#i want him to have such a varied assortment of parents

[perfectharmonyloveschaos]

I really hope if we get an Atreus spin-off in another mythology/mythologies that we get to see him collect even more parental figures. Like Pokemon. It's a power he can't turn off. And the moment anyone hurts him the villain is scared shitless of the Norse crew arriving to beat the shit out of whoever hurt their boy — only for like a dozen other deities and characters to also turn up to get a turn at protecting their boy.

Kratos goes from being worried about other pantheons invading them post-Ragnarok to questioning how many people is he sharing his son with and why.

[pomplalamoose]

Master Luke Skywalker headcanons🩵✨

In my other headcanon posts I already mentioned a few ideas of mine of Luke as Master Skywalker (find a summary of them here) but I wanted to do an extra post because I have a ✨thing✨ for authority figures

• I'm totally biased in saying so but in my opinion Luke would be (or is) a great Jedi Master 

• he's kind, empathetic and patient; in my opinion the most important traits to have as a teacher 

• his own Jedi education isn't as long ago as it would have been if he had grown up in the Jedi temple, so I think he's easily able to put himself back into the shoes of a Padawan

• especially if some of his students are quick tempered, impulsive and easily frustrated when they don't progress as fast as they'd like to, just like he once was 

• he is able to successfully handle a wild assortment of personalities, finding ways to engage a rambunctious crowd just as well as the shy and more withdrawn individuals 

• likewise he matches his behavior accordingly 

• he's very well attuned to his surroundings, good at reading the room and deciding whether a more strict or calming approach is necessary

• he is stern when he needs to be, although I don't think he particularly likes it 

• he doesn't want to raise his voice either and I don't think he has to often except to get his student's attention from time to time

• just like in other parts of his life he always wants to understand why there is a conflict in the first place and will gladly act as negotiator if it means resolving a fight 

• or avoid having to take more drastic measures 

• if he gets angry though even the birds fall quiet

• it's like the life gets sucked out of everything 

• I said before that making him angry is not easy, so congrats to anyone who manages and also my serious condolences 

• even then he won't grow unrestrained though

• he'd never expose or punish someone in front of others

• he'll remain fair and will ask the person or group responsible to have a private conversation with him 

• that's what's so absolutely terrifying though

• his quiet anger is worse than if he'd just scream at them instead

• I don't think that anyone would be able to get used to this, not with how slowly and silently his anger approaches 

• you don't see it coming until it's too late 

• those who end up alone in that room with him never speak of it

• you see them leave looking pallid, many with tear stained faces 

• they never act up again after that

• of course rumours are going wild, the theories about what happened are endless

• yet everyone is too scared to find out for themselves and very happy to stay in their Master's good graces 

• he takes time to get to know every one of his Padawans very well and thus can tell what they might need from him at any given moment or in specific situations 

• do they need a compliment, so as not to loose faith in themselves? 

• a little joke and a gentle smile to lighten the mood? 

• reassurance to ease their mind? 

• maybe a little motivational speech?

• a pat on the back?

• or a hug?

• carefully voiced questions about their well being; do they need anything? Someone to talk to?

• do they need a break, some time for themselves?

• an offer to repeat any exercise after the official lessons of the day are done?

• a tease or a little bet to rouse their fighting spirit?

• a stern reprimand?

• a time out?

• generally I see him slightly differentiating not only in his demeanor towards the children, the teenagers and the young adults but in the way he structures their varying lessons as well

• he allows himself to be more relaxed and laid back with the kids 

• he wants them to feel safe and at home, so he makes sure they see him as a kind of parental figure in addition to being their teacher 

• also I think he'd teach them about the Force and their connection to it in a way that comes natural to them

• many children don't have a long attention span yet, so it's important to be engaging and let them have fun too

• I see Luke trying to keep his inputs short and simple to then make them discover what they just learned in a game themselves 

• like for example: being able to reach out, to feel the Force and all living beings surrounding you doesn't sound as cool as "learning a new trick to beat everyone else at hide and seek"

• likewise he wouldn't jump straight into meditation with them

• you can't force a child to meditate when it fails to sit still for longer than two minutes 

• Luke is aware this would only lead to them viewing meditation as negative, maybe even something alike to a punishment 

• so to avoid that I see him introducing it in a slow and careful way 

• like telling them stories that get increasingly longer over time 

• or making them color in pictures 

• really, any activity that includes mindfulness in some way is a welcome strategy 

• I think he'd be more strict with the teenagers and young adults 

• many of them haven't been with him since they were little and often need firm guidelines 

• not necessarily because any of them are especially rebellious or going through a phase™ but because it's easier to adapt to a new way of life with set rules 

• Luke knows that some of them come from a difficult background or had a hard journey to find him, so he wants to give them clear framework conditions to work with 

• a daily routine leaves less room for uncertainties and lends a sense of safety 

• still he welcomes a more personal approach in their shared free time if they are comfortable with it

• he's very interested to hear about their former lifes

• about their interest and hobbies

• their favorite dishes 

• the customs of their people

• their friends and family 

• and their favorite music 

• he'll share stories of his own as well, often involving his own struggles as a Padawan 

• nobody is supposed to feel like an outcast or a special case because they're older or somehow "different" from the others 

• still they are more prone to giving him an attitude than the kids are and Luke definitely isn't above paying them right back 

• he leans towards Yoda in that aspect; his patience may seem endless but if he can have some fun as well, he'll take the chance 

• repeating phrases that used to drive him mad when he was younger is his favorite thing to resort to

• the best example for that is probably "Don't try. Do!"

• alternatively he likes to come up with ridiculous sayings or advices that make no sense at all

• if someone is especially annoying he'll make them mediate in stupid positions, claiming that this particular pose is immensely important for their development

• even if someone should realize what's going on they don't have any prove to go by, so who are they to deny their Master?

• Luke thinks it's hilarious 

• I don't think it's uncommon for his students to be very intimidated by Luke though

• some of the newly arrived may even fear him 

• while he's beloved as a person and greatly admired for his skills, nobody can quite forget who it is they're living and sharing their meals with 

• especially those who haven't been around him for long yet and can't quite believe that, he too, is really just some dude 

• of course he's not just some dude but I feel like that's what Luke would like to be perceived as 

• to him it's important to be approachable no matter the circumstances

• he wants everyone to know he's always there to help and not just a teacher but a friend as well 

• the children don't struggle with this as much as his other students 

• everyone enjoys spending time with him but then he has these moments where he doesn't seem fully human anymore 

• his eyes are just a tad too bright, too piercing

• they see more than just his immediate surroundings

• when he looks at you it's either like he doesn't see you at all or too much, like illuminating even the last corners of your very being and turning you inside out 

• he's eerily quiet and his presence a mystery 

• not even the best of his students are able to sense him in the Force when he closes himself off

• he could be standing right in front of you and you wouldn't notice if that's what he wants 

• likewise his Force signature is often overwhelming for those still inexperienced

• often he appears out of thin air like a spectre and vanishes just the same 

• he senses whenever he's needed and will let himself be found but nobody knows where he goes to and what he does when alone 

• does he even sleep? 

• are we sure he's really eating and drinking or is that an illusion?

• seeing him tired or crumpled is such a rarety that nobody can remember if it ever happened before

• he doesn't always react the way one would expect him to

• sometimes he's smiling to himself, like he's listening in to someone not visible to everyone else 

• on some occasions his students find him unresponsive for hours 

• is his body still inhabitated? Where did his mind go?

• he never shows any signs of exertion 

• he always looks impeccable no matter the weather and circumstances 

• he seems to simply exist beyond external influences 

Quick authors note before we continue: 

I see Luke as a very responsible and trustworthy person and don't think he'd actually pursue one of his students in a romantic or sexual way; he's aware of the power imbalance and probably not comfortable with it.

While I'm sure there are some mutual attraction situations from time to time, he doesn't act on his feelings.

HOWEVER let's be really delusional and ignore that 

• Luke is usually very direct but in this case I'm sure he'd take his time 

• having a passing fancy is nothing out of the ordinary and he will make sure he's genuinely interested in you before risking to overstep his line as a teacher 

• even then he'd proceed with utmost care

• he does not want to make you uncomfortable in any way and should he find that you don't return his feelings, he'll withdraw immediately

• so he'll carefully start testing how far he can go and observe your respective reactions closely 

• to everyone else this won't seem suspicious at all 

• Luke often takes one or two of his students under his wing to keep them close by when he believes some extra support is needed 

• his innocent touches will linger a little bit longer than necessary though

• your shared eye contact, even during short conversations, is strangely intense 

• his smile suddenly more inviting 

• he often offers you his hand now

• it seems that his attention is always on you 

• are you imagining things?

• of course Luke would never invade your privacy to a point where he'd take a look inside your mind 

• he picks up on clues otherwise 

• for example, if he notices you are growing nervous or flustered around him more easily than usual, he'll take that as a good sign 

• he'll find reasons to ask for your opinion or makes up tasks that require you to help him

• he's adamant about you having one-on-one lessons with him 

• he's very aware of the effect he has on you and likes to tease mercilessly

• he'll lean down to whisper in your ear, reveling in the way it makes you shiver 

• will he outright tell you about his feelings though?

• I don't think so

• this last step he will leave up to you 

• it's important to him that it's what you want too

• he'll definitely continue to flirt but if you don't confront him about it, he won't go any further than that 

[johaerys-writes]

TW: Non-consent mentioned. No pressure on answering this, but I figured I’d ask you since I value your opinion way more than Google/Reddit.

There’s an assortment of superstitions out there around childbirth. It varies among cultures but sometimes the superstitions overlap. I’ve heard suggestions about the position the birth parent is in during conception influences the (assigned) sex. I’ve heard suggestions that if the birth parent has sex while pregnant they will have twins. Now, there’s this other curious superstition that if the birth parent has sex with multiple partners, a number of things could happen including all sperm donors become the (biological) parents. I was wondering to what extent this last one is believed as part of Greek mythology? I’m assuming to some extent it is believed given the myth of Leda.

I bring all this up because of the infamous Scyros scene in The Song of Achilles. Miller is a really great storyteller from a writing craft perspective. Very subtly, she weaves layers into her scenes. For this scene in particular, it is generally understood that the sex between Patroclus and Deidamia was non-consensual. I’ve seen some suggestions that the scene was included to further support the idea that Achilles and Patroclus are two halves -the pain of one is the pain of the other. I was wondering that in addition to such interpretations, that the scene exists also to make Patroclus Pyrrhus’ father? Because Deidamia slept with both, they are both the father. Does this fit with general beliefs/superstitions around sex in Greek mythology?

I wouldn’t really go so far as to say that the sex scene with Deidameia and Patroclus is meant to be non con. I always found it a bit dubcon-ish instead of fully noncon, although the lines might be a little blurry. I think that the scene is meant to be awkward and weird, and my understanding of it is that it wasn't so much to show Patroclus' and Achilles' pain, but to sort of... shed light on Deidameia's situation? She's a young girl that really has no options right now: she got into this marriage without really wanting to or understanding what was going on-- imagine a goddess showing up to you and telling you you have to marry her son or else? I doubt many girls in her position would have been able to say no to this. And then she sleeps with Achilles, she is his wife, and as a wife she has to love him now, he's meant to be her whole world. Like this is how Deidameia has been brought up, this is part of her culture, and as a young impressionable girl I assume she had some very confused feelings for Achilles at this point. Of course Achilles is gorgeous and a demigod and that plays into Deidameia's infatuation with him.

But then, Patroclus shows up. And whatever little interest Achilles had in Deidameia is gone. She is married to him and pregnant with his child and yet none of this matters because Achilles just wants nothing to do with her now. So I feel like the whole sleeping with Patroclus thing might have been... her trying to take control of the situation in some way. If she manages to seduce Patroclus, then perhaps she will manage to hurt Achilles as he has hurt her; or perhaps she might even come to be included in this very exclusive thing these two have going on.

It's a muddy situation with no good outcomes for her, but don't forget that she's a very young girl. And young people often make bad decisions. So, for me, this scene is less about making Patroclus and Achilles "even" or focusing on their bond (although there are elements of that here), but more so to highlight the pretty awful position Deidameia is in. (Of course people are allowed to have different opinions, if someone's reading of the scene is different to mine then that's fine.)

As for whether Patroclus and Achilles are both Pyrrhus' fathers, I.... am not sure. Like, I don’t really see it that way. To my knowledge, there aren't really many myths in ancient Greece to support this particular angle? The most you'll see when two men and one woman are involved is the woman having twins, which is what happened with Leda: she slept with both Tyndareus and Zeus, so she had two sets of twins, Helen and Clytemnestra and the Dioskouroi (Castor and Polydeuces), of which one child was mortal and the other a demigod. I really can't think of an occasion where a single child was the product of two fathers. And I also don't see the symbolism of it working for TSOA, since Pyrrhus is a psycho when he shows up at the end lol. Like that's no love child that right there 🥲

EDIT: Theseus was mentioned as having two fathers, Aegeus and Poseidon; I didn’t include him because in the version I'm familiar with he's just Aegeus' son, but in other versions of the myth he is also Poseidon's son. So I guess it depends on what version one has heard/wants to go for.

Anyway, that's my two cents! I hope I answered your questions 💙

[sparklecare-after-au]

Give some fun facts about the kid characters, any of them, whichever are your favorites, I guess. Love these kids, theyre so fun. Your character designs are always so nice!

Thanks! Heres some assorted fun facts under the cut (fun level varies)

Cara: Cara is short for Caramel. She likes puzzles a lot, especially puzzle cubes. They can also carry pretty much anything in the pockets inside their sweater because of magic she used on them when she sewed them in. Its very rare for her to not have something you'd need. Shes prepared for almost anything. She also says gamer words without knowing what most of them really mean (other than bro, she usues that literally)

Barley: He calls himself Epic Fail as an insult to himself, so nobody else calls him that. Cara calls him Epic and Epic Win. He likes horror movies, but he cant watch them that often because of his parents and Cara being around, so he usually watches them in bed on his phone.

Ryan: Ryan is really sporty, he likes basketball and baseball, but hes not on any sports teams. His favorite colors are orange and yellow, and he likes baking. He picked it up from his parents, as he would help them when he was younger. He still helps them now when he can, whenever he isnt busy with school, that is. Hes unaware of The Horrors.

Rosie: Rosie isn't actually her aunts favorite, even though it would seem like that since she gets whatever she wants. She only gets stuff because her aunt thinks it'll keep Rosie quiet and away from her. Rosie has Posie do her schoolwork for her, so she isnt that good with reading and writing. She does know how to swim and ride a bike though, which Posie does not. She can be mean to Posie sometimes, but thats only because shes jealous that Posie is the favorite, something both of them have been told before.

Logan: Logan is only a few months younger than Barley. Her egg showed up a couple months after Barleys did, and since they lived in the same aprtment complex, they spent a lot of time together. Logan sees Barley and Cara as siblings, and they feel the same towards the Berry kids. Shes the one who introduced Barley to horror movies, she especially likes monster movies...and vampires.

Posie: Posie is the favorite due to her being very quiet (usually unable to speak up) and how she can entertain herself without being around her aunt and uncle. She likes to build blanket forts in her and Rosies playroom. She could sit in there for hours by herself, reading or coloring, she doesnt like being away from Rosie though, so theyre usually together.

