#i'm having entirely too much fun just dicking around in this save

[papermint-airplane]

You know, wanton detonation really is a great way to meet people. 

[brucewaynehater101]

Okay okay, so Tim finds out Bruce is stuck in the timestream and gathers all his siblings + Barbara for a meeting, presenting his evidence, a drafted plan of action to save Bruce . . .

. . . And asks what to do with this information

They all come to an agreement / majority vote

l e t h i m d i e

=========

Once upon a time they thought that Gotham, the world, that they, all needed Batman

Now that isn't the case anymore

Oh he was mourned, by the Justice League, by his allies, by civilians . . .

But the Batfamily has grown into their own, they've found a way to fight for Gotham, Bludhaven, Crime Alley because they've inherited the Fear of Batman

They've found their own ways to instill the fear of them into the criminal world

Their territories are becoming better even despite their Patriarch being dead

And they feel less dead than they were becoming under his thumb

The Dark Knight is Dead; Long Live The Dark Knights

· · ·

People questioned what would happen with the Prince of Gotham dead

Tim tried becoming CEO, but Jason stepped in himself to take the mantle from right under him, citing he was too young and should enjoy his childhood while it still lasted

That started quite a fight between them

Duke Thomas was adopted by Jason and while not technically joining the family's nightlife, Signal could always be found while the sun was up

Gotham's bones broke, organs failed, and flesh was bitten off

Gotham has never been better since Batman or even The Second Robin died

Praise the Batfamily

This is happiness . . .

?

=========

Somebody finds out they let Batman die

Be it the Justice League, other heroes, their rogues, or another hero's rogues, or somebody else entirely

They find out

Do other groups learn by themselves? Does this knowledge come into the hands of people who would spread it?

Either way, the Batclan is going to have to confront that it's known they let Batman die

Is the knowledge it used maliciously, is the accuser wanting answers, or is it a mix of both

Gosh, what will Alfred think if he learns? I imagine that even if he enabled Bruce's abuse they kept him around, stick close enemies and friends after all

(me thinks personally that Joker is throwing a fit with his nemesis dead, and he may not even be able to abuse the fact his own kids killed him cuz it was a child abuser who was killed by his abused)

(but I'd love to see your take on Joker's pov when he only knows Batman is dead and if he learns his kids left him for dead and if he learns they were abused by him and that's why they let him die)

Now I'm wondering what would happen if it got leaked to the public that the Batfamily knew Batman could've been saved but did nothing about it. There could be so many different reactions from different groups

Crime Alley people, criminals, people outside Gotham, Gothamites themselves, and Bludhaven residents would have different takes collectively methinks

Fucking hell, that isn't even accounting for all the fuckery you could do w/ Bruce Wayne = Batman and I'm not talking about an post-mortem identity reveal, I'm talking identity shenanigans

Like say the bats knowing they could have saved Bruce but left him for dead and somebody/some group learns this and leaks it

And then Jason steps in to say "you know the FUCK what? We knew our old man could have been saved and since he was shit we voted/agreed to let him die!!" And all hell breaks loose

And that's just one example!

=========

Inspired by that ask on Jason calling for a family meeting after learning Bruce is stuck in the timestream to figure out what to do from there

+ the one post where Dick tries and fails to get Tim to give up on Bruce so he doesn't embark on BruceQuest and Bruce dies in the Timestream

w/ Cassandra in particular, it'd be fun to explore her psyche in the Vote branch, if she votes to let Bruce die or not considering her "No Kill" stance

Heck, with both branches they alone bring so much fun to the table, even without the flavor of The Reveal

Agreement: You get the explore a world where all the bat kids + Barbara want Bruce dead, by why is it? You get to see all their reasons for it, and how their reasonings may mesh or clash and how they come to make their decisions!

Majority Vote: You get to see the conflicts between those who want him back and want him dead + what they do and think knowing who voted for what then onwards

Bonus if a batsibling or two start of wanting Bruce back but then decide they want him gone, or the reverse, or they flip flop again and again until they make their choice

Either branch I think would overhaul the Batfamily's relationships w/ each other in a major way and not just because someone has to take Bruce's spot as the family head or whatever, but because they chose/voted for said Patriarch to die

That's a big fucking deal

Oh yeah, Duke; is he ever taught about the (technically not) Patricide committed? Or do they keep him ignorant because ignorance is bliss?

Because if he learns through means other than them, yeah it'll be a shit show the Bats won't be prepared for beforehand

Oh yeah what about Gordon? Do you think he'd be in the know or learn via leaks or a leaker cuz he's kind of Barbara's family

Hello!!!!!!!!!!

Tw: abuse, death, murder, child abuse, suicide (let me know if I need to add more)

I love this idea, and I'm totally up for breaking it down.

If it's not an agreement, then it's likely that the ones who disagree will try to save Bruce regardless of what everyone else wants

This will turn into an all-out war as those who want Bruce dead try to prevent the others from succeeding. It would be like a weird version of capture the flag, clue, and escape the room. The save-Bruce team (whether out of love or duty) would need to gather all the evidence that Tim did while fending off attacks and working against the clock (there comes a point in time that it's too late to save Bruce).

Even if they all agree, it's still complicated feelings wise.

Bruce is an abusive piece of shit (especially in this AU), but it's hard to not love your abuser. The cycle of abuse is difficult to break out of. I think Dick and Jason would be at the point they are more apathetic to Bruce's care/love. They are adults who don't rely on him. They might still love Bruce, but it's easier for them to put a defense against the man emotionally to the point of condoning his murder.

Babs and Steph aren't his kids, so, while their feelings aren't black and white, it's easier to distance themselves from Bruce.

Canonically, I think Tim recently got adopted by Bruce. This makes it harder for him to outright reject Bruce. When given evidence (and shown what Bruce did to his other family members), Tim might come to the conclusion that it's better off without Bruce.

Damian is a child who just got to meet his dad. I doubt he'd be on board with this plan nor, with his hero worship, would he be able to find faults in him. He simply hasn't spent enough time with Bruce (and lots of angst to be explored there. Basically, his "siblings" that he's just met are telling him it's better for him if their dad is dead).

Cass loves Bruce. She trusts his mission, what he's supposed to stand for, and that he does love his kids (she can see that he truly does love everyone). At the same time, he hurts her siblings. She doesn't agree with leaving Bruce to die, but her feelings are complicated on the matter.

How the batkids feel about Alfred is similar (although not categorically per a kid) as they feel about Bruce

If they've reached the point where they have acknowledged that Alfred will never be on their side nor protect them, they still love that old man. They want him to be around, they would be sad at his death, but they know Alfred could and has hurt them. They know Alfred would choose Bruce over them.

The JL find out Bruce isn't actually dead with the Black Lantern battle thing.

Theoretically, other heroes can then start trying to save Bruce. Without canon Tim's information, though, they might not be able to. Bonus points to this batfam au if Oracle and others actively sabotage their efforts.

Gordon would be presented with all the evidence that Batman was an abusive piece of shit.

The Commissioner would try to bury any feelings of grief out of guilt for what he's unknowingly allowed his ex friend to get away with. If he knew that Batman was the same boy he threw a jacket over at the scene of that kid's parents' murder, he would sit at his desk with a bottle of scotch and a lit cigarette trying to figure out where it all went wrong. Jim would blame himself, curse Batman, and, as he curses himself for always allowing, do not a damn thing against what the masked vigilantes tell him to do.

Crime Alley and Bludhaven respectively probably would either not give a fuck, say "good riddance," or whistle at the fact the Bat's own kids refused to save him.

Gothamites know their vigilantes. If the batkids had refused to help Batman, than they trust the kids. There's nothing out there that would turn a man's entire family against him besides the man himself. By the end of the week, all Batman related stuff is burnt and replaced by the many symbols of the birds.

Anyone outside of Gotham (besides Bludhaven) will criticize the batkids. Gotham becomes fiercely protective over their birds after that and will fist fight anyone who tries to talk shit about them or their decision.

Fuck Joker, but here's how I think he felt about it.

Man definitely lost his shit in a fit of giggles. It seems (though Joker is slightly disappointed he wasn't part of the final showdown) that Batman was dragged down to the level of madness he swore he'd never go to. If Batman's kids turned against him, oh that must mean that the furry freak truly did horrendous actions against them!

That clown spends several weeks coming up with twisted fantasies and theories to ask out of the Birds to tease out their reactions for when he next sees them. He wants to know exactly how the Dark Knight fell and what was so dastardly to turn children against their father.

After he solves that mystery? Dealer's choice. He doesn't quite get as much joy without Batman around. He can play around with Red Hood and Red Robin specifically (if JJ happened), but nobody is the Dark Knight.

Maybe his melancholy turns into rage where he starts seriously gunning for all the Birds for not returning Batman to him. That, or Joker kills himself cause his nemesis/obsession is gone. Both are likely responses.

Anyways, I also love the positive notes you had that I didn't address. The hopefulness of them doing better for Gotham and Jason adopting Duke is fantastic. I'd love more of that as well as everything else

[gothamite-rambler]

Dimensional Crossroads: Jason

Inspired by a fanfic, this story revolves around Jason Todd from the current canon and a version from an alternate timeline in which he survived. Random portals have been opening throughout the world and in Gotham. In a twist of fate, Jason slipped through one, finding himself in a reality where he lived, while another version of him, unfortunately, fell through a portal into the main world. As the portals continue to open, chaos ensues—an all too familiar situation in Gotham, to say the least.

Bruce: Right, don’t freak out, but the Jason over there isn’t our Jason. He’s from another dimension where he didn’t die at the hands of the Joker.

Tim: Oh, so you didn’t mess up in that dimension and save him in time?

Bruce sighed, rubbing his forehead in frustration.

Bruce: I honestly thought Dick would say that.

Tim: He’s just in shock.

Dick had already approached AU!Jason, who was sipping from a cola can. The alternate version of Jason looked around in confusion before offering a sincere smile and waving.

Dick (shocked): Who are you?

AU!Jason, from a world where he survived and was a semi-normal Batkid, looked down at his red shirt and then back at his brother.

AU!Jason: I’m Jason.

Dick (doubtful): ...Nuh-uh.

AU!Jason (doubling down): I am.

Dick (pondering for a second before chuckling): ...Nuh-uh. You look genuinely happy with life. Who are you really?

AU!Jason (chuckling with a genuine smile): I’m Jason Todd. I’m your brother… well, I’m your brother, but that version of you does look slightly different from you. He's a cool guy, by the way, so I imagine you are too. It's crazy that I'm here; Bruce told me I died in this world and then got brought back. Trippy, right?

Tim (raising his voice): Did he tell you how you died?

Bruce smacked Tim on the back of the head.

AU!Jason: Yeah, we talked about it a few hours ago. I’d be mad like my version, but probably not in the burning bridges way he acted. I’m not sure; that hasn’t happened to me.

Dick (smiling): You look so�� I love my brother here, but this is nice to see too.

AU!Jason: Thanks, man. I can't believe this place looks so similar to my dimension. Glad the portal didn't drop me somewhere post-apocalyptic.

Dick: Yeah, portal jumping is weird. It's why I could never understand that video game about portals or that dumb movie, Jumper.

AU!Jason (confused but not upset): I oddly get that. You know what? I like you. You're close to being like my version of Nightwing.

Dick: Aww, thanks.

Tim (enraged): So, he’s from a world where he didn’t die and he still looks like that? He’s still tall and buff?! Damn it!

Tim stomped off angrily.

AU!Jason: Oh, thank you! My dad and I work out together.

Bruce covered his smile with a napkin upon hearing that. Dick glanced at him with a judgmental glare.

Dick: He said his version, don't get excited.

AU!Jason: Was the kid that left supposed to be the new Robin?

Dick: Yeah.

AU!Jason: Oh, neat! Good for him. There's a version of him in my world, but he's not as… temperamental.

Dick: We had to deal with a version of him that is Joker 2.0, and he's still upset about it. This entire situation is terrifying for me, but we’ll get you back home. That explains why our version is missing, and… God, I hope he’s okay.

AU!Jason: Aww, you care about him that much?

Dick (lying): Yep, definitely not worried about your Batfamily that he’s probably cursing out at the moment.

