#man now that i'm an adult with a job it is nice being able to get digimon things

[skydigiblogs]

AAAAAA NOT ONLY DID MY DX COLO COME IN, SO DID MY BOX SET OF APPMON AND A CHERUBIMON CARD I ORDERED!!!

YAHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[lukazade]

Foreword: it's all just my opinion! Don't freak out! Don't worry! Listen if you want, don't listen if you don't! Discuss if you want, don't if you don't! Awesome! Also man it's wordy I'm sorry!

Ok I know we've talked about zooble trans allegory and yes, agree, however. I think it's also like, something about acceptance and adjustment as a whole concept. A feeling of self actualisation,, or something. I'm gonna talk about masking now!

Some characters have adjusted implicitly to the circus (Ragatha, Jax), some have brute-force adjusted (Kinger, Pomni), and some have adjusted by refitting to their environment as it changes (Zooble, Gangle).

What I mean to say is this hints at their past lives a little more (to me);

Ragatha and Jax

Ragatha and Jax are what I would call perfect maskers. The type who do it so well they fool themselves - the type who have the sort of trauma that just can't be given to an adult. It's entwined into your birthright. Ragatha has always come across as having "eldest daughter syndrome" (if you're not sure what I mean by this, look it up!) and Jax chooses destruction and cruelty in his every play (I know men who do not know how to be Nice to others and can only bully and demean the people they even genuinely like, because of toxic masculinity being ingrained in the very fabric of being A Boy in this world- yadda yadda yawn) (note: this still makes them suck and please don't forgive people who say "this is just how I am" when they hurt you just because of whatever they've been through. You are now going through it for them.) but they don't come across as genuine. Neither of them feel genuine.

Jax wants everyone to enjoy his "banter" and thinks that them reacting is similar to them enjoying. They're partaking, after all. He doesn't like when people aren't playing along with him, but they don't play with him because his playstyle is cruelty. He's compelled to be mean. And he needs you to respond in his language - his language that is obscene and hurtful. And it gets worse as you engage with it, because he's playing with you. And not necessarily to hurt you. Just.. to hurt you. You feel me? It's a game. It's not real. Why would it upset you? Lighten up.

Ragatha wants the same, in a way. She wants to play house (needs to) because eldest daughters can never stop playing house. They've been doing it since the second the younger sibling was born. Perhaps even parented a parent, with no siblings at all to speak of. They start the job so young that they do not live in reality. They're playing house. They're the mother. And Pomni is literally child shaped, so of course she wants to nurture and care for her. And of course she wants to care for everyone, because that's what she knows how to do; she can't accept thanks for it because of course she'll take care of you. She'll take care of everything. It's nothing to be thanked for. And Pomni is her child but also,,, she's not actually. That's not her child or even A child. She'll parent her as a way to show her love, right down to, "she's too busy flirting with gummigoo to be with us, wish someone would flirt with me" (aka: "she doesn't love mommy anymore, she's abandoning mommy and growing up"). We aren't going to travel this path further in this post but if you're a freak who wants to explore it feel free! Heck. Maybe you already have explored it! Life's crazy.

Anyway. They hate each other, (Ragatha and Jax) but they get along because they're both able to, weirdly, find common ground. Ragatha gets to bite at him in an angry housewife way. He gets to bite at her because she bites back. They let off steam by arguing, where he tends to play defence to her offence, when you might assume a nasty rude cruel guy would raise his voice and deny her the right to do so. I won't go further here either because I lack evidence the deeper I go rotating these two in my mind. My evil otp. Sorry Ragatha I think you're a lesbian having weird things with Pom but you're part of my evil otp with nasty Jax because you're parallels of what the world does to its eldest sons and daughters sorreeeeey.

Pomni and Kinger

These two are. They're rotating in my mind. Yeah. Yeah they are, right there. The child he never got to have, the father figure she evidently yearns for.

These two are the type who don't adjust well. They don't mask well. They can't hold it in and lie about things, and when they do they fall apart.

Pomni is in the early stages of a new environment - she can't blend into it all even though she looks the most like a circus act. She tries, but the way it drives her up the wall, the way every good moment is also a moment waiting to strike, she can't. Until the moments she can. When it's quiet, when people are acting normal, when she's alone somewhere and can functionally talk about it. And then she's. Fine. She blends, she matches. She's just in hell, just in the circus. It's okay though.

But there's only so much talking things out can do, especially when you're stuck somewhere that actively traumatises you. Going back to therapy won't stop the bad things from happening, and so she'll loop again and again until... well, who knows! I hope we find out!

Kinger my beloved that killed his wife (?) either beforehand (while alive) OR believes so because he watched her abstract in front of him, and confused it with killing her. Who knows. His real life and his life in the circus are one and the same, he can't pick them apart. Because he never did adjust. It all slams into him every time, he needs that quiet, dark, emotional place that Pomni is still reaching for. But he has accepted that he doesn't fit and can't reach. He's literally a piece from a set. A set with no other pieces. Nobody else is from a set; Pomni maybe counts as part of a Circus Objects set. But she is in a circus. She might be able to adjust with time; Kinger does not fit. Cannot adjust. An outsider who (if we're to believe that was his life, in the haunted house ep) was paranoid and lived away from society (with the one matching set piece that he got to have, his queen). And in killing her, lost his ability to be in a set. To have kids. Uh. Pawns if you will. He has no place, and though he cannot truly adjust, though he remembers himself fairly easily in private (something the best maskers don't necessarily get to have; whew boy let me tell you sometimes the mask feels more real than the skin!!), he has accepted it. He has adjusted. Episode 3 there's so much more in you that I'm not seeing.. there's more I should be able to see.. idk what though. But he knew it was his own life. 100%. Also I believe in ep 4 gummigoo remembered his past life as an NPC v.1 idk where else to say that tho. I'm putting it here I believe.

And now we nearly reach the end! Are you still with me folks? And do you like my informal writing style? Thanks! University hated it! I'm shocked that I have a degree!

Zooble and Gangle

These two literally in canon adapt and change themselves to fit in. They're not perfect maskers, but they're also not the type who can't mask. The perfect maskers need their situation to gradually change, the ones who can't mask need things not to change. But change is in the nature of these two. Adapting is what they do. Gangle literally changes her mask right in front of others (think.. code-switching? I guess!) Zooble offers her a mask she thinks might help. Changes up her limb pieces. They are adaptable. But they diverge.

Zooble steps out of anything she doesn't want to do, anything she can't handle, but this is because she is constantly trying to find the right "body parts." She is so interested in the introspective, in the self, that the affectation of the outside just slides right off her. Jax wishes! She is able to ignore everything because the most important thing to her is her sense of self. Never mind how it fits in with others. Her apathy is only for things that cannot help her - she holds empathy and gentleness deep within herself, and gives it to those who care or relate to her struggle. She isn't close to the Perfect Maskers because they fundamentally cannot understand her (Ragatha wants to just go with it and let each adventure play out and end. Over and over. Something to do. // Zooble doesn't want to be distracted from the self actualisation of finding her "correct" body parts. Adventure outside is nothing for her (literally episode 4 couldn't touch her lmao she just did her job good for her)).

And Gangle. Oh sweet Gangle. Ever the bottom of the dog pile, ever the hurt and wounded one, needs to be loved, wants to be loved, but can't ask. So instead she matches her mask to what the people need (or to a tantrum that perhaps This Time someone will care about, maybe, please). Gangle gets to be in charge in ep 4 and immediately becomes Boss From Hell. This is a person who wants to have attention paid to her, but also who feels undeserving or too unimportant. So when given control, of course she doesn't know how to do it in a way that works. It just isn't in her wheelhouse! And whew, everyone has caused heaps of trouble during the circus, but the one time she causes chaos, she blames herself and settles away outside of the group. But she is trying to pursue a sense of self by trying different masks, trying different ways to fit in. She can mask, and will mask, but her sense of self claws out. Her emotional, sensitive self. Tears of a crybaby are easy to write off. Contentment/happiness are even easier to write off. But uncomfortable emotions beg to be seen and heard. Manic mask(?) was extreme in a way that is uncomfortable for the others, and for herself, as it caused a weird little freaky outburst (like anger, jealousy, etc - they result in choice words and actions fairly often). I said good for her even while I was scared of her ngl good for her for real. She can mask fine, she just doesn't truly want to. She does, to make things work. But it's clear from the beginning that masking is just a gimmick to play along and feel part of something, it's clear she's just aching to feel something real and honest. And, just as Ragatha/Jax and Zooble can't get along, Gangle also can't get along with them; she isn't good at playing house. They both aren't into playing house, they want to express something real, either through correct body parts, or through hobbies (like art).

These groups fundamentally form and overlap where they intersect. There are dynamics that are clear, and dynamics that are untapped. Those who can play house, those who won't play house, and those who don't even know what street the dang house is on.

In conclusion

Shit I'm bad at conclusions..

TL;DR

That sounds less daunting. The characters all represent something to me that I think is cool :) and also may not matter at all in the grander scheme! I am always trying to think of the "what do they want" concept when they interact with adventures/caine/each other. Jax is the most interesting to me because he's the best masker on the team. "But he's just like that" you cry. No~ there's something that does that, even if it's nothing you notice. Breathing in tobacco smoke can still give you lung diseases - even if you didn't smoke! Kinger is my fav though uwu I'm an Ice King enthusiast ofc I'm gonna pick up another traumatised and confused old man he's in my basket rn as we speak.

Anyway hope you enjoyed my writing style, this is just how I like to talk. And I felt it was on theme with the vibes of the show hahahaha hope you had fun - also it's 1am, forgive me if I went off topic like 60 times 🥰 I swear I had something to say!

[cmdrfupa]

i. Not Today

Toji x Reader

Working alone was always the rule. No one to slow you down when you had to run and no one for him to save when shit hit the fan. That's until the best in the game were needed together.

Former Mercenary/Hitman Toji Fushiguro only wants to make enough to disappear in the next year as the job is no longer worth the risk. You’ve found a way to just enjoy the thrill of the con as a professional grifter and former mafia fixer. Now forced to find out just how deep the world of art dealings goes as your next mark is far more twisted than you realized.

an: I wish I could tell you that I'll stop thinking about Toji but we know that’ll never happen. I've been revisiting games and media lately where the lead is some former army man with little to lose and I saw our dark-haired dilf immediately. Something felt right about it and here we are! A JJK AU where some of our faves will make an appearance.

CW for the series: adult themes, use of alcohol and drugs, sexual undertones, violence, full blown mature themes. Will be updated as necessary.

Dividers from the lovely @/saradika-graphics

Shiu made the mistake of scheduling Toji’s meeting at the same time as yours. He says your meeting was the mistake but let's be real. 

The only thing you wanted to do was avoid the smug bastard in the hallway. Which worked til now.

“Kong. I know I owe you, but this can't be what you're cashing in on.” the up and down you gave Toji made him grin.

“Ouch, princess. What if I'm the man you've been waiting for?”

“Then I’ll off myself and try again in my next reincarnation. Kong.” you looked back over to your already stressed friend of over a decade.

“Sorry kid. I need the best and both of you are my best. It won’t hurt to play nice.”  Shiu opened a fresh pack of cigarettes, effortlessly shaking one out and putting it in his mouth. 

Toji grabbed the lighter, igniting the flame for Shiu. “If you’re worried about your safety, you’re safe with me, doll face. It’s only for one night.” 

Bewildered was an understatement as Shiu shook his head, “A month.” 

“No can do, Shi. A month is fucking nuts.” 

You smiled, sitting on Shiu’s desk as Toji paced to the window. “Worried I won’t be able to protect you, Prince Charming? You're safe with me.” 

If the daggers in his eyes had their way, you would’ve felt them pierce your chest. “You’re cute but don’t push me.”

“Is someone getting angys?”

“Angys? Are you a child?”

“No, but I can beat your ass like a grown man.”

Grabbing the largest book on his desk, Shiu slammed it down with little effort. “Fucks sake, shut up. The both of you.” 

You swiftly jumped off his desk, shifting your attention back to the cigarette hanging from his lips, Toji came and stood beside you. It began to feel like a disciplinary meeting with the headmaster. 

“Look. It's a month-long job minimum. Per diem with an 800,000 payout at the end. They need a charmer and a fucking beast to retrieve some goods and get intel so you two need to work as a couple to get this done. Either you both take it, or it's off the table and you won't have shit to do for the next 3 months.”

“800 split?” you questioned.

“No. Per person.” 

800,000 would give you a more than comfy cushion to sit on for maybe a month. Then you'd get tired of the cushion and beg Shiu for something to keep you busy. There was never an end to the thrill of scamming the ultra-rich and occasionally watching the life drain from a few. 

“I will not be your babysitter during this. You're a grown-ass woman and I refuse to have a brat slow me down. Understood?”

He was so pretty in the off-white cable-knit sweater that swallowed him but that mouth was going to have you punching his throat in a matter of minutes. 

“I'm willing to do the job as long as your chained puppy can treat me like an adult. I can handle myself.” 

“Already the first steps towards being a loving couple. You're gonna be fine, kids.” Shiu stepped between you two, smiling as if he were a proud parent. He squeezed your shoulders. “Everything you need will be sent over in 2 hours. I have the twins working on your background stories and covers. You leave at the end of the week.”

Strength. Resilience. Mindfulness. Breathe.

“Why don't we get matching shirts so they know that you're mine? Sound good, sweetie?" The vibrato in the pet name gave your resolve a run for its money. Fortunately, the smug look on his face once you looked at him dried you back up. 

“Yeah! I think ‘I’m with dumbass’ would look cute in bubble letters on a baby tee, no?” 

The flight was more than perfect. Business class with every accommodation known to man thanks to Shiu knowing you would never do anything less. You settled into the second half of your flight preparing to get a little rest before landing. 

“Toji? Can you wake me when they come around with dining options?” you lowered the partition to find Toji intently reading a home improvement magazine.

“Just tell me what you want and I’ll order so I can wake you when it's here.”

“I don't know what they'll be serving. Just wake me—”

“There's an International and Japanese cuisine menu. Either beef filet steak with a red wine sauce and a side autumn plate or pasta gratin with chum salmon & black truffles with roasted pumpkin.” finally looking up from the magazine, his deadpan gaze met your face. “The Japanese cuisine has Wagyu curry with eggplant and mitsuba and sansho peppers or grilled black cod, a crab omelet with grilled shiitake and taro. What sounds good.” 

Taken aback, you bat your lashes trying to digest this robotic answer to your request.

“Did you not hear me?” 

“I did. You just.. Did you study the menu or something.” you rolled the partition down completely, studying the expressionless man. 