[invisibleraven]

Halloween OTP prompts!  "Painting pumpkins together since they both can’t be bothered with the mess and time that comes with carving them" for Willex because I feel like Alex would hate pumpkin guts and Willie would absolutely think to paint them!

Alex was mindlessly doing the crossword when the front door burst open, Willie beaming as the pile of pumpkins tumbled from his hands. "Decorative gourd season motherfucker!"

"What the ever loving... No actually, I don't want to know," Alex said. "Why all the pumpkins?"

"Because decorative gourd season," Willie replied with a smile, like that explained everything.

"I still don't know what that means."

"It's almost Halloween, and we finally have this nice big porch to decorate, so I figured, why not go full jack o lantern patch?" Willie said, picking up his haul to lay out on the table.

The assortment of pumpkins were in varying shapes, sizes, and even colours. Willie had truly gone all out in his quest to go full pumpkin patch it seemed. Alex had never been the biggest Halloween fan honestly. His parents refused to have anything to do with it, and by the time he met the guys, they were all a bit too old for it.

Sure the cheap candy and horror movies were okay if you were Reggie and Luke, but Alex never had much of a sweet tooth, and he hated scary movies. So the whole holiday felt like a wash to him.

But Willie loved Halloween. Loves stressing up and covering their home in spooky shit. Watching every horror film and childhood special. And Alex loved Willie so he put up with the whole spooky season.

But he drew the line at pumpkin carving. The thought of sticking his hands into the slimy guts to scoop the gourd out? Made him shudder. Then wielding a knife to cut out some crudely drawn face? None of that sounded fun to him.

And that must have shown on his face, as Willie's expression faltered. "D-do you not want to make jack o lanterns and do Halloween?"

"No! No it's not that! I just really... Don't like the idea of doing the whole scooping thing. Maybe we could decorate them some other way?" Alex asked.

Willie gathered Alex into a hug. "Aww babe, of course we don't have to scoop them out! We could melt crayons on them, or paint them or-"

"I like the idea of painting them," Alex admitted shyly.

"Well alrighty then!" Willie detached himself and ran off, gathering supplies. He decided against his graffiti paint, given the fumes. But he collected lots of bottles, tubes and various brushes with glee, returning to find that Alex had covered the table in newspapers, all but two of the pumpkins relocated to the island. He gave Willie a wide grin, and snatched up the pink paint with the silver sparkles.

"I'm going to make a Carrie pumpkin," he declared.

"Won't she be insulted?"

"Only if he pumpkin isn't the biggest and the best," Alex replied with a wink, beginning to paint the pumpkin to resemble the Dirty Candi leader.

"Well then I think I'll make Julie," Willie said, snatching up the purple paint. "Or else you might find yourself out of a job."

In the end, each of the band members got their own pumpkin, with Alex also making a Willie pumpkin to sit alongside the one Willie painted to look like him.

There was also a pumpkin covered in paint splatters, which matched the state of their living room after they were done. One emblazoned with their handprints and hearts. And one that Willie carved himself, only showing it to Alex when he was done.

They could never show it to anyone else of course, but later, surrounded by their art, and dutifully avoiding the pumpkin guts that Willie had scooped, Alex found his opinion on Halloween much improved. But maybe that was just the after effects of the orgasm and Willie hand feeding him candy talking.

[tsyllaes]

Water Infused with Desert Lime and Muntries

TITLE Water Infused with Desert Lime and Muntries AUTHOR @annarti DISCLAIMER All mine PART 4 of 5 (982 words) (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) ABOUT Part four of the meeting of two characters from my upcoming porny NaNo. This part has CONFLICT :O Barely.

‘But first, may I present the best smithy in Ni-Badra.’ He held a hand out to the sandstone building they had now reached.

Sita’s hopeful little smile turned to one of broad delight. ‘Oh, yes! I had almost forgotten!’ She reached out to swish the canvas door aside.

Uli walked in after her and clapped to announce himself. The front room was stocked with all the standard pots and tools his parents made between projects, so anyone who needed a cooking oven could come and buy one without having to wait for it to be made. The door to the workshop behind rang with the clink and tang of hammers on iron. It was a warm, nostalgic sound for Ulindu, a reminder of a life he might have led but was pleased to have left in his past.

‘See anything you like?’ Uli asked as Sita began perusing the shelves. She had found the drawers of smaller items, fish hooks of varying sizes, cutlery and assorted fastenings.

‘Almost,’ she murmured in Tsaythi.

The canvas door to the workshop flapped aside to admit Ulindu’s mother, Halef, a woman with as much width in her shoulders as height in her frame, dressed in grimy leather pants and apron. She greeted them with her saleswoman smile which quickly turned genuine when she recognised her son.

‘Well, isn’t this a surprise?’ she exclaimed in welcome. ‘Shouldn’t you be siesting by now? What brings you here, lovey?’

Ulindu’s body threatened a yawn at the reminder, but a glance aside at Sita kept it at bay. ‘This is Sita,’ he introduced. ‘From the Gang Gang. She asked for the best blacksmith in town, so here we are.’

Halef looked aside at her prospective customer, raised a curious brow at her son, then turned her sales smile on Sita. ‘Well, now, how can I help you, lovey? I see you’ve found the fish hooks. We’re actually running low; I’ve got Luda restocking them this afternoon, if you can wait until then?’

‘Oh, no,’ Sita said with a shake of her head as she straightened. ‘I was after something a little sharper. Or, a lot sharper.’ She looked down at the cutlery.

‘Ah, a kitchen knife? We make those special. How long are you docked? When are you heading off?’

‘Two days, unless trade goes particularly well, but no. Not a knife.’ Sita looked aside at Uli with a curious, almost guilty look in her eyes. Apologetic, perhaps? Then she ducked her head. She said something so quietly Ulindu was sure he hadn’t heard correctly. It had sounded like ‘sword,’ but that couldn’t be right.

Halef turned to him now with accusation. ‘A sword?’ she repeated, turning back on Sita. Her thick arms were folded and she loomed as tall as a woman of her stature could loom. ‘Well, now, we don’t make weapons here, and even if we did, we can’t just… sell an iron sword to anyone who walks through the door. The king would have our heads!’ She threw her arms out in disbelief. ‘Swords are very, very tightly controlled. Ulindu, did you tell her I'd make her a sword?'

Uli shook his head and lifted his hands in protest, mouth open in a mild panic.

‘No, no, no! No, he did not,’ Sita answered for him, her voice quivering slightly. ‘I am sorry, I-I do not want to cause any trouble. I only asked for a blacksmith, and he showed me the knife you made in his kitchen, and I thought—I-I did not think. I am sorry.’

‘Hm.’ Halef folded her thick arms and narrowed her eyes, but allowed a stiff nod. ‘You’re young, so maybe you’re unaware but, well, now you know, love. We have a responsibility. We have a license, and making weapons is a very big part of getting it, but it’s not just because the king tells us not to. As blacksmiths, we can’t just go handing out our biggest advantage to our—well, not to say you’re our enemy, lovey, but I don’t know you. You could be a pirate. Or, what if you were to be taken by pirates, and a sword I made is in the hands of people using it to take Raykinian lives? That’s why I don’t make them at all, and why you’ll not find a blacksmith willing to make you one.’

‘I-I understand,’ Sita said, voice small and head bowed. She looked aside, guilty and apologetic again, at Uli. ‘And please do not blame Ulindu. I did not think to ask him first, either, or I am sure he would have told me the same as you just have.’

Uli nodded and cleared his throat. ‘She just came down from Kazin. I don’t think they’re so protective over who their smiths sell their weapons to.’

‘Hmph. Because they’re brownsmiths; theirs are just made of bronze.’ Halef rolled her eyes.

Uli gave a tentative smile, knowing the ego boost would help to settle her.

‘Well, apology accepted,’ she said with a gruff smile. ‘And I hope you don’t plan on leaving empty handed, lovey.’

Sita’s crinkle-nosed smile spread once more. ‘Certainly not! The fish hooks are exquisite. How would you feel about supplying my skipper with bread ovens, wholesale? I just know the Llayans would snap them up.’

Uli felt his shoulders soften to hear them talking business. As much as his mother loved thrashing the cherry-red iron, she loved the dance of selling the finished pieces even better. The knowledge of her ovens baking bread in Llayad, of all places, would thrill her. He knew she still wouldn’t let them go cheaply, though.

When they finally left, Sita with a little wooden box of fish hooks and a deal that only needed her father’s approval in her pocket, Uli bent over to her ear. ‘Awfully captain-like negotiations, there. Did you really want a sword?’

---

Remember what I said about Raykin basically owning the rights to iron? Yeah. Totally made up the license thing just there.

My Nanna called everyone 'lovey' so I gave that to Uli's mum =3

[bigskydreaming]

I am looking (disrespectfully) at the trope of Bruce and other family members only seeming to respect Dick’s wishes when doing so aligns with what they already wanted to do.

Let’s go to the examples!

1) Bruce not broaching adoption with Dick because he wants to respect Dick’s first parents and feels like he would be taking their place or overstepping or putting himself in between Dick and his memories of his parents. Sometimes its cited that Dick himself expressed this wish early on after his parents died, sometimes its not and this is still just upheld as Bruce’s reasoning for not adopting Dick before he was already well into adulthood.

THE FATAL FLAW (in mine own personal opinion, natch. Personal mileage may vary, check your speedometer to be safe):

This particular plot point or tangle is in my experience ALWAYS paired with Bruce’s own insecurities about his role in Dick’s life, or not wanting to push that or receive an answer he doesn’t want to or is afraid to hear. Sometimes its about his fears of unworthiness to be Dick’s actual parent, etc, etc. But the bottom line is, there is always the presence of SOME element (and not a small one) in which Bruce’s own self-interest or feelings are protected by him NOT broaching the adoption conversation with Dick and having to confront these fears head on.

This is additionally juxtaposed with the problem that although there’s a lot of variance in regards to stories where Bruce fired Dick versus stories where Dick gave up being Robin and moved on to Nightwing voluntarily....there’s NOT a lot of stories where Dick makes Jason Robin himself or is asked by Bruce first. The part where Bruce takes this initiative on his own, without thinking through its repercussions on Dick emotionally.....this is practically always present.

Now, the problem here is that......Dick became or began becoming Robin well into his time with Bruce. Its frequently cited as the thing that began allowing them to truly connect, their time training and acting as Batman and Robin.

Meaning no matter WHAT interpretation you go with as to why specifically Dick chose the name Robin, whether it was a family nickname or an homage to Robin Hood.....the fact remains, NOTHING of Robin, THEMATICALLY, nothing that spoke to Dick in regards to what he wanted Robin to be - specifically in honor of his parents because avenging his parents and making sure what happened to them didn’t happen to others like, this was literally a key part of what bonded Dick and Bruce, the fact that Bruce was TRYING to help Dick specifically BECAUSE they shared this particular overlap of purpose - like the bottom line is, nothing about Robin CAME from Bruce. Or Dick’s feelings about Bruce. That....didn’t really even exist yet, at the time he created Robin. Everything about Robin, other than the physical costume itself, not even the design just the actual creation of it....all of that came from BEFORE he met Bruce. None of it was thoughts or feelings derived from BRUCE. Its the whole reason Dick was never Batkid or Batlad, or any derivative of Batman.

It all, ALL came from what Dick came to the manor WITH. Remnants of his life with his first family.

So the fatal flaw of Bruce’s reasoning that by not broaching the subject of adoption with Dick before well into adulthood, he was actually just respecting Dick’s relationship with his first parents and not trying to come between them and Dick’s memories and feelings about them....

All of this is inherently undermined by Bruce’s own actions.....when by repurposing Robin to ANY degree, even just to give the mantle to Jason.....this meant that he was inherently viewing Robin as being more about being Batman’s partner, HIS partner....then it was about being Dick’s heritage, his last intangible keepsake of his first family and life BEFORE Bruce.

In effect....Bruce making Jason Robin or firing Dick as Robin, either way....both betray Bruce’s OWN alleged intentions for only wanting to respect Dick’s relationship with his parents, and that being why he didn’t want to overstep by trying to impose or even ask for his own official parent/child relationship with Dick. Because that’s exactly what appropriating the Robin mantle was. It was Bruce ignoring the relationship Dick had with his parents and their memory and the fact that Robin was directly born of that....and making Robin entirely about Bruce’s OWN relationship with Dick, heedless of any other factors.

And the second Bruce did that.....his entire justification for not raising the adoption issue....disappears. It goes away. Because you can’t claim inaction being just a result of not wanting to disrespect something you’ve already voided respect for. No matter whether Bruce INTENDED it or not.....by crossing this boundary, Bruce already acted against Dick’s feelings in this regard and well, disregarded them....which makes claims of Bruce not raising the adoption issue pretty much JUST self-serving at that point. Its an alleged viewpoint of Dick’s that Bruce largely just ASSUMES....and only ultimately respects - in direct contrast to how he didn’t respect the associations Dick had with Robin - because it aligns with something Bruce ALREADY wanted to do, rather than what Dick actually wanted. It provided justification for Bruce to just....not have a conversation he was afraid to have. And that’s about Bruce at that point. Its not about Dick. Its just like...not.

2) Another example of this that is not unique to just Bruce, but recurs frequently in both canon and fanfics in Dick’s dynamics with other characters he’s close with.....is characters not apologizing for things they’ve done to Dick or raising the issue of things they did a long time ago but never apologized for....while claiming to do so because they thought DICK didn’t want to talk about it.

THE FATAL FLAW (in my own personal opinion. Nuances and variations may not be identical at all store locations, please see your local branch for details):

The particular problem I have here is that....Dick never ever ever in the history of ever and also the before ever time.....has EVER expressed a desire to avoid confrontation.

Like. That’s what he DOES. That’s his JAM. That’s literally CITED time and time again as one of the reasons he’s viewed as more of a people person and natural team leader than Bruce and other Batfam members....because he’s not afraid to cut straight (or bi) to the heart of the matter and air out a dispute.

In fact, this very character trait is one of the ones most commonly utilized AGAINST Dick in various depictions of him, as he’s often cited as TOO confrontational, TOO eager for a fight or conflict especially when his temper is engaged, such as when he’s well....personally hurt or offended.

So how does it follow, then, that avoiding tough conversations ONLY when its on the OTHER person to INITIATE, because they were the ones who DID the wrong-doing and Dick the subject of that rather than the instigator....how does it work, exactly, that these are the only times in which we DON’T tend to see a direct conversation about the harms done and the fallout that resulted? With it being claimed that this is solely for Dick’s benefit, out of a desire to avoid pulling him into an allegedly unnecessary (but really just unpleasant) confrontation?

When the concurrent reality is that whether stated or acknowledged or not.....avoiding these specific conversations and ONLY these conversations (as there never seems to be a problem finding canon or fanfic stories in which Dick apologizes for harm HE’S caused to others or is clearly expected to).....this avoidance also carries the side benefit of allowing the character who DID something wrong to Dick to....not ever have to have that super uncomfortable conversation in which they actually verbally acknowledge the thing they did to him and the effects it had on him, and apologize for that.....and then render themselves vulnerable to actually hearing whether or not he accepts their apology or is still upset with them regardless.

