#i just had to draw this cutie pie properly!

[etternn]

jasonic!

[haunting-jane]

Aang's grief

From the first time I've watched Avatar: The Last Airbender, I've always been really attached to Aang's character and deeply sympathized with his pain. One of the reasons for that, I muse, is the show's bittersweet ending that always made me sad. Sure, Ozai was defeated, Zuko is the new firelord, and all peoples are in peace at last. But when one looks at the cheering crowd, no airbenders are found.

Aang is the only person dressed in orange and yellow amidst a sea of red, green, and blue. He succeeded in his mission of uniting everyone, but there is no way of bringing back or fixing what was done a hundred years prior. And this aspect in specific, I think, is where lies one of Aang's most stinging pain: nobody but him knows what the Air Nation genocide represents.

Nobody truly understands him, because they simply aren't old enough to grieve in the same capacity as him. Toph, Sokka, Zuko, Suki and especially Katara are all amazing, empathetic and kind friends and companions, and they are definitely essential parts of his grief journey. But they just don't. get. it.

Katara and Sokka lost their mother to Fire Nation colonialism, Toph was disinherited and forsaken by her parents, and Zuko's traumas don't even have to be mentioned. However, and I believe this extends to the audience as well, they cannot wrap their minds around a loss as big as that. And in my opinion, that is why so many fans tend to gloss over Aang's trauma or not interpret correctly some of his trauma responses.

Aang lost everything. And everyone. He lost his childhood friends, his home, his old toys, his clothes, his favorite culinary recipes, his parental figures, his books, his drawings, his bed. The Air Nation people weren't just eliminated, their culture, poetry, history, art, cuisine, fashion, ALL of it was erased. And as Aang slept for a hundred years, time went on and took anyone who could remember the Air Nation as it once was.

Although the rest of the Gaang suffered a lot, their pain can still be understood and felt by other people who went through similar situations. Aang, however, is alone. Nobody can really understand what it feels like: to be the only survivor of a genocide, with no home to go back to and suddenly awake in a world strange and hostile to you. At 12, to top it all.

This kind of pain, of rushed trauma causes immense disassociation, and I think Aang didn't even process what actually happened until like season two. Maybe even later. How could he? He woke up and the weight of saving the whole world was thrown onto his shoulders. How could a child, at the same time as all of that was happening, truly comprehend that they are responsible for bringing back an entire nation and culture? That's why I think he was so cheerful and generally happy in the first two seasons, he hadn't actually understood what had happened.

The pain, nevertheless, was there. Maybe Aang didn't truly comprehend that he was the only survivor of a genocide and what was at stake, but he did grieve for his people. And boy, he was angry.

I'm not a psychologist, but I consider that Aang was lost in a haze of anger and denial after he found out what had happened. And, to be honest, I really liked to see those moments when anger came out. It felt cathartic, it felt like something he was entitled to. Don't get me wrong, I fell in love with him as a protagonist precisely because he's a sweetie and a cutie pie. And he definitely deserves to be happy and silly as any normal child. But sometimes I feel like his anger is not really understood, maybe not even by himself.

He wasn't angry just at Fire Nation, he was angry at the Airbender elders who forced him into fulfilling his role as avatar at 12, he was angry at Gyatso for not defending him (or as he erroneously thought), but most importantly, Aang was angry at himself. He was the avatar after all, why did he run and abandon his people to die?

Being a child who did not have time or the means to properly grieve, and was also going through immense pressure, self-blame surely did a number on him and his mental health. Of course he would give up on learning firebending after he accidentally burned Katara. There was no way Aang would ever accept being remotely similar to those who took everything from him (and who took Katara's mom).

Of course he would be initially salty and angry at the people living in the old Air temple, they were acting as if the airbenders never existed in the first place, at least that's how he saw it. He was right there! Maybe his culture was dead, but his tradition still deserved some respect! Still deserved a place in the world! Still deserved to be remembered!

Of course he would be angry at EVERYONE when Appa was captured. He loved Momo deeply, but the lemur wasn't there with him while it all was happening a hundred years ago. Appa was the only one who saw everything, who had lost as much as him. Losing Appa was like losing his last connection, his last piece of the Air Nation. Of course he would be unfair, grieving children do tend to act irrational in moments of anger, especially when they feel isolated from everybody else. It couldn't have been any different, really.

And honestly, I think those issues persisted into his very adulthood. Naturally, losing absolutely everything might be something one never gets over, but considering that Aang never went to therapy and never resolved his internal conflicts and understood his grief, it all persisted.

And obviously he wasn't a very good father. Aang spent his entire life trying to fix what could never be mended, trying to make up for the time he was away in the iceberg, trying to convince himself that he wasn't a failure.

It might be an unpopular opinion, but I do believe he and Katara kept trying until they got an Airbender, and I do not think it would be out of character. Some Aang defenders try really hard to state that he wasn't a bad father. But guys, there's no escaping facts: it's almost impossible to conciliate being the avatar and the responsibilities that come with it with being a good parent.

Of course he would try to repopulate the Air Nation if he never really got over the belief that he was responsible for its destruction in the first place. I know, when studying with that guru, Aang seemingly understandood that he couldn't keep blaming himself for something that he was never in control, but I don't think this kind of conviction can be so easily internalized. Especially when you're blinded by such poignant and isolating grief.

So he favored Tenzin. How could he bring his culture back if he didn't prioritize his little Airbender's upbringing? I wanna make it clear, though, that although I understand why Aang was the way that he was, I'm not justifying his actions. Bumi and Kya were after all emotionally neglected by their father, and that was also not fair.

But, in the end, grief rarely is. Grief kept Aang from truly participating in his two eldest children' childhoods and from seeing that his legacy wouldn't lie on just bringing the Airbenders back.

And I think grief also clouded Aang's eyes with guilt as he realized he could never give Tenzin what was given to him. His tattoo ceremony must have been so sad for Aang, as there was probably only himself, Tenzin, Katara, Bumi and Kya present. The elders were gone, the sky bison were gone, the instruments, the music, the speeches. The richness and culture. He could never give that to Tenzin.

This too, I believe, is also a huge pain Aang carried. The pain of the certainty that no matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried on teaching Tenzin everything he knew, of trying to recuperate as much as humanly possible, the Air Nation he knew would never come back. He could find new Air acolytes, discover a new species of sky bison, sew their clothes as accurately as he could...The Air Nation technically would return, when Tenzin had children.

And he did, and Korra opened the portal and suddenly there were dozens of airbenders. But it would never be the same. They would never have the privilege that other nations had, of revisiting their own past, of having their history documented and culture preserved. No. That Air Nation would die with Aang, and there was nothing he could do to prevent it.

And due to the amount of pressure he put on himself, there was no way he wouldn't pass it on to Tenzin. Can you guys imagine how he felt after Aang passed? Now, he was the one responsible for the Air Nation, and he knew damn well that he was supposed to do it knowing he'd never be as good as Aang. He'd have to find a way to preserve tradition while never actually having known it. To fulfill his father's role and essentially, be him.

Tenzin's pains and traumas are certainly ignored too and deserve a post of their own, tbh. He most definitely compared himself to Aang all the time, and even though he spent most of his childhood with his father, I don't think it was necessarily easy.

Anyway. I'm not really sure how to conclude this. I don't consider Aang an ultimately tragic figure, he did live a happy life alongside his wife and his friends. But I don't think he ever stopped grieving. After all, he wasn't living in usual conditions prior avatars lived in. He had to take on so much responsibility, to grow up so fast, to witness so much chaos and death, only at 12.

In his soul, Aang was a gentle spirit, as Yangchen cleverly put, and a good person, in the raw sense of the word. It just wasn't fair. All that he went through.

Maybe there really isn't a moral of the story or a lesson here. Maybe things are just unfair and not fixable.

So yeah, although Avatar: The Last Airbender technically had a good ending, I can't help feeling blue every time it ends. Because I know Aang, my favorite character of the verse, never really, truly got a happy ending himself. And because I know he'd have to live the rest of his life carrying that pain and that grief.

It brings me a little comfort, however, of thinking that perhaps Aang was watching Jinora's tattoo ceremony. That he was seeing all those airbenders and he was seeing his little granddaughter becoming a master. And that maybe he smiled.

And that maybe, at last, he forgave himself.

[takasgf]

thought just came into my mind after sending that last ask. ik I mentioned swap Morket but that was just swapping their circumstances. I kinda also wanna hear more abt a species swap 💭 where r.ocket is the silly porcelain-like alien and morgan is the... well.!!!! She doesn't have to be a raccoon cause I vaguely remember you drawing her as a deer but yk what I mean. Idk !!! I'm just curious about what you've got going on in ur noggin :3c

HI WISHI!!!! im answering this one first because I've got more ideas for it ;^; I've been thinking about your questions for weeks and I've been trying to get some actual lore bit by bit.

I present to you!!! Morgen Deer :3 (reindeer actually but i like how just deer sounds) in all honesty i've got more ideas for her than humanoid!Rocky, but I'll be sure to do a follow up post for him when I get some ideas. Until then, let's talk about her!! Her story makes more sense in a universe in which they are both animal-like people.

If the outfit isnt too obvious already, she used to be a professional wrestler in this universe! A genetically modified reindeer with amplified strength - she isnt from the same lab as R.ocket's, so I suppose there were multiple space scientists experimenting on animals at the time😭 okay, hers were a bit more caring towards her but they still specifically made her for the entertainment industry. She is pretty feared by others, but not treated with enough respect due to her species. She first meets Rocky when he randomly attends one of her matches, out of curiosity - she was honestly pretty excited to see "someone like her" in the crowd of spectators, so she definitely tried to meet up with him after. Can't say they immediately formed a connection because Morgen was very socially awkward and Rocky's not exactly the most friendliest person either, but they had respect for one another and knew they could count on eachother if there was any need for that.

After some time, Morgen started to get really sick of being a wrestler and not being treated properly and she wanted to find an opportunity to run away!! There was one incident in which she stopped a fight between Rocky and some other person, getting her antler ripped apart in the process. That was her call to start a new life and she ran away with her raccoon friend, who promised he'll fix her antler as thanks for standing up for him. He wasn't very keen on the idea on having a companion (this was before he meet G.root) but he warmed up to her and they stuck together, as they met all of their other friends !! Once again, it took them until after IW to admit their feelings for eachother because they are dumb and scared. It's not like everyone already thought they were together because "hmm if this guy is a furry and this girl is also a furry then they must be a couple!!1!"

ok thats all i have because im burnt out on ideas. humanoid/zteamer person r.ocket is just an emo catboy(raccoon boy?) to be honest. and i think he's super silly and a cutie pie and he still bites people's arms and steps on their feet because he's a short king full of anger

here's an albino raccoon Morgen just for fun though :3 for a silly AU in which they are both raccoons (who kiss) (eachother)

[stuff-from-the-void-matron]

Laurel Wreaths & Animal Teeth (7)

(c!Technoblade x fem!Reader)

(I know y’all are getting tired of waiting for Techno to arrive, so am I! But I have no solid control over the story plot lol but I swear it’ll happen soon!! And y’all know the drill! Reblogs and comments keep this story going. So if you want a chapter 8 then please show this chapter some love! <3)

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(FORGOT TO MENTION ART!

The amazing 'YeetUsFeTUSDelETusss' on DA was so cool and drew two pictures to bless our eyes!!)

READER HERSELF!

READER PROTECTING HER BOYS!

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Only Tubbo showed up the next day, and he said he sadly couldn’t stay for long because him and Tommy were needed back at L’manburg for a while. Meaning him and Tommy wouldn’t be able to visit for a bit, but they’d try to visit as soon as possible! Hearing they’d not come see you for who knows how long made you pretty sad. You honestly looked forward to when they’d visit. It was honestly the highlight of your day. But you knew whatever nonsense was going on in L’manburg currently would need their attention. Though you wondered what exactly was going on. You recalled a decent amount of the ‘history’ of the Dream SMP but you knew you could be misremembering or even mixing things up. But you did remember the big things that happened. Like the wars and stuff. So needless to say you were concerned.

‘What point in history am I in right now? Whenever it is, L’manburg is apparently still standing,’ you thought pensively before asking Tubbo what was going on that they’d need to stay in L’manburg.

Tubbo sighed and said it was ‘just some drama’ but apparently their, meaning his and Tommy’s, older brother figure Wilbur had been president of L’manburg for the entirety of the time L’manburg had existed. But some new citizens who joined them found out he’d not been properly elected and didn’t think it was fair to everyone that Wilbur had basically just made himself president without any input from everyone else. Which you could see was not right but this information told you that you were in the pre-election time. Which meant Schlatt and Quackity hadn’t won yet… But that hinged on this universe even being the same one that you’d watched on youtube. Things could be different here for all you knew. You’d always believed in the multiverse theory so who was to know WHICH universe this was. Or how you even got here. All you could do really was to just… wait and watch.

A couple hours passed during the short visit and towards the end Tubbo showed you how to message others, ie; him and Tommy mostly. You’d known how to message others and put in commands and stuff in regular minecraft but you’d just sort of never thought to try those things here in this place. Though to be fair you’d been dealing with a lot of stuff so fiddling with your inventory and everything hadn’t been your top priority. And when he’d mentioned messaging him your first thought had been ‘how?’, because this was a ‘real life’ minecraft, where things were very similar but not always exactly like how it was in the real game. The biggest difference being that there was no computer keyboard or ‘screen’ for the type/chat option to be at the bottom of like in the game.

But to your surprise the place to type in a message was actually IN your inventory. More specifically it was at the very bottom of the main section right below where your items were stored in the hot bar. You’d never paid the long ultra thin box at the bottom any mind, assuming it was just part of the weird design. But no, Tubbo showed you with his inventory how if you tap on the thin box (that you’d honestly thought was just a line) it expands into a typing window! Your eyes widened at that and watched as he tapped the typing box again and a little keyboard appeared below the typing box and he started typing something into it. You squinted and he said to message someone you needed to be sure to type ‘/msg’ and then whoever’s name you’d like to send the message to!

He demonstrated this by typing out the first part then right after it typing your ‘name’; aka Reader. Briefly you wondered why it had been made that but you brushed that thought away to focus on what Tubbo was doing. You saw him type ‘hi reader!!’ before hitting Enter. Then a second later you heard a soft ‘ping!’ sound and you just KNEW your inventory was waiting to be pulled up. Like knew in an instinctual sense. Like how you knew to blink or how to walk. Just an instinct you couldn’t explain so you brought it up and there at the bottom the ‘line’ was flashing a pale red. So you did what Tubbo had done and tapped it, revealing the little typing box. Only this time it had a message in it! It said, ‘Tubbo whispers to you: hi reader!!’ and you smile. Excited now you type out a message to him and hit send. He got it and laughed after he read it. 

‘Reader whispered to you: hello my little goat boy!! :)’

After that he blinked when more messages popped onto his text box. These were from Tommy and Wilbur it looked like. With a sigh he checked his clock and dismissed his chat box before saying he was sorry but he had to get going. He’d actually stayed longer than he was supposed to. You were sad to see him go but knew he’d be back, and hey, now you could message him and Tommy to make sure they got back to L’manburg safe instead of just wondering like before. So you told him to be careful on his way back and to message you that he was safe home when he arrived, and also if he needed any help. He laughed and cheekily said he would but gave a shy smile when you pulled him into a hug and gently knocked your antlers with his horns, but he happily returned it. Not so secretly enjoying the affection. But he had to pull back and leave.

That left you to your own devices.

-0-

With nothing better to do you initially spent the next three days building a couple fountains in the village (which was getting pretty big..). One tiny frog shaped one in the little grotto at the west side of the village and a much larger more traditional one in the opposite side of the village. You’d even set up park benches, flower plots, lamp posts, and stone sidewalk around the bigger one. It was very pretty and the villagers seemed to be enjoying it. But after that was done you’d sorta gotten bored. You weren’t really inspired to do anything else to the village so you thought of ways to occupy yourself. Eventually a metaphorical lightbulb flickered to life above your head and you got an idea. 

You could go to the Nether! 

Sure you weren’t the biggest fan of the place but it beat sitting around twiddling your thumbs waiting for a reply from your only two friends like some loser. And hey, you liked giving piglins gold. They made cute little piggy snorts when they were happy. So with that loose plan in mind you got up from where you’d been lounging by the creek and brushed yourself off before heading out to the place outside the bamboo and prickle berry wall you’d placed the first Nether portal. You crafted one real quick before tensing up when you heard the sound of rustling behind you. Assuming it was a creeper or something you glanced back, not that it would hurt you but you still found it unsettling for anything to be sneaking up behind you. You caught a brief glimpse of something small and white disappearing into a cluster of ferns. You paused, wondering what it was but then about a block to the left of the ferns a chicken and her chick walked out from around a tree. ‘Oh, must have just been a baby chicken’, you thought with a mental shrug before turning back to your task of lighting the portal with your flint and steel.

Once activated you stepped into the purple swirling mist and your vision warped before you ended up in the Nether again, stifling heat and all. 

-0-

You’d been exploring the Nether for what felt like hours. The place was goddamn enormous! You’d followed the same sand block trail from the last time you’d been here, seeing the piglins and a few striders along the way. And to your delight a familiar little piglin baby started following you. She (you think she’s a ‘she’, that’s the vibe you’re getting anyways) had to be the one you’d played with the last time you’d been in the Nether. You crouched down and patted her head and pulled a golden carrot from your inventory before gifting it to her. She squealed happily and munched on it. You kept walking along the sand path before reaching the fortress. That’s when you diverted your path to the right and started exploring that way, careful to keep laying down sand as you did. You thought the baby piglin had stayed back but after a while of walking you heard a soft snort and glanced down to the left of you to see her happily trotting along with you, still nibbling on the golden carrot.

You wanted to melt, she was such a cutie pie. You stopped and asked if she should be travelling so far away. Won’t her parents miss her? She blinks and seems to understand you before shaking her head ‘no’. You figure she must have some pretty lenient parents. But you suppose piglins are sturdier than humans so it makes sense they’d keep their kids on a looser leash than humans would. So you ask her where her parents are and if they’d be okay with her wandering off with you, a stranger. She tilts her head and shrugs. You purse your lips and ask if she can take you to her parents so you can ask if they’d be okay with it. This time she shakes his head no. So you ask her why and she seems to be thinking how to answer before she goes over to the closest block of sand and starts drawing in it. You look over her shoulder and see her drawing three hearts. Then your stomach sinks when you see her draw an ‘X’ over each heart, meaning one thing..

“Oh sweetie, did your parents lose all their lives?” you ask in a gentle tone.

The tiny piglin nodded and your heart broke for her. You asked some more questions and discovered she wasn’t really being taken care of by any one piglin. The other piglins knew her parents were gone so they’d sorta chip in to make sure she had food. But that was really it. This made you feel worse so you just sighed and patted her head and said she could join you while you explored the Nether. She snorted happily and you two continued on your way. Eventually after walking for a bit you came across a warped forest. You had to admit the biome was much prettier in person. The stark contrast between the Nether’s usual red color scheme and the teal of the warped forest was really beautiful. Even the weird little green/orange fungus that were growing everywhere were cute. You even picked a handful to keep, placing them in your inventory before continuing your little jaunt with the baby piglin. 

That last thought made you mentally pause and realize that you couldn’t just keep calling this kid ‘baby piglin’. So you stopped walking and looked down before saying you forgot to introduce yourself. She could call you Reader (since that’s what your little name thing said..). Then you asked what her name was. She blinked before snorting a little, like she was clearing her throat, and said, “Azogamay.” 

You smiled and said you liked her name, making her give a cute little tusked smile. Then as you continued exploring you both made small talk. Nothing deep (how deep could conversation get with a little kid) but you asked each other the usual questions. Like favorite foods, favorite colors, favorite animals, etc. Then Azo (you’d taken to shortening her name to make it easier) answered one of your questions with some gibberish that made you pause. You glanced down at her and gave a ‘huh?’ that made her giggle before apparently remembering you weren’t a piglin. She said she forgot and spoke Piglin. That made you raise your eyebrows because you’d never thought about other species in the game having their own language. But now that you were thinking about it, it totally made sense. Of course they would, duh. Now very curious you asked her to teach you a little! Like did she know how your name would be said in Piglin? Her answer surprised you…

“Eaderray!” she said in her quiet baby voice.

Now you two had entered a wide soul sand valley, which made Azo anxious. She hid behind your leg, making you recall that Piglins didn’t really spawn in this biome or like soul fire (which is super common here). You had to admit the place was rather creepy. It didn’t help that the soul sand beneath your feet was emitting a rather creepy whispery wail. So you decided to turn back and try another direction. Azo seemed relieved and trotted along behind you. But once you were walking again you remembered your last thought and had a vague feeling about this ‘piglin speak’ and wanted to hear more. So you asked Azo some other words, just to test this theory of yours. And well…

Skeleton? Eletonskay…

Blaze? Azeblay…

Strider? Iderstray…

Lava? Avalay...

