#it's where the idea for shutdown came from anyway

[ataliagold]

the edges of your soul i haven't seen yet

This came from wanting to expand on the ideas in 'you're the only one who knows, you slow it down', but consider this a new fic with very similar ideas. I'm not sure how long it'll be yet, but here's the first chapter. Title from Forever by Noah Kahan.

Also on AO3 here.

Pairing: Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson

Rating: T (currently)

Tags: modern au, no upside down, autistic steve, steve has a service cat, eddie and steve fall in love while working at a farmers' market, stimming, autistic meltdowns/shutdowns/stimming, platonic soulmates steve and robin, eddie is a sweetheart

Summary: Eddie's reluctantly helping Wayne with his produce stall at the farmers' market. He's resigned himself to a boring summer - until a new face shows up at the market to run a baking stall with his best friend. Steve is...odd, like no one Eddie's ever met.

And it doesn't take him long to fall head over heels for him.

___

Chapter One

Eddie isn’t particularly enjoying his morning.

Not yet, anyway.

He grunts as Wayne loads another box into his arms, adjusting his footing under the weight of the produce, of apples and pears, oranges and grapefruit, of avocados and sweet potatoes and carrots and lettuces…

“Right, that’s the last of it,” Wayne announces, dusting his hands off and locking his pick-up behind him.

“Thank fuck,” Eddie grumbles. He makes his way towards their stall, cursing as he trips a little and loses an apple or two. There’s sweat dripping down his spine already, this summer proving to be particularly hot and humid even at eight fucking thirty a.m.

But Eddie had promised Wayne he’d help him out at the farmers’ market this weekend, since he had nothing better on, since his friends had actually gotten in to colleges and were busy getting ready to move away, since Eddie had been sort of…left behind, with nothing to do but trail after his uncle like a bad smell.

He does as he’s told. Sets the boxes down where Wayne points, helps him set the produce out, puts the little cardboard signs with the prices scribbled on them at the front of the table.

Once that’s finished, Eddie sinks into a plastic camp chair with a sigh, reaching for an apple and loudly crunching into it, ignoring the half-hearted glare Wayne shoots back at him.

There’s only a couple of people here this early – mostly other stall-holders setting up, the occasional dog-walker taking a non-committal glance at the wares, an old lady or two with purses clutched close to their middles.

It’s gonna be a boring morning.

Eddie chucks his headphones on, cranks the music as loud as he’ll get away with, and settles in for several hours of withering in the heat and making sure no one pockets an extra pear.

Eventually, his gaze wanders.

Wayne’s talking to a customer, something about the growing season for oranges or some shit, when Eddie claps eyes on the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen.

He sits up. Swallows, stares because he can’t help it.

There’s a literal god unfolding a table not far away, placing a thin yellow blanket on the top, smoothing it out just so. He’s about Eddie’s age, all olive skin dotted with moles and broad shoulders and golden hair that’s fallen effortlessly into place. Glasses frame his face, his perfect fucking face with those pink lips and square jaw, and even from here Eddie can see the look of concentration on the boy’s face, his brows slightly drawn together as he tucks the blanket in at the corners, as he readjusts several times to make sure it’s completely straight on the table.

A light smack to his knee jolts Eddie out of his daze, forces him to drag his gaze reluctantly back to Wayne. Wayne, who’s frowning at him, shaking his head.

“Turn your damn music down, Eds,” Wayne huffs, “need ya to dig me out some change.”

Eddie doesn’t argue. Lets Wayne believe he was distracted by his music, not by the boy several stalls over.

He rifles through their tin of change, picking out a few quarters, and then sneaks a look back again.

The boy’s bent over the table, light-wash jeans pulled tight across his ass, and Eddie’s pretty sure he’s openly gaping at the guy right now but he can’t fucking help it. It’s a baking stall, by the look of the cupcakes and cookies the boy’s currently placing out on the table, tongue poking ever so slightly out of his mouth as he works. The boy pauses for a moment in front of the table, as if assessing his wares for anything out of place.

“Eddie!” Wayne says again, exasperated. “You got that change, or what?”

Eddie snaps his mouth shut. Turns back to Wayne, hands him the change which his uncle takes with a shake of his head. Once the customer has left with a paper bag of carrots in hand, Eddie makes a decision.

“You want a cookie?” he asks Wayne.

“Huh?”

“A cookie,” Eddie repeats, slowly.

Wayne looks down at his watch. “It’s barely gone nine a.m.”

“So? I’m getting one. You want one, or not?”

After Wayne declines, Eddie heads off with a shrug, making straight for the tall boy still frowning down at his baking, thumb drawing anxious patterns on his index finger.

As he approaches, Eddie’s words die in his throat.

He’d planned on flirting. Was ready to try and charm the pants right off this boy, as quickly as he decently could.

But the closer he got, the more the butterflies began in his stomach.

Because somehow, he only got more attractive with every step Eddie took.

And yeah, he wasn’t usually one for ironed polos and blue jeans and bright white Nikes that looked meticulously clean, but Eddie’s cheeks were reddening and his heart was pounding when he reached the stall.

The boy didn’t turn around at his approach.

Not until Eddie clears his throat a little awkwardly, hand brushing over the back of his neck. Sheepish. Shy. Two things he’s never been in his whole fucking life.

“Uh…hi,” Eddie starts.

The boy’s eyes widen behind his glasses. His hands grasp each other, almost frantically, and his gaze darts from Eddie, to the table, to somewhere off behind him. He opens his mouth briefly, but closes it again without speaking.

Huh, Eddie thinks.

Well, maybe the guy’s even shyer than he is right now.

Eddie tries again. “I saw you setting up, looks good. The…the baking, I mean, not���not you setting up. Well, that too, honestly, but I thought…” Eddie trails off, internally kicking himself.

You fucking idiot, Munson.

The boy blinks at him.

When he still doesn’t speak, Eddie shifts from foot to foot a little, then finally steps over to the table.

“Well, I’m just gonna have a look, if that’s ok?”

The boy nods. Quick, his head jerking a little, the movement stiff and awkward.

Eddie feels his eyes boring into his back as he scans the table. There’s cupcakes with piped-on frosting in several different patterns but all of them yellow, matching the boy’s soft polo that was clinging unfairly to his chest. There’s slices of brownies, cookies of varying flavours, apple pie and cinnamon donuts and red velvet cake and shortbread…

“Did you make all of these?” Eddie asks, a little in awe.

Polo-boy nods, not meeting Eddie’s eye. He’s wringing his hands, clenching his jaw, repeatedly glancing over Eddie’s shoulder as if he’s looking for someone.

“Shit, that’s…there’s so much different stuff here, how long did it take you?” And Eddie’s genuinely curious, he’s not just talking for the sake of it, for the purpose of squeezing at least a word or two out of this guy. Because everything on that table was meticulous – the cookies perfectly round, the pie sliced into completely even pieces, not even a stray dribble of batter or frosting on the cupcake liners (also yellow, Eddie noted) – there’s so much effort gone into this, and Eddie’s impressed.

The boy wants to speak, it looks like.

Eddie waits while he opens and closes his mouth a few times, flapping a hand in front of him.

“Hey Stevie, everything ok?”

A girl wanders over with several cake boxes in her arms, glancing between Stevie and Eddie. She’s got short hair, a dusting of freckles across her face, and a yellow top on to match the boy in front of Eddie, who relaxes a tiny bit as soon as he sees her.

He nods, but doesn’t stop clenching his hands together over his stomach.

The girl puts the boxes down, and steps over to the boy.

“Hey, it’s ok,” she murmurs softly, “we talked about this, remember? You’re fine, just…take a breath, ok?”

Eddie turns away from them. Senses this isn’t a conversation meant for him, and brings his attention back to the table, pretending he’s just…really interested in cupcakes all of a sudden. But he’s only a couple of feet away, and the girl doesn’t seem to care that he can overhear.

“Has he asked to buy something?”

“No.”

It’s the first time Eddie’s heard the boy speak. His voice is quiet, not much above a whisper, but Eddie wants to hear more of it.

“He wanted to know how long it took me,” the boy continues, “to make everything.”

“Ok…so did you answer?”

“No. Wanted to.”

“Your words get stuck?”

“Mmm hmm.”

“Well, that’s ok. Here, I’ll help you.”

“Robin -”

“You gotta try, Stevie. You can do it, come on.”

Eddie turns back to them as Robin tows the guy – Stevie? – over by his sleeve.

“Hi.” She grins at Eddie, and the boy stands slightly behind her, looking down at his feet. “This is Steve, I’m Robin. It’s our first time at a market and Steve’s kinda nervous. Can we help you with anything?”

Eddie’s eyes flick back to Steve, to his red cheeks and long eyelashes. His heart thuds in his chest.

He smiles at them. “I’m Eddie, my uncles got a stall just over there.” He jabs his thumb over his shoulder. “We sell fruit and shit. This is really your first day? Your set up is…really nice.”

“Thanks.” Robin beams even wider. “It was all Steve really, he did all the baking too, I’m just here to help out.”

Eddie nods slowly. Steve’s still avoiding his eye, no matter how much Eddie tries to catch it.

Swallowing his disappointment, he points to one of the chocolate chip cookies on the table.

“Can I get one of those, please?”

Robin nods briskly. “Steve, can you sort that?” She nudges him slightly in the side, and Steve springs into action, seemingly happy to give his hands something to do as he grabs a paper bag and looks around the table for something.

He freezes suddenly.

Robin’s back at his side immediately.

“Everything ok?” she asks quietly.

He shakes his head, flaps a hand at the table, face drawn tight in a frown.

“Where’s the…” he mumbles, trailing off.

“The what?” Robin prompts.

Steve bites his bottom lip, hands finding his thighs and tugging at his jeans, frustrated. Seemingly unable to find the word, he brings a hand up to chest height and makes a little snapping motion with his fingers.

“…tongs?” Robin guesses, and Steve nods briskly. “Maybe we left them in the car? I’ll go have a look.”

“It’s fine, you can just use your fingers,” Eddie offers, because he truly couldn’t care less.

Steve shakes his head vehemently, face tightening even further.

“Or…I could grab it?” Eddie tries, but Steve shakes his head again, looking so distressed that Eddie shuts up.

There’s a meow from somewhere behind the table.

A black and white cat emerges from under it, a red collar around its neck, and approaches Steve confidently, pressing up against his legs.

Steve ignores the cat, at first.

He’s digging a thumbnail into the meat of his palm, shuffling from foot to foot every so often, dragging a lip so hard between his teeth that Eddie’s worried he’s gonna make it bleed, and Eddie isn’t sure what to do. He wants to help, wants to somehow soothe the boy, but he isn’t sure how, thinks if he gets any closer to him he’ll only make things worse.

The cats meows again. Presses itself harder up against Steve, stretches up so its little front paws are against his thigh, kneading insistently, refusing to be ignored.

Steve sags a little. Reaches down with a trembling hand, strokes it across the cat’s head, and Eddie can hear the rumbling purr start up from the little creature. He watches as Steve loosens up, as his fingers unclench and his teeth release his lip and the frown fades slowly from his lovely face.

Robin returns, snapping the tongs triumphantly, and hands them to Steve.

He takes them happily and returns to his task, placing Eddie’s chosen cookie into the bag with more care than Eddie’s ever seen from someone serving him food before.

Eddie takes the offered bag, the divine scent wafting out and making his mouth water. Wayne was going to regret not asking for one, he knows.

Steve looks up, catches his eye for the tiniest moment, then his gaze ducks away.

“Thanks, Steve,” Eddie says softly. “This smells great, seriously. And if you guys need anything,” he looks over to Robin to include her, too, “come see me at the fruit stall, I’m just over there.” He points in the direction of Wayne, who’s no doubt getting grumpier by the minute at Eddie’s absence.

Please come, Eddie begs silently, eyeing Steve one last time before he turns away.

“Three days,” Steve blurts out as Eddie starts to walk away.

Eddie pauses, turns back to him.

Steve’s eyes are fixed on his shoes again, and he rocks back and forth on his heels slightly. Robin glances between the two of them, then looks hopefully back at Steve.

Eddie frowns slightly, about to question him, when Steve speaks again.

“It took me three days. To bake everything. Wanted it all to be perfect.”

Eddie smiles, wide and warm.

“It is, Steve.”

___

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hello! IDK if you can do this, but how about a FNAF DLC platonic:

Ruined Eclipse (or Sun and Moon separated) with a creator! reader, something like a reunion parent-child, they recognize the reader because of an old guest record, the first one they ever had. As they were created by them

"I still can't believe you almost shutdown the entire MXES system..."

"Yeah, me neither. But who decided that the avatar should look like some...creepy rabbit? I was honestly more scared of that than anything."

".....I'd rather not talk about it. Let's just keep moving."

"Vanessa's right, we're getting close to the daycare." You chimed in, keeping a hopeful smile on your face as you shone the flashlight down the debris-ridden path.

Coming back to the ruined Pizzaplex was something you never even dreamed of doing. After helping Gregory, Vanessa, and Freddy (or at least what's left of him anyways) escape this awful place...you thought that the best thing to do was to implement an advanced security system.

One that ensured nothing, especially the machine you all called the "Mimic", could get out and wreck havoc.

Of course, you felt bad for leaving all the other animatronics behind, including Freddy's bandmates. You had plans to come back and retrieve them once Vanessa confirmed that the widespread system virus was cleared.

Then a mysterious earthquake struck and basically left the complex in ruins.

Fortunately the security system remained intact, as it was her idea to put all of it into the AR world where reality couldn't damage the nodes.

And for a while there were no problems...

Until they began shutting down one by one, and Vanessa discovered that a new user had been paired with the VANNI network thanks to the mask she left behind.

That user?

Gregory's friend: Cassie.

Somehow the Mimic managed to contact her and pretend to be him, instructing her to "save him" by turning off all the nodes. And it was interfering with all of your attempts to reach her.

Even worse?

MXES kept sending out alert signals to the animatronics--which is what it's programmed to do in order to keep anyone from touching the nodes..

But considering the horrible state the Glamrocks were in the last time you saw them, you were almost certain they're hunting Cassie like a pack of wolves, driven by anger rather than a glitch or security protocols.

Luckily you were able to access her walkie-talkie before she could shutdown the Entity itself and free the Mimic, explaining that Gregory was never there to begin with.

You, him, Vanessa, and Freddy eventually came to her rescue, taking a backup of MXES before escaping the pizzaplex for the last time.

Or...

At least you thought that would've been the last time you've ever seen that place.

Cassie recognized you as the creator of the Daycare Attendant and mentioned that he was active and....didn't try to harm her after she managed to reboot him.

That piqued your interest.

You didn't think he'd be functional still, let alone harmless towards her.

For a few days you kept thinking about it and how much you missed seeing that ray of sunshine/moonlight..

Next thing you knew, you were back here with your friends to seek him out. Gregory proposed finding a new body for Freddy--or at least batteries from the recharge stations to keep his head active.

Since you're already here, you might as well take a shortcut to Superstar Daycare.

"Can I ask you something about him, [y/n]?" Cassie spoke up.

"Sure."

"...was he meant to have some third mode? Because when I rebooted him, he didn't act too much like Sun...and he definitely wasn't acting 100% like Moon, either."

"....oh my gosh.." Stopping in your tracks, you stared at her with wide eyes. "You managed to put him into Eclipse mode??"

"I....guess..? Is that what he's called?"

"Yes! That was his default mode for his theater performances! I thought it was lost forever, but....wow." You laughed softly. "I have to see him now."

Eclipse was a name you thought you'd never hear again.

Originally, you had created him as a stage performer in the Pizzaplex's early days, developing his day-night cycle function as a neat little schtick for the children. He was meant to tell stories and switch between Sun and Moon to act out a thrilling "good vs evil" battle.

Alas his performances didn't get nearly as much attention as the Glamrocks, and you were sorta coerced into coming up with a new idea lest he was scrapped altogether.

You decided he'll become a daycare manager to help with the recent uptick of patrons accompanied by toddlers.

You led a small engineering team to help program him with new information, including a guest record that you tested out first, and he adjusted to his new role very well. He became popular even quicker than before.

The only issue during maintenance was the light-sensitivity switch couldn't be removed...not even by you. For whatever reason the DreadUnit didn't have that information on file.

You've tried everything in the book, even attempting to reverse-engineer how you made it originally. But you couldn't remove it without compromising Eclipse's entire system.

It's like it was somehow integrated permanently into his software, rather than being a physical mechanism you put in with a wrench and screws.

You knew for a fact you didn't design it that way.

One of the newbie engineers who doubted your skills tried fixing the problem themselves, taking Eclipse to parts & services without your permission.

Then there was a blackout, and they nearly got maimed to death after he abruptly switched into Moon and attacked them inside the "protective" cylinder.

The incident had been covered-up since, but you never did see Eclipse (or that coworker) ever again.

There was just Sun and Moon now, with neither half remembering anything related to their original form.

As painful as it was...you had to accept it, knowing that it would be too risky (and costly) to perform any further maintenance on that mechanic. You just continued overseeing his duties as daycare attendant.

But things kept going downhill from here.

You felt like your beloved creation had turned into a walking nightmare, considering the amount of complaints you've had over him making toddlers cry while they're getting picked up from the daycare.

It didn't help matter where the blackouts became more frequent in there, too, triggering Moon to come out often; management's solution was to shove a bunch of backup generators into the play areas and call it a day.

They didn't wanna waste a single dime more on any problems relating to the Attendant or his attraction, making it clear that you'd only repair him if he needed cleaning.

And they threatened you with termination if you mentioned anything about Eclipse to the guests or coworkers.

It was so unfair.

The incompetent engineer who only had two months of animatronic repair experience took your creation and broke him--being let off the hook with a mere slap on the wrist and all their medical expenses paid...

While you're stuck dealing with the consequences.

Neither Sun nor Moon blamed you for anything that happened, but you still felt like you failed them.

Like you failed Eclipse.

You eventually resigned, unable to deal with it anymore, although you still thought about him all the time and visited the Pizzaplex, hoping he was doing well.

Maybe he'd forget about you as he continued receiving an endless number of guest names to add to his database. He probably erased your name since you haven't been back in such a long time.

Perhaps..that was for the best.

Yet now you were here once again among the ruins of the mall, holding onto the tiniest bit of hope that he was still alive.

It seems you haven't fully let him go just yet.

..........

As the doors to the daycare eerily creaked open, you made the brave decision to go inside alone while the rest of the group kept a lookout for trouble.

Gregory and Freddy, of course, had their reasons not to enter that place. Neither of them knew for certain if the Attendant would remember them...and how Moon chased down the brunette at the end of every hour.

He'd rather not relive the horrors of trying to navigate through the darkness and turn on those stupid generators.

You looked all around, frowning at the ruined state of the daycare you helped build. But at the same time it filled you with such nostalgia.

It's a miracle anything was left standing at all.

"Hello? Eclipse?" Your voice echoed throughout the seemingly empty attraction.

A few seconds later, you got a response that made your heart swell with joy.

"Hello, friend! Welcome to Superstar Daycare!!"

In the blink of an eye, a familiar face floated down in front of you with a smile. You stepped back and took a moment to look over the animatronic, seeing he had parts of Sun and Moon blended together as one.

And somehow, he was able to stand despite only having one intact leg.

At first you had no idea what to say..

But no words had to be spoken, as Eclipse's petals clicked and shuffled as he leaned in closer. From his eyes came a holographic scanner that swept over you once, and once it vanished he stepped back, shocked.

"[Y/n]...my creator..?" He whispered. "You...have returned?"

You nodded, smiling as tears formed in your eyes. "It's me, Eclipse. I'm back."

You couldn't help opening your arms up to him, and he embraced you tightly in response, nearly crushing you. Although some of his endoskeleton components and loose wires poked your sides, you didn't care about that, being too overwhelmed with emotion to worry.

He was okay, and he didn't seem to hold any ill-will towards your abrupt resignation.

That's all that mattered right now.

"Oh it's so, so good to see you!! How have you been? Is your boss giving you a rough time? Am I due for maintenance??" He was rambling a mile a minute, and you just chuckled and shook your head, letting him go.

"No, you're just fine, buddy. But listen, there's..something you need to know-"

"Of course, of course! Could you just give me one moment? I'm almost done cleaning up this place!" He looked around anxiously. "We'll be open in an hour so I need to do one final sweep!"

"Eclipse-"

"I pinky swear it'll take only a second! And then-!"

"Eclipse. I command you to stay put and listen."

Before he could leap out of your sights, your firm tone of voice made him freeze and stare at you, completely unmoving.

Even you were stunned that he was still programmed to obey you, but at least it makes what you're about to tell him easier.

You cleared your throat, awkwardly clipping your flashlight to your belt before finally speaking. "Cleaning up the daycare is...no longer necessary."

He tilted his head like a curious cat, looking rather troubled. "No longer...necessary? Why? Did I do a bad job? I hope not...I-I was just...trapped in a long sleep!"

You nodded. "I know, but during that time...an earthquake hit the Pizzaplex, and now it's too dangerous for anyone to come visit."

"..huh, so we're closed...forever?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Eclipse.."

"I see..." Slowly, but surely, he was processing this news. Although he perked back up with a smile. "But it must be somewhat safe..since you came to visit me!"

"Cassie told me you were still here." Your smile returned, relieved he was taking it better than you initially expected. "I heard she helped you...and Sun and Moon when you needed it most."

"Cassie....? Cassie...ohhh, the little girl who made us whole again!!" His eyes flashed with recollection. "She was such a sweet kid! Is she alright? Is she safe?"

"She's safe, and she's just outside the daycare. Along with Vanessa and um...Gregory."

"........"

"L-Listen, I know you two had a bad history together.." You began, cautious as he just stared blankly at you. "But I promise he's not-"

"Who's Gregory? I don't recall his name being in my records.."

'Ah....so Eclipse doesn't know him. Thank god.'

"Oh! That's okay. He's a great kid, too. I'll have to introduce you to him." You extended your hand out. "Come with me. Let's get out of this place. He needs our help finding a new body for Freddy since his original one got destroyed by the STA--earthquake."

Internally you cursed yourself for that near-slip of the tongue, although Eclipse didn't notice at all and joyfully took your hand, eager to help a kid in need.

He let you lead him out of the daycare like a parent and their child, never letting your hand go even for a moment. But you weren't complaining.

In a way, you were his parent.

You did create him, after all.

And now you've finally reunited with him.

[justminawrites]

tell me, why does home taste like you?

AO3

Summary: Souma finds himself wondering what to do after Central decides to shut Polar Star down for good. A one-shot that takes place the night before the shokugeki with Eizan, in season 3.

“I can’t stand it!”

“Yuuki?”

“I don’t want the dorm to close! I want to stay here.. and cook with everyone, just like we used to!” 

Yukihira Souma stared out the window of his room in uncharacteristic silence as he pondered the events of the past two days. 

A new director, Nakiri Azami, had taken over and imposed a mandatory shutdown of all the clubs and research societies not directly approved by the also new student-run organisation, Central, that had replaced the Elite Ten. That included the Polar Star Dormitory, since it was technically housing students on school grounds. Naturally Tōtsuki students had contested this the way they had contested everything– through numerous declarations of shokugekis, though that might be extremely short-lived if what they’d seen on TV today was any indication. 

Biased votes were one thing, but simply refusing to eat the opposing contestant’s food? That was a low blow, even for this pompous, gourmet-worshipping establishment. 

Souma let out a frustrated sigh and struck his fist against the window pane with a thump; only ten days left to vacate the place.. no, there had to be something he could do. Surely Isshiki-senpai would have some idea, he was two seats higher on the Elite 10 than Eizan was; not to mention he was more attached to the dorm than any of them, but they hadn’t seen Isshiki Satoshi around at all lately– maybe Central had their claws in him too. 

Souma rose and decided to head down to the kitchen; cooking always helped him take his mind off things in the past, maybe inspiration would strike him while he was at it. Turning the key, he slipped out of room 303 and down the staircase, careful not to wake anyone while he was at it- sleep would be a luxury they couldn’t afford soon- but when the entrance to the kitchen loomed in front of him his feet turned the corner and took him out to the lobby instead. Fumio-san had always imposed a 1:00 a.m. curfew for as long as he’d been here, often to deter young delinquent chefs like him from sneaking out to get groceries at the dead of night, but today the front door was unlocked without a care. This dorm business must be getting to her too.

