#it's time to hyperfixate again bABY!!!!

[supager]

me being normal about the sequel????? nope.

[pearlsdiamondsandvodka]

saw “the sunshine court” trending along with “Neil Josten” and I was very confused, checked the tag AND YOURE TELLING ME THERES A NEW ALL FOR THE GAME BOOK??? why did I have no idea about this???

[txmxkis]

that was. transformative

[milkbreadtoast]

I NEVER SHARED THIS PUBLICLY BC NO HOME WASNT TRANSLATED AT THE TIME BUT I NEED U GUYS TO SEE THIS NO HOME SHITPOST SCENARIO I WROTE IN 2020 WHERE EUNYUNG ACCIDENTALLY CATFISHES JUWAN KDJCXM god its still good....

[jamtamart]

please nobody follow me for any specific niche my only through line when i post is Art . alright . i will never stick to a fandom . i dont have the strength . all i know is drawing my silly little pictures and getting emotionally attached to made up guys

[sinestrosmind]

Thank You for Saving Me

Summary: Fireclaw has thanked Sinestro many times for saving him. Now, it's Sinestro's turn to thank Fireclaw.

Warnings: Sinestro cries lmao

Characters: Topaz Fireclaw, Thaal Sinestro

Wordcount: 1,319

     The sun was low in the sky, stars beginning to appear as night fell upon New Korugar's capital, and upon the surrounding forests. Deep within one of these forests, the leader of the Sinestro Corps and the second in command walked peacefully side by side.

     The leader had many names by many others, harsh and most untrue in his eyes; tyrant, dictator, fear mongerer, traitor- name it, and he's been called it. In contrast, his corps called him their leader, their founder, and, his most preferred by them, Sinestro. To the rest of the corps, he was just that. He was just Sinestro. But, to the Levanixian walking beside him, a soft purr rumbling in his chest, he was far more.

     The feline beside him called him many things too, and his favorite was whatever he chose to use at the time. Love, dear, babe, Thaal, even some more intimate names of which Sinestro cared not to share with anyone outside his and the Levanixian's shared personal quarters.

     There's one, though, that Sinestro has noticed used rarely, only in times of darkness for the cat beside him. "Savior."

     Sinestro didn't mind the name, he thought it fitting. After all, he did save Fireclaw. Gave him a new life, a new home, a new purpose. He did save him from his previous, cruel life. But whenever Fireclaw used the name, it always worried him. It was always used in times of darkness, of dispair, when the cat was battling a foe that Sinestro could not aid him with.

     Today seemed to be one of those days, as despite Fireclaw's purring, Sinestro could see that he was lost in thought. His eyes heavy and dark, filled with sadness. This is why Sinestro had proposed going for a walk, to clear his love's head, to spend quality time together and continue to heal past wounds.

     "Thaal?" Sinestro hears Fireclaw's quiet voice, laced with sadness. The Korugarian wraps an arm around Fireclaw's shoulders, gently pulling the Levanixian close to him. "Yes, Topaz?" Sinestro replies, gentle and loving and worried.

     Fireclaw let himself be tucked under Sinestro's arm, welcoming the embrace and the warmth. "Thank you for saving me..." The Levanixian whispers, and he feels Sinestro's hold on him protectively tighten as tears begin to fall. "I don't know where I'd be right now if you didn't..."

     "Anything for you, my dear," Sinestro reassures, and Fireclaw closes his eyes and leans into the Korugarian, tension visibly leaving his shoulders as he relaxed and let Sinestro guide him along. Let Sinestro lead him away from his troubles.

     These walks continued, as they had before, whenever one or the other was feeling down for any reason they would take a walk deep into a New Korugarian forest together. Sometimes, Fireclaw would again thank Sinestro for saving him, or for being his savior, for the umpteenth time. And, again Sinestro would find some way immediately after, by accident or on purpose, to get Fireclaw to relax. For that tension to leave Fireclaw's body, and sometimes, eventually, for the Levanixian to fall asleep as they sat beneath a tree, or in a clearing under the vast night sky.

     Other times, Fireclaw comforts Sinestro, leads the Korugarian away from his troubles as he does for him. Holds him close and hears him out, lets the Korugarian ramble on about whatever's bothering him at the time. Sometimes, Sinestro would thank Fireclaw for even loving him, for being there for him, for trusting him, putting his faith in him.

     Though this time, tonight, as the sun set on New Korugar and gave way to the stars above, it wasn't Sinestro that found Fireclaw sad and alone, fighting enemies who cannot be seen nor touched. It was Fireclaw who found Sinestro, sitting near the outskirts of the new city, staring at the ground, lost in thought.

     "Sinestro! There you are!" Fireclaw called as he slowed from a lazy lope to a trot, and then stopped beside the Korugarian. "I was worried about you," he said, bumping his head against Sinestro's shoulder in a greeting before giving the Korugarian a kiss on the cheek. "What's on your mind?" Fireclaw felt no need to point out the obvious with a "you look sad," instead jumping right to the point. And it seemed Sinestro had little need, or want, for words at the moment, as he wrapped his arms around Fireclaw and pulled the Levanixian onto  his lap, burying his face into thick orange fur.

     In turn, Fireclaw wrapped his arms around Sinestro, holding his love close to him. "Thaal, sweetheart," Sinestro hears the cat say, gentle, worried, caring, full of love. And that's all it takes for a sob to cause Sinestro's form to shake. He clings to the Levanixian in his arms, fingers digging into fiery fur as if his life depended on it. And right now, if Sinestro were honest, he felt as though his life did depend on keeping Fireclaw as close to him as possible.

     As another sob racks the Korugarian's body, Fireclaw gently comforts him. Rubbing his back, littering kisses all over his head, and whispering gentle words to try to soothe him. It's a while before Sinestro's crying eases to something he can breathe through, something he could manage to speak through. All the while, though, Fireclaw continues to try to ease Sinestro's pain the best he can.

