#it is all free range and sustainable

[yowlthinks]

I googled it and apparently, this is real. Crowley Foods company exists, and even though the real one was founded in the early 20th century in the US by J.K.Crowley, I now can't stop myself imagining him running a goat farm.

Now read it in Aziraphale’s voice.

[asteroidtroglodyte]

>be me

>hates Roaches like any American

>decide that I cannot live in fear

>researches Cockroaches

>like, deep dive on Blattodea

>intelligent social generalists

>”oh they’re little people”

>aw fuck

>have become Guy Who Likes Roaches

>begin to resent everyone else for not having any love in their heart for the clever little tree-bugs that learned to live harmoniously alongside us when we began reforming the world according to our designs

Anyway that’s my Villain origin story

[dandelionsresilience]

Good News - May 22-28

Like these weekly compilations? Support me on Ko-fi or $Kaybarr1735! Also, if you tip me on Ko-fi or CashApp (and give me some way to contact you if it doesn’t automatically), at the end of the month I'll send you a link to all of the articles I found but didn't use each week - almost double the content!

1. Scientists Invent Healthier More Sustainable Chocolate

“The new chocolate recipe from researchers at ETH Zurich uses more materials from the cocoa pod that are usually discarded, including more of the pulp as well as the inner lining of the husk, known as the endocarp. […] The resulting chocolate also [was “deliciously sweet” and] had 20% more fibre and 30 percent less saturated fat than average European dark chocolate[, and] it could enable cocoa farmers [to] earn more from their crops.”

2. Vermont Is Coming for Big Oil, Making It Pay for Decades of Climate Pollution

“Legislators in Montpelier are on the brink of enacting the "Climate Superfund Act," modeled after the federal Superfund law, that seeks to make oil, gas and coal companies pay for damages linked to historical greenhouse gas emissions. […] Companies would be held liable for the costs associated with […] floods and heat waves, along with losses to biodiversity, safety, economic development and anything else the treasurer deems reasonable[, that were caused by their emissions].”

3. Important bird habitat now protected in the Rocky Mountain Trench

“Grassland-reliant species in the Rocky Mountain Trench now have more protected habitat thanks to a new [270-hectare] conservation area near Cranbrook. […] About one-third of the Skookumchuck Prairie Conservation Area is forested[…,] Most of the site is a dry grassland[…, and] Three hectares of wetlands add to the landscape diversity and offer crucial benefits to wildlife and water systems in the area. This conservation gem also provides habitat for endangered American badger and excellent winter range for elk, mule deer and white-tailed deer.”

4. Lemur Week marked by 70th breeding success

“A wildlife park has celebrated its 70th lemur breeding success ahead of a week raising money to help save the endangered primates. […] The park's open-air Madagascar exhibit is home to 31 free-roaming lemurs and was officially opened in 2008. […] Females are only sexually receptive for just one or two days a year, leaving a small window of opportunity for males to father offspring. […] The two playful siblings, one female and one male, were born to father Bernard and mother Hira.”

5. Innovative material for sustainable building

“Researchers introduce a polymer-based material with unique properties. This material allows sunlight to enter, maintains a more comfortable indoor climate without additional energy, and cleans itself like a lotus leaf. The new development could replace glass components in walls and roofs in the future.”

6. Isle of Wight eagles don't pose threat to lambs as feared

“While there had previously been fears that the eagles would feed on livestock, such as lambs, the project has found no evidence of this. [… “W]hite-tailed eagles effectively steal meals from other predatory birds[, which is] a really important ecological role that had been lost within the landscape and is being restored.” [… The birds’] population was boosted by a chick last year – the first time the species has bred in England in 240 years.”

7. Breakthrough discovery uses engineered surfaces to shed heat

“Cheng's team has found a way to lower the starting point of the [Leidenfrost] effect by producing a surface covered with micropillars. […] The discovery has great potential in heat transfer applications such as the cooling of industrial machines and surface fouling cleaning for heat exchangers. It also could help prevent damage and even disaster to nuclear machinery.”

8. New malaria vaccine delivered for the first time

“A total of 43,000 doses arrived by air today from UNICEF, and another 120,000 are scheduled to show up in the coming days. […] They're the first vaccines designed to work against a human parasite. […] Across four African countries, these trials showed a 75% reduction in malaria cases in the year following vaccination of young children. […] The Serum Institute of India, who will be manufacturing the new vaccine, says a hundred million doses will likely be available to countries by the middle of next year.”

9. Urban gardening may improve human health: Microbial exposure boosts immune system

“"One month of urban indoor gardening boosted the diversity of bacteria on the skin of the subjects and was associated with higher levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines in the blood. The group studied used a growing medium with high microbial diversity emulating the forest soil," [… whereas] the control group used a microbially poor peat-based medium. [… N]o changes in the blood or the skin microbiota were seen. […] “This is the first time we can demonstrate that meaningful and natural human activity can increase the diversity of the microbiota of healthy adults and, at the same time, contribute to the regulation of the immune system."”

10. Cities Are Switching to Electric Vehicles Faster Than Individuals

“[M]ost large cities have adopted some kind of climate goal, and some of them are buying EVs for their municipal fleets at a faster rate than the general public. And that progress could speed up as more EVs enter the market and as cities get educated about grant funding and tax incentives that were passed over the last four years.”

May 15-21 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[kaidatheghostdragon]

Halfas and Fear Gas

Ive seen a lot of "fear gas makes danny high." Its hilarious and i love it. Other variations i recall seeing are: fear is not as potent, complete immunity, 'food supplement' fear gas, and the boring 'effects him like normal.'

BUT.

I haven't really seen anyone treat effect effect on the brain and core as separate processes. In other words, humans get affected one way, ghosts get affected another way, and halfas get blasted by both.

We already know how normal humans are affected, so we dont really need to go over that. Ghosts, however, are free reign. (Unless there's a canon incident where a ghost like boston brand or gentleman ghost are exposed to a fear gas attack? Any DC canon nerds out there that know of something like that?)

The options I've seen or thought up so far:

Complete immunity - ectoplasm just doesn't react to physical matter in a way that impacts the ghost. Fear gas, as in the chemical itself, has no effect whatsoever.

Effects ghosts like humans. Straight forward, it's a bit weird if you think about it, but eh.

Fear gas, as in the chemical itself, is like ghost weed, or perhaps something stronger. Might be hallucinogenic, but in a bad trip sort of way rather than a worst fear sort of way

Fear gas, as in the chemical itself, is accidentally a super effective health suppliment for ghosts

If emotions are food to ghosts, fear gassed humans can span the range between 'delectable snack sprinkled with extra sugar' to 'weird chemical food that isnt healthy but will still sustain you' to 'supercharged health snack completely saturated by nutrients'

Fear gas, either the chemical itself or the people affected by it, has a distinct smell. It could be good, bad, or neutral, possibly related to how it affects the ghost. (Or deceptive, for humor and/or angst.)

Fear gas is outright toxic to ghosts. Perhaps the chemical itself is similar to, but just left of, ectoplasm. Like many artificial chemicals that can substitute various nutrients / usurp metabolic pathways in humans, it could have any number of mild to debilitating, short to long term effects on ghosts.

(If anyone has another idea, feel free to add)

Now we get to halfas, who have both a human brain and a ghost core. Dany has a human body and brain that are affected normally by the fear gas: hallucinations, panic attack, adrenaline response, etc etc. Someone better at biology can describe the actual biochemical processes going on.

But the ghost core? Added on top of All That? Can be excessively angsty, somewhat mitigating, or outright hilarious.

Going through the list of options:

Complete immunity.

This sounds boring, but its actually my favorite. Why? Because danny is getting conflicting signals. His brain is compromised and in full panic, but his core is telling him that he's completely safe. As a hybrid, Danny could be capable of having critical thought with both organs. If he's clever enough to recognize the seperation between the two, he can exploit it as a sort of anchor (I'm imagining it somewhat like how a multitasker can do different things with different senses, like listening to an audio book while solving a jigsaw puzzle - the book is auditory, the puzzle is visual and tactile, neither interfere with the other.)

Danny, in this scenario, is definitely in an altered state of consciousness, seeing things that aren't there and right on the cusp of panicking or defending himself. But if he can recognize that his core is unaffected, he can focus on the sensory input that his core is processing, and the whole situation might be somewhat equivalent to becoming lucid in the middle of a nightmare - its terrifying, but just the recognition that it isn't real takes the edge off. To him, it's now like being stuck in a VR horror game and being unable to take the headset off, flinching at all the jumpscares but recognizing that his body isn't actually being attacked or injured.

Affects ghost like humans

Danny could either be affected exactly the same as anyone else or effectively double-dosed as both brain and core fight entirely different hallucinations. Maybe if danny is lucky, he'll just black out from the sensory overload.