Gold? ...Oldgay (that may have made you snicker).

But you got the idea and honestly you cannot be held accountable for your reaction after you realized Piglins honest to fucking god spoke PIG LATIN.

You lost it. You laughed so hard you doubled over and had to brace your hands on your knees to keep from collapsing onto the ground. Azo didn’t know what was so funny but your laughter was contagious and she ended up laughing too, intermixed with little snorts that made you laugh even harder. It was a whole cycle. And by the end of it you’d laughed so hard you started coughing and had to sit down to catch your breath. The giggles returned a couple times but eventually you got control over yourself enough to be able to breathe normally again. As you sat there, little Azo looking up at you in amusement, you couldn’t believe the absolute batshit nonsense that was happening in your life right now. But out of everything that had happened, you think finding out Piglins spoke pig latin had to be the funniest. Though you wanted to test your theory further so you said to Azo,

“Ellohay Azogamay, isyay isthay ightray?”

Azo’s eyes brightened and she perked up, looking close to bouncing from excitement as she realized you were speaking ‘Piglin’ to her. She started babbling at the speed of light, in a way that all excited toddlers seemed to be able to do. While it was cute enough to pull a chuckle from you the downside was that you could not understand a single word Azo said. You got her to slow down, telling her you didn’t speak Piglin fluently so she would have to go slow with you otherwise you’d be lost. She nodded, just happy that you could understand Piglin. So she slowed down a lot and chatted with you that way. And that’s pretty much how the rest of your time in the Nether went. You traversed through the hellish dimension and brushed up on your pig latin with the little piglin. 

It has definitely been a LONG time since you’d even thought about the made up ‘language’. You’d had a friend in elementary school who had been Obsessed with it. It was all they spoke sometimes and they’d talked it up so much that it caught on with the rest of the class, yourself included, and soon everyone was using it to write notes to each other, like a secret language. You’d even speak to each other only in pig latin during recess and lunch breaks. You’d been fluent in it and didn’t even have to think before speaking. Though after a year it had lost its popularity and everyone slowly stopped using it since the fad was over. But you still remembered a good deal of it. Enough to speak it slowly anyways. But the more you used it the easier it was to speak it. It was like riding a bike you supposed, you never truly forgot it.

-0-

Things were going fine until they weren’t. You’d stopped to have lunch in a crimson forest, more for Azo’s benefit than your own, and were sitting and eating for a while before Azo started playing with a baby hoglin. Which had been fine, you’d seen baby piglins and hoglins do that in the game before, no biggie. But they’d gotten rambunctious the way kids do when they’re playing together. And while chasing each other around Azo had smacked into one of the adult hoglins, which had pissed it off enough for it to snarl angrily and start chasing Azo. And Azo in turn began squealing in fear while running away. You’d dropped the steak you’d been idly munching on and sprinted after the two. Sadly the hoglin was closer to Azo than you and managed to get one good hit in with its tusks, the force behind it practically yeeting Azo up into the air. You yelled in horror as you watched the baby piglin fall down into a lava filled ravine. 

Panic flooded your body, you knew zombie piglins were fireproof but regular piglins were not as far as you knew. Let alone baby piglins who just took a direct hit from a damn hoglin. So without thinking about it you dove into the ravine after Azo, catching her in your arms and fully planning to hold her up above the lava since it wouldn’t hurt you. Once she was in your arms you jerked back instinctively, not sure why, just maybe bracing for the impact with the lava. You waited but… nothing. About that second you realized that you weren’t moving anymore. You’d come to a halt and at first you wondered if maybe you’d landed on a block and not noticed. But… one glance down revealed you were not in fact standing on a block. Actually you weren’t standing on anything. You were hovering about 3 or 4 blocks above the bubbling lava at the bottom of the ravine. You were so stunned that you almost missed the sniffling snorts that started up next to your face but thankfully they broke you out of your shocked state. You looked at Azo and your heart broke when you saw her tearing up and looking close to crying. Forgetting momentarily about whatever the fuck was going on with you floating you focused on soothing her.

“Aw sweetie, are you okay? You took a hit from that hoglin, where does it hurt?” you cooed.

She was babbling mostly, being too upset to try to speak English. And understanding crying pig latin was almost impossible. So you just asked her to point where it hurt. She reached for her back and side and you softly told her you were going to lift her shirt a little bit to see if there was a mark, and she nodded shakily and sniffled while you did. You winced at the blooming bruise and adjusted her so you were basically cradling her and with your free hand you opened your inventory and started looking through the potions. You grabbed a healing potion and uncorked it before offering it to Azo, whose snout wrinkled at the potion. You told her it was alright, it was a healing potion that would make her feel better and get rid of those bruises for her. She looked unsure but still let you raise the mouth of the potion bottle to her lips so she could sip it. She took a few sips before hiccuping, potion swirls wafting off of her after she did. The baby piglin blinked and felt the pain in her back and side start to disappear. 

You smiled and said that must feel better, Azo nodded and was happy she wasn’t hurting anymore. You let her take one more sip for good measure before putting the cork back into the bottle and stashing it in your inventory. But once that was done you were reminded of your current predicament. You were still floating in place above a ravine of lava.. With zero clue on how to move too. Briefly you internally panicked at the thought of just.. never being able to move again!! Being stuck fixed in one spot forever with no way to get down or live freely! Though before you could panic further you took a deep breath and told yourself to relax. This wasn’t permanent, it couldn’t be. There logically has to be a way for you to move. You got yourself stuck here and you’ll get yourself down as well.

And the last thing you wanted was to look scared with Azo here with you. She was just a little kid and needed the only adult around to be strong for her. So you put on a smile and reassured her that things will be okay and you’ll figure out how to get them both safe on land in no time. Azo nodded, looking less worried than before. So you started trying things you think would get you to move. You could move your limbs no problem. Proven by how you could move Azo around with your arms and kick your legs about without issue. But your body as a whole was still locked in place. Though when you leaned your upper body to the left you hit a breakthrough! Tilting your torso to the left managed to move your whole body to the left by about a block and a half! Now onto the right path you started leaning your torso this way and that, figuring out what movements actually got you moving and which ones didn’t. Figuring out how to move side to side and forwards and back was pretty easy. But it was figuring out up and down that was tricky. 

At the moment going down was the last thing you were interested in, what with the lava beneath you. So you tried focusing on going up, and after a lot more wiggling about that you were sure made you look like an idiot to anyone who could be watching (Azo only giggled a little) you finally figured out that to go up you had to tense and stretch your torso a specific way. Like exactly how you would do if you were trying to reach something on the top shelf, only you didn’t have to move your arms or legs the same way, just your torso. Like how people straighten themselves to seem taller, not slouching at all. After getting that down you manage to go up and then over out of the ravine. Which was a relief and a half. Now that the threat of sinking into lava wasn’t a worry you instead fixated on getting down. Thanks to figuring out how to get up you had an easier time getting the hang of getting down.

Once your feet touched the ground the floating thing disappeared and gravity was restored to you, making you able to walk around normally again. You gave a small cheer, Azo snorting happily as you carried her back to your spot on one of the crimson mushroom tree tops. Once seated you let out a breath and felt your shoulders relax. You hadn’t even been aware they’d been so tense, but you guess it made sense what with how you just sorta had a weird physics related mishap. But now that you and little Azo were safe you felt like you could breathe again. 

You took a golden apple out of your inventory and took a bite, the sweet juice soothing your metaphorical ruffled feathers. You noticed you mostly just eat for the taste now. Which was fine you guessed. When you glanced down you held the apple close to Azo’s face, asking in semi-good piglin if she wanted a bite, chuckling when she eagerly sunk her little teeth into the sweet fruity flesh of it. You gave her the rest and just watched the other Nether inhabitants mill about peacefully. Today had been a wild ride for sure. At least compared to your usual peaceful days. You leaned back against the lump of red fungus behind you, Azo cradled in your arms, and sighed calmly. You’d been ready to rest your eyes when you heard a soft ‘ping!’ that had you blinking back into focus. It was your communicator app thing. Thinking it was just Tubbo messaging you to say goodnight or something you casually opened the message. But when you did you raised an eyebrow at the note from your kid.

‘Tubbo whispers to you: the election is tomorrow afternoon, can you come? 

‘Tubbo whispers to you: i’ve got a bad feeling.. i’m not trying to pull you into our mess’

‘Tubbo whispers to you: but idk i’d feel better if you were there.’

You had a bad feeling too… You hoped what you likely knew was going to happen DIDN’T happen but.. it probably was. So you sent back a quick reply to Tubbo.

‘You whisper to Tubbo: of course I will! you can show me around your home! :)

You tried to keep your reply upbeat and happy, not wanting to feed into the teenager’s worry. Even though you were probably more worried now that he was. But regardless.

It looked like you were visiting L’manburg.

[whore-for-nohr]

Laslow Fluff Headcanons

No-one asked for these, but I'm having a lot of feelings for this cutie pie right now, so here are some headcanons of Laslow being pursued by an astute reader~ I'll focus on Fates Laslow for this post. These kind of meander so sorry about that...

Laslow/Inigo

It doesn't matter what realm he's in - Laslow's secretly a shy boi. He just covers it by flirting. He's been doing it for so long that he's almost become the mask, but he still gets downtrodden with each rejection. Has to be said, it's partially self-inflicted since he insists on flirting with almost every woman he meets, even the married ones or the ones who could break him like a pretty twig. But I digress. Laslow's a flirty crybaby with a disastrous love life. What a cute little shit.

He's always the one doing the chasing, never the chased. Which is surprising, considering that he's a royal retainer to the future king. You'd think he'd be quite the catch. But alas, his reputation as a consummate flirt precedes him and the only people who seek him out either want to get close to Xander or just want to rob him and tie him to a tree.

Hope springs eternal, but at this point he honestly expects to be rejected by every girl he talks to. So he's taken aback when you say yes. Even worse, he gets horribly flustered when you turn the tables on him and start flirting right back. It's so cute. He goes from suave to red-faced and shy in the blink of an eye, sputtering.

"Oh? You...actually want to? Well, of course! Ah...shall we then?"

He has quick social reflexes so it doesn't take him long to bounce back, but there's a nervous energy to him now. Uncertain but excited. In the back of his mind he's semi-suspicious that you might be another mugger, but Laslow's not one to turn down an opportunity for a tea date. He'll take you to his favourite place. The familiarity makes him feel more confident, and the tea is honestly just that good. Tea is kind of an expensive commodity in Nohr since it doesn't grow well in their climate, so he's splashing out on you a bit.

He's an incorrigible flirt so the compliments come freely and often, but he will tone it down once you both find an equilibrium and start properly talking. He's had a lot of practice talking to people, so I imagine he's picked up on how to draw people out of themselves, while still being a little cagey himself. Laslow's not sure how to feel when his own techniques are being used against him and he finds himself opening up

Don't get me wrong, he won't tell you where he comes from or much about his past. He has to be vague to protect himself and his friends. But he finds himself sharing opinions and thoughts that he's rarely expressed aloud, talking about his day-to-day life and his friends.

In the back of his mind he expects you to start asking questions about Xander, about the Nohrian court, probing for gossip or secrets you can use to your own advantage. But you only seem interested in the things that touch on his life. He gets a laugh when he sheepishly admits he was grounded by Xander for flirting too much.

The date is going so well that Laslow starts to get uneasy. It doesn't show on his face, but he wonders if this is some kind of set-up. You wouldn't think the guy is a cynic but he's been burned a few too many times over the years. If it's not someone trying to rob him, then maybe Selena paid you off to go on a date with him and hit him with a pie or pour tea over his head at some embarrassing, public moment. Okay, maybe that's taking it a bit too far. He'll chill out after a while, I promise.

I think he could even grow to like being chased, rather than be the chaser. At least it's good for his battered lil ego.

[babysizedfics]

Little Accidents, Big Developments

Chapter 8: Sink and Float

[This is an age regression story]

Chapter Summary: Roman is anxious, Virgil has some compelling things to say, Logan deduces Virgil’s true regression age, Patton gets emotional, and we say good-bye.

Chapter word count: 11,750

Other chapters: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / bonus

Read on AO3 or below the cut!

Content warning: Light angst, but cuteness galore to make up for it.

oOo

‘All right, little prince. What should I write here?’

‘His coolness rating,’ Roman replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. His tongue stuck out slightly as he concentrated on his drawing; a picture of Kanga on the top half of a small piece of paper. Underneath the character were five rectangles, all coloured to varying levels of completion.

‘Of course,’ Patton said, nodding solemnly as he wrote “coolness” underneath the fifth rectangle on his own piece of paper. ‘And I’m guessing Tigger’s coolness rating is -’

‘Ten.’

‘Ten. Obviously,’ Patton giggled. He picked up the red crayon from the dining room table and coloured the final rectangle to completion. Just like the four rectangles above it. They signified Tigger’s bounciness, funniness, orangeness, and Roman’s seal of approval ratings, all maxed out. ‘I’m starting to think this card might be rigged.’

‘Nu-uh!’ Roman cried, finally looking up from his drawing with a pout. ‘Not rigged if it’s true. Tigger is the funniest, bounciest, orangest, coolest character, and he’s my favourite. He just has to win all of the rounds!’

Despite the frankly questionable logic, Patton was simply glad that Roman was back to his cheeky self.

While they baked, Roman had been strangely well-behaved. The way he had obediently mixed the batter, rolled the dough, and shaped the cookies without so much as a whinge was highly unusual. Patton was glad he didn’t have to tell the boy off for anything, of course, but there was nothing relieving in seeing Roman stand patiently at the side of the room while Patton washed up. There was no singing, no dancing, no bouncing, not so much as a peep from the little prince. It just wasn’t right.

Roman was boisterous, whether he was little or not; he was excitable and hyperactive and loud. Usually, he would have baulked at the mere suggestion of standing in silence awaiting instructions. Though that was precisely what he had done in the kitchen by his own volition, staring at his feet in quite a pensive manner.

By the time he had set the gingerbread haycorns and hunnypots on the counter to cool down, Patton had made the decision to extend their father-son bonding time. He knew Roman’s strange mood would persist if Patton didn’t get to the bottom of it.

‘Where are you going, sweetheart?’ Patton had asked when Roman had started walking towards the living room once Patton had finished the dishes.

‘Back with Vee and Mom,’ Roman had replied. ‘We can’t decorate them yet.’

‘It’s still father-son bonding time though! Why don’t we find something fun to do while we wait?’

He wasn’t quite as bouncy as Patton had hoped he would be, but Roman at least smiled at the suggestion.

Now, after almost an hour of crafting Pooh Cards (all design credit owing to Roman, of course), the creative side had finally been coaxed out of his sombre, contemplative mood. Patton himself had even perked up from the reassurance that he still knew what was best for his little prince.

‘What if another player that isn’t you gets Tigger’s card?’ Patton asked, neatening the edges of the coloured rectangle. He was careful not to budge Roman with his elbow as did so. ‘Won’t you be sad to lose?’

The scritch of Roman’s crayon paused for a moment, then continued. ‘It will be a worthy loss.’

What a funny little boy, Patton thought with a chuckle. Having finished with Tigger’s statistics, he put the crayon back in Roman’s Lion King pencil case. ‘Okay, last one!’ He slid the card across the table to Roman’s spot. ‘Do you need your dad’s help to draw Tigger?’ Patton asked. (Not so much because he was expecting a positive response, but because he knew the question reinforced both of their respective headspaces.)

‘I got it!’ An orange crayon was snatched from the table.

Patton sat back and watched as Roman drew his favourite character with a bright smile. It was impossible not to mirror it. ‘Once you’ve finished drawing Tigger we can decorate our cookies!’

‘Dad,’ Roman whined without looking up from his drawing, ‘they’re not cookies. They’re haycorns and hunnypots.’

‘Right, haycorns and hunnypots,’ Patton quickly corrected himself. ‘I keep making that mistake, don’t I?’

There was no response from Roman, who was clearly concentrating on getting Tigger’s tail just so.

‘Cutie pie,’ Patton couldn’t help but coo. When he pinched Roman’s cheek the younger side laughed so sincerely that Paton was hit by a wave of equal parts joy and guilt.

Joy because Roman was happy and so utterly adorable. Guilt because Patton clearly didn’t spend enough time with his little prince if this was such a rare sound to him.

‘I’ll get the icing ready,’ Patton whispered, leaving the room quickly.

By the time he had moved the cookies and the icing bowls into the dining room, Roman’s drawing was complete. Patton praised him heartily for his work (to which Roman blushed and giggled) as he arranged their workspace with the three different bowls of glace icing - yellow, pink, and mint green - and the cookies, plus a tube of white writing icing for the hunnypot labels.

Excited to be in charge of yet another creative project, Roman instantly took on a leading role. ‘Dad, you’ve gotta do the writing on the hunnypots and fen - and f-th-then I’m gonna do all the pretty colours!’

‘Right-o, kiddo!’ Patton saluted him, then got right to work. ‘You always have such wonderful ideas, don’t you, little prince?’ The lid to the writing icing tube put up a slight resistance as Patton unscrewed it.

‘Mhm… I’m clever,’ Roman mumbled slowly, concentrating as he spread some green icing onto one of the haycorn cookies.

‘Just like your mom. I’m sure him and Vee agree too.’

‘Vee thinks I’m clever?’ Roman asked, his voice a pitch higher from excitement.

‘Of course, sweetie. He looks up to you a lot.’ The tail of the “Y” that Patton piped accidentally curled off of the hunnypot in his hand. Patton placed the cookie back on the cooling rack and licked the sugary blob off from his fingertip. ‘You two are such lovely brothers - you’re practically inseparable.’

There was a gentle snap. Both Patton and Roman looked down to see that the haycorn in Roman’s hands had snapped in half.

‘Oh…’ Roman breathed as he looked down at the broken cookie. The pout on his face was so intense that Patton was almost worried he would start crying.

‘No, it’s okay. Here,’ Patton gently took the gingerbread pieces from his fingers. ‘Your dad can work his magic and glue it back together with icing. You just keep making them look pretty, sweetheart.’

They resumed decorating in silence, with something indescribable hanging heavily in the air between them. Patton kept quiet, allowing Roman space to speak if he wanted to say anything. Then, after a couple of minutes:

‘Dad?’

It sounded shy, so instead of looking at Roman and possibly making him more nervous, Patton’s eyes remained on the haycorn halves that he held together. White icing oozed from the crack as he waited for it to set. ‘Yes, my bright ray of sunshine?’

The nickname pulled a little giggle from Roman, brightening the atmosphere infinitely. He sounded a bit more confident when he asked, ‘Is, um… is Vee wearing a diaper?’

Patton’s gaze snapped onto Roman’s face in faint shock.

‘There was a weird sound when Mom moved him earlier,’ Roman explained. ‘And you said he feels littler ‘cause you tried something new.’

There was no variation of upset or amusement on Roman’s face, so Patton was not concerned when he confirmed, ‘Yes, he is wearing a diaper, you’re right.’ Though he still felt it important to add, ‘Does that make you feel okay?’

Roman quickly nodded, clearly desperate to show that he was not in opposition. ‘No, it’s fine. W-wait, I mean yeah! Yeah, it’s okay.’ His eyes fell down to the cookie in his hands as he continued decorating. ‘It makes sense. Babies need diapers, right?’

‘Right.’

The way Roman gazed at his cookie reminded Patton of how he had appeared in the kitchen; contemplative. It was clear that Roman had more to say, going by the way his toes tapped at the foot of Patton’s chair rapidly. Patton waited.

‘Okay, wait, so,’ Roman eventually said, sounding as if he were a student troubling himself over a difficult math problem and Patton was the teacher who could shed some light on its solution. ‘Virgil really can’t go to the toilet?’

Patton readjusted himself to lean his elbows on the table, settling in to patiently help Roman through his confusion. ‘Not when he’s regressed, no.’ The cookie halves wobbled a little in his hold.

‘And can he really not speak properly?’

This time Patton had to take a moment to think over his answer. He hadn’t actually considered questioning whether Virgil’s hindered speech was genuine. Now that he thought about it, Virgil did appear to try hard when he spoke while regressed. Although the babbles were quiet and seemed to meld into each other, they were notably forced. As if he was putting a lot of effort into getting them out. And yet they were only ever half-coherent at the best of times.

‘No,’ Patton said, smiling to himself at the realisation. ‘I don’t think he can.’ The reminder that Virgil’s regression was all-encompassing sent a rush of excitement racing through Patton’s veins. He truly was responsible for an incredibly vulnerable baby. While that thought might have been intimidating to some, Patton was filled with pure comfort at the mere thought. It was like he was finally fulfilling his purpose. It was like coming home.

‘So… Vee is really, actually a baby.’ Roman’s eyes were wide and his voice laced with astonishment.

‘Yes,’ Patton confirmed with a giggle. It sounded like this was a new revelation to Roman. ‘Your baby brother is really, actually a baby.’

