#it's a zombie show so expect the usual things that come with that

[ofnailbatsandaxefives]

By clicking the links below you will find #682 gifs of Nat Zang in Z Nation Season 5. He is white (German, Irish, Scottish, English). Do not use in gif hunts or make icons. Remember to please like and reblog if you decide to use.  

Part One / Part Two

[baronessvonglitter]

The Haunting of David York

Dave York x ghost!reader

Word count: 2.6K

Summary: It's a typical Halloween night for Dave. The last thing he expects is for you to come back and get your revenge.

(Spoilers below the cut, so resume with caution)

WARNINGS: Rated M; Dead Dove Do Not Eat; mentions of wet work, murder, brief gore, threats of violence towards family, major character death (don't hit me)

Author's Note: this fic is for @mermaidgirl30 Jamie's Halloween Writing Challenge 👻 thank you for hosting this lovely fic challenge!

The idea for this started out as a random discussion about why we're afraid of ghosts if they can't really hurt anyone.. then I wanted to add our favorite suburban murder daddy to a ghost story and got some inspo from watching old school stuff like Creepshow and early seasons of AHS. (I haven't written horror in a very long time, so gimme a little break)

Shoutout to @yorksgirl for the Dave chit chats-- there will be a sweatpants scene in another fic, promise!

"Dave, not again!" Carol whines from the front steps.

"What?" he asks innocently, hefting the human-sized 'body bag' consisting of garbage bags stuffed with leaves and tied up with duct tape to fashion a corpse decoration in the yard for Halloween. Dave has been working on them all day. He's now up to seventeen.

"The HOA is going to complain," his wife shakes her head. "We got away with a warning last year. This time they'll definitely fine us."

"It's worth it to see the looks on everyone's faces," he insists. "Besides, I'll have them picked up and out of sight by the end of the night. I promise."

Dave doesn't love Halloween, but neither does he mind it. People dressing up to be anything other than themselves for one night only? Try doing that 24/7.

He doesn't get to parade around the Mr. Hyde aspect of his life. He doesn't get to knock on doors while in tactical gear, sniper rifle resting in one arm while he sticks an orange jack-o-lantern bucket out to get a handful of tooth-rotting sweets. He doesn't get to wake up on November first and pretend it was all for fun.

It's a silly holiday, but he likes scaring the shit out of the neighbors with the decorations. And his kids love planning their costumes months in advance. Alice is going as a zombie cheerleader (he never understands where these ideas come from) and Molly is some type of Pokemon Dave thinks is a squirrel but she insists is something called an Evoo or Evie or something completely asinine.

Carol usually insists on taking them out trick-or-treating, dressing up herself in a last-minute Minnie Mouse getup, a red sweater and black leggings, and a headband with sequined mouse ears to complete the look.

"You'll be okay here by yourself?" she asks, putting the finishing touches on her mouse whiskers and nose with liquid eye liner in the hall mirror as the girls wait impatiently to leave.

She asks that every year, as if something bad will happen on his watch, as if he can't hack it alone for a couple of hours.

"Unless Michael Myers or Pennywise show up, I'm pretty sure I'll be fine," he says, giving the girls a quick kiss before they go.

"What's Pennywise?" Alice asks as Carol herds them out the door, and she shoots her husband an annoyed glance.

There aren't as many trick-or-treaters this year, and Dave regrets that he'd bought so much candy. He dips his hand into the large tub of mini chocolate bars and fruit-flavored chews that stick to one's teeth and selects some Nerds, eating them straight from the tiny box. With barely concealed disgust he finds the candy corn, plucking the small packets of the hated sweets out from the bowl. He doesn't know how anyone can eat these. These can go to the next kids who ring the doorbell. When the next round of costumed kids come around he gives out huge handfuls. The less sweets they have in the house, the less sugar-fueled meltdowns he's likely to experience from his kiddos.

When there's more of a lull he relaxes on the sofa, mindlessly unwrapping a chocolate bar as the Halloween song hums from the TV, The Nightmare Before Christmas playing where the girls had left it on:

Boys and girls of every age wouldn't you like to see something strange? come with us and you will see this, our town of Halloween

He finds his glass of Macallan pairs nicely with a mini Hershey's Special Dark chocolate that he knows the little trick-or-treaters won't appreciate. The candy rests on his tongue as he savors the lingering taste of the scotch while the movie keeps playing. He absorbs a little of it, a now thirty-year-old film that came out when he was his kids' age. He watches idly, letting the scotch lull him into a nice semi-rest.

This is Halloween, this is Halloween pumpkins scream in the dead of night this is Halloween, everybody make a scene trick or treat, 'til the neighbors gonna die of fright

Enough of the singing. He changes the channel. There's postseason baseball on TV, but his favorite team isn't in the playoffs, and the announcers are annoying. Click. Of course there's a horror marathon on every channel. All the Scream movies, which he can appreciate for their ingenuity, Psycho, Shaun of the Dead, the entire Friday the 13th franchise even though it's Thursday, the 31st.

He flips channels, mindlessly, watching tidbits of each, digging into the leftover candy once again when he hears a thud.

With feline alertness he mutes the TV and sits up straight in one swift move. He zones in on where the sound came from, waiting, his racing heart the most audible sound in his ears.

Most people listen for a sound and relax when they don't hear it again, chalking it up to the house settling, or a rodent in the attic. But Dave knows better. He's been on the opposite side of this type of situation countless times. He doesn't relax and just chalk it up to mundane things like other people, because he knows there are guys like him out there-- becoming one with the shadows, as silent as possible--

It's coming from the back door.

In stealth mode, he grabs his gun from the safe in his study and quickly, skillfully, loads it. Adrenaline sings in his veins, carries him towards the danger. He flips on the light switch for the patio and the lights glare into the dark, lighting up nothing. His gun is still in his hand as he slowly opens the door, listening for footsteps.

Quiet.

A little disappointed that he's gotten riled up for no reason, he sighs as the rush of adrenaline dissipates and leaves him weak for a brief moment.

He keeps the gun in the holster at his side as he returns to the sofa, a little more on edge. It could be just teenage assholes playing pranks out of boredom, but he doesn't want to risk it.

He shuts the TV off and the silence becomes the largest thing in the room, even louder than his thoughts. He's taut as wire, not allowing himself to relax just yet. He's listening for more sounds. Most are explainable: a slow drip in the kitchen sink that Carol told him about just yesterday, the notification pings on his daughter's tablet that she left on the dining room table.

"Fuck!" he curses in surprise as the TV turns on, The Nightmare Before Christmas still playing where it left off:

I am the one hiding under your bed, teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red I am the one hiding under your stairs fingers like snakes and spiders in my hair

Dave quickly snaps the TV off, removing the batteries from the remote.

It's just some electrical glitch he tells himself. And then the power goes out completely.

"Shit," he mutters, using his phone to light the way to locate the real flashlight. It's not in the cabinet beneath the kitchen sink where it's supposed to be left. Carol must have moved it. He checks the garage. Through the windows he can see the neighbors still have power, so he grabs the trusty flashlight and checks the breaker box. After fiddling with it, it won't reset. The flips do absolutely nothing.

Heaving a frustrated sigh, he pinches the bridge of his nose, taking out his phone from his pocket. The battery shows 1% before fizzling out to a black screen with the gray spinning wheel before dying.

"You've got to be shitting me," he grumbles. With another curse, he shoves the useless thing back in his pocket, letting the flashlight guide him out of the garage. He may as well get the keys and go try to find Carol and the girls, who are probably several blocks over by now, maybe get them to stay at her mother's place while he gets things sorted out with the power issue.

And then..

he hears the sound of his name spoken, a sharp. accusatory whisper, as if it's right next to him. It's so real he can feel the cold breath against his ear. It makes him jump out of his skin.

Alert, his body tense and ready for action, his eyes dart around the room as he begins to get his bearings back and his heart goes back to its normal rhythm.

Stupid.. he curses himself, sitting upright again. Annoyance colors his face.

But the sound of it.. of your voice still rings in his ear. And he'd know your voice among a thousand others.

Now he knows he's imagining things, because it couldn't have been your voice at all.

You're dead.

He doesn't want to think about that day, a cold autumn day just like this. In fact it'll be one year exactly on November 14th. The last day you saw sunlight, the last day you ever breathed.

It's not that you were bad, you were just in the way. There was no room for you in Dave's perfect, clock-precision life. He tried to make your end painless, make sure you didn't see it coming.

Some secrets don't stay buried forever..

Nobody knows he assures himself. It's impossible.. He'd even kept it from his teammates, and they knew nearly every damn thing about him.

No, this particular job.. the handling of you, had to be done on his own.

Casting a glance at the backyard patio again, the light from his neighbor's back porch glows eerily, spotlighting the patch of earth Dave had avoided until finally he'd caved and erected a bird bath with a small garden, a surprise for Carol's birthday. His wife never suspected that you were buried there, beneath her gift.

Without thinking, he's already walking outside, gun in one hand, flashlight in the other, leading the way to your grave. He never comes out here anymore. The guilt has become too crushing and he's not a man who dwells on guilt. He does what he has to and revisits the issue if problems arise.

You won't arise, though. When he closes his eyes he can still see the bullet hole in your temple, the blank look as the light left your eyes.

Forgive me, he'd thought, unable to speak it aloud as he stuffed your body in a bag and placed you in the dirt on a moonless autumn night.

When he reaches the stone path that leads to your innocent-looking grave marker, he has to process what he sees:

there's a hole in the ground, where some of the rocks and flowers around the bird bath have been upheaved, and in the breeze his flashlight shines on a tattered, empty black body bag. The scent of death greets his nostrils as he pales, trying not to vomit.

He goes back to the house, immediately on the defensive, irrationally expecting to find you there, clothes dirty and hair caked with mud and blood, a specter of his own paranoia and guilt.

It's still shrouded in darkness, the home that is supposed to be his shelter from such dark things as yourself. It's his domain, his castle, and in this trouble, without his family, he feels like less of a king.

"There's no fucking way," he mutters, stomach roiling with fear and suspicion. He opens the patio door and steps inside.

The whole place smells of death, of the grave.

You're in every corner, quiet, waiting, watching. But not impassive.

He feels you everywhere, himself made small by your ubiquitous pall. The gun in his hand feels useless, and this makes him angry.

You feed off his anger. You love it. It's the only thing you can feel anymore. Pure, unadulterated hate.

You slither towards him, wicked grin growing bigger as you approach him. Dave gets the chills down his back, not knowing just how close you are to him.

"Boo" you whisper lightly, ghostly breath caressing the shell of his ear.

Your cackling thunders in his ears as he whips around, eyes wide with fright. You delight in the fear he's giving off. The scent of it it so intoxicating. It's the only good thing about being dead.

"I should make your death as nice and quick and clean as you made mine" your voice echoes all around the room. Dave looks equal parts pissed and afraid as he tries to track you.

"But I won't."

You've been waiting for this night, this one unholy night where you'd be allowed to come back, to gather the unearthly powers granted to you. Halloween: the one night of the year when the living come back to haunt the dead.

And the son of a bitch had the gall to kill you in November. You had to wait almost a whole year for your revenge.

Gonna make it sweet.

It takes a lot of energy to assume something of a human form, but as you grab onto the fear he's giving off, as you use the most ancient of forces to pull your corporeal parts together, it gets easier. You don't feel afraid. You haven't, not since he killed you.

"Consider yourself lucky it's only you I'm after. If I had my way your family's blood would be splattered on these walls along with yours."

Dave shivers violently. "Please, don't!" He's not used to begging or pleading. He's actually on his knees. He tries not to look at you; your visage is too grotesque. Your flesh is falling off your face and your eyes are sunken into your head, giving a ghoulish appearance.

You force his gaze upon you with the ice-cold touch of your hand. "Your family is safe. For now. Hell, there's always next Halloween."

With the cracking open of his ribcage and the spilling of his guts you reach into him, finding the fullness of the heart, the organ he uses the least.

All Dave can do is scream and scream and scream.

