#like it's a long shot to be able to do any kinda traveling ever again for me and I kinda resigned myself to being in my little room forever

[flightyalrighty]

I shall invite you to a good ol' Texas BBQ 🍖🔥

We got like sausage, brisket, cream corn, ribs, chicken, sometimes some fajitas and MOST IMPORTANTLY the beans and just MEAT in general

But rlly dude, love your comic and art and your mental health is more important than us folk

YEEHAW and come on down and I'll hook you up on BBQ faster than a cattle running from a wrangler in bulking season 🤠👍

Oghh I've always wanted to go to Texas specifically for the food. I'm love bbq.................

[stvolanis]

Broken Heartstrings

(one shot)

warnings : dom & sub dynamics, Elvis is kinda abusive, age gap, INACCURATE TIME LINE, angst, Elvis is suspected of cheating,pet-names (baby, doll, darlin’, satin), a hint jealousy (Elvis and OC), manipulation, toxic relationship, OC is naive and kinda (not really) innocent, smut includes degradation (slut, brat), praising, dubcon-ish I guess, spitting, p in v sex, oral (f receiving),size kink, slapping (not hard enough to hurt), man handling, overstimulation, spitting, house wife kink (if you squint), stomach bulge, make-up sex, and overall rough sex. Sorry if I missed anything <3

this is my first story I’ve written for Tumblr, so it won’t be the greatest and might be poorly written to some, but I had fun writing it so enjoy to those who are interested :)

˚ ꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ˚

the days grew longer as the nights seemed to be getting unbearably shorter. Lucy was sitting on a tall bar stool swinging her little frilly sock covered feet back n’ forth as she waited for her husband to get to their shared home. It was late, ‘round 12:30 and he hadn’t shown up to the dinner she had graciously prepared for the both of them. The food was getting cold and her appetite was fading, being replaced by a feeling in the pit of her stomach she couldn’t seem to pin.

The couple had their ups and downs, as any other, but lately it seemed to be more downs. he’d come home late, his hair and clothes disheveled. sometimes he’d smell like cheap women’s perfume and other times he’d smell like gin and whiskey. he’d come home with an attitude, and take it out on Lucy since she was the closest one around. She knew he was struggling, but Elvis Presley was not one for opening up and receiving help.

the drinking and coming home late started happening after his mother passed away. he didn’t know how else to cope, so he did what he’d see his father do. he’d been chasing a high he’d never be able to reach, but his determined mind wouldn’t falter. one more drink. one more show. one more hit of whatever he was on in the moment or could get his hands on. anything to help relive the aching in his chest. It was like a poison that spread through his body, draining his energy and overtaking him. but he kept on falling deeper and deeper

but there was her. Lucy. the sweet little 20 year old who kissed his worries and pains away. Lucy, who made him feel like a young school boy all over again. Lucy , who batted her pretty eyelashes up at him when she needed some loving. Lucy, who’d perch herself on his lap and whisper sweet nothings into his ear when he was exhausted from shows, telling him everything he already knew, but it was coming from her, so he’d hear it a million more times if he could. Lucy, who was so sickeningly sweet and naive, she didn’t realize that not everyone wanted wanted to be just her friend.

Elvis didn’t like that.

Elvis knew he scored with Lucy. He knew that she was the purest thing he’d ever be able to obtain in his lousy life. the freshest, kindest and most beautiful little daisy in a field of weeds. Sure, people were throwing themselves at him left and right, but they weren’t real. Girls always on his arm, yet they only cared for his charm, fame and money. Only cared about fucking their way to the top just to be a nice trophy wife on the arm of some rich piece of shit. Running them dry. But Lucy was never like that.

Lucy was from a small town. A southern bell, and a hard worker who took care of her sick mother for as long as she could remember. She always seen the good in people, even when it seemed invisible to others. Her hearts too big for her delicate body, or at least that’s what her momma used to tell her. Lucy worked at a busy diner on the outskirts of her town, and traveling people were always in and out. So it was no surprise to her when Elvis Presley had shown up in a white button down, dark jeans and polished dress shoes with his friends following behind him.

Ever since that day, Elvis made it his mission to be with her. attached at the hip since they laid eyes on each other, and neither of them would have it any other way. But once her husband started touring again, their honeymoon phase was soon ending and arose more arguments, aggression and finger-pointing.

Elvis had promised to have a nice, civilized dinner with his wife as long as she cooked the food and not one of the maids. For hours, Lucy had been feeling waves of excitement as she cooked all day, creating a nice big meal for them to enjoy together for once. It had been so long since they sat down for dinner together. But alas, he was no where to be found.

She looked down at her hands that were between her thighs as she felt her eyes begin to water and her breathing uneven. of course he wouldn’t have come. what was she thinking? as tears began to fall, it seemed as though they wouldn’t stop. The girl wept as she began to throw away the food she had worked so hard to make.

Soon, that sadness and disappointment turned into a bubbling anger in her core. How could he do this to her? Why did she always have to be the one waiting around? She hated feeling reliant on him for the smallest things. Time, attention, love. Things no one else had ever cared to give her, but Elvis had so happily. She hated that they always fell into this routine of cat and mouse. And always, just when she’s about to call it quits, he smooth talks his way back into her arms.

Mumbling words of affirmation to her. How much he loves and cares for her, and how no one else will ever love her as much as he does. How she’s such a good housewife for him, always keeping the house together and waiting for his return like a good girl. How beautiful she is, and the things he loves most about her.

as the anger bubbled in her stomach, she could hear the booming laugh of Elvis through the halls as he cracked jokes with his choice of friends for the nights and all Lucy could feel was disgust. how could she have been so dumb?

In that moment, Lucy decided she’d had enough. She slammed the door open to the kitchen and marched her way through the long halls till she got to the entrance of the house where Elvis stood in all his glory. Oh, how pretty he looked. His smile becoming bigger as he laid eyes on his wife who wore a white, off the shoulder sundress and frilly white socks. she seemed so small and frail compared to him.

But his smile soon faded as he took notice of her puffy red eyes, red nose and trembling lips and worry consumed him. “Woah, darlin’, what’s goin on?” He asked as he took off his coat and laid it on a small round table. Lucy scoffed. “Are you fuckin’ serious, Elvis?” She said dryly as she squinted her eyes.

Elvis clenched his jaw, clearly displeased. “Watch ya mouth when ya talk to me, ya hear?” He said sternly as he pointed a finger at her. Lucy rolled her pretty green eyes. “Where were you? Huh? You were out with women, weren’t you? I can smell them on you Elvis!” She shouted as fresh tears fell from her eyes.

He groaned as he lazily dragged a hand down his perfectly sculpted face. “What the hell are ya talkin’ ‘bout, Lucy? I ain’t been with no women other than you!” He shouted back as he flared his arms out with a dry laugh. “I’m done with your lies, Elvis.” She said as she harshly wiped her tears and turned to leave.

Elvis made quick work of grabbing her arm and spinning her back around, harshly pushing her against the wall as his hand snaked up and snugly wrapped around her neck. Lucy was taken aback, Elvis had never put his hands on her in a way she didn’t like before.

“Dammit, woman, what’s it gonna take for you to calm down and stop accusin’ me of bullshit every damn day?!” He yelled out in her face. Lucy’s body wracked with sobs, and only then did Elvis realize what he’d done. He shakily removed his hands, but didn’t move away from her and instead caged her body in with his slender arms.

Lucy pushed harshly against his chest, trying to create some distance between them but Elvis wasn’t having it as he grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head. “Let me go, Elvis!” She said, her voice hoarse and broken. “Need ya to calm down first, baby.” He replied as he watched her body tremble

“Oh I need to calm down? How fucking funny coming from the man who just choked me out!” She laughed out dryly as she shot him a look of disgust and anger. “I’ve fuckin’ had it with this attitude you got. After everything I do for you, this is how you wanna act?! Huh?!” He yelled as he began dragging her up the stairs to their shared bedroom.

“Stop it Elvis, you’re hurting me!” Lucy weakly yelled as his grip tightened around her wrists, surely to leave marks the next morning. Elvis played deaf as he harshly threw her onto their bed, slamming the door shut and swiftly locking it. Lucy’s body bounced as she made contact with the bed before sitting up, ready to speak again till Elvis cut her off.

“Strip.” Was all Elvis said. His voice thick, deep and velvety. Such a sweet sound. If only the words coming out weren’t laced with disappointment and dissatisfaction towards the helpless girl on the bed. Her eyes widened and her words got caught in her throat. Again. Why does this always happen? right when she’s about to stand up for herself, she always backs down the very last second and the cycle continues and worsens each time. But it’s addicting.

Sickeningly enough, she thrives in it. She’s become so accustomed to it, she wouldn’t remember how to live like a normal couple again. The toxicity of their relationship kept her on her toes, and deep down inside, she knew she wouldn’t want it any other way. How boring it would be. She knew Elvis wasn’t with other Women, because if he was it would be the cover of every times magazine and she wouldn’t hear the end of it from her friends and family. She knew the perfume she smelled on him was his mommas favorite.

As her shakey hands met the fabric of her white dress and began pulling it off of her body, Elvis rolled up his sleeves and drunk in the sight in front of him. almond green eyes, plump lips and a cute button nose that’s still slightly reddened from her crying. long chocolate brown hair. Full breasts with perky, sensitive nipples that sat ever so perfectly. slim hips and meaty thighs with a round ass to top it all off. But god, how he adored how small she is compared to him.

How tiny she is, is one of his favorite parts about her, and oh, how he used it to his advantage in the most vile ways. it was so easy for someone as big as him to completely destroy her. and that’s exactly what he does.

“Please,Elvis, m’ sor-” she tried, but Elvis wasn’t having it. “I don’t wanna hear a fuckin’ thing from ya, baby.” He said roughly as he gripped her hair at the base and craned her neck up to look at him. her hands gripped his shirt and she felt her slick between her thighs at his tone.

Elvis brought his hand up to her mouth and Lucy stuck her tongue out, welcoming her husbands fingers that harshly hit the back of her throat, making her gag and eyes water. Elvis clicked his tongue. “How can ya take my cock when ya can’t even take my fingers, darlin’?” He chuckled out.

Her mouth closed around his fingers and she began to suck them seductively and Elvis felt his pants tighten at the sight. Pretty eyes staring back up with him, trying to prove she can.

Always a hard worker, huh?

Elvis smirked at the thought as he removed his fingers and instead harshly pushed her upper body down onto the bed, spreading her legs as he dropped to his knees. his mouth watered at the sight. Her cunt was puffy and pink, bud swollen with need and begging for attention. Her slick was seeping out, and there was a wet patch on the sheets of the bed where she had been sitting that was dark and visible. It was such a pretty sight for a starving man.

He spread her lower lips and dragged his tongue between the welt folds, gathering all of her essence. He hummed at the taste of her on his tongue before savoring it for a moment. Then, he sucked her clit into his mouth with such force, her back painfully arched. His tongue skillfully played with her overly-sensitive bud, teasing and sucking as her thighs closed in around his head.

Elvis was pussy drunk. He couldn’t seem to get enough of the taste of his sweet girl. He didn’t care if he couldn’t breathe, he didn’t care about anything besides making Lucy come as many times as she could on his tongue. He prodded a finger at her sopping entrance before slowly sinking them in, letting them sit before pulling out and harshly slamming back in. Lucy let out a gasp at the intrusion as he began to finger fuck her tight cunt with no remorse.

The small girl felt the coil in her stomach tighten as her fingers gripped his mop of disheveled hair as she pushed her cunt further into the dazed mans face. Elvis curled his fingers in her before sucking her clit harshly one last time, and that’s when it snapped. “Oh my god—Elvis!” She moaned out as she tried to shove his head away from her overstimulated clit, but Elvis wasn’t listening.

“Sucha good girl, satin.” He mumbled against her clit as he felt her juices drip down his chin. God, how sweet she tasted. His entire chin and chest were covered in her, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. He’d fuck up a million more times if it meant he could come back home to this.

Lucy panted, out of breath underneath him as he crawled above her sweaty body. He laid the gentlest kisses upon her skin, so tender and sweet. The flutter of his lips against her stomach had her insecurities seeping away into the cracks of the floor boards. The suckle of her nipples, and the releasing ‘pop’, followed by the countless hickies laid where they both knew only he would be able to see had her blushing madly. The caressing of her neck and the soft kiss against her lips made her forget the reason this all started to begin with.

“Ya with me, baby?” He asked. “Yes, Elvis. ‘M here.” She softly replied. Elvis took that as his sign to tighten his hold around Lucy’s neck, lifting her slightly to better look her in the eye. “Good, ‘cause I’m gon’ show ya what happens to ungrateful brats when I’m done with ya.” He said harshly as he slapped the side of her cheek with his free hand, but not hard enough to actually hurt. Just hard enough to know he was gonna fuck her into oblivion.

He spread Lucy’s legs, slapping her puffy, over-sensitive cunt. She softly moaned at the impact, making Elvis chuckle. “Fuckin’ slut.” He muttered as he lined his throbbing cock to her entrance. Elvis inhaled deeply as he slowly pushed his tip in, teasingly pulling it in and out a few times. Lucy whined. “Elvis-” she began. “Shut up, ya take what I give ya, brat.” He said sternly as he gripped her hair. Lucy nodded I obediently as she whimpered out a small ‘sorry’.