Ghost weed

This could make what was initially designed to be a really bad trip into something catastrophic... or mellow it out. Idk. I've never done recreational drugs. Both the brain and core are cut off from reality. The brain is terrified, and the core is tripping out. If his core naturally reacts to his emotional state, it's gonna amplify the effects, which is Really Bad. If the core is compromised to a point where it can't really process anything, then Danny is still trapped in a nightmare state, just more loopy and otherwise no worse than any human.

Health supplement and/or literal food

This one is confusing. Brain is terrified, core is satiated? Energized? A boost to his powers is gonna make him much more difficult to contain and treat. When he comes out of it, there's real potential for angst from danny worrying that the conflicting emotions of absolute terror and hunger satiation are a sign that he's turning evil. Especially if his core was instinctually feeding off of the fear of nearby civilians who were also gassed during the trip. That undercurrent of predatory satisfaction is gonna leave him awake at night for a few weeks.

On the plus side, feeding his ghost core might help it clear out the toxin faster, so the trip is much shorter. Maybe he even pulls out of it before he accidentally causes any damage with his powers.

Smelly

Pretty straightforward. If it smells bad, Danny is automatically gonna hold his breath, limiting his exposure. If it smells good, he might take a good few wiffs before realizing what's up and holding his breath, or just keeps dosing himself more and more as that effects, good or bad to the core and definitely bad to the brain, settle in.

Toxic

Has the potential to be much more long-term and insidious. You can run the full gamut here. Does he need to be restrained and taken to the far frozen for days or even weeks of treatment? Does the ectoplasm incorporate the drug, and Danny has to suffer weeks or months of microdosing until it's used up, turning him into a paranoid schizophrenic during that time? Is it blood blossoms 2.0? Does it have no mental effects but screws with his powers? Does it influence his emotional self-control? Does he grow the ghost equivalent of a tumor that encapsulates the toxin and has to be surgically removed? Does he need supplemental ecto to remain healthy, temporarily, or permanently? Does it affect his ectosignature or peak power level? Injure his core? Lower his healing factor?

All of this is on top of the initial fear gas trip, which he may have never even fully pulled out of. The angst possibilities are endless.

Then, there are liminals who have the potential to be affected like halfas or in an entirely different way. Does your headcanon give them proto-cores or baby ghost cores, or are they just severely ectoconaminated? How would that change their symptoms?

Anyways, just some ideas for people to use. My favorite idea so far, that I'd love to see someone use, is that Danny has learned to use his separate brain and core as insurance against mind control and mind-altering drugs. The freakshow incident was a sort of catalyst that helped him recognize the differences between his brain and core, and he taught himself how to lean into one or the other for various advantages in different situations. (Sort of like how a person can lean on either logic or intuition to make different types of choices.)

There's a lot of interesting potential here. Essentially, Danny could teach himself to be immune to mind-control and greatly resistant to drugs, as he can evaluate his surroundings with both organs and identify differences. Mind control wouldn't work unless it targeted BOTH brain and core, as he could shift to the uncontrolled one to break away. Any drug designed to knock out or roofie a human is countered by the fact that danny's core still remains conscious of his surroundings, and creative use of ghost powers counters the accompanying paralysis.

If ghosts dont sleep, one could argue that Danny's core is in a meditative state when his brain rests, which is why his ghost sense can wake him up from a dead sleep - he's never fully unconscious. Workoholic danny could find a way to get homework or paperwork done, or solve a problem, or design a piece of tech, or even play a videogame, while 'sleeping,' even using ectokinesis to move stuff while his body is sleep-paralyzed. Sleep-deprived danny is still functional because his core isn't affected by his brain's lapses in consciousness from micro-naps. (He is a lot moodier, though. His core is more emotion-focused while his brain is more logic-focused, on top of the normal mood-swings from sleep deprivation.)

This version of danny, after being fear-gassed, immediately recognizes that his brain and core are suddenly experiencing two different realities. He would be able to talk himself down from a panic attack and slowly find his way to safety. He probably wouldn't trust himself to hold back if he got in a scuffle, but he would be coherent enough to vaguely understand his surroundings to avoid danger.

And lastly, something I dont recall seeing in any fics - if the bats encountered fear-gassed Danny, and he's aware enough to refuse an antidote, I dont think the bats would push it. Yeah, forcing more medical trauma on our favorite blorbo is all good and fun, but he clearly has an altered metabolism that was affected differently by the fear gas than normal, so there's a heightened risk that the antidote would also have an altered affect, for the reward of removing the effects of fear-toxin (which is no longer guaranteed), which danny is already showing he's capable of working through.

On top of that, medical professionals are not allowed to force treatment if the patient refuses them and can walk it off. (If they are unconscious or can't get up on their own, they can intervene.) Medical conditions and allergies are a thing too, and its the priority of the patient to inform the medical worker as soon as possible to prevent complications. Jazz may have coached Danny about "in a medical emergency, declare closet-meta status with highly modified metabolism and unknown reactions to most drugs."

I see the conversation going something like:

"If you can hear me, im going to administer an antidote."

"Dont. Give it to someone who actually needs it."

And then the bat treats everyone else before approaching danny again to ask how they can help. They would be trained to take all of this into account:

Human male, visibly uninjured (unless the fic writer has different ideas) experiencing non-standard reaction to fear toxin. Probable indication of meta or enhanced status.

Victim is cognizent, replied to verbal communication, denied treatment. Appears to be managing the effects of the fear toxin. Not currently a danger to themselves or others.

Nonstandard reaction to fear-toxin implies potential non-standard reaction to antidote. Victim may be aware of medical condition that could complicate treatment, and is reasonably stable at the moment. Further questioning needed.

There are other victims in the area that are less cognizent, they become higher priority. Approach victim again when all other victims are cleared out, (in case of uncontrolled meta powers, to avoid further casualties), ask more questions and ascertain situation.

Once questioned further, danny drops the memorized line about altered metabolism and unknown effects, and giving Danny the antidote basically immediately becomes a non-viable option. They will probably argue Danny into being taken to Leslie's clinic, as he'll refuse a hospital (probably quite hysterically, given the fear toxin), which i'd imagine is the bat's normal protocol for closet-metas.

At least, that's how I imagine the situation panning out. Danny noping out before the bats return to him or during mid-interrogation is also extremely likely, which is gonna put the bats in panic mode for the next several hours. (Going to *any* secondary location with the bats is a non-option to Danny, for many potential reasons.) Danny is definitely going on a watch list (as in, possible meta with unknown powers, keep an eye out in case he gets caught up in another rogue scheme, need more information).

[asteroidtroglodyte]

HOLD UP

Ok so if I’m reading this right they found 4 discrete biodiversity hotspots: 4 colossal marine seamounts that had each developed their own abundant ecologies!

Wake up aspiring Marine Biology doctorates the subject of your thesis just dropped

I don’t have time to transcribe the full text now but I will later in the meantime, enjoy some brand-new additions to the Bestiary!

Squat Lobster, Squaaaat Lobsterrrr

This is a fucking Muppet

Now that’s a good Squid. Lookit that. Marvelous.

“Feather Worm” who named this go take a poetry class fucks sake you see an elegant chandelier of factually emergent spirals perfectly adapted for the icy lightless depths growing from a skeleton of spun glass across the still quiet eons and “feather worm” is what you come up with I SHALL HAVE YOU FLENSED-

Kreechr. I love him. I can’t wait for the inevitable plush doll.

ITS A SPUN GLASS FILTER SPONGES FUCK HARD

YOU BETTER NOT HAVE BROUGHT ANY BACK WITH YOU

look at him 😭

[rotzaprachim]

some smaller bookstores, presses, and museum shops to browse and know about! Most support smaller presses, diverse authors and authors in translation, or fund museums and arts research)

(disclaimer: the only three I’ve personally used are the Yiddish book center, native books, and izzun books! Reccomend all three. Also roughly *U.S. centric & anglophone if people have others from around the world please feel free to add on

birchbark books - Louise Erdrich’s book shop, many indigenous and First Nations books of a wide variety of genres including children’s books, literature, nonfiction, sustainability and foodways, language revitalization, Great Lakes area focus (https://birchbarkbooks.com/)

American Swedish institute museum store - range of Scandinavian and Scandinavian-American/midwestern literature, including modern literature in translation, historical documents, knitters guides, cookbooks, children’s books https://shop.asimn.org/collections/books-1

Native books - Hawai’i based bookstore with a focus on native Hawaiian literature, scholarly works about Hawai’i, the pacific, and decolonial theory, ‘ōlelo Hawai’i, and children’s books Collections | Native Books (nativebookshawaii.org)

the Yiddish book center - sales arm of the national Yiddish book center, books on Yiddish learning, books translated from Yiddish, as well as broader selection of books on Jewish history, literature, culture, and coooking https://shop.yiddishbookcenter.org/

ayin press - independent press with a small but growing selection of modern judaica https://shop.ayinpress.org/collections/all?_gl=1kkj2oo_gaMTk4NDI3Mzc1Mi4xNzE1Mzk5ODk3_ga_VSERRBBT6X*MTcxNTM5OTg5Ny4xLjEuMTcxNTM5OTk0NC4wLjAuMA..

