#my dad has been involved in two fights with my mom this week about it so I know he hates people who kill themselves

[kenlvry]

Hi there I same you writing for South Park and I wanted to put in a request, how would the main 4 (separate) when their gf gets hurt/in a fight?

Also love how you write them sm

-orchrid anon

how the main 4 would react when their gf gets hurt in a fight

note: HELLO ORCHRID ANON, you sound so sweet, thankyou for the complement i hope you enjoy this one! tw: slight sa in cartmans

⊰⁠⊹ฺ

kenny mccormick

it was lunch and kenny and others was talking about the new game thats about to launch in a couple weeks, stan then asked kenny if you and bebe has been fighting lately.

he was quite confused and asked why he said that, "dude didn't you see? the entire class the both of them was staring at each other as if they wanted to rip each others hair out" kyle chimed into the convo, apparently the whole class noticed it, kenny was focused on something else during class so he didn't notice anything.

all of the sudden some other 4 graders was running outside, cartman asked what was going on and the 4th grader said bebes hair is getting ripped out by you

kenny was shocked af, you weren't the type to get into fights because of how you always forgave people. if bebe did something to you so much to the fact you would fight her makes him worried.

all of them rushed outside to see a big circle and in the middle with you and bebe ,you had your hair tied up with loose hair strands. your lips was bleeding and so was your eyebrow. you cheek was swollen, but if you look at bebe she was a thousand times worse.

you were sitting on top of bebe punching her and kenny knew if he didn't get involved bebe would be dead by the time the fight ended, kenny pulled you away from the fight with you trying to kill that bitch. he quickly took you home despite still being school hours

"what the fuck happened babe? if someones been bothering you, you could've tell me i can handle it" (because of his alter persona being mysterion) "that bitch was talking about my mom being a whore and effing her dad, how could i not get mad???" kenny settled you down on your bed for you to blow some steam off on your pillow.

coming back with the first aid kit he treated your wounds and bruises with you moaning abt it not hurting and wanting to continue fighting. "babe next time dont hurt your precious face like this, just tell me okay? i dont want you to be in trouble"

he was really sweet for comforting you and you calmed down. you kissed him for thanks "damn, do that again but longer" you laughed and so did he. he ended up staying over and listened to you ranting to him about how fucked up bebe is, you two cuddled and watched some movie knowing tmr you'd get sent to mr mackeys for fighting and ditching school . kenny also made a mental note to visit bebe tonight.. <3

stan marsh

school ended and you stan and the others promised to go play at your house, some of the girls called you out, they waited long for you outside of school and cartman was not having it, about 5 minutes later you came out the door

but it seemed like you got into a fight, your hair was a mess and your face was fucked up, even your coat and scarf was missing, you looked like you could have frost bite any second.

the four of them rushed over to ask millions of questions, while being questioned stan realized you were freezing and gave you his coat, he'd rather him being cold than you, now back to questioning.

"what happened dude? you look like shit" you explained that apparently when wendy and the other girls called you to the playground to "talk" it was about stan, wendy was not happy stan broke up with her for you, when you arrived they were wendy and her cronies surrounding you, "what did i tell you about touching stan y/n?! dont fuck with me!"

they all jumped you trying to fuck up your face so stan would loose feelings for you, what they didn't know though was you could take all of them while sleeping, you were a black belt and your dad always taught you self defense, you easily took them. you should've known that wendy had ill intentions towards you.

when stan heard all of this he was fuming he wanted to go in and beat all of them up, luckily he doesn't fight women (unless necessary) kyle and the others was also mad af, you told them to deal with it tmr because all you wanted to do was go home and play some games or wtv.

the next day stan marched right up to wendy, and wow did you handle her.her face was wayyy worse than you, stan almost laughed. anyways he yelled at her on how stupid of it for her to fight you just because they broke up. it got heated real fast, stan ended it with saying "well fuck you wendy, after this don't even think i'd even consider you as a friend!!" he wanted to say so may things but if he did even you would be mad at him.

he'd take care of you until your wounds and bruises gets better, when you do anything he'd act like a whole mother. after this wendy always glared and didn't dare touch you.

kyle broflovski

when he heard you got into a fight he couldn't believe it like "y/n??? y/n l/n??? my girlfriend y/n??" "oh my fucking god yes" he was waiting for you outside the counselors office (with the other of course), it took really long and it sounded like you and whoever it was, was arguing inside.

