#i know I could do a hydrogen peroxide soak but I don't feel like it

[clonerightsagenda]

Took an old toothbrush to my deer mandible, but the algae doesn't want to come off. I suppose it's kind of fun to have a bone that turns bright green whenever it gets wet.

[getinthefuckingcarkitten]

Afraid

That's not the first time she's felt that angry. She remembers it well, actually, the scene that played out in front of her. Ronnie washing blood off, her own shaky hands gripping a rag soaked with hydrogen peroxide. Best they could find in a pinch. There were blood specks on the floor leading to the sink, but they'd have to clean it later.

"Okay," Ronnie said, pulling her arm out from under the water. The gash was still bad, but less messy than when she had ran into the bathroom. "Now, before it starts bleeding again-"

She doesn't need to be told twice. Robin presses the rag to her wound, and Ronnie hisses in pain. Startled, she tries to pull it away, but Ronnie presses it down harder herself, falls to her knees with her eyes watering a bit.

"Thanks." Ronnie says, her voice weak. Robin barely did anything. Maybe she should do something, now.

She hesitates, then speaks in a burst of courage.

"You should break up with her." Robin speaks, finally, and Ronnie looks up at her. That annoyingly impassive mask on her face, then she chuckles.

"I'll handle it." She says, and Robin knows it's a lost cause. She helps patch up the wound despite the shaking hands, and it's the best she can do-

But that wasn't the first time she felt that world-ending rage. Not even when Kylar kept rubbing herself up on Ronnie despite the mess she made, and how Ronnie kept bending over backwards to please the little psycho, a hint of fear in her usually warm brown eyes that Robin might be making up to fuel her righteous anger. Ronnie doesn't get scared, not like she does.

Robin was very scared, all the time. When she was little she'd let her older cousins do whatever they wanted because she was afraid of causing a scene, when Bailey threatened her into paying a frankly ridiculous amount of debt she complied because she was afraid of being punished, when Ronnie kept putting her on standby she'd act like it was okay because she was afraid of losing the best thing in her life. Ronnie wasn't like that.

Maybe if she was, she'd stop getting in such dangerous situations. Like, when she kept saying Avery was nice, just a bit lonely and kind of stuck up, but she helped pay rent on time. She never seemed nice, not in the way she ignored Robin entirely while speaking to Ronnie so possessively. "My sunshine" this, "my little prince" that, dripping with a malice that only Robin seemed capable of seeing.

And when the pet names were dropped and Ronnie still got into that car, alone, it ended just as Robin had predicted. Empty eyes stared back at her in the school bathroom stall they had scrambled into when Ronnie stumbled to school an entire hour late, bruises on her pretty face that she was trying to fix with a wet towel, her hand gripping it as tightly as she did Robin's shirt, at the same time.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the infirmary?" Robin asked, and Ronnie finally seemed to see her there. Her grip on Robin's shirt relaxed, and she shook her head.

"...No." Ronnie replied. Pulled the wet towel away from her face, hair clinging to the darkening bruises.

"Let's go to the police." Robin said, feeling brave again. Why did it seem to come in the worst moments? "If you don't want to, i can go."

Ronnie kept herself silent. She leaned against the wall, sighed deeply, and smiled up at Robin, despite the deplorable state she was in.

"Don't worry. I'll handle it." She said, shaking her head.

...Handle it? Like she's been handling Kylar? Yeah, sure.

"Ronnie," She started, but Ronnie whimpered and cut her off. Buried her face in the towel. Was she-

"I don't want to think of what she'd do to you." Ronnie said, her voice trembling. Afraid. "Please."

That was maybe the tipping point. What about she'd do to Ronnie if she kept it up? And Ronnie would just- Let her. Because she did feel scared, only when it wasn't for herself. What a joke. What an horrible joke.

But right now she didn't need a scolding. She needed someone to hold her, and if Kylar had her head buried too far up her own ass- Sure. She'd swallow that bitter rage and keep it down-

Or she tried to. It all happened so fast. They walked to school through a different route, and still she had found them- There was the car door slamming, and then Avery was grabbing Ronnie by the arm and trying to drag her inside. It all came flooding back. Blood on the sink and weak smiles that promised something they'd never be able to keep-

She hit Avery square in the face before she could understand what was going on, sending her back into the car, the sickening sound of the impact mixed with the shattering of her glasses. Avery wiped blood off her cheek as Robin wrangled Ronnie out of her grip, and she looked up at them, incredulous, then angry.

"You'll pay for this." She said, her voice hoarse, clearly not expecting that, and then she got into her car and left and Robin nearly collapsed up on the sidewalk if not for Ronnie holding her so tightly.

She remembered her cousin making fun of her for never hitting back when they'd pick on her. She was bigger than them, she'd cause a scene if she did. Hurt them for real. Robin was always afraid of hurting people for real. She looked down at her fist, darkened with blood, and remembered it, that feeling of being so afraid of hurting someone else.

It scared her the most that she had lost it. The fear of hurting someone else was replaced by something else entirely. She'd have punched Avery again if she hadn't left, and again if it meant she never had to see Ronnie's empty gaze again, if she never had to hear an "i'll handle it" again. Fuck, she'd curbstomp her.

The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She hugged Ronnie back as they stepped away and back on the path to school, and Robin looked at her friend, who was still smiling at her.