     Shivers take hold of Sinestro, Fireclaw can feel them travel through his form. And, as Sinestro finally lifts his head from Fireclaw's neck, as Sinestro finally looks at Fireclaw, Fireclaw sees how exhausted Sinestro is. He see how tired his eyes appear, alongside how irritated they are. He sees how flushed Sinestro's face is. And, when Sinestro speaks, the exhaustion is thick in his voice.

     "I love you." Sinestro tells Fireclaw after a moment of staring into the Levanixian's loving, worried, forgiving eyes, his voice heavy and weak with exhaustion and hoarse from crying. "I love you." He says again, as he buries his face again in Fireclaw's fur. And Fireclaw begins to shower Sinestro in gentle kisses again, whispering an "I love you too" to him.

     It's a little bit before Sinestro speaks again, when the tremors mostly have died down, when he's mostly relaxed and allowing exhaustion to begin to take hold of him. "You thank me for saving you," Sinestro starts, and Fireclaw listens closely. "Call me your savior... But you don't realize," Sinestro lifts his head to look into Fireclaw's eyes, relaxing once their gazes met. "That you saved me, too." Sinestro again buries his face in Fireclaw's fur, getting comfortable once again as he rambles off whatever comes to his mind.

     "I thought I'd never love again. Thought I'd never be loved again." Sinestro mutters, tightening his hold on Fireclaw. "I thought I'd never feel complete again. Never have a family again..." Sinestro continues to ramble on, muffled by Fireclaw's fur.

     The two sat where they were, Sinestro kept his face buried in Fireclaw's fur, and Fireclaw kept his arms around Sinestro, rubbing his back and whispering gentle words to Sinestro to comfort him. Sinestro continues to ramble on, eventually devolving to muttering words of praise and terms of endearment. "My savior." Sinestro had started, barely a whisper. "I love you."

     And Fireclaw remained by his side, remained in his arms, remained holding him close, continued to reassure him, to comfort him. Until exhaustion took hold, and Sinestro's breathing leveled, his voice falling quiet.

     When Fireclaw was sure Sinestro was soundly asleep, he carefully untangled himself from Sinestro's arms and then picked the sleeping Korugarian up, taking him to their bedroom where he'd be safer. Where he'd be comfortable and warm. Where, when he wakes in the morning, Fireclaw will be curled up by his side, arms around him, head on his chest, exactly how things should be. Exactly how he wants things to be.

[latenightsonrooftops]

WIP

[sheepie-self-ships]

💀 not me being so angrily frustrated that I don't remember the exact setlist of the aqua.bats concert I went to of theirs when I was FUCKING TEN YEARS OLD LMAO

[hesgomorrah]

was by far the youngest person at the doctor who cosplayers meetup today but i got to chat with a lot of folks who were very excited that someone my age was into the old stuff so it was cool

[thedeadthree]

me looking at my brain to CREATE 🥀✨😵‍💫

[fishbeanstew]

febuarary is no longer 

[artsycloudysleepy]

give one of your OC’s the fear of Death but is so ready to defend the people they love that they’d kick the reapers ass

OH I LOVE THIS IDEA THANK YOU SO MUCH :DDDDD

*shakespeare voice* to make another oc or to use an existing oc? that is the question...................

(or both hehe)

this is amazing timing btw! was literally just brainstorming about my god ocs when you sent this ask, and there's two that would fit the reaper role perfectly: azrael, the guardian of health, and cérélia, the guardian of time (they'd switch it around as to who does the reaping, or they'd do it together for funsies)

so now i just need to create or edit an oc who is willing to kick BOTH guardian asses for loved ones while also fearing them (and death) intensely! really loving the potential for dynamics here :))))

(and angst hehehe >:3)

thank you so much, i really needed a creative boost!! lmk if you want oc prompts too, more than happy to provide whenever i have time :D

[cesium-sheep]

they apparently agreed on watching some show on the tv I've never heard of and she put in a bunch of effort to get it to cooperate and they're both into it but they didn't like. ask me. and if it's mostly for arin's benefit because matt was working and he's gonna leave in a bit anyway, I don't get why she put all this effort into getting it on the tv in the first place, because it certainly fucking isn't for my benefit. but I'm not allowed to be a bitch about it even though they're both bitchy at even the slightest fucking inconvenience.

[meadowsofmay]

it's 6am, i keep rereading the chapter and realized i still haven't written the first morning kiss because it's just too fucking much, it's too fucking tender and the love they have just makes me scream, cry and throw up and tie myself in knots. it takes a shit ton for me not to start self-deprecating and think i Actually can't do it and what i am writing is shit... holy fuck an experience of being a writer... damn...

[sinestrosmind]

Fireclaw Backstory number no idea

Summary: "Do you believe Sinestro is capable of becoming a hero again?"

Hal lowers his gaze to the ground for a moment, thinking, while Fireclaw stands and silently approaches the tribe again. As Hal raises his head, looks to Sinestro, and says "I want to believe it." Fireclaw follows quickly up with a hoarse "He already is."

Warnings: Green Lantern 2011 (comics) Issues #10 & #11 spoilers, canon typical violence

Characters: Hal Jordan, Thaal Sinestro, Topaz Fireclaw

Wordcount: 6,792

       "What's going on?!" the Korugarian yells, facing a hoard of bloodthirsty offline indigo lanterns. Beside him, Hal Jordan grabs his shoulder and pulls him along, while a frightened yet still battle ready Fireclaw is unable to stand still, bouncing from paw to paw while waiting for the two more experienced lanterns to make a decision. "I'm saving your ass." Sinestro hears Hal say as he's pulled along, the offline indigo lanterns yelling "Get them!" and "Kill the Green Lanterns!" As the two take off into the forest, Fireclaw close behind.