it ended with a loud sigh from mr mackey and telling the both of you to get out. you came out with your hands in your pockets looking annoyed, you had a tissue up you nose, your eyebrows was bleeding and you had a small cut on your forehead. they were shocked at the state of your face. then the girl that you fought came out. it was a random 4th grader the others haven't meet before, apparently it was the new kid.

you told them that she had moved to the house infront of you and caused havoc, she'd throw eggs at your window and rocks at your bedroom windows, would also ask you to come over just to ask you to clean up her house! you told your parents but they would never catch her in the act. you punched her one day not wanting to deal with the shit she puts you through and she promised the next time she saw you it was on. you just didn't know it'd be at school.

you sigh knowing you have to deal with your parents later. kyle immediately took you the school nurse getting bandages for your wounds and a ice pack for whatever he thought its for. he didn't knew how to do anything but tried so hard, so precious. he told you to stay still and wouldn't have to lift a finger because he and the others can handle it.

the new kid was introduced and everyone knew what she did, you were a very famous lovable person, everyone loved you. wendy rolled her eyes at her knowing what she did to you. everyone ignored her. even when she was being introduced nobody was paying attention, they were just playing. she was mad to say the least, she thought everyone would love her esp kyle bc she took a liking to him!!

when you came back from the nurses office everyone greeted you. asking if your ok and if you need help. the new kid looked pissed at the sudden fame you got. you asked kyle what happened and he told you that not only he told everyone what happened between you two, he spread rumours about her, telling everyone she was someone who'd steal everyones mans and how she liked to steal things

you laughed at his efforts and also didn't know he could be such a gossip girl you kissed him to show thanks, the year continued with the new kid having 1-2 friends just because she was a bitch to you <3

eric cartman

him and three others was at his house waiting for you so they can go and play basketball. while on your guys way to his house some 6th grader called you over, you did and told them to go ahead and wait for you. it was well past 20 minutes now and they re getting bored.

"dude where is your girlfriend? she's taking forever omgg" "i dont know geez" suddenly you burst open the door making them all jump. you were out of breath and looked horrible , your hair looks like you haven't showered in years, your cheek was swollen and your coat had a tear in it, "dude what the fuck happened" "yeah you okay?" you were in tears.

the 6th grades asked to borrow 100$ which you didnt have so you refused but they wanted it now, you told them you didnt have them, you were getting real scared and wanted to run away, you looked behind you to see if it was okay to run or if there was someone you can call for help when all of the sudden someone grabbed you shoulder and demanded the 100$, he grabbed strands of your hair and kissed it saying that you can pay with something else winking at you. the other two 6th graders just laughed and you punched him, you were grossed out. they were shocked, the other 6th grader punched you and it was a full on fight, you could handle two of them but the other was too strong, you just ran off to cartmans house scared.

after you told the story cartman wanted to go and burn the 6th graders house but he hold it in "dont worry, i got this" cartman said to your crying figure on the couch and left the house. you looked dumbfounded but wtv.

(the 6th graders pov)you went home after getting beaten up by some lousy girl, you made sure to make a mental note to meet her tmr. going up the stairs to greet your pet bird, he was your fav thing in the world, you lov- hes dead. what the fuck, your room was trashed, all of your clothing was torn apart and on the floor was a note written on it was (fuck your 100$ bitch) .............

when cartman got back he told everyone to go home and to just play tmr, except you of course you can stay, he acted all tough but he was actually so worried for you, he treated to your bruises immediately, he was surprisingly good, the next day the 6th graders didnt bother you, infact they were scared of you, whatever cartman did you were so thankful

you kissed him and hugged him, he cringed and made puking noises but he loved it, you both knew <3

hope you liked it, cartmans is a bit messy cz i got tired halfway writing all of this sorry!!

[no-damsel]

Just friends

Warnings: Swearing, minor violence

Chapter three

“Son of a bitch!”

“Stop,” you hiss, smacking Adam’s hand away from your face. “Trust me, I’m fine.”

You had gotten in between two drunken assholes when they started fighting in front of you while you were collecting dirty glasses from tables. You ended up getting punched twice in the face since both men swung at the same time; however, the fight immediately stopped when they realized they’d hit the wrong person.

Two bouncers threw them out, and that was the end of it until Adam got involved. He got riled up, thinking he was going to have both of them thrown in jail.

“Is there a problem here?” Jasper walks into the staff room and says, “I heard there was some kind of altercation.”