Izzun books - printers of modern progressive AND masorti/trad-egal leaning siddurim including a gorgeous egalitarian Sephardic siddur with full Hebrew, English translation, and transliteration

tenement center museum -https://shop.tenement.org/product-category/books/page/11/ range of books on a dizzying range of subjects mostly united by New York City, including the history literature cookbooks and cultures of Black, Jewish, Italian, Puerto Rican, First Nations, and Irish communities

restless books - nonprofit, independent small press focused on books on translation, inter and multicultural exchange, and books by immigrant writers from around the world. Particularly excellent range of translated Latin American literature https://restlessbooks.org/

olniansky press - modern Yiddish language press based in Sweden, translators and publishers esp of modern Yiddish children’s literature https://www.etsy.com/shop/OlnianskyBooks

https://yiddishchildrensbooks.com/ - kinder lokshen, Yiddish children’s books (not so many at the moment but a very cute one about a puffin from faroese!)

inhabit books - Inuit-owned publishing company in Nunavut with an “aim to preserve and promote the stories, knowledge, and talent of Inuit and Northern Canada.” Particularly gorgeous range of children’s books, many available in Inuktitut, English, French, or bilingual editions https://inhabitbooks.com/collections/inhabit-media-books-1

rust belt books - for your Midwest and rust belt bookish needs! Leaning towards academic and progressive political tomes but there are some cookbooks devoted to the art of the Midwest cookie table as well https://beltpublishing.com/

[oharabunny]

imagine being miguel's live-in doll

Description: You're kind of a loser and horrible at taking care of yourself so much so that he takes it upon himself to be your one and only caretaker.

Word Count: 2271

Warning: yandere!Miguel, OOC!Miguel, coercion, fem!afab!Reader, pitiful!Reader, Author projecting their problems, not beta read

So let’s say your universe collapsed and you were the only one that Miguel managed to save.

Since you have no universe to return to, he allows you to stay in HQ and provides you with a modded dimensional watch to keep you from disintegrating.

You have your own room and access to the amenities in HQ like the cafeteria and the training center. 

Honestly you hit the jackpot because before your universe collapsed you were a loser who barely scraped by for your shitty apartment. You never graduated college, and you job hopped between minimum wage jobs.

The catch was that you are not allowed to leave the premises. Apparently the outside world is too dangerous and overwhelming for someone of your time. For a while, you didn’t seem to have an issue.

First couple months passed, and you loved having no responsibilities and being able to laze around, but you quickly found that to be very boring PLUS you had survivor’s guilt and wanted to be useful for Miguel, who saved you.

So you ask him for a job to do and he seems a little impressed. You are just an ordinary human so he gives you the job as his assistant that doesn't handle sensitive and complicated information. 

He may have regretted a little for assigning you a job because now he sees you as a clumsy oaf. It’s not like you couldn’t do your job properly, but you always somehow trip, fall, scrape, and bump into everything. Not a single day were you not mildly injured.

What sealed the deal one day was when an anomaly broke out in HQ and you were caught in the crossfire.

Basically, you are never going to have freedom ever again.

You are rushed to med bay and diagnostics concluded that your injuries are not life threatening, but for some reason he never left your side. Was it pity? It couldn’t be, because pity wouldn’t make him stay while you healed.

He basically wouldn’t let you discharge until every single cut on you was healed and sealed. 

When you are discharged, he tells you that you’re no longer sufficient for the job and will be promptly relocated to a safehouse aka his apartment. 

You almost fought him on the spot because you enjoyed your job and being able to socialize with the other Spider people. (Which you didn’t know had him seething)

Also, you would be a horrible roommate.

He didn’t give you much choice because it was either his apartment or be homeless.

You couldn’t risk being homeless in a futuristic society with nothing but the clothes on your back. 

He personally escorts you to his apartment and to no one’s surprise it was luxurious and spacious. However, it was plain and boring like his taste.

You have free range in his apartment since there was nothing particularly important stashed there. All of it would be at HQ anyway. He practically lives there.

While he did give you a salary when you had your job, but not enough to sustain yourself forever since he fired you. So, he lets you use his credit card to order groceries and whatever you want within reason. And yes he will be monitoring every purchase.

And of course, he also tells you you’re not allowed to leave the apartment. For any reason. Unless you have his explicit permission.

And if you ever do try to leave, the door has a very loud alarm when opened and he is immediately alerted. Even if you manage to get three steps out of the apartment building, he’ll haul your ass back. 

Or if you actually do make it into the streets, he has your location pinged in real time from your dimensional watch that he also made completely locked to your wrist (to your dismay cuz it’s so ugly and clashes with your outfits).

Man, you just wanted to go for a walk.

But he’ll just tell you to sit on the balcony that is completely sealed all around only allowing light in so don’t even bother trying to jump.

Anyways.

Since he won’t be coming by often, you can basically redecorate and redesign it to suit your preferences. If anything, he encourages it.

It was fun for a while, but having no structure in life caused you to spiral. As a certified loser with executive dysfunction, you ordered take out and instant food everyday, left trash to build up over time without taking it out, slept and woke up at random hours of the day, and showered once a week.

He definitely knows you are spiraling. He hid many many cameras all over his apartment before taking you here.

He comes by unannounced one day while you are sprawled on the couch, sleeping, with the TV running.

Yeah he cleans everything and takes out all your trash. He wakes you up. You’re startled. And he just tells you that you need to shower.

Man how embarrassing is that. You stank like butt.

You apologized profusely, but he doesn’t seem to care. He wasn’t mad but he definitely pitied you.

You go to the bathroom right away to take a shower and he follows you.

You’re like wtf get out.

He then exposes the fact he knows you’re a clumsy idiot who definitely slipped and hit your head multiple times before.

Still, you think he doesn’t need to watch you shower right? RIGHT???

Wrong, he is going to personally wash you head to toe.

Yeah you are definitely fighting his ass off because you two are not that close and also you’re not handicapped! But he keeps treating you like one.

You kept struggling and kicking him like a baby which did annoy the shit out of him so he bit you so his venom can paralyze you.

He strips you bare and tests the water temperature before setting you down on the shower bench. He is very thorough with you. He scrubbed every spot and yes even your private parts which made you think he was trying to cop a feel.

Oh boy when he starts to wash your hair, you literally melted. Why is this man giving you a full scalp massage???? 

He even dries you off, lotions your body, and gives you a full skincare routine. WHY DOES HE KNOW YOUR SKINCARE ROUTINE??? 

Yeah and he also dries your hair off and comb it too. He would style it if he wasn’t too tired that day.

Bruh, he even cuts and buffs your nails and toenails. Applying creams and massages them.

The paralysis seems to wear off around your head and neck area so you’re able to eat and drink. He cooks your favorite dish but he has you drink water as your beverage because you kept having soda so he thinks you should be barred from beverages that weren't water.

And since your body is still paralyzed, he hand feeds you. And for some reason when it comes to helping you drink some water, he spits it into your mouth like a mama bird. And if you weren’t going to open your mouth, he would kiss you.

Now you’re wondering why he’s even here. Why was he doing all of this?

The only answer he tells you is that you’re pathetic and you need someone to take care of you. He took a week off just for you.

You argued with him that he doesn’t need to do all that but he insisted and said you can work through it together.

You think he was going to help you manage your executive dysfunction but nah he was going to do all the housework himself for the whole week and hang out with you. 

Well he does try to give you a schedule for when you wake up, what to eat (he literally made you precooked food all labeled and everything), when to work out (he bought you workout gear), and what else you can do in between until when you have to sleep.

He says he’ll come by more often to check up on you so you don’t spiral again. (Which still includes him doing all the housework and washing you)

He went from coming by once a week to every other day, but he usually visits at night. You wondered how he wasn’t drowning in work right now like he usually does.

And every time he visits, he’s taking care of everything you forget to do like when you left dirty dishes in the sink to clean for later. 

He makes you take showers with him and it always involves him washing you first before he washes himself. He’ll let you help wash his back though.

He even started making you sleep in the same bed as him and it was hell because he would snore and cough like a dying engine. He keeps you trapped in his arms and legs, and you being a smol bean makes it impossible for you to escape. 

He’ll literally start dressing you up, brushing and styling your hair, and doing your makeup every morning even if you want to do it yourself. But it’s interesting to see what he finds attractive on you.

At one point he decides that it was time y’all should get married and have a baby since he literally takes care of you like a baby anyway.

You’re reluctant because you still wanted to figure out what you wanted in life, but because he’s not someone who wastes time in getting what he wants, he’ll just tell you that you can figure it out after you give him your hand in marriage and babies. 

You can’t figure out if you hate him or you like him because he does a lot of things without your consent and doesn’t allow you to make your own choices in almost anything, but you also appreciate the sheer amount of effort he makes JUST to take care of you on top of being Spiderman. Plus he’s hot as hell.