Roman’s brow pulled into a light frown as his spoon swiped over his cookie one last time before dropping into the icing bowl with a clatter.

It was clear Roman wanted to ponder over the answer, for whatever reason, so Patton turned his attention to testing the cookie in his hands. At the slightest pressure, the two halves broke free from each other, and he tutted. Replenishing the icing more liberally this time, he held the jagged edges together firmly again.

‘I like that,’ Roman muttered.

‘What’s that, sweetie?’

‘I like having a baby brother.’ Patton saw Roman nodding as if assuring himself of his decision. ‘I don’t want Vee to be like me, I like that we’re different.’

The last part seemingly came from nowhere, and the whole discussion seemed oddly disjointed, though Patton didn’t show his confusion. Instead, he opted for his standard smile of loving support, which would always be appropriate in any situation as far as Patton was concerned.

‘Well, I’m glad you like it!’ His tone bounced cheerfully. ‘And I know that Vee really loves having a big brother.’

‘Hm,’ Roman hummed and picked up a hunnypot cookie to decorate. Something in the slow movements of his fingers as he iced the treat felt off.

Patton nudged him gently, jostling his elbow. A sympathetic smile wormed its way onto his lips when he saw distant eyes snap onto him. Roman’s throat rolled with a gulp.

‘What’s the matter, little prince?‘ Patton murmured sweetly. It never took Roman long to blurt any troubling thoughts that hurtled through his mind when Patton asked about them with such softness.

Right on cue, Roman sighed explosively. Then he began: ‘Now that I’m part of the family -’

(Patton’s heart twisted. Now that Roman was part of the family. As if he hadn’t been before.)

‘- I’m kind of…’ Roman paused, nibbling his lip. His eyes fell to the table as he whispered, ‘I’m scared.’

Patton instantly dropped his cookie to the table. He didn’t care that it split apart once more, leaving a thin line of white, sugary goop on the wooden surface - his only priority at that moment was Roman. His little prince always placed so much importance on being fiercely brave and strong. Patton knew this must have been an exceptional circumstance for him to actually admit to feeling afraid.

‘What are you scared of, honey?’ he asked, his tone as steady and firm as the arm he placed around Roman’s shoulders. It was of utmost importance that Roman saw him as a supportive, strong father figure during that moment of rare vulnerability. It had to be known that Patton would protect him from anything that was causing him distress.

‘I’m scared it’ll end.’ Thankfully, Roman clearly found Patton supportive enough to lean against him as he spoke. ‘You know, us being a family.’

It was difficult to contain the urge to shrug off the mere idea. Though Patton knew better than to dismiss his loved ones’ worries, no matter how seemingly unlikely. ‘Why do you think it will end?’ he asked instead.

A sharp shrug jostled both of their bodies. ‘I don’t know… What if Vee stops regressing?’

‘I don’t think that will happen,’ Patton said gently as he swayed them to and fro. The weight against his side got heavier as Roman leaned into his one-armed embrace. ‘Your mom thinks the regression is written right into Virgil’s brain since he’s done it for so many years. It’s a part of him.’

‘Okay…’ Roman sounded uncertain still, reaching forward to fidget with the hem of Patton’s cardigan. ‘What if me and him start arguing all the time again?’

Taking the long fingers in his own, Patton whispered, ‘You won’t,’ with absolute confidence. ‘I don’t think you could go back to how you used to be after everything you boys have shared with each other.’

When Patton pressed a soft kiss to Roman’s cheek, he honestly expected to feel the tension leave Roman’s body.

Instead, the grip around Patton’s fingers tightened painfully. ‘What if he says he doesn’t wanna be brothers anymore?’ Roman’s words were frantic, panicked. ‘I don’t wanna lose him, he’s the best brother I…’

Silence reigned.

Patton’s gaze sunk to the tabletop where the two halves of the haycorn cookie lay torn apart, joined only by a thin trail of icing.

‘I just don’t want us to be split up,’ Roman whispered brokenly.

Memories flooded Patton’s mind. Of two boisterous children, identical twins, perpetually by each other’s sides despite their constant arguing. Of fearsome fights; scratching and biting and screaming. And of a thought, just a thought, that had passed through Patton’s mind one sunny day like an innocent floating cloud. The thought that one of the twins had potential and that the other was… wrong.

Memories of the following day and only seeing one child come out from their room. Of little snippets of conversation between Janus and Logan. Of realising that the other twin had not ceased to exist, but had been moved to the lower parts of the mind. (No one understood how. It was the only time a side had been moved between the conscious and the subconscious.) (That would change over a decade later when Virgil timidly knocked on their door.)

Memories of the “good” twin - Roman - seeming unaffected by the loss of his brother. Happier, even, that his ideas had no contenders. That there was no longer a double of him suggesting all manner of disturbing things that Patton simply could not stand to hear.

Warm fingers tightened further around his.

As Patton’s awareness was reeled against that cold, crashing wave of regret, his mind spluttered. Unaffected? Patton realised now the ridiculousness of the mere notion that Roman would have been unchanged by the split. By the fleeting thought from Patton - he himself still being a child at the time - that had acted as the catalyst for such an irrevocable shift in the twins’ lives. In everyone’s lives.

‘Dad?’ Roman’s gentle voice broke the surface of Patton’s turbulent reverie.

With a steadying breath, Patton forced himself back to the present and clasped both hands around Roman’s. He prayed that the tightness of his grip would dispel the trembling of his fingers.

‘You and Virgil love each other very much,’ he said, ‘and you’ve both become a lot better at showing it; when you’re little and when you’re big. Even if you did argue, you could never stop being brothers. Not now. I promise, nothing will -’ Patton’s voice was suddenly strangled by an involuntary gulp. He felt his cheeks burn as he swallowed past the knot of nerves in his throat. ‘Nothing will tear you apart,’ he finished quietly.

‘What if you and Logan break up?’

It was easy to forget how different Roman’s voice was when he was little. Him being such a master at adapting his voice for different roles, the shift in tone was subtle, though effective. The slightest bit higher in pitch, though not unnaturally so. Much bouncier in intonation, but not inappropriately so. Changed, but not overexaggerated. (Perhaps Roman was accustomed to minimising the impact of changes, Patton realised.)

Though now it was clear. This question was deeper, louder, bigger than the previous ones. It was a question from adult Roman.

Patton sighed and met Roman’s eyes equally. At that moment he was no longer a father speaking to his son, but rather a friend reassuring a friend.

‘If, for whatever reason, Logan and I stop dating…’ Patton paused. That was the first time he had verbally acknowledged that they were an item. It truly felt amazing to admit to someone besides Logan himself. Though it was a melancholy experience, to be announcing their relationship while simultaneously theorising its demise. ‘If that ever happens then we’ll still be very good friends. And we will all still be a family, I promise.’

The reluctance faded from Roman’s expression and he wriggled his hand free from Patton’s hold. A finger raised between their faces. ‘Pinky promise?’ Roman asked in childlike hopefulness.

Patton curled his little finger around Roman’s. ‘Pinky promise,’ he said earnestly.

Taking advantage of the fact that Roman’s hand was apprehended - and desperate to distract from the loaded atmosphere - Patton swiped some icing onto Roman’s face.

‘Hey!’

‘What’s wrong?’ Patton asked in mock-confusion.

Roman glared at him past a smile. ‘There’s icing on my cheek!’

‘Oh, let me get that for you!’ Patton pressed a long, wet kiss to Roman’s cheek, the icing spreading between his lips.

‘Da-ha-d,’ Roman giggled, trying to squirm away.

With a loud smack of his lips, Patton pulled away laughing. As he licked his lips clean, he took a moment to appreciate the pure joy on Roman’s face. ‘I love you, little prince. And I love Virgil and I love Logan. And I know for a fact that you all love each other too. That will never, ever end. No matter what.’

There was a loud screech of chair legs against the floorboards then Roman was on his feet, hunching over to hold Patton in a deadly-tight hug. Patton returned it with a strained wheeze.

‘I don’t want it to end,’ Roman mumbled into his shoulder. ‘I don’t want anything to change.’

That was a loaded statement if Patton had ever heard one. The sentiment behind it was clear and admirable, of course. Like Roman, Patton too loved how their family was faring and wouldn’t change it for the world. Though he was hit by the reality of just how much had changed in the past few weeks, the past few days, even the past few hours!

Regardless, he knew what Roman meant, and he wasn’t one to magnify the ambiguity of language choices. That was Logan’s job.

So - despite his uncertainty in the generalisation of the statement - Patton held Roman closer and said, ‘Nothing will change, sweetheart.’

oOo

As much as he had enjoyed his and Roman’s Father-Son bonding time (which they agreed would become a weekly ritual from then on), Patton was more than eager to return to the living room and be the happy pappy again.  It was hard to shake the melancholy from the earlier conversation, after all.

Once the hunnypots and haycorns were decorated and left to set in the kitchen, the two traipsed back down the hallway. Patton stopped just short of opening the living room door when he heard a muffled, unintelligible conversation coming from the other side of it.

He looked behind him to Roman, who mirrored his confusion. The distant voices sounded as if they were holding a full-fledged discussion. Could Virgil have been grown-up again?

Patton pushed the door open with a deep disappointment that he didn’t quite want to acknowledge. Though on poking his head into the room, it didn’t take long to see that Virgil was still regressed and in Logan’s lap. He sighed in relief.

‘Mamanaba,’ Virgil muttered, rattling Meeko with fervour. The inflection of his voice was similar to that of normal speech, even if the actual content was gibberish and his tone was still decidedly babyish.

Logan’s hands readjusted on Virgil to hold him steady as the boy kept bouncing in his lap. ‘My goodness, I never considered such a thing! Though I don’t believe that is quantifiable.’

‘What are you talking about?’ Roman laughed from behind Patton, then stepped around him in the direction of the couch.

There was nothing but pure paternal instinct that made Patton hurriedly reach out and pull Roman backwards against his chest and into his arms. He just could not bear to see the others being so sweet while his own arms were empty of one of his babies. Thankfully, Roman just settled against him and didn’t comment on it.

‘This is an academic debate, little prince,’ Logan explained very seriously, offering one of his false-stern looks. His lips twitched. ‘No interruptions, please.’

‘W-waba, mamama,’ Virgil babbled, his voice now squeaky with excitement.

Logan gasped loudly and looked at Virgil in amazement, to which the regressor giggled. ‘What a fascinating hypothesis! But have you considered the subjectivity of such a theory?’

There was a moment of quiet while Virgil looked over at the doorway to Patton and Roman. It seemed he had only just noticed their appearance. Meeko was raised to hide Virgil’s face as he collapsed against Logan’s chest. ‘Baba,’ Virgil whined, muffled by the toy at his chin.

A loud chuckle rang out. ‘Well, you’ve certainly given me a lot to think about,’ Logan said, cupping the back of Virgil’s head protectively.

‘Mom, can you speak baby?’ Roman asked, sounding thoroughly impressed. As he spoke, he launched himself away from Patton’s chest and skipped over to stand in front of the couch.

‘It certainly sounds like it,’ Patton murmured, watching Roman go. The sudden emptiness in his arms couldn’t hold a candle to the emptiness in his chest. Why was he so sensitive all of a sudden? Why did his chest physically ache when he wasn’t holding his boys?

Then his thoughts came to a crashing stop. No. This wasn’t about him and what he wanted. Roman obviously didn’t want a hug so he was perfectly within his right to wriggle out of it. Patton had been keeping him from his brother, after all. The memories of his and Roman’s previous conversation rose in tides, threatening to spill over. Patton had been keeping Roman from his brother again.

‘What did you two get up to, little prince?’ Logan asked. ‘Did you have fun with your dad?’

As Roman launched into an impassioned regaling of the creation of Pooh Cards and his expert cookie decorating skills, Patton floated over to the couch - specifically towards the baby in Logan’s lap. His knuckle ghosted over Virgil’s smooth cheek and elicited a small coo from him. The contact and the sweet sound filled Patton with a sudden motivation that he hadn’t realised he had been lacking.

Then Virgil pulled himself to sit up from Logan’s chest and shook his rattle right by Patton’s ear with a bright smile that threatened to dislodge his pacifier. ‘Babababa.’

‘What a fun sound!’ Patton gushed, only faintly acknowledging that Roman’s monologue had just drawn to a close. ‘I see someone’s woken up a bit since we left.’

‘He is rather enraptured by the rattling sound,’ Logan said, shuffling Virgil in his lap so that he could more directly face the others. (It was true, the way Virgil stared at his toy looked as if we were both confused and amazed by the sounds coming from it; almost spellbound.) ‘I think it’s safe to say that it is a “good stim”.’ He directed his gaze to Roman and said, ‘Virgil appreciates his present from you Roman, even if he is not able to tell you as much at the moment. Thank you for making your little brother happy.’

Roman flopped down to sit on the couch a couple of feet away from Logan with pink cheeks. ‘S’okay,’ he muttered with a nonchalant shrug that was betrayed by his wide smile.

Quite unexpectedly, Virgil whined loudly and dropped Meeko to the couch. Then he wriggled and reached his arms out towards his brother so insistently that he slid right off of Logan’s lap.

‘Vee!’ Logan yelped.

Patton acted lightning fast, dropping to his knees and catching Vee in one fell swoop. A fraction of a second later and Virgil would have hit the ground.

‘Woah, there we go.’ Patton hoisted Virgil onto his hip and stood upright again, keeping a firm arm under Virgil’s diaper to support him. ‘Are you okay, angel?’ he asked breathlessly, residual adrenaline surging through his veins.

The shock didn’t fade from Virgil’s expression for several seconds. Then, at last, his eyes swam with thick tears and he broke into a constant stream of whimpers.

‘Aww, my little baby,’ Patton cooed. He started bouncing him lightly as parents often did with wailing infants. ‘You’re all right, sweetie. Shh-shh-shh.’ Virgil’s whimpers quickly quieted at the bouncing so Patton kept it up, warm adoration swelling in his chest at just how alike a real baby Virgil was.

With a wet sniffle, Virgil buried his face against Patton’s shoulder.

‘That’s it,’ Patton murmured. ‘Papa has you, you’re safe.’ He felt a pinch at his side and looked down to see that Virgil was gripping his cardigan and tugging on the material harshly. Without looking away from his baby, Patton held his free hand out to the couch. ‘Can someone please pass me Meeko?’

A few seconds passed without any softness being pressed into his hands. Patton looked over to find Logan and Roman sat staring at him in stunned silence.

It felt as though he had unknowingly done something horribly wrong. Heat flooded his cheeks. ‘What’s wrong, what did I do?’ Was he being a bad Dad? Would they take his baby away? His grip on Virgil tightened.

‘N-nothing,’ Logan stammered.

A loud snort sounded from Roman. ‘Wow, Dad’s pretty strong, isn’t he, Mom?’

‘Oh,’ Patton breathed with a nervous chuckle, trying to hide how utterly relieved he was. The look of betrayal Logan was directing towards Roman inspired enough amusement for it to be passable. ‘You carried him earlier too, Lo.’

‘I know that,’ Logan defended, his cheeks dusting pink as he looked back at Patton. ‘Just… not with one arm.’

Patton’s eyes trailed down to realise that he was indeed bouncing Virgil easily with only one arm. 

Logan cleared his throat then muttered, ‘It is rather impressive.’

‘Well, I’m a dad,’ Patton giggled lightly. He would never have imagined Logan would be flustered by such a thing. ‘Dads need to be strong for Dad Stuff!’

‘Like catching Moms when they swoon.’

At Roman’s cheeky remark, Logan’s mouth dropped open. The creative side quickly descended into giggles.

Patton witnessed the shock on Logan’s face be wiped away by an evil grin. ‘Oh, I’ll give you something to laugh about.’ Then Roman was being tugged towards Logan’s chest, Logan’s fingers wriggling in his underarms.

‘W-wait! Wait!’ Roman’s legs kicked against the couch as he was dragged into Logan’s lap. ‘Mom, ple-he-he-ase!’ he pleaded through already hysterical laughter.

Patton giggled and shook his head. It wasn’t often Logan tickled their little prince, but when he did he was merciless. Roman’s begging would not help him.

Amongst the raucous laughter and tumbling on the couch, Patton managed to swipe Meeko from the cushion before Roman’s ankles thrust into it with a squeal.

‘Here you are, honey bunny,’ Patton said, worming the toy between his cardigan and Virgil’s fingers.

The weight on his shoulder lifted as Virgil looked up with a curious hum. On seeing that he had been reunited with his raccoon, his eyes sparkled with joy rather than tears. And, as expected, he rattled the toy for what must have been the hundredth time.

‘Why did you jump off of Mama’s lap, Vee?’ Patton asked, fully aware that Virgil might not have been old enough to even understand the question. It was worth a try at least.

The question seemed to break Virgil from the trance the rattle had him under and he started whining and wriggling violently.

‘Baby, baby, it’s okay,’ Patton tried to soothe him. It was only met with louder whines and harder kicks. ‘All right, down we go,’ he sang, doing his best to make the words bounce with joy. It was difficult considering the immense sinking sensation in his stomach as he carefully lowered Virgil to the floor.

‘Is everything all right?’

Patton looked up at Logan’s breathless question, pleasantly surprised to see Roman still in Logan’s lap, finally free of the tickle attack.

‘I just asked him why he jumped off your lap.’

At the reminder, Virgil thrust his arms out towards Roman again and pleaded, ‘Wo… Wo-Wo!’

‘I didn’t do anything!’ Roman’s shoulders raised defensively as he looked to Patton. ‘It wasn’t my fault he fell!’

‘We know that, little prince. It’s all right,’ Logan assured him, embracing him to his chest.

With a gentle smile, Patton realised that Virgil was not blaming Roman for the fall whatsoever. ‘Sweetheart, I think Vee just wants to play with you.’

Virgil’s arms stretched even further into the empty space between himself and the couch. ‘Pway!’

‘Oh, um,’ Roman hesitated, looking at the ground and running his fingers over Logan’s arms, which were fastened around his waist.

‘I would like to stretch my legs anyway,’ Logan said, carefully sliding Roman off of his lap.

There was a short moment of thick quiet. It was over in an instant as Logan quickly rose to his feet, announcing that he would fetch some more toys for them before promptly leaving the room.

Before long, Logan had returned with supplies and the caregivers had set up a baby-safe play area for the boys. A large fluffy blanket lay across half of the living room floor and more than two dozen soft toys sat around the edges of the blanket, cordoning off the area. Around the room, cushions and pillows padded the harsh corners of the coffee table, TV unit, and radiator to avoid any painful bumps.

Roman was as bubbly as ever, overspilling with exuberant playfulness as he finally had his little brother’s full attention.

‘And what doth the King Meeko have to say to this usurper?’ Roman cried regally, bouncing his stuffed dog Bumpkin in his hands to indicate that he was speaking.

Virgil giggled and bounced in place where he sat against the foot of the armchair, carefully propped up by two pillows. His laughter mixed with the rattles coming from Meeko as he shook him.

‘Vee, what do you want Bumpkin to say?’ Logan mumbled from where he sat beside Patton on the couch.

A happy hum rolled from Patton’s chest. It was rare that they got a chance to sit together while both boys were little, but Virgil had gotten surprisingly fussy when Logan tried to sit with him on the blanket. It seemed the excitement of being with Roman had chased away his languid energy and he wanted to sit alone with his brother while they played.

Despite Patton’s increasing panic at seeing his little baby sitting all on his own, not in his arms, Patton felt comforted by Logan’s closeness. It meant he could run his fingers idly over Logan’s thigh as Logan’s arm draped heavily across his shoulders. He took the rare moment of casual intimacy in stride. Usually, they had to sneak around while the boys were asleep to cuddle and kiss. Though since he had spoken so openly about their relationship with Roman in the dining room, and seeing as Virgil was either unbothered by or unaware of their displays of affection, they allowed themselves this intimate moment.

‘A-ababa,’ Virgil babbled, pointing to the soft toy in Roman’s hands.

Roman sucked in a pained breath through his teeth. ‘Oof. That’s brutal, Vee.’ It earned him a bright symphony of babyish giggles.

Over the next few minutes, Patton brought his cellphone out to take pictures of the littles. Then when Logan pointed out that he had taken more than twenty almost identical photographs, Patton rolled his eyes with a playful nudge to his partner. He would have easily taken a thousand pictures if it meant he could remember this day by the adorable scene in front of him, rather than the blunt, heavy regret hammering away within him. 

‘How old is Vee right now?’ Patton wondered aloud, partly because he was watching Virgil through his phone screen. Partly because he just needed Logan’s voice to drown out Roman’s sorrowful words from earlier that kept replaying in his head.

‘Going by his babbling and playfulness,’ Logan replied, ‘I would place him around eight or nine months.’

All of the breath wrung from Patton’s lungs as he snapped his gaze onto Logan. ‘Months?’

Not seeming to notice Patton’s shock, Logan continued watching the boys with a gentle smile and nodded.