“I got caught up in a bar fight; I’m fine.”

Since you were facing Adam, the owner couldn’t see how swollen your eye had become or the blood gushing from your eyebrow.

Adam steps up towards the owner, but before he can say anything, you lightly shove him in the chest, gaining his attention again. “Tommy, I’m fine. Take a walk or go back to work.”

He lowers his head slightly. “I’m sorry, boss, I just hate seeing a woman getting beat on, you know? It sets me off.”

Jasper pats him on the shoulder and says, “I get it.”

At this point, you turn to toss the tissue in your hand into the trash and go to get another one. “I think Angel should go home,” Adam says. “Have you seen her face? It’s a mess.”

“Angel, let me see.”

You turn and look Jasper in the face, and his jaw clenches. You were under no false illusion that he cared for you personally; rather, he cared about how you looked. He makes a tsk sound. “This just won’t do. Princess,” Jasper clicks his fingers at a blonde dancer when she enters the room. “Go and find Gregg for me; tell him I need a word with him. Tommy, go back to work.”

“I’m not excusing him shouting his mouth off.” You top off the whisky in Jasper's glass with your free hand while the other holds ice over your eye. “But one of the dancers told me his dad used to beat on his mom and sister as kids; he was just being protective. Which is more than I can say for the pathetic excuse of bouncers who let a fight like that break out.”

You felt guilty saying that Bob Ruzek was a good man, but you needed a cover story to excuse ‘Tommy’s’ behavior.

“No sweat, baby,” he motions for you to sit beside him. “Have you thought about my offer? More money, fewer late nights.”

“Why did you pick me?”

Jasper chuckles. “You’re the only one in here I trust to have my back.”

Adam and Antonio had been undercover for almost three weeks, and they were so close to making an arrest; they had found the stash house. They now just need to catch him handing the drugs over to his dealers. But now, his newest revelation was something you needed to discuss with Voight as soon as possible.

“Gregg,” Jasper says, standing up.

“The blonde girl said you wanted to see me.”

You hold back a snort. Antonio would go out of his way to call the dancers by their show names; whenever he heard someone being called Princess, Heaven, or Angel, he’d screw his face up.

Jasper pulls multiple twenty-dollar bills out of his pocket and hands them to Antonio. “Take our angel to the emergency room. Make sure they take good care of her.”

“The bleeding has stopped,” Antonio says, tossing the bloodied cotton ball into the trash. “I don’t think it will scar; just leave a nasty cut for a couple of weeks.”

“Thank you.”

Instead of taking you to the emergency room, Antonio took you back to his apartment to clean up your wound. If you went to the hospital, you’d need to use your real name, which could blow the whole operation if Jasper caught wind.

Antonio disappears from his bathroom and reappears moments later, holding a bag of ice in one hand and a hand towel in the other. He says nothing as he places ice on the material, then holds it up to your swollen eye, causing you to flinch.

“Sorry,” he mumbles.

Your fingers brush against his when you take the ice from him. You felt slightly uncomfortable; Antonio always seems wary of you. As if he’s expecting you to somehow betray him.

He leans back against the wall with his arms crossed. “Do you think Jasper bought the cover story you said about Tommy?”

“I think so. Although Adam looked pretty pissed,”

Antonio motions for you to follow him into the living room. “Can I ask you something? Sorry, gotta take this.”

He walks into a bedroom you presume is his own to answer his mobile and starts talking in Spanish. Every so often, his voice would become louder, so you would assume he was mad at something. You were grateful he cleaned you up but didn’t want to impose, and you would probably leave once his call was finished.

Sitting on the couch, you glance around his apartment and notice the framed pictures on the table. One stands out more than the other; on one side of the frame is a happy-looking young girl surrounded by balloons and banners with the number eighteen on them, and the next one is Antonio standing between the same girl and a young boy with his arms wrapped around them. All three of them were smiling brightly.

Hearing the sound of a door closing, you look up and see Antonio coming out of the bedroom. Before you can say anything, he shoves his phone into his pocket and says, “Sister.”

“Are these your kids?”

He nods.

“They are beautiful.”

He picks up another picture frame and sits down beside you. The kids look younger in this picture, and there is a brunette woman hugging them. “That’s my sister Gabriela, my daughter Eva, and my son Diego.” Smiling, he places the picture back down. “Do you have kids?”

“None biologically, but I’ve been raising my nephew Eli since he was two; he’s just turned seven. The only downside to being undercover is being away from him.”