AU!Jason (shrugging): They’ll be fine. What can I do for fun around here?

Dick: Um… want to go to an arcade?

AU!Jason: That sounds fun, sure! Does Bruce want to come—well, I mean this version of Bruce?

Dick: He doesn’t usually enjoy those places—

Bruce (calmly, suppressing his joy): I’ll get my coat! Thanks for inviting me!

Bruce happily left the room to grab his coat and wallet while Dick shook his head in annoyance.

Dick: Of course he’d act this way.

Pt 2.

[marytvirgin]

I like my whiskey the way I like my men

- John Price x f!Reader (Death)

Reader have tatoos... Lots of them.

I'm thinking of using this as a plot for a fic. Tell me what you think.

Be added to the Tag List!

PART TWO!

You didn't expect your night to be like this. But oh boy, this is better than you expected.

Tight black dress with thin straps with an opening on the right thigh that almost shows the strap of your black panties. Loose hair around the face, silver earrings on the ears and dog tags hanging between the neckline of the breasts. High-hein boots stiletto. Bare arms revealing the skin covered in black and white tattoos, some specific spots colored in red – patterns of roses, knives and guns cover the entire length of both arms.  On your back, the large "La Muerte" tattoo appeared through the neckline of the dress.

And this type of clothing, which shows so much of what makes you you are not ideal to be close to a superior. But how were you supposed to know he'd be there just that night?

Captain Price.

A living legend.

You didn't notice him at the bar, too distracted by your companions of the night. All old army friends, gathered at a table in the centre of the bar. At this point, some men had already approached your desk trying their luck with any of you. You laughed while listening to them. Beautiful boys, but too young for your preference.

You like those who wouldn't piss you off for minimal and childish things, those who knew how to deal with women, really deal with instead of just trying to wet their dicks. The guy who'd go down on a woman and make her legs tremble; fuck your brain. Yes, that's your type.

And usually that means older men.

"Girl!" Your friend, Dani, poked you with a suspicious smile. "There's a man here who's very much your type!"

"Where?" You asked, smiling too.

Dani was that one type of friend who almost a hundred percent of the time showed you the guys you'd spend one or even a few more nights with. She knew you well enough and seemed to have a radar for good fucks. A sixth sense that benefited you – a lot.

"On your six. He's with some beautiful friends too. You must take a look!"

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. Uh-oh. I'm sure you'll climb him like a fucking spider monkey. "

Shaking your head, you laughed. But the laugh died in your glass when you turned to look.

Jesus fucking Christ.

Sitting two tables behind yours was a group of four men. With his back to you was what appeared to be a mountain of muscles, the hood of the sweatshirt pulled over your head. Next to him was another strong man, fair skin and a mohawk on top of his head – this one was smiling. The other man was the smallest on the table, but still strong. This one has black skin, low cut hair and an extremely fun smile dancing on his lips – as if enjoying an inside joke with the mohawk guy.  All extremely familiar to your taste.

But it was the last man you noticed that made you choke on your drink and turn to your friend, your eyes wide while coughing.

He's big, the second largest on the table. Well-combed brown hair, soft beard spread across his face, bright blue eyes, medium lips. The leather jacket makes him look even bigger. Lord, you still remember the serious and soft voice he has.

Dani is right, you could really climb Price – if he let you.

"Fuck!"

"Girl, what-"

"That's Captain Price!" Your voice came out half-shouted, half-whispered.  "He leads the task force 141!"  Dani eyes go wide as she recognized the name.  "That's 141!"

You've been on the field with Captain Price before, the man is a force of nature when leading. You had saved Price two years ago in your first deployment with him, and then worked as the man two more times. Not only that, but you know the big man too, even if you can only see his back. He is Lieutenant Ghost; you had been deployed to him in Al Mazrah three months earlier. Extremely confidential mission, hand-picked team. And he had picked you.

Those are two of the men who had your respect to the maximum level.

"The captain?

"Himself!"

"Oh… "

Wait… oh Lord.

"Were you talking about him?!”

"I think so. Can you judge me?  He's your type." She smiled as her eyes were wide-eyed. "Why don't you go there? Say hi, ask him how he's doing..."

"Are you going crazy?!".

"Whoa, I don't see the problem.  With all this desperation, it seems like you have a crush on the man… "

You do, but she doesn't need to know that - she already knows, probably. This bitch.

"Dani, he was my captain in three deployments! Not to mention the lieutenant! The man can kill me if I bother him, really! " Ghost is not at all bad, just silent, focused, not so funny.  Fucking dangerous.

Dani frowned and stared at you for a moment.  You took it as a victory for her to drop the subject.

"In addition, our field of operation is the same. Both of us are SAS. That would go against the rules of our book.”

 It's a shame.

A smile opened on Dani's lips, not the kind you like. "I dare you to go there and buy a drink for the captain. In front of him, so he knows it's you."

May God kill you now.

There it was. The word "dare" moved you.  You have a problem not knowing how to lose or not proving that you were capable of something. She knows that. Your weakness. You've almost been arrested because of this before, got yourself into so much trouble in your recruiting time because of dares. But...

You think that if you defied death so many times that you've come to the point of being compared to it, you've even won the callsign Death...

You can do that.

"You are a cunt! Challenge accepted. "

Dani's laugh was too high for your taste, attracted looks you didn't want. Drinking your other friend's tequila shot, you got up and started walking to the table of 141. One by one, the men at the table have put their attention on you – it's not their fault, your clothes and tattoos make it very difficult to ignore you.

Fuck, you can't do that!

"Sergeant Death, some time without seeing you." Price greeted you as soon as you got to the table.

"Captain." You nodded lightly. "I've been busy. You know, Laswell loves me." Price opened a smile and pulled the chair free from the table for you to sit on. "Lieutenant Ghost." You waved to the man a little more serious.  "Boys." The other two at the table waved, looking shocked.

"To what do I owe the honor?" Price asked, arching one of the eyebrows. Eyes gleaming in the dim lights of the bar.

God.

Help.

"A dare." You said before you could hold it. Better be honest.

"What was the dare?" Price asked, leaning his elbows on the table, leaning slightly towards you.

Oh. That move, you've had guys do it before. Same look, same inclination. God help you not to be misunderstanding the situation.

His left eyebrow rose slightly. The man's movement made a wave of confidence spread through you, a predatory smile opening on your red-painted lips revealing pearly white teeth. Your eyes moved across the table briefly taking in the reactions – all but the lieutenant had a slight glow of surprise in his eyes.

"Buy you a drink and make it clear that I did it."

"Damn it. She really went to this." The mohawk guy whistled softly at the darkened skin guy next to him.

You sat slightly leaning to the captain's side, passing one of the tattooed arms over the back of your own chair. The neckline on the breasts more prominent. Through the corner of your eyes, you saw Dani and the other women at the table spinning their jackets over their heads – Dani let a wolf whistle escape.

"So, what are you drinking, Captain?" Price chuckled as he looked you deep into your eyes.

"Whiskey."

"Hmn... "

With a shake from your hand, you called the waitress to the table and asked for another two doses.  The waitress, knowing you well, smiled blinking one eye when you whispered to her what whiskey you wanted. As soon as she put the glass on the table, John picked it up and tried the drink. The man's eyebrows rose in surprise for taste.

"Surprised, sir?"  You laughed lightly, really enjoying having impressed the man.

"I didn't expect you to know good whiskeys, I admit."

"You want to know my secret?" You asked, leaning slightly forward as the cup hid your growing smile. Price waved confirming. "I like my whiskey the way I like my men... I like them older."

The rest of the dose went down your throat, burning your stomach along with the tequila. You rose from the chair still smiling like a wolf that cornered his prey and supported a hand on the shoulder of the man looking into his eyes.

"They always taste better."

Price's eyes darkened slightly, his expression shifting to something slightly wild. Fuck, your body's heated up – and maybe it's not the drink responsible.

"See you around, sir."

You left the table, listening to the whistles of the two men you didn't know while they were messing with the captain.  Looking over your shoulder, you noticed that John had not turned his gaze away.

Maybe he is the wolf now...

And you're the prey about to be cornered.

Fuck, you can come, Captain. I’m waiting for you.

[vechter]

Top 5 Dick headcanons?

1. dick having long term impacts from blüdhaven being bombed (n52 i'm furiously pretending you don't exist)- i just don't think dick should ever be able to talk about the city he chose to protect that got nuked bc he got under a cringe old man's skin. even years later, he wakes up from nightmares about chemo being dropped. he can't talk about it. it's his biggest failure, his biggest what-if. he can't talk about it still. the guilt occasionally threatens to eat him alive. if he had never vowed to protect it, would it still be standing? also i know continuity about where exactly he was at the time is confusing- infinite crisis puts him in new york but his own solo has him in the thick of the action in blüd, which is my personal preference. i would also like to see long term impacts from the level of radiation he was exposed to. a few chemical burns, possibly sterility (an interesting thing to explore that his parents' legacy biologically dies with him- he is the last grayson. but persists in the way he has taught those around him to fly and catch.) plus i want bruce to feel insane about this because no one else will understand how dick feels about a city like bruce does. also, bruce regretting not having stepped in earlier when dick was in the mob or the circus was burning down. it's one of his biggest regrets, too.

2. dick moves back to new york after bruce comes back bc new york has always shepherded and saved him. he went there when he lost robin, when he lost blüdhaven. preferably, he moves in with donna or roy because the year he spent being batman changed something intrinsically in his code and he needs to be around people who love him for him. he doesn't know how much of it was an act, how much of it was the mission, how much of it was grief. he never wanted to be like bruce and yet. yet. also a big fan of dick convincing tim to move to san francisco with young justice after bruce comes back because he is seeing what gotham, what batman is doing to his brother. tim stays there for a year, attends college before upping and moving to new york, instead. far enough from gotham but still tethered to batman. it is a little brother's prerogative to copy everything your big brother does <3

3. he and cass have a complicated dynamic. they both see and understand bruce in a way no one else does. it can sometimes be a good thing because they feel seen. but it also leads to conflict and subsequent resentment and hurt. and they both feel guilty about it because they know the other person has nothing but good intentions and their heart in the right place. also, dick is an intensely private person so for cass to be able to clock his lies, his performative nature- it often feels like too much. people are always watching him but cass sees him. and i don't imagine dick being too pleased about that. meanwhile, cass, to whom bruce and babs are probably the most important people, also feels a degree of resentment that they both are so intensely abnormal about dick, even when dick lashes out/hurts them. i miss cass throwing dick out of windows, it was so fun. but also, their entire approach to vigilantism and the concept of perfection. there is so much untapped potential for them to have excellent conflicts and resolutions. also idk where i saw this but cass being unable to do a quadruple and dick privately gloating about that. hilarious <3

4. recurrent knee pain. listen, the boy is an acrobat and he tends to stick his landings on unforgiving terrain like concrete and roof-tops. plus, firefly shot him in his right leg and he spent a big chunk of canon on crutches and wearing a brace. sometimes, your body recovers from an injury but it is never the same again. a notable part of the pain is also psychosomatic. it reminds him of one of the worst times in his life- the circus burning, his apartment being blown up, blockbuster, tarantula, etc. and how much of a failure he thinks he was during that time. like i said, the guilt often threatens to eat him alive so ofc the long-term, intermittent pain of an injury like that is mixed with immense mental stress as well.