Suddenly, the larger man bullied his way inside her wet cunt and she could feel his hair against her throbbing clit. She moaned out as her hand grabbed the arm Elvis was holding her leg up with to ready herself. Elvis spared no mercy as he ruthlessly began bucking his hips into hers, not waiting for her to adjust to his size. She felt like heaven to him, after all, he’d trained her pussy to perfectly fit his cock since the night of their wedding, but after so long of going without being inside of her, she’d tightened up again. Elvis hissed as her walls squeezed him before throwing his head back and letting out a deep groan.

Lucy gripped the sheets below her, desperately trying to hold onto something as the beast on top of her used her cunt like she was a rag-doll solely for his pleasure. “Tight fuckin’ cunt, all for me, mama. Takin’ my dick so well, just like I taught ya, baby.” He said between breaths. Her chest fluttered at his praise, and her cunt squeezed tighter around him. “Ya like that, hm? Like when I tell ya how good you are to me. How nice you fit around my cock. My good girl.” He muttered against your lips as his hands squeezed her hips with such force, they’d be sure to leave a mark.

“Yes, Yes, fuck—yes Elvis. ‘M your good girl. All yours.” Lucy replied through loud moans, her breasts bouncing with ever rough thrust he planted. Something snapped in Elvis at that, and he threw her legs over his shoulder, hitting a new angle. Just the right spot to make her vision blurry and seeing stars. Her back arched as his fingers found her clit, rolling it between his fingers before rubbing it just the right way that made that familiar coil tighten again.

“Fuck, ‘m gonna cum, Elvis! p-please mm- lemme cu-cum!” She stuttered out through moans. Elvis reveled in her satisfying sounds, every thrust sent him into orbit as he became pussy drunk, completely consumed in her. He could feel her everywhere. Her soft hands all over him. Her cunt squeezing the life out of him as she was on the brink of an orgasm. the pleas of her crying aloud. Her eyes watering as she stared up at him, overstimulated.

“Hold it, ‘m almost there, baby. Doin’ so good f’me.” Elvis replied as his hips shot further into hers. The sound of their sweaty skin echoed through the room, and surely could be heard through the halls. Elvis took notice of the prominent bulge on her stomach, groaning at the sight of him filling her to the brim. He pressed his hand against it. “Feel that? ‘M right here, doll.” He said, his voice laced with desire. Lucy merely whimpered, still trying to hold back on her orgasm.

The sudden pressure on her lower stomach made her eyes roll to the back of her head as she felt the coil once again snap, releasing all her juices on Elvis’ lower stomach for a second time. But Elvis wasn’t done yet as he kept his pace of pounding into her. “Please, I can’t-” she moaned out, Elvis slapped her cheek. “I told ya to fuckin’ wait, but you just hadda be a slut, huh? you’re done when I say ya are.” He hissed. Lucy moaned at the contact of his hand against her cheek before nodding her head vigorously.

Elvis felt his stomach grow tighter as he was closer and closer to finishing. “‘M almost there, j-just ho-hold on f’me, mama.” He stuttered out through the waves of euphoric feelings. All of his senses were overwhelmed and his body felt hot to the touch like it was on fire as sweat dripped down him. He slammed his cock into Lucys overstimulated cunt a few more times sloppily before his hips stilled inside of her.

Elvis soon pulled out and watched as cum dripped out of her sopping, pulsing hole before taking two of his slender fingers and stuffing it back in. “Don’t want it to go to waste, now do we?” He said with a smirk as Lucy’s body wracked with spasms as his fingers penetrated her. Lucy’s hand reached out and stilled his movements with a small whimper. “No more Elvis, ‘s too much.” She whined.

Elvis sighed. “Alright, satin, let’s get you cleaned up.” He said as he got up and went into their shared bedroom to retrieve a wet cloth before coming back and gently wiping off both of their juices from her sore cunt. Lucy sighed contently as Elvis pressed a few lingering kisses on her thighs and stomach. “You did so good.” Elvis said against her lips before softly kissing her.

“Want you to hold me, please, Elvis.” She muttered back with a cheeky smile. Elvis let out a small laugh, eyes gleaming with something she couldn’t quite decipher. “Whatever you want, Lucy.” He replied as he laid in bed next to her, bringing her closer and wrapping his arms around the smaller girl. She drew small patterns on his naked chest and smiled contently when she felt his hands begin to massage her scalp.

“Yknow I love ya, right?” Elvis said as he glanced down at her in his arms.

“I know, Elvis. I love you too.”

˚ ꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ˚

[maximwtf]

“You fought well.”

                          Aragorn x reader

words: 1880

google docs pages: 3

warnings: mentions of blood, death, pain, think thats it?

opening: You’ve known Boromir and his brother for a long time, and seeing him in a tight situation, you sacrifice yourself to keep him safe. Aragorn arrives to the scene just a little too late. 

AN// (Boromir is also in this a lot) First time writing for someone who isn’t an elf, kinda nervous- reader can be any gender! I've had this idea for ages, but it keeps changing every time I try to start writing this, also I was scared to write for new characters  :”D

                           “You fought well.”

You and Boromir had been separated from the rest of the group. No one was keeping count, but you were sure you had killed more orcs today than ever before. They were coming from every direction, and it felt like they were never ending. Merry and Pippin were nowhere in sight, not that you had any time to look after them since one wrong move could cost you your life. Your attention was fully on the orcs, making sure you and Boromir were safe. 

Pulling your sword out from the now dead orc, you took a quick look at Boromir. He slammed one of the orcs to the ground, swinging his sword around and by doing that getting a good hit on one of the orcs that had been charging towards him. Instinctively you dodged a blade by dropping to your knees, and then swinging your own sword to the orc’s legs to make them fall. Getting back up, you swiftly pushed your sword through the creature’s chest. With a heavy breath you pulled the sword out, getting ready for the next orc, but then you saw something. The leader of the orcs, Lurtz, he had stretched his bow and was pointing the arrow towards Boromir, with a deathly grin on his face. It felt like time slowed down for a moment as you were thinking of different ways this could go. The arrow would travel fast once it was released and you knew that. You were no talented archer, but you had seen Legolas use his bow and the death was always quick for the orcs he was fighting against. So if you now yelled out for him and told him to dodge, his attention would be on you, and he would get shot. There weren't a lot of ways this could end, someone was bound to get shot.

You took a better hold of your sword and gritted your teeth together. Boromir seemingly hadn’t seen Lurtz, and was completely unaware of what his faith was going to be if you didn’t make it in time. Taking a couple fast steps, you shoved your body in between your friend and the arrow. Just then the orc released the arrow and with full speed it landed into your shoulder, making you quickly drop to your knees. Groaning in pain, you tried to calm down your breathing. You could feel Boromir grab your shoulder which caused another groan from the wave of pain. “What are you doing?!” You heard him say while you were dragging yourself back up, still holding onto your sword. “What does it look like?” You mumbled while trying to pull a smirk on your face through the pain. You heard him take in a breath but before he could say anything you took note of the orc that had appeared behind him. Not as swiftly as before, you moved forward and blocked the orc’s attack. Before you were able to finish the job, Boromir had pushed his sword through the creature. “Hide, you’re going to die if you don’t!” He commanded you, his gaze seemingly locked on the arrow that was sticking out from your shoulder. “I would rather die like this than by hiding and bleeding out.” You replied, wincing when you accidentally moved the injured shoulder a little too much. 

Over Boromir’s shoulder you could see Lurtz stretching his bow again. “Down!” You commanded him, and when he didn’t move, you pushed him down with the blunt side of your sword. He was now low enough for the second arrow to hit you as well. It landed somewhere near your stomach, this time hurting a lot more than your shoulder had. You fell backwards and got harshly greeted by the cold ground. Boromir’s expression was almost angry when he saw the second arrow. It was unclear who he was angry with, but you hoped it wasn’t you. You had made the choice to be the one to die today instead of him. Knowing he had much more worth to a lot of people than you did, he had to live. 

That thought gave you enough power to push yourself back on your knees. While gritting your teeth together you could see Merry and Pippin’s horrified faces. They had both gotten keen on you when the fellowship had been formed, and you felt bad that they had to witness this first hand. It was Boromir’s scream that brought you back to the current reality as he charged at one of the orcs that had gotten a little too close, killing it then and there. Seeing his valianty gave you some as well, and with that you were able to push yourself back up even through the pain. You could see blood pooling out from where the second arrow had landed. It must have hit a more critical spot since your shoulder wasn’t bleeding as much. 

As your gaze rose back up to Boromir, you were able to see him kill yet another orc. Even through your blurring vision, you could see Lurtz bow yet again. Only this time, it was pointed at you. Gaze locked onto the orc as he released the arrow without a second thought. For someone who looked like that, the creature sure had good aim because the third arrow hit you perfectly, in the middle of your chest. Head spinning from the pain, you fell to your knees, tasting blood in your mouth. It was hard to hear what was going on around you after the latest arrow. You could see the shadows of orcs running around you, it seemed like they were leaving, but you couldn’t understand why? You hadn’t lost yet, right?

Even through the chaos you felt someone stop in front of you. The bow you had seen many times before today was once again stretched and pointed straight at you. Now eye to eye with the orc, you swallowed one last time. There was nowhere you could crawl in order to hide, your faith was in front of you. 

Just before the creature was able to finish you, you heard the arrow flash into the forest behind you and following that was a loud thud. Your gaze rose up once more and you were able to spot Boromir fighting with Lurtz. Following the fight was hard since moving hurt so much, and when they both went out of your field of vision, your heart began to race. You could now only faintly hear what was going on, and by that make a conclusion on who was winning. 

Breathing was now harder than before and the pain had begun to fade. Now that you weren’t moving, the waves of pain had evened out but one wrong move and they would get worse again. The taste of blood was still present in your mouth, not really sure where it was coming from but it felt like you were drowning in it. 

It was only the sound of Boromir killing the orc that brought you back from your haze. You could feel and hear the fighting stop before he made his way closer to you. “I’m still..” You started before coughing out some of the blood in your mouth. “Do not speak.” Boromir’s voice said as he kneeled down near your head. Feeling his eyes examine your condition, you could also almost feel when the realisation hit him, that you wouldn’t be able to survive this. 

No words were exchanged for a moment. Boromir was clearly mad at himself and you for taking the shots meant for him. “You need to live, more than I deserve to.” You mumbled through the blood as you tried to stay awake. Boromir shook his head in distress. “This was foolish of you. I didn’t ask for you to do this!” He said while looking at you. Time didn’t seem to pass by any quicker than before, and it bothered you. You didn’t want to face Aragorn like this. The thought of him having to see you half dead like this has just occurred to you and you didn’t want that. 

You felt thuds on the ground as someone was coming towards you two. Through your blurry vision you could see the man you had just thought about and behind him stood Legolas. The dark haired man ran up to you, only stopping once he was kneeling over you. You opened your eyes more to assure him that you were still here. “What happened?” He asked as his voice began to shake a little, the severity of the situation slowly starting to settle to him as well. “They took the shots meant for me…” Boromir’s now quiet voice said, clearly feeling guilt over this and the fact that he had tried to steal the ring. You had gotten a glimpse of him and Frodo, but you knew he regretted his actions. He wasn’t the kind of person to do something like that without regret. You getting injured wasn’t his fault either, you chose this faith. “So it’s your fault?” Aragorn’s words lunged at Boromir, anger clear in his voice and venom in his words. Without hearing Boromir's reply, you gathered some strength and took a hold of Aragorn’s arm. This action caused him to turn his gaze back to you, his expression softening the second he saw the condition you were in. “Stop..and listen.” You breathed, trying to finish the sentence. Aragorn looked at you silently, giving you time to speak. “I wanted him to..to live.” You groaned and let go of the man’s arm. “Why…?” He whispered, getting a little closer to you. “He is a- a good man, love.” You spat out more of the blood in order to keep breathing. “Look after him for me, m’kay?” You winced a little, trying to desperately get some air. Aragorn’s eyes began to water as he looked at you. He pulled both of your arms to your chest with your sword in your hands. “You fought well.” The man said, giving you a gentle kiss as a tear rolled down his cheek and fell to your chest. You wanted to tell him that you loved him, but you didn’t have the energy to speak anymore, so instead of that you only looked at him. Looked at his grey eyes with the love you held for him, knowing that he was able to understand and sense what you meant. 

Legolas and Gimli had gotten closer to you and Aragorn. Legolas looked more bright than before, and in any other situation you might have been frightened by the sight, but right now it felt calming. Your body began to go limb in Aragorn’s arms, but before you let go fully you made sure to turn your gaze back to Aragorn. 

[forestwhisper3]

Teaser for the next chapter of Dragon of the Sun:

Despite his rough arrival, Leo had to admit that Usagi's world was...beautiful.

It was strange, walking around in broad daylight. The warmth of the sun felt almost unfamiliar without layers of clothes hiding everything beneath, and being able to freely walk into the village he'd spotted before without anyone running or screaming at the sight of him felt...nice.

Mikey would love-

Immediately, his heart clenched tightly in his chest, and he had to take a moment to center himself as he remembered yet again why he was so desperate to get home.

                           XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Done already?" he asked when he saw Mikey get up from the couch without his comic. "You just sat down not too long ago, didn't you?"

It had only been a few minutes, in fact. Regardless of the amusing and ironic fact that Mikey was a speed reader second only to Donnie, even he couldn't have finished it that fast. Especially since he knew Mikey liked going through them a second time just for the artwork.