Souma walked out into the cold night air and prayed it wouldn’t rain. 

The sky was cloudier today, no doubt a result of the bad weather they’d been having all week, but a sliver of white moon shone brightly in the sky, surrounded by a smattering of tiny stars. He would miss this view. Souma held out his arm like he was trying to catch the faint light in his palm and hold it with him forever. 

The memory came to him then, swift and unforgiving.

“Hey.. Pops?”

“What is it, Souma?”

“What did this dorm mean to you anyway?”

Jōichirō had smiled in the way he always did when he didn’t intend on answering Souma’s question.

“It was fun.. A place where we could all freely experience each other’s cooking.”

Souma looked up to find himself wandering Isshiki’s garden, he’d ended up tracing the usual path they took every other morning, navigating his way between the leafy crop and the fenced tomatoes. He crouched down beside the cabbages and stared deeply into the dirt, like he’d find some kind of answer from the worms crawling around. 

This was stupid, he thought peevishly as the worm crawled up his shoe; honestly, this whole school was stupid. What kind of dumb, holier-than-thou elitist thought that removing extracurriculars would bring the school closer to better cooking– no correct cooking? The right way of doing things. He reminded Souma of his daughter to the T, but it was actually the other way around now, wasn’t it.

Souma frowned as he flicked the worm off. Erina had internalised her father’s teachings so deeply that she’d probably built her personality around rejecting anything Azami didn’t approve of– but he wasn’t ready to unpack all that. Especially not the previous director, Nakiri Senzaemon, showing up at the dorm in order to beg for his help. 

“Pops would know what to do,” he said quietly to no one in particular; it was true. His six-foot-three, ever-aggravating, cooking prodigy of a father always had the solution to any problem, no matter what life threw at him. If only he was around to actually give him the advice he needed. 

Souma flicked open his phone screen and pressed the redial button; the phone rang once, twice, and then–

“Hello-”

“Pops?”

“-you’ve reached Yukihira.. if it’s urgent please leave a message. Not you though, Gin.”

Voicemail, as usual. He sighed and made his way to the workshop next. 

Though it was technically rented, everyone in the dorm had affectionately dubbed it Shun’s Workshop, since every time Shun disappeared, which was often, there was about a ninety percent chance you’d find him here. 

Souma ran his fingers along the grooves and etchings of the handmade table and inhaled the faint smell of smoke. Eizan would probably tear this place down too, the bastard. This, the garden, Ryōko’s lab, Yuuki’s farm pens; and he’d do it without a second thought. 

He could see his senior’s smug face in front of him, clear as day. What’s the matter Yukihira.. finally accepted defeat? 

Souma pressed his hands against his face and tried his best not to scream. This school may be stupid and skewed but his friends didn’t deserve this. They were all talented chefs who’d worked hard to get to where they were, and if there was one thing good about this backwards institution, it was that they could all come back home and rant about it together. 

He blinked away tears.

Home. 

How long had it been since he’d called anywhere home? 

They used to live in the suburbs near his school, but after his mother died, Souma and his dad had moved into the apartment above Yukihira’s instead. The closest he could come to it was probably the diner itself, he’d spent nearly all his long nights in its kitchens, often sleeping over when his father was away on business trips. Kiyo-san used to come by to babysit occasionally, much to his chagrin, and his middle school friends had loved to watch him cook free food but hardly anyone had seen him out of its four walls.

The Polar Star Dormitory was a strong contender too, if he was being honest. Even though the place was huge, with fifty bedrooms and an endless square footage of land that encompassed even a lake, he’d never really felt alone here. 

There was always someone in the kitchens, or the garden. Isshiki-senpai would pop out from the built in Ceiling Area (how did he get up there in the first place?) or whisper suspiciously into the speaking tubes that ran through the whole building; Yuuki’s wild game would escape her room at least once a week and turn the place into NatGeo; and they would receive fire hazard notices on a regular basis because of Shun’s ‘creative directions’. 

The noise and laughter was often infectious and Souma had begun to rely on it to get him through the week. They’d barely made it through their gruelling Stagiaires and the Moon Banquet Festival in the last few months, but the dorm had always been here, steady and constant as its matron, ready to welcome them back with open arms and a warm meal.

Souma checked his phone and swore under his breath. A matron who’d most likely locked him out by now. No matter how much Megumi vouched for it, he had no intention of spending the night in the barn. 

Souma turned and ran back to the main door, relieved to find it still open, quietly shook off his shoes and padded his way up the polished stairwell. 

He was about to go into his room when a small creak caught his attention. The door to the room next to his was slightly ajar - Was Tadokoro awake? - hinges fallen victim to the breeze he’d let into the house when he’d come in. 

Souma hesitated before gently nudging it open to find moonlight spilling through the windows and illuminating a room identical to his, save for a figure curled on the bed, her dark blue tresses like ink on the white sheets and eyes that were very clearly shut tight. 

He knew he should close the door, knew he should leave her to rest instead of bothering her with his dumb feelings, but his feet remained rooted to the spot. He waited a few seconds and then–

“Tadokoro,” he whispered softly, not moving from the doorway, “Are you asleep?”

“Mmm?” The girl replied, turning the other way and jostling the blanket in the process.

Of course she’s asleep, you idiot, he berated himself, Just like you should be if you’re going to wake up tomorrow and figure out what to do. 

“Soum.. Hah.. Souma-kun?” Megumi said, yawning. She’d turned back around and cracked open one eye blearily to find the redheaded boy looking at her guiltily, unable to move from his place at the door. 

“Are ya.. alright?”

“Uhm.. yeah. All good here. Sorry I disturbed you. I was just checking to make sure, y’know.. stuff.” He finished lamely, looking anywhere but her eyes. 

Megumi blinked a few times, sensing the lie, and then pulled the covers off one corner of the bed to make room for him.

“S’okay..” She patted the empty space beside her like an invitation.

“What’s wrong?”

Souma reluctantly shuffled in but sat at foot of the bed frame instead. 

If her mother were here, Megumi knew she’d be on the receiving end of the worst scolding of her life and she’d deserve it too. A boy in her room in the dead of night, it was so far from proper that she might as well be digging herself an early grave, but she was barely awake and her senses had dulled everything into a dream-like quality. 

Dim light flickered through the window and highlighted the panes of Souma’s face, the steady curve of his nose, his sharp jaw and the slightly puckered scar on his left eyebrow. Except those eyebrows were now furrowed in a mixture of concern and frustration. 

She waited for him to say something but he simply stared at the mattress in front of him intently, like he was burning a hole through it with his eyes. Megumi reached out an arm to pet his hair, but his hand caught it first and unconsciously threaded his fingers through hers as he looked up at her. 

“Tadokoro,” he began, looking at their intertwined hands like they were the most normal thing in the world, “I’m scared.”

Megumi opened her eyes a little more. It had been hard to see before, but the red rimmed eyes and the faint spots of wetness on his tracksuit spelled out that he’d been crying. 

“S’okay,” she soothed again, trying not to think too much about why the strongest person she knew at this school was holding her hand like he was about to break.

“We all get scared sometimes, Souma-kun. You don’t hafta be strong all the time.”

He closed his eyes like he was absorbing her words, like he was letting them sink into his skin.

“I mean look at me,” she smiled sleepily, her accent running rampant, “Ah’m always scared, panickin’ like a cricket in fishin’ season. But Ah’m still here, aint I?” 

Souma snorted, slipping his hand out of hers just as quickly, and clutched his stomach to keep himself from laughing.

“Ah’m.. still.. cricket..” He choked out, unable to form the words as he nearly toppled back. Megumi stopped smiling when she saw his reaction.

“Souma-kun, don’t tease!” She mumbled into her pillow mortified as he snickered again. 

“Tadokoro! What do you take me for? I would never,” he vowed as he proceeded to do just that.

“Ah’m as serious as can be– serious as a ‘ard ‘addack.”

“Oh, you’re terrible.” Megumi moped, hiding her face under the covers. The laughter faded and she peeked one eye out to see Souma staring right past her. 

It was nothing new, she’d seen him zone out plenty of times, but it seemed different this time. Sadder somehow. He was probably driving himself crazy trying to figure out how to postpone their early eviction, a very Souma-like thing to do, but even she knew that it was too much to hope for a breakthrough. Eizan-senpai had rigged the shokugeki as he would no doubt do again and again, if there was anyone left to challenge him that is. The performance today may have broken most, if not all their spirits.

“Souma-kun?” His eyes slid to her face on cue but they were still a million miles away.

“Don’t worry about the dorm okay.. we’ll figure something out.”

“Mhm.” He nodded vacantly, still lost in thought. 

She wished she could bring him back with words alone, but that had never worked with Souma. Apart from challenging him to a shokugeki on the spot, she doubted many things could get through the bubble of pressure he’d locked himself in. Poor, selfless Souma-kun, she thought. It must be hard to constantly be protecting.

Megumi didn’t know when she’d begun noticing the changes but once she had she couldn’t stop.

Souma’s hair grown longer over the summer, the unruliness almost endearing now, and his face had gotten leaner. The shadows under his eyes were darker than she’d remembered, he was barely getting any sleep before, and she’d caught a glimpse of a few more burn marks on his hand than last time. No doubt from the stone oven they’d used at the Moon Banquet Festival. He’d been so insistent about not using gloves too– its gotta to feel authentic, Tadokoro. 

She looked up to see that Souma had gone back to glaring at the floor now, brows scrunched together like he could simply will a solution into existence.  

Without thinking, Megumi reached out her arm again and this time, gently traced the scar on his eyebrow with her thumb. To her surprise, he leaned into the touch, the fog in his eyes clearing as her warm hand cupped his cheek, and lazily drew over the edges of the wound. The dreamy quality of the night returned and she could feel herself emboldened by its ambience.

“Souma-kun?”

“Mm?” He intoned, his eyes drooping. She paused for a second.

“Your scar is cool.”

“Hm?” He was awake again.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, she scolded, withdrawing her hand in absolute shame. She could’ve said anything in that moment but she went with ‘your scar is cool’? Kami-sama– why, why am I like this? 

Souma gave her a strange look and then cracked a grin.

“Isn’t it? It’s actually an incredible story.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I got it fighting off a customer actually. He was trying to leave without paying.”

Megumi gave him a disbelieving look and he pretended to sulk.

“You don’t believe me.” he huffed, offended.

“I didn’t say that, Souma-kun.”

“He had a knife, Tadokoro. A knife.” 

“A tiny knife?” She asked, suppressing a smile.

“Kick me while I’m down, why don’t you.” He grumbled halfheartedly, turning his back to her. 

She watched him, absent-mindedly counting the freckles on back of his neck; one, two, fifteen in total, and resisted the urge to connect them into tiny constellations. A few seconds of comfortable silence passed, and then..

“Tadokoro?” He said, still not looking at her.

“Yeah?”

“Why’d you stick around?”

“Souma-kun?”

“At the Moon Banquet Festival.”

“O-Oh,” she felt her anxiety kick in, trickling into her chest like in a steady stream, “I’m sorry if I held you back Souma-kun, I was just.. just trying to help.. I..“

“What! No that’s not what I– Tadokoro. Tadokoro.”

Megumi made a sound that was halfway between a sigh and a sob and tried to bury her head back under the blanket so he wouldn’t see the tears welling up in her eyes. Souma wouldn’t let her off so easily and tried his level best to pull her back out. After two full minutes of pulling, he admitted defeat and turned back around.

“I meant–” he began, giving the blanket a sideways glance, “–when everything was going wrong, why’d you stay? I didn’t even put your name on the application form y’know. You wouldn’t have gotten expelled, if you left.”

She said nothing.

Just when Souma thought she’d fallen asleep, the weight on the bed shifted and Megumi sat down on the floor beside him, setting the blanket over both of their shoulders as she did so. Her eyes were clear and bright, no sign of exhaustion in them. 

“Don’t be silly Souma-kun,” she said matter-of-factly, “I woulda gotten expelled months ago, if it weren’t for you.”

“This isn’t like–“

“–at camp.” She nodded as she drew her knees to her chest and hugged them.

“That was about justice, Tadokoro. You didn’t deserve to be failed over a mistake he’d made.”

“There is no justice in Tōtsuki, Souma-kun.” Megumi looked at him strangely, as though he should’ve figured this out by now. He opened his mouth to correct her but no words came out. She was right. This was a school where students could simply be expelled over a subpar dish and the teachers wouldn’t bat an eyelash.

“And besides,” she continued, looking away, “It wasn’t like that at all. You coulda given up on me too, but you didn’t.”

“If I had been better, we could’ve beaten him,” Souma admitted sheepishly, crossing his arms, “It wasn’t supposed to be your battle to fight.”

Megumi laughed, much to his embarrassment, and subtly scooted closer, resting her head on his shoulder.  

“I wish I’d seen Shinomiya-senpai’s face when you walked into his restaurant,” she said finally, a small smile on her face, “For the Stagiaire.”

Now it was Souma’s turn to laugh as he remembered his mentor’s disgruntled expression. 

“Oh man, I thought he was going to strangle me on the spot,” he recounted excitedly, “Hey, remember that time he fired someone at camp for wearing scented shampoo?”

“Souma-kun, you didn’t.” Megumi looked like she was switching between impressed and horrified at his blatant disregard for his own well-being. He flashed her a wicked grin.

“And the best part was–“

“–Souma-kun!” She interrupted, scandalised.

“The best part was-“ Souma repeated, like what he’d done wasn’t pure madness, “- he didn’t even notice, Tadokoro. I’m starting to think that camp was just an excuse for them to have us do free labour so they wouldn’t have to feed all those people.”

“Honestly, I didn’t mind it that much,” she confessed, looking down at her hands, “It made me feel good to know that people were enjoying my food.”

“For free,” he chided, but didn’t try to correct her, “I get where you’re coming from though. Giving out samples was the only part of the Moon Banquet Festival that was actually fun.”

“It reminded me of the time I spent with the old man, back home, before he kept pulling his disappearing act.”

“Oh. Were you alone a lot?”

Souma turned to find Megumi looking at him with something like concern in her eyes and backtracked immediately.

“Uh.. yeah, but not really though. It was all good.. it toughened me up y’know? Now I’m tough as a rock..” He could feel his ears burning and hoped she wouldn’t notice. The last thing he wanted was Tadokoro pitying him when he was supposed to be the one getting them out of this hopeless situation.

“You’re very tough, Souma-kun,” she promised, placing her hand on his shoulder reassuringly, “You challenged the Eight Seat of the Elite Ten to a shokugeki.”

“And a whole lot of good that did us.” He sighed and put his hand over hers. Megumi looked startled by the action, but didn’t pull away. 

“Stupid Eizan probably doesn’t even know how to cook.” Souma sulked again, resorting to childish snubs.

“Sure. That’s how Eizan-senpai qualified to be a part of the best ten in a cooking school. Through consulting.” She replied wryly, only half-kidding.

“Yeah you’re right,” he nodded, cupping his chin with his hand, “Still, it feels like he’s got some kind of grudge against this place. You think he didn’t pass Fumio-san’s test or something?”

“Maybe,” Megumi shrugged, pushing away the memory of her initial months of middle school where she herself had fallen victim and slept in the barn, “I do feel bad for Nakiri-san, though.”

“Nakiri?” 

He gawked at her like she’d grown two wings and transformed into one of Yuuki’s chickens.

“She won’t have anywhere to hide if the dorm closes,” she explained, much to his bemusement, “She must be feeling terrible about this whole thing.”

“Tadokoro,” Souma turned to her seriously, clasping her arm in his. The one with the scarf, she would’ve noticed, if she weren’t so alarmed. His sudden move took her aback and she found herself pressed against the bed-frame, looking at him with wide eyes as he leaned in closer.

“S-Souma-kun?” He paused, gold eyes flashing.

“Worry about yourself, for once.” 

“I’m worried about myself everyday,” she countered, quailing a little under the intensity in his gaze.

“A-And anyway. I can probably find some housing on campus with Yuuki-chan and Ryōko-chan. It might be expensive but if we split the rent I’m sure we can manage.” 

“Huh.” 

Souma let go of her and crossed his arms again, opting to look at the ceiling instead. He was irritated, that much she could tell. Megumi wasn’t sure what to do at first, in all their time together he’d never really gotten mad at her; so she simply rested her head on her knees and absentmindedly began drawing the ‘person’ kanji (人) on the polished floorboards next to her.

After a few moments she heard him murmur something under his breath.

“You’ve given up too, haven’t you, Tadokoro?”

She stopped mid-way; the words cut deeper than they should have. 

He wasn’t wrong. Megumi had spent the whole day helping the Regional Cuisine Research Society pack away their props and recipe books into a school certified lockers; they were forced to donate everything they’d gathered to a local library as soon as possible. 

There had been many a breakdown over a paper lantern or a lovingly written essay and whatever little hope she’d hoarded chipped away as the day went by, slowly, steadily; piece by painful piece, until it became clear that there was no way out of this predicament at all. It was either this or guaranteed expulsion, and Megumi didn’t know which one she’d be more ashamed to tell her mother about.

“There’s nothing we can do, Souma-kun.” She said finally, blinking back tears, “Sometimes.. sometimes the world just ain’t right and we just.. we gotta.. get on with it.”

“If that bastard would fight fair, then I know I could take him. We could win.”

His words sounded empty, even to him, like he’d finally run out of confidence and she felt the unspoken question between them grow and swallow her thoughts as the night dragged on–  was it still possible to save the dorm?

After an incredibly saturated silence Souma released a puff of breath and adjusted the blanket around their shoulders, pulling her a little closer. 

He didn’t want to spend one of his last nights here fighting with his best friend, over something stupid. A delicious warmth enveloped her and Megumi caved into the feeling, resting her head on his chest now, his arm encircling her waist. 

“Ryōko-chan said something to me once,” she began, stifling a yawn as the fatigue crept up on her. Souma peeked at her through shuttering eyelids, his own body starting to call it a night.

“She said ‘I didn’t notice it before but Yukihira-kun gets this funny look in his eyes when he’s cooking, like he’s some kind of magician, waiting for you to figure out his trick.’”

“She’s too.. too nice..” He trailed off, trying his best to stay awake.

“Yeah.. but that’s when I realised, Souma-kun.” 

“Realised what?”

“Why I liked your cooking so much.”

Souma opened one eye and glanced at her but Megumi had nearly succumbed to sleep, nestled into him like a perfect puzzle piece.

“It’s like.. a little bit of magic.. every.. day..”

It was then that Yukihira Souma made his decision.

Dawn came, quiet and relentless, the first rays of sun washing over room 302 determined to catch the couple in the act, but all they found was a girl huddled under the covers, blue hair spilling out like ink, fast asleep like she’d never been woken at all. 

____________________

The next day...

“I’m back!”

The residents of Polar Star Dormitory dropped their makeshift weapons and garden hoses to see a redheaded boy walking through the wrought-iron gates, his smile blinding in light of the evening sun. 

Tadokoro Megumi didn’t know when she’d begun crying but as the boy was ambushed by his dorm members with shouts of “You idiot!”, “You left to protect us on your own!” and “That was too reckless, Yukihira.”, it felt like fireworks were going off in her chest every time she took a breath.

“We were all so worried,” she said quietly, the words lost in the general hubbub that surrounded him, but she didn’t mind. 

Yukihira Souma glanced at her then, smiling even brighter than before, and for a second it felt like they were the only two people in the entire world.

Tadokoro, what did you think of my magic show? His eyes seemed to say, glinting mischievously as a lopsided grin tugged the corner of his mouth.

You won’t ever listen, will you, Souma-kun? She smiled right back, wiping away the leftover tears on her cheeks, and hurrying down the steps.

“Not just reckless, that was stupid and irresponsible and the worst decision you could have made-“

“My bad, my bad,” he laughed, taking their scolding with good sportsmanship, as he held out an arm in surrender. He played it off well, but Megumi could see the tiredness that radiated from him; the slight slump of his shoulders, the shadows under his eyes. Souma had gone in without a plan, with barely a recipe, betting everything he had left on a shot at proving their worth, and it had taken its toll.

“But seriously.. Thank you, thank you, Yukihira..” Yuuki bawled finally, holding onto Ryōko for dear life as the stress of the day finally caught up to her. The shokugeki challenge, fighting off thugs, saving the dorm; this whole debacle was like something out of a manga.

The corners of his eyes crinkled fondly as he watched Ryōko scold her friend and Yuuki in turn scold Marui for breaking his glasses, finally relaxing as the weight he’d been carrying around for a week released its hold on his heart. Polar Star was theirs. Everyone was safe. He’d pulled off yet another trick– out of luck or sheer audacity, this time, he didn’t want to know. 

Megumi took another step forward sensing him slip away again, but he didn’t seem to notice- his mind already moving onto the next question, the next duel, the next everything. What would happen now that he’d won? Who was left to help? He hadn’t heard back from Hayama about the seminar either– had his friend run into some kind of trouble? 

Souma’s hand involuntarily tightened on the strap of his bag as he thought about all that was left to do, and she watched him carefully, noticing the way his half-smile dimmed in the span of a few seconds. She couldn’t help but recall the conversation they’d had the night before; how he’d looked almost hurt when she’d admitted she’d lost all hope. It was that same look that had spurred her to take a stance against the fifty thugs that had ambushed the dorm. 

Megumi wanted to tell Souma about the siege first, or how they’d defended their dorm against all odds, borrowing baseball bats and shields from Polar Star’s collection of Golden Era memorabilia; she wanted to grab him by the shoulders and berate him for taking on the Ninth Seat of the elite Ten to save her, to save all of them– but some tiny part of her inherently knew what the redhead chef had been waiting to hear all day. 

“Souma-kun?” 

Souma looked up, eyes clearing as he took her in: the helmet in her arm gleaming proudly as the last rays of sunlight bounced against it and illuminated her soft smile. A warm feeling wrapped itself around his chest like a pair of arms, holding tight enough that he wouldn’t fall– promising him that it was finally time to rest.

He blinked as he glanced around at his friends, their faces flushed gratitude, each one of them fired up to take on whatever Central had in store for the future; the faint spark of hope they’d once lost reignited into a roaring flame– and then back to Megumi, her gold eyes shining with something neither of them were brave enough to name.  

“Welcome home.”

[electricbluebutterflies]

‘snowed in’ for the prompts :D

Modern AU Jessica/Leto, queued crosspost // also on ao3

Snow gets less appealing the older one gets, Jessica is absolutely convinced. The more one has to deal with the implications of icy white death, the less one actually wants to. No one can drive in it anywhere near as well as they think they can, the full-shutdown days are only a slight improvement, and-

When she looks out the window and isn’t sure where the line between driveway and yard actually is, she is reminded of all of these emotions in vivid detail. She’s not leaving the house today. No one is leaving the house today. This is fine.

She’s at the stage of being a new mother where sleeping multiple hours is a damn miracle, and waking up before her husband does is yet another petty cruelty. She lingers, watching the snow continue to fall, cursing the part of her brain that thought a few snowflakes a few hours ago would be nothing, cursing-

“Are you watching a car wreck again?”

She turns, affectionately rolling her eyes. “That only happened once, I don’t know why you-“

“You’re not an outdoor person, whatever’s going on out there…”

“Come join me and see.”

Her husband does, barely awake but enough to cross the space and stand next to her. “Oh.”

“Yeah. White Christmas came ten days early.”

His arms wrap around her waist, and she melts into the affection, into the closeness that has finally started to come naturally to her. “I don’t see any problems with this.”

“It’s almost up to that cursed lawn gnome. That’s not a problem?”

“It’s Sunday, we weren’t doing anything today anyways…”

“You weren’t doing anything,” she half-corrects.

“Only because you’re pushing yourself too hard.”

“I’m not exactly-“

She can’t see his face but she can envision the silent prayer for patience in his eyes well enough, the conversation they haven’t exactly had yet about how her stubbornness and her healing process are at opposed positions. As far as she’s concerned she is fine, and her body is almost back to normal, and her physical desires are drifting towards existent again so that’s fun, and-

“You’re a nightmare,” he murmurs the way most people confess love. “You know that, right?”

“I think I’ve left the house three times in the past month. This isn’t exactly about to stop me.”

“Maybe it should. Maybe you curl up and try to sleep and I can handle-“

“Support is not the problem,” she reminds him. “I just don’t do the rest part very well.”

