#it makes sense that i got them mixed up and i dont even think they'll remember. but i will.

[sol-flo]

noooo just realized i spread misinformation to two of my friends tonight they should take me out back and shoot me like a lame horse 😭😭

[citrusy-lemons]

pancake-cakes

tasm!peter x reader

summary: late night cravings bring out some deeper feelings.

author's note: HOLY SHIT, count on me to go MIA for a month after posting. honestly tho i'm so sorry, i've got school and extracurriculars and projects and shit and i haven't really gotten time to write and my schedule is still super hectic, hopefully i'll be able to get other stuff out soon but no promises :/

let me know what you think? constructive criticism is welcome and please be nice :)

see, the middle of the night wasn't meant for this. it's to sleep and dream and pee.

not for baking a cake without having most ingredients of the cake. but you'd gotten a sudden craving and it was a weekend tomorrow, so bad decisions were inevitable.

did you have a million assignments to do? maybe. but peter also had a million assignments to do and he was still here, so technically, he's also making bad decisions. he was aware of that fact.

mind you he did try to convince you to go back to sleep at first but you wore him down. he didn't put up a big fight, he never did, against you.

he's convinced himself that he was only there to watch over you and make sure you didn't slice a finger or spill the flour, not to help you out with your late night shenanigans. but he was cutting up the strawberries so, really, he didn't have a strong resolve.

"you know, i think that when the box says 'pancake mix' you're supposed to make pancakes," he said, turning to you, who was reading the back of said box.

were you trying to bake a cake in the middle of the night with pancake batter cuz you didn't have the stuff for the cake and didn't want to go to the grocery store to get it? kinda. would peter have gone and got the stuff himself if you'd asked? yes.

"i didn't listen to you the last 17 times, i'm not gonna listen to you now, and besides," you said, pouring the mix into a bowl, "a pancake is just a cake but made on a pan instead of an oven. we're just changing the recipe a bit," you shrugged, like it was obvious and he was the stupid one.

"there are so many things wrong with that sentence, i dont even know where to begin,"

"here's a hint, don't."

you were being mean, you knew that. you didn't mean it. peter knew that. and you knew that peter knew that but you would apologize later. he knew that. he sighed dramatically.

"you wound me,"

you rolled your eyes at that. pretending to be annoyed at him was easy. wiping the smile away from your face when you were around him wasn't.

"if i had a dollar for every time you're wounded, i'd be filthy rich."

he glanced up at you. he knew that that wasn't completely a joke, it had a bittersweet tone to it. was that the reason why you were up at this ungodly hour? peter knew that you'd been stressed lately, he didn't know he had a hand in that.

"hey, you wanna tell me what's up?"

you didn't meet his eye, but you did stop fiddling with the bowl. almost immediately, you grabbed the knife out of his hand, mumbling, "you're cutting them all wrong,"

you both knew that wasn't true. one of the perks of having grown up with may was that peter was a fantastic cook. he'd been doing this sort of stuff forever. you needed to get better at excuses.

he gently laid his hand over yours to stop you and said your name softly, pleadingly. a long pause. you complied.

"it's just that," you started with a sigh, and dropped the knife, "you're my best friend peter, and i know that being spiderman means a lot to you," hesitation creeps up as you get to the actual issue. peter senses a 'but' coming. you look at him.

"but you come home every night with bruises everywhere, in pain, and i know you say that they'll go away in the morning and they do but," you're rambling now, he doesn't stop you.

"you have to see it from my perspective, i-" another sigh, you look away, "i get scared, peter."

oh. you were worried for him. he wonders how he didn't realise that before. that time he came home with a stab wound and you looked like you were going to cry he thought you were nauseous at the sight of blood. peter was an idiot.

"i know i shouldn't but i dont like the thought of you getting beat up every night." you were talking with your hands now, "imagine how you would feel if i came home with bruises all over my body and told you not to worry and that i'll be fine in a couple hours." you looked at him again. there was a sort of pain in your eyes. peter wishes it weren't there.

"it doesn't feel good peter. and you assume that i'm supposed to be okay with it?" you took a deep breath and closed your eyes, turning back to the strawberries. your hands were shaking.

peter thought about it. about what you'd said. you were scared for him and he understood that. it couldn't have been easy to be with someone like him. but he couldn't very well abandon spiderman. it was a part of him now. he knew that you knew that, but at the same time, he understood your point.

he thought about how he'd feel if the roles were reversed. if you came home with the type of wounds he did every night, he would be terrified. he couldn't blame you, of course he couldn't.

but he was spiderman, he had a responsibility, an unspoken vow to this city. he had opportunities and powers that no one else did, and he wanted to do good with it.

he hadn't asked for it, but he still had it. if he gave up being spiderman, he didn't think his conscience would let him live with it.

"i'm not asking you not to be spiderman," you spoke, finding your voice, "of course i won't do that. i'm just saying..." you trailed off, unsure of what you wanted and whether you were allowed to have it.

peter took both your hands into his, silently begging you to look at him. you did.

"i know what you're saying, and i understand. i don't blame you, i get where you're coming from and i promise, i'll be fine," he said, softly. he knew you were anxious about his safety.

"i can't give up being spiderman, and i know that's not what you're saying, but you have to understand, i can't not do it, it's a part of me, and i swear i will be more careful," his brown eyes bore into yours, willing you to understand. you blinked and unconsciously looked to the floor.

"but what if, being careful isn't enough one day? what if it isn't just some robbers or burglars but some other things? what if it's one of those aliens or mutants or something and you can't defend yourself? what am i supposed to do then, pete?"

you closed your eyes again, trying to stop the tears. peter's heart was tearing itself knowing that he was the reason for them. how could he tell you that him being the cause for your tears hurt more than any knife in the world?