       The trio dashes into the surrounding forest as a storm brews and threatens to break overhead, thunder rumbling and putting Sinestro's newest protégé more on edge. Oddly, Sinestro notices, he's quiet, eyes focused ahead of him, a hint of anger in his eyes under the fear of the situation and the determination to survive. Beside him, leading the trio, drawing his attention, Hal calls out to someone Sinestro has never heard of nor seen before.

       "Natromo?!" Hal calls out into the forest, after the keeper of the indigo light. "Natromo, wait!" He still had a hand on Sinestro's shoulder, still pulling the Korugarian along with him. He didn't need to, but he did anyway. "What's going on, Jordan?" the human hears Sinestro ask again, irritation clear in his voice. "Your ring's drained, mine's running on fumes, and Fireclaw's useless." The human felt the glare from both Sinestro and Fireclaw, and he'd heard a dismissive chuff from the cat. "Can't fly," he continues. "No force fields. And we're being chased by a tribe of space monks, who in reality are a legion of lunatics."

       "The tribe tried to brainwash me." Sinestro focuses on, instead of the insult the human threw at Fireclaw. Hal's finally removed his hand from Sinestro's shoulder, and the human is the first to walk out onto the log ahead. Sinestro follows as Hal explains what happened, and the Korugarian glances back a moment to make sure Fireclaw is able to keep up. He notices the cat's ears are low, as is his head, glaring at the ground. Sinestro swore he saw tears in the Levanixian's eyes, which he in all honesty was not surprised to see. Not after what Jordan had said.

       "They did brainwash you, Sinestro." Hal tells Sinestro as he crosses the ravine. "Or the indigo ring managed to. But with the lantern shattered, you're off-line like the rest of them." Lightning cracks across the sky as rain begins to pour down, and Jordan can hear the frightened mrrow and the following agitated hiss from Fireclaw in response to the weather. The human gets the sense that Sinestro is no longer following, and as he turns around he sees that Sinestro has turned to face the offline lanterns, and Fireclaw is lingering beside him, also turning to face them.

       Angered, offended, Sinestro turns and faces the indigo tribe. If looks could kill, Sinestro would not need his ring at the moment. "Rings or no rings, they are as good as dead." Sinestro starts, voice cold. "Sinestro does not forget." Lightning cracks across the sky again as Sinestro raises his ring to the tribe. "Sinestro does not forgive." The Korugarian manages to get his ring to work, the green light blazing to weakened life. In front of him, crouched down, fur soaking wet, tail flicking in agitation and aggression, Fireclaw gives voice to a low growl. But then he hears Jordan call out above the rain and thunder, and he feels a construct form around him.

       "Come on, tough guy. You can mouth off about how badass you are after we've got these freaks back under their indigo spell." Hal had cast a simple construct around Sinestro; a harness on a leash. The human reasoned, if Sinestro planned to act like a child or an untrained animal, lashing out despite the clear insane disadvantage, he'll treat him like one. Despite Sinestro's angered protest of "Stop! Release me, Jordan!" Hal pulled on the construct.

       Angered himself now, Hal leans back as he pulls on the construct, trying to pull Sinestro out of the fight he'd surely lose. "Do you want me to get you off this planet or not?" He snaps, and Sinestro shoots back an "I don't need your help." With a strong, firm yank on the leash in his burst of anger, alongside yelling "You don't need my help?!" Hal sends Sinestro flying backwards above him, into the forest behind them all.

       Jordan turns to face Sinestro as Fireclaw dashes past the human to get on solid ground and away from the indigo tribe. "Then why the hell did you give me this ring in the first place?!" Hal all but screams at Sinestro, who now lay on his back in the remains of a tree he'd been so harshly thrown into. "If you don't need help, why the hell is he here?!" Jordan now points at Fireclaw, dragging the already irritated cat into a fight that did not fully concern him. "He's more at risk of being killed out here than we are! He's untrained, too [fucking] scared to wield the ring, and he's too much like you for his own damn good!" Much to Jordan's already extreme irritation, his dying ring censors him, unable to translate one of his curses.

       Sinestro lays where he landed, even though he was in pain, and takes whatever Hal yells at him. The Korugarian feels anger rise inside him as Hal brings Fireclaw into the fight, and a glance at the tomcat tells Sinestro all he needs to know about how the feline feels about the situation. The Korugarian feels guilt replace that anger he felt, and as Hal walks away, Sinestro begins to pick himself up off the ground. As Sinestro gets ready to stand up, Fireclaw approaches. Closer, able to get a better look, the Korugarian can see the pain in Fireclaw's eyes, the tears in his eyes that blend into the rain that soaks his fur.

       He looks near broken, and for a moment Sinestro regrets his decision to give Fireclaw a ring. He's made so many mistakes in Fireclaw's training that he had never made with any other protégé he's had, and the new lantern had gained unnecessary scars because of it, both mental and physical. Gently, Sinestro puts a reassuring hand on the side of Fireclaw's face, gently scratching behind the tom's ear before standing up as Hal creates a new construct.

       "I was ready to get my life back together. I was ready to let the ring go." Hal rants as he drives the construct jeep through the forest, Sinestro riding shotgun and Fireclaw hidden from the two in the back seat, forepaws covering his ears in an attempt to avoid the fighting and try and get control over his emotions. "But you just had to pull me into your damn mess! And now that I know the guardians are about to dismantle the corps for reasons I'm guessing aren't benevolent, I have to put my life on hold all over again."

       The Korugarian sits and listens as Jordan yells at him, not phased by his words in the slightest. He's used to it by now, if he were to be honest. But, what did bother him was the unsteady breathing coming from the back seat. He couldn't quite tell if it was crying or anger, or both. "You are a Green Lantern, Jordan," Sinestro starts. "This is your life." And, as he expected, his answer, though true, agitates Hal.