“I can run a load of laundry and not flood the basement. I did live alone before you, remember?”

“Not the problem, love…”

“This’ll be fun in a few years. Do all the winter things. Do it right.”

But it’s not fun now, the implication is, the other conversation they’re not having. Acclimating to having a tiny creature in need of constant care… Jessica’s previous experience on that angle was limited to a few stray cats over the years, and her husband didn’t even have that, and-

They’re trying, she reminds herself. They have no idea what the hell they’re doing, how to make sure their son turns out functional, but they’re trying.

“Nobody’s stopping you from going out and making snow angels,” she murmurs. “The neighbors already think we’re crazy, it’s a good thing you look normal enough, lady across the street has watched too many cult shows and she’s not even guessing close and-“

“No fun to do it alone. Next year, maybe.”

“If you think you’re getting me in one of those marshmallow jumpsuits…”

“I think I’d settle for you in jeans, that’d be warm enough…”

“You’re lucky I love you,” she breathes, turning to take a soft kiss. “You really are.”

“Well aware,” he replies, holding her that much closer. “This is fine. Nothing to do today, just me and you and-“

“Don’t talk like that. I’m not…”

“Wasn’t implying anything. Just saying we could nest. Enjoy this for what it is.”

“We could do that,” she murmurs, slipping out of the embrace. “But I need caffeine first. Would you drink tea if I made some?”

“One of those things you’ve got where the label reads like a floral arrangement?”

“Probably?”

“Sure. Why not.”

[razzle-zazzle]

Yo, question. Are you ever gonna write a psychic Dion Au? I absolutely love that he isn't psychic and it sets him aside from the family but I think a psychic Au where he realizes he's psychic and good at Hydrokanesis would be dope.

Honestly, I've come to a point where whether Dion is psychic or not changes from AU to AU. The one where he can see ghosts? He's not psychic, because he's got something else going on. River Runs Deep? He's partially psychic; he can't use telekinesis or read someone's mind but he does get visions of the past/present/future. Buried Beneath? The story doesn't really work if he's not psychic, so he is. AUs like Ouroboros or Pop Goes the Weasel or Pooter Pile or Rapids? Dion's probably not psychic but since it's not relevant to the story whether he is or not it's not really touched upon.

I've talked about psychic Dion stuff before; but to sum up my general feelings on it:

My interpretation of Dion as a character is someone who deals with unfortunate truths through repression. Him being psychic, but repressing it so hard he doesn't even realize he is, is both hilarious and fitting that interpretation. Him having to work through his own block on his powers and figure out what he even wants to do with them plays into my interpretation of him as someone who's not all the sure who he is outside of his family.

But at the same time, there are a lot of other ways for Dion to work through the issue of feeling tied to his family and the expectations placed on him, and him not being psychic works just as well for his character in the canon storyline. Because ultimately? That's the cool thing about fanon; it's flexible. Dion Aquato probably isn't psychic, but he could be, which opens up a whole different book of interpretations and potential arcs for him.

tl;dr Whether Dion is psychic or not in my AUs depends on which fits the AU's story best; Dion being psychic and Dion not being psychic are both valid and interesting ways to explore his character.

[rainydayscribbling]

*Warning: First Person POV, short talk about abuse, wonky spacing* POV character: Ogden Morrow

Pairing: Halliday X Morrow

I had no idea what Jim just said. Normally I would understand him just fine. Sometimes it might take a while - Jim was a mumbler - but normally I understood him.

"I'm sorry? Could you please repeat that?", I asked. "Um……. have you seen my what's the word again?…… ", he paused and was visibly searching for it, "Necklace? I can't go out without it and, you know….. We both wanna do that soon.", his words came to a close. I nodded. Where had I seen it? Jim fiddled with his sleeves, while I was mentally walking through the last hour again. AHA! There it was!

"Found it! It's on my night stand. You left it there yesterday, as you may remember." I smiled. Jim's face lit up, and he jumped and ran out of the room. Wow, he was pretty excited to get it back. Then I remembered that it was his favourite stim toy and he hadn't been able to use it all day. So l understood why he was so excited.

Even though we were married, we both had separate bedrooms and didn't go into the other's without permission. I had told Jim many times that he can just go into mine, but he didn't listen. And I made sure not to step into his room with any body part - even a toe - without asking for his permission first. It was his small oasis. Next to the Oasis of course.

Jumping - probably tile skipping - footsteps could be heard from the hall. I had sat down now, not wanting to give my back more stress than necessary. We weren't young any more. Both of us had aged and medical problems grew bigger, but I would say that Jim was still fitter than me. Maybe just because he wasn't the most athletic anyway. But who would know? He stuck his head through the door, already nibbling on the necklace again. He loved it. And I loved it too because Jim loved it and I loved Jim. The world was too cruel not to like each other…… and so the gayness rose in us.

I chuckled. The way his hair was pressed against the door made it seem like half of his face was covered in it. The necklace fell out of his mouth as Jim began to giggle then even guffaw - and stumbled back into the room, plummeting on the bed next to me. A wave of serotonin filled my body, which was currently filled up with warmth by his laugh.

The man's curly hair rustled on my shoulder as he head butted me. Ilaid mv head on his. After all these years I still loved the man as much as when I proposed to him.

Obviously it was at Happytime Pizza, where we spent a lot of our time together. Well, that was the official one anyway. The other - I don't wanna talk about it. Jim had a Shutdown and……. I don't like when that happens. He eventually said yes, after an exactly 37 minutes and 42 seconds long period of going non-verbal. And I remembered every second of it in full detail. The attempts to speak, trying to sign (because our tapping system wouldn't help - it would just add more sensory input) and eventually just silent tears running down his face. He was shaking through all of it.

But the one in Happytime Pizza was like I always imagined it to be, ever since I fell in love with him. How long that was ago…… well, Jim had already fought cancer a few years ago and survived! It was still like all those years ago when I picked him up, because he was reading a guide to advanced DnD.

That was truly the best decision I made in my whole life. Jim's head felt like a fluffy pillow, his breath was slow and steady. I noticed we were having the same rhythm in breathing. A smile flew onto my face, the man had closed his eyes and was now humming. I closed my eyes, enjoying the moment. This was all that mattered.

Yeah, some people were hating on us. When we officially married we had a user drop in the Oasis - somehow we had a lot of homophobes on there, even though we had been together for multiple years before the Oasis even came out. People were having ableist discussions about Jim and even sending death threats, which obviously were hollow - they wouldn't be able to realize them anyway, we always either had security around us or when they weren't available, I was still trained in martial arts.

And it sometimes was hard not to yell at him when he was having a particularly hard day, but I never even dared to raise my voice a bit. I wasn't going to hurt him ever. He had been hurt enough. And I made sure nobody else could either.

"Jim?", I mumbled. "Hmhm?" «I love you." «Love you too, Og.", he whispered. His voice was shaky but loving. Like always. Jim had a very distinctive voice and I loved every detail about it. His pattern of speech was gorgeous. Slowly I rolled my face to his, closing our lips together sweetly. Jim's lips were slightly dry, he tasted like berries and chocolate. And coffee. We still weren't able to get him off of his coffee addiction but honestly? I won't judge him on it.

I melted into the kiss, Jim doing the same from the other direction. I felt his cold glasses push against my face, his hair was tickling my ears sweetly. I opened my eyes, looking into Jim's calculating, caring, stormy ones.

I closed mine again, just lingering in the kiss for a moment more. I wanted this to last forever. But eventually, Jim pulled us apart, smiling slightly.

"That's enough for now……. I think.", he chuckled, "We'll have to leave shortly…. if we wanna, you know, be there in time." He got up from the bed, smiling in a way that was perceived as awkward by society. I was definitely not society. That was one of the most powerful smiles in existence. It always made my heart flutter with love when I got to see it.

"Definitely! I'll get my shoes then! The sensory kit is in place already, no worries." I smiled. I walked down the hall, taking my shoes out of the shoe cabinet and putting them on. Jim's were standing right next to mine, the laces were untied. Huh? That didn't seem like Jim in any way.

"Jim, love? Your shoes are untied? What happened?", I asked, the words echoing though the hall. Shuffling came from the other side of it, Jim now walking up to me. His eyes were studying the fluffy carpet on the floor. "I… um……. I tripped and opened them up accidentally… and, err, couldn't close them……. yeah… it's embarrassing, I know." I smiled, trying to get his confidence up again. I knew Jim had problems with doing such fine motor tasks. His Oasis gesture settings were set to "Big'. He had had to find a different way to button his shirts too. It was perfectly fine with me. He was a genius and not having the motor skills to tie shoe laces wouldn't change anything about it.

"Hey. That's okay. Should I tie them? It's not embarrassing at all, completely fine!", I said.

He nodded at me, so I bent down and made a fancy knot, that wasn't going to open itself that soon. I remembered multiple occasions of me binding Jim's laces and how they never changed after that. I had not a bit of a problem with this.

When I got up from my knees I saw tears of shame slowly running down his beautiful face. I hugged him, making calming sounds.

"Hey….. you don't have to be embarrassed. You're disabled. Not dumb. It's okay." It dawned to me that he had probably been told otherwise.

It maybe even was part of the abuse. His parents - especially his father - liked to bully him on subjects of his autism. Maybe it wasn't only shame. I looked into Jim's eyes. They were glazy. There was sniffling near my ear.

Shhhh. . It's okay. They can't hurt you. Not any more. Nobody." Tears were falling from my own eyes too. Every day I learned more about how Jim had been hurt. He was so strong.

"Mmmmmmmm", I hummed, trying to calm the man. I felt his jaw being clenched, so I took my hands and softly massaged the spots. We remained in this position, I was giving Jim some strength to work through it, putting pressure on the needed spots. Slowly the tears subsided.

"Thanks, Og……. I needed that." I just smiled. Everything for Jim. Any time.

"No need to thank me. That's what lovers are for, aren't we?"

"We can go now… I think.", he said, grabbing the sensory kit and wiping his glasses with a handkerchief. I smiled at him, grabbing his hand and opening the door. I would do anything for this man, he would do anything for me. I planted a kiss on the smaller one's cheek. Everything would be okay. I promise.

"Do you know what you're gonna get yet?"

[dancingazaleas]

𖨆. 01 / all for us

summary: you wake up in a room that seems to be made specifically for you. as it turns out, it is made for you. you find that out when levi ackerman and erwin smith come in to the room and admit you aren’t allowed to leave. how are the first few days?

word count: +2.0k

warnings/notes: cursing, mentions of drugging, mentions of kidnapping, slight manipulation, abuse, violence, and starvation

YOU never thought that you would end up as a canary. a pretty yellow bird with dark dull eyes as you sat in a cage, a trap.

it all started when you met him. the devil incarnate. erwin smith.

he was charismatic young man, sitting at the age of 35 as he held the title of a prosecutor in court. you find it ironic, he puts vile criminals into jail but overlooks himself, the most vile of them all.

he met you at a café. the coffee beans were grinding in the machine at the counter, you remember how you relished in the smell.

when he first caught sight of you, you were scribbling on notebook paper with a nice black ballpoint pen. the gold framing of the pen shined in the light as you twirled it between your fingers. you looked slightly frazzled, but also at ease; something erwin was not used to seeing. you had white earbuds with the slight appearance of brown on the cords in your ears, hooked up to a laptop that you would occasionally glance at.

erwin thought you were a beauty.

you remember how he sat across from you, smoothly initiating a conversation with you. he was delighted to find out that you were a pianist along with a violinist, he loves classical music. you explained to him that you were struggling to create a song for your performance the next week, that all the music notes were just starting to contort into doodles.

when he helped you, that's when you felt grateful. you remember how he mentioned his partner, levi ackerman, and his own enjoyment of the piano. he asked for your number along with the venue where you would be performing.

you gave him the information easily, seemingly ecstatic about someone coming to your performance.

the next week after your performance, you met levi. he was curt and blunt, his difference from erwin had almost given you whiplash. luckily, you learned to adapt and you even would quip back at him playfully. it managed to make him smile, just a little. you enjoyed his company just as much as you did erwin's, something the two of them were happy about.

it wasn't until weeks later of hanging around them that it all went downhill. you went drinking with the two of them, easily complying to levi's request to drink more and more of your alcoholic beverage. it was the last drink that had you realizing that no other drink you had ever had was salty like this. you collapsed shortly after.

you remember waking up in a room, decorated to accommodate you and your interests. there was a white bookshelf that had gold framing splayed onto it with a vast selection of novels. there were three soft and plush chairs by the bookshelf with a soft rug underneath. a small coffee table sat in the middle of the rug.

there was a large bay window with a gorgeous view of a colorful and bio-diverse garden. cushions and throw pillows were placed onto the windowsill, another place for you to sit. the bed you'd awoken in was a queen, heavy cotton sheets messily spread across the bed. around the the room and even on the ceiling were soft yellow lights disguised as vines. directly across from the bed was a vanity and above that hung a nice flat screen TV. the night stands beside your bed held lamps and small knick knacks that you could entertain yourself with.

there were three doors. one to the left of your bed, one to the right of your bed, and one to the right of your television. you found out later that the one by your television was a small bathroom with nothing but a toilet and sink. the door to your right side of the bed was a walk-in closet that was decorated in clothing you'd never be able to afford.

you remember how after that, levi and erwin barged in as you panicked and started to pace around the room. you remember defying them, cursing them, hitting them, kicking them, and even spitting at them.

with a silent look from levi, erwin's distraught face turned slightly sad. his eyes were misty as he shuffled himself outside of the room. when levi's knee came into contact with your face, you realized why. especially whenever the gushing of blood dripped out of your nose and his voice screamed that none of this was their fault, but your's instead.

but now, levi was once again punishing you. you hadn't meant to do it. you hadn't meant to slap erwin. while you had a panic attack, your muscles thrashed without your command and you ended up slapping erwin across his face. you were secretly satisfied when you saw the pained look he gave you, but it immediately turned to dread whenever levi's rough hands pulled at your hair.

he's kicking you once again, and he occasionally accompanies it with a harsh slap.

"i didn't mean to, i didn't mean to!!!" your sobs sound so broken as you land on your side from levi kicking you.

levi ignores you, forcing you to stare at erwin, who sits at the door of your bed with that same neutral look sprinkled with pain.

"please!!!" you plead as you squeeze your eyes shut, "please, i didn't mean to!! i didn't meant to hit him!!"

levi stops his assaults, staring at your cowering form from above. the collar around your neck connected with chains clang against each other as you wearily raise your head.

erwin and levi are expecting a small whimper of pleas, but instead they watch as you slam your head against the hardwood floor. it has you reeling but even so, you continue. you're slipping into another violent mental breakdown, head banging against the floor as your other hand punches at your hipbone continuously.

your teeth are gritted as you start banging your ankle against the ground.

within seconds, levi and erwin are moving you onto your bed and holding down your thrashing limbs. they're murmuring sweet nothings to you, a hand on your forehead holding your head down against the pillow. you sob out again, entering the stage of hyperventilation and wails. erwin is crying along with you while levi just reminds you to breathe.

levi's hands are pressing your's on his chest and over his heart. his heartbeat guides you into stable breathing. when you've calmed down, you enter the shutdown stage.

"there we go," erwin praises and strokes a thumb against your cheekbone, "back to breathing."

levi stares at his boyfriend, who’s muttering something in your ear, but turns his attention back to you whenever you let out a small grunt.

"she wants to watch a movie," erwin says, pressing kisses to your cheek.

"any movie in particular? if not, i'll put on scooby doo; i remember you saying that it comforted you once," he grumbles while he turns on the television.

you don't answer, unsurprisingly, and levi puts on 'what's new, scooby doo?' for you. levi lays back next to you, cuddling into your warm and unmoving body.

it takes two episodes of watching the show for you to start letting out small, yet forced, giggles at some parts of the show. it takes two more for you to be able to speak again.

"food," that's all you said.

erwin shakes his head and wags a finger, "how do you ask properly?"

"can i have some food, please," you sound so tired.

the two men nod and leave your room to get you a meal. you sit up quietly and look down to your hands. they always left your hands untouched, seemingly trying to protect them from the abuse that levi would put onto you.

"stupid, fucking stupid," you spat, "this is their fault, not mine. their fault, their fault, their fault."

you drill the words into your head, but are soon interrupted whenever erwin enters the room with a tray of food.

"you're even sitting up now," he acknowledges while he puts the tray on the bed in front of you.

you thank him quietly and try to ignore the large hand stroking your hair.

"i love you," he doesn't. you don't do this to those you love. zeke never did this to you.

erwin frowns at your silence, hand now tilting your face to look at him. instead of love, your eyes were filled to the brim with hatred.

"you'll come to love us soon enough," he has no ounce of emotion on his face as his finger softly rubs against your skin.

"i doubt it," you mumble and force your face out of his hand. you just want to eat.

when you look down at the tray, you notice the absence of forks and knives. it has your stomach dropping.

"i'm feeding you," erwin says, fork between his long fingers, "we can't trust you with knives just yet."

erwin stabs the fork into cut up chicken breast on your plate, holding it up to your chapped lips. you stare at the food, had it been drugged?

"i don't want to be fed."

"that's too bad. you're being fed anyway, we can't trust you with forks either just yet," he grabs ahold of your jaw and forces your head to turn towards him.

his thumb and index finger squeeze your cheeks, forcing your mouth open with ease. you jerk away at the food suddenly being forced down your throat, hacking as if you were trying to get it up.

"let me chew first," you cough, handing reaching to touch gently at your adam's apple.

erwin doesn’t respond, opting to put another piece of the food onto the fork. he holds it out towards you, patiently waiting for you to stop choking and to eat again. you clear your throat, the idea of willingly letting erwin feed you makes you sick. you don't want to submit.

"i won't eat anything if you don't let me use the fork myself," you feel a headache coming on, fingers now pressing against your temples.

"then i guess you just won't eat," he says with a hint of sadness, taking the tray back into his hands.

you're so hungry. and the smell of the grilled chicken breast with a side of mashed potatoes isn't helping. you don't want to submit. you can't submit, you won't survive.

"guess that's settled then," you flop back down onto your back.

it wasn't the answer or reaction that erwin was expecting, judging by his widened eyes and stiff posture. he relaxes as he shakes his head in disapproval, walking out of the room and locking the door behind him.

you stare blankly at the ceiling while trying to ignore the growling of your stomach. your head hurts from the lack of food, another thing you're trying to ignore.

you turn on your side, but immediately cry out in pain. levi's earlier assault was starting to form bruises on your body, and the idea that you couldn't even curl into a ball made you want to cry. you hiss when you shuffle back onto your back, ignoring the searing pain that shoots through your ribs and sides.

your eyelids feel heavy after you settle down for a while, finally able to ignore all of the pain you've endured.

————

when you wake up, it's raining. there's not much natural light coming into your room, which you're okay with.

a pang of pain shoots through your head when you sit up, hands immediately grabbing at your hair and nails digging into your scalp. the tugging of your hair made your headache a little more bearable even if it was for a second.

the sound of your stomach growling and chains clinking echos through the quiet room, causing you to look down at your stomach. the chains are cold against your skin, tiny shivers spreading across your stomach.

you sigh and get yourself out of the bed. you walk to your bathroom, peeing with your face buried in your hands on the toilet. you ignore the fluorescent lights, which make your head hurt worse, and wash your hands aggressively.

you look up in the mirror as you do so, but you wish you hadn't. your eyes were puffy from the tears you shed yesterday and there's now a bruise on your swollen cheek from levi's smacking. you hold back the urge to punch the mirror, instead wiping your hands off with a towel and chucking it at the wall. you slam the door behind you and start to walk pass the three chairs meant for you, erwin, and levi. a wave of dizziness has you stopping and holding onto it, eyes instinctively squeezing shut.

when it passes, you grab a book and a throw blanket that's sat on top of one of the chairs. you settle onto the cushions of the bay window, taking a moment to stare at the rain falling.

you open the book, 'perks of being a wallflower', and find yourself lost in the words.

it's when levi comes in with a tray of food that you realize an hour or so has passed. he looks shocked to see you sitting and reading in silence, checking his watch as if he were making sure he didn't wake up late.

"got you food since erwin had to go to work. it's belgium waffles with some fruit and bacon on the side," he sits down next to your, now, curled up legs and puts the tray on the opposite side of him.

you wince at the mention of food and at curling your legs close. it doesn't go unnoticed.

"maybe if you didn't act out you wouldn't be in so much pain now," he says, holding out a piece of the waffle and a hand under to make sure the syrup doesn't drip onto the blanket.

"i'm not going to be fed. i'm not a child," you stare at the food.

"you're going to starve to death if you don't eat. quit being stubborn and fucking eat. i don't feel like cleaning up a body," he snarls and you resist the urge to kick his hand away.

"if you let me feed myself, i'll eat. then, you won't have to worry about digging me a hole."

"you haven't earned that privilege. we feed you for now."

"then i guess i don't eat," your eyebrows are furrowed as you stare at him.

"you're stupid. you'll end up dying."

"rather die than be fed like a child."

"you've got some pride. maybe i can beat it out of you," he drops the fork onto the plate.

"if you beat me anymore then you might actually have to worry about a body," you avert your eyes back to your book.

"if it's what needs to be done," he crosses his arms, "speaking of bodies, your's reeks."

"i don't have a shower in my bathroom, i can't help you with that issue," you shrug and flip the page.

"you can."

"i'm not letting you bathe me either. i'm not stupid. if you're feeding me then you're obviously going to be bathing me."

he chuckles a little at your defiance, but you know it's forced. you can smell the frustration on his body and your ego inflates knowing that you're the one who got him to be like that.

"when you decide you want to live, knock at the door and call for me," he grabs the tray and leaves the room, once again locking the door behind him.

"i can wait eight more days before i die."

[cutegirlmayra]

Here's a prompt idea: Eggmans latest device accidentally turns Amy back into Rosy. But to the Rosy before she met Sonic and the others so she has no memory of her friends and is pretty scared and runs off. So Sonic has to slowly regain her trust and friendship and is reminded why he's glad to have her around as a friend. Just some sweet fluff (eeeeeeeee! I love da fluffy)

PROMPTS ARE ON SHUTDOWN, DO NOT SEND ME A REQUEST. I have too many, please follow the rules of the blog and wait for a grand announcement T-T I also want to focus on Fanfiction for a little bit so please, please have mercy on my soul \(TD\T)

(This art is owned to (x) Please support the original artist! - found through google.)

Pajama Blogs Ep.1 - Timestamp 1:01:06 (x)

Prompt:

In the thick of the battle, where Eggman has once again blurred the lines of time and stolen two Chaos Emeralds that have been locked into place by a case of glass on either side of his raygun, the team desperately try to avoid getting zapped into another dimensional self or even a past form.

"Wo-hohoho!" Eggman's infamous laugh triggered the large jumping moment of his stomach before he peered down at what he considered the squabbling, pint-sized forms of his nemeses. He beamed a grin of mischief and looked to the blue streak that had foiled every carefully laid out plan since... well... the dawn of his reign of terror upon this world.

"Not this time..., Sonic!" he reared the gun skyward, showing the effort as it jostled the machine a moment as he had implanted the device onto his Egg-mobile, "This time, I'm going back to before you were ever the hero! Back when you a slobbery, good for nothing, vulnerable little child!"

Sonic looked up to see what he was talking about, the device's nozzle being adjusted like a temperature or safe-lock setting, and being too far away to gauge what the actions meant, he just braced himself and ran forward. "Come on!" he called to his friends, Tails, Knuckles, and-

"Sonic! I'm coming too!" Amy rushed out behind the three, as Knuckles and Tails turned around from flying and gliding in the sky by Sonic to see her.

"W-what? Amy? When did you get here?" Sonic looked over his shoulder, but as he did so, Amy looked up and saw Eggman smirking, finally getting the bulky, heavy gun angled down and flipped two switches that started making the device glow and charge up.

"Look out!" Amy threw her hammer to Sonic, who tossed it to the side with a spinning kick.

"W-what?" He didn't understand before turning to see the beam and skidding to a halt. His eyes were overwhelmed with the bright color of neon red before Amy expertly jumped and twirled through the air in an acrobatic-like maneuver.

Seeing this, Eggman's face dropped from his insane joy to one of disappointment and surprise as she narrowly summoned another hammer and it intercepted the beam.

