#i like this idea of this but not sure about the execution

[honeypiehotchner]

The Gambit (Hotch x Fem!Reader) -- part thirty-three

Coming up for air from my other one shot idea for today's Gambit update as promised 🤭

Warnings: our usual angst but more about r's father that is 🫣, bits of fluff here and there, local cops being local cops, that's about it i think

Hotch knows this is inappropriate. He knows this is so beyond unprofessional. He knows a “no fraternization” seminar is certainly in his future if this goes any further.

But when he sees you lying there, sleeping soundly, he can’t bring himself to care. He’ll deal with Strauss, with HR, with anyone who tries to make this something it isn’t.

He doesn’t know why he’s thinking ahead like this — because the two of you haven’t talked. Richard Monroe turned up dead, the unsub left the body outside your old school, and you had (and fought off) a panic attack and somehow remained standing. You have no idea how strong you are.

Hotch tucks the blankets better around you before forcing himself to sit in the desk chair and go over some files while you rest. Rossi texts him updates from the precinct — nothing viable — and not-so-subtly asks how you’re doing.

She’s sleeping, Aaron types back with a slight eye roll. Dave certainly gets even nosier with every passing day.

How did you manage to do that? is Dave’s reply.

Aaron turns his phone over and doesn’t answer. Instead, he looks over his shoulder to check on you, but you’re fast asleep, little puffs of air escaping your lips peacefully.

He turns back to his files. They’re coming up empty so far, and it’s starting to worry him.

Yes, the majority of these officers were raised here, but aside from some charges that have since been dropped and were clearly the result of teenage ambition, there is nothing untoward, nothing to suggest that one of them might know more than they’re letting on.

Frustrated, Aaron grabs his phone and steps outside into the hall, keeping the door open a crack, and his back pressed against it protectively. He dials Rossi.

“Aaron?” Dave answers.

Hotch keeps his voice quiet, “I’m not finding anything. Some vandalism charges from spray painting the playground, from egging a police officer’s car, all while teenagers. That’s nothing to write home about.”

“I agree,” Rossi sighs. “It’s the same here. Small things, no indicators of the kind of behavior we’re looking for.”

Hotch rubs his forehead. “We’re— We’re grasping at thin air, Dave.”

“We’re still missing something.”

“How can we be missing something still? After all this time?” Hotch fights to keep his voice low. “I can’t leave her alone. I’ve got a bad feeling.”

“I know you do,” Dave says quietly. “You sure it’s not mixed with something else?”

Aaron sighs. “I don’t know.”

“Have you two talked?”

“Yeah,” Aaron murmurs, a fond smile toying at his lips. “We have. But—” Your fucking raccoons interrupted us and she hasn’t acted the same since. “Obviously we were interrupted with Richard’s death, and…” He trails away, shaking his head. “Now isn’t the time.”

“Now might be the time,” Dave argues. “To let her know how much you care. How much you’re worried about her.”

“She knows, trust me,” Aaron says. “She was angry with me for making her get some rest—”

“You did spring that on her.”

“Because you know she wouldn’t have agreed if I tried to ask.”

“Maybe,” Rossi muses. “Or maybe you could try something new, try talking to her before making an executive decision about her. You did it on the jet.”

“Right.” Aaron sees his friend’s point. Maybe you would be more open-minded about his help if he would talk to you first, especially now, after getting things out in the open about how he was trying to help all those years ago. The jet was different; it was in relation to work. And as much as he tries to convince himself that ordering you to nap is also considered work, he knows it isn’t. He knows it’s something else. “I’ll try.”

“Good,” Dave says. “You should try to rest too, if you can.”

Hotch thinks back to earlier. You had told him he needed to rest too, and he hadn’t planned on it, but maybe he should. Maybe an hour.

When Aaron heads back inside, you’re on your side, eyes cracking open.

“Hey,” he whispers, shutting the door. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you.”

“C’mere,” you murmur, obviously still half asleep. “Y’gotta nap too.”

He smiles. “Alright. I concede.”

He strips his suit jacket and tie off but leaves his pants and shirt. He’s just about to crawl into bed beside you when you give him a funny look.

“You’re gonna wrinkle your clothes.”

“It’s fine.”

“That can’t be comfy.”

“It’s just a nap.”

You shrug, snuggling further into the pillows and shutting your eyes. Hotch sighs.

He takes off the dress shirt, and hangs it over the back of the desk chair. When you don’t move, clearly drifting off again already, he strips down to his boxers, draping his dress slacks over the chair too.

He sets his phone on the nightstand before sliding into bed beside you. You might be half-asleep, but you move closer to him instantly, curling into his side and sighing happily. Aaron wraps an arm around you, chuckling softly as he tucks you into his chest.

+++

You hate being back in this town.

You wake with a start, the gunshot in your dreams still echoing in your ears as if it happened just now. One quick glance around the room tells you it didn’t. You’re in bed, in a hotel room, and you’re alone.

Well, almost alone. There is currently a koala clinging to you in his sleep in the form of Aaron Hotchner.

You laugh softly as you try to twist in his arms, but have no luck. You don’t even know what time it is, but knowing Hotch, he set alarms, so you can’t be late for anything.

You let the comfort of that — and his arm around your waist — lull you back to sleep again, even if for just another few minutes. And it was the worst idea you’d had all day.

This time when you wake, you manage to fling yourself out of Aaron’s arms, sitting up so suddenly that he is woken with a jolt.

“What is it?” He’s alert instantly, the man and agent that he is. His hand comes to rest on your shoulder.

“Sorry,” you laugh it off. “You ever have a dream and wake up, then fall back asleep and the dream picks up right where it left off?” You’re rambling and you make no sense, but that doesn’t matter. “We should get back to the precinct.”

You stand up and head for your work clothes still hanging up where you left them. You’re barely touching the fabric when Aaron is behind you, hand on your shoulder again.

“Talk to me,” he says. “What happened in the dream?”

To his credit, he doesn’t try to turn you around to face him. You don’t think you’d be able to speak if he did.

“My um,” you pause, clearing your throat. “My dad almost shot me. It was real.”

You hear him sigh. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, his hand dropping down to your arm, thumb rubbing your skin gently. “It wasn’t real, it was just a dream.”

You shake your head. “It was a dream, but it was also…a memory.”

His motions falter. “What do you mean?”

You start shaking your head again. “It’s stupid, it’s probably my mind twisting my memories because I learned about what my dad did and now everything is tainted with that—”

You stop to catch your breath when Aaron says your name, his voice quiet, broken.

“We were getting lunch together,” you murmur, taking the clothes off the hangers just to busy your hands while you speak about this. “It was a good day.”

“What happened?”

“I don’t even know,” you huff. “We were having a good day. Mom had gone to run some errands, Dad took me out for lunch, it was the weekend so I was just surprised and happy he was home. We went to my favorite sandwich place nearby— It’s probably not even here anymore. But I was just eating, he was talking. I guess I said something wrong?” You don’t even realize Aaron has turned you around until he’s taking both of your hands in his, trying to meet your eyes. “I don’t think I even knew he had his gun on him — I knew he had one, that’s normal for a family in Alabama, but like, shotguns. For hunting deer. Not a pistol.”

“He tried to shoot you?” Aaron prompts.

You nod. Shake your head. Nod again. “He shot the floor. He was looking over my shoulder.” You pause. “And then we left, and when I got up I saw that it was— It was so close to my foot, Aaron, he nearly shot me.”

“And you left— Was he angry with someone that worked there?”

“I don’t know, I was too shocked by the fact that he shot the fucking floor where my feet were,” you snap, yanking your hands out of his. You wipe your palms on your shirt.

