#lost dog rescue events

[cosyvelvetorchid]

buck/tommy: single dad tommy looses his son who wanders off after a fire engine. firefigher buck to the rescue

This was such a freaking adorable prompt! Thank you!

As always you can send me bucktommy, saltommy, or Tommy prompts to my ask. Fluff or smut or both. 🩶

*****

"Lucas can you please put your shoes on?" Tommy called out from the kitchen. He could still hear the cartoon blaring from the living room. More than once he'd imagined what harm he'd like to cause the person who invented Bluey. He finished packing their lunches, shoving them into his bag, and grabbed his phone and car keys before walking into the living room and turning off the TV. Lucas whined.

"You have 5 seconds to put your shoes on or you won't be riding the engine." He told him sternly. "5..4.." The 4 year old knew daddy meant business and quickly ran to the door and put on his shoes. "Good boy." Tommy smiled and lead him out to the car.

He was taking him to the annual community fire safety event they held down town. There were lots of exciting things for kids to do - rides, entertainers, and of course a chance to sit in a real engine! Usually Tommy would be working it but this year he had actually managed to get the day off to take his son.

Lucas had been buzzing with excitement about it since Tommy had first told him about it last week. He was counting down the sleeps like he did at Christmas. It had been the first thing he'd gotten excited about since his mom had died the previous year.

He was only 3 when she died and he didn't really understand what death meant, just that mommy was in heaven with the angels. But he certainly felt the loss of his mother. His personality was diluted. Tommy had taken him to a therapist specialising in grief therapy for children, and slowly but surely he began coming out of his shell more.

Evangelina and Tommy had been best friends since they were teenagers. The type of friendship where even when they lost contact for months or even years because of all the things they each had going on in their lives, when they reconnected it felt like no time had gone by.

5 years ago she had asked Tommy to help her get pregnant. She was desperate to be a mother but she was single and time was running out. They had many, many conversations about how it would work, how they would co-parent.. if Tommy even wanted to. They decided that if she were to get pregnant, when the kid was older they'd tell them about how they came to be, but until that point he would be Uncle Tommy.

As it happened, one trip the the fertility clinic, 1 donation and 1 insemination and Evangelina had a bun in the oven. The first few months of her pregnancy went like clockwork. Until the 2nd trimester when she found a lump in her breast. Cancer. Stage 3. She was given 2 options. Terminate the pregnancy and begin treatment, or delay treatment until the baby was born, which would risk the cancer spreading. She chose the latter. After many arguments with Tommy about it, he finally accepted that this was what she wanted.

Watching his son being born was the most beautiful thing Tommy had ever witnessed. He didn't think a human heart had the capacity for that much love. Sadly, within days of Lucas' birth they received the devastating news that Evangelinas cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and other organs. It was terminal. She fought like hell to live, but a month after Lucas' 3rd birthday she passed away.

"Come on, little man. Let's go see some fire trucks!" Tommy let him out of the car, taking his hand.

"Daddy look!" He pointed to a a giant Bluey mascot dressed in turn out gear. Tommy cursed under his breath. He couldn't get away from that little blue shit. "Can we go see him?" Lucas asked.

"Of course, buddy." He said with a smile leading him over. As much as Tommy couldn't stand that damn dog, the smile on his sons face was worth it. After that they rode the teacups, Lucas met some real life firefighters (that weren't his dad), he got to sit in an ambulance and blare the sirens, and he got given so many free stickers Tommy was already imagining having to remove them from the furniture at home.

There was one more thing to do and that was to sit in an engine. Except, what Lucas didn't know was that Tommy had organised with Capt Nash of the 118 a surprise ride in the truck. But first lunch needed to be eaten. A hangry 4 year old was not what anybody needed to deal with on a Sunday afternoon.

They found a picnic table and Tommy handed Lucas his sandwiches and chips. But in the rush trying to Lucas out of the door he'd forgotten the drinks.

"Shi-shoot!" He corrected himself. Trying to police his swearing wasn't easy now that Lucas was of an age where he repeated everything he heard. Thankfully there was a booth in the picnic area that served drinks.

"Lucas, I'm going to get us something to drink. I need you to stay right here, okay? I'll just be over there-" He pointed to the booth no more than 7 or 8 meters away "-you can see me the whole time."

"Okay." Lucas sang.

"You stay here, okay? You must not get off this bench. Do you understand?"

"Yep." He replied, peanut butter and jam smeared all around his mouth. Tommy walked to the booth, looking back every few seconds to make sure Lucas was where he should be. The lady in front of him in the line dropped her purse, spilling it everywhere. It only took Tommy 10 seconds to help her pick everything up but by the time he stood back up and looked to Lucas he was gone.

His heart immediately thunder against his chest.

"Lucas?!" He called out running over to the table. "Lucas!" He looked around. He was nowhere to be seen. Panic began to set in. He took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. This had happened before in a grocery store a few months before and after Tommy spent 15 minutes freaking out, multiple calls over the annoy and a call to the police, Lucas was found at the other end of the store watching Bluey on one of the TVs.

There were tonnes of things at this event that a child would gravitate towards. He probably made a beeline for the Bluey mascot or an engine. No, Tommy wasn't going to freak out yet. He'd look for a few minutes first then get security.

***

"Buck have you given away ALL the candy?" Eddie asked.

"What? They're all just so adorable I couldn't say no!" Buck tried defending himself.

"You're such a push over." Eddie told him. "I'm gonna go get a coffee. I'll be back in 5." Buck waved him away as he bent down to the 4 year old standing in front of him.

"Hi" He said with a big smile. "Whats you're name?"

"Umm.. I'm not s'posed to say. You're a..a stranger."

"Thats good thinking. You're absolutely right." Buck looked around but there were no other adults in the vicinity that looked like they could be this kids parents. "Hey Buddy, are you parents here?"

"My daddy brought me to see the firetrucks." The kid told him.

"Well that's a cool dad you have, huh? Hey do you known where he is? Can you see him?" The boy looked around and lifted his hands up in an exaggerated shrug.

"Okay. Well you see this?" He pointed to the radio on his chest. "This is my very special radio. I can talk to some very cool people and maybe they can find your dad. How does that sound?"

"Okay." The boy said.

"Do you think it would be okay if you told me your name? That way I can tell my friend on the radio and it will help us find your dad." Buck asked. The boy thought about it for a second.

"My name is Lucas."

"It's nice to meet you Lucas. My name is Buck. You wanna sit in the truck while I radio my friend?"

"Yeah!" He said excitedly. Buck opened the door and lifted him up onto the seat, before getting on the radio. "Hey Cap?"

"Captain Nash here. What is is Buck?"

"I gotta kid here that seems to be lost."

"Im with Sergeant Grant now. Can you describe the kid?"

"How old are you buddy?" He asked Lucas.

"Im 4"

"He says he's 4 years old, names Lucas. Dark curly hair, wearing blue jeans and a black tshirt with a helicopter on it." He spoke into the radio.

"This is sergeant Grant. We have the father here. Where is the boy now?"

"I've got him in the engine."

"Keep him there, we're on the way."

"Good news, your dad's on the way." He told Lucas.

"My daddy is a fireman too." He said

"He is?"

"Yeah. He.. he flies helicopters too!" He said pointing to the picture on his shirt.

"Wow that is very cool!" Buck said. "You wanna put the lights and sirens on?"

"Yeah!"

"First things first, before we go to an emergency we have to be safe. So.." he grabbed a helmet from the back and gently placed in on Lucas' head. "There we go, now you're ready. See that button right there? Press it." Lucas leaned forward and pressed it and the sirens rang out.

"Woah!" Lucas cried out with a big smile. Buck smiled back, his heart melting at how adorable this kid was.

"Daddy!" He shouted pointing through the windscreen. Cap and Athena walked towards the engine with an unfamiliar man. Something shifted in Bucks stomach at the sight of him. He was tall, with a large muscular frame. A piece of his dark curly hair had fallen onto his face. Buck suddenly felt nervous. Buck switched off the siren.

"Lucas?" The man called as they reached the engine.

"Daddy! I got to put on the siren!" He said as Buck removed the helmet from him and lifted him down. The man bent down to his eyeline.

"Lucas, how many times have I told you, you cannot wall off like that? It really scares daddy when you do that." His voice was soft but strained. He hugged the boy tightly. Bucks chest tightened at the image in front of him of a scared father.

"Im sorry daddy."

"It's okay buddy." He kissed the top of his head and stood up. His eyes met Bucks and he caught a breath. The man in front of him was gorgeous. As tall as him with a slightly smaller build but long legs. He had an adorable pink birthmark by his left eyebrow underneath a head of gentle dirty blonde curls.

"Were you the one who found my kid?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah. Bu.. Evan. Evan Buckley."

Evan. Tommy couldn't help notice the similarity. Evangelina was all about signs from the universe, which He'd always waved away as hocum. But now..

"Tommy Kinard." He responded, somehow feeling nervous all of a sudden. "Thank you. For finding him." He smiled. Something about those smile lines around his eyes made Bucks heart beat a little faster.

"He actually found me if I'm honest." He laughed. Tommy looked at his son.

"I need to put bells on this kid I swear." He said. Buck smiled and Tommys mouth went dry.

"Hey Tommy, you still want that surpise thing?" Bobby asked walking over.

"So long as my kid stays in the damn truck, sure."

"What surpise?" Buck asked confused.

"Well-" Tommy said lifting Lucas up into his arms "-how would you like to go on a real life ride on an engine?" He asked Lucas.

"Can I daddy?" Lucas asked practically vibrating.

"I don't know. What do you think Captain Nash?" Tommy turned them to face him.

"I think that would be okay." He smiled.

"Well let's go then!" Tommy said to Lucas putting him the back of the engine.

"Buck, Eddie is dealing with a broken ankle by the teacups, so I need you to jump in." Bobby told him.

"Got it Cap." He jumped in the back as cap got in the drivers seat. Tommy buckled Lucas in, they he snd Buck sat either side of him. They caught eachothers gaze and held it for a few moments. Something sparked in both of their chests.

"You ready, kid?" Bobby called from the front.

"Yeah!"

"Here we go!" Bobby put the sirens on and turned on the engine.

[sandumilfshou]

still kind of insane to me that people talk shit about jiang cheng without fully understanding what he has been through so lets just understand what his mental state is like BEFORE canon begins:

born via a dysfunctional marriage to be the sect heir

father doesnt care for him, mother expects too much from him/everything he does is not enough

has his three dogs just kicked out randomly with no notice because of some kid he's never heard of by the father who never gave him love and/or attention

said father then favours this kid more than him, to the point that the entire world basically thinks that this kid is biologically your father's son as well, which causes even more family dysfunction

despite this still learns to love this kid as his unofficial brother

works his absolute hardest but is always second-best because his new shixiong is naturally talented

nobody appreciates the hard work he puts in at being second place despite the fact wwx literally doesnt work hard for it

masks his emotions with anger as a coping mechanism to minimise the amount of hurt he feels

ok great so now lets actually take all of the above and apply this mental wellbeing to canon events FROM HIS PERSPECTIVE (keep in mind this is literally what jc is seeing/experiencing because he DOESNT KNOW what the reader knows):

brother is off being the protagonist and getting in trouble and gets their sisters marriage ruined

comes home from a year away and then almost immediately has to go and be a hostage where brother continues his protagonist behaviour

gets trapped and nearly dies in a cave with a 400-year-old monster, is in charge of finding a way out and making sure everyone else escapes

brother and a guy who maybe hates him get stuck behind in the cave so now jiang cheng has to boost it home ON FOOT, without food, to get manpower to rescue them, which takes a minimum of a few days likely without any food or sleep

no appreciation or thanks for doing that since brother was more heroic and killed the 400-year-old monster

gets scolded by his father for being annoyed by this

parents immediately get into another fight about father loving wwx more than jc

because of the above shenanigans their sect is targeted next

tries to defend brother against being whipped to death and/or having his hand cut off by mother

witnesses his entire sect being burned and murdered

loses both his parents

decides to sacrifice himself to save his brother's life, instead of dying he is tortured and has his golden core melted

on top of his inferiority issues, the ONE THING he was expected to do was be the sect leader for the yunmeng jiang. the sect that no longer exists. he is now a sect leader with no sect and no golden core. no shit he wants to mcfuckin die

miraculously gets a new golden core but loses his brother

immediately plunged into a war and he's only like 17

spends 3 months trying to find his brother only for his brother to show up doing the Forbidden Magic and necromancy which is Super Disrespectful in their culture like holy shit what are you doing

brother refuses to use his sword in favour of the Forbidden Magics and kind of keeps undermining jc's orders as sect leader which makes jc look weak in front of all the other sect leaders when he's actively trying to rebuild their sect and be respected as a leader

fights a war for [handwaves] an amount of time, certainly a few years minimum, while watching his brother descend further into Unhealthy Behaviour but brother refuses to do anything or talk about it

ends up lowkey being a war hero

the other three great sects (of which there are now only four) swear brotherhood, leaving out ONLY ymj/jiang cheng, which, what the Fuck dude

is now a teenager who has lost his parents who now has to rebuild his sect from scratch with fuck all money, supplies, and support

brother, who promised to always be at his side helping, is not helping, and in fact is actively just getting drunk and being a nuisance and STILL REFUSING TO SAY WHY

entire cultivation world starts to turn on his brother who is now looking like a loose cannon bc he has Forbidden Magics that are Terrifyingly Powerful and also it has been proven that he does not give a fuck about jc's opinion since he's constantly doing whatever the fuck he wants

literally out of nowhere said brother decides to piss off everyone, start fights, and then KILL JIN GUARDS at a camp and MAKE OFF with like fifty people who are part of the family that he just fought a war against and were responsible for slaughtering his family/sect

go to the terrifying haunted mountain where wwx and the wen remnants are and sees that he's essentially starting a new family with a kid and crops, doesn't seem to care that jiang cheng is still trying to keep the ymj afloat and look like they have any strength

brother is still doing Forbidden Magic and refuses to explain why, and now says he'll secede from the ymj so his bad reputation doesn't reflect on jc like he HASNT BEEN DOING THAT THE WHOLE TIME

so now shixiong wants to just abandon jc completely after jc has lost his parents, had to rebuild everything from scratch, while ignoring the promise he's made their whole life? ok fuck you

jc also can't defend him in public because that would turn the ymj into a target and please keep in mind he is a teenager who was expected to do this ONE THING by his parents and he has poured his heart and soul and blood and tears into rebuilding the ymj and they are So Vulnerable Right Now

uhhh what the fuck suddenly wwx kills their sister's husband ?? bro what the FUCK?