‘That’s way younger than he usually is…’ Patton placed his phone down on the couch, feeling shaky all of a sudden.

‘I am not so certain.’ A thumb started circling softly over Patton’s knuckles as Logan explained in a low murmur, ‘At first he told us he regressed from two to five years old. Though I have been observing his behaviour over the past few weeks, and I believe he has been greatly mistaken in this estimation.’

The soft material of Logan’s slacks bunched between Patton’s fingers. ‘What, do you think he’s not that old?’ The new information bombarded him with the horrible thought that he hadn’t been doing his job as a father if he hadn’t even noticed how old Virgil was when he regressed.

Gaze fixed on their boys, lips fixed in an oblivious smile, Logan went on: ‘Nothing I have seen of his regression has suggested he is ever older than two and a half years - though even then, being that old is rare for him.’ He tilted his head in thought, which would have been adorable had Patton’s vision not been pulsating with his frantic heartbeat. ‘I wonder whether he misunderstands developmental stages, or whether it is simply a case of him being unaware of his own behaviour patterns.’

‘What ages does he actually regress to?’ Patton whispered. He stared intently at Logan, desperate for the answer that he had apparently been too incompetent to see for himself.

With utmost confidence, Logan said, ‘Three to twenty-four months.’

Hot tears sprang to Patton’s eyes. ‘Three months…’ he echoed under his breath. Practically a newborn. With a gulp, Patton’s watery eyes settled on Virgil. A newborn who had been alone for so many years.

His wet eyes being glued on Virgil’s steadily blurrier form, Patton was startled when he felt Logan’s arm pushing insistently at his shoulders. Within seconds Patton was on his feet and being swiftly ushered into the hallway. His heart lurched when the blue and purple blob fell out of sight as he was guided past the corner of the doorway and the tears finally fell to his cheeks.

‘Your dad and I are right outside if you need us. Keep playing with your little brother,’ Logan’s voice said, then the door was pulled mostly shut and Patton was surrounded by long, warm arms. ‘What’s wrong, Patton?’

It all happened so quickly that he had no hope of burying his emotions, so Patton didn’t speak. He just clung to Logan and sniffled into his shoulder, thinking about what he had learned. About Virgil being so young and consequently about everything he had ever had to deal with on his own. The loneliness, the accidents, the bullies.

Patton bit his tongue through a wave of overwhelming anger. Over the course of the next minute, he simply took in deep, shaky breaths, glad that Logan did nothing but tap out one-second intervals on his back to aid his breathing.

Then, just as he thought he had overcome the worst of it, a babyish giggle rang from behind the living room door.

A sob wrenched its way from Patton’s throat.

‘My love, please tell me what’s wrong,’ Logan pleaded, his voice gentle though pained.

‘Sorry,’ Patton choked, pulling his face back from Logan’s shoulder to scrub his sleeve over his eyes. When he opened them and caught the utter sincerity in Logan’s concerned expression, the tears started anew. What exactly had Patton done to deserve such a wonderful man?

Patton couldn’t bear to hold back his lament any longer, keeping quiet so as not to upset the boys in the next room. ‘He’s just so - he’s literally just a baby. He’s innocent and - and vulnerable and -’ his voice wobbled and broke off with a shuddered breath. As he recollected all Virgil had told them of the hate he received on his blog, that same boiling rage oozed through Patton’s entire being. It stung and made him tremble. Like poison. ‘I can’t believe those horrible people would bully him for it!’

At the hissed tone, Logan’s face crumpled with a wince. Patton was ready to vehemently apologise for himself - about to claim he had no idea where that came from, it wasn’t him at all - until Logan said, ‘I know. I am angry too.’

There was no way Patton could have predicted how comforting those four words were. They doused the fire in his chest and left him dumbstruck. The raging indignance that had been snapping and flaring within him all afternoon suddenly disappeared and all that was left was a smouldering, pathetic sorrow.

Patton slumped back into Logan’s arms in defeat.

‘He was on his own for so many years, Lo. It’s bad enough he couldn’t look after himself,’ Patton whispered and shook his head, Logan’s shirt rustling faintly with the movement, ‘but on top of that some strangers attacked him just for - for -’

‘For trying to feel safe,’ Logan finished, twining his fingers gently in Patton’s thick hair.

Delighted, squeaky laughter echoed from the living room.

‘Not everyone is accepting.’ The deep voice vibrated in Logan’s chest. Patton held onto him tighter. ‘It is an unfortunate reality in both Thomas’ world and ours, and I understand it is upsetting. As much as we would like to, we simply cannot protect our boys from every possible threat.’

The icy pang of dread in Patton’s gut was twice as toxic as the scalding anger from before. What was Patton’s whole purpose if not to look after his family?

‘Virgil was not completely helpless to it, though,’ Logan continued. ‘He disabled anonymous asks without being prompted to do so. That shows he had the foresight to prevent it from happening again. He was protecting himself.’

Gentle shivers radiated over Patton’s scalp as Logan’s fingernails combed through his hair. ‘That’s meant to be our job,’ he argued weakly, ‘and he didn’t even tell us about it.’

‘Not at first,’ Logan conceded. ‘Still, that does not mean he did not trust us.’ Then Logan pulled back from the hug, leaving Patton cold. ‘You know how reluctant he is to share things that he perceives as embarrassing. Your conversation with him yesterday proves as much,’ he said, turning and walking down the hallway.

‘Where are you going?’ Patton shrieked, his hands curling into tight fists by his sides.

Logan looked back in shock. Then he carefully reached out to pick up the tissue box that sat on the cabinet by the staircase. The movement was slow, and Logan watched Patton all the while as if he were a startled animal that had to be monitored.

Shame flooded Patton. ‘Oh. Sorry, just… not done cuddling you yet.’

A soft smile replaced Logan’s frown and he brought a couple of tissues back to Patton, holding him again and dabbing at his itchy eyes. ‘I didn’t realise you would be competing with a box of tissues for my attention,’ Logan chuckled.

Patton knew it was a joke, of course he did. He loved jokes and he loved that Logan was finally comfortable enough in himself to make them without fearing people's opinions of him. But suddenly the heat in his chest was reignited.

‘Why didn’t you just summon them?’ Patton asked flatly.

The tissue that Logan stroked over his cheekbone faltered.

‘You always say how important it is that we don’t challenge the mindscape,’ Patton went on, glad that this topic had distracted Logan enough from his sudden clinginess. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen you summon since you realised the whole - what’s it called?’

‘Equivalent exchange,’ Logan supplied, blushing. It was he who realised that the programming he had set up for their mindscape to follow real world laws of physics glitched whenever the sides took advantage of their powers; summoning an object would make another of similar mass and/or sentimental worth disappear, and breaking the laws of physics would train the mindscape to disparage Logan’s carefully crafted code. For the sake of stability in their environment, they had long since all agreed to sacrifice the convenience of summoning unless in emergencies. Logan most of all, which is why Patton was so shocked when he saw he had summoned a baby book earlier. ‘I understand it was hypocritical of me to break my own rule. I apologise, it won’t be happening again.’

Patton nodded. He didn’t want Logan to think he was upset with him, though he was satisfied that he had redirected the conversation effectively. ‘What was so urgent about a baby book anyway?’

‘I could not think of anything to calm Vee down,’ Logan explained, pocketing the crumpled tissue as Patton’s face was perfectly dry by then. ‘Regretfully, I acted quite impulsively in response to his crying.’

‘Oh no, was the poor thing upset?’ Patton asked, all harsh emotion replaced by softness and concern for his little one.

With a soft sigh, Logan leaned forward to press a kiss to Patton’s forehead. ‘You know how his separation anxiety is,’ he murmured against his skin, lingering there.

Patton frowned at Logan’s chest. ‘He still has separation anxiety?’

‘Of course,’ Logan said, putting some distance between them to look down at him.

‘But,’ Patton blinked rapidly, ‘earlier he was okay with me leaving and he - he hid from me, I thought -���

‘Patton, it doesn’t disappear from one positive experience,’ Logan explained, his arms still wrapped around Patton’s shoulders. ‘It may have been dimmed momentarily though it is still very much present. I believe it may be a permanent fixture of his headspace, simply due to the ages he regresses to and his anxious nature.’

‘Oh… okay.’ It was hard to know what else to say. Earlier Patton had thought he was proud of Virgil for overcoming his separation anxiety. But hearing that Virgil would perhaps never get over it sent a wave of warm comfort over Patton. He wanted to smile, but the fluffy feeling was sullied by something. Something distant that he couldn’t identify. Something unpleasant.

‘Do you know what time it is?’ Logan asked softly, spoken as if it were a love confession.

Patton instinctively reached into his pocket, only to come out empty-handed. ‘Sorry, I must have left my phone in -’

A featherlight touch at his lips made Patton fall silent: Logan’s fingertips. He could feel Logan’s pulse thrumming through them.

‘It’s later,’ Logan whispered, his eyes swimming with utter adoration. Then the soft fingertips were replaced by softer lips and Patton fell into a dream.

They floated together for a while, suspended in the short space between their hearts. After a few gentle pecks and a quick swipe of tongues, Logan pulled away.

‘That was sweet,’ Patton whispered airily, letting his eyes flutter open. Then he saw that Logan was frowning deeply at him.

‘Patton…’ Logan licked his lips and grimaced a little. He started chuckling, ‘Just how much lemon did you put in your tea?’

It wrenched Patton from his dreamy state.

Guilt. The unpleasant feeling that was sullying his emotions was guilt. Guilt because how could he think himself supportive of his family if in the face of their developments his response had been extreme jealousy? So extreme that he had had to literally suck on a lemon to pull himself out of it.

As if that weren’t awful enough, Patton had actually felt happy when he learned Virgil would continue to be distressed by his separation anxiety.  He had failed his baby, just like he had failed his little prince by neglecting him and not recognising his insecurities. He had failed at being a dad; the one thing he thought he knew. Why was he even trying to be a caregiver when he kept accidentally hurting his family?

Roman called loudly from the living room, ‘Dad?’

A switch flipped in Patton’s brain. No, he wouldn’t give up. His boys needed their dad and that had to be him. No matter how many mistakes he made, how wrong he was, Patton would never let go of the only thing in the world he could do. He would never let go of his purpose. The one thing he lived for.

He was nothing if he couldn’t be Papa Patton.

He slipped right past Logan, not caring to check his reaction to Patton’s avoidance. With a huge smile, Patton bounced into the living room. ‘What’s up, my majestic little songbird?’

It was immediately clear why Roman had called.

Where Virgil had been sitting on the blanket before they left the room, giggling and rattling Meeko excitedly, both boys now sat. Roman’s arm was thrown over Virgil’s shoulders protectively, supporting the younger boy as he swayed and blinked slowly. His eyes were decidedly teary and he was tugging at his pacifier again.

‘Oh, my sweet little baby,’ Patton cooed, rushing over to them. The storm of guilt and jealousy cleared from his mind in an instant, leaving him a little light-headed. It was replaced by a muffled determination and affection that made everything seem softer around the edges.

Dropping to his knees, Patton pulled Virgil into a hug. There was a little whimper, and then his shoulder was immediately used as a hiding spot for Virgil’s face. ‘What happened, Roman?’ Patton asked, leaning back against the foot of the armchair. He rested his hand atop Virgil’s head and felt as though his heart had started beating for the first time in hours.

‘He just froze and went super quiet all of a sudden,’ Roman explained, letting go of his brother and collapsing back onto the blanket with a pout. ‘Then he didn’t wanna play anymore.’

‘It’s all right, Roman,’ Logan said, settling onto the floor beside Roman with a reassuring pat on his knee. ‘Virgil can play with you again another time.’ He began clearing the mess of various toys on the blanket, assembling them into an ordered line.

‘Are you upset, baby?’ Patton whispered, rocking Virgil slightly in his hold.

As was to be expected, there was no answer. Virgil only hid his face against Patton more fiercely.

‘Perhaps it was the separation anxiety.’

Patton nodded faintly at Logan’s suggestion, but internally he knew that wasn’t it. In the past, if Virgil was anxious about being separated from Patton he was much more vocal in his upset; sobbing and whining loudly. Plus he certainly hadn’t heard Virgil calling out for him before Roman beckoned him in, so Patton remained doubtful that that was the issue.

Another difference became obvious as Virgil hugged Patton tighter, forcing Patton to hunch down a little to accommodate it. Where Virgil would always scramble into Patton’s lap at being reunited with him, this time he had remained on the floor with his legs pulled tightly to his chest. Patton experimentally nudged Virgil’s knees to convince him to lower them but was met with a whine and Virgil’s whole body tensed up.

As Patton shushed his baby and swayed him back and forth, he just knew. There was no solid thought process he could attribute to his realisation. He thought it must have been his paternal instincts (which sent a rush of pride through him). Though regardless of how he knew it, Patton was quite certain that Virgil’s diaper was wet.

Then Logan spoke. ‘I think I would like to -’

‘I’m handling it,’ Patton assured firmly without looking up from his baby.

There was a short while of silence before Logan spoke again. ‘I was going to say I would like to play Pooh Cards with Roman.’

Shame flooded Patton’s mind. He chased it away by rubbing soothing circles on Virgil’s back.

‘Oh yeah!’ Roman cried, jumping up from the blanket so fast Patton was surprised he didn’t fall face-first to the floor with the momentum of it. As he bounced in place he grabbed and tugged on Logan’s hands. ‘Mom, Mom, Mom, quick, come see!’

There was a slight reluctance as Logan raised to his feet. ‘I said I would play with you Roman. Please do not pull me.’

Patton rolled his eyes. Roman was merely excited, and he knew his own strength. It wasn’t like it hurt Logan. There was no reason for him to be so strict with their little prince.

‘Are you sure you two will be all right?’ Logan asked, and his voice actually wobbled.

Logan - who always kept a steady, calm voice even in moments of distress - was presumably so worried about leaving Virgil with Patton that his voice had actually wavered.

Patton had to unclench his jaw to reply, ‘Of course we will, I’m his papa.’ It came out far more snappish than he had intended. He ran his fingers through Virgil’s hair, using the soft tendrils to distract himself from the sinking feeling in his chest. ‘I mean - he’s okay. I know what this is.’ Finally meeting Logan’s gaze, Patton offered a small smile that he knew didn’t meet his eyes.

‘Okay, love,’ Logan said softly, lovingly, and Patton knew he didn’t deserve it.

Then Logan led Roman out of the room to fetch the card game and the papa and his baby were left alone.

For a minute they simply sat, Patton still swaying them gently. Going by the fact that Virgil was no longer whimpering, it was clear the cuddle was soothing him. Patton too felt himself relaxing as their bodies moved as one and their breaths synchronised.

Over the course of those few quiet moments, Patton’s worries all seemed to float away. As if Virgil were a calm breeze, clearing the muggy clouds of guilt and bitterness from Patton’s mind and replacing them with crystal clear skies. Patton nuzzled his nose into Virgil’s hair and breathed deeply, feeling as though he hadn’t tasted oxygen until that very second. There was no other feeling in the world that could compare.

‘Come on, sweetheart. Let’s have a proper cuddle.’

There was no protest as Patton shuffled both of them up into the seat of the armchair. Virgil kept a tight hold on Meeko all the while, clearly afraid of dropping the toy. Admittedly, Patton had hoped he would have an opportunity to check Virgil’s diaper during the movement, but their positions simply didn’t allow for it. As soon as they were seated with Virgil on Patton’s lap, the regressor whined and hurriedly wriggled off of his legs to squeeze into the small space between Patton and the armrest.

‘It’s okay, honey,’ Patton murmured, letting Virgil curl up to his side instead. His knees were flush with his chest once more; hiding his lap on instinct, Patton realised.

‘Dad!’ Roman yelled, skipping back into the living room with a bright smile. ‘Mom really likes my game and says I’m really clever!’

Feeling Virgil jolt at the sudden noise, Patton carded his fingers through his hair softly. ‘That’s wonderful, sweetie,’ he said, trying not to feel disheartened by the interruption to his and Virgil’s time together. ‘I think you’re very clever too.’

Roman appeared to vibrate. ‘And - and n-now Mom is gonna play with me!’

‘Well, I hope you win, little prince,’ Patton chuckled, enamoured by Roman’s sweet enthusiasm. Then he put on a loud stage-whisper, ‘Try to get the Tigger card!’

A deep gasp sounded from the doorway. ‘I heard that, Patton!’ Logan entered the room with a look of mock-offence. He held a red sippy cup in one hand and the stack of Pooh Cards in his other. ‘I cannot believe you’re conspiring against me.’

Patton giggled, twirling a lock of Virgil’s hair around his pinky. ‘I’m a supportive dad, I have to be on Roman’s side!’

‘Hm, I suppose I can concede that,’ Logan grumbled, throwing a quick smile Patton’s way. He handed Roman his sippy cup, praising him when he said, ‘Thank you’.

There was a quiet whine from Virgil and Patton rocked him a little. He was probably upset by the others being so close given his shy headspace at that moment.

‘Come here, little one,’ Logan called, moving to sit by the coffee table at the other side of the room. ‘I need you to teach me how to play.’

Roman did not react.

‘Sweetie, that’s you,’ Patton whispered, reaching out to squeeze Roman’s hand.

A blush overtook Roman as he looked over at his mom, a smile forming on his lips. ‘Me?’

‘Of course,’ Logan nodded. By the casual shuffling of the Pooh Cards in his hands, it almost appeared as if Logan didn’t recognise the gravity of calling Roman ‘little one’, though Patton knew his partner better than that. He knew that Logan must have noticed Roman’s need for coddling in the face of Virgil’s younger headspace.

Patton grinned as he watched Roman rush over, sitting as close to Logan as was physically possible.

Then he felt Virgil trying to burrow into his shoulder further and looked down. The boy’s neck was noticeably strained by the action since he had to stretch awkwardly seeing as he wasn’t in Patton’s lap like he usually was.

‘Do you wanna sit in Papa’s lap?’

A slight nod came in reply.

‘All right, on three. Ready?’ Patton secured his arms around Virgil’s back and under his diaper. ‘One, two… three!’ As he easily lifted Virgil onto his lap, he took the opportunity to subtly pat and pinch the diaper through the fabric of his onesie. Definitely wet. With a swell of satisfaction at being correct in his assumption, Patton lowered Virgil to his lap and kissed his head.

It hadn’t gone unnoticed though. Once he was sitting on Patton’s thighs, Virgil immediately whimpered and hid his face behind Meeko.

‘It’s okay, baby,’ Patton reassured, rocking him again. ‘Papa was just checking if you’re still dry.’

The explanation was met with a tiny squeak. Virgil lowered Meeko, revealing his pink cheeks and rattling the toy once more. Though he did not shake it with the same vigour he had earlier; this time Meeko was gently waved to and fro quite lazily. ‘Bababa,’ Virgil mumbled.

Apparently, the diaper check had comforted Virgil and reinforced his younger headspace. Patton sighed and held his baby closer. That was just utterly adorable.

Logan cleared his throat quite pointedly from the other side of the room, and when Patton met his eyes he mouthed silently: Is he dry?

Patton responded with a slight shake of his head. Then, strangely, he felt his lips curl into a smile. Even stranger, Logan mirrored it, and Patton was quite sure they must have been thinking the same thing:

That Virgil had had an accident again, but this time there was no sobbing. There was no hyperventilating. There was no panic attack. In fact, the only indication he had wet himself at all was the fact that he had been pushed back into his sleepy baby state, and that wasn’t a bad thing whatsoever!

Looking down at him now, it was clear to Patton that the diapers were a hugely positive change for Virgil. Despite his lethargic energy, his dimples were showing at the sides of his pacifier which bobbed lazily in his mouth. As he rattled Meeko softly, his eyes sparkled with babyish curiosity. He was calm and happy. It soothed Patton immensely.

oOo

As their time together went on, Patton and Virgil cuddled and played so much that it was impossible for Patton to wipe the cheesy grin from his face. He had rocked Virgil gently, tickled his cheek softly to watch him blush and giggle, dutifully kissed Meeko whenever Virgil held the toy up to Patton with a smile, and now…

‘Are you ready?’ Patton asked in his most exaggerated baby-talk voice. ‘Is my baby ready for more bounces?’

Virgil giggled and kicked his feet a little by Patton’s hips, facing him in his lap. Meeko was hugged tightly to his chest as he nodded.

‘Ahhhh…’ Patton started, securing his grip on Virgil’s shoulders. ‘Bouncy, bouncy baby!’ He bounced his legs on each syllable, making Virgil bob up and down in his lap with little squeals of happiness. ‘What a cute little stormcloud!’

Sweet laughter continued to tumble from behind Virgil’s pacifier. ‘Baba, g-gen!’

‘Again?’ Patton repeated, chuckling. They had been doing this for several minutes by that point, and his legs ached from the constant lifting. But who was he to deny his baby when his eyes glittered with such joy? ‘Okay. Last one, sweetie.’

