#invisible wind factory

[theliverpudlianuk]

🎵 Popular Bristol Jazz band, Run Logan Run, are set to Headline the Amorphic Jazz Club night at The Invisible Wind Factory's Substation this coming Thursday the 9th of March.

🎵 Support for this show comes from folk jazz songstress Annie Gardiner, saxophonist & composer Nick Branton’s new trio venture KIPPERS, and Anti Social Jazz Club on the decks keeping the vibes high till late.

🎵 Read the rest of our article on the website for the full story and information: https://www.TheLiverpudlian.com/post/run-logan-run-set-to-headline-amorphic-jazz-night-at-the-invisible-wind-factory-s-substation

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[naomikozura]

Playing With Fire: Chapter 4

Jason Todd (Red Hood) x Fem!Reader (Criminal)

Trope: Enemies to Lovers, Forbidden Romance

Warnings: Strong language, use of weapons, trespassing, angst, trauma, emotional turmoil, mentions of Reader’s past, bribery, reader being a smart ass. (lmk if I missed any!)

WC: 9.3K

Summary: What happens when the one person you're supposed to kill, is the one you have a moment of shared recognition and longing with? What happens when your loyalties are questioned?

Series Masterlist

Chapter 3 || Chapter 5

The massive web of connections on the investigation board that laid on your coffee table made your brain go into overdrive. The clutter of maps, papers, photographs, and notes all pinned on the board and scattered on the couch and the table, it all slowly brought together your task at finding the direct hit to taking Red down. It had been a week since he broke into your apartment and threatened you, leaving you feeling more motivated to take him out than when you first started this assignment a month ago.

You had spent the majority of your time analyzing his patterns, putting together every hit he made and every operation under his watch. Each job, each stakeout, each tiny detail leading you closer and closer to dismantling his entire criminal empire.

You leaned forward, taking a quick sip from your wine glass before placing it on the table, pinning another point on the board, a meeting he had held with some of his partners that you scoped out. It was a normal monthly check-in, his partners updating him on the scope of the land, the hits they had taken, and the mention of the abduction of Amazo resulting in a failure. It was one of the final straws that made Black Mask's inquiry with Penguin. Amazo was supposed to help Sionis rise in the ranks, solidify him as a powerful hand in international trafficking. The entire operation stopped by none other than Batman and Nightwing. They also were pinned on the board, it wasn’t likely they were connected to Red, but they were on the board anyway. Any encounter was important. You laid back into the couch, soaking it all in as you crossed your legs, contemplating your next move. You could set a trap, lure him in and get him off guard.

It was a thought, but he was calculative and smart. He would probably see your attack from a mile away. You needed to plan around his strengths and expose his weaknesses.

You laid your head against the back of the couch, looking up at the ceiling before making your decision, your head lolling to the side and taking note of the time. It was still early. You could make it to the next point of contact.

You let out a breath, pushing yourself from the couch and changing into your stealth clothes, securing your mask above your nose and pulling your hood over your head, falling into the alley and speeding down the streets to your pinpoint location.

The air was thick with tension, the wind blowing as you slipped into the shadows of the abandoned factory, moving silently to not be caught by any potential security measures. You kept your breath even, scanning through the night with your night vision goggles, trying to find any sign of movement or suspicious activity.

Your eyes instantly locked on the black figure moving through the building, its movements calculated and careful, blending seamlessly into the darkness and staying practically invisible. You moved into the room, carefully treading as you moved towards the beams above the room, the walkway hanging from the ceiling, trying to stay hidden as you watched Red. He kneeled, watching as he pulled up a device that downloaded information from the data box that was wired in the wall. You felt your heart race increase, the plan playing through your head as you tried to focus. Your muscles tensed, waiting for the perfect moment to get him off guard.

Once Red stood, you pushed yourself off the walkway, your feet taking the majority of the impact as you kicked him, his head snapping to the side and landing on the ground, launching back at him with your knife as you cut through his arm. You felt his grasp as he slammed you to the ground, your anger taking over you as you jumped over him and grabbed his head, trying to snap his neck only to be met with him wrapping his hands around your ankles, twisting your body and forcing it on the ground. He slammed you down, his body crushing yours as you tried to aim your dagger at his throat. You felt a solid, forceful punch in the gut as he dug his knee into your side. Each of his hits met with equal force, your body tangled with his as you rolled and landed on top of him, your face meeting his crimson helmet as you tried to force the knife into his jugular, his hands forcing the knife to come to a halt as it shook in your grasp.

His eyes narrowed at you, a subtle scoff as he forced the knife out of your hands, disarming you as he wrapped his legs around your body, forcing you into the ground his leg forced against your back as he shoved your face into the concrete. Your breath hitched, gasping for air as the heat of his body burned through her, his intensity causing her to struggle underneath him.

“Getting better, sweetheart.”, Red’s voice was low, the vibration flowing through your bones in an eerie sensation. “Almost had me that time.”

“Get… off me.”, you struggled, your cheek pressed firmly on the ground as you struggled against his grip. His hold was unmoving, his presence full of lethal power. You met his gaze, his body heat causing your skin to burn, trying to push him off of you.

You could not let him get the upper hand, you strained against him, using all your force to get out of his grasp. You struggled to get to your feet as you felt his hand clasp around your wrist, spinning you around until your back was pressed against his muscular chest, his voice echoing in your ear.

“What are you doing here, (Y/n)?”, his voice rumbled in a deep octave.

“You know why motherfucker.”, you forced out, the venom laced in your voice as you glared dagger at him behind you. “You need to be taken care of.”

“Taken care of? Sweetheart, you’re so sure of yourself.”, you could hear the humor in his tone, the smirk that probably lingered on his lips under his mask. “You don’t think you could possibly take me down. I’ve gotten you three times in a row, don’t act like you’re better than you actually are.”

“And you think you’re big and bad?”, you spit at him, you annoyance growing, the extinguished fire reigniting itself as he held you in an iron grip. “You're a nobody, Red. You only have this hold on weak men because you can’t rise to the ranks on your own. You are nothing without Black Mask and Carmine’s rings.”

“You got a smart mouth on you. Talking about being a nobody.”, He grabbed your face, forcing your head closer to his. “Take away Penguin, take away your connections, take away everything that brought you into this life. Who are you?”

Your jaw clenched, your anger setting into your bones, your vision turning red at his obvious bait. Taunting was always his best card to play in order to get a rise out of you. There was nothing you hated more than people second guessing you, invalidating your work and efforts to get to where you were.

“I’m the one who’s going to fucking kill you.”, you seethed. “I’ll be the one collecting that bond on your head, and when I do, I won’t ever have to deal with your bullshit or Sionis ever again. I’ll be free to leave.”

His grip tightened, making your jaw ache from the force but you refused to flinch at the pain. You were getting under his skin, you could tell by his ticks. Looks like he also hated being second guessed.

“You think you’re untouchable, but you forget that you’re just human. You can die just as easily as the rest of us. It’ll be the greatest pleasure to watch the life drain from your eyes when I put a bullet through your fucking skull.”

“Watch your fucking tone.”

“Does it bother you knowing that you have no real power? That you’re nothing without taking territory and men from other crime bosses?” His eyes narrowed, the anger radiating off him in waves. He was trying to maintain control, but you could see the cracks in his composure. His grip on your face felt like a vice, but the pain was secondary to the satisfaction of getting under his skin.

You smirked at him. “I’ve dealt with worse than you and always received my payment. You're just another obstacle, another name on my list. And believe me, I’ve got a solid kill count.”

“Solid kill count yet you can’t make the shot that will actually count.”, he taunted. “You can’t touch me. You underestimate me and that is your biggest mistake.”

He shoved you away, making you stumble but you caught yourself quickly, standing tall despite the ache in your jaw. He paced, his fists clenching and unclenching, the muscles in his neck taut with barely restrained fury.

“Careful,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “Your smart mouth will get you killed, sweetheart. I’ll break you. Slowly, painfully. And when I do, you’ll beg for the end.”

“I’d rather die than ever have to beg you for anything.”, you watched as he straightened, his body on guard as you focused on him, ready for when he’d attack.

He lingered a moment, his gaze piercing into you as if he could see the very core of your being. Then, without another word, he turned, heading towards the door. The room seemed to exhale as he reached the exit, the air thick with the weight of his threat.

"This isn’t over, Red.", you spoke out as he walked away.

"No, it isn’t.", he called out. Just as he was about to leave, he paused and glanced back over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing with lethal intent. "If you follow me, I'll shoot you.”

The door closed behind him, the loud slam echoing through the room, leaving you standing in the middle of the room with your fists clenched at your sides and your gaze focused where he stood. There was a burning sensation in your chest, an anger that penetrated deep within you.

You wanted to scream, to punch something, to make him feel even a fraction of the rage he had put within you.

You stayed silent, the frustration boiling beneath your skin. You knew you couldn't afford to let it consume you. Not yet. There would be a time for anger, a time for revenge, but for now, you had to bide your time.

You need to be smart.

You need to be patient.

You would make the Red Hood regret ever doubting you.

Breaking into a high secured building seemed a lot more difficult than it was, bypassing the security system to run on a loop in order to not be caught. You slipped past the few guards inside, noting that the building being “highly secure translates to only three guards being on duty.

One at the entrance, one by the invaluable pieces of art and jewels, the last navigating the rest of the building, floating so his movements were unpredictable. It didn’t matter though, especially since you’d already made it inside. You needed to find the office and grab the intel you needed.

You moved around quietly, your all black suit helping you blend into the night as you navigated carefully through the halls. The downloaded blueprint of the building located the office was only a few doors down. Looking around the corner you noticed an opening, quickly going through and sliding into the dark office.

You skimmed through the office, taking note of the files cascaded on the table. Your eyes notice different company names and a long list of names. Lifting the paper, you noted it was a guest list. For what you couldn’t care less. This wasn’t what you were here for.

The file cabinet caught your eye, picking the lock and opening the first drawer, looking through the files quickly to find the one you were searching for.

“Always sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong” the sound of the deep, distorted voice made you jump, turning around quickly as his body was already pushing yours against the cabinet.

“Red”, you seethed.

“What are you doing, Y/n?”

“That’s my business. Not yours.” you countered, trying to discreetly find an out. He must’ve noticed because he moved his face closer to yours. “What are you doing here?”

“Don’t worry about what I’m doing, sweetheart”

You rolled your eyes at his comment, trying to push past him and move to the other side of the room, but right as you did you felt his hand wrap around your arm, pulling you into him. Your heart started beating, pounding in your chest as the adrenaline told you to find an out. You trashed against him, his arm wrapped across your chest to hold you in place as his gloved hand covered your mouth. You kept fighting him until his back was against the wall, your back flush against his chest, slowly calming down as you saw a small light illuminate the floor.

A guard.

You watched the floor light up, the flashlight scanning through the room as your heart pounded in your chest in hopes he wouldn’t go deeper into the room. You sank into Red’s hold, relaxing in his warmth. A part of you, the delusional part of you, found a sliver of comfort in the way you were against him. You could feel his heart in his chest, even and calm. How was he so calm? You pushed the thought away as you watched the light disappear down the hall, the door clicking as it closed and locked as the footsteps descended down the hall.

Once the click sounded, you snapped back to focus, turning away from him once you realized the position you were in.

“Thanks”, you muttered, forcing the gratitude out like it was acid.

“So you do know how to say thank you”, he teased before you snapped your head towards him, glaring daggers as he backed away.

You turned back towards the filing cabinet, skimming through until you finally found the file you needed.

Gotcha.

You turned, Red’s eyes focused on you as he sat in a chair nearby with a leg over the other and his arms crossed. He stayed silent, almost as though expecting you to answer but you didn’t.

“Let me guess. The file is in Sionis”, you contemplating answering him. “Why do you have bad blood with one of your boss’s partners?”

“Why would I tell you about my bad blood with Sionis?”

“So there is?”, he countered quickly.

“He… He’s a dog. He needs to be taken down a few notches, humbled.”

“That why you let me go so kindly?”, your jaw clenched. “You said it was spite, i’m assuming it’s because of him?”

“You’re making me regret not shooting you in the mouth.”

You opened the files, skimming through the information to confirm it was Sionis’ file. You placed it under your arm, turning to walk past him. He stayed silent, not questioning your actions until you paused.

You were still angry with him. Even more so than usual and yet him being here didn’t stir any emotions inside of you. It left you feeling confused at why he was so hot and cold. If you were the enemy to him, and you killed all his operations why didn’t he take his free shot to kill you?

Was he waiting for something to happen? Did he expect something to pop up and then he would take the first chance he could to get rid of you?

It didn’t make sense. He was so adamant the other day that you were probably the worst thing that could’ve ever happened and yet he stood five feet away from you watching your every move and not even trying to stop you from escaping with the file.

Why?

“They tasked me to kill you. I won’t do it because Sionis doesn’t deserve an easy out. You die, he regains his position as the top of the food chain and I’ll do anything to keep that from happening. Don’t think this is because I won’t kill you, because I think we both know I can.”

That was the last thing you told him before jumping on the table, jumping up and pushing the window open and climbing to the roof before running home.