In terms of marriage, he doesn’t care for weddings and wants to keep it lowkey. It may sadden you if you love weddings, but it’s not like you have any friends and loved ones anyway. He just wants to have a domestic life with you right away and is not a huge shower. 

He’ll make it up to you with the best honeymoon you can ask for. <3

And honestly, especially now that you two are married, he’s going to be a lot more physically affectionate with you and expects you to be the same. Especially whenever he comes home after work, he’s dying for you to pepper kisses and hug him.

The idea of giving birth scares the shit out of you especially when you hear stories of men finding their wives disgusting or how they aren’t there for you in the process or god forbid the husband stitch.

He doesn’t do any of that. He literally worships your body and tbh he’ll be even more proactive in making your life easier that you don’t even lift a finger.

He’ll be on paternity leave so that means he’s gonna stay in the apartment 24/7.

Also, he seems the type to have multiple kids. So, uh, prepare yourself.

And honestly, his controlling and overprotective tendencies are dialed up to the nines after you give birth.

He will watch your every move like a hawk. He’ll hand feed you in every meal. Most of the time he just carries you instead of letting you walk to where you want to go. He blows your nose if it’s stuffy. Massage you when you’re sore. Always being the one to remember when you need to take your medications. Like, literally everything.

And at first when your kids are still babies, he’s extremely protective of them in the same way he is with you. Like taking care of all their bathing and feeding. But as they grow older he definitely loosens his protective hold a little and teaches them skills that helps them learn to be independent.

He even takes them to school, but he usually insists that you stay home until you fight him that you have the right to see your kids at school too.

He still literally does everything in the house and doesn’t let you lift a finger because he partially doesn’t trust you not to hurt yourself.

Which makes your own children think you’re sickly and weak. Because sometimes Miguel would have the kids help you when he’s unable to like delivering your breakfast to your room or doing your dishes.

Ironically, your own children have more freedom and independence than you do.

If he ever does let you go outside, he would be gripping your hand the entire time he doesn’t care if you’re sweating. Or if he has to let go, then his hand has to be somewhere on your body. If not, he will just leash you like a toddler. 

Now, I haven’t mentioned how you guys bond, and to briefly sum it up: he is interested in getting to know you such as your personality quirks, hobbies, favorite food, favorite color, etc etc. He does take into consideration what you like especially in terms of aesthetics (you have better taste than him). But if you do anything that could lead you into independence or potential to hurt yourself, he immediately shuts it down. 

Honestly, you don’t really get why he does it and how he’s not tired of you, but he enjoys that you’re his doll to take care of. And you can sure as hell bet he's taking care of you until your deathbed. (Imagine him still taking care of all of your needs when he's too old and wrinkly too and ngl that's romantic ❤

A/N: Okay I got a little tired of trying to compress my ideas while trying to describe how exactly crazy this yandere caretaker Miguel would be (even though he would 100% not act like this at all especially if you’re incredibly dysfunctional and unable to take care of yourself with ADHD like me). I rewrote like 4 times to not overwhelm you guys in detail. Even though at the same time, there were areas of detail I didn’t know how to get into. I also at some point lost all my writing and started over again. (;´༎ຶД༎ຶ`) Sorry if this wasn’t really well written it’s like 6 am right now. I kind of wanna rewrite it when my brain is more organized but I just wanna shoot my idea out there first.

Idk I might delete this later.

I wanted to like credit my inspos to @jessamine-rose for their fic and the manga “My Childhood Friend is Overprotective” by Kumanami Sae (you should check it out it’s so cuteeee)

[acesolaris]

To build a sustinable community

Are you looking for Community or Friends? You can look for both, it's not an either or, but its important to know. Attemps of creating a community can be stalled and/or fall flat by mixed expectaions. Friends are part of our community, but not every comunity member needs to be or is a friend.

What are your personal values and needs? A lot of people complain they're not able to form friendships once out of school. School or work based comunity/friends are based on mandatory spaces. If you are aware of your values and needs, you can actively search out people with the same ones outside of these spaces. Establish a list of non-negotiables for you to be able to set boundaries and leave the space if they are not met.

What's your capacity for meeting new people? Seeking community, means seeking comfort, security and saefty. This comes with expectations. Be aware how much you can and will give in terms of eg. time, resources, emotional intimacy etc. and communicate these.

Whats your preferred method of interacting? A sustainable community requires communication and time spent together. Think about your preferences of being more online or in person. Ifyou are more online, do you actively paricipate in a mutual gathering or are you part of a parasocial relationship.

What are your relationship managment skills? Being part of a community means being in alingment with other people. That also means, knowing how you personally handle conflict, and if you are able to negtiate and commmunicate your needs. Are you reliable and in what way? Can you probem solve in group dynamics? There is nothing wrong with having weaknesses in these areas, but it will influence the groups dynamic.

What are your interests and hobbies? Mapp out your interests, hobbies and things you want to do but have neve tried before. Try to focus on things not relying on consumerism, as these are open to a more wider range of people. Connect to others with the same values and needs by seeking out these hobbies and interests.

Now seek out your people. Be awkward. Be brave. And if your answers to all the questions above revealed that you just can't, thats fine, too. Building a community takes time and sometimes one or two false starts that help refining your list of values and wants. But if you are able to, and want to, you need to actively search out others, now that you have identifed who they suposed to be.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Small Linkspam on topic:

@luulapants gives advice on what do you do if the mutual aid groups/communitys around you seem to have dissolved or don't have consistent recurring meetings.

@alotofnot talks about being a passive envireonmetalist as an example of a person not having reosuces to be politically active in the way they are told to.

@victoryofthecommonse talks about how to build solidarity with social anxiety

This video by @andrew-ism explains the concept of mutual aid

A few years ago I wrote a list of things to research in your local community that also might help finding you people

This post talks about burnout in activism, which is something everyone needs be able to recogise in themselves as well as other members of their community

I insist you feel free to add to the discussion or resources.

Turn anger into kindness. ~ @acesolaris

Version 07.11.2024

[rewh0re]

— LOVE, TENDERLY ; ITOSHI RIN

-1.2k, hurt/comfort, fight with parents mentioned, reader wants to pursue a literary career, insecurities and second guessing about choices in life, crying reader and gentle rin

a/n- I saw a reel on insta where the bf was wiping his gf's mascara and it was so cute that I was fuelled to write this. I'm literally writing after 2 months so pls spare me. Also I love rin. REBLOGS + INTERACTIONS ARE HIGHLY APPRECIATED!!

you could always count on your lover to support your decisions. Rin was your biggest admirer, he was all you could ask for and more.

When the doorbell of his apartment rang approximately at around 10:41 in the night, Rin scrunched up his eyebrows in confusion.

He was not expecting anyone this late. He looked up at the door in suspicion when the doorbell rang again.

Taking his reading glasses off and putting his book down on the coffee table, he uttered a 'coming' before walking off to open the door.

His eyes widened in shock, concern and a little bit of fear at what he saw.

There you were, standing on the other side, arms wrapped around yourself as you sniffled. You were supposed to be at a family dinner. But you were standing in front of him, mascara and eyeliner running down your very glossy and very red eyes, staining your cheeks black.

The sight in front of him, made Rin's heart drop as a sense of unpleasantness and worry consumed him whole.

"Hi," you croaked out, wiping the fresh tear that streamed down your face which  in turn smudged the black makeup residues.

"I'm sorry, I..I just didn't know where to go. I didn't want to be alone. Can I come in?" Your arms tightened around yourself as you looked at him hopefully.

Your words broke his chain of thoughts as he pulled you inside and locked his door.

He sat you down on the sofa and gave you some water which you gratefully drank. You didn't quite realise how scratchy and dry your throat had been until you drank the water.

"Thank you," you offered him a gentle smile.

"Wait here," with that he seemed to disappear somewhere only coming back with a packet of wet wipes.

He sat down and took your face in his hands, inspecting it thoroughly before taking out a wet wipe.

"Dinner went south? Mhm?" He asked, voice gentle like the cool breeze of an autumn's day. It soothed you a bit.

"Yea..." You replied in a murmur, feeling the damp wipe against your already tear dampened face.

Rin's hands worked skillfully as he gently wiped off the runny mascara from around your eyes and cheeks. There was a shared silence between you two that was comfortable, welcomed even.

"I want you to look up for me," he said and you obliged. "Want to tell me what happened?"

"Got into a fight with my mum. She said stuff about me trying to pursue a literary career," you felt your chest tighten as the earlier fight with your mum, who you thought would support your decisions, replayed in your brain.

Rin only hummed, urging you to continue as he slowly went to wipe the other side of your face.

"She said it's not a promising career, would not sustain my life and who knows if it could work out. She said it's better as a hobby, something that I do in my free time. She's so sure I'll fail Rin, I'm scared," your voice broke as a fresh stream of tears fell down your eyes. You bit your lip to suppress any sound from coming out.