everyone rallies to go and attack wwx for this and again jc literally cant do anything about it and refusing to go will just make everyone assume he's on wwx's side and their sect can't afford to be attacked rn

bro what the fuck now THEIR SISTER IS DEAD?????

oh even better now said brother is DEAD

jiang cheng literally has NO ONE LEFT. no friends. no family. no parents, no siblings, everyone he knew growing up is dead. its literally just him and his infant nephew, who by the way, is living with the sect who are the most powerful and also most likely to be super fucking shady so jc has to tread very carefully

so jc spends over a decade raising his nephew ALONE while trying to make ymj powerful and also hunting/killing demonic cultivators that now p much only exist bc his brother invented/popularised the technique

oh yeah and also this whole time the guy who maybe hated his brother is now like EVEN colder and more antagonistic towards jc like it was HIS FAULT that wwx is dead? get fucked lan wangji you didnt even like the guy (or if this is cql/untamed canon: you literally did nothing either so where do you get off on acting like you're better than jc)

over a decade passes and suddenly his dead brother is alive again and causing more problems and acting like the things he did were not major contributors towards jc's entire family and sect dying

More Political Drama Happens and jc has to manage it

suddenly its revealed that the guy he's been co-raising his nephew with is the major villain who caused the entire world to turn on wwx in the first place oh and also it turns out that the fucking miraculous core jc has IS HIS BROTHER'S, WHO NEVER SAID ANYTHING, AND THIS IS THE REASON HE STARTED THE FORBIDDEN MAGICS AND STOPPED HELPING AROUND THE SECT, but he didnt even BOTHER to tell jiang cheng about it

by the way did i mention this was done via an entirely unconsented experimental surgery

and now the brother of the doctor who did the unconsented experimental surgery is ?? mad at jiang cheng about it ???? like he was supposed to KNOW ABOUT THIS when wwx was KEEPING IT FROM HIM ON PURPOSE???

and now theyre all nearly dying in this dumbass temple - and the ONE family member jc still has is literally being threatened with a garotte

oh cool now jc's brother is saying forget the past let's just leave it all behind !!! as though THAT ISNT JC'S ENTIRE LIFE AND TRAUMA and the ONE THING he EVER wanted was for him, wwx, and jyl to be alive and happy, and now wwx is saying just forget it! like FUCK YOU???? does jc truly mean NOTHING???????

oh and now his brother is off gallivanting with the guy who hated him - who it turns out doesn't hate him - and now they're getting married

and jiang cheng is meant to just. pretend all of this never happened and live his life normally. while wwx is out there. being happy and married.

like... if you can read all of this and still treat jc like he's the bad guy, i'm sorry, but you have literally zero empathy. dude had it probably more rough than any of the other main ensemble cast, and i am including jgy in that, because jgy Made His Choices. jc literally just had to let things happen around him helplessly

[bruhstation]

Since we see him every now and then, what is Ryan like in Casa Tidmouth?

ryan works at the harwick branchline with daisy. in the secret of the lost treasure and misty island rescue arcs, ryan is the bystander to thomas' adventures that lead up to his fight with sailor john and skiff, eventually adding to the number of supporting characters that got dragged into both the mystery surrounding the gold dust and the mess thomas has left on sodor. after sailor john got arrested and thomas went missing, ryan helped thomas' friends look for his whereabouts while also being the key witness to sailor john's mad ramblings about "lady of the legend" and his motives for almost blowing up the island. ryan never asked for any of this but because he likes thomas and knows info that other people don't, he just HAS to step in

outside of the plot-heavy stuff, ryan's one of the kinder sudrian railway workers compared to his weirdo coworkers. he considers daisy and thomas to be his closest friends despite the former having the tendency to push her workloads onto him in the past and the latter being a bit standoffish despite ryan's attempts at hospitality.

ryan's extended family, on the other hand...

ryan is connected to the gresleys through his mother. his mother is the daughter of joseph gresley I (the gresleys’ grandfather), so he’s the cousin of gordon, scott, spencer, and mallard. he doesn’t talk to his cousins often ever since he’s a teenager because they’re nutjobs who mostly care about themselves and ryan has self-respect and values his sanity

unlike most his cousins who has the power of hater-ism coursing through their veins, ryan is a perfectly normal man who cares about his friends. he talks about his issues directly instead of letting it simmer. he sometimes have drinks with daisy and thomas after work. he used to have trouble articulating his more “negative” feelings and driving his opinion, but he’s doing better lately. he wants to maintain peace by being kind to others, which makes him prone to being dragged into any weird business his cousins have whenever they have the chance.

whenever holiday season is around the corner, ryan knows exactly what to expect. scott, his most famous cousin, the only one who still GAF about tightening what’s left of the gresleys together, will ask him to come over for dinner with his cousins (his charisma stat is maxed out). ryan can’t refuse because scott will pull excuses like “it’s just once a year” or “there's a dog” and ryan doesn’t have anything else to do. the family party will start off normal, then when mallard brings out the wine (provocateur!!!) things go south. gordon and spencer would badmouth each other about each other's secrets/fails, they get into a fight, scott tries to calm them down, ryan frowns at the disinterested mallard, sighs, goes outside to the nearest telephone booth to call daisy and ask her to pick him up. at this point it’s comical

ryan’s really the opposite of his cousins, from clothing to backstory. when designing him, I took the key components of his cousins’ designs and invert them. his cousins dress lavishly – big coats and suits, but ryan just rolls up his sleeves and dons a vest. his cousins’ haistyles are combed back, gelled, etc, while ryan’s hair goes everywhere (parted bangs show hairline). most of his cousins have horrific trauma related to death and loss from their childhood, while ryan’s just a city boy who grew up with nothing eventful in his life (except attending his cousins’ funerals). he doesn’t even inherit the gresley surname and is oblivious to most of the gossips surrounding or is inside the gresley family.

ryan is his own person who gets thrown around like a volleyball a lot, but he still has a good heart. one can consider ryan to be what any of his cousins would’ve ended up like if they had normal upbringings. who am I kidding? lol

[scribblestatic]

Hey yo, time for a dose of Sheepzun :3

----

Shen Yuan snuck his way further onto Qiong Ding Peak in search of his student. He rammed a few demons along the way, leaving them laying about in his search. Which, yes, he was leaving a mess, but he didn't have opposable thumbs to clean up after himself and he's kinda busy right now!

After some searching, he heard some wild commotion. It looked to be coming from the central platform of Qiong Ding, right in front of the main hall. Who would attack the main hall first except for some show-off, ah? If you want to infiltrate, start from the corners and bleed inwards so the main brass doesn't notice until it's too late! That's the kind of method that works best in this dog-eat-dog world!

Regardless, he kept himself concealed as he approached, noting that most of the disciples, as expected, wore Qiong Ding Peak colors. A smattered few wore Qing Jing Peak ones, with only a dotted minority wearing those of other peaks. When his ears flicked backwards, he heard a few more Qing Jing Peak disciples on their way.

Ah, interrupting the demons in their effort to break the bridge was a good idea! Perhaps Qing Jing could protect these lambs while waiting for more powerful backup. However, Qing Jing Peak didn't have many disciples, right? If it was one of the other peaks, there'd be more backup...but, of course, they'd mostly be lambs.

Where were the instructors, ah?? Their cultivation should be better than these little ones!

Frustrations aside, Shen Yuan snuck around the back of the crowd, easing his way toward the front. He had to be careful several times to avoid rushing disciples, keeping them from knocking into him or his horns.

Eventually, he made it near the front, only to see...dancing?

No, it was a battle. But it looked more like dancing to him than expected. Their fighting was elegant in a way, but it wasn't the sort of bloody event he'd been expecting between an immortal and a demon. Though, perhaps that had to do with the immortal's lack of spiritual sword. She must be of Luo Binghe's generation, some of whom haven't received their swords yet.

As such, her sword didn't ring with powerful energy, and as Shen Yuan watched, he saw her make a few mistakes. She overextended her arm at times, spun a little too loosely, just minute errors. But they built up, resulting in her loss once the demoness she battled struck her arm and chest.

After she picked herself up from the ground, she walked over to a lofty immortal who was leisurely fanning himself and--

Ah! Wasn't that one of the immortal lords he'd rescued in the cave? He was well! How wonderful!

Indeed, his colors were clearly Qing Jing, and he'd managed to clean himself up quite well. Perhaps he'd been cultivating in a different cave before finding the other...err...the pretty one. Yeah. Shen Yuan looked around briefly, realizing he couldn't see him anywhere. Maybe he was still recovering? He couldn't imagine it took that long, but he's a ram. Maybe it worked differently for humans.

Anyway, this guy, in his silver hair crown, fanning himself leisurely, was clearly some sort of immortal master. And he'd saved this guy's life? Perhaps he had some golden thighs to cling to after all!

...Eh? What a strange thought he just had. What 'golden thighs'?

"This disciple has lost and disgraced the mission, I request that Martial Uncle Shen punish me."

Punishment? No, she didn't deserve any sort of punishment. She'd done her best all things considered. Instead, she needed to learn the places she could've done better and continue her educa--

The immortal huffed, dismissing her with the wave of his fan, his expression curled in derision. The veiled girl managed a respectful bow despite her injured arm, then joined the gaggle of other girls in purple garb much like her own.

?

???

???

What an asshole???

Excuse me, Mr. Immortal, this ram had to save you in the caves! Where do you get off on acting like that little lamb was bothering you with her earnest attempt? Aren't you something of a teacher? Shouldn't you use this as an opportunity for her to learn?!

This Shen guy--

...Shen.

As in, Shen Qingqiu?

The demoness who won against the veiled girl smiled coquettishly, her body loosely covered in red bolts of fabric. So much skin, there was little left to the imagination. Ah, but Shen Yuan didn't think too much of that. As it was, his tail and wool were all that maintained his decency, in the humanoid sense, anyway. He would not be a pot berating a kettle.

Rouged lips parted to show bright teeth, canines a tad too sharp to be strictly human.

"This third trial will determine the victory! Who will you send up for the next trial, Elder Shen? This time, you had better choose carefully."

Agh, it really was Shen Qingqiu, wasn't it?

This lofty immortal with no teaching ability, this man was his Bing-lamb's human shizun? What a waste of a handsome face!

Ah, no, he should wait. It wouldn't be right to judge someone so quickly. After all, that immortal had been trying to help his pretty comrade in the caves, only for his messed up meridians to hinder him. If anything, the fact he's cultivated up to a core formation shows his dedication to the craft. Indeed, perhaps this man was simply somewhat cagey.

When the man spoke, a handsome, if not snide, voice rang out.

"No need for the Young Miss to trouble herself. This Shen has a person in mind."

Oof, he's definitely cagey. And quite apt at insults.

The young miss in question called out for a warrior on her side to come forth for what was apparently the third trial. So, there had been a battle beforehand? Who had fought?

But Shen Yuan's thoughts quickly became distracted when the ground below him shook. He moved out of the way as disciples around him shook and clustered in closer, clearly feeling some fear.

Not that Shen Yuan would blame them, considering the one that stepped out!

The huge demon elder was definitely some sort of giant! At least ten zhang tall, with a thick, hefty build, wearing thorny armor all over his body, he dragged an equally-large sledgehammer behind him. A toothy grin peered out from behind his shaggy hair and helmet.

The demoness in red spread her arms in display.

"I'll give everyone on this immortal mountain a warning first. The spikes on Elder Tian Chui's armor are covered with my family's strongest poison. This kind of poison has no effect on demons, but if a human is pierced, there is no cure."

...Excuse me, Young Miss?

Why would you bring an incurable poison to an immortal's mountain unless you meant to murder? Why bother playing around and fighting three rounds when the last one clearly shows your intent? What kind of infiltration is this?!

Also, Tian Chui?! Was this elder born carrying his sledgehammer the entire time?!! Did his mother look down at his body and say, "Dear demon child, look at you, born with a hammer! Your hammer will one day pierce the heavens and fight the power of the immortals!"

Terrible naming! Absolutely the worst!! Spit on your mother's grave, Tian Chui!!

Shen Yuan was so close to stomping his hooves in irritation, he had to grit his teeth to keep himself from doing so. But goodness, he'd never felt so enraged in his life! Something about being away from Qing Jing and Luo Binghe just made this world and its intricacies ten times worse.

Where was his little lamb? He should get the boy and go back to Qing Jing immediately. At least to get away from this mess!

The disciples around him clearly agreed, airing out their frustrations.

"Stinking demon girl!! Competing is competing! Using a strong poison--what fairness is there!"

Damn right, boy in Qiong Ding robes!

But the demoness just laughed.

"I didn't hide this point. If you feel anything's unfair, or if you're afraid of getting poisoned and losing your life, the custom is to cede the trial. There would be no more need to compete then. We demons won't laugh at you since we cherish life." Her grin sharpened then, clearly mocking. "It's only human."

Ah. She's a bitch.

Shen Yuan's not sure what a 'bitch' is, but whatever it is, she's that. He'd have to find out later.

The disciples continued their complaints, angrily condemning the demons. And, of course, none of them stepped forward. Who would? It's not just human nature to value your own life--it's the nature of all living organisms! Who in their right mind would throw it away once you told them an action would end it?

Shen Qingqiu was clearly thinking the same thing. After all, he was being quite quiet as the bantering slowed. As an immortal master of some sort, surely he wouldn't threaten the lives of his little lambs. He was an adult! It's important to give lambs the opportunity to grow, but it needed to be under controlled circumstances.