There was no protest, only a squeak of anticipation. Virgil really was a sweet baby.

‘Ahhhhh… bouncy, bouncy, bouncy, bouncy baby!’

Delighted laughter escaped the pair and danced in the air surrounding both of them. Then Virgil smushed his face into Meeko and made a strangled, high-pitched sound. It was a common verbal stim when he was overwhelmed by happiness.

‘Oh my goodness,’ Patton gushed heartily, huddling Virgil closer in his lap and wrapping him in a tight hug. ‘You are the sweetest, squeakiest, most adorable little baby in the whole world.’ He emphasised his point by pressing a great number of kisses to Virgil’s cheek in quick succession.

Virgil suddenly whined quite desperately and pushed at Patton’s chest to be released from his hold. Feeling a rush of concern, Patton held Virgil at arm’s length, still supporting him but trying not to crowd him. ‘I’m sorry, was it a yucky feeling, honey?’ he asked, fearing he had set off Virgil’s sensory sensitivities.

Though Virgil still smiled and promptly held Meeko up in front of Patton’s face. 

Patton bit his tongue through a wide smile. ‘Why hello again, Meeko! Would you like some kissies too?’

‘Mnh,’ Virgil hummed insistently, rattling the toy a little.

Chuckling, Patton leaned forward and pressed a loud, ‘Mwah!’ right on Meeko’s button nose. When he pulled back, Virgil dropped Meeko to his lap and held Patton’s cheeks softly between his hands.

Patton was frozen in place. His brain simply couldn’t handle the adorableness.

‘Dad, Dad, look!’

Patton held Virgil’s hands softly to stop him from squishing his cheeks for a moment. Looking over to the coffee table, he saw that Roman was holding a full deck of Pooh Cards up to him with a triumphant smile.

‘Yay, you won again!’ Patton cheered, laughing when Virgil giggled and poked his cheeks again. ‘Well done, my clever little prince!

‘He’s a complete expert at this game,’ Logan said, stretching his back with a click. It must have been an awkward position to be sat on the floor hunched over the coffee table for so long (though exactly how long Patton wasn’t sure, he didn’t care to check the time.) ‘I don’t think I will ever be able to outsmart you at Pooh Cards, Roman.’

It was clear that Logan had purposefully let Roman win every game from the snippets of laughter and dramatic sighs Patton had heard as they played. Though Roman either hadn’t clocked it or didn’t care about it going by his extreme happiness.

‘How about we have some hunnypots and haycorns to celebrate?’ Patton suggested, knowing the cookies would have been set by then.

‘Why don’t you and Virgil go and pick them for us - only one each,’ Logan hastily added with his eyebrows raised at Patton. It was a fair point to make; as much as he and Logan didn’t care much for sweets and would be happy enough to share one cookie between them, Patton probably would have let the boys have several if that’s what they so wished. He was grateful Logan was there to be a sort of filter for his blind generosity sometimes. ‘Meanwhile, I think Roman and I may need to expel a bit of excess energy.’

By him and Roman, Logan obviously only meant the creative side, who was currently shaking and fidgeting quite energetically in his place on the carpet. It was true that a quiet card game was quite a rare activity for the hyperactive boy, as was obvious by the energy overspilling from him.

Patton nodded, holding Virgil closely against his side as he stood from the armchair. ‘Okay, let’s go pick some yummy cookies for everyone, baby!’

As Patton carried Virgil to the kitchen, he heard Logan set up the soundtrack to The Tigger Movie on the speakers. It was followed by the unmistakable sound of Roman launching to his feet and starting to jump and dance around.

‘All right, can you look up for me, Vee?’ They were stood in front of the rack of multicoloured cookies now. Virgil lifted his head from Patton’s shoulder and made a hum of interest when he saw the treats. ‘Good boy. Now you’ve got a really important job: I need you to pick some pretty cookies for everyone!’

Virgil pointed at himself with a surprise in his eyes.

‘Uh-huh,’ Patton nodded, jostling Virgil further onto his hip with one arm as he picked up a plate from the drying rack.

‘Baba,’ Virgil mumbled, and Patton looked down to see he was pointing at a cookie that had gone slightly wrong. It was originally a haycorn but as the cookies all spread in the oven it had been crowded against the corner of the baking tray, becoming misshapen and wonky. It was coated in pink icing.

‘This one?’ Patton lay the plate on the counter and picked up the cookie to hold it in front of Virgil.

‘Wub!’

‘You love it?’ Patton asked.

Virgil shook his head and pointed at it again. ‘Harp!’

‘Oh, you’re right,’ Patton smiled, looking at the cookie in a new light. ‘It does look like a heart! That means it’s a special love cookie.’

‘Beshul?’

‘Very special.’ He pressed a kiss to Virgil’s head. ‘Just like my special little baby. Do you want this one, honey?’

In response, Virgil suddenly pushed at Patton’s hand and the cookie got lodged between Patton’s teeth. He giggled in surprise, pulling the cookie back out of his mouth. ‘You want this to be Papa’s one?’

‘Wub Papa!’

Just as Patton thought there were no more harsh, icy emotions in him to thaw, he positively melted at Virgil’s innocent love confession. He smiled and placed the cookie on the plate. ‘I love you too, baby. I think me and Mama can share that one. Now do you wanna pick one for your brother?’

After some quite serious deliberation, Virgil had decided on a green haycorn for his brother and a yellow hunnypot for himself. Patton carried both his baby and the plate of haycorn cookies back to the living room. The hunnypot cookie was held in Virgil’s fingers as he suckled on the edge of it (Patton had stored his pacifier in the pocket of his cardigan, making a mental note to invest in a pacifier clip for the future). It seemed their bouncing game had tired him out once more, as Virgil’s head promptly dropped back to Patton’s shoulder once his task was complete.

‘I’m putting your cookies on the table, you two,’ Patton announced over the sound of Tigger’s theme song once they had returned to the living room. He swerved himself and Virgil around Roman as he bounced (and Logan who bounced only when Roman looked at him, then stopped once Roman looked away), careful not to bump anyone as he lay the plate on the coffee table.

Patton then settled into the middle of the couch with a sigh, letting Virgil drop to his lap again. Thankfully the music was not overly loud and Virgil seemed unbothered by it as he sucked quite lazily on his cookie.

‘Is that yummy, sweetheart?’

The soggy cookie left Virgil’s lips and was held up to Patton’s. He humoured his baby by pretending to nibble it and humming in enthusiastic approval. ‘Ooh, that’s lovely! Mm-mm, very yummy. Thank you, Vee.’

It satisfied Virgil as he smiled and continued sucking on it himself, nuzzling further into Patton’s hold.

Soon Roman had gotten tired of bouncing and Logan switched the music to set up the next chapter of their Winnie-the-Pooh audiobook, claiming that it was quiet time now.

While Logan was preoccupied, Roman had finished his cookie deftly in three bites (making Patton giggle) then he approached the couch quite shyly. ‘Dad, can I…’

‘You wanna cuddle too?’ Patton asked softly, smiling in encouragement.

The acknowledgement of Roman’s unspoken request was apparently enough permission for him and he practically jumped into the spot beside Patton.

‘Excuse me, I believe you are in my spot,’ Logan announced on his way back to the couch. As Roman made a noise of offence, Logan pulled him up from the seat to collapse into it himself.

‘Hey, I was -’ Roman started whining, but cut himself off with a yelp when Logan swiftly tugged him back down into his own lap. Roman’s cheeks flushed pink and he clammed up.

‘You were saying?’ Logan asked in a lightly teasing tone.

Patton shook his head at their silliness. It was strange that whenever the two showed affection to each other they seemed to want to set it off with jokes and teasing. Though as Patton rocked Virgil in his lap delicately, he realised it wasn’t really for him to judge how they showed affection. As long as his family was happy, he was happy. And it was clear from Virgil’s sleepy hums and Roman’s blushing cheeks bunched in a smile and Logan’s soft chuckles that his family were all perfectly happy.

His gaze dawdled a little on his partner until Logan’s eyes met his and softened, crinkling with a smile. Patton bit his lip and looked down, feeling bizarrely like a shy, lovestruck teenager.

‘Dad, can I have a kiss?’

The question threw Patton a little, not ever having heard such a blunt request for affection from Roman. It was unexpected but made Patton extremely proud of his son for being brave enough to ask.

‘Of course, little prince!’ He leaned up slightly to press a firm kiss to Roman’s cheek, noting a very light stubble there.

‘And now Vee!’ Roman immediately cried once Patton had sunk back to his seat.

Patton chuckled at Roman’s strange antics, but complied, pressing a softer kiss to Virgil’s head. The baby squeaked and buried his cheek further into Patton’s shoulder. Some gingerbread crumbs littered Patton’s cardigan, but he hardly cared.

Then Roman spoke again, ‘Now Mom!’ His voice was all childish innocence, whereas his eyes screamed pure scheming adult.

A short, surprised huff escaped Patton as he looked over to Logan. His cheeks felt warm.

‘Well,’ Logan hummed, his lips pulling into a shy, crooked smile, ‘I suppose you have kissed everyone else.’ He looked down at Patton expectedly. ‘It’s only fair, right?’

Patton thought his face would split in two with how he beamed with a smile. No more hiding, no more sneaking around. Not needing to be told twice, he pushed forward, thankful that Logan leaned down to meet him in a quick kiss. It was entirely chaste, lasting a fraction of the time all of their previous kisses had done, but it lingered in Logan’s blush and Patton’s smile as they pulled back from each other.

The look of absolute calm in Logan’s eyes instilled such an overwhelming feeling of content in him that Patton had to take a slow, measured breath. Everything is going to be all right, Logan’s eyes seemed to whisper. I love you and I believe in you, I believe in us, and I believe in our family. We’re all going to be all right.

And Patton believed that. He knew things weren’t perfect, that they might never be. That Roman would not overcome his insecurities overnight, that Logan was still struggling to balance sternness and playfulness, that Virgil still struggled with asking for help and that they would have to deal with the repercussions of Virgil coming out of this new headspace likely confused. Reluctantly, Paton also acknowledged that there might have been something to his own caregiver headspace that was less than ideal if his jealousy and clinginess earlier were anything to go by.

Still, in that exact moment, everything was fine. They weren’t going anywhere. They would continue to be a family no matter what. They had plenty of time to address these difficult things. Presently, Patton just wanted to appreciate the rest of the evening in peace.

‘Is everyone ready?’ Logan asked, holding his phone up to show that the audiobook was ready to play.

Virgil breathed deeply, still sucking his cookie. Roman nodded and scurried back in Logan’s lap to lean back against him.

When Logan’s questioning gaze turned to him, Patton simply nodded and shuffled on the couch to rest his head on Logan’s shoulder. ‘Ready.’

A gentle kiss from Logan pressed to his head and Patton held Virgil closer with one arm while reaching to hold Roman’s hand with the other. He knew now that the perfect family wasn’t possible. Though being surrounded by the three people he held dear in his heart, Patton also knew that this was the closest anyone could get.

‘Chapter Ten, in which Christopher Robin gives a Pooh Party, and we say good-bye…’ 

⤛ The End ⤜

oOo

Reblogs and likes are greatly appreciated! ♡

AO3 link | Bonus chapter

[rena-rain]

Miraculous Holders’ Costumes - RANKED

#1 - Dragon Bug

Dragon Bug’s design is the freaking epitome of asymetrical balance. Everything about this suit is both smooth and sharp. The curving stripes and spots give the impression of fire licking up her body, same with the flame-shaped horns in her hair. You can hardly go wrong with black, red, and gold. The upward-pointing hair accessories reflect her downward-pointing pigtails, adding more subtle balance, and I love the details on her mask.

#2 - Rena Rouge

This design really suits Alya. The shape of the white front is both slimming and compliments her curves, and the black accents at her extremities are an excellent counterbalance to the white and orange. Also something about the coattails just completes Rena Rouge’s look! It’s the right shape too, because fox tails are on the bushier side, unlike cats and mice.

#3 - Chat Noir

Chat Noir’s costume can be described as “black cat meets knight in shining armor but modern.” Let’s go from the head down. The change in hairstyle balances out his cat ears. His blond hair, green eyes, and gold bell are beautiful contrasts to the black suit, which has a subtle texture to the fabric. There are visible seams over his shoulders, arms, and torso that add visual interest to the design and makes his suit resemble armor - even more so with his boots and gauntlets. Those details are fantastic because black is extremely slimming and they give some emphasis to his shape. Between the ears, eyes, bell, claws, and tail, you could never mistake his aesthetic as anything but catlike.

#4 - Hawk Moth

Do not tell me Hawk Moth’s costume isn’t sleek as hell. The monochrome works for him, the suit pairs well with his weapon being a staff, the overhead silver helmet-mask gives him a great villainous feel, and every pointy detail gives a sense of evil butterflies. I love that his miraculous is the focal point of his outfit, the light color contrast really draws the eye.

#5 - Snake Noir

They definitely combined the best elements of the Chat costume and Aspik costume for Snake Noir. In a word, you can describe his design as “lithe.” The cyan pairs well with the green, especially because there’s a Chat Noir-green diamond on his chest. The snake elements are a bit subtler, with his head smooth, the design tapering down his body, the fangs on his mask, the scale texture on his suit and the lines running down his arms. It’s cohesive, elegant, and stark.

#6 - Bunnix

I think Bunnix is meant to resemble a snowshoe hare. They didn’t give her a tail, but I think that’s what the little rounded ball accents are supposed to represent. The markings are bold and evenly distributed, making her look balanced and symmetrical. She actually has a vague vintage feel to her design: the white torso is reminiscent of a corset, which goes with the gloves, boots, and umbrella/parasol. Like Chat Noir, Alix’s hair makes a great contrast with the light blue and white. Also POCKETS.

#7 - Carapace

I love how much Carapce emulates a turtle. His hood and cowl are shaped like a turtle beak and also hide his face, serving both to protect his identity and give the impression he can physically retreat into his costume. His shield looks like a shell, the designs on his hood look like common markings on turtles’ heads, and he has a tortoiseshell pattern on his chest and shield. Like Chat Noir, the lines of his suit give his arms and legs visual interest.

#8 - Queen Bee

As much as I personally dislike the color yellow, Queen Bee’s costume has a straightforward elegance about it. Obviously the black and yellow stripes resemble a bumble bee but they’re also good for Chloe’s slender body type.. The black “neckline” and “gloves” are regal in flavor, suiting her moniker. You get a distinct bee impression from the sharpness of her stripes (a reminder of her stinging power), the black swirl around her hair, and the antennae-like hair ribbon.

#9 - Multimouse

Multimouse is another example of a well-balanced and symmetrical design. It uses the reliable faux gloves and boots design with colors that go well together. Her buns and jump rope look like mouse ears and a tail. I have a suspicion the animators came up with it to easily combine with other miraculous powers, mainly by changing the color of the pink stripes post-unification. Overall, this costume is very cute. I won’t go over every permutation of the multimice combos since very little changes other than color.

#10 - Lady Noire

Overall, Lady Noire’s suit is minimalist and elegant in a sharp, modern kind of way. Black is naturally slimming, and Marinette is already very slim, so the horizontal green accents help emphasize her curves. I don’t love the green lining of her ears, but I suppose that keeps the design consistent. I’m absolutely in love with Lady Noire’s braid (and I’d be remiss not to take the chance to point out this is the only time we see her hair properly black instead of blue). Her suit has a completely smooth texture, unlike both her Ladybug suit and Chat Noir’s, which I found odd and does’t do her petite frame any favors.

#11 - Mr. Bug

I’m glad they gave Mr. Bug black panels on his sides. The full-cover spots of Ladybug is fine for Marinette, but Adrien has a bigger frame and it would just look ostentatious on him. This design emphasizes his shoulders and slims him down a bit. He actually looks like a football player (American football, don’t @ me about this). He ranks just below Lady Noire because of the hair.

#12 - Aspik

OMG what a cutie pie. I can’t not say it - he looks like he’s wearing a corset in the left pic. Not a good or bad thing, I’m just saying. Look at this cutie pie! Aspik actually looks more snake-like than Viperion, imo: the design is sleeker and he’s got the diamonds over his head, that’s a nice touch. The snake scale pattern is a great detail. I had to step outside my own bias with this one because snakes really freak me out and so does Adrien without hair.

#13 - Jade Turtle

He’s less turtle-y than Carapace, but I was pretty happy with the Jade Turtle costume. The Asian style obviously suits him, and it makes sense because he was originally from China, while many of the others would be more used to Western clothing at a young age. Fu has a tortoise-shell pattern on his hat and shoulder guards and his shoes look like turtle feet. However, His chest plate deviates from the turtle theme

#14 - Viperion

My favorite parts of Viperion’s costume are his mask with the little snake fangs and the scale texture of the suit.As I mentioned above, it’s less snakey than Aspik’s. The lines suit his shape pretty well, but don’t taper down his body in the way a snake slims from chest to tail. I just feel like something’s missing from the outfit as a whole.

#15 - Ladybug

There’s just...nothing all that special about Ladybug’s costume. The red and black do suit Marinette’s pink coloring and dark hair, and contrast with her blue eyes. The bright color and pattern emphasize Marinette’s curves pretty well and make her look a little bigger than her slim stature. All that said, the suit is both busy and plain somehow.

16 - Pegasus

While I do love the hair, something about Pegasus’ costume is both too subtle and too over-the-top somehow at the same time. He has a lot of bells and whistles, though I suppose it’s supposed to look similar to horse tack. The winged shoes seem completely out of place. It’s not that I think he looks bad, but he doesn’t look particularly cool either.

#17 - Mayura

The one sin of Mayura’s outfit is the giant slit up the skirt, but kwamis is it a sin. The colors all go together and the headpiece matches the hem, and it has a distinct cold-weather theme going on with the boots, fur collar and cuffs, and full coverage design. That gets negated by the slit, which exposes nearly all of her legs, something that works far better for a summer evening dress.

#18 - King Monkey/Roi Singe

I’ve tried to figure out what it is about King Monkey’s costume that looks less than optimal, and I’m pretty sure it’s that it isn’t balanced well. He has large gloves, and elaborate crown and hairstyle, a thick collar, and a thick belt high up his waist. It makes him look kind of top-heavy. Similar to Pegasus, but to a greater extent, he’s washed out by the excess of neutral colors that the red doesn’t counteract very much.

#19 - Ryuko

I expected the dragon outfit to be more exciting. Other than the tail design (and the horns???), there’s just nothing dragon-esque about this. Come on, Chat Noir got ears, claws, and a tail; Viperion and Snake Noir got little scale motifs all over and fangs on their masks; Multimouse got bun ears and a tail; Carapace got a shell and a beak; Rena Rouge also got ears and a tail on top of a design reminiscent of a fox’s fur markings. Imagine the awesome tail and claws and fire motifs we were deprived of with the dragon. The best parts of Ryuko’s design is the embellished mask, her reptile eyes, and the red/black/gold color scheme, which are pretty cool.

[suf-lives-rent-free]

Fragments

Everything below is just my opinion; I am in no way trying to say that how I feel about this is the one correct take or whatever.

I know a lot of people like this episode and what happens in it, but I don’t.  I totally understand that some people just don’t want to see any negativity, period, but negativity is not inherently bad or wrong.

Negative opinions, even about something you enjoy, can be valid too - regardless of whether you happen to agree with them or not.

Also I get very salty near the end of this, and that might be entertaining to people who stan this episode?

I am aware that a lot of people – the majority, I’m pretty sure – think that the episode is a masterpiece. And on some level, I see where they’re coming from with that assessment.

The episode is boarded beautifully, the backgrounds – especially during the training montage – are stunning as always.  The music is fantastic, and the performances are great too.  In these respects, Fragments is a stand-out episode; I agree.

(Like look at this.  Gorgeous.)

However, something that’s bothered me since I saw the episode is the writers’ decision to write it into the story that Steven shatters Jasper.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: I just don’t get it.  I’m purposefully misinterpreting the story to say it’s bad.  Steven brings her back to life; and it’s not like he meant to do it in the first place.  I just don’t have the capacity to understand the sublime nature of the show’s storytelling.  I’m an SU crit and all I want to do is make the real fans feel about themselves for liking it.

Uhhhh... no.  Nah.  That ain’t it chief.

It’s true; I am not a writer.  I’m just a passive consumer of media.  However, I do not agree with the viewpoint that in order to properly understand or critique a thing you need to have the expertise and/or experience in order to make something similar.

For example, if I were to put something I drew when I was 10 years old next to something I drew yesterday, it shouldn’t take a person who has had an education in fine art to tell you that the latter drawing is better-looking than the former.

That’s how I approach media consumption and criticism; when I criticise a writing decision, I am doing so as a consumer.  I’m not saying I could write it better, or even that my opinion is objectively correct and the writer is wrong or bad.  I’m just saying that I didn’t like a thing.  Which, I would hope, is allowed?