While - as long as they DON’T ever have this conversation, for whatever reason - they can look to the clear and consistent precedent of Dick continuing to work with people who have done things like oh, I don’t know....punched him in the face cuz they’re mad at him (and this isn’t a Bruce critical point, this is a whole damn family critical point as the only one who HASN’T actually done this is Duke. Well, Cass technically just threw him out a window, but I mean, tomato toh-mah-to). Writers and characters both can lean on the fact that actually Dick has a pretty clear track record of ultimately giving up a grudge or at least showing a willingness to look past those grudges enough that it doesn’t prevent him from still maintaining or resuming some kind of relationship with the person who hurt him.

And thus, like Example Numero Uno......this ultimately just lets other characters off the hook while claiming to do Dick a favor, but actually Dick receives no real benefit from it and instead now just has another instance of characters saying “see we respect your wishes” when ultimately their inaction is MORE in service to their own wishes and self-interests.

2b) See also the variation of this in which characters such as Bruce, Jason, Tim and assorted others like....are written specifically determining that they’re not going to apologize to Dick or beg his forgiveness because they feel they don’t DESERVE to be forgiven, and once again....its in HIS best interests that they not even give him the opportunity to say he forgives them....because they know Dick Grayson of course, and they know he’s too forgiving for his own good, so its better to like....not make it ever a possibility in this particular instance.

With the problem here being like.....Dick can’t and shouldn’t be expected to KNOW that’s their logic? So....all he’s going to actually SEE is loved ones just....not expressing remorse for hurting him or acknowledgment it even happened? Which....hurts?

So......hurting your loved one MORE after already hurting them....because you don’t feel you deserve to be forgiven for hurting them in the first place and are actually PROTECTING them from being hurt more when mistakenly forgiving you.....by.....hurting and continuing to hurt them with your silence and lack of evident remorse....

Mmmm.....

Its not the best approach, y’know?

Flaws are detected.

3) Dick’s friends and family manipulating situations in order to get the end result THEY desire, while claiming to do so for his benefit only. Dick being willing to manipulate people to achieve his own ends comes up a LOT actually....but there’s relatively little examination of how often people do this to him, claiming his best interests but really just circumventing his clearly stated desires for independence and the right to make his own choices about what HE needs....or when this is brought up, its usually limited to JUST Bruce doing it, but uh....no that ain’t it.

Specific examples of this are like when Wally joins the 1999 version of the Titans specifically to get Dick to join up, because in his estimation Dick needs more of a social life and is drowning himself with his responsibilities....and then quits not long after Dick is finally officially invested in staying with the team. Another example is when Roy gets Dick to join the Outsiders based entirely on his pitch of NOT treating the team like a family, like they did with the Titans, so that Dick could keep emotional distance and not be as worried about losing them like he suffered from losses like Donna....with his claim again being that he worried about Dick in the aftermath of that loss, etc.

And to be clear! Its not that I think Wally and Roy and others who do similar things have NEGATIVE intentions in mind for Dick. That’s the whole point of this post.....like the other examples, I fully believe THEY believe (or writers believe when writing them this way) that they have Dick’s best interests in mind and not their own. I just....disagree.

THE FATAL FLAW (at least as I see it here):

Is that I view this and Batfam members who do similar stuff as like.....falling into the trap of the savior friend complex. Its that thing when you see a friend hurting, and over time get FRUSTRATED by seeing this when a solution seems obvious to you but think they won’t take it because they’re too stubborn or don’t know what’s best for them....with this specifically recurring a LOT with Dick in particular, due to his core characterization of wanting to be the one to make his own choices. The problem here, same as the problem with the savior friend complex....is that it treats the subject of these views as like....incapable of determining what they need. Its a tacit condemnation that they actually don’t know how to cope with things and are doing it wrong - even though the ones making this assessment will never be the ones actually having to LIVE with the outcome of their meddling. Its the conviction that someone like Dick needs to be HANDLED, for his own good....because he can’t be trusted to KNOW what he needs, not as well as them at least.....and so they jump to manipulation rather than just....ASK him what he needs, or HOW they can best support him, or even just WHY he’s making the choices he is.

For instance, the problem with what Wally did was never that Dick wasn’t struggling. He was. He was drowning in his responsibilities, he had very little to no life outside of them.....Wally is not remotely in the wrong for WANTING to do something to change this situation. The problem is Wally basically defaulted to just...HANDLING his friend by restarting the Titans just to give Dick a social life again, which is pretty much a line straight out of the comics...and basically railroaded right over Dick’s initial ‘no’ when he first heard the proposal. And kept pushing things until Dick eventually joined up in order to get Wally to commit to the team too, because Wally spun it as though Dick was helping Wally by getting Wally to commit to the team for the very same reasons Wally wanted Dick to. And then....right after that, Wally quit to go back to just focusing on the Justice League, which was part of what Dick predicted would happen all along.

The thing was.....at no point along the way did Wally actually ask WHY Dick initially said no....he jumped straight to assuming his own view of the problem, that Dick just COULDN’T be made to ever see the reason to take a break occasionally and put his mental and emotional health as a priority. If he’d done this, Wally could have had dozens of other options to achieve his desired end result....he could’ve like....set up regular hangouts with Dick. 

But Wally jumped to assuming he knew the answer, he knew what was best for Dick, and that Dick’s logic was inherently self-destructive and self-flagellating.....and he felt the solution was to bring back the Titans, as he recalled their earlier times as Titans together as a time when Dick was better able to balance his social life and responsibilities.

But by not ever stopping to LISTEN to why Dick felt the way he did and was initially opposed to rejoining the Titans....Wally overlooked one crucial fact: He isn’t Dick.

And more important, his view of the past wasn’t Dick’s view of the past.

Wally was a lot more capable of viewing the Titans as not just a family, but an inherent social life, a hangout, a kind of club....because that’s what it had always been to him.

But he’d never been the leader.

Throughout all their childhoods, the whole time the Titans WERE all of the above, and relatively light-hearted in comparison to their older selves....Dick STILL had the weight of responsibilities that none of the others had by virtue of just...not being the leader. Ultimately, all of their lives were in HIS hands. He was the one calling the shots. The buck stopped with him.

And this is precisely WHY Dick had gotten to the point he had in adulthood. It wasn’t because he’d changed. It wasn’t because he’d stopped figuring out what he needed and how to take care of himself. Its because the position he’d ALWAYS been in as leader....has WEIGHT. That eventually added up more and more and weighed him down. A huge part of the reason Dick had ended up leaving the Titans in the first place, before they disbanded prior to the 1999 revival....is because of the sheer WEIGHT of all the deaths and misfortunes that had befallen the Titans....and how much he and he alone struggled with it in ways the others didn’t....because they didn’t have to. It hadn’t been their plans, their calls, their RESPONSIBILITY to find a way the others could have all made it out alive or at least less traumatized.

So.....of COURSE Dick said no when Wally first proposed restarting the Titans, before Wally defaulted to using his own membership as a lure to get Dick to agree.....because......nothing about the above paragraph had changed, via Wally’s ‘plan.’ It wasn’t because Dick just didn’t KNOW how to be a fully rounded person....it was because nobody was helping him find actual OPTIONS for doing that....that didn’t just double as MORE responsibilities! Because that’s exactly what ended up happening! Dick wound up the leader of the Titans again, just as responsible and just as invested as always.....just like he always knew he would....and also as he knew would happen...Wally ended up quitting not long into it and persuading Jessie Quick to step in as his replacement....aka just one more person for Dick to worry about when it wasn’t like he was going to be worrying any less about Wally, just now he wasn’t going to have Wally there to even POTENTIALLY be able to support him when tragedy inevitably struck because they’re freaking superheroes....and instead he’d just have another person looking to him for the answers but with no reason or chance of being the support Dick could ACTUALLY use at times like that!

Wally’s manipulations circumvented Dick’s opinion that no, actually he knew what was best for him and it wasn’t what Wally was suggesting....without actually accounting for the fact that hey, Dick might actually know that. And in the end, Wally got the result he was after, he got to feel that he’d HELPED his friend....which again, this isn’t WRONG to WANT to....but Dick didn’t...exactly....benefit from this. It wasn’t actually in his best interests ultimately.

I mean...see Donna’s death for details.

And in the aftermath of THAT....Roy essentially did exactly what Wally did....just in REVERSE! Roy got Dick to agree to lead the Outsiders, to shoulder responsibility once again....by promising that Dick WOULDN’T have to view them as family. And did Dick go too far and end up TOO uncaring about their welfare? Yup! No disagreements there! Problem is though....he only ended UP in that situation because yet again a friend thought they KNEW the solution to what Dick needed.....only for Dick to end up essentially punished and further self-blaming....just for doing exactly what Roy had told him TO do, with this particular team. Again - Roy hadn’t EXPECTED Dick to take it this far. But that’s the whole point! Roy had expectations about what Dick would ACTUALLY end up doing, that didn’t match up to the pitch Roy actually gave Dick to GET his agreement.....because Roy all along was of the assumption that by virtue of being Dick Grayson, he wouldn’t be ABLE to avoid connecting with these new teammates and viewing them as family, and thus he’d end up ‘snapping out of it’ with it being the funk he’d been in since Donna’s death.

Roy’s intentions might have been noble, once again.....but his methods stuck to the same pattern of people around Dick believing they knew what he needed or knew who he was or knew what it meant to BE Dick Grayson....better than Dick actually did...particularly when Dick said no, this isn’t what I need or this isn’t a good idea or just...I don’t want to do this.

And in the end....its Dick who ended up paying the price for it, as well as the people who got hurt because of his INTENTIONAL emotional distance.....because the ‘view all surrounding people as new surrogate family’ aspect of the Dick Grayson Experience hadn’t kicked in as Roy thought inevitably would....but the ‘view all this as directly my fault and suffer guilt for it forevermore’ aspect of the Dick Grayson Experience most certainly did! Not at all actually helped along by the fact that like....Roy also expressed frustration with Dick that like.....Dick hadn’t actually responded to Roy’s intended manipulation of his emotions the way Roy had expected him to when he EXPRESSLY TOLD DICK TO BEHAVE THE WAY THAT DICK ULTIMATELY BEHAVED. (Just, he didn’t tell Dick to dial that all the way up to Extra, but given that’s the only setting Dick does ANYTHING at, I feel its a possible outcome Roy should have at least considered. I mean, wasn’t the whole point that you know Dick Grayson better than he knows himself?)

But lo, I am salty.

LMAO, but I mean, you get it right? Obviously, I LIKE Wally and Roy. I LIKE Jason, etc. I’m not saying all of this to be like ugh how dare these characters do all this to Dick....I’m saying it because like.....they all keep falling into the same patterns of making a big fuss and acknowledgment of how much Dick prioritizes being able and free to make his own choices and decide what’s best for him and what HE wants.....

But without ever like....actively asking him AT THE RELEVANT TIME....what he thinks and feels about all this. What he thinks and feels he needs. What he ACTUALLY wants from them, or why he’s ACTUALLY saying no to something and maybe it being for reasons that aren’t just him inherently being stubborn and self-destructive.

And instead just defaulting to falling back on whatever he might have said or expressed in an entirely different context at an entirely different time.....and saying okay, by doing so, we are abiding by his wishes and thus doing what he wants and respecting his right to make his own choices.....

But ONLY when doing all of the above just so happens to align with these other characters then getting to do the thing or take the approach they’re already predisposed towards wanting to take because of their OWN self-interests at the same time.

With this never actually coming into play when respecting Dick’s wishes aligns with them taking actions they DON’T personally want to undertake, because it makes them uncomfy or they think its a bad call, even if it is something that should be his call to make.

Like....the pattern. It very much exists. And abounds. Like I could cite examples allllllllllll the way up to Ric Grayson, where Bruce respected RIC’S wishes to be left alone and not interfere in his life no matter what.....in ways Bruce almost never respects Dick’s actual expressed wish for Bruce to butt out of matters when Bruce is actually quite keen on meddling and would very much like to....

But notice how the other thing about the Ric Grayson storyline is that Ric’s expressed desire to stay the fuck out of vigilantism and superhero work, like.....just so happens to align with Bruce’s longstanding desire for Dick to like...get out of the vigilantism and superhero work? With butting out of Ric’s life and respecting his privacy in ways Dick has to FIGHT him for, like......absolutely the optimal action to take in order to allow this expressed desire of Ric’s to flourish in the ways Bruce always wished would kick in for Dick?

.....just saying. 

The pattern. It abounds.

And the key to breaking any pattern, of course, is to first recognize....and acknowledge....that it exists.

Otherwise you tend to fall into the trap of repeating and perpetuating it over and over without even realizing it, simply because its what’s familiar.

This has been A Post by Me. Thank you and have a nice day. Or don’t. Idk. I’m not the boss of you. Whatever.

[differenceonlyyoucanmake]

12 Dancing Princesses Thoughts/ Headcanons/ Assorted Stuff that Came to Me in a Dream

I’m kind of tired, so this may be incomplete. I wanted to put it out there, though. My dreams have mostly been from Courtney’s perspective, not an omniscient one. Because of this, there may be some gaps.

Ashlyn:

- Deserved so much better

- It actually makes me upset. I woke up from one of my 12dp dreams in TEARS because she deserved so much better.

- After Isabella passed, Ashlyn took on the role of being a maternal presence to her sisters. She did this extremely well, but it’s also heartbreaking how she pushed herself to grow up.

- Randolph was not a capable father during the lowest periods of his grief, and Ashlyn definitely had to compensate for this.

- Randolph... could have been kinder to her, especially after the queen died. He couldn’t look Ashlyn in the eyes. She reminded him too much of his late wife.

- Isabella wanted Ashlyn to inherit her belongings and position, but Randolph had his own favorites (I promise I don’t think he was an evil person, but he could have done better).

- I think Ashlyn would identify as bisexual.

- She knew several instruments, but was most attached to the flute. Her most treasured memories involved Isabella giving her flute lessons.

- She was expected to be the mature one all the time, so she repressed a lot of her own frustrations in favor of caring for others.

- She was closest to Blair and Courtney.

- She was a little soft spoken, and one of the most “ladylike”; Ashlyn was one of the sisters who struggled least with Rowena’s lessons.

- The younger sisters had a hard time remembering that she was a person capable of all sorts of feelings. They expected parental behavior from her, and got really confused when she expressed negative emotions.

- Some of the sisters assumed Ashlyn didn’t care for sweets, because she would offer hers to the others whenever they got any. In reality, she thought this was kind behavior. She showed sacrifice in several, seemingly inconsequential, ways.

- Despite seeming so mature, she always felt as if she stopped growing up after her mother passed.

- As the sisters grew up, Ashlyn really struggled with finding her purpose. She didn’t get the power her mother promised her. She put her own ideas and prospects aside to care for her sisters. She ended up floating from kingdom to kingdom, with varying success in several different courts. She eventually came  to live with the other eldest sisters.

- Despite being (in my view) cheated out of her kingdom, Ashlyn seldom expressed frustration or resentment. She adopted the attitude of a retired noble early in life, spending a lot of time on composing music and serene hobbies.

Blair

- horse.... horses..... sleeping in the stables...... with the horses

- I’m kidding! Mostly!

- Blair was bold and opinionated. She also loved witty conversation and comedy.

- What else did she love? Horses.

- She would sneak out all the time to ride.