The next day Carol sits at the dining room table, two detectives with her. Her coffee has grown cold, barely touched. She still bears the remnants of the makeup she'd put on to complete her costume last night. The girls are upstairs. She couldn't bear sending them to school, having them apart from her. Not while Dave is missing.

"He was fine last night. Normal," she adds, shrugging as she dabs at her eyes with a Kleenex.

Because of his position as a government agent, his disappearance is being taken very seriously. Officers are en route, dispatched to start searching the area, especially the nearby woods, which Carol has always feared.

Dave's gun is there, his wallet, phone, and keys also left behind.

One of the field officers comes in (there have been many people coming in and out of the house today) and motions to the backyard. "Halloween decoration?"

"Yeah," Carol sniffles, smiling just a little. "Dave likes to shock the neighbors. He promised he'd put them away before the morning.. but he never puts them out back.."

Out of guilt, or maybe just to give herself something to do, she gets up and goes to put the decorations away. The detectives follow.

Funny. There's just one.. she thinks, looking at the lone body bag on the lawn, tossed haphazardly next to her bird bath.

It's heavier than she expects. She's too petite to pick it up. Sighing, she kneels, the crunch of the fallen leaves beneath her knees. She'll just take the leaves out and throw the bag away.

Ripping it open with her nails she's stunned a moment, not processing what she's seeing before she lets out a bloodcurdling scream.

Wrapped up in the duct taped body bag is what's left of Dave.

dividers by @saradika-graphics 👑

tagging @almostempty @itwasntimethatdidit40 @milla-frenchy @salingers @zascal

[spooky-luvur]

Eyeless Jack x m!Reader Pt. 2

(A/N i didn’t reread this at all so sorry if something doesn’t make sense. that’s usually the case ha)

Shivering even under the thick blanket, you run your fingers over the sore scar tissue. Part of you is scared if you move wrong or press too hard the skin will split open and stain your sheets. Maybe he smells blood. Like a shark.

Freak, you think to yourself.

A sudden knock at your door makes you jolt and freeze up in pain. You yell at whoever’s at the door to wait a moment as you pretty much fall off the couch to tug some clothes on.

Your hand pauses over the doorknob for a stiff moment. What if you open it and he’s there? Will he take your other kidney? Or maybe your liver this time. Forget shark, is this guy a zombie? You force yourself to open the door.

“Hello, dear. How are you?”

You relax against the frame and smile tiredly at the woman.

“Hey Miss Zhao. I should be asking you that.”

She shuffles past you to set a casserole dish on the table next to the door.

“Oh, I’m alright. Jack is good company, you know.”

“Jack?” You echo, folding your arms against your chest- subtly wincing in pain as the movement pulls on the raw skin. “Is that the new neighbor? I saw them in the lobby the other day, I think.”

Miss Zhao laughs and waves her hand.

“No, not them.”

Your brow burrows but the smile doesn’t drop from your face until a figure steps into view behind the stout woman. Your side aches at the sight.

He has the nerve to casually wave at you.

You stutter as Miss Zhao says something about feeding time and goes back to her room, leaving you with the very thing that’s been haunting you like a ghost.

“Hey,” he greets.

“Wha-“ Is all you allow yourself to say before promptly slamming the door shut. You stand there for a few moments, half expecting the man to open it and thrust a knife at you. But he never does, and the door stays firmly shut. You find yourself glaring at the poor wood before stomping away.

A nice shower, you think. Thats exactly what I need.

You strip yourself of what little clothes you were wearing. Grumbling, you pivot to the bathroom hallway and come to an abrupt halt. There he stands, hands in his pockets. How is that even fucking possible?

You stare at each other in silence before his head tilts down not-so-subtly.

“Nice,” is all he says.

It takes you a moment to realize this masked murderer that literally took one of your organs the other week is currently scrutinizing you.

“FUCK you!” You cross your arms over your chest which is about all you can do at the moment. “What the hell do you want? My other one?”

“Not today.” He frees one of his hands to point at you. “How is it? The scar.”

You subconsciously reach down to mess with the puckered skin.

“Fine, no thanks to you.”

“It is thanks to me, actually.”

“What?” You hiss.

“Well, it was me that fixed you up instead of leaving you to bleed out on the floor like a hog.” He shrugs his broad shoulders.

“Ugh, right,” you rub a hand down your face, exasperated, “the tub. The damn ice. What the hell even was that? Who does that?”

“Do you really want to know why I took it?”

“You’re a psychopath that won’t even show his face. My guess? You’ll be caught as soon as next week.”

The man does that stupid quiet laugh again and lowers himself onto your plush sofa.

“Kick up your feet why don’t you! Make yourself comfortable. Actually, get the fuck out.”

He folds his hands in his lap like he’s about to have a very nice conversation with your mother “I think I’ll stay.”

You’re about to snap at him again, start yelling, maybe throwing things, but you choke on the words as you remember exactly who you’re about to lash out at. This man who is obviously stronger, faster, and smarter than you (and has no problem proving it) is giving you little to no options. Part of you doubts he would hurt you again, but what’s stopping him? Nothing.

So you bite your tongue and simply glare. After hesitating a few moments longer you turn away to go take your well needed shower.

Jack pulls out his (untraceable, courtesy of a ffffffffriend) phone once you round the corner. His mouth twitches in annoyance at the messages on the cracked screen.

B:

wya?

B:

wyd

B:

you ar not supplied to be out today

supposed

Jack:

ben

B:

ohhhh i get it

B:

its that guy

Jack:

ben

B:

dont worry ill keep your secret

Jack feels the need to have eyes to roll as he slips the device back into his pocket. God forbid that kid keep his thoughts to himself.

“So, I should call the cops. Right? That’s what I should do.” Is what you tell the man relaxing on your couch once you face him again. He looks over at you and you almost shiver at the sight of the goo slowly sliding down the blue face.

“Sure.”

“You’re really confusing, you know?”

“Ha.”

Your eye twitches in annoyance before you give up, heaving a heavy sign and taking a seat in the recliner beside the couch. Your hand absentmindedly wanders to caress the puckered skin of the healing wound.

“Let me see.”

“Huh?”

“The stitches. I can take them out now.”

You eye the man on your couch warily. What is this guy, some kind of doctor?

“You want to…take the stitches out.” You parrot. He nods and stands from his seat and push yourself further into the chair the closer he gets, like a picky child that’s being fed peas.

“You want them out. They’re itching.”

“Are you a doctor or something?” You snap out your previous thought causing him to stop in his tracks. You spot his hands twitch before he stretches his fingers out.

“I know what to do,” Is his reply.

Really, what other choice did you have? Going to the hospital to get undocumented stitches out would raise a few questions…not to mention you’d never be able to pay for it.

“…Fine. But I’ll catch you in the nuts the second you do something funny.”

“Noted.”

You gasp as he grabs you and pulls you up and then a second later you’re laying on your stomach on the couch. You can’t even spit out a retort when he tugs your shirt up to get better access. The cold leather against your bare skin causes you to squirm for a moment before a hand is holding itself against your back.

“Stay still.”

“You-“

He must sense your coming fit and slips his hand to lay gentle but firm across the back of your neck. Words die on your tongue as you go lax like a kitten that’s just been picked up by its mum.

“Whatever…”

You feel his hands poking and prodding before the tug of stitches being cut.

“Is it even ready?” You ask the man who is currently leaning over you on his knees like you’re on an actual operating table.

“It is.”

“But are you sure? If it isn’t healed-“

“It’s healed.”

“You love cutting me off!”

“Hush.”

You resist the urge to kick him in the face.

After a few minutes of silence he leans away, running his fingers across your skin.

“Done?” You crane your neck.

“Yeah.”

“This isn’t very sanitary. I should-“

You sit up and turn to look at him but pause at the sight of his hands retracting. The color makes you gasp and almost fall off the couch to grab him.

“What the fuck?” You hold his arm and push up his sleeve to see more of the man’s skin as he simply watches you basically feel him up.

“I don’t get a lot of sun.”

You glare at him for the joke.

“This is…so weird.” You release him and scrub a hand down your face as you relax into the couch. He takes a seat next to you like you’re two friends catching up. “What’s wrong with you?”

You close your eyes and wish your mouth had been sewn shut instead of your side but he huffs out a laugh and you look at him almost timidly.

“Shit, I didn’t mean- I mean I did but like- okay, I’m done.”

“It’s a long story.”

“Oh yeah? An interesting one?” You lightly pry. Whatever happened for him to look the way he does- for him to be some kind of kidney-stealing grey skinned freak has to be more than ‘oh yeah I got the flu real bad once.’

“Hm…maybe.”

“Are you…gonna tell me? I feel like I’m entitled at this point.”

Jack folds his arms and you hear him hum in (probably fake) contemplation.

“I’ll tell you…once you trust me.”

“Trust you?” You gape at him in disbelief. “Why would I- you tried to kill me!”

“No I didn’t.”

“Then what the hell was this?!” You gesture toward your scarring angrily.

“Not enough to kill you. I could have, though.”

Your mouth clicks shut at the new tone in his voice. Dangerously territory, this conversation. So you drop it.

“Okay. Fine. So…what’s with the goo?”

[asoiaf-source]

GRRM wanted to subvert the usual tropes

Remember GRRM started out his series with the intention of writing something that didn't follow the typical tropes and conventions of previous works. GRRM wanted to subvert the usual tropes like the secret hidden 'prince who was promised' perhaps by having that person be illegitimate - Jon fulfills some prophecy by blood, but not through a legal marriage, he is the 'hero' but not the true 'king' at least by rights of succession.

GRRM will not pull a book out of a dark ancient library that gives us all the answers to the past that make everything easy for our characters, or have a weird political marriage between 'siblings / cousins' be what is needed to unite a kingdom (how? everything is fractured, the land decimated, why would the people care about a political marriages in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse?)

Remember GRRM promised or forewarned a bittersweet ending, not all the mains or favorites will survive or have a typical happy ending, and I'm assuming that is especially true for the tortured and much suffering 'hero' - at least that is my gut feeling. To me the two most prominent characters Tyrion and Jon are also the two most likely to die by the end - at least one if not both, driven there by circumstances: blinded by love, rage, or perhaps a noble sacrifice.

Tyrion is already blinded by his hatred and rage, will his better nature win out or will he continue to feed his hatred until his end? GRRM had Jon suffer 'death' and gave us clues that resurrections can happen, but they also alter a person, no matter how Jon manages to remain intact after resurrection, he will not come back the same, there will be notable changes, otherwise why do it in the first place? (the show did this very poorly!)

If they survive they will be much altered, as in not the most well adjusted people, lots of trauma to deal with, to take on the role of the clear-sighted leader needed to rebuild a nation and inspire/lead its people. They maybe able to help and/or advise, but I don't see them as the main leader on top. Both have really been through the most changes physically and mentally and you know it will only get harder and worse by the end, GRRM isn't don't with them yet.

As much as the Stark kids have suffered, I still get a feeling of hope and sense of future with them, they are working hard for some kind of future in mind, they are young and being tested and learning how to be resilient people. They don't know of the larger dealing happening in the world yet, only bits and pieces, but it does feel like GRRM is preparing them to deal with it when their time comes and they finally have full agency to do something. Not sure all will work out, but I just can't see any of them dying or coming to harm by the end of the series. I don't feel any of them have had 'big' player moments yet, so I find it harder to sense a future for them beyond what others speculate on and most of it feels wishful.

As for Dany, she started out subjugated, but quickly found her power and has exerted that power within the story. She is by far the most powerful POV in terms of making changes in the world with large consequences. She means well, but things do not always go well or as she expected. She is learning, but also doing at the same time which makes the outcomes all the more complicated as it affects so many people, and not all of it is welcome change. Dany brings hope, but she also bring chaos, Dany makes friends, but she also makes lots of enemies...