“It rolled across the screen earlier and I took a mental note of it. So, can you tell me so I can tell the cute attendant when I call for her to come back? She's a busy woman.” 

A sigh so deep you felt your nervous system reboot as you rolled your eyes. 

“Tell your girlfriend I’d like the grilled black cod meal please.”

“Will do. I'll try to get you an extra omelet for being such a supportive wife as I date around. Thank you, sweetheart.” Toji winked and rolled up the partition with a grin like a Cheshire cat spread across his mug. “Sweet dreams.” 

“You’ve gotta hurry up, doll face. The race starts in 30 minutes and the driver is pulling up any minute now. Let's go” Toji yelled through the hall as he made his way to your room in the villa. His loafers lightly clacked along the polished granite floors as he walked into your room. “You don't need a whole canister of paint for makeup. Just put some blush on and let's get moving.” 

“Can’t rush perfection, Fushiguro. And I'm just putting on my earrings. Relax.” you popped your head from the bathroom and raised your brows. “Wow. You clean up nicely. I thought you could only wear those tight-ass Uniqlo t-shirts.” 

A crisp, light blue button-down that could only do so much to hide his muscular build, and a pair of deep indigo chino pants to round off the fit. “Funny. Now can you please come on? We’re on a time crunch and I don't want to be around those old rotting money bags for longer than necessary.” 

Rolling your eyes as you went back to looking in the mirror one more time, you walked out to the bedroom. “Alright. Let's go.” 

Toji didn't have to say anything when his eyes did the talking for him. “You gotta wear shit like this more often. I'll be more open to actually listening to your words if you do.” 

You grimaced as you walked past him to the front door. “Please stop talking.” You smiled as you walked out, the driver holding the car door open as you gave him a warm thank you before sliding in.

Toji got in behind you, getting strapped in as you did. When given the clear, the driver pulled off. 

 “Doll face.”

“What, Toji.”

“Being married to you is fun. Best open relationship ever.”

Toji winked before going through his phone, going over the files one more time.

  “God. If you exist, please turn this shit over right now,” you whined as the car whirled down the road.

The sun hangs high over Monza’s glittering skyline, casting a golden sheen over the harbor and its rows of yachts. The thunderous roar of F1 engines echoed through the streets, as sleek cars zip past. The race is in full swing, but the real spectacle isn't on the track—it's in the VIP section.

The third row to the left of the podium sat your target: KK. 

Notorious organized crime affiliation who tends to dabble in high-stakes art deals, illicit trades, and other illegal acts. 

He smiled like a kid in a candy store watching how everyone tried to please his every desire. Two men stood behind him as he continued to conversate with the crowd around him.  

You both weaved through the crowd with practiced grace. Toji exchanges pleasantries with a collector while you check your reflection in the mirrored windows of the luxury suite, your gaze never drifting far from KK.

Feigning boredom, you let out a resounding sigh, twirling around to face Toji. “Formula One. I’ll never understand the appeal. It’s all so... mechanical.”

Expressed loud enough for nearby guests to hear, you elicited a few amused looks.

“You said the same thing about abstract art and now New York and half of Japan want your opinion on it.”

Toji’s laugh is light, effortless like he's done this a thousand times. 

Your banter catches the ear of Hashime, one of KK’s bodyguards, who’s leaning against a railing with an air of casual authority. 

His interest now piqued, he glances between the two. Toji catches Hashime’s eye and offers a polite nod. He returns the nod and steps toward you both.

The pale blue-haired minion seized you up “You’re into art, huh? Never understood it myself. What’s the secret to knowing if something’s worth millions or not?” 

“Everyone’s chasing an enigma. If you can give them a story full of mystery and wonder, more will want it. If you can do that, then you can sell a painting to a blind man.” 

Joining smoothly, Toji wrapped his arm around your waist smiling. “Rare pieces, hard-to-find items, things worth killing for. They have a way of getting it all.”  

“I've heard Mr. KK over there has some of the best pieces to never be seen by the public. What I would give to just catch a glimpse.” Your voice lowered.

“He doesn't just let anyone see the collection.”

Leaning in slightly, you dropped your tone, whispering more intimately. “Of course not. Someone with his... connections... would appreciate only the most discerning eyes.”

Hashime's eyes narrow, his guard raised. You felt the energy shift, but remained calm, letting Toji take the lead from this point. 

“Stay here.” Hashime stepped away, walking towards KK.

Apprehension settled into your gut as you watched KKs dark eyes find you and Toji. Refusing to falter, you smiled and placed your hand on Toji’s abs. “You think this’ll work?”

“Of course it will. We just have to sell him on the most dangerous art deal of his life. He can't say no to what we have.”

A brief moment of calculation crosses his face, and then he stands, straightening his jacket. KK approaches you, a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes forming on his lips before he reaches out to take your hand. You obliged as he kissed your knuckles before shaking Toji’s hand. 

  “I tend to know everyone who breathes air in the art world yet neither of you look familiar.” KK smiled, placing his hands back in his pockets. 

  “If everyone knew us, I’d say we were doing awful at our job.”

KK looked over at Hashime and gave an almost girlish laugh as he raised his champagne.

“Hard to find. Good. After the race, let's talk.” He nodded, giving Hashime the go to give you his business card. Mozying back to his seat, you looked down at his card:

  Retrieval Services

Kenjaku

IT/JP/US

[midnight-in-town]

Hey =) how do you think that Coco will feel when she'll know what happened to Galga? Considering that she has indirectly caused this situation? Of course it's not her and Tarta fault but Ininia wouldn't have been able to erase Galga's memories if he had not been unable to move. Especially that he was just doing his job, is a very kind man, and wasn't as extreme that mister rampage that they had to drug to calm him (and i hope HE will be punished for what he did because he got a lot too far).

Hey Anon ! My apologies for the delay :) The pace has been on and off in WHA, so I admit I haven't been keeping up seriously with the recent releases !

To answer your questions :

"how do you think that Coco will feel when she'll know what happened to Galga?"

Since Coco is a very nice girl, I'm sure she'll feel guilty about Galga, though I'd like to emphasize that I don't think any of the children (Coco, Tartar, Ininia and Coustas) should be blamed for what happened.

As I’ve been saying in the past, children don’t know better and can’t be blamed for being manipulated by adults, which was clearly the case for Ininia and Coustas. As for Coco, she and Tartar were trying to protect their friends (and rightful victims of the current system, let's be clear) and neither meant for Galga to lose his memories.

Galga's amnesia is the fault of Lord Restis and, more generally, I believe the Knights Moralis are fully to blame for evicting their comrade with barely an afterthought because "that's the law".

Again, WHA is about being allowed to criticize an unfair magic system that benefits only a few, since the system causes victims to be blamed instead of being protected, meaning it's beyond flawed and needs changing.

And children like Coco (especially Coco-chan who used to be ignorant of what magic is in this universe) innocently try to provoke change, to make mentalities change, offering creative solutions to a rigid issue.

It's that simple : to most adults, there is no creativity, the law can't be changed, obviously because they benefit from it. To children, it needs changing, because children will naturally wonder about the rules and about the world they live in ; that's why they want to learn and understand why "forbidden" spells are forbidden.

Ultimately though, what's important in this arc is that Coco figured out that they all share the same purpose, as Qifrey taught her, and it's why she's so determined to help Coustas :

So no, while I think Coco could feel guilty because she's a good child, she's in no way to blame for what happened to Galga and I hope many adults will reassure her.

Overall, I find it ironic that, despite Galga really being such a nice man, being a part of such a rigid and oppressing system cost him not only his memory but his whole life, as he was evicted from his own community the second he started needing their help. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

That's why I can't forgive Estheath for now. Speaking of him:

"do you think that what [Estheath] did will have consequence ?"

Shirahama-sensei is a good and consistent writer, so yeah, I sure damn hope so !

First of all, I think an institution like the Knights Moralis was written specifically to highlight what's unfair in the current magic system and that doesn't mean characters can't develop or get redemption, on the contrary !

Take my girl Lulucy for instance : she was a victim of one part of the system and she chose to join the Knights Moralis because they rescued her. Now confronted by the reality of the current crisis and the proposed solutions, she admits that change can be good :

Because, as a character, Lulucy is capable of understanding and accepting that change is a necessity given the situation ; that's why she went against the same Knights Moralis who saved her, as soon as Estheath went on a legal rampage against his own boss and a 12 year old little girl.

So yes, I'm sure consequences (and maybe even redemption ?) will come for Estheath, seeing as he was proven wrong before he even decided to erase everyone's memories. Because yes, fighting for change can be hard, but if everyone works on it, it will often lead to more positive results than refusing change altogether.

In the current arc, it's the sum of Coco fighting for her ideas in front of Beldarut, Agathe's love for decorative sigils, Riche's talent with tiny spells and Tetia's final idea that created "the opportunity for overcoming diversity" :

Estheath' big issue is that, unlike Lulucy, he doesn't see past the fear of the pact being broken. They taught him "beware of the dark days before the pact" and that's literally all he cares about, because "change" represents an unknown concept that he can't handle.

Estheath fears change, because he has no control over what dozens of witches will do with a knowledge he considers dangerous.

As a character entirely lost in his own subjectivity, he stagnates and thus he will face consequences for refusing to change, preferring to attack his own mentor and a 12 year old instead of confronting his fears.

Don't get me wrong though, as I've written before, I believe it's entirely possible that the 3 Sages and Estheath are aware of a dark (and still unknown to us) truth hiding behind that pact. Maybe the disappearance of magic altogether if the pact is broken and dark days arise once more ? That would explain why Estheath is so afraid of change and why the Brim Hats are indeed a threat...

...but that still doesn't mean he had the right to attack all these people.

There is a lot we still don't know, but WHA still stands strong on the idea that knowledge, or lack thereof, being the justification for blaming the victims and the vulnerable is wrong.

Sorry for rambling, I hope it made sense, haha ! Last but not least, I'd like to show everyone these pages depicting Coco's resolve, because they were breathtakingly beautiful !

Despite not knowing every little dark secret, my girl is not in the wrong and that's probably why she's Iguin's hope still (as bad as it sounds, admittedly).

I hope I answered your questions, have a good day Anon ! :D

[chaoticdelinqueerwithglitter]

Okay, yesterday I had a shared brain riot with @just-sp-in-inginthevoid about Kakucho not having a real birthday and the s62 throwing him unbirthday mad tea parties. More of once in a year because, hey, it's an unbirthday! Mostly because the Haitani brothers wanted a excuse to be extras and dress up, but also because they decided it was a funny way of trying to find out his real birthday (of course, Izana was the one that decided the official date).

In some way, this is the second part of this drabble here. What could be at least in Bonten!timeline.

Kakucho used to loves his unbirthdays. Before everything changed.

(Drabble of Kakucho during Bonten. There is some subtle KakuIza, but it's just a tinny moment easy to ignore and see it as platonic)

Warnings: Angst and hurt without too much comfort. I'm so sorry, I swear the idea was hilarious in my mind, but then Bonten timeline appeared and it refused to not be angsty. So yeah, I'm so sorry, Kakucho 😭

(English is not my first language, so be nice please 🙈)

"Happy unbirthday!"

Kakucho almost jumped when Ran, Rindou and Mochi screamed at him as soon as he entered his office.

He just sighed, because of course, he should've know better. It was Februart 1st, he's official "unbirthday".

But the scarred man thought, that now that they were all adults (and criminals, for god's sake), this surprises parties were over. Or at least, the costumes were over. He should've know better, Ran and Rindou missing a chance to dress up and be weirdos? Not in a million years. Even the poor Mochi was wearing some ridiculous bunny-ears.

"I'm not going to wear a costume, so don't even try it."

Kakucho managed to say as soon as he saw Ran's mischievous smile. Rindou looked disappointed, but the two brothers quickly shrugged that off. They tried every time, but no even Izana himself could make Kakucho dress with an "Alice" costume.

Oh yeah, his unbirthday parties had a theme. Always the same one. A mad tea party in Alice in Wonderland. But the Haitani brothers always wore a different costume. Every damn time. They could repeat characters, but outfit? Never.

Chesire Cat Ran smiled at him, not caring about his grumpy attitude.

"Come on, Kakucho, we deserve some fun. So sit down and drink your tea, before I decide this was a fiasco and we need to throw you another party soon"

Kakucho shivered with the idea. No thanks, he still remembered that times (He tried so hard to forger, yet, he still remembered everything). All the s62 generation throwing him a unbirthday party more than once a year. Because for some reason, the Roppongi rulers decided it was a good way of finding his real birthday. Ran was sure they would get it right eventually, Rindou was convinced that Kakucho would have a big reaction when they finally did it. Of course, both of them were wrong.

So, even if his "official" birthday was the date Izana decided for him, even if it was just supposed to be February 1st, he had more tea parties that he was able to count. Izana used to joke about how Kakucho was at least fourty with so many celebrations.

Maybe is that, he thought, the memory of Izana's laugh being too real for a second. Because now he finds himself smiling softly while drinking tea and eating cake with what's rest of his family. Mad Had Rindou is making jokes about Sanzu's insanity and Kakucho is laughing, he's actually enjoying this.

Kakucho had fun, even if they could only stole a couple hours for that. But he felt good for this hours, less alone. The reminder that there was still people with him that shared the same memories, the same grief. The left pieces of his broken family. Kakucho was not alone and his friends never failed to show him that when he needed it most.

Later that night, after finally finishing the job and cleaning everything up, Kakucho was unable to sleep. The memories were too present this time.

He still remembered the last umbirthday he was actually happy. A few days before the Kanto Incident. Even if everything was getting more dangerous, even with Kisaki's plots, with the raids on Toman, the Haitani brothers decided that it was the best day to do it.

Or maybe it was exactly because of that, who knows. Kakucho certainly needed to relax that day, he was tense with everything that was happening, with seeing that bastard manipulating Izana.

But that day, Izana shone. That day, Izana didn't talk about Mikey or Toman, focusing his full attention on his servant. He dressed up like the queen of hearts, like always. Refusing to wear any costume that didn't show how majestic he was. Kakucho thought the tanned boy always looked like a king no matter what he was wearing. But he never told him that. He never told him so many things...

Kakucho cries himself to sleep that night, curled up in his bed like a kid.

The image of Izana smiling at him printed on his retine.

Overlapping with the last time he ever saw Izana's genuine smile directed at him.

Snow threathening to fill his nightmares one more time.

His own regrets eating him alive.

[fl3shm4id3n]

Reader who come from earth and who used to be a thief and has a bunch of expensive jewelry and diamonds from her last job and all the adults and kids find it, and they kind of freak out about it but she explains how she got it like it’s no big deal and jokes about it (kinda like an oceans 8 story)

Dᵢₐₘₒₙdₛ ₐᵣₑ ₐₙ ₐᵤₙₜ'ₛ Bₑₛₜfᵣᵢₑₙd

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐣𝐨𝐛 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐝, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞. 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐣𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐛𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮.