“What was the place called?”

“I don’t know, something Deli,” you shake your head. “It was in a trailer— Does this even matter?”

“It might, we can look into it,” Hotch says, keeping his hands by his side. “Why don’t you take a shower?”

“Hotch, I don’t have time—”

“What will help you calm down?” he asks. “What can I do?”

You sigh. “What time is it?”

Hotch looks like he doesn’t want to answer, but he does anyway. “Almost 11:30.”

“Okay. Can you—” You pinch the bridge of your nose. “I don’t fucking know what to do.” You breathe shakily. Then, you ask him something that surprises the both of you. “Can you tell me what to do?”

He nods slowly. “Take a shower,” he starts. “It’ll help. I’ll get dressed. I’ll call Rossi and tell him what you told me, we’ll get Garcia to look into it. Do you remember how old you were?”

You shake your head. “Elementary school, I think.”

“Okay, that narrows it down, good job,” he says softly. “We’ll leave when you’re ready and get back to the precinct and go over everything with the team. Find some new leads and we’ll follow them. We’ll get this guy.”

You nod. “Okay. Okay, I’m gonna—”

“Shower,” he says, one hand coming up to your arm again, guiding you toward the bathroom.

You walk with him, pausing just outside the bathroom door to turn around. You hesitate for a moment before throwing your arms around his neck.

He stumbles for a second before his arms encircle your waist, squeezing you tightly against him. As if a promise to protect you from anything bad that will ever come your way again.

“Thank you,” you whisper, pulling back to press a kiss to his cheek.

You’re into the bathroom and shutting the door before Aaron can even register what just happened.

+++

The team is waiting for you and Hotch when you arrive back at the precinct. You don’t necessarily look well-rested, despite your nap, but you do feel marginally better, and Hotch had you change clothes instead of wearing the same ones from before. A fresh start. A reset.

“What do we have?” you ask casually, hoping the team of profilers will pick up on the fact that you do not want to talk about you being practically ordered to get some sleep.

“They have mostly clean slates,” Rossi starts as Hotch shuts the conference room door. “Some petty theft, some vandalism, mostly from teenage years. One officer has a sexual harassment charge that I’m eager to ask about.”

“Who?” you ask. Not that you think that officer might be the unsub you’re looking for, but it’s all you’ve got so far.

“The deputy,” Rossi says. “Laneman.”

“Wait before questioning him,” Hotch interjects, just a touch of warning in his words. “I’m not sure I want these guys knowing we’re investigating them just yet. We need their help while we can get it.” He pauses. “We need to ask them about Adkins. Watch their behaviors, see if anyone recognizes the name or knows maybe more than they should.”

“How are we going to do that without it being suspicious?” Prentiss chuckles. “As far as they know, we’re just investigating Richard Monroe and his death.”

“And the guy was a serial killer, I’m sure they’re wondering why the hell we’re even being called here to investigate,” Morgan adds. “He had a lot of enemies, a lot of victims’ families that would’ve had more than enough motive.”

“But it’s the letter,” Reid says. “It— At times it almost reads like a suicide note, other times like an apology to you,” Reid looks at you, “but for what? And if it isn’t Richard who wrote it, if it’s the unsub, a suicide note makes sense, to make us think Richard killed himself, but the overkill immediately rules that out. It’s like—” Reid pauses and makes a face, stopping himself.

“What? What are you thinking?” Hotch asks.

“It’s almost like our unsub had this all meticulously planned out from the beginning, step by step, right down to this moment, but something threw a wrench in his plans and…that’s why there was such a brutal overkill.”

“Like he and Richard were part of a team to find her, until Richard bailed—” Morgan starts.

“Because the unsub brought Lila into it and Richard said he promised that he wouldn’t,” you finish. “Richard didn’t write that letter. The unsub did. Richard didn’t visit my dad in prison. I visited Richard. This unsub must’ve visited Richard as well, wanting to find out how to get to me, and—” Your eyes go wide and you turn toward Hotch. “The car chase.”

“Richard told the unsub we’d be there,” Hotch says. “Told him the exact time. It had to be approved in advance, he would’ve known in advance.”

“This unsub wasn’t friends with my dad, not as close as he and Richard must have been, or someone else the unsub witnessed being friendly with my dad— But he wanted to be. He wanted my dad’s approval for some reason. He wanted to be noticed by him,” you carry on, not sure where you’re going, but hoping it’s going somewhere. “And my dad must’ve written him off. Didn’t give him the recognition he was looking for, and it upset him. So he kidnapped me to get his attention.”

“And your father made it very clear that he wasn’t happy with whoever took you,” Rossi adds. “So that upset the unsub further. He wasn’t getting validation, he was getting contempt.”

“We’re just talking in circles here,” you sigh, propping your chin in your palm. “This feels like everything we’ve already known.”

“Assumed, and now it’s confirmed with behavior,” Hotch says softly. “But we are going in circles. We need to find out what these men know about Adkins.”

“Leave that to me,” Reid smiles, a little too deviously for him.

“Really, genius?” Morgan chuckles. “What are you going to do?”

“Ask them if they’ve heard of him,” Reid shrugs. “In my own way.”

Everyone shares looks.

Emily tilts her head with a smirk. “This is going to be good.”

+++

It’s like a well-orchestrated dance, the way Hotch rounds everyone up to set the scene for Reid to interject. The plan is to begin giving the profile, and Reid is going to start one of his rambles, this time about how the infamous serial killer Carson Adkins was from right here in town.

Rossi, Hotch, Prentiss, and Reid stay at the front of the room, while you, JJ, and Morgan hang around the sides, gauging reactions from there.

You’re not even sure what you’re going to be looking for. You wouldn’t be surprised if any (or all) of them have heard of your father. They obviously have no clue you’re his daughter, which is how it needs to stay, but unfortunately for everyone, your father is famous for his killings, and for turning himself in when you were kidnapped.

You can’t even count on two hands the number of articles you read that argued he had a heart because he turned himself in for his daughter. You don’t know that it was any indication of him having a heart or not, but you do know that he killed all those women and somehow wanted you to be safe.

Two things can be true at once, you guess, but those two things? Some days it just makes no sense.

“As you’re all aware, the victim, Richard Monroe, had been on the FBI’s Most Wanted for some time, so he has no shortage of enemies,” Rossi starts.

“This rings true in the injuries Richard sustained,” Prentiss continues. “It was the very definition of overkill. Whoever is responsible, they held a grudge against Monroe, probably for many years.”

“Do you think it could be like a family member of one of his victims?” Officer Hunt asks.

“I said save your questions for the end,” Deputy Laneman scolds with a huff.

“It’s alright Deputy,” Hotch says with a nod. He looks at the officer that spoke up. “It’s possible, yes, we’re looking into the whereabouts of the victims’ families.”

“But there could be some victims we don’t even know about,” Reid chimes. “So we’re not sure.”

“This guy is angry,” Morgan says from the other side of the room. “That kind of anger doesn’t just go away with getting revenge. We think he’ll slip up again.”

“So you’re sure we’re looking for a man?” another officer — Smith, you think — questions.

“We believe so,” Hotch replies. “White male, mid-30s to mid-40s, most likely the same build as Monroe, if not slightly larger. Monroe put up a fight, but was ultimately overpowered. This suggests our unsub was able to subdue him by brute force before continuing to injure him post-mortem.”

“Richard Monroe was just one of the famed and known serial killers in this region,” Reid begins, and just by the tone in his voice, you know where he’s heading. You scan the officers carefully, even the deputy who stands not far from you, arms over his chest like a shield. “Actually, uh, did you guys know that Carson Adkins, The Strangler, was from this town? His home was not far from here—”

“That’s enough, agent,” Deputy Laneman all but growls.