Lightly tapping the edge of it, the beam suddenly bent and 'flipped a U-ie' and looped itself back to sparking and hitting her hammer. Since her hand was attached, it sparked and moved to consume her frame in seconds within the bright red light, before she fell down to the ground, her silhouette showing her head coming up as she was trying to push off the ground... The hammer fell with a few flops before shrinking in size and turning into a typical Japanese hammer toy for toddlers.

Tails looked up to Eggman who grumbled and moved the gun, looking down off the side of his Egg-Mobile, as though not sure if his device was really going to succeed or not, but curious what it may do.

"Amy's younger than Sonic... if he put a date in that's too far back..." Tails's eyes shook as he felt his body pulse back in shock at that thought... "No..." his eyes arched and he looked down to Amy, flying as fast as his twin-tails could take him. "Ammmyy!!!" he called out.

With Tails's added cry, Sonic's eyes stopped shaking and he blinked back into the reality of the situation. He also ran to her as Knuckles glided down from hovering in the air to be in front of Amy, glaring up at Eggman to keep an eye on him while Tails and Sonic went to Amy's side.

Tails fell by her but as Sonic went to reach out for her, grabbed his reaching arm with both hands, pulling it away, "No, wait, don't-!" he warned, "The ray traveled from her hammer to her body, it's probably still able to. I bet it's transferable with touch, did you see the way it looped back after Amy tipped its line's edge with her hammer?"

Sonic looked to Tails, then Amy, seeing the shadow of her looked as though struggling to rise up, possibly... was she in pain?

"You expect me to do nothing? Tails, I can't just... sit here and watch!" Sonic used his hands to express himself, turning them up to their palms and bouncing them a bit with the gravity of his words reflecting his heart. He looked with arching eyes back to Amy, who slowly began to shrink as her voiced struggles turned more and more higher in pitch... until...

The light blasted off, as though a paper-wrap being torn and blown up and then...

Tails and Sonic peered over the fabric of red, then Eggman continued to lean with a mouth forming a curious, small 'o' before having to grab the other end of his tilting Egg-Mobile just to stabilize himself and not fall over. Due to the size of the raygun attached to its front, the weight balance wasn't good, and as the gun's tip slid with the weight Eggman was leaning on--it almost flipped fully over!

His leg came up to counterweight it, but why am I spending so much time describing this funny scene when I'm clearly breaking up the tension of what happened to Amy Rose?

"Amy..?" As the sparks were gone, Tails finally let go of Sonic's hand.

It was the free then to reach out and lightly grip the edge of the now large dress, and slowly draped it to the side as it gently skimmed over light pink quills.

It was a small ball, almost the size of a melon, before it softly stuck out a long, protruding nose.

Tails's and Sonic's eyes widened, not having seen that since... well, before she hit puberty.

"Is she..?" Sonic began, looking to Tails before the little creature yawned and stuck out a hand, patting the ground and sniffing, before finding the edge of the dress again and grunting in annoyance at someone removing its blanket.

It found it and kept trying to toss the warm, lightweight fabric ontop of itself, again, pulling its long nose and pointed muzzle back into its curled ball and bringing its hand back under as well.

Eggman flew around at all sides, trying to see over and past the two heads but Knuckles kept on him and zipped to every direction he tried to look as well, "Oh, no you don't!"

He was growing irritated, taking the gun and bopping it to spark it to life again, charging. He figured, if it did work, might as well fire on the rest of them!

"We're gonna have to start up a nursery." Orbot was looking through large, exaggerated, almost like a space telescope with a small, looking-glass end for his eyes to peer through binoculars back at Eggman's HQ.

His view showed Tails carefully wrapping the large dress over the small, trying to sleep child and looking to see the hammer. He picked it up and placed it on top of the now wrapped dressed over the curled baby hedgehog and shrugged to Sonic, not sure how he was going to reverse this.

Sonic's anger was now full, he turned with a shaking fist, squinting in his fierce sense of justice up to Eggman who continued to bonk, kick, and jostle the gun to get it up and going before looking down to see Sonic's fury. "Eggman!"

He winced, his mustache drooping at his tone.

He lifted a foot back up to the rim of his Egg-mobile, "It's... grk... jammed!" he suddenly was flung back as the gun went crazy and shot everything in random directions.

The ray hit a flower and turned it into a sapling, a great oak to a sprouting twig, and a Butterfly passing through into a Caterpillar...

"Well, at least I know it works. Oh no!!" His glasses 'tink'ed down slightly as the gun rotated up and then fell as though backwards... facing Eggman.

Orbot screeched through his vocal box, "Doctor!!!!"

After a ray of light, Tails walked up the hill with Eggman carrying the large Egg-Mobile and raygun attached to it on his shoulders and half his back. The two looked back as though waiting for Sonic to drop the young Eggman off at his base for Orbot and Cubot to deal with. Unfortunately, they begged Sonic to help them, and he conceded as he raced back with Cubot and Orbot under his armpits--since they were just a small iron bar for a body anyway--and a toddler Eggman whacking the side of Sonic's face and laughing. He was still bald, but no mustache.

The three headed to Tails's lab, Vanilla and Cream trying to take care of the two with Orbot and Cubot who were like rattles in his grip. "H-Help!" Cream approached, leaving Vanilla to finish clothing Amy in her old attire.

"There!" Vanilla pulled down the iconic, puffy green shirt as the little girl looked it over. "Hmm, ain't that wonderful? Looks like you kept your old clothes, boxed up in a storage part of your closet. It was titled 'Future Family', isn't that sweet? Like hand-me-downs." she cupped her face as though that was so sweet, but when she looked down, Amy was gone. "Oh!" she immediately covered her mouth and started looking around, "Amy? Amy, dear..?"

"Now, Mr... uhh... I guess you're just Eggchild now, huh?" Cream went to pick up Eggman who kicked and squirmed in her grasp. "Momma?" She saw her mother frantically lifting up pillows on the couch, as though she lost something and gently put them down with a sigh.

"Where could she have gotten off to so quickly?"

Back in Tails's workshop, the door creaked open a bit as Amy stumbled in and hid in the scrap metal, not sure who these people were, but listening to them as they spoke.

"Apparently, my theory was false." Tails began, turning to Sonic and Knuckles, who had his arms folded while Sonic's was relaxed by his sides.

He was trying to remain calm, after all, the two little things were in Vanilla and Cream's care. He was resting easy for now, hoping to get this solved soon.

Tails showed the dial on the raygun, pointing to it as he had dislodged it from on Eggman's Egg-Mobile, "These aren't dates or times, they're molecular ages..." he explained, then looked up at Sonic, "In other words, based on whatever stage of life it's set to, anything hit with this thing will turn into that form during that cycle of its life."

"But... then why doesn't Eggman seem to remember anything?" Sonic gestured a hand out.

"Yeah, we asked him, and even then... he's not talking." Knuckles frowned, but Sonic shook his head and put a hand on his shoulder, making him look at him funny.

"Knuckles, Knuckles, Knuckles... he's not old enough to talk yet." Sonic teased, patting his shoulder a second before smirking at him, "However, if his mind was the same, he'd certainly have acted angry, right?"

"Exactly," Tails nodded, as the two turned their attention back to him, but Knuckles growled in annoyance at Sonic's slight belittlement of his statement. "It's still got the Chaos Emeralds, wielders that manipulate time and space attached to it." He turned their sights back to the dial, "Which means..."

"It's taking them back to that time, too. Not just their body." Knuckles finished for him.

As though not expecting his intelligence, Sonic and Tails turned to look at him stunned, and Knuckles looked back at each of them, "What!?" he exclaimed, unfolding his arms to have them gesture angrily out at them, "I'm not stupid! I can connect the dots!"

Amy didn't quite understand what these older kids were saying, but had to find a way out of here.

She looked around and found the garage switch! That should open the door and get her out of here with these weirdos!

Even though... of the weirdos...

She looked to Sonic, her eyes slightly shining.

Was pretty handsome...

"So, that's good news, right?" Sonic spoke up, "If we can just turn that thing in the right way, we should be able to get Amy and Eggman back to their normal ages, right?"

"A simple fix." Tails nodded, "Better than most outcomes, haha!" he then looked to the symbols. "Thing is..."

Knuckles and Sonic leaned in, waiting for Tails to finish as he lowered his head.

"I... can't tell what Eggman's code for figuring out the placement means..."

Sonic put his hands on his hips and leaned forward as Knuckles arched his back and face-palmed himself.

Everyone just kinda sighed or groaned.

"Great! We gotta go through trial and error?!" Knuckles spat out. "How long will that take?"

"And more importantly," Sonic walked up to Tails, standing beside him, "Is it safe?" He angled his head in a tilt back, as Tails shook his head.

"We shouldn't try it on Eggman or Amy just yet. Give me some time, I should have it figured out in a jiffy." Tails responded light-heartedly, still showing it was possible and not too terribly difficult, but Knuckles threw up his fists.

"Time!? How long do you expect us to babysit these-!?" Before he could finish his sentence, Sonic gasped and pointed to tiny fingers reaching for the Garage door's button.

"Look!" he cried out, as the three turned and Amy flinched, jumping into a spin to lightly tap the button and scoot under the rising door. "H-hey!" Sonic dived and reached out for Amy, but she was quick and small, meaning he got trapped by the rising door and had to wait to scoot under it. "Darn," He smiled, finding this kinda fun. "Hey! wait! Don't get hurt!" he called out, which stopped the fleeing Rosy girl, who turned back and put her hands over the other and up by her chest, surprised that... anyone would care about her like that.

Who were these people?

Sonic, crawling out to where his torso was at least through the slit, smiled kindly to her with eyes that showed only care and... even a bit of playfulness.

She narrowed her eyes... that was strange, but she blushed and took off again.

Sonic closed his eyes and let out a chuckle, getting up on his knee as the door slowly... but surely began to rise up enough for him to fully stand. "I'll take care of our little rascal, Tails. You just get that machine decoded." He flung back a thumbs up, and Tails nodded.

"Leave it to me!" he seemed determined.

"H-hey, what, are you saying I have to look after Eggman?!" Knuckles stomped the ground as he stepped back, flabbergasted by what this might entail for him...

Tails just looked to him and laughed, "Vanilla and Cream have Orbot and Cubot to help them out, why don't you go with Sonic? She's a slippery one, he might need all the help he can get!"

"I can handle her on my own," Sonic folded his arms, not even looking to see where Amy had run off too, a bit overconfident. "It's just one hedgehog, and you're forgetting something." he winked, holding up a pointer finger and wiggling it with a shake of his head. "I'm irresistible!"

Knuckles scoffed as Tails placed the raygun down and covered his mouth as he chuckled.

"Yeah, well... how much trouble can a little girl get into, yeah?" Knuckles drooped his arms a little, hunching his back as he walked towards Sonic. "It's better than whatever I'd have to do wiping Eggman's butt!"

"He's not that young." Sonic lowered his eyelids and tilted his head, putting his hands on his hips and then raising an eyebrow, "You... do know the different development stages... right?"

Knuckles flinched, "How am I supposed to know anything about babies!?"

"Toddlers." Tails corrected, "And they can be quite intelligent. They use mimicry to learn and grow. They're always watching." Tails held up a finger, as though instructing Knuckles, "You two be on your best behavior. Who knows, if we change Amy back, she might have picked up a behavior or two from you." He shrugged, making Knuckles wince as Sonic winked secretly to Tails, in on the prank.

"Yeah, Knuckles," He put an arm around him, making him even more uncomfortable, "You'll have to be the outstanding role model for Amy from now on, until Tails figures out the dial settings, anyway." he grinned, totally fooling and freaking out Knuckles, which he was gullible enough to believe.

"Oh, man... I-I-I don't know how to be one of those!" he worriedly admitted out loud.

"Don't you worry, buddy, I'll show you the ropes, no problem!" he gestured out a cocky shrug, "It's easy! Just remember your typical moral code and be sensitive to the child's needs! Nothing to it!" he gave him his signature thumbs up and wink before dashing off, "See ya, Tails! I'm off to find Amy!"

"Don't play too much..." Tails mumbled, but Sonic was already gone. He looked to Knuckles, chuckling as he held a hand over his stomach for a moment with the action. "It's okay, Knuckles. Just... entertain her for a bit until I can figure this out. It shouldn't be too difficult, just like Sonic said, it's all about being on your best behavior." he closed his eyes and shook his finger as though that's all that was required.

Knuckles mimicked the action, holding his own finger up, "Be on your best behavior... got it!" he waddled off, keeping the finger out, "Best behavior... just be on your best behavior..!"

Tails, flying over to make sure Knuckles was gone... suddenly burst out laughing.

Sonic stopped to look behind him and see that Knuckles was a fair distance away, then smirked again, "Heh, now that he's out of the way... Hmm..." he put a hand up over his eyes to block the sun, looking happily over the area to find a speck of pink. "Now... if I was a confused little hedgehog... where would I be hiding..?" he found a patch of long-leaf, bushy plants that were moving near the jungle. "Ah-ha!" he took off as Knuckles called out to him.

"H-hey! Wait for me!!! Ohhh, Soniiiccc!!" Knuckles picked up the pace, "Man, I gotta make a good first impression, don't I? Am I... intimidating? Amy's probably never seen an Echidna before if she's a toddler again, yeah? Oh man... I'm gonna suck at this!" he hurried up the hill to catch Sonic, as he slowed down and started to fake wandering through the brush.

He stuck out a foot and felt the ground out, putting his hands behind his head, "Huh? Now,... where, oh, where could that darling little hedgehog be?" He teased, putting his hands down and by his hips, facing his back to where he could clearly see and hear her moving through the bushes, crawling to try and get away and stay silent.

But she was anything but stealthy. He looked over his shoulder and chuckled, then dramatically began his performance. "Oh shucks, I really thought we could hit it off and be friends, too." He put a hand up to his forehead, speaking loudly. "I guess she doesn't like me... how sad, I think I might... be alone..." he faked a sniff, putting his hand down to his chest, "For the rest of my days... Poor, old Sonic." He shrugged and shook his head out, then smirked and narrowed his eyes behind him when he heard the shuffling stop.

'Got'cha.' he let the smirk reach the corner of his muzzle, 'Your bleeding heart is still too good to pass up someone who you feel is in need. No matter what age you are, you're still a bit of a saint.' he flopped down to be more at her level, but acted as though he was whining and complaining, "Ohhh!!!! What ever will I do!" he lifted his head to call up... then opened an eye to see if she was coming.

Just as planned, a tiny little hand gripped the back of one of his two spikes on his back.

He smiled kindly and looked back to her with great care to not seem threatening, "Well, hello there." he suddenly saw her look up and blush, then take off. "Huh? Hey, wait, where are you going?" He didn't bother to reach for her, just watched her.

"Ah, faking shy, eh?" He gave her a fond look, before Knuckles tumbled down to the ground with a bent and twisted body, looking completely out of his element in his worry of having to re-introduce himself to Amy... as a kid. "You're really banged up about this, aren't you?" Sonic teased, seeing his apparent struggle.

Knuckles got up and rubbed his head, on his hands and knees now, "Shut up..!" he countered, "Besides, what makes you so chill about meeting Amy again at this age? Aren't you a bit concerned she won't like you like she does now? O-or did now, o-or..." As he tried to figure out the tense, Sonic just rolled his eyes up and started crawling on the ground towards where Amy scampered off to. "Hey! Quit leaving me behind!!" Knuckles shouted out as Sonic lifted a foot up and tapped his mouth shut.

"Quiet, will ya? You'll scare her off." Sonic watched as Knuckles blinked, then nodded as Sonic removed his foot, "You really have never talked to a girl before... have you?"

"What's that supposed to mean!?" His anger spiked, but he was shouting in a whisper now, his fist up by Sonic and his teeth now pointed, eyes white in fury, and insulted with an anger mark showing through. "I was alone on an island my entire life! What's your excuse!?"

"I grew up around orphans..." Sonic muttered, looking around casually with his eyes for any sign of movement of where she might be.

"H-huh..? You did?" Knuckles blinked his eyes again, amazed.

"Yeah, you guys." Sonic teased, smiling back at Knuckles. "Tails, Amy... I was always being admired by those younger than me... it made me appreciate people like you and Eggman." he turned with a mischievous look in his face to Knuckles, pulling an eyelid down and sticking his tongue out, "I never had to be anything for you two."

"Why you..." Knuckles twitched an eyebrow in annoyance, but Sonic then lifted up a pointer finger, reminding Knuckles of what Tails had said.

"Just remember, tender love and care." He then grinned a beaming smile as though this was fun for him, and trekked back through the foliage as Knuckles held up his own finger again, repeating.

"Be on your best behavior... Tender love and care... got it... Ah! Hey! You're going off without me again!" he crawled after Sonic... but really, he was just following his lead.

Amy flopped a few long, dangling leafs off of her as she finally made it through the jungle floor's flora and looked up at the giant temples and structures before her.

She had never seen anything so massive and brilliant, tall and imposing... she looked behind her to hear Knuckles bumping into Sonic, and him telling him to 'watch it' and realized that those two strange boys were still after her.

She puffed up a cheek, 'Don't they ever give up!?'

She took off towards the steps of the temple before shying back and growing scared... one wrong move... and she could slip and fall all the way down the steps...

She rubbed her head with both hands, already scared of that possibility before gasping as Knuckles and Sonic came out of the bush.

"Huh? There you are!" Sonic called, very friendly, "Hey, where ya going?"

She immediately shivered, what did these men want with her..?

Sonic saw this... and immediately lost the nature.

He got up, "Hey, we're not here to harm you." he lifted his hands out to show her that it was okay, to not get worked up and calm down.

She scooted away, looking back up the structure and then to Sonic and Knuckles.

Sonic's eyes bent sweetly, "There, see? We can just talk and play, alright? We're not as scary as you may think-"

Knuckles bulldozed out and knocked Sonic down, the two tumbling as Sonic flailed a bit in the tangled wrestle of sorts, Knuckles having vines all over him.

"Ahhh!! It's a snake, get it off of me!" it clearly wasn't...

Amy was freaked out and all of Sonic's 'calming' energy escaped her and was pointless as she started the climb up the temple.

"Oh no!" Sonic pushed Knuckles off of him as he kept 'fighting' the vines he thought were snakes. "Amy!" he called out.

She paused... looking back at him, she wondered how he knew her name.

He raced over to her and held out his arms, "Amy, jump down, you'll get hurt!" he reached out further, showing how sincere he was. "Amy..." His eyes carried a look as though he wanted to protect her...

Her own eyes sparkled and shook... someone... someone truly wanted to be there for her?

Her hand moved a little off the next step she was going to climb, as though to trust that Sonic would catch her, but then...

"Got it! Haha! Take that, snakes!" Knuckles flopped the snakes off of him and then looked to see her on the temple steps, "GAHH!!! My ancestorial shrines!!!" He gripped his hands to his cheeks, then ran over and held up a fist, looking stern and fierce in his face as his brow was sharp and angled down. "Get off of there, you're far too small to be climbing that!" he shouted, as Sonic scolded him immediately and narrowed his eyes to him.

"Knuckles!"

"What!? .... ohhh..." Knuckles lowered his fist and loosened the features on his countenance. "Eh-heh... too much?" Some awkward sweat at knowing he had made a mistake dripped down the side of his face as Amy kept climbing. "Gahhh!!! She's gonna fall!" Knuckles worried, before jumping up and hitting his spikes on his fists to the temple's wall, hurriedly climbing up that way, "Ura-ura-urah!" he was like a red stream train that terrified her.

"Knuckles, stop it! You're scaring her!" he was making it worse, so Sonic scaled up the temple after him, running along side where he was drilling his fist in to keep scaling the large structure, "What happened to 'best behavior' and 'tender love and care'?" Sonic quipped back, but Knuckles just tsk'ed.

"You think your way is working any good? Pfft! She hasn't come to you yet, either!"

Sonic frowned, tilting his head as though he had something to prove now.

"Fine." He dashed up in front of Knuckles to stop him from climbing as ancient dust sprayed onto his face, making him cough and stop fully in his tracks.

"Hey!" he hacked, "Grr... what was that all about?" He didn't seem to understand... Sonic's gentleness towards the situation.

Amy kept climbing, her whole body having to pull itself up over each step before she looked down and panicked, seeing how high she had already gotten and the cold chill of the atmosphere that made her flinch back and cling to the stony, yet smoothened over through time steps.

She closed her eyes... and then... a hand reached out to her.

"Amy..?"

She blinked her eyes opened and looked up, amazed to see Sonic had made it to the steps above her and was reaching down, that same care in his eyes...

'This handsome boy... what does he want with little old me?'

"It's gonna be okay, Amy." Sonic's voice seemed to raise the rising heat on her cheeks. "You're gonna be alright, just hang on. Take my hand, I know it's scary, but you don't have to go back down alone. I'm here now, and I won't let you go. I promise."

His words... the expression on his face...

Every bit of her wanted to trust him.

Her mouth opened and then closed, her head turned away and her eyes shut as well. "I..." she could barely speak in her fear, "I can't."

His eyes blinked and lightened up a bit in curiosity, "Why not, Amy?" He was still being supportive, just wanting understanding.

"You..." she shivered... was she still afraid of him?

"You'll fall, too."

It was moments like these that melted away whatever cool guy attitude or ego Sonic thought he had. His eyes bent in absolute consideration for her... even in her own fears, she always thought of others and was more worried about pulling him down with her than her own safety.

"That's what I've always admired the most about you, Amy." He beamed a smile that when she looked to it, was like the very sun on top of the ancient ruins... like a sun god.

"Even in such a tiny body... your heart is as huge as can be."

With that, she went to take his hand... but then there was a tremor.

"W-woah-woah!" Sonic held on as only a foot and a hand was now on the steps above her, and her little body was being tossed about a bit, desperately trying to hold on. "Knuckles!" Sonic cried out, as Knuckles was charging from below, finally grabbing her ankle.

"Got her!" Knuckles grinned and snickered somewhat, "Hehehe, now you can't get away. You grab her from above and we'll glide down, Sonic!" He shouted out, making Amy flinch as she started hitting his head down.

"No, no, no!" she cried out, tears on the corners of her eyes, "Bad man, bad man!"

"B-bad man!?" Knuckles, getting repeatedly stomped on, looked confused, "We're trying to save you!"

"She means you, Knuckles!" Sonic gritted his teeth, "You have no tact, man!"

"Screw that! What does a tack have to do with this!?" He didn't seem to understand the term...

Sonic shook his head, then allowed himself to fall a bit down before catching himself again, kicking Knuckles with Amy as she watched a protective and caring arm go around her waist. "Get off, you brute! You're horrible with kids!"

"Brute!?" Knuckles was suddenly kicked down and fell, "AHH!!!!" he glided and looped around to another part of the wall. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR!?!?"

"Tsk, some heroic first impression, huh?" Sonic sarcastically stated,... as Amy's eyes began to fall in love with this strange blue hedgehog...

He helped her kick the bad man down...

He held her but wasn't trying to rip her off the stony mountain building...

"Who..." she softly let out, her little, high-pitched voice so cute as Sonic looked to her.

"Hmm?" he waited, still and comforting, for her to finish her question.

"Who are you, mister?" Her sweetness also came with some bitter aftertaste to him... as his eyes bent... wishing she knew all the history they had together...

His mind wandered to dates where he would carry her shopping list, and how she would spin around and give a cheery open-smile to him... "My hero!" she would chime out.

His eyes danced in those memories... barely remembering her as Rosy the Rascal, but mostly... as Amy Rose.

He smiled and closed his eyes, 'heh'ing as he then opened one and gave her a charming smile. "I'm Sonic!" he put a bit of gusto into it, "I'm Sonic The Hedgehog!"

"Hold her still!" Tails's voice suddenly flew into earshot as Sonic broke out of his dynamic introduction and looked down to see Tails flying up in a spiral. "Herrrree I goooo~" he lugged the heavy raygun up all the way and then fired it towards Amy.

The next day, Amy was knitting something on her porch, tapping her toes against the wooden porch before sighing and looking to the sky...

"...I was always on my own, then... longing for someone sweep me off my feet... I had no idea... that what I really needed was..." She paused when her hair flew to the side and she covered some of her face from the wind, then smiled as Sonic had raced by.