5. his most intense and most private thoughts about jason and tim. things he hates himself for thinking, things even truth serum or magic or whacky comic shenanigans wouldn't pull out of him. bruce took on jason as robin to get over the pain of losing dick and somewhere deep, deep inside, dick resents both of them for it. because jason died in his colours, under his name. and now they all live in a post-jason world, jason included. and maybe if bruce had never had jason, he wouldn't have ever lost him and bruce could still be the man/god that dick unquestionably put his faith in.

building up on this, their first real interaction after bruce punches dick for confronting him about jason's death is primarily because of tim. tim is the catalyst for the events in a lonely place of dying.

and while i don't subscribe to the bruce-is-abusive-camp, i think exploring scenarios where dick leaves bruce for good is so compelling. like i don't fuck with batman beyond and don't claim to be super knowledgeable about those runs, but what is enough for dick? what would make him abandon bruce? what would make him come back? it's so neat to explore. and i think in a world where dick decides bruce is unforgivable, he would come back for the kids. in fact, he does come back for terry and bruce is perhaps the most expressive we see in terms of his regrets about dick, about missing dick, about hurting him but dick doesn't really want to listen.

and i think, that interaction post jason's death altered their dynamic fundamentally. it makes dick go to therapy lol. and we never see on-screen resolution of that, just a continued glimpse into bruce's worsening spiral. so, i think, it's interesting to consider how dick would view tim's role in this. like yes, he loves and adores tim (a thousand ninjas wouldn't be enough, the closest thing i have to a little brother).

but does he privately wonder what would have happened if tim hadn't come in and dragged them both in a situation where they have no option but to co-exist semi-harmoniously? it took tim for them to talk again but is that really for the better? or for the worse? because dick's devotion to bruce is not only detrimental to his mental health, it is often straight-up dangerous for him. and while dick may be unable to recognize the mental strain it puts him under, he would probably have a sort of inkling of the physical harm. taking back blackgate all alone for bruce, the time bruce hits him when he thinks gordon is dead, the time he jumps in front of a blast aimed for bruce, the time bruce has superman's powers and beats dick down when dick calls him out.

6. a fun, small one. he had a threesome with kory and roy in the outsiders era exactly once. it made sense because he loves them and he knows they loved donna just as much as he did. it was soft and fun and a very transparent attempt to get dick to let down his walls. dick left when they were both asleep, cried when he went home and they never spoke of it again.

[meanbossart]

Massive ask compilation time OH LORD

YES, her journals are a fun read. I somewhat wish there was more to her and The Dark Urge's interactions, too - she's wonderfully evil and clearly very attached to you if you're playing as that character, but I had hoped there was more of a reason for her obsession besides just "you were fun to cut up", haha. I remember reading her journal over a couple of times looking for something I might have missed.

His reaction was pretty in line with the Narrator's cues, just immediate rage over what she had done to him - DU Drow may be a masochist but that's reserved for people he cares about! So, her and her posse met a swift end. Also, despite the fact that the whole tadpole thing turned out being for the best, I think he's easily overtaken by resentment over his lost glory-days whenever faced with it so directly (he misses living in obliviousness) - not to mention his profound fear of vulnerability, and of feeling... Small. The way Kressa spoke to and of him would have absolutely shook him to his core, especially by doing so in front of the others.

[MORE UNDER CUT]

THANK YOU so much for your kind words first of all! As for the question, it depends a bit on the timeline; his dislike of female drow, especially at the start of his tadpole'd journey is pretty irrational and faith status wouldn't be of too much relevance, he just thinks It's in their nature to want to put him down and be conniving, and wants nothing to do with them.

Later, and especially post-game, he might at least give them a chance to prove they aren't "like other drow", though it would take him a lot to ever let his guard down entirely - UNLESS you seem like a complete fool LOL he's actually easy to trick into dismissing you as long as you don't mind playing the role of a dumb idiot.

But if not, he'd have an extremely short patience for any attempts to exert authority over him or his actions - or jokes at his expense, or any level of smugness or secrecy. Nymea would definitely feel kept at arms length because of the gender+race combo alone and have to put up with a lot of snideness. Basically, she'd have to treat this 6'4" feet tall freak with kids gloves to ever develop a rapport LOL

But also... The vampirism may "help"? He'd consider her a "lesser drow" for it. In that regard her attitudes toward Astarion would probably come to be relevant. I'm not sure about that aspect of it to be honest!

First of all, this is a hysterical scenario because he Would just fucking put the ring on without thinking about it LOL so thank you for the laugh that mental image just provided me with.

Oh he wouldn't care though. I mean, he dislikes drow in general, but he is a drow (up for debate, but you know, generally speaking) and he thinks he's pretty great. As long as he's still huge and strong he could wake up a woman tomorrow and not give a damn. And, frankly, his dick could turn into a pussy at any point in time and it wouldn't change anything about his character save for having to add a recurring UTI problem to his character sheet - he'd probably have fun with it.

TOTALLY FAIR, I'm very sorry it went past the point of enjoyment for you, but I'm glad you knew when to put it down!!! We're in our hand-holding and elf-smooching era now with the occasional visceral description of violence LOL SO YOU'RE WELCOME IN IF YOU'D LIKE. Thank you for dropping by!

Just putting this here because - I actually haven't decided yet, so that's pretty funny you asked LOL I'm leaning eyes closed though, nothing like a smooch to calm the big weirdo down.

HAHAHAH WELCOME BACK, I've been around this whole time! But I was hanging out on twitter for the most part. HOPE YOU'RE INTO THE DND STUFF LOL

DROW DURGES RISE UP I'll be honest with you friend, DU drow's lore has been as accidental as something like that can be, so much of it has felt completely organic in the way it came up - I guess that's what good RPG does to your brain. The rest of it has just been a wonderful opportunity to develop my writing that I decided to take full advantage of this year. Thank you so much for the lovely message!

---

Aaaaand I can barely muster something to say that feels like an appropriate response, but again I wanted to acknowledge all the sweet compliments people take the time to leave in my inbox. Some of you guys' comments about the things I create blow me away, I think I'm pretty confident in my art but... Damn, makes me so happy to know the stuff I create can hold a little special place to some folks. Thank you all so, so much for taking time out of your day to spread a little kindness around, and make mine a little better.

Again, thank you all for humoring me, have a lovely day folks!

[coinoperatedbird]

*Neil . . . . . . . . oh dis about to get long and unfriendly...

Second of all - jesus.fucking.christ.on.a.crutch.at.christmas.uphill.in.a.god.damn.yeti.lickin.blizzard.... did you get tired of harassing the H.P. RP community and come here looking for attention? wat the actual fuck my guy? fuck off. im not responsible for Neil**'s actions anymore than Pablo's responsible for them. so take that entirty and fuck right the fuck off with it. preferably very far and away from me. like...the bottom of the the grand canyon. how you get there is entirely up to you. now...

Ok that that bit of the ugly is out of the way...lets move on to the other part of it.... Third of all-- two hundred years? are you a flat earther too? like i mean on top of being an entire tit stuck to a dick? TWO HUNDRED YEARS? How fucking uncultured you are, dear. Like so uncultured that i'm slightly afraid for those around you with your kind of lack in awareness of knowledge. srsly a two second google search would have shown you this...(please see below)

Now in case you also aren't aware of how centuries work...the 17th century covers from the year 1600-1700. (also a fun fact you could google but im saving you the time aren't i just so nice.) And so like last I checked in with the laws of mathmatics....1700 subtracted from 2024 equals 324. So even if we assume the story of little red cap started there and did not originate from any other earlier tale that's still---124 years more than your 'guess'. which is seriously all i can think of you did. guess i mean. had u done ur research clearly we wouldn't be here regarding that part of your ugly statement.

But let's talk about that for a minute yea?

10th century 900-1000 Little Red Cap was first told as an oral tale.

Taken from Google for ease : (Many scholars believe the story originated as a spoken folktale among European peasants as early as the 10th century.)

Now you might say oh that's vague there's no proof how can you prove it all they did was talk, blah blah blah. Go have a sit down with a literary historian, they're much more equipped to explain that to you in a way you would understand. yes i really just told you to go ask someone else because i can not in fact bring my iq down to ur level to explain it to you. its a flaw. im aware of it. i apologize.

Moving on, lets assume u've now had that nice chat with that extremely more qualified and patient person than my self historian. That out of the way we're heading into the next issue with ur nasty wee words...

the 10th century aka 900-1000 is still quite a bit more than 200 years before the 19th (thats 1800-1900) by around what 800 years give or take? and even further from where we are now which would be...2024 minus lets call it 950 for fairness....that's 1074 years again give or take a little. so what do you think that means? did you work it out? you got it? that's right! the story of little red cap and the big bad wolf is approximatly one thousand and seventy-four years old. good job!

Now i can hear you going 'AH HA GOT U! LUKA WAS CAST OUT IN BC AND HIS STORY DIDNT POP UP UNTIL AD!'

That statement is true. well done. but that literally has jack to do with when or where we think his story first got spoken. We know it was a spoken story because it was passed down for ages in other countries that the grimm brother's never visited and yet those people knew the story without every having heard of the grimm brother's book let alone read it. so explain that. can you? i can. its very simple....

all we know is that's as far as memory went. aka that's as far back as the last story teller said it was. let me try to put it another way that's easier to follow... Story teller #10 (for 10th century) - he tells the story...but where did he get it from? the story teller before him. and where did that story teller get it from? most likely the story teller before her. and while that story teller may not have enjoyed the tale and there fore did not tell it often her replacement perhaps did like the story but never had a chance to tell it to anyone but his replacement. and that one (#10) took his master's grief of never having gotten to tell it and told the story many times over his life.

so what does that tell us? that tells us that the story of little red cap and the big bad wolf COULD REALLY HAVE originated hundreds of years prior maybe even thousands. We honestly do not know how old oral stories could be because there is no actual way to tell when the story was first woven to pay for a spot by the fire, or perform there duty in the tribe, etc. srsly we don't know. all we can know is however far back human memory goes, and what we find in stone that's survived. that's the only history that's concrete and funny how not even that is because its the victors that write the histories and the victors always put themselves in the best light they can manage.

BUT NOW LETS TALK ABOUT IRELAND AND WOLVES.

Its one of my favorite topics! why? because there's just so many gosh darn wolves in irish mythology and it kinda irritates me how often they're looked over and forgotten. did you know that ireland actually used to HAVE wolves but they were hunted to existion? did you know that? DID YOU?! No? GOOGLE IT.

Now a super COOL thing about wolves and ireland...(see below)

yea they were actually seen as GOOD things back then. do you have any idea how loved Luka would have been back in the day? just seeing him was a sign of blessing. his pawprints left in the mud under ur window sill a sign of great fortune because he accepted ur gift. do you really not understand just how far he fell? he was the favored servant of a favored and feared GODDESS u uncultured swine. bright and beautiful and terrible. and he was twisted into this half life creature with no end and only the dark that hears him all because of a fucking MISTAKE. because immortal servant or not he'd been human once...and humans error. Fourth and final - - "2 dimensional half assed villain"

you've clearly not read a shred of anything regarding Luka and his background or read a single one of his rps, at all. how do i know? because my rp partners wouldnt lie to me. they've protected me from liars before and fuck u very much but im gonna trust them over ur greyed out glassy douche bagged ass.

The Big Bad Wolf as I protray him in my own mythological universe is not a fucking villain. he is not a fucking hero either. he's fucking tired is what he is. and so am i. so fuck off and fuck you.

TL;DR : let me utterly frank...this hill is not a hill i will die on. this hill is a hill i will slay everyone else on. period. Luka is MINE. i made him. i fashioned him as i saw fit. and he will use the fc i fucking decide to use. i dont give a shit what your opinion is. go get help.

tellin' my ass i should be ashamed. bitch u wouldn't know shame if it ran you over with a mack truck. fuck off.

[eisforeidolon]

"I think the one that still boggles me the most is Lucifer stans mad at the Winchesters for being SO MEEN to him."

Please tell me this is not actually a thing? Good grief. Lucifer is a great villain in early seasons, and transforms into little more than a giant bag of dicks as the show keep bringing him back past his expiration date. If anything, the Winchesters should have been MEANER to him. Guh!

So, on a slightly related but different note, I love that Sam is never nice to Crowley, and I see a lot of people crap on him for it because Crowley's fun abd charismatic and occasionally an ally. But, Crowley is a very very bad person, and he has done both petty and hideous things. He manipulated Dean into getting the MOC, for cripe's sake. Sam is wise to not trust him. Also, Dean is mean to him, too in Season 10, manipulating and lying to him. And I say, GOOD!

This doesn’t mean I don’t like Crowley the character, but when people hate on either brother for not trusting or being nice enough to the constantly or occasionally evil supernaturals in their lives, all I can do is roll my eyes.

No one on this show is entirely trustworthy all the time, and that includes both brothers, so people shouldn’t get too uptight about others criticizing characters from time to time. It’s just the harping on one brother constantly (Sam or Dean), and painting them as the bad guy, out to ruin the ither's love, that is ridiculous.