ᴊᴀᴋᴇ ꜱᴜʟʟʏ x ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ꜱɪꜱᴛᴇʀ! ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ (ᴘʟᴀᴛᴏɴɪᴄ), ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴜʟʟʏ ᴋɪᴅꜱ x ᴀᴜɴᴛ! ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ (ᴘʟᴀᴛᴏɴɪᴄ)

Tw: jewelry thief, robbery, cursing, family goofiness.

A/N: I thought this would be a funny fic to write, I loved it.

Masterlist

Ever since you were left alone on earth, you did whatever to get some money to be able to eat. You lived with a gang on the streets, they had taken you in after you were left on your own. You would pickpocket and take little things from stores, but your group wanted to go bigger. You began to sneak into jewelry stores and sometimes rich people's home and take whatever you thought was pretty. Whatever you took, you got to keep, you liked having something pretty since you were always on your old rags, while your group would pawn their stuff for money.

Then your brother had somehow got in contact with you and had asked you to go to Pandora with him and his family. At first you weren't so sure, but you got convinced by your gang that you should go, that you had a family, unlike them. You didn't want to but you finally agreed to go. You said your goodbyes to your friends and left. Only taking whatever little you got and your jewels.

When you arrived, you were greeted by Jake, to your surprised you recognized him even thought he was now a blue cat. Then you met your nieces and nephews, let alone his wife. Who did not seem to like you at all. She hated humans for sure, when she first saw you, she just hissed at you at in attempt to scare you, but you just brushed it off.

The kids in the other hand were just amazed to know that they had an aunt. Sure you were human, but so was their dad at some point. You got bombarded with questions about yourself, about earth and other things. It was nice seeing that your nieces and nephews had an interest in you despite being a human.

While you were in a conversation with your brother about just things that had been going on.. You didn't notice how Tuk had been looking in your bag, you had let them look at your earth stuff, but she came across your jewel bag. She opened it, and her eyes lit up just like the diamonds you had stolen. She took out a small diamond neckless with little heart shapes. She stared at it then she looked at you. "Aunty? Where did you get this?" You turned over to look at her, seen the neckless in her hands. This also caught your brother' attention. "Yeah, where did you get it?"

You looked at him then at Tuk. "I got it off some rich people's home" you blurt out, making Jake to look at you with horror in his eyes. "You stole?!" he asked, meanwhile Lo'ak and Kiri were now looking in the jewelry back to see what other things you got. "Yeah? Duh" you said with a chill not so bothered look. While your brother still had a look of horror. "Y/n what kind of influence are you giving my children" he demanded, making you laugh. "What else was I suppose to do? Fucking die in the streets of starvation?" you asked while chuckling, but Jake was not joking. "Don't you sass me young lady" he said, going into his big brother mode.

"Calm down Jake, I may be small but I can still kick your ass old man" you warned him, but he got an offended look on his face. "I'm not old" he said, crossing his arms. "The hell you are!" you laughed, seen your big brother pout like a child. "Also, here you go" you said, holding your brother's arm band, when he saw what you had your hand, he looked over at his arm, seen that his arm band was gone. He glared at you and took it right away.

"Hey Aunty, can you teach me how to do that?" Lo'ak asked, having been watching the altercation of you and your brother. "Of courses!" you smiled at him, but Jake gave you another glare. "You better not y/n" he warned, but you just rolled your eyes. You were going to teach him anyway.

[banqanas]

BATTLE OF TOKYO snippet translation

Volume 4, Chapter 1, Page 31-33

...

Nine people were dead in the park last night; Astro9's Grandmaster and the eight people who kidnapped him. Despite the latter being criminals, it is undeniable that a large number of people died and yet the park continued to operate as if nothing had happened.

It was clear that the top brass of the park's management were trying to cover up the incident.

"I'm sure the Director was the one behind Grandmaster's kidnapping. So now I'm gonna crash to this asshole's place and find out why."

"'Do you think he'll just tell us if we nicely ask him, why did you sell out the Grandmaster to Blue Shield?" Kane retorted.

"I'll make him talk. No matter what," Kagura whispered the last part and Kane felt shivers ran up his spine.

"Kagura... You can't seriously be thinking of interrogating the Director by force. Do you know what will happen if you do?"

"Whether I get him to talk or not, I'll get fired either way. So," the man laughed darkly.

Astro9 might be the park's biggest star, but going against the management is taboo for everyone. Defying or committing violence against the bosses would not only get them fired, but they will also be blacklisted in the entertainment business everywhere else. You would have no more future in the show industry.

Looking at his partner's increasingly worried face, Kagura continued, "Don't worry. I'm not gonna get you or the team involved. I'll go alone. If I'm the only one gone, you guys can still go on without me."

"What about you? Can you go on without the team?"

"Of course I can't. Astro9 is my everything."

Kagura tried to play it cool but his words came out in a loud voice. He couldn't suppress his emotions as the past five years he spent with Astro9 flashed through his mind.

After losing his parents to the storm and becoming an orphan, it was the Grandmaster who took him in. He was introduced to the others and together they underwent grueling days of training their body and honing their abilities.

He, who lost everything was given a new life of a showman and troubleshooter by Astro9. He wouldn't wish for anything else other than to be together forever with this team he came to love.

"But Kane... Would you be able to accept pops* death just like that? Could you still go on stage and smile knowing that you're working for the bastard that's in cahoots with the Blue Shield? I would rather die than letting myself, or you guys, continue working for him."

Any other adult would probably be able do it. But "wanting to" and "being able to" are two separate things. If you keep doing things you don't want to, your heart will eventually shrivel and rot. And a performance without any heart will feel hallow even on the brightest stage.

Kagura wouldn't be able to bear seeing his friends becoming the park's lifeless puppets. The Astro9 he loves is one that's always shining with life and he'll make sure that they stay on that bright path always.

"And this isn't just a simple case of the Director backstabbing pops. There's a possibility that the whole park's management division has turned sides to Blue Shield. If that's the case then we need to act now before they put the team in danger," Kagura said with his fist clenched in determination. As if reaffirming his resolve, he whispered to himself, "someone has to take the job... And I rather it be me."

Kane fell silent at Kagura's conviction.

Eventually he took a deep breath. "That's very much like you, Kagura. I understand."

"Then, I'll come along with you."

"What?" Kagura snapped his head to look at Kane. "Have you even listened to anything I said? I won't look cool if you're tagging along stealing my thunder! Besides, if we both get fired at the same time, it'll just make them angry at us for ruining the routine!"

"I'm coming along to make sure you don't get fired even if you resort to violence on the top brass. I'll handle it somehow."

"And if you can't?"

"Then we'll both gracefully excuse ourselves out of the park and hide in a some town while being street performers maybe," Kane explained with a smile spreading across his face.

The wind user has a gentle disposition but he was not someone who put his heart on his sleeves. Seeing Kane smiling sincerely for once brought some comfort to Kagura's heavy heart.

"You're a weirdo, you know that," Kagura sighed.

The speedster offered his hand and his partner shook it just as quickly.

"Well, then. Let's go give that asshole Director a visit, Kane."

"To avenge the Grandmaster."

The two skill users stood up at the same time and made their way towards the City, the park's center of wealth and conspiracy.

...

TL note:

*The kanji was written as the usual Dancho (grandmaster) but the subtext was written as Oyaji (father, old man)

[pbandjesse]

Today was a long day. But I had fun. And thankfully I didn't feel sick. I am tired but I'm doing a lot better then yesterday.

I slept okay. I changed blankets and I think that helped. But there was a lot of noise outside again. The recycling truck came at like 6am?? And it felt like it was just parked out front of our house and it was so loud. Not amazing.

But I did fall back asleep. And was able to sleep until 7.

When I woke up James was sitting at our desk and they came over and gave me a hug and it was so nice. We talked about how weird it was that the trash truck came so early. And then I went to get ready.

I wore my short overalls today because I didn't realize how chilly it was going to be this morning. But I did wear knee socks and a sweatshirt (I changed into a fleece when I got to camp) and was pretty comfortable overall.

Other drivers stressed me out hardcore. After I left the house, giving James a kiss goodbye, I got in the car and took my time getting ready to go.

It's always tough turning out of our street. I waited my turn and I was up next and the person behind me pulled around me!!!! It was so dangerous and so incredibly entitled. And worse we would end up next to each other at every single light for the next few miles. And I was so fucking mad but also trying to not look at them because I was just so angry. I just wanted to get to the highway and be away from them because I was shaking I was so mad and also didn't want to feel like that!! I hate feeling so deregulated that early in the day.

The rest of the drive was fine. And I got to camp and went right to art to collect my materials. And decided to drive them over to the trading post where I would be leading the program. And eventually went to the office to have breakfast and chill.

Everyone was supposed to come through at 930. I took a walk over to the lodge to move the table carts since it is probably not the best idea to move the big tables myself. It's hard to balance what I should and shouldnt do these days. But it felt like it wouldn't be a good idea.

While I was over there I noticed that the stove top looked like it was on? But it was actually the pilot lights being very very tall? So I called Heather for her opinion and she told me to check with Joe. Who eventually would tell me they got taller after it was serviced this summer but it seems wrong to me. But he knows better then I would so I left that and walked back to the office to sit with Heather.

Her birthday was yesterday and she said she had a really nice weekend celebrating. We talked about my job plans for the next year. Being available only as needed and not every day. Picking up different job shifts at the museum and other things I may focus on. She made me feel very supported.

And when we saw Gabe from indigo's car I would go over to the lodge to meet him.

I was frustrated that the other puhtok staff were still not there. They were supposed to be in at 930. They would actually roll up after 10. After me and Gabe had already finished setting up the 10 tables and 80 chairs. I was not happy with them at all. But I tried to be chill and told them what they would need to do. I tried to take charge because no one else was going to. Elizabeth is sick and Sarah is stuck in Tampa. Hopefully she's made it out by now, as she left at 2am. But with the traffic jams because of the storm I am pretty worried about her.

The day would go really well though. The kindergartners were so lovely. And I had a lot of fun hanging out with them.

We started in the amphitheater with their normal intro, warming up bodies and giving rules about being in charge of your body and not touching anyone else's. We were originally going to break into 5 groups but the teachers asked to do 3 so they could stay with their classes. Fair but man those are big groups. But it would go early because fine. I just had to talk really loud.

I took the biggest group. With 25 kids and 6 adults. And I think we had a lot of fun. We talked about mushrooms. We identified ferns and spice berries. We pet carpet moss and turkey tail mushrooms. We talked about how we identify dead trees and what termite damage looks like. And it was just really fun. I don't think it was my best hike every, mainly because I don't think the end of the line could always hear me. But I did my best and I had a lot of fun.

When we got to the Glen Gabe took over to lead a scavenger hunt. Half the group had to use the bathroom though so I would take them back up the hill to go to the latrines. And when we were done there we would walk back down to meet the group and then walked to lunch. And I tried to stop where we could to point things out. And then took them to the field. Where I decided to pass off leading the group to Gabe so I didn't have to backtrack to the office and have my lunch. He was chill about it. And I said I would see them after.

My lunch was okay. Could have used a sauce but was fine. I ate and watched some TikToks and sat on the porch. It was warm enough that I could leave my fleece. And would head to the trading post to do my project.

And it was really fun. I made some examples. A girl in a dress, a turtle, a kitty, some butterflies. And the kids were really into it! Not all of them understood exactly and we're mainly just flying down leaves. But overall it was a really positive experience and they looked like they had fun.

We would run out of glue right before 2. Which was perfect and let me clean up and head out. I needed to get out of there by 215 so that I could go home and change and charge my phone before going to the museum. I let Adam from indigo know. And would text Tony. I figured I set up everything, the others could put the tables and chairs away.

But apparently not? I heard back from Tony that he had to leave for his other job too. Okay. So I texted Nick. He was the one driving Tony. So I gave up. I let Elizabeth and Heather know I wasn't sure if things were cleaned up and apologized for that.

But I couldn't stay.

I would get home before 3. Which just gave me enough time to change and charge my phone. I took ten minutes to sit down and fixed my makeup. I felt kind of uncomfortable but I figured I just needed to eat.

My plan was to go to Jimmy John's before the museum. And Im so glad I did. It was exactly what I wanted. I got stuck in a little traffic but I got to the shopping center with plenty of time to eat there. I listened to a podcast and enjoyed my sandwich and felt a lot better.

And I would have a pretty excellent evening. It really would have only been improved by more people coming back to the galleries.

When I got there I gave James lots of hugs and went to set up a chase for printing. I chatted with Meril and Jesse. And later I would get my very own key for the museum and I'm thrilled about that.

But not a lot of people came back to the galleries. Even though they set up a bar back there! So I would chat with the bar tender for a while. I would have about ten or so people come back who were awesome though.

I had like a 15 minute conversation with a couple who were fascinated by everything. By the machines. By the prints and blocks. Even by me. I would print off some of our image blocks special for them. And told them all about my background and how I ended up here. How I get to work with my husband sometimes. And it was just really great. And when no one was back there I just printed or sat on my stool and chilled. Meril would come check on me but mainly I was just hanging out.

I did have one surprising conversation. A man came in and said his wife used to do letter press but she stopped when she was pregnant because she couldn't touch the lead. What???! This was not something I had considered at all. Should I not be in this room?? Like I'm careful, I wash my hands after. I don't put things in my mouth. But I guess the whole room is technically contaminated. I texted James. And they also become concerned. So I would send a message to my OB office to see what they think.

At 7 I would clean up. And hung out talking to Meril about my hopes for my job over the next year. Very similar to my conversation with Heather. And Meril has such similar energy and makes me feel so listened to. I'm really glad we get to work in this department together, she's really great.

She would run over to their office to bring me my new front door key. She made a big show of giving it to me which was super sweet. And soon I was heading out. See you guys in a few days.

I got stuck in the parking lot because people were confused about where the road was. But it was okay. I got out of there. I almost forgot the groceries James bought and left in the fridge for me to bring home but I didn't forget. And I asked James to please have cream cheese wontons ready for me when I got home.

Traffic was bad again and other drivers were terrible. On our block again!! When someone passed around me when I was about to turn into the alley. They are so lucky I wasn't making a quick turn because that was insane and could have been so bad. I had to take a moment to collect myself.

But I parked and came inside and was super happy to see Sweetp and James. We hugged. Then we picked up Sweetp and hugged with him between us and he hated that. James showed me that the other set of curtains came and they would put those up. I'm very pleased about that.