"...I was really scared there." Ronnie spoke up, and Robin nodded and hugged her closer despite what she really wanted to say. Good. She better start feeling afraid for herself, before Robin lost the fear of her own violence like that again.

[modern-vellichor]

i'll be alright

summary: Frank comes back. and you missed him. You just try not to let him know that. warnings: blood, injuries, angst a/n: cannot get enough of frank castle........ pls give me a break <3

"Don't touch me," you mutter. "How dare you show up here, now."

Frank was dripping blood onto your hardwood floor. He towered over you, he could kill you without even breaking a sweat, but he still flinched when you shouted.

"You disappeared, Frank. As far as I'm aware, you're dead. You being here is putting a target on my back."

"Sweetheart, please," he begged.

"I'll stitch you up, but you're not off the hook, Castle."

He nodded. He slammed the door behind him. He tracked blood through your house, your beautiful, pristine house which had just been mopped. You walked behind him, shoving him in the right direction. You rather roughly push him to sit on the toilet while you soak old rags in hydrogen peroxide while Frank peels off his shirt. You toss his bloodied clothes into the bathtub, a job for later.

"I just mopped this whole fucking house," you grumbled. "Take those boots off before you even think of taking another step."

Frank did as he was told. He would always do anything you asked. You cleaned his hands first. His knuckles were bruised and grazed, and one of his fingers had to be reset, nothing you couldn't handle. You reset his nose too, you don't apologize when he curses under his breath. He deserves this.

You spare him no sympathy as you sterilize your needle. And he squeezes your shoulder when your clean the deep gashes in his chest, and he nearly breaks it when you begin to stitch him up.

"Get your hands of me," you growl. Franks mutters a rushed apology.

But as soon as you clean the final wounds on his thighs, his hand shoots out for you again. You let him. You do feel a little bad, you still love Frank, but you don't tell him that. You don't show it. He doesn't get to know. You close the stitch, and he stares at you. You let him.

His hand lingers on your shoulder. And then he trails his fingers up your neck and caresses your cheek. You want to lean into him. You want to collapse into his chest and weep and beg for his forgiveness. But you didn't. You held yourself together. You let him hold you for a few moments more, and then you moved away. And not once did you meet his eyes.

You kept your back turned as you chucked rags into the wash and binned the used needle. You heard your sofa creak behind you. You heard heavy footsteps plodding to the bathroom, and then the same footsteps back, but this time they were boot-clad. He headed for the door. You didn't move.

"where are you going?" Your voice was quiet, and it cracked as it reached the end of the question, full of emotion.

"I'm leaving."

"I never said you had to leave."

The softness of your voice made Frank want to cry. You were so full of unspoken emotion. He wanted to hold you and comfort you and keep you safe.

"Do you want me to?"

The question lingered in the air. You turned to face him, but your gaze was glued to his boots.

"You're tracking blood through my house, Frank," you whispered. "Take them off."

He kicked his boots off. You extended your hand and he took it. His other hand gripped your chin and forced you to meet his gaze. You nearly burst. His eyes were so full of love and admiration.

"I think I have a shirt you can wear," you smiled, but looked down at your feet again. "The one you got in Louisiana."

You pointed towards your bedroom, even though you knew that he didn't need direction. He had been here enough times before to know. He found the shirt without a problem, and a pair of sweatpants he had left here even before that. All the bloody clothes he had dumped in your bathtub, you had washed and kept. And they smelt like you, and it was heaven.

"Just sleep," you whispered, awkwardly tucking him into bed. "I want you to stay tonight and tomorrow night. I want to watch you, make sure you don't bleed out, or seize up, or, you know." You adjusted the pillows around his head.

"I'll sleep on the couch," you continued. "It's more comfy than it looks."

You considered kissing his forehead. But you decided against it. Instead, to satiate the yearning you had for his touch, you pressed the back of your hand against his cheek, checking his temperature.

You moved to pull away, and suddenly, Frank's had shot out and wrapped around your wrist. He held you in place.

"I'll only stay if you stay with me." He grunted.

You stood for a minute, considering his offer. You sighed. You'd just stay until he was asleep, you told yourself, and then you'd slip out and sleep on the couch. And so you caved, and you crawled into bed next to him. And you cradled his head against your chest. You wanted to sob, you wanted to scream and cry and heave and you wanted Frank to hold you, and tell you that it would all be okay.

Frank curled around you. He tangled his legs with yours. He wrapped his arms around your waist and kept you tucked tightly against him. You couldn't move even if you wanted to, but you didn't. You stayed. And you held him, and carded your hands through his hair, and along his back.

"You'll be alright," you whispered. "We'll be alright."

"I'm sorry," Frank murmured.

"Go to sleep," you buried your head into the crook of his neck, muffling the sound of your soft cries.

Frank was already asleep when you started to cry. You whispered to yourself:

"I'll be alright."

[shadyufo]

Sorry if I'm being annoying but I was wondering if you could give me any tips of how to get the bones from an animal? I recently found a dead opossum in the woods near my house and I would really like to keep its bones but I don't know how, tips?

My apologies for the delay, Anon! And you aren’t annoying at all! Always glad to help out when I can! :)

When starting with a whole carcass there are a few different cleaning methods to choose from. My own preferred methods are maceration, dermestid beetles, or one of the various forms of nature cleaning. 