The file contained an entire run down on Roman Sionis, his background, his upbringing, his family and criminal ties, even why the Sionis and Two-Face were at odds with one another. You needed to find a weakness, an opening to knock him down a peg, something to keep him from becoming the top dog in Gotham’s underground.

Ever since you met the man, you’d despised him. Your meeting went back longer than the meeting at the Lounge. You were certain Black Mask never recognized you, but you remembered him from when you first tried to gain footing in the underground. He’d sent his men to beat you to an inch of your life when he’d found you trying to steal from him to try and get some money. You were still weak, small, barely 16 and your appearance had changed a lot since you were a teenager. He’d left your body bloody and beaten, left to be attacked by others but you were able to drag yourself into a sewer drain and let yourself rest until you could find a way to tend to your injuries. It was the same time Penguin had taken you in.

You’d chosen this life to get away from the ghost that haunted you. You couldn’t go back to the family, go back to Gotham Academy, after Robin disappeared, you wanted to put that entire life behind you. It was easy to have all your problems solved, but you couldn’t be in that life without thinking about him. He’d made everything bright, made living with the family tolerable. The only way to get over him was to leave the life he made so bright behind.

That life never suited you, and you were fine with it. You’d rather work with Penguin and get the money you needed to leave by your own hard work, not because some rich family was giving it to you.

Sionis had ties to Arkham Asylum, being admitted there a few times before leaving and getting more of his business to take off. He had ties to almost every major criminal that was locked behind bars there and you wondered if there was something deeper in his connections. He already called one of those connections in and was set to be released soon. You let your brain overwork itself until you couldn’t focus anymore.

You couldn’t handle this, you needed a break, needed time to just be alone and bask in your own emotions. You let out a breath, pushing out of your chair and stretching your legs. You needed to get out, go on the field and do some real work, but your job with Calvi had taken up a good chunk of your time. You still needed him to be in contact with Penguin.

You pulled out your unmarked phone, dialing Calvi’s number, hearing the line ring twice before he answered.

“Calbera speaking.”

“Hey, Calvi. It’s Vivian.”, you said with a smile in your tone as your face remained neutral. “I was just calling to set another time to meet.”

“Vivian, it’s nice hearing your voice again.”, he said in a smooth tone, “Yes, we can set a time. How does tomorrow evening sound?”

Tomorrow.

You felt a tug at your chest as you looked at the calendar, your mind unsure of your answer before you heard him call your alias through the phone. Tomorrow was too… raw, but you needed to get this job done sooner than later.

“Tomorrow is perfect. I look forward to seeing you Calvi”

“The feeling is mutual. See you tomorrow Vivian”.

The line went silent, your eyes still focused on the calendar before turning and heading to bed, looking out at the sky as the small light from the stars barely shined through due to the light pollution. It was enough though, enough to get a good idea of what it would be like to see the stars in full effect.

~

“I want to go out to the mountains, like camping or something.”, you squint your eyes trying to see the stars over all the light from the buildings around you. You couldn’t see the stars that well but you imagined them well enough to see what they could possibly look like.

“We could go, you know?”, Robin looked up, standing next to you as the wind blew your hair and ruffled his own. “Let’s plan a day to go together.”

“I don’t even know who you are behind the mask and you’re asking me to go camping with you?”

“I could tell you.”, he shrugged. “I don’t see why I couldn’t talk to Batman and see if he’d let me.”, you stared at him, a part of you in shock at his openness to ask his mentor to let him reveal such a huge part of himself. The thing that made his identity a secret. Was he really willing to risk it all for you?

“Yeah, I’d like that”, you smiled at him before looking back up, the breeze wrapping around you like a blanket of comfort.

~

The next evening came quickly enough, the time slipping by as you busied yourself with getting ready and heading over to Calvi’s estate. The butler taking you inside and Calvi waiting for you in the foyer. He smiled at you with a charming look, reaching a hand out and leading you into his main sitting room. He fetched you some wine, the same red you had at the club a week ago when Red had barged in and ruined everything. You were still angry at him, beyond pissed, but the anger had dwindled with the days as you started to focus more on things that did nothing but cut you open on the inside.

Calvi talked mindlessly as you paid minimal attention to his words, everything flowing in one ear and out the other, your responses dry but you covered them up well with your eye contact and body language. He didn’t even notice just how detached you were from the situation and you couldn’t bring yourself to care anymore than any other day. Today just wasn’t a good day for you. It brought back pieces of your past that left you to shreds and made you feel forgotten.

“Vivian, would you like to accompany me to a Gala being held in a month?”, you snapped up to him, your eyes focused on him as he stared at you.

“A Gala?”, you asked softly, still trying to focus on what he mentioned before this.

“It's an annual Gala held by some of the most prestigious businessmen in Gotham, every major partner, business owner, and A-list celebrity will be there. I’ve gotten a special invite to be honored for the evening for my business and would like to bring you as my plus one.”, he placed a hand on your knee, his eyes focused on you and hoping you’d say yes.

“An evening in your honor, that sounds…. Amazing.”, you replied softly, smiling as he focused on your lips. “I’m flattered that you’re asking me. Of course I’ll go as your plus one.”

“Great, I’ll forward you all the information you need. I think it will be a good way to celebrate the past two weeks of getting to know each other.”

You forced a smile at his words, noticing that he was taking this relationship in a different context than you had hoped. This was your way to get him to switch from working with Red to working with Penguin. You just needed to find the perfect opportunity to get him talking about his deal with Red and somehow steer to Penguin.

“So, Red Hood?”, you asked quietly. “I didn’t expect you to have ties with someone who’s been running rampant and causing a fuss on the street. It’s been all over the news recently.”

“He provides good protection, helps me get an upper hand in my operations and doesn’t let black market intel slip into the wrong hands. I think it’s a pretty secure system.”, he leaned back, taking a drink of his whiskey before looking over at you again. “Why the sudden interest, my dear?”

“No particular reason. I just know there are a lot more established people who run the crime rings. That’s all”

“How do you know about the crime rings?”, he raised an eyebrow at you, questioning you for a moment.

“Let’s say, I like to dabble in what goes on in Gotham’s underground matters. The rich, upscale life is too…. Boring.”, you confessed. It wasn’t a lie. Upper Gotham was boring and only consisted of rich assholes parading around like everyone owes them something.

“That is very true. I don’t think I can help make it less boring, can I?”, he motioned slightly, cocking his head as his eyes bore into yours.

“You already managed to make it less boring with our meeting at the club last week.”, you smiled, a mischievous grin painting your features. “I like seeing that side of things. It might be dangerous but…. It left me excited.”

His eyes darkened at your words. You were playing your cards right and he was slowly falling into it. You needed him to further bring up the topic, until then your hands were tied and you could only wait as he focused on your features.

You had your hair in a loose ponytail, one that wasn’t underdressed but not overdone either. It was a perfect inbetween that matched your laid back attire of a basic white tee and tan dress pants with your exposed necklace perfectly tying everything together. It was simple yet classy, not over done but not underdressed.

“I can bring more excitement if you want to join in on future meetings. Of course, if you’d be interested.”, your smile didn’t reach your eyes but you were good at covering it up with false excitement.

“I would love that, Calvi”, you touched his hand, clasping it and rubbing your thumb on the back of it before he leaned forward, placing a kiss on your forehead before kissing the corner of your mouth.

“I look forward to it then, my dear.”

You felt absolutely nothing. Yet, you couldn’t help but imagine if life would be more simple if you had been with someone like Calvi. Handsome, rich, intelligent, and able to hold his own when it came down to business and the underground. You wouldn’t lie to yourself, you knew he was successful and had a hand in the black market business, but you didn’t fall so easily for the charm of someone who had too many flaws, hidden secrets, more skeletons in the closet than you cared to deal with. His family business was dirty and their reputation was filled with all sorts of shady upbringings. Calvi was not the type of person you got involved with in any way that was for anything other than business.

After your meeting, he led you to the front, waiting for the car to come around and take you home, but you had requested the driver take you to another location once you had said your goodbyes and hopped into the car. The driver only nodded and drove 20 minutes to the other side of where you were supposed to be. It was late, almost 10pm. You hadn’t noticed your meeting with Calvi had been so late but that’s what happens when you agree to meet at 7pm instead of earlier like regular people. Once you arrived, you thanked the driver and got out, letting the wind hit your face as you walked down the street and up to the building that overlooked the water.

You rounded the building, finding the ladder shaft that led all the way to the top of the building. It was a tall climb but you didn’t care. You wanted to feel a sense of exhilaration climbing up so many floors just from the side of a building. You had been trained properly to ensure you wouldn’t fall and you didn’t. You reached the roof in ease after 10 minutes of climbing up the long ladder.

You walked over to the ledge of the building, over where it overlooked the rest of the surrounding areas and looked down at the place that once brought you good memories and feelings of happiness. You sat on the ledge and focused on letting yourself just bask in the moment.

It was chilly outside, your legs pulled up to your chest as you watched the water. It’d been a while since you came here, your heart constricting at the distant memories you’d shared with the Boy Wonder. It was secluded and no one ever came up here, it was perfect to just wallow in the past of everything. There were parts of you wondering if you came here enough, if he’d somehow show up too. You scoffed at the thought before fiddling with the pendant on your necklace that was perfectly exposed.

It wasn’t too long ago that you came back and sat in your own company to grieve through losing him. You never found out why and the closure would never present itself. You wanted to give him every excuse, every reason why he didn’t return but in the end it was to only ease your hurt.

Footsteps behind you broke you from your trance. The silence grew as you slowly turned your head, meeting the exact person you already knew it was. You were too tired, too burned out, too emotionally unwell to even be angry at his presence.

“What are you doing here?”, his voice questioned through the voice distorter, his distance making him easy to hear but still kept him far away enough to not come across as a threat.

“I come here all the time.”, you muttered, not caring to fight with him today. Especially not today.

“That wasn’t my question.” he repeated himself. “What are you doing here?”

You rolled your eyes, turning back to look at the water without answering him. Did he follow you here? He had a bad habit of keeping tabs on you when he needed to mind his business.

“Y/n.”

A simple call. Simple yet demanding.

“What?!”, you snapped. “Why are you following me? Just go away, give me peace at least today! You can go back to trying to kill me tomorrow, hell at midnight if you want but just go!”

He stopped in his tracks, the blanket of silence falling over you again. You noticed the sockets of his helmet move, his shoulders tensing as he looked at you, likely taking in your emotional state. You’d never shown a level of vulnerability to anyone before, but you were so close to breaking. The heat and pressure behind your eyes growing by the second.

Today was the day he’d left. The day he didn’t come back. You needed to be alone. You needed to process the hurt that you still carried in your heart. It was the only thing that made you weak and you hated it. How did some boy make you weak after fighting all those years to be strong? How was he your Achilles heel?

You could feel him still standing behind you, your lip quivering as you forced yourself to stay composed. His boots shifted before he walked to the ledge, standing there and staring at the water with you. You looked at him silently, trying to gauge why he was here. He didn’t say anything, just stood quietly as you sat on the ground with your legs to your chest and your chin resting on top of your knees.

The silence felt…. comforting.

He didn’t say anything else, you didn’t speak. You just basked in the silence together and it felt like he was giving you a silent form of support. You noticed his body relaxed, his muscles resting instead of flexed and ready to fight.

The heaviness in your chest grew into an overwhelming ball of emotion, but you forced yourself to push it away. You couldn’t break down in front of him.

You just couldn’t.

“I had a friend I used to meet here”, he spoke finally. “Seems like it was a lifetime ago”

You looked at him, your eyes softening at his confession. “Yeah. Me too.” you breathed. “It seems like it was a hundred lifetimes ago”

Silence again. You couldn’t help but wonder what it was like for him then, had he always been this dangerous? This cut throat and with a murderous edge?

“Were the two of you close?”, you broke the silence.

“We were. We became friends unconventionally but it was a good relationship to have.”, even through the distortion in his helmet making his voice change, you could hear how his tone softened from its usual rough and deep tone.

“That’s good. It’s hard to find people to have good relationships with”

“What about you?”, he asked, turning to you as you looked up at him from the ground, your eyes locked on each other and a moment passed in similarity.

“We had it good… but guess it wasn’t good enough”

Red looked at you, his body language open as he waited for you to continue.

“He disappeared. Just never came back. So..”

He didn’t say anything after that, just turned back to the water and soaking in the small bit of wind blowing your hair out of your face. You were not dressed for the weather but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. He moved his hand towards you, passing you a small item. You raised an eyebrow at him, grabbing the item before you felt the warmth flood your hands.

It was a hand warmer.

You silently thanked him, allowing yourself to soak in the quiet. The silence stayed for a while longer, maybe 20 minutes give or take before he turned, leaving you as you watched him walk away from the ledge.

“Hey”, you called to him, making himself too in his tracks and he moved his head to the side, waiting for your response. “It’s after midnight. You have a free shot right now”

He turned his whole body, staring at you silently seeing his eyes narrow slightly. You couldn’t see his expression but you felt something different in the air. He stared at you almost in empathy.

“I’ll save it for next time”, he muttered, turning and taking off, leaving you alone on the roof as you watched after him.