I had my wontons. And came upstairs to sip water. I would eventually go back down to tell James my fears and thoughts about the hurricane. And how it brings up my fears about having to evacuate and what I might grab and take with us. How I want to get a travel container for Crabcake, like we have one for Sweetp. We should have a way to transport everyone in an emergency. It's important.

But now I'm back in bed. Finishing this post. I'm going to take a shower and get ready for bed. Tomorrow I am probably staying home. I told Heather to let me know if I'm needed because if not I have things I would like to work on here. Specifically I want to make more plushies. I haven't made new ones in months and my supplies are low. So wish me luck with that. I hope I have motivation tomorrow.

I also hope you all have a good evening. Sleep well and be safe. Goodnight!!

[goodluckclove]

The Archivist no. 1 - Control

so fuck it i'm trying this anyway. here's a long-form, but ultimately singular piece i wrote trying to process the singular Terrible Event of my upbringing. if unaliving stuff is triggering for you now you shouldn't read this.

i'm not going to do this that often because it's nice to work things out in my head but holy shit this was weird to come back to. if someone finds it relatable in that oh hey your shit sucked too and you survived huh?? way i'll get into it again at a later time.

otherwise uh. yeah. enjoy? legit though read the tags before you do this i don't want anyone freaking out.

The Archivist no. 1 – Control

Mom wasn’t sleeping much in the nights before she killed herself. It wasn’t unusual given her rampant insomnia. Dad would pass out in the bedroom, and I would come out of my room at the end of the hall tin the middle of the night and find her watching bad crime dramas and reading the news on her iPad. I didn’t sleep much back then either, I guess.

Sometimes I would sit with her for a while, but the shows didn’t interest me much. Mostly I’d make a joke and continue to the kitchen to grab a snack before going back to my bedroom to keep on writing. I was almost sixteen years old and I had completed two novels that stood, unread, on an elephant’s graveyard of abandoned projects. So it goes.

Near the end of summer I came down with some sort of head cold. I woke up in the middle of the night, feverish and frustrated, and went out into the hall to see if Mom would be awake.

Time flickers and I’m lying on the couch with my head in her lap. She’s stroking my hair. She’s telling me that in the morning we’re going to go out in the mall and she’s going to buy me new pants. I don’t know why she told me that. I don’t know if it was a lie. She solved a lot of problems by shopping for clothes, so it sounded like something she would say. Mom even insisted in a voice that hung quiet in the dark that we would go to Macy’s, a rarity when she only ever bought my wardrobe from Goodwill.

I believed her then because I was a child and I loved my mother. I was sick and I loved my mother. I was looking forward to her buying me new pants.

Did she know then? I don’t know. She’s had two rounds of electroshock therapy since then, so the memory has been thoroughly wiped from her brain. It’s just gone. That moment exists solely in my own recollection, which is barely better than it never existing to begin with.

Later that morning she left saying she had some errands to run. I didn’t think much of it at the time. I had no way to, really, being that they had me on nine hundred milligrams of Seroquel at the time – one hundred more than the recommended dose for an adult man. The mornings left me in a sticky daze and I usually wasn’t able to gain any lucidity until a few hours after I woke up.

Once that happened I felt a little stirred by the circumstances. Mom had errands? What errands? She didn’t do the grocery shopping, she had my brother and I make that trip every week. She didn’t have a job or friends to meet. More than that, her agoraphobia crippled her at times and made leaving the house for anything a feat. But no, she just let for errands and told me that as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

I told myself it was fine.

When I texted her a few hours later she didn’t respond. I called her after that and she didn’t answer. I think I called her a few times.

She didn’t come home at all that day. I remember feeling the dread clinging tight to the top of my rib cage like something toxic just about to drip. It was a feeling I didn’t know how to communicate, and in retrospect I know now that it is a deeply-rooted instinct from my childhood. The warped insight that tells me that, when Mom leaves under mysterious circumstances, or when she leaves after you make her made – she’s going out to drink.

But that couldn’t be it. Mom was sober now and proud of it. She marked her sobriety date as Cino de Mayo and laughed every year at the irony. Mom was sober now. Things were different.

Dad came home from work and I was lingering in the living room, standing guard like an anxious animal. My older brothers were in their bedroom, on their laptops, no knowledge of the panic I was feeling.

Dad greeted me and asked where Mom was. In a voice that mimicked neutrality I said that she left to run errands. He took that with a nod and went to the backyard. I don’t know why he did that – he wasn’t smoking anymore, but by this point he might’ve been using e-cigarettes. Or maybe he was just enjoying the evening air. I just know I was sitting inside the house, very aware that the only other adult I knew was outside, and my mind was racing.

Do I tell him? Should I tell him?

Eventually I opened the sliding glass door and stood in the kitchen until I drew his attention. In my imagination he sees the look on my face and knows that something is wrong. I don’t know if this is true.

“You have to look for Mom,” I said.

He did. No questions asked. I didn’t linger over that at the moment, but thinking now I know that must mean that he understood what was happening. He wasn’t surprised.

Mom had no intention of taking me to Macy’s.

I don’t know what I did while he was driving around looking for her. I don’t really have a clear playback of finding out what happened. The extent of my trauma has severely limited what I am able to remember, and for this specific part of my life what I know happened now is influenced heavily by the many times my Dad recounted it to me.

A few years later he took me for ice cream and we sat in the parking lot to eat it, staring out at a night bathed in orange streetlamp haze. At one point he put his cup on the dashboard and pointed.

“You see that motel?” He said, drawing my attention to a nondescript line of buildings. “That’s where I found her.”

He recognized her car in the parking lot. The manager didn’t want to tell him what room she was in, (“I bet he was worried I’d catch her in an affair,” he’d remark darkly) but I imagine he explained the situation and got the help he needed. Apparently they found Mom after she took all of our medication. Well, I don’t know if it was all our medication. I just know that she had taken my psych drugs, as well as my dad’s and her own, and decided to mix them with a six pack of beer.

Did someone specify it was beer at some point after that? I don’t know why I would know that. I also don’t know why I would assume it was that over any other type of alcohol.

My Mom took my medication to end her life.

It didn’t work, though. Dad told me later that she died for a little over a minute.

I told them I was worried about taking more Seroquel than both of them put together and they promised me it was very hard to overdose on Seroquel.

Was she counting on that? Or did she forget?

I never liked anything at Macy’s.

At some point I found out that Mom was stable and in the hospital. She was in a coma. In my head I have a memory of standing at the kitchen counter and watching my father call Kaiser to get a new supply of all of our medication. He wrote them all down, every name and their proper dosage. I listen to him speak kindly to the pharmacist on the other end of the line.

“The thing is,” he explains, “we packed to come home from vacation, and our luggage got lost on the flight…”

Inside myself is a vacancy so haunted that ghosts are too afraid to dwell there.

Dad ends up sleeping on the couch. He does not want to sleep in an empty bed. He tells me that he will leave in the morning to go back to the hospital, but he just wants to get a little bit of rest. Once he closes his eyes I slide a quilt above his sleeping body and put on a Jim Gaffigan stand-up special that I only process every third word of.

I don’t know where my brothers are in this memory. I am not thinking about that when it is happening. I’m thinking of my father, and my mother, and how if I didn’t tell my father to look for her he might’ve waited and ended up too late.

Years later I will learn that my father never told my brothers, or my older sister who lived on her own, that Mom tried to kill herself. I can’t bring myself to say tried – she succeeded, and was only brought back by the marvels of medicine. While I am thinking of my mother’s death none of them have any idea what is happening.

I am the one that told my siblings how our mother died for a moment years prior. We learn at the same time that they had no idea. When I ask my father why I was the only one he told about her death and not them, he told me that I agreed they shouldn’t find out.

When did this happen? I was fifteen years old and I have no knowledge of this conversation. Was I there? Or was only my body present and he decided that was enough.

Mom wakes up after three days. My sister joins my brothers and myself and we drive to the hospital to visit her. I can’t imagine what I am feeling. Maybe everything, maybe nothing. I remember riding up the elevator and going down the hall, and then my brain skips again and I am standing at my mother’s hospital bed.

She looks sick and she looks the same. There are tubes. I think she’s probably sedated. She is my mother and I love her and she took all of my medication to try and kill herself.

“Why did you do it?” I ask her, voice soft. I am trying very hard not to cry.

Mom smiles. I don’t know if this is true. She smiles as if doesn’t realize that she didn’t stay dead. When she speaks her voice wavers, faint and weakened.

“I didn’t feel – like I had control,” she pauses to catch her breath. “So I did this...and now I do!”

She is pleased like a child presenting an interesting leaf. My mother is proud of what she was able to accomplish. In some part of my brain that hasn’t fully learned how to speak up enough to defend itself, I absorb the knowledge that she has told me something that will ruin me time and time again for the rest of my life.

All of that is gone now. Mom doesn’t remember, and Dad has decided that it is our job to make sure she never has to.

I wonder if he heard what she said to his child. If he is able to process the deep, permanent damage his wife has done in two simple statements. A sympathetic part of me says that I wouldn’t know what to do in his shoes either, but is that true? I’m not sure.

Pull the child aside in the hallway of the hospital. Take them by the shoulders and lean in close so you have a semblance of privacy.

She is sick, I would say. She is unwell and she is lying. When she is like this, you do not have a mother.

Most of the time I do not have a mother.

When I am in the psych ward after my own suicide attempt my parents are the only ones I allow to visit me. I love my parents and my mother sometimes offers to take me to Macy’s. My Dad crafts little notes like cootie catchers written in red ink. I peel tangerines from the bowl in the cafeteria while they tell me what the dog is doing. He does not treat me like I am sick. Perhaps he considers me more suitable for survival.

I wonder if Mom does what Dad did to me in the parking lot with the ice cream. Does she press her palms into the sheets of her bed and think this is where my child came and told me they tried to drown themselves.

She probably doesn’t. I don’t think she remembers anymore.

I don’t think about the night Mom killed herself as often as I used to, and when I do I don’t really feel anything anymore. As I heal I’ve been warned that things might emerge, and that time might actually make the memory more vivid instead of distant. I don’t know what to say to this. When the possibility emerges I just tell myself that all of that is gone now. It isn’t real.

By this time next year my parents will have no way to find me. I’ve taken control my own way – not through death, but by cutting them off entirely. Whether that is something they understand, or even remember, is not my problem anymore.

[gamequeenanya]

I may have figured out FNAF.

(Aka: "Phone Guy and the inherent tragedy of every developed FNAF character.")

Now, this isn't some deep theory post. It's just my observation watching the characters of the series and what happens to them.

FNAF is and always has been, a tragedy. (Everyone already knows this in relation to the ghost kids, but let's look deeper.)

And all this time I've been wanting more character development for my faves, I failed to realize that they already had it. But in the opposite direction as I may have liked.

You see, FNAF characters - every single one of them that even has a character to speak of - goes through a fall arc. Every single one of them (even the few who get rescued in the end, like Vanessa.)

Michael Afton has a fall arc (Bite of 83, and his gradual deterioration in the Sister Location Custom Night)

William Afton has a fall arc (his envy of Henry leads to his downfall, and then leads to himself getting Springlocked and deteriorating physically as well as mentally)

Other characters can have either a physical or mental state of getting worse as the story goes on, but many have both.

The Glamrocks get dirtier - and most of them are broken by the end. Glamrock Freddy survives but by the end, only his head is left.

There are exceptions to this rule - we don't yet know what Steel Wool is going to do with Gregory and Cassie - but for the most part this story is about everyone suffering because of FNAF, even if they start out in a relatively good place at the beginning.

Now to the part I've been waiting to tell.

All of Phone Guy's calls through the three games are about a fall arc. (Yes, even FNAF 3. It's subtle but it's there.)

He starts out as an older teen/young adult who seems really happy and excited to be a part of the Fazbear Experience. Listening to the tapes, you can hear the smile in his voice as he's reading the script.

But then, gradually, he starts smiling less and less. If you listen to the first tape and then the last tape back to back, you'll notice the fall from grace... What started out as a sweet, happy young man turns into a sad man with guilt and trauma. And even though he is telling us to "Remember to Smile!," he no longer puts any effort into even faking a smile by the end.

And it gets worse when you realize that this is someone who is bearing the burden of something he didn't do. People who are too nice often find themselves bearing the burden of other people's actions. And it feels like this is the case here. Phone Guy did not want anyone to get hurt on the job. Whether they actually listened to his tapes or muted him is not clear, but the fact is it would upset him greatly to hear someone got hurt on the job, and bear the guilt of the incidents. Phone Guy is good at hiding his emotions and pretending everything is fine, but as I'm listening close during a deep dive, it's clear his heart is affected by this.

That's not even getting into what William Afton did... Phone Guy has to pretend to be happy and smiley, but he can't help get passive aggressive when he finds out William broke the rules.

And then, listening to the less subtle ways the restaurant broke his heart... He went from a cheerful youngster wanting to work for a company that seemed like a lot of fun, to someone just trying to keep it together for the next person. By FNAF 2, he "succeeded." He's "lucky" because he gets to be paid more as a manager. But FNAF 2 contains probably the worst trauma ever for him... failing to save five children, and then dealing with the guilt. Then, (for whatever reason), he steps down from his previous position to take the night shift. Well, I have an inkling why, but it's dark. Does tumblr still allow us to say it without censoring it? I think the reason is that he's punishing himself for not being able to do more.

And then the FNAF 1 fall arc. This has all led up to the most unconvincing attempt of hiding his emotions we've seen so far. Phone Guy here is nervous. He's frazzled. He knows he's going to die. (But goshdarnit if he isn't going to talk to the nightguard he's training and try to help as much as he can.)

(And I know a lot of what Phone Guy says is just Scott trolling the player, but I can't help love it and want to analyze it nonetheless.)

And how could this be complete if I also don't analyze the trailer line:

"Hello hello? If you're hearing this, you've probably made a very poor career choice!" - If every other instance of Phone Guy lines can be dismissed as not being dark humor, I think this definitely is. But take a moment and consider: who is he really talking about here? The player is not going to have a long career at Freddy's. Nightguards at Freddy's tend to be a short time gig (for whatever reason). Whose job can safely be called a "career" then? It's Phone Guy. He's talking about himself. He regrets working here and he wants to warn you away from the job... And why would the trailer line be cut from the game? It isn't out of character. It's just something Fazbear Ent would not let him get away with saying.

Basically, this is the first instance of the FNAF fall arc, but it's a darned effective one. It's a tragic tale of a man who just wanted to have fun at a place that seemed nostalgic and happy.