You cut your eyes to him, not moving your head, not wanting to raise any suspicions.

Hotch, however, fully turns his head to glare at the man. “Deputy, may I speak with you in private?”

“Whatever it is, you can say it in front of my men.”

“No, I think we should speak in your office,” Hotch gestures to the door. “After you.”

The deputy almost looks like he’s going to put up a fight, but he doesn’t. He clicks his tongue and bulldozes into his office, leaving the door ajar for Hotch to follow through. Hotch doesn’t look at anyone as he goes, and you can tell he holds himself back from slamming the door.

A tense silence settles over the room.

Reid, in all his blessed awkwardness, clears his throat. “Uh…sorry.”

Officer Robinson chuckles. “Don’t be sorry, kid, he’s a hothead.”

“We’ve all heard of him, though,” Officer Smith says. “The Strangler, I mean.”

Everyone pipes up in agreement.

“Even I’d heard of him, and I’m not from around here,” Officer Robinson adds. “He’s a boogeyman here, y’know? Almost like a myth.”

You swallow around the strange lump in your throat. Your father, a boogeyman in your hometown, even as a ghost.

“Yeah,” another officer, Whittler, laughs. “My brother used to tell me if I wasn’t quiet at night The Strangler was gonna jump out and get me.”

Everyone laughs, punching each other's shoulders in agreement with similar childish laughs.

You roll your eyes and head back toward the conference room. None of them are taking this seriously. You need a new angle, one that doesn’t involve asking any of these officers for insight. Clearly they won't be helpful.

+++

Hotch finds you, alone, in the conference room after his rather unproductive discussion with Deputy Laneman.

You’re staring at the board, at the photos of Richard’s body, at the photos of the charm bracelet and letter since both have been sent off for prints.

Hotch doesn’t even get to ask what’s upsetting you before you tell him.

“They’re just laughing,” you say, disgusted. “He’s a boogeyman,” you mock. “Our unsub is not in this precinct, clearly. They’d all run away screaming if he was.” You pause, finally turning to look at him. “What about the deputy?”

Hotch shakes his head. “He definitely has some anger issues and is probably aggressive when he’s drunk, but it’s not him. He thinks we’re wasting time by being here.”

“Wasting time? We haven’t even been here a full day yet.”

“I know,” Hotch says. He studies the pictures again. “What are we missing?”

You snort. “Everything, apparently. Every time I think we’re about to get a grip on this guy, it turns out he’s somewhere else entirely.” You chew on the inside of your cheeks. “Did Garcia ever look into the deli?”

“It’s on her list,” Hotch sighs. “I still have her looking into every officer’s background here, just in case.”

You nod. “It was nothing special, anyway. Except that their pickles were homemade.”

Aaron shares a soft smile with you. “Still. I’ll have her look.”

“And the victims’ families?” you ask with a smirk. “Or was that just to keep them thinking we’re not at all digging into their credit histories and tragic backstories?”

Aaron rolls his eyes at you, still smiling. “That was the truth. It’s on Garcia’s list.”

You raise your eyebrows with your grin. “Remind me to get her one of those big baskets of chocolates when we get back. And a bouquet of roses.”

He chuckles. “Funny, I was thinking of getting one of those for you.”

Your breath stutters a little as you turn toward him, realizing with a shock that he’s being sincere. “Well,” you knock your shoulder into his arm lightly. “Sorry to ruin your master plan.”

“You’re forgiven,” he replies, his fingers grazing the back of your hand.

The door to the conference room flies open and you yank your hand away, returning to crossing your arms over your chest. Hotch straightens and resumes his Unit Chief demeanor.

He waits until the door shuts behind JJ, Prentiss, Morgan, Reid, and Rossi before asking their thoughts on the officers.

“They were too busy laughing about a boogeyman to even suspect any sort of connection,” Morgan snaps. “I mean, seriously, how are we supposed to get anywhere if these guys don’t even seem a little concerned that whoever killed Richard Monroe might kill someone else?”

“I know,” Hotch sighs. “Prentiss, Rossi, go back to the dump site, see if there’s anything we missed. JJ, check on the bracelet, see if they’ve made any headway with the prints, if they haven’t, try to get it sped up if you can. Reid, Morgan, I’m having Garcia look into some of the families of Richard Monroe’s victims, help her determine anything suspicious, make some phone calls, see where everyone is.”

“What about us?” you ask.

“We’re going to drive around,” he says. “I want to see if any place jogs your memory. And see if Carson Adkins truly does haunt this town like the boogeyman they say he is.”

[moviecritc]

✦ ˚ : · PIERCING THROUGH THE HEART · : ˚✦

pairing ☆ roy harper x fem!reader

word count ☆ 1.5K

summary ☆ out of boredom, you conviced roy to let you give him a piercing

warnings ☆ none

main masterlist | letterboxd

Roy still remembered perfectly the first time you took off your mask —the one that covered your entire face— to reveal your identity to the rest of the Titans. His jaw had dropped slightly. Not just because you were gorgeous, but because you were covered in jewelry. A brow piercing, a silver septum ring, a hoop on your lip, and both ears stacked with piercings in a perfect arrangement, with earrings of different colors and shapes.

You were one of the coolest people he’d ever met. Your sense of humor always made him laugh out loud, you executed your part of the missions flawlessly, and although you sometimes came off a bit distant, whenever you were with Roy, you showed a warmth that completely disarmed him. That mix of mystery and sincerity had him utterly fascinated.

Roy wasn’t exactly sure when the affection he felt for you had gotten out of hand, but he was starting to realize he was looking at you differently. And it didn’t help that you always showed up with those impossible outfits and that attitude like the entire world belonged to you by natural right.

Sometimes, when you were training together in the Titans' training room, he'd find himself watching you a bit too long. He tried to play it off, of course. Or at least he thought he did. But Dick had already elbowed him a couple of times meaningfully, and Kory looked at him with a smile like she knew everything.

Now you had the tower all to yourselves, the rest of the team busy with different missions or personal matters. You’d spent the morning training, making fun of each other, then figuring out how to cook the simplest thing, only to end up ordering takeout.

That night, you both collapsed onto the couch, food on your laps, a movie playing in the background. It was bad. Really bad. The kind that isn’t even funny because of how bad it is. But it didn’t matter. You were comfortable. So was Roy.

Or at least, you both were until you'd been shifting side to side for about twenty minutes, sighing, turning toward him.

"I'm bored," you finally said, letting your head drop onto his shoulder.

Roy smiled without taking his eyes off the screen.

"Yeah, well, the script is a crime."

"I'm not talking about the movie. I mean everything. Bored of not doing anything."

Roy turned his head slightly toward you, just enough to meet your gaze a few inches away.

"You wanna do something?"

Your eyes sparkled with that mischievous expression he already knew meant danger.

"Can I give you a piercing?"

Roy blinked, clearly expecting something else.

"Sorry?"

"A piercing," you repeated naturally. "I’ve got my kit. All clean. All sterilized. I’ve practiced a million times."

You gestured at your rows of piercings. Roy blinked again, he had tattoos, several scars, but it had never occurred to him to get a piercing.

"You did those piercings yourself?" was all he asked, slightly frowning.

You nodded enthusiastically, clearly proud.

"All of them. Well, except the industrial," you said, raising an eyebrow slightly like it was a trophy. "That one hurt like hell. But the rest? Nothing compared to what we do."