I go back and forth on Dany's ending, mainly because of GRRM trope subversions and with Dany it could go either way. GRRM is building her up for something good and great, but whether she survives or is acknowledged for it? That would be bitter sweet indeed, but also in character for her - well meaning and doing something for the greater good, but often misunderstood or politically attacked by her enemies so that only a few close to her know of her true noble intentions and sacrifices. I want her to live, but I could also see her dying or being killed. She is a symbol and and icon and that is an attractive target for people like Varys or even Cottington, could go either way... I just acknowledge the possibilities.

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

Full focus

In working out like a maniac for at least 1 hour a day before going to bed, Carmy had found his solace.

He hadn't completely conquered his insomnia, but his sleep patterns had improved considerably since he'd collapsed into bed after a hot shower and an intense and painful workout session that always left him aching all over and sweating like a sinner in church. Every muscle burned like hell and every joint felt like a death threat after working out to the point where exhaustion was just a fogbank his body would trespass in a state of welcome mindlessness. Like a zombie. The only reminiscence of life he felt after the fact was the blood rushing through his veins and the pain coursing through his limbs.

Needless to say, he wasn’t expecting company when in the middle of his third set of Russian twists he had to let go of his beloved kettlebell, get up, and jogg to the door.

His sweaty face and messy hair framing it, his labored breathing that made his voice sound different, sexier, his old football jersey that he had cut shorter because he had partially burnt it trying to put out a fire a few years prior and now showed his perfect V-lines and sometimes even his bellybutton, his dick printed grey sweatpants that also showcased his perfect V-lines, his incredibly blue eyes showing surprise and also satisfaction, all of it was what Sydney saw as soon as he opened the door. And she had to remind herself to breathe after taking it all in.

"Hey there!"

"Hi, hello!"

"Come on in… What’s going on?"

"You forgot these."

She handed him a manila envelope that contained forms he had to fill out, sign, and submit the next day, well in a few hours actually, first thing in the morning.

"Natalie was furious so I thou-"

"So you saved the day, as usual…"

"Well, when you put it that way…"

"Sorry for the mess, Syd… I wasn’t expecting…"

"Oh, no no, don’t be. I gotta go now anyway, it’s almost midnight so…"

"Oh that’s not what I meant, please stay, give me a sec, and I’ll take a quick shower and drive you home. K?"

"No, it’s OK. I’ll catch a cab if I miss the train. Don’t sweat it. Well, too late for that, but, it’s fine. No worries. I mean. It’s cool, it’s fine, it’s-"

She was ranting, her speech rate had skyrocketed.

"This late? Good luck with that… No way! Lemme give you a ride, it’s the least I can do. Just… just help yourself in the kitchen and I’ll be right back. OK? Make yourself at home. Give me 5 minutes!"

"Um… OK. OK…"

Before jumping in the shower he speedily picked up his “toys” and put the kettlebell, the dumbells, the push-up bars, and the cast iron disc away as he casually tried to make conversation:

"So.. who… who let you in?"

"Your neighbor, the one with the little brown dog that looks like a squirrel."

"Oh, Mr. Washington! Yeah, he told me once you reminded him of his daughter."

"Yeah! He just told me that too. Shouted that at me, actually."

"He’s hard of hearing…"

"Yup. I’ll just wait here. OK?"

Syd sat down in the living room and texted his dad to let him know why she was running late and to reassure him that Carmy was going to drive her home soon.

"K, as you wish, I’ll be right back."

The more she went through his books the more she found herself wanting to ask him about what he had learned from each of them.

She wanted to know it all, what recipes had he already tried, which ones he didn’t like, where had he purchased that other book that was so hard to get, etc.

The pile of books by the window also served as an impromptu coffee table on top of which a little black ashtray was on display. She found that so endearing, so very “Carmy.”

She ran her index finger along the edge of that ashtray and could see him standing there by the window, smoking a cigarette, thinking about the restaurant, about Michael, about a recipe maybe… Did he ever think about her? She wondered. Her finger was still on the edge of the ashtray, tracing circle after circle, then venturing inside the receptacle to play with the ashes, drawing more circles in there. Sydney was deep in thought by then and had completely forgotten about the books, she was now only thinking about Carmy. 

In a state of semi-trance, she unknowingly got to the shelves on the wall and started inspecting each of the items there. Her curious mind was having a field day.

This red hard-cover sketchbook caught her attention and she couldn't help it, she had to know what kind of Sistine Chapel-level drawings with shading and all Carmy had come up with, so she opened it. 

If she momentarily forgot how to breathe earlier when her EC opened the door looking like a Greek God of testosterone, stamina, and cross-fit, covered in sweat, what she saw in that sketchbook straight out made her forget how to maintain a proper brain function altogether.

Each page, dozens of them, showed a different expression of her face, a different hairstyle of her braids, and a different design of her headscarves. A flawless variation of her. She was all over those pages. The resemblance was uncanny. She was beautiful on that paper, she was like enhanced but not to the point of not looking like herself, her essence was captured perfectly and she couldn’t help but be mesmerized by her own features.

That’s when Carmy showed up behind her.

She didn’t even have to ask. 

He started explaining himself immediately. He stuttered his way through that explanation as his cheeks started to burn and his mouth began to feel dry.

Her surprise didn’t allow her to close her mouth. She kept it open all along, while Carmy tried to talk his way out of that predicament.

He kinda did by saying that he always drew portraits of people and that he didn’t think they were any good so that’s why he hadn’t shown her those yet, but that if she liked them she could keep them.

After a few more moments of silent blinking, Syd, while still flabbergasted, finally managed to shut her mouth, compose herself, swallow, and then form a short sentence:

"Um… thanks."

Carmy tried to fake calm. He wanted to sound as if he had everything under control and nonchalantly said:

"So you like them?"

"Sure."

"Wanna keep them?"

"I wanna frame them."

"Oh well… OK, thanks, I guess…"

"You are sooo talented, Carmy. These are… great, I’m—I’m in awe! I don’t know what to say, really…"

"Thank you."

"How did you-"

"I see you every day Syd."

"So… you didn’t take any pics or anything like that? I mean, I never posed for these…"

"Nope, just… I thought of you… that’s all."

"Wow!"

"You wanted my full focus, didn’t you? Well, there you have it."

He smiled sheepishly.

"I’d say…"

They both laughed on the way to the car.

That ride was awkward. The tension in the car was palpable. They couldn’t hold each other’s gazes. They would just steal a look at each other now and then, at a red light mostly… Then the tension continued to build up and they kept trying to ignore it and act as if nothing happened. Syd was holding on to that red sketchbook for dear life, she held it firmly against her chest like a shield.

When he pulled to the curve in front of her house, he looked at her intendedly, but couldn’t say a word. He was still too nervous and too embarrassed. His cover had been blown.

He had been caught red-handed, loving her.

His cover was up in the air like a fucking zeppelin.

Loving the memory of her.

His cover was now a satellite orbiting around Earth.

Loving the very thought of her.

He was sure she knew that by now. She was too smart to not have figured it out.

Syd looked at him and this time she was able to hold his eyes for a moment, then she stuttered something along the lines of: “Thanks for the ride” and got out of that car as fast as she could.

The walk to her door felt endless. Torturous even.

She wanted to go back in her tracks and kiss the genius out of him but she kept walking.

When she heard him drive away Sydney felt equally sad and relieved.

As soon as she got in bed she started going over the drawings again, and she was still so blown away by them that she couldn’t get any sleep that night.

She twisted and turned and her mind kept playing tricks on her. She pictured him alone, at his place, smoking a cigarette by the window, maybe wearing sweatpants, perhaps *only* those grey sweatpants that looked so hot on him, surrounded by his amazing books and thinking of her, drawing her perfectly by heart.

Her heart was all of a sudden a wild horse.

She wanted to call him up, wake him up, listen to his voice, and ask him about each drawing. She wanted him to walk her through each of those masterpieces. She wanted him to tell her why he did that, the truth this time around, not the PR version. She wanted... him.

6:00 AM Sydney was on her way to The Bear, still wired up, with the image of her own charcoal face firebranded on her brain and her every thought circling back to Carmy.

6:40 AM She was already at work, going through her to-do list, which included a lot of things that Carm usually did because he had to run that errand downtown, that morning.

9:07 AM Carmy walked through the front door of the restaurant and went straight to the office trying to avoid Sydney.

9:08 AM Syd was in the office telling him they needed to talk and do it elsewhere because Natalie was on the way.

9:08 AM Carmy was kicking himself on the inside.

9:10 AM They were outside, in the back alley, trying to sound like 2 adults having a serious yet friendly conversation about art.

9:11 AM They were making out. No, they were obscenely sucking face. Syd’s tongue was deep in his mouth and his hands were on her back pulling her closer.

9:20 AM They were still making out in the back alley, now her back was pressed against the wall, her hands were in his hair and his mouth was exploring hers as if his life depended on it, they were running out of oxygen, but that didn’t stop them, they continued locking mouths for a moment longer.

9:21 AM They finally broke the kiss to catch a breath, now their eyes were locked, they were panting, and they were nowhere finished. He went for her neck. Then back to her lips, she did the same. His hands on her waist, keeping her pinned to the wall, pressing himself against her. Her hands all over his back, trying to learn it by touch, like blind people learn to recognize faces with their hands.

9:22 AM Tina went out the back door carrying a huge trashbag, quickly made her way to the container, and dropped it there. She only saw them when she turned around and headed back to the restaurant. At that point, her spidey senses told her *something* was up, but Carm and Syd tried their best to look like 2 innocent people who happened to just be chit-chatting about the weather. Tina decided to play it cool and shot: “Morning!” Then promptly left them to it.

9:23 AM Syd and Carmy were back in the kitchen, pretending to fully focus on the tasks at hand. Not looking at each other. Still feeling their lips on one another. Still trying to control their respective heart rates.

11:08 PM Syd was on his couch, he was on top of her, he was all over her, inside her. She was grabbing his ass and urging him deeper as she sank her teeth into his shoulder and commanded him to fuck her.

11:29 PM Carmy was smoking a cigarette by the window, in his white boxers, using the ashtray he kept on top of his pile of books and looking at her, basking in her naked beauty, memorizing it. Syd was still on the sofa, lying on her side and resting her head on her hand, looking at him, enjoying the view as well. Their full focus: On each other, only this time around none of them were trying to hide it.

:The 💋 end:

You can find more fics like this one by me on AO3.

Thanks for reading!

XOXO

[where1endandyoubeg1n]

I think for every athf season I watch I'm gonna do a series of quick reviews for each episode. I like jotting down my final thoughts

Season 1

Rabbot- A pretty good pilot episode tbh, I really loved their dynamic here with Shake being so uppity about getting things done yet so uncaring at the same time and Frylock just kinda going with it. The shitty lipsyncing took a bit to get used to, but great start. Also HAHA HE SAID THE FUNNY DANCING IS FORBIDDEN LINE

Escape From Leprechaupolis- Fun concept. Didn’t get too attached to the leprechaun guys but Carl and Shake were especially funny, and Meatwad’s big sunshine and rainbows speech at the end had me holding back laughter.

Bus of the Undead- Wasn’t enthusiastic for this one. Not a fan of zombies, which is what usually comes to mind with “undead” but it was completely nonexistent vampires so that was a relief. Tangential rambling aside. the moth guy was cool and while I don’t remember too too much about this episode, I remember it getting some of the best laughs from me.

Mayhem of the Mooninites-

Ignignokt and Err’s debut in which they entirely destroy Meatwad’s morale and Frylock acts like a guardian to Meatwad, and really what more could I ask for? I love me some mama Frylock. And of course the stars of the show, the Mooninites, do not disappoint. Ignignokt has a whinier voice than I remembered, but I don’t mind because that homestly makes him even funnier, and Err has some really aggressive lines that caught me off guard in a good way(“GO BACK INSIDE! WE’RE FIGHTING!”). Fave moments have to be when they lazer Carl and when Meatwad tries to give “the finger” and just morphs into a hot dog. I was very giggly during this one.

Balloonenstein- Fun premise that just spirals out of control the further into the episode it goes. I like the first half where Meatwad has control of the whole household when he gets electricity from being spun around in the dryer. And the literal plothole that’s just a random massive vortex that shows up for plot convenience is honestly hilarious.