"I was so sure that I wanted to do this and now...now I'm second guessing. I mean, what am I even doing with my life? What if she's correct and nothing works out?" You inhaled, exhaling shakily from your mouth. Your breaths were heavy and Rin was livid that someone could break you this badly.

He remembered all the days and nights you spent working on your unfinished debut novel draft, scraping, editing and doing it all over again till you believed it to be perfect. He was there through your writing blocks and how you felt helpless when it happened. He would read your work for you, smiling at you proudly because that's what he was. He was always so proud of you. He always provided you with comfort whenever you needed it. You need it now more than ever.

He kept the wipe down as he finished removing your makeup and wiped away your tears with his hands. He rested his hand on your cheek then. Calloused as they were due to years of football training, they blossomed in you a feeling of solace. A much needed one. You closed your eyes, leaning into his hands as you took it in.

"I think you are wonderful," he rubbed his thumb against your cheek in a comforting motion.

"I think you're wonderful and absolutely brilliant at what you do. Your writing is splendid y/n and never ever let anyone make you think or feel otherwise," you let out a breathy laugh at his words as you opened your eyes to look at him.

"Oh no no don't laugh. I'm dead serious right now," and he was. He was absolutely focussed on your face and he spoke from his heart, with all his heart.

"You have a way with words and you execute them brilliantly. As far as not knowing if it will work out goes, really, of how many things are we absolutely sure about? Life is unpredictable. What if it does work out? That's a fair possibility isn't it?" He tilted his head as he smiled at you, bringing a small smile to your own lips. You didn't even notice but your sniffling and your tears had stopped.

"I know that but it's just so aggravating you know? She just gave me this reality check. She said everything I sometimes feel so insecure about like I don't know, voicing out my worst fears or something," you sighed as you flopped back on the sofa pillow sighing.

"Tell me about having a shitty family," he pushed back his fringes — which messily fell over his eyes again — as he fell beside you, putting his legs up on the coffee table.

"Tell me something Rin," you rested your head against his shoulder, snuggling against his muscular body, his arms engulfing your figure and bringing you closer.

"How do I know everything will be worth it?"

"You don't and that's the beauty of it," he looked down at your face, placing a kiss on your temple.

"You know I never knew if football would be right for me. I knew I was skilled but there were these thoughts in the crevices of my mind that would crawl up to the surface sometimes and I would worry. It took practice, a whole lot of shaping and belief."

"You have to believe in yourself. You have to believe in your dreams. Keep writing, no matter who says what, no matter what happens. You are skilled, you are smart and you have so much potential. Sometimes the thoughts will crawl up but you've got to push them down okay? And when you're the biggest author out there with bestseller books and millions of fans around the world, remember I was your first fan. Also, always your biggest one," He placed another kiss on your forehead as you were left in awe of the words he spoke. You could only grin at his softly smiling visage.

"What?" He whispered.

"I never knew you had a way with words," you took his face in your hands, looking up at him with adoration and love.

He mimicked the look on your face as he slowly wrapped his hand around your wrist, leaving a chaste kiss on your fingers.

"Eh. I try. Gotta watch out for my love now don't I?"

[auroras-void]

My dream I think now is to someday live in a large shared villa with many friends and partners and their friends and partners, we share our homes, share our resources share our love, feel bound to one another like family, there's a complex and somewhat unstable web of polyamorous relationships between everyone which frequently blur the line between friend and partner, but none of us really care to sort it out, we just those connections be whatever they are and enjoy it, just, being happy. We are all free to find what works for us and have the openness to continue to strive together for the healthiest relationships we can manage.

Our home is covered in greenery, designed with permaculture and sustainability in mind. As a collective we even out the burdens of our individual hardships and lift up our achievements. We provide the foundation for more of us to take risks on paths that make us happy even if they might be more financially unstable at first. We cook for each other regularly, taking turns helping to feed everyone so we stay healthy and happy. We have a workshop with shared tools and skills, we learn from each other and help each other do create more things artistic and functional to improve our environment for everyone.

Maybe some of us have kids and we parent them as a collective, our diversity of experience, balancing out the mistakes any one of us might make as individuals, and instilling them with a wide range of wisdom and knowledge and strong sense of community and independence. We raise them to be stronger than we were, to make the most of their life from the very beginning.

We are as close as we can be to being free from the constraints that our world crushes us under. We have our own strength to oppose it. We have love, we have connection, we have stability, we have freedom.

I know it'll never happen, it would take a miracle to find the right people to do something like that with, and decades of work and experience to bring it into reality. But that's what makes it a dream I guess. It doesn't have to be realistic, just hopeful.

[batboyblog]

Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week. #5

Feb 9-16 2024

The Department of Education released the first draft for a wide ranging student loan forgiveness plan. After Biden's first attempt at student debt forgiveness was struck down at the Supreme Court in 2023, this new plan is an attempt to replace it with something that will hold up in court. The plan hopes to forgive debt for anyone facing "financial hardship" which has been as broadly defined as possible. Another part of the plan hopes to eliminate $10-20,000 in interest from all student loans, as well as a wide ranging public Information push to inform people of other forgiveness programs they qualify for but don't know about.

The House passed 1.2 Billion Dollars to combat human trafficking, including $175 million in housing assistance to human trafficking victims

The Department of Transportation announced $970 Million for improvements at 114 airports across 44 states and 3 territories. They include $40 million to O'Hare International in Chicago to improve passenger experience by reconfiguring TSA and baggage claims, and installing ADA compliant bathrooms(!). The loans will also go to connecting airports to mass transit, boosted sustainability, installing solar and wind power, and expanding service to under served committees around the country.

Medicare & Medicaid released new guidelines to allow people to pay out of pocket prescription drug coats in monthly installments rather than as a lump sum. This together with capping the price of certain drugs and penalties for drug companies that rise prices over inflation is expected to save the public millions on drug coasts and assure people don't pass on a prescription because they can't pay upfront

The EPA announced its adding 150 more communities to its Closing America's Wastewater Access Gap Community Initiative. 2.2 Million Americans do not have basic running water and indoor plumbing. Broken and unreliable wastewater infrastructure exposed many of those to dangerous raw sewage. These Americans live primarily in poor and rural communities, many predominantly Black communities in the south as well as those on tribal lands. The program is aiming to close the wastewater gap and insure all Americans have access to reliable clear water.

The White House announced deferred action for Palestinians in the US. This means any Palestinian living in the United States, no mater their legal status, can not be deported for any reason for the next 18 months.

The Department of Energy announced $60 million in investment into clean geothermal energy. The plan will hopefully lead to a 90% decrease in the coasts of geothermal. DOE estimates hold that geothermal might be able to power the hopes of 65 million Americans by 2050 making it a key step in the Biden administration plan for a carbon-free grid by 2035 and net-zero emissions by 2050.

The EPA launched $83 million to help improve air quality monitoring across America. With updated equipment local agencies will be better able to report on air quality, give more localized reports of bad air quality and the country will be better equipped to start mitigating the problem

The Department of Energy announced $63 million in investments in domestic heat-pump manufacturing. Studies have shown that heat-pumps reduce green house gases by 50% over the most efficient condensing gas boilers, as technology improves this could rise to 75% by 2030. Heat pump water heaters meanwhile are 2 to 3 times as energy efficient as conventional electric water heaters.

HHS awarded $5.1 million to organizations working with LGBTQI+ Youth and their Families. The programs focus on preventing homelessness, fighting depression and suicide, drug use and HIV prevention and treatment, as well as  family counseling and support interventions tailored for LGBTQI+ families.

The House passed two bills in support of the oppressed Uyghur minority in China. The "No Dollars To Uyghur Forced Labor" Act would prohibit the US government from spending any money on projects that source materials from Xinjiang. The Uyghur Policy Act would create a permanent post at the State Department to coordinate policy on Uyghur Issues, much like the special ambassador on antisemitism.

[asteroidtroglodyte]

Some People think there is no water here

Some People think that this place is dry

Because there is no river for them to drink

But each morning, a river flows uphill

A river of moisture

A river of fog

Enough to get by

If you’re from around here

And you know how to drink from the air

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Year

1. Belgium approves four-day week and gives employees the right to ignore their bosses after work

Workers in Belgium will soon be able to choose a four-day week under a series of labour market reforms announced on Tuesday.

The reform package agreed by the country's multi-party coalition government will also give workers the right to turn off work devices and ignore work-related messages after hours without fear of reprisal.

"We have experienced two difficult years. With this agreement, we set a beacon for an economy that is more innovative, sustainable and digital. The aim is to be able to make people and businesses stronger," Belgian prime minister Alexander de Croo told a press conference announcing the reform package.

2. Spain makes it a crime for pro-lifers to harass people outside abortion clinics

Spain has criminalized the harassment or intimidation of women going for an abortion under new legislation approved on Wednesday by the Senate. The move, which involved changes to the penal code, means anti-abortion activists who try to convince women not to terminate their pregnancies could face up to a year behind bars.