"hey, look at me," he said, searching for your eyes. you shook your head but looked up at him anyway, the tears in your lashes resolutely not giving in to gravity.

"nothing is going to happen to me. i've handled stuff like that, you know. i know you're worried and upset but i promise, nothing will happen. you need to trust me, okay? we're going to be fine. please, I need you to trust me."

he said your name like it's the last time he'll ever get to, not in a way a friend is supposed to.

you sniffed, "i trust you, i do. it's this city that i don't trust," you steeled yourself, "but if you're sure, and you believe we'll be fine, then i do too."

he cracked a smile then, and pulled you in for a hug. a tight one. neither of you let go for quite a few minutes. you relished in it.

"god, okay i know i'm being silly, i'm sorry," you said after you'd pulled away, rubbing at your eyes.

"you're not being silly, don't be sorry. it's completely okay and valid. don't ridicule your thoughts, you're allowed to feel," peter said, in a scold-ish manner that he'd no doubt learnt from may.

"and please step away from the strawberries, and go back to butchering your so-called 'cake'," he said with a teasing smile, bumping his hips into yours to move you back to the bowl of pancake mix.

you scoffed incredulously, back into your playful demeanor, "excuse you, i would have perfected this pancake-cake if i weren't feeling sleepy right now, so, unfortunately for you, you won't get to taste this deliciousness, whenever i do get to make it,"

"oh, what a tragedy, i won't get to torture my tastebuds with whatever concoction you manage to brew up,"

you shoved at him, not that he moved an inch, and grabbed the plate of cut strawberries.

"just for that, i'm gonna eat these strawberries in bed using your pillow as a table, and you know i can be a very messy eater," you laughed like an evil sorcerer and ran towards the bedroom.

peter, horrified at the thought of sleeping on a sticky pillow, ran after you, forgetting that he had sticky hands himself. (pun intended, i'm sorry i couldn't not do it)

"come back here you!"

the pancake mix in the bowl, the half pack of strawberries waiting to be cut, and the anxiety were all left forgotten back in the kitchen.

[mejomonster]

This rant on Enterprise turns into Trip/T'Pol (implied /Archer) about halfway through ToT

I'm in general so mixed on Enterprise. On the one hand I think it does some stuff very well, on the other it falls so short of its potential and often self-censors to refuse to actually tackle moral issues or just goes with the still-fucked-up status quo (made even MORE irritating by the fact they write Archer SO kind and good usually - they'll write him say "we dont believe in one person owning another you're free to do as you wish" after helping a slave run away from their master, which makes sense, then fucking write him condoning slavery and returning a slave and saying they shouldn't have tried to help... which is so out of character And Anti Star Trek's goal of working for a better future its painful). I want to love it but there's just too many shortcomings in it that... I would expect of a 90s show being censored by networks and higher ups, but not of a 2000s show when other shows were pushing the limits farther. I want Star Trek to aspire for a better future, it hurts when its actively avoiding that. (However: im not saying i dislike the crew attitudes, them being immature and intolerant and impulsive and human-centric makes sense given its their first time interacting with the bigger world, and they grow, and its all very in character and makes sense. What doesn't make sense is whenever writing tries to do something brave, then backpedals and contradicts itself so weirdly you know someone was told "do NOT write that, write that the slave needs to to back to their master NOW" or "i know we just made a metaphor for AIDS but you shouldnt have and its too late to change the whole episode i guess, so make sure the gay metaphor people lose their jobs." Its just frustrating as fuck. I can TELL some writers were trying hard to tell meaningful and brave stories, and got told midway through or at the end "NO, undo the point your script is making NOW"

And then on the shallow side? I can see some surface level decisions they made (perhaps as a result of playing it safer rather than braver but whatever the reason). Like Archer/Trip/T'Pol having some key similarities to Kirk/McCoy/Spock in terms of their main traits being a balanced leader taking into account emotion and logic as he embodies passion, a more emotionally expressive and motivated leader, a more logically motivated leader. I can see Archer/TPol as a romantic relationship explored is so much (at least initially) what if we did spirk again, but theyre a guy and girl so we can just SAY theyre sexually attracted on screen. (What couldve been? Imagine a world where all 3 were women, and they pursued a spirk type lesbian couple explicitly, that couldve been something no show before did. Or if TPol was explored as explicitly trans more, and it never affected Archer or Trips attraction to her - her being a vulcan being the only thing they're even debating handling - how that couldve done something new and brave TOS didnt do and TNG didnt do, both having interspecies friendships, and straight romances). Then the show goes: okay what if we try emotional/logical romantic pairing? With Trip/TPol.

Which while not brave (many a logical/emotional pair on star trek shows platonic and romantic, many an interspecies straight relationship on star trek at this point), is a dynamic that TOS didnt make explicitly romantic. Like making a straight spirk equivalent, making a straight spones equivalent is... interesting, can be explicit (since the show clearly didnt want to do an explicit queer relationship), and Trip and TPol are really secondary main characters so thats interesting. Whereas DeAnna and Riker... TNG bounced between the crew enough they maybe had less focus, perhaps. And... one one level (as nonstop with Enterprise) I'm a bit frustrated they didnt try for braver writing choices.