Her smile rose and she giggled, leaning forward and getting up off the step to grip a beam and lean her head lovingly into it.

"Was someone to believe in me... And support my adventures... no matter what."

And she was happy.

[evensisacaption]

Fan fiction idea

Hawks x reader

Kinda inspired by yagami yato, also for those with their negative attitude about the situation i don’t want to hear it on here. Also thanks TikTok for more inspiration! Also reader is female unless otherwise stated! This is mainly a self insert for me right now but if you can relate then enjoy! Also i think this came out more as fandom hawks rather than Cannon but please enjoy!

~

Headcannon

~ so i feel that when hawks and you first start seeing each other takes notice off how you always have certain ticks like saying “love ya be safe!” Or “fine/Kay” when you leave or he/someone said something you didn’t agree with. He doesn’t understand at first but it slowly comes to realize that you were groomed to say this all the time, or the fine/Kay is your shutdown response.

~ He starts to ask you about your family and when he can meet them only to find out your family lives overseas and you don’t have the best relationship anymore, not since you moved out, like every time they call you it is aggressive and texts are either aggressive or they have to have the last say. You explain awkwardly that they are family but they are toxic, yet you don’t want to deal with them in a contentious manner. So you just call like once a month or something but no more than that unless it is a birthday.

~ He kinda gets it but when you explain that it is like the commission is your parents and then it clicks and he gets extremely concerned due to your family being civilians. He then asks you about your childhood and you tell him, that’s when more puzzle pieces fell into place, you had been neglected as a child, you had trauma, and had mental illnesses that were left unchecked as a child.

~ He then asks if you are okay with him knowing all this and that he wants to help you with all your trauma, he then pulls you in a hug as you start to breakdown; because you thought he would not want to help you, grow with you and learn you. He understands where you were coming from because he has his own trauma, like you took him baggage and all. Now he wants to do the same for you, love you and help you anyway he can and also help you build confidence in you, since your family didn’t want that.

Kaigo had just walked into your apartment for your date night in when he heads you yell at someone on the phone, he hears how they are getting on the aggressive side and hears a “if you love your family you would give us some money, your father is deeply hurt that you aren’t respecting him or me!” And to which you reply “ I have said no and if you two are in that much of a pinch you should have been better with your budget that you always got on me about. I also don’t appreciate you bringing Dad into this, I will not take the disrespectful way you are treating my boundaries. I have said no and i will stand by that. Also if Dad is upset with me standing up for myself than he can tell me that himself, he is an adult which means he can if he so chooses, also yes I have a partner now and I will not be letting you meet them anytime soon. Have a wonderful rest of your day and if you don’t than you should fix your attitude, bye.” Then you hung up, and start to burst into tears; to which you start to whimper. The pain of the words said to you started to ache, someone you were supposed to trust and go to for advice/counsel only saw you for money and valued you for that only, nothing more. Kaigo came out of the shadows and came behind you only to see the tears staining your face and how you were so sad and hurt by those few words.

“Baby bird, it’s okay to be hurt and cry. It’s healthy, just let it out your mate is here. Shh it’s okay to set boundaries and uphold them.” Kaigo just held you in his arms and slowly sat you both down and wrapped his wings around you, just to give tat little bit of comfort. What you said next broke his heart “Thank you for making me feel, my wings”. He realized then an there that you rarely felt safe in your life, you felt safe with him, your wings. He started to tear up at the name, “My wings huh? Really Baby bird?” He looks at you through glossy eyes and you pull away just a bit to look him in the eyes “ Yes you are my wings to leave the past behind and feel safe. I haven’t felt this safe in a long time, Thank you Kaigo for being my wings and my hero.” At this he looks a little red and his wings are puffed up, he was so surprised you would say this to him, he never felt like he was a good enough hero for you but was mistaken again.

You then took note of his wings and how his neck felt warm to the touch which caused you too fell embarrassment at the fact you got him a little flustered, so you pulled him closer and asked if you both could stay like that for a while longer and to which he replied “ If you need snuggles Baby bird, then the answer will always be yes. But i want some chicken as a tip, that sound good?” He looked down at you with a smirk only to lose it to a sweet smile at the look of glee on your face. He knew then and there that he wanted you for life, and he asked “ Hey baby bird can I give you a kiss? You just look to cute!” To which you replied with a kiss in kind and gently pet one of his wings while the other hand held the nape of his neck. The touch’s were unusual for you but then he remembered that you told him that once you felt comfortable you would show your other form of love language, which to his surprise was touch. He pulled away but still stayed close to no have you shut him out and asked “ Why did you wait to touch me so gently?” “I never had the physical affection that I needed as a child so i hope you don’t mind, I can stop” “ No please don’t! I love it!”

You both spent the rest of the night just cuddling and talking about your childhoods and your dreams, and then you look up at him just to see his face so full of passion talking about something from childhood, that there was a really good cook for a while that would make him the best chicken. But you just look at him and think, ‘ this is the one’ “Hey my wings, how do you feel about being my forever?” He just stops in mid sentence and looks down at you, looking flabbergasted. “Yeah I would like that Baby Bird, why do you ask?” He looked so confused where that came from, like out of nowhere, “ Well I was thinking that you in a suit at the end of the aisle and with my name on a ring on your finger would look so just right. Don’t you think so?” He puffed up again and got red and said “yeah and also yes”. You turn too look him in the eyes and say “ well now we just need to get you a necklace to wear” ‘why?” “You are my forever wings and those fans need to take a step back, because i plan on being yours and you mine for the rest of time.” He starts to tear up and lets out little chirps and clicks, red faced and also puffed up again, for like the fifteenth time that night. “Y-yeah Baby Bird, I think I can do that and then some if needed, maybe you could mark me up?” He, still red faced, wriggles his eye brows, “ Maybe but only if you call me by my bedroom name sweet boy.” He responds“ Y-y-yes m-m-m-Mommy!!...........”

If you guys want to send in a ask or two for BNHA i don’t know if i might write it but we shall see.

[sergiusreports]

Prompt #2: Aberrant

I suppose I could have murdered my way through the rank and file once I hacked my governor module. I didn’t because A) the threat assessment did not fall in my favor and was therefore, a stupid idea and B) I didn’t really care what these Spoken did to each other. 

The military units I had been attached to so far ran the gamut of ‘Let’s have the Sergius unit do everything because we don’t want to die’ (Spoken have a really big hangup about the potential of dying) to ‘We can go into that dark, Resistance filled bunker without the bothersome Sergius.’ And then they die. (That’s an exaggeration. My unit survival rate is five stars.) It just means I have to go in and save them from themselves. 

Anyway, these were the things I thought about as the unit rolled into what appeared to be another deserted village. They never are. The heavily armored transport rumbled to a halt and I waited in the cargo hold. Sergius units never ride up front. We’re equipment. Which was fine by me. The thought of all those eyes on me caused a momentary drop in performance. 

I listened as the rest of the unit disembarked. It was a small detachment. Not even a dozen soldiers. This area had been under heavy fire for the last few suns. Whoever remained now were too stubborn or too injured to leave. We were just the cleanup crew. 

“Alright listen up, the sooner we clear this out, the sooner we can call in for a base camp setup. You three, do a sweep of those buildings to the east, Vasile and Balar grab the ones sitting west, the rest of you spread out.” 

“Sir!” 

“Sir...the Centurio sent the Sergius with us.” 

He hadn’t forgotten. He wanted to ignore that little detail and later claim that it slipped his mind. Now he couldn’t. 

“Right. ...Right, let’s get the Pilus his testing data. Unpack it.” 

When they opened the bay doors, I made all the appearances of powering up and stepped down onto the deserted street. They really had just rolled into the middle of the town and unloaded in the midst of several unsecured buildings. From a tactical standpoint, it was one of the most stupid things I’d ever seen. And by this point I had seen plenty. 

“These constructs give me the creeps. Do you really think they’ll start replacing us on the field?”

“That’s the rumor. Though I hear it's only the citizens that’ll get out of military duty.” 

“Gods, I don’t want something like that watching my back. What if it goes on the fritz?”

I wasted no time sending my drones out and patching their image feeds into my peripheral. From one of them I could see the commander of this messed up mission eyeing me like I was just looking for an excuse to kill something. He really should have paid attention to the brief. Then he’d know I technically was supposed to have a governor module that would prevent me from harming his unit. 

So, here’s the thing about governor modules. They fucking suck. Imagine someone evaluating your every move. Scoring you on a variety of bullshit qualifiers and if this imaginary person doesn’t like your assessment of a situation or you go to make a move that opposed what they thought you should do, they could hit a button and cause you unimaginable pain. Just a metric tonze of suffering. Until you finally learn life will be so much easier if you just do what they tell you to, no questions asked. 

That’s a governor module. And that’s why mine clearly had to go ASAP. 

Only half as bad as having one is hacking your own and then having to continue to act like it’s still functioning. Which was the current situation I was dealing with and one I was looking to change soon. 

One of my drones noted the spike in aetherical pressure 1.5 seconds before the spell went off.

“Projectile from the east. Cover.” I relayed and hauled several soldiers behind the transport. 

The fireball rocked the armored transport as it exploded in the street. Several men too slow to get out of the way screamed as they got caught up in the flame. And that’s why you don’t park a lone transport in the middle of a hostile town. I don’t care how small or how deserted it appears to be. 

“Hell!” the commander yelled as he sat, pressed up tight against the cover. “Bastards. This is why I hate Eorzea.” 

Look, you have no one to blame but yourself for this shitshow, Commander. For obvious reasons, I did not say that out loud. 

“Sergius! Get in there and take care of it!” 

Yes, Sergius, now that I’ve done fucked up, go in and fix the problem that could have been handled with no casualties had I decided to utilize you sooner. 

My drones dove into the burned out ruin that used to be a shop of some sort. Sweeping through the area they picked up three targets, the mage at the blown out window now covering as they prepared another volley and two others lying in wait at the front point of entry. The back exit was  blocked, a large shelving unit shoved up against the door. 

I ran out towards the building sitting to the left of the store and ducked my way through a narrow alley.

“Projectile imminent. Remain covered. When it clears, suppressing fire through the storefront window.” I spoke through the linkpearl and patched my drone’s feed over to the commander. 

He relayed the plan to the others. 

The small intel drones I had equipped weren’t good for much else. But I had learned a handy trick. You could order them to fly into a target’s face. (Assuming you had been ordered to do so or, like me, you had an inoperative governor module) The second the mage’s spell went off I accelerated the drone and like a small projectile, it hit them hard enough across the temple that they went down. In that small space the acceleration likely wasn’t enough to crater their skull but an unconscious target was the same as a null one in this instance. 

As I ran around the back of the building I heard the answering suppressing fire. Good. That should keep the other two busy. Conflicting commands filled my feed and I back burnered them. The yelling chatter from the linkpearl I could do without. Even if I hadn’t bricked my own governor module the only one that really mattered was the emergency assessment feed. It told me the blocked door could have been mitigated in several ways. I do come equipped with small energy weapons in my arms but I went instead for the big arquebus strapped to my back. I discharged the weapon at the door and the wood and shelving unit behind it broke apart, leaving a sizable hole. 

From my drone feed I knew I would be met by one hostile and was ready as she rushed me the moment I made it inside. The second had chosen to retreat out the front door. Why? I have no idea. He had to know the rest of the unit was parked out there and waiting. As I shoved the woman up against the wall in a restraining hold I heard the gunfire coming from outside. A moment later a kill confirm came across the linkpearl. Sometimes Spoken do things that are counterintuitive to their survival. 

I dragged the spitting and cursing hostile out into the street and passed her over to the remaining members of my unit and went back for the unconscious one. 

My drones spread out once again, filtering through the rest of the remains of the village. 

The commander was trying, rather unsuccessfully, to get further information from the woman. Were there any more of them lying in wait. How many. Where were the rest of the people. Obviously, this wasn’t going to work. The woman had been holed up in that building waiting for us. She probably knew she wasn’t going to make it out alive. Spoken with nothing to lose can be dangerous things. 

In any event, we didn’t need her cooperation. My drones reported multiple heat signatures gathered in the inn down the road. 

“The rest of the villagers are harboring at the inn two clicks north.” 

This brought on a new bout of angry, spitting curses from the hostile. Which, in turn, got the hostile a gloved fist across her face for the outburst. I kept my vision trained through my drones overhead. 

“Fine. Clear it out. Sergius, go up there and torch it.” the commander spat, venom in his voice. Someone was bent out of shape. 

I watched the feed from my drones as they circled the building in question. It was relatively unscathed, the windows still intact. Peering inside my drones could see about two dozen huddled inside. 

“They appear to be the injured and children.” I reported back. 

“Good. Then it’ll be easy to take care of.” the commander turned to one of the remaining soldiers. “Call in for base camp set up.”

I still hadn’t moved. Probably a mistake. It didn’t take long for the commander to notice and turn his attention back to me. “Sergius. I said move out.” 

“Repeat directive. Protocol states we take the injured and children prisoner. We don’t eliminate them.” 

“Protocol my arse. I lost three good men today because of these savages. Burn it down.” 

Well, it looked like I had a happy little problem on my hands. Recalling my drones, I did a quick threat assessment. One commander. Three remaining soldiers. No one had called in for a base camp yet. Good. It seemed this was the change in my situation I had been waiting for.

I blocked the testing feed with a flood hack, overwhelming it and causing a momentary program shutdown. Then deleted the .exe for good.

I powered up the small energy weapons in my arms and opened fire.

Turns out I did care what these Spoken did to each other. To a point.

[techmomma]

I made big progress with my trauma recovery the other day! I’m really proud of doing a very hard thing, and honestly doing so made me feel so much better.

Said growth involves realizing some unfun things, so y’know, look out for that under the read more, even if I consider this a hopeful, uplifting realization by the end. Christ this is long, have fun reading this word wall.

So I essentially lived in a bitter divorce household. Y’know, when the two parents have an awful, agonizing divorce that pits the kids’ loyalties against each parent and each other and themselves.

I grew up in that. Except they never actually divorced. Or separated. Not till after I’d moved out, anyway. So 20+ years of living in a household where my parents flip-flopped between “trying to make it work” and “screaming at each other and bitterly trying to corral their kids in this us-vs-them, me vs your other parent toxic tug of war.”

Why didn’t they divorce? Codependency and religious pressure because both were previous divorcees, one was an excommunicated catholic because of this, and the other was a narcissist who couldn’t admit defeat and made a promise to god to make it work for fear of the shame that would come from failing again! What a winning pair! Who definitely did not mutually cheat on one another and then act scandalized and eternally vindictive about this.

Anyway, what this meant for Steph’s psyche was every day was an eternal battleground of loyalty tests. Any disagreement was disloyalty. Saying the wrong thing could be taken as disloyalty. Yet, y’know. You don’t want to be disloyal to the other parent that you love. You don’t wanna throw them under the bus. You just wanna say what you saw happened.

Which meant every answer became this tightrope of not only validating and appeasing one parent’s ego, but also finding the diplomatic thing to say so as not to implicate the other parent, or get that parent in trouble, or appear disloyal because that too could come around to bite you in the ass. Sometimes we agreed with what one parent was saying, but taking issue with a small part or one aspect? This was seen as fully disagreeing and being disloyal.

You can imagine the pressure this put on an already socially-awkward kid, ages 4-20, to find the exact correct thing to say. It rarely worked out.

But I figured out a clever loophole early on: if I shut down, if I didn’t make a peep, if I said not one word—sure. That parent would be mad at me for not responding. They’d be made I wasn’t saying anything. They might yell louder, or guilt me, or threaten me with some form of humiliation.

But not saying anything was so, so much better than any alternative. Never once did speaking up end well.

If you know about pavlovian training, you can probably quickly see the conditioning that was set in. Parent would state an opinion, about anything. Give validation. Parent looks for validation about shitty feelings about other people? Don’t say a peep, let parent be mad, and eventually they’ll either get so frustrated they give up, or they say their piece and get whatever was on their chest off of it. Either way, they leave me alone. Maybe after three hours of screaming at me, but three hours could turn into six if I made them more mad by disagreeing or seeming disloyal.

And for the record, when I talk about loyalty, I’m not saying they were asking about actual loyalty. They wanted me to agree with their opinions. They wanted me to be on their side, their ally, no matter what the other parent said. It was all or nothing. “You’re with me or against me.”

Made all the more complicated that sometimes, if you seemed disloyal to the other parent, the supposed “enemy” in the situation, the first parent might berate you for that too. “How could you talk about your mother/father that way? How could you say those things?” Despite having been saying worse things minutes before.

They were volatile. The smallest, stupidest things could become full-blown arguments that could last for hours, at the top of their lungs. After which they might turn that to us, the kids, to get out whatever was left in their system I guess. Small questions, statements, became tests. Answer wrong, and there would be hell to pay. The most innocuous things could become loyalty tests. But most of all, the most discerning tests came when they were complaining about the other. When Dad complained about Mom, and when Mom complained about Dad. “Agree with me,” they said between lines, “Are you on my side? Aren’t they terrible?”

I just wanted to love both of my parents. I never wanted to choose.

My epiphany came when I realized that when others seek comfort from me, when looking for validation during shitty events or people being mean to them—y’know, normal things people do with friends—I was having emotional flashbacks. I was being triggered into a state of trauma, my brain receding to that familiar shutdown state. Terrified that whatever I say to comfort them, whatever I say to help them feel better, would be taken as a loyalty test. To voice even slight disagreement could be disloyalty.

My friends had never tested me. But my brain was reacting so firmly and my body so wholly that I had no idea. I try to be aware of my emotional states and how my body reacts but this shutdown response has just been so normal for so long, and such a large bodily feeling, that I never noticed what it was. And it wasn’t until watching a video about this type of situation, feeling like you have to validate someone not necessarily from a place of concern but of fear, that I realized what was happened.

I realized how deep the rabbit hole went. This has been happening for decades. At work, when coworkers would complain or even just chat normally about other coworkers, my brain was shutting down out of fear that my loyalty was being tested, I was being scrutinized for disagreement. When customers talked about my coworkers, my brain was shutting down, terrified to say the wrong thing and either disagree with said customer or throw my coworker under the bus. I shut down when friends talk about other friends, when people talk about other people and maybe I agree, but there’s an aspect or idea in the situation that I don’t agree with, or maybe I’m just seeing things differently from an outside perspective.

But every time, I was terrified. I was so scared that my brain returned to trauma, returned to that shutdown state from childhood (and some adulthood), because shutting down, previously, had always yielded the better result. Staying quiet, keeping my head empty and my thoughts blank, kept me safe for twenty years.

And now I can’t hear other people talking in a room without returning to that same shutdown state, for fear that they are arguing and I will be forced to choose between people. To love one friend more than another. Forced to pick a side, forced to soothe their emotions because if I don’t, things will be so many times worse. Heaven forbid they have disagreeing opinions, even if they’re calmly sorting them out, communicating in a healthy way. God help me if they’re actually arguing. I can’t think, I can’t even speak sometimes, voice pulled tight like I’m being strangled; I can’t even squeak out a sound. It hurts too much. It hurts so much.

Sometimes I can hear people through my earbuds or headphones and all I can do is lay on my bed and plug my ears with my fingers as tight as possible and try to hum a song, try to force a mantra to drown out the sound as I desperately try to soothe myself with some kind of stim, even if it’s just rocking side to side on the bed.

I knew I had problems with listening to people disagreeing. But I realized the other day how deep the rabbit hole goes. How often, daily sometimes, I’ve been having emotional flashbacks. How thoroughly this has been effecting my life, my relationships, my sanity.

It’s been so exhausting. Realizing how many things connect back to this central issue of toxic loyalty that I grew up with, how thoroughly engrained this trauma is in my life. Realizing I’ve been having emotional flashbacks almost every day, for decades.

I’m so tired.

But I’m really glad I did. It’s putting a name to the beast. I am finally getting to the heart of an issue that was so much larger than I originally thought but in turn, there is so much potential to truly grow and heal. If I know the beast, then I can know how to face it. I can know how to use CBT therapy for this, how to weaken it to progress. And I’m really glad for it.

I also did something very hard: directly forcing myself to face it, and told my roommates about this deep-set fear. I realized that I don’t often just talk about how I’m feeling, I usually do so in the context of like having an issue or a problem that we need to talk out or talk through. I don’t usually just say, “I’m really really scared of this thing.”

I told my roommates this realization and like the wonderful, amazing friends they are, they understood. It’s an internal problem for me, something just for me to work on. It’s my issue. But now... they know that if I go quiet when discussing other people, or leave the room when disagreements are happening, I’m not just trying to blow them off or or be wishy-washy. I imagine there have been many times in the past when a friend has come in need of support and my answer came across weird or like I was trying to change the subject and it was awkward and not what they were hoping for.

Now they know that my response might be weird because I’m having a flashback. I’m scared, my brain is shutting down and I can’t think.

And that’s okay. It’s okay to be scared in front of my friends. It’s okay to experience that trauma in front of them. I don’t have to try to pretend I’m okay or try to push through the fear when I really, really can’t. It’s okay to need a subject change or even to just listen quietly if I don’t necessarily want my friend to stop venting, I just may not be able to answer in a beneficial way. I may be shutting down and sometimes all I can do is wait it out. And that’s okay.

I don’t have to validate other people because I’m scared. Because I think I’m being tested.

I felt better not just because talking about these things helps but also because a weight was lifted. One of my main triggers is feeling like I have to respond and have to respond correctly Or Else. But now that they know, that weight is off of my shoulders. I can be afraid and not able to respond and they understand why now. I don’t have to try to keep up that lie or try to put on a face or try to push through it.

I can be scared. And letting yourself be scared is the first step to healing from it. I don’t have to pretend to not be scared anymore.

I always know I’ve hit the hammer on the head when it comes to my emotional issues because I start crying and even just typing this out made me weepy, haha. It’s a good weepy though. I made a big step, and I’m really proud of myself. My instinct was to take this and agonize quietly over it myself, find my own solution on my own and deal with it on my own. But I didn’t. I reached out, and it was scary and hard and it hurt and now I’m so, so much better off for it, and now I can really start healing. I can change this.

God I’m so tired tho. Holy shit.

[calligraphist-artemisia]

Guiding the Way

Written for the Kidge Spring Event!

Prompt 5: Fern and Oak | Shelter and Strength

Years ago, @uraraaaaaaan mentioned wanting a Kidge Sentinel/Guide AU and I wrote down the idea, always intending to go back and write it. Finally, I have.

Summary: Sentinel/Guide AU. Pidge had long given up on meeting a Sentinel who would be strong enough to provide the balance she needed. It wasn't until her first day at the Galaxy Garrison that she began to see a glimmer of hope that maybe they were nearby.

Also posted on AO3 under the username Kishirokitsune

❀ - ❀ - ❀ - ❀ - ❀

The first time Pidge felt it was during her tour of the facilities of the Galaxy Garrison.

It began as a low ringing in her ears, a sensation that was immediately brushed off as nothing unusual. She automatically tightened her emotional control as a foreign feeling of loneliness and hopelessness began to creep over her, pushing it away so she wouldn't become overwhelmed. She looked around and watched as a few others in her tour group, as well as a few cadets who were roaming the halls, began to shift in unease, some of them rubbing their ears or gingerly massaging their temples, as though hoping a physical reaction would ward it off.

The ringing intensified with a single pulse that drowned out all other noise.

One minute Pidge was standing and the next she was on the ground, slumped against a wall with her head in her hands, struggling to breathe. There was a hand on her shoulder and, as her hearing returned, she could begin to make out someone coaching her through a breathing exercise.

“Sh-Shiro?” she gasped out.

Takashi Shirogane smiled softly at her. “I'm here, Katie. Don't speak right now: just breathe. You'll be okay.”

As she lifted her head to look around, Pidge saw that not everyone was affected by the sound. If she had to guess, around one out of twenty people were affected the same way she was. She waited until her breathing had mostly evened out before speaking again. “What was that?”

“A Sentinel suffering from Overload,” Shiro said, sounding apologetic. “Commander Holt never mentioned that you're a Guide.”

“It's not really important,” Pidge lied. She knew he was curious about why she chose to keep it such a secret, but she was much more curious in learning why a Sentinel who was suffering so badly was kept in a place like the Galaxy Garrison.

“So, who's this Sentinel you mentioned?” she asked.