Okay, defensive hedging over, back to the point; I don’t like that they had Steven shatter Jasper.

[I get markedly saltier from this point on, fyi]

Full admission of bias here: one of the things I really cherish about the original show is how they wrote Steven’s character; he’s a boy with interests that don’t rigidly conform to gender stereotypes.  He likes ‘boyish’ things and ‘girly’ things, and that’s okay; thats just him.  In cartoons when I was growing up, characters like Steven would be the butt of jokes about being ‘girly’ or thinly-veiled homophobia.  I find him very relatable, and I want to acknowledge that yes, that is probably a significant part of why I have such an issue with this episode’s twist.

I am not trying to say that he’s a perfect baby angel or whatever; Steven regularly gets frustrated and angry. He does some pretty manipulative and dickish things to people around him (stop trying to make Larsadie happen, Steven. It’s not going to happen).  He is a flawed character who fucks up sometimes. And he’s not 100% peaceful either; he acts violently when he defends himself against corrupted Gems and Homeworld Gems (and Crystal Gems on occasion *cough*Bismuth*cough*).  

However, he has a pacifistic temperament; whenever it’s possible, he prefers that problems be solved without needless violence or hurt.  And I like that; in most media, it’s rare to have a male protagonist who wants to solve their problems without jumping straight to punching things.

When he accidentally frees Centipeedle, he convinces the Gems to step off and allow him to try and rehabilitate her peacefully; he even notices that the Gems’ weapons are a trigger for her, and make them put them away.  He frees Lapis against the Gems’ wishes because he recognizes that keeping her prisoner is wrong, and when she steals the ocean, he talks it out and heals her so she can leave Earth peacefully.

He tries to aid Jasper when she starts corrupting, fixes Eyeball’s gemstone when she’s cracked and tries talking Bismuth down when she attacks him with the breaking point.  In all of these situations, his words and help are ignored or rejected; he’s forced to resort to violence.  And it traumatises him.  

We get an entire episode dedicated to the fact that he’s been struggling with processing these awful things that happened.

Even in Future, Steven shows hesitation about engaging in unncecessary violence; he gives into Jasper’s goading for a fight after what’s implied to be dozens of failed tries at making her come to Little Homeschool, and he spends an entire episode trying to keep Lapis from squashing the two rogue Lapis Lazulis. 

The only time he hops into a fight willingly is after Eyeball and Aquamarine hold Greg hostage, and even then they pose a clear threat to his and Greg’s safety and have made it clear that they want to hurt him emotionally and physically.  Even at that, he stops and switches tactics to talking them down as soon as they lose their focus and start bickering with each other.

(I mean, he fails.  But it’s the thought that counts.)

I personally find it really jarring that the writers found it appropriate to write it into the series that this same character – over the course of three (3) days – goes from disliking mindless violence for mindless violence’s sake to happily engaging in the destruction of plants and animals* and has done a total 180 on his willingness to spar with Jasper, to the point that he instigates their rematch.

*(You best believe plenty of small mammals and birds – y’know, like the nest Steven saved in the first episode – died as he and Jasper felled tree after tree, not to mention all of those displaced by the destruction of their habitats, and the potential loss of food sources from some of those trees.)

You’re telling me that it’s a reasonable character beat for this boy to gleefully laugh like an anime supervillain at his sudden new-found joy in fighting, then pin Jasper in place, taunt her for helping him get so strong, and hit her so hard that she breaks into pieces and dies?

You’re telling me that that’s an in-character thing for Steven Quartz Diamond Cutie-Pie DeMayo Universe do to another character?

(And yes I am purposefully dancing around talking about the mental health stuff because if I did that I’d have to go on a whole other tangent about Growing Pains and fuck I just don’t feel like it right now lmao)

Going back to Mindful Education, another big thing we see Steven struggle with is the idea that his mother shattered Pink Diamond.  This knowledge sits heavily with him; it makes him sympathetic to the Diamonds, even under the circumstances in which he sees them (escaping from the Human Zoo, and being on trial for said murder). 

He sees their grief, and he feels awful.  He questions who Rose Quartz even was.  He knows, based on what Garnet said, that Rose had to do it; there was no other way to free Earth.  But he still feels awful seeing the pain that Pink’s loss has caused Blue and Yellow Diamond.

In Steven Universe, shattering is clearly equated with execution/death multiple times.  When Pearl and Garnet fret over the crack in Amethyst’s gemstone worsening.  When Blue Diamond threatens to break Ruby.  When Bismuth introduces the breaking point, and Steven recoils at the sight of what it does.  If you want to take the fact that Gem shards are sentient and desperate to become whole again into account, you could even argue that it’s a fate worse than death. This particular act of violence is treated very, very seriously.

When we find out that Rose shattered Pink Diamond, there is a season and a half long arc unpacking the implications and consequences of this one action, and how this knowledge forever alters Steven’s mental image of his mother.  And she didn’t even kill anyone.  It was a lie!

In Steven Universe Future, Steven shatters Jasper 4 episodes before the end of the series.  And it’s only brought up twice; once for a big *gasp* moment during his breakdown in Everything’s Fine, and in I Am My Monster by Pearl, when she has to fill-in Bismuth, Lapis and Peridot.  Notably, it is never discussed around or by Jasper.  Y’know.  The person who actually died.

No indication of how (or even if) what Steven did is affecting his own self-image after his initial breakdown, how Jasper feels about what she went through beyond falling back into the Era 1 and 2 mindset.  No inkling of how the knowledge that Steven killed somebody has affected how anyone in his life thinks or feels about him; when Pearl brings it up in I Am My Monster, she seems to not even really believe it’s true.

If there are any consequences or talks about this incident, they’re skipped over between I Am My Monster and The Future, and we’re expected to assume that Steven and his therapist are dealing with it, I guess?

And yes.  It was an accident.  He did bring her back to life.  But it still happened.  If you hit someone over the head and they stop breathing, just because the paramedics are able to resusitate and stabilize them afterwards doesn’t mean you never hit them.

But here, it’s shoved aside because dwelling on it would take far too much time, and risks framing Steven in an unsympathetic way when he’s meant to be on the cusp of a breakdown.

It just feels like careless writing to me.  They really, really wanted their big action scene with Steven and Jasper, but didn’t think (or maybe weren’t interested in thinking) about the seriousness or consequences of what Steven shattering someone would entail.

In my opinion, Steven shattering Jasper is one of the cheapest, laziest things they could have ever done with his character (and hers, for that matter).  To me, the entire thing feels entirely out of character.  It’s pure shock value; nothing more.

So yeah.  That particular writing decision just does not work for me.  And if you disagree... well that’s fine?  It’s fine.  We can agree to disagree?  I’ve read a lot of defense/praise for this episode, and honestly even after processing all of those opinions and all the time my thoughts about this plotline have been stewing in my brain, I still feel the same way.

[deadlygoddess85]

Eternal Soul - Serie

- Part 2 - 

Chapter 2 - The Coven

Pairing: The witches x Hongjoong, Seonghwa, San and Jongho

Words: a lot

Genre: Fantasy - a bit of horror

Songs suggestion: The Queen of the damned soundtrack. 

Characters presentation - The vampires

Characters presentation - The Witches

/ CHAPTER 1 - THE BEACONING /

The sweet laugh of the chubby baby sitting on the toy plane made her chuckle. Even if she has been doing this for the past 3 years, babies are still her weakness. She loved them so much and this one, was a little cutie pie with the tiny aviator hat, the goggles, and the blue scarf around his tiny neck. He was having the time of his life with this toy plane.

The mother was incredibly pleased, and she promises to buy a lot of photos from this session. So, Nina made sure to make her baby look the best.

“Oh Nina! You are the best with kids!” said the woman picking up her baby boy.

Nina blushed, putting a strand of hair behind her ear “Thank you Mrs. Abbott. It’s easy to do my job with this munchkin” she said, playfully pinching the baby’s chubby cheek.

Mrs. Abbott looked at her watch and gasped “Oh my god! It’s already 9. I’m so sorry Nina, I didn’t know it was so late already”

“No worries Madam. You are my last client for today. Plus, we need the perfect picture for your little prince, right?”

The mother smiled, happy with Nina’s professionalism. The young woman walked them to the door and unlocked it

“Well, Mrs. Abbott, I will call you when the negatives are ready. We’ll schedule a new appointment to choose the pictures you want.”

Mrs Abbott thanked the photographer by giving her a huge tip and walked out the studio into the brisk summer night air. Nina looked at the woman walked away with her kid and she sighed. Her eyes went down to her hand on the 100$ bill the mother tipped.

“Thank you, Mrs. Abbott, you just paid for tonight’s rounds!” she chuckled.

The photographer closed the studio. She stopped in front of one of the mirrors in her shop and fix her make-up. She looked at her dress and smiled. She loved that dress; she remembered the day her mother gave it to her. The old woman had spent countless nights sewing the whole thing together as a surprise for her younger daughter.

Nina played with the hem of her skirt, her fingertip brushing across the embroidery details “I miss you mom!”

She wiped a small tear from her cheek and walked out her studio. She made sure the door was locked properly before she made her way to the Twilight Grove.

---

The Twilight Grove was already pretty crowed even if it was early in the evening. Jo, the barmaid, was busy trying to get all the drinks order out as fast as possible. She was thankful about her decision to have her hair into two pompoms tonight, with the crowd around her bar, it was super warm. She finished a batch of Cosmopolitans for a group of girls who were at a table in the middle of the place. Jo put all the cocktails on a tray:

“Marcus, cover the bar a minute, I’ll drop these cocktails to the girls over there!” she said taking the tray in her right hand and walking to the center of the place. Walking through the dancers was a hard maneuver but she managed to get to the table without spilling anything.

“Here you go girls!” she said giving the cocktails one by one to the customers. They paid Jo, but barely left any tips. The barmaid smiled anyway and made her way back to the bar. She noticed a man sitting alone at a table in a far corner of the place. It wasn’t the first time she was seeing him there. She got back behind the bar and continued taking orders when her sister arrived

“JO!” she yelled, making her way behind the bar.

“Nina! You’re not supposed to be here!” Jo said softly, hugging her sister. Nina took two bottles of beers, gave them to a cute man that was waiting and made him pay. She looked at her older siblings and winked. Jo shook her head smiling,

“Alright! We could use your help. Go see this man over there. He has been waiting for a while!” Jo said pointing at the strange customers.

Nina salute her sister like a soldier and happily walked to the stranger.

San was too concentrated on the crowd to see Nina walked to him. He got startled when he heard her sweet voice

“Hi Sir, we are sorry for the long wait. Can I take your order?” she asked smiling.

San blinked looking at the lovely woman in front of him. His heart skips a beat when she placed a strand of her dark hair behind her ear.

“Hmm…I.. I don’t – w-what do you recommend?” he studder. Nina giggle “Cute!” she thought to herself. She gave the cocktail menu to the young man and bent to his level to show him her selection.

“If you like sweet cocktails, I suggest the Blackberry Vanilla Lemonade. It is spiked with vodka. Very good! But if you are more strong alcohol, the Old Fashion is a classic here”

San’s heart skipped a beat again while having Nina’s face this close to his, he slowly inhales her sent, she smelled like fresh raspberries. He adjusted the glasses on his nose and gulped hard.

“I’ll- I’ll have the Old Fashion….please!”  

Nina stand back up and winked at him “Coming right up!!”

San sighed heavily and slightly loosen his tie. He has seen a lot of people in his long vampire life, but nobody like this young woman. There was something about her. He decided to concentrate on her and read her mind.

Nina got back to the bar and gave the order to Jo. She leaned on the bar

“He’s cute, isn’t he?” she asked her sister

“Who?” Jo asked while she was mixing the cocktail.

“The man over there” Nina answered

Jo lift her gaze for a second, looking at the mysterious man and she smirked

“Well you sure did a good impression on him. He is so checking you out!”

Nina stared at him with hungry eyes and bit her bottom lips. San saw the way the young woman was looking at him. He fidgeted on his seat, clear his throat, and rake his hair with his soft fingers, obviously uncomfortable with the situation. Nina came back to him with his cocktail

“Here you go Sir! It’ll be 7$ please” she asked politely.

San gave her a 20$ bill while trying to avoid looking at her in the eyes. “You can keep the change” he said, his voice was tiny, almost a whisper. The young woman cocked her eyebrow at the sudden change of attitude. She pouted going back behind the bar to help her older sister. San downed the cocktail in one shot, the alcohol burnt his throat for a mere second and he left the bar.

---

The place was silent, only the sound of her breathing and the humming of the refrigerator was echoing into the lab. The dark hair woman took a syringe in her steady hand and slowly pour the liquid contained in it into the petri dish. She looked at the result through the microscope and scribble the details into her notebook.  

“You are still here?” asked a male voice behind her. The woman took her goggles off and rubbed her eyes. She leaned her arms on the table and yawned

“Yes, I’m close I know I am, but I just can’t get the blood sequence right” she said softly.

The male walked to her and rest a hand on her shoulder “Andri, go back home! You haven’t slept in the last 48 hours. Get some sleep and come back in two days!”

Andri turned to face her colleague “But…”

“It’s an order! I’m your boss after all! GO!” the male ordered.

She sighed heavily. She knew too well she couldn’t win against her boss. She gathered her things, unwillingly, while her boss was watching her. She slowly walked toward the door of the lab

“Nobody touches my research please!” she said before her boss pushed her out the lab and locked the door. He waved at her with a big smile and she understood she had no other choice but leave and go home.

Although, she wasn’t in the mood to go home. She stopped by the lab’s showers, cleaned up and put on some clean clothes before getting out of the lab.

The wind was refreshing on her skin as she was walking toward the Twilight Grove. She walked pass a dark alley and heard a small whimper coming from the narrow road. She looked around her, hesitant, nobody was there, the street was empty. Andri made three slow steps in the alley

“Hello? Anyone there?” she asked. Silence, she was about to turn and walk away when she heard the whimper again. In a flash, Andri was pinned down by two vampires. Two vicious Nightshades trying to feed on her blood. Quickly, she reacted by focusing on her two sisters.

“Jo! Nina! HELP!”

Nearby, in the Twilight Grove, Jo and Nina suddenly hear an aerie voice calling for them. They both stop what they are doing and exchange a look. They automatically walked toward the exit

“Andri!” Nina shouted in the middle of the street.

“Where is she?” Jo asked her sister. They looked around; the street was empty. How was it even possible? A small fog-like smoke was hovering the ground, Jo saw, down the street, four maybe five vampires.

“Nightshades!?! What are they doing here?” her rhetorical question was only answered by the growl of three more vampires behind them. “We have to find Andri!” she told her younger sister.

Nina think quickly and she kneeled on the hard ground. She took a small piece of white chalk she always carries with her and started drawing runes on the hard ground, the fog covering the surface making it much harder for her.

“Cover me!” she told her older sister. Jo looked down at her sibling with wide eyes

“Are you kidding me?” The three vampires that were behind them tried to make a move toward the two sisters, but Jo quickly raised her hands in front of her and instantly the beast where violently pushed back by a huge invisible force. The three beasts were brutally shoved against the brick wall about 6 feet away.

“Hurry up!” Jo screamed at Nina on the ground. The young woman drew as fast as she could. As soon as the last rune was drawn on the ground, she put her hand together, gathering an imperceptible energy and with one huge flash she saw signs of her older sister. The vision was blurry, but Nina could see her. Andri was in an alley two blocks down surrounded by Nightshades. Nina quickly got up, she took Jo by the hand and start running toward the alley she saw in her vision.

“This way!” she said pulling on her sister to follow. Jo started running behind her younger sibling. Loud growls were heard behind them as more feral vampires gathered to chase them.

Andri was at the end of the alley, behind her a tall steel fence, in front of her; two Nightshades growling and hissing ready to pounce on their prey at any given second. She tried to use her powers but the previous attack by the vampire hurt her badly and she couldn’t concentrate enough to get her energy going.

As they were about to take advantage of the situation and attack, the two vampires burst in fire, right in front of Andri’s eyes. The beasts burned into aches in an agonizing moan as Jo and Nina ran to their sister.

“Are you alright?” Nina asked panting. Andri nodded before hugging her siblings, the little reunion was soon interrupted by more growls behind them. The three women were now blocked in the small alley, surrounded by 6 more Nightshades.

“Girls, I can’t use my magic!” Andri informed her sisters. Jo and Nina stepped forward to shield their kin from the menacing vampires in front of them. Jo remembered the last time she fought one of those in the past.

She recalls all the blood that was shed that day. She remembered how young she was, maybe 11-12 years old. She remembered; The whimpers of fellow witches agonizing on the floor as their blood was being drawn out of their bodies. The screeching sound of every Nightshades being slaughtered.

She was quickly brought back to reality when one of them didn’t hesitate to jump on her. The young women were trying her best to push away the beast hovering her body. Her muscles were flexing and trembling as the creature was putting all its weight on her poor arms. It snarled like a rabid dog a few inches only from her face.

“Nina!” she let out through gritted teeth, hoping her younger sister would help. But it’s only when she turned her gaze that she noticed Nina was already fighting two Nightshades. She cursed to herself.

Her muscles were about to give up, when suddenly the creature got pulled away from her. It took her a few seconds to realize what happened, but when she finally got up, she saw four men fighting the Nightshades. One of them, tall, black hair slicked back, perfect jawline, pale blue eyes, turned to Jo

“Stay back” he shouts with a stern voice. She didn’t try to argue and stepped back to protect Andri.

Nina wasn’t an expert at fists fighting but she could deal a good amount of damage while using her power of “Life link”. By linking her mind with the Nightshades, she was able to read them, and she was able to find their weakness more easily.

She has been able to stun one on the ground as another one stepped in front of her, punching her in the guts. The air got knocked out of her lungs. Nina dropped on one knee as she tries to catch her breath, at this instant, the feral who tried to jump on her got knocked down. The young woman lifted her eyes and saw the man from the bar, fighting the other creatures with a very skilled martial art.

The sisters retreated in the back of the alley as the four men were fighting the Nightshades away.

Soon, one of the creatures screeched signaling the others to retreat, which they did, leaving the sisters and the men alone in the small alley. The tall handsome one, walked to them.

“Are you girls alright?” he asked grabbing Jo by the neck and inspecting it carefully.

“Hey! Hey! Hey! Paws down pretty boy!” Jo let out pushing him away from her.

“Seonghwa, my friend. Don’t be rude!” the voice was calm, eerie. It almost sounded like a melody to the sister’s ears. Another man walked towards them. Smaller than Seonghwa but just as beautiful. Deep brown eyes, silver hair, he was wearing an all-black Victorian Jacket with a dark blue embroidered vest and a black shirt. His fingers were decorated with many rings, and only the pinky of his left hand was painted in black nail polish.

The man stopped in front of the three women and politely bow,

“Please, excuse my friend. He didn’t mean to be rude. He is just…foreseeing” he said. “I am Hongjoong. Leader of this group.” He continued, bringing a hand to his heart as he bows again. “This handsome one is Seonghwa. There’s San” he said pointing at the man who help Nina “And that’s Jongho” he pointed at another man, roughly the same high. More muscular, short dark hair, cute features. He turned back to the sisters

“We are The Ateez family!” he said smiling “If I’m not mistaken, your girls are Moonlight sisters, right?”

Jo considered the man in front of her then those behind him.

“Yes, we are. And I’ve heard of your family.” She walked a few steps back shielding her younger sisters “You guys are vampires”.

Hongjoong chuckled “Indeed we are. Please come with us, your sister needs some medical attention and we need to talk about some serious issues”

Jo was about to protest but Andri winced in pain, she looked up at her older sister:

“Please Jo, let’s go with them.”

Jo’s stare went from Andri to Hongjoong and back. She nodded:

“Alright, we’ll go with you!”

The leader gave a small signal to the boys behind him and quickly Seonghwa wrapped his arms around Jo’s waist, San did the same with Nina and Jongho took Andri in his arms. Before the sisters could understand what was happening, they vanished from the alley.

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Stay tune for more chapters!!! 

All right reserved to DeadlyGoddess. DO NOT COPY or USE WITHOUT MY CONSENT.

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[ciarawritesmarvel]

Hey dood! Could you write something about our boi peter parker with a s/o that cosplays? I've been trying to write smth like that for ages lol

A/N: Doood I love this concept! Our boy is a cutie pie who just wants to make you look sweet as. Hope you like this! :)

It’s Anniversary Drabble Day on this blog! Please send in your prompts and I’ll get to them as soon as I can. Ending at 21:00 GMT!

—

Peter ran the glue gun along the length of the staff, grabbing the ivy vines that were next to him on his desk and pushing them down onto the glue, making sure to wind them around the staff just so. Once that was done, he used just a single blob of glue under each leaf of the fake ivy and glued those down too, pulling on them lightly to make sure they’d stuck properly.

He cast a glance at his bed, where you were sat, or rather, lying down. You were on your stomach, your little sewing machine in front of you as you furiously tried to sew on some of the final details of your costume. Your tongue was a little out of your mouth and your brow was furrowed beyond belief. He smiled. You looked adorable.