But on another I'm like: okay. Fine. You want to try to see how a straight spones like romantic relationship plays out. Then DO it. The show decides fine, its going to constantly imply TPol might get romantically involved with Archer or Trip (even into season 3 implying she got romantic with Archer when she caretaked him for 12 years in the alternate future with rhe parasites, having her kiss Sim with Trips memories). While I'd like a woman lead whos not constantly involved in ships... if thats what the show wants to do, I can invest in it. I can believe she might like them both. (I think the poly Archer/Trip/TPol shippers are imagining a better alternative that would make more sense if the romances were Committed to). The show then... toys with both ideas. Slowly. Like it doesnt want to commit to one (but despite acknowledging polyamory with Phlox's wife and Trip, does not want to write actual polyamory on the crew relationships), so it makes TPol seem to like both men. It writes both mens feelings very fleetingly, so the audience doesnt get too much hope ONE of the men will try to start a relationship, and then places all three of them in this weird schrodingers cat situation.

(And oh, can you imagine a more bravely written Enterprise? Where TPol tells Phlox she likes Archer and Trip, Phlox suggests just having 2 husbands - "sorry, boyfriends, subcommander, you don't need to decide to bond long term right away"

and she silently mulls over that discussion, they continue the holding pattern of the men saying almost nothing about their crushes, until one neuropressure session TPol asks "have you and the captain ever been intimate?" And Trip is baffled, thinks TPol means just a massage like this... but might mean sex or kissing. So he asks what she means. She says "in a romantic sense..." Trip goes "No, why? Did you hear gossip from the crew... because that would be wild. Them talking about us, and him." TPol responding with "I have heard a partocularly crude comment once. About the three of us having dinner alone." Trip: "From who. I'll straighten them out, that kind of talk shouldn't be happening. It's beyond disrespectful- does the captain know a crewmember said-" TPol: "It was a long time ago. It hasn't happened since. I simply ask now about you and the captain, in case it had some basis in prior real activity." And so Trip says, "Well. No. It's an odd thing for people to say. I think they were just being disrespectful... I'm sorry you were dragged into it." TPol nods. Then decides, after minutes of silence, to ask: "Would you be opposed to intimate contact with the captain?" Trip: "Well no... of course I'd massage him if he- what kind of contact do you mean, TPol?" TPol simply shrugs and says she was just asking, its fine if he doesnt answer. Then finally she mutters, stil torn about how far she wants to inform him: "I have reason to believe the captain may... wish sometimes, that I was closer to him."

Trip jumps up, as if worried she's being harassed by Archer, but her steady gaze stops him and he doesn't spill out all the things he was going to say. TPol: "I am not sure if anything will come of it. I suppose, only if I pursued the matter." Trip blinks, sitting close to her since he jumped up, face to face, his expression shocked then falling before he can control it. He suddenly realizes, she might be telling him she wants Archer. He didn't realize- he didn't think so far ahead, he supposes he wants her to be happy, so he shouldnt feel crushed he has no chance with her, he didnt even realize he wanted the opportunity to see if she'd want him until now- now that it's clear there will never be that opportunity. "Well, what do you-" he starts. She cuts him off, her gaze still steady and direct, "I am uncertain if you would be amenable to us persuing...further intimacy."

Trip is unable to compute what he's hearing, so he just stares back, not ready to open his mouth until his brain catches up with him. She can't be saying what she said, it makes no sense-

She leans forward and presses her lips to his, when the silence stretches out and he does not appear to understand her question. She wants to know, if this is something he wants too. Or an assumption on her part which is beyond reality, which was fed into by Phlox and his very unvulcan-and unhuman-views on such matters. She should not have taken advice from someone who didn't grasp her or those she cares about's feelings. Norms. Desires to act or not act.

Trip only starts to kiss back when she's pulling away. He stops when she's apart, the two of them looking at each other, both seeing more unknowns than they did before.

"You like me?"

Trip sees TPol's subtle eye squint, might as well be an eye roll on her, and immediately whatever he was worried about melts away. Because she's clearly comfortable, she's just irritated he isn't already caught up to her own thoughts, and is relaxed enough to show it. God help him in figuring out how far she wants his mind to jump.

"Course. You did. We did-"

"We did." She repeats, the slightest tone of humor at waiting for him to catch up with the obvious.

"Well. I'm flattered." He's probably blushing. Her eyelashes flutter, but refuse to hide her gaze away, and he figures she's equally flustered right about now. "I like you too, obviously."

The tightness spreading in her expression indicates, no, that was abdolutely not obvious to her- and she thinks she took a damn big risk just now, and he should recognize that.

"I like you too," he says, putting more weight on the words, leaning forward to grab her hand and holding it. To try and impress how much he realizes this is a big deal.

He has no idea what his gesture means, to her, the way he's radiating just how much he cares, how hard that is to ignore-even when she's extremely practiced in ignoring any signs of it when they're in proximity, when they're often touching in these sessions. This touch is different. Even if she blocks out everything, except for her own tumultous insides, his touch is so gentle. Resolute as the expression directed at her.

"That is fortunate," she finally replies.

He thinks that's an understatement, still holding her hand. Unsure what to do next, what T'Pol would want.

After a while, to break the tension- to give himself a break from the open uncertainty in the air, or maybe give T'Pol a moment without unmitigated emotion to wade through. "Wait. Why did you bring up the captain, anyway?"

"As I said, I have reason to believe he desires... further intimacy as well."

A million things he could say: are you sure? Did the captain act disrespectfully? What can I do so that you feel better? Who's gossiping and do you want me to demote then (even though you could and probably already have if you wanted that)? Instead he asks: "Is that something you want?"