I wish I could tell you it wasn't a thing, but I definitely came across it when I was still going into the general tags. Blocked and never looked back. I'm not telling anyone what they can and can't get out of a tv show or any other media so long as they aren't being dicks to other people about it, but sometimes I Don't Get It and I Really Don't Want To.

Things with villains in the latter seasons of SPN just get ... weird. It's like they kinda tried to redeem all of them and make them the Winchesters' buddies? But in a really half-ass way most of the time? Like, I genuinely like some of those characters, but they did some evil shit. Meg got Jo and Ellen killed, attacked them several times, and was part of Bobby ending up in a wheelchair. We met Rowena torturing random hotel workers on a ceiling. Gabriel killed Dean a whole host of times and was an even bigger coward than we knew. Crowley held Bobby's soul hostage, killed several people they saved including Sarah Blake, talked Dean into the MoC, prevented Lucifer from going back into the Cage, etc. And don't even get me started on Eugenie's Thing about Lucifer and how they wanted Sam to be joking around with him (which apparently some people would have been into that, SMH). It was like they couldn't stand to just let evil characters be evil, or at least let the Winchesters consistently treat them as if they were as untrustworthy as they actually were.

So yeah, getting all up in arms about Sam being mean to Crowley is just ... do you not remember all the shit Crowley has done? Like, even when he was technically sort of on their side he was constantly being a self-serving manipulative dick! C'mon! He's a great character but the furthest thing from a trustworthy ally.

Some fans really do seem to get to a point where they don't want to even try to sympathize with or understand the characters that aren't their faves while excusing the characters they like from pretty much anything and everything.

[evesaintyves]

for @remadoramicrofics 10/5 prompt, "Midnight." Nine 100-ish word drabbles. Read below or on AO3 🍻

 

1

The streets are shiny with all-day drizzle and they double the colour of the neons and the traffic lights and and the creature-eyes of cars. Young girls flocking down the avenue like calling birds. The fuzz and whine of a band tuning. And Tonks's eyes are smokey dark—Remus can't tell if she leaned into a mirror to line them with kohl, or simply squeezed them shut and changed them from within—and her lips are like glossy red lacquer. She's smiling, pulling his lapels to make him stumble into her. He's stumbling. He's letting it happen.

 

2

It's already midnight and he's due at work by four. He's just started, hasn't been paid yet, so Sirius is buying drinks. If she knows, she's been nice enough not to mention it. It's been months of this uncomfortable charity and Remus has been lying awake thinking of what happens when it dries up. The plan is to squirrel some cash into the bag he keeps always-packed out of habit for whenever things fall apart; the reality is, he's never been good at that. There's always some crisis or some hundred small exigencies eating his savings until they're gone.

3

He's thought about telling her. Not just tonight because he needs to get some sleep, but because he entertains a silly fantasy of her dropping by when it's slow, of slipping her an espresso and one of his chelsea buns, and her delighted face: Lupin, you made this? Leaning over the counter, playing with his apron strings. It's idiotic, and it's not how that would go. There'd be questions ( working for muggles? Do you need the money that much? ) and there'd be the tacit admission that this, baking rolls and tweezing biscotti into piles, really is about the best he can do.

4

She mentioned, once, that she worked at Madame Malkins' for four days before being sacked.

Well, she said, cracking a licorice snap, it was partly because I altered the uniform—horrible long frumpy thing. I made it shorter, nipped in the waist. I also made it lime green.

And... the other part?

Told a customer to suck my dick.

She played the line completely straight, which made him laugh so hard he inhaled a mouthful of the crisps she'd brought him, and the two of them had sat chuckling, in the dead of night on a surveillance mission, for an absurdly long time.

 

5

But when he thought later about the various reasons he'd been sacked—too ill to work, or worse, too ill and showed up anyway, bosses thinking he was dopesick or high, bony arms and knackered clothes making it hard to argue—it left a sour taste in his mouth. He has smiled through rudeness, through undisguised smouldering contempt, to keep a paychecque coming in. Dignity is a luxury.

When they stop for pizza the place is slammed, the slices take an age to reheat, and Tonks rolls her eyes and mutters unbelievable when the kid hands over their greasy paper plates.

 

6

There was a girl at a bar, long ago when he was twentyoneish and still trying, who pulled at his clothes quite like Tonks is and let him kiss her in the fog of last-orders cigarettes outside. He was drunk, absolutely trollied, and when she yanked back from kissing him to look him in the face he could see that she was too.

You reek of chips, she told him, and hailed a cab.

He'd lost his job at the chippie moping about it in bed all week. Fifteen years later, he still worries that he has that stench on him—not just of shit work, but of desperation. Loneliness.

 

7

She buys an entire packet of fags to smoke one and throw the rest away.

I'll smoke them all if I don't, she shrugs. Three hours until work. He's sobering up, but she still has this glow about her, luminous and hazy as the bar-lights reflected on the street.

I ought to get you home.

Out of money?

Er—

She presses up against him. Her smoke gets in his eyes. There's no lipstick on the cigarette butt; it must just be her.

I don't want to go home, she says. I'm having fun. I could kick around on the street with you for hours.

 

8

He almost tells her, then, standing by the rubbish bin on the corner, bass vibrating the pavement, being jostled by hen-nights and lads in packs walking four-and-five-abreast. But tonight has been so lovely he'd like to preserve it under glass, keep it on a shelf, look down into the electric colour of it forever. If he told her, there'd be fumbling explanations, she'd muster herself to seem excited for him, the way she does. Not tonight. Not this one night.

So he bends to kiss her cherry lips instead.

He hates the taste of cigarettes. Still, it's heavenly. She slides her hands under his jacket and around his back.

 

9

Four-sixteen. He flips the switches. Fluorescents buzz like a headache. He's late because he indulged himself to brush his teeth and shave. Buns out to proof, then into the oven. Coffee grinding, that head-clearing smell. Closing shift left the milk out. Down the sink.

Before he flips the OPEN sign, when it's dark outside the windows and the café is just a bright box in a black void, it's easy to imagine: the bun fresh and steaming, her blue fingernails clinking on the little espresso cup. She takes a bite, makes a tiny wordless sound. Closes her eyes, lost in pleasure.

image by me

[zeroducks-2]

Can I request 12. “Just do it.” for Arkhamverse Jay? How about something painful for my sadomasochistic heart? Maybe Dick and Slade finding Robin Jason in Arkham, and deciding to take advantage of him? ���😈

12. "Just do it" - Arkhamverse!Jason/Dick Grayson(?) + Slade Wilson

this is not at all what you asked but it's what my brain decided to produce :') sorry about that. I hope you enjoy regardless!

Please proceed with caution, noncon and torture and dark shit below.

Jason can't feel his hands and wrists and barely has a notion of what's happening to his shoulders, but he knows he should be in pain. He's spent long enough in that position for the shoulders to pop out of their sockets and for the wire to cut through his forearms.

Nightwing looks at him like Jason is supposed to be looked at, a mix of disgust and contempt. «I should take you out of your misery.» He says, and Jason's head spins wildly as it gets tilted up by one of the man's sticks. Then he says something else but the static in Jason's ears grows too loud, and it's a hit to his face that snaps him out of it, strong enough for his cheekbone to crack.

«Answer, cockroach.» Nightwing is saying. «You look like you're going to beg for me to end it.»

«Just do it.» His tongue is so swollen it doesn't properly sit in his mouth, his words slur. It doesn't matter. Beside everything, he would prefer the man he once regarded as a brother to finally kill him, because Jason knows he isn't going to get out of this alive.

«I'm going to have some fun with you, first.»

His head lolls down once he's let go, and he doesn't have it in him to protest when fingers dig into one of his legs to pull it up and expose him. He thinks he can bear this. As soon as once it's over, it will be over forever.

He doesn't expect Grayson to be less cruel than anyone else, he knows he hated him. He hated how the Robin name was taken away from him, how it was given to a street urchin. Jason had thought for a time that maybe Grayson had grown fond of him, but once he'd found himself in the darkness of Arkham Asylum, he realized he was just being delusional about it. It's almost fair. It was all Bruce's fault anyway, he doesn't hold a grudge on Grayson for that.

«You're high as a kite, you little bitch...» The man huffs and grunts as Jason's body rolls, not really responding to anything but with raspy groans. There's another blow to his face and his temporal bone cracks loudly, and this time the pain is there, enough to make him clench and whimper. «That's better. I don't mind if it's gonna take me to beat you to death to make you writhe on my cock.»

Did Dick really hate him that much...? Jason isn't exactly surprised but it still hurts somewhere inside of him where it was still not entirely shattered. He tries to blink and focus, maybe he should apologize. This might bevthe very last thing he says, he needs to at least try. But then he sees blood coming from the tip of a sword that pierces Grayson's chest, so he looks up and sees his wide eyes, mouth open in quiet shock.

The sword pulls back and blood splatters on Jason's chest and neck, then it returns and slices the man's throat. A moment later they're both falling, and Jason is distantly aware that the recoil is going to likely rip both arms off his torso but he can't bring himself to care. It doesn't happen though. He's held as Grayson's limp body slips away from him, and he keeps being held while his arms get detached from the hook keeping them upright, then brought down. There's someone else with him, another man with a strange suit, orange and black split in the middle of his face. Jason doesn't care, his torturers all look the same to him at this point, except...

«Don't cry, kid.» The man is using something to cut the wires around his forearms. That hurts, but Jason just shudders at the sting of the metal getting peeled and plucked off of his flesh. «Save your tears for when we get the hell out of here.»

Jason can't stop looking at the man bleeding out on the floor. He just whimpers when his arms get popped back into the shoulder sockets, then tries to scramble away. Nightwing is dying right in front of him. «Let me go.» He whispers. «You...» He glances at the masked man, then back to the other on the floor, his breath coming in short. «You killed him, you...»

«I killed him.» The masked man doesn't move and Jason almost manages getting away, but his legs don't hold him up and his arms are functionally useless. He gets caught again before he can hit the floor, and this time it's more rough and it presses on everything which is burned, broken and bruised, making Jason wail between his teeth. «Calm down.» The man pulls up his mask and reveals white hair and an eyepatch. Slade Wilson, Jason remembers vaguely, Deathstroke. A mercenary who Bruce hated. Another villain, as he imagined. He killed Dick. «That man is not who you think he is.» He holds Jason steady and reaches down, lifts the dead vigilante up by the top of his head like a ragdoll. «Look at him. This is not Nightwing.»

Jason looks. The drugs are still fogging him enough but he looks hard enough, and he recognizes hazy dark eyes. Brown hair. Dick's hair has always been as black as Jason's if not more, and his eyes bluer than robin's eggs. This is not Nightwing.

This is just a man who dressed with an imitation of Nightwing's suit, Grayson has never been there.

«There's a commotion going on in the Asylum.» Deathstroke says and stands up, holding Jason like he was an old blanket. «Good time to go. The drug will wear off soon and the pain will set in, but I'm going to need you to be silent when it happens. As silent as you can be.»

The room shifts. Spins around him, disappears from Jason's view. He can't really move but he is indeed starting to feel the pain, his arms quivering and feeling like a scorching poker pierces his palms up to the balls of his shoulders. He's being taken away...? «Why?» He grits out, trying to be as quiet as instructed.

«I was hired to watch you.» The man answers. He pulled his mask back, Jason is not sure when it happened. «I've seen enough.»

The pain is growing, spreading to his face and his neck and blooming through his bruised belly and his broken ribs, coming from wounds old and new. He wants to pass out but he knows he won't get that luxury.

«Where?» He rasps, not sure it was audible in any meaningful way. He thinks of Grayson's face while the man was raping him. That was not Dick, and that makes him tear up again way more than the pain, not that he knows why. «Where...?» He repeats, involuntarily struggling, and the man makes a sound like he's trying to soothe a balking horse.

«Away.»

-

Thank you for the prompt Sands! Again, I assume this is not what you wanted but I am really sorry, I cannot write top!Dick to save my life lmao (also I love Daddy Slade when it comes to an Arkhamverse scenario) Also apologies for how long this was. If you got here, I hope you had fun nonetheless :)

Here's the prompt list for whoever wants to peruse it, or send me another prompt!