[ilovewhiteroses]

We Are Not So Different After All

Pairing: Clement Mansell x GN! Con Artist Reader Genre: Smut with humour Warnings: Sexual and adult themes, cursing Rating: 18+

After you failed to rob him and had to reveal him what do you do for a living, Clement realised the opportunities and asked you to join him and Sandy in their money making shenanigans...

You were at Sweety's bar and you saw a handsome man by the jukebox, cheerfully singing. The song was familiar to you and you also started singing and approached him.

"You have good taste in music!" he praised you when the song ended and another began. "I'm Clement." he introduced himself to you and you told him your name.

"Well, Clement, now that we know each other, would you like to have a drink with me?" you asked, gently stroking his arm, to which he smiled.

"Okay!"

You went to the bar and Clement asked Sweety for two Strohs. You noticed how good the relationship between the two men was and you asked Clement about it.

"Good ol’ Sweety and I have been friends for years."

“That’s nice.” you said smiling.

The hours passed and Clement started to get more and more drunk while you stayed sober as you just pretended to drink and poured most of your drinks behind your back. At one point, he took off his black leather jacket, put it on his chair and told you that he is going to the restroom. When he was out of sight and no one else saw you, you reached into his jacket to find money or a credit card. To your annoyance, you didn't find anything and when you put the jacket back in its place, you turned around and found yourself facing Clement, who was giving you a very angry look. Suddenly you didn't know what to say and could only gulp.

"What the fuck were you looking for in my jacket? Money?” Clement asked, so angry that he sobered up immediately. He put on the garment. "Bad news for you: it's here." he said and pulled out a small wad of money from the pocket of his dark jeans, which he put in the chest pocket of his jacket. "Look, if you tell me why you did it, maybe I won't make a scene." he said menacingly.

You were so mad at yourself for being so clumsy. You were forced to tell him the truth.

"Are you a cop?" you asked before confessing.

"No."

"Okay. Well, look. I've been doing this for years. I'm nice to people, I become friends with them and when the time is right, I steal their money." you felt embarrassed for having to say all this, but Clement's reaction surprised you. Just when you thought he was going to hurt you, his face softened and he seemed to look at you with understanding.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Hm. So you're a con artist. Looks like we are not so different after all." he said, now smiling.

"What do you mean?" you asked him confused.

"My girl Sandy and I do basically the same thing. I give the idea, she does the job. She seduces men, and when we have the chance, we steal their money together."

You felt relieved. What luck! Your evening could easily have turned out worse.

Clement's eyes lit up.

"Hey, since we both do the same thing, wouldn't you like to join us? The three of us would get more money and, of course, would divide it into three."

You thought about the offer. You were good on your own and so far everything went well, but sometimes it was quite tiring to work alone.

"Alright, I'll join!" you said enthusiastically.

"Great! Let's meet here tomorrow afternoon, I'll bring Sandy and introduce you to her, and then we'll figure out the rest together." Clement said, rubbing his palms, barely able to hide his excitement.

The next day you went to the bar at the appointed time. Clement introduced you to Sandy, his girlfriend, who was already pleasantly high from weed and offered you too, but you didn't take it.

Clement sat you down at the bar while Sweety poured you all a drink.

"Okay, I'll tell you how we gonna do this. I told Sandy about you and she said she'll get you a job at the casino, which would be good because you'd be twice as efficient together." Clement said enthusiastically.

"Really?" you asked looking at Sandy.

"Yes. There is also a guy I am “dating” now, his name is Skender Lulgjuraj. He is Albanian and a real moneybag.” she said and Clement winked.

"I see." You started thinking about how you could work with the blonde girl.

"What would you say to Sandy and I flirting with potential candidates, getting them drunk and stealing their credit cards? You have to go for the cards, because there is more money on them than what guys usually carry with themselves in cash." you told him and her your idea, which they both thought about.

"I like the way you are thinking." Clement said with narrowed eyes and a sly smile, Sandy liked the idea too. "Okay, we got this. You go to the casino with Sandy and the job can start soon. Come on, let’s drink to that!”

Few days later, you found yourself in the casino in your waiter's clothes and you were taking a few drinks to one of the roulette tables for the guests. You looked at the clothes and accessories of each of them, because they revealed a lot about their wearers. When you saw that one of the guests was wearing a presumably real, expensive watch, you approached him and started flirting with him. When he got bored of the game, you asked him seductively.

"Would you like to party with me and my friend?". The man nodded so fiercely that his head almost fell off. "Okay, but let's have a drink first."

You went to the bar, where Sandy was already waiting for you. The two of you just pretended to drink, but after a few drinks, the guy could hardly speak and his thinking seemed to slow down, so at a certain moment Sandy took out his wallet from his suit, took out his credit card, and then put the wallet back as if nothing had happened. Once you were done with that, you called him a taxi and two security guards took the drunk man away from you.

Then you carried out another such action during the evening, and after work Clement picked you up and you went to the nearest ATM. You took as much money from both cards as was enough for you then went to Clement and Sandy's apartment, where you celebrated the first successful job together.

You continued like this.

You discussed with Sandy that you would rather rob three people during the night, after you made sure that the person had money. In most cases you were good, but were not always lucky. There were times when the person didn't want to drink with you, or it turned out that he had just lost all his money, or he got so drunk that you couldn't help but slap him to come to his senses. It also happened that a guy's wife suddenly appeared, so you were forced to retreat.

After a while, you collected so much money that Clement could hardly count it.

"My darlings, Daddy is very proud of you!" he said, being in his tighty whities and kimono and gave you and Sandy a kiss on the head. You and the blonde girl sat in front of the TV eating potato chips. Her phone rang, it was Skender. While she stepped aside to make a phone call, Clement sat down next to you on the couch and put his feet up on the coffee table.

"What’s up with this Skender guy?" you asked Clement, biting into a chip.

"He supposedly has a secret hiding place or room and I think he keeps a safe full of money there, then when the time comes, Sandy and I will rob him. You can come with us if you want to." he told you.

"And how long have they been together?"

"Maybe a couple of weeks."

"And they sleep together?" at this question, Clement was silent for a moment and just looked in front of him.

"Probably." you could sense some bitterness in his voice. Sure, the money was the motivating force, but you could see in Clement that he wasn't comfortable with his girlfriend sleeping with another man, no matter how hard he tried to hide it from you. "But hopefully it won't be like this for long and then we'll go to an exotic beach where we can relax." he said and rubbed your shoulder as a sign that they would take you with them, because without you they wouldn't have managed to get so much money.

It was good for you that they took you in and that Clement treated you as an equal, not like Sandy, whom he scolded for smoking too much weed and complained to you about her.

You wanted to talk to Clement about this, but Sandy just got back.

After another couple of successful money making actions, you and Clement were alone in the apartment, and Sandy was spending time at Skender's.

You were in bed leaning against the headboard and talking. Clement was again in his tighty whities, you were wearing a T-shirt and shorts.

He told you what he was doing while you and Sandy were busy at the casino. Of course, he spent most of his time at Sweety's bar, other times he negotiated with his lawyer, Carolyn Wilder, or went to rob a few people.

"Just the usual." he said to you and smoked his cigarette. This time you lit one too. "It's good that you don't smoke weed, Sandy often takes it too far."

"I tried it once, but I almost choked on it, so I've been avoiding it if possible, but the smell doesn't bother me." you said and you also smoked your cigarette and then blew smoke rings.

"See? I’m telling you, that shit is dangerous!” Clement said and you both laughed, then he suddenly put on a serious face. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Would you sleep with someone just to get their money?" Clement asked, looking at you with almost sad eyes. You knew what he was thinking and you were glad that he asked, because it meant that he also wanted to continue your last conversation.

"No, I would never go that far, my dignity would not allow it. I'd rather get the fuck out of there than give my body for a stranger's money. I hope you understand."

"Yes, of course, and I appreciate your honesty." he said and put out his cigarette into the ashtray on the bedside table. "Look, I love Sandy, but not like I used to. Of course, it's good that we get money together and everything, but at the same time, it bothers me that she's also sleeping with Skender. To tell the truth, sometimes I get a little bored of her and I have the feeling that I want to be with someone else too, if you know what I mean."

"Yes." you nodded and put out your cigarette, then you took his hand. You were understanding and compassionate with him.

"Unfortunately, it's like this, you can't do anything about it. Just because we steal money from others we are human too with feelings. That's why I always worked alone, so that my emotions wouldn't influence me." Clement looked at you with wide eyes.

"Wow! I don't know when was the last time I heard such sensible thoughts. You can't really talk about such things with Sandy, not to mention she doesn't like the White Stripes. How can you not love that band? They are fuckin’ amazing!"

"Really? I love them too!” you told him, and then you started singing 'I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself' by the band together, which was actually a cover. Clement had a surprisingly good voice, as you had already noticed during your first meeting.

When you finished the song, you both moved at the same time and kissed each other. You kissed like your life depended on it and you only stopped when Clement pulled off your t-shirt and shorts and you pulled off his underwear. It wasn't long before you were lying under him and caressing each other's bodies. During kissing your tongues touched gently, you playfully bit Clement's lower lip, then his neck, and you turned so that you were now on top. You reached down to Clement's cock and started stroking him.

"Hmm, look how greedy you are! You want my cock, honey? You want to feel it in yourself, right?” he asked in his sexy, deep voice and pulled you close by your neck for another tongue kiss.

"Yes!" you gasped, feeling the lust taking over your body and fog started to cover your thoughts. Clement reached into the nightstand drawer and cursed.

"Shit, I don’t have condom. What if we do it with the pull-out method?”

"Okay, just let's do it, I want you so much!"

You sat on him in a reverse riding position and put his hard cock inside you. You pulled your knees up and supported yourself with both arms behind your back. He clasped his hands at the back of his head and with a smug smile he watched you moving on him. In order to reach orgasm sooner, you touched yourself.

"Oh baby, you're so tight, ah!" Clement said, gripping your hip with one hand.

You were so consumed by desire that you didn't even care if Sandy walked in and saw you two fucking.

Your knees started to tire, so you pulled Clement out of you and lay on your stomach, raising your ass up. He took the hint and knelt behind you. He caressed your round butt with his palm, then he grabbed it and put himself back inside you.

"Oh baby, you're so good!" he said between moans and moved his hips in a fast rhythm, so much so that you could feel his balls slapping against your skin.

The bed started to creak from the intense movements and you were sweating like you had run a marathon. Clement waited until you reached your orgasm and then he too was getting closer to it. He pulled himself out of you and came on your back, you could feel the hot fluid dripping off you. He laid on his back next to you, and you spread your legs out and lay on your stomach, gasping.

"Should I wipe your back?" Clement asked with a chuckle, now satisfied and in a better mood.

"No need, I'm going to shower anyway. What…what are we going to tell Sandy?”

"Nothing. She doesn’t need to know about this." he said and leaned in for a kiss. "This should be our little secret." he winked at you and you smiled to yourself.

"We can do this another time." you told him teasingly. Clement raised an eyebrow, apparently liking the idea.

"When Sandy isn't at home, you and I will fuck everywhere in the apartment!"

[darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght]

Chapter 34- Part 8

Oh, Salazzle is the last Pokémon! Look at that, I guessed four out Aya's six Pokémon correct! And best of all, it seems like this Salazzle isn't holding an Air Balloon, so…there's nothing stopping Crater from using Earth Power on it! With Shimmer providing Psychic backup, of course.

Nevermind, only half that plan is working out!

Ah, okay, fair enough…and Nidoqueen’s just using Sludge Wave, that shouldn't do too much damage to-

…Wait, doesn't Sludge Wave hit all Pokémon? Even the ally? Wait, that means Salazzle’s gonna-!

HAH! Don't need to worry about doing that with Telepathy, baby!!

Alright, Shimmer being poisoned still isn't ideal…but instead of keeping her in like this, I'm gonna switch her out. Looking at my current team…the best bet would probably be Wulfrum. Nidoqueen is either gonna use Stomping Tantrum on Crater, in which case I'm about to Super Potion her anyways, or it'll use some other move to finish off Shimmer, in which case Wulfrum should be able to tank it. 

Man- poor Wulfrum. I brought him to this fight as extra immunity against Poison shenanigans, and I ended up not using him at all. He's just been sitting there, in the back of the party, waiting for his moment to join the fun, and he only gets to come out at the very end.

Anyways, like I said, Crater's getting healed too-

And Nidoqueen used Sludge Wave again, perfect! So Crater will use Earth Power, and Wulfrum will…um…use Double-Edge, I guess??

Wow, Wulfrum’s really not allowed to do anything in this Gym. I was thinking to myself “it's really nice to have a Steel-type this time, I didn't have that when I fought Corey”, and I- I actually could have just done this with a team of five.

Aya's bluntness aside…it has been three thousand years since this has happened, but at long last, after everything the last few chapters threw at me and Xera, I have once again managed to beat a Reborn Gym on my first try! And it was a Double Battle too!! Now that's character development!

And another upside to genuinely being able to win first try- spiting Fern, who didn't! Take THAT, you foolish fool!

Oh yeah- and besides, isn't losing battles as much part of a Gym Leader’s job as winning? They like- test challengers to see if they're truly worthy of the Badge and strong enough to take on the rest of the League, that sorta thing.

…Man, why did my first first-try win against a Gym Leader in…quite a few chapters have to be against someone with such deep troubles as Aya? This just feels bad now! It's like I said earlier, it's like a hollow victory- and I was feeling good about the win at first, too…

Oh hey that's the title of Chapter 17! Fascinating that this chapter has so many callbacks to back then.

Cain’s the younger sibling? Huh- for some reason, I assumed Aya was the younger one. Probably because I mistook her for being closer to a teenager, but if she's older than Cain, that's obviously wrong too.

But then…how old is Aya supposed to be, anyways? And how old is Cain, for that matter? I've been assuming he and the other two rivals are around the same age as Xera, whose own age was vaguely listed as “Adult” at the start of the game, so like- who the heck knows at this point.

Previous

Next

[i-promise-i-am-not-on-drugs]

Alright, I'm rewatching st 04×02 and I'm going to write stuff while it happens so I don't forget anything.

I'm going to dissect the episode by scenes, so it's going to be pretty long, but whatever.

1) Max and the boys

Nothing much to say here, but I like that it's pretty clear who Lucas and Dustin listen to the most in the serious kinds of situations. (Lucas looking at Mike after Max asked him what they were talking about, Mike shaking his head and Lucas not even hesitating to turn Max off.)

(Also, Mike being the one to stay with Will, and he probably asked Lucas to bring the others outside)

2) Joyce and Will(+ the MF)

There's so much r@pe analogy in there I don't even know where to start, and I don't think I'm going to go too far on this subject anyway because oh boy, does that make me uncomfortable.