T'Pol considers, taking in Trip's expression- not hurt, but certainly vulnerable, open. Clinging to her hand still as if it will kill him if their connection were to break, and yet his mouth falls open to wonder if she'd like him to withdraw. The way his eyebrows shift, the way his expression betrays that it would agonize his heart to do so, but he would slip away in a heartbeat if it would please her. Hopefully, he would say something as he did- so she could piece together his own desires on the matter- but regardless, he would try his best to accomodate her needs first. Perhaps only, if she doesn't push him to confide in her.

"I'm not sure," she answers honestly. "But. I would prefer an arrangement where... you are happy."

Trip laughs. "Well that's not exactly fair," he smiles, in contradiction to his words. "That's what I was going to say."

[quietbluejay]

Horus Rising 6

let's timeskip forwards a bit

ninety rounds and then a flamer Abaddon says he's proud of Loken for dealing with things as well as he had Loken: what did i even deal with?? abaddon is doing damage control

keeler's in shock so they don't expect much out of her but they'll deal with her if necessary seeing abaddon handle this…how many incidents has he dealt with already, i wonder well, not daemons, probably, but you know other cases so the dead remembrancers are going down as dying in a landing accident

Abaddon's been very smooth here

Abaddon's moving a little too fast for Loken but at the door is Horus, who dismisses Abaddon so let's see what he's like one on one

if you were gonna rate the primarchs by "good in a dad sort of way" horus would definitely be one of the ones near the top so Loken feels ashamed of failing, and Horus gently leads him round to be like "you didn't screw up, you did everything you promised" there was no way to expect this kind of thing to happen

and now we get to the shady part

horus: you didn't see a daemon horus: time for a secret horus: it's the warp

loken: look i know about the warp i did all the class worksheets, and that's only supposed to happen to psykers horus: ok here's another secret: even the emperor doesn't fully understand the warp, but we need it, without it there would be no Imperium of Man

horus: the beings of the warp are xenos, just extra-dimensional

heee hooo

okay so i guess this is not the first daemonic possession which is why abaddon is experienced makes sense tbh

so, loken wants to know, why DONT they tell people about the warp horus answers with another question: "Why do you think i'm warmaster?"

so that's what Horus is like one on one and now a solemn moment as they haul away the bodies and Mersadie is here to talk with Loken so Mersadie didn't end up going because she was trying to help out Karkasy loken: you didn't miss anything loken is starting to take off his armour while they're talking the back and forth between them is definitely a lot more comfortable than in the first meeting lol

END PART ONE

time for part two let's meet some guys from another legion iiiiits Saul Tarvitz tarvitz has mixed feelings about the megarachnids they're fighting

perfection twitches fun fact did you know the words "perfect" and "perfection" are used a total of 164 times in the novel Fulgrim? because it sure felt like more! so they're "reinforcing" the blood angels however they've been on the planet for nearly 3 days with no trace of the blood angels or in fact, each other lmaooo

lmao "the whole situation smacked of abject failure" or, as we like to call it, a pro-gamer move

fun place to go on vacation the visibility is, quite frankly, shit also at the stalks of the grass are various larvae which are presumably sucking on the grass also they make a weird hissing noise that adds to the eerie atmosphere of the place

oh hey something new lucius found a tree

narration: lucius was wrong so we get a bit of exposition about their friendship lucius is ambitious while saul is grounded

lmao the healthiest version of this is "know your limits and what you're best at" the unhealthiest...well "know your place" fifteen minutes later, they meet the megarachnids

the megarachnids killed 2 EC just like that and they barely managed to get a hit in return let's stan the murder spiders lucius hit something! lucius is a child lol

he waves it around like a sword and then cuts his hand on the end <3

but don't worry guys! the luna wolves are on the way

Horus is happy they have an alien war to fight don't have to think about the morality there

and now for a fun linguistic note

heh a lot about Horus is theatre so the problem is there's more ships than they expected and they're not sure if they're hostiles loken opines that they're other imperials (as we know, it's the EC)

horus is dubious the 140th have done such a horrible job so far he doesn't trust them to have translated it or cracked it

pfff so we got confirmation the extra ships are the EC they…aren't doing well, lmao

[summerlycoris]

I havent had a great day today. Gonna chuck it under a cut because its probably gonna be long and annoying.

So i volunteered to help set up and run my workplaces pride stall this year. Got excited to do it- even made some bracelets to put out on the table if they gave me permission.

But the hours were originally 9am setup. Luckily, i checked my work email on my phone the evening prior. Because theyd changed it to 8am.

I would normally work today, but arranged to take annual leave so i could do pride. And ultimately never ended up going because of a few things.

One being just. Executive dysfunction. Im always late for everything- even things i want to do. Especially when- and this might sound stupid- i hate that people expect things of me. Feels stifling. But i signed up for this? But i signed up for a 9am start not an 8am one. And this is my annual leave im using so i dont want to immediately jump out of bed and rush around like on a workday yknow? So even though i wanted to get going before 8am, it wasnt happening.

In the end, i get ready to go there for 9am because. I missed the time to get ready for 8am or even 830am so. On the bikeride over there i got so worked up thinking about how theyll be judging me- all these people who work in the office and i havent met before- they'll be thinking like 'oh summer. Didnt you get the email? This was supposed to start at /eight/. Well, we've already set up... we'll find something for you to do /i guess/.' And even if everyone acted nice to my face, they'd be thinking it and judging me. And i burst into tears halfway there and was just like. Even if i get there now, I'm gonna be crying all day so whats the point? People are just gonna look at me like im a weirdo. And theyd be right.

So i turned around and went home. Texted one of my coworkers that would be there that i wasnt having a good day and couldnt make it. So she'll be looking at me like im a weirdo at work tomorrow too! Cool! And maybe my boss will be judging me- like i went through all this effort to /not/ do something?