“Yeah, I get you. When Laura filed for divorce, she took the kids with her, and it killed me. Eva did come and live with me for a while, but she’s now at college, and Diego only stays with me the first two weeks of the month.”

It took you by surprise that he was sharing any personal information with you since you didn’t really know each other.

“Where’s Eli now?”

“In our home with my dad. My dad’s a retired detective; he moved back to Chicago to help me with Eli.” You trace your finger over the thin red bracelet, a friendship bracelet your nephew made. “Is Gabriela your only sister?”

“Just the one sister,” he says. Antonio relaxes his arm over the back of the arm chair. “Gabby is younger than me and is incredibly strong-willed. She is a paramedic firefighter.”

You smile seeing how his face lights up when he talks about her. “Does she work in Chicago too?”

“She did. She moved to Puerto Rico a couple of years ago. Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

“I’m the youngest of three girls. My oldest sister, Cherry, lives in London.”

“What does she do?”

“She’s a sonographer. She moved to England to live with her husband and her stepson.”

“So I’m guessing she’s not Eli’s mom?”

“No, he’s my sister Amber’s son.”

He laughs, “You’re kidding me? Cherry, Amber, and Viola?”

“Yeah, yeah. My mom named us after her favorite colors.”

Antonio senses your change in emotion and, in a lighter tone, says, “So, does Amber live in the city?”

“Amber moved to New York when she was pregnant. She died five years ago.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he says sincerely. “Eli is lucky to have you; not everyone is willing to raise a kid; that’s not there.”

Before you can respond, your work mobile vibrates in your pocket. You answer the call and put the phone on loudspeaker. “Hey, I’m guessing you got my voicemail?”

“Yeah, I did. You okay? Adam said you got caught in a fight, and Dawson left with you.”

“I’m fine.”

When Hank doesn’t seem to believe you, Antonio speaks up: “Hank, we are sitting in my apartment; the bleeding has stopped.”

“Okay, good. So what was so urgent?”

You lick at your dry lips, mentally reading yourself to share the information you learned right before the fight.

[tojiscumdumpster]

CHAPTER ELEVEN- TOJI

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 Life has really been fucking with me these last six weeks. Work’s hell. The apartment we live in went up by four hundred dollars. And to make matters worse, Megumi and I have been rockier than ever. 

 That’s the thing that’s bothering me the most.

 It’s over simple shit, too. 

 I try my best to be a laid back parent and only go full on dad mode when needed, but I think the kid has taken advantage of that. All I ask is three things from Megumi:

 Don’t get into fights, and if you do, don’t get caught. 

 School night curfew is eight. Weekends are eleven.

 And lastly, tell me your whereabouts.

 But what does he do instead? Miss curfew. Leave the house without telling me where he’s going, and now he’s on a two week-suspension from school since he got into a fight. 

 Grant it the fight was justify because some kids were fucking with him and talking shit about his lack of English, but shit, Megumi. 

 At least he won. 

 One side of me was saying that’s my boy, and the other side had to ground him. 

 Let’s just say he wasn’t too happy with me after that. 

 I’m surprised he actually listened to me, though. But with him listening, I’ve been getting the silent treatment, no eating meals together, and been avoided like I’m the plague. 

 Parenting is not a walk in the park, I know that. Especially when you’re a single parent. When times like this hit, I think of my late wife more than ever. 

 With her death anniversary right around the corner, I can’t help but miss her and wish she was by my side. 

 I can’t do this shit alone. I was not raised in a loving environment, and considering the fact that my old man was an abusive drunk that used me as his punching bag, I damn sure don’t know what the fuck it feels like to have a father. 

 A mom? Don’t know either. Old man wasn’t faithful and was sleeping around with different women, so my mom could be dead or alive. Who knows? 

 My late wife knew all of this, not the severity, but she knew I had a shitty family. Yet she managed to see something good in a motherfucker like me, to the point we had a kid together.

 A kid that fucking hates me. And I’m the only one to blame. 

 God, maybe I should listen to Kong for once. I’m forty-two. Shit, maybe it is time to settle down and look for a housewife. Someone who’s willing to help raise a fifteen-year-old boy. 

 No, what the fuck am I saying? Since when do I listen to that fucker?

 Never. I trust him, though. Hell, do I really have a choice since he helped me take care of Megumi when I was going through my episodes in the early years of my wife’s death? 