There was no way you just… shared your past with him, right?

You didn’t think too much about it, letting yourself bask in the cold silence before finally heading home closer to 1am. Leaving behind another part of your past as you went home to rest for the coming days.

It was dark, the lights from the city in the distance seemed to be the only thing illuminating through the night. You moved silently through the field, your senses on high alert and responsive. Your goal was simple: get inside the building, download your information, and leave before you got caught. You needed this information, it was another piece to your puzzle in bringing down both Sionis and Red. It was foolish to try and dismantle both of them, but you needed an upper hand.

Your heart pounding in your chest as you moved in, everything seemingly too calm. Scanning the area, you took in every detail, trying to catch anything that could raise alarms. It was quiet. Too quiet.

You slipped in through a window, jumping from the top of the building and landing softly on the ground, your footsteps almost non-existent.

You couldn’t be too careful, taking in the palettes of wooden crates organized neatly throughout the room. Anyone of these could trigger an alarm, or worse, get you caught in the middle of the workers trying to kill you.

You needed to go up a few floors, the server room being on the upper levels of the building. Moving through the room, you found the staircase, carefully moving and ready to jump over the ledge if the moment called for it. You were not going to get caught up like last time.

You pulled open the door, peeking in to securely sneak in. It was empty. The late hour could be the reason but something tugged at your gut telling you it was something else.

“C’mon, this way.”, a voice rang out, forcing you to press your back against the wall, flush to minimize being seen. Three men, probably patrolling or fucking around. Regardless, you needed to get past them. You waited until they passed, moving carefully as they left. You watched after them, double checking the hall before moving to the other end of the floor, reaching the secured room as you connected your drive to the security panel to hack into it.

The universe must love putting you in shitty situations, not even five seconds later the room filled with a flashing red overlay, an alarm blaring throughout the building. You snapped your hands up, covering your ears as you turned around, trying to ensure you weren’t getting caught or tripped an alarm. Nothing. Panic surged through you trying to find a way to get out of this without getting caught.

You heard the click of the door, your eyes widening as you pushed through, shutting the door and walking over to the server. You connected the flash drive, hacking into the system and downloading the information you needed. You heard footsteps from the hall, your heart pounding in your chest as you waited for the chip to turn green.

The handle rattled as the men barged into the room, your heart spiking as you swiped the flash before it could download everything you needed. Dammit!

The sound of gunshots erupting through the room sent you into overdrive, forcing you to face them head on and get out of the building. You moved quickly, the bullets missing you as you tipped over the desk and ducked behind it. Chips of broken wood flew all around you, the gunshots never ending as they moved closer towards you. You tried shooting back at them with your own fire, but it was four against one. You were going to get caught.

Fuck.

The gunshots stopped, your heart pounding as you tried to contemplate your options. A loud explosion threw you off, the guards cursing as gunfire started again. The shots getting louder before they stopped completely, then a lone shot echoed.

You stayed frozen, mentally preparing yourself for what you’d face if you stood. You turned, looking at the doorway, your heart dropped but flooded in relief. You pushed the thought away as the deep distorted words moved through the room.

“Move!”, he ordered you, the alarm getting louder as you pushed yourself to your feet, rushing to the door as meeting his eye line.

You hesitated, your pride eating at you before you clenched your jaw. You couldn’t be in debt to him. Before you could say anything, the sound of more men rang out. Red motioned for you to follow him and for some reason, you did just that. You ran behind him as you slipped through the hallways, his body ramming into a door, breaking it down as he kicked through the window, glass shattering everywhere.

Your adrenaline was pumping through you, your heart working overtime and your mind racing as you tried to keep up with everything happening around you.

“You coming or do you want to get shot?”, he taunted before he climbed out of the window, you following closely behind as you climbed the ladder to the roof. The outside of the building also had an alarm system, the blaring ringing in your ear as you tried to focus on getting out of the death trap filled with men ready to die for their cause.

You saw as Red’s body disappeared over the ledge, your lungs burning to reach the top and get a break from the chaos inside. A gloved hand extended itself, staring at it as you paused, taking it as Red hauled you over the top, your body crashing into his. He had a hand on your back, your hands on his forearm and chest, breathing in the air as you tried to catch your breath.

Why was it so hard to breathe right now?

You looked up at him, your hands still on his body as his gaze held yours. He didn’t narrow his eyes or seem annoyed, he just… watched you.

“I…” you sucked in a breath. “I had it under control”, you muttered.

“Sure you did, sweetheart”, sarcasm dripping from his tone. You rolled your eyes, your attitude less than it normally was.

He really did just come out of nowhere and help you, a tug in your gut making you question why when all he’d done the past month is try and kill you. Had he softened after the two of you saw each other on the roof? You doubted it. He always had ulterior motives and you needed to find what they were before it was too late.

In the midst of your trance, Red heard a snap behind him, his hands still on your body as he heard the cocking of a gun, the sound missing your ears entirely. He grabbed your body, shielding it as he jumped behind one of the metal containers on the roof as a rain of fire flooded the roof. They were shooting to kill, and he was not about to get killed by these brainless men.

You snapped out of your trance, the thud that you hit the ground with making you focus. Red’s body was over yours, his gun raised as he took shots at the men who came closer to the two of you.

These men were not easing up.

“A little help would be nice, sweetheart”, he grunted as he ducked, his back flush with the container.

“Right”, you muttered as you stood, taking out your pistol and reloading the mag and snapping it into place, taking aim as you shot at the men on the other side of the roof.

“What the fuck do they want”, you heard him curse next to you, taking another shot as one of the men fell to the ground. “We need to get out of here.”

“Oh really? I thought I’d set up a picnic”, you rolled your eyes.

His head snapped towards you, glaring and unamused before yanking you back behind the container. The bullet barely missed you.

“Stay focused”, he bit out.

“God you’re controlling” you made another shot, “Does it help inflate your massive ego knowing you’re calling the shots right now?”

“You’re annoying, you know that right?” the irritation evident in his tone and it made you smirk. You enjoyed getting under his skin.

“Never had anyone complain before, people love me”

“If you could stop talking and actually focus, we can get out of this shithole alive”, he forced.

“Thanks but I don’t need you to boss me around.”, you ducked before shooting back, dropping the mag and reloading.

“Clearly you do.”, he growled, aiming at the men, shooting one in the leg and another in the shoulder. “Watch for the guy with the patch.”

You narrowed in on the man Red described, the goon pulling out a grenade, about to throw it before you got a clear shot of his head, the bullet hitting its mark, his body thumping to the ground.

“Got him. Are you happy now?”, you straightened, seeing as all the bodies laid on the ground.

“Ecstatic”, he muttered, uncocking his gun and reloading the bullets. “We need to leave.”

“I think I can handle myself.”

“Oh my..”, he placed a hand on his helmet, almost like he was trying to calm down. “Can you not be difficult for once.”

“I was doing fine..”, you trailed off as he imposed on your space, taking up all the air in proximity and making you silent.

“You set off the security system when you broke into the server room.”, he loomed over you, his stance on guard and his muscles flexed.

“That wasn’t me.”, you bit out. “Someone else must’ve tipped the alarm, but I was careful.”

“You always have some excuse.”

“It wasn’t me”, your fists tightened. “I had it under control.”

“You were being cornered, outnumbered, and getting shot at, I wouldn’t call that under control”

“I didn’t ask for your help”, you glared at him.

The tension in his shoulders showed his irritation, “You never ask for help. That’s your problem.”

“And you’re always in the fucking way. That's yours.”, you bit back.

“God, we need to-”, he paused, “Fuck, here we go.”, he scoffed before grabbing your arm, pulling you behind him, his body shielding you as he unloaded his entire mag. More men came through the doors, rushing towards the both of you.

Red charged, throwing punches as you followed with the other goon behind him. Four of them focused on taking down you and Red. You jumped over one of them, and swung your leg around, kicking one of them in the jaw as they dropped to the ground. You ran towards the other goon, watching as he pulled out a knife and trying to strike you with it. You twisted your body around his attacks, dodging each one and hitting him in the gut.

The goon punched you, trying to dig the blade into your side as you threw yourself back, pushing yourself off the ground and disarming his weapon, throwing it to the ground. He grabbed your arm, flinging you over his head and slamming you down. You felt the ache in your back, but you couldn’t focus on the pain, you needed to get out.

You looked over at Red, watching as he fought off two men at the same time, both of them delivering and receiving hits from the hooded vigilante.

You focused, running towards the goon who was trying to kill you, punching directly under his jaw and his head snapping to the side with your second blow. His body dropped to the ground, turning as you ran over to help Red.

You jumped on the man’s shoulders, using your dagger and digging it into the side of his neck, his body toppling to the ground. Red quickly secured a hold on his goon, tightening his grip and cracking his neck sideways before throwing his body carelessly on the ground. You sucked in a breath as you took in the blood that splattered all over you. Your hands were covered, not that it was unusual, you were used to it.

“For someone so smart you get yourself in stupid fucking situations”, Red mocked.

“Yeah well, it comes with the job.”, you wiped the sweat off your forehead, looking up at him and sitting in silence.

Red did a quick overview, his senses kicking off as he watched you mess with something in your utility belt. The infrared in his helmet exposed the movement in the dim lit roof. His eyes narrowed, alarms going off. He noticed the staggered movements of a body, raising a gun and aiming for you. Without hesitating, he lunged, pulling you into him and pushing the both of you to the ground.

“What the hell?!”, you exclaimed, watching as he aimed his gun at the darkness, before heading a thud of a body. You watched as he narrowed his eyes, pulling you to your feet with him.

“Fucker was still alive.”, was all he said as he scanned through the roof again. “Almost put a bullet through your skull.”

God, how many times had he saved your ass tonight?

“It's clear.”, he motioned, you following behind him as he reached the ledge of the building. You stayed silent, shifting from one foot to the other before you swallowed your pride and broke the elongated silence.

“Thanks, for everything. For tonight.”, you forced out, hating that you had to thank him for saving you. You were always careful, tonight was just…. Bad luck.

“Yeah. Whatever.” Red’s voice was firm, but you didn’t fail to notice how it had a miniscule softness to it. It was less harsh than normal and it threw you off. You rubbed the back of your arm, feeling a vibration in your pocket as you took out your transmitter.

The message sprawled simply, but made your gut drop.

Sionis Industries, 2200 hours, Tomorrow. BM

Your eyebrows scrunched in confusion and annoyance, turning as Red stayed focused on you. What did Sionis want now? To torture you some more with his ridiculous tasks? Come onto you a little stronger? God, could he just leave you alone for once.

“Duty calls.”, you waved the device before shoving it back in its holder, turning away and jumping to the other building and disappearing.

Red watched after you, a tugging in his gut before brushing off the feeling. He couldn’t deny you were stubborn, hot-headed, smart… charming. Different than before. It made his irritation towards you lessened a sliver. He ignored the thought, leaving in silence as he stepped over the bodies of the men and disappeared into the night.

The room was empty, as you pushed the door open, three guards lingering at the entrance as you moved deeper into the room. Your eyes fell on Sionis leaning back in his leather chair, his gaze fixated outside and seeing you in the reflection. His gaze darkened as he turned, fixated on you like a predator. You hadn’t told Penguin about the meeting tonight, wanting to ensure Sionis’ reason behind meeting with you wasn’t for something completely unrelated to Red.

“Y/n, glad you could make it.”, his voice rang through the empty room, the windows surrounding every side of the room making you feel exposed. His corporate building was smack in the middle of Gotham, it was both strategic and dangerous. “Sit. We have business to discuss.”

“I’d prefer to stand”, you said confidently, not letting your nerves get to you. Sionis stared at you with serious eyes.

“I said. Sit.”, his voice was sharp, a vein popping on his forehead. When you refused to sit, he grabbed the bottle of whiskey on the desk and smashed it to the ground. Your body stayed still and held his eyes but a small fraction of you wanted to flinch. “I don’t have time for you to play these games, Y/n.”

“Then get to the point, Sionis.”, you spit out.

His maniacal laugh echoed as he moved towards you, his body towering over you in pure greed, anger, hatred. You could sense his itch to hurt someone, to punch them or even kill them. He wouldn’t touch you. You knew that much. He couldn’t risk losing his deal with Penguin, it would ruin his entire process to getting Red out of the picture.

“I just don’t understand, sweetheart.”, he spoke loudly as he picked up the glass filled with his whiskey, the bottle shattered at his feet. “It’s been almost two months. Why haven’t you caught the son of a bitch yet?”

Your jaw tightened, the reminder burning through you as you watched his calculative and taking note of your every word. “I’m doing everything I can. He has an upper hand, Sionis. He’s calculative, quick, and has eyes and ears all over the city. He’s always two steps ahead.”

“Doesn’t seem like you’re doing everything you can. This dirty piece of shit has been destroying my jobs! I’ve lost millions! Maybe my last request was too mired in subtlety. I want this man dead. Now, when I say dead, I mean seriously dead! Beaten, broken, his head mounted on my wall kind of dead! Either do it or I’ll convince Penguin for you to take his place instead.”