I just. Fuck. I dont know why i bother trying to do anything. I just disappoint myself and others.

I dont want other people tp have control over me. But not wanting that doesnt change the fact that they /do/ have control over me. Ive beholden to their expectations. And if i dont meet them ill be judged. Thats how the world works. That should motivate me to get out of bed right?

If anything, knowing that and repeated failures just ensures I keep failing. Keep failing to get anywhere on time- because its hard to fight against anxiety and bitterness, all in a combo one-two punch. Keep failing to /want/ to do things. Because i know ill fuck it up.

Am i making any sense?

Honestly i feel so shit. Might just ring in for work tomorrow too. Im so fucking tired.

And like. Im nearly 30. This kind of tug of war between success and failures been going on since i was a kid. I could actually see about getting diagnosed with adhd and see if /anything/ can help me but all the horror stories about getting diagnosed and what if im just. Wrong. What if its just me and nothing helps? Because i think its a mix of executive functioning issues, and bad mental tbh.

I dont know what to do at this point.

[settersprouts]

꒦ ikanaide : chapter four ! ꒦

半神

. . : oikawa is the son of athena, while iwaizumi is the son of ares. both godly parents are known to be rivals, but what does that mean for their children ?

or, hq + percy jackson au, where oikawa is not the son of aphrodite for once, but people still think he is because he's pretty, and he's flattered and confused.

. . : okay hear me out, oikawa is known to be strategic and analytical, which is perfect for a descendant of athena. that is my reasoning for this alr dont attack me pls also, vv sorry this was late, i was feeling like shit all week and couldn't finish m sorry :((( hopefully you guys didn't wait too long :((

iwaizumi's about had enough of his bullshit.

his fists were shaking as he stood in front of his divine cabin, the front door ajar and an absolutely horrid smell wafting out from the cabin. he stepped closer to the cabin, stiffening even more as he pushed the door open the rest of the way. the whole place was absolutely trashed- both his and his other roommates' clothes mixed together in many piles on the floor. he could tell just from the strategically placed items all around the room that the place was definitely rigged with mediocre traps. nothing would kill him, but it would most likely maim him.

the demigod growled, stepping over the tripwires on the floor and grabbing his khopesh. it was charged with electricity, thanks to yū nishinoya from cabin one. in exchange for the many weapons the son of ares' crafted, the son of zeus would help charge a select few and give them back to him.

the added energy would definitely be helpful for when he beat the absolute shit of a certain demigod.

he was seething with bloodlust as he stepped out of his cabin, walking towards the beach, where he knew the person he was looking for would be.

and there he was. sitting in one of the little tide pools, talking with one of the sea nymphs. she was way too close to him, but oikawa didn't look like he minded in the slightest. or he didn't notice, one of the two.

she bent down to whisper in his ear, his pupils growing smaller in his brown eyes, and he let out a laugh. it was really melodic, which was common for a son of aphrodite. their beauty was immaculate, and they were practically irresistible to everyone, unless you had a decent sense of self control. iwaizumi knew that oikawa had the whole camp under his fingertips. except for him.

iwaizumi let out a groan, clenching his fists. fuck morales. he knew that his father and oikawa's mother were on really good terms, but he couldn't help but feel attracted to the absolute need to punch the brunette in the face. with a concrete slab. or choke him with aphrodite's famous scarf. one of the two.

he let out an animalistic growl, drawing the attention of oikawa and the unnamed sea nymph. oikawa blinked at him, unimpressed, while the nymph shrieked and dove back into the ocean with a splash. oikawa glanced at the bubbles where the nymph had disappeared, and let out an unamused sigh.

`oh, well, she was kind of boring anyways,` he said nonchalant, stepping out of the pool, buck-naked, without a care in the world. iwaizumi's eyes widened as he turned away almost immediately, his face flushing completely.

`what the hell do you think you're doing?` he seethed, his usual bark lacking no bite, since oikawa really couldn't see his facial expression.

the latter let out a chuckle. `calm down, you can turn around, now. i'm decent.`

forest-green eyes slowly darted back to the brunette's figure, pupils growing bigger in relief, as he realized that he really was decent. he was dressed in the atrociously bright orange camp half-blood shirt, and bleached denim jeans, rolled up to just above his ankles. his bead necklace was still wrapped around his neck snugly. it was extremely tighter than iwaizumi's, which hung down just over the scar on his left pec. he must've tightened it like a choker. it was kind of smart- usually, monsters with half a brain used those necklaces to pull demigods towards them if they couldn't grab their limbs. this tactic limited the amount of things they could grab on him.

iwaizumi would've never thought of that.

`so,` oikawa mused, folding his now damp towel. he must have used it to dry himself off while iwaizumi was looking away from him. `what do you need from me?`

the other demigod blinked, mouth forming an 'o' once he realized his reason for being there. he totally didn't forget that he wanted to sock oikawa in the face just because he saw him naked. `right. i have a bone to pick with you, oikawa.`

`oh? is that so?` the brunette smiled sweetly at him, his eyebrows furrowed in an act of confusion and innocence. disgusting.

iwaizumi stepped forward, whipping out the khopesh he had stuffed in his pocket. with a simple flick of his wrist, it extended. the contraption was thanks to someone in cabin number six, with the help of cabin nine- apparently, iwaizumi had saved someone dear to them, and he was given the khopesh as a thank you. however, the person never did reveal themself to iwaizumi. it was an athena cabin secret.

oikawa's brown eyes widened at the sight of the weapon, but that expression was quickly replaced with an amused sneer. `oh, what's this? you want to fight?`

`no, you're going to let me maim you in silence, i refuse to fight someone as weak as you.` iwaizumi retorted, fists clenching. the brunette gawked, his mouth agape in a silent shout.