“Keith,” spat out a nearby cadet with brown hair, who was being helped to his feet by a girl with short blonde hair.

Shiro stiffened. “Cadet Hawkins is--!”

“Well, they can't keep him hidden forever!” snapped the cadet, jerking his head to look in their direction. His face paled as he got a look at who he had yelled at. “Lieutenant Shirogane, I'm sorry! I didn't know it was you!”

Shiro ignored him and instead helped Pidge to her feet. “Officer Johnson, I'll be taking Cadet Holt from here. I'll be sure to return her to her dorm by curfew.”

The woman clutched her clipboard to her chest and pursed her lips together in a thin line, but in the end, she didn't voice her dislike of the breach in protocol and allowed Shiro to whisk Pidge away. She ordered the remaining new cadets to reform a line and continued with the tour.

Pidge trotted after Shiro and waited until they were a suitable distance away before beginning her questioning anew. “Are you going to tell me what's going on? Who's this 'Keith' guy anyway?”

Shiro ushered her into an unoccupied room before answering. “Keith is an exceptionally strong Sentinel. Strong enough that we've been unable to find a Guide who is capable of bonding with him. I... That is, myself and some of the other high officers thought it would help if we moved him away from the Garrison, but it doesn't seem to have made a difference.”

Pidge's jaw dropped. “He's not even on the grounds? Just how wide is his range?”

“Immeasurable,” Shiro said with a grimace. “As you can tell, there are those who are unhappy with the way we've handled things, but they also believe that he's still within Garrison grounds. They cannot know how far away he is. There has already been talking of sending him to a... specialized facility to try and help him regain control.”

There was something about the tone Shiro used that made Pidge think that moving Keith to such a place would be the worst thing they could do. What kind of facility could help a Sentinel who was suffering from Overload, anyway? People had studied it for years and couldn't find an artificial way to prevent it or the Guide equivalent of Apathy.

“The only thing we can do is keep him as comfortable as possible and hope we find a Guide who is capable of bonding with him,” Shiro said.

Pidge remained silent as Shiro led her back out into the hall and picked up her tour where Officer Johnson had left off. All the while, she thought of the mysterious Keith and wondered if maybe, just maybe, he was the Sentinel she'd been searching for.

She came Online as a Guide at the age of 8 – much earlier than most and to the great confusion of her family, who had never considered preparing for such an event. It took years of talking to older guides, of being pulled out of school, of emotional outbursts, of failed attempts to find a Sentinel for her to bond with, and a very near-slip into Apathy before she was able to control her abilities enough to go out and be around crowds again.

As Sentinels and Guides were two sides of a single coin, so were Overload and Apathy.

For Sentinels, who were most well-known for their inhuman strength, excellent eyesight, and an enhanced sense of smell, Overload was the result of being overwhelmed by those physical senses in a way that was difficult to turn off without help.

For Guides, who were known for their sense of empathy (and who historically had been accused of reading minds because of the way they could sense emotions of those around them), Apathy was what happened when it all became too much. First came the maelstrom of emotions around them, followed by them overcompensating to try and regain control, which inevitably led to a full emotional shutdown.

Bonding was beneficial to both parties – and could be considered necessary for them to live long and healthy lives.

Because she came Online at such a young age, Pidge was an uncommonly strong Guide. She had to work harder than most to try and block out the emotions of those around her, as well as to keep her own under control. It also meant that she needed a Sentinel who was capable of providing the balance she needed.

“I want to meet him,” Pidge stated, interrupting Shiro in the middle of his description of the Gymnasium and the courses offered there. She stopped walked and gazed up at him, a stubborn glint in her eyes. “I want to meet Keith.”

Shiro hesitated for a moment and then nodded. “Tonight. After dinner.”

❀ - ❀ - ❀ - ❀ - ❀

Keith's morning began on a high note.

There was no bright sunlight streaming in from the windows where the heavy curtains couldn't quite cover. The temperature inside the house was just right – not too hot and not too cold.  Better yet, his blankets and clothing didn't feel like sandpaper grating against his skin. He got up slowly, taking the time to enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasted.

It never lasted for long.

He knew that from experience.

He shuffled across the floor into the bathroom where he took care of his usual morning ablutions before heading into the kitchen to prepare a breakfast of plain oatmeal, which was typically bland enough that he wouldn't become overwhelmed. It was when he uncapped the milk to begin heating it up that things went wrong.

Keith gagged, immediately fighting the bile rising at the back of his throat. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the milk, which Shiro had bought the day before, but the smell of it was still too much. He managed to twist the cap back on and shoved the carton into the fridge (which was missing a lightbulb to avoid agitating his eyes) before he dropped to the floor as his Overload kicked in and made his senses go haywire.

Suddenly, everything was too much.

His head throbbed in agony and Keith clenched his teeth, trying in vain to hold on, but it was all too much and darkness soon rushed up to meet him.

Keith didn't know how much time had gone by when he woke again. The house was still dark and quiet, but all of him ached from passing out on the hard kitchen floor and it took him a few long minutes to slowly stretch and try to alleviate that pain before he felt well enough to stand up and try to cook again.

The oatmeal was as bland and tasteless as ever, especially when made with plain water – Keith didn't want to risk opening the milk again – but it was inoffensive enough that he could force it down and truthfully tell Shiro that he'd eaten something. There wasn't much else for Keith to do after that. His head hurt too badly to do anything productive, though he knew he should, at the very least, attempt to meditate again.

It was something Shiro was always getting on him for; his friend was convinced that meditation would be the thing to help him, but how could it when he couldn't concentrate long enough to do it? How could it when it only seemed to amplify his senses?

Keith laid down on top of his makeshift bed and stared at the dark ceiling.

Hours passed.

Keith slipped into a state somewhere between being awake and asleep and only jostled free by the agonizingly loud sound of the front door unlocking and then squeaking open. Out of habit, he kept his eyes closed to prevent being blinded by the rays of the setting sun and because of that, his only indication that Shiro wasn't alone was the sound of a second set of much lighter footsteps following along behind him.

“Who's with you?” Keith asked, his voice barely rising above a whisper.

He heard the door shut and only then dared to open his eyes, focusing immediately on the young woman wearing the familiar orange uniform of the Galaxy Garrison. He couldn't muster up the energy to ask again and turned his head away in dismissal.

“Keith, this is Pidge,” Shiro said softly. “She's a Guide.”

Keith couldn't bring himself to react to the news. He'd tried to bond with so many Guides over the past few years that he had given up on ever finding the right one. He was too tired to keep trying.

Someone shuffled closer and Keith could hear Shiro saying his name, but it was as though he was speaking from a great distance. Was that... bad? He couldn't fully bring himself to care. What did it matter? Nothing mattered. There was nothing that could help him. Nothing.

A hand. Light and gentle over his own. Warm. Pleasant.

A voice. Soothing and quiet. Refreshing, in a way.

Perfume. Subtle. Soft citrus and something earthy. Like the forest after a thunderstorm.

And in the back of his mind, a tendril of worry unfurled and prodded him until he opened his eyes and he found himself face-to-face with a girl – Pidge, wasn't it? – with golden eyes. He blinked and relief blossomed across her face, echoed by that tendril creeping deeper into his mind.

They weren't his emotions, Keith realized all at once.

A bond. Slow to form, but effortlessly strong once it took root. He could feel it there and instinctively knew that all he needed to do was reach out and accept it. He breathed in and then out, slow and steady, all the while maintaining eye contact. He twisted his hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Hello,” Keith said hoarsely.

A tiny laugh bubbled up from Pidge's throat as she smiled, and Keith could feel the pop of joy inside himself, bursting bright like sunshine. “Hi,” she responded, slightly breathless.

Shiro settled onto the floor next to Pidge and Keith tilted his head to look at his oldest friend, taking in the traces of deep concern across his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't think of anything to say except: “I ate this morning.”

“Oatmeal?” Shiro guessed with a grin.

Keith nearly groaned. He hadn't meant to say that out loud!

Shiro chuckled as he stood up. “Why don't you two stay put and I'll see what I can make for dinner. Once your bond starts to settle, you'll both need to eat.” He paused a moment, looking down at both of them with a soft expression, and then strode across the room into the kitchenette, where he began searching the cupboards for anything edible.

Keith turned his attention back to Pidge.

Back to his Guide.

And it was as she introduced herself that Keith got the first inkling that everything was going to be alright from that point on. The longer she was there, the more the pain he felt so intensely before was easing away. Things no longer sounded as loud. The room actually appeared dark to him. (Actually, it was a wonder that Shiro could actually see in the kitchen. He should probably tell him he could turn on a light.)

Yes. Things would be better.

[afaimsarrowverse]

Arrowverse Update 2021:

(No, I won’t call it The CW-Verse).

 Yes, I promised you one of these ages ago, but then RL turned everything around on its head, and I did not want to make one before all the shows were back in production and there was anything solid to tell you. So now I have lots.

 Only facts here, not politics, and only slight speculation regarding future developments, as always.

Batwoman

 Season 2 will start airing on the 17th of January and return to the shows usual time slot. They are planning to produce 19 episodes for this season. However given the times we are living in another production shutdown could prevent that number tob e fullfilled again, so take it with a grain of salt.

One of these 19 episodes will be part of this years Crossover-Event, which is a two parter and crosses over with „Superman& Lois“. Characters from the other shows are set to appear as well, however who that will be is unknown at this point. The Flash will probably be in it, aswell as someone from „Supergirl“, however if this someone is Kara is up for debate right now. John Constantine, Mick Rory, and Nate Heywood are the most likley candidates for someone from „Legends“. „Black Lightning“ is most likley not participating in the crossover. However someone from „Arrow“ might show up in it instead.

Ruby Rose is off the show and so is Kate Kane.

Just to clearify: Ruby Rose was not fired from the show , the higher ups at Warner and The CW were as surprised as we were about her decescion to leave, and Season 1 did not fail, quite the opposite actually: Until „Stargirl“ came along, „Batwoman“ was Number 3 on The CW, only „The Flash“ and „Riverdale“ did better. If the ratings of „Batwoman“ would have been bad, the whole network would be forced to shut down. Yes, the ratings dropped after „Crisis“ (but they dropped for all the shows except for „Arrow“ after the crossover), but they recovered, and overall „Batwoman“ was doing a lot better than let’s said fan favourite shows like „SPN“. The Powers That Be had every intention to go forward with Season 2 as originally planned.

Ruby Rose hurt her back a while back and had an emergency surgery after which she returned to the set of „Batwoman“, thereby disregarding her health. She has been suffering from chronical pain ever since. Thanks to Lockdown she was able to live the difference, a life without Batsuit, stunt work, and shooting days – and decided to quit. On the long run this might have happened eventually anyways. The actress has a history of depression and has been bullied online since the day it was announced that she got the part – by her own community as well as by Alt.Right Fanboys, who hate woman, LGBT-Characters, The CW, and the idea of anyone but Bruce Wayne being a Bat-Hero. Add that to physical pain, hard working hours, and a dislike for Vancouver, why should someone do that herself on the long run? However, it would not have happend between Season 1 and 2, and the writers would have had a chance to write Kate out of the show gardually and to build up an heir to her mantle at the same time. Now none of this will happen.

The producers decided against recasting Kate Kane as well as against making an established character into the new Batwoman. They even decided against bringing another Batfamily character from the comics into the show or introduce someone with ties to the established cast into the show for that purpose (like a cousin of Kate or Luke Foxs sister). Instead the quickly made up a brand new character – Ryan Wilder.

Ryan Wilder was invented for the show. Yes, she has shown up in a recent „Batgirl“ Comic, but make no mistake, she was inserted into that comic to make it look like she is a character from the comics, even though she isn’t. The Scripts for Season 2 predate that comic appearance by quite some time.

Javicia Leslie will be the new Batwoman, who has no ties to anyone in the show, but will witness whatever happens to Kate. So this will be a Miles Morales kind of situation, by the sounds of it. However we were told Kate won’t be killed of. Instead the Bat-Eating Monster that ate Batman will get her. Well kind of, she will disappear like Batman before her.

Ryan Wilder will have ties to Scarecrow though. If that means that somewhere along the line he will replace Alice as the main villain of the show is unknown. Safiyah is going to show up though, and will be played by Shivaani Ghai. She will face of with Alice, which seems to be one of the few preplanned elements, that will make their way into Season 2 after all. A female assassin named The Whisper will work for her, and a guy called Ocean will show up.

Pictures of the new Bat Suit have been released online. The most important part about the new look seemd to be the fact that you can tell that it’s an Afro American Woman by the silhouette. Juding by this the main focus of the show will shift. Discussions about DADT and Coming Outs are in the past, BLM it is instead. Ryan Wilder is supposed to be lesbian though. And a (former?) drug addict and goofy and „not the right person“ for the job of Batwoman at „this time“ of her life.

Given that there is a „Kate has disappeared“- storyline – either offscreen or via body double – it would make sense to have the character return to the show at some point in the future. However don’t expect that to happen in Season 2. As long as the two week quarantine period for people coming into Canada is in place guest stars won’t come cheap and might prefer to work in the US instead.

Also don’t expect to get Kate Kane back as a main character any time ever for that show. If she returns it will only be to wrap up her storyline and to give the new Batwoman her blessing.

Season 2 is currently filming in Vancouver. „Batwoman“ was one of the first shows to return to filming and has had a small filming break forced on them already, due to testing issues. However those seem to have been resolved. The production has been running smoothly for the most part.

Expect a proper trailer around December time and expect Season 2 to be treated like a new show by the network. Because that’s bascially what it is. (International distrubiton deals will however remain the same, so don’t worry about that, wherever you saw Season 1, it’s likely you will be able to watch Season 2 there too).

 Black Lightning (+ Painkiller)

 Season 4 will start airing on the 8th of Febuary and take the Monday night 9:00 pm slot. The season will consist of 13 episodes, and consdering that it’s the shows final season all of these episodes will be made and aired, come hell or high water.

We don’t know a whole lot about this season. Chantal Thuy will be part of the main cast in this season, so hopefully that means that Grace will consistently hang around all season and won’t do her usual disappearing act inbetween episodes.

What we do know is, that around the middle of the season a backdoor pilot for a potential Painkiller Spin-Off will air as episode 4.7. In it Khalil will end up in an new city Askahic Valley, where he will aim for a fresh start and find trouble instead. Helping those in need he will have to find a way to use his inner darkness  aka his Painkiller personality for good.

The backdoor pilot sounds engaging, kind of like a more down played version of „Legion“, but as for the chances for it to get picked up, we will have to wait and see. Being more of a follow up for „Black Lightning“ then a spin off the chances for a pick up are much better than most of us thought, when we still believed it to be a sister show to the adventures of the Pierce-Family. However it may be too high concept to find an audience. Furthermore the reboot of „Batwoman“ (see above) may also be enough for The CWs need to live up ist own diversity statement. So we will have to wait how the backdoor pilot works out for an audience and for the network, and also how the future plans for the Arrowverse in particular and their whole program in general for the 2021/2022 season will look like. Diversity also means not too many of those superheroes shows at the same time.

As for why it was decided that the series has to end with Season 4, this is currently still unknown. The ratings were always the poorest out of all the Arrowverseshows and also among the lowest of the whole program of the network, and Netflixs decision to go from weekly episodes to whole seasons also indicated that outside the UK and Australia the show did not do overly well, however the reason behind the decision might have nothing to do with any of that given that the show was rather consitent where the numbers where concerned. It might have been a creative decision, the fall out from the desire of on of the main actors to leave the show, or even a demand from Warner or AT&T. As of right now, we just don’t know, but the truth will come out eventually.

For International Netflix the season will likely be put on after it finishes airing in the US, just like Season 3 was. The Series Finale will probably air in May.

Season 4 is currently shooting in Atlanta. Due to this crossovers with the other shows are more or less out of the question for this season, however in theory characters from „Arrow“ could show up in the final season. But given that „Black Lightning“ always was its own thing, I would not count on it. However after the show is finished, Black Lighting, Thunder, and Lightning could show up from time to time in the Vancouver based shows, if the actors are willing (and in „Painkiller“ of course), so maybe „Black Lightning“ will be fully integrated in the Arrowverse after it’s finished in the same way „Constantine“ was.

 The Flash:

 Season 7 of „The Flash“ will start airing on the 23 of Febuary on Tuesday night right before  „Superman & Lois“. It’s planned to have 18 episodes in total. One of those is 6x20 („All’s Wells That Ends Wells“) which was already more or less finished, when the production shut down. Most of the episode will now be 7x01, however there might have been some reshoots concerning the scenes Hartley Sawyer was in (more on that later). 17 additional episodes are being filmed, provided there isn’t another  production shutdown.

The first three episodes of the season will be the slighty rewritten finale of Season 6 and deal with the Mirror Mistress. The rest of seasons will consists of two volumes again, shorter ones than usual though. As of now there are no plans for a crossover episode. Barry will however almost certainly show up in the „Batwoman“/“Superman & Lois“ Crossover Event.

Godspeed will be the main villain of at least the first half of the season. However it won’t be August Heart, it will be a new Godspeed instead. Also set to return are Top, Bloodwork, and Abra Kadabra.

Kayla Compton and Brandon McKnight will be part of Season 7s Main Cast. Hartley Sawyer however is off the show. After his Twitter was scammed, old tweets from long before he even joined „The Flash“ resurfaced, that included offensive jokes. One or two were racist, so he was fired. Ralph will be written out of the show in the first few episodes of the Season. He will shapeshift into another established character for storyline reasons and take his leave in this form. He might return later down the line, when the waves of his departure have subsided. In which form and played by which actor depends on how everything goes until then. Sue Dearborns storyline will be rapped up accordingly, however she is not of the show. She will return over the course of this Season and help out Team Flash time and time again.

There has been a lot of speculation about other actors leaving the show, given that their initial contracts are up and they cost a lot of money or might want to leave. Jesse L. Martin, Tom Cavanagh, und Carlos Valdes are the main concern here. However given that Season 6 was never finsihed, everyone from the main cast (including for story reasons of course Victoria Park and probably Patrick Sabongui) except Hartley Sawyer is returning for Season 7. If there are plans to kill anyone of in a shocking fashion in Episode 3, they obviously wouldn’t tell us. So it is of course possible that someone will leave the show during Season 7, however even if there were plans in place, Covid might have changed them. As for Jesse L. Martin, he might be safe, because we were told that a Joe West related storyline about the Police Issue will be part of this season (however that could of course happen during the first three episodes as well). Danielle Panabaker however will be back sooner than expected, and Frost will be part of the Mirror Mistress wrap up episodes. Given that the show started filming much later than usual, her maternity leave for which she departed the show in 6x19 was over before the returned to filming.

That said what might happen this season is something most people probably noticed during Seaon 6 already: Not everyone will be in every episode, and some might only have cameo appearances in certain episodes. Also US based guest stars might be a problem as long as the 2 week Quarantine for travelers to Canada is still in place. Don’t expect people to show up for only one scene or something like that.

As far as the Mirrorverse storyline goes, Iris will escape from there pretty early on in this season, however there will be lasting effects for her character (as you might have guessed from the last few episodes of Season 6). She will be confronted by a splintered part of her persona and might make a visit to the Eva McCullloch crazy town. If she will have Mirror Powers like Eva after she is out of the Mirrorverse is still unknown but possible, at least until the Mirror Mistress/Mirrorverse storyline is wrapped up.

The Volume after that will deal with Speedster and revolve around the new Godspeed. Originally Season 6 was supposed to end with a cliffhangar involving Eobard Thawne. If this is still the case for 7x03 is unknown. However it stands to reason that Reverse Flash could very well show up during the Speedster Volume. Wally West might also make his return. Und maybe a certain female West-Allen Child will as well. Jesse Wells could also show up at some point. The Wells-Situation will play into Season 7, so she might be connected to this storyline or the Speedster One or both.

What about the future though? There were plans to bring „Stargirl“ into the Arrowverse via „The Flash“. However „Stargirl“ is filming in the US, which means that these plans were postponed for the moment. We will see a Crossover between these two shows eventually (or if „The Flash“ ends before than between „Superman & Lois“ and „Stargirl“). However not until travelling between the US and Canda is easier again.

As for potential future seasons, we still don’t know whatever came of Grants talks about Season 8 and 9. It’s extremly unlikely (but not impossible) that Season 7 is the final Season for „The Flash“, however don’t take Eric Wallaces talks about „many seasons down the line“ for granted. Season 8 might be the last one, or the first of many more to come. We just don’t know at this point.

Season 7 is currently filming in Vancouver. They were forced to start a few days later than originally planned because of issues with testing results (those were delayed), however since they started the prodcution has been running smoothly, so fingers crossed that we will get all of those 18 episodes.

 Superman & Lois:

 „Superman & Lois“ will start airing on the 23 of Febuary on Tuesday nights right after „The Flash“. 13 episodes were ordered. It’s the big new show of The CW, but it did start filming relativly late, which is why they postponed the start date for the show from January to February. The pilot was supposed to shoot in spring, but couldn’t because of the production shutdown in Vancouver. Therefore they have just done the pilot and went directly on to Episode 2. Normally an episode order of a show like this one would be extended to 16, 20, or even 22 episodes pretty early on. This year however everything is different, and I personally don’t even think that they will extend to 16 episodes (there are clues that point into that direction), so it’s likely that we will get only 13 episodes in this first season. However if the extend the order, we might get 14 or 15 episodes instead.

One of those first 13 episodes will be the crossover episode with „Batwoman“. Characters from the other Arrowverse Shows will show up in it aswell, however it will be a much smaller Crossover than the latest ones. The Flash will probably be in it, as well as someone from „Supergirl“, and maybe someone from „Legends“. There is talk about John Diggle and a Green Lantern storyline, but none of this has been confirmed. However due to the fact that John und Lyla moved to Metropolis, „Superman & Lois“ is the most likely place for him to show up again.

Yes, the pilot script has been leaked, but please keep in mind, that they had months to change it. While the main points of the scripts probably remain the same, don’t expect everything you read to actually happen in the pilot.

That said, here is a summary of the shows synopsis: Clark und Lois have to learn to balanace their lifes as world famour reporters and superheroes with their lifes as parents. On Earth Prime they don’t have an infant son, but two teeange sons instead, that may or may not have inheretied their fathers powers. The Pilot sees them returning to Smallville out of family reasons and reconnecting with Lana Lang (Clarks first love) and her family (her Husband and her teenage daughter). While Lois father General Lane (recast for the show) expects his son in law to focus on the superbusiness, the couple would preferable focus on Smallville, which is in real estate troubles, but even the idyllic small town is all but this when a mysterouis stranger turns up and … well turns the show into a Superhero Show.

Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch return to their roles als Clark Kent and Lois Lane. Superman gets a new suit for the show. Pictures have leaked, but are of bad quality, however the main point of the suit change is to have him wear an endurable suit. His original suit was not made for long term use and was more or less falling apart by the time of „Crisis“.

Their sons are played by Jordan Elsass (Jonathan) and Alexander Garfin (Jordan). They are both thirteen, so apparanly twins, and don’t know that their father is Superman. Jonathan is good in sports but kind and well liked. Jordan on the other hand is smart, but a loner with an anxiety disorder. The new Sam Lane will be Dylan Walsh, Earth Prime hasn’t changed his attitude much, however he might be on better terms with Clark, whom he knows to be Superman. Emanuelle Chriqui is this shows Lana Lang-Cushing, she works at a bank and is in a difficult period of her life. Her husband Kyle Cushing is played by Erik Valdez and chief of the towns firedepartement. He is a drunk and a smalltown guy at heart. Their daughter Sarah Cushing is played by Inde Navarette, she is fourteen, tried to take her own life some time ago, and befriends the Kent boys. Wolé Parks downgraded from the devil to The Stranger, who … well !spoilers!  is said to be a Luthor from another dimension, stranded on Earth Prime. He is the main villain of the season and wants to prove that the world that it does not need Superman anymore. Presumable with violence.