- Her favorite horse was black and very tall.

- She was closest to Ashlyn and Courtney.

- Blair was sick in childhood.

- Though the older sisters were known for being more refined and elegant, Blair pushed this notion plenty.

- She loved adventure.

- All of the sisters missed the golden pavilion, but Blair struggled with this a lot.

- She didn’t have as many problems with Randolph, but sometimes she would CAUSE problems on purpose (mostly defending Ashlyn and calling out his favoritism).

- She turned her own estate later in life into a close replica of the pavilion. The grounds were massive.

- She was intelligent, but struggled with many academic tasks. If she needed to read something that was challenging, she would often hand it to Courtney for help. She would only have motivation to read if it was about subjects she loved.

- This is ironic, because she later came to be a published writer. I believe these were short works, similar to pamphlets.

- Blair enjoyed throwing and attending large balls and gatherings. She was still chasing the thrill of the magical visits she’d make with her sisters.

- Blair was considered extremely beautiful, and drew admirers wherever she went. She accumulated many pieces of ruby jewelry this way.

- She also liked wearing capes and cloaks.

Courtney

- Generally shy, Courtney made an exception when she stood up for Ashlyn.

- Courtney longed to travel, and books provided her with a form of escapism until she was able to.

- She had a health scare after the events of the movie, and this somehow tarnished her standing in society??

- She wasn’t straight, probably a lesbian.

- She was well read on political matters and the history of their kingdom, and would often be the first one to noticed Randolph’s incompetence in certain areas.

- She was a young teen when she first started rewriting her father’s treaties in her spare time. She learned after the first time not to bring her drafts to him.

- When Ashlyn and Blair left home, she grew closer with Fallon. Both had a streak of wanderlust, and gravitated towards the romantic.

- Courtney published poetry under a pseudonym starting at a young age. This probably helped her somewhat. As she grew up, her poems grew in notoriety, and many debated who their true writer was. A significant portion focused on love between women and feeling trapped.

- I think she had been to Apollonia (Antonio’s kingdom in Island Princess) several times, and knew both Luciana and Antonio from an early age. I think this was the case for many of the older sisters.

- After their mother died, the girls traveled less, and met less new people. Courtney was bothered by this.

- She was generally thought of as calm and quiet, but she felt emotions deeply ( even if she didn’t always express them).

Delia

- Athletic and spunky

- Delia enjoyed more structured sports.

- She was prone to sunburns.

- Delia was enamored with the sun and light. She would hang prisms next to her windows to watch the light refract.

- She was closest with her twin, Edeline. They enjoyed playing croquet together and (though it was usually harmless) gossiping.

- Delia had a temper. She would deal with guilt afterwards if she lashed out at someone.

- Her emotional regulation issues came to light after her mother died.

- Delia dealt with a lot of guilt in general. She didn’t feel as put-together as her older sisters, or as carefree as the younger ones. She felt guilty for not fitting in, and expressed feeling like an inconvenience to those around her.

- Outsiders thought she was dim-witted, and she internalized this.

- Delia often had a problem of interrupting people or speaking loudly, so it was advised that she stay quiet when visitors came. This really hurt her self esteem, since she was always happy to make new friends.

- Rowena had offended her when she was a young girl, and Delia never forgot this.

- Delia liked birds, and hummingbirds fascinated her.

- She had to learn to accept herself later in life. 

- She discovered people who appreciated her for who she was, and finally left her inhibitions behind. 

- After that, she became known for her charisma and charm.

Edeline:

- Edeline shared a lot of interests with her twin, such as sports and outdoor activities.

- She enjoyed making others laugh.

- Once Genevieve married Derek, Edeline took it as her cue to BULLY that poor man.

- Seriously, it probably warded off suitors for her other sisters.

- It was usually in good fun, though.

- Edeline disliked rules and structure.

- She was closest with Delia.

- She often stood up for her twin.

- Edeline had a good ear for gossip, and had her own methods of fact checking stories she’d heard.

- Something happened with her at Genevieve’s wedding?? Maybe she broke something??

- Edeline traveled some, but found her way back home eventually.

- She DESPISED Rowena. None of the sisters liked her, but Edeline couldn’t stand her from the beginning.

- Edeline would have loved to know about the concept of roast humor.

- She liked to have sleepover-like setups in their bedroom. She would build forts and encourage the others to come tell ghost stories. When the memories of her mother came to her, she felt the need to DO something, even if the action wasn’t necessarily related.

- She became known for her humor.

Fallon

- Fallon was pretty much independent, until she and Courtney bonded.

- Fallon always wanted pets, and was jealous that only Genevieve was allowed to have one (besides....bugs and the horses, who were kept outside).

- She would try to befriend wild animals, and nursed some injured animals back to health.

- I don’t think Fallon was straight.

- Fallon was sensitive, and had a hard time dealing with Rowena’s harsh treatment.

- Fallon had nightmares, and would often go to her older sisters for comfort.

- She enjoyed the company of others. She would spend time with servants and other people considered to be below her station.

- Fallon played the harp.

- She loved the softer aspects of life. 

- She devoted time to charitable causes.

- I just know that she did that classic princess trope of posing as a commoner. That’s such a her thing to do.

- She gained a reputation for being eccentrically kind. She had a large family of animals, who she took EXCELLENT care of.

Genevieve

- You may have noticed that the older sisters were generally closer with each other. Well, Genevieve wasn’t, and she made it that way.

- She.... liked to act like she was in charge. She often undermined Ashlyn’s efforts.

- She was Randolph’s favorite.

- Genevieve got along better with the younger sisters, especially Lacey.

- She probably did have leadership skills, but a lot of them came from acting like she did.

- Like I’ve implied above, she got a lot of power after she married, instead of Ashlyn.

- Derek wasn’t a bad person, but he was a COBBLER. How did she get more political power by marrying a COBBLER?

- She butted heads with Blair and Courtney quite often after the events of the movie.

- Basically, she had Main Character Disease dsfghjk

- She traveled less than the other older sisters.

- Admittedly, she wasn’t a poor leader.

- I have a feeling she adopted a lot of children later in life.

- She and Derek had a pretty long transitional period after they married, meaning they spent more time really figuring out who they were as a couple rather than jumping into their duties right away.

- Genevieve kind of symbolized the cutoff for the sisters who had lots of solid memories about their mother and those who didn’t.

- She was one of the best dancers out of the sisters.

- She was brave and self-assured.

- She knew what she wanted, and she would get it.

- After Twyla, she got some other cats. They were mostly orange and/or long haired.

- She never quite shook her habit of being late.

Hadley

- Hadley was closest to their twin, Isla.

- As Hadley grew up, they became more comfortable being gender nonconforming. They may have been trans, but I don’t remember.

- Hadley enjoyed fencing.

- Stilts were Hadley’s first love, and led to appreciation for other daring activities.

- Hadley also loved the ocean. Many of their adventures involved being at sea. They spent years sailing longside their twin on a ship Genevieve gifted them.

- Rumors swirled that they were a pirate. Though these weren’t true, Hadley didn’t mind.

- Hadley was energetic and intuitive.

- Hadley was an athletic risk-taker. They enjoyed acrobatics and other feats of the human body.

- Hadley became known for their adventurous exploits and fencing prowess.

- Though Hadley initially idolized Genevieve, she eventually sided with Ashlyn and the other older sisters once she learned the whole story.

- Hadley stayed with the older sisters after whatever scary thing happened with Courtney.

- Hadley mentored people, and may have been a teacher.

- She really missed the times when all of their sisters got along.

- There were rumors that Hadley was affiliated with darker forces, when in reality Hadley was one of the most well-adjusted.

Isla

- Isla was closest to Hadley.

- Isla liked adventure, but she was less daring than Hadley.

- Isla stayed our of most business involving the older sisters, preferring to spend time with her twin.

- She loved swimming.

- Isla had a collection of maps.

- She was known for being easy going. 

- She sometimes had to bring Hadley down from an idea that seemed too dangerous.

- Isla was the voice of reason in some situations.

- She never lost her passion for dance, and learned new styles through their travels.

- Isla had pet birds.

- She was admired for her grace and acrobatic talent.

- Isla enjoyed circus-like acts.

- She was more bothered by the pirate rumors than Hadley.

- Isla enjoyed researching magic, and trying to find a way back to the magic pavilion. 

- Isla was non-confrontational.

- She tried many forms of artistic expression, from writing to painting.

- Isla was loyal to Hadley, and would be there for her twin no matter what.

Janessa

- Janessa maintained her love of insects.

- Since they were so young when it happened, none of the triplets remember details of the magic pavilion. If their sisters weren’t there to confirm their memories, they would have thought it was a dream.

- Janessa grew up to be very interested in science.

- Janessa found the proper way to care for insects, and took pride in how well she did it.

- She was prone to worrying.

- She often lamented the fact that she was so young when they visited the pavilion.

- Janessa was considered obedient and passive.

- Janessa heard how much she looked like her mother (though not as much as Ashlyn). She had mixed feelings about this, because she couldn’t really remember what her mother looked like.

- Janessa was closest to Kathleen.

- She became close with Edeline and Delia when she got older.

- Janessa knew she wasn’t Randolph’s favorite, and took this personally. She tried, especially in her youth, to gain his approval.

- She also knew that Genevieve preferred Lacey, even though all the triplets looked up to Genevieve.

- Janessa balanced her love for science with her royal duties, and used what power she had to provide exposure and resources to research institutes.

Kathleen

- Kathleen was creative and unconventional.

- She was closest with Janessa, and became close with Isla later in life.

- Kathleen was known for her paintings.

- She started out painting things like landscapes, then moved into less traditional subjects.

- Her royal portraits were renowned in particular. They captured royalty doing activities that were important to them, or in significant fantasy settings.

- She painted portraits of her siblings and father. These became their favorites. She captured: a relaxed Ashlyn writing music, Blair on horseback in mid-air, Courtney in her library, Delia in the sunlight, Edeline in a fantastical outdoor scene, Fallon with her animals, Genevieve dancing, Hadley fencing, Isla swimming, Janessa surrounded by flying insects in the sky, and Lacey at work.

- Though she tried many times, Kathleen was not satisfied with her attempts of painting her mother. She felt like she was simply copying pre-existing portraits.

- The only painting of her mother she was somewhat pleased with was one of Queen Isabella walking away, her back to the viewer as she walked into a golden pavilion.

- Kathleen tried to paint the magic pavilion, and these painting had a fuzzy, dream-like quality.

- Her art gained a significant following.

Lacey

- She was Randolph’s second favorite.

-Lacey was unshakably loyal to Genevieve. She didn’t understand why the older sisters were upset about her being given power and land.

- Lacey struggled with illness as a child. She was inspired by the healing water at the pavilion to study medicine.

- Lacey struggled with muscle strength and coordination well into adulthood.

- Despite this, she continued dancing.

- She looked very similar to Randolph’s relatives.

- She felt the need to defend Genevieve, and would often challenge her older sisters because of this.

- Although Ashlyn never challenged her, Lacey harbored resentment towards her. She blamed Ashlyn for the fact that Genevieve’s approval wasn’t universal.

- Lacey was interested in scientifically based medicine, as well as magical remedies.

- Lacey was always closest with Genevieve, and lived with her for a long time.

- Lacey idolized Genevieve and Derek’s relationship, often heralding it as the pinnacle of romance.

- She searched for a way back to the magical world, believing it contained the key to eternal youth and immortality.

- Lacey didn’t care for travel as much as some of her sisters, but she usually enjoyed when she did leave her own kingdom.

- She grew up to be Genevieve’s closest adviser, and an accomplished healer.

Canon Noncompliant Things

- The sisters left the pavilion by dancing in birth order. Although Derek did leave by dancing with Genevieve, they weren’t responsible for leaving in the first place. Once again, Ashlyn doesn’t get the credit she deserves dfghjk

- Genevieve had an actual wedding, not whatever that was that was shown at the end of the movie. It was smaller than a lot of royal weddings (because Derek didn’t have many connections or people to invite), but it was a serious affair. 

[hoodoo12]

Doll (1/2)

More Robo Fizz s-m-u-t you thirsty, thirsty people.

NSFW

@go-commander-kim @monsterlovinghours @mimiscappinisideblog @jester-junk @jesterfestivle @beetlebitchywitch @realmonsterboyhours @yankyo

Enjoy!`

You didn’t show it to anybody, and you definitely didn’t keep it out for anyone to see if they ever came over to your tiny one room flat, but you had an old Robo Fizz doll. It was a hold over from your imphood, and it had been your favorite toy. A constant companion when you were young, the doll was now ragged and worn; not only was the colorful costume discolored and his face a grimy grey, but Robo Fizz had had multiple repairs in uneven stitching, and his left shoulder cap no longer had a frowning face. You’d rubbed it off with your thumb because you wanted him to always be happy. 

Now his plush limbs were lumpy from where the stuffing had clumped and flaccid in spots where the stuffing had settled elsewhere. Any original texture was threadbare. You didn’t care, you still occasionally cuddled it when sleep didn’t come easily. 

None of the hundreds of Robo Fizz dolls in the window of the souvenir shop looked anything like your old doll. These were all bright and shiny and brand-spankin’ new. 

Jostled repeatedly by a seemingly never ending string of the implings and their either exasperated or also overly excited parents, you finally just went along with the crowd and entered the store.

Inside was a marketing director’s wet dream. If the Robotic Fizzarolli himself had come in and vomited, it would probably look like this place. Robo Fizz merchandise was everywhere, and if it wasn’t his exact likeness, it was the colors that made up his outfit. Everything from breakfast cereal to pencils to kid’s outfits to hats to water filled globes with glitter and a tiny Robo Fizz inside to keychains to posters to . . . there was so much you could barely take it all in. You decided to stick close to the display of dolls. 

They were of varying quality. The smallest were vague and minimalistic in their likeness of the star of the carnival. The larger ones had much better workmanship and one, in a glass display case, purported to be wearing a vintage costume the Robotic Fizzarolli had worn in one of his shows. The dolls that were the same as the one you had loved through your imphood were somewhere in the middle, towards the lower end. 

You picked one up out of the pile. This pristine doll in your hands had pom-poms on his collar that weren’t compacted balls of felt, like yours. You’d forgotten that originally your doll had had metallic fabric edging the costume; this one’s fabric was uncracked and gleamed in the overhead lights. All of his limbs were properly stuffed. It was tempting to buy a new one. You did love your doll, and were still a fan of the Robotic Fizzarolli. But all these shiny, mass produced dolls didn’t have the personality of your well-worn and well-loved Fizzy, and it felt a little like a betrayal to buy another. 

Just as you were setting the doll back on the pile, a impling shoved between you and the display. You stumbled back. The doll flew out of your hands. It landed almost back where it belonged, and you managed to keep your feet under you. No one apologized: not the impling, not his parents who were now also crowding you out as if they hadn’t seen you or, more likely, didn’t care. 

You should’ve put up a fuss but it wasn’t worth it. You wandered away from the large display of toys to look at the other bobbles. Just like the dolls, some had cheap and shoddy quality, while higher end products were better made. Their price tags reflected it.

At the back of the store, near a wall rack of shirts emblazoned with his face, a doorway with a beaded curtain caught your eye. 