Space Conflict from Beyond Pluto- Favorite episode of the season, no contest. I was in tears by the end of it, my cheeks hurt from smiling too much, I was so amused throughout you don’t even know. Possibly the funniest fucking thing I’ve seen and I don’t even know why. The jokes just get thrown at you nonstop again and again and again and stellar vocal deliveries + terrible(/pos) character dynamics + stilted animation = just… perfection. Fave joke is definitely the running gag of all the buttons triggering balloons and confetti(“Did… Did we blow it up?” “YOU ARE TOYING WITH ME!”). I didn’t think the Mooninites would be outclassed by the Plutonians but here we are.

Ol’ Drippy- Was totally unsure what to expect and was very pleasantly surprised. Ol’ Drippy was a super pleasant addition to our nice little list of characters, big fan of the entirely decent character hanging w the total dipshits trope and it's stellar here. Poor dude, I hope he returns for another episode one way or another. Yea, can you tell he steals the show this ep? Such a soothing voice too.

Revenge of the Mooninites- Hear me out but I think this is the worst of the "these aliens are stupid nuisances" episodes of the season. It's kind of just a retread of Mayhem; They come to earth for essentially no reason, take advantage of Meatwad, terrorize Carl, and run away after an anticlimactic showdown. I mean it's still good, like a solid 7/10 episode, not that I'm giving them number ratings, but not very original. I think I would have liked it more if this premise were saved for next season.

MC Pee Pants- Scared of spiders... a little freaky, but I honestly loved the premise of "giant spider coerces innocents to use their brain waves to drill a hole to the center of the earth for candy." it's as nonsensical as it sounds, and i don't have lots to say on it but it's good.

Dumber Dolls- Wasn't a huge fan. I don't have much of a reason, I just thought everything was done pretty average, and there weren't a lot of laughs. I dunno, I wasn't feeling this one.

Bad Replicant- The replica Shake is really goofy, definitely ringing a bell for Emory, which is funny because he's also here. They're kinda just... guys. And I love that. Plutonians are hilarious as always, got tons of laughs from everyone... Great episode.

Circus- I enjoy how many fuckass blob characters this show just throws in 😭 First the Plutonians, then Ol' Drippy, then Randy the Astonishing, today's new flavor of alien! I'm not even getting tired of the aliens, all of them are terrible in their own ways and it's great. Randy gets tons of laughs, and Shake in the circus was really funny.

Love Mummy- Weird premise I'm digging. I really love how absolutely none of these plots are tropey or already established episode archetypes, at most being something that seems tropey and then is totally flipped on its head(e.g. aliens come to earth... but only to corrupt the impressionable with drugs and crime. a biohazard mess becomes sentient... but the monster is friendly and does everyone's dirty work.). I do find the mummy grating after a certain point, but still for the most part fun.

Dumber Days- Now it starts to fall into trope territory, and I'm not even mad because I love this kind of episode. It's the Patrick Smartpants of the show, and I'm running out of things to compliment, dude... Funny!!! Go watch it damnit!!! Good show!!!

Interfection- Shake and Meatwad being total fucking nuisances 💖💖💖 They really did predict just how bad subscription models would get though... I thought Shake would be more internet savvy but him just clicking on ads like a grandma is really funny. The scene where Frylock is trying to retrieve Meatwad from the scene of ads is great.

PDA- The monster of the week format works so well for this show... This and the previous one especially feel like a cracked out version of Regular Show, they're more similar than I would have thought at first. I wonder if there was any inspo from this show. Love how Shake just gets the random ahh tar monster's PDA, and the actual tar pit tour scene was 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴𝔂... Enjoyed this one.

Mail-Order Bride- I wasn't big into the premise of this one. Kinda sucked, not a lot to say. It felt like it dragged on for a good ten minutes longer than it was.

Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future- The way the robot's story stretches on and on here is really funny, he just like me frfr(yapping). Everyone being so fucking done with him was great, and the twist at the end was really funny.

BEST TO WORST: Space Conflict from Beyond Pluto, Ol' Drippy, Bad Replicant, Mayhem of the Mooninites, Rabbot, Circus, Bus of the Undead, Interfection, PDA, Dumber Days, Balloonenstein, MC Pee Pants, Escape from Leprechaupolis, Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future, Love Mummy, Revenge of the Mooninites, Dumber Dolls, Mail-Order Bride

OVERALL: I thought I'd like the show, obviously... but I think I'm hooked. It's got its teeth into me for sure. The comedy isn't the lowbrow shit I expected from an adult animated comedy, and I'm hungry for what's next in S2!

[anhed-nia]

HANDLING OF THE UNDEAD (Hanteringen av odöda)

There's a certain common experience of comic awkwardness--actually there's even a Mr. Show sketch about it, if I remember correctly--where, after bidding a sincere farewell to someone at the end of an enjoyable night out, you make the unfortunate realization that you're both walking the same way home. Emotionally you are both somewhere else now, "the night" is conceptually over, and now you're trapped together without a script. Although Thea Hvistendahl's feature debut HANDLING THE UNDEAD probably has nothing else in common with Mr. Show, they both ask this same basic question about closure and the persistence of the past. The film concerns three families of the recently re-animated; there's a sort of will they/won't they tension regarding the obvious question of whether these zombies will behave in the traditional manner, but the focus is more strongly on the emotional problem of accepting that things will never again be as they once were.

I think this film is really going to do it for modern horror fans who have come to expect direct explorations of tough topics like grief and trauma. For me personally, I found it highly competent, but a little flat; yes, it is sad, it is VERY sad, it is VERY, VERY SAD, and what more can one really expect? At my screening director Hvistendahl was available for questions, and she candidly confessed that she didn't have any personal experiences with grief to which she could refer--a fact that had no impact on the amount of sniffling in the audience. She inherited the project from others, after a few false starts over the last decade; it is adapted from a novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, better known for LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, and the writer really did have a powerful reference point for grief. According to Hvistendahl his father was literally defaced in a hideous boating accident and, despite the warnings of morgue workers, he insisted on viewing the body. The filmmaker says that her own reference points lay outside her life; that she drew inspiration from others who'd had closer encounters with death.

Personally, I started thinking about people I've known who died early in the film, and then I just couldn't stop. I wondered what would happen if various people came back. The basic assumption might be that it's usually desirable to have somebody back, if you missed them. But I feel like things are likely to be more complicated, especially if the living have already gone some distance through the grieving process--potentially accessing feelings that were too hard to face during the deceased's lifetime.

I thought about a much-admired friend, somebody who was kind of my hero and who was adored by everyone who knew her, who killed herself. The main initial reaction among her closest loved ones was rage. People were so, SO angry with her for leaving them, or not allowing them to save her, or maybe for forcing them to feel as sad and lonely as she felt, or for whatever other things seem to piss people off so much about suicide. I don't know what would happen if she came back to life. I mean probably a lot of people would lay down their arms and try to be grateful, but who knows. That kind of really personal anger can be hard to come back from.

I also thought about a couple I know well, the wife was extremely well-loved by many people, all of whom were devastated when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The painful, protracted illness made the loss all the more awful, and it fell to her surviving family members to preserve and sort of reenact her memory for everyone else. But the reality was that things were not so perfect at home--not to suggest anything really dark, but the couple would have been divorced had she survived. So then she died and her widower was left holding the proverbial bag; he could never have the personal satisfaction of separating from someone who was not right for him, and criticizing her would be unthinkable. If she came back to life...sure, they might divorce, but it's just as likely that he would suffer public pressure to honor and keep her in a more extreme way than usual for the rest of his life.

Finally I thought about a friend of mine who was murdered. I watch a lot of slasher movies, and whenever I hear the criticism that horror lovers must all be desensitized or delusional about real violence, I think about this person who was senselessly killed by a random psychopath at her sister's wedding. It shattered our circle of friends and I cannot imagine what it did to her family, especially her sister. I mean even if they were to do another wedding, it would be impossible not to think of the murder the second time. It would be permanently associated with the new couple. It's hard to even wrap your mind around all the effects of this event. In this case--setting aside the problems of zombies, which I have left out of my meditation--I can only think that having my friend back really would fix things for everyone.

So maybe ultimately I'm saying that HANDLING THE UNDEAD would be a more interesting movie if the losses in it were a bit more complicated in some way. However, I can't ask one film to be all things to all people, and surprise is a particularly difficult thing to achieve. But if you like John Ajvide Lindqvist and you want to be surprised, I strongly advise you to watch BORDER. You will see some stuff in there that you will never see anywhere else in your life, and it probably won't bum you out too much.

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Hi Lofty!

Fellow Healthcare worker here, I think I remember you saying you work nights? I'm a dayshifter that will be transitioning to overnights in a month, and am both excited and scared since this will be something new not just for me but for my whole department.

I was curious, did you specifically choose nights, and how do you like it compared to days? I would think nights would be quieter, but I also know to expect the unexpected, and things can go from dead to hectic in an instant.

Also, do you have any advice for going to an overnight schedule? I'm sure my sleep and eating habits will be messed up for the first few weeks until I get into a routine, are there any other challenges you think I should expect?

Sorry to talk work, I know you probably come here to get away from that, but I don't really have anyone else to talk to and felt you are a safe person to talk to.

Anyway, have a good day/night/whenever you happen to be awake! (I am well aware our schedules can be very wacky)

Hello! :D

I did in fact specifically choose nights. On my unit you have the option to do just nights or to rotate, and you can request to go on a waiting list to work only day shift. I prefer nights, but it’s a mixed bag to be perfectly honest. (This got long so I’m putting everything under the cut)

What I like about nights is that there are fewer people (there aren’t eight thousand teams rounding through the room who never introduce themselves to me and come and go without telling me a darn thing, or they ask me a million questions), visitor restrictions apply (I love family coming to see the patient… just don’t love having to entertain them or be interrogated by them while I’m trying to do stuff lol), the coworkers are much chiller it’s a very different vibe between day workers and night workers, and no management.

What I don’t like about nights is essentially not work related - it freaking kills your life outside of work. Let’s say you work three nights in a row. When you get off it’s the morning of the next day, and you can either make yourself stay up and be a zombie but awake to enjoy that day off, or you sleep the entire day, which wastes a day off, and then you’re still nocturnal for your remaining time off, which makes doing normal people things difficult. It can strain your mental health, especially with lack of sunlight, so you just have to find a way to handle it that works best for you.

I will say, there is one more thing that I don’t like about nights: many providers feel like nights are just “status quo time,” in other words, don’t do any interventions to rock the boat. I’ve fought and argued with doctors multiple times for patients who are showing warning signs of decompensating only to be ignored because they don’t want to do anything drastic on night shift. Had it happen pretty recently and just about wanted to punch an intensivist (I had told the resident that we needed to temporize the patient’s K because it was 5.5, and given his AKI and low UO we should consider options like diuresing or even CRRT and since the resident was brand new she listened, but the intensivist later was like “eh you didn’t need to do that” and wouldn’t do anything about the pt’s nonexistent urine output and ATJEIWOAJFDKSALJFEIWO I do not like that man)

Advice for going to night shift! I’ll make it bullet points so I stop having these giant paragraphs:

When possible, try to cluster shifts together. That way you’re not constantly jumping back and forth with your sleep cycle

The day before you work, there are multiple ways to make yourself nocturnal in preparation. I usually push myself to stay up as late as possible, and go to bed between 4-7am. Others will take a nap in the afternoon before their shift.

Black out curtains are your beloved. They make sleeping during the day so much easier. If you can’t afford those at the moment, an eye mask is a cheaper and effective alternative.

Many of us need some kind of noise to help settle our minds after work since many go to bed directly after work. A fan, a white noise machine, anything like that. I personally like ambience videos off YouTube, rain and thunderstorms or crickets and stuff.