Maceration is done by putting the carcass in a container of warm water and letting it rot down to bones. You’ll want to use a fish tank heater or bucket heater to keep the water around 85 degrees Fahrenheit for optimal results. Keep the container covered and don’t change the water or you’ll lose your bacteria colony which will slow the process down. Skinning and defleshing the carcass fish will definitely speed things up and save you from having to pick through fur to find tiny bones and teeth later but it’s okay to just macerate the whole carcass too if you’d rather. I’ve macerated whole carcasses plenty of times with no problems. Depending on the size of the specimen, maceration usually takes at least a couple of weeks—sometimes more, sometimes less.

Dermestid beetles are excellent little bone cleaners but they do require some upkeep so they aren’t for everyone. I haven’t had a colony in a few years now but I can’t recommend them enough especially for cleaning delicate skulls and skeletons.

There are various ways of “nature cleaning” a carcass. You can put it in a fine mesh bag and bury it in a flower pot or container of dirt. You can put the carcass in a cage and let nature do it’s thing. You can put the carcass in a plastic bag with a few holes poked in it then cover it with an overturned container to prevent scavengers from nabbing it. Lots of options with nature cleaning. And as with maceration, skinning and defleshing definitely speed to process up but you can skip that step for nature cleaning too if you’d rather.

Whichever method you choose, once all of the tissue has rotted off then you’ll be ready to degrease the bones. I use hot water and Dawn dish soap when I degrease. Put the bones in a bucket of water, keep the water heated to around 85-115 degrees Fahrenheit, and add a squirt or two of Dawn dish soap (or any other good grease-cutting soap). Change the water as it becomes cloudy or develops a film on the surface. Once the water starts staying clear let the bones dry and check for any bad odors or yellow/brown stains in the bone. Keep degreasing if necessary but if there aren’t any odors or in-the-bone stains then you are ready to whiten.

Whiten bones only with hydrogen peroxide—never use chlorine bleach. Even a brief soak in watered-down bleach will destroy bones over time. Hydrogen peroxide is the only way to go. I just use the plain old 3% solution sold in a brown bottle in grocery/drug stores. I soak bones in peroxide in an open container out in direct sunlight—the sunlight causes the peroxide to degrade faster so you may have to freshen it up as you go but I’ve always gotten much better results doing it this way. Let the bones soak until they are as white as you want and keep in mind they’ll dry whiter than they appear when wet if you are aiming for a certain shade. After all that you should be good to go!

Hope that helps get you started, Anon! Check out my Bone Collecting for Beginners post and my bone cleaning tag too. I think you’ll find a lot of info there that’ll be helpful too! If you have any other questions please feel free to ask. I’ll try to be a little faster at replying next time!

[hot-wiings]

The Chapter Contains Enji Todoroki. If this makes you triggered, or uncomfortable don't proceed.

Edited: 5-18-20

#1. I Love How You Patch Me Up. 

You let out a sigh as you dabbed Touya Todoroki's eyebrow with a cotton ball. He hissed as the hydrogen peroxide soaked ball of cotton made contact with his skin, burning him as it cleaned out the cut.

"Sorry."

"Just stings."

Touya watched you from the spot where he sat on the barstool. You pulled your lip between your teeth and he knew you were upset. Upset that you had to make him sit through the extra pain of cleaning out his cuts with ointment and peroxide. 

You weren't just upset, but livid. Livid that his father would hurt him like this. Livid that his mother didn't step up and protect him. Most of all, you were livid that she wouldn't even stay around to clean him up, but rather left him to patch himself up.

Your heart hurt for Touya, it truly did. You knew what it was like to have your father, a respected man, lay a hand against you—that's how you originally met Touya in the first place.

You were both in a local drug store looking for peroxide and medical materials, the same day with the same purpose and reasons. You both happened to reach for the same bottle as if fate intended for you to meet. You ended up helping him patch himself up that day.

You carefully pressed a bandaid over Touya's eyebrow cut before moving onto a new one. Your eyes briefly flashed down to his teal orbs before going back to your task at hand.

"Why'd he get so angry this time?"

"I told my parents I wanted to apply to UA. Enji told me I wasn't cut out to be a hero, I disagreed."

"And your mother? What did she say."

"She didn't say anything... But I know she agrees with him."

Your hand pressed down harder on Touya's cut. Sensing your anger, Touya pulled your hand from his cut cheek to his mouth. Ignoring the pain from his busted lip, he kissed your tense knuckles.

"I hate them so much. I hate how he treats you. I hate how she doesn't stop it. She doesn't even try!"

"Can you really blame her? If she intervened then my busted face would be hers. If he didn't hit me, he would be hitting her."

"That's not how a mother should act. A mother would step in, a mother would protect you. You protect her so much, but she has never done shit for you."

"How would you know? You don't even have a mother." 

His comment deeply bothered you, but you knew that it didn't come out of malice but rather a defense. It didn't make it hurt any less, however, you didn't retaliate with words but actions. 

With a tight smile, you soak a cotton ball in hydrogen peroxide and aggressively press Touya's lip with the substance. He winced, but he couldn't be mad. You would never hurt him on purpose, instead, you took out your anger by cleaning him up, something that you knew would hurt him but something that essentially needed to be done. 

"I'm sorry, that was mean." 

"It was."

"I just hate when you talk bad about her, she's not a bad person. He is, but she's not. She's sweet with Fuyumi and Natsou, it's just cause' I look so much like him. She thinks I'm just like him."