"I'm gettin' kinda hungry, so I was gonna get started on lunch," Mikey grinned, but it was a bit too stiff. Too...off.

Something was wrong. He had a good idea what it was, too, but going by how Mikey kept fidgeting in place and his eyes refused to meet his, he wasn't going to get anywhere if he tried to draw it out. He'd missed the chance to do that weeks ago.

He just had to be patient. Mikey would come to him eventually. He always did.

"Just let me know if you need help."

He allowed the unspoken meaning linger between them, and felt some of his concern ebb away when Mikey's grin shifted into something much more genuine and warm.

"You got it, bro."

                               XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"We must make haste to Edo," Usagi said, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Do you know how to ride a horse?"

"Oh. Uh...no. Not exactly a lot of opportunities to do that where I'm from."

"Then we will procure just one other and ride in pairs." His friend smiled a bit. "Perhaps, should we find a moment to spare while traveling, I can teach you some of the basics."

He perked up at the offer. He doubted there would ever be a time he'd need to know how to ride a horse in New York, but learning obscure things had become a sort of secret hobby of his over the years ever since Master Splinter had taught him about alligator pressure points. It was always fun to see the absolutely gob smacked expressions of the people around him whenever he knew about something or managed to pull off a move or skill no one expected of him.

It was a trait he shared with-

The excitement that had built up in him faded, although he did his best to smile back.

"Only if there's time. I don't want to put Lord Noriyuki in any more danger."

"Of course," Usagi nodded.

He paused for a moment, as if he were going to say something else, but ultimately kept moving.

His mind was quick to drag him back the moment silence fell between them.

                         XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Someone, quick!" Donnie exclaimed. "Grab the-!"

Scepter, he finished in his mind. If they managed to grab it, then Drako and the Damiyo's son wouldn't be able to freeze them like they had Raph, and it would make it easier to fight them. It was a good plan. Probably the only chance they'd have of making this fight turn in their favor.

But they'd anticipated the move, and in moments, they were all frozen in midair.

"Uh..."

All of them, except for Mikey.

He felt ice shoot through his veins at the enraged snarl that echoed through the air. He could see the hatred that burned in their eyes. The desire to destroy. To kill. And it was all aimed at his little brother.

His little brother, who had been left to face it all alone.

"Insignificant insect! You only delay the inevitable! There is no- Gah!"

Something shot passed them, and it wasn't until it clattered to the ground after hitting its mark did he realize that it had been a pot lid. He felt a spark of pride wriggle through the worry and panic, even as another part of him wanted to shake his head. Throwing weapons specifically designed for it was one thing, but throwing things not meant to be thrown was harder than it looked. It said a lot about Mikey for him to have it done it so well under duress.

The panic returned stronger than before as Mikey sprinted forward, eyes focused on the falling Time Scepter. His expression was determined. Resolute in a way he'd never seen before- even when facing down the Foot and the Shredder. Then again, he'd never had to face such a threat on his own before now.

He should never have had to.

Casey cried out in shock somewhere behind them, but Leo was too focused on Mikey as he lunged forward, hand reaching out for the scepter as it fell.

He didn't even have time to yell out a warning before a large tail slammed into him, knocking him away and into one of the support pillars hard enough for part of it to break off.

"Mikey!!"

Mikey slumped to the ground unmoving, his plastron cracked and a trickle of blood dripping down from the back of his head.

Leo felt his heart stop.

"MIKEY!!"

                             XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"-san. Leonardo-san!"

He jerked back into the present, Usagi frowning slightly at him as he held the reins of a horse. Still, his friend didn't question it until they made it back onto the path outside the village.

"Such lack of focus is unlike you, Leonardo-san," he murmured quietly. "Are you well?"

"I'm-..."

No.

"I-..."

I'm not.

He trailed off, words failing him as he struggled to keep everything at bay. In doing so, he missed the way Usagi's frown deepened.

I'm...scared.

But he couldn't falter- not now.

His family needed him.

[leaffiii]

*shows up from the sewers like alligator, with headcanons and 1 drabble in teeth* hello :)

I like to think that Pharaoh man is the old man of this team.

Maybe he was fighting along with other robots in Hard war somewhere far away, was able to survive and run away from government long enough to be considered a legent, waiting for the right moment to rejoin in this lost war again.

Maybe he heard about Silicon city's many attends from other robots to overthrow humans ones again but without any luck and decided to lend his hand there. And so he travels and eventually arrives and joins your terrorist club. Maybe he even seems badass first time we get to his introduction. A legend thought to be long gone, a experienced warrior that can survive in extreme situations, a hard war veteran and ect.

And then hes like "how do you do fellow kids" and the badass points that he has? Long gone.

Expect the "in my time-" and "I've seen better" routine. And don't even try to ask about his past, because you just will be stuck in unskipable cutscene of him telling you all about it, like at least 3 hours, bare minimum. Usually the victim of this "cutscene" is Hard man, because he's to slow to make a getaway in time before Pharaoh starts telling story and to nice to actually walk out if he started it.

Also i just think that solar shot (or whatever Pharaoh uses) is actually one of few things that beats Hard mans defense. Like, dude can be dence as much as he wants but can he stand the plazma with a heat that feels like surface of the sun?

Imagine Snake asking Pharaoh about Hard war, and thinking that now that he has a literal veteran he won't need to steal documents about that ever again and walking out of that same room 12 hours later and be like: i wish that i was stealing documents and failed rather than be stuck in a room with him like this ever again.

Pharaoh is pretty affectionate toward Metal man but in a "grandfather that tells u suck after barely telling that he's proud of you" kinda way. Like "man, Metal you actually not half bad with repair stuff, i dont feel anything wrong with my arm animore. But i still had better, so you have room to improve."

Also Pharaoh sometimes uses slangs in hes speeches, so it leads to situations like this:

Hope you recovered from whatever you had and that you have a great day! Bye *goes back into sewers*

Reaches out of my trashcan and munches on this like a raccoon eating grapes (Had a busy day lol but FINALLY got on my laptop to reply)

Oh my GOD this is such a treat, actually!! I've been having a bit of trouble characterizing him and this is PERFECT for him. Pharaoh being a veteran is such a good idea! It also officially marks him as the oldest of the group. I'm still deciding on what his abilities will be specifically, since I'm trying not to have too much overlap between them lol. Poor Hard Man though, big man has to deal with so much lol

I do imagine Pharaoh and Skull being from the same creator (Some FC version of Dr. Cossack) BUT keep in mind I haven't touched the comics at all, aside from skimming the articles on the Wiki. This is already an AU of sorts anyways, which I'll elaborate on eventually. That being said I think Toad should also have come from the same creator for shits and giggles lmao THAT DOES REMIND ME i gotta finish Pharaoh's ref, hes been legless for so long oops (and I gotta do one for Metal and the last two guys. whoops.) I recovered from my cold a bit ago, I'm doing well now!

[tonydaddingham]

Follow-up from my sister: she'd like me to add that she makes no promises it's not the lighting, but that if it isn't, she's quite sure it's not the roots, because the rest of his hair is fine and it's a uniform, very deliberate-seeming change between solid brown and solid red, no layers or patches or ombre that would suggest dye growing out, like "they either forgot to dye the sideburns and then remedied that halfway through filming, which I somehow find unlikely, or had them red initially, then bleached the colour out and re-dyed it brown at some stage, which is ludicrous".

hello anon darling!!!💕 right! ive gone through this again because. my fixation on crowley's sideburns is ever dormant and this has only stoked it, im afraid ✨

ive gone through and taken what im hoping is a fair number of screenshots of each episode of s2, to try to pinpoint the trajectory that your sister suggested!!! im completely on board with what she says, they definitely seem to vary in colour, but my main thoughts are this:

(screenshots, btw, are under the cut in chron. order)

i do still think there is something to the short vs. long sideburns. i came up with a completely ridiculous time-travel theory (honestly just for the giggles), but regardless of how outlandish it is, the varying length is the element that i think is hardest to explain away. the only thing that would make sense is the DW thing, but i think the dates pretty much debunked that, or alternatively there was another project that dt was working on, and the timings of it were cutting fine with having to do pick-ups/any AP for s2, hence having to keep the long/short sideburns

following on from this, i do think crowley was intended, at the start of filming (im sure someone with receipts will be able to negate this for me - more than welcome!), to have short sideburns. reason i say this is because, to my eye, the beginning of ep5 has them cut very neatly, and they are more uniformly red (it's during the gabriel confrontation scene onwards that they change to long). this compared to his short sideburns in ep1, for example, where it looks like (again, only going based on sight and 1080p quality) his roots have grown out slightly, and you have an underlay of brown beneath the dyed-red ends. this therefore indicates to me that they were originally short, dyed red, but grew out over filming when scenes were shot out of sequence (would be interesting to compare this 'timeline' with michael's hair in the same sequencing!)

when crowley has long sideburns, in the 2023 scenes, they are always brown (as far as i can tell), so this would indicate to me that these scenes were filmed towards the end of the shoot, but again it's very obvious that the sideburn length changes - ie. it doesn't seem at all gradual, even if shot out of sequence - and the sideburns weren't redyed to match the rest of his hair

ep2 job scenes - i did my best, and im fairly certain they're long and brown, but it's a) hard to tell with the wig, and b) length/colour might not mean anything, it might be that whatever 'secret' the sideburn thing is potentially indicating only applies to 2023, not the flashbacks... guess it kinda depends on whether you subscribe to the notion that the flashbacks have been messed about with or not by modern-era crowley

ep3 resurrectionist scenes - honestly? god only knows. the lighting wasn't exactly conducive to empirical research (lmao who am i kidding, none of this is scientific)... but the muttons do appear, overall, to be more consistently and obviously red. im assuming that they were made from artificial hair pieces - as opposed to dt taking the time to grow them??? - and so would be easier to keep uniform in colour anyway

ep4 1941 scenes - i mean, yeah, they are long and brown (except the very end scene???), and this might just be down to when it was filmed in the schedule... again, same as bildad, it might not really mean anything, unless you consider that 1941 has been messed about with too.

so conclusion for me at the moment is that the colour variation is down to hair simply growing out/not wanting to damage his hair by constantly rebleaching (?) and re-toning, but where it coincides with whether the sideburns are short or long remains - and probably will for the rest of my days on this good planet - an intriguing mystery!!!✨

[hazzabeeforlou]

Hi, I’m Toni.

Got a slew of new followers and I’ve been almost inactive the last half a year (at least) so wanted to do an update/intro so you know who I am LOL and so my long suffering fandom besties know what the fuck’s been going on (if anyone still cares rip sorry it’s been forever)

Currently writing this from my sick bed of ear cellulitis? That I got from wearing my mask? It would literally only happen to me. Had to go to urgent care and get a butt shot of antibiotics so it didn’t, you know, spread to my bloodstream :)

Anyways I say that to say that I probably got sick in the first place because I’m incredibly run down right now. The classical music world (im a professional musician) FINALLY opened up again, and to meet gig demands I only work my pandemic retail job once a week. I have been traveling the last four weekends in a ROW, which, due to my chronic pain (which has seen SOME improvement over the last year!!) makes me super duper exhausted and I have to admit tik tok has been getting most of my brain numbing time.

Life post-happy drugs has been tough. I’ve seen improvement in the areas I wanted to, physically, but mentally god. Drugs were nice. Anywho, I’ve done a ton of witchy/ancestral connecting/herbalist kinda things the last six months, and I now have an alter and a spiritual practice that has really brought me a lot of growth and meaning. It’s hard healing from your past when you’re still living IN it… and there’s no improvement with my parents. They’re still homophobic as hell and Republican as fuck, despite screaming matches. The threats of physical violence prevent me from confronting my dad any further. I’ve kind of given up hoping they will ever change.

It’s funny though, I would classify this year as the year I started to “feel” things, and of course that happened physically post the drugs, but also emotionally once I started to let myself FEEL emotions, god what a train wreck. Who knew humans could CRY so much? That emotional revelation led to the probably overdue realization that I’m likely Autistic and high masking, and have been suffering from that classic 30’s wall that “gifted girl high masking autistic children” eventually hit wherein they are no longer able to just push through and ignore. That’s been tough.

Writing has always been how I process and understand emotions, and now that I’ve started to actually FEEL them, it hasn’t become as essential to my functioning as it had been the last six or so years. I miss it, and I plan on finishing all my projects I left behind… as I’ve said many time The Garden part 3 IS coming I promise lol. But! Hopefully. And no promises. But I have the most delightful Christmas fic tucked into my head that I would love to publish this year, if I can find the time to get it on paper.

Okay as for fandom… I did a “growth thing” earlier this year and deleted all the bbygate stuff I’d been saving for the inevitable end. I just can’t anymore. All the photoshop, the blatant exploitation of it all… yeah I think the best option is just not to care. If they’re gonna drag this out for the rest of my life then I’m going to ignore the shit out of it. Speaking of ignoring, I also noped out of the H and O nonsense. God. What a MESS. I liked HH, truly, but the fave for me was Matilda. To be honest with you all, I listened until I grew naturally full of the album and I moved on with my life, it wasn’t world changing to me the way FL was. HOWEVER. FITF? Lord save me i didn’t even know it was coming out and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I’m fucking obsessed. I’m planning a MP. I genuinely think it’s Louis’ finest work and I can’t get enough of it. Every time I listen I like it MORE. I theorize it’s going to be a slow blooming album that smacks everyone’s expectations in the face. I’m so fucking proud of Louis. I bawled real ugly tears at Common People.