If you’re trying to fall asleep after a shift and it just ain’t happening, there are a few things you can try. If benadryl makes you sleepy, you can try using that, though I don’t necessarily recommend making it a habit so much as a backup plan. Some people say magnesium makes them sleepy. I’ve used alcohol before to help me sleep but it doesn’t promise the best sleep. Another option is carbs! I’ll eat just a couple slices of bread or something and then you get a nice little food coma feeling.

Try not to kill yourself with your caffeine intake lol. And note when to stop caffeinating so you can fall asleep! I usually have to stop by 4am or I won’t be able to sleep right after work. (Though lately I’ve given up on falling asleep right after work, it usually takes my mind a couple hours to settle down so I fall asleep closer to 10/11am or so)

Note that working nights is probably gonna take a toll on your mental and physical health. Take vitamin D supplements to compensate for the lack of daylight, it’ll help boost your mood too. A lot of us have light lamp therapy stuff too, especially for winter. Try to find a good balance of letting yourself rest at home to wind down and being with some kind of support system.

Have fun! Night shift crew is almost always awesome, we’re wacky and fun and laid back! :)

[bihanarms]

chapter 3 OUT! enjoy!! and feel free to say anything ~ hope you’ll like it. (and once again excuse my english)

Chapter 3 : Face to Face

Luis had just met Ada for the first time regarding the amber, but unfortunately he had nothing to give her right away because Saddler had gotten his hands on him before he could escape with it. And like she had mentioned in her email, "no sample, no protection".

As he walked determinedly in the direction that (y/n) had indicated, wondering what she was going to ask him to do, a decrepit house began to take shape in his field of vision. There were no villagers, no hideous zombie-insects or any other horrors that he would have had to face. Surroundings were strangely quiet.

Playing with his lighter in one hand, he gently pressed his ear against the door, trying to listen for any sound inside

Nada

He pushed the door open, making an unpleasant creaking sound. A quick glance to analyze the surroundings showed that there was no one there.

"Well, well, is anyone here?" Luis shouted loudly.

He took a step forward.

"(y/n)?" he shouted even louder.

« Hijo de puta!" »

Luis barely had time to turn around before he came face to face with a hatchet.

Luckily for him, the sound of a bullet firing from a pistol was heard, leaving a red hole between the infected villager's eyes, who was now just a corpse on the ground.

« Scream louder, good idea. » said a sarcastic female voice.

He turned around and came face to face with a woman holding a gun in both hands.

« And you are,querida? » asked our pretty spanish boy.

« Not going to answer that question, obviously » said the woman, putting her pistol away in her bag and revealing her face.

The voice, the uniform... impossible.

"(y/n)?!"

Luis was dazzled. Of course, it was her. The arrogant tone in her voice, who else.

She was there, right in front of him, her face revealed for the first time, and the wait was totally worth it... She was so stunning it was hard to believe. A wave of warmth pass through his heart, a flirtatious smile forming on his face, he took a few steps towards her.

Not a word came out of his mouth.

He was mesmerized by her beauty. Of all the dreams he had had, all the times he had tried to imagine her face, what he had in front of him at that moment was beyond all his expectations.

« Have you lost your voice?" asked (y/n), a smirk on her lips.

She finally looked up at Luis, eyes to eyes.

"Well, mi amor..."

Her gaze was so intense that although Luis was used to flirting, nothing more could come out of his lips. He was completely helpless. Funny thing was, that man was usually well-informed when it came to flirting with women, but that ONE woman he was facing, well... he was going to need new instructions.

« You look very foolish, you know that?" she said mockingly. "Pull yourself together, what's happening here is very serious. I'm glad you came."

"Where's your mask?" asked Luis, still unable to detach himself from the spectacle before his eyes. "It doesn't surprise me, querida, that you kept it on so often. You could have had me at your feet so easily, and there’s no fun in that."

"And there's the Luis I know," she sighed. "It didn't take you long. Any other pertinent remarks for our survival?"

"Sorry, mi amor, it's just that..."

"Luis, stop," she said sharply.

Y/n's uniform was soaked in blood and dirt, her mask had been lost in a scuffle with several villagers.

Despite her confident posture and determined stride, the worried look in her eyes betrayed the fact that she was not in control of the situation.

"I asked you to come here to talk," she began. "I had the chance to sneak into your office during your various absences recently and now I know everything you were doing behind Saddler's back."

Luis felt his heart racing, bringing him right back to reality.

"It's not what you thi-,"

"It is what I think," she interrupted. "And don't worry, I'm not here to rat you out. In fact, I'm here to ask for your help."

He breathed a sigh of relief, his entire body relaxing as he slumped into a nearby chair. But his quick mind soon took over, wondering how this was possible. After all, she worked front and center to protect Saddler's work.

"I know what you're thinking," she said, sensing his confusion. "And I know I can trust you. I'm actually not working for Osmund Saddler and his twisted plans. For months, I've been infiltrating this organization to gather information on him for the BSAA, we’re charged with preventing and eradicating bio-terrorism."

Luis had no time to process all of this information. A flurry of emotions coursed through him as he tried to come to grips with what he had just heard. But Y/n wasn't finished.

"I know that’s already a lot to deal with but that's not the most important thing. I need your help because Saddler knows what I’ve been up to. Before I left the island, he came to me and I know that you have found a cure--"

Her voice grew increasingly tremulous, and she paced nervously around the room as she spoke.

"--and I'm infected."

Those were her last words before her body gave out. Luis jumped up just in time to catch her in his arms. Her forehead was slick with sweat, and her breathing was painfully erratic. Signs of the infection were already starting to appear on her skin.

What the fuck was actually going on?

It was a lot of information to digest all at once, (Y/n) was an infiltrator, infected, and Saddler was on her tail.

Mierda, Luis had so much on his mind that he didn't know where to turn.

Gently lowering his gaze to Y/n's face, which was now showing pain above all. He couldn't help but feel constantly captivated by her anyway.

Despite all the revelations, deep down in his heart, he knew one thing for sure: he had to save this woman and keep her safe. Not just because of what he was feeling for her, but also to prove to himself that he could help someone out of this and not just run away like some coward.

end of the chapter, 4 incoming. :p

[siriuslylantsov]

helloo, hope ur day has been good <3

coming here to talk about yesterday's episodes and today's :p

FIRST OF ALL, my heart can't take more of this matt/foggy fight. i just want them to hug it out. i feel like nelson & murdock will be over (not that they won't rekindle their friendship but the law firm by the third season i think won't come back) can't forgive matthew for not visiting foggy after he was SHOT

also. suddenly this is TLOU? the zombies??? hshsh

the scene u were talking about frank... yeah, had to look away a few times :p

i honestly thought he was gonna fight fisk and that's why he had wanted to go to prison in the first place.

i am SO on board with frank/karen now. when they were talking at the diner, well before all the other stuff happened 💀 i think they have a much more interesting dynamic than you know who (and i'm usually the biggest fan of friends to lovers)

love karen working for the bulletin and did NOT expect that guy being the blacksmith !!

and honestly foggy and marci... i like them !! i like her, she makes me laugh and they're not bad. i think they're cute together.

i loved seeing more of elektra's backstory. i wasn't a fan of the scene where she finds out she's black sky and for a moment it feels like she changes her mind completely and is about to go the other side idk, felt a bit weird to me. it felt rushed?? sort of? idk

i'm actually very scared to watch the last episode cause i feel like that will be when elektra dies and i do not want that :D

thank u for coming to my ted talk

hi angel!

ughhh ik me too matt and foggy angst makes me want to kms, istg if they make us go through more in born again.... ENOUGH PLEASE

bro the zombie thing scared the SHIT out of me like when did this get scary???? and the ninjas??? like FR NINJAS and how they slow their heartbeat so matt cant sense them!! hella cool

BEST FIGHT SCENE EVER. did you notice the little detail when the guards drag him out, he looks at his reflection on the ground and he sees the skull print on his clothes. i thought that was so cool.

heres a picture i took last time incase you didn't catch it!

frank castle covered in blood has got to be one of my fav things

frank and karen definitely have more aligning morals compared to her and matt. so morality wise, they're definitely more compatible, she doesnt see much fault in what frank does.

yes!!! i love karen at the bulletin, shes so good at it :)

FOGGYBEAR!! i love that marci calls him that, theyre so cute ☺️

yeah the black sky thing is so upsetting cus it like flips her world on axis and matt is trying so hard for her to not believe them, like BABE youre not just a killer 😕😕

good luck... you're in for it...

so when you finish s2 will you start watching the other shows? (luke cage, jessica jones, etc)

you could also... squeeze in the punisher s1 if you're intrigued, it is a bit of a segue because theres nothing about the hand. but it'll tell you the rest of the story about his family, its so loaded its acc crazy. im still lowk confused abt all of it. OR you can just watch it after lol im peer pressuring you my bad...

[romance-reanimated]

(Now we get to the embarrassing part)

Romancing Herbert West: A Comprehensive Guide

So step one is die.

Sorry! But seriously, if you’re not in some way connected to The Work, he’s unlikely to be interested in you. And what’s a better way to get involved with his passions than to be a nice, fresh, preferably undamaged cadaver!

Step two requires further research.

Why did most of Herbert’s subjects come back as half-conscious zombies, while Carl Hill returned as his usual spiteful and scheming self? Maybe Herbert would have acknowledged the brilliant success of Dr. Hill’s reanimation with his full mental faculties, if he hadn’t been so busy fighting Hill for the rest of the movie. (Or maybe it goes deeper, he sees being a successful experiment as a personal virtue, and can’t bear to imagine such a high honor being bestowed upon his nemesis) Either way, your reanimation will be, in his opinion, his most successful yet. And oh how he will admire his work!

Now you’re perfectly set up to grow closer in a natural manner!

No need to ask him out on a date, you’ll be around him nearly constantly in order to discern how often you need more serum, and what dosage. No need to break through his prickly exterior, you only know him at the height of his happiness, when he is working on his precious experiments. All you need do is take an additional interest in his work (besides its relevance to you) for him to feel, for once in his life, a genuine interest in another person.

Don’t expect your relationship to be… normal.

He already has that whole homoerotic bickering science babes thing going on with his lab partner, which although a very intense connection isn’t quite the basis for a romantic relationship. But with you, things are different. Often if you read deeper into his behavior it will come off as hostile, but once you realize that he really only means what he says, you will likely find his conversation easy and comforting. Who knew you spent so much effort reading everyone’s subtext all the time! He’s surprisingly affectionate, but he shows it in peculiar ways, by giving you odd compliments that show how well you align with his strange standards in a partner, or asking you to assist in parts of the experiment that would seem gruesome to someone who didn’t know what an honor he considers it.

Congratulations! You have attained one (1) Herbert!

[theleotorrio]

You mention both titan anatomy and breakdowns of wormhole physics and expect people not to want to hear about it???

I would love to hear whatever infodump or general rant you want to share!

(Also on the wormhole part, agreed!)

Well looking at me weird is the usual reaction I get when I start talking about these things, but I am more than happy to yap about them, if you want to hear them.

The titan anatomy one is for the attack on titan titans, because they tell you a lot about it and not all of it fits together. (Turned out to be more about the titans in general)

So there are three different kind of titans, there are pure titans, abnormal titans and the big nine titans als known as the titan shifters and they all kinda work the same yet not. So what we get to know is that every titan come from a human, who is sitting in their neck, that kinda, depending on the kind, more or less serves as their neural centre (which is why they only die when that part of the titan neck is separated). When humans get injected with spinal fluid from a titan shifter they turn into the titans and stay that way and lose aöl their will and control, the pure titans seem kind of luke zombies in that way. The titans themselves are not really made of flesh, they regenerate very fast and create a lot of steam when they do but also dissolve very fast when they die and there is a whole yeast theory that says that the bodies of titans are kinda made of those, which causes them to expand so much and release steam and gas and so on. To that I am very sure that when a titan dies and the titan body dissolves the human body of the base shouldn't because it is made of actual flesh so when a titan dies there should be a human body left behind, which they never show, but it would just make sense.