Before, with the demoness, there wasn't a threat of death. Now there was. Surely, the master would argue--

“Luo Binghe, you come out.”

...

Eh?

After a beat of silence, the Qing Jing disciples immediately started yelling. Disciples from other peaks barely did so, but they could be excused. They didn't know that Luo Binghe, instead of being a head disciple with 30+ years of cultivation under his belt, was just a wee lamb with less than two decades under his belt, more than half of which were spent in the mortal realm.

Of course, knowing this, Ming Fan--Ming Fan of all people--paled, suggesting he wasn't suitable for the task. A young girl also in Qing Jing robes cried out, attracting Shen Yuan's attention.

Sure enough, he finally found Binghe.

His lamb was stiff, eyes wide. The girl who had cried out was clinging to one of his arms--ah, yes, Ning Yingying--saying in a sort of babyish cry that she didn't want Luo Binghe to fight, stamping her feet much like Shen Yuan wanted to.

Of course! Good girl! She got his Binghe into trouble a few times, but she had a good heart overall!

But the immortal simply raised a brow.

“I said to let him go up so he should go up. Are you unsatisfied with this master’s judgment? Ying-er, let him go.”

As Luo Binghe comforted the girl, his tanned face pale, Shen Yuan shook, his hearing turning to white noise.

What was this? Was this really happening right now?

The boy's just barely 16, and he has had next to no battle experience at all. Although Binghe told him about the trip down the mountain and how Ning Yingying had gotten kidnapped, that experience barely counted for anything. A skinner demon was substantially less threatening than this bear of an elder.

What sort of...

He blinked, ears still ringing, and Luo Binghe stood before the hefty demon, like a sproutling before a fierce storm of demonic energy.

Like a lamb to the slaughter.

An anger like no other struck through his body. This...he had to stop this. If Luo Binghe met his end here, he wouldn't be able to live with himself--

But another thought came to him.

He was a teacher, was he not? At least, Luo Binghe trusted him to be a teacher.

And this situation... Luo Binghe was not prepared for it. And so, he should step in...

But something told him to wait. Something nagged at the back of his mind to stay his hooves and watch. It was the same sort of feeling that drew him to the cave, only this time, it was...light.

Positive.

...Although this sort of thing could be like a lamb to the slaughter, an old story he'd heard from another culture also came to mind. Of a young man wielding only a slingshot against a giant. He couldn't remember the names of the subjects in the sacred texts...Dà Wèi [大卫 - David] and Jùrén [巨人 - Goliath], maybe?

Anyway, from what little he could remember in his strange, hazy recollections was that Da Wei, despite being heavily outclassed, won against Juren just using that slingshot he had.

Shen Yuan's little lamb...perhaps he was just as powerful.

Despite his strong desire to interfere, he shakily placed his hoof back down, teeth gritting.

...He would trust in Binghe's power. What he needed more than protection was belief. He needed someone to truly believe in him. And so, as his shizun, he would take that position and put all of his power into believing in Luo Binghe's success.

And so, with the heavy slam of Elder Tian Chui's sledgehammer, the battle began.

Shen Yuan watched carefully, his eyes solely on Luo Binghe. If he would not interfere, then he would catalogue all his movements. Every single place he could've been better, every single move he could improve. He would do his job as his teacher.

He choked down a bleat the first time the hammer made contact with Luo Binghe's body.

But he also watched as the boy rolled, redirecting as much of the pressure as possible to reduce damage. He was, undoubtedly, still hurt, but he showed no weakness.

Indeed, a prey animal could not show any weakness. Doing so could spell death.

Even a mouse, when cornered, opens its mouth and squeaks a war cry against the cat hunting it, threatening with its little teeth.

With enough of an opening, that little mouse would jump forward and bite.

Luo Binghe had taken such lessons to heart, searching for the best place to strike. But it was very difficult. Trying to strike would mean getting closer to the poisoned armor which could kill him.

He was as spry on his feet as possible, still getting hit and nicked at times, but far from the sort of failure one would expect of a poorly trained disciple.

Even so, Cang Qiong's disciples were losing faith.

“Isn’t this a sure loss? What is there to compete?”

Shut up, Qiong Ding disciple.

Eventually, even the demon side recovered from their stupor, jeering at Luo Binghe as he took and avoided hit after hit, no closer to landing a single blow on Elder Tian Chui than before.

The elder bellowed out a laugh that echoed across the area as he caught Luo Binghe with his hammer again.

"This little doll had better admit defeat soon and get off the stage! This old man can still leave you a life!"

A life. Not alive.

Being alive and living a life were two different things, with the context changing depending on who said it and what they meant.

Many of the mortals below were living a life. Those with crippled legs and blinded eyes were living a life of struggle more so than others. The wealthy and affluent could be said to truly be alive. The immortals, with the resources to pursue their immortality, could be said to be living a life worth being alive for.

For some reason, Shen Yuan thought of a human in a strange white room.

He heard beeping from several tall devices near some sort of futuristic bed.

The figure in the bed had short, wavy hair, some of it splayed on the pillow, and a clear mask-like device over his face.

He was pale, dark circles under his eyes, and when he opened them, they stared out at the window, the light too bright for Shen Yuan's imagination to see what was outside. But he could see it.

Longing. Desire.

A painful, reaching drive to leave the pale, beeping room and be alive.

Binghe will be alive.

He is alive, and he will remain that way. He need not accept the scraps of life some elder demon would throw at him. No, Luo Binghe could take it for himself.

With that in mind, Shen Yuan put power into his thoughts, and, mentally reaching out to the boy, he spoke to him.

--

'Luo Binghe, you will win.'

[thedrarrylibrarian]

Hi! Do you know of any fics where Draco is a rich/powerful businessman? Maybe muggle au’s?

Hello! Your holds have arrived!

I think I've got the exact kind of vibes you're looking for! I hope you enjoy these fics! And as a bonus, be sure to check out this excellent art by @ano-ka-ba.

Rich/powerful businessman Draco

The Potters' Pool Party by @darcyshire (7,453 words, rated T)

When 12-year-old Scorpius is invited to a pool party, worried father Draco insists on tagging along for the sake of safety. By the time Draco realizes whose family is hosting, it's too late for him to back out.

i stay by @hogwartsfirebolt (9,104 words, rated M)

The darkening sky is dangerous for the shape of Harry’s desire, it makes it seem reasonable, as though it were a natural conclusion of having Draco once again within reach, rather than the mirage it actually is.

Seeking: pet carer for Bartholomew (four-year old rescue greyhound, no special needs) by @gallifrey1sburning (14,694 words, rated E)

When Draco’s boyfriend ends their relationship rather abruptly (and, frankly, extremely rudely), he leaves Draco with full-time responsibility for their rescue greyhound, Bartholomew. Draco loves his dog with all his heart, but the long hours he works at his law firm mean that he can’t possibly be home as much as Bartholomew needs. Enter Sirius Pet Care, an app designed to solve this very problem! When Draco books Harry, he’s relieved at how quickly the man and his dog bond. He’s less relieved by how unexpectedly, distractingly attractive Harry turns out to be… and how Draco’s afternoon meetings keep being “mysteriously” cancelled, meaning that he JUST HAPPENS to be home when Harry comes by. After all, it’s not appropriate to ogle one’s employees… right?

to be where I'm going (in the sunshine of your love) by theweightofmywords (19,080 words, rated E)

"He imagined Draco’s smile, all gums and slightly crooked teeth, his hair slicked back with Pacific water, and he knew: He’d travel as long as he’d need to if it meant he’d see that face. If it meant that Draco would hear the message he’d been carrying for so long. Maybe he didn’t have to travel the road alone anymore."

Draco and Harry go on a road trip together. It's about the journey, not the destination.

Uptown Downtown by Sbpagel (29,134 words, rated E)

Draco Malfoy is the spoiled, entitled, pretentious heir to Malfoy Constructions. James Black is a mystery, wrapped in an enigma and tied together with a puzzle.

it was a bad idea ('cause now I'm even more lost) by @all-drarry-to-me (36,446 words, rated T)

When Draco is told his green card is denied and he must return to England, he does the only thing he can think of and starts a fake relationship with the one available person in the room: Harry. The plan is simple — until feelings get involved.

When Trust and Truth Collide by silvergalaxy (47,374 words, rated E)

Harry meets Draco for the first time in the employee break room on a boring Wednesday morning and they immediately hit it off. Chance encounters turn into dates, and dates turn into feelings.

Oh, yeah. Draco's also Harry's boss. Harry has no idea.

Burn the Witch by @lettersbyelise (95,800 words, rated E)

When Harry Potter is sent in to investigate Draco Malfoy’s successful potions company, posing as Draco’s bodyguard, he doesn’t know the case will launch a series of events that will change his life — and Draco’s.

A story about choices, scars, Chopin piano pieces, and finding all kinds of love in the most unexpected places.

Pages of You by @wolfpants (101,717 words, rated E)

Summer, 1980. Harry is floating between university and becoming a Real Certified Adult. He's not ready. He really isn't.

In a desperate attempt to have the Best Last Summer ever, he takes a casual job at his godfather's bookshop in London, starts an illicit pen pal affair with a wordy posh boy that he's catching feelings for, all while dealing with the son of Sirius's business rival, one Draco Malfoy, insufferable know-it-all extraordinaire.

A story about trying to figure out who you are, where you're going in life, and who you want to take along with you.

❤️ As always, if you find a fic you enjoy, please remember to leave the author a kudos or a comment! ❤️

Lots of Love and Happy Reading!

[little-cereal-draws]

Button House Dog Rescue au

Alison and Mike get the house and the land like in the show but instead of an event hall, they get involved with the local shelter and turn it into a dog rescue. All the ghosts are dogs that they foster/unofficially adopt

Robin (wolfhound): He's been there the longest. He was given up as a puppy for reasons unknown; his owner didn't specify. He was the first dog that they rescued and even tho they tried their best, they still messed up a lot. He doesn't hold it against them tho, he loves them. He's made a lot of friends over the years but they've all been adopted out; no one wants him because of his size so he's been unofficially adopted by the Coopers and he's 100% fine with that. When he sits by the fire and they scratch his belly or behind his ears, he doesn't need another family

Humprey (golden retriever): He used to belong to a rich family but got out one day and was hit by a car. The accident left him unable to move anything but his head and even tho the family was distraught, they opted to put him down. Alison came in at the very last second insisting that she could help him and she did. It's took many years of physical therapy, learning to use mobility aids, and different meds but he can get around relatively easily now. He still opts to sleep in the sun most of the day tho and only occasionally romps around the garden w his friends. He's Mike's favorite bc Mike likes to squish his face. Mike's his favorite because he gives him way too many treats

Mary (dalmatian): She lived with a family but the house caught fire one night. She was able to escape (as were the ppl, dw) but ran the wrong way and got terribly lost in the dark. She had no tag or identification so she was taken to the shelter. She's got terrible anxiety and was constantly trembling when they first got her so Alison bought her one of those compress vests that acts like a weighted blanket. It was hard to get it on her the first time because she would shy away from any move they made but now she insists to have it on 24/7. Since getting to Button House, she's gone from skittish and hiding from everything to fairly confident. Alison believes it's from socializing with the new friends she's made

Kitty (pomeranian): She was given as a birthday present to a rich girl when she was a puppy. The girl wasn't very nice to her however and used her more as a doll she could jerk around than a living being. She would yell at her a lot too for natural puppy behavior (ex: not coming already housebroken, chewing things, making messes, etc) After a year or so, one of the neighbors finally had enough and was able to take her away. Unfortunately, they were unable to foster her so she ended up at Button House. She's still incredibly sweet, outgoing and loves to run and play with the big dogs. Even tho she can't keep up at the start, she always ends up running circles around them thanks to her unlimited energy when they tire out. When she's not doing that, she's "helping" Alison and tripping her up while she tries to work

Thomas (shetland sheepdog): He also belonged to a well-off family that he loved very dearly but got lost. He's convinced they're going to find him one day even tho it's been years at this point. The other dogs feel bad that he still believes this but they don't tell him. When he got to Button House, he latched onto Alison as his new family --or his temporary family since he's only going to be here a short while-- and follows her everywhere now. Definitely has separation anxiety due to his getting separated from his first family and freaks out whenever he can't see her. He'll cry when she shuts the door to the bathroom or her bedroom. He tries every night to sleep in her bed but the Coopers have a strict rule about no dogs in the bedroom so he never succeeds. Instead he lays right outside the door in the hallway and cries himself to sleep each night. It used to hurt Alison's heart but she's used to it now; she can't let him in bc once she does, everybody will want to come in

Fanny (chihuahua): She's white, pretty fluffy, and has magnificent floofs on her ears. She was given up by her family for being "too aggressive." They had several small kids and didn't do their research before getting her. The Coopers were a bit nervous at first but quickly learned she was all bark and no bite. Now she's Alison's lap dog and even tho she's perfectly capable of walking, she likes to be carried places. She's too old to want to play with the other dogs so instead she sits in Alison's lap and watches. She'll bark her head off at them but never goes to join the game. Alison thinks it's quite funny that when it's one on one, she can cow all the big dogs, including Robin, into doing what she wants

The Captain (german shepherd): He's a retired military dog that was unable to find a home because he didn't adjust to civilian life very well. He was never actually in a war tho, he stayed domestic and helped more with bomb sniffing. He was retired bc he was getting old and had a lot of health complications in his hips/joints. He's enjoying it much more at Button House with the other dogs than the few families he went to before and is slowly learning how to relax/be a dog. But because of his health problems, he can't play for very long before he has to lay down (this makes Kitty very sad). Mike's scared of him; he was nervous at the start because he assumed as an army dog he would be aggressive, but his fear got cemented one time they were out on a walk and there was a squirrel. The Captain lunged for it and pulled Mike face first into the mud. Mike swears he almost dislocated his shoulder but Alison isn't sure