A tear falls down from Touya's pretty teal eyes. It dribbled down his cheek and mixed in with his cuts. You turned your own gaze to the ground, as you couldn't help but let a few of your own fall as well.

"You're not your father Touya." 

"You're right, I'm not my father. That's why it doesn't matter if I let him hurt me, cause' at least I know I'm not enabling a monster like him to hurt my mom."

Touya slips his arms around your waist and pulls you closer between his legs. He used his hand to tilt your chin up making you look him in the eyes as his other hand traced circles into the bare skin of your hip above your jeans.

"I wish we could just get away from them all." 

Touya let his head rest against your chest and he softy murmured into your skin as you ran your fingers through his bright orange locks.  

"One day I'm leaving and I'm not coming back. You'll come with me, right?"

Your lips quirked up into a small smile. You leaned your neck down and kissed the top of Touya's head.

"Of course. After all, you'd be hopeless without your unlicensed doctor."

"I think you meant my pretty, unlicensed doctor." 

Touya could still feel the heat from your kiss on his head, lingering and begging for more. It was then in that moment as you patched up his wounds that he realized how he really felt about you. He really wanted to say those three unspoken words, the words he was so cautious about handing out, but he didn't. Instead, he held his best friend and let her patch up his face. 

#2. I Love How You Won’t Let Me Go. (Even When I Push You Away.)

He knew what he was doing was horrible. He knew what he was doing was going to break your heart. He was doing the worst thing. It would be like stabbing you in the chest and twisting the knife. 

Touya Todoroki knew what he was doing would hurt you, but that didn't stop him from packing his bag with any essential items he would need. He knew it would hurt you, but that didn't stop him from discreetly leaving you a heartfelt goodbye letter in your mailbox before he headed off to school. 

He knew it would hurt you, but that didn't stop him from walking to the nearest bus stop right after school got out. He knew it would hurt you, but he still bought a ticket to the farthest destination anybody would look for him, a ticket he bought a week in advance from his departure date. 

He knew it would hurt, yet he still attempted to go through with it. What he hadn't expected was to see you standing there at the bus stop when he arrived. He hadn't expected to see you, arms crossed with a furious look spread across your face. 

"Were you really going to leave?" 

His eyes flowed from the scorned look of betrayal on your face down to your hand which held the letter he left in your mailbox. It was bunched up in your fist and your knuckles were white from clenching it so hard.

He could see the tears building up at your eyes, and his chest felt heavy with regret. He pulled on the arm straps of his backpack tighter. He was scared of hurting you. He was careful to choose his next words, wary of breaking you even more. 

"How did you even get from school to home to here so fast?" 

"Maybe if you hadn't been avoiding me like the black plague, you would've known that I was absent from school today." 

"Why were you absent? Did your father-"

"Don't. Don't ask about my father. You don't have that right, not after you broke your promise." 

The tears started dribbling down your cheeks and you looked up at the sky to avoid looking at him with your blurry tear-filled orbs. 

"You promised. You promised that you would take me with you. You said we’d escape our parents together… But you were going to leave without me. You weren't even going to give me an actual goodbye."

Your voice sounded quiet and simply broken. The tone you used with him was hurt and lifeless. He wished you would scream, he wished you would yell. Anything would be better than the broken tone you held. Anything would be better than the broken tone he caused. 

"How could I take you with me? I'd just be dragging you down."

Touya took a deep breath and closed his eyes, mentally preparing himself for the words he had to say to you. 

"You wanna know why I got so distant? My mom got put in a mental institute and our last conversation was her telling me I was gonna end up just like Enji. I can't be anywhere near you. I won't let myself treat you like he treats people." 

Touya made the motion to turn as his tears started to leak down his eyes. He started to turn away from you, letting his last words to you serve as a goodbye. You quickly grabbed onto his arm, stopping him and pulling him back. You would not let him go, not like this. 

“I'm not a good person, [Y/N], it's better if I just leave." 

"I will not let you walk away from me, I will not let you walk away from the past seven years. If you can look me in the eyes and truthfully say our friendship has meant nothing, that I have meant nothing to you, then I'll let you walk away." 

“That's not fair. I could never say that to you. I'm not leaving because of you. I'm leaving for you. For fuck's sake! If my own mother, my flesh and blood, couldn't love me then no one can. I'd just drive you insane.”

“That's bullshit! Cause' I love you, and I'll always love you." 

The thing you so belligerently tried to keep from your best friend was out in the open. You felt naked and vulnerable now that the words were out of your mouth.

"You love me?" 

His voice sounded so hesitant and scared of the answer. He looked at you but you were looking at the ground, scared to meet his eyes. You took a deep breath before divulging in the secret you kept so well. 

"You’re the reason I have the strength to wake up every day despite knowing what's in store with my dad. You make it worthwhile every day when I see you in school, you make me feel like I'm actually important. I love you, I've always loved you... And if you still want to leave despite knowing that, then just leave.”

Touya cupped your cheeks in his hands and tilted your face up, forcing you to look up at him. His hands on your cheeks felt warm, you wished for nothing more than to stay like that. 

“You always take time out of your day for me. Whether it's homework, an injury, or just to ask me about my day, you're there. You’ve never once got disgusted by my scars. I think I love you more than I value my own life and that scares me.”

Touya pressed his lips against yours. They felt warm and soft. You could smell his distinct scent of ash from his quirk. Words could not describe the way you loved the way ash smelt on him.   

“But I can't stay with a family who hates me. Come with me doll. Leave your shitty dad and come with me.”  