God, you never hated anyone more than Sionis. Red even didn’t make her as angry as Sionis did. He was ruthless, power-hungry, unhinged, and just purely psychotic. You were surprised at how tame he had been the past month, Roman Sionis did not have a reputation for being calm and composed. He was open and aggressive and that made him the top of the Criminal food chain. He was the one person you did not fuck with or betray. It always ended with someone getting tortured, beaten half to death, or straight up killed.

“Don’t forget I work for Penguin, not you.”, your eyes narrowed as you shoved your face in his a little more. “I’ll take care of Red Hood on my own time. I still have other jobs the Boss asks of me.”

Sionis fists clenched at his sides, his foot tapping on the floor as he analyzed your glare, looking for just the tiniest, miniscule chip in your facade. You were good at keeping things hidden, you never let anyone break through your walls. That was the only way to survive. Your stance solidified and your gaze hardened.

“I already cost him hundreds of thousands, he won’t let me take another hit at him so easily after busting two of his operations.”

Sionis’ smirk widened into a sinister, full smile, “You think a couple hundred thousand is anything? I lost millions! Get this fucker’s body on my desk soon or I will start shooting bullets down someone’s fucking throat.”

“Trust me, there’s nothing I want more than that bond you have on his head.”, you took a step back, his hand grabbing you.

“If you get his body on my desk by the end of the month I’ll double the bond.”

A million dollars.

You could be free. It was all you needed to finally get away. The last of your savings to put you in a secure spot. You already wanted to get rid of Red, the past few days meaning nothing to you in how he treated you. You knew it was all for his own selfish motives and this would be your selfish motive. A million dollars. That would make anyone go crazy.

“Consider it done.”

Sionis smirked, his dark face gaining more of an ugly maniacal appearance to it as he loosened his grip on your arm. “Good”, he hummed, returning to his desk. “If you fail, I’ll make sure to do my own look as to why.”

“Don’t waste your time. It’ll be done.”, you said finally, seeing his eyes follow you as you turned and left through the door, the guards letting you out before you reached the elevator. You clicked the lobby button and sat in your thoughts as you contemplate your next move. A million. It wasn’t a lot in the grand scheme of things. Relocating, moving, starting somewhere new, that would take the majority of the money, but it was enough to get you started.

The ring of the elevator brought your attention back to reality, stepping out into the lobby and heading out the door. You didn’t have a choice. You needed the money, you needed this assignment, you needed to get rid of Red. Your life quite literally depends on it.

The air outside was fresh, a stark contrast to the suffocating feeling inside of Sionis’ office. You took a deep breath, calming yourself before walking back home. You couldn’t let Sionis win, but right now, you were at his mercy.

Red needed to be taken care of.

Even though a part of you felt cold at the thought, it was the only way.

A/N

Hello everyone!

So so many of you have been sending me messages on here saying how much you love this story so far and it makes me so happy that you’re enjoying it! We finally get to see more of Red and Reader slowly get to know each other outside of the masks. I know it’s still picking up but the upcoming chapters will be full of more progression!

Again I cannot thank you enough and please leave comments, messages, or any questions!

See you next week xx.

[methoughtsphantom]

DP x DC

not me thinking about imaginary scenarios of ten year old Tim Drake in the ghost zone (pariah’s castle)

where Tim thinks it’s strangely soothing that despite being the only one whose steps connect to the ground, there’s not that eerie silence that befell drake manor

strange blob creatures chitter softly and nip at his hair and swooshes and wisps of wind betray the presence of an invisible ghost

which after following he realizes it’s almost like he’s trailing after the black dark shadow that is batman again

which gives him the idea that, maybe, just this one time, he can play the part of robin

that in mind Tim makes out a game of sneaking to the side of ghosts that look like they’re brooding and if they can spot him he loses

most just grunt in response (very in character) while others fuss over him and ask questions which Tim uses to infodump

he also politely asks the ghost that always asks him how he’s doing to instead say the word “report”

(the ghost looks at him weirdly but humors him and besides the answer would be the same anyways)

Tim also(!!)

gets on the case of why the walls lack tangibility when he is the one leaning on them (he doesn’t live down the time he wanted to look cool only to fall through the wall)

hyperfixates on how gravity works in the ghost zone because he couldn’t do a skateboard trick he has pulled off many many times and he’s salty about it

tries to figure out where they are getting human food from (cause it’s hot enough to be homemade but also there’s no kitchen —so how could it be) (also he wants coffee)

finds out the dude that often gives him a side eye when he finds that Tim knows how to do something (math homework), is next in line for the throne and yet doesn’t have a single “mingle and talk people up” bone in his body. (despite it his networking is a solid 7/10)

gets a ghost horse to adopt him what

discovers pretty quickly that there are rooms to which he can’t phase through (a.k.a. he’s not allowed entry) to which he begrudgingly backs off even though that stands in his way of doing a very thorough layout™ of the place (robin would)

sulks over the lack of extreme sports in the place

(Danny takes him to the Far Frozen where they go tire sliding in the snow and where tim learns how to use a skateboard skate and also that ghost ice cream is just as good as normal ice cream)

sulks again cuz he caught a common cold

also because there’s no sun or moon poor Timmy’s already screwed sleep schedule gets more messed up to the point no one knows when or where he will fall asleep

(ghosts find him in the most unhinged of places with a signature purple cloak draped over him every. single. time.)

overall, be a menace

see-> the time he threatened to build ghost weapons he’d somehow memorized the blueprints of cause Danny wouldn’t let him visit the radium girls factory but yes the renaissance period

see-> that time he went through the whole ghost energy and how to work with it book section in the library and half an hour later had a prototype of a star wars laser beam made

(note: bribing only works for hot chocolate, not for letting him keep cool-looking guns)

just tim having the time of his life

clockwork being no help at all (the ghost loves being a cryptid)

and danny trying not to get attached while he progressively gets more concerned over this chaos child he emotionally adopted as his little brother

(to fit canon cause i want it to this would just be until Danny finds the dimension little Timmy is from, then they can safely yeet the child back to the moment he first went missing)

anyways before anyone knows it’s been three months

[dullgecko]

goblin's main sense is actually their sense of smell, even with their big ears and eyes (which dont get me wrong, are great at what they are meant to do). Things in this world can go invisible, teleport around, and silence everything around them, its incredibly useful to be able to smell where they are no matter what.

that being said: You cannot hide anything from Riz. you can't even hide yourself from Riz. He will smell you out and find you and he does not care if your 'busy', Kristen, you have Student Body President stuff to do.

luckily, Fabian doesn't have to worry about this, if he doesn't want Riz to bother him he will simply put on an expensive perfume that he knows Riz wont go near because the smell overstimulates him.

The first time Fabian used it was after bloodrush practice, the team having showered and gotten changed to head home for the day. He'd only sprayed a very small amount but Riz had /gagged/ halfway across the room and immediatly left to go outside while covering his nose.

As teenage boys tend to do, the knowledge that his friend couldnt stand the smell of something /obviously/ had to be exploited. Fabian didnt use it all the time, just at oportune moments when it would be the funniest because it would inevitbly make the goblin fumble whatever he was doing with a disgusted look. It was especially funny to use during games where the rogue had advantage on shooting or throwing, because he would critically fail /every time/ he caught wind of the fancy perfume.

It took Fabian a while to notice that Riz would start leaving the room and not coming back for hours afterward, obviously waiting for the smell to clear out before returning. He ended up throwing the half-full bottle away when he realised the reason why though. Riz didn't just find the smell unpleasent it was downright /torture/ on his sense of smell. Bad enough to trigger migraines if he was around it long enough which only ramped up in intensity the more Fabian pranked him with it. He hadnt said anything because he figured the fighter just liked the smell, and the bottle had been /expensive/, so he didnt want to make a fuss over nothing.

Fig had been the one to chew Fabian out about it when she followed Riz out of the room once and caught him trying very hard not to be sick in a completely dark bathroom while he waited for the sudden migraine to go away.

(They later found out that the main ingrediant used to be used as a goblin repellant, and Fabian used his contacts to get the whole factory shut down.)

[puppetkisser]

Found family

Desc: Reader comes across a puppy on a mission, and they can’t bare to leave it there

Fluff, no smut

Simon Riley x reader if you squint really hard, shut your eyes and pretend. The vision was there I promise.

Warnings: animal cruelty (not by the readers or 141s hands, just the puppy’s backstory)

Enjoy.

It was meant to be a straightforward mission — a task of infiltrating an enemy facility to gather critical intelligence on their current leadership. Our objective was clear: get in, retrieve the information, and make a swift exit without leaving a trace. The enemy's base of operations lay hidden amidst the unforgiving snowy peaks of Russia, creating an intimidating barrier around the city.

Our team touched down in an abandoned factory located on the western outskirts of the city, a safe starting point for our covert operation. From there, we needed to reach our secondary destination, where we'd secure a crucial vehicle for our infiltration. Time was of the essence; every second counted, and we had to avoid detection at all costs.

As we trekked through the biting cold, the desolate landscape seemed to echo with the harsh rumbling of the wind, and the crunching sounds of our boots against the snow. The icy air cut through our clothing, making it feel like there was no room in our lungs for air. Despite the freezing temperatures, we found some relief with the hot packs we were provided, clutching them tightly in our pockets, desperately trying to preserve warmth.

The surroundings seemed lifeless, except for the occasional snowflake that danced in the wind. The vastness of the snowy expanse felt both awe-inspiring and perilous. The mission had us on edge, our senses heightened, and our nerves taut like strings of a finely tuned instrument. We kept glancing over our shoulders to look for any movement or sound, but the area appeared devoid of life, which seemed even more eerie than before. A lone bird flew overhead, its long, slender feathers trailing in the wind, as if it knew what we were here for.

"I've had my share of cold missions, but Russia always manages to freeze my britches just a tad more," Price grumbled, rubbing his gloved hands together.

Gaz, ever the wit, chimed in with a smirk, "That's why they call it Mother Russia, sir. She embraces you with a chilly hug and never lets go."

trying to keep up the team's spirit, Soap added, "Well, as long as she doesn't squeeze too tight, I think we'll manage just fine."

I managed to sneak in a snicker from under my scarf despite the circumstances. "I'll be sure to remind Mother Russia of that when we're out of here in one piece," I said, trying to lighten the mood.

Price cracked a half-smile, ''Keep your wit sharp. It might just save your hide out here."

Ghost, who had been unusually quiet, spoke up in his low, gravelly voice, "I'd say keeping our eyes sharp is more critical right now. Let's stay focused you boys. We have a mission to complete."As we stealthily entered the warehouse, an eerie chill ran down my spine. The vast space looked empty, but an inexplicable sense of unease lingered, as if we were being watched from the shadows. Glancing at my teammates, their expressions mirrored my own uncertainty.

Summoning my training, I retrieved my scanner equipment, the faint glow of the display illuminating the darkness. With cautious steps, I scanned the floor for any hidden threats, every nerve on high alert. The silence weighed heavily, broken only by the faint hum of the equipment.

As the scanner swept across the floor, my heart raced, half-expecting to detect signs of recent activity. But to my relief, the results came back negative. It seemed we were alone, but the unsettling feeling persisted, like an invisible presence lurking just out of sight.

Captain Price's low voice cut through the silence, "Stay sharp, Something doesn't feel right."

Gaz nodded, his eyes darting around, "Agreed. Keep your guard up."

We continued scanning the floor for further clues. As expected, the room was empty, although it did give off a slight metallic scent, almost reminiscent of old blood. My stomach churned nervously, my pulse speeding. As much as we wanted to take this easy, we had to be thorough, otherwise the intel would prove worthless, allowing the enemies to slip away. We could risk everything on success; otherwise, failure loomed large, the consequence of failure being death and destruction at the hands of the Russian government.

"This place is huge." Soap muttered, taking in the size of the warehouse.

"Yes. But it isn't empty," I replied, scanning the area.

My scanner gave another ping, indicating something in particular had caught my attention. A single small door had been left slightly ajar, and beyond that was the unknown.

"I'm gonna go check it out.." I prepared a flashbang grenade to use as cover should the need arise, in case we stumbled upon hostile personnel. I moved towards the door as the others followed behind me, weapons drawn. Once we reached the door, I carefully opened it wider, just enough for him to peek inside.. hundreds of dog kennels lined the walls of the warehouse, with several pairs of cages lining the walls opposite, each filled with different varieties of huskies. Some dogs looked relatively well trained, while others were barely recognizable as such.

"Fuckin 'ell..." Ghost breathed, looking horrified at the sheer numbers of dogs in these cages.

Gaz nodded grimly, "It's gotta be some sort of a cruel dog training compound.."

"No shit." Price nodded, frowning deeply.

As far as I could tell, there weren't any signs that someone had gone into the warehouse recently, not even footprints.

We shuffled inside, slowly entering the building, careful to remain as silent as possible. The dogs continued to watch us suspiciously, occasionally wagging their tails or barking viciously in greeting. My eyes darted quickly from side to side, ready for anything, but none appeared to pose any threat. We approached the first cage to investigate further, and froze in place as soon as we spotted the occupant.