Pat (corgi): He was given up by a suburban family who underestimated how much space and exercise he would need. Their yard wasn't big enough and he was either laying around the house all day depressed or ripping up the furniture to entertain himself. It was a very tearful goodbye when they dropped him off but the Coopers assured them he would be in good hands. He was very upset when they didn't come back after a few days but he's gotten used to it now. He loves running around in the big field and all the new friends he's made. He's Alison's favorite because he actually listens to her. She was surprised by how many words he knew and now puts his herding skills to use almost every day. "Pat, can you get everyone in the car?" "Pat, can you get everyone to the bath?" "Pat, can you get everyone for dinner?" He's very good at it and make's sure no one's left behind (even Mike)

Julian (weimaraner): He was adopted by a politician as a publicity stunt when he was a puppy. As he grew up, he was absolutely spoiled and occasionally got to go to events/parties. His owner liked to take pictures of him and post them on social media to get voters' attention so quite a large number of people knew who he was. As he got older tho, the posts stopped getting as many likes and a new puppy was adopted. Before he knew what was happening, he was left at Button House. There was quite an adjustment period as he got used to not fancy food, having to share, and all that but he's loving it now. He's Alison's least favorite because he's so crafty and always up to trouble. When he teams up with Robin, the two of them can easily break into the pantry and eat as much ppl food as they like. Alison's started locking it but somehow they're still getting in. It remains the most infuriating mystery of Alison's life

The plague ghosts: they are quite a few different breeds that were rescued from a very unethical puppy mill. They’re at Button House because it was the only place big enough to house them all. They’ve all got mange tho and are quarantined to a separate part of the house. Even tho they are loving their new life much more than how they were living before, they still dream of the day they’ll be able to go out and play w all the other dogs

Pt 2 Pt 3

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

of course

***Spoilers for the Stitch summer event below the cut!***

Of coooourse Azul and Floyd jump on the opportunity to extort their classmates while they’re stranded on a deserted island 😭 Such an Ursula moment when Azul asks the group what they’re willing to do to be rescued… 😭 Not Floyd suggesting they all be Octa’s errand boys until the end of time 😭 AnD NOT hIM CALLiNG AzUL NICE FOR LOWERInG iT TO “just” A WEEk???? 😭 Why are fish like this—

This is even funnier when you look back at Birthday Union/Jacket vignettes, where some characters are asked “If you could bring one person with you on a deserted island, who would you choose?”. Of the 6 characters featured in Lost in the Book with Stitch, Jack is the only one who was asked this question. He at first says he can survive on his own, and though he eventually provides Epel as his answer. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT??? Jack also states in the interview that he would not want to be stuck with anyone in Octavinelle because “they seem like the types to ask for compensation whenever they have to do something” 🤡 Which. Isn’t far from the reality they’re now experiencing…

Addendum: In Jack’s Labwear vignettes, Floyd asks Azul if they can “keep him”, as though Jack were a stray dog. Again, Floyd’s affinity for dogs reappears in the Stitch event, where he doesn’t want to hand Stitch over to Gantu.

Other related points from Union Birthday/Birthday Jacket vignettes (the other 5 were asked “if you could pick any student from NRC to be your sibling, who would you choose?”): Ace would pick Azul to essentially get free stuff I bet he’s regretting his decision right about now, eh, Floyd would pick Ace so Ace can take the fall for him in sticky situations why do I suddenly have a bad feeling for what’s to come, and Lilia would pick… FLOYD 😂 because Floyd is mischievous, challenges people, and keeps surprising him with unexpected things… Oh, don’t worry, I’m sure plenty of “unexpected things” are going to happen, whether the boys like it or not 💦

On a more serious note, I do find it interesting that we get formal confirmation that merpeople in human forms need to remove their clothes before returning to their true forms. (This was always assumed before, but was never explicitly brought up in scenes where they actually had to revert back, such as book 4, Vargas Camp, and the first Halloween event.) However, Azul and Floyd say that the Beachwear clothes must be magic because they can’t be removed. I’m assuming either it’s unsafe to revert while still wearing clothes or the magical clothes just prevent them from bursting out of it a la Vanessa to Ursula in The Little Mermaid:

It’s also implied that their human forms are not suited for swimming long distances (or at least they are not used to swimming long distances in human forms yet)?? Which makes me think their anatomy and physiology must become entirely human when they drink their usual transformation potion??? Like, I’m assuming there aren’t gills on their human forms (because they’d serve zero purpose) which could hinder swimming as a human. (For that one scene in book 3 where Azul joins the group at the Atlantica Museum, I always assumed he just drank one of those “breathing underwater” potions he gave out earlier in the book!)

Side note: thanks to this event for gatekeeping us from potentially getting a peak at Azul’s non-OB octomer form/j 🙄

[skycrimedraws]

Harlan Francis Lovell // PROPHET. Previously SOOTHSAYER, SEEKER,JOHN DOE, Lt. Lovell

Harlan F. Lovell grew in Seattle. His parents were unremarkable lower end corporate employees for Ares. His relationship with his father was strained, his expectations of him as the eldest were far more than he could withstand. Driving under the influence ended Francis Senior’s life, and put Mr. Lovell into a two week coma. Rescue attempts were quick enough to drag him out of the water in time, but Francis senior did not have the same luck.

Despite the potentially traumatic event, Harlan claims he has made his peace with his late father, and it is not a factor in his life. In current time, he has a good relationship with his mother and stepfather, as well as the younger siblings he helped raise afterwards, and speaks no ill of his biological father.

During the coma, Mr. Lovell claims he was aware to some extent, saw visions of a reality he should not have been privy to. He was twelve at the time so the possibility of an over active imagination is not out of the question. According to him:

“I kept sinking. I was drowning but I could not swim, everything around me felt like thick syrup, crushing my body. It was dark but I could see eyes staring back at me from time to time. Not like ours, different, somehow I understood they were eyes. I was trapped for what felt like years, feeling like my body was feeding something much larger than I was, but I was not being bitten to pieces, I wasn’t being chewed. My legs, my arms, my chest, it felt like I was being ground softly but constantly, losing more and more of myself. When I thought I had gotten used to the pain, it became unbearable once again. An endless cycle of numbing down and becoming aware. With what I know now, it was nothing like the astral world I can access. It was deeper. When I woke up from the coma, only two weeks had passed, and all I had lost was my hand. Doctors mentioned that I had more brain activity than expected, which led them to believe it was a case of locked in syndrome, but I don’t think it was that. I was awakened after that.”

Mr. Lovell’s current difficulties with night terrors and obsessive compulsions to understand things can be traced to that event whether it was real or an after effect of stress-induced awakening.

Mr. Lovell was inducted into an Ares educational program for the awakened children of employees. His studies of magic were based on the Unified Magic Theory school of thought, and a position in Ares or one of their subsidiaries was promised as part of his scholarship. Mr. Lovell finished his studies and was funneled into Knight Errant’s Awakened Crime Division. Lovell’s psychological evaluation was shaky, but excuses can be made for mages.

Mr. Lovell was a detective for six years. He cites his idealism as the reason he agreed to the Knight Errant placement. He cites the same thing as his reason for quitting. It was a one sided affair, as his contract left no wiggle room for him to stop working in KE until 40 years had been completed. Mr. Lovell explained many favors had to be pulled for his SIN to be burned, and mentions this was the only way for him to relocate to Los Angeles without being caught.

Mr. Lovell’s work in LA has been largely of a humanitarian nature involving the local anarchist cells and SINless people who have been failed by the governing bodies. His unlicensed Private Investigation agency (Manned solely by himself and his dog, Mac) accepts SINless clients, and even cash or barters. Although he doesn’t advertise himself as pro-bono, he isn’t a stranger to ‘forgetting’ to send the bill to a client or two.

He has grown a reputation, particularly among anarchist cells. In a night of riot, a marginalized slice of Downtown, home to foreigners and metahumans, caught on fire after reckless use of less-than-lethal ammunition. Despite police presence, emergency services did not make an appearance. Mr. Lovell happened to be on the scene, according to him. Fire fighting efforts from the community were underway, but the fire had grown wildly out of control with the way buildings were built with cheap materials, shoulder to shoulder.

Mr. Lovell acted selflessly, putting his own health on the line to employ the help of several spirits he had previously contacted for help. A powerful water spirit created a rainstorm over the span of thirty minutes, a spirit of man cast healing spells on several victims of the fire, while a third spirit of air gave way to fear in the authority’s hearts, enough to break the formation trapping the people in the area of the fire.

Mr. Lovell himself spent the next few hours casting healing spells on whoever else he could to the point of exhaustion. Mr. Lovell wasn’t keen on claiming any credit, but it was easy for the collective to learn of his identity. At the current time, Mr. Lovell resides in that neighborhood, mostly keeping to himself.

[disneytva]

"An Almost Christmas Story" New Disney Television Animation Animated Holiday Stop-Motion Short Directed By David Lowery And Produced By Academy Award-Winner Alfonso Cuarón, Coming To Disney+ This November.

Disney Branded Television announced a new Disney Television Animation animated stop-motion short film “An Almost Christmas Story” slated for a November release date on Disney+.

The musical short produced by Disney Branded Television, Disney Television Animation and Cuarón’s Esperanto Filmoj, in association with Titmouse and Maere Studios, and with animation services by 88 Pictures. "An Almost Christmas Story" is the first original short from Disney Television Animation since "Hamburger High" (2016). It joins Disney TVA's roster of stop-motion projects ("Mickey Mouse and the Magical Snowy Holiday", "Mickey Saves Christmas", "Mickey And Friends: Trick or Treats", Mickey's Christmas Tales" and "Rhona Who Lives By The River")

The celebrated creative team includes David Lowery (director, screenplay and producer), Cuarón (producer and story), Gabriela Rodríguez (producer), Jack Thorne (story and screenplay), Nicholas Ashe Bateman (creative designer) and Daniel Hart (composer).

 "An Almost Christmas Story" follows Moon, a curious young owl who unexpectedly finds himself stuck in a Christmas tree destined for Rockefeller Plaza. In his attempts to escape the bustling city, Moon befriends a lost young girl named Luna. Together, they embark on a heartwarming adventure, discovering the magic of the holiday season and forming an unlikely bond as they journey back home to their parents. “An Almost Christmas Story” is inspired by the true events of a tiny owl, Rocky - short for Rockefeller, found and rescued from the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in 2020.

An Almost Christmas Story features the voice talents of Cary Christopher (FX "American Horror Story") as Moon, newcomer Estella Madrigal as “Luna,” Jim Gaffigan (Pixar Animation Studios "Luca") as “Papa Owl, Mamoudou Athie (Pixar Animation Studios "Elemental") as Pelly, Alex Ross Perry (Walt Disney Studios "Christopher Robin") as Dave The Dog, Gianna Joseph ("Star Trek Into Darkness") as Peaky, Phil Rosenthal ("Everybody Loves Raymond") as Punt, Natasha Lyonne (Cartoon Network Studios "Steven Universe" franchise) as Pat and John C. Reilly (Walt Disney Animation Studios "Wreck It Ralph" franchise) as The Folk Singer.

An Almost Christmas Story features a live orchestra score by Daniel Hart (Walt Disney Studios "Peter Pan & Wendy"), the short features 2 brand new original songs by John C. Reilly.

An original album featuring the songs and score of the short by Walt Disney Records will release on November 2024.

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Week - December 12, 2022

1. Big cats: US Senate unanimously passes bill to curb private ownership

A bill to restrict the private ownership of big cats like lions and tigers in the US has passed by unanimous consent in the Senate. The Big Cat Public Safety Act would stop people from keeping the animals as pets and from them being exposed to public petting and photo opportunities.

Efforts to curb private ownership have increased in the wake of the Netflix documentary series Tiger King.

The bill now needs to be signed into law by President Joe Biden.

2. New Mexico voted a child care guarantee into its constitution.

New Mexico in May became the first state to offer free child care to most of its residents. Now, after a November referendum, it’s also the first state to enshrine child care funding in its constitution, effectively making the service a universal right – and perhaps offering a model for how other states could serve their youngest residents and working parents.

3. Rare good news from the Amazon: Gigantic fish are thriving again

Thanks to sustainable fishing programs that combine education with strict rules and quotas, the pirarucu, one of the world's largest freshwater fish it's now making a comeback.

"The pirarucu population has recovered," says Ana Claudia Torres, who runs the sustainable fishing program for the Mamirauá Institute, which manages a vast nature reserve covering 4,300 square miles of jungle in northern Brazil.

4. Dog reunited with family 7 days after falling from cliff on Vancouver Island

A beloved pet that went missing in the Highlands area of Vancouver Island was found seven days later by an army of volunteers. Luna, was found desperately clinging to a narrow ledge on a cliff, and was reunited with her owner after a heroic rescue last month.

It's believed that Luna had chased an animal out of her yard and got lost, somehow falling off a cliff and landing on a two-foot wide ledge. She remained there, alone, as her owner and searchers frantically looked for her.

5. Iran Shutting Down Morality Police, Official Says, After Months of Protests

Iran has scrapped its morality police after more than two months of protests triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini following her arrest for allegedly violating the country's strict female dress code, local media said Sunday, citing a single Iranian official.

"Morality police have nothing to do with the judiciary and have been abolished," Attorney General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri was quoted as saying by the ISNA news agency.

6. Condoms to be free for young people in France, Macron says

Young people in France will be able to get condoms free of charge from next year in an effort to reduce the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday.

"In pharmacies, condoms will be free for those aged 18 to 25 from January 1," Macron told reporters during an event about young people's health.

7. One-eared rescue dog Van Gogh paints his way into adoption

A former bait dog in a North Carolina dogfighting ring "paints" artwork for charity and is living his best life in Connecticut.

. . .

That’s it for this week. If you liked this post you can support this newsletter with a small kofi donation:

Buy me a coffee ❤️

Have a great week ahead :)

[rowans-thoughts]

Is it late? Yes... do I care? No.

Anyways I had this haikaveh headcanon that I must share.

Alhaitham comes home one day and to his surprise there is a random cat in his home, followed by a kaveh running into the living room since he heard alhaithams arrival.