“Touya, I’d follow you to the ends of the earth if it meant being with you.”

#3. I Love How You Don’t Judge Me.

With a grocery bag in his hand, Touya unlocked the door to the dingy motel room you had been staying in together. It wasn't much, but it wasn't somewhere someone would think to look for the son of the famous hero Endeavor. It wasn't much, but you didn't care as long as he was with you. 

Touya locked the door behind him before walking further into the motel room and dropping the grocery bags at the foot of the bed where you laid reading a book. You looked up from your book and smiled at Touya. 

“Hey there.”

Touya leaned down to your face and pressed his lips against yours, giving you a quick chaste kiss. 

“Hi.” 

"What’d you get at the store?” 

“I got some instant ramen.”

“Same as yesterday, yummy.” 

You picked up the grocery bag and carried it to the tiny microwave that the motel had provided in every room. 

“Instant ramen in a rundown motel room. I'm sorry, I know it's not ideal.” 

You turned your head to the side to look at Touya. A smile played on your lips as you made eye contact with him. 

“I knew what I was signing up for when I came with you, besides, I like instant ramen.”   

You added water to the containers and popped the ramen inside the microwave before pressing on the right buttons to turn it on. Touya came up behind you and wrapped his arms around you. He gave you another chaste kiss, this time on the side of your temple. 

“Will you dye my hair?”

“Really? I really like your orange hair.” 

You turned around in Touya's arms and looked him in the eyes to see if he was serious. It was so out of the blue, he had never had any interest in dying his hair before. As you ran your hands through his orange locks it wasn’t hard to guess what was going through his head. He was a spitting image of Enji. 

“I have a job interview tomorrow, but I don't wanna go to it like this. I don't wanna go to it looking like a younger version of him. I want a whole new identity.”

“I really like your orange hair, but I'll love you no matter what hair color you've got.”

You walked over to the second grocery bag Touya had brought home and pulled out the black hair dye. You ripped the box open as Touya took a seat on a wooden chair in front of you. You ripped open the powders and dumped the powdered dye into the liquid chemical bottle before placing a lid on it and shaking it up. 

“Tip your head back.” 

You ran your fingers through his hair and applied the dye thoroughly as you rubbed it in his roots. You made sure not to leave a single inch of orange hair untouched. 

You washed your hands and set a timer on your phone before retrieving your ramen bowls from the microwave and placing one in front of him and taking your place in the chair across from him. 

“Thank you, doll.”

“Of course babe. I just hope it takes to your hair well, orange hair can be unpredictable when dyeing. We might have to go to the store and get another box.” 

Touya sat there with you, happily eating away at the ramen you cooked for him. He wasn't sure how much time had passed when you asked the question he dreaded you asking. 

“What's the job interview for?” 

Touya bit down on his lip as he debated whether or not he should tell you. If he honestly told you what the job was, then you might get mad. On the other hand, he wanted to have an honest relationship with you. 

“It’s for a position in the league of villains.” 

You stared at him speechlessly as the timer went off on your phone. He wasn't sure what to make of your expression. You didn't look mad, or angry, but you didn't look happy or pleased either. Despite being best friends for most of your lives, Touya couldn't identify your expression. Not being able to tell what you were feeling made Touya nervous.  

“You should wash your hair.”

“[Y/N]-”

“Go wash your hair before it falls out!”

He knew you were angry. He thought you were. You had to be. So instead of staying to talk it out, he retreated to the bathroom to wash out the chemicals as you took a seat on the edge of the bed. Each minute that passed felt like years to the both of you. 

After what felt like a millennium, Touya emerged from the bathroom with a now black stained towel in his hand. You took a deep breath before smiling at your lover as he walked closer to you.

“You want to be a villain?” 

“I- I know you're upset and disappointed, but I can't be a hero. I can't be that heroic guy you want and need. You can judge me all you want, but I can't be that.”

“Oh, baby… I would never judge you.” 

You reached up and grabbed Touya by the sides of his head. With your thumbs, you wiped away the tears that had begun making their way down his cheeks and you gently pulled his face down to yours. Touya got on his knees and wrapped his arms around you as you cradle his face on your chest. 

“I’m not upset, or disappointed either. You want a new identity, I understand that. I literally just dyed your hair, I'll even help you pick a new name. I was just shocked to hear you say, villain.” 

“I can't be a hero [Y/N], they're so corrupt. I- I can't be someone like Enji. He was a hero and he was a bastard. I'm sorry if you hate me for this but I can't be someone like that.” 

“Hey, I said I wasn't gonna judge you, and that meant I wouldn't ever hate you either. It just scares me. Hero or villain, it's a risky occupation.”

You run your fingers through Touya's newly black damp hair. It felt nice to him and it did miracles to soothe his tears. There were countless times where he found himself in this exact spot growing up, usually after he and Enji had a fight. 

“It's a risky occupation. But hey, if you get to do something dangerous, then I can too.” 

“[Y/N].”

“If you're joining the villains, then I am too. Who else will bandage up your wounds properly? Somebody's gotta keep you alive.”

Touya pressed his lips against yours. This kiss wasn't a chaste one like earlier, but one of longing and want. It was filled with lust and passion and hunger. 

“Okay, we’ll do it together.” 

#4. I Love How You Reassure me. 