Roy stared at you. Your relaxed expression, the way your fingers played with one of your earrings. The heat creeping up his neck wasn’t just from the idea of the piercing, it was from you. From how close you were. From how casually intimate the conversation had become.

"And what kind of piercing do you want to give me?" he asked, a mix of suspicion and curiosity in his voice.

"A small one," you said, sitting on your knees and looking at him more intently. "A hoop on your ear. No big deal. Won’t hurt. And it’s going to look amazing."

Roy hesitated. You were too close. He was feeling too much. But then you did it.

You smiled. That smile of yours that was a little cocky, a little sweet, and he felt all the air in the room collapse into his chest.

"Come on. If you don’t like it, it’ll close in a few weeks."

He felt stupid for taking so long to nod.

Twenty minutes later, you were in your room, sitting across from each other, your tools perfectly laid out on the table. He was trying to stay relaxed, but the way you were so focused, so close, with your cold fingers touching his ear, his pulse was through the roof.

"Which ear do you want it on?" you asked after picking the hoop.

"Which one is the gay ear? I want it the other one," he said completely seriously, like he was making a public statement.

You stared at him in silence for a second. Blinked once. Twice. Then burst out laughing.

"What?" you said, leaning back in laughter. "Did you seriously just say that? What year are you living in, Roy Harper?"

Roy shrugged, half-smiling, with that embarrassed sparkle in his eyes he got when he knew he’d said something dumb but wanted to keep a little dignity.

"I just wanted to avoid any misunderstandings."

"Sweetheart, if someone looks at you because of this piercing, it won’t be a misunderstanding."

You kept laughing as you leaned in again, grabbing his face to examine his ears, unable to hide your amused smirk.

"You're such an idiot sometimes," you whispered with a smile that hit him like a punch to the heart.

"And you're laughing too much," he retorted, raising his eyebrows. "You gonna pierce me or not?"

You rolled your eyes and moved closer, standing between his legs while he remained seated in the chair. You put on the gloves, cleaned the area with soft movements, and even though Roy was trying not to show it, his chest was rising and falling harder than usual.

It wasn’t fear. It wasn’t pain.

It was that you were so close. That your fingers brushed him so delicately. That you focused on him with so much care it felt like… like he was truly being seen. Like no one had ever touched him with that kind of intention before.

"You’re going to feel a little pinch," you whispered, as if that could prepare him.

"Go for it."

And you did. Precise. Fast. Silent.

Roy barely flinched, surprised at how little it hurt. But even more surprised by how you leaned in right after, checking the hoop with your fingers.

"You look… fucking good," you murmured. Your voice had dropped an octave. Your eyes locked onto his. Your hand still resting on his cheek.

Roy didn’t say anything.

He just looked at you.

Like it was the first time. Like he was seeing you in a different light, with a different truth. His pupils dilated, his breathing slow. His eyes so wide, so soft, that for a second, even you froze.

"What?" you asked, almost in a whisper, suddenly shy under that intensity.

Roy swallowed.

"I’ve always liked that you have so many piercings, you know?" he said without thinking too much. He hadn’t even looked at his own yet. "I like the one on your lip."

The redhead gestured shyly toward your lip, pulling his hand back before touching you.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Although… doesn’t it get in the way when you kiss someone?"

You raised an eyebrow, not backing off.

"You wanna find out for yourself?"

Silence. You could practically hear his heartbeat. Roy looked you in the eye. Then down to your mouth.

He didn’t respond with words. You were so close, your lips so temptingly near his, that all he could do was nod slightly, as if that were enough to give the universe permission for it to happen.

And you kissed him.

Softly at first, barely a brush, like giving him the chance to back out. But he didn’t. On the contrary, he leaned into it, held your waist with one hand, the other still trembling slightly from gripping the chair as you came closer.

The kiss deepened, slower, loaded with a tension that had built over time and now, finally unraveling, felt endless. Roy wasn’t sure if it was the heat of your mouth or the cold metal of your piercing against his lips, but something in him had ignited like gasoline near a flame.

When you pulled back, only a few centimeters, breathing like it was hard to come back from the moment, Roy looked at you with a mix of disbelief and desire.

"Yup, doesn’t get in the way at all," Roy said, like he’d just confirmed a theory.

You looked down, a little flushed, and as Roy leaned in again, you put both hands on his jaw and turned him toward the mirror. "You like the piercing?"

Roy barely looked at it for a second, of course he liked it. You’d done it.

"I love it. I’m halfway to being as cool as you."

You let out a soft laugh, the one you used when you were too close to taking something seriously but still wanted to play. You stared at him through the mirror with an expression that was a dangerous mix of sweetness and mischief.

"I’m not as cool as you think," you said with a dumb little smile.

"Well, for me, yes, baby," Roy shot back, pulling you closer between his legs. "You are the most amazing woman I’ve ever met."

For a second, you didn’t know what to say. That comment caught you off guard. Because people knew you for being sarcastic, for your punk aesthetic, for not letting anyone get too close. But Roy always found a way to see through the smoke.

"You’re so silly," you said, running a hand through his hair. "How long have you liked me?"

"I’m not gonna answer that," Roy started. "’Cause it was embarrassingly soon."

[sparkbirdmusic]

I saw a video sharing criticisms of Certain Birds, and found it interesting and wanted to respond! And I want to say up front that I'm not offended (except by the claim that my music has the vibe of 2010s Christian music /lh). It's a thoughtful critique, so I felt inclined to give it a thoughtful response. /gen

The person said:

...if I'm being totally honest, I didn't really like it. 😓 It's incredible that this sounds nothing like any of them individually, but instead a mixture of all three of their musical styles. Unfortunately, it was not in as much of a thrilling way as I'd hope. For how unique and provoking these artists have been in their work, this one just seems to fall flat for me. Honestly, the main chorus, the 'the end is falling' parts are a good idea. Having each artist join together in a harmony to show how together things are stronger. I think that is a cool idea! But the execution, to me, just falls short. It reminds me of 2010s Christian music, which *is* actually the vibe of a lot of Sparkbird's music. And while I don't think that it's self is necessarily a bad thing, it's just not my preference. The vocals individually are wonderfully done, I particularly love FIAB's singing, I think it really fits the vibe of nocturnal birds. And the beginning of the song sounded like something i could've really liked! I think if they had just leaned towards the more creepy, haunting sound that they had in the beginning, this could've been a lot better! But they instead went for a more upbeat kind of song with a message basically meaning 'If we just stick together, we can do anything!' that was my interpretation at least. Which, again, feels very 2010's pop music. It also feels like it's pandering to fandoms using their songs for edits, instead of making music for the casual listener to listen to and enjoy. And while fandom music isn't a bad thing, it just feels forced sometimes. I much prefer songs that tell their own story rather than someone else's. All in all, I don't think this song is bad. It's just, well, a little disappointing. If it had just been a little different, I would've adored it."

My response (which I commented):

I can definitely understand and appreciate your thoughts on it! I’d never written a song with anyone else, and it’s definitely a very different way to do things. Throughout the whole process, there have been times where I felt super excited and times where I felt more lukewarm about it.

One thing that didn’t help was taking a year to release it, because it built the expectations up higher (imo). I can say, though, that while writing it we talked for many hours every day about every single lyric and the story we were trying to capture, and it was written to capture that story and not specifically shaped for edits or fandoms. The closest we came to that was my using the word ineffable in my verse (which was Good Omens-inspired but I had other reasons)

Anyway, all this being said, I think the place this song shines is in a community setting. It was really meaningful to record, because it was genuinely the first time I’d felt so close to a group of people in so many years. It seems like that was a feeling we all had, and the lyrics reflected that experience. Back home, I felt less certain about the song. Then on tour, singing it all together with a room full of people every night, I fell in love with it again. I get the sense that a lot of people who enjoy the song are people who heard it and sang a long on tour, so maybe that’s an important component to feeling connected to it, I’m not sure!