“You look adorable,” he said, vocalising just exactly what he was thinking. You didn’t look up at him, even though you could feel his gaze attentively on you. You pressed your lips together to keep yourself from looking too giddy at his compliment.

“I’m a mess,” you laughed instead, finishing the part you were sewing and finally looking over to your boyfriend, sitting up and crossing your legs on the bed. He pushed himself over to you in his wheely chair as you gestured to the old shirt you were in which had bits of glitter all over it and safety pins along the collar in a neat little row and a hole near the hem where you’d ripped it.

“Nice mess,” he mumbled, now right in front of you and you cupped his face, drawing him in for a long, slow kiss. As you pulled away, you winked at him and he chuckled, pushing himself away from you again before coming back with the staff in hand.

“Is this finished?” he asked and your eyes lit up, looking at his handiwork. You clapped your hands happily and took it from him, turning it over and over in your fingers, tracing the clean lines and gorgeous paintwork.

“You, my little apprentice, are coming on wonderfully!”

Peter’s cheeks were tinged pink and you pinched one playfully before he shook you off.

“Just want my girl to look her absolute best at Comic Con tomorrow,” he said proudly and you shook your head with a fondness that only grew with time.

“You still insisting on going as Spiderman?”

“Um…duh? Who’s going to have a more realistic costume? I’ll win the contest for sure.”

“You’re such a dork, y’know that?” you sighed as Peter jumped out of his chair and retrieved his suit from its Super Secret Special Hidey Spot. He smoothed it out next to your finished costume on the bed and jumped onto the bed next to you, crossing his legs too and laying his head on your shoulder.

“We’re gonna be the best dressed dorks Comic Con has ever seen!”

You couldn’t argue there.

[okuraiani]

Ikemen Revolution – Oliver Knight Route Part 8

Okay, here we go with another part! Well, some surprising and not so surprising things in here... The beginning is hilarious, though! As well as Blanc. After Oliver’s route I kind of like him more than before. This part, chapter 4 especially, gave me a run for my money. With one sentence I even had to ask for help from someone living in Japan T_T But, yeah, all in all everyone acts like they always do, so have fun!

PART 8 CHAPTER 1

[Alice] “Wha—What should I do...”

[Oliver] “You can't do anything except that.”

In front of Jonah, who brims with confidence, Oliver is lifting the corners of his mouth—

[Oliver] "Let's directly humiliate that guy."

[Alice] “What!?”

[Jonah] “Hold on, I think I heard some really impertinent words right now.”

[Oliver] “If so, then this will be quick. This girl here will accept your challenge.”

(Wait, wait, wait!)

[Alice] “I didn’t say anything like that!”

[Oliver] “Then take it as an order from your employer.”

[Alice] “... Why are you...”

[Oliver] “Think for yourself. Do you think that guy will withdraw so easily?”

(That’s...) (It’s no use. I can’t say anything in return.)

If I keep doing nothing, no matter how hard I try, in my head, I can’t envision a future where Jonah obediently withdraws his challenge.

[Oliver] “As long as you keep refusing, that guy will probably come here forever.”

[Alice] “Such a bothersome thing...”

[Jonah] “It’s not bothersome at all. You should be crying with joy since I do you the favor of coming here.”

(I’m going to cry for a different reason...!)

Oliver sternly points his finger at me.

[Oliver] “Listen,  remember what your objective is.” “If they make so much noise in the garage each and every day, my work won’t progress.”

[Alice] “...! That will be troubling.”

[Oliver] “See?”

(I have to help Oliver quickly complete the Black Army’s request...)

A: “But it’s scary.” B: “I accept the challenge!” C: “I– I understand. Leave it to me.”

[Alice] “Alright, I accept the challenge!”

[Oliver] “You’re looking as if you're heading for a duel. You’re brave as can be.”

[Alice] “Is– Is that bad?”

[Oliver] “No, not at all.” “That decisiveness of yours is a praiseworthy part of you.”

As if to signal the end of our whispered conversation, Oliver’s gaze returned to Jonah and Edgar.

[Oliver] “Listen up you two. I suggest a short-term battle.”

[Jonah] “A short-term battle?”

[Oliver] “More precisely, settle this with a single date.”

(A date!?)

[Oliver] “If you can’t seduce Alice during that, it’s your loss.” “If you promise to never come here again, she is going to play along with you guys.”

(Wha– Wha– What...)

[Jonah] “I see. Fine, one date is more than enough.”

[Edgar] “Good for you, Alice. You are being challenged to an oppressive... I mean, honorable date.”

[Alice] “That’s not an honor at all!”

[Oliver] “Be quiet for a moment, idiot.”

(Even though I am the one involved!?)

Before I can complain, Oliver quickly continues speaking.

[Oliver] “However, if it’s not under the Black Army’s supervision, I can’t lend you my assistant.”

[Jonah] “Well, I guessed so already. It poses no problem, if we are being monitored from a distance as long as they don’t get in the way.” “If it’s only enticing Alice, then it doesn’t matter who is looking.”

(I really want to know where his confidence is coming from...)

Oliver, who summarized the conversation in no time, turns around to me.

[Oliver] “That’s how it is. Alice, try your best at being his companion.”

 PART 8 CHAPTER 2

[Oliver] “That’s how it is. Alice, try your best at being his companion.”

[Alice] “... stupid Oliver...”

Even if I pass him a resentful look, Oliver simply ignored me.

—A few days later.

Holding the date invitation letter Jonah sent I make my way to our meeting place.

(This day arrived so fast.)

When I briefly look back, Fenrir gave me a peace sign from behind his hiding place.

-FLASHBACK

It was the evening of the day I had decided on the declaration of war—— err, going on a date with Jonah. When I returned to the Black Army and report about Jonah, various responses were returned.

[Seth] “Alice, cutie, there’s no need for you to go!”

[Luka] “I... also object.” “There is no need to go along with that guy’s farce.”

[Alice] “Farce, huh...”

(It’s rare for even Luka to say something like that.)

[Fenrir] “Still, there’s some truth to Oliver’s words.”

[Ray] “Certainly so... Unless this comes to a conclusion, there is a possibility that they are going to follow her around forever.”

(So it really is like that after all.)

[Ray] “We could also drive them away with all we have, but...”

[Sirius] “That would indeed be hard to deal with.”

[Alice] “Uh, if it’s enough to make matters worse, I’ll just quietly go on that date.” “If I break his pride, this whole topic will be settled peacefully!”

[Luka] “... You’re really strong.”

[Seth] “Fantastic! That’s some spirit you have, Alice ♪”

[Fenrir] “Don’t you worry. I will guard you while you’re on that date.” “I won’t let Jonah do anything strange.”

-FLASHBACK END

(— Fenrir is also here, so everything will be okay.)

When I swallow the strange nervousness, an extravagant carriage is stopping right before my eyes—

[Jonah] “You have my praise for coming here without running away, Alice.”

At the same time—

Inside a back alley, there was one, or rather, two shadows.

[Fenrir] “Oh, seems like the Red Queen has arrived.”

[Oliver] “... I don’t need a report on each and every thing.”

 PART 8 CHAPTER 3

[Oliver] “... I don’t need a report on each and every thing.”

Fenrir gives the dissatisfied Oliver a mischievous smile.

[Fenrir] “Come on, don’t say that. That you’re also here means you came to see how things are going because you’re worried, right?”

[Oliver] “No. I was driven out of the house by a meddling, quick-to-worry old white rabbit.” “Just because I said something unnecessary—“

- FLASHBACK

[Blanc] “Oliver, I’ve been watching the outside for some time. What is going on?”

[Oliver] “I am checking if I managed to properly repair the item that Mousse requested.”

[Blanc] “... What do you mean?”

[Oliver] “He asked me to make a compass that will search for a comfortable place to sleep. And one of its functions is a weather forecast.” “The embedded magic crystals are designed to shine blue if they detect rain...”

[Blanc] “That is amazing! So that means, since they are shining blue, it will rain from here on out?”

[Oliver] “I guess so. If they are not broken.”

[Blanc] “But the weather is so good.”

[Oliver] “... You can see thick clouds in the distance, though. So it’s not altogether wrong, you know.”

[Blanc] “If so, then Alice is really unlucky.”

[Oliver] “Huh?”

[Blanc] “I mean, isn’t today the day she goes on that date with the Red Queen?” “It would be good if she has an umbrella with her...”

[Oliver] “Whether it rains or snows isn’t something I would know.” “Rain isn’t unusual weather in London, in the first place.”

[Blanc] “Oliver, this is Cradle.”

[Oliver] “... Why are you handing me an umbrella?”

[Blanc] “It would be terrible if she caught a cold because she gets wet.” “And, since she is your assistant, doesn’t that also make it your business?”

[Oliver] “... ...”

[Blanc] “Have a safe trip, Oliver.”

-FLASHBACK END

Fenrir, who listened to how things got this way, reveals a faint wry smile.

[Fenrir] “And that’s why you’re holding an umbrella?”

[Oliver] “Yeah. ...I just quickly want to hand her the umbrella and go home.”

 PART 8 CHAPTER 4

[Oliver] “Yeah. ...I just quickly want to hand her the umbrella and go home.”

[Fenrir] “Aww, don’t say that. Let’s guard her together.”

[Oliver] “Who would—“

Letting the seemingly displeased Oliver go, Fenrir keeps an eye on Alice, who boards the carriage.

[Fenrir] “Oh, they moved. We’re going to follow them, too.”

[Alice] “Wow, this is delicious...!”

(There’s plenty of custard and strawberries in it, so it tastes incredibly sweet.)

A few hours after the date began, at a café in the city, I was having a strawberry millefeuille melt my cheeks. Jonah, on the other hand, is sitting across from me, eating the same millefeuille with a disapproving face.

[Alice] “Jonah, do you not like the cakes in this café?”

[Jonah] “The taste is all right. The pie’s dough, of course, as well as the strawberry decoration aren’t bad.” “What I am not pleased with is you, Alice.”

[Alice] “Eh?”

[Jonah] “That is absolutely no way to eat a millefeuille. It should be eaten gracefully by cutting it while pushing down the knife.”

When I look at the plate Jonah’s hands, he is cutting up the millefeuille surprisingly beautiful.

(Oh, wow... I have never seen someone eat so beautifully.)

[Alice] “You are so good at using a knife. I will try practicing, too.”

As soon as I move in accordance with his advice, Jonah raised the edges of his lips.

[Jonah] “I didn’t think you would get better right away after practicing, but looks like you can do it if you try.” “More importantly...”

Stopping the hand holding the knife, Jonah intently stared at me.

[Jonah] “You are really weird.”

[Alice] ”What part?”

[Jonah] “Well, everything. Even though I told you I’d buy you as many dresses or jewelry as you like, why is it sweets...”

(He’s still going on about that. Was that such a shock to him?)

In the beginning, Jonah tried to drag me from one high-class store to the next. Rejecting that with all my might, I somehow managed to pull him into an affordable café we would soon be reaching.

[Alice] ”I wouldn’t know what to do with all those dresses and jewelry.” “There’s no reason for you to gift something to me in the first place...”

[Jonah] “I do it because I want to entice you.” “I thought every woman liked such things, though.”

(He’s really clearly telling me that he does this to bribe me.)

[Alice] “I don’t think you should tempt someone with objects.” “But this millefeuille sure is delicious.”

When I put the beautifully divided millefeuille into my mouth, Jonah draws an astonished breath.

[Jonah] “You really are cheeky. However...” “I just understood very well that you can’t be dealt with by ordinary means.”

From a hidden spot on the main street, Oliver and Fenrir are watching over the situation between Jonah and Alice.

[Fenrir] “Hey, Oliver?”

[Oliver] “What?”

[Fenrir] “Alice seems to be having more fun than I thought she would.”

Through the window, they watch Alice stuffing her mouth with millefeuille in front of Jonah without any nervousness.

[Oliver] “I’m sure she’s just blinded by the sweets.” “Seriously, how much of a glutton can she be?”

 PART 8 CHAPTER 5

[Oliver] “Seriously, how much of a glutton can she be?”

Oliver impatiently taps his crossed arms with his finger. Fenrir tilted his head at the other’s grim look.

[Fenrir] “... Aren’t you strangely irritated?”

[Oliver] “Huh? That’s only your imagination.”

[Fenrir] “Yeah, no. That’s also your way of socializing. I can tell by looking.”

[Oliver] “... ...”

[Fenrir] “And it doesn’t look like you’re irritated because you’re hungry.”

[Oliver] “Don’t lump me together with that gluttonous little girl.”

When Fenrir stares intensely at Oliver, who frowned...

[???] “... Haha, I kind of feel a bittersweet atmosphere.”

[Oliver & Fenrir] “Ugh!”

As Oliver and Fenrir vigorously turn their backs around, they are met with a bright smile.

[Edgar] “Oh my, I’m sorry for talking to you during surveillance.”

[Fenrir] “The Red Jack, huh...”

Without a moment’s delay, Fenrir confronts him with his magic gun, but Edgar faced the two people, raising both hands in a calming manner.

[Edgar] “I have no hostile intentions, so please don’t attack.”

[Oliver] “Then, what did you come here for?”

[Edgar] “I came to look at the situation, of course.” “From the start, Jonah is only clearing up my misconduct after all.” “So, I guess, to me this is part of my responsibility.”

Oliver and Fenrir’s vigilance strengthens at his suggestive smile.

[Oliver] “The other day, you expected to trick Alice and kidnap her, but this time you’re using Jonah to get closer to her...” “What are you scheming, ‘Gentle Demon’?”

[Edgar] “Haha, you’re really sharp for a kid.”

Even in this strained atmosphere, Edgar gave them an easy smile.

[Edgar] “But please rest assured. It is nothing severe.” “It’s just... In hope of deepening Jonah and Alice’s relationship a little more, I have prepared a present.”

[Oliver] “You...”

[ethilite]

character question tag

tagged by @adiwritings​!! thank you owo

Rules: Answer the following questions for one of your characters and then tag ten people!

its apparently Luke day so fuckin’ yeet, here we go.

1) What was the first element of your OC that you remember considering (name, appearance, backstory, etc.)?

I wanted a hot white-haired anime boy. That’s all. Really. He just turned into a huge dumpster fire after figuring out his appearance.

The concept of Luke was around for a while - at first he was a redhead, and so was Greg, to be honest. But I wanted to stray away from my uhhh Luke fon Fabre and Ganondorf inspirations lmfao.

2) Did you design them with any other characters/OCs from their universe in mind?

Not really, actually. What I wanted from his appearance actually generated more facts and backstory about him, so it worked out fine that way lol. I mean, I was hoping he could turn into a romantic interest for Addie, but I was fine with letting him develop however, too.

3) How did you choose their name?

Luke is a good name. I get most of my character names from other forms of media, lol oops. Sorry Luke and Anise ahahaha;;;;;

4) In developing their backstory, what elements of the world they live in played the most influential parts?

Uh, the fact that he’s a prince, I guess? There’s some plot-related stuff concerning his backstory I don’t want to spoil, but otherwise I really do want to take the time in ttot to go into what the world looks like, so that’s why his earliest memory is a bunch of scenery imagery.

5) Is there any significance behind their hair color?

yes but that’s plot and backstory related ahahahahahaha

6) Is there any significance behind their eye color?

also plot significant. His eye colour is purple, for anyone who’s interested. wink wonk

7) Is there any significance behind their height?

not really. I imagine him to be about 5′7″ on a good day, which I guess is considered short-ish for dudes? I guess most of my characters are a lil on the short side. But I’m short. So suffer. muahahahahahaha

8) What (if anything) do you relate to within their character/story?

I relate to his clumsiness for sure. owo

9) Are they based off of you, in some way?

He may have some borrowed traits from me, but most of that is surface level I guess haha.

10) Did you know what the OC’s sexuality would be at the time of their creation?

Nope! I was thinking he was gonna be straight, since well, no one was really straight. But then I looked at him, and was answering character asks, and it turns out he’s bi as fuck. So there’s that, I guess.

11) What have you found to be most difficult about creating art for your OC (any form of art: writing, drawing, edits, etc.)?

The fact that a lot of my characters would do really well in a JRPG or anime leaves little wiggle room when it comes to creating moodboards and the like. I also can’t draw people to save my life, so nailing down exactly how they look isn’t ever gonna happen lmfao. someone teach me how to draw people pls

12) How far past the canon events that take place in their world have you extended their story, if at all?

not at all! :’D I still have a lot to plan out for ttot, concerning actually plot timelines and events. I do know that I want him to go down a Zuko-esque route, and go from anti-hero to joining the party and being a cutie pie readers thirst over ahaha.

13) If you had to narrow it down to 2 things that you MUST keep in mind while working with your OC, what would those things be?

1. he’s a lost soul and needs to find himself, so he’s gonna fuck up a lot

2. he also just wants some genuine companionship and affection, so he should try to better himself so he can obtain those things

14) What is something about your OC that can make you laugh?

he’s gonna have a lot of comedic relief scenes if I have anything to say about it. He tries to take himself so seriously, but its also super half-assed because of what he’s going through, so he tends to overreact and get thrown over cliff sides a lot. 

15) What is something about your OC that can make you cry?

If I can spin his backstory properly, and play a lot on the whole being a disappointment to your parents and never being able to do anything right spiel, I’ll prolly cry a bit cause that’s relatable as fuck.

16) Is there some element you regret adding to your OC or their story?

Mmm nothing yet. I quite enjoy making fun of my OCs and they dumb shit I can get them into, so nothing has really stood out negatively yet.

17) What is the most recent thing you’ve discovered about your OC?

Some minor origin story and influences to how he is, hehehe. >:3c

18) What is your favorite fact about your OC?

The fact that he’s like, this huge heartthrob, and could technically be a playboy if he wanted to, but his heart is too soft and he’s a huge klutz so he can’t really pull it off haha.

I’ll tag @yuutfa and @teacup-universes if you guys would like to do it;;; as well as anyone else who wants to steal it from me! Tag me in yours!!

[happypastelponies]

Analyzing Earth Ponies

Earth ponies are mud horses. They’re uninteresting. They have the weakest abilities out of the 3 races and tribes. For a long time through the history of Friendship is Magic, Earth ponies have had a sort of negative stigma placed upon them by the fanbase, who see this race as being the lowest class. On the other hand, the fans tend to lean to the perception that Pegasi rank in the middle of the class system, with unicorns being the superior of the three.

I’m here to say BUCK THAT!!! And turn everything you guys knew about Earth ponies upside down and inside out.

So what do we know about Earth ponies? While many people in the MLP:FiM fandom have looked at this race from a mere surface level, they can probably tell you that they’re the hardiest of the three races; strong and study like the earth that they’re connected to, and...good farmers? And that’s about it.

But what if it’s not? What if being strong enough to smash boulders into pebbles with their hooves and durable isn’t all there is to the good ol’ Earth pony? We’ve seen in numerous episodes, such as “Cutie Mark Chronicles” and “The Maud Couple” both literal and figurative analogies to Geodes- a plain and unordinary-looking rock on the surface, yet having abundant crystals and gems within their core once they were broken apart. I think that Earth ponies are like these geodes and just not enough people are willing to to truly crack them open and see them for what really lies within.

1: Alchemy

I believe that Earth ponies may, in fact, be the original founders of magic. Now, you may be thinking I’m crazy, but just hear me out. Take a look at creation- the common theory that whether by a Big Bang or divine creation, the earth- our earth- came about through through means of massive, unfathomable forces. Millions of years of microscopic space rock and dust colliding together at full force, and pulling in on each other, fusing, and becoming one giant rock floating through space to become our planet. Where am I going with this? It all most likely started with something small; one microscopic piece of space dust or rock, and elements within that binding throughout millions of years with other debris, and changing into something large over time. A sort of transmutation, if you will.  

And what is known to be the art of transmutation itself? Alchemy. This is a practice that aimed to purify, mature, and perfect certain objects into chrysopoeia. For example, the transmutation of base metals into ‘noble’ metals, such as lead into gold. Earth ponies by nature are the one race most connected to the earth- it’s in their name, and doubtless, in their D.N.A. This is seen in their ability to tend the land so easily, to determine whether soil is fertile enough to grow crops, to tell if a geode is a geode by its exterior alone, to punch through rocks and turn them to dust…..

But let’s look a little deeper. Alchemy is all about transmutation, right? Well, in what do we find the microscopic materials that are needed for elemental transmutation in real life? Earth! It offers the building blocks of transmutation that are most likely needed for earth ponies as well. The planet Earth itself has been transmuting itself- base minerals into ‘noble’ gems, like diamonds, golds, geodes and more, under extreme pressure, intense heat, and a careful selection process of the building blocks of matter long before humans walked its face, and also, as it the case for Earth ponies.