 But my kid is my responsibility. Getting a woman involved isn’t going to help my relationship with Megumi. That’s some shit I need to fix myself. 

 Kong and I have one unorthodox ass relationship, but he’s the only bastard I actually consider a friend, and I know he means well. 

 He is Megumi’s godfather after all. Besides, the last thing I want to do is to ever make Megumi feel like I’m trying to replace his mom. Far from it. 

 Maybe loneliness is just catching up to my old ass.m, and the only woman I think of breaking me from my no relationship rule is Y/N. 

 Y/N fucking L /N. 

 That woman drives me insane in more ways than one. 

 After our first date over a month ago, we’ve been talking nonstop. Texting. Calling. Casual dates every now and there when time allows us. If I’m being real, Y/N is the only reason why I haven’t ripped my fucking hair out. 

 People would usually turn to alcohol to depend on the burning sensation it gives you to get drunk when feeling stressed. But me? Y/N is who I get drunk off of. Her energy is fucking addicting, and the reassurance she gives me… who know I needed so much of it. 

Like any other man, I don’t turn to anyone to help with my problems. I’m a prideful motherfucker who has the ego the size of a galaxy. However, I don’t have to be the way around Y/N. I sound sappy as shit, I know. 

 Guess that’s what happens when you become vulnerable. 

 The only reason why I haven’t had sex with her yet.

 I know myself. When I was younger, I only saw sex as a way to make extra cash when I was struggling after I got disowned by the Zen’in. The older I got, sex became more meaningless to me. I can be balls deep in pussy, no matter how good it is, and have no type of feelings attached. Me making a woman come or them making me come doesn’t mean I’ll start buying them roses and shit. 

 It wouldn’t be the same with Y/N. 

 Not saying I’m on the verge of falling in love with her, let alone loving her. But seeing how much we talk, how jealous I fucking get, especially after figuring out she works at the same school as her ex-fiancé, I don’t want any other fucker to even breathe the same air as her.

 Not even myself, but I’ll still be selfish enough to do it.

 That’s the thing about Y/N. I feel myself growing more selfish when it comes to her. I want her time and energy to only be for me. She’s mine without her knowing and I’m planning on keeping it that way. I can admit that’s probably a dick move, but I can’t find myself falling in love again. 

At least, I’m forcing myself not to.

 Hearing her moan my name. Seeing her face when she comes. Knowing what it feels to have that sweet, tight, warm fucking pussy clench around my fingers. I’ll become a starved and possessive man the moment she’s like that around my dick. 

 I’ll catch feelings.

 I’ll want her above me, beneath me, all over me twenty-four-seven. I’m not an easy lover. I can admit to that.

 But that won’t stop me from…

 No, I won’t say that.

 It’s strong. Whatever emotion I feel about Y/N, and I can’t help but think it has something to do with her being so damn familiar. The more I talk to her, the more I know who she is. Maybe in another lifetime I’ve loved her before. 

 Even saying that in my head sounds crazy as shit. The dreams about her aren't helping, either.

 “Get a hold of yourself, Fushiguro,” I mutter to myself. I look at the time to see it’s eleven thirty. “She should be on her free hour right now.” 

 Maybe a phone call wouldn’t hurt.

 “I’m busy,” I grunt.

 I couldn’t even call Y/N before Kong called me to fucking be clingy. He claims he only calls me to check on the kid, but Megumi has his own phone. 

 “Mad because I’m not your girlfriend? Sorry, I had you first, Fushiguro.” I hear him puffing out smoke from his cigarette. “Be grateful you have a fucking friend to check on you, you fucking jackass.”

 I chuckle, sarcastically saying, “Awe, I consider myself very lucky.”

 “Fuck you.”

 “Sorry, not interested,” I replied. And this is what I mean by unorthodox friendship. “Assuming you got some information for me?” After that Zen’in fuck purchased the club ownership last month, I had Kong do some digging for me.

 All the bullshit he was spewing about Naobito forcing everyone in that family who doesn’t have a kid, to have one, and taking interest in finding Megumi, I couldn’t take shit like that lightly.

 Not when my kid is potentially involved.

 Knowing how those Zen’ins’ get down, they always find a way to get what they want. Even if it results in blood.

 “I found some files about that Naoya shitface you told me about… Looks like he’s the real deal,” he says.

 “Meaning?”

 “Meaning he is your cousin. Looks like your old man’s brother had some unwanted kids of his own.”

