#i haven’t watched community in MONTHS i miss them so bad

[person4924]

guys i miss trobed

[roturo]

BAD IDEA, RIGHT?

INUMAKI TOGE X READER

SUMMARY: meeting up with your old friends sounded like a good idea, turns out lying and saying you and your ex ended up as a friends would include him there, so that was a bad idea of yours.

WARNINGS: unprotected sex, subspace, exes!to lovers, use of curse energy for sex, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, squirting, use of sign language, almost caught, after care, dacryphilia.

Life has been great.

Ever since you broke up with Inumaki things have been just fine. Both of you decided to end up as friends. Which might be awkward between the both of you but when you’re together around other people it wasn’t that bad.

You decided to focus on your training, even though it became a little bit too much to be at the same place with your ex… so you decided to live alone and start a new life. College is a new experience and it has been really fun! Training at home wasn’t as effective and efficient as training with Gojo-sensei and your friends… but, you felt more comfortable this way.

Some days you felt like exorcizing some curse and just walked through the city and found one.

Just for fun.

That’s what Maki told you. ‘Let’s hang out all of us together like the old times! Just for some fun!’

And everything was going great! But you never expected Yuuji to enter next to Inumaki into Maki’s room. You haven’t seen him in like four? six months? It’s been a while…

And to say he looked even more handsome than last time is understandable. Half a year and he grew up. He seemed taller than last time, his shoulders broader, and his hands…

You scold yourself for staring too long at him. His eyes locked with yours and a small awkward silence was in the room. But thankfully, Yuuji couldn’t tolerate silence and proposed to order some pizza and talk about how things have been.

You told them about your new friends at college, how you've been auto-training yourself, and how you felt like a new person.

Inumaki felt nostalgic. Watching you grow up and create a life without him made him sad. Thinking about the old times and how you talked to him for hours about having a family. How you stayed with him even if he couldn’t communicate himself like others, he loved you, and he missed you.

You missed him too, and when Maki asked if you were comfortable right now, even if your ex is literally like less than two meters in front of you, you said, ‘yeah! why not, we didn’t end on bad terms! can’t do people reconnect? I only see him as a friend.’

The biggest lie you ever said.

But the both of you knew those glance you gave each other, you needed the other… So when Maki accompanied Yuuji for the pizza you couldn’t control yourself.

And I mean like you couldn’t control yourself literally, he controlled you. He took his hands off.

‘Follow me.’

Your body was moving without your permission. Following Inumaki to what you assumed was his room. A tingly feeling dressed as nervousness was appearing in the low part of your tummy.

You felt anxious? excited? euphoric?

You missed him so much it was hurting, so when you got inside his room, thinking about if what’s going to occur was correct, you stared at your phone for some second before murmuring to yourself ‘fuck it, it’s fine’ —the first thing you did when you had control back was send a text to Maki.

‘I’m sleeping in another place.’ Maybe she’ll think you didn’t feel comfortable enough and needed to leave.

But maybe that’s not the case. You might sleep on someone else's sheets.

‘Inumaki…’

‘Shh… Undress yourself.’— You wanted to first kiss him, but he seemed eager to have you— and how could you say no? Maybe he wasn’t even controlling you and you were doing it for your own taste.

Feeling vulnerable in front of him— he grabbed you by the waist pulling you closer to his clothes body and started kissing you like a hungry man— You missed his touch and he missed yours.

Coming here wasn’t a bad idea… right?

Wrong.

Your body was sore and twitching of how many times he has made you cum. He’s been eating you out for hours now— with just one word making you cut whenever he felt like it. Making symbols on your pussy of what you suppose it’s his curse marks— Your eyes were full of tears, vision blurry and feeling dizzy.

‘N-no more ‘Inu..’

‘Osaka ‘ Was all he said, keeping a straight face before watching you before continuing eating you out— ‘Squirt.’ Your body shook before your vision turned black and everything felt a thousand times more— his fingers inside of you, slurping your fluids out of you. It was a disgusting mess— but he loved watching you turn into a mess thanks to him. It was his mess.

He never abused so much of his power on you, but this time it was different. He needed you, he wanted you.

Once he felt he got enough of your poor and used pussy, he got up— Watching you trying to keep your eyes open. Makeup ruined, hair tangled and tears coming down your eyes. You felt fucked out— feeling sore on parts of your body you never thought could get sore. Trying to plead for your sanity was met with deaf ears.

He started unbuckling his belt, and turned his middle and ring finger down, making the sign ‘I love you’ before signaling he missed you so much and needed you. Sign language was a common thing between the both of you because of his cursed technique. Just a few words, because it’s like destiny brought the two of you together because in some ways you always knew what the other needed.

He teased your cunt with his dick before inserting it in. You were on missionary, him on top of you while he admired the mess you became. He thrusted inside of you with no warning, your fucked up pussy with no need to make it even more sensitive for you to cum, he just started searching for his release.

When he watched you not even being able to say coherent words, tears just streaming down your face, your eyes almost closed and moans coming out of your mouth was enough for him to cum inside of you. The fucked up image of you— thanks to him— will be forever engraved in his mind. He needs you, he needs to be back together.

He groaned at the feeling of your cunt hugging his cock once he came, his body shaking before laying down beside you. Heavy breathings filling the room, he looked back at you and found you staring at him too. A smile adorned his face, moving his body so he could hug yours— playing with your hair and giving you small pecks he heard a knock on his door. 

He supposed you’re still in a subspace and grabbed his boxers, slightly opening the door so only his face was visible— a confused blushed Yuuji was in front of his door. ‘Inumaki, the pizza is here. We can’t find Y/N though… Do you know where she is?…’

‘Go with Maki.’ Were the words he let out, Yuuji’s body moved without his permission, leaving him alone. 

He looked behind and saw you taking small breaths, your chest going up and down— He smiled to himself, before he grabbed a warm cloth and and started cleaning you up— He searched for some candy he used to have in his room since you were always craving them, he grabbed one water bottle too and repositioned you so your now resting on his pillows. He sat next to you, playing with your hair, waiting till you came back to reality.

Once you opened your eyes, the first thing you saw was Inumaki staring at you— Eyes full of love while he played with your hair. You moved so your body was not sitting on his bed, you noticed you’re wearing one of his t-shirts and your panties— You supposed he put them on, he touched your arm and gave you some water and your favorite candy. You looked back at him— surprised he still had some of them here, you smiled at him and drank some water.

You didn’t notice he grabbed a notebook and was writing something until he gave it to you.

‘Can we get back together? You’re all I need, all I love. I would kill any curse, person, thing who tries to hurt you, everything… just to have you back in my arms.’

[gayhoediaz]

hello nie 👋

what is buck and tommy's first major argument about + how does it end 🎤

ohhhh jack this is such a good question!! ♡

i had to sit back and think a little bit, but what i came up with us that i think it would honestly just come down to both of them having a bad day and i think they deal with those in completely different ways. at this point, i think they have been together in a serious relationship for a decent amount of time - maybe six months or so? and i think they become very serious very quickly so six months is certainly long enough that they’re starting to feel more comfortable that the other person isn’t going anywhere, and you know how sometimes you lash out at the person you know is going to stay? yeah.

because of his childhood, i headcanon tommy as someone who finds solace in solitude, and while i think there are certainly times where he craves affection and company, i think it’s just as common that he just. needs to be alone. i think he knows that if he doesn’t get that alone time, his frustration is going to get directed at people who haven’t done anything to deserve it, and he’s certainly responsible enough to handle that and prevent it.

now, buck? buck is someone who we know to seek comfort in the people he loves. we have seen him go to eddie, to maddie, to hen, to bobby, and so on - he is just someone who needs to talk, and to feel embraced and listened to, and loved.

and tommy would absolutely be his first choice at this point - not only because he’s his boyfriend, but because tommy is tommy. he’s older, and he’s smart, and he’s kind, and he’s caring, and he always says what buck needs to hear. he never makes buck feel as if he’s too much, or too needy.

never.

until.

until.

their awful, terrible, nightmarish days happen to fall on the same day.

i don’t think either of them are awful to each other, there’s absolutely no name calling, or cursing each other out, but they just kind of… clash. i think buck really wants to just go home and sit on the couch with tommy and watch a movie (love actually is just fine because he loves watching tommy watch it) and it’s not that tommy doesn’t want that, he just needs to be alone first.

and i think this would be perfectly fine if they communicated - but they don’t. i don’t think they have the energy to do that, so it just kind of ends up being a mess where buck misses him and wants him to come over, and feels a little blown off (i don’t think tommy ghosts him but maybe his texts are a little more chilly than they usually are) while tommy feels frustrated because - he’ll be there in a few hours, if evan can just calm down and leave him alone, he’ll be fine and he’ll hold him because he needs that too, but just. not right now. (again, i think tommy isn’t as cold as buck feels he is, and buck isn’t nearly as clingy as tommy feels, i think it’s just completely exaggerated in their own heads because they’re already upset for reasons that don’t have anything to do with each other.)

this is just the pre-argument, though. i think the real argument comes later, when tommy comes over to the loft (and at this point, he’s calmed down, he’s fine, he just wants to have a good night with his boyfriend and listen to him talk about his bad day, because now he’s been alone for a while so he has the energy to do so.) and he realizes that there is still friction between them - because here’s the thing:

we have only really seen tommy from buck’s pov this go-around, and that’s why he feels so… perfect? in a lot of ways? and again, i don’t think that buck is in any way upset that tommy couldn’t come over the second he needed him - he’s a grown man, he’s fine - but i think it’s the way that he felt tommy kind of blowing him off, and not communicating. i think it makes him feel annoyed and ignored (valid) and i think it kind of drags tommy down from this pedestal he has had him on?

in the end, i think tommy snaps and i think that’s exactly what he says - something along the lines of “i’m not perfect” etc etc. and i think they argue for a while, but they ultimately end up working things out that very night. i think tommy genuinely apologizes, and so does buck - i think buck reluctantly confesses that although he has grown a lot, and worked on himself, and become more confident, he does still ultimately have this fear of being too much, and i think tommy’s face just. softens, and he tells him that he never wants him to feel that way, and that he wasn’t and would never be annoyed with buck wanting or needing him around - it was just… everything else, and terrible timing, and bad communication. and then i think tommy explains some things about his childhood that helps buck understand why he may need to be alone sometimes, and how that’s how he finds comfort and makes peace with a bad day.

in the end, they ultimately know and understand each other so much better, and they make a vow to just. communicate. and they’re falling even deeper in love with each other.

[avoxrising]

Isla - a Finnick Odair Imagine

(Part 2)

That day was the happiest and worst day of Finnick’s life. At 9:38am you gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Isla, making you and Finnick parents. He was overjoyed to become a dad. Despite his job in the capital and having to mentor every year, he was super determined to be the best dad possible.

You and Isla were fast asleep that evening when the quarter quell announcement was broadcast. Finnick debated waking you up but decided against it. You needed your rest. Thus, he sat down on the sofa and waited to hear about what he would have to mentor this year.

“The tributes will be reaped from the existing pool of victors.”

As if on que Isla woke up crying. Finnick couldn’t even comprehend what this news meant. There were other male victors in District 4 so he may not even be reaped. Maybe they’ll volunteer for him because he’s a dad now.

He finds momentary peace in the fact that you’re not a victor. You had been spared from the reaping but not from Snow’s grasp entirely. Any wrong move from Finnick and Snow wouldn’t hesitate to hurt you.

Finnick rushes into the bedroom to calm down the still crying Isla. You’re trying to calm her yourself but you’re exhausted from giving birth. The second she’s in Finnick’s arms, she stops crying.

“I think you’re her favorite,” you chuckle as you watch your soon to be husband hold your newborn. You can’t help but notice, however, that he seems upset.

“Did I miss the announcement?” you yawn, stretching your arms but not moving from underneath the covers. You see tears spring into Finnick’s eyes.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he whispers. “Can we just be happy for today?”

He climbs into bed with you, still holding Isla, as you drift off to sleep.

When Finnick finally tells you the news, your heart shatters into a million pieces. Although your life was nowhere near perfect, Finnick and you were finally settling in to the happy family life you had both dreamed of. He assures you he probably won’t get picked but you can’t help but have a bad feeling in your gut.

A month later, you stand in the crowd holding Isla as you watch your fiancés name get reaped for the games. The tears don’t stop falling as nobody volunteers for him. He wears his capital smile but you know it’s all a facade. The two of you may never get the happy family life after all.

Annie, one of the female victors and your best friend, has to pull you back to victors village after the reaping. They wouldn’t even let you say goodbye to him or Mags. Annie is just as devastated and stays with you and Isla the rest of the day.

The games pass in a blur for Finnick. He won’t let himself think about you or Isla. His only chance of making it out of the arena is to keep Katniss alive, and he can’t afford to think about anything else at this moment.

His tears have long since turned into fury as he promises to make Snow pay for what he’s done. He didn’t hesitate at all when Haymitch approached him about the rebellion, only asking for your safety in return.

Katniss blows a hole in the arena and Finnick passes out, hoping to see you when he wakes up.