[spurgie-cousin]

update on quitting my soul-draining job (it's been like, a week i think since i told my boss i was finishing my last projects and quitting):

my manager actually didn't try to manipulate me into staying which was very unlike her and a pleasant surprise, bc all she talks about usually is how the entire dept is understaffed (and i've mentioned quitting before which she talked me out of). maybe she's planning on quitting too?

god the ✨RELIEF✨!!!!!!!!!! i've been conditioned to feel waves of panic at certain times of the day for so long lmao and now when they come i can just breathe and be like 😊doesn't matter anymore! insurance executives pressuring me? go at my pace or eat a dick! clients pissed off about something insignificant? wow sounds stressful good thing i won't have anything to do with you or this place in 2 weeks! department needs someone to pick up training or extra work? hmmm maybe there'd be more help around if you had a better environment with support for contractors sounds like a you problem. i feel zen af

i've actually had time in the afternoon to plan my garden this year and it's already so much better than a few hastily planted peppers and tomatoes. can't wait to do more with that.

i've had the time and mental energy to START A BOOK for FUN for the first time in like, a year.

nightly panic sessions about being bad at my job and how i'm not productive enough and therefore am a bad person who doesn't deserve anything good are waning and i think will eventually disappear.

i found a local CBT therapist in my actual town (a complete mind fuck as i've been looking for months and my area is a mental health wasteland) that i'll be starting in the near future! very excited to have that support in addition to the time and mental energy to work on my goals as far as ADHD/somatic depresh goes

i've also had the mental energy to pick up other forgotten hobbies and projects that i found fun, including Cult Book Club, which has been making me really happy. i'm almost done re-filming Jill Rod's book and i'm on a library waiting list for Jinger's book and I borrowed a copy of my aunt's cult leader's book from my mom and have been making outlines. i've decided to move everything over to tiktok though, which i think is just a more conducive platform for me while i work on focus and attention. youtube felt like way more of a time-consuming production and TT has just been coming more naturally to me, but i'll post more about that later on here and youtube when i have it all together (i have saved the cultbookclub handle on TT though).

all in all i'm feeling a lot more happy and hopeful and excited to focus on myself for a bit. if you need a sign to quit a job that is making your life miserable, this is it!!!

[mysteriouslybluepirate]

Cucumber Day 5 Watching Con's Filmography

(I also listened to a short story he'd been in, scroll down a bit on my page and you'll find it. For everyone who watched this and needs a refresher only on Con, someone finally posted a compilation on youtube. If you haven't seen the series, you'll probably be lost. But I'm sure its a fun out of context watch)

Summary wrote after binging the entire series in one day.

Please, Please, Please go online and check every warning for this show. Not only for the graphic hate crime but see everything they warn about. Protect yourself. This review will discuss sexual topics, nudity, and substance abuse, and age gaps.

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

So the show. I think it was fun, not the best tv show, and has some mixed messages, but a fun watch.

I grew up in a household/town where sex wasn't discussed. Especially queer shit. This show is very in-your-face about it and I admire the shit out of it. The friendships felt lived in. The experience of being a young queer 'hunted' by older queers was explored enough to not make Henry a complete hypocrite, sadly. But the focus was always more on Henry, even in the end, Henry still got off on the image of a 20 something during sex.

Fully noting, I did skip scenes. Some things were just a bit much for me, so I took the liberty to save peace and move on. Yet, the show does seem to balance heavy moments with joy and comedy. Hell, during a fucking funeral, some guys need to go check their dicks for hair. And you know what, I feel that if Lance were there, he wouldn't even be suprised.

I loved Freddy. Holy shit, at first, I was worried about how he'd be treated, but by the end, I was rooting for him. Obviously, the guy is just so used to being hunted for his body. This topic was brushed on with the teacher, and not really felt by the plot or the characters around him. I'm happy he felt like he could leave and just grow up as a person. I'm so happy they let the audience see a time jump where everyone turns up okay, and happy.

I'm not a queer man, but I know this shit can resonate. I've seen queer men online discuss these same points. Predatory age gaps, the pressure to be hot, aging, commitment, and communication issues in relationships...This isn't the best show for all that to be taken seriously but I'll leave that discussion to that community.

So Con's character, Cliff, was right about Henry in episode 1, and I fucking love when writers do this shit. "You always did that. Never had affairs, just obsessions." Cause in the context, yes, Henry never cheated. But he never has deep relationships; he has brief obsessions until things get too serious and he needs to move on. Hell, In episode 8, that's the conclusion Henry comes to himself. "Maybe one day I'll come to terms to it...being gay". Cause he wants intimacy but fears men and getting close to people. It's that closeness he struggles with.

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

The things that bugged me about the series

The entire bit about the boys playing chicken for internet attention. Again, I know this is a thing. But now a days we legitimately have children doing this stuff unknowingly for people online. Or parents unknowingly showing their children on tik tok for millions of people. I know people who were groomed, and avoided it like crazy growing up as a kid online. I cringed every time this plot point was mentioned, feeling like a kid was a second away from getting hurt. It just felt a bit much to touch on for me in this type of show. Again, they tried to have their cake and eat it too by showing Harry get a slap on the wrist, but it just didn't feel like it justified the plot line being there in the first place. Seriously, what did it add to the story besides showing Henry that maybe he should go back home? He could have done so many other things. The only funny bit is when Cliff commented how fucking weird straight people are sometimes.

Cliff says in ep 1 he had a history of going after older men when he was young, and the age gap is boggeling. Again, this could mean he only had a crush on him. But if we're going to bring up how wierd it was, then why is this and the teacher sub plot where minors brought up the only time its mentioned. Like yeah, the teacher-student situation was fucked up. How about the 30 and 40-year-olds going after people in their early 20s. "I'm horrified to discover I have standards." Fun line Cliff, yeah. But they are literally minors. Age gaps and taking advantage of younger queers is a real issue in the queer community. There should 100% be a place to talk about it. But when every 'likable' character does it without issue, then it's still a problem. Hell, this is why Freddy's plot felt so out of left field in ep 8 with Cliff and him fucking before running off. I don't know why he did it, knowing that Cliff wanted him for his body? Or maybe he just wanted comfort after that argument and knew he'd get it by having sex? I genuinely want to know other interpretations. If Freddy felt like this, it would have been more satisfying for Henry to learn his lesson and not use 20-year-old Freddy as wank material for the next 6/7 years. Also, Freddy running away from Cliff with his pants down was just funny.

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

Now, wash most of that out of your head!

The fun part that we have all been waiting for-

TALKING ABOUT CLIFF COSTELLO

(Yes, Cliff is kind of a douche early on. Enjoying eyeing Freddy and praising Henry for leaving his boyfriend for a 'young boy toy'. But, as the series goes, it dies down. Cliff, pre-episode 6 was a fun jackass. Post-ep 6 is one of the best characters in the show and the best friend you could ask for.)

I have seen most gifs online for this character. The soft outfits, smoking, suits, smiling. And fucking YET. The three scenes to me that make me love this character are-

"And obviously, I could take a statement. Have a briefcase with me, files and a pen. Because solicitors get searched entering a prison just like everyone else, but I'd still have a pen. Because a pen is all I'd need, really. I think it would take me a second to lean across and insert the pen through his throat. Right here. At the base. Straight through to the spine. (I could do that.) He'd bleed out in seconds. Dead. So... that's what I'll do. With your permission." I need Izzy to do this speech. Please god. In all your infinite wisdom. In this moment, I 100% felt that this lawyer would murder the murderer of his friend in sheer rage with a fucking pen.

Cliff pulling up(no crutches *curtsies with a smile*) to save Henry's ass from saying something stupid to the cops after their place gets ransacked. Stepping in and ensuring Freddy doesn't assault someone in front of cops.

"I look forward to the tribunal because the law is magnificent in this regard. It's not up to us to prove homophobia, it's up to you to prove homophobia does not exist. Best of luck. Thank you." AHHHHHHHH Smarmy, confident, smiling Con, I love it. Maybe the hottest thing Cliff does in this series, the outfit, the glaring before hand, the confidence, and AHHH.

His stand-out moments are when he's being a loyal, caring motherfucker. Trust me, after days of seeing a sad, depressed, miserable Con, seeing him thirsting after men was fun. Seeing him make dick jokes and act like an 'Elder Gay' that protected his own did heal my soul. But there was just a fucking genuine happiness he brought to the role.

I love that, even though he's a character Henry can rely on, Henry would never stay at his flat. (Obviously, cause then the plot wouldn't happen, but I like to think they know they'd both bring out the worst in each other).

Henry uses him for his knowledge of the law when doing cagey shit. It's great. Like getting his job back or doing the whole weird shit mentioned above for extra money. Seeing Cliff doing his best to stay semi-professional and not visibly judge the shit out of Henry for essentially being a soft core pimp is so fucking funny. Also, his 'that's our song' speech, where he goes on about how people steal underground culture, was fun.

The funeral made me respect Cliff, as he knew how to handle the situation. Keeping the situation safe enough in public so that Henry could have his own time to break down.

When Cliff didn't push, let Henry grieve on his own time, it was beautiful. Many of us would have immediately pushed that boundary. Trying to let ourselves feel better by stopping someone else from having destructive emotions. But Cliff knows better. Hell, when Henry is crying we see Cliff tearing up. Showing that Cliff knows to just step back tells us so much about how these two men care for each other.

Now a tiny praise corner about writing an Elder Gay lawyer character-

The sheer joy in Cliff knowing he could use the 'law' to protect queer people. Both for Lance and for getting Henry his job back. If Cliff is as old as Con, he'd have been a lawyer starting in the 1990's. He would have in practice during queer legalization post-thatcher in the UK. There's a good reason he seemed to be the happiest when they got home after getting his job back. He would have been taught Section 28 as a queer man.

'The fight for sexual equality however, was far from over. Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, introduced by the Conservative Government under Margaret Thatcher, banned local authorities from ‘promoting homosexuality’ or ‘pretended family relationships’, and prohibited councils from funding educational materials and projects perceived to 'promote homosexuality'. The legislation prevented the discussion of LGBT issues and stopped pupils getting the support they needed. Section 28 was repealed in 2003, and Prime Minister David Cameron apologised for the legislation in 2009.'

He went from learning about all that shit as a young lawyer(who fucking survived the AIDS crisis), plus worse, to using ANTI DISCRIMINATION LAW for LGBTQ people! (kinda) So yeah. There's a very good fucking reason why that scene made me pause and stim for the fucking life of me. He was the happiest one when they came home, belting and smiling! So much has changed over his life and AHHH-

(This just hurts knowing this defence is all still legal where I live. And rights are being stripped every day... But hope still exists...yatta yatta.)

The friendship between Cliff and Henry feel so lived in. Burrowed and nestled. Clearly, Cliff has his own sad law show going on in the background and Henry is where he can let his (glorious) hair down.

I think it's funny as shit that when Henry panics and tries to find someone in mind to keep him in the moment sometimes he accidentally imagines Cliff. In a 'I've heard way to much about my friends sex lives so I think I know what it looks like' kind of way.

I also think it's funny that in the two times we see him in time jump to the future (At the table toasting Freddy and in Bed) Cliff is still not entirely gray after 6-7 years (obviously, they didn't think/want to age him up or do makeup just for a gag). However, Icon behavior.

His outfits? I would wear most of them. He is gender and life envy. Again, I think Cliff could have been a character to show how happy some people are without relationships. We get this vibe from him with the whole 'you're not tied down' speech, and I wish that was a concept explored more on TV.

He's the least depressed lawyer character I have seen on TV. If I could be a Cliff Costello type, I would go into law.

I think a good mix of the best parts of Cliff Costello and all of Val Pearson is who I want to be as an 'elder'(again, I turn 21 in January). Confident, loyal, willing to stick up for others, funny as shit. Maybe has a more stable love life than them, and hopefully not any substance addictions, but god. They just have so much joy when you know these characters had to have lived through such shitty times for queer people.

At first, I did this just to explore Con's work. But I think this has all helped me feel some hope for the future. What people need is support and love and a place to exist.