I do think that Dusty, Shayfer, and I tend to go to a pretty different place lyrically and emotionally in our solo work (compared to what we wrote together). I think we’re all normally much more introspective and internal and isolated in our processes, and the theme of this song (togetherness, community support) might have been inevitable under the circumstances. But with this more mushy song out of the way, I’ll be interested to see what wacky stuff we might come up with together in the future.

EDIT (an afterthought): I would also add that you can tell it wasn't written *for* edits/fandoms because we hold out each word of the chorus so fucking long, no one's waiting for that, they're scrolling past and moving on with their lives

[bibi-the-pooh]

So... Willowhill and the Stalker are connected. And they refer to themselves as "we", a group of people.

To be honest, my theories are pretty much fully formed, but I really want to assess this from an unbiased point of view. Otherwise, my disappointment might give me severe headaches lol.

A group of nefarious people at Willowhill might imply two things, and one of them seems far more plausible in terms of plot continuity:

1. There’s a group of evil individuals in WH.

This plotline could work, but it would need careful execution. For example, Dr. Fairburn is described as an expert psychiatrist, qualified in outcast mental health. Assuming her intentions are good and she genuinely wants to help Tyler, she would likely be oblivious to Willowhill’s dark side. On the other hand, Heather Matarazzo’s sycophantic character definitely won’t get along with Wednesday. Maybe she’s another red herring, but it does seem like she might be a member of the same group as the Stalker.

2. The institution itself is corrupt.

Assuming Tyler will serve as this season’s Hannibal Lecter (perhaps even the Red Death or Phantom of the Opera), he would probably already know Willowhill can’t be trusted. That mysterious broadcast channel message clearly points Wednesday toward Willowhill, it even feels like a trap.

Her first suspect might be Tyler, but logically, she should know he’s in a secluded facility and couldn't possibly threaten her from his cell. Still, since she’s expected to be wary of him, she won’t dismiss the idea entirely.

Even so, I doubt her first move would be to visit Tyler. She’d probably go to Donovan first.

We know Wednesday visits the Galpin house, and from the latest trailer, we see that she finds either a corpse or a homeless man. I lean toward the latter. Donovan being dead doesn’t make sense. Jamie McShane wouldn’t return to the show just to appear as a corpse.

Also, let’s be real: season 3 has already been confirmed, and whether people want to admit it or not, Hunter Doohan is one of the main leads. For whatever reason-plot convenience or popularity-he’s not promoted as heavily as Emma, but if he were just a villain, he wouldn’t have been confirmed for season 3 so soon. Every season introduces a new antagonist. If Tyler's story were done, they could have just killed him off. But they didn’t. We’re not doing this again, and I refuse to be angry again.

Anyway, Donovan will likely direct Wednesday to Tyler. Maybe she’ll accuse Tyler at first, but she’ll eventually realize he can’t be the Stalker. Still, he might have crucial information about them.

As much as I’d love to see Wednesday as Tyler’s master, I don’t think the show will go that route. That theory was wildly popular—based on that old Tudum-exclusive video—and even the cast was aware of it. They seemed to find it interesting, but for some reason, G&M prefer to keep everything wrapped in mystery. It would be too on-the-nose to reveal something like that at the beginning of the season.

That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s revealed at the end that Wednesday was Tyler’s master all along.

I really don’t want Tyler to have another evil master. It would be repetitive. Whether Wednesday gets him out of that hellhole herself or he escapes on his own (which seems less likely), this needs to happen before he’s used again.

There’s always a slight chance that a part of those (debunked) leaks were right and he ends up with a new master, but maybe Wednesday, with Bianca’s help, keeps him in check. That way, we’d get to witness Tyler’s internal struggle.

Oh, and we have Bianca: another major cast member who hasn’t been properly promoted in the trailers or IG posts. G&M said we’ll follow her storyline while Wednesday is away. I’m pretty sure she’ll be dealing with her mother’s cult, and somehow, that’ll bring her back into Wednesday’s orbit. Since Wednesday is busy with her stalker and Willowhill, the theory @thelovelybookworm and I had about a connection between MS and WH still stands. You can read it from here.

As for Enid, she’ll likely be involved with her pack. I won’t cast aspersions on them since we know next to nothing yet. She’ll probably try to fit in while dealing with a love triangle. It also makes sense that Wednesday wouldn’t share her visions with Enid, she wouldn’t want to agitate her right from the beginning. And I still think Wednesday prefers to investigate alone.

This might lead to an argument between them. Enid could get angry at Wednesday’s lack of support and secretive nature. But eventually, Wednesday will have to talk to her. The school will be in panic mode, and she can’t hide the fact that there’s a stalker roaming the corridors.

Now, about Slurp. There are some wild theories out there, some say he might be Morticia’s grandfather, referring to the old ‘60s sitcom where a “Grandpa Slurp” is mentioned. I doubt this will be more than a mild Easter egg.

The theory that he’s a spirit who possesses a teenager’s body just to haunt the Addams women feels like a massive stretch. That would even require changing him to Morticia’s father.

Plus, Isac Ordóñez said Slurp's in heavy prosthetics at the start of the season, and from that, I assume we’ll eventually see him without them. It would've been more logical to cast an adult than a young actor.

As for Morticia’s black tears; since Wednesday’s psychic glitches started with Goody’s book, and now we know the Stalker’s intent isn’t to cast a generational curse on the Addams family, it seems Morticia may have tried similar practices with that book.

Her line “I won’t let history repeat itself” sounds suspicious. Maybe she lost someone the same way Wednesday fears losing Enid.

And I’m sorry (not really) if this sounds like the same theory over and over, but the most likely person is still Francoise.

If they want to carry Tyler’s arc into season 3 and keep it tethered to Wednesday’s (because yes, they are tethered, and they have unfinished business, some people need to cope with this little info), then they need a strong emotional driver behind Tyler’s motives.

If Donovan’s only a guest star (and it seems he is), he probably won’t make it into season 3. Unless the plan is for Tyler to go full villain while Wednesday tries to stop him, which would be a bizarre choice. A nemesis situationship might be fun to watch, but there are plenty of other characters to explore that kind of dynamic. For the whole show, it would only lead to a dead end.

Let me know if you have any other theories. I’d love to hear different perspectives.

[xxch3rryl0v3xx]

Chicago au idea

The six merry murders of Nevermore county jail.

Tw: spoilers for Chicago, abuse kind of and gore, obviously

Liz (pop) would probably be Prospero because Liz killed her husband after being so sick of him doing nothing but shewing gum. Prospero came home from his shift at the local doctors office and saw that his partner was still in the same place they were when he left. He was already fed up with them but the final straw was them still chewing that fucking gum. Took their shotgun off the wall and initially used it to intimidate, but his anger took over as he said.

“I never meant to hurt them! No matter how many bullets were in their skull.”

Annie (Six) is Will. Something about him and Monty's dynamic in the comic resonates with Annie. Will was always a lover, and he loved hard. When he found out about his boyfriend's Six other wife's without him even knowing. He planned on going to a party that his boyfriend and his partner's were going to. Came to the party and made sure to fix him a drink, in front of all of his partners. He made sure they all saw. ||They all watched him choke and die, and will stood there smiling through it all as the blood poured out of his mouth and onto Wills loafers.

“Some guys just can’t hold their arsenic yknow?”