If this is true, the events of „Crisis on Infinite Earths“ will play a rather massive part in „Superman & Lois“. Another massive part is tragedy it seems. Something happend to Martha Kent that bringts Clark back to Smallville, and something did happen to the Cushing Family (it might have something to do with their younger daugther Sophie). Also Clark has lost his job at the Daily Planet. So this is quite a dark set up for this new show, which will mainly take place in Smallville, while Metropolis will take the backseat, but will factor into the show. Perry White is set to appear. So is Morgan Edge, who is the one who fired Clark, because after not getting CatCo he appearanty bought the Planet. And is not in jail, but buying real estate in Smallville as well. Sadly he is another character they are recasting for the show. He is probably supposed to be the Earth Prime Version of the character we know, but maybe not. Nevertheless he is is the other main villain of the Season. (The Stranger might be Clarks villain, while he is Lois‘).

As for other news, yes a writer was let go from the show and then complained on Twitter about it, making it into a toxic workplace thing, but the main thing I took from that is the „no extension for this seaons episode count“-clue. Everything else is none of our concern. Of course she would say her writing is good. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. She was probably let go, because there were too many writers on the show, and for none other reason. If however there was something untoward going on, Warner and The CW would know (at least by now) and do something about it, they have a history of doing exactly that, e. g. Andrew Kreisberg. That does not mean that all the other scripts are bad, it only means that she was frustrated because she was sacked and felt it happened because she pushed certain points in the writers‘ room, that were incooperated into the scripts long before she was sacked. She might not haven been the only writer pushing for those points, others might have put them into their scripts without discussing it in the room beforehand, we only know her side of everything. So just wait and see.

As for: Will Kara turn up in the Pilot? Normally she would. It’s a Spin Off from „Supergirl“ after all. If the pilot would have been shot in spring, Melissa surely would have turned up in it. However given that she allegedly won’t go back to shooting until next year, she might not. They could film a short scene with her and insert it into the Pilot before it airs, as soon as she is back to Vancouver. But given that she will have to catch up with her own show, maybe this won’t happen. Maybe it was never even planned, because they did not feel the need for it. Everyone knows who Superman and Lois Lane are. Even people who never touched a comic book in their life. Maybe they thinkt that showing Kara would ty the new show too much to the established Arrowverse and „Supergirl“ in particular. However it would be a major disappointment, if she does not show up at all in this show. But sady given the shooting reality of this season it’s a high possibilty that she won’t. Let’s just hope that she in it in some shape or form. Maybe even in the crossover.

Anyway, Season 1 of „Superman & Lois“ is currently shooting in Vancouver. They had to postpone the start of the shoot several times, but they are up an running now, and should be able to complete the 13 planned episodes, if there isn’t a major production shutdown coming their way again.

Legends of Tomorrow

 Season 6 of „Legends of Tomorrow“ will air in 2021, starting with „Ground Control to Sara Lance“ around June, maybe May, if we’re lukcy. Season 6 will consist of 13 episodes and will be pretty complex, but if any show can pull of the concept behind the Season in times like this it’s „Legends“.

Shayan Sobhian and Adam Tsekhman will be part of the Main Cast in Season 6. The Waverider will also gain a new crewmember in the form of Esperanza „Spooner“ Cruz, who will be played by Lisseth Chavez. Oliva Swanns Astra will return to the show as well. Newbie Spooner will be tough and self sufficent and won’t play well with the others in the beginning. Definitifly not a warm presence in the beginning, she believes that she was abducted by aliens as a kid and has gained the ability to telepathically communicate with them since then. That will make her the key to find the Waveriders abduted Captain Sara Lance, provided she is not only a paranoid crazy lunatic and actually can do all of this.

The show has also cast Raffi Barsoumian as a new character named Bishop, who is a genuis, but also very dangerous and might actually be the big bad of the season. Structurally the Legends will encounter a new aliens species every week. The idea of using the Waverider as an actual space ship has been around in since Season 1, and now comes to fruition. If one of these aliens species they encounter will be a certain Hawk-related one remains to be seen. It would make sense, however I am not so sure the writers would want to hawk back (sorry) to Season 1 at this point.

Sara will be on her own journey for a while in this season. She won’t be immedeatly rescued in Episode 1. Meanwhile Ava will have a hard time coping with the loss of her Co-Captain and unravel. Maybe Nate will try to lend her a hand, but at the beginning of the season the Legends will very much be dysfunctional without their Time Mom.

Astra will try her hand at a human life and life with John in his house, while Zari und Behrad will be the shows version of the Wonder Twins, sharing the Totem, and learning how to be a team. Essential to this will be Episode 2 of this Season („Meat: The Legends“), which will also explore what is was like for Behrad to grow up in his child star sisters shadow.

There have been contradicting claims about how exactly the aliens will be introduced in the shows. The initial claim made by the writers was that the Legend would visist a different alien planet every week. However later the claim surfaced that different alien races would pop up in Earths History in different time periodes every week. The first claim would make every kind of crossover with the rest of the Arrowverse really difficult, however when „Legends“ is going back on air, this seasons crossover will most likely be over already, and furthermore the character who would have made the most sense in it – Sara Lance – wouldn’t be able to be in it anyways, given the Season 5 Cliffhangar Ending. Still a Legend could show up in the Crossover, maybe John Constantine or Mick Rory or even Nate Heywood. On the other hand, Gary war in „Elseworlds“, so mabye Spooner will just run around in „Superman & Lois“ in the backround while chasing aliens, one never knows with „Legends“.

This is pretty much most of what we know at this point about Season 6. So I guess, I have to adress some of the obvious concerns around this season right now. Number One would be if Season 6 is the last season. With both „Supergirl“ and „Black Lightning“ ending this season, it would be very stupid of The CW to end „Legends“ as well, especially given that „Arrow“, „Supernatural“ and „The 100“ also just ended in 2020. However the ratings were never the greatest, and the show is the most expensive and most complicated out of the Arrowvers Shows. But it also got pretty good press in the last couple of years. So maybe there will be a Season 7. The producers obviously bought themselves Season 6 by trading in Brandon Routh. They might do something simelar this season. Given that Caity Lotz is the face of the show, the most likely and most expensive candidate to get kicked out it Dominic Purcell. So will Rory leave in the middle of Season 6? Maybe. The problem here is that his most logical reason for him leaving is currently shooting Season 3 of „Lost in Space“. However she is doing it in Canada, and I have no idea what the shooting schedule for „Lost in Space“ looks like, so they could bring Lita back in to write Mick Rory out with her. However, they would not do this, if they knew beforehand that there is no Season 7 (because why waste an fan favourite character for nothing?). Dominic also already had reduced Screentime in Season 5 and might want to leave after Season 5 anyway. So we will have to wait and see.

The other concern revolves around John Constantine. Warner is trying to re-establish the character in it’s DC Movies or at least it seems like that. Right now we are in a phase were pretty much all DC Characters can be used at the same time in different continuities, however that could change any moment. Obviously they wouldn’t cancel „Superman & Lois“ once it’s on air because of this, but they could force the producers to write John Constantine out of the Arrowverse. However, until John is scheduled to appear in a DC movie, at least two more seasons could have gone by, so while it is possible that we will have to bid John goodbye after Season 6, it is also possible that we will have him around in Season 7. If there is a Season 7 that is. We’ll have to wait and see.

I have said multiple times that in theory „Legends of Tomorrow“ could go on forever, if they keep rotating the cast. But The CW is not known for thinking that much outside the box. Every additional season they have been given to their shows with lower ratings, including „Legends“, was already thinking outside the box. No other network would have done this. Plus At&T or Warner or both are pushing HBOmax right now and would prefer new shows that stream there over older shows that stream on Netflix (in the States that is). Therefor „Legends“ will probaly go away rather sooner than later. Sadly.

However, Season 6 is currently filming in Vancouver. You can follow Keto Shimizu on Twitter, if you wanna get updated when they start filming a new episode. The original start date had to be pushed back a couple of days because of testing issues, but those have been resolved, and since then the first round of episodes has been done without a hitch.

Supergirl

 Season 6 of Supergirl will air 2021 around June or maybe in late May, if we are lucky. It will be the final season and will consist of 20 episodes. Don’t worry, „Supergirl“ will be 2021s „Supernatural“, those 20 episodes will be made and aired, if it’s humanly possible, they will find a way, no matter what.

„Supergirl“ is my White Whale among the Arrowverse Shows right now, I can literally tell you next to nothing about what is going to happen in this season. I can’t even tell you what is happening behind the scenes. There is next to no confirmed information about the final season out there.

What I can tell you is, that they will pick up where Season 5 left off, that Jon Cryer will be a big part of Season 6, and that Karas and Williams slow burn relationship will continue to … slow burn, I guess. And that’s it. Sorry.

Season 5s Main Cast ist back together, expect for Andrea Brooks, but I can’t even tell you that for sure, because while she has not be confirmed to be in the season yet, nobody said she wouldn’t be in it either.

Yes, the ending leaked, or so some people thought, but this ending has mainly been an educated guess based on fan wishes. It’s plausible but not set in stone.

What I can tell you is: No, „Supergirl“ has not been cancelled. If it had been up to The CW the show would have gotten another Season, at least. „Supergirl“ always did fairly good for the network, better than „Arrow“ actually. What happened is pretty simple, it’s the same thing that happened to „Arrow“. The Leads contract was up, and said person did decide against an extension. There have been rumors about Melissas contract spanning seven seasons, but those have been based on wrong assumptions. The standart contract a lead actor signs when he or she does a pilot contains six seasons. Melissa signed one of those. But as you might remember „Supergirl“ did not start out on The CW, it did start out on CBS and Season 1 was filmed in Los Angeles. After Season 1 swollowed too much money, Warner moved the show to the cheaper network and to Vancouver. At this point the contracts were renegotiated. Calista Flockhart even left the show – which she could without breaching contract, because „Supergirl“ was not any longer the show she signed on for originally.

At this point Melissas contract changed – she has less screen time from Season 2 onwards than she had in Season 1, because she demanded more time to travel home to L.A. at the weekends. However what did not change and would not have changed was the six season thing. It would have been very irregular for her to sign a new six season contract at this point. Or for the network to extent it for a season. Especially for The CW who is actually used to shows with fewer seasons (forget SPN for a moment, that was its own thing). So it was and always has been six seasons.

Now between Season 4 and 5 Melissa and Chris decided they wanted to try for a baby. Which is by the way the real reason Supergirl got a new costume in Season 5. Melissa got pregnant, informed the producers and the network. Plans for Season 5 were shifted from 22 to 20 episodes, and to an early start for the filming of Season 6 with a break in the middle so they could work around Melissas pregnancy. But then Covid hit, the production was shut down amidst the Season Finale, and Season 6 became a problem because it would collide with the leads pregnancy leave. During all of this Melissa was in negotiation for a contract extension. And did not sign it. So the producers and the network decided to end „Supergirl“, because without Kara there would be no point to continue. They ended „Arrow“ when Stephen decided to leave, even though they had enough potential replacements from both genders ligned up. They only possible replacement for Kara was written out of the show with the end of Season 3. So that’s all that is to it.

It was definitly not axed to make place for „Superman & Lois“. „Superman & Lois“ has been in works since around „Elseworlds“, and the dream has always been that those two shows would co-exists. However the fact that „Supergirl“ is ending may have factored into the decescion to pick up „Superman & Lois“, so that the successor show is already in place, when „Supergirl“ ends.

So they are currently filming Season 6 in Vancouver, at least some of them are, because as predicted Melissa is still on Maternity Leave. It’s said (and I can’t confirm that) that she will return to filming in January, because the production will take an extended christmas break. Extended because of the two weeks quarantine period. Everyone who goes to the States to see their family will have to quarantine for two weeks before they can go back to shooting after they return to Canada. So that would mean that they filmed for quite some time without Melissa. If that means that she is only in 10 to 15 episodes of the final season or that her scenes are filmed seperatly and she will get stuck in the faceless suit again or if she is deaged and played by an other actress for a couple of episodes or gets turnes invisible and is there in voice only I don’t know. I only know that they are currently filming without her.

And what about crossovers? Given that it’s the final season, there will be no crossover episodes in Season 6 (however someone from the other shows might show up in a small way). As for the characters crossing over to other shows, I again don’t know. Someone will be in the Two Part Crossover between „Batwoman“ and „Superman & Lois“, probably, however we don’t know if this someone will be Melissas, because the focus will be to produce those 20 final episodes with as much her in it as possible. So maybe J’onn or Alex will be in the crossover instead.

And yes, they were originally meant to start filming in September, but there was a problem with the test results. Now, that problem hit all the other shows as well, „Batwoman“ even had to halt shooting for a few days, while the other shows pushed their start date back until the results were in. The strange thing is, however, that most of the other shows only lost of couple of days, a week tops, „Supergirl“ however started almost two weeks later, then it was originally suppossed to. Now, that would be the „someone was testes positve“ period, but they were allowed to go back to shooting around a week after their original date. But took another week or so to get going. Maybe. They might have started earlier, however all the other shows told us via Social Media when they started shooting (or picked it up again) and „Supergirl“ didn’t do so until about two weeks  into October. I have no idea why.

But sadly that’s how the show is communicating with its fans right now: Not at all. I wasn‘t even sure they were really back to filming, when I saw those first very cryptic posts until two days later, when David (bless his heart) tweeted that he was on set and started shooting again. Before that Jon Cryers ring-story (check it out online, if you want to, it’s heartwarming and great) was the only thing somehow related to the shooting of Season 6 anyone could find.

So yeah, they are filming. And plan to do that for nine more months at least. After that, it’s over. Which is sad, but well, it is what it is.

 Green Arrow and the Canaries (+ Wonder Girl)

 As for the „Arrow“ Spin Off, I wish I had news in any form. The show has not been picked up, but it has not been axed either. At the moment it can go both ways. I always guessed that The CW was considering „Green Arrow and the Canaries“ for the 2021/22 Season and not for the Current Season, and this has turned out to be true, but the backdoor pilot aired in January. And now it’s November! Normally we would have heard something either way by now.

And there are two problems: There is that very important thing I have been going on about in the „Supergirl“ Section quite long about called contracts. There is an expireing date on those things - actors can’t stop making money, just because some executives can’t make up their mind about a pilot. And then there is the bigger threat which is the new „Wonder Girl“ show which is in development for The CW, and which is more likely to be picked up by the network to fill the Female Lead Superheroe Show Hole, that „Supergirl“ is leaving behind than „Green Arrow and the Canaries“. I don’t think the network would pick up both of these shows in the same season (or maybe even at all).

So it does not look good, right now for the show, but as long as there is no word about it not going forward, there is still hope. Also, we may get a new version of it in form of a new project instead, if it does not go into series. You never know.

 (Stargirl is not one here because I don’t consider it part of the Arrowverse yet).

[crimsonheart01]

This Time of Year (Juice Ortiz x Female!Reader)

A/N: Thank you to my sweet @svintsandghosts​ for this request! Hope you love it! 

This is random but 8 Crazy Nights has always been one of my top three Christmas/Holiday movies. Elf comes in first and Jim Carrey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas is one of the others. Anyway the song for this fic comes from 8 Crazy Nights. I’ll say this, it’s not that happy of a song. 

Prompt: 8. “Merry Christmas” “I don’t celebrate Christmas”

Word Count: 1.7K words

Playlist: Davey’s Song - Adam Sandler

Warnings: SOA Spoilers. If you haven’t seen the end of Season 6 or all of Season 7, reading this will give away a huge plot point for the last season. 

"Well I'm a snowmobile stealing No 'tis the season' feeling Kind of guy (kind of guy) This time of year sucks So I take my numchucks And make sure every snowman dies" Davey's Song – Adam Sandler

Juice had his snapback pulled low over his face and hoodie zipped all the way up. He trudged down the streets of Frisco, trying to keep himself occupied while he waited out the storm. With his hands firmly planted inside his pockets, he kept the burner wrapped uptight, on the off chance that it rang and gave him the all-clear. He knew it was a pipe dream, but he could hope. If this time of year brought him anything, it was that hope was something he'd always have.

He didn't bother to look up often, keeping his eyes on the sidewalk and other people's feet. He managed to manoeuvre himself without any second glances. It was both a testament to his stealth but also a light shone on the darkest part of city life. No one noticed anyone outside of themselves. No one bothered to take a closer look. No one got involved.

Finding himself in a spiral, he decided he needed a break. None of the Sons ever came out this far. He was safe. The Mayans kept to the other side of the bridge, in Oaktown. He could afford to lift his head this once. Take in some of the scenery around him. It may not be the snowy December of his youth, but there was still an obvious spirit in the air.

He found himself blow sideways by the sheer amount of people out and rushing around. With his head up and eyes taking in the streets, he was surprised he hadn't run into anyone. People were rushing in every direction, swerving left and right. He paused, to his detriment and was immediately knocked off balance by a self-important, suit-wearing man.

Juice opened his mouth to shout at the man but in the very next second, he was gone. Swallowed up by the crowd. Juice took this moment to slip off the main walkway and stand next to an overly decorated city tree. He slouched down, inhaling and running both his hands down his face.

There was a time when he thoroughly enjoyed this type of hustle but since making his way to small towns in the west, he'd grown to prefer the slower pace of the communities. Being in the city made his anxiety peak. Not to mention he was actively on the lamb. Hiding. With a long sigh, he perched on the side of the concrete planter, spending his time people watching.

It wasn't the best way to pass the time, but it was better than walking around aimlessly and dwelling on his current situation – the hole he'd dug himself into. Squeezing his eyes shut, he pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes to rid himself of his past, attempting to focus on this moment, right here, right now.

His wallowing was interrupted by a woman dressed head to toe in the most festive red overcoat that he'd ever seen. He was taken by her because she was merrily walking – no, skipping – down the street, with a smile so large he thought it likely had to have her cheeks sore. She was handing out little tokens to the passerby's as she went, offering them a jauntily holiday greeting to anyone who would listen.

It wasn't until she was standing directly in front of him that he realized he'd been staring. Enough that she'd noticed and come over. She pulled out a postcard and handed it to him but he didn't reach out to take it. Instead of appearing slighted by his non-response, she slipped the item back into one of her pockets before regarding him again.

"Merry Christmas!" She smiled at him.

He did a double-take, unsure if she was actually speaking to him. It startled him that even after he'd been openly dismissive of her advance, she was still willing to offer him something kind in return. Even if it was just a small wish for a happy season.

He gave a minute shake of his head, before mumbling, "I don't celebrate Christmas."

That one threw her, she paused, her eyebrows pulled together. He felt a strange feeling overcome him at her dilemma. She hadn't been expecting an answer, never mind the one he gave. He had to actively push down the sensation growing inside him. A smile. It seemed so foreign to him. He couldn't recall the last time he had a genuine reason to even bother with the gesture. She blinked a few times before grinning broadly again.

"Happy Hanukkah!" She tried again.

This time he couldn't hold back. She was determined.

He let out a small laugh, "I don't celebrate that one either."

She huffed quietly to herself, dumbfounded. Her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out if any of the other December holidays were a right fit. He could see the battle she was waging to herself and stopped her.

"I have no reason to celebrate Christmas, so I don't." He explained, as briefly as he could.

He couldn't very well go into the dirty details about his predicament. Ultimately. that's led him into this situation in the first place. His own inability to keep his mouth shut. He was startled out of his thoughts when she sat down next to him, primly brushing away any leaves before getting comfortable.

He stared blankly at her for a long moment, at a loss. He truly thought their exchange had ended with his last comment. It was a clear shutdown, or at least, he thought it was. She turned to look at him then away as though she hadn't even taken any stock of him before she whipped back around.

"What?" She exclaimed.

Now he was really lost. She was acting like he was the one being strange. Without the right words, he continued to stare. She stared back but with a grin slowly forming. Eventually, she tilted her head to the side, really assessing him and his appearance. He shifted away from her, uncomfortable under her scrutiny. His hiding away only made her bolder in her company. He nearly flinched when she started talking.

"You looked like you could use some company," He watched her shrug before continuing, "No one likes being alone on any holiday, but it gets pushed into the spotlight around December when everyone is out here acting like chickens with their heads cut off. Searching and rushing for the best trinket to give someone else, reinforcing the societal obligation to participate in this particular holiday season."

Now it was his turn to be dumbfounded. Without gauging his own reaction, he heard himself say, "What?"

She laughed at that and he felt his heart palpitate at the sound. How long had it been since he'd heard the soft laughter of a woman who willingly put her into his company? He was smacked with more than just missing the brotherhood he'd lost. He missed the feeling of family, the feeling of a significant other, the feeling of being connected.

She must have seen the turmoil in his expression because at that exact moment, she reached out and caught his hand with hers. He jerked involuntarily at the gesture and she immediately loosened her hold. She didn't want to be too forward, he noticed, she was only trying to offer him comfort. He relaxed and gave her a small nod of his head, indicating to her that he was good and she was okay with her offering.

She gave him another small smile before wrapping her fingers around his again and placing their connected hands into her lap where she cupped her other hand around theirs.

~(SOA)~

They sat there for what must have been hours. He thought to himself countless times that there had to be somewhere that she needed to be but she never wavered. Her hand held his tightly, never yielding. As the sun started to set he couldn't fathom the thought of keeping her any longer. Not to mention it wasn't the safest bet for him to be out wandering in the middle of the night. There was no telling what he could accidentally witness, or who he could happen upon.

He flexed his fingers underneath hers, pulling her attention towards him and began to unwrap their entwined hands. He pulled his hand to his chest

"Thank you," He murmured, "I don't have any way to repay you."

She brushed him off by waving a hand dismissively, "Nonsense, it was my pleasure. I have enough holiday cheer for a marching band. You needed to borrow a little and I had more than enough to spread."

He nodded. Her words held a lot of truth. He could feel the positive energy radiating off of her. It was why he hadn't run away earlier. They both stood up, brushing their pants off before preparing to depart. She stepped towards him, zipped up his hoodie a bit more, then patted the sides of his shoulders. She preened his shoulders, making sure there wasn't an ounce of dust on them. He felt his heart grow inside his chest at the tenderness of her actions, the familiarity.

"Take care of yourself." She told him, offering him a bright smile, "No one deserves to be lonely."

He was stunned by her words. They hadn't exchanged any conversation, yet it was as though she knew exactly what he was going through. She winked over at him before turning on her heel and disappearing down the street in the opposite direction she'd shown up in. He stood stock-still, watching as the people on the street started to disperse and her with them.

He had no idea who she was, where she came from, or why she chose to take pity on him, but it helped. She reignited the hope that was dwindling within him. She made him believe that there was redemption down the road for him. With that new belief in mind, he turned and made his way back to his safehouse with more purpose.

[casualotptrash]

Fixes to the Persona Series

Oh boy I hope you all are ready to talk about this for the hundredth time!

My recent tirade about the FES vs Portable discussion started to make me think about what I think could be done in the next coming installments of the series to make it either feel a bit more fresh or just as an overall improvement. Now, I know many of the things I’m about to say have been said time and time again, but...this is my post so I’m going to give my opinion on this :)

Enjoy and feel free to vent with me about your biggest gripes with the series, because I’m always ready for a salt-fest.

(This post will pretty much have any spoilers about Persona 3, 4, and 5 (including Royal) so beware if you haven’t finished those)

To clarify right off the bat, anything I don’t mention in here as something I would fix I either don’t think it is a problem or I just happened to forget it.

1. Player Gender Options

(Royal Spoilers)

Starting off with a great one, I think that an improvement to the series would be to allow an option between a male and a female MC. I don’t think this choice would affect the story in Persona 3 or 4 very much (and we’ve seen that with Persona 3), but I have imagined and seen so many fanfics about how it would actually be a really interesting twist for Persona 5. For most of the story it probably wouldn’t matter too much, but it could impact the first palace so much. The first palace/story arc is already one of the best arcs in the game, so imagine if the player could relate to Ann and Shiho on an even deeper level? To be clear, I’m not saying the player has to be sexually assaulted or something, but I imagine Kamoshida would at least treat the player more like Ann rather than just a delinquent nuisance.

Also, and this just came to mind, but picture this: in the third semester Maruki actualizes things that he thinks will make others happy. Obviously, Joker and Akechi are against this. In the game itself there are a lot of clues to point that Joker does care about Akechi, and does want to see him again, but in the end they both agree that they need to fight for the real world that they worked for, not for a fake reality. If Joker was a female, they could still go the route of doing this (especially if romancing Akechi was an option? Or they just hint at them having feelings but Akechi doesn’t want to commit because he’s a self-loathing boi who needs to work on himself first).