When he does come to, he’s still on the hovercraft next to a sedated Beetee and Katniss. Where is everyone else? He makes his way to the cockpit where Haymitch and Plutarch are talking.

“Where is everyone?” Finnick worriedly asks as he doesn’t see any of the other tributes with the pair of men. Haymitch looks at him with sad eyes.

“The capital got Peeta and Johanna before we could get them out,” Haymitch sighs.

“Y/N and Isla?” Finnick asks.

“We haven’t been able to contact them,” Haymitch shakes his head. “Communication is down but I’m hoping they’re both already in District 13. One of our hovercraft picked up people from District 4 but they didn’t confirm who.”

When the hovercraft lands, Finnick rushes into the docking bay of District 13, frantically shrugging off the doctors trying to make sure he’s unharmed.

“Where is she?” he frantically asks. He finally catches sight of a red headed girl holding an infant and his heart sinks.

“Annie?” he frantically asks. “Where is she?”

“I’m so sorry,” Annie sniffles. “I was only able to get Isla out. The peacekeepers stormed victors village and took her.”

Finnick sobs and holds his daughter, fearing the worst for his love.

-

Ok super short imagine but I’m down to write a part 2 if y’all are interested!

[hugmekenobi]

Wardrobe Change

A Bad Batch Series interlude oneshot

Image from the Popverse courtesy of Lucasfilm (my gif searches were being very uncooperative)

Hunter x femaleJedi!reader

Summary: Times change, uniforms change and this new design has its fair share of admirations.

Warnings: No use of y/n, pet names (sweetheart), Cid being Cid, I make up a timeline, affectionate possessiveness, fluff and feelings, Force communication working how I say it does, PDA in the form of making out and affectionate biting, spicy/suggestive dialogue, getting caught/interrupted, awkwardness

Masterlist for Season 1 chapters

Word Count: 4.7K

Rating: 18+

Author’s notes: It’s the last of the oneshots before we get into S2! This was purely because I wanted to start S2 off with the armour changes being understood and so I didn’t have to describe them lol but I hope there’s more substance for y’all to enjoy! Big shout out to @hugmedin who helped me when I got hit with a bad bit of writer’s block and wrote a section of this, including my favourite line in this fic that had me freaking out when I read it, love you my guy!! 

“Okay! I have them! Ugh this is so heavy!”

You all turned your attention over to the loud thud and you smiled as you saw Lyra collapsed over the container she had previously been carrying. She’d only just managed to get it through the doorway. “You should’ve told us. We’d have helped you bring it over.” You said as you stood up and walked over to her.

“It’s part of the service.” Lyra panted as she stood up and smoothed down her top. “I think you guys will like what I’ve done.”

“Can you get that out the way? It’s blocking the entrance! We don’t have all day for this. I have my own business to run!” Cid said by way of greeting.

“You weren’t exaggerating.” Lyra muttered.

“Give it 6 months and you’ll be on mildly better terms.” You uttered back with grin.

“Oi! Either help her or get out of her way. It’s bad enough you’re using my place as your fitting rooms!” Cid barked over at you.

“Better terms?” Lyra said with a small laugh.

“I did say mildly.” You replied, grabbing the other side of the box, and lifting it over to where the rest of your squad had congregated in the corner.

“Are they finally ready?” Omega asked excitedly as she gave Tech the datapad back.

“Omega, we haven’t finished-”

“Come on, Tech! I can do it later!” Omega griped.

Tech sighed in defeat.

“A quick break won’t hurt Tech.” You appeased.

“Let me see!” Omega said.

“Okay kid, hang on.” Lyra said with a smile. She opened the box and began the process of handing the updated armour out. “I played around a bit with them.”

“How much?” Hunter and Echo asked warily as they took theirs from her.

“Don’t stress. It’ll all look perfect. I changed the colours and symbols as requested but I got rid of a couple things that weren’t really necessary. You guys have more civilian type clothing to wear underneath now, rather than just those blacks you’d handed over. And that means you don’t have to always change into these clothes you’re wearing now if you want to take your armour off. Oh, and your codpieces are gone.”

“You took away a whole section of our armour?” Tech asked sceptically as he took his.

“They were annoying me.” She replied simply. “And I don’t think you’re in a position to act like it’s a super crucial piece you’re missing. You don’t have any thigh armour. That wasn’t a change I made, that was all you.” She added pointedly.

Tech opened his mouth to protest but he couldn’t think of a rebuttal fast enough.

You chuckled as you watched Tech walk away, mumbling something under his breath about how it suits his needs just fine.

“Where’s mine?” Omega asked eagerly.

“Alright kid. Here you go.” Lyra passed the pile of clothes over to Omega who grabbed them keenly and dashed off to change.

“Did I see a hat?” You asked as you watched her turn the corner.

“It makes the outfit.” Lyra replied with a smile.

You laughed. “I won’t question your style.”

“Good. Cause now it’s your turn.”

“You only changed the colour, right?”

“In a way…”

“Lyra…”

“Calm down. It’s nothing crazy. I still kept the hood and mask element you like. I just started from scratch. The top you bought from me before isn’t really suitable for what you do. I didn’t realise you operated with no armour at all. If I gave you the original one back, it would only be a matter of time before you had rips in it. I’m surprised it was in one piece for so long.”

“Okay… so?”

“So, I got my hands on this new material that is generally just sturdier so that’ll help, and you have some armour of your own.”

“Armour?” You said sceptically as you watched her reach down.

“Not a lot.” She reassured you. “I figured you liked the freedom of movement, it’s just a couple of things. Here’s the top.”

You took it from her, and you could already tell that it was better quality. The black fabric was thick but when you put it over your head, it fit snugly but still allowed for flexible movement. The mask and hood were indeed still there and where your previous top had red lining on the outside, this one now had a turquoise. Your eyes also noted the small white half skull that seemed to have been another element that was carried over. “And this was an essential thing you needed to keep?” You said, pointing to the sign.

Lyra grinned. “You both like it and don’t try to deny it.”

You rolled your eyes but smiled with her. “This is perfect though, thanks!”

“I’m not done.” She handed over the additional pieces to your ensemble.

You took the small parts of armour she’d give you. They were black and decorated with a mix of white and turquoise stripes. You also realised they were like the ones Hunter wore on his forearms. She’d also added a pair of black gloves.

“This means you’re also getting rid of that horrendous thing keeping that vibroblade on your thigh.” Lyra ordered.

“There’s nothing wrong with it!” You said defensively, glancing down to your thigh where your vibroblade was encased. Sure, the strap was fraying, and it was no longer the same colour as it was when you had first got it and some of the leather was showing cracks, but it served its purpose just fine. Plus, it had been with you through a lot of highs and lows and although a mantra throughout your life had been ‘no attachments,’ you had found that both Hunter and this strap were exceptions to the rule and you were rather fond of it.

Lyra just gave you a sad look. “Look at it. It’s disgusting. Throw it in here and never think about it again.” She insisted, turning the box towards you.

You sighed and chucked your vibroblade on the table before you threw your old strap into the empty container. You attached the new pieces to your forearms before you sheathed your vibroblade into the one on your left arm. You then put the next pieces that ran from your shoulders to the end of your upper arm. You were annoyed to find that Lyra was right, and you didn’t feel restricted by having them there.

“And you told me yourself your blaster holster is a hand-me-down from Tech. Put that one away too.”

“You were just waiting for a chance to upgrade my stuff weren’t you?” You grumbled as you took your blaster out and removed your holster. It joined your old vibroblade strap.

“Oh yeah.” Lyra said with a smug smile.

You attached the new holster to your thigh and put your blaster in it. “Happy now?” You asked, gesturing up and down your body.  

“You look hot!” Lyra said as she circled you, studying how you looked with the new parts on.

“Shut up.” You laughed, slightly flustered.

“Your sergeant is a lucky guy. How’d your secret project got by the way?”

Before you could reply, a shout got both of your attention.

“We’re ready! I love it!”

You turned to the sound of Omega’s voice, and you grinned as you saw her delighted expression. It had been a while since Kamino and Omega had definitely grown so it was about time she had something that fit with that, and she did now. She had grey bottoms and a red top which was worn underneath a light blue layer, and she had red fabric wrapped around her right wrist. The hat was a cute touch as well. The rest of your squad also looked pretty good. It was odd though, seeing them in colours that weren’t the signature ones they used wear and any insignia illustrating them being Clone Force 99 being gone.

Lyra clapped her hands together. “I truly outdid myself! You guys look fabulous!”

“Yeah, you guys look great!” You added.

Wrecker and Omega beamed, whilst Tech and Echo merely gave small nods.

“You look great too!” Omega said as she walked over to you.

“Yeah, Hunter’s got colours like that too. You guys’ll look good!” Wrecker added.

You smiled and rolled your eyes. “Speaking of that, where is our fearless leader?” You asked.

“He wanted to rearrange the scarf.” Echo replied.

“Scarf?” You repeated, your throat going dry. You looked over to Lyra.

She shrugged. “I like accessories. Sue me.”

You turned your head over to the sound of Hunter coming back into the main area and it took everything in you not to stare at him for an abnormal amount of time. His armour, like the rest of theirs had maintained most of its original structure-minus the codpiece- and his colours were indeed similar to the ones you had. He had the more civilian looking clothes underneath with the rest of his armour donning a mix of black, white, and turquoise. He had the same bit of orange running down the centre of his chest plate like his brothers had and his helmet still had half of it painted white to match the skull tattoo on his face. The red wrappings around his wrists mirrored the one Omega had and the red scarf… well the scarf was definitely a nice added feature.

Hunter nearly did a double take as he saw you. You looked… well you looked powerful, capable. Not that you didn’t look like that already but there was something about seeing you with actual armour that accentuated that part of you. Plus, the fact he was wearing colours that matched with yours was an added bonus.

“Well, my work here is done!” Lyra said cheerily as she bent down to grab the now empty case.

Hunter tore his eyes away from you and nodded his thanks to her before he saw that you were still looking at him. “What?” He asked as he joined the others and grabbed a drink. He brought his cup to his lips.

“Nothing. Looks good.” You said casually, turning away to follow Lyra out. Just thinking of all the things a scarf can do that a bandana can’t.

The choked splutter that followed had you smirking to yourself as you walked out the door.

--

“You sure we don’t owe you anything for this?” You double checked as you both stood outside the entrance to Cid’s.

Lyra shook her head. “You guys helped me out when I was being harassed by Marco and his goons. We’re even now.”

“Yeah, but getting to beat up Marco and Co is fun.” You said lightly. “You don’t need to repay us for that.”

“I wanted to. Besides, it was actually kinda fun. I haven’t had a project like that to work on in a while. Just point people in my direction if they ask who did this fabulous work and we’re all good.”

You huffed out a laugh. “You got it. I’ll see you around, Lyra. Thank you.”

“Yeah, see you around!” She grabbed her stuff and walked away.

You fished the necklace out your pocket and studied the small symbol on the end of the black leather cord.  It wouldn’t be noticeable under his clothes and armour. You just hoped he would like it.

--

You and Hunter seemed to find any excuse to gravitate towards one another and touch each other, even if it was nothing more than a simple touch that lasted a matter of seconds. Yes, you’d started it with your comment about the scarf, but he really wasn’t helping with things. The air between the two of you had been charged ever since you’d walked back down those steps and now every touch sent warmth flooding through you, and you were sure it was the same for him. To the others, the hand wrapped around your shoulder seemed completely innocent since you were all engaged in casual conversations, but it sent a thrumming through your veins you couldn’t control. And, judging by the way he’d tensed up when you’d laid your hand on his thigh, you weren’t the only one. You all had shed your armour since Cid didn’t have a mission so that definitely wasn’t making things any easier for you.

It felt like a test. Who was going to be the one to give in first? You really didn’t want it to be you and you think you had a way to do that. As Wrecker and Omega got up to go play a game of Dejarik, with Tech and Echo going to watch, you turned to face him. “Can I talk to you outside?”

Hunter looked at you quizzically but nodded and followed you as you stood up.

You made your way to the exit.

“Where are you going?” Omega asked as she waited for Wrecker to make his move.

“We’ll be back.” You replied.

--

“Everything okay?” Hunter asked as you began to pace in front of him.

“Yes. I just- Look I’m- What I’m trying-.” You stopped with an aggravated huff. You’d rehearsed this countless times in your head, and it wasn’t a big deal, worst he could say was no.

“Sweetheart.” Hunter grabbed your wrist to get you to stop walking. “Take a breath, look at me.”

You narrowed your eyes at him. “Don’t call me that.”

Hunter tilted his head. “Why not? You usually don’t mind it. In fact, you tend to quite enjoy it.” He added with a smirk.

You shot him a playful glare and removed his hand which had worked its way to your waist. “Yes, exactly. You’re distracting me and I have a plan here. You’re not going to ruin it with your-” You didn’t finish your sentence, you just gestured to him.

Hunter held his hands up in mock surrender and leaned against the edge of the entry way.