You sat on the closed edge of the toilet in your shared apartment as you stared down at the tiny thin stick in your hands. You were nervous and your whole body was tense as you stared at the stick with anticipation as you waited for the timer on your phone to go off.

Every passing minute felt like decades and with every passing second, the pounding of your heartbeat got faster. The timer beeped and you looked at the stick for the results. Two lines were present signifying positive. 

The tears sprang from your eyes. You weren't sure what the appropriate response should have been but the whole situation left you feeling overwhelmed. What kind of lifestyle would you be bringing a child into? You were a villain now, and although you worked for the league of villains in a more medical aspect, your lover, the father of the baby, held a big role for the league of villains. 

Occupations set aside, you weren't even married, nor did you and Dabi, the name Touya was going by these days, had much knowledge on how to raise a child. Yet the more you thought about how you carried something so precious in your womb brought a soft smile to your face. The more you thought of raising a child with Dabi, you felt better and more secure. 

You heard keys jingling in the apartment doorknob followed by the sound of boots coming in the doorway and you could soon hear Dabi's deep voice resounding throughout the house.

"Sweetheart? I'm home."

You started to panic as you heard him walk closer to the bathroom. Should you hide the test, or just tell it to him straight? There was a slightly unsettling feeling in your stomach that Dabi wouldn't be happy about the predicament, but you had an open and honest relationship with Dabi. 

The door to the bathroom was pushed open and Dabi made his way inside ready to scold you. 

"You're sick, you should be resting in bed." 

Being sick was just an excuse to take a day off from league work to slip away and buy your pregnancy test. To be fair, you were sick earlier due to morning sickness.

"I'm feeling better now, and, I uh, I have something for you." 

You looked at the ground and ran one hand through your hair nervously as you used your other hand to push the pregnancy test into his hand. He took it, not even realizing what it was. Not even realizing how that tiny stick would impact his life. It didn't take him long to realize what it was as he looked down at the pink stick with two red lines.

"This a pregnancy stick."

"Yeah." 

"Two lines. Is that positive?" 

"Well, I wouldn't be giving you a pregnancy test if it was negative, would I?"

Dabi numbly took a seat on the edge of the bathtub across from you. To Dabi, children were not in the life plan, he never even let himself entertain the thought of kids. Sure, you were financially better than when you first left home together, rather than bouncing from dingy motel to motel you lived in a nice apartment, but you were both barely over twenty-one, your career choice was villainy, not to mention you both never had the best example of what a parent should be. 

"It has to be wrong, we've been careful. You- you can't be pregnant."

Your eyes which had been trained on the floor finally looked up and met Dabi's orbs. You knew he might not want your baby, but you hadn't expected him to look so distraught and sick about it. 

"Well I am, and I'm not aborting. This child is a part of you and me, I won't abort them." 

"We can't raise a child." 

"I can raise a child, what you mean is that you don't want to raise a child together." 

"I didn't say I don't want to, I said I can't." 

A tear dribbled down Dabi's cheek. You pulled him off the edge of the bathtub, onto his knees with his head against your chest. His comfort space, the space he would always find himself crying as he grew up. You ran your hand through Dabi's raven dyed hair, your signature move to quell his tears. 

"I know what you're thinkin' and it's not true. You're not gonna be like him, you're not him."

"He's always going to be biologically a part of me. He was a shit dad and a shit husband. I don't wanna be like him."

"Just cause he's your dad, doesn't mean your gonna be like him. You're a good man and you'll be a great dad. You're not gonna hurt me, or this baby. You won't be like Enji." 

Dabi slid his head from your chest to your stomach. A smile made its way across his stapled face as he let himself entertain the domestic thought of having a family with you. 

"If we're having a baby then we might wanna look for a bigger apartment."

#5. I Love Everything You Create. 

Dabi leaned over the sleek black bassinet and peered down. His precious baby lay there sound asleep. She had trademark teal blue eyes like his, but your nose. although she looked very distinctly you, she had red hair from Dabi. Although it was very Todoroki like, he didn't care. He didn't care that it tied him to Enji because it also tied her to himself and you. She was his baby, his pride and joy. She was the greatest gift you could have given him. She was his and yours to cherish and love, he wouldn't give that up for anything.

The baby began to stir and Dabi hesitated as he looked at her. Sometimes she would just fall back to sleep, but today was not one of those days. Her little cries began to start and Dabi swooped her up into his arms. With her head against his shoulder, he carefully swayed her back and forth immediately quelling her cries.

She didn't fall back to sleep but she laid there quietly in his arms. She was just a little over a year old but she was already a daddy's girl.

"You hungry?"

Dabi smiled as he heard Akari's little excited gurgles and giggles. He carried her down to the kitchen and pulled out a container of baby food from the fridge. Before quickly tossing it in the microwave.

Dabi pulled Akari closer to his chest and away from his shoulder so he could move around and do things in the house while securely holding her. Akari, deciding she wants more attention, pulls her hands towards her father's face and yanks on one of his staples.

"Ah."

Dabi swiftly put Akari in her baby high chair before grabbing a towel and wiping his face to get rid of the small blood that came along with the staple.

"Da! Da!"

Dabi weakly smiled in his daughter's direction as to not worry or frighten her. This wasn't the first time she had pulled his staples out, but it didn't hurt any less with each time she did it. Once the bleeding let up Dabi tossed the towel on the counter and picked Akari back up, giving Akari the attention she was trying to get.

"You're daddy's little menace, aren't you? Huh?"