"alhaitham I swear I can explain!!"

Alhaitham just looks between the cat and kaveh for a moment before responding.

"kaveh you can't just bring random animals into our home. Especially not without discussing it with me first"

Kaveh looks up at alhaitham with puppy dog eyes "but she was abandoned!! I couldn't just leave her!!"

Alhaitham sighs and looks at the cat again. "Fine... But if that cat causes any trouble it's out of here."

Kaveh is pleased with this turn of events and he decides to name her pita, because kaveh was eating a pita pocket when he found her.

Alhaitham always acts like he hates that they have a cat now be he secretly loves her. Kaveh sometimes catches pita snuggling up to alhaitham and him just sitting there petting her as she does. Kaveh sometimes complains that pita likes alhaitham more than him and that's it's not fair since he was the one that rescued her.

About a month later alhaitham is very used to having a cat around. But he comes home one day to kaveh sounding desperate as he says "now don't be mad alhaitham but I couldn't leave the poor thing out all alone!" There was now a dog in the living room.

"kaveh. you can't bring a wild dog into our home!!"

"he's not wild! Look he's so tame and sweet" kaveh says this while petting the dog on the head.

Alhaitham sighs. "Are you sure he isn't someone's lost pet?"

"well... No I'm not sure but what was I supposed to do? Leave him there?"

"kaveh... Actually nevermind." And alhaitham turned to leave without another word. Kaveh wasn't sure if this meant he was fine to keep the dog but a little while later alhaitham returns.

"I asked around and I found the dogs owners."

Kaveh looked up slightly disappointed. "Oh... You did?"

"yes. They're coming by in a little while to pick him up."

And so kaveh had to give up the dog back to it's owners. And alhaitham told kaveh not to bring any more animals home and kaveh slightly protested but ended up agreeing.

Not even a few weeks later and this time it was a rabbit with an injured foot. That alhaitham ended up taking to the vet, leaving them to do the rest.

The time after that it was a fox. And alhaitham scolded kaveh for bringing a wild animal like that in their home. This kept happening for months where kaveh would feel bad for any lost or injured animals he found and alhaitham would be the one having to actually deal with them.

Finally after yet another animal alhaitham had reached his limit "kaveh. For the thousandth time I don't want you bringing animals in here!!"

"well what else am I supposed to do haitham? I can't just leave them there when I see them..."

Alhaitham loved how kind and caring kaveh was but sometimes it was too much. But he knew no matter how much he tried to reason with kaveh that just leaving it up to fate is the best option that he wouldn't listen. And so alhaitham came up with an idea

"kaveh what if I asked the akademiya for resources to build an animal rescue center. A place where lost or injured animals can be taken care of."

Kavehs eyes immediately lit up at this "really?! And you think they'll approve it??"

"only one way to find out"

And so with that the project did end up being approved and it was named "pita's rescue" and now whenever kaveh found animals, he had a place he could take them that wasn't his and alhaithams apartment. And kaveh was allowed to visit the rescue whenever he wanted and he also would help out when he was there. Alhaitham drops by every now and then but he mainly just goes to play with whatever cats are there at the time.

(i came up with this because I was explaining kaveh and alhaitham to my friend and I was talking about the desert event where kaveh ended up helping the foxes to his own detriment. and from what I remembered I think he almost passed out trying to help them. And then I had the thought he would definitely be the type to bring home animals and so yeah that's where this came from, hope y'all enjoyed it!)

[bulkyphrase]

Marvel Halloween Rec Week 2024 - Stony Tuesday

Day two of Halloween Rec week! Here are some of the best spooky Steve Rogers/Tony Stark I read this year.

How to Lose a Super Soldier in One Easy Step by and_backagain, jibrailis (Stony, Explicit, 18,248 words)

Summary: Rogers jerks backwards, shock registering on his face, and Tony thinks, welcome back to the land of the living, Cap, looks like you're sticking around. Or, a Pushing Daisies AU.

In Love with a Strict Machine by Carsonian (@carsonian) (Stony, Mature, 12,805 words)

Summary: After an honourable discharge from the War, Steve is relocated to a suburban neighbourhood where he stands out as the only Monster around. Soon after, T0ny, a Cyborg he knew briefly during the War, moves in next door. Steve's long carried a hidden flame for the man, and decides to take their paths reconnecting as a sign to finally make a move. (A.K.A. the Halloween fic where Steve is Frankenstein's monster, Tony is a cyborg, and they are pathologically drawn to each other.)

More below the cut!

The Moon and the Sea by dirigibleplumbing (@dirigibleplumbing) (Stony, Explicit, 81,058 words)

Summary: Steve has lived his whole life in the coastal California town of Nublado. He’s spent the last few years trying to move on from a traumatic event in his past, and he finds new joy when he befriends—and quickly falls for—reclusive local billionaire Tony Stark. Then Tony abruptly breaks things off and won’t reply when Steve reaches out. Steve’s friends Clint and Nat have his back, at least. But… is someone following him everywhere? What’s with the human teeth Steve and his friends found while they were out fishing? How did the Scarlet Witch know so much about him? And why are there so many crows around?

The Official Avengers Movie Night Movie Selection Bylaws by phenominable_snowman (@phenominablesnowman-blog) (Stony, Mature, 18,020 words)

Summary: It was just little things at first. Elevators opening on the wrong floor. Wild temperature fluctuations. An odd, glitchy babble from J.A.R.V.I.S. that went from amusing to annoying to alarming and then righted itself without explanation. Tony nursed a persistent migraine. His body ached. He slept, but he never felt rested. He was sure there was something lurking on the edge of his periphery, but whenever he gave in and looked, it was gone.

The Lost and the Wretched by Veldeia (@veldeia) (Stony, Teen And Up Audiences, 58,023 words)

Summary: After his reanimation, Tony has yet to find a reason to continue his existence that isn’t hatred or bitterness. After decades of captivity in Arcadia, Steve doesn’t know if he even has a soul anymore. When the vampires of the Covenant of the Shield organize a mission to rescue Steve, it is a new beginning for both of them.

so long, traveling song by Anonymous (Stony, Teen And Up Audiences, 7,672 words)

Summary: The gem burns hot, singing the tender skin in the center of his palm, and he can see the possibilities unfolding in technicolor around him. A thought, and he wouldn’t be able to feel the pain. A thought, and he’d tear the whole building to the ground, turn the Hudson River to coffee, rain frogs down from the sky, send clouds of locusts upon the hot dog vendors on the street. Wood splinters crunch underfoot as Tony walks slowly into the husk of the mansion, unworried about the possibility of it crumpling down on him. The problem with the place is that it refuses to stay as stagnant as his memories of it; rain has already began to bleach color from the exposed wood, the ceilings to bulge oddly under pressure. Stop, a voice somewhere far away warns him, something like the Watcher’s voice, something like Stephen’s. Stop now. A thought, and he can fix all of his worst mistakes. Possibilities shimmer effervescent in front of him, momentarily gold under the power of the gem. A thought, and he can make this better for everyone, make it a world worth living in. A thought, and he can come home. 

[mrpersikdream]

Okay, so i cant post on tiktok for ✨️russia✨️ reasons, and i dont know where else to put this but tumblr, so here we go

I have an idea on how to help families (and their dogs!!!) In Palestine

(❤️TLDR: read text in bold. Repost to tiktok if you can, please)

So we all know and love @ weratedogs on twitter (and most recently on tiktok).

They are a nice little acount with millions of subscribers on all their platforms. They regulary fundraise for dogs all over the world, but i couldnt help but notice the lack of speaking up on Palestinian gen0cide, and we dont tolerate that.

So basically my plan was to try and reach out to them and make them highlight a couple gofundmes that help doggos in Gaza and their families. Like, there are families with dogs there, there are kind people, bless their hearts, who still run shelters in theese conditions, and they need help too!!!

Like, i dont see a problem there. This would be intact with the theme of their profile - helping dogs in need. If they got a family with together their puppy out that would make for such a heartwarming story and make dog of the year! I see it as totaly doable.

But I cant make it alone. We need to all contact them in dms and via e-mail with messages and gofundme links, to the point where it would be impossible to ignore is anymore.

Contacting them is easy!

You could dm them on twitter, tiktok, wherever, or, i suggest, we all contact them via E-mail using their website:

I already DMed on tiktok and sent an E-Mail. Heres what i wrote. You can copy and paste if you dont wanna come up with your own:

Hey! I really love your profile and everything that you do for puppies and dogs, you seem like a really nice person. In the light of recent events i couldnt help but notice your lack of acknouledgement of the wая in Ра1еsт1ие.

I would love to bring to your attention that there are thousands of dogs in Gаза who need our help and thousands of families who have dogs who need money to get out. I found at leas 5 gofundmes just by searching "gаза dogs" on gofundme . com. You raise money for puppies in need all the time, and dogs and most importantly their owners in Ра1еsтiие need our help now more than ever.

Im sure you care for all the innocent lives lost there, but might be scared of public backlash. I assure you, whatever small thing you do would count. Even though the best time to speak out was months ago, second best time is NOW.

Here is one popular foundraiser i found on gofundme, but there are many, many more, less popular ones. If you speak about them that can make ALL the difference to those doggos

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-the-sulala-animal-rescue-in-gaza?qid=e7e0be6b60e9067a01da3aea85cfd66d

Thank you so much for your concideration

Now, I am not naive, and i know that it might turn out that @ weratedogs os a terrible person and just does not care, or worst, a z10n1st or something. But thats not the point right now. All that mattsrs is that we come together and try our best to convince them to advertise those gofundmes to their millions of followers, or tell stories of Pаlestinian doggos and their owners who are stuck in a terrible situation right now.

Thank you so much for staying this far and

REPOST TO TIKTOK IF YOU CAN!!!!

I cant post to international tiktok from Russia with my cracked version, so, please, if you have tiktok, TELL THEM MY IDEA and lets raid @ weratesogs' dms!!!!!

Love yall!!!! No freedom untill we are all free✊️

[meowmeowriley]

Rules: Post the names of all the files in your wip folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it! Tag as many people as you have WIPS!

If you saw the original, no you didn't. Lol sorry, had to do some housekeeping here on my blog, and had to redo this post.

Right well, here's the thing, I have way more WIPs than I do moots 😅 butttttt I'll drop what I've got. Please please please ask me about any of them! I'm begging for interaction!

1) Little Meow Meow - my first fic, it's not abandoned, catboy!Ghost is also unkillable and emo.

2) Poké-Pandemonium - Pokémon and secrets. Here soon I aim to make people cry with it ❤ (soon as in within the next couple of chapters, whenever I put them out)

3) More Than Just Loose Ends - 09 Ghost has been watching over and mentoring 22 Ghost his whole life

4) Oh, Brother - my most popular fic, told through the eyes of Erin MacTavish (John's sister) and Tommy Riley. Baby's first realistic and in character AU.

5) I Don't Think We're in Space Anymore - Ghost is a shape-shifting alien and also chaotic as fuck. And horny. Whoops.

6) Was tHat thE BiTe oF 22 - FNAF but all the characters are replaced with COD characters. It's my little abomination.

7) Be Kind, Rewind - Ghost is suddenly 10 years younger. Young dumb and full of cum. Seriously, being 19 means he's got that teenager horndog thing goin on.

On to the ones that haven't been posted yet

8) Duo Fatui - Unus Annus, but make it Soap and Ghost

9) Is That Gonna be a Problem? - Ghost and Soap met before the events of MW2, and were secretly together during the game. This is the story of their relationship.

10) Cohabitation - ghost!Ghost and Zombie!Ghost share one body. They're the same person, so it's not difficult. They banter like siblings.

11) Lost a Bet - Ghost lost a bet with Gaz, so Gaz gets to design his next mask. Gaz designs a cat skull mask, and Ghost bonds with a bunch of stray cats on base.

12) Outlaw Outta Time - some of the COD boys get sent back in time and meet up with a certain outlaw. COD RDR2 crossover. It's a fix it for Arthur ❤

13) unnamed fic about trans Ghost dropping hints that he's trans and Soap who thought he was straight being really confused by the boners he gets around Ghost.

14) unnamed fic about Soap thinking Ghost has a girlfriend, that they're on their way to rescue, when it is in fact a dog. Ghost is fully aware of the miscommunication and thinks it's funny, so he doesn't clarify

15) unnamed fic about Ghost and Soap getting sucked into our world a la Supernatural's The French Mistake. They have to pretend to be Samuel and Neil until they figure out how to get home

WHOO BOY! I think that's all of them. And they're all Ghost/Soap except the FNAF one, because they're children.

Mooties who aren't already on this list, no pressure though! @myriadblvck @27potatochips @resident-idiot-simp @tacticaltaxonomist @ratpiss0

[starshine-hockey-girl]

This blurb is for PrincessPhilly's lyric challenge in honor of her birthday. I selected lyrics from Heaven Sent by Keshia Cole for Brandon Tanev.

It is a reader insert and just under 1500 words.

@princessphilly @pattiemac1 @penstxgal1968

Bellevue, Washington

You listened as Brandon walked in the door of your shared high rise condo. The brief serenity while your loves- both human and furry- took their unending energy and activity for a walk ended abruptly. You smiled as his baritone voice boomed through the condo and he animatedly spoke to the excited pups. He talked to them as if they understood his words.

On the surface, the two of you made no sense as a couple. You, the quiet and reserved one, and he, the loud and bodacious one, seemed like polar opposites. However, you had one common characteristic that made it work- passion. You both had a passion for your work and an even greater passion for each other.

The relationship took both of you by surprise. When you joined your Seattle Reign teammates for a ceremonial puck drop at the Seattle Kraken hockey game, you were nursing a broken heart from your first and only serious relationship. You were the very definition of “not looking for love”. However, when you were introduced to Brandon Tanev and he pulled you into a hug with a loud proclamation of “YN! I am a big fan”, you felt the electricity almost at once. You stumbled back and smiled nervously. Then he flashed his bright smile and you were hooked. When he asked for your number before you left, you gave it without hesitation.