What do we find regarding Earth ponies and the art of transmutation/ alchemy in “Hearth’s Warming Eve” episode? Applejack being shown holding a clump of soil in her hoof and being able to progress the development of a seed into a sprout within mere seconds. The earth, in and of itself, is the ‘great, natural alchemist’, with plants naturally transmuting sunlight and nutrients from the soil into a valuable energy source for themselves; and- as said before, the earth taking rocks and minerals in its layers and transforming them into sought after precious metals and gems. The talents of most other Earth ponies, from what we’ve seen, lies in the field of farming and also manipulating the aging process of the organic lifeforms of their fields. Much like how Avatar’s Earth benders learned the talent from nature itself, such as the mole badgers, this could prove to be the case for Equestria’s Earth ponies being the first to pick up on transmutation from the earth.

2: The father founders of magic?

Since I already brought up the art of transmutation through alchemy through the earth, and by extension- Earth ponies, we know that alchemy, at its core….is nothing more than chemistry. Chemistry, at its core, is nothing more than science. This is extremely telling, because ironically, while pretty much every fan theorist and analysis found in the FiM throws Earth ponies into the mud (pun intended), they continually hold unicorns at a much higher regard. But let’s look at unicorns for a second. What connection do they have with alchemy, i.e, science? Everything!

In Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, the very earliest that we see of Twilight’s teachings in the studies of magic is “Amending Fences”, where she’s in a classroom with Moondancer, showcasing just how much she knows of the building blocks of the Periodic Table of Elements. From her dialogue, we learn than substances such as sodium chloride exist in Equestria, as they do here on earth. It’s of no mere coincidence that Unicorns study chemistry in Canterlot, where they also study magic. A Youtuber by the name of Cavatina theorized that younger unicorns are taught to study science (basic alchemy transmutation) before they learn magic. This is most likely due to safety reasons, if magic in itself is nothing more than combining elements and compounds that exist in the ponies themselves or in their enviorns, and being able to channel them properly through a conductor- such as a horn.

If magic is nothing more than the combination of elements within the self and the world around them, that the very youngest unicorns learn and advance from there, then perhaps….just maybe…..Earth ponies could, in act, be called the originators of magic. Perhaps not in the more advanced form that higher leveled unicorns have polished and practiced the craft, though. But if Earth ponies have been transmuting the elements of earth and their environs, before any unicorn ever had abilities of any sort, then it wouldn’t be too farfetched to assume that the base level of what Earth ponies could do by way of elemental reconfiguration and chemical bonding is being picked up and taught to unicorns. Being a race who hold themselves ‘holier than thou’ for millennia, it wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that they would’ve taken the base magic acquired and learned from Earth ponies, and just pushed it to its limit, which led to the crafting of “spells”.

3: Spiritual

Alchemy- the art of transmutation from an esoteric and Hermetic standpoint, is fundamentally spiritual. Zosimos of Panopolis was one of the first alchemists to highlight the spiritual nature of the alchemical quest, symbolic of a religious regeneration of the human soul. How does the spiritual connect to Earth ponies?

From a religious, Christian viewpoint, one would draw the conclusion to make the case that it was divine will for the sentient creatures born of the earth- that being humans to have been made a little lower than the angels; crowned with God’s glory and honor (Psalms 8:5), have in subjection the lesser creatures of the land, and that their (human’s) purpose, after being created and put in a garden of God’s own creation (Genesis 2:8), was to tend/cultivate the land and extend its borders (Genesis 2:15). I think this is significant as to why most Earth ponies have a job that makes use of their talents in performing that task in Equestria, and also showing that from as far back as “Hearth’s Warming Eve”, this one race was responsible for growing and distributing all of the food to the other races order to keep them from going extinct.

In addition, in Genesis 3:8 shows that humans once had a close fellowship with the spiritually divine (God) while in the Edenic garden that was His, and direct access to His presence, as spoken of when He would ‘walk’ about in during the breezy part of the day.

Could this not be the case with Earth ponies? It seems all too coincidental for this race to be traditionally farmers and caretakers of the land, and basically have in subjection the races of unicorns and pegasi who depend on them for food lest they go extinct; much like how humans, by divine order, were tasked with the job of tending God’s gardens, maintaining the earth, and having the lesser ranked creatures to them in subjection and taken care of.

Furthermore, in delving deeper on the topic of the spiritual aspects and connection of and to Earth ponies, one need only look at the finest example, which is Tree Hugger.  While this pony is looked at as a parody of Hippies by the FiM fans, and just as overlooked and disregarded as the earth pony race as a whole, I have no doubt that this one pony is the open book that we need to truly understand what Earth ponies are capable of.

I bring it up in greater detail here: https://happypastelponies.tumblr.com/post/172160703223/past-lives-and-present-possibilities, but in short, TH’s frequent mention of chakras and energy leads me to believe that, in spite of her appearance, mannerisms, and speech, she has been able to tap into the greatest ability that can be found within Equestria, which is the link to the spiritual, the azoth as it is known in alchemy. I believe that this is something that only Earth ponies would be able to obtain and have access to; though with great difficulty.

It could be that perhaps Pinkie Pie, Maud (and Cheese Sandwich) have a limited access to the azoth, given what we’ve seen of her abilities in her inherent ‘Pinkie/ Cheese/ Maud sense’ and awareness of other dimensions that she can gain access to, through, but it comes and goes, as it was said in “Feeling Pinkie Keen”.

In conclusion, though this is all pretty much speculative, I believe that Earth ponies are not to be looked down upon, and possess more abilities than we are made aware of. Perhaps they may be the highest race of the three tribes; perhaps higher than the Alicorns, even! We may not know everything that they’re truly capable of, nor do we have to, but the show has dropped breadcrumbs for us to take and interpret however we choose. Don’t give up on the earth ponies and take them at mere surface value. After all, at the very least, they were able to keep two entire races from vanishing off the face of the earth during turbulent times and threat of an eternal ice age!

See Also: Ascending to Earth pony would be the Avatar State? https://happypastelponies.tumblr.com/post/172772457998/mlp-g5-alicorn-ascending-to-earth-pony-would-be

Past Lives and Present Possibilities https://happypastelponies.tumblr.com/post/172160703223/past-lives-and-present-possibilities

[zombiesama]

tell us bout biyi-jiang. just whatever comes to ya first

oh heck yeaaa, my first mom OC

She has a cutie-pie daughter named Li-Fen who likes to draw stuff so mama Biyu can hang it in the clinic! She often sits at Biyu’s desk and scribbles in coloring books while Biyu works.

because she’s an FMAB OC and I oddly didn’t have any alkahestris OCs she’s an alkahestris and uses her alchemy to help injured people! Their home/clinic is nearby a bar so she’s often up really late sewing up drunks who got into fights for who-knows what reason. Because of this there’s a door at the bottom of the stairs that lead to their home and one at the top, both of which she locks whenever she has late night patients.

Lifen wants to help people like her mom, so Biyu lets her get bandaids out of drawers and give people suckers.

Biyu is always tired and messy tbh. She’s constantly considering shaving all of her hair off because she never has a chance to brush her hair properly kjshaflkfhdlsf she gave herself an undercut to see how she’d feel about it but never had time to finish the deed lmao.

the usual patients all know Lifen and often bring her toys and treats when they visit the clinic. she has a shelf in her room that has all the stuffies she’s gotten from them.

Biyu has bloodstains on like all of her pajamas from the drunk guys that need to be sew up. 

cant think of anything else so bye 

[macabrebride]

“I can’t be scared forever! ...I’m gonna overcome this thing, and I’m gonna be fight! For you! For the family! Because that’s what a real man does!”

Shin

//It’s been a long time coming but I finally managed to draw a look for him that I’m proud of. This AWESOME DARLING is Bride’s number one pride and joy. Note: Not just anyone gets close to him. If she lets you meet him, it is safe to assume you have gained all of her trust. He was 10 before the time skip so now he’s 12?? T-T They grow up so fast!!! </3

//For some reason, when I drew him, I had a ton of influences in mind? Like Astro Boy and Gohan, and I guess the  hair was inspired by Haku from Spirited Away. And in his future, I saw something like Roger Smith from Big O. He’s already a cutie pie, but when he GROWS UP. Still a goofball. Just even more handsome.

//These sketches, however are from when he was 8-9, so a few years after he joined the crew. In a forsaken town, he was one of many unfortunate child slaves, forced to work in the mines (despite being small, frail, and so very young) under the guise of being properly nurtured and lovingly cared for at an orphanage. The owner of this orphanage used a devil fruit that allowed her to wipe create illusions and wipe the memories of the children’s parents, making them completely forget they had them to begin with. Every piece of evidence that proved otherwise was burned to ash and the remains tossed to the sea.

//When Shin and the others were rescued by Bride and the others, the parents’ memories were restored and most of the little one’s returned. Some, however, had been lost before the Crush Pirates’ arrival. 

//Shin’s parents were nowhere to be found, so there is a question as to his true origins, but he has never voiced concerns about it, as Bride was all too willing to take him in and raise him herself. Today, he is a normal boy, a ray of sunshine on most occasions, albeit obsessed with getting stronger every day and kicking booty, but he saw many dark days. Laboring in the caverns was not only strenuous, unhealthy for the child, but birthed intense cases of nyctophobia and monophobia - as he was punished for trying to run away by being holed up in the cave for a whole night, the entrance barricaded with boulders.

//To date, he has conquered the fear of darkness, and has grown more independent. He still fears being by himself, but with so many brothers, uncles, and a mother he can’t shake lose, he’s come a long way. 

[planarchaosproject]

Planar Chaos: Chapter Twenty

Black and White and Red All Over

"Okay, you two," Odom said, standing between Ashleigh and Brock, "I want you at opposite ends of the elemental at all times. We're on a mission, and you're either going to have to look past your differences or not interact at all."

"That's right," Marthel said. He was standing across from Odom with one hand on Brock's shoulder as much for restraint as for comfort. "We've got to get to the center of this maze to get out. Kyari's missing and Ashleigh's friend is likely the only person who can help us find her. The sooner we do both of those things, the sooner we can escape and get on with our lives."

"Since," Odom continued, "given the looks on your faces you aren't particularly intent on our former option, we'll have to go with the latter. No interaction. Now, both of you turn around and walk away."

The rival walkers did so, Ashleigh joining Sverre, Oona, and Sa'Raah as they played with Abby while Brock stalked over to where Nadia sat, begrudgingly eating a slice of bread.

"I didn't know angels ate," Brock said.

"They don't," Nadia said curtly. "I, however, must. I have been touched by the space between spaces. It has changed me. There is nothing more to it." She took a bite and grimaced.

"Well," Marthel said to Odom, "I think that went well."

"Mhm," Odom replied. "Let's just hope we can keep it this way. I don't want a fight to start."

"You'll just have to keep your little cutie pie away from him," Marthel cautioned.

Odom's face grew dark. "It's going to be hard. Abby's getting very curious." He glanced over to where the abomination was sitting in Sa'Raah's lap, propped up with its rear tentacles and feeling her horns. One of Abby's tentacles touched its own small horns that were beginning to form. "It's able to recognize features it shares with others and seems to be building a conceptual model of the world from a psychological standpoint. I'm just happy this endless gray maze provides enough sensory stimuli for proper cognitive development."

"We're a pretty ragtag bunch, Odom," Marthel said. "I'm sure that between all of us Abby's getting enough sensory input."

Ashleigh smiled slyly at Sa'Raah. "So what's this I'm getting about Sarkhan Vol?"

Sa'Raah blushed bright red in response.

"Go on, or do you not kiss and tell?" Ashleigh pried.

"I prefer not to," Sa'Raah said. "Mother did teach me modesty, which you wouldn't think a dragon would care about all that much."

"Seems like it was more than kissing, then," Sverre said.

"It must hurt to be parted from him for so long," Oona said. "I can't recall the last time Sverre and I weren't together, it's been so long."

"And it will be even longer, my love, once we can be together forever, never parted by the cold kiss of death," Sverre said dramatically.

"I do miss him," Sa'Raah revealed. "He's the only other person in the multiverse that understands just how I feel about dragons."

"Go on," Ashleigh prompted.

"And when we're together, I can just tell how fascinated he is with me, how attracted to me he is. The first time we met, we almost…" Sa'Raah trailed off.

"So it was an instant connection," Sverre said approvingly. "I felt the same way about Oona when I first beheld her heavenly beauty. I didn't care that she was a dainty fairy queen and I a profane necromancer unworthy of her sight. I strove to be the kind of man worthy of such divine affections. I did whatever it took, up to and including brutal, cold-blooded murder."

Maelstrom Wanderer lurched forward as the spider construct began to move again. The hydra no longer obstructed its path back to its director, but instead had wandered off into the maze.

"I hope we can get that damn beast back," Marthel said, sitting down next to Brock and Nadia.

Odom followed him, joining the quieter of the two groups. "I don't know that I've ever actually seen Kyari without the hydra. She'd bring it with her on research projects and just let it roam around while we took our samples."

"The reason she never lets it out of her sight," Brock explained, "is that it planeswalked with her that first time. They wound up somewhere dark, surrounded by metal and death. She doesn't know what plane it is, but I have my guesses."

"She's too young for it to have been Phyrexia, Brock," Marthel said.

"You don't necessarily know that. Elves live a long time."

Odom yawned. "He's got a point, they do have long lifespans wherever they exist. The only thing that lives longer are dragons, vampires, and planeswalkers. I'm not counting angels, Nadia, no offense."

"None taken. From our birth on Bant we were functionally immortal."

"Technically speaking," Marthel chimed in, "angels aren't born. They're made."

Odom and Brock each arched an eyebrow.

"The prevailing theory, from what I've been able to find regarding the subject, which involved several heated interrogations of one Soratami planeswalker, is that angels were created by Serra, an ancient planeswalker." Marthel smiled smugly.

"How did you get Tamiyo to tell you anything?" Brock asked.

"Basically, she started lecturing me with stories."

Brock smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah, she does that a lot."

"Where does she get those stories, by the way?" Odom asked.

"I'm going to be honest. I don't really know." Brock said.

000000

Several days had passed. The spider construct was forced to move slowly so its tagalongs could navigate the maze. On the back of the elemental, things were getting heated.

"That damn thing tried to attack me," Brock shouted as Ashleigh took a defensive stance in front of Abby.

"It's just curious, Brock," Odom said, trying to diffuse the situation. "It's harmless at this stage of its life."

Sverre mumbled something about his helmet begging to differ. Sa'Raah took an opportunity to scoop Abby off of the ground and carry it away from the brewing fight.

Marthel stood in between Brock and Ashleigh, his curved knife at the ready in case one of them made a move.

"It won't be harmless forever, don't you see that? I can prevent so much death, so much loss, if I destroy it right here and right now." Brock's wide eyes had taken on a manic quality.

"And I promise you that if you were to kill Abby that Ash would go off the deep end," Odom said. He glanced over to where Ashleigh stood. She hadn't moved, or rather she hadn't seemed to. He felt her delicate mental fingers picking through his mind for a spell, any spell that could work inside the maze. No doubt she had already combed through everyone else's minds except her rival's.

"She's already off the deep end, Odom, she lives in the deep end," Brock laughed harshly.

"I think we ought to let them settle this, don't you?" Marthel said coolly. He took a step back.

"No fighting on the elemental," Odom said emphatically, crossing his arms.

Ashleigh took a running leap from Maelstrom Wanderer's back and landed on the ground below. In this one spot gravity seemed to function properly. Brock followed, glaring over his shoulder at Marthel standing there with his dinky little knife and Sa'Raah cradling the unholy mass of flesh.

"Traitors," he muttered.

Ashleigh was waiting for him when he landed. She rushed him down, flinging blasts of electricity. Brock calmly stepped to the side, sending her tumbling over the edge of the walkway. What he didn't expect was to see her come back up the other side, hands sparking. Brock retaliated with fists of flame, using a special technique he'd learned from his time studying on Mount Keralia. He had to regulate his breathing, his heartbeat, even his blinking to draw upon the mana of the plane and channel it into the invisible flames. Ghostfire would serve him well against the crazed electromancer.

Ashleigh feinted right and jabbed to the left. Brock struck at her shoulder, his superior physical strength sending Ashleigh staggering back. The Ghostfire had burned away her coat, revealing more of her sun-starved skin. Her eyes flicked up to where Sa'Raah held Abby. The abomination's eyes were riveted to its mother, following her every move. Ashleigh let out a feral growl and attacked with renewed viciousness. She gave up all pretense of cunning, operating purely on instinct. Brock smiled to himself. He could use this erratic fighting style to his advantage. He dodged her blows, allowing Ashleigh to tire herself out.

"Shouldn't we stop them?" Sa'Raah asked. "We're stronger together."

"They want to tear each other apart," Marthel said. "I say we should let them get it out of their system."

"Besides," Odom said, "If they tear each other apart I can get those deep tissue samples I've been needing from both of them."

"Ever the scientist, Odom," Sverre said, smirking. "That said, Ashleigh doesn't look like she's doing so well. I don't think I've ever actually seen her with her hair down. It's longer than I expected."

"Yeah, it's really soft too," Odom said. "I hope she doesn't lose those combs, or Brock doesn't break them. They're her favorites."

Ashleigh was breathing heavily and bleeding from the corner of her mouth. She spit on the ground, sending a tooth skittering into a separate gravity field, where it began falling up. "Didn't anyone tell you never to hit a lady?"

"With all due respect," Brock said, barely breaking a sweat, "you aren't a lady."

He reared back his fist and punched. Ashleigh was too late to dodge it. She felt her ribs crack and stars erupted behind her eyes when her head crashed into the hard ground. Her foot twitched and her breathing came in wet gasps. Her eyes, though out of focus, were still filled with malice and the will to fight.

Brock stood over her, ready for the kill, when Odom appeared before him. His own fist connected with Brock's chest, sending the monk flying and causing similar injuries to those he'd inflicted upon the Voidcaller. Brock found himself staring at the ceiling watching his blood start to drip upwards.

"Marthel, hold him still," Odom ordered. Marthel did so, giving Brock an apologetic look.

Odom knelt down by Ashleigh, gently stroking her face and hair while a series of extra arms harvested the samples he needed before healing her wounds. He did the same with Brock, minus the stroking.

"Sorry, dude, but that'd just be weird," Odom said, picking bits of Brock's innards out and placing them in separate vials before regenerating his broken body.

Ashleigh was back on her feet and ready to begin fighting again when she felt something pick her up by the back of her collar. A barky substance with hot breath that smelled like brimstone closed around the fabric gently and Maelstrom Wanderer lifted Ashleigh off the ground like a mother cat would do to a disobedient kitten. Odom himself helped Brock up and put a friendly yet firm arm around his shoulders. The grip was tight to the point of almost being painful.

"We're going to take a little walk, you're going to come with me and Ashleigh's going to go with Broski," Odom explained.

"Odom get your overgrown tree dog to put me down," Ashleigh demanded. Maelstrom made an angry rumbling noise in response.

"He's not a tree dog, Ash, he's an elemental." Odom rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Brock. "Women, am I right?"

They began walking, Odom directing their path.

"I don't think you see what I'm trying to do, here, Brock," Odom said after several minutes of uncomfortable silence. "So I'm going to explain it again. You're aware that Ashleigh hears voices, right? She's constantly assaulted by the voices of the living. She's been doing fine here on Xerex because there are maybe thirteen sapient beings on the whole plane. But on other planes she doesn't do so well. Take Ravnica, for instance, it's a giant, densely populated city. Her mind is bombarded with a dull roar in the background of all her thoughts. It's enough to drive someone insane, and at times it has. But you know what, if I can keep her distracted for long enough with something new she does just fine. If I give her something to care about, she can resist that urge to destroy everything for a moment's peace and quiet. Then Abby came along, and she can now exist without hearing those voices if she has Abby. So, while you see the presence of Abby as something terrible and dangerous, I see the opposite. Abby's death might be just what Ash needs to fly off the handle and go on a rampage. So I'm going to give you another chance, because I like you. You're a swell guy, and I do think we need someone like you on this team, but this will have to be your last chance. If you can't keep that temper of yours in check we're going to have another problem, and next time I won't duplicate your attacks at half power."

"I don't see you asking her to keep her temper in check," Brock spat.

"So I have a soft spot for her. Go on and have the Azorius and Orzhov sue me. I'd like to see how long it takes you to fill out the paperwork. You'd have to give yourself to the Maw of the Obzedat just to exist long enough to finish it." Odom shrugged. "Good luck."

"You're not being fair," Brock said.

"No, I'm not. And I won't be 'fair' just because you say to." Odom stuck his tongue out.

Brock groaned. "Okay. I'll do my best not to get angry, alright?"

"I'm satisfied. Shall we rejoin the others?"

"Only on the condition that you talk to her."

"I don't have to, Marthel is taking care of that for me. She gets these big puppy dog eyes and I just can't be stern with those, but they don't have an effect on Marthel at all."

"At least someone sees through her," Brock said, rolling his eyes.