He sat in the corner, an empty food bowl sat at the opposite end of the cage, a small bowl of water next to it.. he looked to be only 5 or 6 weeks old, a small husky. Possibly the runt of the litter judging by the scrawny physique. The poor thing didn't appear to have the energy to bark.

"They're training them from pups.." Ghost pointed out

"This 's fuckin sick.." Soap whispered, looking down at the small, helpless creature with compassion and revulsion.

There wasn't any question about it; I was leaving with this puppy. This was my own side mission..

"Keep going, I'm gonna stay back here and try to get more information on this compound" I ordered, my voice calm, although deep inside, I felt sick at my guts. "I'll catch up"

The others agreed with varying degrees of reluctance, but I waved them off with a quick "Go". It wouldn't do good to let the others see my anxiety, so I tried to push the emotions aside.

As everyone took off into the next building, I approached the puppy in the cage, crouching down as I extended my hand toward him. He whimpered, turning his head away as if he were afraid to approach me, which I couldn't blame him for.

With a soft grunt of effort, I lifted the cage open and scooped the little dog into my arms. His fur was damp with perspiration, his breathing labored as he struggled to regain his strength.

"Shhh, it's okay... I gotcha" I whispered soothingly, petting his head with my hand. "Just relax for now. You're alright."

After some time, he finally seemed to gain the ability to breathe properly again. He sniffed my jacket curiously, then looked into my eyes, clearly still distrustful of me after the things he must've endured. A yawn escape his lips as fatigue overwhelmed his body. With infinite care, I gently placed wrapped him in a spare piece of clothing, hoping to prevent the poor thing from catching a cold. I wrapped another cloth around him, nestling a heat pack in the cloth.

"You'll warm up quickly. You'll be just fine" I murmured, smiling at him.

As I stroked his fur lovingly before tucking him in my vest and securing him, making sure he could breath, but he wouldn't be seen, the puppy nuzzled against my collar bone sleepily, obviously exhausted. I stood up and began walking out, my heart heavy, thinking about how I had failed to rescue all these dogs. But hopefully when we got back someone would care enough to help.

Back outside, I caught up to the team, having lost track of them in the maze of concrete buildings for a bit, but fortunately spotted them standing by the entrance of yet another warehouse. I motioned them over as I headed towards them.

"Anything?" Price asked as I approached.

"Nothing.."

After regrouping we got on with the rest of the mission, gathering the necessary intel and moving into action to get the fuck out. I could feel the puppy breathing against me, and I held my breath with anticipation. As the team prepared to make an exit, I glanced down and spotted the tiny animal sleeping against me..

We hopped into the getaway car, heading back toward the base. I turned on the radio, hoping to hear news regarding the mission and whether or not we had found anything useful to report..

The ride home was long but uneventful. The sky gradually darkened, and with it, the city lights lit up as the moon rose high in the sky. I was seated between Ghost and soap, and I couldn't stop myself from stealing glances at my new friend who lay peacefully asleep..

"You're kiddin me lass.. You're really taking him home?" Soap asked

"please don't tell anyone.." I said softly, "I don't think he'd survive if i let him.."

Ghost gave me a sympathetic look, but thankfully didn't press the issue further.

Once we reached the base, the rest of the team dispersed. As usual, I stayed behind to collect my supplies, and once I arrived at my quarters, I removed the dog from my vest, placing him gently onto my bed. I brushed the strands of fur back, letting out a sigh of contentment.

This went on for a few days, I had kept the puppy hidden, he still lacked a name however..

In my quarters I tossed a tennis ball at the wall, the puppy darted after it instantly, he carried it in his mouth proudly and trotted back to me so i could throw it again. He dropped the ball and barked pretty loudly, causing a few heads to turn in the hall..

Ghost knocked on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Is' Ghost"

"Yeah, come in." I hummed, he opened the door and stepped inside, Soap following behind.

Ghost glanced around the room, his eyes finally landing on the playful scene between me and the puppy. The little husky was now bouncing around, excitedly wagging his tail, clearly enjoying the game of fetch. Ghost's stern expression softened slightly as he observed the heartwarming sight.

"Seems like you've made a new friend," he remarked, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips.

I looked at Ghost, feeling a mixture of relief and apprehension. "Yeah, he sort of found me," I replied, trying to downplay the significance of the encounter.

"He's adorable," Soap chimed in, entering the room fully and kneeling down to pet the puppy. The little husky nuzzled against Soap's hand, his tail wagging even faster.

"He sure is," I agreed, unable to hide the affection in my voice.

Ghost glanced at me with a knowing look. "You've been keeping him hidden, haven't you?" he asked, his voice gentle.

I hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I didn't want to cause any distractions during the mission. But... I couldn't leave him there, you know?"

Ghost nodded understandingly. "I get it."

Soap looked between Ghost and me, realizing the significance of the situation. "So, what's the plan now? You can't keep him hidden forever," he said.

"I know," I replied, my heart heavy with the realization. "I've been thinking about that. Maybe I can find a way to take him home with me once the mission is over."

Ghost sat next to me, the tall man towering over me, His hand snaked over my shoulder, keeping me close.

"Whats is' name?"

"Doesn't have one.."

Ghost's stoic expression softened as he gazed down at the puppy nestled in my arms. His eyes, usually sharp and focused, held a glimmer of warmth as he observed the tiny creature.

"Doesn't have one, huh?" Ghost repeated, his gravelly voice tinged with curiosity.

I nodded, a touch of sadness in my eyes. "Yeah, I found him in that warehouse, and he was all alone. I don't think anyone bothered to give him a name," I explained.

Ghost leaned in slightly, reaching out to gently stroke the puppy's soft fur. The little husky looked up at him, his eyes full of trust, despite everything he had been through.

"Well, he's not alone anymore," Ghost remarked, a faint hint of a smile forming on his lips.

I couldn't help but smile at Ghost's words. It was true; the puppy and I had formed an unexpected bond amidst the chaos of the mission. He had become my loyal companion, and I had become his protector.

Ghost's eyes met mine, and for a moment, there was unspoken understanding between us. He knew the significance of this little life, and he knew that I would do everything in my power to ensure his safety.

"I guess it's time we change that," Ghost said, breaking the silence. "How about 'Scout'? Seems fitting for a little traveler like him."

"Scout," I repeated, the name rolling off my tongue. It felt right, a perfect representation of the puppy's adventurous spirit and his role in our story. "I like it. Scout it is."

As the days passed, Scout's presence within Team 141 became more apparent. His playful antics and affectionate nature had a way of melting the ice around even the most hardened soldiers. Everyone but Price knew about him..

One afternoon, as we returned from a particularly intense mission, Scout excitedly bounded toward us having escaped my quarters, his tail wagging furiously. He had a keen sense of recognizing the sound of our approach, and he always greeted us with enthusiasm, as if celebrating our safe return. It was as though he understood the significance of every mission and appreciated our commitment to each other's safety.

As we entered the base, Scout followed closely, as he always did, earning smiles and affectionate pats from the team members. I couldn't help but worry about what Captain Price might say when he discovered our little secret.

However, my concerns weren't soon put to rest. As we reached the common area, Captain Price was there, deep in conversation with Ghost. Scout, seemingly unaware of the captain's authority, stopped at his feet. his tail still wagging but his demeanor more cautious.

Captain Price looked down, his eyes falling on Scout, who stood there with a mix of curiosity and wariness. Price's brow furrowed for a moment, but to my surprise, his expression softened as he observed the little husky.

"What's this, then?" Price inquired, his tone not quite as stern as I had anticipated.

I stepped forward, bracing myself to explain. "Uh, sir, this is Scout," I said, gesturing to the puppy. "I found him during our last mission. He was alone in an abandoned facility, and... well, I couldn't leave him there."

Price nodded, his gaze still fixed on Scout. "I see," he said, and to my surprise, there was a hint of a smile on his lips. "He's a tough little thing, isn't he?"

"Yes, sir," I replied, relieved that Price didn't seem overly upset. "He's proven to be quite resourceful and loyal."

Price glanced at Ghost and then back at Scout. "Well, we could all use a little lift now and then," he admitted, surprising us all with his acceptance of our furry friend.

Scout, sensing the change in atmosphere, seemed to be excited, pawing at prices legs as he scratched behind his ear

" I suppose we could use a morale booster," Price said, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Just make sure he doesn't get in the way during missions."

I couldn't believe my ears. Captain Price, was surprisingly okay with having a puppy on the team.

"Don't worry, sir. He won't be a burden," I assured him gratefully. "He's smart and well-trained."

Price nodded, then turned back to Ghost. "Keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn't chew on anything he shouldn't," he said, only half-joking

That was it then.. Scout was part of 141... I smiled, relieved that things were going smoothly...

[gumnut-logic]

WIP Monday

Kayo had been in the Appalachians when John broke comms silence. The fact he broke that silence just as she was about to forcibly enter a building and detain a GDF spy spoke urgency just by itself.

TI New York was under attack.

She didn’t swear.

But she did whip out her tranq gun and dart the man through the window of his log cabin. The fact he was wearing a similar plaid shirt to her heavy lifting brother was just insulting.

“John, tagged but not bagged. Get London in on this please.”

“FAB.”

She was running as she spoke. S was hidden as she always was, the breeze through the trees rattling against her hull in these tight confines the only giveaway that she even existed. Woods were not Kayo’s favourite. Jungle was worse. Plains and deserts and high cliffs gave her line of sight to see them coming.

‘Them’ was everyone. Trees hid far too much.

She didn’t need her ‘bird to be visible, grabbing invisible rungs as her ladder lowered, leaping up into her cockpit. The world’s most quiet VTOL engaged, lifting her above the trees, high enough to let Shadow’s wings unfold.

She still marvelled at her ‘bird. Wings as thin as origami paper and speed that almost rivalled One. Almost.

Which meant she was on approach to TI New York within moments.

The building was architectural brilliance. Older than any other TI building, bar the factory in Kansas, it was a spike of eco-conscious glass reflecting the New York skyline.

Thunderbird One was perched on the roof.

Five was churning situation reports via One’s sensor array. Everything was mostly unknown. An emergency signal had been triggered, and the seventy-second floor was a blindspot. It was as if the floor didn’t exist.

Acknowledging Five and shunting the feed to her wrist, she perched S ever so silently on the side of the building. Ignoring the wind buffeting at this height, she slipped out of Shadow and into the shadows.

-o-o-o-

[erzatz3117]

@vvindication sorry for tagging you, but I thought you might like this other piece of my writing I translated *stares into the sky, waiting for a punishment from the heavens for my arrogance*

November 17th, 741, 7:23 AM. Rodgaard, Pervorodina. The Founding Stone. Anton Wladomojski, President of the Republic of Czarnovia-Sevraport, is walking down a winding, completely empty corridor. He is intently watched from the frescoes on the walls by politicians and bureaucrats, warlords and apostles leading faceless rabble. Like waves following celestial propulsors, the human masses consumed every obstacle on the path set from above - the Elven civilization, wiped out to the last tribe, the renegade states that defied the supremacy of Rodgaard and Divine Sevra, the socialist and anti-colonial forces of the recent past, trampled by measured economic pressures.

The pristine twilight of the millennia-old chambers, the dusty and unmoving air pressed tangibly on the President; the image of the Founding Stone, built up over centuries of human statehood, suggested to anyone entering the palace only one thought: the history of civilization is entirely woven from the aspirations of its greatest representatives, and therefore those who entered the palace through the front door could hardly expect anything.

The asymptote of the corridor finally approached its limit - room №1002. The metal plate with the frightening inscription "COMMITTEE OF MESOECONOMIC ARBITRATION" was unpleasantly out of the surrounding antique surroundings, which made Wladomojski feel even worse.

The redwood parted with a rumble, and the servant of two nations found himself in a room flooded with painful light. Its ringing emptiness was interrupted only by a huge oak table, which strongly resembled the cathedra of a courtroom. The resemblance to a punitive chamber was reinforced by five immovable men in black robes who had already taken their rightful places.

- Anton Wladomojski, right? Czarnovia-Sevraport? Please have a seat, - the sucralose voice of the chairman of the arbitration committee sounded from somewhere in the center of the room, - I hope you got a good night's sleep, *pan prezident*.

The president's eyes still hadn't gotten used to the bright light, so he couldn't make out the faces of his judges or the minor objects of furniture. Fortunately, by the grace of an invisible assistant, another anachronism - an uncomfortable aluminium chair - was beneath him.

Wladomojski was drowning in the green-pink ripples of nervous tension, suddenly feeling acutely his senile weakness, undoubtedly aggravated by alcoholism.

- Some vodka, Mr. Wladomojski? For courage, - a woman's voice and a leaden crystal rang out from his left.

- Thank you, but let's get straight to the point, - Anton Borisovich felt that he was one drop of alcohol away from a heart attack.

- As you wish, Mr. Wladomojski.

The rustling of thick reports and muffled whispering suddenly filled the office, but stopped just as abruptly after the chairman's laconic request:

- Enough. The decision's already been made.

- So what is it?