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

Overall ratings

Cinematography: 7/10. Fun edits. Fun motifs. Loved the opening, and the sound effects to suggest certain things to the audience was fun.

Story: 6/10. Would be higher but some shit just got stuck in my craw. Again, the show just got better and better as it went and by the end I just felt satisfied. Would be an 8 ish if not for my issues mentioned above.

Characters besides Con: 7/10. Everyone plays really fun parts. Everyone is shitty in their own unique way, and for the most part, they get what they deserve. Even if they haven't really learned their lesson yet (Henry, I swear to god you are on a wire). Satisfying arcs for everyone besides Henry, but that's the point. I'm happy the Collective wheedled out into a more realistic ending where these people could go on and live happy lives and not coddle the man.

Con: 8/10. He is so much fun, and he is having so much fun. I wish he was in it longer, but in every scene, he is in, he eats it up. He goes from serious lawyer to best friend in a flash and it just makes me so happy. Cliff is up there with my favorite performances, some of his actions just kill the vibe a bit for me. Again. Any series where Con smiles is a win. Also, I love that he bodied a character who uses movement aids, and it just made me more excited to see what he'd do with Izzy for S2.

OVERALL: 6-7/10.

Not an easy recommend but could be a fun rewatch when I start losing somd hope about our community, while trying to see the real issues that exist to this day...or see more people online criticize queer people for wanting to have sex.

I would love to know your opinions about Cliff, thoughts about my thoughts, and more below! Have a Lovely day/night, everyone!

Next on the docket: Kisses in the Dark. An 8 ish hour audiobook on Spotify! Seems to be a supernatural horror Staring Con O'Neill and Rhiannon Clements(hopefully not a romance, since, with the person I googled, the age gap is 28 years. It's a bit different with voice acting...but now that I know? eh). I will be listening to that on Saturday (the 17th), and will have my thoughts on that here soon. I've been warned it was recorded during the pandemic at homes. So if you want to join in, prepare yourself for that.

As always, some of you lovelies who suggested/commented on my last few posts! Thank you so much!

@ivegotnonameidea

@treesofgreen

[clanofjones]

Ghosts of Our Days: Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen ->

A/N: Fair warning, Casey and Raph get up to some... fun times, so if you don't want to read that, the beginning and end will be marked with red

Co-written with @theosb0rnway, as per usual!

Chapter Twelve: Assault and Amaze

Raphael found it weird that he loved laying on top of his own corpse, with his lover right beside him. Today was somehow perfect, which he never expected with the way that Casey had brutally murdered that cop. 

Sure, they'd both heard the sirens blaring almost all day, but it was... surprisingly relaxing to have the whole day to themselves, even in a building that looked like it could send them to their deaths any minute. The couple had spent practically the entire day on the icebox, Casey sleeping for the large majority while Raph kissed his face and told her loving words that he knew she would never hear. 

He'd also been working on a secret side project as he did so, hoping that Casey would be as thrilled as he was when he had finally achieved his goal. Seeing as she hadn't stopped kissing him since he made the big reveal, she loved it very much. 

Trying to be a loving boyfriend, Raph had woken him up with as many kisses as he could place on the older boy's face, then waited to see what happened next.

Casey’s POV

Casey wrapped her arms around his lover and pulled him closer, purring gently. 

WAIT. 

Pull him closer? 

The vigilante's eyes shot open as she saw his arms wrapped around Raph as if he was a solid being, then said turtle smiling at him, which was rare in itself. 

"What the!" 

"Surprise, babe! You like it? I've been practicing all morning!" 

"Holy shit, R-Raphie, I- I can't believe it!" He took his time running her hands up and down Raph's arms, then moved to his chest, still in awe. 

"I can't do it forever but for now-" 

(sex scene ahoy! Skip ahead if you like. Or don't! Just don't complain in the comments or tags :))

"Fuck me." 

This time it was Raph who was caught off guard. "W-What?" 

"I thought I lost you forever, Raph! If Casey Jones somehow has the opportunity to let you rail her again, you can bet your sweet ass he's gonna take it!" 

Raph didn't think he could blush, but if he wasn't dead, his entire body would be as red as his mask. "Oh- okay! I mean, there's nothing going on outside, you're safe somehow, so yeah." He softly gripped Casey's arms and flipped him on her back. "Can you take off your clothes for me? Wanna save up my energy." 

Casey nodded rapidly, stripping as fast as she possibly could. He didn't care where anything landed, and she was so used to the ice box that it didn't even bother his naked skin. He spread her legs, smiling in anticipation as Raph crawled on top her, his plastron pressing into Casey's chest, leaning his head down to lick and suck at her neck. 

Casey let out a loud moan, and Raph had to put a hand over his mouth. 

"Not that loud." 

"I can't help it when you do that! You're too good, Raphie, too good- oh FUCK!" 

Raph grabbed Casey's dick and started to stroke it, smirking as Casey bucked up into his transparent hand. 

"Casey, PLEASE, be quiet-" 

"Tell me to be quiet again and I'll find a way to flip you over and take you myself!" 

"What makes you think you can even try, Jones?" Raph's thumb glided over Casey's slit and the girl let out a choked moan. 

"If you keep teasing me-" 

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" 

"Hey, that's s’posed to be my line!" 

"It will be soon if you stay patient!" 

"Fuck being patient, I want you in me!" He whined, thrusting up against Raph. The turtle rolled his eyes. Casey Jones, impatient as always. 

"Suck?" Raph put his fingers to Casey's mouth and he took them in, sucking long and slow, still trying to comprehend that idea that Raph could do this. 

When he felt like he had enough of Casey's spit, he slowly slipped a finger in Casey's ass, enjoying the muffled moans it brought. Then he slipped in another, then the final finger, asking Casey if he could start moving and getting an eager nod in return. He pushed his fingers in and out, his brain ignoring everything except for the beautiful sounds his lover was making. 

"Raphie, I'm gonna-" 

"Nope." He pulled his fingers out quickly but carefully, Casey letting out a loud whine and grabbing at Raph's hands. "Don't worry, baby girl, you'll get there soon, just hang on-" 

The hands suddenly dropped to the bed and Casey let out a filthy moan. "Fuck, say that again!" 

"Baby girl... my baby girl." 

Casey sounded like one of her own victims from the way he was screaming, loud and long and muffled. 

Raph took the opportunity to slowly stick himself into Casey's hole, watching his expression as he did so. Despite the paint all over Casey's face hiding some of her smaller expressions, Raph could easily tell he was enjoying this. 

"Tell me when I can go, babe." 

"If you don't go now, I'm gonna throw you off the ice box!" 

"Got it." He slipped in all the way and Casey saw stars, her eyes closing and Raph leaning forward to kiss her as he moved in and out. It only took another minute before Casey came, biting harshly into Raph's ghostly skin. 

"Raphie?" 

"Yeah Case?" 

"Can we do that again?" 

"Course, baby, but I haven't even come yet!" 

"Oh." Casey muttered dumbly, still trying to gain back his half of the brain cell that he lost during her orgasm. 

He was so ready to go for round two, and round three, and round four... and then Shredder. Raph may exist, but Casey's vengeance wasn't even close to being over yet. But for the time being, she could enjoy this moment. 

(Y'all are safe now! LOL, enjoy the chapter)

"Can't believe we're having sex on top of the fuckin' death box." 

"RAPHIE!" The rest of the day was just as lazy, between eating chips, target practice with more crappy photos of Shredder, and the Sudokus Casey actually bought from the Walmart. 

"I still don't get it!" Casey stared hopelessly at his latest failed Sudoku puzzle. 

"Every row and every box has to have all the numbers, no repeats."

"But how do all of them not repeat? UGH! Screw Shredder! Casey Jones's mortal enemy is math!" 

She threw the book on the ground and groaned, burying her head in his arms. He could hear Raph laughing behind her, shaking his head at the chaos. 

"It's alright Case. I'll help you out, it's not that hard." He grabbed the book off the floor and set it back on the table, sitting down next to Casey and wrapping an arm around his back. He flinched a little, but it went away when Raph kissed her painted cheek. 

"Okay. Be my hero, Raphie! Save me from this demon humans know as math!" 

"Alright. So you see this square? Look at all the numbers, which ones are you missing?" 

"1, 2, 3, and 5." 

"Okay. So can 2 go there?" Raph pointed to a column where there was already a 2. 

"No." 

"So where CAN it go?" 

Casey scanned the columns, looking for one that didn't have a 2 in it. "That one!" 

"There we go! Now do the same thing for the other numbers and then for all the other numbers in the other boxes!" 

"But that's SO much work!" 

"That's why it's a puzzle, Case. It's 'sposed to be hard." 

"Can't I just go out and beat up the rest of those pigs? That sounds like WAY more fun than number boxes." 

"And ice boxes-" 

"Hey!" 

"But no. I ain't lettin you go out there Case, not after what you just did, everyone's after you now!" 

"Raph, I've faced worse than the fuckin’ POLICE, they're like ants underneath my hockey sticks!" Raph had had enough of this conversation. 

"Casey, JUST STAY HERE, goddamnit!" Casey flinched again, her hands balling up into fists as a reflex. 

"Raphael." His voice was deadly calm, hiding all the emotions she was feeling as well as he could. "If you EVER yell at me like that again..." Her voice started to shake as he whispered out, "W-We're done." 

"Casey, fuck, I'm sorry, I just- I don't want you getting hurt." Casey looked calmer now. "I know, and I won't. Trust me." 

Casey couldn’t recall the last time he’d broken a promise to Raph. At least not in any way that had mattered. Good thing she hadn’t said ‘I promise’, Casey thought to himself. 

Then, at least she won on a technicality. But she really hoped that ghosts didn’t have telepathy or some weird shit like that. The hard part was being able to sneak out. There had always been the fail-safe of just walking through Raph, but not only was that needlessly harsh, but it also wouldn’t have stopped Raph from trying to coax Casey back to the crappy apartment. But that wasn’t exactly viable anymore.

Not only could her boyfriend probably cart him back to the apartment with a decent margin of error (Raph had said he couldn’t do it for long, after all) but he was also a ninja, so sneaking away from said ninja would be difficult. And ghosts didn’t seem to sleep, for some dumb reason. 

But it would be an unreasonable amount of stupid to try and sneak out now. So she waited. 

And waited. 

And waited a little more. 

Until, finally, Raph decided to put his newfound skills to the test and retrieve the delivery pizza he'd begrudgingly let Casey order. Only it wasn’t right outside, the pizza delivery people always seemed to get spooked at the sight of a barren and run down apartment, particularly at the one room that looked like the perfect place to be murdered in and have your body tossed into a corner. 

So, the second Raph was out of eyesight, Casey nodded with a terse grin. There wasn’t much rhyme or reason she could apply to this situation – just apply the logic for getting the fuck out of dodge. 

So, naturally, he did what he always did when faced with a rough objective that equated to ‘get the fuck outta dodge’, and slid across the irregular, torn up floor to grab a duffel bag containing most of his equipment – equipment being weapons and spray cans – and ran for the knocked in wall. 

She jumped off the ledge, and launched the grappling hook, taking a sharp turn in midair, away from the side of the building with any windows he was visible from. It wasn’t particularly either of their faults – a gal’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do, right? 

If Casey felt any sort of guilt, it was about as faint as the faint string of expletives that, if he strained his ears, she might just have been able to hear from the old, ramshackle apartment. But Casey Jones didn't have time for that. 

He had some work to do. 

Donnie’s POV 

If asked how things were going, Donnie would have replied that things weren’t going at all. He kicked over one of the cork boards, and it fell to the ground with a mighty crash. 

“DUDE! What was THAT for? There’s some valuable research in there!” Mikey screeched, scooped some haphazardly drawn theories from the board, and flicked Donnie in the forehead, though not as hard as Raph might have. 

Raph… Donnie’s face contorted itself into a deep frown. 

They needed to stop creating senseless dead ends – Leo was right, in a sense. They needed to whittle out the possibilities from the chatter, and regroup with Raph and Casey. 

Then, once they were all accounted for and in decent enough health, they could continue in what seemed like an uphill battle to take the self-proclaimed ‘Skullshot’ out of commission and finally put an end to Oroku Saki, avenging their father. 