       "You're going to that old trope?" Sinestro hears Hal ask, and Sinestro turns his head to look at the human. "Because I'm right."

       "You're always right, huh?" Hal asks, looking at Sinestro instead of the path in front of him. The next line of events were a blur for the human, as he noticed a low growl from the back seat rise in volume while Sinestro spoke. Fireclaw finally broke and gave a loud, angered roar of "Enough!" as he quickly rose from the back seat, eyes clearly irritated from crying. "I'm sick of hearing you two-" Hal heard Fireclaw start, looking at the Levanixian in shock before Sinestro's startled "Look out!" had caught his attention.

       Hal dismissed the construct, sending the three lanterns tumbling to the ground. But just as quickly as he had dismissed the jeep, he created a cage construct around who he'd almost hit. "Natromo!" Hal called, and the indigo light's keeper grabbed the bars of the cage. "Let me be! I want to say goodbye to my family!" The keeper begged, and Hal gently set the cage on the ground and slowly dismissed it. As Sinestro strode over with anger and Fireclaw picked himself up off the ground, Hal and Natromo went back and forth.

       "Stop panicking!" Hal told the keeper. "We need to piece that lantern back together and get these maniacs under control!"

       Natromo shook his head. "With Abin Sur dead, there's no reason to. All is lost! The guardians of the universe will destroy us all! It is time for prayers and whipshaw feasts!"

       Interrupting the two, irritated, Sinestro harshly grabbed the back of Natromo's neck, holding a sharpened broken stick to the light keeper's neck. "Enough whining." Sinestro growled. "Repair the lantern or die."

       "What the hell are you doing?! Let him go!" Hal yells at Sinestro, and the Korugarian calmly and coldly replies "We have no time. I can hear them coming. He'll live if he agrees to fix the lantern." Fireclaw shakes the rain from his fur before approaching the situation before him. "I can hear them too, but-"

       Hal cuts Fireclaw off, angered. "You think threatening Natromo is going to work, Sinestro?! He already thinks this is the end! Fear isn't the answer, you're not right this time." Hal tells Sinestro, and Fireclaw growls with a lash of his tail and a glare at Hal. The cat's attention is back on Sinestro, and his voice is more stern than he intended as he speaks. "If he doesn't agree to fix the lantern and you kill him, there isn't anyone else here who can fix the lantern, so we'll be stuck here fighting for our lives." The Levanixian tries to reason, appealing more to logic and the future consequences of an action than trying to be right about something like Hal is. "He's extremely useful to us, we need him. We can't kill him."

Sinestro stands still, sharpened stick still held to Natromo's throat for a moment longer, gaze drifting between Hal and Fireclaw. He sighs as his eyes land on Fireclaw again, and the Korugarian drops the makeshift weapon and sets Natromo down with a defeated "Okay."

       Sinestro can see Fireclaw relax, but knows the Levanixian will tense up again as the Korugarian turns and looks into the surrounding forest. "Okay?" Sinestro hears Hal ask, genuine surprise and confusion in his voice. "You're not just saying that, are you?"

       "Just do whatever you're going to do, Jordan!" Sinestro says simply, moving deeper into the forest. He hears steps behind him, light and almost soundless on the soaked forest floor. He knows Fireclaw is now following him. "I'll go hold them off!" Sinestro calls back to Hal, and Sinestro hears Hal shout back at him "With a powerless ring?!"

       "It's what you would do," Sinestro says to himself, eyes scanning the forest. He catches sight of a pair of green glowing eyes in the surrounding brush, and as they disappear he spots vibrant orange fur that quickly cuts to black. He'd remembered to turn his suit black.

       As Sinestro moves to strike from the front, Fireclaw had turned the green of his suit black like he had learned on Korugar and stalked through the brush, positioning himself to strike the offline lanterns from behind. The Levanixian only leapt out from hiding when Sinestro did. And while Sinestro had announced his attack with "It's been a while since I had a real fight. Please don't disappoint me." Fireclaw kept silent, only giving voice to a vicious growl as he landed on one of the indigo tribe members and had sunk his claws into their flesh.

       This fight had definitely gone way better than the one on Korugar, ring or no ring. Fireclaw held his own better than before, and during his time working with Sinestro, he'd learned to judge when the Korugarian needed help and when he didn't. The Levanixian swapped between fighting styles he'd learned at random, keeping his foes on edge and uncertain what the feline would do next. Sometimes, he'd use moves he'd learned by watching Sinestro, or learned from him directly. Other times, he'd fight like himself, using his claws and his teeth instead of throwing punches or striking with his elbow.

       "Now it's a fight! Come on!" Fireclaw heard Sinestro taunt. Curious and checking in, Fireclaw turned to look at Sinestro just in time to see him give the creature that had its tentacles wrapped around his neck a solid punch to their face. From there on, the fight seemed to go just as well as before, until Fireclaw was pinned down. As long as Sinestro still stood, he would be fine. That's what the Levanixian told himself, and he believed it. That was, until he heard Sinestro grunt and heard a rough thump on the ground. Panicked, Fireclaw looks, and in terror watches as one of the indigo tribe members raises a boulder above his head, eyes locked on Sinestro.

       The tomcat gave voice to a furious yowl, growling and snarling as he thrashed about in an attempt to free himself so he could free Sinestro. Though, just as quickly as the fight had started, it ended in an indigo flash. Fireclaw froze, eyes wide as he watched the indigo tribe come online again, hearing their rings ding and a quiet voice from each one, overlapping each other, listing the lantern's name and status. The one Fireclaw locked on to and was able to pick out of the crowd was-

       THAAL SINESTRO ON-LINE.

       Fireclaw feels the now online indigo tribe members release him, and, chest heaving, backs away, paws scrambling on the soaked ground. His previous confidence is gone now that the fight's over and Sinestro is once again no longer himself. As Sinestro approaches him, eyes glossed over and reading emotionless to the tom, Fireclaw backs away and slightly shakes his head. Sinestro simply stops in his tracks and stares a moment, unblinking, at Fireclaw before indigo light consumes them all.