3. House passes bill to federally decriminalize marijuana

The House has voted with a slim bipartisan majority to federally decriminalize marijuana. The vote was 220 to 204.

The bill, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, will prevent federal agencies from denying federal workers security clearances for cannabis use, and will allow the Veterans’ Administration to recommend medical marijuana to veterans living with posttraumatic stress disorder.

The bill also expunges the record of people convicted of non-violent cannabis offenses, which House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said, “can haunt people of color and impact the trajectory of their lives and career indefinitely.”

4. France makes birth control free for all women under 25

The scheme, which could benefit three million women, covers the pill, IUDs, contraceptive patches and other methods composed of steroid hormones.

Contraception for minors was already free in France. Several European countries, including Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway, make contraception free for teens.

5. The 1st fully hydrogen-powered passenger train service is now running in Germany. The only emissions are steam & condensed water.

Five of the trains started running in August. Another nine will be added in the coming months to replace 15 diesel trains on the regional route. Alstom says the Coradia iLint has a range of 1,000 kilometers, meaning that it can run all day on the line using a single tank of hydrogen. A hydrogen filling station has been set up on the route between Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Bremervörde and Buxtehude.

6. Princeton will cover all tuition costs for most families making under $100,000 a year, after getting rid of student loans

In September, the New Jersey Ivy League school announced it would be expanding its financial aid program to offer free tuition, including room and board, for most families whose annual income is under $100,000 a year. Previously, the same benefit was offered to families making under $65,000 a year. This new income limit will take effect for all undergraduates starting in the fall of 2023.

Princeton was also the first school in the US to eliminate student loans from its financial aid packages.

7. Humpback whales no longer listed as endangered after major recovery

Humpback whales will be removed from Australia's threatened-species list, after the government's independent scientific panel on threatened species deemed the mammals had made a major recovery. Humpback whales will no longer be considered an endangered or vulnerable species.

Climate change and fishing still pose threats to their long-term health.

Some other uplifting news from last year:

A Cancer Trial’s Unexpected Result: Remission in Every Patient

California 100 percent powered by renewables for first time

Israel formally bans LGBTQ conversion therapy

Tokyo Passes Law to Recognize Same-Sex Partnerships

First 100,000 KG Removed From the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

As we ring in the New Year let’s remember to focus on the good news. May this be a year of even more kindness and generosity. Wishing everyone a happy and healthy 2023!

Thank you for following and supporting this g this newsletter

Buy me a coffee ❤️

[andreafmn]

I'm Not Afraid | Chapter 19

Word Count: 3.6K

Story Description: (Y/N) Argent arrived at Beacon Hills to put to rest her father’s sister, Kate Argent. For the first time, her family has decided to settle down and sustain a life in this interesting small town. After 17 years, (Y/N) has the opportunity to establish interpersonal relationships but will she be ready to face the complications that come with relating to her cousin’s, Allison, friends; especially, the infamous Derek Hale. She will face the adventure of being associated with the Derek and McCall pack, as well as being faced with the discovery of certain aspects of her life she never imagined.

A/N: heheheheehehe 🤭🤭

<- Previous | Next ->

By the time Stiles and (Y/N) had driven back to the school, classes were over, and students flooded the parking lot as they made their way to their cars. The pair parted ways with a promise to ditch school again one day. Stiles disappeared back into the school, and (Y/N) waited for Isaac to come out of hiding, which she had done for the past week. Yet, time passed, and there was no sign of the blond boy. He’d taken to appear while the crowd was heavy in order to conceal himself, but the parking lot emptied, and he didn’t come out.

Dread washed over her as she pulled out her phone to call him, worry swimming through her veins as the call was sent to voicemail. All she could think of was the worst thing that could happen. Her family had finally caught him, and he was currently being tortured for answers, or worse, he was already dead.

Her vision blurred with tears as the thoughts flooded her mind, guilt gripping tightly around her throat. She had already begun to blame herself for Isaac’s supposed capture. If she hadn’t been his friend, they would never have been able to pin him. Once more, she had gotten too close to someone and had put their lives in danger. As hard as she had tried to protect him, she had failed.

She zoomed through the streets as she made her way home, praying to whatever was out there that Isaac was in her house and had, for some reason, forgotten to charge his phone. As much as she wanted to think positively, she had never been wired that way. (Y/N) had been taught to think of everything that could go wrong in a situation, no matter how unnecessary it could be. Her mind flooded with thoughts of losing the one person she had fully trusted for the first time in many years. She could hear him calling for help, pulling his weight in whatever fight had ensued, giving it his all until there was nothing left to give. But it all ended the same way. With Isaac either hurt or dead.

As soon as she arrived at her house, she dropped her bike on the grass like it had burned her, not caring if it smashed into pieces as it hit the ground. She knew her parents weren’t home. Not only was their car gone, but the family also had them occupied every second of the day. The girl had free range to turn the house over to find her friend.

“Isaac?!” she yelled, waiting for a response that never came. “Isaac, are you here?”

She ran to the basement, not even noticing when her dog had joined her side. Brody barked to catch her attention, but she was focused on her parents’ office. (Y/N) clicked through their computers, searching for any hint in their calendars, any clue in their messages, anything. But there wasn’t even a post-it note out of place. Everything they knew, she had known long before them.

But she couldn’t stop there. If her family had anything to do with Isaac, there would be no evidence. She had to confront them face-to-face and deal with the repercussions afterward. (Y/N) fished for the key of her parents’ weapons cabinet, arming herself with whatever she’d need to take down whoever stood in her way. Even if she got hurt, she would not go down without a fight. The Argents had gone long enough without paying for the things they had done, and it was about time they did.

As she strapped a rifle to her back, she heard a stumble on the floor above. Whoever had been sent to her home had caught the short stick that day. Red anger flowed through her veins as she walked silently up the basement stairs, a handgun tight in her grasp and her loyal dog slowly behind. Nearing the door, she removed the safety from the gun and braced herself.

“Woah, woah!” Isaac yelled as she burst through the door, a gun deadest on him. “It’s just me, (Y/N).”

(Y/N) ran toward the boy without a second thought and wrapped her arms around him tightly.  He was there, unharmed, and staring at her like she had gone crazy. “Where were you?” she cried, tears burning her eyes and making their way down her cheeks. “Why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“My phone died,” he said, holding her tighter still. “What did you think happened? Where are you going with al this ammo.”

“You weren’t at school or answering the phone, and I thought my family… I didn’t know.”

“Were you about to light up your family to find me, (Y/N)?” he chuckled, cradling her face in his hands and wiping away her tears with his thumbs. “Are you crazy?”

“Maybe,” she laughed hoarsely. “I didn’t really have a plan in mind. I just couldn’t let them get away with hurting you.”

“Well, I can safely say, stand down, soldier,” he teased. “My phone died, and I was meeting with Erica and Boyd. I would have left you a note, but you left school before I did.”

“Yeah, well, I needed to cool off,” she sighed, taking off the gun she was wearing and dropping the rest of her weapons on the hallway table. “These past few weeks… I just needed a break, and Stiles happened to be there.”

“So, what? He’s your new best friend?” Isaac grumbled as he slouched onto the sofa. “What if something had happened while you were with him? At least at school, you’re kinda protected, but out there? Who knows?”

“You do know I can protect myself, right?” (Y/N) chuckled as she sat next to him. “I may not have supernatural strength or healing, or even claws, but guns and knives can also do the trick.”

“Those healing scratches on your face would beg to differ.”

“I’d like to see any of you guys pull your weight in a fight without all those abilities,” the girl teased. “I, at least, can’t be paralyzed by the Kanima. So, I think I can protect myself good enough.”

“Whatever,” he mumbled under his breath, crossing his arms over his chest and furrowing his brow in annoyance.

But she knew Stiles and her recklessness weren’t exactly what he was worried about. Behind his blue eyes, she could see something else was setting a dark cloud over him. There was worry that hung heavy on his shoulders and concerns that stole his sleep at night. Too many questions ran through the boy’s mind, and no one seemed to have given him the right one.

“Come on,” she said, bumping her shoulder against his. “Tell me what’s really going on.”

Isaac sighed deeply, resting his head on her lap like he had started to do when he needed comfort. “Boyd and Erica are leaving,” he responded. “With everything that’s going on, I don’t blame them. Not having anyone while we’re being chased to our deaths… it’s a suicide mission. Leaving might just be the only choice.”

“Is that what you think? That you’re alone in this?’ 

“(Y/N), you know I can’t stay here forever,” Isaac reminded her. “We’re lucky I haven’t been caught so far, but your parents are gonna notice sooner or later. I don’t want to put you in a position where you’d have to go against them like you were planning on doing today.”