 “Having kids in the family just to leave them dry is a fucking ritual in that shitty ass family.” I get up from bed and go to the kitchen to grab a ginger ale. “What else you find out?”

 “Zen'in owns half of the real estate in Tokyo,” he tells me, clicking his tongue. “Those bastards keep growing and growing by the minute. So if what this Naoya is saying is true, I can only imagine Naobito is doing this to have the city fear the name Zen’in, even after he’s six feet under.”

 I scoff. “For an ego stroker? So what the fuck does this have to do with my kid?”

 “How the hell am I supposed to know?”

  Over my dead fucking body if they think they could come even twenty feet near Megumi. I have no problem going back to that violent lifestyle that I’m trying to escape when it comes to protecting my kid.

 Actually, I’m hoping that they do because I’ve been itching for a stress relief and permanently getting rid of those Zen’in fucks just might be the way to do it.

 Maybe I should pay them a visit on my trip to Japan in a few months.

 I run my hand through my hair and sigh. “Alright. Keep me posted.” An incoming call comes through and I see Y/N’s name flashing my screen. “Gotta go.”

 “Your girlfriend’s callin-” I disconnected our line before he finished his bullshit to answer Y/N.

 “I’m so close to fucking pulling these braids out and choking my boss with them.” Ha, that’s a funny way to say hello.

 “I’m trying to wrap my head around why hearing you threaten to kill someone is turning me on?” I tease.

 She lets out a soft breath. “I’m sorry, big guy. Work is being a pain in my ass right now.”

 “I see that. You cursed twice. That’s something expected from me.”

 “Well, it’s kind of inevitable when you’re a high school teacher,” she argues. “And actually, no. I expect four curse words in under a minute from you. So I think my two words will be alright.”

 I smile while walking back to my room and close the door behind me. “Talk to me, sweets. What’s going on?”

 “Other than finding out that my name was unknowingly submitted to take part in the state’s teachers summit, nothing really.”

“Is it that bad?” 

 “No. It’s actually a good opportunity to voice your concerns as a teacher to the school board, but quite frankly, I’m tired of going. Only one teacher is selected every year to represent each school in the county and it’s always me.”

 “And what is this summit shit? Why do they need teacher representatives?” I hear her smile through the phone when she explains the summit, and I’m pretty sure it’s because of me cursing already. “Probably this isn’t what you want to hear, but I can see why you’re always chosen. You speak your mind well, and I can see the passion you have when it comes to your students.”

 “Well, yeah, but every teacher should be that way,” she counters. “And the summit this year is four hours away from us, so they made it a weekend convention. A weekend, Toji?” 

 I arch my brow. “And who submitted your name?” Her silence tells me my answer. “You sure this fucker isn’t trying to win you back? Abusing his power as your boss to get you to himself for the weekend seems like a man move I probably would’ve done, too.”

 “You would?” she incredulously asks.

 “When it comes to you? Absolutely. Zero questions asked.” I can almost guarantee the silence from her again is because she’s blushing, something I find fucking adorable about her. “You there, Miss L/N?”

 “Toji, I’m at work,” she answers.

 “Admitting that your mind is in the gutter?”

 “I-uh, no. Just reminding you to get your head out of it.”

 I tip my head back and laugh. “Cute. So when’s the summit?”

 “In three months.”

 “And you can’t pull out?”

 “Unfortunately, no. Unless I can prove that it’s due to a medical or family emergency, I’m out of luck.” No doubt in my mind that her ex pulled this shit intentionally. I mean, I get it. If I lost someone like Y/N as my fiancée, I would be going through hell and back until she was mine again. 

 But too bad for this fucker that isn’t the case anymore, and I don’t tread lightly when it comes to people fucking with what’s mine.

 Mine, that’s exactly what Y/N is.

 “I’m way too hungry for this crap,” she says, pulling me from my possessive musings. 

 “And you didn’t eat because?”

 “Someone kept me up last night on the phone, so I overslept and couldn’t get a decent breakfast before work this morning.” 

 I chuckle, remembering our two a.m. conversations that turned into her masturbating while I was talking her through it. “I’m sure that person is sorry.”

 “Doubt it.”

  I look at the time again to see it’s noon. “What time is your free hour over?” 

 “One. Why?”

 “Grab lunch with me.”

 She playfully hums to consider my last minute invitation. “I guess I can squeeze you in.”

 “Squeeze me in?” I mock her response while laughing. “Appreciate it, Miss L/N.”