Abnormal titans are the same but faster and more aggressive making them more dangerous opponents. I think they are different because their subconsciousness has more control over the titan making it more driven or try to follow a goal making them more determined or more subconsciously angry at what's happening with them. We can see that in Dina who said that she would always find her way back to Grisha before being injected and then her titan made her way to his house later, so that's where I got that from.

Titan shifters are the most interesting, there are nine and they can transform into titans by will by drawing blood on themselves but also can turn back to humans and have control over their titans. Those titans are more powerful than the others and each has a special ability. They all come from the founding titan, Ymir, and those titans can be given from person to person. A titan shifter after becoming a shifter only lives additional 13 years. A person becomes a shifter after becoming a pure titan and eating the former human who had the titan.

That's a 'short' exposition (i got carried away), now the issues and implications we can assume. Sooo, one of the first facts we get to know about titans is that titans do not have a digestion system. They eat humans and when they full they throw balls of humans back up owl style. So here's where the problem with that statement is. We get to see those human balls in the manga so I don't doubt that statement, BUT the titan shifters eat the former shifters they want to take the ability from ad a pure titan, which would not being anything, because they don't have an digestive system and couldn't take those powers over in that way because the titan can't absorb the bone marrow of the former shifter that way, but that is how they hand the titans over. Ymir, the founder, have her powers to her three children by having them eat her dead body as humans and as gruesome as that is, it makes more sense, but the problem they created for that is that when a titan shifter dies before giving the titan to someone else, those powers go to the random next born after the shifter died, so difficult, but it doesn't really work in any way which is frustrating.

Additionally, as they don't have a digestive system I wondered what organs they might or might mot have (i totally read my roomates medical books for this, without telling her, because how do you explain this). Ad they have the humans as their neural and neurological centre i don't think they would need a brain, they have the humans brain for that. They must have lungs and a voice box as many titans make sounds, the beast titan (and I think the armored too) can even speak and scream, so those must be there, but things like liver, kidneys and so on also most likely to exist as there's nothing to filter and the titans need space for the stomach pouches where the humans go that they eat (and they are big enough to swallow those whole). Also interesting is that especially for the shifters the humans subconsciously seem to have some sort of control over what organs their titans have or don't have, best example Berthold and Armin, both holders of the collosal titan, so their design is quite similar, but Bertholds titan has ears, so we can assume he can hear too, but Armins does not have ears and most likely can't hear because Armin does not like yo hear the suffering of the people he has to kill. I am on the fence about whether titans have hearts or not, because they have a lot of blood and bloodflow so their cells must also need oxygen to work, that they get from the blood because why have it otherwise? And to get that blood going there's should be a heart, but titans are huge so how big would that heart need to be to achieve that, so i think it's possible that it's muscular movement of the blood like how the necks of giraffes work to get it around, so I think both are possible.

Also there is just a lot (and this is not a critique on the author but really on the people in the story) of experimentation that you can do involving giving on titans. So Ymirs titan spirit of the founding titan got split into three and from there later into nine that build the big titans. But they know that those titans are superior so why did they stop multiplying them? Or you could try to cross them deliberately to make them each more powerful. Something that happens in the show on accident, when Falco ingests spinal fluid from the beast titan and later eats the jaw titan and from the design of his jaw titan, it has beast titan characteristics, so why did they never try that, it's such a waste and would have been real interesting.

Sooo, this got out of hand and I am very sure I am even now forgetting something, but I think a lot about attack on titan so there's a lot in this brain. Sorry, it's so much, but thank you so much for the ask! (I can also totally talk about my red sky issues too, if you want 😅)

[faustianbroker]

TIMING: Current LOCATION: Harmony Hill, World's End Isle PARTIES: Caleb (@dirtwatchman) & Gabagool (& Levi at the end lol) SUMMARY: Caleb meets Gabagool in a graveyard, and the badalisc has an interesting offer for him. CONTENT WARNINGS: n/a

—

The strangest part of not working for Nichols anymore was the loss of comfort that came from being around them. Caleb had always had a hard time getting close to people, it was something that stemmed from childhood and it was no secret, but the Nichols family had always been that security blanket that made going through life so much easier. It had started with losing Jack and now that he couldn’t really be around Erin or Diane every part of him felt…out of place. He’d been trying to search for a new home, a new place where he could feel safe and understood without feeling like a burden, and he could get that with a few of the friends he still had around town but it was nothing compared to what he’d had before.

New locations weren’t doing it for him but he’d found himself searching them anyway. It was like he was sixteen again, running from what he couldn’t change while delving into the peace of the dead. He was leaning back against one of the larger headstones on Harmony Hill, his eyes closed as the sounds of the night barely reached his ears. The zombie wished he could hear the chirp of the crickets like he could when he was a kid, longed for the days he never thought he’d want to go back to again. 

He was just about to put his headphones in his ears and really go back to the past when he heard the scuffling of little feet coming towards him. Caleb’s eyes snapped open, his body now on alert, knowing what he could encounter. He was not expecting to see the weirdest looking cat thing he had ever encountered scurrying around one of the headstones to his right and he didn’t know whether to be cautious with it or hold out a hand to scratch behind its ears. “Uh...hey buddy. You seem like you’re a long way from home.” As it got closer, he took in the two different colored eyes and the soft gray of its fur, his body still tense. The thing was kind of cute but that didn’t mean it couldn’t be deadly. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m pretty far from home too.”

—

Gabagool was a hunter by nature. A hunter of juicy, juicy gossip. And sometimes, you know, you didn’t find that in highly populated areas! Usually, sure, but the juiciest stuff usually happened when someone was alone, was unaware that they were being watched. So from time to time, the little demon would wander his way through the outskirts of town, snooping around lonely cabins and weaving his way stealthily through more populated areas into the quiet, empty parts of town. Graveyards tended to fit that description, and this one was no exception! Except for the one guy in here, which was definitely suspect. Sure, maybe he was just out here mourning someone, but did they even bury people in this graveyard anymore? The demon didn’t know and didn’t care. All he knew was that there was a potential source of gossip to be investigated, and at the very least, it might do something funny. People tended to do funny things when Gabagool showed up.

It was hanging back for a while, but the man was being boring, so it decided to introduce itself. Trotting up to the man, totally carefree, Gabagool cocked his head as he was spoken to. “I am, actually,” he responded in his best version of a teary, lip-trembling sort of voice (that inexplicably sounded a lot like Billy Crystal). “A long way from home. I’m lost!” He could have gone on and on, quite the yapper, but it was always fun to let the humans react to the fact that he could talk.

—

It shouldn’t have surprised him that this thing could talk. He was used to the unexpected, so much so that the unexpected wasn’t all that unexpected anymore. But for some reason when the thing opened its mouth Caleb was shocked enough that his own fell open. A talking cat thing wasn’t as bad as a literal demon but maybe the fact that it sounded like that one guy from City Slickers didn’t help much. “Uh…right, yea. Of course you can talk, why would that not be a thing right now?” 

He was still staring at the thing, still poised for some sort of attack because that voice did nothing to convince Caleb that the cat was sincere, but he also was ready to help if needed. It was something else instilled in him, that need to please even the smallest of creatures around him. It said something that Caleb wanted the approval of this animal but he wasn’t willing to dive into that yet. “Do you uh…want me to help you get back? Do you know where you live…do you even have an address?” Was it rude to ask a lost…thing if it had an address? The zombie didn’t want to offend it even if he was a little scared the thing was going to take his head off at any second. 

—

Gabagool grinned a wide, cheshire grin, his little tufts of fur that might’ve been ears flattening against his large skull. The creature was 70% mouth, the rest of it consisting mostly of soft fur and flab. Well, and sharp teeth. He was still a carnivore, after all. 

“Oh gosh, mister, would you?” The badalisc hopped on all four paws, moving closer to Caleb and shaking out his fur. “I live on World’s End Isle. I’m sure my master is terribly worried about where I’ve gone, mister. Could you take me there? I don’t like walking on the bridge alone… it’s scary.” He dropped his head low, dramatically throwing himself to the ground right next to Caleb’s legs, rolling onto his back and looking up at the other upside down. “Hey, what are you doing here, anyway? Not a very nice hangout spot. I don’t like graveyards — I didn’t mean to end up in this one.”

—

This thing sounded almost condescending as it spoke, that wide grin not helping one bit. But it was a ridiculous thought, right? It was a cat…thing. Animals weren’t condescending from what he knew of them. Still, animals didn’t talk either and this was proving him wrong. When it flopped on its back and started looking at Caleb while upside down the zombie felt his lips pull up into a smile, all thoughts of its tone disappearing from his mind. They were dumb thoughts anyway. It had to be the voice. “I can help you, yeah. The walk across the bridge can be pretty terrifying in the dark. We don’t want to keep you from your master any longer.” 

He reached over and hesitantly ran a finger under the animal’s chin before getting to his feet. Caleb felt like a giant standing next to it with his chin almost meeting his chest as he looked down. “I’m kind of the opposite. I come to cemeteries to think when I have too much on my mind. They’ve been a source of comfort for me.” How sad was that? Why was he scared that this animal was going to judge him for it? And why was it easier to talk about all of this with a cat? “There’s been a lot going on lately.” 

—

“Oooohhh, a lot going on, huh? I gotcha, I gotcha,” Gabagool sympathized, following Caleb’s lead and rolling back over onto his paws. He gave his whole body a shake to get rid of any stray dirt or leaves, then started to pad along beside the man. “I’m Gabagool, by the way! And I’m a great listener. At least, that’s what papá tells me! Sometimes when he gets home from work and he’s just had the hardest day, he likes to sit with me on the couch and tell me all about it. Says it makes him feel better!” The badalisc bounded in front of Caleb, standing up on his hind legs and stretching the front ones out toward the man as much as he could. 

“Uppies?” he asked with a grin, hopping on the spot to maintain his balance. “Papá also says that my fur is the softest he’s ever felt and that it’s soothing. Plus, you got long legs, I dunno if I can keep up.”

—

Caleb had never had a pet before. When he was younger his foster parents claimed they were too busy taking care of their foster kids to house any pets inside. The mom would try to be nice about it, let the kids believe that it was for the benefit of any animal that might come through their home, but Caleb saw the real truth when he was thirteen. His foster brother, only a year older than him, brought home a cat one day because he’d found it stuck in a drainpipe. Gary, having already started his drinking that day, went ballistic. Turns out, the man really did not like animals. It almost reminded Caleb of how much Gary hated the very children they let into their home. His brother had been able to get the cat out of the house before anything really bad happened but that moment had stuck with all the kids from that point on. No pets allowed. 

When he got older Caleb had never really thought about a companion no matter how lonely he’d gotten over the years. It must have been ingrained in him that pets were a bad thing and then he was killed and became a zombie…which he felt would put any pet at risk if something were to happen to its owner. 

But having this cat stand on its hind legs and reach for him made him want to break down and get his own. Obviously this one kept speaking of an owner so it was off the table but there were shelters around here. He grinned, not even hesitating to pick up the furry thing as it danced in front of him and let it settle comfortably in his arms. “That’s an interesting name. I’ve never heard one like it.” But this animal’s papa was correct, its fur was very soft. Caleb was absentmindedly brushing his fingers through it as he started walking in the direction of World’s End Isle. Maybe the papa was right about spilling his guts to the cat too. He didn’t think about the fact that if this thing could talk to him it could talk to others before he launched into things. When a person sees a cat they don’t automatically think the animal can spread their secrets around. “You ever heard of demons, Gabagool? Those things are very real. And they like to possess people and use them and ruin their lives. I was doing okay, you know? My life wasn’t horrible but then Aesil set out to destroy almost every relationship I had for fun.”

—

Had Gabagool ever heard of demons? It made the badalisc want to laugh, made him want to chuckle and chortle and guffaw right in this silly man’s face, because of course he had! He was one! But all the mirth would have to wait, because Gabagool knew that name. Aesil. They weren’t friends by any stretch of the imagination, and their paths had only crossed one time — this was before Gabagool had decided to align himself with Leviathan. But he knew that name, knew that demon, and had some small inkling of that demon’s purpose. It wouldn’t do, not here. Not now. 