Eighteen months later, you stood in the bathroom listening to him speak to the dogs- Jett and Messi. His one request when you moved into the condo over the summer was to get a dog. Yes, that was the plan to adopt one dog. However, as you walked through the rescue adoption event, he went straight to the pair of adorable Yorkie terriers who chased each other through an enclosed play yard.

“What do you think, Y/N?” he looked back at you as you observed.

“You want a small dog?” you asked incredulously, “You have been searching for labs for weeks.”

“I don’t know. I think a smaller dog would be better in the condo,” he bent down to pick up the bigger of the pair. He held him up to his face. “Cute, eh?” he asked. You knew instantly that he was hooked and there would be no talking him out of the tiny dog.

“Baby,” you smiled as you bent down to pick up the smaller of the pair, “He has a little buddy. Someone needs to adopt them as a pair.” You had hoped that would serve as some sort of deterrent to the selection. It had the opposite effect.

“Someone being us, Y/N” he smiled. You opened your mouth to object when he started to plead his case. “Think about it. They already know each other and they will have a built-in playmate. They won’t be so lonely when we are at practice. I’ll have one for each side of me when I watch your road games and you watch mine.” He took both of them into his hands. He started speaking to them. “Yes, do you want to come live with us? We’ll teach you all about hockey and soccer,” he spoke animatedly before putting them down to start chasing them through the play yard. You groaned. He looked up and flashed you a smile. “Come on, YN- you know you can’t resist this cuteness.”

You smiled. He, of course, referred to the dogs but it was infectious energy that you could not resist. “Fine,” you said as you climbed into the play yard and picked up one of the pair, “But only if I get to name them.”

“No way,” he laughed, “You name one. I’ll name the other one.” He picked up the other dog and examined it closely. “What’s your name, buddy?” he asked if the dog would answer. “Jett?” he grinned as he bestowed the name of his first NHL team on to the Yorkie.

You looked at Jett's partner in crime, “Well okay, Messi- let’s go home.”

You were lost in the memory when you heard him bounding up the stairs. His footsteps were loud as he lept the stairs two at a time. The pitter patter of tiny paws tried their best to keep up with him. “Come on boys. Let’s go see YN,” he called as he reached the top of the steps, raced into the bedroom and slid on his sock-covered feet into the bathroom. You looked up at him in the mirror reflection. He held out a cup from your favorite coffee shop- the one he took you on your first unofficial date. “I thought you could use the extra caffeine tonight,” he smiled as he handed it to you.

You smiled and accepted the drink from him. “He knew,” you thought to yourself. He knew that the gala would require all of the social energy you had in you. Being in large crowds, entertaining and charming people came naturally to Brandon. To you, it was an effort. One that would need to be fueled by caffeine and his boisterous love. He walked up behind you, wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his chin on your shoulder. You shared a look in the mirror. The words were unspoken, but you heard them all the same, “I got you,” he spoke with his eyes, tender with emotion.

Then the moment abruptly ended when he swatted your bottom playfully, “Don’t worry. I got myself a triple espresso so I will be bouncing off the walls soon.”

“Brandon!” you laughed, “You do not need caffeine. Please tell me that you are joking. The world does not need a caffeinated Turbo.”

He looked back and smiled, “Oh, but I think it does.”

You went your separate ways. He went into the large, walk-in closet to get dressed in his suit. You stayed in the bathroom to put on your final touches of your hair and make-up. After you dressed in your dress with a slit cut high enough to emphasize your toned leg, you wandered down the stairs. The caffeine from Brandon’s drink had kicked in and he raced around the room in an elaborate game of chase with the dogs. He looked like a cross between a twirling tornado and Tasmanian devil. The game was getting out of control and he came dangerously close to knocking over your favorite floor vase as he sped by the fireplace. “Brandon,” you yelled as his hand knocked the vase over, “Why do you have to run around like a Tasmanian Devil? You are going to break something!” He used his lightning-fast reflexes to catch the vase before it hit the floor.

He swung around the couch and caught sight of you from the corner of his eyes. He stopped suddenly and stood with his mouth agape.

You looked down at your dress nervously, “No good?”

“Oh, it’s good,” he finally choked out, “It’s…..ummmm….. Yeah….. It’s uhhhhh” He searched for the words but could not find them. “You look like an angel,” he whispered when the words finally bubbled up in his brain, “You look like an angel sent from heaven.”

You blushed as he walked over to you. He looked at you in wonder, “just like the song.” He pulled you into a tight embrace as he instructed Alexa to play your song. https://open.spotify.com/track/2E90KUsor4U2abOJGFKtfx?si=1773701ad44c4836

He spun you around as the music filled the room.

I wanna be the one who you believe

In your heart is sent from (sent from heaven)

“You are, YN, you are,” he whispered as he gazed into your eyes, “I may be a Tasmanian Devil, but you are my angel sent from heaven. I love you so much.”

“Brandon….” you spoke softly, “I am no angel.”

“Yes, you are,” he kissed you softly before whispering against your lips, “You are my angel and I am so lucky to have you.”

“We’re lucky to have each other,” you whispered back. Suddenly he lifted you over his shoulder and carried you toward the door.

“BRANDON!” you squealed, “What are you doing you devil you!”

“I see you are embracing my identity, my angel,” he laughed as he grabbed your purse, “The sooner we get to this gala, the sooner we can come home. I can get that dress off of you and show you just how devilish I can be.”

“Is that a promise?” you laughed.

“It’s a damn guarantee,” he swatted your bottom and carried you out the door.

[patheticbatman]

The 52nd Win A Commission Contest was the film Napoleon (1995)! I wrote it in prose form in conjunction with my drawings (lmk if you think I should add the songs), so if you’d like to see that, please

Once upon a time, there was a golden retriever puppy, who had big dreams, and no idea how to reach them.

His mother had named him Muffin, but one day, he heard humans speak a name – Napoleon! – And knew that had to be his true name. In his soul, he knew his heart beat to a tune that was both more warlike and wild. Often he had even heard the howls of wild dogs. Unfortunately, no one else saw it like that, and his mother insisted on calling him Muffin.

It didn’t help that he was afraid of water. He told himself that while every warrior had his trials, there was no need to be afraid of the humans’ pool; he was bred for swimming. Still, he hesitated.

One day, the small human had a birthday party. Cruelly, but without malice – for many young creatures are oft inconsiderate – the child decided to show off Napoleon's adorable qualities by placing him on a turtle pool floaty. The puppy panicked. Then, in an even worse turn of events, the humans forgot he was there, and soon he floated to the middle of the pool – the stuff of nightmares for both him and his mother.

Thankfully, the floaty eventually made its way to the steps of the pool, and Napoleon rescued himself – though not before a balloon fell on his head.

Irritated, he chewed and slobbered on the various objects the children left by the poolside to assuage his ego.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something new to investigate - a basket, tied to a bunch of helium balloons. He crawled in, much to the chagrin of his mother. She asked him to get out immediately, but embarrassed and overfocused on asserting his bravery, he did not heed her commands. And as she was tied to the dog house, she could do nothing to enforce them.

His wiggling and jiggling as he sniffed all over the basket – it smelled and tasted like a child with a lightly sticky hands had been messing with it – he did not notice that the basket had come untethered. Only when he had righted himself, did he notice that the basket - and thus himself – were in fact, flying.

His mother pleaded with him to jump out, but the balloons rose too fast, and he was soon too high up to tumble out safely. Both parent and puppy were terrified, and she tried to assure her son that he would stuck get in the trees, and to just sit tight.

But through some twisted miracle, he floated into the open sky.

Trying to calm his nerves as his mother’s frantic barking grew fainter and the world underneath grew smaller, he sang a song of adventure. A warrior, a true, wild dog, must of course be able to make the best of bad situations.

Soon he floated out of the suburbs, and into Sydney, seeing the incredibly tall skyscrapers from above for the first time.

And just when he was starting to float down, and his hopes rose – for maybe some human could take him home! – His basket got caught on the front spike of a monorail train.

Speeding through the city, he enjoyed the wind in his face and the rush of people in cars below. Unfortunately, the train came to a stop, and his basket came loose, and once again, he was free - floating right towards the harbor. Water!

Soon, he was over open water, and the weight of the situation settled heavily on his poor heart. A plane passed overhead, but did not hear his pleas for rescue.

But a lost galah named Birdo did. Screeching and curious, but also cautious for the puppy, he encouraged Napoleon to sit more securely and balanced in the basket. However, Birdo was still a bird, and he had a bird-brained idea. As the two floated over a beach, Birdo started popping the balloons in an attempt to gradually lower Napoleon to land.

Bemused, for Napoleon did not quite follow the plan, he watched as the first popped balloon fell to the side of the basket. However, by the second, the basket began to worryingly shudder its way to the ground - and Napoleon was not close. Still, Birdo persisted.

Unfortunately, the fourth popped balloon was one too many, and the basket hurtled to the ground.

Horrified, Birdo screamed for Napoleon to jump out as the basket impacted, and then began bouncing and rolling violently down the windswept cliff. When the basket finally reached the bottom, Birdo feared the worst, for he saw no sign of the puppy.

But it was empty! Napoleon was on a rock ledge. He ridiculed Birdo, and the galah was both irritated at Napoleon's ingratitude, and worried over the puppy’s fate in the wild.

Napoleon, ignoring both his and Birdo’s fears, decided to embrace his situation and go look for wild dogs. He climbed up a different cliff to overlook a vast rainforest. Birdo warned him that house pets don’t survive out in the wild and said he should head home. Hearing the call of a wild dog, Napoleon ignored Birdo’s warnings and descended into the forest.

It was soon dark, but Napoleon wasn’t worried, making his way through the slender moonlit trees. High above him, a tawny frogmouth caught his attention and warned that housepets either died or became something monstrous to survive. Napoleon once again ignored the advice, believing that the frogmouth was merely trying to frighten him.

—

Eventually, Napoleon decided it was time to sleep. He had gone a long way today, and would likely have further to go.

Napoleon ran across a spider and asked her for a good place to sleep. She instead fished for a compliment about her web. Napoleon pointed out a mistake, panicked because it stuck to his nose, ran through the web and ruined some more of it with his tail. The spider was quite displeased.

Unconcerned, the puppy ventured forth, until he came to a great tree, with a tunnel running between its roots. Napoleon sniffed it, hoping that it could be his bed for the night, but found it to be someone’s home. Calling out in the hope of finding someone willing to share for the night, Napoleon did not notice a feral black cat watching him from above.

"Is that a mouse I hear?" the cat said rhetorically, stalking forward. Napoleon entered the tree roots. "Can’t have a mouse in my house." Napoleon munched on something inside. "Furry mouse. Big yellow mouse."

Napoleon thought he heard something but quickly turned back to the food.

"Time to rid my house of the mouse!” the cat said, coming into view.

"Huh? What?" Napoleon said, his wide, dark eyes shining against his pale yellow face.

"The mouse." The cat growled – whether or not in reply to Napoleon, only she would ever know. Her intense, yellow eyes squinted menacingly, her body barely standing out from the dark of the night.

Napoleon laughed nervously, panting. "Good thing I’m not a mouse."

"You can’t fool me with that pitiful disguise!" She crept forward and hissed. "I’ll RIP it off you!"

Napoleon tried to run, but the ribbon the birthday child had wrapped around his neck got caught. The cat growled, and the puppy ripped free, leaving the ribbon behind. She ran after him, in that flat, close to the ground way cats do, far more familiar with the landscape than he was.

He hid, hoping that a lack of movement would protect him from the grimalkin.

Unfortunately, he had hidden right next to a boulder, which was perfect for her to creep up, plan her attack, and then pounce on the unsuspecting Napoleon.

He ran into the forest, the cat catching him occasionally, and even once bowling him over. She chased him onto a log, crossing a small, muddy pond.

He froze when he realized he was stuck over water, and the cat taunted him.

“Listen to me. I am not a mouse. You are a deeply disturbed animal." Napoleon foolishly appealed to her sense of reason.

“Shuddup!” She snarled. Napoleon whimpered. "My job is to destroy all vermin in this house. The mouse must die, now!" She started biting at his face, hoping to knock him into the water.

The tawny frogmouth, who had been observing, took pity on Napoleon, and flew down, knocking the cat into the water.

Only bubbles rose.

The frogmouth scolded Napoleon, but he did not care, and mocked the spot where the cat fell in. Remembering his manners, Napoleon thanked the bird.

"That cat won’t rest until you’re dead,” It said.

"That cat is fishbait by now." The puppy scoffed, and ran away.

The cat rose out of the mud and swore revenge, but by then, Napoleon was far out of earshot.

—

Snuggled at the base of a tree, the sun rose, and Napoleon heard his mother say, "Rise and shine, Muffin. It’s a beautiful morning. Time to get up, Muffin. Wake up."

“Mom? Mommy?” He woke up, expecting his mom to be there, but was dismayed to find himself alone.

Shaking his sadness off, Napoleon scampered through the verdant rainforest, and congratulated himself for surviving his first night away from home. He came upon a waterfall, and sat stymied. Out loud he wondered why he was so afraid of water.

A bunch of rainbow lorikeets started mimicking him. In between taunts, they told him that the wild dogs are on the other side.

Soon, Napoleon’s desire to meet them won over his fear. He found a flat spot to cross, and the lorikeets mocked his progress. But he made it!

He met a much nicer lorikeet who confirmed his intel and sympathized with him over the rudeness of the others … which gave Napoleon an adorably wicked idea.

Crossing back over - for he was slightly distant desensitized to his fear of water by then – he tricked them into calling themselves stupid, and went on his way.

Eventually, he arrived in a less dense forest, and overhearing a suspicious sound, went to investigate.

In the clearing, on a slanted tree, was a koala.

Napoleon tried to growl at the koala, but he was nonplussed. After a little more boasting from Napoleon, the koala climbed down, unconcerned with the puppy’s antics as he followed behind his odd waddle on the ground.