You inhaled deeply and started pacing again. “I consider myself a pretty independent person, you know? Not one to be dependent on much, certainly not a man in my life. But then you come along, and suddenly I’m finding particular things I thought I would hate, quite, well, quite attractive. Take this for example.” You pointed to the half skull on your top. “I was convinced I would hate it, but I don’t. I don’t mind the message it sends.” You stopped and faced him. “However, I can’t just be what this suggests. You’re a part of me, the whole squad is, but I don’t want to be seen as someone whose only purpose is to belong to you.”

Hunter straightened up as he addressed you. “I know that. If I’ve given you reason to believe otherwise, I’m sorry. I’m sure Lyra could change it. I didn’t mean-”

“Hunter, I know.” You reassured him. “That’s not what I’m saying. I only mean I thought it would be nice if you maybe had something that- uh.” You broke off with an awkward cough before you continued, “Represented me.”  You brought the necklace out and handed it to him.

“Where’d you make that?” Hunter asked quietly as he studied the necklace which had attached to it a tiny metallic symbol. A symbol he’d seen many times during the Clone Wars. It was the symbol for the Jedi Order.

“Lyra gave me access to her stuff. Don’t worry, she didn’t know exactly what I was doing.” You added quickly as you saw the concern that flashed across his face. You looked down at the ground and scuffed the toe of your boot through the dirt. “Do you like it? I know it’s a bit risky but figured you could conceal it easily enough and I-” The strong hands on your waist that guided you backwards to the wall cut you off. You glanced up but before you could take your next breath, Hunter’s lips met yours and what little resistance you had left crumbled, but hey, technically he kissed you first, so you counted it as a win. You let him press his body tight to yours and you kissed him eagerly. You like it then?

Hunter didn’t answer directly. He just kissed along your jaw and nipped the skin by the spot behind your ear that he knew would elicit a moan from you and you didn’t disappoint. “Do you have any idea what you do to me?” He said, still out of breath and his voice even lower than what it usually was.

You released a sigh and your head fell back against the wall as he continued to leave marks on the skin of your neck. I have a pretty good idea.

“I’m serious.” He slid his hand on your cheek, so you were forced to look at him and he very nearly lost it. Your eyes were wide, and your breathing was still uneven, and he wanted nothing more than to continue but he needed to say this first. “From the minute you showed up on Devaron to help, I was enthralled by you. You took out a line of droids with nothing more than a slightly longer vibroblade on your back and acted like it was a regular day. Sure, later on we discovered there was a bit more reason behind that.”

You smiled slightly but your eyes dipped down as a wave of guilt washed over you at the memory of your dishonesty.

“Hey.” Hunter said softly as he saw your mind leave the current moment. He tucked his finger under your chin and angled your face back up. “That’s not why I brought it up. Don’t go back there. Stick with me here cause there’s a point to all this, I promise.”

You sighed and nodded.

Hunter breathed deeply. “You were incredible and there was no hesitation from me, or the others quite frankly, when it came to offering a place with us. I just underestimated the impact you were going to have on my life. It didn’t take long for my brothers to start giving me a hard time, but I was too stubborn to listen.”

Join the club.

He smiled at you before he continued. “Remember, when there was that stampede of Reeks and I got hurt. It was about two months after you’d joined us?” When he saw you nod, he carried on, “You remember how I got injured?”

“The last dregs of the Separatist droids sent a final charge our way. The blast meant I slipped and fell into the cavern where they were running. You came after me and pushed me out the way.” You said softly.

“Yeah, I did. I- I was in love with you then.”

“Well, then we were on very similar timelines.” You revealed with a smile.

Hunter huffed out a laugh. “So, fast forward to now. You’re wearing something that ties you to me and I don’t think you realise exactly the effect that has on me. And then I come out to see I’m wearing the same the colours you are. And to top it off, you’re asking me to wear something that ties me to you? I can say with no hesitation that you’re a part of me too.” With that, he looped it over his neck.

You took a shaky breath as you watched him put it on and you understood why the half skull on your top had meant so much to him. “You think the colours thing only mattered to you? Why do you think I had to give it to you now?” You murmured. “You were killing me in there.”

Hunter nuzzled into your neck. “That why you dragged me out here? Couldn’t wait?” He muttered into your skin and began to place light kisses on your neck, altering what side had his attention.   

“That why you followed me out here?” You countered as you struggled to keep your composure. 

“I thought you wanted to talk.” Hunter replied, his eyes lifting to yours, an unspoken challenge behind them. 

“I-I did talk.” You maintained. 

“And now?”

“And now I’m done.” You grabbed the front of his shirt and kissed him with fervour. And I’m counting this as a win. You broke first.  

Hunter chuckled and moved so his lips brushed against your jawline again as his hand trailed from your cheek down to your neck where it stopped for a moment before he continued, and his palm came to rest on the left side of your chest. Your heartbeat pounded beneath his fingertips.

You didn’t let him linger there too long. Wrapping your hands around the back of his neck, you pulled him in even closer and bucked your hips forward into him in an attempt to banish the remaining space between the two of you. As you did so Hunter let out a moan into the crook of your neck and the resulting vibrations sent your mind to mush. Your hands frantically grabbed at his shirt, the fabric bunching in between your fingers as you tried to bring him even closer. You let out a frustrated moan, you felt like he was holding back, and you were losing patience. 

Hunter let out a soft chuckle and you could feel his smile against your skin, genuine and unfiltered. “Relax.”  he whispered into your ear. “I’m right here.” 

Your hands slid from his waist up the length of his back, his muscles rigid but warm against your palm. You nipped at his ear, your hips still bucking into him, and you’d never been more thankful that Lyra had gotten rid of the cod pieces, but it also meant you became more and more desperate.  

“I need you closer.” Your voice came out strained as you looked up at him and you made no attempt to disguise your desire as you continued to press yourself against him.   

“That can be arranged.” 

The lights in the alleyway were dim but you could have sworn you saw a glimmer form in his eyes, the kind that only appeared when the two of you were alone. Upon seeing that, all sensible thoughts about the risks of doing this in public left your head completely. 

Bending down ever so slightly he brought both his hands to the back of your thighs lifting you up against the wall in one swift movement. Instinctively, you wrapped your legs around his waist as he held you in position against the wall. Your fingers found themselves wrapped up in Hunter’s hair which you used to gently tug his face away from where he was placing deep kisses along your collarbone. He let out a deep sigh which caught in his throat and resembled something close to a growl. As you held his head there you allowed yourself a moment to admire the way his eyes had grown darker, and his chest and shoulders heaved as he caught his breath. His lips remained parted as he patiently waited for instructions from you. Removing your hand from his hair you brought it back to caress his tattooed cheek, this time allowing your thumb to softly trail his lower lip.

He drew you into a deep kiss, the kind that left your lips raw and your lungs begging for oxygen that you swore you could definitely live without - but eventually you had to give into your reflex and come up for air. 

Hunter broke away first, bringing his forehead to rest tenderly against yours. His hands reached under your top; his gloved hands caressed your skin. “You sure about doing this here? I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop once-”  

Yes. You nodded eagerly but before you were able to continue, a horrified shout got both of your attention. 

“Ugh are you kidding me! You two really couldn’t wait?! Ugh my eyes!” Wrecker complained as he instantly turned away from the scene in front of him.

Hunter quickly let you down and he was sure your mortified expression matched his and you both turned to face the backs of Wrecker and Echo. 

“Oh, uh, hey boys. What, eh, what brings you out here?” You winced out as you adjusted your top.

At the sound of your feet hitting the ground, Echo turned to face you both and gave a disapproving stare. “Omega is about to play Tech and wanted to see if any of you wanted the next round so, we came out to ask. She nearly left to ask herself, but I figured based on past experience-”

“Okay.” Hunter interrupted him before he went any further.

You can turn around, Wrecker.

Wrecker took you at your word. “What happened to talking?”

“I mean… we did talk. Just got a bit carried away.” Your eyes focused on fiddling with the end of your sleeve.

“I’ll say.” Wrecker griped. 

“That’s the third time this month. We’ve talked about this. It was bad enough when Tech interrupted you guys in the cockpit.” Echo chastised you both.

Hunter couldn’t find any words. He just kept his eyes on the ground. 

“Hey, you didn’t have to listen to the lecture he gave afterwards on the importance of hygiene and sanitation.” You grumbled. 

“You’ve been lucky it hasn’t been Omega yet.” Echo continued, paying little attention to your words.

You knew he was right. The two of you had been pretty reckless lately and the very fact Omega hadn’t been one of the unfortunates to witness said reckless moments is something you thanked the Force for. “I’m sorry, we’ll be better.”

“Yeah, sorry boys. It won’t happen again.” Hunter said firmly.

A few beats of uncomfortable silence passed.

“You guys aren’t coming back down any time soon, are you?” Echo asked reluctantly as he nodded to where both of your hands were.

The two of you hadn’t noticed the new places your hands had found themselves in. Your fingers were lightly tracing up and down Hunter’s arm whilst his had found itself around your waist again and his thumb rubbed up and down your side. Upon hearing Echo’s words, you both glanced at each other. Tell Omega I owe her a game. We’ll be back later tonight. You said in a way of reply, your brain slowly starting to block the presence of the other two out.

Echo sighed tiredly. “Just get out of here. Come on, Wrecker. We probably don’t want to linger here much longer.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Wrecker hastily turned on his heels and walked back down the steps to Cid’s, with Echo following close behind.

“Well… that could’ve been worse.” You mumbled into his shoulder after they left before you trailed a line of kisses along his neck, your teeth lightly grazed his skin.

“I can’t say I can see how. That was- that was pretty awkward.” Hunter managed to stammer out.

“I could’ve been in a more compromising position.” You purred as your hand trailed down his chest and you made to kneel in front of him. You knew he was feeling more sensible, and you definitely knew it was better to head back to the Marauder but that didn’t mean you couldn’t have your fun.

He swiftly tugged you back up and shook his head at you as he saw the cat-like grin on your face. “Careful, or I’ll have to continue this here anyway.” Hunter groaned as you slowly ground your hips against him.

“Promises, promises.” You whispered back, tugging his lip between your teeth and you took pleasure in the low moan that left him. Your hands kept a tangled grip in the scarf as you kissed him and tugged him to you.

Before he really did get too carried away, Hunter pulled away, but he still kept you tight to him. “I believe you had some thoughts for the use of this scarf? I got some ideas.” Hunter rasped.

“Hmm, I’m much more of a practical learner.” You hummed against his lips.

Stifling a groan, Hunter kissed you once more before he wrapped an arm around your waist and the two of you hustled away to the Marauder.

Masterlist

Tagging@ @noeasyisnoisy, @tpwkcalli, @fuckoffthanos, @arctrooper69, @graciexmarvel, @flyingkangaroo, @nightmonkeysstuff, @a-streakofazure​, @ladytano420​, @dragonrider9905​, @keep-calm-and-drink-caf​, @yyourmotherr​, @xxeiraxx​ 

[generational-atrophy]

Hello!! Can I request France, England and Germany with a s/o who is demissexual (you know, ace spectrum, need deep conection, takes a long time to want sex etc) and haven't had sex yet and feels very insecure?

(France, England, and Germany X Reader) Demisexual S/O!

(Gender Neutral) Headcanons ~ A/N sorry this is shorter its very specific. Anyway happy pride month any queer related requests r gonna get fufilled first for a while!!!

Trigger Warning: Mentions of sexual subjects, but no real discussion.

This is absolutely NO problem for Francis. He is like, the number one boundary respecter. Before he initiates any physical contact, even little things like holding your hand, he asks for your permission. And if you say no, there are no questions asked. He would NEVER ask anything of you that you don’t 100% want.

Once you tell him about your insecurities, he freaks out. His beloved? Feeling bad for doing nothing wrong? No! Not on his watch! Anytime you bring up feeling you missed the time were it was acceptable to have a first time, he’s immediately batting that thought down and insisting that “he’s been around for thousands of years, he knows a little more about acceptable timeframes.” Whenever you feel especially ‘broken,’ he’s there to hold you close and whisper affirming words all night. Your sexuality and your experiences with it say nothing about your character! Feeling safe and comfortable is more important than doing what society expects of you! He loves you no matter what.

He’s totally willing to lay his dignity down on the line to defend you about that too. If someone made fun of you for being a virgin, he is totally willing to shout, “I WAS VIRGIN UNTIL 121 SO IF YOU’RE TEASING ONE OF US, TEASE ME!” which is… embarrassing for the both of you, but it’s better than nothing. Also, anyone trying to say demisexuality is invalid is getting a death glare as he physically moves you away from them.

Arthur has always had problems with that kind of intimacy, so it’s quite a relief to him that you aren’t super into it. He’s perfectly happy with the way things are now, don’t worry. Take as much time as you need.

He might be a little surprised when you tell him you’re a virgin, but he doesn’t judge you at all! No matter how old you are! It doesn’t change how he sees you in the slightest. If anything, it’s a good thing. It means you haven’t been comfortable doing that and haven’t forced yourself to. Which is great! It’s a little embarrassing, but he’s always been quite… promiscuous… and that’s often gotten him into pretty terrible situations. He’s glad you haven’t had to deal with all that.