`weak? excuse me? i'm far from weak. just because you come from cabin five, doesn't mean you're higher than everyone else.` he replied, sticking his nose high up in the air. `i'll have you know, i've won many tournaments against your cabin.`

iwaizumi rolled his eyes. `yeah, because you always cheat and sneak over to athena's group.`

`i don't cheat! and i don't have to sneak over to athena's group, i have a place there you know!` oikawa shrieked, whipping out a dagger and pointing it at iwaizumi threateningly. however, the latter remained unphased, which pissed the brunette off even more.

`yeah. sure, and what's that?` iwaizumi said, letting one of his eyebrows raise. if rules served him correctly, there was no teaming allowed in any game at camp half-blood, unless stated otherwise. however, he always saw oikawa with athena's group, but he let it slide, thinking the ares' cabin would win anyways. he was, unfortunately, very wrong.

oikawa blinked. `are you stupid? athena's my mother.`

`huh?` the son of ares' stepped back a bit, glaring at the other. `you- athena's son? but- you're-`

`pretty? yeah, i get that a lot.` oikawa sheathed his dagger, stretching out his muscles. `people mistake me for the son of aphrodite way too much. it's kind of annoying, actually. there's a lot more to me than my face,` he mused, glaring at iwaizumi. `looks like you're no different from the rest of them. shame. i actually took a liking to you.`

the other stood there, unmoving, confusion lining every forehead wrinkle. `what are you saying? there's no way-`

oikawa sighed. `i should've known you were going to be hard to convince. look, i'm the son of athena, and the current ruler of the cabin. if you don't believe me, ask my cabin mates. they'll tell you.`

`then who the hell's trashing my cabin?` iwaizumi seethed, still not convinced by oikawa's truths.

the latter let out a melodic laugh. `i thought that was obvious. i saw some of hermes' cabin sneak out to yours during lunch. makes sense, they're always trying to pull pranks on everyone and see their reactions. yours was most likely the best one of them all.` oikawa smiled, his eyes twinkling as he walked away. `well, while it was fun talking to you, i have to go. it's getting dark, and i'd rather not get caught being out past curfew.`

iwaizumi looked up to the sky to find out that he was, in fact, right. the sky was slowly darkening, the sun almost disappearing at the horizon. the green-eyed demigod let out a sigh, turning to glare at oikawa, to find out he was long gone.

`..damn it!`

⚝──⭒─⭑─⭒──⚝

`can you believe he's even athena's cabin ruler?` takahiro hanamaki muttered lowly to his fellow cabin mate, issei matsukawa, who also stood in front of a very emotional toorū oikawa. he had been ranting about how he was sick of everyone mistaking him for a son of aphrodite, and when his cabin mate shigeru yahaba said it could've been a compliment, the hysterics had gotten even worse.

fortunately, the 18-year-old had tired himself out, and was now resorting to laying on his bed and blinking the tears out of his eyes.

matsukawa sighed. `no. i can't. not when he's like this.`

`i can hear you, 'ya know.` oikawa muttered, tear-filled chocolate brown eyes turning to them accusingly. `you can't even act like you're tired of me, you just got here.`

`true,` hanamaki replied, kneeling down next to his dear friend. `but according to yahaba, you've been complaining about this for the past forty-five minutes. don't you think that's a tad bit excessive?`

oikawa sat up abruptly. `no! well- maybe. but it's so stupid!` he exclaimed, fists furrowing in his fluffy brown locks. `i don't act like aphrodite at all! i don't even look like her, but i'm pretty and that's the only reason people need to lump me in with that cabin. i actually liked iwa. of course, he's just like the rest.`

`oh.` matsukawa snapped his fingers, pointing at oikawa. `he's the guy who rescued kiyo and takeru, right?`

the brunette shuddered. `right. that memory just gives me chills.` he thought back to that day, where a gorgon had came across oikawa while he was taking his sister and nephew shopping. the gorgon smelled him, and realized he was a son of athena, and attacked the group, leaving oikawa bruised and bloodied while he took kiyo and takeru as prisoners. however, a group of demigods from camp half-blood on a quest sensed the violence occurring, and rushed to the scene as quick as possible. iwaizumi was amongst the group, but he had taken off after the gorgon, and didn't get a good look at oikawa's face.

when the group returned to camp, oikawa had made the khopesh iwaizumi had sported, and left it on his bed while he was out training with his cabin mates. he also left a thank-you note, but didn't sign it, hoping to leave his identity anonymous.

`yeah, why don't you just tell him that you're a relative to kiyo and takeru? the whole camp knows about that quest, so if iwaizumi knows your identity, everyone else will too. people won't mistake you for a descendant of aphrodite anymore,` hanamaki supplied, reaching into the tupperware of ambrosia oikawa was given (he had started a fight with kyōtani from ares' cabin to relieve his stress- both parties sporting the same amount of cuts and bruises) and popping a bit into his mouth.

oikawa shrugged, snatching back the tupperware before hanamaki could steal any more. if a demigod ate too much of the sweet, healing treat, they could get extremely sick. `yeah, maybe. but,` oikawa grinned, turning to his two friends that stood by his bedside, `beating him at capture-the-flag tomorrow sounds way more fun.`

the two boys sighed, smiling at the sight of their best friend with a much happier mood. capture-the-flag with demigods was always a very violent and extreme sport, but all cabins ended up having a lot of fun playing the game. and, no matter what side the athena cabin was on, they always ended up winning. no one could remember a time where they lost.

beating the ares' cabin was going to be a piece of cake for oikawa.

