goal! Maybe after you're all finished with promo. Of course, and I love London too, so it's certainly not like you'd have to pull my arm if you wanted to visit there. And I'm happy being where you are too, so honestly, that sounds perfect to me.

Well, I want to show you all of my favorite places, and especially those we can dance! I'm smiling hearing you say that you love cooking with me, and whether it's in cooking classes or at one of our places, I know we'd have a great time and learn to make something new. I'm excited to fill up those cooking books too! Bentley definitely liked you, though I had no doubts at all that he would! I know the sanctuary appreciated the donation so much, and at least we got to interact with some of the other animals while we were helping feed them! You absolutely have a kind heart, love. I knew my parents would end up liking you, and I think they're so happy they've met you since I talk about you so much! I'm just telling the truth, you're amazing! Though you're making me blush saying I'm the amazing one. Do you really think your family will like me? Because I hope so! I'm all for visiting London and seeing them whenever you'd like to. It's a good thing I make you smile and make you happy then, since that's a reason for them to like me. You're welcome for the camping spot, and I knew you'd enjoy seeing the cattle and being on the ranch. Maybe cows are just like giant puppies around you, since they clearly wanted your affections! Turkey will be a lot of fun, although you know I'm all for any holidays with you. And we can spoil each other everywhere we go, no question on that. Now that I'm not working, you can wake me up that way as much as you'd like, especially since most days, we don't have an early call time. Or yet, I should say, since I know you have some promo coming up. Between those and the morning showers, I'm definitely becoming more a fan of mornings. No, you didn't scare me off at all, Joseph, and if anything, it means a lot to me that you're thinking about us in future terms. And I love you, and I'm so happy you feel the same way about me. Not to mention I feel so incredibly lucky for it, too. I want that with you too, living together at some point and getting married when the timing feels right for it. Makes me curious if you've thought of where we should live, like where you'd want a place together. I do love you, Joseph, and it makes me smile that I can say it now without holding back. Nothing I can say would scare you? Not that I'd test that theory, though saying I love you out loud was the scariest thing up until now! And I do want forever with you, and honestly, it makes my heart race just saying that out loud too, not to mention knowing you want the same thing. I'll kiss you as much as you'd like, that's a fact! well, no surprise when you linger on my mind in general, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I absolutely loved the decorations and the red theme, and well, I feel like I showed just how much I loved it with including it as part of the photo album I gave you! It just meant the world to me since no one's ever done that for me before. Christmas and New Year's with you was incredible, and it was fun getting to spend both of them in New York. I bet you'll end up playing the mandolin beautifully too, and we'll have to start in on the lessons soon! I really did love your gifts, and that necklace is honestly my new favorite. Plus we'll definitely have to plan the cruise soon since it'll be a lot of fun! The kiss in Time's Square was so memorable, and well, I don't doubt in the least that all our New Year's kisses will be that memorable, too. I'm happy you liked the idea of Devonian Gardens before we had to leave, albeit a week earlier than I'd said in honor of your birthday! I have a feeling you liked it, but did you enjoy the cabin I rented for that week along with your other birthday gifs? It was difficult to keep from you, I can say that! And well, you're stuck with me since I don't have to film anything for now, so I can take care of you while you're having to work. | @josephafq