June (squish) is definitely Monty in my opinion.

The southern tone in June's voice along with the fact that she stabbed her husband 10 times really just feels like a Monty move to me. Monty and his partner's relationship had already been rocky and rusty to each other. One day His partner came home, Angry and screaming. Accused him of cheating when they’d been the one unfaithful. They both were throwing stuff around and fightin. I mean 2 Explosive people in the same relationship? They both agreed on something that night, only one was making it out alive. When their neighbors came in to check in on them after hearing all the noise? It was clear who won when Monty came out covered in blood in handcuffs.

“It was either them or me, and i wont go down without a fight.”

Katalin (Uh-uh) Pluto. Katalin was an innocent bystander accused of beheading her husband when she truly did no such thing. I think that this lines up with pluto very well since his father always accused him of stuff he didn't do. Also im on the Scottish or irish pluto train so l feel like nobody would be able to understand him because hes only speaking in Gaelic. Yet due to many translation issues and his father being the one who spoke English, he was falsely accused and sentenced to be hung in front of the jail. The only innocent one yet the first one to be executed in the history of the Nevermore county jail. His final words to the public were ones they couldn’t even understand.

“Tha mi neoichiontach! chuir am bastard sin am falach orm gus am faigheadh e air falbh leis!”

(Cicero) is Duke. Velma was a performer, just like Duke, who killed her husband and sister before a show after she found them sleeping together. It was the a few hours before the show when Him, Luca and their opening act were all hanging out. Duke went out to go get some food and when he came back he saw that Luca cheated on him with their opening act. He blacked out and killed them with nothing but his hands and a vase. Preformed the whole show by himself and his stage hands and ended the show by getting arrested on stage. He got away since there was too much evidence that he was innocent and didnt do anything

“It wasnt until I was washing their blood of my hands, I even knew they were dead”

Mona (Lipschitz) is Theo? Idk the only reason I can come up with Mona had her partner cheat on her while she was sleeping. In this AU when theo was recovering from his injury (hes not dead guys | swear) His partner found multiple other people while he was stuck suffering alone in the hospital. Went out and saw his partner having sex with another person. He waited at home and strangled them as soon as they arrived back home with a kitchen towel

“Cheating on me while i was bloodied and broken in that sterile prison. Guess you could say we had some, moral differences.”

[therabbitthatpostthings]

KPOP Demon Hunter Headcanons

Saja Boys!

Abby is happy to flirt with anyone, he loves the attention. With Zoey it's playful friendly flirting, with Mira he's borderline genuine. The idea that Abby tried flirting with Zoey fr and Mystery bit him is sending me over lmaoo

Romance also loves the attention but only puts in the effort to actively flirt with Mira. (miromabby truther over here)

Mystery is the second oldest (behind Jinu) with the least of his humanity left. None of the Saja Boys actually know anything about his previous life aside from him having a good singing voice. They treated him more as a pet and after being on earth he seemed to be the slowest at regaining his humanity. Or at least they think so, he’s very quiet.

Baby was a very popular boy in school and was gonna debut straight outta high school before he "died". He had a pretty crappy personality and was very non-caring about most things but got away with it because he was attractive. Also, he's the only Saja Boy we saw get away and NOT go back to the underworld so I imagine if Huntr/x were to find him, he'd be the BIGGEST little shit about it.

I imagine Baby wasn’t really well-liked, kinda selfish, not really a bully but not really a bystander either. This is his intense guilt that plagued him through his journey to success and lead him to falling to Gwi-Ma

I like to think that the boys are at least 15 years past their death dates so the oldest is Jinu, then Mystery, Romance, Abby and Baby died around he same time (they needed the least cosmetic changes). While for Mystery and Romance I don't have much of a thought, Abby and Baby give me early 2000's boyband vibes so I think they would be probably around Celine and Bobby's age if they were alive still.

If we do get a second movie and it involves the Saja Boys life- post HonMoon- I think Mystery and Abby would try to make the best of the fact that Gwi-Ma is no longer in their ears vs Baby and Romance who would fall back HARD on their vices.

I think these two had similar deaths as well. Both striving for fame and notoriety that ended tragically whether it was their own faults of not. Plus the Saja Flop tags on Twitter would these heated lmao

Mystery would get really attached to Zoey and follow her around basically like a puppy. Hyper Active Yapper GF and her Silent Observer Boyfriend.

If Jinu somehow comes back, The Saja Boys would beat tf outta him. Bro imagine going through GRUELING dance and singing practice, having to keep up the facade and deal with crazy friends for like 3 straight weeks- no breaks- no rest and then your leader DIES over his situationship of the same time frame and that mf comes back like everything is fine?! BRO WE ARE FIGHTING!

This isn’t really a headcannon this is just my view on Jinu and his shame. I truly believe Jinu THOUGHT his mom and sister could come with them but when faced with his family or the ruler, he chose the option that would have suited them best. Think about it, the beloved singer in the King’s palace, surely his family would be taken care of but deep down he knew they weren’t. He could try to sneak out and sneak food and money to them but if he was caught all three would be executed. He was scared and wanted to keep them alive- he made a deal with the demon king for them. Jinu doesn’t feel regret over his deal, he feels guilt over abandoning his family. I wouldn’t be surprised if he even started to despise them a little, he’s basically trapped in a deal to the King and to Gwi-Ma for them. But then he dies and years pass by, he knows his family is surely dead by now and that resentment has surely taken over by guilt. All he’s left with is the shameful memory of when he THOUGHT he had a choice. A choice the King and Gwi-Ma already decided from him. Jinu is not a good person, he could have done more or attempted to help his family. He could’ve pleaded with the King. At worst Jinu is a coward. Cowardice is not a crime. It is not a sin. I won't say Jinu isn't evil or selfish- he is a 400 year old demon that has more than likely feasted on souls but, he isn't evil for trying to survive.

[elamarth-calmagol]

I guess everyone knows I'm into Murderbot now. I decided that if other people could flood my feed dash with random shows, I could, too. I came late to this party. I had Murderbot on my list, but I didn't try to get it until after the show came out, and by then, everything was checked out with a line except the audio book. I can't remember ever listening to an audiobook before, but I had a long drive down to my friends who are both Murderbot and audiobook fans, so I figured All Systems Red would keep me awake for most of the drive, and by then I'd be ready for music or something. I ended up downloading the next book at a rest stop. Then, having listened to two books in one day, I watched the first episode with my friends, which is officially the fastest I've ever jumped into a fandom. I listened to the next two on the way back, and then watched the rest of the show at home. I was going to chill out after that, but I literally found myself unable to chill because the air conditioning broke. So I lay in my bed listening to Fugitive Telemetry and not moving, because what else do you do when you have no AC in Florida in the summer? And yet, I still can't read fanfic because it's all about Network Effect.

Anyway, I decided to share my character opinions comparing the books and show.

The ones I like

Murderbot: I've decided to save my opinion on why it's not so bad for SecUnit to be played by a white man for another post, since it turned into too much of an essay. My mental image of it was poisoned because I saw pictures of the Alexander Skarsgard as SecUnit and also listened to a recording where it was played by a man, so I never thought of it as androgynous. (All the books but Artificial Condition were the full cast version. I'm not sure why, given that my friend got the originals from the same library. Apparently, the full cast version left out some lines?? Which is completely unacceptable! But both versions have a male narrator.) And I think Skarsgard was fantastic. I love his subtle expressions, especially the horror at being asked to socialize. If I take the book literally, SecUnit's face should be highly emotional, but I always saw it as totally blank unless I was told otherwise, which is basically Skarsgard's face. I was disappointed that the wide-eyed horrorified face only happened early in the season, so hopefully, they find somewhere to fit it in next season.