⚝──⭒─⭑─⭒──⚝

`you seem on edge, iwaizumi.` ushijima had muttered to the demigod, taking a seat beside the other. they were currently stationed in the middle of the forest, with the job of guarding the red flag. `do you want to talk about it?`

iwaizumi glanced at his companion. under the absolutely atrocious battle helmet was a look of concern and worry for his friend. the dark-haired demigod let out a sigh, nodding slightly. `yeah. i'm just.. shaken up, i guess.`

`how so?`

`well..` iwaizumi pondered, trying to figure out the best words and phrases to lay his point across. `i pissed off one of the sons' of aphrodite here, because apparently, he's the son of athena, and not aphrodite. like, what the fuck? the dude even acts like the deviled spawn of her, so i don't understand why he's so pressed.`

ushijima nodded, listening intently. `you mean toorū oikawa, right?`

iwaizumi gaped. `how the hell did you know that?`

`i made the same mistake you did, thinking he was a descendant of aphrodite.` ushijima mused, looking up to the sky. the clouds reflected in his olive-coloured eyes, but were less noticeable than the clouds reflecting in oikawa's eyes. `when he had first came to camp half-blood, he was called weak by one of our cabin-mates. he challenged him to a duel and won. i then told him he should have been a descendant of ares, not one of aphrodite. he would have a rightful place here, with us.`

`oh? what'd he say, then?`

the olive-haired demigod shuddered. `he slapped me. very hard. and then yelled at me, saying he was a son of athena, not aphrodite. he apparently doesn't like being addressed as a child of aphrodite.`

a sharp wolf-whistle came from the trees. ushijima and iwaizumi stood up, quickly switching to a fighting stance. iwaizumi clenched his khopesh as the figure who was listening to their whole conversation emerged from the trees.

and of course, it was fucking oikawa.

`y-you?` iwaizumi shouted, almost dropping his weapon. `how long were you there?`

the brunette stretched, calm despite the fact that a sword and a khopesh were both aiming at his chest. `i heard the whole conversation. i've been watching you two for quite some time, now.`

ushijima stepped forward as to greet oikawa, but faltered. his eyes widened, and he turned around. leaning on the flag they were supposed to protect was a silver-haired male holding a celestial-bronze axe. his honey-brown eyes met ushijima's olive-green ones, and a corrupt smile split his face. `finally. you noticed me. i was wondering how to get your attention.`

iwaizumi turned around to see the second attacker, letting out an almost animalistic growl. `it's a fucking ambush.`

`correct~` oikawa mused, taking out his dagger and smiling at the other. `however, suga-chan isn't allowed to touch you. i wanted to do all the dirty work myself.`

the silver-haired demigod nodded. `my only purpose here is to take the flag once oikawa defeats you. he requested to fight you both at the same time.`

oikawa nodded, flicking a little switch on his dagger iwaizumi hadn't noticed before. as soon as he did so, he dropped the dagger, and it extended into a much longer weapon. the other demigod scanned it, recognizing the weapon to be a scythe. 'suga-chan' smiled at the sight, meeting iwaizumi's questioning eyes. `you guys better be prepared. he hasn't lost a duel since he came here.`

the brunette nodded, pointing at ushijima with a smile before lunging at the demigod. before the latter could even react, oikawa had connected his foot with ushijima's abdomen, sending the demigod flying. he landed on his back with a gasp, having the air knocked out of him. iwaizumi's eyes widened- he hadn't even been able to react either. that was how fast oikawa was.

ushijima sat up quickly, blocking oikawa's attack with his sword. the other demigod smiled sweetly, twisting the scythe and yanking ushijima's sword out of his hand. it landed in the dirt a couple yards away.

iwaizumi growled, running at oikawa with his khopesh up high. the brunette turned around, unamused, sidestepping iwaizumi's attack and tapping at the end of his weapon. the khopesh hissed and groaned, a net pooling out from the back end, trapping iwaizumi in the knots. the demigod gasped, writhing around in the trap. `wh-what the hell?`

`you seem to be confused. could it be,` oikawa laughed, `that you didn't even know that was there?`

`s-shut up! how the hell did you know anyways?`

oikawa deadpanned. `i made the stupid thing. i think i would know every little thing there is to know about it.`

the dark-haired son of ares stared at his attacker, watching as he stalked over to suga and ripped the flag out of the ground. the brunette turned and smiled sweetly at his victims, waving. `well, see you.`

the two demigods sprinted off, laughing at the shouts coming from behind them.

⚝──⭒─⭑─⭒──⚝

`i can't believe him!` iwaizumi kicked the boulder, ignoring the pain from doing so. `he's so fucking insufferable! but i can't even do anything about it, because apparently he made this stupid weapon-` he waved the khopesh in the air, `-and i have to be grateful, but he's making it so goddamn hard!`

kyōtani glanced at the demigod, popping another piece of ambrosia in his mouth. he was still recovering from his fight with oikawa earlier. `you didn't know he made that for you? i thought it was obvious.`

the other glared at his cabin mate, confusion in his eyes. `what do you mean?`

`well,` kyōtani chewed the left over ambrosia in his mouth and swallowed, before continuing. `i'm pretty sure he has a crush on you, or something. he's been watching your duels ever since he came back with your group.`

`what group?`

`the quest you had a while ago.` kyōtani muttered under his breath, probably ridiculing iwaizumi. `you saved his sister and nephew from a gorgon. remember that?`

iwaizumi deadpanned, the memories all but flooding back to him now. `that was him?`

`that was him.`

`so he really is a son of athena?`

kyōtani nodded.