You’d been in this gift shop at Loo Loo Land before and had never seen that door. Granted, it was when you were a young imp, and your brain had been overloaded with sugar and the joy of getting your very own Robo Fizz doll. It was partially behind the cashier’s counter, but there was no sign that indicated it wasn’t for the public.

The imp in a smock at the register looked a combination of bored to tears and annoyed at her situation, so you didn’t feel comfortable asking about it. Out of the corner of your eye you watched two imps disappear through the door, and feeling bold, you followed. 

The beaded curtain parted and one strand trailed along your horn as you went into the back room. There was a very short hallway, and a turn to the right into another room, which was why you couldn’t see anything past the initial doorway. 

Inside the room was another plethora of Robo Fizz merchandise. 

However, there were no implings, only adults, and the few customers there, although excited, all seemed to keep their glee subdued. 

Looking to your right, your eyes widened at the wall display of dildos in various shapes and sizes, all their packaging proclaiming they all were authentic Robo Fizz replicas, exactly like the original Robo Fizz’s assortment of phalluses. Past that display was a large selection of bdsm products, including handcuffs that mimicked Robo Fizz’s cuffs, and whips that looked segmented, possibly to look like tentacles? You weren’t exactly sure. 

In front of you were standing racks of clothing again, but these were lingerie, all designed as riffs  his jester’s outfit. A couple was looking through them; one skimpy bra and panty set was held up and they both seemed pleased it was in her size. 

There were piles of lollipops molded like his tongue, tentacles, and again, various cocks. A huge shelf of DVDs all had Robo Fizz on the cover, each touting to provide a different sexual fantasy. 

Along the far wall, there was another large display of dolls. 

Like in the front of the store, you were drawn to them.

Although there was still a wide assortment of size and quality, none were smaller than the one you had at home and all promised a more intimate encounter. The top of the line was a Personal Companion Robo Fizz, which you’d heard about but never had the chance to see one in person. It towered over you, looking vaguely menacing standing so still and lifeless compared to its manically boisterous original. 

“It comes with a free gallon of lube. You can get a subscription to have a gallon shipped to you on a monthly basis,” someone said behind you. “Uh--what?!” 

An employee in a smock like the imp’s out front stepped up beside you. Nodding towards the Personal Companion, she said, “You buy it, it comes with the first gallon of lube. You might need more, if he’s receiving, but even if you use if more for giving, you still need some to make his tongue more pleasant. No one likes getting eaten out by a cold mechanical mouth with zero lube!”

She shuddered dramatically. You weren’t quite sure what to say. Luckily--you guessed--she continued. “He’s top of the line, of course. Everything you’ve heard on the commercial is here. He’s got the BDSM feature, has two tentacles that you can attach so you can be double penetrated and spit-roasted at the same time, has so many speeds and patterns for vibration, and is super easy to clean! There’s a standard set of phrases he can say, but he can also be programmed to call you whatever you’d prefer, like Mistress or sweetie pie, and you can add a few other personal words too. And if you upgrade to the semi-AI package, he learns your preferences and his interactions with you can be even more life-like!”

You blinked up at the Personal Companion, overwhelmed by the enthusiastic sales pitch. Even if you were interested, there was no way you could afford it. Maybe, if they offered rental of him, you could swing half an hour, but more likely only fifteen minutes. 

You thanked her and told her it was out of your price range and made to move away. She grabbed your arm and pulled you down the line of dolls. “I get it. A Personal Companion is expensive. But there are lots of other options!”

The grip she had on your arm was relentless, just like her sales talk. She gave you the specs and features of each type of doll available. They all had different attributes, some only vibrated, some had interchangeable cocks, some were designed for imps who preferred to penetrate. Several of the middle to high end dolls had a ‘sparking’ feature for a more authentic experience. All of them were machine washable. 

Despite yourself, you began to think maybe you did want a new doll. 

You still couldn’t afford something fancy. There was one type that was similar in shape and size to your old Fizzy, but came with a single cock folded up under his costume. It had a bit of a heft to him, and the sales clerk told you it was because of the motor--it didn’t have thrusting gears, but did have three different vibration settings. The price was slightly higher than you expected so you hemmed and hawed, but with the sales clerk smiling encouragingly, you decided to buy it. 

“Excellent! Listen, since you’re a first time customer I’ll throw in a voice chip for you. Free of charge.”

You nodded your thanks, and followed her to the register to ring it up. She made sure the “adult” attributes of the doll were tucked away and the button was off, and it looked like any other innocuous Robo Fizz doll in the gift shop’s bag. She also tucked a tiny bottle of lube into the bag for you too, another free gift. 

She thanked you for your purchase and you went back out into the main room of the shop, clutching your special Loo Loo Land souvenir to your chest. 

tbc . . .

[chamomileteainabuttercup]

Dincobb Week Day 3 - New Experiences (SFW)

Welcome to my Dincobb Week fanfic posts! I've written stories and scenes of varying lengths and tones. For clarity I should say that most of these exist as miniature AUs of their own and have no continuity with each other or with anything else I've written about these characters, so in different pieces they may be described having different physical features, personal possessions, preferences, et cetera. (There are three exceptions which I'll note as such when they come out.) Thanks to @djarining, who helped me a lot with brainstorming and discussing my ideas!

For today I have two pieces, an SFW and an NSFW - the NSFW is scheduled to post an hour after this one.

New Experiences

Cobb keeps on saying he’s been cold before, it gets bitter cold out in the desert at night, and Din has kept on telling him that yes, that’s cold, but it’s not ice and snow cold, and if he’s going to take him on a trip he needs Cobb to trust him about the appropriate clothing.

He does need thermals, he does need thick wool socks, he does need a heavy parka, wool cap and mittens.

“What about you?” Cobb asks. “You may be wearing thermals under your suit, but I don’t see a parka.”

“I’m used to making do without one,” says Din, “but I have higher standards for you.”

“Have ‘em for yourself too, then.”

“All right then. I will.”

“Just see that you do.”

“You’re not the boss of me,” Din says, smiling inside his helmet.

“I’m the boss of everyone, they just don’t know it yet,” says Cobb with a cocky grin.

Boss or not, he’s got Din to wear a parka over his beskar, which he doesn’t altogether like to do. The shiny breastplate is for show as well as for function. A symbolic declaration of identity and values. Well, everyone can still see the helmet, and he compromised on cutting off the parka sleeves just above the elbow so his vambraces are free and functional. This is meant to be a pleasure trip, just to show Cobb a different world as a treat, but he’s still not about to go anywhere without ready access to his grappling hook, flamethrower and whistling birds. Safety first.

He lands the small ship he’s borrowed from Boba on a small, flat-topped hill overlooking a frozen lake, its edges frosted white and its heart a turquoise blue. In fact, if you’re generous with your aesthetics, the lake is sort of heart-shaped. He wonders if Cobb will notice and appreciate that. They lower the landing ramp and step outside into a brilliantly sunny day. The air out here is so cold and crisp it stings your face. Cobb actually gasps. Din gives him a few moments to walk to the bottom of the ramp, then slowly, carefully, extend one foot and put it down and feel the crunch and squish of the snow under his boot.

“What do you think?” he asks.

“It’s weird!” says Cobb enthusiastically. He sees his own breath condensing on the air and huffs out another cloud of warm mist. Then, “Ow.” He puts his mittened hand to his ear.

“You forgot to take out your earring?” Din asks.

“I was excited to see the snow,” Cobb says sheepishly. “And I love it. You gave it to me.” It’s the beskar dart tip from a whistling bird and Cobb is almost comically proud of how it looks glinting in his earlobe.

“Well, it’s gonna get real cold and I don’t want you to get frostbite. Hold still,” Din says. He pulls off his gloves, gives them to Cobb to hold and carefully removes the already chilly earring. He pulls up one of the hook-and-loop flaps of Cobb’s parka pockets, tucks the earring firmly down inside, presses it closed, then pulls Cobb’s wool cap down to cover his ears properly. “There.”

“This hat is crushing my hair,” Cobb grumps.

“A Mandalorian helmet couldn’t unpretty your hair, but you think a toque will?” Din asks, pulling his gloves back on.

“Aw, Mando, you think I’m pretty?” Cobb beams at him, more radiant than the sunshine on the snow crust.

“C’mon,” Din says, embarrassed. He does think Cobb is pretty but he has too little experience of romance to be able to say it smoothly. He grabs Cobb’s hand and pulls him along, heading down the slope towards the lake. Cobb slips and flounders and laughs. He starts to lurch forward, catches himself and throws himself backward, landing on his butt and then flopping on his back with his arms outstretched. “Come on,” says Din, with a chuckle. He reaches down and pulls Cobb up to his feet, leaving his outline in the snow.

“Hey, look at that!” says Cobb, twisting to look back. “It really takes a print, doesn’t it? Not like dry sand at all. It’s so crazy that this is water.” He scoops up a mittenful and crumbles it around.

“Try squeezing it,” says Din. Cobb squashes the snow between his palms. “See how it compacts? It’ll hold together.” He’s remembering the short period his first covert spent living someplace very like this, a little compound in the snowy woods. Unlike most covert locations, it offered both secrecy and open space for children to run and play. The snow forts they built and the snowball battles they fought were both educational for warriors in the making and tremendous fun for a motley assortment of kids in hand-me-down winter clothes and soft training helmets. The snow was the first thing that brought him out of his shell to play with the others. Up to then he had been his foster father’s shadow, dumb with sorrow, until finally the sight of them running, shouting, flinging snow had sparked his attention.

Buir had seen where he was looking as Din stood beside him holding tightly a fistful of his cape. He’d looked down at Din, his helmet impassive, nothing like his lost parents’ dark, expressive eyes and smiling, talking mouths. But there was something kind in the tilt of his head, and he gently jerked it in the direction of the romping foundlings. Buir barely spoke because his larynx had been crushed in a fight years before. Rather than speaking through the mic in his helmet, he would hold a little electrolarynx device to his throat when he really needed to speak aloud, but more often than not he used a modified sign language, finding it more convenient. That was what he told Din back then, but thinking on it now, he’s fairly sure Buir switched to relying on signing because the electrolarynx made him sound a lot like a droid, and he saw how uncomfortable that made the child he’d picked up. He didn’t need to say “Go on”; Din understood, and after hesitating a moment longer, he released his grip on the crumpled fabric and ventured out to play.

That was the day he learned to make snowballs, and it’s something he can teach Cobb now, how to press and mould the snow between cupped palms, how to roll it down the slope, picking up more and more snow as it went, turning it between the two of them to keep its shape even and rounded. It makes them both laugh just out of happiness and satisfaction. Cobb’s cheeks and nose are flushed a sweet rosy pink. His eyes are bright, their hazel colour almost gold where the sharp sunlight catches it, and he’s altogether so lovely a sight that Din is glad his face is hidden and he can stare as openly and foolishly as he wants.

Together they build a snowman where the ground flattens out; he gets an idea and labours back up the hill in the sliding snow into the ship’s hold and brings back a bucket to mould its head into a snow Mandalorian. After that success they make their way down to the lake, and after Din checks how solid the ice is, they venture out on its surface, skidding around a little. Cobb keeps grabbing hold of his hand, and although it actually makes both of them a bit less stable, Din’s happy to let him. When Din asks, “You want to try sliding?” he’s immediately game. They run and slide on foot, on knees, and on a few accidental occasions on their asses until they’re out of breath and glowing with warmth. It occurs to Din that apart from a little light Grogu-entertaining, he hasn’t really played in years. He still knows how, though. Panting and laughing, they stagger off the ice and begin making their way back up the hill, wallowing in the knee-deep snow, helping each other up by reaching down from above or by pushing from below (hands on butts). At the top they look back at their chaotic trail across the formerly perfect snowscape.

“What do you think of it now?” Din asks.

“It’s fantastic,” says Cobb. “I couldn’t have imagined what it’s really like. And there’s no one I’d rather be here with than you.” He throws his arms around Din and, to his surprise, kisses him smack-dab on the cheek of his helmet. He can’t feel it, of course, but he enjoys it symbolically, at least for a few moments until it becomes clear that Cobb’s lips are stuck to the frosty metal. He tries to pull away, gives a little muffled cry of panic and pain, and stares helplessly through the eyeslot of Din’s visor. “Hnnh!”

“Dank farrik — it’s okay, hold still. Just — okay, put your hands on the helmet, hold it, take the weight. Got it? Don’t let go or it’ll peel your lips.” He steadies it with his hands too and brings his head and shoulders down, pulling his head out of the helmet. He’s dazzled by the unfiltered bright light for a moment, then gets a proper look at Cobb, scarlet-faced and glaring with anger, confusion and embarrassment, still smooching the helmet. He has to bite his own lip hard not to laugh, but it’s not really funny, he doesn’t want Cobb to get frostbite or tear the skin off his lips. “Stay there,” he says, turns and runs up the ramp into the ship. In the tiny, cramped galley he draws a cup of lukewarm water from the tap, then rushes back, trying not to spill it. “Okay. It’s okay, just hold very still for me, got it?” Carefully, he pours water over the join between lip and metal, while Cobb breathes loud and fast through his nose. After a few moments the icy seal breaks and Cobb is able to gently, carefully peel his lips away from the helmet. They’re very red and they look like they’re sore and stinging. “You don’t look like you’re bleeding anywhere,” Din says hopefully.

Cobb cautiously runs his tongue-tip over his lips and winces. “No, but they feel raw,” he says. “Goddamn that was cold!”

“I think you’ll survive,” Din says.

“Well, sure, I’ll survive,” says Cobb. “But could you kiss ‘em better?”

It seems only fair.

[focsle]

Vendryth Bio

HELLO here I am with one of my Gigantic Character Bios.

Basics

Name: Vendryth

Nickname: Ven to friends. He also has a number of tacky nicknames in the various small localities he helped out over the years: The Golden Traveler, The Dragon, Trollslayer, Midwinter Hero, ET CETERA ET CETERA. To Neris he is ‘Grandpa’.

Age: Died at age 326. Born 1E 2594, died in 1E 2920. Is Neris’s resident ghost as of 2E 582.

Gender: Man

Race: Dunmer

Class: Battlemage and restoration master

Physical Traits

Height: 6ft

Weight: 210 lbs

Hair: Auburn, pulled back in a long braid.

Eyes: Red

Skin: Dark blueish grey

Distinctive features: Full Van Dyke-style beard. A lot of assorted scars from 300+ years of Fighting Things. Really big gaudy dragon tattoo on his chest.

Mannerisms: He has a confident ease moving and existing in the world, and he definitely takes up space in a lounging sort of way. He also tends to relate to people physically—SHOULDER SLAPPER sort of guy.

Voice: Friendly and booming. Bit gravelly but refined.

Fashion: He likes ornate armors and likes to keep ‘em shiny. In the day to day however, he dresses very simply...keeps his shirt collar as open as possible...

Emotional Traits

Personality: He’s very personable and very willing to help people, to the degree that he is prone to butting into situations that initially don’t involve him. He almost never turns down requests for help and can quickly shift to adapt to situations that call for his attention. He tries to behave honorably, though he hasn’t always done so in his interpersonal relationships in the past and is awkward in coming to terms with that.

Likes a good time. Is boisterous and rollicking and sometimes has an air about him that he doesn’t take things seriously, even though as said above, he can rapidly switch gears to handle grave situations. He’s chummy with everyone. A bit flirtatious & slutty. A pro at entertaining swaths of children. Good at calming horses.