Napoleon tried to goad the koala into climbing up a tree and spotting the wild dogs – for once again, he heard them, but could not seem to find them. The koala turned it back on him, and kept the fact that he couldn’t see farther than a meter in front of himself, until he was away from Napoleon's reach.

The puppy stalked away, irritated. That was when Birdo found him again. Napoleon immediately jumped on the chance of having a lookout, but accidentally insulted the galah instead.

He apologized and then ignored Birdo‘s advice about going home, instead, asking for wilderness survival skills.

Unfortunately, when trying to open up to Birdo, to convince the galah of his mission, Napoleon let slip that the that they called him ‘Muffin’ at home, near a dastardly frog, and the same taunting lorikeets from before, looking for revenge. On the spot, they came up with the whole song about how he should go home. Napoleon tried to bite the frog, but it plopped onto his head. Birdo, being a good friend, kept knocking the lorikeets off their perch, but they kept flying back.

Tail held high, Napoleon walked away from the twittering animals, and found a log floating in the water. Unthinkingly, he walked on, and was surprised when it detached from the shore and floated into a bay. Despite his dismay, he resolved to sit tight, and let it take him to the other shore, where he was headed anyway. Less work!

Of course, it ended up dead in the water.

Birdo, impatient and dedicated to keeping this dog alive if he wasn’t going to go home and save himself, decided to toughen Napoleon up. He swooped down and knocked the puppy into the water, encouraging him to doggy paddle.

Napoleon was surprised to find that he was really good at it – perhaps forgetting that he was literally a golden retriever. He still needed a little instruction on how to get up the bank, but he made it.

—

The first lesson to become a wild dog, Birdo decided, was food. They had reached a rocky area, overlooking mountains. Birdo lead Napoleon to a rocky hill, covered in dry grass. A chorus of rabbits briefly scattered into sight before hiding behind other boulders and grass.

"Do you want me to eat these?" Napoleon said incredulously. All he had ever eaten was his mother’s milk, dog food, and dropped human food.

“You want to eat," Birdo said, with no small amount of vicious glee in his voice, "You’ve got to learn to KILL!"

Napoleon's incredulity did not lift. But somehow, he was convinced to try. He wandered over to where the bunnies were flitting about.

Sadly, they moved so rapidly, Napoleon had trouble focusing on just one to catch. They sang as they escaped, aware that they had the upper paw, but unwilling to show anything other than caution.

Birdo sang in opposition, calling upon Napoleon's bloodlust and hunger to drive the puppy to kill. Napoleon managed to get one alone, and it sat huddled, mostly frozen to its own detriment, as the puppy engaged in rough play with its tremorous body. But the rabbit managed to gather its wits, and after it jumped on top of a rock, Napoleon lost interest.

Birdo scolded Napoleon, but eventually gave up on the bloody venture once the puppy found lichen to eat. It did not stop his complaints.

They moved to drier, flatter land. The next lesson, according to Birdo, was learning to discern whether an animal was dangerous or not.

Napoleon approached a wombat, but as soon as it caught sight of him, it ran away, screaming, "A house pet!"

Next, he found some quokkas, former victims of the cat. They were more friendly, but still shaken from the encounter. One’s ears were quite torn.

Birdo was satisfied, so they traveled onto some snow-topped mountains. Napoleon, who loved using his nose, remarked that snow made smelling more difficult. That did not stop him from smelling something unusual.

Birdo was uninterested. He felt that it was time to learn the third lesson, about the weather. In fact … he felt a huge storm coming.

The snow that sat on the trees shivered and fell. A large rumbling came ever closer. Then Birdo realized his mistake. The rumbling wasn’t a storm. It was brumbies!

"Run!" the bird screamed, and flew away, landing in a far tree.

As the feral horses thundered by, the bird realized with great dismay that he could no longer see his friend. He called out, but if there was an answer, the galah could not hear it.

Once the herd passed, Birdo fluttered down and searched amongst the trampled snow, panic rising. But Napoleon merely had slipped into a snow burrow.

Napoleon yelled at Birdo, for he had at least smelled the horses. Birdo protested, and it only made Napoleon angrier, vowing not to trust Birdos ‘faulty’ advice again, and ran down the mountain. His nose caught something, so the puppy paused for a moment, looking over the land below. "I smell sweets!” – Napoleon followed his nose to a field of what he thought was tall grass. Birdo followed, and tried to warn him what happens to fields of dry sugarcane.

Being a dog, and one irritated at Birdo, Napoleon ignored the warnings and followed his nose instead.

Napoleon ran into a red-bellied black snake, and was nearly drawn into its eyes, but Birdo’s worried screeching pulled him out of it.

The cane around him got hotter and hotter as he pushed further in. Then he smelled smoke. And where there is smoke, there is fire. Terrified, Napoleon trampled through the burning cane, skirting around blazes and coughing, while Birdo guided the puppy out with his voice.

Stumbling out of the cane, the two reunited joyfully, and Napoleon apologized.

Of course, that was when the cat caught up with them. Bird and puppy hurried away, the cat following close behind.

Surprisingly, they stumbled upon Birdo’s flock, whom he had been searching for these last few days. Birdo joyfully flew among his kin, screeching.

This gave enough distraction that the cat, not wanting to miss an opportunity to rid her ‘house’ of vermin, crept up on a tree full of galahs.

Happy for his friend, Napoleon wandered a gulley lined with red dirt, making slight fun of the reunited family as he passed underneath. By chance, Napoleon turned his head and saw the cat creeping up behind some of Birdo‘s cousins.

Napoleon had to yell repeatedly that the cat was behind them, their excitable din nearly causing their own demise. But the galahs noticed the cat and flew away in time.

Birdo didn’t see it that way, and scolded him. He hadn’t seen the cat, and only saw what he thought was Napoleon scaring his family away. He quickly changed his tune when the cat crept up behind him.

Napoleon sauntered away as the cat lay defeated in the tree, looking for Birdo. They soon found each other near a highway. Birdo failed to land on a traffic sign, and Napoleon refrained from commenting beyond a genuine query about his health, as Birdo delicately climbed onto his chosen perch.

"Where does this road go?" Napoleon asked.

"It leads to the shore, where you landed." said Birdo. "It can be one of the most dangerous places out here!"

The puppy shrugged him off, saying, "I know all about roads!"

This was when a tractor trailer truck came into view. Napoleon wisely got to one side, but then noticed a dark colored frilled-neck lizard, laying flat on the road. Desperately, he barked at the lizard, believing it to be asleep. He wanted to go into the road, to nudge it away from the path of danger, but Birdo and some of Napoleon's housepet instincts held him back.

The truck roared by, covering the poor lizard from sight. To Napoleon and Birdo surprise, once the truck passed, they saw the lizard lay unharmed.

Napoleon went forward to make sure that the lizard was all right.

"GO! AWAY!" snarled the lizard, terribly offended at Napoleon's proximity and concern. "THIS IS MY SPACE!" The lizard leapt threateningly into Napoleon’s face. Friendliness made Napoleon a little slow on the uptake, so he didn’t really walk away until the lizard leapt.

"Never expect gratitude from a cold blooded creature. Hah!" Birdo said, landing on the road to walk away with Napoleon.

Soon, they encountered dry shrublands. In between dull green plants with thin leaves, the red earth lay cracked and uneven.

Birdo urged Napoleon to go home, reminding the puppy that his family surely missed him.

Napoleon's eyes shined wetly, but he couldn’t ignore the call of the wild dogs. It was his lifelong dream, after all.

The two debated for a while, but Napoleon held fast, claiming it was a dog thing, and Birdo wouldn’t understand, but that he was grateful for all of Birdo’s help so far. They came to the edge of the desert, and both felt in their hearts that it was time to go their separate ways.

As evening fell, they sang a bittersweet duet of parting, and bid each other goodbye, wishing to meet again. Birdo flew off to rejoin his family, and Napoleon continued on his quest to find the wild dogs.

—

Napoleon followed along a narrow footpath.

A small, spiky animal groaned as it came his way, as if each step hurt. An echidna! Napoleon went over to say hi, but it dismissed him stingily, anticipating jokes about its appearance, and wishing to keep its potential water to itself. Napoleon assured it that he would share any water he found, but that didn’t seem to matter to the echidna. Then he made a poorly-timed pun, and the creature clumsily rolled into a small pit in sheer irritation.

The echidna begin to dig, though its small paws made for slow going. Napoleon helped, and the puppy quickly uncovered some water, and drank first, much to the echidna’s chagrin, complaining about germs.

Napoleon set off again, and found himself in the desert. Red sand laid burning, wind blown into long waves of dune lines, stretching on for desiccated kilometers. The puppy scampered across, as the gait afforded him less time for each paw to touch the scorching ground. Nevertheless, it hurt.

Brown mountains rimmed the stretch of land, and Napoleon kept along until he found a solitary tree, providing precious shade. There he rested among the dead branches bleached white like bones, when he spotted an odd animal.

It stood – as much as a lizard can stand – upon a shrubby hill, and howled and barked in a heart-sinkingly silly voice.

"That’s what I left home for?" The lizard barked some more as Napoleon stared on in disbelief.

Disconcertingly, the thing started approaching Napoleon, making odd gulping noises with each step it took.

"Were the wild dogs I’ve been hearing… that?” Napoleon had to make sure. He ran to the creature and asked.

Pleased with the attention, the goofy looking beast – which he came to realize was a perentie lizard - let out a long, ridiculous howl, ending in a guffaw. Without prompting, the lizard demonstrated his poorly rendered repertoire, which included cow noises.

Napoleon ran away, heartbroken and disillusioned, the lizard’s haunting "Moo. Moo. Moo. Moo. MOO!" echoing in his ears as he climbed up the mountains.

"I am such an idiot. All this time, I’ve been chasing after a barking lizard. There’s no wild dogs anywhere. I’ve been running after something that doesn’t even exist." He whimpered. "Now I’ve got no home. No wild life. I don’t have my mother. I don’t have the instinct to make it out here. I’m a dumb house pet.” He cried for a moment. “Who doesn’t know a retriever from a reptile. I don’t deserve the name Napoleon. Not a crumb like me." Then, with a sob, "I’m just a Muffin after all."

He kept running, racing along ridges, until at last he fell down from exhaustion.

—

When he came to, small creatures - rodents, or marsupials, he wasn’t sure - were running around, hiding in rock cracks and burrows. A few noticed him, and presumed him dead or soon to be. A rain storm loomed ever closer, and promised to sweep all incautious creatures away.

Napoleon got moving. He knew better now than to ignore their warnings. Sure enough, fat drops soon splattered the ground, and currents began to form as the water overtook the earth.

Running into a crevasse, desperately hoping to find himself a cranny or nook to press himself into until the flood was over, Napoleon stumbled into a cave that stretched upwards, away from the coming water.

It was still dry, the red soil still untouched by water that would turn it into a bland tan. Napoleon climbed upward, sniffing excitedly. A safe spot! And then, at the very top, a pale movement. Two other puppies!

"Mother? Is that you?" a sweet voice called out.

"Hello?" Napoleon couldn’t believe his eyes.

"A stranger! Get out, or we’ll attack!" a rougher one said. He knocked his sister down to Napoleon in the guise of a pounce.

They were creamy tan, with ears that were still floppy like his, but looked like they were going to lift up soon, likely into sharp points.

Nancy, for that was the girl puppy’s name, decided Napoleon was fine, and after clearing up that she and Syd (the other puppy) weren’t lost, that this was their home, she tried to play with Napoleon.

But it was not meant to be. A wave rushed into the cave, and soon caught up to where Napoleon and Nancy were standing, washing them away. Syd, safe on a rock shelf, screamed as his sister was thrown about, yelping. Napoleon managed to pull himself to sit on a rock shelf, a larger and stronger swimmer.

Napoleon took charge once he saw that Nancy was still in the water. He instructed her to keep talking, and to hold on.

Nancy disappeared for a moment, the boys’ hearts leaping into their throats. But then she reappeared on a rock, the water still lapping at her feet, threatening to catch her again.

Napoleon could feel his heart racing - all his troubles with water had lead right to this moment. He swam to Nancy’s rock, barely keeping his head above the water as lightning flashed and thunder rumbled.

But he made it! Too scared to swim, Napoleon coaxed Nancy onto his back. Confidence and a need to save her strengthened his paddles, as he pretended to be a boat, to distract her from panicking. Both stayed above water. He had a little trouble getting her onto the ‘dock’ -the rock shelf where her brother stood - but they managed.

And just as quickly as the rain had come, it stopped. And there, standing at the cave mouth, limned by the tentative sun, was a figure.

"It’s a wild dog!" exclaimed Napoleon in wonder.

"Of course it is. It’s our mother!" exclaimed Syd.

She shook the rainwater off, and smiled at the puppies.

"I’ve been with the wild dogs all along!" Napoleon couldn’t believe it.

In a comforting voice, the mother dingo said, "Syd. Nancy. Are you all right?" she panted. "Who is this?"

Shock at his own luck and a sudden drop in adrenaline hit Napoleon like a hammer, and he fainted.

—

He woke up hours later, with Nancy licking his face. After shrugging her off, and spotting her mother, he got straight to the point.

"Can I stay here with you? I want to be a wild dog."

"But what about your mother?" ask the dingo, her kind eyes watching from above.

"I want to live here. In the wild!" The other puppies pleaded his case too.

The mother dingo answered the only way she could: "Of course he can."

"I’m a wild dog. At last!"

All the puppies began to tussle out of sheer happiness.

—

The days passed by. The two dingo puppies played ‘Napoleon’ with the vanishing puddles, taking turns being rescued.

Both Napoleon and the mother watched over their antics. At the beginning, he would sometimes sit out of their games to make sure he did not tumble the other two puppies - being bigger and older, he could hurt them. But as time went on, he grew disillusioned with playing. For the last few days, he had not played at all, and only laid next to the dingo mother.

His new life in the wild didn’t quite satisfy him anymore. The thrill of living with real wild dogs was amazing, of course, but something felt missing. Napoleon thought it was just because they hadn’t started the more bloodthirsty aspects of the life, like fighting and hunting. But the dingo mother knew better, and so as she cuddled with the retriever puppy while he took a big nap, she made a plan.