Lying, though, that wouldn’t do, either. Because the truth would come out eventually, and it was better to build that trust now. If this guy was somehow connected to Aesil, who might have had plans that would disrupt the operation here, Leviathan would want to know. Leviathan would want to take care of it, as it always took care of things. That didn’t include killing the man who was now carrying Gabagool home, but it would very likely involve getting some information out of him. Papá liked to do that a little more humanely, these days. It liked to not burn bridges that didn’t need burning. So, the badalisc put looked up at the man with wide, mismatched eyes, conjuring every ounce of pity that he could into those bright orbs. 

“Oh… I’m really sorry to hear that, mister,” he commiserated. “Demons can be… well, like you said. Just the worst. But yes, I know all about them.” There was a pregnant pause, and the creature smiled again, this time without baring his little fangs. His ears perked up, little nub of a tail wagging behind him. “I am one, actually. But not like Aesil. There’s lots of different kinds of demons, did you know? I just talk a lot. That’s my thing.”

—

He almost dropped the cat. Caleb almost launched it in the air as soon as it admitted to being a demon itself almost as if the creature was burning him but he held on, albeit a little tighter than he had before. Of course it was a demon. Of course the only damn thing that he’d felt completely comfortable with in the past couple of months turned out to be the very thing that had almost destroyed him. What was it about these things that attracted them to Caleb? Were they now kindred spirits or something? Now that he’d been taken over by one they all wanted a piece? He needed to know so that he could find a way to get rid of whatever was pulling them his way.

His body had stiffened so much that he felt himself coming to a slow stop in the middle of the street. He did know about different types of demons as he was currently reading up about them as much as possible but he’d never come across one like this in his teachings. Gabagool seemed friendly enough but Aesil had been the same when they wanted something from someone. Right up until they decided they were done with them and got rid of them in some excruciating way.

Caleb couldn’t deny that this was an opportunity though. If the demon in his arms was willing to talk, which apparently it talked a lot, he could possibly get more information about Aesil and demons in general. There was a brief thought of how concerned he should be about himself for the subtle obsession of finding as much information about this stuff as possible that was starting to take over his mind but he brushed it aside. “Do you take over people’s bodies?” Maybe it had taken over the cat’s body? No, this wasn’t a normal cat that didn’t seem right. “How do I know I’m not going to wake up one day to you controlling me while trying to raise a greater demon?”

—

Gabagool felt the man’s grip on him tighten and closed his eyes for a moment, resisting the urge to react by sticking his claws in him. He was freaked out. Of course he was freaked out, apparently he’d been a vessel for a while. People didn’t like being vessels, Gabs could understand that. So he waited patiently for the man to speak, and when he did, the demon let out a little scoff. 

“Me? No, no, of course not! My body is perfect for me, thanks very much, why would I want to crawl into someone else’s? Anyway, even if I did want to, I can’t. I’m not that kind of demon, y’see? I’m a badalisc. I can’t help my nature, mister, but I’m no body snatcher. As for raising greater demons…” Gabagool smiled gleefully at Caleb. “My  greater demon is already raised! It’s walkin’ around town, happy as a clam. Didn’t hardly need anyone’s help to do it, either! It’s the best, honestly. There’s no better greater demon to work with. You’re gonna love ‘em. Y’know, I gotta tell them about this Aesil guy, though. He sounds like a stinker, and we’re not really in the market for competition. But Leviathan can take care of that problem easy peasy! You make friends with it, and it’ll have your back if that clown comes back to town! One greater demon is enough for a place of this size, don’t you think?”

—

He wanted to relax, forced himself to do so by lessening his grip on the animal, but how could Caleb even believe a word this thing was saying? He knew. He knew about the lies that spilled from the mouths of these things because he had been trapped with one for months watching every horrifying scene play out as he screamed for things to stop. Even now his own voice echoed in his mind, pleading for Aesil to end things by either leaving him or somehow taking him out to leave a husk the demon could have forever. 

But he was getting some new information already even if he couldn’t trust the source. Caleb had a source he could trust, someone he could run this information by later and see what was truth and what wasn’t. It was the only thing calming him down. “Badalisc…I didn’t realize there were so many different types of you guys.” 

His mouth ran dry as the badalisc continued, news of a greater demon already walking around making him feel a new kind of terror. From what he had gathered throughout the months of Aesil’s reign, the greater demon he was trying to raise had one goal and one goal only; to wipe out the human race. That demon despised humans, the undead even more so, and had been planning very cruel things for this dimension. If what this thing was telling him was true though, it didn’t seem like Leviathan had the same goals. Caleb hoped that was true. “You want me to meet them? And be friends?” That wasn’t happening. The idea of telling them about Aesil so they could take care of them? That could be arranged. “....Okay. I have a lot of information about Aesil I can pass along. I think I even know the name of the demon they were trying to raise.”

—

“Oh, there’s loads of little demon friends. Not all of us can talk, though. I’m special like that.” Gabagool beamed proudly, deciding to forgive the man for his tight grip. He seemed hesitant about meeting Leviathan, which was fair. Most people heard a name like that and started to remember all the human stories they’d ever heard and read about creatures called Leviathan, most of which were the demon in question at one point in its life. It could be terrible and cruel, just like the stories all said, but it did love humans. It was fascinated by them, even though it sometimes did terrible things to them. That was just greater demons, though. You can love a thing and treat it poorly, too — Gabagool had witnessed this plenty of times. It made sense, really, since humans were so very far beneath demons on the totem pole of life. They were like… pets. More like pets than even Gabagool was! Which he was fine with. He liked being pampered. 

Of course there were exceptions to every rule, like his human brother, Teddy. Teddy was a human who was made into something better, then changed back. It’d been sad to see them lose what connection they’d had to their father, but it had been necessary. And Leviathan still seemed to love them just as much as it had when they were less human. 

“Great! Leviathan would love to hear it, if you know the name. Is it their true name? Greater demons love to use aliases, you know. Leviathan isn’t my master’s real name, of course — we wouldn’t just use that in casual conversation. You can do a lot of damage with a greater demon’s true name. Leviathan might even be able to summon it to kill it!” He wiggled excitedly in Caleb’s arms, staring up at him with wide eyes. “It did that once before, you know! Killed a greater demon for a human. I don’t know if it would do that again, but it’s worth asking.”

—

“You sure are.” Caleb felt like he was on autopilot as he started to walk again, going over the bridge into World’s End Isle. The closer he got to this thing’s house, the more his body started to buzz with anxiety. He almost wanted to let it go on its own but the idea of sending Aesil and their greater demon to an end was too tempting to let go of. Their doom might even make him feel a little lighter knowing that they wouldn’t be back to continue what they started. It was a constant fear in the back of his mind. What if Van let them out again? Worse, what if she brought on the greater demon with the powers that she couldn’t control? Would Caleb be sought out for the use of his body? Would they succeed in taking over this time?

It was worth seeing this other one. As long as he didn’t get possessed yet again. “…I’m really putting a lot of trust in you right now.” Which felt like a mistake even as he looked down into the demon's eyes, even as he admitted to his master doing such a good thing before. It didn’t seem truthful though Caleb was probably biased…with good reason. “Please…please don’t lie to me about this.” He’d seen too many die by his own hand, good people who hadn’t deserved the fate that had been handed to them.

“Andras. The greater demon, Aesil called them Andras. I don’t know if that was his real name or not.” Was Aesil smart enough to not let Caleb in on the true name of the thing they were trying to raise. His money was on ‘no.’ The cockiness alone was enough to make them believe that Caleb was never coming back from inside his own mind. “Does it sound familiar to you?”

—

The house was like most in this area — large and somewhat imposing, especially when you knew that a demon lived inside of it. Well, two demons, technically. Gabagool might not have had the talents of Leviathan, but he was every inch as demonic! The sky was dark and smattered with stars that peeked out from behind the thick cloud cover, and the ocean roared behind the house with large, stormy waves that crashed against the private beach. There were a few lights on on the first floor, glowing amber and warm in contrast to all else in the town.  

“I would never lie, mister. I’m honest as they come! Don’t worry, Leviathan will have a lot more interest in this possessor of yours — and the demon they serve — than it will in… you. To be blunt.” The town had no shortage of viable humans, there was no reason to go breaking the trust of this one just to add one more to the pile. No, he seemed like he’d be much more useful alive. 

“Andras, though… no, that doesn’t sound familiar. Papá might know it, might know it by some other name, too. Sometimes the real names only pass the lips of other greater demons, you know? Very sacred stuff.”

As they approached the house that the badalisc indicated, he finally wiggled himself free from Caleb’s grasp and dropped down onto the footpath, stretching out his limbs before hopping up and down on the spot. “C’mon! Time’s a-wastin’!” Bounding up to the door, he leaped at the doorbell and slapped it with a paw, falling back into a heap before righting himself on the stoop, little nub of a tail wagging. 

Footsteps approached the door, and there was a loud click as the lock was disengaged. Then, the door was pulled open and artificial light poured out onto the stone walkway. A large figure stood silhouetted in the doorway, silently assessing the stranger on his doorstep.

“Leviathan! This one’s got a story you’re going to want to hear.”

—

As Caleb watched the animal scurry out of his arms and up towards the door it was hard to believe that this wasn’t some unbelievably talented cat but instead a demon. He’d spent the better part of the last five months believing that those things came in only one form; evil. Gaba wasn’t evil, or he was at least doing an amazing job at lying if he was. Which...was possible. Demons were manipulative and even if Aesil lacked the cunning that the zombie believed they should possess he was pretty sure it was because a dud took over his body and that wasn’t normal. Still…watching him slap the doorbell with his paw almost made him smile. 

But then the door opened and his eye was drawn upwards, that fear from earlier trickling back in when he took in the sight of this greater demon. Of course it was intimidating in all aspects, because why wouldn’t it be? 

He met its stare for a brief moment before looking back down at the steps of the porch, not able to summon the strength to boldly look it in the eye. At Gaba’s insistence, Leviathan seemed to deem the zombie worthy of entrance and it stepped aside to let him in but he hesitated, swallowing down the lump that was forming in his throat. All he could do was hope this would pay off. He stepped forward, still avoiding the persistent gaze of the demon, and didn’t even bother looking around the house before he started his story.

“I’m Caleb…and I think there’s a demon you might want to look into.”

[penultimate-step]

Denji is a character written to be a disruptor, someone who will break through established social norms. When he speaks, this is reflected in his blunt willingness to say whatever he feels should be said, having no care for niceties and not paying attention to the conversational flow. Of course, to skillfully show off such a character trait, that means the author, in contrast, must be very concerned about the flow, to best write the moments to have Denji insert himself.

This isn't an analysis, just talking about a few examples from the series that stood out to me. Examples include spoilers throughout part 1 and well into part 2 under the cut:

Just look at chapter 127 for the most clear cut example.

The whole gag is that there's a serious emotional struggle going on, in the middle of a serious action sequence, and Denji is talking about how much he loves sex. It's like the manga equivalent of a whoopee cushion in a handshake gag: the joke is in the interruption from the established atmosphere and expectations.

If we look at part 1, we can find a few similar times where the same trick was attempted. I'll use chapters 47, since it's the first one that comes to mind for me:

Notice the difference? In part 1, where denji has a much greater focus and the side characters have less emphasis, it means much less when Aki and Reze are playing off of him. Yes, it's still denji having a moment where he breaks the emotional tension with a desire for women, but without Asa's grounding counter presence as co-protagonist he's left to essentially play straight man to himself.

Of course, denji's bluntness is deeper than just playing the fool. One of my favorite moments in the manga is a result of this, from chapter 36:

A more socially conscious character might have offered condolences or said they had regrets, when standing in front of someone whose family is dead. It's pretty common politeness! But denji doesn't care about social graces - the man mistreated him, turned into a zombie, and died, no need to overthink it. So he tells his surviving family to his face that he feels nothing. Amazing. This is a moment where rather than Denji disrupting serious emotional moments to release tension, his honesty instead ramps up the emotional stakes of the scene, getting more personal than things would be otherwise.