 “I’m sure you can find a way to show me your appreciation.”

 I smirk. “Forgot you were at work?”

 “Whatever, Mr. Fushiguro. Text me the address and I’ll meet you there.”

 “Alright, alright. I’ll see you,” is the last thing I say before disconnecting the call.

 Smiling to myself like a fucking lovesick idiot knowing that I’m about to see Y/N has me surprised myself. Like I said earlier, this woman drives me insane.

 And I think I’ll grow to not mind it.

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no discussion question this chapter. but would love to hear your thoughts ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

[kining-the-evil]

All I Have Left ch1/?

Summary: you were in love with Randy, you had a life plan with him. But after his death, you cut out everyone in your life. It’s not until you take custody of his niece and nephew that you begin to live life again.

An: this is going to be platonic/motherly!reader to the twins. The idea has been bounced around my head for a couple of days, so I wanted to try it out

It’s not overly long, but if I continued with the idea it would have been way to long. So I may write a part two

Scream Taglist: none currently. Let me know if you want added

Scream Masterlist All Masterlists

“I think it will be a girl.”

You glanced up at Randy when you heard his words. The two of you were in the middle of a movie night in his dorm room, you tucked into his side while his arm was wrapped around you. He wasn’t even looking at you, making you wonder if you were hearing things.

“What?”

“Our first kid, I think she’ll be a girl.” He further explained, looking down at you. The two of you had been talking the night before about life after college. You were high school sweethearts, and had talked about it plenty of times. He was going to major in film, and you psychology. You would live in Hollywood while starting your carriers, and once ready for a family you’d move to a close by suburb. A plan you had started making the summer before senior year. And last night, you’d talked about kids.

“You think so?”

“Absolutely,” he confirmed.

“What makes you so sure?” You asked while giggling slightly.

“A dad just knows,” he winked.

“Well, so does a mom and I think it will be a boy. Besides, it’s not like you’re currently a dad.” You poked his chest lightly, making him chuckle.

“I’d love to have a son, and I’d love him,” he reached down to grab your left hand and place a kiss on the engagement ring on your finger. “But I’ll get my little girl. Don’t care how many times I have to fuck you.”

“Wow, so noble,” you teased as he pulled you to straddle his lap. “What would you name her?” He had clearly put thought into this, and you wanted to know how far his mind had gotten.

“Mindy.”

—•—•—•—•—•—•—•

That night was only a week before Randy was killed, and every night after you wished you were dead yourself. Everything made you angry. Seeing Sidney or Dewey made you angry, and even thinking about Gale and her stupid book made you angry. Seeing the school made you angry, and the police made you angry.

So you dropped out of school. You cut people off, distanced yourself, and moved back to Woodsboro. You only went to town when you had to, and worked at home in any way you could. You didn’t need a tone of money, just enough to live in your small house alone. Sidney had tried to reach out a few times, but eventually got the hint that you didn’t want to see her. The only person you were slightly civil with was Randy’s sister, Martha.

She worked at one of the stores you went to often, and you just couldn’t bring yourself to hate the women. You’d known her for years, being friends with Randy for years before going out. So when you saw her at the store, you said hi. If she asked you to come over for a drink or dinner once in a while, you said yes. And when she got pregnant, you promised to be as involved with the kids life as she needed.

“Please…” Chad whined, giving you his best puppy eyes. You had to hand it to the seven year old, he was pretty good at it.

“No, your mom said you’ve been wearing them for the past three nights. They need washed,” you attempted to reason with the boy. Which didn’t work in the slightest.

“Mom said she ‘gave up on that fight’” Mindy spoke up. She had already changed into her pjs, quickly complying when you promised a treat during the movie. Martha and her husband were out for the night, and you had offered to watch your niece and nephew (technically godchildren but as Martha said ‘you would have become their aunt’).

“Enough,” you scolded her before turning back to Chad. “I know for a fact you have more then one pair of train pjs. Get one of your others.” You were at a standstill, a staring contest with a seven year old. You were pointing towards the dresser, and you were determined to win this fight.

“Fineeeeee,” he stretched the word before walking towards the dresser. “But can you wash them for tomorrow night?”

You agreed, knowing Martha would appreciate the clothes at least being clean. You helped the two kids get ready for bed before sending them down stairs to pick a movie. You grabbed some more of their clothes, starting a load of laundry. The sound of arguing drew you downstairs, but you stoped at the fire place. A small shrine that had been set up for Randy. You still didn’t know how to feel about it. Every time you saw a photo of him it reminded you of finding him in that van, but at the same time it reminded you of whatever goofy memory surrounded the photo.