And lastly as always, I believe the boys were in love but I make no claims about their lives now. I enjoy the hints and speculation and love larrying along, but I think they’ve established these personas that are bulletproof to fan speculation these days, and I feel that’s how they truly want it. And that’s cool, won’t stop me from writing Larry because it was the truest gayest baby Star crossed lovers story out there and still makes the best fan fic.

Apologies for the novel but nice to meet you if you’re new HI I’M TRYING TO BE BACK to my old chums, and feel free as always to talk to me, my ask box is always open ❤️

[gutsfics]

how about a low stakes and high stakes episode "what if Jo had been there" for Time Traveller's Pig (how would he spend his time at the carnival?) and Not What He Seems

eeeee tysm for asking <3 💞

for Time Traveller's Pig, he's running either a caricatures booth or a facepainting booth. im leaning toward face painting though, and you can either choose from a design he made based on Mystery Shack attractions, or just ask for Whatever and he'll do his best (there is a kid rocking the Really Cool Tiger Going Through A Divorce)

his booth is set up close enough to Stan's dunk tank that If someone is able to dunk him, Joseph can help him out but not so close that he or anyone stopped there will get beamed by a baseball. at the end of the episode when Stan gets dunked by Lolph, Joseph is laughing too hard to get him out at first. it takes until Stan inhales some water laughing at Robbie for Joseph to calm down enough to get him out

NWHS got kinda long so i'm putting it under a cut

for Not What He Seems, Joseph was taken into police custody alongside Stan with the assumption that he was an accomplice. which, Correct, but he's also just Better At Lying To Cops than Stan is. plus also he didn't do any of the "stealing nuclear waste from the government" for plausible deniability reasons. like he helped w the portal of course, but it was more "helping Stan do a thing he needs an extra set of hands for" or "making sure Stan eats and drinks water and goes to bed" type stuff. lowkey he kinda resents being put into another "doting housewife" role since his divorce with his first husband but he feels insanely guilty about feeling resentment. especially bc Stan is a WAY better partner than his ex was. low bar to clear but clears it Stan does. also part of it is him not communicating to Stan thats how he feels. he thinks that Stan's grief & problems are More Important than his own.

anyway since he seems to knows nothing, the goverment guys leave him w Blubs and Durland to focus more resources on Stan. bc, you know, Blubs and Durland, all he has to do is just walk out the door after the gravity thing happens. like he didnt even know for sure that Stan was using it to get a way (+ also he didnt have anything to alert him about it the way Stan did) but he figured it was as good a time as any to leave. does this incriminate him, escaping with Stan? yes, definitely, absolutely. but Stan's been working towards this for the past 30 years, he wants to be good emotional support for him

during the final confrontation in front of the portal, he's........ quiet. since he joined Stan in Gravity Falls, he has these reoccuring dreams he can't ever quite remember when he wakes but that leave him with this foreboding that he cant explain* and he kind of..... doesn't want the portal fixed? yes it Has put a strain on his and Stan's relationship, thank you for asking. he hasn't brought it up in a while but Stan knows full well his thoughts on the portal & about that sense of unease and dread he doesn't know the source of. so anyway he just kinda...... leaves himself out of that confrontation? its been long enough that now he just feels "whatever happens, happens" about the whole thing. although if he had a say in it, he'd side with Dipper

*there are hints to this as early as Dreamscapers when he goes into Stan's mind with the rest of them & he recognizes Bill but doesn't know why

if i were framing shots for this episode (which i am planning on doing at some point, for a lot of episodes, once im back in a I Can Draw Things Again way), he would be kind of hanging back aways from everyone else, just watching everything play out, clearly worried/uneasy but like. nothing framing him specifically. the kind of thing you notice on rewatches after you learn his full involvement in this

also i think prior to this episode, its left vauge if he knows whats going on with Stan or not. like he definitely knows about the weird things in Gravity Falls (& unlike Stan he thinks its good the kids know bc that way they've got Something Else to focus on than anything going on in the Mystery Shack. another point of tension between the two tee hee), but we don't ever see him down in the lab. so him escaping police custody w Stan would be us learning that he knew the whole time, bc him lying to the cops is also him lying to the audience

anyway yeah. thank you again for asking 💞

[lone-changelings-journal]

2/2/149

Start this entry with the previous night’s conversation about Silver Moon Company and then continue from there in order. Remy Talked about the company after writing the above entry and that day ended with Taelia using magic to put her to sleep, hence why it’s in this entry and not in the previous one. But start this one with how much she hates Kor’aas for yelling at her

I hate Kor’aas. I hate him! He’s awful, I don’t want to travel with him anymore! Gods, he’s so mean for no reason and he’s the biggest hypocrite I’ve ever met. He… Reminds me of father… Ugh, he’s EXACTLY like father! I hate this, it’s awful. Of all the people I’m stuck with I’m stuck with the one person who reminds me of the person I’m trying to get away from…

Just… Gods… All I was trying to do was ask if he’d seen Umbra. That’s all I wanted to do, and he just… Freaked out… I mean, I know I interrupted him. I shouldn’t have interrupted him, but was all that… Necessary? I just… I can’t… This morning has been so awkward, no one’s talking to each other and it’s all my fault. I should have just waited for Umbra to get back, I shouldn’t have bothered him.

It sucks, because last night seemed to be going so well. Taelia noticed I wasn’t doing so well and offered to heal me even more. After that we talked about their guild a bit more. Writing about that might help get my mind off things. Let’s see… After I finished talking to Morr I went back inside. I’d already let everyone know I was talking to my boss, so they didn’t have any questions when I told them I’d sent Umbra back to her to pick something up for me. Dandelion was happy the scroll he made for me worked and was happier to hear I would be joining them back to South City. He’s definitely the most sociable of everyone in the group.

Hearing about the guild was surprising. Apparently all three of them work for the Silver Moon Company which… I don’t know how I feel about that. See, on one hand they’re definitely the most reputable merchant’s guilds in Aestoria by a long shot. In terms of getting shipments to people on time, anyway. To the average person it’s a perfectly fine company, but I’m not an average person. Father used to order from them. A lot. And with his business being what it is, well… Let’s just say these people know how to source materials that aren’t generally allowed in the city. 

I’ve always thought they were a little suspect considering they managed to get their hands on Wandercaps. Father LOVED using those instead of anestesia because you only had to eat an 8th of one for their effects to kick in. Gods, the kinds of things you see after eating one of those. You can’t move after eating one because your body goes into a trance, so you’re kinda just forced to sit and hope for the best. Last time I remember being forced to take them I kept seeing moths everywhere. Like… Crawling out of my wounds and out of people’s faces and flying everywhere all over the wall. I don’t like moths anymore.

But yeah they work for Silver Moon Company. Kor’aas has been working there the longest. I think he said three years? Dandelion has been working there a little over a year, and Taelia has been working there for three months. Makes me wonder why she’s the only one working directly under Tyvar. If he’s a higher ranking member of the company it’s weird she’s so new. But if he’s not it doesn’t make sense why Dandelion and Kor’aas are getting involved. Or… Am I overthinking this? All I know is father refused to work with anyone who’d been with them for less than two years. I wonder if Kor’aas has ever worked with him. It’d explain why he’s so horrible…

Once we finished talking I mentioned I was turning in early for the night. Taelia had healed me again, but her healing doesn’t really grant you energy, it just fixes your wounds. She was concerned about me not being able to sleep well because, well… Honestly, I wasn’t. I wasn’t doing well yesterday and I’m sure as the hells not doing any better today. Either way, she was concerned and offered to help me fall asleep. I’ll be honest, I had no idea what she was going to do. At first I said no and that I’d be fine. Surely the others were just as horrified. But… No. She was worried about me and she wasn’t letting up. So I let her do what she was going to do. It felt… Nice. She had me close my eyes and she placed her hand on my forehead. My body started feeling tingly and numb and heavy and then I woke up. She used a spell to make me sleep. I’m… That feels weird to me… But it was probably the best night’s sleep I ever had…

Of course something had to come along and ruin it. Umbra wasn’t there when I woke up, but everyone was awake so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. Maybe she had gotten back but wasn’t in the room. So I asked Dandelion and Taelia if they’d seen her. They hadn’t, and Dandelion told me to try asking Kor’aas. He was outside talking to… Someone. I don’t know who exactly. All I know is when I went out there I waited for him to be done speaking with whoever it was. You shouldn’t interrupt people. Me being there at all made him upset, though. His version of interrupting is different than what I’m used to…

Anyway he got really upset with me. He snapped that it was a private conversation and that I needed to wait. He yelled that I needed to be more considerate and that even a child knows not to interrupt. He did ask what was so important that I needed to barge in and I managed to ask if he’d seen Umbra and that… Made the situation worse. Honestly it was my fault. I should have had more faith in Umbra. She’s capable of handling herself, I shouldn’t have bothered him. I just don’t want him to yell at me again. He’s… Really intimidating…

I went back inside and I guess it was obvious something was wrong. I’m such a terrible liar, I wasn’t able to convince them everything was fine and it turned into this whole massive ordeal. The second Kor’aas came back in Dandelion made another untasteful joke about him talking with some secret lover, male or female, and asking who it was. He got angry we were trying to pry into his personal life and then Taelia yelled at him for being a hypocrite because we aren’t allowed to question his personal life but all he’s done is questioned ours. I don’t even remember what I said, I broke down. I remember being called a child and trying to apologize and… I don’t know. They just kept yelling at each other until eventually Taelia put a stop to it. How she did I don’t know.

It’s horrible. Everyone’s been all tense and quiet. We’ve been walking all day and the only time anyone else said anything was when Umbra came back with her new collar on. The thing Morr gave me to communicate with her is a magic gemstone that’s attached to a collar. I don’t know if she put it on the collar just so Umbra could bring it to me or if it’s supposed to stay there. The gem’s fixed in place pretty well, so I assume it’s supposed to stay on the collar. Either way I’d probably keep it on because it’s really pretty around Umbra’s neck. The gem is the same orange as she and Morr’s eyes and it has this nice mystical swirl thing inside of it. It’s nice. The group acknowledged Umbra had returned and after that we just… Left… No one’s said anything since. It’s… Horrible…

I’m writing this during my watch. Well, part of it. I wrote some before going to bed and decided to continue now because it’s better than sitting awake alone in the cold. Now that we’re actually on the way to South City we aren’t sleeping in the cabin. Thankfully it isn’t too cold out. I mean, it is, but not as cold as it was when I first ran away. Besides, now I have a bedroll and winter clothes and Umbra to keep me warm. I’m mostly worried about my hands. I guess shouldn’t be writing if that’s the case. The only gloves I have are too thick to write in so I had to take them off. Maybe it’d be best to end this off here. Besides, I should be keeping an eye out for danger. I just… Needed to vent my frustrations. Keeping all this bottled up wouldn’t do much good for me…

[tolbachik]

Hi again! How’s it going? Thank you for your kind words, I’ll be sure to give myself a break if I need it ^^

Once I finish my Latin education, I might want to go on to study ancient Greek. The language has always fascinated me, though I’ve always procrastinated on learning it. I’ve also considered making videos analyzing Roman graffiti, but I’d have to get over my camera shyness first haha. People tend to focus on the funnier graffiti, which is understandable, but I think other kinds of graffiti deserve love too :]

Are there any thing you plan on learning, or that you’d like learn if you had the means? It could be anything, a craft, a language, an instrument :D

Clemens!! I always liked Clemens, I remember being so happy when he was able to escape Pompeii, but was kinda disappointed that he only showed up for one chapter in book two :[ I remember not paying much attention to Quintus in the first book, but I really came around to him in the next two books :]

I always loved Uranus, I felt like it was such an under-appreciated planet. I remember just thinking that it looked really cool as a kid haha. I also was always interested in Neptune, partially because of its elusiveness.

In your last response you brought up being interested in space travel as well. Do you have any favorite space missions? :]

Also don’t worry about getting to my recommendations right away! I have to be in a music listening mood to appreciate an album, so I totally relate to that feeling of being in a musical rut!

Also, that video of Norma Tanega is so cute! I love when you can tell that a musician truly loves what they’re doing! I’ll have to check out the redr of her other music sometime :D

I like to write about historical topics and media analysis. I especially like to connect modern media back to ancient myths, and sorta analyze why these kinds of narratives are so appealing to people. I also like to write about misconceptions we have about the ancient world, specifically Greece and Rome, since those are what I’m most familiar with. Though looking into disproving these myths is fun in itself, I also like to try and find how the myth formed and why it was perpetuated! I just think it’s so interesting how you can tell a lot about a culture based on what stories they tell :] Sorry that this was kinda long winded, I got a little carried away haha ^^’

Also, I definitely understand having a hard time sharing writing. I always get a bit bashful when showing people my art or writing, even online. It feels very vulnerable to put your work out there, so I totally get it. Once you start looking for beta readers, I’d love to volunteer! Admittedly, I’m a bit of a slow reader, so I might not be the best at beta reading, but I’d love to give it a shot! :D

I’m glad you were able to tackle that problem! I love ruminating on things in my mind as well. There's something so satisfying about figuring out the solution to a problem after thinking about it in the shower haha

I know you’re a writer, but do you like to read as well? If so, do you have any favorite books? :D

I’m so happy these asks make your day! I always look forward to reading your responses and writing the next one. SRS came up during a kinda tumultuous time for me, and it has really helped to keep me grounded and gave me something to anticipate every day. Your responses mean a lot to me, and I always love to hear what you have to say! I hope you have a good day/night! :]

- 🎲

Hello again! So sorry for the delay; yesterday was fairly busy for me, so I didn't really get a chance to reply! Thank you for your patience, I really appreciate it.