“Why not, Isaac? I can talk to my dad, and we can find a way to keep you safe. Hell, we could keep Erica and Boyd safe, too. With Allison looking for you guys, it’s not smart to be out in the open by yourselves. I’m sure that with his help…”

“I can’t keep putting you in this position,” he exclaimed. As he sat up, (Y/N)noticed the tears that reddened his eyes. She could tell he was terrified. He had no home, no pack, and an alpha that seemed more lost than he was. The only thing he was sure of was that staying with his best friend made him a sitting duck and a perfect target for her family. “You know, there was a time when I thought my biggest problem would be my father. I never thought that the one thing that got me away from him was the thing that put me in the most danger. “You’ve done more than you can imagine, (Y/N),” he smiled sadly. “But I can’t keep putting you in danger like this. The best thing I can do for all of us is go.”

(Y/N) was quick to wrap the boy in a hug as matching tears fell from her eyes. “I can’t lose you, Isaac,” she said. “We’ll figure this out. Just… you can’t go.”

“There’s nothing else I can do,” he replied softly. “Not that I can think of anyway.”

“Please stay,” she mumbled against his chest. Her voice came out weak and exhausted as she was no longer able to be strong. It had taken (Y/N) so long to find someone she could confidently call her friend finally, and in a matter of months, she was going to lose him. She felt as though the universe was telling her that she wasn’t made for relationships. “I need you, Isaac.”

The pair stayed in each other’s arms as they calmed, unsure what direction they’d be taking next. Isaac hadn’t had someone care about him as strongly as (Y/N) did in a long time. He had forgotten love and care could come from a soft touch and not the hard slap of a punishment. She had reminded him that life wasn’t that scary when there was someone by your side, especially someone that was willing to go against her family in order to keep him safe. The last thing Isaac wanted was to lose her—much less leave her with her while danger still lurked through every corner—but staying only made things worse for her. He knew, no matter how hard, the best decision was to go.

“I’ll talk to Scott tomorrow,” he whispered instead. “Maybe he’ll have an idea of what I could do.”

“Alright,” she sighed against him. “Just be careful, okay? I don’t know what’s going on with him and Gerard, but he seems to always want to do the right thing.”

“I will,” he promised. “But why don’t we go to sleep now? I have a feeling tomorrow is gonna be a very long day.”

Isaac couldn’t seem to catch sleep at all. He watched as (Y/N) tossed and turned next to him, her own nightmares keeping her stuck in dreamland while his kept him wide-eyed.

Before her, he didn’t care to stay in Beacon Hills—hell, he didn’t care if he lived or died. After his brother died and his father’s temper took a turn for the worse, there wasn’t much that tied him to the town. He wasn’t particularly good at school; without his supernatural strength and speed, he wasn’t that good at sports either. Now, his father was dead as well, and he had no home to call his own. Isaac was the perfect candidate for a runaway. Even if he was gone, the town would continue on as if nothing had happened.

Night turned to morning as Isaac tried to succumb to his tiredness, time somehow speeding when all he wanted was for it to stop. (Y/N) was still dead asleep, her arm wrapped around Brody as they both snored softly. If there was anyone that cared about what happened to him, it was her. And she was the only person in the town he truly wanted to protect.

Before she could wake, the boy slipped a t-shirt over his sweatshirt and jumped out the window with his backpack on his back. He still wasn’t sure what he was going to do, but if he decided to leave, a clean break was the best way to do it. Isaac knew if he told (Y/N) he was possibly leaving, she’d find a way to make him stay. Or, even worse, try to go with him. He had to make a choice by that night, even if it hurt.

He knew Scott would be in his usual shift at the vet’s office, and it was a good time as any to pick at his brain about the situation. The door was unlocked when he got there, and he let himself in, flinching as the dogs quickly started barking the second he was inside.

When Deaton and Scott walked around the corner, he was sure they would throw him out. He hadn’t proven to be a good person, much less an ally, and he could understand if they wanted him gone. Instead, the doctor welcomed him warmly, allowing him to join them in the exam room, where the foulest odor reached his nose.

Laying on the stainless-steel table was a small white dog, weakened by whatever sickened it and the very source of the smell. The poor animal whimpered as Deaton injected something into it, and try as he might, Isaac couldn’t help but grimace at the odor. “Why does it smell like that?”

The colleagues looked at each other with knowing smiles before Deaton said, “Scott said almost the same thing to me a few months ago. One day, he could somehow tell the difference between which animals were getting better and which… were not.”

“He’s not getting better, is he?” Isaac questioned, a sudden wave of sadness rushing through him as the doctor confirmed his suspicions. “Like cancer.”

Sickness had a very distinct smell, Isaac learned. It was bitter and musty, almost like smelling a batch of fruit that had been left to ferment for months. The scent gripped his nose, painting the walls of his nostrils with a sample of what came next. Death. And all he wanted to do was to save the poor mutt from it.

“I know you’re well aware of what your new abilities can do for you,” Deaton said after calling the boy closer. “Improved strength, speed, and healing. You ever wonder what it could do for others?”

The vet guided Isaac’s hand onto the dog, pressing it firmly against his skin. Suddenly, black rushed through his veins, crackling under the pressure of whatever was filling his body. “What did I do?” he asked in surprise, feeling as the ooze sank into him.

“You took some of his pain away,” Scott smiled. It was an overwhelming sensation for him. Even if it had been only a little, like Deaton said, it had done a lot for the small pup. Tears welled in the corners of his eyes, and he wanted nothing more than to be able to take more. “It’s okay. First time he showed me, I cried, too.”

But they were tears of joy. Tears of accomplishment. Derek had only been teaching the pack how to be defensive, how to protect themselves and people around them from whatever dangers lurked in the shadows. Yet, there was a world of knowledge waiting for him, and Derek didn’t seem to want to show it to him. At least not while the Kanima was around.

Deaton left then to place the dog back in his kennel, and Isaac found it to be the perfect time to talk to Scott. “They’re leaving tonight,” he said as Scott cleaned. “After the game.”

“So, why are you telling me?”

“I’m not telling you. I’m asking you,” Isaac responded. “I’m asking for your advice.”

“From me?” Scott asked, dumbfounded. “Why?”

“Because I trust you, and so does (Y/N),” he admitted. “She said you always seem to want to do the right thing, and I agree with her.”

“I usually have no idea what I’m doing,” Scott shrugged. “Actually, I never have an idea of what I’m doing.”

“Well, do you want to let me know what you’re doing now?”

“I’m not going anywhere if that’s what you mean. I have too many people here who need me.”

And those were the words that struck the deepest chord in Isaac. “I guess that makes me lucky ‘cause…” he chuckled sadly. “‘Cause I only have one person, and I’m doing her more harm than good by staying.”

As he stood to leave, Scott stopped him. “Are you gonna go with them?”

“Yeah,” was all he could think to answer. “Yeah, I think I will. Good luck with the game, though.”

“Well, thanks, but I’m not going either. Can’t think about playing some meaningless game right now.”

“You weren’t at practice last week, were you?” Isaac questioned. “And you didn’t hear? Jackson was there as if nothing had happened.”

“That means… the game tonight?”

“Yeah. He’s playing,” he said. “I thought someone would have told you by now.”

“Yeah, no. N-no one did,” he stammered. “You’re sure about this?”

“Mhm, it was one of the last practices I went to before (Y/N) told me Allison had grown the manhunt. It stopped being safe for me to be there. I’ve been hiding out at her place ever since.”

“Is that why you think you’re putting her in danger? Because she cares about you?”

“It’s not what I think, Scott,” he sighed. “It’s what I know. I mean, you have to know what it’s like with Allison and everything. (Y/N) was ready to burst into her family’s house with guns because she thought they had taken me.”

“I don’t know what it’s like,” he answered meekly. 

“What do you mean?”

“Allison, as much as she says she loves me, was quick to turn on me when she was lied to about her mom’s death. She’s never believed in us as strongly as (Y/N) has,” Scott admitted. “If there’s anyone you should stay for, it’s her.”

Scott’s words hung heavy in Isaac’s mind as he walked through town, not really sure where to go. Erica and Boyd were more than likely either at Derek’s old family home or already long gone. He couldn’t go to Derek, not when he had something—someone—more important. Being cared for may have been something Isaac had forgotten, but there was someone making sure he remembered it.

He waited until he was sure he wouldn’t be caught before jumping through the window he had left through some hours before, expecting to find the room empty. Instead, he found a frantic (Y/N), sending her phone flying in his direction and tears falling down her cheeks.

“Where the hell have you been?” she exclaimed, her words hoarse from the crying. “I’ve been calling you for hours!”

“Sorry,” he shrugged. “I turned off my phone.”

“I thought you were gone, Isaac,” she cried. “I thought you had taken your things and were never coming back.”

“To be honest, I thought I was,” he confessed weakly. “I really thought the best thing would be if I just left without a trace—that it’d be safer for you in the long run.”

“Are you crazy? I was worried sick that something had happened to you. If Allison…”

“None of that happened, okay?” Isaac said as he crossed the room toward her. He placed one hand on her arm and another on her cheek, stopping her body from shaking. “And I’ve decided to stay. I’m gonna fight this to the last consequence.”