       Fireclaw's mind is swimming when he lands on solid ground again, somewhere dry. Once the world has settled for him, he stands and shakes the rain from his fur and suit, cutting off Hal and promptly getting yelled at for it.

       "Oh, come on!" Hal yells, both at Fireclaw and Sinestro. The human fully shifts his focus onto the tribe, dismissing the clearly worn out and now cold Levanixian who is now sitting pitifully on the floor. "Let Sinestro go!" Jordan tells the tribe. "If you have any sense of the mission Abin Sur really created you for, you'll let him go!" he continues, then turns. "Natromo?"

       The keeper of the indigo light shakes his head. "I cannot release him." He tells Jordan. "Only they can." And to that, Hal sighs and turns back to the tribe.

       "I know it's crazy, but you need to let Sinestro loose. I need him to find out what the guardians' next move is." The human tells Iroque, Indigo-1.

       "We will release him if you give us your word that he can find redemption without one of our rings." Iroque replies, prompting a "What?" from Hal and Fireclaw to raise his head and look at the tribe. "It's a simple question, Green Lantern," the indigo lantern starts. "Do you believe Sinestro is capable of becoming a hero again?"

       Hal lowers his gaze to the ground for a moment, thinking, while Fireclaw stands and silently approaches the tribe again. As Hal raises his head, looks to Sinestro, and says "I want to believe it." Fireclaw follows quickly up with a hoarse "He already is."

       Fireclaw's words got a curious look from Iroque and a stunned look from Jordan. "What do you mean "He already is," Fireclaw?!" Hal yells, more in shock than anger. The ginger Levanixian ignores the human for now, as Iroque gives a curious tilt of her head. "Elaborate." was her simple, rather gentle but still authoritative command.

       Fireclaw raised his head as he took a deep breath, trying to get a little confidence. "Ever since I met Sinestro, all he's done is help me-'' Hal shakes his head and can't help a small laugh with a hushed "You've gotta be kidding me." To which Fireclaw snaps his attention from Iroque to Jordan. His voice is firm, cold when he speaks. "Something on your mind, Jordan?"

       "You're joking." The human simply starts. "Sinestro doesn't care about us, he's using us. Or, he's at least using you." Fireclaw stares blankly at Hal while the human talks, the end of the Levanixian's tail flicking back and forth in agitation, giving away his true feelings. "He's playing you for all you're worth."

       Fireclaw remains silent for a moment, breath slightly shaking. Iroque remains silent, watching the ensuing argument and paying attention to every word said by the two green lanterns. When finally Fireclaw speaks, his quiet yet angered tone surprises her.

       "If Sinestro didn't care," he starts, ears turning to lay flat against his head, his back slightly arching, and tail lashing at times. Clear signs of aggression. "He wouldn't have given me a ring." Fireclaw steps forward, starting to slowly approach and circle around Hal. "If Sinestro didn't care, he wouldn't be training me." The cat's approach makes Jordan take a step back. "If Sinestro didn't care, I wouldn't be here right now! The fight with the Indigo Tribe while they were offline would've killed me- the fight with the Sinestro Corps on Korugar would've killed me if Sinestro didn't step in and get me back in the fight!"

       "You shouldn't have been in those fights in the first place!" Hal yells. "You shouldn't have a ring! You don't have what it takes to be a Green Lantern!" That made Fireclaw back off a step, pain clear in the tom's eyes. Though, Hal didn't relent. "How many times have you gotten hurt because of it?! Because of a situation that heartless monster put you in?!"

       Angered, tears welling up in his eyes, Fireclaw snaps. "I would rather face death a thousand times over than never have had a ring!" the Levanixian roars, tears soaking into his already damp fur. "You sound just like my mother, saying I can't do something that I can clearly do! That I don't have what it takes when I do! That I shouldn't get into fights that I have the skill, or can learn the skill, to survive and win!" His tail lashes, his breath shakes. "If Sinestro was a "heartless monster" like you claim, he wouldn't have shown any concern about Korugar! He rushed into a fight, threw his own plan out the window, all because someone he cared about was in danger! He wouldn't have shown any concern about me, either! And he wouldn't have listened to us about Natromo!"

       Fireclaw turns and relaxes his posture as he turns to Iroque, ears low as he looks up. His voice shakes as he speaks. "I don't know what Sinestro has done in the past to warrant any of this, he's definitely not compassionless to me," he starts, dismissing Hal's muttering behind him. "But to me, it seems like he's trying to make up for whatever he's done. He's already a hero for me; it's a start of what you want, isn't it?"

       Iroque stares a moment, thinking, before nodding.

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

       It's a quick teleportation back to the Indigo base, and the cleansing process didn't take as long as Hal thought. Though, the fight about who would control the on/off switch for Fireclaw's ring took a while. Ultimately, Natromo gave control of Fireclaw's ring to Sinestro while she was reprogramming the rings and changing the hierarchy. While the indigo light was being removed from Sinestro's system, Iroque had Fireclaw taken to be dried off and warmed up before he caught his death. When he joins Jordan and Sinestro, the Korugarian is dazed but wearing green again.

       "What... What happened?" Fireclaw hears Sinestro ask, and the tom picks up a brisk trot towards the two green lanterns as Hal explains. "The Indigo Tribe's released you into my custody." The human tells Sinestro, and Sinestro echoes "Your custody?" with a slightly confused tone. "They refueled our rings," Hal continued. "And Natromo, the Indigo Guardian, helped change the bond between mine and yours."

       As Sinestro asked what that meant, taking a slightly defensive posture, Fireclaw slowed down to a stop as Hal explained. "It means the ring you constructed for me does whatever I will it now." Hal raised his ring, bright, strong green light flaring up from it. Hal saw Sinestro glance to the side, a glance to Fireclaw who stood frozen with wide eyes as Hal shot at Sinestro with a simple "Including affecting you."