“We need to focus right now, Mikey. Unless we want to sit through another explanation from Leo on why we have to start patrolling again, we need to pack these up,” Donnie explained, and wheeled the board into a closet.

Mikey frowned, but Donnie could tell he got it.

Mikey frowned, but Donnie could tell he got it. “Yeah, sure, dude. Do you want a hand, or…” he made an odd gesture as an explanation. 

“No, it’s fine. Just grab your gear and meet Leo and April by the entrance.” As he carted two more boards into the closet, he heard Mikey’s footsteps grow further and further away. 

Weeding the decent ideas from the desperate would certainly be a piece of work, he knew that. 

Packing the cork boards up took much less time than he thought it would – the string that would have complicated things was flimsy, and probably found at the dollar store.

With his self-imposed task completed, he went and grabbed his gear. Giving his staff a test twirl, he marveled at how fast it moved for a raw millisecond, having not used it in quite a while. 

Donnie then brought it to a stop as one of the ends made a ‘thwack’ sound against the floor. He tightened the knot of his mask and strapped his right knee pad on – he’d gone without it for a solid week in a bout of the forgetfulness that came with sleep deprivation – before heading out. 

Donnie was the last to arrive at the entrance, with Leo, Mikey, and April all waiting, the leader tapping his foot to pass the time. Donnie slid in next to April, and Leo nodded at him. 

“Alright. We’re on a strict schedule this time. To make sure we’re on the same page, Mikey, what are we doing?” 

Mikey blinked, clearly unprepared. “Uh… We're gonna take out the new not-Casey?” 

“Right.” Mikey pumped a fist into the air. “I have a pretty good idea of where this self-proclaimed ‘Skullshot’,” Leo continued, making air-quotes around the title, “will strike next. Coincidentally, a gaggle of the Foot have grouped around an NYPD station. Given that the two groups that have been affected the most are the Foot and the police, it’s a safe bet that they will be in danger.” 

“Wait, but not-Casey’s fighting the Foot, so shouldn’t we just get the cops out and let not-Casey deal with the Foot? 'Cause it seems like they're on our side, bro!” 

“No, Mikey, we can’t do that.” Leo pinched the area of scales where his nose would have been. 

“If we intervene and essentially leave him or her to their business, then that sets the stage as us either being hyper-lenient or that we are on this mercenary’s side, which we aren't. Our goals involving the Foot just seem to be more or less... aligned. So here’s what we’re going to do. April, since you’re the only human here, you’ll warn the cops in advance, both of Skullshot and the Foot, no in-depth details necessary. Donnie, Mikey, we’ll be facing both groups. Since this 'Skullshot' has only been in the news once, I'm not exactly sure how this person fights, so be cautious, and remember your training. If it comes to it, we retreat. Our goal is to find out where Raph and Casey are. Whether or not it's the Foot or Skullshot who has them, we’ll figure that out on site.” Leo then looked them in the eyes, waiting for a distinct nod from all of them. “Great. Move out.”

——

Casey’s POV

Casey didn't expect to hit the jackpot this early on in the night. A group of Foot soldiers were standing loosely around a police station, making it the perfect target of one very enthusiastic Skullshot. 

"Did I pack all the bombs? Yeah, duh, of course I packed all the bombs, I'm not that dumb!" Casey muttered to herself, skating down the street to where the Foot was loitering around. "Hey sleazeballs! Look who's here!" 

One soldier barely turned their head before it was almost blown clean off by a hockey stick. They came charging towards the vigilante, but she came prepared. The taser came shooting out of her glove, successfully taking down at least three or four more goons, his baseball bat taking out another four or five. 

The soldiers outside the department were now all down for the count, but no officers came out rushing from inside the building. That was suspicious, even for Casey who usually thought everything was fine. He still continued to place bombs around the outside, detaching her skates and climbing up to the rooftop to place the rest. 

As he finished up, he could sense that he wasn't alone, dropping a knife into her ungloved hand. 

"Show yourself!" He commanded in the voice she used when she needed to conceal his identity. She pulled out his hockey stick as a familiar figure dropped out of the shadows, three more following him. Leo, followed by Mikey, Donnie, and April. Casey remembered what Raph told her about concealing his identity and laughed. 

"Aw! Nice Halloween costumes, freaks! Sorry, but the only thing I'm givin’ out tonight is pain and justice!" April rolled her eyes. 

"Okay, that's clearly not Casey. Too cheesy. WAY too cheesy." 

The vigilante growled at that. "I'll show you cheesy, bitch!" She pulled down his skates again and raced towards them, his right hand distracting them with the hockey stick while she took a jab at April with the knife. Caught off guard, the knife slashed April's shirt, drawing blood, but not nearly enough to take her out. The spike on her glove got Donnie's arm, and a good kick to the plastron knocked Leo back several feet. 

April ducked as the girl let his bullets fly, a spare one hitting Mikey in the plastron, another hitting Donnie in the leg. But when the bullets went out, Casey didn't have much left to fight with. 

The turtles had him almost surrounded, but she wasn't going to give up, even when Mikey’s nunchuck wrapped around his arm and knocked her off his feet. 

"Where's Raph and Casey, you no-good knockoff?!" April growled, motioning for Mikey to pull Casey closer as she walked toward the vigilante. Oh shit, she was going to take off her mask. 

He kept her cool, smirking. "Who and who? If you're looking for missing people, your best bet is the police- oh wait! They're not here are they?" 

The group's eyes widened as Casey let out a broken cackle, the detonator dropping directly into his right hand. 

"And neither will you." 

"RUN!" Leo screamed, Mikey releasing Skullshot as the four ran to escape the blast. 

Casey, however, stayed put for a moment before dropping down the ladder and casually walking away from the building as it blew up. Killing April and the turtles was never her goal, but knowing they were out there still made them a threat. A tap on the shoulder caused Casey to jump backwards, seeing Raph glaring directly at him. 

"AHH!" 

"Blowing up buildings and killing Foot goons without me, I see?" 

"It was nothing, Raphie, I promise! I just needed to get out of the house, that's all!" 

"Yeah, then why do I see my brothers and April walking towards us, and- is Donnie LIMPING??" 

"Stay back, Nightwatcher. Skullshot has these guys in the bag." 

"Casey, NO!" But it was too late. The group had escaped the building fine, walking around what remained of it to see Casey walking away, but the vigilante had noticed them again far too quickly. 

Casey laughed to herself as he raised his stick up and yelled: "GORGONZOLA!!" 

Raph was almost on the ground in laughter as he watched the fight unfolding before his eyes.

Raph’s POV:

Bless Casey's heart for taking Raph's warning seriously. Raph could try to fight if he wanted to, but it wasn't something he wanted to risk. Right there, fighting the woman he loved was his sister and brother, and all he could do was watch from the sidelines like his name suggested and hope nothing got serious. 

Things got serious. Fast. When Casey started throwing mini bombs at April, Raph drew the line. 

Sure, she caught them with her powers, but every one was a close call he wasn't willing to let go any closer. 

"Skullshot, retreat!" 

"What? No! Skullshot doesn't retreat!" 

"CASEY!" 

"FINE!" She threw a few more knives and bombs as a warning, skating off while the duo was distracted. 

At least she had a cold pizza to look forward to at the apartment. 

"Gorgonzola? Really? And the bombs?" 

"Hey, you told me not to be myself, so there ya go." 

"You could've killed April, Casey, you could've hurt all of them!" 

"They're way better fighters than me, Raphie. Plus, I'd never let anything happen to Red. Or maybe Mikey. The other two are totally worth scrapping though." 

Scrapping. That's what Casey thought of the people who used to be his family? 

Raph’s family?

"You’re not gonna ‘scrap’ any of ‘em! Imagine if I said that about Angel-" His eyes widened. 

"YOU THREATEN MY BABY SISTER AGAIN AND I-I'LL... I'LL PUT A LIGHTER IN THE ICE BOX!" 

"That's what I'm saying, Casey, that's how I feel right now with you saying that!" 

"Yeah, but Angel isn't after you with a goal to kill! At least, I don't think so. There's a reason you don't see her outside the house much." 

Raph shuddered. As cute as that little girl was, she was also Casey Jones' sister, and who knows what Casey had taught her to do. 

"Just don't call my brothers expendable, cause they're not." He grabbed Casey's hand and pulled up her mask, thankful they could do so in the safety of the apartment. 

"If you kill my family, Casey, we're done. Do you understand?" 

The two looked deep into each other's eyes, Casey nodding, but saying nothing else. "If anyone gets in my way, they'll face the consequences. But I guess I'll make them off limits for now." 

Raph barely bit back a frown. They should never have been on the limit in the first place! "Thank you, Casey. Ya know they don't mean any harm, right?" 

"They attacked me, that's harm. Someone hurts me, I hurt 'em back." Raph sighed. He was never going to get Casey to fully agree with him, so he stopped while he was ahead. 

“Whatever you say, Case. Now how 'bout that cold pizza you left me with?" 

"Dude, I LOVE cold pizza!" The turtle shook his head, watching as his boyfriend opened the box and shoved a whole cold piece of pepperoni and anchovy pizza down her throat in record time. 

Maybe she was born to be a Hamato, Raph thought to himself. It may have looked disgusting to anyone else, but to Raphael, all he saw was the love of his life finally happy for once, and that in itself was a victory.

[eldritchmochi]

Letter ask: the word PHANTOM

jesus christ mina youre going to kill me lmao

P - Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).

HMMM i have a couple weird ones, because im me, but i think the weirdest would be the one where i just slap ashton into the whole situation i have going on with my job where they get hired to be reception (somehow??? he's baffled too honestly) and then ends up taking over bookkeeping because he has some level of prior experience due to all the temping hes done while trying to get out of manual labor work to save their increasingly fucked up body at least a little, and then revolves around him navigating getting his health under control and the fact that hes like... financially stable and almost well off???? for the first time in their entire life, with added bonus of the IT guy they deal with most for getting all the stuff set up to do bookkeeping is fucking cute as hell and they keep running into each other at the gym and then maybe something about taking care of both fcg and milo (even tho milo hates it) because finally ashton has money to meaningfully contribute to the well being of his friends. i will eventually write it because i think it'd be fun to put ashton into Situations in an entirely benign office setting when he's defintely not the sort youd think to be there, especially not in some sort of management situation, i just haven't figured out the rest of the cast lmao

H - What is your favorite source text for fandom stuff (e.g., TV shows, movies, books, anime, Western animation, etc.)?

broadly, it really depends. i am all over the map with where inspo comes from and just because i find inspo in one particular piece of media does not mean i'll latch onto something in the same vein even if you'd expect me to. even beyond format or indie vs mainstream, i'm wildly unpredictable when it comes to things like how fleshed out the characters i claim as mine are in source material and like even the kind of characters i find inspo in a lot of the time. like, ive written (but not finished) fic for crime procedurals so like...... my mileage certainly varies lmao

probably the trends are like: indie media or cult classics, things with found family, and things with characters who either have a solid base of unique traits to extrapoliate into a good personality or characters that are very well fleshed out and very unique

A N T answered here!!