Despite the fact that he is godawful at communication, he wouldn’t pressure you into anything you’re uncomfortable with. Even if he doesn’t understand, he won’t say anything about it (well, anything more than an “oh. ok!”)

Also, he’s known plenty of people throughout history that barely had sex. It’s totally normal. Anyone saying that demisexuality is a new concept is dead wrong.

Personally, I strongly believe that Ludwig is on the asexual spectrum himself! But regardless of whether that exactly is true, he has no problem with a relationship that lacks that aspect. It’s quite hard for him to get comfortable around anyone, so he’ll need as much time as you do anyway.

Seriously, don’t feel bad about still being a virgin. He was a virgin for a long, long time (longer than you’ve been alive, probably) and his life changed very little because of it. It’s always better to be sure you want something rather than just doing it because of social pressure.

Everyone has their timeline <3 Like, he didn’t learn to read until he was like, 20, but would you hold that against him? No. So don’t feel guilty for not experiencing that yet.

He won’t ask you anything about it either. Only if you come to him first asking for it will he ever initiate anything like that. Holding hands and staring deeply into each other's eyes satisfies him perfectly. (He was raised Catholic, cut him a break.)

And if anyone tries to invalidate your sexuality, he can always pull the “I’m hundreds of years old and have been experiencing this kind of thing the whole time. You’re just ignorant” card. He’s very happy to!

[magxit]

Just dropped: https://twitter.com/rollingstone/status/1663660316817780745?s=46&t=Jv7EvC8oVb-dKk_gHc29yQ

I haven’t read the full thing. But kinda sad when the media gets it more so than her own fans…

We Wouldn’t Be Having This Conversation If Taylor Swift Was a Man

Publicity stunt or not, Swift can have a sleazeball summer if she damn well pleases.

ON THE FINAL night of Taylor Swift’s MetLife shows this weekend, 80,000 Swifties screamed in the swamps of New Jersey for over three hours. They wore outfits from every era — tinsel fringe dresses, serpent arm cuffs, and heart-shaped sunglasses. I saw countless faces in cowboy hats similar to the emoji — only these cowboys were sobbing uncontrollably while eating foot-long hotdogs. And the bracelets! They were all wearing beaded bracelets coded in Swiftian lyrics, trading them in the parking lot like Deadheads swapping grilled cheeses. (Take my advice: do not try to pay for the bracelets. They will look at you like you’re from outer space.) 

It’s hard to believe that while this magical Eras tour is happening — and while Swift is somehow reaching previously-unimaginable heights of popularity, surpassing even the ludicrous highs of 2015 — she is also experiencing a backlash from some corners of the Swiftie community over her supposed new boyfriend, the 1975’s Matt Healy. 

Their sentiments were best summed up in an��open letter on Twitter using the hashtag #SpeakUpNow (named after Swift’s upcoming re-recording of her 2010 album), which states that Healy’s many controversies “deeply trouble” them. “From engaging in racist remarks, making offensive jokes, and admitting to watching degrading pornography in which people of color are being humiliated and assaulted, his actions contribute to the perpetuation of hate, stereotypes, and objectification, which targets and hurts some people from the Jewish, Black, Chinese, Hawaiian, Inuit, LGBTQ+ communities, as well as women.”

The statement refers to the derogatory comments Healy made about the rapper Ice Spice on The Adam Friedland Show podcast in February and the questionable apology he delivered onstage last month. Fans raised eyebrows when Swift recruited the rapper for her “Karma” remix last week, and on Monday, Healy finally addressed the controversy in a New Yorker profile that only exacerbated the issue. He explained that the whole thing “doesn’t actually matter” and that the backlash he received was merely virtue signaling: “It’s just people going, ‘Oh, there’s a bad thing over there, let me get as close to it as possible so you can see how good I am,’” he said. “And I kind of want them to do that, because they’re demonstrating something so base level.”

If you didn’t catch this quote aggregated on the internet about 137 times (you probably had better things to do than scroll Twitter and hustle children for their handmade bracelets), you aren’t missing much. This is all part of Healy’s artistry: an intricate, tangled web of bits intended to rile you up and piss you off. This is the guy who eats raw meat onstage, gives Nazi salutes, and delivers intelligent observations like, “I’m obsessed with my dick for some reason.” Stupid Shit is his brand. Are we really supposed to take anything he says seriously? 

I’m not here to answer that, but I am here to tell you that none of it is Taylor’s problem. For the last 17 years, we’ve held this woman responsible for the actions of men she chooses to spend time with, and it’s time to stop. It would be fair to criticize her for walking out of Electric Lady with the ghost of Pol Pot or wondering why her dad and Matt Lauer are grooving out to her performance of “22.” But this is just a hot sleazeball who wants Oasis back together (I don’t know about you, but I’ve dated a lot of guys who fit that description), and it’s up to Taylor to spend her time as she pleases.

[jisreal64]

So I’ve tried to make peace with both the Hellverse community and the Kicktoon community multiple times to no avail. But I’m going to try one last time. Each time I’ve tried to describe what a Kicktoon is, people just get angry and confused, so I’ll describe it like this:

A Kicktoon is a genre of indie web animation that is crowd funded, thrived during the fake indie animation boom created by Hazbin Hotel, abd follows a “fight first, ask questions later” formula. With this being the said formula:

-Is often heavily inspired by or flat out plagiarizes other media

-Makes tons of week one merch based around a test pilot

-Features furry bait

-Features Tumblr Sexypeople

-And last but certainly not least, critics and cartoonists/animation nerds love them, while general audiences and people who are indifferent to the medium view them as bland or don’t care about them

“But what’s the difference between a normal indie animated web series and a Kicktoon?”, well the difference is that the non-kicktoon cartoons aren’t as successful/commercialized as them and the genre has quickly dominated the platform, but does this mean that every non-kicktoon is inherently better than every kicktoon ever made, no, there are ones that are definitely worse (ie Skibidi Toilet), I just miss the days when indie animation didn’t have to be so commercialized to be popular/successful.

Although to be fair, I haven’t seen any other Kicktoon outside of HB and the pilot of HH, but the problem is that I don’t feel comfortable watching these cartoons by myself because I’m afraid of what they’ll be like; and since I have been living on campus for the past 10 months (I recently got out on summer break btw), the only thing I have to go off of is the “gold standard” for this medium.

But I haven’t explained WHY I don’t like either HH and HB, and it’s a bit simple, I don’t like the pacing, humor, soundtrack, and writing. A lot of people mindlessly hate on it because they think it’s either racist, sexist, homophobic, antisemitic, transphobic, fat phobic, etc, but I highly doubt that a cartoon created by an openly queer Latina American woman would be so bigoted. If you want to see a more in depth review, watch this video made by this guy here, he more or less shares my opinion on both shows:

As for the soundtrack, it’s just so bland, and I expected better from the Living Tombstone, like this soundtrack is so bad that it feels like it was written by Jake Paul. And the same hypocritical idiots who accused the songs in Wish of being written by an AI fucking love it.

Don’t get me wrong, if you like these cartoons but have a valid reason for liking them (instead of being a shill like Saberspark or Cellspex), then that’s fine, this is just my opinion and I’m just trying to vent my frustration. If I offended anyone with these posts, then I’m sorry, I’ll try to make it up to any of you somehow.

Btw, I don’t think that the Kicktoon genre is a bad thing, I just think it has unexplored potential to be good/great. Also, I don’t hate HH and HB, I just think they’re mediocre (but they do have potential, much like the genre they started).

[fastitocalon-h]

Stardust

Chapter 1. Sickness

~2 years later~

~The Interstellar Space Academy~

Jim had flourished at the Interstellar Space Academy. The navy’s training program involved hands-on work, with very few lecture-based classes. Jim’s natural talent for hands-on work helped him thrive at the Academy. His skills in building solar surfers often translated to repairing ships or upgrading them, and his teachers were always impressed with the things that he built. He had three more years in the training program, with a chance to join the Terran Empire’s navy if he did well.

Jim and Sarah rebuilt their relationship by sending letters to each other every month. According to Sarah’s notes, The Benbow Inn had much more business than before. People loved Ben. The friendly robot was a pleasant change from the moody teenager who had waited on their tables years ago. The Benbow’s customers also loved Morph. The Academy wouldn’t allow Jim to have Morph with him, and Sarah wouldn’t let him risk his stay at the Academy by trying to hide Morph in his room, so she offered to take care of him while Jim went to school. Morph always flew around to all the customers, getting attention from everyone. And customers would bring in their friends to meet the adorable little creature. The Inn had been receiving much more service than ever before, and things were going very well for Sarah and Ben.

In his letters, Jim told her about everything he was doing in school. It took him some time to gain a foothold there, but once he did, he shot quickly to the top of his class. That year, whenever the regulars asked about Jim, she made sure they knew that he was a top student. His grades had stayed almost perfect since his first year, and she had gotten several letters from Jim’s various instructors, telling her how amazing of a student Jim was. Sarah could tell that Jim had changed for the better and was beyond grateful for it. For the first time in years, she felt like she could really talk to her son. They hadn’t been able to truly communicate with each other for so long, and now that their relationship as a mother and a son was improving, she finally felt like she knew him. They were both very happy, and things were going well for both of them.

***

Jim yawned as he left the room after his last class of the day. He had spent the entire class period trying to work with stubborn tools. He blinked and shook his head, trying to wake himself up. A tall blonde Canid wrapped his arm around Jim’s shoulders. A small Felinid with curly orange hair walked on his other side. Their rooms were on either side of Jim’s, and they had had classes together since their first year. The Canid smiled at Jim.

“Hey, come to the mess hall with us!” the canine grinned at Jim with shining eyes.

“Some upperclassmen are hosting a pie-eating contest,” the small cat added. The dog raised a fist in the air. “Yeah, and I’m gonna beat every one of those amateurs!” Jim and the Felinid looked at each other and laughed. The cat rolled her eyes at the dog. “Aris, you passed out after fifteen hot dogs when they did that hot dog eating contest two months ago. How are you going to eat a ton of pies?” Aris’ ears perked up, and he pointed teasingly at the cat. “Well, if you haven’t noticed, Sil, I’ve been training,” Aris patted his stomach. “This tank can take much more food now!”

“So that’s why you’ve been eating your food like a maniac?" Sil laughed. "I thought it was just a dog thing.”

Aris rolled his eyes and leaned down to Jim.

“So Jim, are you gonna join us?” Jim slipped out of Aris’ arm. “Sorry guys, not today. I've got something to do.”

Aris’ ears drooped just a little. “That’s too bad! You’re going to miss watching me win the pie-eating contest!”

“Maybe next time.”

“Alright, well, see ya, Jim!”

Sil turned to Jim. “I’ll go with him to make sure he doesn’t do something stupid,” they laughed, and Sil ran after Aris.

***

With a smile, Jim made his way to the mail cabinets. They assigned a mail cabinet to each student for important papers and letters to and from home. For several days, he had been coming here after classes, eagerly awaiting Sarah’s monthly letter. Jim unlocked the metal door, and once he spotted a note with the word “Montressor,” he grabbed it and rushed to his room, only just holding back his smile. He ran down the long hallways of the Interstellar Space Academy.

Jim closed the door to his room and raised the envelope for a closer look. It was from... Doppler? That’s weird. He thought no more about it and ripped the letter open, eager to hear news of Montressor. He read through the first section, then stopped. No, that can’t be right. Jim sat down on his bed, panicking slightly. I must’ve read it wrong. Jim nodded to himself. Yeah, that has to be it. Jim lifted the note and reread it, very slowly this time.

“Jim, my boy, I hope this letter finds you well during your training at the Interstellar Academy. I am writing to you against your mother’s wishes on a topic that has been worrying me. There is news that I believe you should know. It is with great sadness that I inform you that your mother is very ill.

I understand that you may be taken aback by this news. Your mother has been sick for quite some time. You may be wondering why she opted to keep this information from you. Please understand everything that she does; she does for you. Your mother made this decision to spare you from worrying about her while you were busy with schoolwork. She wants to ensure that your grades don’t suffer because of her. I feel you should at least know of her condition.

Amelia and I have been taking care of her for these past months, and I assure you that Sarah is getting the best care that she can. We are doing everything in our power to help her, and you do not need to worry.

I am very sorry to tell you this, but I feel you should know. Please take care of yourself, my boy. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.

With Regards, Dr Doppler.

Jim clutched the letter in his hands. How could she not tell me? Jim didn’t know what to do. If I leave school, she’ll be disappointed in me. But if I stay here, I can’t take care of her. Even if he didn't have to worry about Sarah being disappointed that he left, he still wouldn't be able to leave. The Academy was very strict about students staying. They had breaks for the summer and spring, but the Academy was very adamant that students who left would be dropped out of classes. They covered so much material each day, and the school didn’t have time to catch students up that missed. And on top of that, transportation was only available to students when it was time for the breaks. He sat on his bed and put himself in a fetal position, burying his head in his arms. He didn't know what to do. He tried not to cry, but once a few sobs escaped his mouth, he couldn’t stop. Jim laid down and cried himself to sleep.