       Sinestro hit the ground with a pained grunt, rolling over before settling. Slowly, he picked himself up off the ground, wiping blood from a cut on his lip with his wrist as Jordan approached with a smile on his face and a clearly unapologetic "Sorry" and a "I wanted to make sure it worked."

       "Wanted to make sure it worked?" Fireclaw echoed, shock and anger in his voice and in his eyes. As Sinestro stood up, he'd given Fireclaw an order. Fireclaw ignored what Sinestro told him to do, opting instead to throw himself at Hal with an angered yowl.

       Quickly, Sinestro intervened. "Fireclaw! Jordan! That is enough!" The Korugarian yelled as he gripped Hal's arm in one hand and the scruff of Fireclaw's neck in the other, pulling the two apart and separating them. He roughly pushed Hal away and tossed Fireclaw away from him, making the Levanixian land with his back to the two green lanterns. Though quickly, Sinestro watched as Fireclaw turned to face Hal again. "Drop it, Fireclaw." Sinestro ordered. "This can be dealt with later. There's a glaring problem before us."

       "You mean besides-" Fireclaw started, but fell silent when Sinestro snapped a firm "Later" at him. "Jordan," The Korugarian started, shifting his focus. "Where's Black Hand?"

       "He was here." Jordan says, and Sinestro crosses his arms, looking down at the dark colored splatters on the rock. "And now he's not." He sighs and shakes his head before speaking again. "You idiot." Sinestro starts. "Why worry about me when Black Hand was still out there? I could've gotten free from the indigo ring myself. My will would have eventually broken through." The Korugarian continues, looking at Jordan. Beside Sinestro, Fireclaw stands on all four paws, back arched, fur standing on end, and ears low, looking down at the splattered liquid on the ground. He's shifting from paw to paw, clearly frightened by the sight before him.

       "No one can keep me--" Sinestro starts, but is cut off by Hal's "This isn't about you, Sinestro."

       The Korugarian watched as Jordan looked up, explaining that "There's only one way Black Hand could get down here if his ring was offline. He jumped." Sinestro felt Fireclaw lightly bump into his leg, likely by accident, and Sinestro lowered a hand to gently tap the Levanixian's shoulder to get his attention. "Relax, we've faced Black Hand before." He whispers to the tom before turning his attention back to Jordan. "So Black Hand would rather die than be enslaved like this tribe." Sinestro says, and Hal crouches down as he shakes his head.

       "I'm not sure dying was the end game." Hal tells Sinestro, investigating the splatters on the ground. "This isn't all blood. This is the same slime that made up the black lanterns." Jordan stands, and then looks at Fireclaw. "You did say you would rather face death than never have had that ring, didn't you?"

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       "Thanks for the lift, Indigo." Hal says as the four lanterns settle on Korugar, Fireclaw already looking around.

       "My tribe will finish forging the rings alongside Natromo. We will wait for your command." Iroque tells the Green Lanterns, and Sinestro rolls his eyes when he hears Hal and Iroque's next words.

       "Let's hope your indigo rings do some magic when we slip them on their little blue fingers." The human tells the indigo lantern.

       "The ring changed me, Green Lantern," Iroque starts. "And if I can be changed, if a child killer can now feel things even without the indigo ring, then the guardians can be saved."

       "Please." Sinestro starts, cold. "The guardians are beyond saving."

       "That is what we believe about you," Iroque starts, and notices that protective, challenging look in Fireclaw's eyes as he glares at her from where he stood behind Sinestro, ears pricked forward and head low. "You are fortunate that Topaz Fireclaw and Hal Jordan believe something else." she continues, glancing behind Sinestro at Fireclaw, seeing how he relaxed slightly. "Do not waste this opportunity. Or we shall return."

       "If you try this again," Sinestro starts, tone dangerous. "I will kill every single member of your tribe without hesitation." It wasn't just a threat, it wasn't just a warning, it was a promise, and Sinestro intended to follow through with it if the time came.

       "When that time comes... It will be an interesting battle." Iroque agrees with a nod as she prepares a teleport. "Nok."

       "You shouldn't threaten Indigo or her tribe." Hal tells Sinestro as they walk through tunnels deep under Korugarian streets. Fireclaw follows behind, standing up on his hind legs for once, and simply listens as Sinestro and Hal go back and forth. "They're on our side."

       "Which is why they kidnapped me?" Sinestro asks with a raise of a brow.

       Hal rolls his eyes. "Okay, my side."

       "So you want me as brainwashed as them?" Sinestro asks, giving Hal a questioning glance.

       "If I did, I would've left you on Nok. They asked me if you--" Sinestro was quick to cut Hal off with a dismissive wave of his hand.

       "I don't need to hear it and I don't want to hear it, Jordan." Sinestro dismisses. "My threat stands. And if we ever get in a situation like this again, you worry about me second and Black Hand first." Sinestro pauses a moment, and looks back over his shoulder out of the corner of his eye. "Both of you."

       "Have you ever said "Thank you?"" Hal asks, so which Sinestro calmly replies with a serious tone; "There is no translation of that on Korugar." It causes Hal to pause a moment, before smiling. "Did you just make a joke? You did, didn't you?"

       "Take a guess." Came Sinestro's reply, calm yet with a tone of being completely done. This got a small laugh and a smile out of Fireclaw.

       After a few minutes of traveling in silence, Hal finally asks; "So, why are we moving through the sewers?"

       "Because we need to stay out of sight." Sinestro explains. "Korugar deserves some peace after what I put everyone through. They see me... They could assume the worst." He continues. "But the worst is yet to come." Sinestro could tell Fireclaw had become curious, feeling the Levanixian's presence beside him instead of far behind him.