Oh wow, that sounds like a lot of fun! If you decide to go through with it, I hope you enjoy it a lot! Now, I forget; did they have a Cambridge Greek course as well, or just Latin? And that's totally fair; with Latin alone I'm sure you had a lot on your plate, so take the time you need before you move on to Greek! If you do ever make videos, I'd love to watch them. I know very little about Roman graffiti, so it'd be fun to learn more! Any examples you'd like to share?

Hmm, well, I would really like to learn how to read sheet music and play piano if I ever got the energy or time. I know a tiny bit, and how to play a few parts of a few songs, but nothing major beyond that, really! What about you? Aside from languages, what other stuff do you want to try to learn in life?

Right? He definitely deserved more attention, I think! I forget quite a bit, but I think Quintus did some pretty good stuff towards the end of it all, right? I'm so glad people are still reading those books, they're such a good way to introduce people to the language, I think!

The ice giants are both great; I truly hope we can get something out there again soon! From what I understand, China is potentially going to have a small probe perform a flyby of Uranus in the 2040s, but I don't know if they'll go through with it or not. No clue if we'll ever get anything for Neptune, but here's to hoping! 😭 I'd have to say Skylab! Not for anything special it did, but I feel like it was one of the last things that encompassed the dreams of the 60s and 70s, y'know? Of a future with civilians living and working in space, but obviously things didn't turn out that way lol Aside from that, I think the Soviet Zond 5 was interesting scientifically, since it was the first mission to carry life to the Moon! It was two turtles, a few fruit fly eggs, and some seeds. They all survived too, thankfully! A little starved, but they made it! Ah, quite the opposite! Talking to you has gotten me back into listening to music again, and I've enjoyed it all so far! Thank you so much, I really do mean it. Sometimes I just get tired of listening to music, but having new stuff is a great help! And I hope you enjoy the rest of Norma Tanega's stuff; she's very nice to listen to, and had a great personality from what it seems. Please, talk about your interests as much as you want! I love seeing people be so passionate about things, it really warms my heart. I'd love to hear of some misconceptions people have; I'm sure I've fallen for a few, as well! On top of that, what's your favorite myth you've encountered so far? I love talking about ancient civilizations as well, although I've read more about Pre-Columbian civilizations more than I have others!

It's hard sharing anything you yourself make, isn't it? It's such a vulnerable thing to do, to have complete strangers or even friends see the things you've made. I'm sure it gets easier with time, but I'm sure there'll always be that little bit of shyness, no matter what. I'd love to see what sort of things you've made, if you ever feel like sharing! And there's no rush at all; it's a lot to read, so there's no pressure at all. I'm just thankful that you're willing, it means a lot to me! Thank you! I think the best/worst part is when it's late at night or early in the morning, and it just suddenly hits you; you have to write it down or else you'll forget and fall back asleep! It's happened to me more than I can count lol That's a good question! I like some older scifi authors like Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Douglas Adams, but I also like some nonfiction writers like Marshall T. Savage (his "The Millennial Project" was a huge inspiration for me growing up!), Michael Pollan, and Charles C. Mann are all great too. What about you? Aww, same here! And I'm so sorry things have been rough for you lately; I hope they settle down for you, and that you can enter a calm and happy era of your life once more. I know you're on anon and we still don't know each other all too well, but if you ever need anything, let me know! Please take care, and have a great rest of your day! Talk to you again soon!

[artymcart]

*Granny voice*

I've been there, I've seen it all.

Yeah, joke aside, let me tell you from my experience with the fandom, why the Destiel Squad wants their redemption.

Let's take it from the beginning, please beware of a long ass text with a lot of rambling but I'll try to focus on the main things.

Sorry for bad English or Grammar, I'm not a native speaker.

See, when Supernatural aired I was there. It wasn't a big hit, it was okay, it was "new" in the sense of tonus and had a major lead with Jared and Jensen. Two pretty guys hunting ghosts, good chemistry with each other, good writing for the 2000ends.

And the narrative of the two brothers stayed for three whole seasons and A LOT happened back then.

We all ask ourselves: How the duck did Wincest happen?

Because there was nothing else. I married a person who read Wincest in the first two years of the show because THERE WAS NOTHING ELSE.

The boys were not allowed to have female interests because the Fans went INSANE when that happend, especially with fan favorite Dean Winchester. (Just to tap here the "harassment" part of the former argument).

Cassie?

The episode sucked but the poor girl was never mentioned again on any episode ever.

Jo?

The main female interest for Dean, fitting, Hunter, knows around a knife, same attitude. Seems legit.

The poor actress got death threats. People booed at her on Conventions, people told her in the streets she's not worth precious baby Dean.

If you ever thought Destiel Fans are crazy, you should've seen that. She talks about it a bit in the SPN Then and Now podcast and I would recommend to listen. It's insane.

Lisa?

Oh boy. If you open any fan fiction in the time Lisa was introduced to the show, it was a shit storm. People still hate on her because she's a woman in the life of Dean Winchester and I feel so sorry for her.

For Sam it stayed tame, we have poor friged Jessica, we had the girl from the potrait episode and then later Ruby but people kinda liked that and thought it's hot which is still disturbing. (I'm not gonna open the Box of Pandora that's called Eileen, sorry).

Anyway. No love for the Winchesters, long streets ahead, Monster of the week, writers strike.

Conventions back then were super small, words didn't travel fast because all we had was old-school Tumblr and LifeJournal (yeah I'm that old). We had the brothers, sometimes Jim Beaver, maybe a Comic Con Promo, it was cute.

And then with lighting and sparks he came into the narrative and changed THE WHOLE DYNAMIC OF THE SHOW.

I saw that episode 24 hours after it aired and I was kinda confused about it? Angels? Okaaaay? Weird dude with badly dyed hair? Fine with me. Let's see how it goes.

Suddenly the dynamic changed, the brothers had a sidekick. A powerful one and a destiny to fulfill and for the first time in the show, we had a MAJOR break up of the brothers. They weren't able to do that before, who wants to see a show of two traumatized white boys living seperate life's? Lol, Imagine that in the early seasons.

And there was something special about the way Castiel behaved around Dean and glued to his side. There were hints here and there and weird long shots on lips and eyes and licking lips. No, I don't imagine that, I've seen it with my own eyes. And everyone who saw the show too!

Conventions got bigger. Weirder too.

Questions got more personal, because they weren't supervised back then like they're now (at least at some Cons).

"Would Dean fuck Castiel?"

Imagine Jensens back then. The poor innocent Texan boy, thrown into the cold water and not able to swim. People got so damn invasive, because they wanted to hear it from their favorite. It was insane. And uncomfortable to watch. For everyone.

And the other side of the fandom got more aggressive too. Horrible things were asked and said and people assumed everyone had to be like these few people who are definitely in need to learn about personal space.

BUT, they found an alley. Someone who literally googled himself the night the episode with him aired and found out what fandom actually does.

We found Misha Collins.

Misha rode that horse like a pro. Joked whole heartly about fan art and fan fiction(in a good way, btw) and took Jensen by the hand to show him that not ALL people are actually stupid.

(Really, you can't measure whole crowd of people on 100 weird dudes. We don't do that, stop it.) Why do I not talk about Jared here? Ah, well. Not enough time. Let's say he was aware but not on any side.

Fast forward a few years and seasons and convention.

We had Castiel saying things like Profound Bond, we have seen him staying WITH Dean, especially with Dean, until the very end of the world. He let go of an Army of Angels for ONE Human, one. Not the brothers. ONE. He had to kill hundreds of hundreds of Dean Winchesters, not Sam, not Bobby. Dean Winchesters corpse, a hundred times. He lied, he betrayed, he even lost his damn mind for the Winchesters but always, always mainly for Dean.

Dean Winchesters wins in the series were a lot of times connected with Castiel. We saw how Dean behaved around a brother, like, Sam was always there too. We KNEW how Dean is a brother, the names, the jokes, the no touchy touchy chick flick things.

Has Dean ever stood close to Sam, looked at his lips first, then with hooded eyes licked his lips and looked then in his eyes?

No? Yeah, THAT would be weird. I'm getting goosebumps, just imagine ALL the scenes Dean and Cas, with Sam.

The too long looks, the closeness, the words, the shared secrets.

That's not how you behave around a brother. You can see how that works, how that is in the show, but Dean's behavior is not the one of a brother, around Cas.

It's more.

And fans ate every crumbs they found. They ate up every conspiracy they heard, they analyzed every word Jensen or Misha let fall at Conventions. And that for 12 whole ass years.

They wanted to get rid of Misha so often, that man must have felt like a ping pong ball. The show lost views, he came back because it just didn't work out to eliminate Dean's best friend. It didn't work out because fans wanted to see them together on screen.

There is no one at the show who knows Dean better then Cas. Not even Sam. Because Dean can't be weak around his brother, his way too tall baby brother. But with Cas, he was able to show how much pressure was on. How much he suffered from his role in the world and all.

The writers sent Becky Rosen to tell us how crazy we sound and look. How they see us and how they think about shipping in general. They told us how delusional we are and that we don't have a say in what happens.

Still, we stayed. And we got louder and Castiel stayed. And Dean had a friend, who he trusted with every fiber of his being.

A Musical episode to apologize to the fans. Yeah, okay, you know of Destiel now and you support queer people. Still had a salty tone to it.

And now we're back at Conventions and questions get supervised and Destiel Fans get shit for trying to sign harmless Destiel Fan Art. No one is allowed to ask a grown up man about a possible male love interest in a fictional show.

The Antis got louder and louder and the show queerbaits itself through fucking metal. It's hilarious how much the writers, producers, even certain actors still tried to tell the fans to chill and stay in their fan world. Let the big boys play, stay in your ballpit.

But at this point, Destiel was the most popular ship in fandom. Over 100.000 written stories of these two fools, Video edits, Fan Art, Tumblr famous, INTERNATIONAL Fans. People who never have seen ONE episode of Supernatural at least knew about Destiel.

We're talking 15 years of loyal fandom, 12 years in which the fandom grew so much we call it a family now. A very dysfunctional one, but a family.

The night of November 5th came.

We weren't ready for whatever they would throw at us. And oh hell, we really weren't ready.

"I love you"

Whaaaaat? I actually had to pause the show because I cried so hard.

We were not crazy. Every fight on the damn internet, every useless discussion, every aggressive argument, finally had a fundament. Not crazy.

Castiel made a declaration of love to one of the main, male leads of the show.

And Misha and Jensen gave us a show. They tried so much to give us everything their character had to give. The episode got BUTCHERED as fuck, Ackles himself told us there are tapes and a lot of acting and scenes landed on the cutting floor.

Buy we are not crazy.

Years of being shamed for "seeing things", for being a fan, wiped away with one sentence.

I love you.

And you know, that's the story of why Destiel fans really really want their ship to be declared as canon. Because it is.

Because we've fought a war in fandom a few of us started years ago, but it goes and goes and goes and sometimes no one even knows why. And then you go on toxic bird or into the Facebook comment section and you have an actual reminder.

We're not crazy. We haven't "seen" things. We are not delusional. Misha has our back. Now we just wait for the other pretty actor man to finally say SOMETHING.

So, that's the fandom.

Talking for myself, I want it go canon out of spite (⁠◕⁠ᴗ⁠◕⁠✿⁠)

Can someone explain to me once and for all why a lot of destiel shippers can only enjoy the ship if its canon. its a genuine question im not trying to start an argument. This phenomenon is unique to the destiel shippers in particular.. why can't you just enjoy the ship as fanon? Why the obsession about it being canon or not

[danielxricciardo]

Hello! This is bit complicated prompt😅 though I read all your shots and I cannot imagine any write who can do this 🤩

Can you do one where Daniel is in middle of race and his wife is pregnant but have very delicate one though she insist on watching the race even though Daniel was very worried about her. Middle of race, her wife had a scare and brought at clinic, i just want to imagine Daniel in the radio when he heard the news. Also if you could include other drivers that got concerned for Daniel🏎🏎🏎

Summary: You have a high-risk pregnancy and during a race, you faint

Warnings: swearing

Word count: 1.2k

You don’t think anything prepares you for a high-risk pregnancy. Morning sickness started within days of conception, you were vomiting pretty much every day. You felt no movements until your 20-week ultrasound - turned out you had an anterior placenta, meaning that the placenta was at the front, masking your baby girl's kicks and rolls. You were on aspirin to help keep your blood pressure down, due to your previous hypertension and pre-eclampsia fears.

Daniel was a saint. He helped you in any way he could. But it still was rough. The constant traveling and the stress from his racing were all too much for you, but you wanted to be strong for your little family. You two wanted this child with your whole heart. Especially considering the fact this was your second pregnancy. Your second pregnancy ended in a miscarriage at 8 weeks. Utterly devastating; sent you into the worst depression you've ever experienced.