I know people who have been r@ped before, and the way Will talks about what he feels during his episodes are so similar to how they talk about their assault. Also, the flashbacks are cristal clear about these implications. Moreover, Will feels guilty of letting the MF get to him.

(here's a direct copy-paste of the subtitles)

Will: And I tried.

I tried to make it go away.

But it got me, Mom.

Joyce: But what does that mean?

Will: [crying] I felt it... everywhere.

Everywhere.

I-- I still feel it.

[sobbing] I just want this to be over.

Joyce: It's okay. It's okay. Hey.

Listen. Look, look at me.

Will: [sniffles]

Joyce: I will never, ever let anything bad happen to you ever again.

Whatever's going on in you, we're gonna fix it. I will fix it.

I promise. I'm here.

Alright. Now let's get out of the MF/possession situation, and just read this.

To anyone who's seen/read anything that relates to r@pe victims guilt, does that seems familiar? It does, right?

Yeah.

I won't go further about this for now, but think about it.

I like that Joyce is trying her best to be supportive of Will without making him feel ignored or like he's overeating. It's nice to see. :)

3) Eleven and Hopper

Alright, that scene was a perfect example and definition "what to not do when my kid put themselves in danger by not following the rules I gave them to protect them because I let them place expectations in me that I knew I wouldn't be able to reach before they loose their mind."

Because, seriously Hopper? You really expected that kid to not go out after almost a year without seeing anyone but a grumpy old man? Wow, really smart of you.

I'll be honest here: I don't like Hopper, and the only thing that makes me not hate him is his relationship with El. Most of the time. Not this one.

Eleven was in the wrong here, she put herself in danger by breaking the rules. Alright. But you know who was the wrong by even putting these rules in the first place? Hopper. Now, I know this was for her safety, but I'm sure they could've find something much more efficient than completely isolate her from anyone, and with only company a fucking TV.

Anyway.

In my opinion, the worst thing about this argument is Hopper insinuating that he was going to send Eleven back to the lab. I'm really fucking mad at him for that. Because of course, the logical thing to do when a traumatized teenager does something wrong for the first time in more than 300 days is to menace her to send her back the incredibly abusive hellish place she's been living in her whole childhood! Of course, what a wonderful reaction!

And about the TV thing, of course you should cut the rebellious teenager of their only distraction from the fact that they're literally forbidden from having any fucking life! That was such an amazing thing to do! Good job Jim, how smart and logical of you!!

I can't believe this man is an adult. Urgh.

My poor girl El was probably send straight back into a flashback too.

Alright I'll stop taking about this now, next scene.

4) Jonathan (+ Will being fucking possessed HELP--)

Jonathan my boy I love you <33

WILL FUCKING HELL YOU SCARED ME

5) The Wheelers

Love Mike and Nancy asking Holly things <33

6) Nancy and Jonathan

Nancy: You don't have to do this, you know.

Jonathan: Stop saying that.

[both nods]

I love them :3

7) Joyce and Will

Joyce calling the police and never getting Hopper to aweser is getting kinda old tbh--

Anyway, this isn't about them

My son Will is getting possessed and I'm excited sad about it.

8) Dustin (+Dart)

Nothing much to say here, but aww. Dustin's taking care of his murderous little friend. :)

9) The boys and Max

Okay, first of all, ew.

Now, second of all, your crush is showing so bad Dustin it's crazy lol--

And then, last but not least, I like how the boys just assumed that Mike know if/when Will is coming. It makes me happy. :3

10) Will (+Mr.Cleark's speech about fear) and Joyce

Holy shit, I forgot how fast the possession went.

11) Hopper (+ Eleven)

Ok, fuck you Hopper, this is not how you deal with teenagers. Learn to be the biggest person and apologize you dumbass adult.

Also, "for my sake, please, deal with her! (Florence to Jim about Joyce)" lmao--

12) Steve (+Billy and Tommy)

Well damn, more reason to hate those two assholes that I forgot about.

13) Jonathan and Nancy

Love how creepy that whole scene is. :)

14) Will, Joyce, Hopper

Holy cow. My poor boy's going though it.

Also, this is the part were I realized why this episode is called "Will the Wise": While Will was explaining how he felt about the "now-memories" of the vines, Joyce looked at a drawing of Will the Wise looking at a Cristal Ball, impling that he's seeing something supernatural that most people don't know about.

15) The party (+Max)

Rip Max, I promise they have nothing against you my girl!

Still love how it's clear that they trust Mike's judgement almost without hesitation. They really act as a team, and they all have their own roles. They trust and listen to each other, and I think that's beautiful. :)

16) Eleven

I like that even if she's frustrated (and has every right to be!!), she's not putting herself in danger and is actually listening to Hopper.

Also, she found the document!!

17) Nancy and Jonathan at the Lab

"you guys 'been together for long?" Lmao--

Anyway.

Still can't believe that the Russians were brought up already! These guys are everywhere!

18) Will's drawings

Hopper: Vines. He's drawing vines.

Wow, good job Hopper. First actually smart thing you've said today.

Sorry sorry, let's be serious for a bit.

These drawings are actually really cool. And also pretty disturbing, but that was a given.

I'm really impressed at how fast Will draws too, tbh--

19) Max and Lucas

Now that's kinda sad.

They signed NDAs Max, they can't tell you wear, sorry 😔

20) Max and Billy (+Lucas)

Urgh, here comes the racism.

My girl Max deserves a hug, and Billy should shut his crap and die already.

21) Hopper

I forgot what he's gonna do with those pumpkins ._.

22) Eleven

Noooooo, El my baby :(

23) Mike and Joyce

Joyce at this point you should know that you son tell Mike everything. Including the shadow monster shit. Stop trying to deny him.

24) Nancy and Jonathan

I love how Nancy's being a total badass, and Jonathan's like "yep, okay, that's hot-"

25) Dustin (+Dart)

NOOOOOOO, NOT THE CAAAAAAAATTTT D:

I trusted you Dart :((

Anyway, on a more serious note, how the fuck did Dustin hide those big-ass blood stains from his mom??

26) Hopper

Holy shit, that hole's big as fuck. Every kid's dream beach hole. (Sorry, sorry)

Alright, he's underground, Jesus fucking Christ, I forgot about that.

— End note

Can we talk about how amazing Noah and Millie's acting skills are?? I got chills from Will's overfocused looks and really bad for him while he was crying. Millie made me feel so bad fol El istg I wanna hug her. :(

Obviously the same goes with everyone else, but these two are the ones who made me feel the most things during this episode!

Alright, I'm done with this episode! I might start with the next one soon. :)

[fangirlstorycreator]

Cash X Reader

Context: you didn't get along at first, but after a difficult night, things start to change...😏💚

It was difficult having to juggle work as well as your home life, and even though you didn't want to admit it, it was your boyfriend who was making it difficult for you. Adrien and you had been together nearly 2 years now, and in the first year it was great, but he had been so diffrent with you lately. He wanted to check your phone when you got home, he'd never let you near his phone, he'd expect so much from you despite the fact that you were the one with the full time job and he only had a part time one in a corner shop. He never contributed to anything, and you were secretly thankful that you didn't live together. You were dreading the day he asked you if you wanted to do that, he just wasn't the boyfriend he started out being. But despite that, you stayed with him because that's what you thought a relationship was like, little did you know that you were completely wrong about that. He didn't like your job as a police officer, he thought you stayed there too long and had no time for him, even though whenever you weren't working, you were with Adrien, you just couldn't win. It was starting to affect you mentally, you didn't have many nice days anymore and it was all because you were worrying about Adrien. You loved him...but you didn't feel like you were in love with him...not anymore at least.

You tried your best to keep a happy face on at work, but sometimes you just weren't strong enough to do that. You had one or two colleagues who you were friendly with, but there was one guy in the office who for some reason, didn't like to talk or be around you very much, and that was Cash. You were sat at your desk one morning with your head in your hands, you had a splitting headache and were waiting for the paracetamol to kick in, when Cash walks up to your desk and puts a file on it. "Its seems we have to deal with some asshole in town today" "We?" "Unfortunately yes, you got a problem with that?" "Would driving in a car with someone who never talks to me like an actual adult with feelings class as a problem? Because if so, then yeh" "Your so funny I forgot to laugh. I'll be in the car, 5 minutes Y/N or I'm going without you" "Well who can resist that happy little invitation" "I said 5 minutes"

And with that, he walks out of the building, you rub at your head when another colleague comes over. "Are you alright Y/N?" "I'm fine, I just have this stupid headache, and now I'm going to be riding with one too" "Look I know Cash can be a headache to most people, but I'm sure you'll be fine on the drive with him" "Seriously Becca? He never talks to me, and if he does, it's just sarcasm and rudness" "Its just a front" "I doubt it" "No really, it is just a front. He's told me before that he thinks your the best police officer in hear" "If he did really say that, then why the hell does he talk to me in that way? He's just acting like an ass" "I don't know, maybe he wants a friendship, but just doesn't know how to show it?" "Your right about him not being able to show it. I've got to go, I'll see you later Becca"

You and Cash drive to this person's home and investigate an aligation of domestic abuse, the report was that the neighbor had called the police because they could hear what sounded like screaming and things smashing on the floor, that's why you and Cash had gone. You and him got out of the car and walked up to the door, and before he knocked it, he said "God knows how this is going to go down, why don't you leave the talking to me?" "I am a police officer too Cash, I'm perfectly capable of talking to people" He just shrugs and looks away from you while knocking on the door. "Yeh? What do you want?" Said this tall and quite boisterous looking man. "My name is officer Cash, this is officer Y/N. We got a call about someone overhearing something that may have happened in your home. May we come in for a chat please?" This guy was reluctant, but he knew if he didnt let you two in he might seem suspicious. He opened the door a little to allow you both in, and that's where you see a woman at a similar age to you, standing by the wall, looking pale and scared, but you could tell she was trying to put a brave face on. "Hello mam, my name is officer Y/N, were sorry to disturb you both but we got a call about what sounded like a domestic disturbance. We are hear to see if anything has happened" This woman had a flash of relief in her eyes, right before her boyfriend walked up to her and put his arm around her, making her physically shake. "Nope, nothing has happened hear, there must have been some kind of mistake. Isn't that right babe?" He asks her, squeezing her arm a little to make her answer, her voice quiet and broken. "N-no...nothing has happened hear" You give Cash a look, and he knows that something fishy with these too.

"Look miss, if there is anything you'd like to talk about-" "She doesn't want to talk to you lady! Now get out of my house, were done hear" This man shouts to you and Cash, without her saying or doing something to tell you that she's in danger, you couldn't just arrest him on a hunch. You had no choice but to go with Cash to the front door, the man and woman following closely behind you, he still wouldn't let her go. You both turned to them and you said "Our apologies for disturbing you both" "Good, get out" This is where your idea pops into your head ,but it would only work if this woman knew what to do. You hold your hand out to say goodbye as the man loses the door, and thank god she knows what to do. She does the same, but just before the door closes, her hand changes from a flat open palm, to tucking in her thumb and curling the rest on her fingers over her thumb, that was the signal! You immediately slammed your foot in the door and pushed it back open, forseing yourself back into the house. "What the f#ck are you-" "Let her go and get in the ground! Now!" You shout pointing your gun. He begrudgingly let's her go and gets on his knees "Cash, cuff him" Cash pulls out his cuffs and gets this mans wrists connected behind his back, then he takes him to the car. "Hey, hey its alright, he's not going to hurt you anymore. You did the tight thing" This poor young woman runs into your arms and hugs you, it's all she can do to show her thanks as she is in flood of tears.

Of course you hug her back too, and look through the door to see Cash locking this guy in the back seat of the police car. About 10 minutes later, another police car turns up to take this woman's statement and offer her a lift to the station once she's ready, the boyfriend is still in the back of the car as you sit on the porch of their house. You feel relief, but apparently that's not what you could see in Cash's eyes as he approached you. "What the hell were you thinking back there?" "What are you talking about Cash?" "Just storming into the house with that violent guy! You could have hurt yourself, you put yourself in danger!"

"I was doing my job Cash, she gave me the signal that she was being abused and I did what I had to do" "While risking your own life in the process?" "I don't know what your deal is? I'm a police officer! It's my job to do this" "What, it's your job to do something stupid at the cost of your own safety?!" "I will not allow an innocent young woman to go through abuse when we can do something to help her! She was trapped and I did what I had to do to get her out! And if that annoys you, well I don't really give a shit!" You try to walk past him but he grabs your wrist. "Y/N, you should have told me what you were planning to do, then I could have known that you weren't in danger" "Like you give a damn about my safety Cash. I can see the way you look at me in the office, hear the way you talk to me too, don't you dare think for a second that I believe you feel anything other that discust for me whenever I walk in the room! I did my job in there Cash, and you did too, so just drop it" "Y/N-" "I said drop it!" You shout back as you rip your wrist away, he almost looked upset by that, but you just storm away and sit in the car, waiting for him when he was ready to go.

When he did sit back in the drivers seat, he tried to look at you to talk, but you just turn your head to the side, clearly not in the mood to talk to him, so he just drove on back to the station. He took the boyfriend into a cell as you spoke to the young woman he was with, after you got her statement and all the details, she decided she wanted to press charges and you helped her with all the paperwork to do that. She went home a little while later and you had all the paperwork on you desk as you worked through it, when Becca walked back up to you again. "Hey Y/N, don't forget the celebration tonight" "The what?" "Dont you remember? It's the chiefs birthday tonight at the local social club. There's going to be drinks and all sorts, just like a big party" "Oh yeh, yeh I'll be there" "Cool! Are you ok?" "I'm fine" "Are you sure?" "Yeh I'm fine" She looks like she doesn't believe you, but she can see you don't want to talk about it, so she leaves you to work. You give Adrien a call to tell him about tonight "Hey babe" "Oh hey! What's uhh-whats up?" "There's a works doo tonight and I was wondering if you wanted to come?" "Oh, uhhh, is this the place near west street?" "Yeh, its-" "Then yeh I'll come, I've got to go, buy" He put the phone down straight away, like he was doing something important and didn't have the to talk to you, but recently there were many times he did that, and you knew he wasn't a busy man.