- Let's go through the entire chronology..... Last December, the Republic of Czarnovia-Sevraport requested a loan of 4 billion reserve kupon-karbovantsy from the Interbank, pledging to repay the amount over the next five years. Interbank reviewed your request and offered you a draft of a loan with an initial interest rate of 10% and an annual increase of 1.70% up to and including 18.50%. You declined, citing, uh, "the unthinkable audacity of compound interest" in your address to your citizens this March. Of course, hardly anyone in Rodgaard would condemn a healthy dose of populism, but you never offered a more reasonable proposal.... We met you halfway, and developed a new project, which implied a reduction in the rate increase to 1.20%, in exchange for pledging part of your state property - first of all, PAO Alchemmach, PAO Simfolijsk Tractor Factory and PAO Thaumenergo. You refused this offer too, demanding a constant interest. And here we are. We have only one offer left for you.

- I'm listening.

- A 12.50% fixed-rate loan in exchange for... 51% of stocks of Alchemmach, Simfolijsk Tractor Factory and Thaumenergo.

- You're... asking for a lot. I'm not sure Simfolijsk will approve of this.

- You can still decline. But we all realize that you *need* that money.

Wladomojski closed his eyes. The pleading faces of Republican ministers emerged from the flickering painful darkness. Without Anton Borisovich, Czarnovia-Sevraport would never have existed, and so the nation still hoped that their president could lead the country out of crisis...

- Miracles don't happen, Mr. Wladomojski. Economic modeling shows that if you refuse our conditions, you will face inter-sectoral economic disintegration. In other words, total decay, - the arbiter of fate seemed to have read the old man's mind.

The president was going through his recent memories as if scrolling through a diafilm. Desperate ministers, deputies understandably blocking the reduction of welfare spending, furious civil servants and workers, who have been starving for months.... ancient monuments of Simfolijsk, his hometown, forgotten and neglected by his own government.

For the tiniest moment it seemed to the father of the nation that he could still turn around it all, immediately cut all ties to the Rodgaard scavengers and save the dying Republic without bargaining with conscience, but the nerve pathways were already burned out on his isocortex - too much time was spent on lavish festivities, talks about "integration" and copious infusions of ethanol. It was too late.

In Wladomojski's hand was an extremely incommodious pen with ink of the traditional crimson color. It traced several quivering lines on the snow-white paper like a wounded, bleeding animal.

- It's a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. President. Come again anytime you need.

[bunny-hoodlum]

Sharing this because I feel like it. ☺️ The first 900+ words of Idle Hands (rewrite) so far. 🥹 In case you didn't catch previous now deleted post, I gave up on the 'stressful childhood' direction. Now it's more of a retelling, but I'm still calling it a rewrite. This Naruto is interesting imo. Ahhhh, I hope I'm doing this right? I guess bear with me here. Contradictions may be inevitable, Idk. So, he falls under the Obliviously Evil trope this time around. I'm shooting for 'cheerful yet stressed (traumatized) and actually secretly crazy'. Doesn't fit the standard Dark Naruto depiction, so I can't really say one way or another which he leans the closest to. 😭 He hasn't broken yet, but he's going to get there, so we'll see. 🤭 Hope this instills some hype! :3 Becuz I'm making progress babyyyy~🎵

xxx-xxx-xxx

Idle Hands (2024)

Pairings: NaruHina, eventual NaruHinaSasu

Smut, Freeuse, Dacryphilia

cw: toxic behavior, dubcon, ijime

Summary: There's nothing to do in the sticks. There's even less to do when you're on probation. There's even less than that when: Your dad is the most popular man in town/You've been raised to be a boy and are invisible when you try to be a girl/When your exciting city boy lifestyle has been taken from you.

Or when two losers and a fuckboy choose all the worst ways to have fun. Not that one of them had much of a choice.

There in the middle of an overgrown clearing sat a rusted, abandoned car, wheel-less and sitting atop four cement bricks. The dense forest trees towered in the distance, their foliage deep green and billowing in the wind. Beneath the car, you can follow the remnants of a gravel path out of the clearing, towards an abandoned auto factory – you know, when having an auto factory way the fuck out here somehow made sense. Back before the bubble burst when everything went to shit. But what does he know? He was only six when it happened. Not like that shit ain’t affecting him well into the Y2K or anythin’.

Naruto lounged in the backseat with a nudie magazine and a sage green quilted blanket over his lap, his cheeky eyes devouring the curvaceous models on the pages. Oiled up, lips spread, pouty eyes peering and pleading for his cock.

He nudged his toe in the soft belly beneath the blanket, or maybe he threw it a little harder than he meant to, forcing a slight cough from her throat as her mouth retreated from his cock after gagging.

The blanket rose up from his lap.

“Hey, I didn’t say ‘stop’.” He cupped the back of her head and forced her lips to press against the underside of his rigid girth, teeth sliding and catching against his tender flesh. When the wet, warm vacuum pull of her mouth around his cock returned, he settled back into place, flipping pages like he was reading the newspaper.

Green eyes stared back at him. Earnest, yet cold. White skin framed by black hair. Her tits squished together in a string bikini as she bent forward, her arms crossed underneath their swell.

Shizuka. Didn't matter that she was twenty-four and he was sixteen. There were plenty of ways he could ruin her that life hasn't yet.

His breath quickened, shallow quiet pants puffing past his lips.

Her rich green eyes were growing on him.

Maybe his first girlfriend will have green eyes. If only.

Women like them didn’t exist out here. Not in this dying town of theirs, where their only market street was rows of shuttered-up shops, their storefronts heavily tagged and dirty with runny rust-stains.

Dsy by day, this place was turning into an old person’s home. Or a fucking casket.

Day by day he passed by a chain-smoking mummy, half-deaf and half-blind yet still nosy enough to cuss him out. Every day those same disapproving stares like he was some kind of disease, some kind of curse.

He wanted a woman like Shizuka. He wanted softness like hers to make him forget. He wanted eyes like hers fixed on him in every mundane context, like two lovers, their names signed on the lease just the day before. He wanted her silent worship.

God, he couldn’t wait to get out of here. Couldn’t wait to get a taste of real women.

He was wasting his fucking youth here. His mind too, not that anyone believed he had much of one to begin with.

He imagined someone beautiful, someone way, way, way out of his league taking him inside her, wanting him more than anyone else inside her. She would rewrite his entire history in a single night.

Excitement arced up his spine as pleasure pooled in his groin, building and building–

Naruto grabbed the back of her head. He thrusted into her hot, slimy throat, ignoring her startled whines, the gagging convulsions tightening around his invasive cockhead.

“Gotta train your throat again, huh, Hinata? C’mon, just endure it. I ‘ppreciate you not playing with other dudes while I was away, but you’ve really gotten sloppy. But that’s fine, too, actually. It’s kinda cute.” He threw his head back and closed his eyes, surrendering to the soft, clinging sensations thrumming around his cock. He was melting against her devoted tongue, so persistent to please him no matter what as she licked and laved the ridgid underside with broad sweeps that left echoes of each across his turgid flesh.

Knock knock knock!

A rhythmic tapping on the glass beside his head startled the lewd occupants and Naruto threw his toe into her stomach again.

He lowered the nudie magazine atop her head and turned his face out the window.

Bent over at the hip stood the thorn in his side that his dad personally stabbed in him the moment he found himself in front of the family judge again – no less than two months after his release from the Juvenile Training Facility.

The silver-haired man with the lazy, lidded gaze mimed cranking a handle backwards and Naruto sighed. He reached for the window crank, lowering the window just enough that he and Kakashi could properly exchange words.

“Go to school, Naruto.”

Naruto sank into seat, clearing his face of any hint of expression as he leveled Kakashi with a cold, ignorant stare.

His toe had other ideas, as he nosed around the convergence between her legs, finding the soft resistance of her panty-covered cunt. He idly teased her clit while he waited for the weary douche to give up like he always did.

Not like his father’s favorite student was all that invested in him, anyway. The dude was freaky smart and found ways to make his minor infractions such as truancy go away. Precisely to his father’s satisfaction, and not the system’s.

Obito told him someone like Kakashi would have proposed lifelong marriage to ‘The Rules’ if it had taken the shape he most desired.

The fact that he could give two shits about integrity these days convinced Naruto that his dad knew Kakashi’s state of mind. And that he was exactly what his dad was looking for in a probations officer.

Someone that would take Namikaze Minato’s side, always.

Someone that would protect Namikaze Minato’s image, always.

TBC

[mugzymiik]

hey guys im on that tpc + warrior cat grind so i assigned Ancestor's Strife (a warriors rp with powers ^-^) powers to TPC chars

all Heroes have variants OR hybrids

all monsters have variants

all corrupt counterparts have their pure counterpart's element(s)

Cube/Cubic: metal

c'mon. gears, saws, those fuckin metal claws. /silly

Pentellow: ice

i think she should have it. as a treat. /silly

Iris: light

that thing on his head

Pyrare: rock/sand variant

idk he just gives that vibe

Cyan: rock/sand variant

please please please please please please please please please pl /SILLYJ

Tsavorite: animal communication variant

I dont have an actual reason but also iam NOT being swayed on this /silly

Orange: animal communication variant + fire (hybrid)

animal communication: he and Tsavorite NEED to stick together im NOT apologizing /silly

fire: please just give me this one please please PLEASE /SILLY

Gold: sound variant

honestly the only reasoning i have him down for sound is because i think he deserves to get to make forcefully people stfu. for himself at least

Cyanide: rock/sand variant

one word. or name: Cyan

Lythorus/Lycanthropy: water

idfk i woulda gave him animal communication but i dont want to have a lot of variants on here 😔

Heli: wind variant

helicopter

Ketches: water

boat

Purpex/Hexacrigon: metal

that shit in her bossfight. the line hexagon things???? i dojt know

Marcle: ice

let her and Rincle have ice. PLEASE /sillyj

Squadril: light

FUCKING MAGIC SHOW

Cintagon/Cintagram: light

stars

Circumsphere/Circumcannon: fire

cmon,,,,cannon,,,,,,,,"fire the canon",,,,,,also let him throw a fireball at someone 😭🙏

Quintagon: metal

shovel. thats it

Hexagram/Hexadic: metal

that thing he holds i???? dont know???? what it is????????? also bc the jsab level hes based on is in the factory

Polyhedron: fire

it was originally water but a lot of the fandom considers him like a wizard and who am i to deny them wizard bitch /silly

Circumuscle: body manipulation variant

i think we all know why. /silly

Rincle: ice

let her and Marcle have ice plzzzz /sillyj

Cirtunda: fire

idk

Spheer: ice

IDRK???? I JUST LOOK AT THEM AND GO "yea they look like theyd have ice powers" IDK IF THAT'S JUST ME THO

Ajacent/Ajaceare: water

because her pure design is NOT fire (fire) and it does NOT go hard (ice or metal). im still so salty about this block of cheese we got /silly I DONT CARE IF SHE'S A MONSTER I AINT GIVIN HER SHIT /sillyj

Ajacenus: sound variant

god pls she just gives that vibe.

Ajavex: lightning variant

bc SOMEONE on this list needs lightning at LEAST /silly

Barracuda: sand/rock variant

like his dad

Dub: body manipulation variant

corruption???? hello????? /vsilly

Circusic/Circubit: sound variant

HE CORRUPTS PEPLE WITH MUSIC. OKAY

La Danse Macabre: body manipulation variant

grim repair lookin ass /aff

Trees of Life: probably all of them idk????? ??????? ??????????? ???

God

The Sun: light

sun

Green Tree Monster: animal communication variant + ice hybrid

shares powers with Tsavorite & Pentellow bc. Green Tree

Acrillimus: water

fish

George: no power

(tearfully) i dont like him. /sillyneg-

other headcanons but not really because theyre more of "if they DID have the powers i bet this wouldve happened" but its my blog i do what i want /j:

upon meeting Gold and being told about his sound manipulation Ajacenus immediately started giving him advice on sound manipulation and Gold tuned her out without hesitation and Ajacenus went "nuh uh" and unmuted herself for him basically and it was a neverending battle until Pyrare finally went "this is important quit that" and Gold just tuned them out for him for the remainder of the visit

flowers that are on the more "feral" side when corrupted (cant speak) are able to be communicated with by someone with the animal communication variant- which is how the Green Tree Monster managed to summon so many flowers for that fight in s1ep10

Squadril likes to scare people by turning himself invisible with his powers and randomly appearing next to them

once while they were still figuring out how to control their powers Orange burned Tsavorite on complete accident and Tsavorite sent squirrels after him to be silly and it didnt end well actually (Iris and Pentellow were so flabbergasted by the time they found them because they were covered in squirrel scratches head to toe)

Quintagon and Hexagram have metal fights sometimes

Spheer is REALLY mad that they have ice powers instead of Cool Ass Fire like their granny >:[

[theliverpudlianuk]

🎵 Amorphic Music in association with Africa Oyé and Melodic Distraction proudly present the legendary afrofuturist, avant-garde jazz musical ensemble, The Sun Ra Arkestra, live at the Invisible Wind Factory on Saturday the 12th of August 2023.

🎵 The Invisible Wind Factory will welcome guests into the Factory Garden from 3pm with live jazz, DJs and food all afternoon to build up for the main event starting at 7pm in their IWF’s Main Hall, ready to welcome the otherworldly Sun Ra Arkestra.