`..fuck, i'm an idiot.`

`i know.`

─── demigods.

[liampboyle]

A conversation among leftbook group admins.

The Dog of Cat: are anarchists not listening to p.o.c?

Myself: Non-poc anarchists have always had issues addressing race.

Gearhead: What do you think happens?

Myself: It's not that many of them don't want to, but too many engage in class-reductionism and forget how foundational race is to class in the US particularly.

The Dog of Cat: anarchists, MLs, pretty much half the left does that shit

Gearhead: This is why even as an Anarchist I'm following Communist POC

Gearhead: and Liberal POC

Myself: Now, if I want to radicalize a less than affluent white guy. Class reductionism is a useful tool to open the dialog.

Myself: But I need to carry that conversation to race at some point.

Myself: The problem is many don't get past the first section.

Gearhead: That's why you end up with the right-wing YVers who are like "We're all getting fucked. Let's just unite."

Myself: ex. They'll read the bread book but not Lucy Parsons or Angela Davis.

Gearhead: I think it was Black Red Guard who shared this... https://www.facebook.com/rod.erick.7946/posts/170722950554868

Myself: I saw that, was not impressed. They guy gets white privilege and economic privilege mixed up a lot.

Myself: Not that the two aren't heavily interrelated, but for purposes of dialog we have to know that difference.

Gearhead: ah got it

Myself: Plus fash use that distinction as part of their recruiting.

Myself: "We know you're broke, we know you're hurting, and these libtards are going to lecture you about how privileged you are ..."

Gearhead: yep, makes sense

Myself: That was basically every email I ever got from the 3%ers and the Oath Keepers when they were trying to recruit me.

Gearhead: So what's our answer to that?

Gearhead: Something just as easy to explain?

Myself: We don't have a clear answer to that.

Myself: That's part of the problem.

Gearhead: I have a neighbor who is clearly tied up in European Traditionalism

Gearhead: Biker dude

Myself: You can pull the Debs route, but that's class reductionism.

Gearhead: I appealed to him as an Anarchist

Myself: European traditionalists you can probably go with comparing enclosure to colonization.

Gearhead: Good idea

Myself: I've also used enclosure to help PoC realize where some of the mindset of impoverished whites comes from.

The Dog of Cat: what's enclosure?

Myself: Most white families never wanted to come to the New World. They had to be driven.

Myself: Driven into the workhouses and factories and driven across the Atlantic. Their ancestral homes were taken by the crown, and then they were told, to get any land back, they had to colonize.

Myself: Enclosure was literally the enclosing by law of all the common land in Europe

The Dog of Cat: oh okay yeah that sucks

Myself: i.e. the pasture you grazed your cattle in for eight generations, was walled up by the nobility and you couldn't use it anymore.

Myself: http://www.thelandmagazine.org.uk/articles/short-history-enclosure-britain

Myself: Basically if you wanted your family farm back, you had to come to the new world, and help kill the natives and enslave the Africans.

Myself: That or you fucking starved to death in a workhouse.

The Dog of Cat: so by using that you are making a parallel to connect.... people?

Myself: I attempt to.

Myself: There's also the fact Europe was never fucking all white, that I use to try and combat Nationalism.

The Dog of Cat: I can see it for that but I dont know how it would help connect p.o.c

Myself: "Becoming a colonizer wasn't a choice for my ancestor, so help me break this mindset" ;)

Myself: That's the route I've been trying to develop.

Myself: There may be a better way, I don't know.

Gearhead: This sounds like the base of a presentation

The Dog of Cat: it's a decent start

Myself: Yeah, but I still need to develop it, and time is not my ally.

The Dog of Cat: I'm not trying to give you a hard time btw

Myself: Not taking it that way. I appreciate the input.

The Dog of Cat: :)

Myself: So back to the enclosure, this creates a mindset where if the question gets asked "But who owns the water?" To someone of European descent there is an answer to this.

Myself: The King owns the water, and the nobility through him, and if you don't have their permission to take it, you are now a criminal.

Myself: This attitude carries through to this day, and it's one of the mental restraints we have to overcome.

Myself: Even though that had not always been the case in Europe, it had been for enough centuries by the time of colonization.

Myself: So how do we break that mindset? How to we correct the capitalized mind?

The Dog of Cat: okay hear me out. while that's shitty and I understand attempting to find common ground this way I (just my feelings) feel like didn't they overcome that shit? like nobility and kings no longer run that shit and while it sucks the circumstances they ended up here in America they're not institutions set up to make it difficult succeed?

The Dog of Cat: I could be thinking too much about it.

Myself: That's a valid criticism, because all the American revolution did was replace hereditary nobility (which were at least mandated to have some form of noblesse oblige) with the capitalist class.

Myself: Since theoretically now anyone could become a capitalist (as long as you were a white male) as long as you could gain access to capital, this was seen as an improvement.

Myself: All liberal reforms have ever done is expand who is allowed to become the hero of the Horatio Alger story, without providing any social support.

The Dog of Cat: SWEET JESUS NAILED IT

Myself: So all it did was support the status quo.

The Dog of Cat: thanks for clearing that up for me

Gearhead: So we have a new nobility

Gearhead: and it's time for a new revolution

Myself: The problem is poc, natives, women, and even poor whites (hirelings), were never fucking given any goddamn access to capital.

Myself: Yes, we have economic nobility - that why I've been using neo-feudalism as a term since the early 2000's