You feel a low flood of feelings go through you, and you felt really upset and low, you didn't know what was going in with Adrien lately, and it was worrying you. "Y/N?" "Hmm? What?" "Hey.. its me" It was Cash, it seemed that he was trying to talk to you in a nicer tone. "Cash, with all due respect, I'm really busy hear and I'm really not in the mood to talk" "You don't have to talk, I was just hoping you'd listen. Look I'm, I'm sorry for how I spoke to you earlier" "Cash please, you don't need to apologise-" "No, I do. I was just concerned that's all" "Bullshit" "What?" "You weren't worried Cash, not about me" "Yes I was-" "No you weren't! Cash ever since I've know you, not once have you had a kind word to say to me, and now what? Suddenly you give a shit?" "You may not believe it but I actually did worry about you today, and many times before too"

"There's no way I'm believing that Cash, my boyfriend doesn't even care about me so why-oh-just, just forget I said that" "What? Your boyfriend doesn't care about you? What do you mean? Is everything alright with-" "Cash please I said just forget it! I'm just some random work colleague and I know you don't give a shit about me, and you shouldn't anyway....just...just leave me alone" "....Y/N...if something is wrong" "Please just leave me alone"

He knows that if he tries to talk to you anymore then he could upset you even more, so he respects your space and leaves you alone to go and sit at his own desk.

He sees you hide your face in your hands as a few tears fall, your hiding it from the rest of the office, but Cash sees this, and he hates seeing you so upset. He thought at first that it was him that upset you, but after what slipped out of your mouth about your boyfriend, it was obvious to him that he was only part of the problem, and he didn't want you to feel like that. You sit up, wipe your few tears away and try your hardest to carry on with the rest of your work. Once work finished, you drive back to your flat and got ready and Adrien was there getting ready too. You walked out of your bedroom to see Adrien and you showed him how you looked, wanting to see if he thought you were pretty. "So? What do you think of my outfit babe? Do I look nice?"

He just looks at you and gives you an obviously fake smile "Yeh, sure you look ok I guess" You were hoping that he would say something nice about you, but instead his comment struck though your heart like a knife. You tried your best to look nice, but now you just wanted to hide in a room.

"I'll uhh, I'll go and find something different then" "There's no time for that now, come on lets just go" He just didn't care, it seemed he was more excited to go out than worry about you, you just go with him and try to hide your feelings. About 20 minutes later, you both arrive at this venue and you both enter and see all your work colleagues having a laugh and a drink, there were nearly 20 people there. "I'm uh-oh going to the bathroom Y/N, I'll be back soon" "Oh um, ok..." He instantly walked away from you, leaving you to stand there on your own, but thankfully not for long. On the other side of the room, Cash was drinking from a bottle of beer when he notices the colour blue enter the room. It was your dress, and he could see how incredibly stunning you were. He honestly thought he was going to drop his drink when he first saw you, it was like you hypnotised him.

He saw you walk in with your boyfriend, but he also saw him leave you on your own, it made his blood boil when he could see the pain in your eyes, he decided to come and speak to you. "Y/N" "Oh, hey Cash" "Listen, I've been thinking, and I want to apologise for how I have behaved throughout our entire working years together. I'm sorry for everything I said to you that upset you or annoyed you, I truly am. I never wanted to do that and I'm really hoping upon could give me a chance to show you that I'm not that man anymore. I would love ot if we could start over again, a fresh start"

This was the most positive thing you had heard for a long time, and now that you weren't angry with him anymore, you exhale and decide to give him a chance. "I think, I'd like that Cash. Ok, let's have a fresh start" "Ah thank you Y/N" "And I've got to say I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have shouted at you back there in the office" "No no, you were upset and I didn't give you your space when you asked for it the first time, I understand that you shouted at me, don't worry about it, honestly" "Well, alright then" You both share a smile, then he says "And by the way, you look absolutely beautiful tonight" "Really? Its just a dress I wanted to try out, it's not even-" "Y/N, you look beautiful" You give him a weak smile and thank him, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. "Y/N, can I ask you something?" "Yeh" "Are you ok?" "I'm sorry?" "Y/N I can see that something is troubling you, do you want to talk about it? It could help you feel better if you get it off your chest" "That's kind of you Cash but I doubt that you'd want to listen to my stupid girly problems"

"Try me" He looked so serious about it, like he really wanted to help you.

"Well...ok...can we get a drink first?" "Come with me" he says with a smile, he leads you over to the bar and you get yourself a drink too. Then you and Cash find a small table and have a chat about what's bothering you, you tell him about how you've been feeling lately and why you haven't been your happy chirpy self. You had been struggling with Adrien and you felt like he hadn't been treating you with any care at all, and didn't care about anything that you were going through. Cash was listening to you intently, taking in all the information you were saying, and he was being so supportive as you unloaded all your worries. "So basically, I don't know what to do Cash, he just doesn't seem to want be interested in me or anything I do for him anymore. I just don't know what to do" "Listen, I don't think you deserve this kind of behaviour from him at all, he should be on his knees and thanking you for being with him. I see both of you together, and it's so obvious that he is punching above his weight. I didn't even see him looking at you in this amazing dress when you came hear. What was his reaction when you showed him?" "He...he uhh..." "Y/N..." "He said I looked ok" "He what?" "I won't lie, when he said that, It kind of hurt" "Kind of hurt? Oh Y/N you don't deserve to be treated this way by him, you deserve to be treated like a princess and told your gorgeous and beautiful every single day. That's why your so upset, you know I'm right" He was making a good point, he wasn't behaving like a boyfriend should be, and you knew you deserved better.

"Your right Cash, I don't want to be treated this way, and I won't. I'm going to go and find him now and tell him that if he doesn't treat me right, I'm gone" "Good for you, you deserve the world Y/N, and if he isn't man enough to give you the world, you need a real man who will thank his lucky stars that your in his life. Any real man would beg for a woman like you" "Thank you so much Cash, I'll be back in a moment" You quickly drink the rest of your drink and stand up with a powerful feeling in your chest, you were going to do something about your boyfriend. You looked all around the hall for him but you couldn't find him anywhere. That's when you see what looks like a lit hallway leading to some toilets, it was the only other place he could be. You walked down there, thought the hallways and looking behind every door, until you hear something in the end door, it sounded like movment and giggles, what was happening in there? You reach over and open the door, and that's where your heart sank in your chest, you had never felt pain hit you so hard before, as right infront of you, Adrein was in this small storage room, half naked and screwing around with another woman.

And what makes it worse, when he saw you standing there, he just smirked at you. "What can I say? She's a better shag than you. Are you just going to stand there all day? Close the door" Your heart shattered into pieces, now you knew why he wasn't treating you right anymore, he had been cheeting on you. Tears stream down your cheeks as you take a step back, but you see a handle for individual indoor fire sprinklers on the wall. In your frustration, you pulled it and it was pouring all over Adrien and this girl, and you slammed the door on them as you walked away. You were heart broken, you had never felt this kind of pain before, it was awful. You couldn't stay there a moment longer, and you just walked away from everyone as they didn't realise you had gone, heading straight outside. As if it couldn't get any worse, it was raining outside, raining so hard that the atmosphere was misty and grey because there was so much heavy water coming down, but at that moment you didnt care, you just wanted to go. In your dress, you walk into the rain and start going home, you were practically soaked through before you even had a chance to cross the street. You walked in this awful rain for nearly a mile, just crying your eyes out knowing it wouldn't be that noticable with the rain pouring everywhere, when all of a sudden you feel a big, strong and warm hand grab yours and stop you from walking, and you feel the rain stop just above your head.

Your suprised when you turn to face this strange figure, and discover it was Cash holding an umbrella. He looked so worried and heartbroken for you, he had come out hear in this awful rain to stop you, even through the rain, he could see how red your eyes were from all your crying. "I'm taking you to my house Y/N, you'll catch your death out hear, come on......Y/N?" He said that as he tries to walk with you to his car, but you just stand there, still feeling so upset. He walked back up to you, and put his umbrella back down, so now he was getting wet too, but he didnt care. He pulled you in for a hug and that was enough for you to really let your emotions out, crying so hard as your finaly able to have someone comfort you and hold you as you fall apart. "I'm so sorry Y/N, I truly am....I'm going to take care of you ok? Come on, let's get you inside to get warm" He guides you to his car and he then drives you back to his place to keep an eye on you. You both drenched when you get inside and your frozen to the bone. "My god your freezing Y/N, my bathroom is right there, there's fresh towels in there on the radiator too, you get yourself warmed up and I'll grab something for you to where ok?" You just nod at him, unable to say anything else. You go to his bathroom and hop in the shower, letting the hot water warm you up and help you feel better.

Once you were out of the shower and wearing a towel, Cash knocked on the door and passd you in some of his clothes, they looked comfortable but still wearable. You dried yourself off and slipped into his baggy grey shirt, and a pair of jogging bottoms that were adjustable. You walked out into his living room where he had put down a trey of things. "That's better, I didn't want you to freeze. I've made a few things up hear, why don't you dig in while I grab a shower too, I'm soaked through" He goes into the bathroom as you sit down in his sofa, he had very kindly set out 2 mugs of hot chocolate, and a trey of chocolate chip cookies. You weren't really feeling hungry so you just took a few sips of the drink, just as Cash came out of the shower in a clean pair of clothes. He could see by the look on your face that you were still upset, so he grabbed a small blanket and drapes it over you before he sits beside you. "Thanks" "Your welcome Y/N....Y/N why were you out there in the rain all on your own? You looked so sad, you still do. Did things not work out with your boyfriend?" "He's not my boyfriend anymore" "Oh no, Y/N I'm so sorry it didn't work out. But you know, if he doesn't want to show you how much you mean to him-" "He was cheating on me" "He? He what?"

"When I found him, he was in a storage room with another woman....he was cheating on me" A slow single tear ran down your cheek as you said that. "That son of a b#tch! I'll beat his ass! How the hell could he do that?! To YOU of all people! Oh hell no that is so out of line! You want me to kick his ass? Or did you kick his ass? I'll cover for you if you did"

He is angry right now, but you just can't hold back the tears as more come out, and you hide your face in your hands as you cry. He immediately takes you into his arms and holds you as you cry, one arm around your back, the other gently stroking your hair.

"Oh god Y/N I'm sorry about that, I didn't mean to go over board, I just hate that he's done this to you. There there you let it all out" He held you for another 10 minutes as you let out all the pain you locked away, he didn't tell you to stop, he just let you do what you needed to. After your crying stoped, you sat up a little and wiped away most of your tears. "Oh god how could I be so stupid Cash?" "You arent stupid Y/N, you were in a relationship with an #sshole. You didn't deserve this at all"

"I knew that something was diffrent with him recently, I just never thought he'd do that to me. God it hurt so much when I saw him in that store room, how could he do that to me?" "He is a pathetic little boy who has no idea how to treat a real woman. Your better off without him Y/N" You stand up and pace around the end of the coffee table, just needing to move around. "I gave him everything and this is how he repays me? I hate him! I hate his guts and I hope he rots in hell" "Did you want I can kick his ass for you?" "As much as I would like that Cash, I wouldn't want you to get in trouble for me" "Who says I would get in trouble?" He makes you ever so slightly giggle and that inturn makes him smile up at you. You walk over go his window and look out of it, seeing the rain continue to pour. "How did you know to come and find me?" "What do you mean?" "I tried to make sure noone saw me when I left the party, how did you know I was out there on my own?" "You say you thought noone saw you, but I did. I saw as you left the party, you looked utterly heartbroken, I knew something was up with you, and I didn't want you to be on your own. That's why I came out to find you, and I'm so glad I did" You hang your head after he said that.

"Its been so strange today. At first we weren't on good terms, and now we are. I wasnt expecting to be single by the end of the night and yet I am. And I certainly wasn't expecting to be in your clothes at your flat after you took me out of the rain" "Its been a very long day for you, I can understand that" He stood up and walked over to you by the window, putting his hands on your arms to warm you up a little more with the blanket. "Thank you for everything you've done for me tonight Cash, I honestly thought before today that you hated me" "I'm sorry I came across like that Y/N, but I was trying to keep my distance from you and be quite grouchy so I....so I couldn't be honest with you" "Honest with me about what?" "What I really felt about you....you were in a relationship and I....I couldn't be around you if there was a chance you could see my jealousy....for so long I...Y/N...I..." You could see him being so vulnerable with you, and it made your heart feel warm. You hand reached up to his cheek and his eyes close as you touch him, its like your touch was relaxing him. When he opened his eyes again, you smile at him and you both move in closer to share a kiss. His lips were so warm and soft, they felt perfect as they gently press against yours.

It was a slow small kiss at first, but when you both pull apart slightly and look into each others eyes, passion took hold over both of you. You pulled him in quicker this time, both of you kiss each other like there was no tomorow, he holds you against his chest as your hand runs though his short silky white hair, the whole moment was electrifying. You gave him access for his tounge in your mouth, and my god it was so f#cking hot, he kissed you so powerfully that you thought you were going to faint in his arms. You had never felt this excitement in your previous relationship with Adrien, this was something else, something real. Cash grabs your hips and picks you up, pressing you agsint the wall. His lips move from yours but only to kiss and gently bite the soft skin of your neck as he grinds his groin against your waist. You could feel him growing in his trousers, it just made you wetter as he rubbed this bulge against you, a gaspy moan escapes your lips when he does this, you even make a fist in his hair as he makes you feel so good. He carries you around his weist into his bedroom, lying you down flat on his bed. He climbs on top of you and you both enjoy a very steamy makeout session, tasting his lips and tounge, and feeling eachother as much as you can. You pull his shirt off to reveal his muscular upper body, he was so f#cking sexy and you couldn't get enough of him.

He helped remove the shirt you were wearing too, and before you knew it, you were both completely naked in his bed. He was positioned inbetween your legs and you could feel his hard cock agsint your inner thigh, but he wasn't just going to f#ck you straight away. He moved his kisses from your lips down your neck and towards the lower part of you. He left open mouth kissed all the way down to your lower body, and he knelt on the floor at the end of the bed. He grabbed your hips and pulled you close to him in one swift and strong pull, but that turned you on so much more. He gave no warning and he wasnt playing around, he buried his face inbetween your legs and devoured you. You gasped and whimper as he moves his mouth and tounge in all the best ways, he had clearly thought about how he would do this to you, and now he was enjoying every moment of you. "Huh! Oh god Cash yes, yes just like that..." Your eyes close as you feel wave after wave of pleasure flow through you, just by Cash using his tounge, it was so f#cking good. Your breath speeds up and before you know it, your moaning and shaking as your orgasm explodes through you, but Cash wasn't going to stop at just one.

He just held you tighter and went even stronger as he continued to devour you, he didnt stop until you were writhing agsint his touch, crying in extacy and screaming out as you feel at least another 3 orgasms. Once he finaly stops, he sits up to see you lying there, shaking from all the orgasms "I've imagined you like this so many times, but nothing is better than the real thing" "Then why the f#ck did you stop?...." You ask him smirking. He chuckles at you as he climbs back on top of you, and he was about to position himself before you held him against you and pushed him onto his back, climbing on top of him instead so you could be on top. He seemed to love this, especially when you take his wrists and bring his hands up to hold your breasts. "Oh f#ck your so f#cking beautiful" You giggle at him before you move your hips in just the right position, taking him inside you in one move. Jesus he was so big, he was stretching you in the perfect way, oooh you knew you were going to have a great night. You start moving your hips back and forth, he threw his head back as you f#ck him against the bed, his hands find your hips and move you in a slightly quicker pace, it felt so much better and you could already feel another orgasm brewing, it was feeling even stronger when you could hear his grunting and moans as you continue moving your hips.