(Y/N) looked up at him with teary eyes, relief finally washing over her as she confirmed that Isaac was there, that he was real. “You’re not alone, Isaac,” she said. “Neither are Erica nor Boyd. You just have to let people help. I know it’s a lot, and it’s scary, but you’re not alone.”

“I know that,” the boy smiled. “I know I have you on my side and that the best thing we can do is protect each other. I’m sorry it took me so long to understand that.”

“I thought you were gone for real this time,” (Y/N) confessed after a moment of silence. “I didn’t know what to do. I even almost called Derek.”

“He wouldn’t have done anything,” Isaac sighed. “He made himself clear. Once we left, we were on our own. After everything he’s told us, I don’t know what he’s thinking.”

“I think he’s just scared. Facing all of this while taking care of you guys cannot be an easy task,” she said. “I think he wants to protect everyone but doesn’t know how to. Just because he looks older doesn’t mean he is—he’s learning as he goes, just like us.”

Isaac chuckled softly as a warm smile tugged the corners of his mouth. “How can you still be so kind to him after he broke your heart?” he asked. “You should be cursing him out, not seeing his side of things.”

“I’d like to think he had a reason for what he did,” she responded, trying her best to hide her real hurt. “I’d like to think maybe one day things will get better.”

“You’re too kind for your own good,” he said. “You’re something else, (Y/N) Argent.

And for a second, for a split second, his eyes fluttered to her lips. His heart beat loudly against his chest and he felt the sudden urge to know what the pink of her skin tasted like. He wondered if she’d gasp at the suddenness. If perhaps she’d push him away or maybe even kiss him back. All he had to do was move a couple of inches toward her and he could lay his questions to rest.

“You should get ready for the game then,” (Y/N) said, breaking him out of thought as she jumped away from him, pulling out his jersey from her dresser. “If anything is gonna go down, it’s gonna start there. I can feel it.”

“Won’t your family know you’re there as a traitor? I mean, it’s not like you’ve been very active in their work.”

“They won’t kill me in public,” she said. “And if they try, they’ll have one hell of a fight coming for them.”

Next ->

My content will always be free, but if you’re feeling particularly generous, you can leave a tip on any of my posts  or buy me a coffee to support me and my love of writingIf you’d like to be tagged in this or any other story: click hereMake sure you have my notifications on so you know every time I post!

Tag List: @hellowinterlane​ @lokisgoddesofpower​  @mersuperwholocked-lowlife@malar-region@sunshine-flower@lilstanxd@sunsetcurvej @malar-region@heyitsaloy@blackbluerose666@bellabadacadabra@winter-soldier-101@zheezs14  @sunsetcurvej  @mushroomelephant  @she–walks–in–moonlight @Gracelynn318 @skyesthebomb@esposadomd@blueshoelaces@then-worship-at-my-altar@six-call@yuki254@honeylovemoon  @Beckiej0073-blog  @baebeepeach  @cecehensonn  @catgirlpwr@magimtz23@perle-noir@adaydreamaway08@hufflepuffobsessedwithmarvel@thatgirljayy@sugasthreedollarkookie  @laylaskywalker  @fandomonetwo@fruitylilfuck@haroldpotterson  @gangstalicious06  @elijahssuit@ellabellabus07@scarletdfox@halleest@sunflowerleii@shara-ne@nngkay  @mar  @saltedcoffeescotch  @thecollectorofwords @gabi-princesada1d  @zealouscookierebeltrash@sleepilysworld@laylasbunbunny@treatiseofselena  @american-staness  @cevans-winchester@brittany-appleyard24@avada-kedavra-bitch-187@ivory-raptor@euphoria1992@mrknightsgirl  @hopexargent  @druigsluver29  @Fresita1218  @sunsetmaverick@rebelbagel@mrknightsgirl@missfunsize

@the-house-of-rose-and-ember@elizabeth916@heccatee@cerejinha@caosfanblr@heartfilia01@shadowwolfqueen-blog@jinxxangel13@arcaurix@cheshirecat484@alyeskathewave@yourfavelili @moonynaturesethetic @gh0stgurl @jjpogueprincess @xshortputax

[goblinhoursinsomniaramblings]

I Know Those Eyes Pt 2

why yes i am continuing this

“You’re certain.”

Batman’s words were clipped. Less a question than a threat of consequences. Tim nodded, no hesitation.

“I’d have to have access to a blood or skin sample for 100% confidence, but… yeah. As of 1:23 A.M. this morning, we have confirmed visuals of Lex Luthor and Damian Wayne, alive and mobile, in downtown Gotham City.”

He brought up images of the hotel.

“Hotel Spillane, originally used by the Falcone family, mainly used by the successors of their original business interests. Several legal and executive representatives of one of these interests arrived over the course of the night and previous evening, with Luthor and… Damian being the last to arrive.”

Keep it together, Tim.

“Oracle looked into Luthor’s new identity. It’s so obvious I am actually mad. He’s backstopped a whole life story as Lex Luthor’s estranged twin brother, Lionel V. Luthor, going by the nickname Vlad. Sole inheritor of all Lex Luthor’s assets.”

He brought up the images on file for ‘Lionel’ as well as his own analysis of the footage.

“The confusing part is what he did after inheriting–he has been spending a lot of money on sustainability research, alternative fuels, updated emergency service systems, things like that. As far as I can tell he wants to make premium versions of those things and sell them for a profit, but is playing the long game by flooding the board with cheap goods while gaining good PR.”

He called up the files on VladCo.

“The rest he used to get a tech startup running, VladCo. Apparently he’s interested in ‘standardizing the nonstandard’, whatever that means, but he hasn’t really made anything for the mass market yet. The closest we can find is he’s been making something classified for the U.S. government.”

He took a shaky breath and called up what he had on Damian. He felt Bruce’s pained, shocked exhale more than he heard it, but it was there all the same. So… there really wasn’t any doubt.

“Daniel Summers. On paper he’s 24, was raised in Chicago, and while he’s acting as Luthor’s bodyguard we couldn’t find any official records of him being employed in that capacity. Probably because Oracle was only checking every thirty seconds and his birth certificate didn’t show up on any records until just before they arrived at the hotel.”

He started counting off on his fingers.

“So, 1: whoever is adding them to the system isn’t done yet. 2: they don’t actually care if they get caught. 3: they, very specifically, don’t care if we catch them.”

“You’re saying he’s taunting us.”

“It’s looking–hang on, Oracle says there’s a situation developing.”

One quick shortcut and video of a meeting room popped up on the screen. ‘Lionel’ was smugly facing down his very angry looking investors and their representatives. Suddenly, each of them seemed to calm down. Unnaturally fast, and in unison, with a very particular dull look to their eyes. Tim felt a chill down his spine.

Mind control. Lex Luthor was a meta now, and he had mind control! No wonder Damian hadn’t reached out–

But why? What did he still need Damian for? Unless…

Oh.

He met Batman’s eyes. The taunting, the lack of discretion, finding his first victims in Gotham City.

This was a hostage situation.

***

“You know, badger, you’re perfectly free to walk away from this part of the plan.”

“No, I promised. … still really creepy to watch, though.”

All the papers were signed, all the signatories overshadowed. Now all they had to do was get out of range.

Danny frowned as he saw the receptionist reach for the phone. Right, spy games. Someone was probably supposed to give her a code word when the meeting was over–

Her eyes went glassy, hand freezing around the phone, and seriously that would never stop being creepy to watch. Still, non-violent solution, he’d take it.

As they approached their car, Danny scanned the quiet, ominously lit street. Not for obvious cameras–he knew for a fact Oracle would never allow one to be obvious–but for the best possible angle a camera could have. Eliminating the ones that would have already been used, that left–

He had thought about this moment. How he would give some signal to let them know he was back. That he had been thinking of them.

… Tt. Another time. Too many layers to communicate through, too little space to do so. His gaze had lingered with a purpose, he could only hope that would communicate that Damian was still a part of him too.

For now, that would have to be enough.

***

-major reveal of this chapter: ‘Lex’ has mind control powers

-lol damian/danny is the ghost king, vlad holding him hostage? ha no

-yeah they did not plan the hostage thing but vlad is gonna jump on it with both feet later. like he’s not gonna take credit for it, amirite

-some chapters will be longer. some will be shorter. the main thing is still vibes

-yes, the last little bit is going to make things so much worse with the bats

-why Summers? anything winter-related would be too on the nose, and using a name associated with a very different comic book universe felt appropriate

-i've been a touch stressed so this got put on the backburner. yes, because current events

@hinari @blankliferain @grimdarling69

[ramlightly]

Hey, can I confes something to you? namely that the other day i forgot that Basil is a legit ingredience in food and got all confused when the corner store had drinks with Basil in them. I really thought "oh damn, they milked the priest for these"

Anyway hope that is a funny companion piece to the person who saw a free-range priest and thought something related to your art

Please do not over milk the priest, it's bad for his health. Please consider sustainable alternatives instead, like nut or oat milk instead.