Your family and friends were always checking on you. They were worried for your health and the little girl's health too. When you were at a race, everyone would ask you if you need anything and you were not allowed to stay up on your feet for a long time.

"I need to go in a few, baby," Daniel tells you, kneeling in front of you. "Need anything?"

You smile and caress his cheek.

"I'm ok."

"Michael is here and he'll keep an eye on you, ok? Tell him if you need anything."

"I know. It's the same as the last race. And the race before," you tell him laughing and then you kiss him.

You loved the way he wanted to make sure you are fine. You were now entering your 30-week of pregnancy and he was extra careful now. Sometimes you were begging him to go to practice. You hated the fact he was under so much stress because of you, but it was not your fault you were having a high-risk pregnancy.

"Be careful, baby, ok?" he asked and you could see in his eyes the desperation.

"I'm supposed to say that..."

It was the Russian Grand Prix. Daniel qualified P5 and it was set to be a pretty chill race. Everybody in the Renault garage was sure your boyfriend can defend his position with ease.

Michael came near you, handing you a bottle of water. You accept the water bottle and take a sip.

It was already halfway through the race and Daniel had kept his position. You were happy to see that he manages and he feels good behind the wheel. But you were 7 months pregnant and you needed to go to the bathroom. You heard Daniel needs to come in the pits to switch to hards so you figured it was now a good time to go to the bathroom.

"Hey," you get Michael's attention. "I'm going to the bathroom real quick, ok?"

"Want me to go with you?" you shoot him a stare. "You know what I meant, Y/N."

"I'm fine, really, I just need to pee."

Maybe it was the rapid way you got up from the chair, but you got dizzy and fainted. The feeling you get when you pass out is a weird one. It's like you know you’re about to lose consciousness, but you’re powerless to stop it. You start hearing like a whirring sound, then your vision gets blurry, your heart feels heavy, breathing becomes increasingly more difficult, then finally you lose control of your body. Everything just went kinda black after that, the only thing you remember is the sound your head made when you fell on the ground. You tried your best to fight it, but you only got more exhausted the harder you tried to remain conscious.

Without you being able to know, everyone around you became frantic. It was almost like they forgot about Daniel coming into the pits, but his race engineer told him something unexpected happened and to come to pits later.

"Ok, copy that," he tells via radio. "What happened anyway?"

"Don't worry about it, Daniel, pit in next lap."

Silence fell over the radio.

"It's Y/N?"

Again, the driver was met with silence and he became anxious with every second. He made up his mind. He will go to the pits the next lap and will retire the car. He can't race knowing his girlfriend, that has a high-risk pregnancy, isn't feeling well.

So that's what he did. His race engineer kept telling him to just do another lap, but he stopped his car into the pits and the race was over for him.

After a while, the drivers started to ask their race engineers what happened with Daniel because he was still out of the race. They got the same answer 'he retired the car'. And everybody knows that Daniel will retire the car only if you are not feeling well. So, the next logical question the drivers asked was 'is Y/N ok?' but there was no answer to that.

You were in the medical center. You were awake now. The doctor was doing a lot of tests on you to determine what caused the sudden blood pressure drop from your usual 120/70 to 90/55. You just wanted to know if the baby is fine, and you were assured that there was nothing life-threatening for the little girl. Michael was staying with you and you were relieved to go through such a fright with someone you loved with you.

You were free to go when Daniel came into the room. At first, you didn't understand what was happening. Daniel was in the same room with you, but you could still hear the car engines, so the race wasn't over.

"What are you doing here?" you ask Daniel when he comes to hug you.

"I needed to see if you're okay, love."

"But the race-"

"I don't give a fuck about the race. Are you ok?"

So the doctor started to tell Daniel everything that has happened with you, and he was pleased to hear that you two were fine.

"You shouldn't have given up the race, I would have been here when you finished," you tell Daniel when you were left alone. "What will the team say about you retiring the car? You could score good points."

"I only care about you and our daughter, ok? When my race engineer told me not to pit that lap I knew something was wrong so I asked if you were ok, and I got no answer. For me, that was the only logical step I could have made at that moment," says your boyfriend and you smiled.

The race ended, with Max winning at Sochi. You and Daniel were watching the post-race interview with the three winners, and you saw Max asking about you.

"Sorry to interrupt, but do you know anything about Y/N? Is she ok?"

"We heard she is fine, just something minor, both her and the baby are fine."

"Oh, ok, thanks!"

Lewis and Valtteri were near Max and heard that you were fine and they breathed a sigh of relief.

[violet-919]

I unironically believe that Destiny Guardians are literally the best warriors in all of fiction. Like, if you were to put a 6-Guardian Fireteam against any other really powerful being/force in any fictional universe, the Guardians would win because they are paracausal (Guardians don’t obey many laws of the universe)

Justice League? Superman: Celestial Nighthawk shot to the face (he won’t even be able to dodge with superspeed because Golden Gun shots travel instantly). Flash: Stasis freeze and shatter him, don’t need to catch up to him, only slow him down. Batman: Even the guy with a crazy amount of gadgets can’t create something to see paracausal invisibility. A Nightstalker can easily sneak up on him and stab him. Wonder Woman: Good luck deflecting a Nova Bomb, babe. Green Lantern: I seriously doubt he can make anything that wont be cut or burned through by multiple Dawn Blades being flown his direction.

Avengers? Iron-Man: Have you ever had your skull burnt through with Sleeper Simulant? Would you like to? Cap: …We don’t even need the light for him. Shoot him with Anti-Barrier rounds and move on. Hulk: We could shatter him with Stasis, or maybe we could stick some Anarchy rounds on him then dump him in a pool, or maybe we could poison him with Thorn, or maybe-. Thor: Gods are nothing new. Yo, Thor! I’ve got your hammer right here! How? Oh, don’t worry about it. *Thor procedes to get pummeled by 2 Burning Mauls* Black Widow: ………Seriously?………. Uh, pew pew ig. If anything, she can’t get away from a Seeker Grenade. Hawkeye: -_- You kidding? Bang bang done. Spider-Man: Take your pick! Sniper, Blade Barrage, Chaos Teach, fusion rifle, the possibilities are endless. Dr. Strange: Kinda trcky, I’ll admit. Too bad a Shadowshot will rid him of his powers ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Kratos? Again, we’ve killed (many) gods before, what’s one more? Tether that mf then Nova bomb his ass, maybe use his own weapons against him.

Doomguy? Demons, gods, tomato, tomato. Quick Stasis freeze and then a Thundercrash his face out of existence.

Skynet? Yeah, because we totally have never destroyed legions of time-traveling robots before.

Spartans? Say hello to my little friend, Gjallarhorn :) I will always have more rockets than your little armor-lock can resist.

Godzilla? Shoot the eyes out, Blink inside the stomach and a Nova Bomb will do the rest.

Dr. Manhattan? These hands too quick even for him, Golden Gun shot to that stupid little forehead bullseye of his.

Titanfall Titans: Chaos Reach, Thundercrash, Nova Bomb, Gjallarhorn, take your pick!

Darth Vader? Tripmine grenade, just need to lure him in.

Thanos? Now that’s a good one! Though a suppressor grenade would blind and stun him temporarily, not letting him use any of the stones and giving us time to grab some if not all of them and use them against him. Alternatively, Shadowshot and then shoot him with Divinity tight before barraging him with rockets, sniper shots, supers, etc.

I’m running out of examples but I think you get the point. So what do you think? Am I wrong in assuming Guardians are the apex predators of fictional warriors? Is there something/someone else that could defeat us? I’m willing to debate this on the notes.

(Sorry for the long post but idk how to make it do the “keep reading” thing)

[getosboobies]

reasons i think matchablossom is or has been canon!

once again, i have become overly obsessive and have throughly analysed each and every kaoru & kojiro scene that we currently have. i indulged and created my own list of “ are they besties or are they banging or both “ but i have decided to share it all with you :))

( keep in mind, i’m a reacher and these are just my interpretations. i will go to any extent to prove myself correct - no matter how unlikely )

so first of all, we have the fact cherry is the only one we have yet to see at joe’s restaurant after hours. this immediately shows that they are extremely comfortable with each other and spend a lot of time together even when they’re not skating. it also potentially suggests cherry is waiting for joe to go home, maybe a habit they’ve developed over time. before these scenes, the producers always show an image of the restaurants front door which states closed. by showing this frame, it obviously gives the impression it’s important for us to know that it is closed and therefore showings us that joe and cherry’s relationship is more than just some rivalry banta and that they have an established friendship built on trust and time. the creators could have just not shown that it was closed and had us assume that’s they were just good friends who spent time together but they went a whole step further and showed us these two men’s personal lives are somewhat intertwined with one another, showing us that they don’t have large boundaries for each other which would be considered strange in contrast to the “ arguing “ we had previously seen between them. if this isn’t enough for you, in these scenes we also see joes uniform unbuttoned so i take this as even more evidence of how comfortable they are around each other. also ! restaurants tend to close quite late ( avg. 8pm-12pm ) and on all the shots of the closed door, it has been dark outside. why wouldn’t cherry be home at this time settling down or something??? or maybe cherry has a lot of love for joe if he’s willing to wait that long for him to finish work... just sayin’. more on this, i analysed the restaurants design and noticed that the plug in the wall is really low down to the ground. maybe this is just one of joes odd design techniques or maybe it was specifically placed for cherry to charge carla, the concept of which, makes me very happy

keeping on the point of joe’s restaurant, whenever we have seen cherry inside he always sits right in front of the kitchen, this is pretty normal unless you think about 1) how much time he spends there 2) how busy restaurants get 3) he came there while he was with a colleague. we’ve already seen that cherry doesn’t mind coming after hours so why did he come during the day if he knew joe would be busy? this is similar to the fact he came in with his colleague in episode 2 - he obviously wasn’t expecting to be able to talk with joe while he was out for a work meal, so why on earth would he sit right in front of where joe would be, which is situated in a considerably inconvenient table for work meal? what i’ve interpreted from this is that cherry’s must enjoy being in joes presence. cherry canonically having anxiety would explain why he likes being close to someone who he knows well, and that cares for him. being able to see and hear joe so close is perhaps very relaxing for cherry.

now when i watched sk8 for the first time, i gather the impression that joe was a forgive and forget kinda guy when it came to someone who did him wrong. when we’re introduced to adam it’s evident there is some hostility within joe but this does not nearly compare to the anger cherry showed. when suggesting a beef their intentions seem to be completely different. cherry outrightly admitting to his grudge and anger for adam whereas joe seems to just want to prove a point to adam by winning against him ( i mean look at the image above, their facial expressions show it all ). but i noticed that as cherry would speak about adam, joe’s intentions slowly shifted and became far more serious and full of anger. “ there’s someone i’d like to punch “ is a sentence said by joe in episode 8. this is quite different to what we had seen in earlier episodes of him just wanting to make a point. i think this shift was predominantly when joe found cherry at the ocean view. joe knew how cherry was feeling towards adam BEFORE this scene because he knew where to find him, but the realisation that cherry was standing there, alone, and reliving some of his saddest memories probably hit joe that cherry couldn’t do this alone. therefore stepped up his game and met cherry’s loathing so they could do it together. as far as things go, this is one of the most important things they have done for each other because it shows clearly how devoted they are to each other.

this is one of the most confusing lines in this show thus far. i’m sure it’ll make sense in the oncoming episodes but i have come to two conclusions. so either adam has created this false reality of what happened and has told himself his evil ways stemmed from joe and cherry or, the more likely in my opinion, adam always felt like he was in need of a partner, a rival but also someone to love. this is displayed in the show in his predatory ways, aka, he wants his own ‘eve’. now there’s no ruling whatsoever that a skater needs any sort of dedicated rival, or skate partner, so i believe adam probably got this want from his peers, for example, joe and cherry. adam seems to believe you need to love your ‘eve’ and it gives me the idea that maybe he saw joe and cherry -in love- and decided that was what he wanted, but then as we know he went about it in an extremely toxic way. the “was it so“ was really hard to interpret, he’s clearly quite smug by the way he shrugs and smiles and shows that he’s very confident about what he’s saying but the question is short and leaves a lot unknown, which suggests why cherry and joe don’t respond. either they are as confused as i am, or they have a slight idea what adam could be suggesting and they feel guilty. we all know cherry and joe aren’t bad hearted people but as adam is insinuating ‘no, you guys parted ways from me first’ it could suggest that joe and cherry had perhaps become closer in high school and had developed a stronger bond than they had with adam and this left adam feeling lost and alone. this is more of a canon compliant headcanon that would make sense rather than a fact but it’s certainly something to think about.

one of the most obvious factors in their relationship is how they always know what the other is thinking or planning. we’ve seen in recent episodes that when cherry was racing, joe knew exactly what his motive was even without discussing it, thats enough information to show how well they truly know each other and how connected they really are. it’s also shown with cherry. when joe is racing, and is going extremely fast towards the corner, we see a frame of miya and shadow being worried for him, but then it shifts to cherry watching and there’s not a spec of worry on his face because he KNOWS what joe is planning and knows he will be fine. they know each other’s techniques better than anyone and it shows they don’t doubt each other’s choices one bit.

we learn right from the beginning that cherry and joe like to argue and fight, at first we think this is because they dislike each other but we learn that they are best friends. so when watching back you notice that none of the insults are ever actually insulting. let’s think about it, the most common insults they use are gorilla, dimwit and four-eyes. now to me, none of these actually seem insulting whatsoever and even if they do like to argue a lot it’s obvious they never ever mean any harm to one another.