O answered here!! but i'll answer it again because its fun lmao

O - Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?

this one is very much on repeat when i work on the 30k+ ashrym character exploration pwp i have been writing off and on for like 10 months lmao

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

okay so like, cherry was absolutely BAFFLED by my fmk answer for cr between my Big Three blorbos here because its absolutely fuck caleb, marry ashton, kill essek

BUT HEAR ME OUT so like ashton right?? we're both abrasive assholes who have a lot of things in common (brawling, punk diy, not touching people) so you'd think we'd butt heads a lot but i can absolutely see them being the sort to plainly state if i'm being annoying and how, and i also see him being the sort to respond well to the same. i think we'd vibe well because we just kinda get a lot of the bullshit we each go through and also have a similar enough way of communicating frustrations that there wouldn't really be hard feelings from frustrations. 10/10 good buddy, roommate, or husband material in my books

essek is the exact opposite. i would punch that wizard in the face like IMMEDIATELY lmao

caleb physically is aggressively my type (which is why i write so much porn from essek's pov lmao) but he would frustrate the hell out of me irl with the way he manages his trauma so id divorce him in like a year BUT the dick would be bomb so fwb but more benefits and less friends because i do not want to be someone's therapist i have been there

anyway.

there are several other letters in this ask game u can ask me bles it is very fun

[starlit-mansion]

I'm not fully sure how to articulate this but part of my ongoing consternation about the state of fandom is that everything becomes a filmy slime of personal projection and memes and half-formed thoughts when it's all just loose on social media, which is fine for incredibly consumable product-ass products but becomes very bizarre with complex texts with meaningful themes

like sometimes it does feel like an emperor's no clothes situation, of like "why are we only drawing these guy's dicks instead of appreciating the whole story?" but also this is a really specific hobby with a lot of social conventions and any given person you talk to is usually pretty happy to expound on the meaningful parts of the text and is just having fun making memes and ship art because for them, there's just not that much left unsaid about the quality of the text

like in many ways, i'm glad that my actual first experience with the book dracula was just straight up listening to an unironic free podcasted audiobook a few years before it became memetic, because there's something about making it an activity that changes the state of matter of the entire story, starts to break it down and dissolve the intention

when I was very young, i only engaged with fanfic that was set out into the world as a complete thought (even if the fic itself wasn't complete, there was a sort of inherent concreteness of presenting a piece of art with something to say), but i don't even really like fanfic and the endless distending and warping of text that much anymore. not a lot would be added to my life from hanging around ao3 instead of here, because I would only start to articulate more of the things that make me angry.

this is all a personal problem. i'm like... constantly clenching my teeth about the fact that there's no news event or disaster that won't become a meme, but also. i'm on the meme website. I should probably just leave. but also. i've taken so many sanity breaks from tumblr over the last year. at one point, i changed my password to autogenerated gibberish and didn't save it so that i couldn't log in anymore, and i would be forced to sit with myself for the time it would take to reset it and remind myself that i was getting so angry and scared every single day and for WHAT

it didn't really work

because without it, now that i'm working from home and don't talk to people much and don't have an irl social circle due to not being very social on my own and moving across the entire fucking country in first year of the pandemic to spend a year and a half exclusively sitting inside a different set of rooms, not having the casual interpersonal connection of mentally hanging out in a shared space is also very bad for my brain, and leads to a lot of bitter rumination once the novelty of breaking yourself of the phone loop and reading a book in a non-public way wears off. we all know this. we've all experienced it on some level or another due to the collective experience of the last 3+ years.

not sure how to wrap this up in a non bleak way and go back to my regular scheduled posting and avoiding too many spoilers about a movie trailer that i WANT to watch and CAN'T MAKE MYSELF DO IT because of MY ABBY NORMAL BRAIN. generally i do enjoy the stuff i engage with and try to keep my haterade guzzling to occasional dabbling in criticizing things i don't like.

this is how my depression way goes though. i don't necessarily spend all day hating and despising myself and ruminating on how all my actions are simultaneously valueless and harmful to others. The endless slog through a lukewarm knee-deep ocean of salt water is that my ability to sincerely and happily engage with things diminishes, anhedonia sets in, caring about things starts to feel like inflammation. the light hurts, because it brings too much with it. i want to take the edge off of things, and joy is an edge too.

it's not that i don't understand the sanding away of nuance, it just reminds me of my worst self, angry and overwhelmed, more interested in chewing on bones than eating.

[muertawrites]

Omg yes please give us perv!eddie he’s not Jonathan ffs

yo are you KIDDING ME jonathan is such a FUCKING CREEP taking pictures of the girl he has a crush on having sex thru her bedroom window like please sir go to PRISON that is where you BELONG

i'm gonna get self indulgent again. honestly just expect it from me.

18+ minors go play roblox

perv!eddie is such a babe. he is so gross. has so many intrusive thoughts. not a decent thing happens inside that pretty little head of his. he babey <3

the thing that makes his perversion so weirdly charming is that he just feels so guilty about it. like it's okay to have fantasies. sex is fun for sane, consenting adults.

but this poor man feels so bad because he can't stop thinking about how much he wants to fuck.

he has an insane collection of porn. he's got magazines, erotic novels, dirty videos, each one more depraved than the last. he researches sex positions for fun. he writes erotic poems (most of them are about you). he has an extensive list of songs he wants to get down and dirty to, many of the entries scribbled out and reordered. he's put a lot of thought into it.

and his toys? he has so many. cock rings. ball spreaders. fleshlights. vibrators. stimulating lube. lube in different flavors. you name it, he probably has it. this man loves to make himself cum.

big pillow humper. he'll grip and bite his pillow and fuck it hard, talking to it like it's the one girl he wants to be with most (you know who. steve lmao.)

he's definitely tried to suck his own dick before. not successfully, but he had to make an attempt. for science.

but he doesn't want to just blindly fuck anyone. no, he's too insecure for that. and how much fun can you really have with a stranger? he wants to fuck someone he knows and trusts, who'll care enough to get him off and who he wants to see get off, too.

you. he wants to fuck you.

you live rent free in his head. not only are you the prettiest thing he's ever seen, but you're smart, and you're funny, and god he wants to hear what kinds of sweet little noises you'd make with his mouth pressed to your clit.

and that makes it very hard to be such close friends with you.

every little thing you do makes him want you. when you wear a low cut shirt, he can't stop himself from peeking at the dip of your cleavage. when you bend over, all he can think about is how amazing your ass would look and feel pushed up against his dick. when you wear shorts or a skirt, he just wants to slip his hand between your thighs. and don't even mention watching you eat - anything you put in your mouth conjures images of your lips wrapped around his cock.

touches of any kind drive him crazy. when he hugs you, he can feel your breasts, the curve of your waist, how good they feel. he's squeezed your love handles a little bit before, saving the memory of the sensation so he can imagine gripping them as he pounds you into his mattress. he "accidentally" brushes his arms and hands against your chest any chance he gets. he tenses up whenever you put your hand on his shoulder, or grab his arm, his entire body fizzing with electricity because you're touching him. that one time you kissed him on the cheek? best day of his goddamn life.

oh, and the one time you guys went to the beach with a group of friends? and he caught a little glimpse of your pubic hair under the line of your swimsuit? and your naked side brushed up against his naked side? he came so hard thinking about it later that night that it was like a religious experience.

he's a bathroom masturbator. when you hang out together, he disappears at least once to go rub one out, his cock straining painfully against his jeans because all he can think about is what you probably look like naked. how your nipple would feel between his teeth. how your pussy would feel around his fingers.

and listen. you and eddie are tighter than one of his cock rings (you know about his cock rings for heck's sake. gareth and jeff don't even know about them, and you've seen those men do tradesies of different issues of playboy with each other). you know he's depraved and totally disgusting but. you can't help but find it.

so cute?

like he gets all blushy when something turns him on, and he can't make eye contact with you, and he goes into Ultra Chivalry mode to try and make up for it. he really is just the sweetest guy in the world, if also the most painfully horny guy in the world.

but he's also your best friend. you bonded over pulling each other's strings and being generally annoying and irksome to each other.

so do you take it easy on him?

lmao no. teasing him is too easy and way too much fun. you're not mean about it, though.

once when you were in his room you caught a glimpse of one of his porno mags, how the woman on the cover wore a velvet choker and nothing else, how the page was pretty crinkled with... use.

the next time you hung out you wore a velvet choker, and styled your hair a little bit like hers. when you got in the front seat of his van he just stared at you for a moment, eyes bugging out of his head, cock straining against his zipper. when you bit your lip and giggled at him he thought he was gonna cream right then and there.

you also love dropping hints about your kinks to him and calling him little nicknames that'll get him going. "hot stuff" is a winner, as is "big boy". you risked calling him "daddy" once and you thought he was gonna combust. one time he was helping you fix the collar of your blouse and he pulled the ties at the neck a little to tight; he apologized immediately and profusely, but you just shrugged and said "it's cool, i like being choked"

the fantasies he had about you that night.

because gareth and jeff still see you as just one of the guys, you're often invited to their kickbacks in one of their basements. of course eddie is there, and of course there's beer, always. you have a few too many at one of these hangs and, when the conversation between the three virgins switches to condoms, you chime in.

"i just think it wouldn't feel good," jeff says

"gonorrhea doesn't feel good either, man," gareth giggles (he's stoned off his ass on the good weed eddie brought over)

"yeah, and condoms can be really sexy," eddie adds. he's about to quote something from his literature when you speak up.

"they can," you agree. "i know how to put a condom on with my mouth."

the room goes dead fucking silent, all of them staring at you like you just admitted to hosting orgies with the local recreational softball league every weekend.

"what?" you laugh. "it's not hard."

"yeah but now eddie is"

that was when he decided he needed to man up and ask you out. you gave him a demonstration of your little trick not long after. he refuses to put a condom on himself now that he's seen you do it.

as a boyfriend eddie's still a little perv. he's just got all his perv energy focused on you, and he doesn't have to hide it anymore.

he's very handsy. he's respectful of your comfort level with pda, because at the end of the day he loves you and wants you to be comfortable, but that doesn't mean he always keeps his hands to himself - he just puts them where no one can see them.

you're at the movies? he's got his arm around your shoulders and his hand down your shirt, cupping your breast. grabbing a bite with friends? his hand is between your legs, squeezing your upper thigh at a dangerous height. in an empty aisle at the local bookstore? he's pulling you in so he can suck on your neck, hands planted firmly on your ass cheeks.

when you kiss him goodbye on nights you're not spending together, he usually goes back to his van and immediately jerks himself off to the thought of you. when you do spend nights together, he likes to undress you as soon as you're through the door, sometimes even before. if you're wearing a skirt, that's a challenge for eddie - he's trying to sneakily get your panties off under it the entire way back to whoever's place you've decided on.

speaking of panties.

he's a little thief. and he's not even discreet about it.

you stay over at his place? your panties will most certainly go missing at some point, only to reappear a week or two later. he comes over to yours? he's opening up your drawers, looting through undergarments, pointing out his favorite bras and pocketing his favorite undies.

"why are you so gross?" you ask him once, teasing.

"gross?" he gasps. "i miss you so much when you're gone that i've gotta have a little piece of you with me, and you call me gross?"

he's not even lying when he says that. having a piece of you is just part of it for him. he loves you, even if it is in kind of a weird way.

one of his favorite dates is going to sex shops with you. he loves picking things out for you - lingerie, restraints, gags, toys, he wants to try it all with you. his favorite thing he's ever bought you is an o ring gag (paired with some numbing throat spray). his favorite thing you've ever bought him is a vibrating cock ring with an attached clit stimulator. that gets used a lot.

he's also made it kind of a hobby of yours to read erotica to each other. you'll alternate picking books - he reads the ones you pick, and you read the ones he picks. you actually tend to get side tracked talking about plot points and character arcs. but eddie is pretty proud of himself for being able to finger you and read aloud without losing his place or missing a beat.

now let's talk photos.

if we're sticking to canon, he uses your polaroid camera more than you do. he loves taking nudes of you, with you, and has multiple shots of what you look like from his point of view during sex pinned up on his wall (and in his wallet, and in his van, and in his work locker, and...). he also likes to slip naughty photos of himself to you, slotting them in beside your bookmarks and under the windshield wipers on your car.

if we're going for a more modern twist, oh my god this guy loves making you his personal cam girl (and being yours). the lockscreen on his phone is a post-sex picture of you, all fucked out and beautiful curled up next to him. he sends you teasing pictures throughout the day, broken up by a few cumshots and masturbation videos. he loses all sense of reason when you do the same to him, even going to the extent of faking an illness so he could get out of work and meet up to fuck in the parking lot of your own workplace. not a fan of cyber sex, though. he likes being able to touch you.

and on that note, he habitually fucks you in public. you've lost count of how many bathroom stalls you've left used condoms in.

he showers with you often, but strangely enough, you've never had shower sex. he likes the intimacy of it, holding you close and kissing your shoulders and just feeling like you're the only two people on earth. if you're showering, he'll slip in with you without a word and just hug you, especially if he's had a rough day.

when it all comes down to it, eddie loves you. he may be depraved and hornier than any other man you've met, but he would never do anything that makes you uncomfortable or crosses a line.

he's lucky you're a dirty little freak like him.