       "The guardians have decided to discard the Green Lantern Corps like they did the Manhunters. And they'll destroy us all. Unless we destroy them first." The Korugarian knew Fireclaw had questions, and signaled to the Levanixian that he'll talk to him about everything later with a simple hand gesture while Hal started talking.

       "Ganthet's a shining example of the potential the guardians have." Hal pointed out. "If one of them can be something other than a cold, unfeeling dwarf, then they all can."

       "You believe there's something good in them?" Sinestro asked, a curious tilt of his head.

       "In everyone, Sinestro." Hal agrees.

       "Even Black Hand?" Sinestro challenges, making Hal pause with a "Well..."

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       As the three lanterns approached a door, Fireclaw pinned his ears at Hal and stepped in front of him, between him and Sinestro, glaring at the human while Sinestro unlocked the door. No longer forced to walk on two legs, Fireclaw dropped down onto all four paws as he stepped onto dry ground and started down the stairs, head right by Sinestro's side.

       "The last time Black Hand rose from the dead, he was a herald to the living embodiment of nothingness-- Nekron." Sinestro explained, really more for Fireclaw than Hal. "He could be on a mission to bring Nekron back. Or worse, a mission we know nothing about. Black Hand's as great a threat as the guardians themselves. And now, because of-" Sinestro was cut off by an angered and clearly pained yowl from Fireclaw, stopping and turning to watch as Fireclaw lashed out at Jordan. Claws unsheathed, teeth bared, ears pinned, fur standing on end. "Fireclaw." Sinestro starts, and it's more an order than a way to get the cat's attention.

       "He stepped on my tail." Fireclaw growls as he returns to Sinestro's side, glaring back at Hal. Sinestro sighs.

       "Walk ahead of me." he tells Fireclaw, and Fireclaw listens to Sinestro's order. He even ignores Jordan's "Hey! It's not my fault he didn't pick up his tail!" because Sinestro promptly responds with "It's not that hard to watch where you're going, Jordan."

       As the trio reaches the bottom of the stairs, and Sinestro had finished explaining where he'd put the Book of The Black, Fireclaw hears Hal ask; "So this is your Batcave?" What the fuck was a Batcave?

       "How big is this place?" Hal asks, and Sinestro replies quickly. Fireclaw is too busy looking around to pay much attention to the conversation Hal and Sinestro are having, in awe of everything Sinestro has in this place. Two power batteries catch his eye, one yellow and one green. He lingers a moment, glancing at the picture that hung behind the power batteries, ears lowering.

       It was of Sinestro and someone Fireclaw didn't recognize. The Levanixian quickly turned to catch up to Sinestro, nearly running into Hal on the way. Though, the tomcat gave a swift kick with a hind paw to the human's shin as he passed, cutting Hal off just as he began to pry into Sinestro's past.

       "Ow!" Hal snapped, stumbling and glaring at the cat. "What was that for?!" Jordan glared at Sinestro when the Korugarian had turned to see what the commotion was, only to find Fireclaw looking rather annoyed and Hal standing on one leg while he rubbed the other.

       "We're not entitled to his past." Fireclaw says, turning back to look at Hal, and the human growls as he lowers his slightly aching leg back to the ground.

       "It's a harmless question," Hal defends as Fireclaw turns to carry on walking, following Sinestro. "I should step on your tail again for that."

       Both Fireclaw and Sinestro pause, and both turn around at the same time, though with different expressions. "So it was on purpose!" Fireclaw snaps, rage clear on his face, while Sinestro remains silent and stunned, eyes wide. As Fireclaw moves to stalk around Hal, Sinestro moves to properly face the two lanterns, hands behind his back. He'll surely step in if this fight gets too ugly, but he's confident it won't.

       "Yeah, it was," Hal agrees with hostility. "What are you going to do? Kick me like you kicked me for asking a harmless-"

       Fireclaw cut Jordan off quickly, repeating what he'd said earlier; "We are not entitled to Sinestro's past!" The Levanixian changes the direction he was stalking around Hal quickly, a way for him to control his frustration.

       "You were looking at the picture too! Surely you wanted to ask-" Fireclaw again cut Jordan off mid sentence, tail lashing as he yelled "It doesn't matter if I looked at the picture or not! That has nothing to do with my point! Neither of us are entitled to know anything about Sinestro's past! Even if we ask! I never asked you about that construct you made on Korugar, because even if I was curious, it wasn't my [cazzo] business!" Fireclaw looks down at his ring, offended, as if it had made the same offense as Hal had. Though his attention was quickly back on Hal as the human laughed, for once witnessing someone besides himself or Guy being hit with the ring's censor.

       "Shut up!" Fireclaw snapped. "Ever since the fight with the Sinestro Corps, you've been nothing but an asshole to me! And not once have I ever seen you show any sort of kindness towards Sinestro, even though he's busting his ass trying to do right by you and that ring he wears!"

       "Oh, you mean the same fight where you refused to help me try and break out of the holding cell?!" Hal snaps back. "And by busting his ass you mean threatening Indigo and her tribe?! Threatening Natromo?!" Fireclaw has a low growl in his chest now, lips twitching. Sinestro can tell, Hal's pushing his luck here. "Yeah, he's doing real good by me." Jordan's voice was heavy with sarcasm.

       "Oh, you mean the same cell I was thrown into after being branded?! The same cell an experienced Green Lantern couldn't break out of?!" Fireclaw mocked, stepping towards Hal. "What the hell would me wasting power and putting myself in more pain have done to break us out if even you couldn't dent the door alone?!" Hal had opened his mouth to speak, but Fireclaw quickly cut him off. "Nothing! It would've done nothing! My back felt like it was on fire, I was in excruciating pain, and you expect me to still stand up and help you break down a door when it was my first time with any ring?!" Silence falls for a moment, Sinestro can see Fireclaw shaking, holding back. Though, the Korugarian knew that this verbal fight would turn physical very soon. It's just how fights with Hal Jordan went, in his experience.