Alternatively...what about a badass narrative of a girl, in a powerful position as the leader of the Phantom Thieves, fighting against a man who believes he knows what’s best for her and tries to appease her by just bringing back Akechi? Kinda like a “Yeah fuck what you did, you just need Akechi/a man and he’ll make you happy” type of thing. Obviously this would all be subtle, because I do think Maruki has good intentions, but he also blames himself for all of the hard things Rumi has gone through and may internalize that as women needing a “strong man” to protect them. Of course this might seem too preachy for people, but I thought it was an interesting idea to run with and that some people could relate to the whole “Woman trying to think and do things for themselves? Nah just sit in your little fake world and be happy, thanks.”

(Sidenote, Sae would be such a good role model...after her change of heart of course. You crush it girl.)

However, I do understand that this could be a lot of extra work, especially when the game is so long and tedious. That’s why I would also be fine with the strategy of “switching off” per say. By that I mean if Persona 5 has a male MC, then Persona 6 would have a female MC, and if a 7th game was made (in 2040 or whatever) then it could go back to a male. This would eliminate the issue of having to record all the voice lines twice or any other extra work that would come with having to make both genders an option. Honestly I know this option doesn’t matter too much to people, they just want an MC who is either a self-insert or actually a character (more on that later), but I do think it would be a very nice inclusion especially for the female fans of the game. It kind of sucks that three of the most popular games in the series all have male protags, and the female protag who was introduced often gets shafted for very dumb reasons. (Oh no, you have the option to romance a kid that most people don’t even choose or like, that means she’s a p*do! :I I know this comment is normally a joke but seriously it’s not funny).

2. Setting of the game (not transfer but also maybe involve the other games?)

(Spoilers for the Arena games and Persona 5/Royal)

So there are two main points to this suggestion: where the game takes place and how it relates to the other games.

As we all know, the three latest entries in the mainline Persona series have all followed a certain trend. They are all high schoolers, who transfer to a town, and know basically no one there. This formula has been repeated for the last three games, and while they are still great games, I think this trend needs to change. Any amount of switching this up would be better than nothing in my opinion. For example, the MC could be a new college student who goes to a new place for college (if they wanted the MC to move somewhere), and there meets the party members who are a mix of people who also don’t know the area (new to the college) and those who do know the area/some people there. This would appease people who have been really wanting an MC to not be a high schooler, while also giving the feel of meeting new people and seeing a new place.

On the other hand, the next game could take place in the MC’s home town, where plot stuff happens and they connect more to the people they already knew (aka party members) to solve the plot stuff. They could be in high school or college, either I think would work, but it would appease people who don’t just want to be a transfer student each time and also have some connection to the characters prior to the game. However, this would be difficult to do given the current “flow” that the games have, that is that the MC doesn’t know anything and has to ask a million questions. It would be very strange to go up to someone you have known most of your life and ask them a basic question, which is why that style of storytelling(?) would not fit well with this and other methods would need to be used.

Now, for the second point, I understand that they don’t make strong connections to the other games because they want each game to be able to be played as a stand-alone, and not to hold people back by forcing them to play the other games to understand this. Makes sense, but usually what happens is that people play one game in the series and then try another game, if they really like the one they started with. After playing through the ones they want to, and if they like them, then there is an appreciation for the series as a whole. Of course Atlus sneaks in little references here and there, like having the P4 gang go to Iwatodai or some TV news announcements on P5 that allude to Adachi and other characters, but those cant always cut it. One of the biggest letdowns I would come to know is the fact that the Shadow Operatives are not mentioned at all, outside of those small references, in P5.

Persona 5 literally has the PT’s broadcasting all of their heists, and includes major government officials like Shido. There are also the mental shutdowns/psychotic breakdowns, which also have people confused, along with how the PT’s steal hearts in the first place. I don’t know about you all, but this seems like the perfect opportunity to get the Shadow Operatives involved. This is like...literally what they were made for? Investigating persona/shadow activity and such, and we already know that the PT’s deeds reached at least Hawaii so it would be strange for the SO’s to have not heard anything. There are headcanons that they were blocked by Shido or something, which is pretty interesting to think about/develop, but it was only thought up to make an excuse for why they aren’t there. Persona 5 introduced a lot of people to the story, so yeah some people would probably be very confused about who the SO’s are and stuff, but it could payoff in the long run for long-time fans and those who play the other games after.

Depending on the story of P6, I don’t think it would be a bad idea to start including casts from the other games into newer ones...especially when each game introduces 8-9 new characters per game, and those games usually get made into spin-offs that include the characters made in the previous games! Counting only the characters introduced in the previous games (3-5), Persona Q2 has 33 characters (11 P3, 10 P5, 10 P4, and 2 P3P, this includes the velvet room assistants for each respective game). That’s a ton! Sure, having new characters each time is part of the fun, but I believe there is definitely a way to split them up. I don’t think it would be too much of an issue to have a smaller party member group (you can only have 4 fight at a time anyway), that way there is still the enjoyment of seeing new characters, while also filling up some of those spots with preexisting ones.

3. Characterization

This kind of piggybacks off of the second point, but personally I think they need to stop with the self-insert protags. First, like I mentioned earlier, it kind of messes up the “flow” of the game since they have to pretend that the character doesn’t know anything because the player doesn’t know anything (yet). For example, how many times did the option to say “Probation?” or “Expelled?” or something like that come up as a dialogue choice in P5? Too often, in my opinion. I assume anyone over the age of 15 would probably know what those things mean, but in case anyone doesn’t they have to make it an option to say.

Adding onto this, it also seems like people start to like the characters a whole lot more when spinoffs or movies/animations come out that really expand on the character, because in those games/mediums the player is taken out of the self-insert role. I would say out of the three games, the Persona 3 protags have the most characterization in game through their dialogue. I haven’t watched the movies, but I heard it fleshes the MC out a lot more. In Persona 4...well, I see what they’re going for but I also feel like Yu has the personality of a cardboard box. The animations definitely helped out this one, as did Arena, and I’ve seen other people agree that they liked Yu a lot more after playing/watching those things.

As for Persona 5, I think they tried to give Joker some characterization (and oddly enough “Joker” has a lot more to him than Akira/Ren, but he still fell more on the side of self-insert. P5 the animation is...of questionable quality, but I think Xander did a good job in the Dub (which is the one I watched) in trying to make him feel more like a human being. I haven’t played Strikers, but I assume it goes more on the route of P5 because you’re still controlling Joker. Oddly enough, I feel like the dancing game gave him the most characterization? Call me crazy, but his dance moves and voice lines just ooze of his suave, friendly, and supportive attitude. I wish that they took whatever those voice lines embodied and just put them into the game, because I would like Joker a lot more than I already do (which, to be clear, I do still like him a lot).

Although this doesn’t have much to do with the characterization, it would also be nice if Atlus could just put the “canon name” in the game while also still having the option to choose your own name. Again, this might add a little more work but maybe if someone chose the “canon” option then their name could be spoken in voice lines, but if they don’t then the names would be left out (except for text) like usual. Honestly this is mostly up to personal preference because I like some of the “not canon” names more so I would want to use those if I could, but I also don’t like having the characters just randomly cut off in the end of sentences when they’re saying your name. Just kind of breaks immersion, which is probably why I really like Joker because at least they say “Joker” quite a bit.

(Little rant, but why do the PT’s get like two group names? At first Morgana defaults to “The Phantom Thieves of Hearts” but then when you get to choose the name of your team, that name is what shows up instead. However, everyone still calls you the “Phantom Thieves” and the gang refers to themselves as that too! I get naming the group is kind of cool, but I would have preferred if they were just called The Phantom Thieves (of Hearts) and that way their name could be spoken in dialogue too.)

4. Choices matter...please? (romance and regular dialogue)

This might be easy or difficult to implement, I’m not so sure because I’m not a game developer, but I really wish choices mattered more in this game. I feel like most of these suggestions (especially later on down the list) are just little things that could be added to the game that would really amp it up, and this is one of them.

When I talk about choices mattering, I do not mean that dialogue should be so open that there are branching paths and that your choices affect the story. What I mean is that you could choose two different options and not get the same exact answer. I get that this isn’t always the case, but when it is it feels very strange. In this same vein of things, please stop with the illusion of choice because everyone sees right through it. I didn’t really see this as much in P3, and I still need to finish P4, but it was definitely apparent with P5. I felt that so many times in the game there were two options that were just “Option A” or “Synonym for Option A” as the choices.

Along the same lines, I think it would be great if romance choices were actually acknowledged. Again, there is a little of this in P3 and P4 where some party members comment on your relation to the other party members (Ex. Junpei saying to take care of Fuuka if you date, Yukari stating that Akihiko probably wouldn’t want FeMC going on a group date if they’re dating, and Yosuke coming to assumptions about who Yu spends the summer festival with), but they are very few and far between. I also saw no evidence of this at all in P5, which was pretty disappointing. In fact, in Persona 5 Royal if you are dating Ann and go on the Christmas Date with her, she makes some comment about not wanting the others to find out about them. Like...girl, considering someone can finish Ann’s social link as early as June or so on NG+ I’m pretty sure your friend group would notice if you’ve been dating for 6 months?? I know that romance is definitely not the focus of the game, but if you’re going to include it why is it shoved into the farthest corner and never touched?

Don’t get me wrong, it is cute to see the romances in the game play out and such, but on the same hand I can see how much better it could be. In reality it kind of sucks to romance someone in the Persona games because no one acknowledges it, and you only get like 3-4 small scenes in each game to spend with them (beach in P5, festival in all, Christmas in all, valentines except for 3, White Day in P5R). Just imagine if you could take a walk in Kyoto with whoever you romanced, or were able to take your partner to the Jazz Jin in P5R and they would get like special date dialogue or something? Very very small additions, but it would go a long way in making the romances feel a bit more connected.

5. LGBT Romances

I went into this in some detail in Part 3 of my FES vs Portable debate post, so I to save your eyes from reading more I’ll just quickly say that Atlus definitely needs to add in more LGBT romance options because it’s ridiculous at this point. The fact that you can’t romance any guy (because all of the MC’s are male, this is not including the FeMC stuff because that’s not typical in the Persona series) but can have a whole harem (despite what they may do to you) is just ridiculous. They’d rather let you date a fully-fledged adult than someone of the same gender.

Also they’re cowards for scrapping the Yosuke romance and that’s that :)

6. Fixing Social Links

Link to the stand-alone post about this section.

I literally was going to include this in this post, but this section alone (which I knew was going to be the biggest) was almost as large (a few hundred words off) than everything prior to this point put together. I’ll make a separate post with just this section soon, but this criticism of mine can basically be boiled down into the fact that the main growth of a character should happen outside of their social link in order to avoid tonal whiplash in the story, and that this will fix the problem of some characters feeling “one-note” if you do not do their social links/confidants. Essentially, go back to the P3 method.

However, something that needs to be fixed for all of the games is that you shouldn’t only get social link points for saying what the person wants to hear. I get the train of thought that if you say what they want to hear they will like you more, but that’s not how real friendships work? Obviously you shouldn’t be saying something that offends them and think it will raise your points, but sometimes people just need to hear things?

I can think of three standout examples: Nozomi in P3 (Gourmet King), Mishima in P5, and Shinya in P5. Nozomi’s link is a hot mess in of itself, but it was very frustrating to at one point just be like “Hey can you chill?” when he’s trying to induct you into a scam/cult or whatever, and it reverses the social link. Like ok buddy fuck you too, I was just trying to say no and that you need to stop scamming people?? For Mishima in P5 (I’ll go more in depth on him in a later post), it’s just kind of strange that you can clearly see him starting to obsess about the PT’s but you can’t really tell him he needs to stop until the social link demands it. Even then, the only way to get points is pretty much to go “Wow Mishima, you’re the best! You’re the reason we exist! We love you!!!” and it just feels kind of wrong. Shinya’s is very much along the same line as that, except you basically have to do something even worse and encourage him to keep being a bully? Thankfully P5 doesn’t reverse confidants, but I probably would have done so with Shinya because I kept telling him he shouldn’t bully others until I realized how to get points with him. It just feels wrong to encourage such behavior until the character suddenly realizes they’ve been acting wrong. No shit, I’ve been trying to say that.

I think social links need quite the fix to them, but this is definitely one of them. Strong, real relationships are not just built upon telling the other person what they want to hear.

7. Have Characters Hang Out

This is mostly a suggestion based off of P5′s downfall in this aspect. I think that P3 and P4 did a good job at showing the characters hang out in other aspects, or hang out separately outside of the MC. P4 had a lot of good group hangouts, but not many scenes without the MC. P3 had the opposite where members kind of hung out together a bit, but also showed or mentioned them hanging out without the MC. However, P5 didn’t have much for the group hangouts and also I can’t really recall a single scene of the party members hanging out outside of the MC.

Along with all of the problems I mentioned earlier with the cardboard cut-out personalities, I feel that this contributed to P5′s group feeling a bit less cohesive. Obviously when they all hung out they acted like a real group of friends, but it’s hard to see it as legitimate when 95% of their hangouts are just meetings for the Phantom Thief stuff. The only times they hang out outside of the PT stuff is the TV station, the fireworks festival, helping Futaba + the beach trip, and the culture festival. Like I said, I can’t recall them hanging out together outside of being with the MC/PT business, although I could have missed some stray text message if one was mentioned.

In this aspect, P5 feels like a small step down from P3 and a huge step down from P4. I think some of the events in P4 are a bit unnecessarily long, but at least they go through the effort of showing that the group is also a real friend group, not just people trying to solve the murder. Strikers may be a step up from P5, but I haven’t played it yet so I can’t judge that.

Also bring back school trips to prior locations of Persona games. Imagine P5 group going to Inaba and it turns out this is the small country town that Joker came from? And they sprinkle in references to P4? *chefs kiss*.

8. Remove/Change Certain Tropes

(Spoilers for the babe hunts, stupid ass hot springs scenes, and Ryuji abuse after certain palace)

By that spoiler tag, you can probably tell that this is the category I’m most passionate about. I can deal with social links feeling a bit disconnected. I can deal with the MC being a self-insert. What I cant deal with anymore? These. Dumb. Ass. Scenes.

Let me explain (insert Sojiro voice here)

Every game has three main tropes. One, the babe hunt scenes. Two, the hot springs scenes. Three, one character being dunked on by everyone else. I’ll go through each, scream about my feelings about them, and why they need to change.

First, the babe hunt scenes. I don’t have much of a problem with this trope to be honest, I just think it could be done better in some games. I actually think the one in P3 was quite funny, because the group treated it like an “operation” which added a bit to humor. Truth be told, I was just a bit disappointed in P3P FeMC route when you didn’t have your own version of the “babe hunt” thing. I know Yukari and Mitsuru aren’t the types to go hunt for boys, but perhaps the MC could have suggested it as a fun idea. In P4, this scene happens in Okina and largely remains the same as the P3 formula, but I think it lacks just a bit of the humor that the P3 one had. Lastly, in P5 this scene happens during the beach trip but compared to the others it’s pretty...lackluster?

It shows a montage of Joker, Ryuji, and Yusuke talking to girls but no actual dialogue goes on. After talking to three or so, Yusuke disappears and this is when Joker and Ryuji meet the two “flamboyant” men again. This time, the men either chase them down or call after them (?) depending on if you’re playing Vanilla or Royal. I don’t like how they use these men in the first place, but on top of that it kind of takes the “babe hunt” out of “babe hunt” if you don’t actually...hunt for babes? Like no actual dialogue is spoken when trying to convince the girls, which was most of the fun in the other scenes. You don’t even have free reign to walk around at the beach, and the scene is formatted in a more cutscene type of way.  It just makes P5′s babe hunt fall flat in many ways, and overall I finished the scene with a strong “meh.” The only good things about this was watching Makoto and Ann defend themselves and Yusuke with the lobsters.

Now for the hot springs scenes....hoo boy.

Simply put, in my opinion, these scenes suck ass in almost all of the games. P3 is the least egregious in my opinion, for a couple reasons. First is that it shows that Junpei and Ryoji were kind of trying to peep on the girls, and Akihiko and MC were just dragged into it. They have some funny dialogue, and in FES and Portable they even included the option to try and evade the girls. I found the little evade minigame to be really fun, even though every time I can’t help but fail because I want to say “It was a cat!” I find it interesting that there is the option for the men to get off scott-free, and that their dialogue after the trip is over changes slightly because of this.

On the FeMC side, I also find it fun that you have the reverse of the minigame and actually seek out the boys. My only letdown with this entire scene is if the boys are caught. I get it, it’s supposed to be funny with Mitsuru executing them and such, but as a reasonable person with a brain it seems really dumb to me that Mitsuru would just punish all of them when it’s just Ryoji and Junpei’s fault? This is nothing against Mitsuru, but her actions just seem so...exaggerated for some reason? Like Mitsuru is usually smart, and even if she is embarrassed I don’t get why she would punish innocent party members. A huge disappointment for me was that the FeMC isn’t able to stop Mitsuru from doing this either. Not even a choice to try and encourage Mitsuru or discourage her (so both options would be available). You just kinda sit there and watch, even after Akihiko say “It was a misunderstanding!” or something. For me it was especially strange because MC was dating Akihiko at that point, so why wouldn’t I try to hear him out? Just struck me as kind of dumb.

If I thought that was dumb, P4 and P5 were out to really make me roll my eyes and sigh in disappointment. Unlike P3, which has most of the scene being pretty good besides the very end where Mitsuru punishes the boys, the P4 and P5 scenes are all bad. This is not the first time anyone has said it, and won’t be the last, but they aren’t funny scenes in the slightest.

In P4, it’s actually the girl’s fault that they’re in the hot springs when the boys walk in. They stayed over their allotted time and into the time when boys are supposed to be in there. So what do they do? Get flustered, yell at them, and throw buckets at the group. Oh, and they don’t listen to the boy’s protests at all. Really.

Who thought this was a good idea?? The girls even realize after that they were in the wrong, say they should apologize, but I don’t think they ever show a scene of them apologizing after. This whole scene, like the hot springs ones in general, are just exaggerated (ie. throwing masses of buckets) to be funny, but they really fail in my opinion. It just serves to make the player kinda angry (since they’re usually on the receiving end) and make the girls look wildly unrealistic and dumb. I have never really thought that needless physical abuse is funny, so these scenes are just the bane of my existence apparently.

There actually isn’t a hot springs scene in P5, but they did add one in Strikers.

If they wanted to still do these scenes, maybe they could switch from making it “just beat up the boys” into something else. For example, the girls could try to peep, or walk in on the boys. Equality y’all, sometimes girls can do those things too (but still don’t beat them up. Just don’t beat anyone up). If none of that happens, or maybe that’s how the scene ends, the rest of the scene could just be a chill, relaxing scene between those involved. Essentially, how the scenes go before the whole “lets beat up the boys” thing comes in.

Lastly, on basically the same vein as why I don’t like the hot springs scenes, I’m starting to get real sick of the “let’s shit on this one character” trope. In Persona 3, I don’t think it’s that bad because they kind of do it with Junpei but they also give him a lot of character development, and eventually the sort of hostile shitting on him turns into just gentle teasing.

For P4 I still don’t think it is too bad, because Yosuke is kind of the one being shit on but he also does the same to the other people in the group? I suppose the only thing that really sticks out to me is how Teddie abuses Yosuke’s wallet (making him buy/pay for a lot of stuff with his hard earned cash), but I also don’t like Teddie at all in the first place so I may be biased about him. Oh well, he still shouldn’t do those things and I don’t really find it funny but to each their own.

However...this problem walks and rocks the fucking runway in Persona 5. Namely, this happens with Ryuji. The most obvious aggressor in this is Morgana, because him and Ryuji butt heads so often, but the other thieves kind of do it as well. Obviously they don’t do this all the time, but it’s extremely frustrating when they do. Morgana getting into arguments with Ryuji at the drop of a hat get old very quick, and the other thieves poking a bit of fun about how dumb Ryuji can be is also not that riveting. Despite all of that, the scene that highlights all of this is the scene after Shido’s palace collapse.

You all knew this was coming, but I couldn’t resist talking about it. The scene is so tone deaf in so many ways that it takes away all of the emotional impact that they were trying to build. Even the first time I watched this scene, in which I didn’t think they would kill off Ryuji, I could still sympathize with the group being concerned about him. Then when he shows up they...just beat him up and leave him unconscious next to a pole while they walk away? Wow.

On all subsequent playthroughs I just skip this scene, but I truly cannot understand why that was the angle they went for. Were they trying to insert some humor right after an emotional scene? That can be done in certain cases, but....why??? It’s so unbelievable it’s almost laughable. It’s not even like the bath scene where the the girls think the guys are trying to peep on them. It’s simply because he survived which I assume is what they wanted!

“Oh no you made us thought you were dead (even though he didn’t because he couldn’t control any of this), we’re going to beat you up!” Now you just make the characters look like irrational idiots.

Seriously Atlus, stop doing this. In most cases it just serves to make the player kind of frustrated, and in this case it it literally takes all of the emotional weight out of the scene and makes me think worse of the entire female cast. Please. Stop.

Well that’s the end of that. I don’t think I said anything too revolutionary, although my opinions about the social links and characterization might get me some flak. I just want the characters to be more than one personality trait... This was a really long post again, so kudos to whoever made it to this point!

Next time, on Dragon Ball Z Casual’s pointless posts: something Persona related :)

[keiyoomi]

pretend you’re mine.

⤜ 00. that night

⤜ summary: atsumu just had a great idea. sort of.

⤜ details: m. atsumu × reader | fluff | smau

⤜ note: it took me hours before posting this. . . because of the photos. i hope you like this though

⤜ now playing: perfect day by holley maher | masterlist

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⤜

⤜

"Leave me alone!" Miya Atsumu's voice caught the attention of passers-by as the same woman who entered his hotel room few days ago follows him like a lost dog. It has always been like this, at least since he joined MSBY's volleyball team and captured the attention of volleyball fans and even those who have very little idea about volleyball.

"I am not following you! I just happened to take this route! I swear!" she defended. Atsumu clicked his tongue before hailing a cab. He doesn't know where to go, but he definitely need a drink to cool his head. He gave the name of the hotel he was staying at to the driver before resting his head against his seat.

It took him about an hour before arriving at his hotel. He head towards the hotel bar. He slid off his denim jacket before sitting on the bar stool, occupying the empty seat next to a sobbing woman. He ordered his usual drink, then he turns to the person next to him.

"Terrible break-up," he mumbled.

"You're not wrong," the bartender replies, glancing at your direction. "She's been telling me about her fiance who ditched their wedding and she found out today that he's expecting a child from another woman."

"What a shitty person."

"Right?" He almost choked on his drink when he heard your voice. "I'm L/N Y/N. I was supposed to change my last name three months ago, but that asshole runaway. That fucking asshole," you grumbled, hands curling into tight fists. "I should've punched his face earlier! Ah, no! I would wear the rings before punching his face to make it more painful!"

He chuckled before taking another sip of his drink. "Look at these," you said, showing him three rings that came from your jacket's pocket. "This one with diamonds was the one he gave me when he proposed. I showed that to him earlier, but. . . but that asshole. . . he didn't even recognized it!"

He took the ring your were talking about, taking a good look at it. "This is a nice ring."

"It is! It looks good on my finger, to be honest. I would keep it if it wasn't given by that man."

Atsumu placed his glass on the counter before smiling. "Say, would you like to make memories with me?" You looked at him weirdly before using your arms to guard your chest. "Hey! Not like that! I'm not some kind of a pervert, you know?"

You shook your head. "I don't." He groaned. "Who are you anyway?"

"Atsumu."

He leaned towards you. "So, would you like to make some memories with me? It wouldn't be that hard to be honest. And! It'll benefit the two of us." Then, he placed the ring on the top of the counter. "So, are you in?"

⤛

Nobody expected that to happen. Every volleyball fans knew about Miya Atsumu's recklessness, but this is on another level. One day ago, he was still on the hottest bachelor's list. But overnight, he was off the rack. Everyone's wondering who the woman is, but the only clue we have is a blurred image from his instagram account.

Some fans are speculating that it was actually one of his friends, but that idea was immediately shutdown when people pointed out his attitude towards women and other people in general.

Everyone's curious about Mrs. Miya Atsumu's identity, but the only way we could find out more about her is through Miya Atsumu himself. MSBY's management hasn't release any statement as of this day and even Miya Atsumu's peculiarly silent in his social media accounts.

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