Akari giggled and buried her face in Dabi's neck, it sent a smile onto Dabi's face. She was so perfect and every second he spent with her he couldn't understand why Enji ever treated him and his siblings the way he had. When he held Akari all that came to his mind was how he would do anything to protect her. Her and you. All he could think about was how precious and special you both were to him.

"Why didn't you wake me?"

Dabi turned his head to the side to see you leaning against the doorway. Your head was all over the place due to bed head and you wore Dabi's oversized t-shirt and a pair of jogging pants. You looked completely frumpy but to Dabi, you were nothing less than perfect.

"I wanted to let you sleep in."

"I enjoyed the sleep, but I'd rather have been up with my lovelies."

You walked over to Dabi and Akari. You dipped your head down to hers and kissed her head before leaning up to kiss Dabi, you stopped midway as you saw his cheek. You brought your hand up and creased his cheek.

"Did she pull your staple out again?"

"Yeah. She's got a mean steak, I still think we should have named her Void."

You reached into the cupboard to pull out a bandaid to patch your lover up.

"Void is such a bad name, so was Winslow."

You took the wrapper off the bandaid and pressed it against Dabi's face. He gave you a soft smile as he placed his hand over your hand that was on his cheek.

"I'm glad you married me, you know that right? I know we did it cause' you were pregnant, but I wouldn't change it."

You pressed your lips against Dabi's briefly before pulling away and smiling at him.

"You and Akari are everything to me. I love you, and everything you've given me. I wouldn't change it, and I wouldn't trade it for anything."

[modern-vellichor]

And You Do Stop

summary: you make observations just as well as Matt, and he doesn't quite know what to think, but he knows how he feels. warnings: blood, crosses. a/n: Henry and June, by Anaïs Nin please leave requests lols <3 can't think of anything original rn tbh

Maybe Matt didn't know that you had stayed late. All the office lights were off, bar the lamp on the corner of your desk, in your office, tucked away in the back of the building. Maybe. But you knew how good Matt was, he could pick your heartbeat out of a crowd of a hundred. He knew you were there. He did.

You didn't leave your office immediately. No. You wrapped your fingers around the small knife in your desk drawer, and you watched as a man, dressed all in black, heaved and bled all over the front desk. Only then, deciding he was too injured to be a threat, did you approach.

"Sit," you said, dragging a chair in his direction.

He didn't fight. He just collapsed into the chair, breathing heavily. You pulled off his mask, you suppressed a gasp when you saw Matt's face. You reached into your back pocket and pulled out your keys, and clicked on your little flashlight, and shone it in his eyes.

"I'm blind, I can't see your little flashlight."

"The brain can still detect light despite the absence of sight," you said. "And you don't have a concussion, by the way."

Matt chuckled at your snarky remark. You gently peeled his shirt away from his skin. Now, you allowed yourself to gasp.

"I can't fix this here, not with our shitty little first aid kit. Let me take you home, I can sew you up properly."

Matt didn't protest. You shoved his mask and your keys into your pocket and guided Matt into the passenger seat of your car. The drive was short and silent. Matt dripped blood all over the interior, but you didn't care. You helped him into your apartment, only after climbing six flights of stairs because the elevator was broken.

"Just stand there." You ordered, placing a plastic sheet over your couch. Then you lay him down. "Can't afford to replace this thing, you don't pay me enough."

Matt let out another strained chuckle.

Quietly, you cleaned him up. You bloodied rag after rag, and then washcloths soaked in hydrogen peroxide. And then you sewed him up with a blunter-than-ideal needle and all you could do was whisper soft apologies and let him grip your shoulder. You knew that there would be finger tip shaped bruises there tomorrow. But Matt was sewed up, the risk of infection had been curbed.

As you changed your blood stained blouse for your pyjamas, Matt sniffed out your liquor and helped himself. You stood in the doorway to your kitchen, watching him, shirtless and drinking the last of your favourite whiskey.

"I often see you sob over what you destroy," you whisper.

"What?"

"Don't think I don't see you, in the alley under my bedroom window."

"You don't know what you're talking about," he growled through gritted teeth.

"I see you sob over what you destroy," you drawl, crossing the kitchen and leaning against the counter in front of him. "and how you want to stop and just worship; and you do stop." you reach up to play with the cross dangling around his neck, a matching one pressed against your sternum. "and then a moment later you're at it again with a knife, like a surgeon."

He's breathing heavily again. He's not hurt, he's angry. He's furious. He feels vulnerable and exposed and you're gnawing at his soft spots and preying on his insecurities. And you're not scared. You're calm as anything. Your breathing is steady and your heart beats normally. And he is on the verge of crying or killing or both.

"You're not the only one who can read people Mr. Murdock," your hand drops away from his chain and he find himself missing your touch.

"Stay here tonight, Matt. I want to watch you, just in case," you say nonchalantly, as if you hadn't just pushed him to the edge of tears.

You wrap his arms around yours, leading him through your apartment to the squashed bedroom. You pulled back your covers and laid him in your bed, adjusting the pillows until he hummed happily, his eyes falling closed. He was already snoring softly when you pulled a book from your shelf and settled into the armchair stuffed in the corner of the room.

At one point, Matt shot up. He was gasping for breath, a frightened look on his face. You were half asleep and his sudden rising startled you. You rushed to his side. One of your hands gripped his tightly, the other pressing frantically against his forehead and his cheeks, checking for a temperature. He was a little warm, but he cooled down quickly. Your hands slid under his shirt, deftly checking his stitches, all still intact.