from analysing the scenes one of the things i’ve noticed the most is how cherry and joe turn up and leave together. when the cops came during the langa x adam skate they both started to run off together leaving everyone else behind. as we know, they spend a lot of their personal lives together but leaving and turning up together every single time we’ve see them there seems like they’re a bit more attached than i originally thought. there’s a chance they meet before hand but why always that late at night? why aren’t they ever at home alone? unless...they live together. i mean it’s a perfectly valid suspicion right now as we’ve never seen either of their homes and we’ve never seen either of them turn up anywhere alone but either way it confirms they spend an awful lot of time together in general life. going back to my original point of them not only turning up and leaving together but they also never leave each other’s sides. there’s a heap of frames that you can see them standing together watching a beef or even just them talking. they’re literally attached at the hip and nothing makes me happier.

the creators of the show have made countless points to show that joe and cherry have a lot of history. from the school references to the fact they have TRAVELLED THE WORLD TOGETHER. they could have just shown one or two so we know that as a general fact they’ve known each other a long time but they bring it up an awful lot for it to be just a general fact. this being shown so much let’s us know that this is important information and that they’ve obviously wanting to lay down a foundation to bring something crucial up. so far they have mentioned their social studies trip, a school excursion, joes love for haunted houses, holiday to La and the Paris bar they went to. now you might be thinking, oh they were in the same school they probably just went on a trip together nothing confirms they were close, well i am here to prove that statement false. joe said he found cherry’s wallet, this not only shows that joe was close to cherry when he lost it but also that he knew where to find it, showing how well he knew cherry. another point is that legal age to drink in Paris is 18 so unless they had fake ID it’s safe to say this is a trip they’ve done since becoming adults and leaving school. it’s also canon that have gone together, so the fact they’ve been travelling as adults together is quite interesting. same with the restaurant in LA, sounds kinda like a date.

over the course of the episodes we’ve seen so far there has been a few comments they have made to each other that suggest a little bit of jealousy. for cherry, these comments are made in episode 6 in the hot spring. cherry brings up joes love for haunted houses and then joe agrees and says it’s because “chicks get scared and grab onto me” * with a smirk *. now what’s interesting about this is cherry’s response. “you really are a scumbag” this insult feels a lot more insulting than usual and the response itself surprised me. at this moment cherry looks away from joe which is an action people tend to do when they’re hurt or pissed off. either works in this scenario but neither make much sense as we know cherry’s already aware of joes status with girls. so why was he mad? well this was obviously a fond memory of cherry’s and joe replying with a statement about girls probably made him a bit angry because that was supposed to be their memory. but joes smirk with the comment makes me rethink, did he state that on purpose to make cherry jealous? obviously we can’t be sure but the entire encounter left me a bit confused. now onto joes jealousy, in episode 2 dub joe says “dude, you’re talking to a machine?” now in context this seems like joe is partially bewildered by the fact cherry is casually talking to his AI skateboard but he also seems slightly jealous that cherry is talking to carla instead of talking to him. this is one of the only scenes where joes facial expressions actually seem insulted rather than just having a bit of fun. he follows this up with “figured you’d give your board a girls name seeing as you can’t get a real one!” why can’t he get a real one? we hear tonnes of girls screaming compliments at cherry when he turns up so he definitely could get a girlfriend if he wanted, and joe no doubt knows this too, so why would he use it as an insult? i’m not sure what to make of this but it’s got to be a factor somewhere.

more on the haunted mansion chit chat, the line about chicks grabbing onto joe is quite funny when you look at the entire scene, because as soon as they get jumped they grabbed onto each other in fear. seems a little ironic if i do say so myself.

they both seem very secluded about their personal lives. cherry more specifically does not like the use of his skate name in his personal life or vice versa. joe is the only one we have seen to be aware or use cherry’s real name. the way joe slips up and calls cherry ‘kaoru’ at “S” shows how close they are and how much time they spend together to be able to accidentally mix up the two parts of their lives. this is just an extra point on how conjoined their lives must really be. in the photo above we see how cherry easily calms joe down when he starts to get annoyed. joe is the only one who knows fully about cherry’s life as emotions and cherry is the same for joe.

now one of the most heart wrenching matcha blossom scenes is when joe finds cherry at the ocean view. i have a lot to say about this so let’s start at the beginning. first of all, joe noticed cherry was missing. it’s not like cherry was there for a massive amount of time, so joe noticing that cherry was gone for even as much as an hour or two really says a lot about the placement they have in each other’s lives. there was really no reason for joe to worry about where cherry was considering they’re grown adults but he continued to go out and find him anyways. this is also set in the late afternoon judging by the sky, whereas the previous scene had been set at night at “s”, so this is suggesting the ocean view scene is on a completely different normal day for them (another factor showing how much time they spend together). next, the fact joe knew exactly where to find cherry. this truly shows how much they know and how connected they are to each other but also how well they understand the others coping mechanisms. cherry was dwelling on memories from 7 years ago and yet joe still knew exactly what he was doing and what he was thinking about. plus cherry didn’t even seem surprised when joe turns up. but one thing i noticed is that in this scene is the way they (in this case, didn’t) hold eye contact. while cherry is faced away, joe is staring at him but as soon as cherry meets joes eyes, joe turns away. either joe didn’t want to be caught staring or joe realised something crucial in that moment. i’ll let your mind decide what that is.

obviously, miyas comment about joe and cherry being his parents is a light hearted joke just to ruin joes chances of flirting with girls but it also implies that the group can tell that joe and cherry are respectively closer than anyone originally thought and they perhaps have caught on that the tension between them is a little bit too gay to be just a bit of banta. obviously in this scene we then see joe looking at cherry’s legs while a blush clearly intensifies on his face. yeah no, this is self explanatory.

one of the things i like about joe and cherry’s relationship is the fact that within that joe also has a somewhat dynamic with carla. although carla is non-living, there has been several interactions between them. for example the beginning of episode 6 on the boat joe recognises carlas voice immediately. i mean straight off i think it’s suspicious as hell that they all happened to be going there at the same time but the fact joe realised cherry must be there because of the sound of an AI skateboard? that’s impressive. also, at the beginning of the series carla is aware of who joe is when calling joe an imbecile, this shows that cherry has obviously had this modified to specifically refer to joe as joe rather than just refer to him as a general person.

there was a popular tiktok i saw the other day (if anyone has the username of the person please tell me so i can credit them!!) and it showed the two images above. in these photos it shows joes skateboard and his odd looking wheels. the creator of this video further analysed that these reflect the general outlook of a cherry blossom flower. though the actual wheels in real life don’t look as similar to a flower as they do in the show. but now if this is what they’re meant to look like, this is a really sentimental fact and shows how highly joe thinks of cherry in his skating career. but what about his personal life? well that’s where my analysing comes in. i noticed in the dessert joe makes in episode 5 he had a range of fruits displayed on the top as well as a single flower. this flower looks identical to a cherry blossom. once again the reflection of cherry within joes life makes an appearance. we’ve seen that flowers actually mean something in this show (toxic example but adam’s red roses for langa) so it would make sense for this to actually mean something about their relationship. i studied a range of Japanese desserts and, although every chef works differently, most of the dishes tend to only have a display of fruits and no flowers. so i have come to the conclusion that this dish certainly had some symbolism to cherry in joes life, some way or another.

so overall, their dynamic already shows that they have a very thin and mistakable line between very close best friends and potential lovers. although some of this was based off personal interpretation the majority is cinematic displays and general facts. so take this and use it however you like. let me know your opinions and other factors you have! for all i know i could be completely disproven with the next few episodes but surely if this many people see a bit more than just a friendship there’s got to be a reason for it.

if we can have one lgbt+ character... why not two more?

[buckyownsmylife]

It’s always shoot to kill - Bucky Barnes x Reader x Steve Rogers smut

The one where Steve wants to watch Bucky fucking you, knowing that he’ll never be able to do it again

Warnings: dubcon in double instance, neither the reader or Bucky are completely on board with this, p in v, oral sex (f), lots of pining from Bucky, jealousy and possessiveness from Steve, voyeurism, kind of cuckolding too

A/N: I’d like to thank the amazing @angrybirdcr​ for reading this and giving me suggestions to make the story better for y’all! I had the best time brainstorming with Marie and I’m so happy I get to call her a friend now! To see more of the dynamic between those three, check out the other one-shots I have about them!

Steve’s P.O.V.

“Take off all your clothes, I don’t want him undressing you.” She looked hesitant again, the pretty little flower. Kinda like that day, so many months ago, when I dragged Bucky to watch us fucking so he would stop pining for her.

It didn’t work. I still caught him looking at her with wishful eyes, whenever he thought I was too busy to notice. 

I always noticed it. I always did, because my mind, my heart and my gaze seemed to follow her, regardless of how important any of my royal tasks could be. A part of me was always with her, and that part didn’t like that James obviously felt for her the same way that I did.

So I devised a plan. If forcing him to watch me fuck her wasn’t enough, maybe I could let him do it once, just once. That way, maybe, his infatuation would disappear, but even if it didn’t, knowing what it was like to have her and never be able to do it again would certainly kill him inside.

“Now, pretend I’m not even here,” I said, letting myself fall back against the same chair my brother had occupied that night, so many months ago. There was something particularly interesting about being in this position, watching someone that gave me so much jealousy at last have his way with my woman.

It felt almost freeing, somehow. Seeing my worst nightmare play out, knowing I was in control of it. Knowing it was only happening because of me, and I could put an end to it at any time.

I watched as Bucky seemed to hesitate, like he didn’t know where to start, or didn’t actually believe he could reach out and touch her. She seemed just as hesitant, fidgeting under his stare as she fought against the instinct to cover her own body.

“Go on,” I directed, waving towards her. “Tell her how she looks. Do I really have to teach you how to treat a lady?” His jaw clenched at that, clearly offended at my insinuation. “You’ve been wondering what she hides under those dresses all this time. There she is. At least look at her properly.”

I watched as he slowly came to terms with the reality of the situation. His posture changed, he stood up straighter, and now the way he towered over my wife almost seemed threatening.

He started from her feet, eyes slowly traveling up, briefly stopping on her breasts before they reached her face. “You’re so beautiful.” Words so simple, I’d said them thousands of times before. But hearing them now, coming from another pair of lips, had me gripping the arms of my chair.

I didn’t like the way he looked at her. Like she was something precious, something breakable. I knew she wasn’t - I’d been rough with her before and all she ever did was cry out in ecstasy.

She nodded once, like she didn’t know how to respond, eyes unwilling to leave his when he reached out to hold her jaw, but then she averted her gaze in an almost embarrassed manner, suddenly remembering what to say. “Thank you. You’re too kind.”

It almost had me chuckling, if it weren’t for how his hand slowly dropped down, caressing the skin as it went. I watched as it ran over her collarbones before his finger rubbed on a nipple. I saw how she trembled but still tried to control her reactions.

He was hypnotized by then. I knew it, it was obvious by the darkness that had taken over his usually blue hues and the way he licked his lips before he leaned down and used them to engulf one of my wife’s nipples.

Instinctively, she offered her chest to him but tried to keep her gasp of surprise or desire in. Such a good little wife. My perfect queen.

She went willingly when he pushed her down on the bed, eyes burning with passion as he took in the image before him. “Did you ever think you’d have her spread out for you like that?” My voice resonated through the room, but instead of breaking him from his reverie, he didn’t seem to mind it at all. It was like all that mattered to him was her.

Still, he answered me. “No.” There was so much emotion in that simple word, so much hidden just underneath the surface, it had me readjusting myself in the chair, almost considering leaping across the room and prying him away from her.

But then he fell to his knees before her. “My queen,” he said, looking up from under his eyelashes. “Can I be so lucky as to taste you?” A pang of desire ran through my body as I watched her stutter out an acceptance.

And then he was between her thighs. I couldn’t see him through the barrier of her legs, but their sounds and movements told the story of what he was doing. Bringing pleasure to my love.

Y/N’s P.O.V.

I didn’t know what to do. How should I behave? At the first touch of James’ tongue on my lower lips, a strangled gasp escaped me, and my hands flew up to find some sort of support on the sheets behind me. God, this was torture, even if I wasn’t the one who was being punished.

I almost closed my eyes to relish in the pleasure I was feeling. His touch was so different from Steve’s - softer and slower, even though there was desperation there.

But then I remembered what was actually happening and I snapped them open, turning my head to look at my husband’s watchful gaze. Unsurprisingly, I found him staring at us with those piercing eyes, his attention never wavering from James and me, but what was astounding was that he didn’t look angry or possessive.

Not at all. There was not an ounce of irritation in his beautiful features, just clear focus as he watched me unfold before his eyes, by the hands of his brother, that now roamed my body.

“Put her on top,” came his voice, clear as day and startling the man between my legs, who seemed to have forgotten about our audience. His head whipped up to see how I felt about my husband’s order, and that’s when I saw it.

His attentive blue eyes, usually so clear, had become dark as night. It was like he was a different person altogether. I could no longer recognize the sweet and caring man I’d once called my best friend…

… but then again, it’d been so long since I’d been close to him in any way.

“What are you waiting for?” My husband’s voice broke me out of my shock, but before I could fully recover, two strong hands had found a new resting spot on my hips as James easily manhandled me into a new position - on my hands and knees, over him.