He’s very vain, though not arrogant. He’s surprised if someone isn’t impressed by him, but not upset or offended. He does Heroics partly because he has the ability to and thinks it's the right thing to do, but also because he likes the attention. Likes being fawned over. Doesn’t wanna wear a helmet to cover his pretty face.

Religion / Belief system: He more-or-less adheres to the Tribunal (much to the chagrin of Grandson Neris). He doesn’t believe them to be Actual Gods and thus doesn’t ‘worship’ them, but does recognize and respect them as powerful leaders and has no problem serving their will when it comes to the defense of Morrowind. He later became one of Vivec's Buoyant Armigers, and was quite reverent to both Vivec and Almalexia.

He’s wary of all Daedra. Just expects them to be troublesome and either doesn’t involve himself or actively works against them. He’s pretty straight-laced about all that.

Lifestyle

Background: He was born into a minor family in House Telvanni. Despite his lack of Notable Lineage, he proved to be very magically adept, especially in matters of restoration magic. In his early 20s he married a woman named Tendreni Ilyiil. Their marriage was a strategic one centered more on solidifying future power than anything else—his skills, and her more powerful family connections. It didn’t work out, particularly as Vendryth’s interests turned more towards being a healer rather than the acquisition of knowledge or power. He wasn’t good at communicating that it wasn’t working out however. He decided instead to simply abandon Tendreni and their infant child and forgo any connections to his house. While he would come to regret that action as he got older, he never made amends, feeling too much time had passed for it to mean anything.

Over the decades he worked with both the Mages and Fighters guild, intensely studying Restoration but also battle techniques and becoming quite powerful through the ranks as a result. Initially he took contracts through the Fighter’s Guild to assist people. Then he became a bit of a Freelance Hero around Tamriel, chasing the high of Minor Glories in numerous regions. His mastery of Restoration magic enabled him to slow his aging considerably.

His work took on a more concentrated effort when he was a little over 100 years old, in defense efforts against the first Akaviri invasion that earned him recognition among his peers. He would continue to serve in Morrowind's military for a time, and then more specifically for Vivec as a Buoyant Armiger. Through this work he had the flexibility to continue his Pro Bono Heroics around Tamriel, but would respond to calls back home when needed.

By 2840 he was back to his military engagements, operating as a high-ranking healer during the Four Score War. While certainly not always on the front, he was involved for the entire 80 engagement and managed to live through it as a decorated veteran. Unfortunately when Mournhold was sacked shortly after, Vendryth lost his head to one of Mehrunes Dagon’s army while trying to heal someone.

He had an honorable burial in Necrom, though not in the Ilyiil tomb. However, simmering generational anger over his initial abandonment of his first family led to his ghost being tracked down by Ilyiil ancestor spirits who then bound him to protect the family tomb. He was there for 600 years, and lost considerable parts of his memory and identity as the notion of being stuck there for eternity became intolerable and his emotional and mental state deteriorated. He was forgotten by everyone, beyond a few obscure scholars of specific military history, as the people who remembered him died. He became a very angry and violent spirit until he ran into Neris who was reconciling with his own feelings about his family and sense of abandonment. Neris ended up helping to free Vendryth and established a shrine for him in his own house. Kindred spirits in many ways, Neris’s companionship helped Vendryth get a lot of himself back, and Vendryth also helps Neris take his final steps away from House Telvanni.

Place of residence: In life he lived in a fancy Hall just outside Mournhold. As a ghost he hangs out in a dedicated corner of Neris’s library in Middle Of Nowhere Vvardenfell.

Occupation: Local Hero™, Buoyant Armiger, battlefield healer

Habits: He’s very particular about his appearance...a Preener. Will absolutely fuss over his reflection in a breastplate he’s shining. Winds down with smoking assorted combos of psychoactive herbs in the evenings. Tends to touch people’s arms or has a hand on their shoulder or something when he’s talking to them.

Hobbies: Adventuring (and long walks through impressive landscapes), gathering up all the local rumors, fishing, musical inclinations, reading a small always-rotating collection of books he finds in his travels and then leaves at the last inn he stayed at once he finishes them.

Likes: Campfire stories or collective songs i.e. activities that include a lot of people, theater, retelling his adventures, being recognized, quaint little towns with warm rooms.

Dislikes: Having to be sneaky or anonymous in any way (he’ll DO subtlety and anonymity if it is required of him but UGHHHH!), having to constantly confront the mortality/death of people around him, feeling ‘kept’ by anyone, losing sleep for any reason, having to skip meals.

Goals: His interests move from ‘I want people to know who I am and I want stories to be told about me’ notions of fame, and as he gets older it turns more into ‘I want to do what I feel is right and will help people’. He always appreciates public admiration and relishes in it, but ends up feeling a greater responsibility over where he stands in life and how he can contribute.

Relationships

Orientation: Straight, ish. He’s attracted to women, but he’d be flattered and wouldn’t necessarily say no if propositioned by another gender. But the actual attraction wouldn’t be there.

Relationship status: Had a long string of romances and families across the continent, as well as one dedicated long-term partnership with a General in the Four Score War that was his last relationship. As a ghost…..he’s a ghost…

Notable Relationships:

He fathered 37 children (that he knows of) over his first couple centuries. While he was never completely absent, he definitely wasn’t involved in parenting. He’d write everyone, he’d make sure everyone was materially supported, he’d show up and stay for a few weeks at a time with gifts and stories, but wasn’t much of an Active Partner. He very much considered everyone family and had no personal sense of relationship decay over time; this was met with varying degrees of agreement, acceptance, indifference, sorrow, anger, and resentment across all the different parties.

He grew to be a more somber man once he realized he was outliving them all. Not just partners, but a number of his children too.

Tendreni Ilyiil: His first wife. Their relationship was one of circumstance, duty, and politics. They were quite formal with each other, and had differing senses of ambition. When Vendryth left Tendreni was furious about it, largely because of the principle of the thing rather than because she experienced much hardship without him (though raising an infant more on her own was something she was very angry about, though there was family help for her there). She didn’t feel a loss with him gone. She thought he was a childish coward and wrote him off almost immediately for it. She moved on, but her parents harbored a more significant grudge, as did her child to an even greater degree, especially as Vendryth’s name became more widely known and celebrated. These ancestor spirits, rather than Tendreni, were the ones who ended up binding his ghost to the tomb.

Neris Ilyiil: His great great great great grandson, of Tendreni’s line, who ended up saving him from his spectral imprisonment. Vendryth is very fond of Neris and sees quite a bit of himself in the boy. He loves exchanging adventure stories with him, even though Neris’s tend to be a bit different. He’s grateful for Neris’s help and is also more than willing to provide a sense of encouragement, family, and guidance to him. 600 years in a tomb means he lost the threads of all the rest of his family members and doesn’t know where any other descendants are. As a result he’s really close to Neris because Neris is the only thing that makes him feel like he still...Existed at one time.

Lady General whom we are still working on a name for: A General who Vendryth served under in the Four Score War. She initially thought he was underwhelming which he found…completely baffling and intriguing and his conclusion was ‘she is underwhelmed by me not because I’m NOT great, but because clearly she has done something greater and now I need to find out about it’. Was deeply curious about her from the beginning. Rather than his earlier relationships that were built on initial physical attraction and his usual ‘I am going to charm her with my Gallant Hero Energy’, he grew close to her out of circumstance first and then utter respect and admiration for her as they worked together. She was his sense of grounding through the whole war and was the first person he was actually In Love with. He hoped the relationship would continue beyond the war—that he kept thinking would end the next year, and then the next year, etc. It was unrelenting and he likely wouldn’t have stayed if not for this partnership. He felt it was worth all the enduring hardship. She saw to his burial after the destruction of Mournhold.

[alexanderfanin]

more hitman hcs please 😟🤲🤲 urs are elite!!

tyty! im jamming these out at 1am so please excuse any potential grammatical errors; i am prone to making them even when conscious-

this'll be an assortment of varying importance and quality.

• Diana is the shortest of the group, even in heels, she stands at a fairly decent 5'5-6 but literally is just surrounded by towering mfs. Olivia is a few inches taller than her (5'8 maybe?), even when Diana is in heels and this unnerves her. Everyone does their own rendition of "how not to talk to short people" with her, Lucas has no idea what he's doing and ends up being the most unwittingly bad about it by like.. hunkering with his hands on his knees at her. Diana does not like it. Olivia thinks it's funny as shit.

Edwards is similar in that he leans over her (I still don't like and will never recover from the fact that he is taller than 47, when popping his hip. Which puts him at like.. 6'4. Awful). Anyway he's lean and tall and towers over her in a way that is like.. purposefully condescending almost. Diana does not like to talk to him, for obvious reasons, but infinitely prefers it to be over the phone or when they're both sitting because Edwards should never be as tall as he is.

• Speaking of Edwards, I kind of headcanon that he essentially resigns himself to a complete lack of both friends and family - and that the closest individual to him was Janus, who was more like a deranged uncle than anything else. He's like.. spectacularly lonely and tries to use it to give himself some gravitas but whenever someone finds out the universal response is just straight pity, which he hates. (*fanin voice* "awh do you want to get some coffee :((?"). Despite being incredibly powerful, he is perpetually perceived as less than.. so he has a complex.

• Lucas has never been to therapy, I feel like he wouldn't - he wouldn't want to risk the humiliation of someone not believing him, he is incredibly private. And he has spent so long prioritising his (and 47's) revenge scheme that he has basically become so infatuated with the concept of doing it, to the point where he's unable to know or attempt to introspect on if it will actually be beneficial or worth it. I feel as though he may be disappointed, catharsis is momentary, and really.. how is he going to justify some of the murders in the long run? (Cobb? We really think he had any clue what happened 50+ years ago when he was also probably just a child? The Partners don't even know). Anyway, he's never tried therapy and probably shut down Olivia when she suggested as much.

• 47 is incredibly bad at naming his animals, none of them have names and when asked to give them one's retroactively, he'll say some shit like "bird" for his canary or similarly with his rabbits. It's not because he lacks creativity (his kills demonstrate otherwise obviously), it's just because he finds it hard to ascribe an identity to and empathise with other things - not to say he doesn't feel compassion, sympathy or care. Just that the nuances of naming and kind of.. anthropomorphising an animal are lost on him.

• Olivia drinks shitty energy drinks, and smokes like it's going out of fashion. She's tried to quit a few times, and pretends to not smoke about Lucas (because he is definitely Stern Dad Mode when it comes to cigarettes). But the stress of what they're doing genuinely leaves her with little choice otherwise, it's difficult to confide in Lucas when he's dashing about the planet with 47 or in pursuit of him and so she just submits herself to the ease of it. Similarly, the energy drinks mean that she has a completely scuffed schedule when it comes to sleeping; both 47 and Diana were woken up and freaked out by her wandering about doing shit in the 1-4am period of time, when they first stayed in the safehouse particularly.

• Soders had an unspoken soft spot for Diana, he knew her parents and rescued her canonically; his disdain for 47 rose in both equal parts as a result of jealousy over 47's talent and concern for the woman who he brought into the ICA after she went through a lot of traumatic shit to do with murder and so forth. He would never admit it, and as time went on he grew further and further from her. Although maybe there was a brief moment after 47 shot her in Absolution of "look I told you so!" but their relationship was pretty non existent by that point. When she was first hired, Diana got a lot of shit for being Soders' "favourite".

Anyway I hope you enjoy theseeee

[hotchley]

the first christmas

please don’t judge the title or quaity of this, it’s 00:50 and i’ve not proofread it. we’re just going to go with it.

summary: it’s baby hotchner’s first christmas that he’s actually going to remember. it’s mostly pure fluff with like the smallest amount of angst, but the ending is happy and nobody dies or gets hurt so we’re classing it as a win. and fluffy.

trigger warnings: implied/referenced child abuse

read on ao3!

Christmas was fast-approaching, and they still weren’t ready. Initially, Dave had wanted everything to be perfect. Now… he just wanted everything to be ready before Aaron woke up. SSA Hotchner had taken a tumble into a river and emerged from it as an eight-year-old. Well, a sort of eight-year-old. He had memories of being an adult, but they were fuzzy at best. And his speech, the way he did things, and his size were that of an eight-year-old.

Jack seemed to be having the time of his life. Dave was just worried they were going to do something horrifically wrong. Like Christmas. Hotch never really opened up about his plans for the holiday season, and now, every time someone tried to get him to open up about what he wanted to do, he clammed up. Or he’d change the subject.

One time, Spencer had asked, and he’d run out the room before he could even finish the question.

They stopped trying to ask him after that. Jessica had no idea what his Christmas traditions had been growing up as her family had only moved when he was going into his senior year, and after him and Haley got married, she still never really knew what the two of them got up to. Jack had seemed uncomfortable when they asked him. After much prodding and gentle confirmation that there would be no judgement, no matter what he said, Emily managed to pry the information from him.

In the years between the divorce and Haley’s death, Christmas was spent with Haley and Jessica, with Aaron there but not really there because you could cut the tension with a knife. After she died, Hotch had always sent Jack to his grandparents for Christmas because then he could see his cousins and spend time with the family he rarely saw. Which meant Hotch usually spent Christmas as an adult alone and sad.

He couldn’t believe none of them had ever realised, but then JJ and Will would always go and see her mom. Spencer would go down to Las Vegas. Derek and Penelope would go to Chicago and then to visit her parents grave. Dave’s plans varied on who was in the area and Emily usually went as far from her family as was possible. But they had all at least had someone. Hotch had nobody.

Rossi suspected that was how he spent a lot of his childhood too. There was no other reason that he would be so small. Because Rossi remembered Jack and Henry when they were the age Hotch now was. They were both healthy and lively. Hotch seemed far too small and far too nervous for a child that was supposedly safe.

He shook his head and stared at the sight before him. The tree that he had gotten at the last minute was still bare because every time he tried to decorate it, something just wouldn’t look right. Garcia was going to come round with cookies and the rest of the team would also be arriving at various different times with assorted items. He knew that meant presents.

Garcia arrived thirty minutes early. When he opened the door to her, he was greeted by bags. Lots and lots of bags.

“Penelope, what have you done?”

She walked in with the two smallest and lightest bags. He sighed and picked up the rest, following her into the hallway as she toed off her shoes and hung up her coat.

“Well Hotch won’t open up about Christmas so we don’t know what traditions he remembers or did. Which means we need to do all of them. I have decorations, cookie ingredients, stockings, films, books and of course, everything you need for the perfect hot chocolate. And he may still believe in Santa so there are some carrots and mince pies.”

“Wait. Cookie ingredients? I thought you were going to bring them?”

Garcia didn’t respond. She’d walked into the living room whilst she had explained what was in the bags and Rossi suspected it was because she hadn’t heard him. He sighed and followed her in. She was staring at the tree.

“What is that?” she whispered, seemingly horrified.

“Look don’t judge me. I tried to decorate it. Multiple times. But every time, something just didn’t look right and I had to start over. I’m a perfectionist. Sue me.”

She turned and stared at him. “Rossi, I don’t know what planet you’ve been living on, but a Christmas tree isn’t supposed to look perfect. It’s supposed to be fun. And I know you want to surprise bossboy, but I think he should be involved. After all, he probably doesn’t remember a single Christmas fondly.”