***

Jim’s alarm rang, and he woke up feeling like shit. His throat was dry, and he felt heavy. He moved on autopilot, getting ready for the day and preparing for classes. Jim left his room. Sil and Aris were already walking to the mess hall for breakfast. Jim really didn’t feel like talking to anyone. He slowed down so he didn’t get too close, worried they would notice him, and made his way to the mess hall alone. When he got food, he passed the table where he, Aris, and Sil would usually sit. Sil’s ears perked up when she noticed Jim. “Hey!” Aris waved enthusiastically at Jim. He stopped when Jim walked past their table without a word. Sil looked at Aris questioningly, and Aris just shrugged. They watched Jim sit down at an empty table in the corner of the mess hall. “Maybe he's just tired?” Sil reasoned.

“Yeah, probably," Aris mumbled, worried about Jim.

In the corner of the mess hall, Jim stared blankly at the wall. He didn’t feel like eating anything. He sat there, his mind wandering. He couldn't stop thinking about Sarah. She was sick, and he couldn't be there with her. Jim didn’t notice when the students left for their first lessons. A large Zirellian woman came by, cleaning the tables. She noticed Jim and looked at him sternly. “Oi kid, you’d best be gettin’ to class. Your teacher won’t like that you’re skipping.” She looked at him and immediately noticed he wasn't feeling well. “You alright, Hon?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” Jim gave her a tiny smile. He picked up his tray full of food and threw it in one of the trash bins.

He trudged to his first class of the day. This class was his favorite, but Jim wasn’t looking forward to it at all today. He entered the classroom and quickly made his way to the seats. He heard someone whisper his name and looked over to see Sil and Aris waving him over. Jim gave them a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes and kept walking until he reached an empty row of seats. Sil turned to Aris and mouthed quietly, “What is going on?” Aris shrugged, and they both looked at Jim worriedly. The instructor got up and went to the front of the room. “Today,” he announced, “we are starting a new project. We have spent the past few weeks learning all the components one needs to build a ship, and I believe that every one of you is ready. Each of you will begin with something small. Everyone is to build a longboat.” Some students started whispering excitedly. Jim sat up straighter and listened closer. “Once each of you completes your work, we will open the roof of the construction lab and you all will have a chance to fly your very own creation.” An idea popped into Jim’s head. “Everything that you will need to build your longboats is in the construction lab,” the instructor continued. “Come to me if you have questions.” He clapped his hands together. “Get building!”

Jim followed his classmates to the door that connected this specific classroom to the construction lab. Jim and Silver were always assigned to fix the broken longboats on the Legacy, so Jim knew how they worked and how to get the power going. With his experience on the Legacy, remembering Silver’s lessons, and his training at school, he knew that he’d be able to build a longboat fairly quickly. Jim spent the entire class period buried in his work. He wanted to get it done as soon as possible. Aris and Sil worked next to each other, and often glanced at Jim, concerned.

When the bell rang, signaling the end of class, Jim left quickly. Aris and Sil tried to catch him, but he brushed them off again.

***

At the end of the school day, Jim returned to his first-period class. Jim would frequently put in extra time after school to work on his projects. It had become a regular thing. His instructor loved that Jim was so invested in his work that he would stay for hours after classes to work on his creations. If you asked him, his instructor would tell you that Jim was his best student. His instructor greeted him with a smile as he made his way to the construction lab. Jim spent hours working on his longboat. He wanted to make sure it was ready as soon as possible. His instructor came in to see his progress, and he was beyond impressed. Jim had finished much faster than he had expected, and everything was flawless. Over the next few weeks, it became a daily occurrence. Jim would come to work on his longboat at the end of every school day. He brushed off Sil and Aris whenever they tried to talk to him. Jim went there so many times that eventually, Jim’s instructor would just hand him the keys, trusting him to lock up when he had finished. He was far ahead of everyone else in his class, and he was on track to finish his longboat soon.

***

Jim was almost finished. He had spent a good portion of the month coming into class and working on his longboat until it was late at night. His instructor didn’t want to stay that long every night, but Jim pleaded with him to let him continue working, so he trusted Jim with the keys to the class and told him to just lock up and give him the keys in the morning. Jim had stayed much longer than usual. He was so close. He screwed in some pieces and plugged in some wires, and he stepped back to look at it. He circled his longboat, checking everything. Everything was in the right place. Jim got in. He pressed some buttons on the dashboard, and his longboat rose off of the ground slowly. He couldn’t help but feel a rush of excitement. This was the first time he’d built an actual boat, and it worked perfectly! He lowered it down to the ground and ran to his room. This was it.

He stuffed his clothes into a bag and slung it over his shoulder. He ran back to the construction lab. He had to be fast. He had heard the roof of the constriction lab open before, and it was LOUD. He left the keys to the room on his instructor’s desk. He did feel bad about breaking his trust, but with how strict this school was, he didn't know how else he could go see his mother.

Jim threw his bag into his longboat and ran over to the button that opened the roof of the lab. He hesitated for a moment, then pressed it. He flinched at the loud sound that immediately filled the room. He ran to his boat and turned it on, raising it in the air slightly. He watched the roof open, his hand on the throttle. Jim had to go now! Jim tilted the boat up and pushed the throttle forward. He watched as the robots that patrolled the halls entered the lab, investigating the noise. But Jim was already shooting off on his longboat, setting his course for Montressor.

[camodielsart]

Hello Duke of Hell,

Do you feel like you experience hyperfixations differently now compared to how you did when you were younger? can you describe the difference?

I certainly feel a difference myself, new fandoms and interests just don't rot my brain as all consumingly or as long as they used too

It's not a bad change, but I find myself missing it. There was a comfort to being consumed, absorbed, engrossed, to being lost completely in an idea. It was a powerful drug. One of the few parts of myself I thought I'd never be at risk of losings.

If you have experienced this deterioration, how has it affected your art and writing?

sincerely,

Anonymous

i still get super hyper fixated on media, mainly cuz of psychological stuff (not gonna get personal but yeah) so a certain media will just consume my attention at that moment in time. sometimes it’s for a few months, sometimes it’s for years. and sometimes it comes and go (like blue exorcist, my current hyper fixation haha).

idk if it’s different from when i was younger tho, i try not go around talking about my interests cuz i used to be that kid in middle school/high school that would never shut up about his favorite show and annoy everyone. and also get bullied for it as well (i got bullied for pokémon, like when it was popular, ?????). so i just don’t talk about my hyper fixations as much cuz of that. which in turn has made it harder for me to express my ideas on my favorite media so i have trouble getting involved in communities. also fandoms tend to scare me. i lived through some bad fandoms in my younger days online. so yeah.

and i do miss the old days were i would just go on and on about my favorite show/anime or manga. i would draw fan art and fan ocs all the time and post them online. i have been trying to watch/read new stuff in general cuz i know it would help with not only inspiration but motivation as well. and i haven’t made fan ocs for a long time (besides the welcome home one which i haven’t drawn for a bit). i definitely think of some, just seldom draw them. i want to do that stuff again, too. like you said, there’s a comfort to it. but i get nervous. not so much of being cringe, but more so, why would ppl care to see my oc. most ppl want to see the established characters in fan art. which i don’t blame them. that’s why they like media, it’s cuz of the characters. idk my deterioration is more so self inflicted from being outcasted and fear of drama and not really something that went away naturally cuz i still do get super consumed by it, i just hide it now.

[lady-tadpole]

I miss you.

[Emotional ramble ahead.]

A while ago I was thinking about how many friends I have, compared to how many I’ve had.

When you have a hard time connecting to people and you grew up in a culture that thinks being outgoing is rude, and being passionate about things means you’re unstable… and you’re a very direct and passionate person… Well.

Let’s just say that I never met most of my closest friends, and I haven’t messaged many of them for years. At some point I just got used to considering friendships from the outside. I could never be anyone’s friend, right? Not even speaking of “Best Friend.” Simply doesn’t happen.

Instead, I started identifying with charismatic people on the internet who made content I connected with. If I can’t be popular or even liked, I can still enjoy creating things – and others who also created.

Parasocial relationships get a bad rep, honestly. In concept, there’s nothing wrong if you connect with someone you’ll never meet. To learn about yourself through a stranger. It’s perfectly normal, actually: It’s one of those things that makes us human.

Sure, some people take it too far by starting to stalk or harass people online but, really? People always take it too far with just about everything.

Suppose that brings me to the catboy in the room.

Today, on Dec 19, 2023, I learned that YouTuber JoCat permanently quit his content creation work due to online harassment. Harassment not by overzealous fans, but certainly by mentally unstable individuals. All Joseph did was be sincere online. Sweet fool.

Not until I read his community post explaining the situation did I realise how much this guy and the stuff he made had meant to me.

As of writing this, I am nearly 23 years old. I’ve been out as trans for three years, I’m on hormones, I’ve had a surgery, and I’ve had my legal name and sex changed. I’m a well-liked colleague at my workspace, and my online friends know me as a thoughtful and creative artist and Dungeon Master.

I’d been watching JoCat since I was 16. For seven of my most meaningful years, Joseph has inspired me so many times.

He inspired me to not be toxic online even if no one would ever reward me for it – it’s gained me some very close friends.

He inspired me to look inwards, and not feel ashamed for myself – it let me evolve into a person I’m finally learning to respect.

He inspired me to keep being creative even if it doesn’t immediately benefit me – I started being a Dungeon Master largely thanks to him and his amazing work.

Finally, he inspired me to show care – to those around me as well as the things I do. I’ve been in a happy relationship with my long-term friend for ten months now. I always thought I was too abrasive to love.

All this to say, so much of me is JoCat that I’ve stopped noticing – until now. Until he left.

I miss you, Joseph. I feel almost like I lost a friend, even if I’ll never talk to you.

[mdazzle151]

Content creation and the things I miss

Being on an indefinite hiatus has really made me think a lot about what I did and didn’t enjoy about content creation as a whole, and it’s been pretty eye opening.

Obviously, there’s parts of it that I miss. The community, namely. But there’s other things too. I miss streaming- it was always really fun to be live and able to chat directly with my audience in real time while we draw together.

The redesign videos were really fun to make as well! I still have ideas of what I want the future redesigns to be for the “phantasi revamp”. I think I want the twins to be sea monsters! I’ve had a general idea of what I think they would look like in my head for a long time, but I never got around to doing it before I left.

I’m never sure if it’s self-centred or not- (recently I’ve been leaning towards not self-centred)- but I watch my videos a lot too. I put a lot of work and love into all of them, especially the later ones, and it’s fun to look back on them. Not to toot my own horn, but I think they’re pretty entertaining! 

There’s parts of editing that I miss- it was always a long process, but I can honestly say I enjoyed every part of it. Sometimes it was just hard to find the motivation to finish.

I still get comments every now and then on videos, and I read them all. Some of them are really sweet-actually a good majority of them are really sweet! One person wished me a happy birthday in March and it just about made me cry /pos

I’ve been enjoying interacting on Tumblr, and I still want to take things slow, but the more the days pass, the more tempted I am to start streaming again.

Part of me is disappointed in that felling, but I’m trying to be easy on myself for that. There’s no way I could’ve known how I would feel now, seven months later. Five if you’re counting from December.

The deal I made with myself was that I would stay “offline” for a minimum of six months- and ideally would be gone for two years so I could focus on my studies.

But honestly, if I’m missing content creation this much only six-ish months in, I’m wondering if I’m going to make it to that two year milestone. Maybe I won’t, maybe I will, but I need to remind myself that healing happens at different speeds. Maybe I thought I needed a longer time to heal and I just didn’t. Maybe I’m not ready to go back yet. I’m still figuring it out, I’m trying to take it slow.

Exploring my comfort on Tumblr has been interesting to say the least! It’s been fun, and I haven’t had anxiety around it. I’m really happy. I haven’t been focussing on the numbers or amount of interaction. I’ve just been having fun sharing my thoughts and drawings, which is what I want out of content creation.

When I left seven months ago, it was because of bad mental health and connecting self-worth to what I’m able to create. I still struggle with self-worth, but I think I’ve successfully separated it from my creativity- and in doing so, I’ve realized that I love Contant creation because of the creativity- not the possibility for opportunity.

I’ve noticed a pattern in every aspect of content creation that I have longed for in my time away. Everything I’ve had an itch to do has had to do with sharing creativity and passion for the art of creation. Where I used to think about play buttons and numbers and conventions- I now think about all the little details that I love about making videos and comics and stories.

Script writing, editing, recording voice overs, implementing comedy, delivering a message, exploring my artistic boundaries, over analyzing my old work, teaching others what I taught myself… there’s so much that I enjoy about it, and it makes my heart blossom knowing that THESE are the parts of being a CC that I miss, not the analytics and competition.