Gurathin: I imagined Gurathin as shorter and heavier and maybe Eastern European? But even if my mental image was more solid, I never would have come up with his show actor because he's so unusual and distinctive. Which is a good thing. I do find the perpetual bags under his eyes kind of distracting, though. I think the show mostly did a good job with Gurathin, though I think it must be spoiling something from a later book with his backstory. I don't like that he was already suspicious of SecUnit from episode one because it made the reveal about the governor module less effective. (Also, why did everyone let him get away with saying SecUnit should be executed for malfunctioning?) But anyway, what I really dislike is the focus on his relationship with SecUnit at the expense of Mensah. You can see this in the fandom's reaction of immediately shipping them: their interactions were the strongest in the show. If they could have had both characters be equally important, I would have been happy.

Mensah: I love show Mensah. She immediately wiped out my previous idea of her in my mind (who looked more like Bahardwaj, I think). When I finished Exit Strategy after watching the show, I couldn't handle the high and youthful voice of the voice actor, because That's Not Mensah. I liked the subplot about her panic attacks as well, though I didn't really like the one on the hill because she was being stupid, and I prefer the book version of that scene anyway. I am really disappointed by the lack of relationship between her and SecUnit through the first nine episodes. I guess the writers thought you need conflict-ridden relationships to make an interesting show, and its feelings about Mensah are too positive to be interesting. I am so relieved that she was the last human they showed in episode 10, though.

Pin Lee: I had trouble tracking all the characters in the book, probably due to the audio format, so I didn't really pick up on who Pin Lee was until the end. I saw her as a skinny, neatly dressed office worker type, so I was thrown for a loop when I saw them in the show. They come across as way too rude and aggressive for lawyering, though later books imply that everyone is scared of her, so I guess it's not completely out of left field. I was hoping for their true lawyer form to be revealed in episode 10. Really, that should have been their moment for heroics, but Gurathin took center stage yet again. Sigh.

It took me ages to realize that they were nonbinary in the show, but while I'm not sure if it was planned or they just chose a nonbinary actor and decided to run with it, I thought that was a really good idea. In the first four books, we only get one nonbinary character, and te is apparently an established gender from ter homeworld. I think there's also someone going by they/them in Fugitive Telemetry, but I'm not sure. So while there is a sense that gender has evolved, we don't see much in the way of flexibility in gender identity. The only options seem to be male human, female human, and bot, plus any cultural genders your planet uses. Pin Lee being nonbinary shows that people can define themselves, and it's not considered weird or confusing. That also means that SecUnit (once it's free) could declare itself to have a gender if it wanted to, and if it's still Bot Standard Agender, that's its own choice.

The ones I don't like

Ratthi: I mostly noticed Ratthi in All Systems Red because I kept trying to figure out how his name was spelled. (Rati? Radi? Roti would be funny.) I literally learned the answer to my question from the show subtitles. He shows up more in later books, and yeah, I see why SecUnit considers him to be a friend. I did NOT like him in the show. He's such a himbo, it's embarrassing. For most of the show, I don't even see how he's useful to the team or why Dr. Arada even likes him. Thank god he finally has a good part in episode 10.

Bahardwaj: Bahardwaj was the first person whose name I knew because she was critical to the first scene. (I wish the show had also started there, in the middle of action.) I imagined her as basically a female version of show!Ratthi: a lot younger, thinner, and more South Asian. But aside from appearance, she feels frenetic and just wrong in her acting. I liked seeing her doing surgery, that was cool. But most of the time, when she was on screen, I wished she wasn't.

The ones I have no opinion on:

Arada: I don't know whether I even knew Dr. Arada existed. I know that when I counted up the characters, I came up one short on the women's side, so someone disappeared in my mind. So obviously, I had no opinion on how she should be acted, and I have no objection to her.

Overse: Again, one of the women vanished from my mind, and it could have been Overse. Given that I couldn't keep track of all eight people, I think it's okay to drop a couple of characters, even if I disapprove in principle.

The other one:

Volescu: It feels kind of wrong to switch out the person SecUnit originally drops its helmet for, but I realize that they were trying to make the show simpler, and Arada is important later whereas I guess Volescu isn't.

LeeBeeBee: I have never been so happy to see someone's head explode. I still don't think she was necessary, but there were some interesting moments from her, so (as SecUnit says) whatever.

[saras-almanac]

BuckTommyWeekend Day 1: Alternate First Meeting

Title:  This seat taken?

Fandom:  911 (ABC)

Pairing:  Buck/Tommy

Summary:  Buck and Tommy meet at a restaurant for the first time. For the prompt: Alternate First Meeting for @bucktommyweek

Notes: There’s so many potential first meetings for these two both within canon and outside of it. I’m behind on writing for this weekend so just went with one that’s a bit quicker, but will probably expand on in the future before posting to AO3. (And/or might do more potential first meetings because there’s so many options and not all of them will lead to them actually being together at that specific moment in time, but it’d be fun…)

Buck sat at the bar, pretending to check his phone while he glanced over at where Josh and his date were sitting. Josh was seemingly having a good time, plus his date was pretty cute, so maybe this would be a win for him. Buck hoped so.

“This seat taken?”

Buck startled and looked over and saw a man—a very attractive man—stood next to him, inclining a hand toward the stool next to him.

Buck shook his head. “N-no. It’s all yours. I mean, if you want it.”

The man smiled and sat down. “Thanks. Just need to wait for my order.”

As he sat down, Buck noticed a logo on the side of this man’s jacket, one that looked incredibly familiar as it was on Buck’s own work clothes.

“Woah. Is that an LAFD jacket? Are you a firefighter?” Buck asked excitedly.

The man smiled. “Yeah. Work at Harbor station now though. Mostly flying planes and helicopters rather than running into any burning buildings.”

“That’s so cool. I’ve always thought being able to fly a plane, like pilot one, would feel like you have super powers,” Buck said. “Does it feel like that?”

“I suppose that’s a good way to look at it,” the man said. “I’m Tommy, by the way.”

“Evan Buckley,” Buck said, reaching out a hand. Tommy shook it, even at the awkward angle since they were sitting so close together. “So when did you learn to fly?”

“A while ago, back when I was in the Army,” Tommy said.

“Have you always been air support for LAFD?” Buck asked.

“No,” Tommy said. “I was on the ground or many years, but just felt like I was missing it. Transferred to Harbor five, six years ago now. I really missed flying so it was a good choice.”

“I bet,” Buck said. “If I could fly, I’d probably never want to be on the ground.”

“Well, I can give you a tour of the place if you’re interested,” Tommy offered kindly. “Show you some of the toys, how things work.”

“That would be awesome,” Buck said. “But I don’t want to trouble you. I mean, you’re just waiting for your food and I’m talking your ear off about work. I-I’m sure the last thing you want to do is talk about your job after just getting off a shift.”

“I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it,” Tommy said. “And I could have always ignored you or told you I didn’t want to talk about work if I wanted.”

“I guess,” Buck said. “I forget sometimes that not everyone likes talking about their job.”

“So then I guess I have to ask, what do you do?”

“Oh, um,” Buck rubbed at the back of his neck. “I’m a firefighter.”

“No kidding,” Tommy said with a laugh. “Which station?”

“The 118,” Buck said proudly.

“Now you’re fucking with me,” Tommy said. “I transferred to Harbor from the 118.”

“That’s crazy! So you do you know Cap? Captain Bobby Nash?” Buck asked.

“Yeah,” Tommy said. “He was just getting settled there when I transferred.”