Rossi realised she, as always, was right. “I guess I got so caught up in trying to get everything to be perfect for him that I forgot it was meant to be fun.”

“Would you look at that? He’s willing to admit when he’s wrong. Where is baby Hotchner at the moment?”

“Upstairs, napping. I don’t think he slept well last night. I also don’t think he likes being called baby Hotchner given that he’s not actually a baby.”

“Well what am I meant to call him? If I say Hotch, then it sounds like I’m referring to the big, mean to unsubs but sweet to the rest of us, federal agent. And Aaron just feels wrong.”

Rossi smiled at her antics. “Maybe. We’ll come up with a better nickname at some point. Do you want me to get him or will you be okay?”

“Oh I’ll get him! Kids that have just woken up are the cutest thing ever!”

Twenty minutes later, Garcia came down the stairs, her hand being held by Aaron.

He looked tiny, even for a child. His pyjamas, which consisted of a green dinosaur top and matching bottoms (only the bottoms had different dinosaurs all over it whilst the top was a single red one) seemed to swallow him up. His hair was falling in his face and incredibly floppy, only made worse by his recent waking up.

It was an adorable sight, watching him rub one eye to get the sleep out.

Dave crouched down, even as his knees winced. Aaron stared at him with wide eyes.

“How are you feeling little one?” he asked.

Aaron shrugged. “Miss Penny said that we were going to do something fun because of Christmas, so I guess I’m okay.”

It took Rossi a moment to understand what he was saying. He doubted any of them- aside from Will- would actually be able to understand his accent immediately for a long time.

“Yeah. We are going to decorate the Christmas tree that’s over there, and then we’re going to bake some cookies. Then, we can all sit on the couch, drinking hot chocolate and watch a film that you’ll get to pick. And after that, when it’s time to go to sleep, we’ll read a special Christmas story!” Garcia said, more excited than the actual kid.

Aaron turned to stare at her, a little disbelieving. “Really?”

She nodded. “Yeah baby Hotchner. Really.”

He still seemed suspicious. “No catch?”

Garcia’s smile faded and she sat beside him too. “No baby. No catches.”

Hotch regarded her for another moment then turned to Rossi. “Promise Mr David?”

Dave’s heart cracked a little. “I promise.”

“Okay. How do we decorate the tree?” he walked over on little legs to stare at it in awe, before moving onto the bags. He looked at Garcia for permission to look through and when she nodded, he smiled so brightly that Dave wanted to freeze the moment and live in it forever.

Garcia turned to Dave. “Rossi, I-”

“Don’t. Not now. He’s very perceptive. Aaron, we can decorate it however you want. You’re too small to put some of the stuff on, but if you tell us, we’ll do it for you. You can do the branches that are lower down.”

Aaron dropped the tinsel. “However I want?”

Garcia nodded. “It’s your tree.”

Aaron grinned and immediately started dragging all the decorations that he wanted to use towards the tree. Both adults got the hint and stood up, walked over to him and started talking about where the best place to put the various items was.

JJ and Derek came in halfway through the decorating process. Aaron froze momentarily, but when they both smiled and complimented the very hectic tree he relaxed and carried on like nothing had happened.

Morgan lifted him up so he could put the star on and Hotch let out a childish squeal that none of them were ever going to let him forget, and just like that, the tree was done. There was tinsel in all the colours of the rainbow draped over random branches, and baubles hanging off every available surface. The lights were wrapped around each section, going the opposite way to the tinsel and the star at the top was crooked. In Dave’s honest opinion, it looked horrific. But Aaron’s smile and pride in his creation made it beautiful.

When Spencer joined them, right before they started making the cookies, Aaron went into shy mode and hid behind Dave’s legs, peering out from behind him to see Spencer joking with Morgan and Penelope.

“Do you want to go and say hi to Mr Spence?” JJ asked gently.

Aaron shook his head. “Last time he was here, I ran away so I don’t think he wants to be my friend.”

JJ looked shocked. “Of course he wants to be your friend! He gets why you ran away, it’s okay darling. You don’t believe me? Okay. Hold my hand, and I’ll show you how much Spencer wants to be your friend. Come on, let’s go.”

He looked doubtful, but Hotch liked and trusted JJ so he stopped hiding and went over to where Spencer was.

“Hotch! Hi there!” Spencer greeted.

Hotch looked up at JJ who smiled encouragingly.

“Mr Spencer, are you angry at me for running away?” he asked.

Spencer frowned. “No. Of course not. I was a little bit upset, because I thought you didn’t like me, but now I get why you ran away and it’s okay. We’re still best friends forever right?”

Hotch nodded, face very serious. “Forever.”

“Well now that’s been established, lets make some cookies,” Derek said.

“You just want to eat mine,” Garcia scoffed.

“I’d rather eat something else of-”

Garcia hit him. “Not in front of baby Hotchner.”

“Miss Penny? When is Miss Emily going to be here?” he asked.

As if on cue, the door swung open to reveal her. “You really shouldn’t keep the spare key under your doormat. Anyone could just waltz in.”

Hotch threw himself into her arms and she stumbled back slightly. “Oh hello child.”

He looked up at her, cheeks slightly flushed. “Hello Miss Emmy. We’re going to make cookies.”

She smiled. “I love cookies. Do you?”

He nodded. “Miss Penny made some a week ago, but these are going to be special because they’re Christmas cookies. She decorated the tree as well, but I got to tell her what to do. Come and see it!” he said without breathing before dragging her to see it.

The others just shrugged, not willing to dampen his spirits.

“I love him as a kid,” Derek commented as they watched him explain the tree in extensive detail.

Baking cookies consisted of Garcia telling the others what to do and then doing it for them because they couldn’t do it right and Aaron giggling at all of them for being silly. His eyes lit up when Garcia gave him the bowls and a spoon before telling him to eat the cookie dough.

He watched the oven very intently. Reid sat beside him, and before anyone knew what was happening, Hotch was running over to them and asking if they wanted to hear what Dr Spencer- not Mr- had taught him.

Garcia let him decorate a whole batch. More icing ended up on his poor countertops and Aaron’s clothes than on the actual cookie, but if you didn’t look too closely, his reindeer and snowman actually looked like they were the things they were meant to be. And then Derek let him have two, which led to Spencer chasing him all over the mansion- not the house- to burn off the energy.

After several hours, they both collapsed on the couch. Aaron climbed into Garcia’s lap, eyes bright and cheeks red.

“I had so much fun Miss Penny!” he exclaimed.

“I’m so happy for you. Do you want a hot chocolate? We can put… marshmallows and cream and cinnamon in it,” she said.

He smiled. “Please Miss Penny.”

“Okay kiddo. One hot chocolate coming right up.”

He settled onto the couch, nestled in between Dave and Penelope when she came back and handed him the mug, full to the brim with cream and other assorted toppings that were definitely going to ruin his teeth.

“This is the best thing I’ve ever had,” he whispered to her, as though it was a very important secret.

“Even better than Mr David’s spaghetti?” she teased.

Aaron paled and seriously considered her question for a few moments before giving the slightest nod. Garcia squealed then went silent when Dave shot her a strange look. It was halfway through Nativity! that Aaron drifted off, the events of the day finally catching up to him.

Derek was the only one able to carry him up without waking him, so the moment they all realised he was indeed sleeping, they switched the film off. Whilst Derek took the sleeping Hotch to Dave’s guest room that they were going to redecorate as soon as possible, Emily grabbed the first book off the pile and followed. The rest stayed downstairs to wrap the presents that Garcia had left in her car, just in case.

Upstairs, Derek and Emily were watching Aaron sleep. Emily read him Stick Man, deciding it was the best story they could have picked.

“He’s so small,” she whispered.

“He shouldn’t be,” Derek said, switching Aaron’s nightlight on before stepping out the room, leaving the door slightly open.

Emily sighed. “Why are we so full of sadness on Christmas Eve?”

Derek wrapped an arm around her. “It’ll all be fine. There. Optimism.”

She rolled her eyes but smiled at him fondly. “Let’s just go help the others wrap, and by that I mean eat the mince pies meant for Santa.”

It was Derek’s turn to roll his eyes.

Dave woke Aaron up slightly later than normal, deeming the events of the previous night reason enough to let him sleep in.

“Merry Christmas little one,” Dave said.

“It’s Christmas?” Aaron said.

Dave nodded. “And I want you to come and see something. You don’t need to get dressed or anything like that. Actually, do you need to pee?”

Aaron nodded, so Dave let him go.

When he came back, Dave stood, ready to just go downstairs when he picked up on Aaron’s hesitance.

“What is it?”

Aaron stared at the carpet for a few moments.

“Little one, you can tell me.”

Aaron didn’t say anything but made grabby hands.

Dave smiled. “Of course.” He picked Aaron up, regretting it almost immediately but only setting him down when they were about to go into the living room.

“Close your eyes. I promise you it’s a good surprise.”

He only hesitated for a moment before complying and walking in, both hands covering his eyes that were almost certainly squeezed shut.

“Open your eyes,” he said, flicking the light on at the same moment that Aaron did.

“Merry Christmas baby Hotchner!” Garcia shouted.

The others chimed in with their own festive greetings.

Aaron seemed overwhelmed, so Spencer went and knelt beside him, explaining exactly what they were going to do, which calmed him down as he started smiling and seemed very excited for all the presents that were under the tree and addressed to him.

Hours later, when Aaron was resting his head on Spencer’s lap so his hair would be played with, Jessica and Jack arrived, having left her dad’s house early. They watched the scene play out from the doorway, smiling when Dave walked over. He nodded in acknowledgement, not wanting to disturb the scene they were all watching.

“He looks so relaxed,” Jack said.

“I still can’t get over how well you’re taking this,” Jessica admitted.

He shrugged. “I’m just trying to not think about it too much. If it means Dad is going to smile and have some better memories, then I’ll choose to focus on that instead.”

Dave smiled at that. They would worry about the cure later. For now, they would give Aaron some better memories.

When they were winding down for the day, Aaron went up to Dave and Penelope, Spencer holding his hand as the two of them were Best Friends Forever and had to do everything together- Aaron’s words.

“Mr David? Miss Penny?”

They paused in their washing/drying duties and turned to face him so he knew he had their full attention.

“Yes?” Penelope said.

“This was the best Christmas ever.”

Penelope scooped her into his arms, and when the others realised they were hugging a definitely touch-starved Aaron, they all came running over and in that moment, there was no evil or bad in the world because for the first time, child Aaron Hotchner felt completely and utterly safe.

[oathofoaksart]

YOUNG JUSTICE OC: KILLJOY  bio under the cut!

BASICS Name: Miles Manson A.K.A: Killjoy; Jess Terring [legally], K.J, Smiles; Jester [formally] Age: 31 [S3 Era] Gender: Cisgender Male Orientation: One Loud Shrug Noise Skin: Light tan; neutral-to-warm undertones Hair: Medium Brown Eyes: Cognac, leaning on Orange Height: 5'8" Build: Compact, similar to that of a baseball player Distinctions: Fingers and palms are partially "perma-clowned". Has a multitude of scars that riddle his body. Most noteworthy being the one which cleaves his right eyebrow in half [Robin I], track marks inside of his elbows, upper arms, and thighs [fear toxin self-injections], a slash across his nose [the Joker], a large discoloration on his left shoulder [Killer Croc], and a long scar that circles around the base of his neck [Victor Zsasz] RELATIONS [note a few @ are friends i prob only know their dA handle to] Parents: Vinny [deceased] and Katherine [estranged] Terring Siblings: Eva Terring [estranged] Friends: Erin Knightly-Tetch @little-red-xoxo, Dick “Nightwing” Grayson, Penelope “Stage Fright” Caskett @poltergeistprincesa, Jervis “The Mad Hatter” Tetch, Molly “Blondie” Weiss @Triskata Partner/s: Scattered one night stands, notably henchwenches; M. "Last Encore" (ev.) @whispering-lava Misc.: The Joker, Harley Quinn, Gi “Geode” Flores, Janus Lyssa @SherlyWats, Madelyn “Angelica” Farro @The-Brain-Teaser, Jadis “Killcode” [Surname Redacted] @whispering-lava Affiliations: The Tetch Family; The Joker Gang [formally] PERSONALITY Personality Type: ESTP-A [Assertive Entrepreneur] Temperament: Sanguine-Choleric   Alignment: Chaotic Neutral Playful | Witty | Erratic | Careless | Brutal Miles’ “daytime” persona is a friendly, quick-to-joke man who takes all things in stride. He possesses a casual cheeriness and an easygoing attitude that aids him in making quick acquaintances and even a fair amount of friends, even if he’s notably private about his personal life. It’s usually written off as him having a generally quiet bachelor lifestyle. He’s best known from his job as a waiter at a tea and sweets shop named The Mad Tea House, where he lets his more impish traits shine through to his fellow employees. He’s been guilty of child-like pranks, shirking responsibilities onto others, and being a bit of a gadfly when he feels things have gotten too quiet in the tea house. As Killjoy, he’s violent, disturbingly reckless, fueled by spite, and follows no logic other than his own. He wastes no time looking for retaliation when he perceives a wrong done against him. K.J’s sense of humor is abundantly morbid, his words often tinged with irony and false jolly. He thoroughly enjoys getting under people’s skin and milking their uncomfortableness. In truth, there are very few things Miles takes seriously, but the one thing he sets above all else are his ties of loyalty. As rash as he is in regards to his own well-being, all bets are off once someone he comes to care for is in harm’s way. While he argues he finds this annoying about himself, it’s also his one source of proof showing he hasn’t completely lost his way. ABILITIES AND WEAKNESSES Metahuman Biology: Originally, Miles’ metagene was tied to his adrenal glands, allowing a boost in bio-stats such as improved strength and reflexes. Years of fear toxin dosing further strengthened this metagene. Unbeknownst to him, his metagene was continually evolving, correlating with his need for survival. His eventual death “rebooted” the metagene, jump starting his body, and fully allowing it to unfurl.