🎵 The Full Line Up: 1️⃣ The Sun Ra Arkestra (Live Performance). 2️⃣ Bop Kaballa (Live Performance). 3️⃣ SOULFULTIZ (DJ — Africa Oyé). 4️⃣ Nina Keh (DJ — Resonance FM). 5️⃣ Ranga (DJ — Melodic Distraction). 6️⃣ Nick Branton & Johnny Hunter Duo (Live Performance).

🎵 Read the article on our website for the link to tickets: https://www.TheLiverpudlian.com/post/amorphic-music-in-association-with-africa-oye-melodic-distraction-host-legendary-sun-ra-arkestra

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[aoicourier]

October 27th, 2281

Hello, Pip-Boy. How are you? I'm a little roughed up, but I'm still alive and there's a lot of alcohol in this room, so things could be worse. I'm currently in a comfortable motel room in the town of Novac. That's right, the Legion haven't burned it down… yet. I think I may be here for a while. It's nice to have a room with a door that locks. And it's nice to have a fridge to keep all this booze cold, compared to the warm Sarsaparillas I've been drinking for days.

A lot has happened since I last wrote an entry on you. I'll try not to miss any details, but my mind is a little fuzzy from the Med-X the doc gave me, and maybe just a little from the vodka I drank before I started writing.

After a sleepless night in Nipton, I got back on the road as soon as the sun came up. I stopped by the NCR's Mojave Outpost and let the people there know about the town's fate, and that the Legion had advanced this far west. Then, I trudged back through the smoking remains of Nipton, avoiding eye contact with the crucified corpses baking in the afternoon sun, and trekked up the winding road towards Novac. There were a few shooters in the hills, and a squad of Legion soldiers I had to sneak around, but nothing I couldn't handle. I spent the night at a tiny NCR outpost, Ranger Station Charlie, and pressed on towards Novac at first light. Walked along railway tracks in silence, black power lines above me cutting the dawn sky into pink squares.

I saw the dinosaur before I saw the rest of the town. A huge hollow statue of a T-Rex, looming over the buildings, most of which are still intact. Turns out the dino is called Dinky, and it's the town's mascot. There's a gift shop inside its body (I bought a little dino toy there), and a pair of snipers take shifts inside its roaring mouth to watch for approaching threats. The Legion have taken over Nelson, to the east. I wonder if that's where Mr. Fox is.

The town's name comes from the motel that I'm staying in, or rather, the neon NO VACANCY sign out front. Only the first five letters still light up, so it's just "NO VAC" now. The people here seem decent. Prospectors are already talking about Primm having a new sheriff. Woman who runs the motel is named Jeannie May; she said the Checkered Coat Man had stayed there and was, quote, "no gentleman". Seems he didn't get caught up in the Legion's destruction of Nipton, for better or worse. His Great Khan bodyguards apparently knew Manny, one of the town snipers. I paid her 100 caps for the room; she said I could stay until "busy season", whenever that is.

The two snipers are Manny and Boone: I haven't spoken to Boone yet, but Manny was cordial enough. He knows the Checkered Coat Man, may even know where to find him. He was part of the Great Khans of North Vegas himself, before he joined the NCR. Now he's retired, and settled down in Novac. Naturally, he won't tell me about my quarry until I help him ensure the town is safe. You get nothing for free out here in the wasteland. There's an old rocket factory up the road, REPCONN, and feral ghouls have been leaking out of it like radiation, attacking the town. He can't leave his post, and wants me to find out what's going on over there.

On my way around town I met a few more of the townsfolk. Andy, a former NCR ranger who was crippled when the Legion employed a little kid to drop a grenade right at his feet. He's still got some fight in him; even taught me a takedown move that may come in handy if I'm ever caught without a weapon. Daisy, a former NCR pilot and a tough old bird herself. Bruce, a singer from New Reno who stole money from a casino boss, and had his way with the guy's daughter to boot. He's hiding out in Novac now, and for good reason. A strange old man they called "No-Bark", who span me a fanciful tale about Commie ghosts and invisible chupacabras with automatic weapons.

Most unexpectedly, I also met a familiar face from Goodsprings… or rather, a familiar screen. Victor, the Securitron robot who dragged me out of my shallow grave. He didn't seem to know what he was doing here in Novac, only said he "got the notion" to start heading towards New Vegas. It's too much of a coincidence, but I held my tongue for now. I'll just keep a careful eye on him, see what he does next.

I started up the road towards the REPCONN rocket site, and that's where it all went wrong. The twisted, radioactive corpse lying in the road was the first bad sign. Then came the radioactive corpses who were still on their feet. Half a dozen feral ghouls, hungry for my flesh, stumbling down the road. I gunned them down, but one of them - a bastard glowing green like a Christmas tree - gave me a real beating, and my skin burned where he'd touched me. I turned back towards town, and by the time I got there I could barely stand. Thankfully, I ran into the town doctor, a woman in a bloodstained white vest, and she got me patched up and dosed me up with painkillers. Charged me 100 caps for the privilege, but I'm not gonna complain. She saved my life. I didn't even get her name, come to think of it.

So here I am, back in my room at the Dino Dee-lite Motel, half drunk and dozy from painkillers. My plan is to get a good night's sleep for the first time in a while, and then make another attempt at the REPCONN factory tomorrow. Maybe it's full of hundreds more ghouls and I don't come back alive, but this is the path I'm on, and I have to keep walking.

Well, I think that's everything. I'm going to finish this vodka before I pass out. Goodnight, Pip-Boy.

[3cheers-4sweetrevenge]

@crawlershq liverpool , invisible wind factory 23rd sept , was actually amazing i love you omg

[arthurmorganstb]

Isn't This Price's Job? (Ghost x Reader)

I can't say I know Lieutenant Simon 'Ghost' Riley 'well'. I think that goes for everyone at the base, and even everyone in Taskforce 141. Except for Soap. After what happened in Las Almas, they've become close. A lot closer than Ghost is to anyone. He also calls Soap Johnny. I could never think of Soap MacTavish as anything other than...well Soap. I've been a part of the Taskforce for six months now, and still feel as if I know Ghost as well as a deer comprehends quantum physics.

"Sergeant First-Class Myra Park," the private greeted me. He was young, nineteen at most. He fidgeted with his vest. This would be his first mission apart of the Taskforce, and like many members would be for that mission only. Still, as a new enlistee, any mission was scary. "Usually, on missions it's customary to just call your fellow mission members by their last names, Park works fine. And in any other context, you can drop the 'First-Class'." He nodded appreciatively. "FNG! How are you? Did you piss yourself yet? Pack extra diapers?" Childish. "Sargent Odson," I said in service of a greeting. He had been a pain in my ass since we first met, an overly cocky Londoner who had no place in the military. "Myra! Are you excited to kill some bad guys?" "First of all, you're a Staff Sargent so no matter what I should be Sargent Park to you." This wasn't necessarily true, as I had just told the private something very different, still I enjoyed lording it over Odson that I had been promoted faster than him. "Second of all, Price put me in charge of this mission so I recommend you shut up before I report you for insubordination. Third of all, our mission isn't to 'kill some bad guys' it's to gain intel from a stakeout. Shooting is a worst-case scenario."     He nodded emphatically, a cocky smile playing on his thin lips. "Of course...Sergeant."

     We arrived at the nondescript old factory in the dead of night, nothing but the moon for lighting. A large hill overlooked the building, large willowy golden-yellow plants swaying in the breeze which would, most importantly, make us virtually invisible.     All three of us pulled out our field binoculars, surveying the factory. No movement except for the wind.     Hours passed by before anything happened. At four in the morning, a large dairy truck rolled up to the factory. The painted-on Shamrock Farms peeled back to advertise itself as Samck Frs.     The large semi door rolled up, and two men jumped out from the truck. The driver joined them, seemingly yelling, throwing his arms up in the air at the end.     Once the diver stalked off and opened the factory door, the two other men got to work. Our view of what was inside the truck was obscured, but as soon at the men started unloading, it was clearly many bricks of cocaine.     "Just as we thought," I softly muttered to my subordinates. "Cartel activity. Laswell isn't going to like this."     "Well, what does Laswell like?" Odson snarked. I ignored him. "Mexican Cartel?" The private interjected. "No, Laswell's been tracking these guys for months. Colombian." "Muy buena." I whipped my head around to come face to face with two Colombian Cartel members. "We can either do this the peaceful way and come with us, or we can dump your body in that river over there. Your choice." The taller of the two men said, AK-47 casually pointed towards the star-speckled sky. Within half a second, I had signaled to my men and aimed my gun, safety off. The shorter of the two cartel members fired into the private's arm, knocking him back. Odson and I both fired into the taller man, dropping him dead. With the momentary distraction, we stood, conscious of how close we were to the edge of the hill. The private dropped the other member, but I could see more coming up the hill. "We've got to move," I said. Turning to the Private, who was bleeding profusely, I asked "You good to walk?" He gave a single nod. As we made our way down the hill, we dropped member after member of the cartel, our military training superior to their street-acquired gun fighting. But they were too numerous. More and more streamed up the hill, the long grasses stained crimson. "Jesus," Odson said. "They've got to have the whole cartel on our ass." Another bullet entered the Private, hitting him squarely in his other shoulder. When he dropped, he didn't get back up. I had been shot before. It didn't hurt at first. The pain would come after, maybe once the bullet was dug out. Maybe a minute after you get shot. Then it would be searing. Blinding. I had been shot many, many times. It didn't do anything to negate the shock I felt once the bullet tore through my thigh. "Shit!" I heard Odson exclaim. I continued firing, most likely not hitting a single target. When the second bullet hit, I went down. It's a funny feeling, your life force being drained away. The scarlet substance left my body in mass amounts. My eyes slowly glossed over, barely aware of the one-man versus cartel army battle raging on around me. As sensibility left with my blood, I dipped my hand in the pooling blood, cheek pressed against the ground. And like the cards in Alice in Wonderland painting the white roses red, I covered the long yellow grasses. My last conscious thought I need to paint them all... Read the rest here

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[utterentropy]

Hello, Chonny's Charming Chaotic Cretins, here is a fic I wrote that you might've already read on AO3

It's called Tired Feathers, and essentially it's about Heart getting stuck mid-air because he doesn't know how to land (for reasons that you will all be enlightened by in the future 😉)

Some context to this AU: Heart and Mind are NOT the same person as Soul/Whole, but rather essentially parts of his brain that were awakened and took form, with the desire to merge with him once more; essentially anomalies with a bizarre purpose.

Also Mind really likes How It's Made. (Nerd)

Quiet thuds smacked the carpet floor, a dull smell of dim, nostalgic memories wafting from the ground.

Cool air flowed through the house; a beginning autumn season, pirouetting through the open door of March.

Even in spite of a simple world inside the head of a man lost to his senses, it appeared the chilled, bitter wind and temperature from the outside world reflected in the residence swathed by his memories.

Drops of cool water slumped from an invisible sky; spilling into the rising gradient of black, to grey, to white, collecting in wet mounds of slushy ground.

A lavender nose moved from centre to left, posed like a startled deer as unsight locked onto the noise of a telly.

From the perspective of the other, his eyes had been stuck to the series of morphing shapes of light, iron hands resting on his furled lap.

A muscular build; broad, hard shoulders; a firm sternum.

Vaguely oceanic-hued hair in untamed curls sauntered down his neck; a single pale eye, with almost silvery skin; half of his face almost reminiscent of a pit of torn charcoal.

An unearthly tall stature, easily exceeding two metres, donning an indigo, accented-black polo neck; black daks, with a distinct necklace encasing his throat.

A dark crown hovered above his head; his feet acting as shoes, shaped as such.

Knees bent and tucked to his chest, his vision wide as it sucked in every last detail on the screen.

The counterpart’s sightless gaze fixed on the other, palm placed onto the painted wall.

He had a blindfold wrapped around his “eyes” and buried under obsidian-hued hair; a heather hoodie hugging his torso.

Dark pyjamas encased his legs; nothing to cover his somewhat long, acicular hooves.

Orchid, pheasant-like wings rested on his back; black rings, composed of holograms, circled his wrists, ankles, and torso; a final, larger one settling above his head, studded with sharp lines, reminiscent of a halo.

An almost-silence took over.

Spared by the gentle discussion of factorial processes, as Mind consumed every detail of the information spewing from the blaring box.

Heart could nigh admire the peaceful scenario; Mind was much too focused on his odd show showcasing the creation of many common objects to descend into cacophonous argument.

It felt quiet.

It felt tranquil.

Sedate.

Calm.

Hard nails touched the between of each string on the floor, and Heart pulled himself to the kitchen with a short series of footsteps.

Mind’s focus reigned undeterred; ceaseless attention to each fascinating craft.

Each gadget that moved to perform its part; every robot succeeding in its life’s purpose, failure I present.

He’d wanted to be like those machines on the screen.

He’d wanted to do his purpose as well, just as effortlessly…

♡♡♡♡

After microwaving a sliver of butter atop a crumbly sheet of bread, Heart gripped the plate between his digits, confident legs forming an upbeat stride as he exits the room, reeking of a potent, foul aroma.

Hooves pushing him in the desired direction, cautious wings notifying him of any sneaky walls afront.