i feel like it's easy to appreciate calgary more because i'm here with you, yeah? but you're right -- aside from the cold, it's a nice city and we've really had a great time and have done some fun things together! and you know i feel the same way about you, love, that anything is more fun with you at my side. i'm glad you love attending my premieres, because i love having you on my arm so much, and it means the world that you're so supportive. you're making me blush a little right now saying that, and i'm glad you think it ends up being special, love. i'm glad it might be a little bit before i work again, so i get to spend as much time with you as possible. and i was very glad for your time off for the holidays as well, because i loved getting to go to flordia with you! the warm weather there was gorgeous, and i almost hated to leave to have to go back to the cold! i like the idea of dressing up in halloween costumes that are popular at that time -- i'm sure we can have a lot of fun with that, i just know i want to match with you! i'm glad to put your mind at ease, love, but i'll admit i have those same kind of worries too, you know? i know that i would be lost without you, so i'll do anything to make sure i don't lose you. i'm glad being in my arms is so comforting, love, and i love having you in my arms so lucky that, yeah? i love your clinginess, honestly, and love that you love mine too! i have been thinking about new dates to plan, i really want to take you some place special that just shows you how much you mean to me. and i loved the something fun you had planned while in tampa, i had a very good time and you know you're the most thoughtful man on the planet, right? oh, very much so, because i love the hot springs there so much and i love going to them with you! i'm glad we'll get to visit them again before your filming is over! and i love recreating everything we've done there together as well, i can't get enough of you, though i'm sure you already know that, yeah? i'm glad that you're on board with staying at the hot springs a little longer so we can truly take advantage of them, and you're right, it would be the perfect post-filming celebration! i'm glad you always love hot tubs with me, love, and we've had a lot of fun in them, haven't we? i love hearing that i made you blush by saying that, but it's the truth, the best feeling is knowing that you're all mine, and it's safe to say that i love being all yours, love. i mean, as long as you're not sick of my knitted items, i'll make a ton more for you! i'm glad that you always want to be near me, like i do you, and i miss you so much when we're apart. i especially miss having you in my arms! it's good that we don't let bach know that we like each other's cuddles better than his, it might hurt his feelings. though speaking of bach, i've been wondering, do you think he looks lonely? because i was wondering if maybe we should get him a friend. i'll reach out to jamie and let him know that we'd like to meet up with them and visit some secret catacomb entrances, he'll be shocked that i'm asking! and thank you for saying you'll always hold my hand, love. it's my favorite when you blush, i hope you know that. but i really do think you're the sexiest, part of why i can't keep my hands off you, love. plus, i'm glad you think i'm so sexy and all, but you'll always be the sexiest of us. i love kissing you every morning too, love, it really is the best way to start the day. i love sending you off to set with plenty of kisses! i'm looking forward to breaking in your place a little more in new york as well, and of course we've still got some places in my apartment as well that we need to break in! yes, wherever you are, i'm happy to be right alongside you! and i'm glad that's mutual, love, and thank you for saying you'll always be willing to visit london whenever i'm missing it. though i've been feeling good, lately and just happy being where you are.

it's sweet that you wanted to take me to one of your favorite spots in new york -- and honestly, the dancing with you was the best part of the night! i'm glad you're all for taking more cooking classes, love, and i know we'll have a fun time with cooking new things and filling up those books. plus, i just really love cooking with you, you know? it's sweet! it was so fun getting to meet bentley, and i have a feeling he liked me, do you think he did? and i'm glad that i was able to donate a little something to the sanctuary, as well as help out with some things while we were there too. though you're making me blush saying i have a kind heart. it was a little scary meeting your parents, i'll admit, but i am so happy they ended up liking me. and now you're really making me blush saying your'e with someone who is as amazing as i am, when you're the amazing one, love! once you're done filming, we'll head to london for a little bit so you can meet my family -- and they really are going to love you. anyone that makes me smile as much as you do and makes me happy as you do, they're going to love. and thank you for taking me to such a great camping place, i loved it so much, and i had fun seeing the cattle. also, i didn't realize that cows could be like giant puppies, you know? i'm glad you're all for going to turkey, love, and that you're as excited as i am about all the holidays that we've got planned. i love the idea of seeing the world with you, love, and can't wait to spoil you at every place we go, as well as have you spoil me! i'm also very happy i can wake you up in the way i like as many times as i'd like, given it's my favorite way to help you start the day! well, it's tied with our morning showers because i love them with you and agree that i'm liking mornings better as well. first let me say that i'm glad i didn't scare you off, because i was really worried. but yeah, i do love you, i love you a whole lot and i've wanted to tell you for a while now. and i do think about us living together and getting married at some point -- which is a little scary because you're right they are big things to say, but i wanted you to know that i'm thinking that, and that i want that with you. and you love me too? just getting really emotional with you saying that i'll have you know, and it makes me feel better you've known for a while too. nothing you could say would ever scare me though, just putting that out there, alright? god, i'm so glad that you want forever with me too, owen, i can't even put into words how that makes me feel. and you're right, neither of us have any reason to be scared since we're on the same page. you'll kiss me all the time? lucky me! oh, i really will always enjoy those favors, love, and i'm glad they tend to linger in your mind as well, that makes me feel very good. it makes me so happy that you loved all the decorations i had done at my place, love, and of course i had to do a red theme since it's your favorite color after all! i'm glad our christmas together was a good one, same with our new years! i can't wait to start mandolin lessons with you, love, i'm really excited and hope i end up playing it decently! i'm glad you feel spoiled by my gifts though, love, and it makes me smile you're never taking off that necklace! plus, i love that you're excited about the cruise because i know we're going to have so much fun on that ship! oh, i loved kissing you in times square as well, i'm so glad you were my new years kiss, and look forward to you always being my new years kiss. and going back to devonian gardens before we leave calgary sounds like a brilliant idea, love. i'm pretty happy you're stuck with me for a while, honestly. and exactly, i'm happy when we can take care of each other, i love taking care of you. and you always make me feel happy and safe, there's no doubt about that. || @teaguehq