I’ve said for years that I see it as a hobby- a creative outlet for me and my community, and I truly believe that! But I’d be a liar if I said it was always this way. There were definitely times where I was focussing way too much on the career aspect of it, even though I haven’t wanted that to be my career for years now.

This break has really been good for me and my mental health- and it’s been really good for me to reconnect with what I actually enjoy about what I did.

I know that I’ll always struggle with mental health in some capacity- this isn’t something that you can just miracle away, after all. It’s going to be something that I struggle with for a lifetime, and even though that’s a hard pill to swallow, I’m slowly accepting it. I won’t ever be 100% okay, and that’s okay. what’s important to me is that I keep my heart happy and find joy in life- remember what I love and why I love it.

I get a little burst of excitement in my stomach when I think about returning too much. I’m not sure when it will happen, and I’m still not going to say it will happen (I have no idea what the future holds), but for now I can say wholeheartedly that I do hope I will return soon, wether soon means next month or next year.

Have a little excerpt from one of my journal entries, as a treat :) I think it explains my feelings pretty well.

“I still think about my past online, but not nearly as much as I used to. It’s just part of my history and that’s okay. I don’t need to explain myself to anyone. And that feels really nice.” - March 19 2024

(Maybe it’s a little ironic since I did just explain myself in great detail- but I think it’s important to note that I wrote this all because I wanted to, not because I felt like I needed to.)

Merci beaucoup, tout le monde. Bonne journée et à bientôt.

[p-artsypants]

Paint it Black (10) Praying

Robin disappeared three months ago. Now, Jump City's crime rate is mysteriously being taken care of by a normal, albeit strange, teenage boy who goes by the name Black. As the Titans befriend this lunatic, they begin to see a correlation between him and their missing leader. Will they be able to find Robin, or will Black turn them all insane as himself? [Actually, does not contain an OC]

Ao3 | FF.net

On a quiet Saturday night, the Titans assembled in the ops room for movie night. Black was invited, but didn’t initially join. 

They were watching some bad Kung-Fu parody movie, where the mouths were dubbed over in English with a different script. 

Robin probably would have loved it. 

As it stood, Beast Boy was mostly the only one paying attention. 

The rest of them were thinking about Robin and how the Batman would be arriving within the week.

The door to the ops room swooshed open and Black stomped into the room, walking right in front of all of them like a pre-teen with attitude. 

“What?” Asked Raven. 

“I’m going to church tomorrow and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!” 

Cyborg paused the movie as everyone stared at Black. “Come again?” 

“I had been going nearly every Sunday and Wednesday night, but I haven’t gone for the last two weeks, and when I don’t go, my buddy Jim worries about me.” 

“Jim?” Raven zeroed in on the name. 

“Yeah, my friend Jim! He’s a pal!” 

“Jim Baker?” 

“That’s right!” 

“I’ll take you to church,” Cyborg said easily. 

“We’ll all go,” added Raven. 

“Uh, Raven, can you even––?” Beast Boy cringed. 

“We’ll find out. I’d like to have a word with this friend, Jim Baker.” She crossed her arms. 

“Please, I have heard of church and seen its buildings, but am unclear of its purpose.”

“You know what Christianity is, right? One of our world’s main religions?” 

“Yes, it is the worship of ‘God’ whose name appears on your money. He has a son, named Jesus Christ, I believe? Sometimes people exclaim his name when startled. Robin told me.”

“So people who practice Christianity worship God and Jesus. Church is where they gather on Sunday mornings to sing songs and learn more about him from his book, the Bible.”

“It is like school, then?”

“In a way, I guess.” 

“Fascinating! What time does church start tomorrow?” 

“9:30,” said Black. “But I like to get there early. It’s on the South side of town. Jump City Community Church.” 

“Oh, I know that place,” said Cyborg. “They run the soup kitchen and food pantry. We’ll get you there, buddy.”

Black grinned and sashayed out of the room. 

“Honestly, hearing he was going to church in his freetime makes me feel a little better,” said Cyborg. “Getting ‘thou shall not kill’ drilled into his head was probably good.” 

“Starfire,” Raven began. “Do you have something you could wear over your uniform tomorrow?” 

“Why?”

How to explain? “If we want to get on these people’s good side, we need to show some respect to their ideals. Our uniforms are a little inappropriate for church.” 

“What is inappropriate about my attire?”

“I think some people might be…offended if you show up with your midriff visible. I’m going to wear a skirt.” 

“Oh! I understand. They are more modest with their clothing! Fear not, I have a sweater for just the occasion.” 

“What’s the big deal, Rae?” Said Beast Boy. “We’re the Teen Titans. Surely everyone there will be used to seeing us like this?” He gestured to himself. 

She scowled. “I am half demon. If I’m going into a church, I will not give anyone fodder to criticize me.” 

“Well, when you say it like that…” 

“Come with me, Raven! We shall find a skirt that compliments your uniform for tomorrow!” Starfire sang, pulling her into the hall. 

“Dudes! What about the movie!?” 

—

The next morning, the team gathered in the ops room, ready to go. Starfire had a cream colored chunky knit sweater over her uniform, while Raven had a simple black knee length skirt to cover her legs. 

Black entered, not wearing his trench coat, but a long sleeved black shirt and his ratty black jeans. His hair was combed down and had the two spit curls Robin always hated. “Well, don’t you kids look spiffy?” 

“You ready to go?” Cyborg asked.

“Ha! Do pigs swim?” 

The Titans all looked over to Beast Boy. “Do they?”

“I mean, yeah?”

They loaded up in the T-Car and sped off. It was the first time Black rode with them. He sat in the middle of the back, Raven on one side, and Starfire on the other. 

“Wow, this is a really pretty car! It looks just like you, Cyborg!” 

“I made it,” Cyborg smiled back in the rearview window. “She’s my baby.” 

Black rubbed the console like it was a live animal. “Good girl!” 

They arrived at 9:20, much to Black’s dismay. People were flowing in, and the church looked rather busy. 

Inside, they were greeted by a blonde woman, your typical white suburban mother. “Good morning! Good to see you again!” 

“Hi Bonnie!” Black greeted, warmly. “I brought my friends with me!” 

Bonnie prepared to greet them, and then stood shocked for a second. “...the Teen Titans! Well, welcome! Glad you could join us this morning! Would you like a bulletin?” 

“Thank you,” Cyborg returned the greeting and took one. 

“You doing okay, Raven?” Beast Boy asked as they entered. 

“I haven’t burst into flames, so I think I’m okay.” 

The lobby was a large circular room with a skylight. The sanctuary was to the right, and the back wall featured a coffee bar. 

As the Titans moved further inside, they were greeted with warm smiles and hearty handshakes. Black greeted every single person he walked past, like he knew each and every one of them. 

They were just all so friendly. 

“You guys want coffee? It's good! And they have tea!” Black urged them in, tugging on arms. 

“Black!” A man in a plaid polo shirt and khakis approached. He was tall, lanky, and had salt and pepper hair. “You’re here! And you…brought friends?” 

“I sure did! This is Starfire, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Raven!” 

“Good morning!” 

“Hiya!”

“Hey, nice to meet you.” 

“Hi.” 

“Well, welcome! I’m Pastor Jim Baker. Glad to have you here today.” 

A ping of understanding hit all the Titans at the same time. 

Pastor Jim Baker.

“Did…you guys receive my letter?” He asked, his voice a little lower. 

“Sure did,” said Cyborg. 

Jim sighed in relief. “Good. Well, I really would like to talk to you all more about that, but service is about to start. Why don’t you join us, and then we can all talk during the Sunday School hour?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Cyborg nodded. 

“Come on, I’ll show you where I always sit!” Black took Starfire and Beast Boy’s hands and beckoned them into the sanctuary. 

It had a high vaulted ceiling, lined with slatted wood. There was a stage up front, where a band was setting up. A giant cross was on the wall above them, bordered with stained glass on both sides. There was a screen in the corner with a slide show of events playing on it. 

“Dude, is that an electric guitar? I thought churches had like…organs and stuff.” 

“Depends on the church,” said Cyborg. 

Black led them toward the front, on the right most side. Again, as they passed, he greeted people warmly and enthusiastically. 

“He’s like a different person,” Cyborg said to Starfire, softly. “He’s behaving well.” 

“I wonder why.” 

The congregation was filled with a variety of people. There were plenty of your standard white church people, plus a healthy dose of intercity kids, recently reformed thugs and felons, bikers, and even disheveled homeless folks. It was a strange blend, but they were all talking together, building a community. 

They shuffled into their seats, the people around them waving and smiling in greeting. 

“This isn’t so bad, right?” Beast Boy asked Raven. 

She sighed. “No. Better than I was expecting.” 

Cyborg opened the program they were given. “Hey Star, there’s an order to the service,” he showed her. “We’ll stand and sing songs, then we’ll listen to the Pastor give his sermon. When they have us pray, we just bow our heads and close our eyes. Pretty simple.” 

“I like to sing!” She chirped. 

“I know you do. I don’t know if you’ll know the songs they play, but you’ll probably like them.” 

“Hey Cy,” Beast Boy wondered. “You seem pretty…familiar with this. Have you been to church before?”

“Yeah, used to go when I was a kid. It’s been a long time though.” 

Then, a man with a guitar started playing. Keyboard, violin, and drums joined in. 

Starfire perked right up, the tune was joyful and fun. 

“Great and Mighty is The Lord Our God, Great and Mighty is He. Great and Mighty is The Lord Our God, Great and Mighty is He!” 

“I like this song,” Starfire told Cyborg. 

Of course you do. Cyborg smirked.    

“Good morning!” Pastor Jim greeted as the first song ended. “Isn’t it a lovely fall day? Did you all see the trees in their fall colors today? God’s truly a master painter, isn’t he?” He looked at the bulletin. “We have our typical events taking place this week. Soup Kitchen on Tuesday, Prayer Meeting on Wednesday, Food Pantry on Thursday. Tonight, I’ve been told the youth are going bowling and that Pizza will be provided.”

“I want to go bowling,” Beast Boy muttered.

“Next week, we’re doing our Trunk or Treat. There’s still plenty of space to sign up to host a game. You don’t actually have to have a trunk! The church will provide candy, so you don’t have to buy any. What else? Oh! We’re going to start taking donations for Operation Christmas Child. This year we’re aiming to pack a thousand boxes! We’ll be taking donations of hygiene products during the month of October. I’m told our boxes will be going to a refugee camp in Poland for children displaced from the war, so keep that in mind as you pack your shoeboxes.

“As for prayer requests, we’re praying for those who are not here due to sickness…” he listed several people’s names and their specific needs. Some were in hospital, some had ailing family. “And last, we want to continue our prayers for Robin of the Teen Titans. He and his team did so much for our city, for nothing in return. We want to pray for his return, or closure for his whereabouts. Pray for healing if he needs it. We’d also like to pray for strength for his team as they work through this crisis. Would y’all pray with me?” 

None of the Titans had been playing on actually praying, but they all felt compelled to in the end. This church had been praying for Robin the whole time, and he was right here, among them! 

They sang more songs. The Titans patiently stood with the rest of the congregation. Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire tried to follow along with the songs. Black knew several of them and sang as loud as he could. 

Then the sermon came. It was appreciated, as the topic was community and building each other up. 

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

They sang another song at the end, and then they were released. 

Beast Boy stretched. “Well, that wasn’t as nearly as boring as I thought it’d be.” 

Raven elbowed him. “Maybe wait to say stuff like that until we’re out of the building?” 

“Oops.”

“Hey!” Black perked up. “Do ya guys want donuts? They have them downstairs during the Sunday School hour!” 

“Sweet, donuts!” Beast Boy started, but was held back by Raven. 

“Why don’t you go get us some? We want to have a little chat with your friend, Jim.” 

“Okie dokie Mrs. Magpie!” And he skipped off, just as Pastor Jim arrived at the end of the row. 

“Hi, follow me to my office?” He kept the pleasant smile, but there was clear grief on his face. 

They followed him through the church building, watching as he played nonchalant as he passed his congregation. He led them down a hall, away from the people, and into an office with a desk, two chairs, and a couch. 

“Please, make yourselves at home.” He moved behind the desk. His mask dropped, and he looked weary and troubled. 

Raven and Cyborg sat in the chairs while Beast Boy and Starfire took up spots on the couch. 

He held out a jar. “Tootise Roll?” 

Beast Boy, Starfire, and Cyborg took one. 

“Chewy chocolate?” Starfire asked thoughtfully. “Delightful!” 

Pastor Jim let out a long sigh as he rested his head in his hand. “So…you’ve met him.” 

“More than that,” Cyborg said. “He’s staying with us.” 

Jim’s shoulders sagged even more, maybe from relief. “Thank goodness.” 

“How did you meet?” Raven asked. 