—

"Wake up, Napoleon. Today is the day." She nudged him awake and led him out of the cave. “Come on, it will just be the two of us." She trotted it across a field of flat rocks, covered in red clay, and baked in the sun. Being unfamiliar with the terrain, Napoleon struggled to keep up, but was buoyed by enthusiasm.

"Tell me child; why did you leave home?" she asked.

"I wanted to go where there were no rules."

"And what did you find?" They crossed onto a plane of white sand.

"Well, I found that there were a lot of rules, about living with other animals, and being on your own."

Now they were walking parallel with the shore, black shells littering the ground. "And what did you want to do out here?"

“I wanted to hunt my food, and kill it!"

"And did you enjoy that?" Her voice continued to be kind.

"No. I ate moss instead." He confessed.

"Anything else you wanted?"

"Well, yeah! I wanted to stay up late and have fun all the time!"

"And did you? Have fun, all the time?" The two laid down, front paws ahead, watching as the sun bowed down to darkness.

“No. Sometimes it was scary. Lots of times I was alone."

"Then why do you want to be out here?"

"I want to be a wild dog! So I can be really brave and fearless!"

"But you’ve been that, all along. You couldn’t have come this far without being fearless. And it was YOUR bravery that saved Syd and Nancy." She paused, and then said, "In your heart, you’ve been a wild dog all along, Napoleon."

Their shadows grew long. "I guess I have!"

"Is there something more you want?".

"Well, yes."

"Tell me."

"I want – " Napoleon paused, for a moment, unsure if he was willing to say it. "I want to go home. I miss my mom."

"What if I told you I had a friend who could take you back?"

"Really?!"

"Come along." The sun‘s last rays lit the two dogs as they went back to the cave one last time.

—

The next day, Napoleon was treated to what was possibly the most inane song in existence as he rode in a red kangaroo’s pouch. Repeatedly, Napoleon was smashed full in the face with tall, bristly bushes and narrowly evaded what should have been easily avoided obstacles, such as trees. He called for help several times, but to no avail, as the kangaroo crooned to her ‘possum’. He tried hiding his face, but it didn’t fit well in the pouch.

As soon as she stopped, Napoleon hurried out and into the forest, to get away from her insanity. Somehow, he ran into the same koala as before.

"Well, well, " the koala drawled.

"Oh no, not him again!" Groaned the puppy.

"If it isn’t my favorite dining companion, the wild dog himself."

"No! I’m Napoleon! Wild house pet! Conqueror of the outback, and the backyard!" Napoleon declared, sure of himself.

“I can run fearless across waterfalls!" he yelled as he did just that.

The lorikeets, who still didn’t have anything better to do, mimicked him. "Little birds suck!" Was all he said, tricking them into insulting themselves once again.

Soon he was back at the beach where he first arrived. "Now what do I do?" he said, clambering over the rocks and pebbles that lined the shore. He could see home! But how was he to get across? Then he spotted his basket, a little worse for the wear, but still floating, and felt triumphant. He went over to the tide pool where it rested, bobbing occasionally with eddies of the waves.

But instead of it being empty, as he had assumed, a New Zealand Adélie penguin popped his head out! It was nearly full grown, but was still small and round.

They argued a bit, but the puppy was able to assert ownership over the basket, and then they fell to talking. As Conan the penguin kept extolling his fierce nature and super–penguin abilities, Napoleon had to laugh; the little bird was exactly like him at the beginning of his journey!

Conan’s speech started to turn dangerous, so Napoleon decided to tell his own story, hoping to help the penguin avoid his own mistakes.

—

By the time he finished, an unconvinced Conan stood watch as Napoleon struggled to climb into the basket – the plan was that he would be carried out into the bay at high tide during midnight. But the penguins' bravado dissolved as soon as he saw his family.

"Pengy!” a raucous voice called out. Conan tried to hide, but as his mother just called out “Pengy!” again, he reluctantly turned to face them. Napoleon laughed at the silly name.

Terribly embarrassed, Conan waddled up a dune to escape, only to find his family already there.

Apologetic, Napoleon convinced the family that he could persuade Conan to go home. He felt bad for making fun of Conan’s name, but still thought it best to try and stop any so-called adventuring – even going so far as to continue to call him Pengy.

Napoleon climbed into the basket before Conan could, annoying the penguin.

"It’s my turn to howl! You’ve had your fun!" said the penguin, who then howled in a goofy manner. Conan began waddling up a hill, continuing to monologue about his future adventures.

There was a low rumble. At first, it sounded like a vicious wind blowing through trees, but it soon transformed into a noise Napoleon knew and dreaded. It came from the hilltop.

"That sounds… Could it be?" Napoleon tilted his head in hopeful confusion. "Hello, is somebody else up here?"

Rocks fell. Napoleon knew it had to be her. "She’s back!" he yelped, voice high with fear.

Lightning illuminated a black figure, stalking downhill. Unconcerned and unaware, Conan carelessly looked for the cat, peering down and making empty threats, as the predator gazed from above. Thunder rolled, and again, the cat growled.

Napoleon scrambled out and up the hill. He couldn’t let that dumb bird die!

"Time to rid my house of the mouse!" the cat announced.

Finally, seeing her, Conan, ignorant of his impending mortality at the claws of the creature above, suavely said, "All right. Come on! Let’s go, hunt down a few."

"But I’ve already found one! An unusual, black and white mouse."

Napoleon finally arrived. "Leave the penguin alone!"

"Well, if it isn’t the Muffin mouse!", she hissed. "The mouse dies!" She lashed out at him, claws outstretched.

Finally getting a clue, Conan waddled away. “Well. There is such a thing as too much adventure!"

“Just you and me, wacko!" Napoleon challenged.

"Seems unfair, nine lives against one," the cat quipped.

Within his head, Napoleon quickly came up with a plan to get her into the water, where the cat seemed much less of a threat. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty!" he called, while backing closer to the water.

Showing her absolute detachment from reality, she followed his call. As both walked across constantly wave–beaten slippery rocks, one hit her body, and she slipped off the rock, yelling.

"Bull’s-eye!" Napoleon yelled, then gasped as he saw the drenched cat hissing from behind another rock.

"You’ll pay for that!" she vowed.

"Okay, it’s payday!" Napoleon ran up a hill.

The cat shook herself and followed.

"Come on!" he taunted. "Come after me!" Napoleon slipped and loosened some rocks, sending them tumbling at the cat's face.

"No!" she wailed, unable to stop as the rocks underneath her paws became loose and pulled her now towards the edge. "Kill! No!" she hooked a paw on the ledge as more rocks tumbled down, persistent to the last.

"Running out of lives?" Napoleon said unsympathetically.

"I still have many more!" Her paw was slipping. "Come, let me slash you!"

“Happy landings!"

"Slash you with-" She shrieked, falling to the dark depths below.

Napoleon pulled himself to the peak, and looked down at the tumultuous water. "I knew that cat was on the edge." The waves raged on. "Look at that! Guess she used up her lives." Suddenly, he remembered Conan. "But what about that penguin? Hey Pengy, you down there?"

The cat watched the golden figure from behind, hate burning in her eyes. She hissed, and Napoleon sent a glance her way, but he must have not seen her, for she she was able to rush behind and headbutt him off the cliff.

She laughed at the puppy stuck on the ledge below. "That’s it! No more games."

"Games?!" exclaimed Napoleon incredulously.

The cat encouraged the puppy to jump to his blue death; the waves beat mercilessly upon the shore.

He refused and tried to appeal to their common background; after all, weren’t they both just lost house pets?

She hissed and crept her way down to him, telling him to shut up and boxing his ears. It was looking a bit dire.

“Hey, ‘fraidy cat!" called Conan from further down. No way was he going to let some cat hurt his friend!

This distracted the cat just enough for Napoleon to push her off the ledge and into the basket waiting below.

She laughed maniacally as the impact of her fall dislodged the basket from the rocks and pulled her out into the bay.

Conan jeered.

From the ledge, Napoleon heard a howl. Looking up, he saw the spirit of a wild dog; and just as soon as it appeared, it was gone.

"I really am a wild dog, " he murmured in awe. But his awe soon drained; forlornly he watched his way home disappear, yowling into the night.

—

Morning came.

Conan questioned Napoleon's plan to get home, but the puppy had no idea what to do. He was very distraught.

Then Conan spotted something, approaching them from the water. A green sea turtle, with something … on its back?

It was Birdo!

Puppy and galah reunited, Napoleon agreed that his friend was right all along, and Birdo brought good news. He had found Napoleon a way home!

As Napoleon stood on the turtle’s back, letting it take him back to Sydney, he bid his friends goodbye, reminding them to come visit soon.

—

Running, running, running, Napoleon made his way home. His tail wagged like a propeller as he saw a familiar yard.

"Mum! Mum! Mum! Mummy!"

His mother, who had just a moment before had been slumped mournfully, stepped out of her dog house and began a full body wag. “Muffin? Is that you?!" She couldn’t believe her ears.

"Mum! Mummy!"

She scanned the yard, but could not see her baby.

"Mum!"

“Well come here!" she said desperately. "Come here! Let me put my paws around you!"

His little head peeked over the patio wall. "Mum! It's me! I’m back! You wouldn’t believe where I’ve been!" He put his front paws on top of the wall.

She spun around, unable to contain herself, held back by the rope attached to the doghouse. "Come here! You didn’t get hurt, did you? What happened to you!?"

Maddeningly, he came no closer. "What happened? Everything happened to me!"

"Careful! You can’t get over that wall!”

"Are you kidding? Piece of cake!" He leapt down, and ran to his mother, nearly smashing into her face out of sheer exuberance.

They jumped and tumbled and kissed joyfully, relief and love filling their hearts. Mother refused to let son out of her grasp and finally, the world was right again.

"Muffin, I want you to promise me you’ll never run away like that again."

"I won’t. And I want you to promise me something."

His mother laughed. "Anything darling, anything."

"I want you to call me Napoleon."

"From now on, you’re my Napoleon."

—

Nobody noticed the cat peering over the wall. "Ah, not a mouse. A dog! Dog must die!"

Napoleon Explanation

So this was a story that took me a long, long time. It’s definitely my longest adaption of film, tv or podcasts yet - and I hope it stays that way! The adaption ended up a little dry, but I feel that I was able to describe the events effectively, and utilize the dialogue (the hardest part to adapt) sparingly but appropriately. At the beginning of my transcription, I tried to avoid any dialogue at all, but oh well. This covers the entire movie, a movie without any books or scripts to help me avoid typing.

Last summer, 2023, I had the job of Lost Parents. That basically meant I’m the person lost children are brought to if the security guards can’t find their parents right away. Eventually, a security guard brings the guardians, or the guardians come themselves, and pick up the kid(s). Which is all fine and dandy, especially since I don’t have kids for most of the shift. Kids have stayed with me for over two hours, but usually they’re gone within half an hour and I’m rarely brought any in the mornings. So I get projects like these done!

The movie is on youtube (see link), so over several days I slowly worked through it and wrote out all relevant details into a notebook (I find writing easier if I start in a notebook and type it into a document later - if I just start on a document I never finish. Plus I wasn’t really supposed to have my phone out, and switching between apps is annoying). Then I typed it up - often via voice-to-text, unless I was recording dialogue. For some reason, the program does not recognize quotation marks very often. Then I fixed it up and whalla! What you see above is what I wrote!

But I didn’t finish editing it until after that summer, because I was more interested in drawing the pictures. In fact, drawing the title picture was the first thing I did!

To be honest, I often drew the title pictures well before anything else. They were easy.

This title picture was in reference to the old VHS cover I used to have for this movie. It’s an Australian movie, so they speak English, but for some reason they released an American dub and released it over here. So I’ve loved this movie ever since I could remember. But the balloon scenes were iconic, so of course I had to include it. Especially since I decided this adaption would only have four pictures total. As I wanted to save my labor for my more original projects, and because this was a movie, it has less pictures.

The second picture is Napoleon getting chased by the cat. It used to scare me as a kid, so I always had a clear picture of it in my head. Plus, it serves to contrast Napoleon’s bravery in later scenes.

The third picture is Napoleon saving Nancy. I basically just wanted to draw all the puppies and Napoleon being brave. So we ended up with that part!

Last is Napoleon and Pengy/Conan looking up at the wild dog spirit. It’s the least accurate picture, but one I felt fit well. In the movie, Napoleon and Pengy look up to see a wild dog on top of a cliff who gets swept away by mist. But considering that they were still up on the high parts of the cliff at the end of the fight, the timing and location doesn’t quite make sense. And drawing *lineart* of mist is hard with my style, and requires more texture than fits in line with my most recent coloring book drawings. Way back at the beginning, I used to add details like shading, lines of hair and such, but that gets in the way of coloring, so I stopped. As such, I adapted it to fit my needs. Now Napoleon and Pengy/Conan are in the shot (I wanted to include both), and the wild dog spirit is in the clods and stars! I’m decided that the storm went away.

The Pengy vs. Conan thing was something of which I struggled when writing the last part. I support chosen names, especially when the old names totally don’t fit anymore. Hell, Napoleon insists on being Napoleon right to the end! But I decided since this was basically from his viewpoint, he would not call the penguin Conan, not even in his head. For the rest of the movie, after all, he calls the penguin Pengy. So while this choice does not reflect my preferences, I think it does reflect Napoleon’s.

Last thought: the setting of this story is genuinely fantasy. I think the creators wanted to go for a pan-Australian vibe; so many different ecosystems from across the continent are shown in the film. This means, of course, that Napoleon went to a fantasy kind of island across from the city though. There is nowhere in Australia where ALL of those environments are present. If he truly walked the entirety of Australia, a continent, he would have been a grown dog well before the end of the movie. But since he is still a puppy by the end, that just means he went to a fantasy Australia. Which is kind of cool.

Hope you enjoyed, and please check the movie out!