[isa-ghost]

AU where Cucurucho can see through all the Fed workers'........ well they don't have eyes, but don't worry about it.

I am DEFINITELY turning this into a full-fledged fic... eventually. I really have to focus on the ones I already have planned, BUT LISTEN......

Do I even have to mention the angst potential between Tubbo and Fred? Or Walter Bob? Or any of the other workers we or the islanders actually got kinda emotionally invested in?

Something something eventually he can see through the islanders that work for/with the Federation's eyes too. Cellbit, Fit, Foolish.

Maybe also the ones that have pasts with or get too close to the Feds or Cucurucho himself. Bagi, Baghera, Jaiden.

And maybe also the ones the Feds have kidnapped and done things to. Phil, Felps, Pac, Mike, Roier.

Maybe the latter two groups aren't compromised yet, but Cucurucho certainly has aspirations to get to that point.

Once the islanders who aren't compromised (or maybe Cellbit/Fit/Foolish figure out Cucurucho can use them and of course warn everyone else because the islanders are unwaveringly loyal to each other for the most part), paranoia explodes among the islanders. They start suspecting each other despite trying their best to keep trust strong. They start wondering if the eggs are being used too. SecurityCraft cameras start getting suspected.

This is the shit the Codes were trying to warn them about. They Know. They're the previous iteration of islanders.

It's Etoiles's time to shine. Granted, several candidates that were being considered eligible to join The Resistance are now compromised or Could Be compromised, but they can figure that out as they go.

He builds an underground meeting place in the spirit of Order Theoritas. He'd use The Order if it weren't for Cellbit being compromised and having full access to the hideout he built. This is the place he'll use to sort out what to do to stop Cucurucho, or at least to find a way to disconnect his eyes from the islanders.

He definitely finds a way to do that at some point, bringing the saved people under The Resistance's wing, letting them recover from it before recruiting them to help save the others.

At first The Resistance is made up of the other people who have been Touched by the Code. Charlie, Maxo, Luzu.

The Codes do their best to get Etoiles intel from within the Federation ASAP in an effort to try and stay one step ahead of Cucurucho, or at least so they have some ability to anticipate what the Federation's next move(s) will be.

Etoiles decides it's most important to seek out the vulnerable islanders and recruit them first, before Cucurucho can get to them. Bagi, Baghera, Jaiden, Phil, Felps, Pac, Mike, Roier.

But he's not going to just welcome them in so easily. They're essentially quarantined in a secret location meant to look like where The Resistance is based, but in reality it's a decoy. In this place, they're screened and monitored for a period of time to ensure The Feds didn't beat The Resistance to them.

Once they pass all the tests to ensure they're not compromised yet, they're brought into The Resistance officially and brought to the REAL hideout. Dare I suggest a certain plot twist that I'm not going to elaborate on in case I actually write this as a fic.

Phil and Roier pass the tests for sure. Roier is particularly feisty throughout the process, he wants to save Cellbit ASAP. Phil's hatred of The Federation is potent. Etoiles trusts them wholeheartedly by the end of their testing. Codebreakers and Bloodhounds >>>>>>.

While the processes with The Vulnerable are ongoing, The Resistance also try and reach out to people they're confident haven't been compromised yet. Tubbo, Bad, Tina, Pierre.

It's a long shot to contact them, but they try to go to the people who are rarely around too, since they're also unlikely to be compromised. Missa, Mariana, Niki, Mouse.

Etoiles has mixed feelings about it, but out of necessity he forms a blacklist of members he absolutely refuses to recruit, for the sake of keeping things secure. Quackity, Antoine, Vegetta.

Tubbo's on board immediately, he's been grilling Cucurucho and challenging him since his first days on the server. With his intelligence and ability to plan combined with Etoiles's skills, The Resistance surely stands a better chance.