Denji's glib brush-off shows his dissonance with the social fabric around him, sure, but also demonstrates his lack of care for the bonds between people - a callback to a few chapters earlier, in chapter 29, where Denji himself has similar worries, and setting the stage for this character thread's resolution in 38. It's a great moment.

Anyway, just one more example before I stop. A bit from part 2, another moment where Denji does something perceived as vulgar, which, through the reactions of those around him, emphasizes his character.

Yoshida sets the stage - he's in control. He is trying to follow in Makima's footsteps in holding Denji's leash. Simple carrot and stick. But he's not her, doesn't have her skills in manipulation, and Denji has changed a lot from the desperate boy he was in chapter 2. So he cuts through - so what if usually cake is eaten with silverware? Denji effortlessly throws Yoshida off his game. See his shocked and disgusted face? It's an early indication that the manipulations that characterized part 1 won't be going as smoothly this time.

In short, look, I know that "character A does something offbeat, character B reacts with shock" is far, far from an original concept, its one of the most classic types of humor. but, nonetheless, I appreciate csm's execution of it. having these defined and emphasized characters react and be off balance by Denji's actions works well as a characterization tool for both Denji and his conversation partner, and can let the author adjust scene tone on the fly.

[galraluver]

Zarkon x Red Paladin Fem, part 4?

I didn't think that this was going to be so popular, so here's another part 🖤

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Almost a deca-phoeb passed since Zarkon captured (Y/n) and she'd come to terms that she wasn't ever going to see her friends again nor was she going to regain true freedom. Living in galra central command wasn't exactly the worst thing in the universe, although she kind of had to be careful around Zarkon because he had some rather obvious anger issues; in a way, she felt like Belle from Beauty and the Beast. Zarkon granted her free roam of central command and status in the empire, at some point she began to fall in love with him a little bit despite knowing she might have had a little Stockholm syndrome. There were times when hints of his previous self showed up in his behavior and that's when (Y/n) devised a plan to help Zarkon return to his previous self instead of continuing to be a quintessence hungry zombie. She was between a rock and a hard place by that point in time, conflicted about whether she should attempt to escape or stay put.

Zarkon wasn't too conflicted about how he felt about (Y/n); she could be a powerful ally, all he had to do was turn her against the paladins if he ran out of plans to get a hold of Voltron, otherwise he wouldn't do it because he needed her to trust him. There were times when he felt somewhat in love with her, he just wasn't good at showing it except for the times when his personality shifted to what it used to be before the incident ten thousand years prior. He didn't mind comforting her when she needed it and he certainly found her attractive, and as time went by she'd managed to earn his trust. One day in particular when Zarkon didn't have anything better to do he decided to visit (Y/n) in her habsuite where he knew she would be, she still preferred the comforts of her new little home because she still missed her freedom. He personally made a snack for (Y/n) using some of the food from his own personal kitchen, but first he made sure everything was edible for humans; he gently knocked on the door when he made it to her habsuite, patiently waiting for her to reply.

“It's unlocked.” (Y/n) called out when she heard a knock on her front door, already knowing who it was; and, as expected, Zarkon walked into her habsuite after the door slid open.

“I've brought you something to eat.” Zarkon spoke with a gentle tone as he walked over to the couch, sitting down and offering the plate to her.

“Thank you.” (Y/n) replied shyly before she took the plate from him, still feeling a little anxious.

Zarkon felt his heart flutter in his chest when (Y/n) accepted the food he gave her, it was a sensation that he hadn't felt in a very long time. He was ancient, he'd been alive for longer than Earth's existence, and yet the young human woman he'd captured made him feel slightly flustered in a good way. One of his main reasons for visiting (Y/n) was because he wanted to take her out shopping at some point, he figured that a day away from central command would do her some good. (Y/n) sat there and quietly ate, feeling a little better after she tasted how good the food was; Zarkon never starved her, she simply hadn't eaten since breakfast and it was almost lunch time. She glanced up at him for a second and saw that he was deep in thought, she couldn't help but wonder what he had on his mind.

“I would like to take you out in a few days to what used to be the largest Unilu swap moon.” Zarkon told her after a few minutes, gazing down at her with a slight smile.

“The old- You mean the space mall?” (Y/n) inquired before she put two and two together, her expression brightening up when she realized that he actually meant the mall; she loved the mall back when she went with some of the paladins, she never thought she would ever get to see it again.

“Yes, I intend to take you to the ‘space mall’ as you put it.” Zarkon answered, his tone a little more chipper than usual.

(Y/n) put the plate down so she could surge forward and hug Zarkon, thanking him for offering to take her to the space mall again. A lot of possibilities rushed through her mind about what she might find at the mall; she would obviously want to go to the Earth store to see what was in stock, she really hoped there would be some books or other things she liked in stock. She hoped that she could find her favorite snack there, the martian usually kept snacks from Earth in stock for anyone who liked them. Zarkon was a little surprised when (Y/n) hugged him out of the blue, he'd never seen her act in such a way and he liked it for some odd reason. For a moment part of his old personality showed itself for a few seconds until they stopped hugging each other.

“Why now? Why are you offering to take me out to the mall all of a sudden?” (Y/n) questioned with a nervous tone, hoping that she wasn't overstepping any boundaries.

“Can I not treat you to a day out whenever I please? I'm not expecting anything in return, if that's what you're concerned about.” Zarkon inquired, feeling slightly awkward all of a sudden, and yet he hid it well.

“I- W-well, yes, you can. I just wasn't sure why, that's all.” (Y/n) answered in embarrassment, feeling stupid for questioning him in the first place.

Zarkon assured her that it was alright; he wasn't offended by (Y/n) asking him why he was taking her out to the mall, in fact he kind of expected it. He watched as she began eating again, not missing the blush that suddenly appeared on her face. He hadn't personally been to the space mall since his time as the black paladin, he wondered exactly how much it had changed since then. Zarkon rarely left central command at all; the only times he did go somewhere was when he had to check in with certain planets, he otherwise never saw the need to go anywhere else. He genuinely felt kind of excited to go out with the former red paladin, although he would have to give her a disguise in order to prevent anyone from recognizing her, but until then he would just go on with life until the day of their trip came.

[grandpa-cephalopods]

Well it was a good finalfest this one, I'm glad team grandpas won this time. It's like an echo of the original Past vs Future, lol.

Unprofreshional Splat 3 nagging incoming, but first, I'll link my other stuff for anyone that stumbles on this blog.

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Main Blog: @thegoldendoorknob

Twitter: Petitemask

Deviantart: Chibilightsage

OC Comic: Wishway

Comic Askblog: @wishwaycrew

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First off- unfinished plotlines.

Had plans to elaborate more on Salmonid lore. In this verse, the apocalypse was partially mass natural destruction, and part zombie apocalypse via the Salmonids. Jones was originally a regular salmonid that was tested in a research lab before escaping and starting the whole death-of-humanity thing.

Also, there was a surviving human moonbase where the rich and famous lived. They gradually replaced parts of their bodies with mechanical parts to live longer than usual, but it took an expected toll on their sanity. That's what I was going to connect the Side Order plot to, initially.

T going evil for a bit bc of the aforementioned Jones thing.

I have a very write-as-I-go mentality with ask blogs so I could go to and from these kinds of ideas, but those were some of the core ones.

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Ok long rant time sorry

So I've ran 2 other ask blogs in the past, and I came to recognize one of the things that can keep me in a fandom for over 7 years like Splatoon is engaging with the game itself. It's one thing to just scroll through the wiki pages 10 times over, but actually playing the games is what gives them so much staying power. Not only does it let me theorize about all the loose ends stated in the plot, but I can consider the fun and technicalities of how the gameplay can tie-in with the plot.

If I didn't play the games, I wouldn't be coming up with ideas like the Respawn March, Ink Eggs, Cuttlefish making zapfish doll batteries on repeat levels, the tentacle amps in Octavio's arena being another Octoweapon, human reanimation, moon colonies...

All of that wouldn't happen if I just read the wiki and called it a day. And that's why it kind of pains me to say Splatoon 3 just.. didn't give me any lasting material to work with. I did like deep cut (especially Frye) but they showed up like.. a whopping 2 times in the actual story, and there's no real lasting impression they make outside of their idol career or supplementary material.

-And that wouldn't be too big of a deal, because the opener of Splatoon 2 ALSO sucked, and gave us table scraps for plot, but I was still able to engage with the story because the new salmon run mode was fun to play, and I still had a little breathing room with the new players before the meta scene REALLY kicked in with X-rank.

I'm not even going to get started with X-rank, or it's little brother S-rank's introduction in 1, but during my time playing I definitely got hit by the hard shift from casual to pro gameplay between these games. Splat 3 was a game that felt like it was made with the purest intention to please pro gamers, but in doing that, it really alienated any casual players from sticking around.

I have a difficult relationship with the shift in meta, because I started with Splat1 back in 2015. Splat1 was extremely defensive, and almost completely dominated by chargers, rollers, and sloshers. You'll never guess what my 3 favorite weapons were in that title I ended up spending.. I think upwards of 5 months figuring out how to play the splat charger, because I ran a Cap'n blog, and Cap'n was a historic bamboozler main. What kind of blog would I be if I didn't at least try to learn grandpa's main? Lol.

So then comes Splat2, and because of all the heckling they were getting over the hyperdefensive gameplay, they decided to shift to a hyperoffensive meta instead. Heaven forbid we got another Moray Towers or triggerfish, so they started to crack down on the level design to make it harder to lock a game down for 3 minutes with one really good charger.

So, my matches got spawncamped by blasters and shooters instead ♡

Because of that, it kind of hurt to come from being a skilled A+ rank charger at the time back into a B- level nobody who sullies their characters. But my friends were still able to play Splat2, and wanted to play splat 2, so it wasn't that hard to deal with.

Splatoon 3, however, no one wanted to play. Within almost 3 months of it's release, my mutuals were already done with it, and if I wanted to engage with it at all, I'd have to play it through solo matches. So I was already running on fumes, and then the main plot involved characters I never played, and plot that only really benefitted human lore. So, this blog's activity continued to stagnate until I couldn't find it in me to let it spiral into my human plot any further.

But it's ok sage, they reassured, because Splat2 plot also sucked, but OE pulled it out of the ashes! Just wait an entire year, and we'll show you how good this dlc is going to be!

Nope! More characters that you don't play and an average story!

I don't have a lot of hope for my relationship with a 4th game, because 2 and 3 gave me a general idea of where they want to go with the series now. I've just fallen too far behind from 2015 sage to 2024 sage that I know that the gameplay is no longer made for players like me. It's made for official tournaments and promotional material, and nintendo is going to make that bank because it's the logical choice. 3 Regulars will probably have it easiest, there.

Realistically, the easiest way for me to return to the series is if they made the map terrain "fun" again, or at least fixed the matchmaking to better pair people with similar skilled rooms (I'll wait those 20 minutes if I can be put in the right room, dammit!). But for now.. I'm sorry to return to the original character hermit shell I lived in, but the lack of community outside of my 4 mutuals isn't strong enough to keep me here when the gameplay can't.

So.. I'm glad Splat3's grand festival ended this on a bang, because I can say nice things about that. It finally gave me a fully positive impression, it just took the end of the game's lifetime to get here. I feel a little bad at the lack of an OE reference outside of Acht, but that more or less confirms to me Tartar is probably pretty dead in canon.

At least BOTH GRANDPAS MADE IT TO THE STANDS! I've had to eat crumbs for years and they reward me with a slice of toast. Maybe 4 could give all of us grandpa fans the balanced breakfast they crave, who knows.

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So I'll be on hiatus for a bit, y'all can send asks at your leisure and if the fandom bug gets me again, there's a chance I could probably answer 'em in the future if splatoon 4 actually slaps. I just wanted to lay these motivation problems out so there isn't any will-they won't-they confusion that I've gotten from many other abandoned or deleted blogs.