“What about Hen? You’ve got to know Chimney. I think he’s been there since it was built.”

Tommy smiled and his nose crinkled and Buck had never seen anything more adorable in his entire life. “Howie and I go way back, from before he was called Chimney. And Hen, she’s one of the best firefighters I’ve ever worked with.”

“They’re the best,” Buck said. “It’s so crazy that you know them too!”

Buck glanced over at Josh again. He’d be furious with himself if he got distracted by this god-like man sitting next to him when his friend needed him. Still seemed to be going well.

“I don’t mean to pry, but I do have to ask,” Tommy started, “You’re not stalking those men, are you?”

Buck whipped his head over to look at him. “What?”

“It’s just, I saw you watching them when I first got here. And now you’re looking over again. Just checking things are… all right,” Tommy said.

Buck felt himself blush a bit because he was the world’s worst undercover wingman. “Okay so one of those guys is my friend, Josh. He’s had some rough luck dating and he was feeling a bit nervous, so I offered to come and hang out at the bar while he was on his date. Just in case anything happened, he’d have back up or whatever he needed.”

Tommy blinked. “You’re giving up your night to sit alone at the bar just in case your friend’s date turned out to be an asshole?”

“Yeah. I guess,” Buck said.

Tommy smiled at him, shaking his head fondly. “That’s really sweet of you.”

“I’m just helping out a friend,” Buck said, feeling uncomfortable. “I’d do it for anyone.”  

Before they could talk any more, a waitress came out with Tommy’s food, stealing his attention. Their chat was less than 10 minutes but Buck felt like he could have spent hours talking with Tommy. He tried not to be annoyed that his food came and he was going to leave—the man had probably just gotten off a shift, probably a twelve or thirty-six hour shift, based on it being night. Tommy deserved to grab his food and then head home to eat and crash.

It didn’t mean that it didn’t suck though. But it’s fine. Buck would go back to checking his phone and keeping an eye out for Josh.

Tommy placed a hand on Buck’s shoulder. “Well, it was a delight to bump into you and I enjoyed our conversation. You made the end of a long thirty-six hours speed by as I waited for my food.”

“I’ve been told I do that,” Buck said, completely distracted by the weight of Tommy’s hand on his shoulder.  

Tommy laughed like Buck had told the funniest joke he’d ever heard. He removed his hand and smiled. “And I’m serious about giving you a tour if you want.”

“I’d like that,” Buck said. “Um, should I call the station?”

Tommy smiled again and shook his head. “It’ll be easier if you just let me know directly. I can make sure there’s time and be the one to give you the tour.”

Tommy reached down to grab the pen sitting on top of his receipt and then scribbled his number on a napkin. “Take care, Evan.”

Hearing Evan come out of Tommy’s mouth was surprising, but surprising in a good way—in a way that Buck wasn’t going to think much about right now. “Yeah. Yeah. Uh, you too, Tommy. I’ll—I’ll text you.”

“Sounds good.” Tommy grabbed his bag. “Oh, and good luck with the rest of your date.”

With that, Tommy laughed a little and then walked out, leaving Buck sitting there, carefully holding the napkin and wondering exactly what was happening with fate right now. Maybe his luck was turning around.

[ricky-mortis]

Curtwen Week Day 4: Haunted

[seaofreverie]

Sparks will be real in 50 days.

[psychopomp-namine]

.

[miladydewintcr]

Has anyone talked yet about how Morrigan is literally named after an ancient Celtic triple goddess? Three distinct, powerful women who sometimes come together as one being.

I didn't notice exactly what they'd done with her on my first Veilguard playthrough (and tbh I am kicking myself over it now) but I do feel better about her merging with Flemeth, knowing that? Bc a triple goddess is 3 separate goddesses, that work well together.

And looking at it from that perspective, I feel like Morrigan hasn't become her mother at all, which is one of the main criticisms I've seen for her Veilguard story arc (Completely valid take ftr!! I also thought that too on my first run!).

I think, too, that this is why Kieran couldn't ever be in Veilguard (ignoring the fact he doesn't exist in some world states). Unlike Flemeth, who deliberately coerced her child into doing the dark ritual, who thrust her directly into danger, who placed such an inordinate amount of weight on her shoulders, Morrigan did the exact opposite with Kieran. She kept him away from everything in Veilguard. Knowing he has an old god's spirit inside him (just as she herself does now!), knowing he could probably help, she still kept him the fuck away. She kept him safe.

That was all Morrigan imo. There was none of Flemeth, in that.

[clumsypuppy]

Gripped with ideas but….. the panelling………….

[xcziel]

.

[turnedpalefromlackofsun]

One thing I find irritating about modern society where I'm from

Is that the people who allegedly have "empathy", are evil.

Bold claim but hear me out on my reasoning

The empathy people will throw words at others like "ableist" "racist" "sexist" like a death sentence and then bristle if you ask them how or wtf that means.

"If you say Adhd is not a disability, you're abelist."

"Wait what? How?"

"Educate yourself"/"I don't owe you my emotional labor"

What????? Where's your empathy?

Allegedly its in the "you're ableist" statement but I dont really see it.

Performative empathy. These annoying people want any excuse to bludgeon people with their righteous hammer.

If they cared about the people they fought for, they would disseminate proper information they they wish people already knew.

Think about it. What does using harsh words against any questions do? It silences the conversation. Now nobody wants to ask or learn because they're afraid. They're not gaining knowledge to connect with others. They're learning to camouflage so you don't see them.

Thank you for starting the Squid Game. Great. I'm not sure about this because I don't feel feelings, but I'm pretty sure "empathy" isn't meant to be a guillotine. Empathy isn't a weapon. So how dare these people claim to have "empathy"?

Do you really think that just because it's a feeling, we can't verify if you truly are empathetic or not? It shows in your actions.

[timelessbian]

i was tagged by @sapphictea and @localgaysian (thank youu!!) to share the first lines of ten of my latest fics in chronological order. all i have to say for myself is it's been a weird few years

and it's over, and i'm going under (agatha all along) '"So that’s what it means to be a witch: killing people to serve your own agenda?"'

it's a strange kind of power she holds on you (the locked tomb) 'The very thought of admitting it to anyone made Harrow want to snap every bone in her body and crumble into dust like a useless construct, but she was starting to realize that she had maybe, sort of been starting to miss Gideon.'

you want a revelation (some kind of resolution) (motherland: fort salem) 'It was Nicte, of all people, who broke the news, but Tally supposed that after everything, she really shouldn’t have expected any differently.'

doesn't the night go slow (the wheel of time) 'It was an unseasonably warm day near the end of winter in Tar Valon.'

interlude (why women kill s2) 'It was a bright, sunny Tuesday morning, and for the first time since Catherine’s invasion of the place, Rita felt like she could walk around her own home without the feeling of eyes constantly on her.'

we're not too far gone (the owl house) 'Eda wasn’t sure that she could pinpoint the exact moment that the Owl House had transitioned from an isolated secret outlaw hideout to the premiere after-school hangout spot for a quartet of misfit teenagers, but ever since Luz had started school, it had become common for there to be an extra kid or two or three hanging around.'

feels like we're going home (the owl house) 'It was strange, Eda thought as she flew towards Hexside.'

beauty and grace (agent carter) 'Peggy knew from the moment that she woke up that the day was not going to be a very good one.'

aka english (agent carter) '“So I hear you’re retiring.”'

for auld lang syne, my dear (agent carter) 'There were a lot of things that Angie had found herself getting used to over the last eight months.' VERY funny that this takes me neatly back to january of 2020 lmao