"You're alright, honey," you whisper. "Go back to sleep."

You sigh and begin to move away from the bed. Matt's hands shoot out, one lands on your thigh and the other wraps tightly around your waist. Wordlessly, he pulls you into his side.

"Okay, okay," you whisper. "I'm sorry, I'll stay."

You try to sit up, but Matt doesn't let you. Instead he slides down in the bed, his hands moving to cup your cheeks. Your hands carefully rest against his scarred shoulders. His lips brush over yours and you can't breathe.

"Matt," you whisper. "You can't, you'll hurt yourself more."

"I don't care," he grunts, he kisses you properly, and it's everything. "You're right here, and I have you, and I will have you. I don't care if i get hurt."

His words send sparks down your spine and they settle, still exploding in the pit of your stomach. He kisses you with such intention that it makes you gasp and he seizes the opportunity given to him. He consumes you, you almost feel guilty, but you suppress it and instead savour the moment. When Matt pulls away, you chase him. He chuckles.

"You have me," you whisper.

Matt smiled. "I know."

[shadyufo]

Hello, there! I'm really interested in vulture culture and recently just learned about it in the last couple of weeks. I love the work you do and was just wondering if there were any basic tips or general knowledge you could share? Like where does one find bones, or how to take care of them? I love what you do and you seem so caring so I hope this isn't a bothersome question. I'm genuinely interested but don't know anything about it!

Hey there, Anon! Welcome to the weird and wonderful world of Vulture Culture!

Your message isn’t bothersome at all! Thank you for sending it and thank you for the kind words!

My Bone Collecting for Beginners post has a bunch of info to help get you started! My bone cleaning and bone collecting tags have loads of info you might find useful in them too.

As for where to find bones, it’s really amazing where they’ll turn up if you’re always on the lookout and have a little favor from the vulture gods! Any place where animals are in nature is a place you can potentially find the remains of ones that have passed. Woods, fields, pastures, ravines, etc are all good places to scavenge. If you have access to a place with water then that’s a great area to check. Most of the stuff I’ve found has been around the banks of the creek that runs through the back of my property. Stuff will wash in from miles around every time it floods so you never know what will turn up after each heavy rain. River banks and beaches are great too.

I’ve also found bones in barns, sheds, chimneys, city alleys, garages, in crawl spaces under houses, in attics, and so on. You can even find them at yard sales, flea markets, and antique stores some times too! And you can always buy specimens online too!

For cleaning them, so long as the bones that you find are free of any remaining tissue then you can just give them a gentle scrub in warm, soapy water to remove any remaining dirt or debris and then let them soak in an open container filled with 3% hydrogen peroxide out in direct sunlight. The peroxide will sanitize and whiten the bones.

If the bones still have tissue on them then there are lots of ways you can clean them. You can macerate, nature clean, use dermestid beetles, fill a container up with horse manure and bury the carcass in that to let it rot (works pretty awesomely well, actually!) etc.

Maceration is when you put the carcass in a bucket of warm water, cover it, and let it rot. Works fastest if you skin the carcass and remove the majority of the tissue like the major muscle groups, organs, eyes, tongue, brain, etc but that defleshing isn’t required if you don’t want to do it. Maceration usually takes a few weeks but so long as the water is kept at around 85 degrees Fahrenheit then you should be down to tissue-free bones before you know it.

To nature clean just put the carcass in a plastic trash bag with a few holes poked in it and then put that under a bucket or rubbermaid tote. Make sure to weigh the container down with a heavy rock or cinder block on top and a sort of wall of them around the base of the bucket too. This will keep any passing scavenger from knocking the container over and stealing your specimen.

So long as the weather is warm and damp then you’re carcass will likely rot down to bones within a few weeks to a couple of months. Again you can speed this process up by skinning and defleshing the carcass first but it’s not necessary. In lieu of buckets you can also use an old wire animal cage or even build yourself your own “rot box” to house these specimens. You can even bury small specimens in a flower pot of dirt to let them rot.

Once you have clean bones you may have to degrease them. Grease (fat) can get trapped in bones making them appear discolored, cause them to have a bad odor, and even make them feel sticky to the touch. Degreasing is done by letting the bone soak in hot (85-115 degrees Fahrenheit is ideal), soapy (dawn dish soap is great) water. Change the water as it becomes cloudy or develops a film on the surface. Once the water starts staying clear then you’ll likely be nearly done. Degreasing isn’t always necessary but when it is it can often take a long time to complete (as in months or more, especially for notoriously greasy critters like bears and pigs) but just be patient and you’ll have a great specimen before you know it!

Once the bones are degreased then you can soak them in peroxide until they are as white as you want (keep in mind bones will dry lighter than they appear when wet, in case you are aiming for a certain shade) and then you’ll be good to go!

ALWAYS avoid chlorine bleach and NEVER boil your specimens in hot water to clean or degrease them. Sometimes you can get away with gently simmering them but I recommend avoiding that if possible too.

Bleach eats away at bone even after the specimen has been removed from the bleach soak. Bones that have been cleaned with bleach appear flaky, brittle, crumbly and often have a foul smell. Boiling also makes bones brittle and can cook grease into the bones, making it practically impossible to ever remove it.

Hope that helps get you started! Thank you again for the kind words and best of luck with starting your collection!