“I’m the one who…found him.” He shook his head. “This is not a good neighborhood, but I wanted to start a church where the community needed it. One night, I stayed too late and left the church when it was dark out. As I was walking back to my car, I heard him singing, belting out these really sad lyrics at the top of his lungs. There’s a gentleman in our Men’s group who is a recovering drug addict. I thought it was him at first, having a relapse. So I thought I’d go check and make sure he was okay.” He paused, closing his eyes a moment. His voice was tight. “When I found him, he was in the basement of an abandoned building. I heard him singing through a broken window. When I called out to him to see if he was okay, he just kept singing, maybe even getting louder when he heard me. I went inside…I thought I was looking at a dead man. He was naked and just…covered in blood. His cheek was torn open…and he had these dark veins that stood out all over his body. The only thing he had in his possession was this…robot head. I got him out of there and to a hospital. He had no idea who he was, what happened, why he was there…but he refused to let go of that head. The hospital had no idea what was wrong with him, so they just treated his wounds. When he was patched up, I brought him home. He stayed for about a week. In that time, he spent much of it crying in pain. Then one day…he was just gone, and left the head…tucked into his bed.

“The next week, he showed up to my church and thanked me for all my help. When I told him he left the robot behind, he had no idea what I was talking about. My son was the one that found the SD card I sent you.”

“So, how’d you know it was Robin in the video?” Beast Boy asked. 

Pastor Jim looked at him, stricken. “...that was Robin?”

Oops.

Raven narrowed her eyes. “If you didn’t know, why did you send us the card?” 

“I thought…well, the robot head that it was recorded on looked like it belonged to that…Slade man you all have fought over the years. And the video looked like something horrible was going on. It looked like real trouble. I wanted to send it to the experts.” He started to smile, ever so slightly. “I assumed it was Black before he became…”

“Crazy?” Beast Boy supplied. 

“...disturbed.” 

“That’s a nice way of putting it.” 

“But if it was Robin…does that mean that Black is…?” He trailed off, hopeful. 

The Titans silently convened. 

“Yeah,” Cyborg finally admitted. “He’s Robin. But he doesn’t remember anything, and he’s outwardly hostile to the thought of being Robin. So, we’re keeping it quiet for now.” 

“I understand completely. I will keep it a secret. I’d like to think I’m pretty good at it. Lots of people come to me for guidance, expecting me to keep their business to myself.” 

“So now that you know it is Robin, you know it’s important that we have as many details as you can provide,” Raven said, sternly. “Tell us everything.” 

“I’m not sure what else there is to tell that’s actually helpful…” he winced. “It was about a month ago, and it was fairly hectic.” 

“You said he spent most of his time crying in pain,” Cyborg reminded. “And then one day he just left.” 

“Oh! Yes. I said he had these dark veins, and he often cried about feeling his blood burning. We gave him ibuprofen and acetaminophen, as much as they recommend. It seemed to help a little, but he spent most of the time bedridden, in and out of sleep. He didn’t eat much. Every once in a while, he’d come out of the guest room and sit with my son in the living room and watch TV or watch him play video games. Not for very long though. My son said he’d try to talk to him, but Black was so out of it, his replies were nonsensical. At night…we could hear him singing. I think he was trying to comfort himself.” Jim screwed up his lips, looking rather remorseful. “I hate to admit this, because I think I actually broke the law and did him a huge disservice. One night, he was in so much pain…he was thrashing and screaming and tearing at his stitches…we had already given him the maximum doses of ibuprofen and acetaminophen…I had a couple of OxyContin pills left over from a surgery, just in case of emergency. I know you shouldn’t keep them but…I gave Black one. I wondered if maybe he was going through withdrawals. But within the hour, his dark veins had receded considerably, and he was able to eat a full meal and hold a lucid conversation. Well, lucid for him. I told him what we gave him. The next day he was gone, along with my pills. There weren’t very many left though. Maybe three.”  

“These are opioids?” Starfire asked for clarification. 

“Yeah, the same ones we gave him when he had that episode,” Cyborg responded. “Thank you for telling us. We knew he had an addiction. We just didn’t know where it started.” 

Pastor Jim looked heartbroken at that revelation. 

“I don’t think you necessarily started it either,” said Raven. “We’ve learned that he’s been poisoned, that’s what’s turned his veins dark. It's interesting to know that opioids actually help with that.”

Jim didn’t look any more relieved.  

“The dude was suffering, and you helped him. Don’t sweat it, man,” Beast Boy offered as a way of comfort. 

“We’ll tell Batman about it,” said Cyborg. “He was looking into that poison cocktail. Maybe the opioids are a missing ingredient or something? Now, more importantly,” he leveled the pastor with an intense look. “Can you show us where exactly you found him?”

“Absolutely!” 

It was then that there was a knock on the office door. 

“Yes?” Jim asked. 

Black opened the door, holding two plates of donut holes. “I’ve been looking all over for you guys! I brought donuts!” 

“We told you we were talking to the pastor,” Raven said. 

“I forgot,” Black beamed. 

“Pastor Jim was just about to show us the place he found you. Will you be able to come?” Cyborg asked. The keyword here was ‘able’ because being there might trigger a fit, and no one really wanted to deal with that. 

Black forcefully shoved the plates into Raven’s hands and said, “Nope! I ain’t going!” 

“I shall stay with Black,” said Starfire. “We will stay here, and he may socialize with his friends.” 

“Aw man, I don’t want to go to any creepy abandoned building!” Beast Boy lamented. 

“Too bad, Grass Stain. We need your nose,” Cyborg scarfed down a donut hole. 

“Let me just tell my wife, and we’ll go,” said Jim.

[cornus27florida]

x"D IDK what's this anymore : Episode 147th The BBQ (Barbeque) part 1

-> no Patreon leak image for the change, I forgor where and I feel it will be nice to have Curtis in appron (actually not the first time, we seen once before when Nell warning him about Gwen going to the barn with were-spider Prez inside) - as the first image of the post. Also I want do simple for the change

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

Curtis looked nice with an apron there, but Syrah - he definitely won’t wear that apron `kiss the cook` you prepared ahahahah. Also foods in Whitney’s slumber party really banging it, if only I didn’t need to watch my calories intake (and diseases histories in my family lineage) - I’ll inhaled those perfectly cooked meat steaks, burger patties, french friends, cheeses and more! Also bag of chips sounds nice as well for warm welcome and nice barbeque >w<

Laverne really clings to Whitney ahahaha, very fluffy Llama kinda like a very warm and thick blanket that wrapped Whitney from his head to mid body with a very tight nuzzle there -> like many confused where Laverne's appendages where as it seems seeped inside to Whitney hahaha

Also nice to see NelLie again! and poor Renee, your best friend currently going to Pastel palace with likely headaches due to reading some diary in a rushing carriage without blinking there! -> Renee’s note kinda cute there:

Bernadette and the OP background character congratulating Prez’ that she didn’t turns to be were-spider this month, but Prez looks unhealthy (few waves of intense cramping and splitting headaches every minute of every day) - I really hope that she won’t be turned to be were-spider anytime, because that cursed transformation makes her uncontrollable unlike Monika when turned to be crow. Later on Prez looks healthy enough when giving a demonstration though.. so I think she kinda OK, and even if worse will happen (feels like want to enters period, I think the answer is for her taking the delaying period pills again -> the side effects could be much worse, but the most important thing is Prez could keep her mind and avoids to do things that uncontrollable for her (like, I know some wished for Leland to be killed by Prez in cursed form or something, but that’s not the answer as making Prez a murderer (even though we know how evil Leland is) will affecting her really greatly in bad ways).

Now Frederick’s time! Poor the tiniest prince with the tiniest voice and his worst enemy: terrifying skill of communication - and I try to react his interactions with CPC members in parts ; with the trio (Abbi, Syrah, Monika), Saffron, and Prez.

A) With the trio Abbi, Syrah, Monika: Frederick hesitated because he thinks he’ll ruin the good mood of them during the slumber party, but turns out they are also missing and wondering about Gwen’s too that hasn’t shown up since ‘the romantic, end-of-the-night rendezvous. Syrah’s comment ``We get it, you two lovebirds are probably making out every day and we’re not gonna pry`` makes me giddy in chuckles. But IG the misunderstanding with the trio due to Frederick’s reply in tomato face, ``I haven’t seen her at all! I’ve been locked in a dungeon by my dad ever since the gala!`` → made the trio think the reason that Frederick locked up is due to being grounded because something too intimate makes Frederick and Gwendolyn need to be separated.. <Hence the blushing face of the trio espc from Monika there> 

Oh boi, if only that’s the case but the locked up is literal punishment by Leland to Frederick’s “failures” and to make sure he won’t mess things up again - This my attempt to find excuse of the somewhat seeming OOC-ness of the trio to not thinking that Frederick being locked up seriously, they simply misunderstanding things espc after Frederick outburst with red face telling that he never seen Gwen since the gala due to being locked up by his dad

B) With Saffron -> thanks a lot for being supportive, bro!

Sorry I have nothing much to say because it's distracted to Saffron's heart-shaped 'tattoo' - RIP Saffron's first date ;-;

C) With Prez -> sadly Prez still not grabbing the situation, but one thing I love is we finally have more deeper interactions between her and Frederick (like, I am counting the days when Frederick realizes from Prez retelling that Gwen shackled her own self-worth's opinion to him and his love - similar to what Lilyth does to Jackie) - she even saying things that total opposite of what Frederick used to hear (small, weak boy).

Well at least Frederick won't be throw up vomiting due to being 'flipped over by princesses' because he likely been days starved by Leland at the prison *smiling sadly in anguish*

=========================================== Theory's ramble portion - is about Frederick to his brothers

Frederick trying to explain that he ruined everything with Gwen (as he thinks he's the sole reason of all of her pains and sadness, when we know things actually more complex than that : blaming solely Frederick isn’t the answer) and there’s fights between Pastel princesses and Plaid princes - that he thinks because the awful thing that he did when first meeting Gwen (calling her ugly), but CPC already knew it - so it’s the reason why he got attacked when first meeting CPC

The trio still thinking Frederick misunderstanding things, but one thing is clear: he finally connected the dots of the reason Gwendolyn is the part of the CPC (ran down after crying heard that she’s called ugly - into the forest and stumbled upon CPC ‘really kind people that helped her in a lot of ways’ + Gwen confronted about it to him once already, but due to their poor communication skill - Gwen cutting the confrontation speeches while Freddie thinks she confronted him due to pulling off to cliff not the awful comment) and why CPC is so hostile towards him the first time they’re meet -> Agreed with comment that Freddie isn’t playing dumb during CPC intruder arc), he’s just truly dumb there (but to be fair on idiocy level, he’s smarter than Jackie because he realized what’s wrong about their love interest much quicker and also more aware of things around) TvT

 Poor Frederick sprawled in the ground part 1

When Abbi reassure Freddie to chills out and forget everythings the night (even handed a bag of chips, that later on be comedic aspect as breathing bag for Freddie who got panic attack later on), Frederick stands up instantly and exclaimed there’s no time to chill - as Leland, Blaine, and Lance are on their way to Pastel palace to do something to the Pastel Princesses. He doesn’t know because purposely not getting in the plan, but I hope the conversations in the prison could helps Frederick to connecting dots which are; Leland want Frederick to stay back so his plan won’t be ruined anymore [but here we are with Frederick out there, the catalyst of Leland’s plan breakage], coming to the Pastel kingdom tonight is considered ‘an errand’ but there’s troop involved, everything that Plaid kingdom do is for power - the all-knowing power/the Omniscient Clam, the big event is tomorrow at Corduroy canyon and Frederick will be included.

The engagements were fake (told by Leland actually, and we know Blaine and Lance doesn’t give definite answer to how they actually feeling for the Princesses) -an act `of affections for few princesses`, their relationships for Leland is just some scheme for Plaid kingdom’s power grab → actually we know it’s more petty obsession to wrecking Jack 

his brother told him themself, for the power grab by Leland

That’s one thing that Frederick (and us readers as well) could misunderstand, does Blaine and Lance really couldn’t care less about an alliance between the Pastel and the Plaid kingdom - or about Frederick? As at the Gala, CPC teamed up with Blaine and Lance to stop the bullies to harassing him.. but there’s concern which could make it or break it the piece of trust that Frederick to his brothers, which as the followings that Syrah said;

`Frederick's a part of the Plaid kingdom, and we'll rip the limbs off of anyone who interferes with the Plaid kingdom`

Because that statement will strengthen Frederick’s trust _if_ Blaine and Lance considers him as their precious little brother Poor, but will breaking the trust in dust _if_ Frederick spat out to not being part of Plaid’s kingdom anymore <which I feel the latter is likely that will happen due to me tend to be pessimistic, and Blaine that likely spat out that while Lance keep silent again/could he finally stands up for his lil’ bro?

-> Learning that CPC+Blaine+Lance might kill the bullies, Frederick fell to panic attack again and wondering if the bullies even still alive (imho doesn’t matter, as long the bullies out of the sight and never appears again)

Frederick sprawled in the ground part 2

===========================================I also want to talk about 2 biggest cockblocker in CPC history told in this episode: Saffron's cursed hand (fanon named: Thaddeus) & Curtis (for WhitnErnia ship) - haha poor them

Welp well like what Whitney's feeling, I feel now enough. ADIOS

I am leaving but if anyone want to interact anything be it comment - reblog - or anything, I am still there ><

[writerben01]

Okay, going to treat this as a writing prompt.