They successfully assemble Bad, Tina, Pierre, Missa, Niki, and Mariana (after an Average Slimariana argument and subsequent hatefucking). Mouse's correspondence is pending (she's a very busy demon!) but Tina and Niki are able to vouch that she'd be likely to help them too.

By the end of all their recruiting, The Resistance consists of Etoiles, Tubbo, Bad, Tina, Pierre, Missa, Niki, Phil, and Roier. Hopefully Bagi, Baghera, Jaiden, Pac, and Mike will join them soon, they're still going through their screenings. (Pac especially is working hard to earn their trust, he wants to save Fit as much as Roier wants to save Cellbit).

Niki proposes The Resistance devotes a portion of themselves to figuring out what to do about the eggs. They can't just abandon the kids! Suffice to say it's a controversial idea to The Codes, but she has a point. Much spicy debating to be had about it.

As THE babysitter ever, Bad volunteers to look after all of them whenever The Resistance is meeting. Whenever they aren't, they go about their days as normal as possible, doing tasks/getting cookies or whatever.

Phil basically joins Bad, but more so because 90% of his reason for living on the island are Chayanne and Lullah. But he's good at staying in his own lane and keeping his mouth shut. His only challenge will be avoiding the inevitable questioning from the kids, especially Lullah.

They have to keep up the illusion they're none the wiser to what Cucurucho is doing. If the eggs ARE plants, The Federation will know right away that the islanders know something is up. After all their incessant fussing over keeping the eggs safe and happy, there's no fucking way they'd all suddenly spontaneously be avoiding their own kids.

It's torture, even to Etoiles himself, to not tell the kids about what they're up to, but they have no choice. They can't risk it. No matter how much the kids would be on their side, or want to help, or at least want to be in the know, it simply can't be done.

Ideally, over time and through so much DELICIOUS suspense and tension and angst, they'd find a way to stop Cucurucho. But I don't know if I'd end the story 100% happy so maybe not Everyone can be saved. I dunno. It wouldn't be a completely unhappy ending though. :)

[bijoumikhawal]

something I've noticed in the episodes I've rewatched is that things involving Garak bite Sisko in the ass way more than Julian. And I don't think it's because Garak does it on purpose- I think it's because Sisko under estimates the chaos Garak brings into any situation?

For example, in OMB Garak tries to go against Julian and save their lives at the cost of the rest of the senior staff. Julian doesn't anticipate this, but he's also not surprised. He keeps a handle on Garak and successfully intervenes and re-establishes the parameters and control of the situation. He knows Garak is a bit of a wild card and thankfully, has a built in excuse to keep him on a short leash.

In Broken Link, Sisko implicitly trusts that Garak will 1) be a good little jester for Odo 2) ask about Cardassia 3) not jeopardize either of these. Garak is left alone to confront the Voice of the Link to accomplish point 2, and when Odo goes down planetside they end up removing all three people who have sway over Garak from the Defiant (Sisko, Julian, Odo). Luckily, Garak is caught, but it could have gone very badly. This also foreshadows IPTM a bit- where instead of Garak acting on his own, he's acting for Sisko, and it bites him in the ass a bit harder when he can't fully anticipate Garak’s behavior (also thinking about @oddeyelesbian's post comparing these two episodes as well and the contrast in Garak's efficacy when acting alone and panicked VS with a strong commanding presence and plan).

And like. What an ODD blindspot to have. Especially because the problem is a character similarity! Both Sisko and Garak are changeable, somewhat unpredictable people. I wonder if it's because Sisko primarily credits Garak’s unknowability to his secrecy and not his ability to change to a situation- in essence he doesn't know Garak as intimately as Julian. There is certainly a touch of over confidence involved (and in the case of ITPM, some subconscious desire for Garak to do exactly that kind of dirty work). When Sisko is right, Garak performs wonderfully for him, but when he's wrong... well, Garak still performs wonderfully... but he also starts improvising (performance varies). Which is also interesting to think about when it comes to proactive vs passive submission- Garak is naturally very proactive, and that tendency doesn't even necessarily get bad results. However, this simultaneously this is an oversight issue (cough he needs to be trained better cough)

(Another angle is also that Garak and Julian directly work together more often than Sisko and Garak, so the proportions are just skewed really badly in general)