       When Fireclaw next spoke, his voice shook. "Sinestro's threat to Natromo was wrong, I agree. And it scared me, as stupid as it sounds for a [fottuta] Green Lantern to feel fear- because I was told we aren't supposed to feel fear!" Fireclaw's voice and volume raises towards the end, tears welling up in his eyes, blurring his vision slightly. "Sinestro's threat to Indigo and her tribe is justified! They tortured him!"

       Again, Hal opened his mouth to speak just after Fireclaw took a breath, but Fireclaw cut him off. "Don't you dare tell me they didn't, because they did! I heard it! I [cazzo] heard his screams! -And don't you dare say I didn't because I know what I heard! If I were put through the same shit Sinestro was put through, I'd make the same threat!"

       "Then you don't deserve that ring, real or a duplicate." Hal says simply. "You're so much like Sinestro it's not funny."

       "I'd rather be like Sinestro than like you!" Fireclaw snaps, tears finally falling down his face. "If you're the kind of person the Green Lantern Corps prefers, I don't want a real ring! I don't want any part of it!" Fireclaw turns away from Hal and walks, trying to find some sort of relief for a moment because he doesn't really want to get into a physical fight with Hal Jordan. But he turns to face the human, rage still present, and continues. "You're so much like my mother it's not funny!" Fireclaw mocks Hal again. "Always telling me I'm wrong, telling me I don't know what I'm talking about, that I don't know what I'm doing- I feel like if I breathe wrong you'll get pissed off and yell at me for it!"

       "You don't know what you're doing, and you don't know what you're talking about," Hal agrees. "You have no idea how to u-"

       "Don't. You. Dare-" The Levanixian's aura flares to life around him, green light sparking from his ring and flecking off his back as if it were a fire. "-Say I don't know how to use this ring!" Fireclaw snarls.

       Watching the conflict, Sinestro thought Fireclaw would be the first to strike, being the one of the two that was the most visibly upset and ready to battle, but it was Hal. The human summoned a construct in response to Fireclaw's aura, starting the physical part of the fight. He'd created some sort of rocket, which Fireclaw had created a construct around his tail ending in a blade of some sort to counter. The Korugarian watched as the feline leapt, using the blade to slice cleanly through Jordan's constructs. If Sinestro had any place to get involved in this fight, this is where he would praise Fireclaw's strength.

       "I'll show you I know how to use this ring!" Sinestro hears Fireclaw mutter as the tomcat summons what seems to be his signature construct; a protective construct around his forepaws with added longer claws. He uses them to protect himself as he approaches Jordan, the experienced lantern having summoned some sort of earthen weapon. And Fireclaw uses his construct to protect himself still as he grabs onto Jordan's construct with one hand, and draws the other back. At first, it looked like Fireclaw planned to use his claws to deal damage, but last second closed his hand and threw what would have been a strong punch at Jordan, had the human not stepped to the side while throwing a net construct over Fireclaw and pushing the cat forward to tumble to the ground.

       Fireclaw struggles, getting his claws stuck in the net. For a beat he panics, and his eyes meet Sinestro's. He could see something clicked in the tom's head, and back to fighting the cat went. Though, this time Sinestro, and even Hal, could tell there's a plan behind Fireclaw's struggling. With his forepaws trapped, Fireclaw uses his hind claws to hook into the net, intentionally tangling them up as well. But, close to his forepaws.

       With the determination not to lose this fight fueling his willpower, thus fueling his strength, Fireclaw pushes against the net with his hind paws, while pulling against that pressure with his forepaws. After the first few threads break, the rest of the construct collapses and Fireclaw is quick to stand to his full height. ...Which, compared to Hal and Sinestro isn't intimidating at all, but Sinestro does have to admit that the look suits Fireclaw. The confidence, the determination. One day, with enough training, he's sure that Fireclaw will always have some strong level of confidence and determination like he has now.

       Sinestro continued to watch silently as the two clashed again and again, Fireclaw using every trick he knew as he fought, and Sinestro noticed new tricks that he hadn't taught Fireclaw show up. He also noticed that Fireclaw began to use Jordan's own tricks against him. It was when the two lanterns had hit the ground at the same time, after both had sent attacks at each other and struck, that Sinestro knew the fight was over. He just had to see who willed themselves to stand first for him to personally decide the winner. Surprisingly, both had actually remained on the floor a few moments, chests heaving.

       Hal was the first to try to stand, rolling over and getting up onto his knees with a pained groan. Fireclaw was quick to follow, clearly taking it as a challenge. Though, while the Levanixian's will was strong, he'd exhausted himself. Jordan was the first to stand.

       "I believe the two of you are done." Sinestro says as he walks to Fireclaw, offering a hand to help the Levanixian up. A moment longer of catching his breath, Fireclaw accepts Sinestro's offer, and the Korugarian pulls the cat to his feet. "For your first real fight against Hal Jordan of all lanterns, you did very well." Sinestro whispers to the Levanixian after turning his back to Hal. He gently pats Fireclaw's shoulder before continuing on with their prior mission, getting Jordan refocused on it with a simple "You wanted the Book of The Black, Jordan?" To which Hal quickly said yes.

       Sinestro left Fireclaw standing there, stunned, and as Hal passed the shocked feline he gave one last taunt; "Sure, you fight well, but you'll never truly be a Green Lantern."

[ghost-in-the-corner]

Ok so I've finally finished Burning Shores and have decided to play through it all again from the beginning for fic purposes

And god damn? Aloy has changed so much since the Proving. First thing I noticed was that her hair was so much shorter, and also her voice was higher (Ashly ilysm). But also it's weird for me to reconcile the fact that she starts out never having spoken to more than 10 people and with a year she's saving the world.