You were so close and so was he, but what you weren't expecting was his hand to suddenly move inbetween your legs and circle your tender clit, pushing you over the edge and making you shake and scream against him, as he still thrusts his massive cock. You scream at the top of your lungs, it was the strongest orgasm you had ever felt, you felt so good but also a little light headed as you fell onto his chest, but that doesn't stop Cash. He fucks into you, grabbing your hips, thrusting upwards and cooing softly into your ear. "Oh yeh your so good at taking my cock, your such a good girl. Take it all, just like that" You have no energy to answer him, just enough to moan and whimper at his response and his throbbing cock as he continues to fuck you without holding back. Just as you feel like your about to pass out from these orgams, he cums too and let's out a delicious shout of pleasure, if anything, that noise made you cum harder. Your continuously shaking against him once he stops, but he holds you until you calm down. Once your a little less shaky, he gives you a sweet kiss and helps you off his lap and onto the bed. As you lay down, he lays beside you and moves a strand of hair out of your face, your both quite breathless. "Holy shit Cash, I never knew this would happen between us" "But I am so glad it did Y/N. I've imagined this so many times, I never knew I'd be lucky enough to experience the real thing though" "I never knew you felt like this about me Cash. I won't lie, I have had a crush on you too, but because I was with Adrien I never let it go any further than that" "Well now you don't have to think about that #sshole Y/N, it's my turn now. I want to show you and prove to you that I'm worthy of a chance, I want to treat you like a princess and show you what it feels like to be wanted and cared for by a real man. That is, if you want me to do that?" "I would absolutely love that Cash"

[hermesserpent-stuff]

i wrote a one shot for the mysterio's apprentice au

might cross post onto ao3 laters

also got a lot more ideas for this in my brains now!!

Peter rubs his glasses on his shirt, trying to get the rainwater off. He huffs as he puts his glasses back on and tugs his rain jacket back down over his shirt. He looks up at the roof of the bus shelter. Rain pings off of it in a steady rhythm, accompanied by the swooshing of cars through puddles. He supposes it is not too terrible that his headphones were broken today. Stupid Flash. He huffs again, rubbing at a bruising arm before pulling out a notebook.

In better news, he had found a smashed game console in the trash. Most of the internal hardware is still usable. So that is nice! He doodles a few ideas of what to do with these components. He tilts his head as he doodles and writes, losing himself a little. He hears someone else enter the bus shelter but keeps to himself. He only looks up when he notices that the other person has gotten closer. He looks up.

It is an adult, well-dressed, with eyes firmly on Peter’s sketches. Peter grips the notebook, nervous. The man blinks and flushes.

“Oh! Sorry. Terribly rude to me. But I find your design fascinating.”

“Really?”

Peter finds so few people that are interested in his technical work. His aunt and uncle try, but they do not understand. 

“Yeah, I think that you are definitely going to have a really interesting way to open a drawer. But have you considered making it remote-controlled, just for the heck of it, using these sensor bits?”

“How… How would you do that?”

The man plops down on the bench beside him with a dramatic hair swish. Peter hesitantly hands over his notebook and pencil and the man carefully writes a few things down as Peter leans in to watch. 

“Oh! But what about?”

  They fall into deep conversation and Peter eventually flips to the other designs that he has drawn over the past few weeks. It feels really nice to have someone ooh and ahh over his designs. Neither notice that time is passing them by, enraptured by the discussion and trading of ideas. Both realize that they have missed their buses as the man checks his watch. Peter feels a bit bad.

“I'm sorry sir.”

“It's fine, kid. I made you miss your bus too!” The man says with a smile and a cheery laugh. 

“Im Quentin Beck, at your service.”

The man offers his hand. Peter snorts a little at the dramatics and takes the offered hand, getting a firm shake.

“Peter Parker.”

“Oh what an alliterative name!”

Peter tilts his head and adjusts his glasses. Beck lights up.

“Meaning that the first and last name starts with the same letter.”

“There's a word for that? Why?”

“Because we have to have words to specifically describe things for ease of communication.”

“But you just had to explain the word.”

“But I won't need to again!”

“... That's a good point.”

They chat a little more and discover that they are taking the same bus. This time they both keep an eye out for it and hop on when it comes. It starts raining more harshly as they ride the bus and Peter scrunches his nose at the thought of taking the miserable walk home. A umbrella and card are pressed into his hands. 

“Valete Alliterative Peter Parker. May we cross paths again.”

Beck says with a bright smile, before slipping off the bus. Peter does not even have the chance to try and return the umbrella, much less thank the man for it. He looks at the business card. A flourishing name and series of numbers adorn it, giving no hint as to the man’s job. But Peter finds himself plugging it in, somewhat enamored with the idea of being able to talk to the tech genius again. Plus, he had to return the man’s umbrella at some point. 

[casspurrjoybell-25]

November - Chapter 23

*Warning Adult Content*

- Oliver -

Oliver knew he had made the right choice.

His first day here with Cooper was like living in a dream.

After they got out of bed, Cooper helped Oliver bring all of his stuff in from his car and find a place for it.

Cooper happily pushed his clothes into one half of his closet and consolidated the stuff in his drawers so that Oliver had room for his.

It was a small gesture but it made Oliver feel welcome and wanted.

When he had moved in with Brad, his ex-boyfriend acted like Oliver’s stuff was an inconvenience and complained about what little he did have.

Oliver and Cooper managed to make dinner together and eat most of it before ending up in bed again.

Oliver couldn't get enough of Cooper.

‘This big bear of a man was so affectionate and attentive to me and he lets me do whatever I wanted with him.’

Making Cooper feel good was quickly becoming one of Oliver’s favorite things.

He was tired from two days of driving and the excitement of being with Cooper again, so he fell asleep in Cooper's arms and didn't wake up once, not even when the other man got out of the bed the next morning.

The scent of syrup and bacon finally woke Oliver and he sat up to see Cooper making his way into the bedroom with a plate in each hand.

They went for a short hike and then spent the rest of the afternoon strolling along Ruby Beach, hand in hand.

As Oliver breathed in the scent of the salty ocean air and glanced over at Cooper, he almost couldn't believe this was his life now.

He was in a beautiful place with a beautiful man and it couldn't be more perfect.

Shortly after the sun went down, they pulled into the driveway of Cooper's parents' house.

They had dinner as a family every Sunday.

Oliver was looking forward to seeing all of them again but He was also nervous and couldn't help feeling like he was intruding.

They'd been nothing but welcoming when he crashed their Thanksgiving dinner but showing up at every Sunday dinner going forward was different.

"Annabelle's going to be so excited," Cooper told Oliver, grinning.

"She always asks about you."

"She's adorable," Oliver replied, smiling back at him.

"I'm hoping that she can help me improve my baking skills. I'd love to be as good as her someday."

Cooper laughed and squeezed Oliver’s hand.

"That would make her day to hear you say that."

When they walked into the house, Oliver could hear laughter and voices coming from the kitchen.

He stayed behind Cooper as they made their way over to the kitchen entrance.

"I have a surprise," Cooper called out.

He stepped to the side and Oliver saw Annabelle's eyes light up as soon as she saw me.

"Oliver."

She ran over and hugged Oliver tightly.

He gave her little shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"I missed you and all of your delicious cookies."

When Oliver looked up, Andy and Eileen were smiling at him and Rhett looked a combination of confused and wary.

"What a great surprise," Eileen said, coming across the room to hug him.

"Are you back for another visit already?"

Cooper looked over at Oliver and they smiled at each other.

"No, I'm here for a temporary job so that Cooper and I can give a relationship a shot. If he doesn't get sick of me, I'll make the move permanent."

Eileen's reaction was almost instantaneous and tears sprang to her eyes as she brought her hand to her mouth.

Annabelle tugged at Oliver’s arm, her eyes shining with excitement.

"So you are Cooper's boyfriend now?"

"I am."

She looked back and forth between Cooper and Oliver not able to stop smiling.

"I hoped it would be you. You make him happy and he talks about you a lot."

Oliver laughed.

"He makes me happy too."

"We're all happy," Eileen cut in, regaining some of her composure.

"All I've ever wanted is for Cooper to find a nice man but it's tough to do out here. I can't put into words how overjoyed I am that someone has decided to move here for my boy."

"I guess we need another place setting at the table now," Andy said.

"Rhett, go ahead and get that for Oliver."

Oliver glanced over at Rhett, not knowing what his reaction would be.

Rhett stared at Oliver and then gave him a nod, which he supposed was the best he could hope for.

Dinner was even more than he could have hoped for.

Oliver never felt like his presence was unwanted, not even for a second.

Andy asked him about the job he was interviewing for and Eileen asked what some of his favorite meals were so she could make them for future dinners.

It was so easy to talk to them and Oliver finally felt like he was with a real family.

It wasn't at all like the cold, stilted conversations he would have with his own parents whenever he had dinner with them.

He felt Cooper's hand slide into his under the table.

He had been beaming the entire dinner and Oliver had felt his eyes on him the whole time.

Oliver never wanted Cooper to stop smiling like that and he was going to do everything he could to keep that smile on his face.

‘He deserved the world and I was going to do my best to give it to him.’

As usual, Rhett was quiet during dinner.

When we all began to clean up, Oliver joined him at the kitchen sink where he was washing dishes, his sleeves rolled up to reveal strong forearms.

He wasn't as big as Cooper but Oliver noticed he had more scars on his arms.

Oliver assumed they were from logging but then again, he didn't know much about Rhett.

The young man got the feeling Rhett was going to be a challenge to get to know.

"I'll dry," Oliver said, picking up one of the towels near the sink and holding out his hand for the plate he was rinsing.

He handed it to the young man and for a few minutes they worked without saying anything.

Oliver was thinking about the best way to start a conversation when Rhett finally broke the silence.

"I was wrong about you," he said.

"Didn't think we'd ever see you again."

"I couldn't stay away. Washington is great and I enjoy spending time with you all and Cooper's here. I hated saying goodbye to him when my vacation was over. He's everything I didn't know I wanted."

Rhett gave Oliver a sideways glance.

"You mean that?"

"Absolutely. I'm in love with him and I want nothing more than to make him happy. It made sense for me to move here because I don't have much keeping me in San Diego and Cooper's entire world is here in Washington."

Rhett grunted and focused on scrubbing a pan.

He took his time before he spoke again.

"You hurt him and no one will ever find your body. There are places in these mountains where no one's been."

"Right. Got it," Oliver replied, taking the pan he held out to me.

"I have no intention of hurting Cooper."

Oliver knew it was going to be an uphill battle with Rhett but he was determined to win him over eventually.

When the dishes were done, the young man turned around to see Annabelle and Cooper at the island in the kitchen, where all sorts of baking ingredients and equipment were spread out on the counter.

"We're going to make cookies," Annabelle said.

"Do you want to help?"

"I'd love to.”

Cooper watched as Rhett walked out of the kitchen and into the living room.

"How did things go with him?" Cooper asked Oliver.

"Well, he threatened to kill me and dump my body in the mountains if I hurt you, so I guess that means he's giving me a chance," Oliver said, shrugging.

Cooper cracked up, his booming laugh filling the room.

Alongside him, Annabelle giggled.

"Rhett won't kill anybody," she said confidently.

"His bark is worse than his bite."

"I figured. What kind of cookies are we making?"

Annabelle began explaining, talking a mile a minute as she detailed what would be in the cookies and how she wanted them to look.

Her enthusiasm was infectious and Oliver got to work right away, combining the dry ingredients while she blended butter and sugar in a large bowl.

Cooper was leaning against the kitchen wall, watching them with a smile on his face.

"You two seem to have it covered."

"Maybe but you need a job to do," Annabelle said.

"My job is going to be eating the cookies."

Annabelle and Oliver both laughed and the young man rolled his eyes at Cooper.

True to form, he spent most of the time telling dumb jokes and making Annabelle laugh, rather than helping them bake.

When the cookies were out of the oven and cooled enough to move, they put them on a few plates and took them into the living room.

There was a fire going in the fireplace, softly crackling and warming the room as it cast a gentle golden glow on everything.

Andy and Eileen were sitting on one small couch and Rhett was sitting on the floor on a blanket and a nest of pillows.

Annabelle sat on the floor with Rhett, leaving the other small couch empty.

Oliver sat down with Cooper and he put his arm around his boyfriend as soon as they settled in.

Oliver nestled against his side, melting into the warmth of his solid body.

The young man couldn't remember ever feeling this content but this was also the first time he'd sat in front of a fire with homemade cookies, surrounded by a kind family and an incredible man who loved him and had no problem showing it.

It was the relationship he'd always wanted.

An hour later, Annabelle started falling asleep and they took it as their cue to leave.

Cooper held Oliver’s hand the whole way on the short drive home, keeping one hand in his and the other one the steering wheel.

"This is how I want every Sunday to be," Oliver murmured.

"A hike or walk on the beach, hanging out with your family and then the two of us hanging out at home after."

Cooper squeezed Oliver’s hand.

"It makes me so happy to hear you say that. It's what I want too. It's everything I want."

‘When Cooper pulled into his driveway and parked the truck next to my car, it felt like I was home.’

Oliver didn't understand how all of this could have happened so quickly but it felt right.

He gazed up at the night sky when he got out of the truck, noticing how much brighter the stars looked out here.

He heard Cooper walk around the truck and when he turned to face him, he had a soft, wondrous look in his eyes.

He stepped closer to Oliver and cupped one side of his face in his hand, his thumb gently stroking his cheek.

"I can't believe you're here. It's like I dreamed you into my life."

Oliver smiled and pressed his forehead against his.

"And I never saw you coming. Back in November I thought I was just going on vacation, not meeting the man I can imagine spending the rest of my life with."

"Do you mean that?" Cooper asked quietly, a hopeful lilt to his voice.

"I do. Obviously we need to get to know each other more first but I can see a life with you. I think I'm going to love living here and I already love you."

Cooper closed the distance between their lips and kissed him, his arms wrapping all the way around his lover’s lower back and pulling his slender body against his.

Cooper didn't need to say the words back.

Oliver could feel them in the way Cooper kissed him and could see them in his eyes when his boyfriend looked at him and the young man knew he'd never have to question or doubt Cooper’s love.

Cooper was everything love should be.