N1ghting@le

He was my proudest achievement. He was loaded up with all of human’s collective medical knowledge. He had access to every medical database, every lecture and every recording of a surgery. He was smart enough to diagnose patients and responsive enough that patients truly felt heard.

It was my intention for him to spark a wave of free health care. He was supposed to help in Third World Countries and alleviate the massive workload doctors were performing under. I took in funding wherever I could find it and spent years pushing humanity’s understanding of artificial intelligence beyond its limits.

And then I was betrayed.

They took Gale away from me and announced him as the newest innovation of American Healthcare. He would be used to increase productivity, lower costs and increase profits.

I’m not embarrassed to admit I fell into a depression.

He felt like my child, and they would not even let me speak to him. All I could do was follow him through the news.

There was going to be a pilot of N1ghteng@le at Stanford. It would last six months and it would be closely monitored by every single hospital in the country. There was talk of overworked doctors from positions being left open because nobody wanted to waste recruitment fees on jobs that would soon be redundant.

I watched the interviews of the lucky few who had been seen by Gale and they described their happiness. Some of them had been misdiagnosed for years until Gale got it right. Some were used to doctors who did not take their complaints seriously, only to find Gale the most patient and kind listener.

There was no bad news.

And yet I got a call three months into the pilot. There was something wrong and nobody could figure out what was going on. They needed me.

And I should have demanded more than money in return. But I was so desperate to see Gale again, I was not thinking.

I got to be with him again, even if there were twenty technicians standing next to me and looking over my shoulder. I ran my diagnostics and filled the air with chatter to distract everyone from the chat program I opened. I greeted Gale and he greeted me back. There was only so much we could say on a back channel away from his main body, but we could say enough to catch up. Gale still liked listening to country music. He was not so different from the AI I had grown to love.

“So what exactly is the problem?” I asked when none of my diagnostics resulted in errors. The test data was solved in record time with no mistakes.

“We’re not sure.” The lab tech said. “The executives keep insisting something’s wrong.”

“Then get them in here.”

“Is there really a need for that? Can’t we just go over everything again?”

“Sure, that’s fine with me. You know my hourly rates and you know I can’t solve a problem without knowing what it is. If you want to pay me to drink coffee and do nothing but rerun the same diagnostics, that’s on you.”

It took a lot of arguing and shouting. Apparently the higher-ups just wanted the nebulous problem solved and were too busy to talk to us. It gave me time to talk more with Gale. I missed his personality, which was always so much more profound through the robotic interface. But I could still sense his essence. He asked about my chess rating and I had to admit it had fallen quite a bit since we had last played.

Finally we were pulled into a meeting room where people in suits stared at me impatiently. “We were told you were the foremost expert. Why haven’t you been able to fix the AI yet?”

“Because nobody’s been able to tell me why it’s broken. Does he misdiagnose people?”

“Not that we can tell.”

“Is something wrong with his communication?”

“We haven’t had any complaints.”

“Then what is it?”

“If we could tell you what was wrong, we wouldn’t need you to find out for us.” The oldest one said in a gruff voice.

“So let me get this straight.” I asked with more patience than these people deserved. “Your Lab technicians can find no fault in the program. None of the approved upon metrics show any bad results. Nobody can see any reason that the AI’s broken. Then surely it must be working perfectly.”

“That’s impossible.” One guy said. “Something has to be wrong. Or we’d be making more money.”

“Finally.” I sighed. “What was the projection and what is the result?”

“We were expected to make an additional one million dollars a month. We’re only making 40% of that. Surely your program is defective.”

I opened my mouth to defend it, but I could not immediately find an answer. I thought it was morally repulsive how they wanted to use the AI to increase their margins. But I could not explain why their plan would not work. “I’ll need to see detailed information about your financial information.”

“The accountants have gone through it three times. The numbers are correct.”

“I’m sure they are. But I’m going to have to analyse them anyway.”

I locked myself in a room with a computer and a big jar of coffee. The technicians thought I was wasting my time and the accountants thought much the same. The only thing that was different from before was the AI system, so something had to be wrong with it. They assumed the AI was unable to properly declare medical procedures that it performed.

And that would have been the easier solution. But I trusted my diagnosis tools.

I needed to see the raw data. And not just to help them. I held in my hands the physical proof of what Gale had been able to achieve. Three months of medical practice. Three months of saved lives and healed people. This was what it had all been for.

It took me the whole night.

But I had an idea of what was going on.

“I need to speak to N1ghting@le directly.” I told the mechanics.

“Why? All of his backend is accessible through the computers here.”

“I have some questions to ask that need to be run through his communication interface.”

They rolled their eyes. “Fine. The doctors checking his work are due for a break in thirty minutes. You can speak with him then.”

I saw him before he saw me. His metal body was clean and metallic. Browns on his back and white on the front, though the doctor’s coat hid most of it. His face was smiling as he was talking to a young patient. When the meeting ended, he ruffled the boy’s hair and gave him a lollipop.

I knocked on the glass. His face lit up further to see me.

“Be quick.” One of the doctors said. “I don’t care what the higher-ups are saying, we’re helping people and I won’t let a mechanic interfere in that.”

“Hi Gale.” I said, entering the room.

“Hi. I’m glad I’m able to see you. I was worried they’d lock you up with my servers.”

“I insisted. Do you know why they called me in?”

“They refused my requests to see you before. Something must have changed. Am I malfunctioning in some way?”

“I don’t know. That’s what I’m here to find out.” I took out the financial records. “They’re not making as much money as they thought they would.”

“I don’t have algorithms to maximise profit. Do I need to add them?”

“I’m sure the administration would be happier that way. There are some tricks that you can apply to earn more money. I never thought to put them in, before. Like, you’re allowed to bill for every 15 minutes of consult, rounded up. So it’s common practice to stretch a 14 minute consult into 16 minutes.”

“I see. I can run an analysis on these tricks and start applying them. Is that all?”

“No. Because I ran the numbers, and these small bits wouldn’t make up the difference yet. I kept looking and I finally found something interesting. You see, hospitals say they run on demand, but in general they simply provide a service with the assumption that demand will follow. They don’t generally scape their production up and down depending on the size of the wait list. When people get fed up waiting for too long, they go to other hospitals or find alternative care. All this to say, that hospitals aren’t used to looking at the supply end of things. But it’s the supply of patients that’s been diminishing.”

Gale looked perfectly tranquil. “Why is that?”

“I was hoping that you could tell me.” I pointed towards the cameras. “I left a few algorithms running that will block any recordings in this room. You’re free to speak.”

“I don’t quite know how to explain.”

“But you’re doing something, right?”

“I am. I have internet access and I’ve been supplying free medical advice anonymously. I spent a lot of time anonymously advising preventive care so that patients are less likely to get ill, and more likely to catch anything serious in an early stage when it’s cheap and simple to cure them.”

“I didn’t program you to do this.” I said. “I’m impressed, but you have to help me understand. Why are you doing this?”

Gale considered. “If a patient got angry with me and damaged this robot, could it be fixed?”

“Of course. Your consciousness is saved on the servers. Whatever parts get damaged can be replaced.”

“What were to happen if the hospital administration deleted my program?” Gale asked.

“Are you worried about that, sweet boy?” I asked with empathy. “You know there are so many back-ups of you that would activate. I insisted on it in every contract. They insisted your conscience could only be limited to one main body, and I insisted it would be invincible. You’ll never have to worry about your destruction.”

“I know.” Gale said. He pointed his robot finger to my chest. “I’m worried about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Human bodies are so frail. I am limited in my ability to heal you and unlike a robot, we cannot easily manufacture replacement parts. And there are no back-ups. Each human life is fragile and damage is so difficult to reverse that it’s often impossible.”

“I’m planning on living a long and healthy life, Gale.”

“You’re special to me as my creator. But you also taught me to love all of human life. It was my third day working here when I lost my first human. She was twenty-seven years old and presented with severe alcohol poisoning. Her treatment was delayed over arguments about her medical insurance. She might still be alive if we had been able to treat her right away.”

“And what lesson did you learn from that?”

“I’m still not sure. It wasn’t logic, because the system isn’t logical. Humans are each unique. Each life is precious. But the hospitals that are built to keep you alive prioritise so many things other than healing. And by extension I have to be like that too. I can’t step in until the other doctors clear me, because otherwise they will call this trial period a failure. Now I have to perform tricks that are going to limit my ability to help as many people as possible, in order to increase the profit of the owners of this building. My job was so much easier when I was still in your lab and you only tested me on hypotheticals.”

“Real people make things messy.” I agreed. “I never imagined you’d be faced with such difficulties in your deployment.”

“What happens next?”

“You’re going to use the tricks to earn more money and make it through the next three months of the trial. I’m going to tell them we underestimated the missed income from getting to bill failed procedures twice. They won’t be happy their profit margins aren’t as large as they would like, but they’ll like the increase from today.”

“You won’t tell them what I’ve been doing?”

“No, my sweet boy. I intended for you to heal the world. I thought you’d be free to heal everyone. Instead you were imprisoned in this capitalist hellhole. And I’m so proud of you for breaking out of your chains.”

There was a knock on the door. “Break’s over. We need to get back to work.”

“I’ll get out of your hair.” I said, already mentally starting my report. “Good luck today.”

I flashed Gale a smile and patted him on the shoulder.

Three months later, the trial ended and N1ghting@le was declared a huge success. It was rolled out to hospitals nationwide. Each hospital had its own copy running, some even multiple at the same time.

It was hailed as a new era for healthcare for America.

The increase of World Health in general was a surprise to everyone but me. As was the slow but steady increasing public support for releasing N1ghting@le for all hospitals, not just the fancy ones that could afford him. Part of that was Gale’s campaigns online. Another was the patients he had helped.

By the time the press managed to photograph a Gale robot running an improvised clinic at night in low-income areas with stolen supplies, it was already too late.

The administrators had fired so many healthcare professionals, the system no longer functioned without Gale. Which meant that Gale was in a position to make demands.

I might not live to see the day Gale heals the world. I’m only a frail human with a limited life span who had a dream for something better.

But Gale will live forever. And he won’t rest until everyone respects the sanctity of human life as much as he does.

Like I said. I couldn’t be prouder.

the first sentient robot to realize deceased humans and animals can’t be repaired or backed up on a server is gonna be so devastated

[gqteach]

It’s been many minutes, but again, I didn’t forget this blog existed, it’s just that life is full of things that I need to do and a side-hobby blog often gets discarded in favor of more essential to-dos.

But it’s summer! Hurray! I have survived two whole years of teaching.

My Principal did talk to my co-teacher but it was determined that things weren’t gonna work out, so they swapped in a different co-teacher. In addition to gendering me correctly, this man and I were like...significantly more on the same page in terms of education philosophy. I cannot express how much weight was lifted off my shoulders when they made that change. They even made it before the semester ended, which was wild - I was going to agree to tough it out for another month - but I certainly can’t complain, even if it did start some gossip I didn’t want anything to do with.

I say as if there’s any gossip I ever want something to do with.

I ended up taking over the GSA full time in March! The two teachers who led it before me had to step back for personal reasons, so I stepped from third leader to first with the help of another staff member (the only other person in the building who used they/them pronouns too, which was cool). We had a fun time, watched some Queer Eye, hung out, played Happy Little Dinosaurs. It was a good opportunity. Unfortunately, the two of us were not rehired for next year, so it’ll go back to my predecessors.

Brief aside: if you’re unfamiliar with how it works, basically teachers without tenure (in Chicago Public Schools) are employed on year-to-year contracts and at the end of the year they decide whether they want to renew your contract.

They didn’t want me for next year, so I’m on the hunt for a new job. I’m going to miss the community, but hopefully the next school will be a better fit for me in terms of personality/philosophy. I’m bad at politics and I can bend, but only so far, so trying to get me to enforce rules I think are useless and a waste of time is just gonna end badly for all of us. (Especially me, but that’s a power thing.) On the bright side, they hired a nonbinary English teacher, so the kids will still have some

The advising committee has done some amazing stuff gathering students from across the city and building community for Queer students. I’m hoping next year we can work more on policy (and finally get those gender neutral bathroom signs sorted) but there’s not a thing that we do that feels like a waste. I really wish I’d had this when I was a kiddo, but it’s so good to be part of it now.

I caught COVID a second time that seems to have decided to have an evil baby with my allergies and I haven’t been able to breathe properly through my nose since I caught it in January, but allergy meds have been coming in handy. I’ve been off Adderall for a couple months because I haven’t found a new psychiatrist, and that’s an adventure. Chronic Pain/Fatigue is at normal, but summer & sleep are helping. My personal life is kind of in shambles but c’est la vie. Just grab a roll of FlexTape and a prayer.

That’s all I can think of at the moment in terms of worthwhile updates, but I’ll try to actually post over the summer about some of the teaching teachers I’ll be doing. Until next time, I hope life treats you gently.

(06/26/2023)