A cheerful hum danced from his nose.

Mind had still been exerting each array of perception onto the screen.

Heart, a moment before arriving at the comforts of the couch, made a final, triumphant look at Mind.

Mind hadn't afforded a single glance.

With a lift of the corner of his mouth, Heart deposited his body onto the seat, and started to close his teeth around the bread.

Another beautiful silence.

The shrill echo of morning avians swam from the outdoors; a memory of a polite awakening.

Rushes of black glided through the world beyond their secluded home; almost as if the ground had a heartbeat, pulsing and surging in a monochromatic style.

The floors and staircase creaked and croaked with age, rhythmic taps from the burgundy hue upstairs.

Dust spread limitlessly across each untouched slab of oak.

All was well. All was good.

Heart, after having consumed the bread, crunchy in incorrect places, lifted his skinny body and took to depart with his plate.

Clink!

The dish slept in a cluttered mass of other unhappy plates, bowls, and the such.

Now was time to wait for Mind to clean them all up, as he did, with his obsession with cleanliness.

A modicum of a smile pressed into each side of Heart’s lips, and he idled at the base of the stairs, a hand touched to the railing.

A single toe clunked against the step, and momentarily, he paused.

He then turned his personal attention to Mind, or at least the sound of him.

“(Hey, Mind?)” Heart cooed.

“[…]” A quiet moment broke between their words. “[…Yes?]”

“(I’m… Glad we’ve been getting along today.)” Heart spoke, a soft, wispy voice, narrow lines of fought anger draping across each side of his tone.

“[…]” A deadly silence. “[I… am glad as well. It's been uncommon we've had days where we… Get along.]”

“(…)” Thus formed an awkward, but pleasant, smile.

Heart continued his ascent, before, once again, ceasing movement.

“(…)” …

Heart reversed his direction, and quietly stepped down the stairs, then trailing towards the couch again, hastily.

He leapt onto the such, and created a small circle as he crawled atop the cushions.

He then tilted his attention to the corporately-forced words emanating from the screen.

“[What… Are you doing?]” Mind asked, face contorting in sync with his puzzled pronunciation.

“(I… I wanna watch, too. So that I understand what you enjoy so much about this show.)”

“[Heart, you really don't have to…]”

“(But I must!)” Heart beamed. “(How else will we cooperate if we don't understand one another?)”

“[Heart…]” He could hear the humour in him slightly dispense. “[What did you do to the real Heart?]”

It was certainly an attempt at a joke.

“(Maybe the real Heart feels bad about how he treated the real Mind. Maybe the real Heart wants to understand him better.)”

He could only assume Mind was smiling, based on his lack of a disapproving huff and the vague “mrneh-mrneh-mrneh-mrneh” sound, singing from his modulator.

The sound of their kind showing interest; an alien voice.

♡��♡♡

Heart made his best attempt to understand what was happening on the telly with his ears.

Wings curled behind his back, neatly bent and thoroughly relaxed.

The occasional adjustment of his blindfold, maybe a dance across his body with his warm fingers.

Mind had seemed much more focused than he had been, no big deal. Mind was logical, he was made for this. He can get the hang of it too, no worries!

Heart’s fingers bundled around his leg, watching with every sense except his own sight.

It was almost like watching a tutorial to create origami on a radio.

“(So… When the car is finished being built, how do they move it?)”

“[Were you not paying attention?]” A stern tone emerged. “[They use conveyor belts!]”

“(Alright…)” Heart sighed.

I’m not half as blunt as this when talking about my interests…

So many confusing words, such disorienting language.

His mind felt like it had reached a roadblock, and he couldn't view any thoughts anymore.

“(I… Have another question?)”

“[…]”

“(Wh… What does a ‘pneumatic press’ do?)”

“[Seriously?!]” Mind snapped, audibly standing up. “[It was explained, like, six times! It uses pressurised gas to…!]”

His thoughts had scattered.

A fog rolled through his mind.

“[Are you even listening?!]” Mind shouted.

“(Well, I'm trying to!)” Heart’s form extended upwards. “(I can't understand all of these stupid fancy words that these shows keep saying!)”

“[Maybe if you weren't so dense–]”

“(Maybe if one of us wasn't born to be the logical part of the brain, while the other was born to be the useless emotional side–)”

“[And here you go, throwing yourself a pity party!]” Mind cried, his voice packed with infuriation.

“(It’s not my fault I was made this way! It’s no help hearing you and Soul point out how inadequate I am, constantly, nonstop, without any pause, I didn't ask to be born this way!)”

“[Heart, none of us asked to be born. And besides, we were created! Heaven knows why we exist, we only spawned just to merge with someone anyway! Our existence is devotion to a cause we were made in the name of!]”

“(You act like I don't know that?! So what if we’re just awakened clumps of brain cells, why is it my fault that I just so happened to be the weaker, meeker clump of brain cells?)”

“[You obsess over our host in the weirdest way possible, and yet you fear him in every way!]”

“(Well…)” Heart itched the side of his neck. “(At least I actually know how to stand up for myself! You just let Soul push you around all day, at least I can set and maintain my own boundaries!)”

“[Like that's even remotely true! You let him walk all over you! You have zero semblance of what real love looks like!]”

“(You have– You have–)”

Heart let out a shout of ire; an inhuman, train-like screech following with his snarl.

A strong foot collided with the ground, and he made a fervent leap, gravity forgetting the shape of his body as his wings heaved and sent him through the air.

“[Heart! Stop that this INSTANT!]”

“(LA LA LA LA LA LA LA! I CAN’T HEAR YOU!)” Heart mocked, his person shooting through the interior of the house as he settled a few metres in the air.

After marching over, Mind crossed his arms, a strict stare stabbing Heart’s awkward position, whom had also had folded arms.

“[Heart. This is ridiculous.]” He scowled.

“(Mm-mm!)” Heart sneered, his head forced away.

“[Heart. Heart. This is very immature of you, and you know how that–]”

“(You're not making me want to come down anymore by insulting me, you wet flag!)”

It appears this would be more difficult than suspected.

“[Heart, come on!]” Mind yelled, clearly growing more frustrated by the second. “[You’re not a year old anymore, this is ridiculous!]”

“(No! You’re not coming up here! Get away from me!)”

Mind offered a sigh, and a package of heat began to curl within the soles of his feet, as he then started to levitate in a similar fashion.

“(HEY! NO! GET AWAY!)” Heart snarled, pointed nails tearing through the air and slashing blindly in front of him.

“[HEY!]” Mind hissed, descending until he regained connection with the floor. “[Don’t claw me!]”

“(Oh, I will claw you.)” Heart said, his lip recoiling to expose his violet teeth.

“[Heart, do not make me get Soul.]”

“(Soul?!)” Heart gasped, and performed a series of odd, almost flail-like movements. “(No! Don't get Soul!)”

“[Oh, I will.]” Mind smirked. “[You don't want that, do you?]”

“(…)” Heart pointed his head off to the side.

“[…Can…]” Mind blinked.

The id tossed and turned in the air, his lip bundled timorously.

His hands had been tightly enveloping one another, and his wings were open, almost like a welcoming embrace.

“[…Can you not get down?]” Mind asked, now stating concern.

“(NO! …Yes? I, I…)” Heart shuddered. “(I can't… I-I don't know how to… …land.)”

“[…Huh.]” Mind snickered. “[So that's why you never fly.]”

“(It’s EMBARRASSING, okay?!)” Heart yowled, shifting in air to appear almost seated.

“[Hey hey, you remember the id-half-of-a-whole-sort-of-brothers rule.]” Mind said, a clear laugh hiding behind his syllables.

Sigh. “(That we get one free laugh, and then we help.)”

“[That’s right. Now…]” Mind then proceeded to erupt into cackling.

Heart produced a cross expression, but allowed him to proceed roaring with ecstasy.

This continued for a minute or two.

“(Okay, okay! Are you done yet?!)” Heart whined.

“[Okay, yes, yes I am…]” Mind spoke, a hint of residual giggles flicking his words.

Mind had once again assumed aerial suspension, then crawling through the open space to take Heart’s wrist into his own hand.

Mind carefully navigated him down to a standard position, fixing his posture to a proper pose to hold while grounded.

“[Why can't you land anyway?]” Mind questioned, setting the other’s hooves to meet the carpet.

“(…Remember what happened with Soul? A few years ago?)”

“[Which time?]”

“(…The time where I got brain damage.)”

“[RIGHT. I’m. I'm sorry for asking, I know you probably don't wish to be rem–]”

“(It’s fine, Mind… It was just a question.)” Heart said, awkwardly adjusting his legs, almost like a baby deer.

“[Okay… On the count of three, I want you to let go of your entire body.]”

“(…Ok.)”

“[One… two… three!]”

And just like that, Heart tumbled out of place, nearly plummeting before he was caught in Mind's embrace.

“(Thank you!)” Heart smiled.

“[You’re welcome,]” Mind internally returned the expression.

“(…Now what?)”

“[…Now.]” Mind thought. “[…Let’s… watch one of those awful nineties cowboy movies.]”

“(Now that’s something the three of us can all enjoy.)”

And so, the day was woven together happily.

[photog-crafty]

If this Hakuchou could tell stories, they would fill a library. This motorcycle was my flesh and blood for years. I had other bikes for stunting, yes, but this one was my daily driver as nothing could match its speed. My friends even raced me with helicopters, following the same courses Forza Horizon style, and it was neck-and-neck every time. What really made the Hakuchou so engaging was that it lived and died by its wheelie. Unlike a car that merely had a gas pedal, the Hakuchou made use of an intricacy of the game engine to go much faster by popping a wheelie, making it almost like a turbo boost. Learning how to read traffic and keep that boost active as much as possible was a game unto itself, which made seeing those 170+ MPH numbers on the speed challenge leaderboards all the more satisfying.

The armless era was a formulative time in my GTA character's career, and I earned a bit of infamy among our crew for rocking the gimmick so hard. It was only proper that I had a car to represent it. This Coquette Classic used a glitch that made the entire rear half of the car completely invisible, aside from the exhaust pipes and taillights, making it the perfect candidate to match the invisible arms meme. it always got smiles, chuckles, and headscratches whenever it showed up at the downtown car meets.

This Fugitive here was my very first car when I began playing GTA on the PC. I still love it to this day. It may not be flashy or conventionally appealing, but loud and gruff V8 sedans are my weakness. Eight years later, she's still shining and purring just like she did when I picked her up off the streets.

The first car I ever bought in GTA, all the way back on Xbox 360 in October of 2013, was a Voltic. The car itself was lost to bugs in the transfer process, but its spirit lives on through this second model. I didn't drive it often after migrating to PC, but the hours upon hours spent racing to earn the money to buy the original will always stick with me.

In a similar vein, this Ruiner symbolizes the first car I ever owned in GTA. The Ruiner was my main car in GTA IV, so when I saw it in GTA V and Online, I flew right back to my old baby. This one was added to the collection shortly after I started playing on PC and it has all the mods I missed out on on 360, like the crazy Shakotan exhausts and exposed intercooler. It's fun for me to compare it to the other Ruiners in my collection and see how much my tastes have changed.

Poetically, my GTA career was bookended by Ruiners. One of the vehicles that released as things were winding down was the Ruiner ZZ-8, and I was delighted to see it because I've got an equally soft spot for fourth-gen F-bodies. The ZZ-8 leaned a little closer to the Firebird with its snout and beehive taillights, but it wasn't too hard to doll it up to resemble a Camaro with the '97-'98 factory Bright Purple Metallic paint. As long as I don't have to change the spark plugs myself, I'm happy.

Normally I don't really dig the small and cute cars, but the modern Fiat 500s are charming to me, especially with their take on dog dish wheels. I tried to customize this Brioso R/A to look like one, but those unremovable carbon skirts put the kibosh on that idea. You win some, you lose some.

The Schafter V12 was already an amazing car, but they released an armored version at the same time with almost identical performance. I couldn't help buying both and giving the armored one a more subdued look to contrast the regular version's bold white. It wasn't quite as stable as the Baller, but the extra protection nonetheless came in handy more than once.

Since the game never had a '72 Riviera, I had to cope with a '65 in the form of the Buccaneer. This one has an unpurchaseable worn paint finish with a crew color glitched into one of the fields in order to keep the classic look while resembling some Rivieras I've seen photos of.

The Rocoto is one of those unassuming street cars I had to pounce on once I knew what it was based on. Volkswagens are mostly alien to me, but their cars from the 2000s with luxuriously oversized engines like the Phaeton W12 and the Passat W8 make me absolutely giddy, and the Rocoto is related to the first-gen Touareg which had the option for a V10 turbodiesel. It wasn't quite as fast or as torque-loaded as its VW analog, but it was close enough to tick the boxes for my obsession.

[liverpoollomo]

Caffè Riccardo. Smena 8M. Expired Truprint 200 iso shot at 400 iso.

Caffè Riccardo is a true hidden gem. Situated in the North Dock area of the city behind the Invisible Wind Factory, where it shares a building with Make, it is the place to go for genuine artisan Italian coffee.

I was quite happy with the results from this cheap expired film.