The weight of his cock, fully erect against the inside of my thigh, sent a thrill through me that I had never anticipated feeling in his hands.

“Go on.” It was like he was waiting for the order because just as soon as Steve’s words disappeared in the air between us, he aligned his member and started to force me down on it. A gasp escaped me, and I had to hold myself against his chest to keep myself up.

Having James inside of me was a completely different experience than when Steve made love to me. Where Steve was long, James was thicker, stretching me in a way I’d never experienced before.

After the first plunge, it was clear that the man inside of me got carried away. He controlled my movements with iron fingers that pressed my flesh so tightly I was sure it’d be hurting for days after.

I could say the same about my insides. He didn’t show any mercy - in fact, I barely even recognized him and this animalistic side he was exposing as he fucked me, eyes keeping my own gaze captive as he grunted and panted underneath me like a man on a mission, if that mission was to ruin me.

“I want to hear you declare your love for her,” came Steve’s voice once again, breaking me out of whatever hypnosis James was performing. “Tell her everything. This is the only time you’ll be able to say how you really feel.”

The pain in his blue eyes was overwhelming. I felt tears rise up in my own eyes, threatening to spill and fall on his face, showing him just how confused I was about this entire situation.

Just who was Steve trying to hurt here?

“I-I’ve always wanted this. You have no idea just how much.” And in the way his voice cracked, I saw it. I saw just how badly he’d craved me, how hard he had tried to hold back from me.

“No one can ever come close to the space I’ve relinquished to you in my heart,” he said, barely over a whisper, and yet I felt like he shouted it at me, the way his hips rose growing quicker and rougher, and I bounced in his arms as he rammed into me. “And it will always be yours,” he assured me, prompting the tears to fall from my eyes, slowly trailing down my cheeks. “My heart will forever belong to you.”

I covered my hand as a sob almost escaped me, but maybe it was a moan, I couldn’t tell. All I knew was that he kept fucking up into me and I couldn’t hold it in much longer, couldn’t pretend I didn’t feel anything while my best friend was inside of me.

But when my moans broke free, my husband didn’t seem to mind. He actually leaned closer, resting his elbows on his thighs as he ordered, “She can get louder. Do it properly.”

And suddenly my world turned upside down because in a simple movement I was the one on the bed and James was hovering over me, never leaving my tight channel. His fingers found my nub, and he massaged it with an eagerness that showed me he wanted me to cum just as badly as I did.

“Cum for him, my queen. Show him how beautiful you are when you’re reaching your high.” It was Steve’s order that brought me to my release, my hands flying up to find a hold on James’ shoulder as I struggled to breathe or even think.

It felt like I was falling from the highest mountain without ever actually touching the ground. When I finally managed to focus again, it was through slowly realizing the way James’ cock was still dragging against my walls. 

I opened my eyes to find him with eyebrows furrowed and sweat sticking strands of his hair on his forehead, his arms trembling on each side of my head. He was desperately trying to hold on just a little longer, and that broke my heart.

I couldn’t close my eyes as he slowly but surely lost the battle against his body, hips quickening before they stopped altogether, and just before he pulled away, he whispered, “I love you,” giving me one last, chaste kiss on the lips.

I could still taste myself in them.

Steve’s stare was heavy on us as James slowly dressed. I wondered what was going on in my husband’s head. Did he think his plan had worked or had he realized it was a mistake all along?

It seemed like the King’s mind still hadn’t been made, as he stopped his brother just before he could leave. “Are you still in love with her?”

James let the question sit on each of our hearts and minds before he gave his answer. “Now more than ever.”

I couldn’t help but notice that he was still hard when my husband kicked him out of the room before turning around to see me, wrecked and dirty, all thanks to another man’s work.

“I hope you’re ready,” he warned, and I already knew I wasn’t. “I can’t wait to fuck his sloppy seconds.”

[whythinktoomuch]

recovered in time

(pt. i)

“From what I can tell, the implant seems to be interrupting the connection between your visual cortex and your emotional center,” Brainy says, eyes narrowed in concentration, two fingers pressed against the incision point at the base of Kara’s neck. “As well as inhibiting your frontal lobe and sending distress signals to the amygdala.” 

“What does that mean?” Kara asks. 

“It means that... you weren’t feeling like yourself,” Alex says, and Kara nods hesitantly at that. 

“So, can you rid of it or not?” Alex asks, fixing Brainy with her most hardened stare. 

“I’ve already determined five different ways to extract the device—”

“Great! So, we can—”

“—but none that wouldn’t immediately prove fatal or result in permanent brain damage.” 

Eventually, Alex releases a long-suffering, shuddery sigh. “... You could have fucking led with that.” 

“I did feel like myself though...” Kara interjects, suspending what was surely about to result in another very unproductive argument. “And I still feel like myself now. It’s just...” She ducks her head, fiddling with the sleeves of her shirt, already frayed from anxious attention. “... I felt so alone? Like, I’d been abandoned, or was suddenly in a world where I’d lost everyone all at once. Again.” 

Kara shifts uncomfortably in her seat, now able to feel everyone’s eyes on her, burning holes into her skin. She has long since traded in her super-suit for comfy clothes, and her scarf has been upgraded to a pair of heat vision resistant blackout goggles, but it would take more than 24 measly hours for her to adjust to, well... everything. 

“You’re not alone though,” Alex says, giving Kara’s knee a firm squeeze as if in reminder. “You know that, right?” 

Kara rubs at her nose, sniffling herself back into some semblance of composure. “Yeah, I know.” 

But of course, knowing something hardly ever outstrips the feeling of it, and Kara kinda just wishes that she still had Lena’s scarf on her. 

//

“Hey Lena,” Kara calls out softly from the bed. She doesn’t lift her head from her pillow, but still offers a small wave in greeting. 

“What gave me away?” Lena asks, and it’s almost playful, which makes everything that much easier. 

“Well... Pretty much everything, actually.” 

“Ah.”

Then the smell hits her, overwhelming her senses in an unexpected rush of heat and spice. Kara sits up right away, startled. “How did you...” is all she manages to get out, then pushed into her hands is a considerably sized takeout box of potstickers. 

“I wanted to surprise you, so I might have created a hermetically sealed lunchbox just to sneak these in,” Lena says, and Kara’s already laughing softly. “The food’s still good though! I literally just slipped them inside right before walking into the building, so...” 

“... Thank you,” Kara says. She inclines her head to the spot next to her, and feels the bed sink with Lena’s weight accordingly. 

Kara starts eating, but does so with only one hand. The other just fidgets at her thigh, tugging at her sweatpants, lying in wait so impatiently. Then Lena takes the hand and holds it firmly in her own, and finally, it feels like Kara can breathe freely again. 

“I never thanked you,” Kara says, “for, you know... everything.” 

“You already did,” Lena reminds her, squeezing Kara’s hand. 

“I... did?” Kara feels Lena nodding beside her. “Okay... so then, why does it feel like I still have so much left to owe you?” 

Lena tries to hold her breath quietly, but Kara hears it; of course, she hears it. “I can’t answer that for you.” 

A couple of hours later, when Alex pops into the room for her usual check-in, she stumbles upon an unexpected sight: Lena sitting up on the hospital bed, her legs tucked beneath the sheets as she answers emails on her phone, and Kara fast asleep, curled up around her. 

Kara’s still holding Lena’s hand, her face buried in Lena’s shirt where it smells most like her, apparently, besides her hair. 

Lena blushes a little, but can’t find it in her to regret her position. 

//

“Alex says it’s because I didn’t see your face,” is the first thing Kara says the next time Lena visits. “I pretty much saw everyone else’s, but... never yours. So, I’ve imprinted on you, or something.” 

Lena recovers quickly, “Well... what do you think?” 

“I don’t know,” Kara admits, running her fingers down the back of her neck, feeling the tender skin still raised in jagged lines. “There’s still so much I feel like I can’t trust right now.” 

“But you trust me...” 

“Yeah.” 

Lena carefully cradles Kara’s hand in both of hers, and it feels like a thank you of sorts. Then Kara draws their joined hands closer and closer, pressing her lips gently to Lena’s knuckles, and sighs in a way that could only ever be an expression of deep gratitude. 

//

Kara’s days all seem to unfold the same way, with Alex and Brainy running tests, Lena stopping by once per day for company, and Kara just trying to break up the monotony of it all with podcasts, books on tape, and tossing a tiny bouncy ball around the room to test her reflexes. 

For that last one, she has to stop the moment she hears Alex approaching her room, of course, because of all the broken glass and knocked over plants, and such. 

Until one day, she overhears a couple of DEO agents discussing some urgent mission—not exactly a rare occurrence, given her super-hearing, but she perks up, ears honing in at the mention of Lex Luthor. 

But when they also mention how Lena might be in danger, Kara is already out of bed and flying out the window.

Kara hasn’t flown since donning her blackout goggles, but she remembers enough to travel at a height that would be safe from any threat of collision. And before long, she’s hurtling straight for the source of all the distant commotion now pounding in her ears. 

She practically crashes in landing, the earth cracking beneath her bare feet. She whips her head toward where Lena’s heartbeat is fluttering the loudest, then hears low chuckles coming from the same direction. 

“You’re all so pathetic and predictable,” Lex crows. “At least try to make it somewhat of a challenge for me. God, it’s all just too easy.” 

“Kara, get out of here!” Lena’s voice shouts out to her, muffled and desperate. “It’s a trap!” 

But Kara takes a step toward them anyway, and immediately, the entire world seems to scream in protest. 

Kara falls to her knees, hands clapping over her ears but to no avail. The excruciating sound is coming from her own head, akin to hot spikes scraping at the inside of her skull. She calls out to Lena, but can’t even make out her own voice over the pain. 

She crumples over, helpless, her teeth gritted as she pushes her face into the dirt and shakes uncontrollably. She knows she has to get up; she’s a sitting duck like this. She can’t save Lena like this. 

And so, Kara does the one thing that she can do. 

She rips the goggles off her face, hurling them somewhere behind her, and jerks her head up. 

She sees a blur of colors, then a single hand outstretched towards her, clutching onto something silver and vaguely rectangular. 

She fires a burst of heat vision right at that hand, and feels the back of her head explode. 

//

“Man... she couldn’t just put them down gently?” mutters a voice that’s not unfamiliar. “She just had to throw the goggles like a goddamn shot-putter or something? These things cost a fortune!”  

“All right, that’s enough, Demos,” says Alex, a much more familiar voice. “I’ll worry about the budget, okay? You just get everyone else back to headquarters.”  

“’M’sorry,” Kara says, or at least she tries to say. “My bad...” Her eyes still shut tight, she flashes a thumbs up, then lets her arm flop back down to the ground. Alex stops her when she attempts to sit up. 

“Hey, not so fast, you jerk,” Alex says, somehow keeping Kara grounded with a single hand pressed against her shoulder. “We’re getting a stretcher for you.” 

“I don’t think I need a stretcher.” 

“Yeah, well... nobody asked you,” Alex sighs, before grumbling, “God, what’s taking them so long? Ugh, hang on... Hey, can you watch her? I’ll be right back.” 

Lena’s there now, and Kara can actually feel herself grinning without even meaning to. “No, don’t... You shouldn’t have come, Kara.” But there’s a smile in Lena’s voice, and Kara’s grin grows wider for it. “I’m serious!” 

“Okay, me too.” Kara then winces as a sharp pain gradually surfaces, trickling into reality. “The back of my head is killing me...” 

“Yeah, you’re bleeding.” 

Kara scoffs. “I don’t bleed; I’m Supergirl.” 

“Okay, Supergirl... but somebody got blood all over my shirt, and it sure as hell isn’t me, so...” 

“I don’t believe you.” 

“Then check for yourself.” 

Kara goes rigid, her humor dashed and her brow furrowing heavily.

“... You know I can’t do that.” 

Soft fingertips brush down Kara’s face, tucking her hair behind her ear so tenderly. “Listen,” Lena says. “You destroyed Lex’s transmitter, along with most of his right hand, and I think you blew out the implant in your head in the process as well.” 

There are thoughts then—the kind that Kara is unwilling to say aloud lest they develop reasons to be true. Thoughts like, what if the explosion damaged parts of her brain permanently? What if it severed that neural link between her eyes and everything else for good? And, how can she risk losing the one person who she believes to be absolutely, 100% real? 

Lena draws Kara’s attention with a gentle hand squeeze. “Hey, where’d you go?” she asks softly.

“I’m still here,” Kara says. “Still just right here.” 

But Lena seems to understand Kara’s concerns, unvoiced or not, because she leans a bit closer and asks, “Do you trust me...?” 

And, yes; yes, she does.  

With a deep breath filling out her lungs, Kara slowly opens her eyes. Everything’s a blur at first, just like before. But then little by little, bit by bit, the night sky comes into focus. She stares up at the darkness, counts as many stars as she can to put off the inevitable. 

Then her hand is being tugged and squeezed in the gentlest reminder, so she turns her head, blinking her eyes in preparation before looking up to see Lena Luthor smiling down at her. 

“Hey,” Kara says. 

“Hey yourself,” Lena returns. 

Kara nods thoughtfully, then gestures to Lena’s shirt. “Sorry, but I can’t afford dry cleaning,” she says, squinting at the various splashes of red—light but unfortunately prominent against the very white material—and Lena just laughs and laughs.