- Immortality: Miles has recently discovered his inability to die by various means. His body heals regentively and is immune to fatal poisons and toxins. - Adrenaline Surge/Blitz Mode: His adrenaline bursts allow him enhanced strength, speed, agility and reflexes. During these “Blitzes,” Miles turns into a one-man wrecking crew, plowing through obstacles and opponents through sheer determination. - Pain Tolerance: Has an abnormally high tolerance to pain, does not mean he can’t feel pain, it simply doesn’t hinder his ability to think or move. (Ex. He can burn his hand, and he feels the same amount of pain anyone else would in the same situation, he just won't react to it if he chooses not to) While Miles is officially immortal by way of being unnaturally resilient, he is still able to experience symptoms and side effects of diseases, poisons and toxins. His healing factor slows in colder temperatures, stopping completely when it drops to freezing points. Heavy damage to his head area hinder him considerably and Miles still feels the after effects after having healed (ie. slurred speech, blurry vision, dizziness). He is extremely susceptible to electric attacks, as it overrides his nervous system, prompting unconsciousness. Gear/Weapons: - Frowny Face Mask: Besides serving as a trademark symbol, Killjoy’s mask comes equipped with mapping and schematic information, allowing for quick and easy navigation. - Voice Changer: An electronic patch attached to his throat allows Killjoy to copy various voices, ranging across age and gender. - Signal Scrambler: Killjoy operates on a generally covert level, sometimes communication from one party to another isn’t in his best interest - Assorted Explosives: Killjoy’s go-to toys, these are generally self explanatory. They vary in size and demolition damage. For the sake of irony, Killjoy is fond of deadman switches.   - Weighted Gloves: Serve as built-in brass knuckles, K.J’s preferred melee weapon 3 in. Balisongs: Two of them to be precise, these typically only come out when simple bruises aren’t cutting it anymore. - Grappling Gun: Useful to get around the city landscape. The blue labeled gun. - 9mm Handgun:  Killjoy dislikes having to use this one, if it’s in his hand, he’s officially stopped fooling around. The red labeled gun. - Joyride: A custom-built Camero, Killjoy’s prized possession and getaway car HISTORY TW: SUICIDE MENTION Jess Terring, better known in the Gotham Underground as Jester, shot through headlines despite his years of generally low profile work as a simple Joker lackey. Charged with the deaths of dozens and injuries of several more by result of a fatal explosion, he was to spend a life sentence at Arkham Asylum, his protests of innocence falling on deaf ears. His attempts at an appeal were overruled, even with figures such as Batman and Nightwing looking into his case for him. Arkham Asylum was hell on Earth for Jess.  His shreds of hope fell apart as the months crawled on, his mental state deteriorating in the process.  He had never wanted to get involved with the Joker, all he’d been was a good-for-nothing conman who’d gotten too greedy. His last four years as Jester had been a never-ending nightmare. Things finally culminated during a free-for-all jailbreak at Arkham where Jess, along with other inmates, were cornered on the roof. Unable to stomach the idea of being thrown back in the cell he was wrongfully given and simply tired of the misery, he jumped. Jess Terring was proclaimed dead by suicide off Arkham Asylum… The last thing Jess expected to happen was to wake up in a morgue. Barely coherent and running on sheer instinct, Jess managed to escape, although not without killing the on-duty mortician. His first official kill and he hadn’t felt a thing. He wouldn’t reflect on it until after clearing Gotham City, and even then, he realized it wasn’t the mortician’s death that bothered him, but rather he didn’t feel anything about it to begin with. Between recognizing his new lack of humanity and hearing the joker-like laugh escaping him, Jess broke. He spent the following months wandering the states as a nameless face. The bizarre events surrounding Jess’ death was eventually swept away by the everflowing stream of news media and within the year, faded into obscurity. It was the best he could have hoped for, free from the Joker’s grasp and unknown, but his thoughts kept returning back to Gotham City. The more the thoughts plagued him, the angrier he got. The Joker had gotten off scot-free, having framed him for the initial massacre and ran him to the ground, eventually turning him into...whatever he was. While a part of him argued he’d be better off cutting his losses, he found himself unable to set it aside and he set course back to Gotham City. He didn’t have a plan so much as he did an outline, but he soon figured out he wasn’t required to be especially careful anymore. Being nigh-indestructible made for a good buffer. He’d finally found a blessing through his curse and through trial-and-error quickly fashioned himself as a makeshift mercenary. During this time he worked under a variety of names, involving himself in several under-the-radar jobs in order to fund what would eventually be his official M.O. He marked his entrance into Gotham with a string of bomb hits on territories tied to the Joker. As of now, not many are sure what to make of this new face, some cheering for his more direct approach on the Clown Prince, others exhausted with the prospect of another nut on the scene, and even a few seedier folk wanting to get him on their payroll. He’s unconcerned by it all, but he finds himself liking the ring to the name circling around him. Killjoy. NOTES - Killjoy mostly classifies as a serial bomber, targeting hideouts and planned heist hits. While he will set up evacuations so as to not injure more people than he has to, he’s fairly flippant about collateral damage - Despite his nonchalance towards violence, Killjoy does what he can to keep things non-lethal. His way of vengeance is a shot to the knee rather than a shot to the head. It’s not that he has a problem killing, it’s just as an immortal, death is the easy way out. - It’s believed Miles’ drastic change in personality comes from multiple factors instead of just one large catalyst (ie. years of fear toxin injection, joker gas inhalation, the trauma of death and resurrection) - The name Miles Manson doesn’t have any particular meaning, it had been a name he improvised and he grew fond of it. He severely hates being called Jess. - He suffers from night terrors, likely due to his usage of fear toxin in the past. He also experiences flashbacks akin to HPPD, albeit rarely - He can withstand an extreme amount of physical abuse and keep his wits about him, but once it passes a certain threshold, his mental state will eventually slip into a frenzy. Unable to consciously keep hold of himself, he will become animalistically brutal to anyone in his vicinity. - K.J mostly concerns himself with causing problems for the Joker, although he can be moved to ally with others for other reasons when he finds fit. Notably, he’s stuck a somewhat fickle truce with Nightwing over the rising number of metatrafficking rings in Gotham and Blüdhaven.

[babycharmander]

Yes I know the event ended yesterday but I didn't get to finish this yesterday and I wanted to post more because I can.

Okay so I doooon't think I can do a post about these using the templates I posted, since they're compilations, but still, I wanted to say SOMETHING about them.

I have two oneshot compilations--An Assortment of Broken Bones and Bone Shards. They're found in compilation form only on AO3, though the individual fics are also posted to my art/writing blog, @bcdrawsandwrites. (Yes, the first one WAS posted to FFN, but I didn't post one specific fic to it, so I recommend reading it on AO3 instead.)

An Assortment of Broken Bones is a collection I wrote for the Bad Things Happen Bingo challenge! For the heck of it, I let people pick prompts from the bingo card I got, and they could provide me with characters to use with the prompt, and a brief idea of how they wanted those things to be combined. The result was a REALLY fun (but challenging!) writing exercise where I got to write a BUNCH of oneshots that I would have never come up with otherwise. It took me over a year, but I DID complete the challenge and get a bingo! During that time I wrote 16 oneshots of varying themes with a lot of different characters. It... was mostly Héctor, of course, but not all of them were about him! So... here's a quick rundown of each oneshot:

Crisis Catch-And-Carry: Pre-movie, Héctor and Imelda (who, since this is pre-movie, is still very angry at Héctor) get attacked by a wild alebrije. (Sort of like the cut "alebrije attack" scene, but with Héctor and Imelda rather than Héctor and Miguel, and on a street instead of on a trolley).

Memory Loss: A very tragic AU in which, after Héctor survives being forgotten, he finds he has lost his memory. (Note that this is a oneshot and it only features one scene of this AU idea.)

Panic Attack: Post-movie, Miguel goes swimming with some friends... and suddenly finds himself experiencing flashbacks and panic attacks, and has some explaining to do to his parents...

Caught in a Storm: Pre-movie, Héctor takes Coco out to play around in the outskirts of Santa Cecilia, only to get caught in a terrible rainstorm.

Worked Themselves to Exhaustion: Pre-movie, Héctor's letters have stopped coming, and Imelda is trying to start a business all on her own. Being a single mother is never easy...

Setting a Broken Bone: Pre-movie, one of Héctor's bridge-crossing attempts (in fact, the one detailed in my "When to Quit" comic on my art blog) leaves him seriously injured, and he has to practically drag himself back to Shantytown so Cheech and some friends can help him.

Cold-Blooded Torture: A one-shot that takes place DURING the events of Neither Can You. It's an optional, very violent read that takes place immediately after chapter 3 of the fic. (Seriously my gosh do not read this if you can't handle torture/violence.)

Damaged Vocal Cords: Pre-movie, Imelda is sick and unable to talk, Héctor is trying to be helpful as he can, and Ernesto is a nuisance.

Common Cold: Several years post-movie, Héctor and Imelda get caught in a rainstorm and find that being dead doesn't keep you from getting sick.

Hiding an Injury: Pre-movie, Chicharrón notices that Héctor is strangely keeping his ribcage covered, and wonders just what he might be hiding.

Doesn't Realize They've Been Injured: Pre-epilogue, Victoria discovers Héctor's been hiding out in the Rivera workshop... after he falls off the rafters and crashes into a worktable.

Cry Into Chest: Post-Neither Can You, Héctor awakens one night to find Victoria standing outside, sheltered by alebrijes. He's not the only one who's been having nightmares after the nightmarish experience they both had.

Tooth Knocked Out: Pre-movie, a teenage Héctor is distracted by Imelda and proceeds to walk into a wall, knocking out a tooth. Hey, that golden tooth had to come from somewhere.

Mugging: Pre-movie, Héctor resorts to very, very desperate measures trying to cross the bridge, and forces himself to test the limits of his own morals--something he takes no pleasure in.

Outnumbered in a Fight: Pre-epilogue, Miguel joins Youtube only to find people praising Ernesto de la Cruz, and finds himself getting into the worst kind of fight... internet arguments.

Slammed into a Wall: Pre-movie, Héctor gets into trouble while traveling with Ernesto.

Aaand that's it for An Assortment of Broken Bones.

BUT WAIT--THERE'S MORE!

I also have Bone Shards, which is a collection of unpolished (mostly unbeta'd) oneshots. Here's the ones I have in this collection so far:

Broken Bone: Pre-movie, Héctor visits Chicharrón after a failed bridge-crossing attempt, and learns something about forgotten skeletons.

Loved One Killed: The scene from the movie where Ernesto throws Miguel off the cliff, from Héctor's perspective. (No, Miguel's not really dead, but Héctor doesn't know that.)

Forced to Watch: A slight universe alteration in which Miguel is thrown into the cenote before Héctor, who is forced to watch it happen.

Chorizo: Pre-movie, Héctor gets a nickname, and isn't particularly happy about it.

Midnight: Pre-movie, Pepita follows her alebrije instincts.

Morning: The moments immediately following Miguel's return to the Land of the Living, from Imelda's perspective.

Sharp: Pre-epilogue, Héctor considers his relationship with his new family.

Dance: A little oneshot covering the events that led up to Héctor and Imelda's brief scene in "A Day in the Life of the Dead."

Sooooo... there you go! Was kinda fun going over these fics again.

BTW, thank you to everyone who participated in the event! I was thrilled to see everyone promoting their stories as well as others' works! I'll make a post myself later recommending a few other people's fics. 

[violexides]

hi! do u have any specific hcs for komaeda? and maybe spare hinata hcs too ^.^

you have given me an escape to doing my homework and i will be in your debt forever, anon.

okay i can talk for fucking hours about some of this shit but in hope that i don’t like. bore people with my absolutely horrid explanation skills, i will just. attempt to bullet point. 

- komaeda likes gardening. he likes pretty things, and flowers are quite pretty. i think this is something that could have started when he was younger-- maybe as a way to connect with his parents?-- and it eventually died away due to despair era and hope’s peak academy taking a lot of his time as well as making his luck a more... Quantifiable Thing. but post-canon, someone needs to take up gardening, and i think it could be healing to care for something? people may not understand things, but flowers aren’t exactly going to wilt while you spend accidental hours trying to process and work through things verbally. so yeah komaeda plants good.

- komaeda likes small amounts of makeup. looking at this from more of an AU perspective, since i am not sure how applicable this could be within canon universe. i can see him with more elaborate makeup to be fair, but also this. i’ve definitely talked about this with some anons in the past, so special shout out to them and the users who also gave me their Komaeda Makeup takes.

- assorted collection of luck-related events. this isn’t quite a... headcanon? i just tend to explore it with rp, so i’ll throw it in there. i think that the canon luck events... while already, uh, A Lot, leave out a good chunk of his time where like nothing happened? varying fic by fic or roleplay by roleplay, i’ll throw something in. i am somewhat interested in the idea of him getting a foster family who gradually grew apart from him and died in the tragedy. he hardly recognizes that they existed. trauma be like that. i realize now this has nothing to do with luck shit.

- he really likes poetry. look, i’m a kinnie, and i also want to write a poetry book one day. that’s how i’m coming at this. but seriously, i do think that this guy really likes literature and especially poetry? it seems a pretty common headcanon that he is really familiar with literature-- he’s smart as hell-- so i don’t think i’m really saying anything New. actually none of my headcanons have been very new ideas so far. but i think that he reads poetry, and maybe tries to write some. he usually gets frustrated and stops. i’ll throw this here but he also keeps a diary.

- post-canon, he isolates. okay yeah i have no idea how to summarize that one but basically like. for likely a pretty long time, maybe forever, he finds new places on the island to hide, and usually waits for someone (typically hinata) to find him. he finds macabre amusement in it, but he also gets overwhelmed around other people, especially then. (also. every year on chiaki’s birthday, a bitch goes into the warehouse. hinata knows he’s there. everyone does. and yet.)

- he speaks more than one language. japanese, english, and maybe french. i don’t know, work with me, i’m stupid.

- his parents died on his birthday. my headcanons for komaeda’s parents tend to flicker, but what i’m mainly looking at is that he wasn’t particularly close to them? they didn’t exactly ignore him, but they didn’t really. care about him. i, over time, sort of developed the headcanon via rp that the first real birthday celebration he had was a vacation planned when he was a kid. he was very excited! it did not end well for him.

- he was not initially the only survivor. okay. this is REALLY headcanon-y, so please stick with me. i kind of fuck with the idea that one other person-- i usually go with a middle-aged man not from japan-- somehow survived the plane crash, but ended up dying pretty fucking badly shortly after. more just for the tragedy of that, i guess, but i also think it could like. just be an interesting thing? like “oh maybe my luck isn’t like that,” only to make it uh. Like That. 

- he likes astronomy. he has a lot of cool facts about the stars and shit and could go on for hours about them. he knows a LOT about the constellations, and he thinks a lot about what life would be like on other planets, some kind of escapism. also, not to dip into kamukoma land, but i think that kamukura and him would have talked about stars a lot. hinata has this information post game. he still listens to komaeda talk about it. 

- trans + autistic komaeda rights. yeah this one isn’t a thing in all my fics but it’s important enough to me that i thought i’d mention it.

-- some quick hinata things for you, lovely anon --

- he isn’t dumb. i sat here for way too long trying to think of how to summarize this and by god i fucking failed. is this even a headcanon? i think hinata, like, has a bunch of very basic shit that he Forgets A Lot, like octagons, but he’s actually really good at deductive reasoning and survival skills. 

- his relationship with izuru / the talents fluctuates. no idea how to summarize this either. i think it goes from “use them all and burn myself out so that everyone is safe” to “now i am not going to use them” to “okay maybe i can compromise here”. with izuru himself, he sort of has a lot of rage towards himself that he puts on the other. he doesn’t like the idea of sharing a headspace with someone on the get-go. but he gets there eventually.

- he does not like the future foundation. i mean no shit but also like. i think he would work for them? maybe? but he cares more about jabberwock than the rest of the world, in a sense. he has altruism, and he doesn’t like, fucking hate the rest of the world. he’s out of touch with it, though, and looks at working on shit more as necessity (or atonement) than, like. yay let’s do this shit!

- hinata trans. yeah. idk.

- he fucking hates medical shit. will he do it for his friends? yes. will he willingly go into an infirmary or touch a medication bottle or think about surgery? absolutely not. 

--

okay. i don’t think any of those takes were spicy or good. but i hope you like them?? i’m sure i have more interesting shit somewhere but like. yeah. thank you so much for the ask this was so fun to do, have a really lovely day!