You were pulled from your thoughts again when the arguing got louder. You were sure you knew what it was about. Mindy was attempting to get Chad to agree to whatever movie she wanted to watch. He mate as of splitting it up you grabbed the two bags of candy, one of each of their favorite, and walked into the room to flop onto the couch. This caught both of their attention.

“What are you doing?” Mindy was practically glaring at you, and you had to do your best to hold in your laugh.

“Well, i was going to give you guys this for during the movie, but you are busy arguing so I figured I’d eat it myself.” A horrified look crossed their faces at your words, and it took minutes for them to chose a movie and to climb onto the couch with you. They each stole their respected candy, giggling as though they had tricked you into handing it over.

It was almost 2 in the morning when you woke up to the sound of the house phone ringing. Chad and Mindy were up in bed, and you must have fallen asleep while waiting for their parents. You blindly reached over to grab the phone, pulling it to your ear.

“Hello?”

“Is this the Meeks-Martin household?”

“Ya, can I take a message?” You yawned a bit through your sentence, trying to wake up a bit more.

“Y/n? Its Dewey.” You sighed lightly at the man’s words. You did your best to be civil with the man, it wasn’t his fault that your worst memories in life included him.

“What can I do for You officer Riley?” You questioned.

“I um, I’m calling for Woodsboro memorial Hospital. I have some bad news.” You quickly sat up, suddenly not so tired. “Joel and Martha Meeks-Martin were in a car accident. They um- they were dead before getting to the hospital.”

“W-what?” You whispered, unsure of what else to say. Your entire body felt numb, the same way you had felt when sitting at the police station after Randy. A feeling that made everything feel fake, like in a dream.

“I’m so sorry y/n,” Dewey’s voice practically whispered through the phone. “But we need you to come down and identify the body’s, as well as decide what will happen with the kids.”

You squeezed your eyes shut, willing tears not to fall. What felt like your only two friends left were gone, and you had to tell their kids what had happened.

“Y/n? Are you ok-“

“Do you need me tonight or can it wait until morning?” You cut him off.

“Tomorrow is Fine. Listen, if you need anything at all-“

“I’ll see you then Dewey.” You quickly hung up the phone, setting it on the couch next to you. You let your head fall to your hands, a small sob being let out. You would cry tonight, morn your friends tonight, and tomorrow you would be whatever Mindy and Chad needed you to be.

[dragonfly0808]

Musa: The Thesis

Kay so… this one involves one of the biggest spoilers of s3 due to one of the biggest changes I made there revolves around Musa and I will be discussing it after the First Things First part. So please please please if you haven’t read up until Season 3 Chapter 24: The Space Between Where Our Ends Meet, DO NOT READ PAST THE FIRST THINGS FIRST PORTION OF THIS THESIS

I’M SERIOUS PLS DON’T

First Things First

The first words I have in Musa’s character sheet are small sassy goth.

One of the main things I focused on with Musa, especially in the first season is her struggle to be vulnerable. Musa has lived the past 5 or so years with a closed off dad and never got a real chance to truly mourn her mom due to her having to learn to pretty much take care of herself, because of this she becomes very defensive and doesn't trust many people, and it causes her to struggle with being vulnerable, making her feel weak to do so. Here we see her open up slowly to the girls and not really talk that much about her home life until s2.

This is also where the main problem in her relationship with Riven comes in, but we’ll talk about that later on.

Musa, along with Aisha was the loneliest Winx before going to Alfea, and this plays into how protective she can be over the girls, she knows what it’s like to have no one so she is more than ready to throw hands for her girls any day of the week.

Love’s a Loaded Gun, Nobody Wants to Fight

A theme we see with Musa is her not believing she’s really worth a lot of time. She worried about staying one place too long and becoming an inconvenience or sharing her hurt and becoming a weight.

We see that it really takes a lot for her to believe that she is not being selfish or ‘too much’ by expressing herself or deciding to stay in one place, namely Tecna’s home.

Musa has a lot of feelings regarding feeling like she’s being shut out.

She’s working on not shutting people out herself but when others do it to her, she could just have a breakdown since she is so sick and tired of her dad doing it to her and that’s just about the worst thing you could do to her.

She’s a tiny bit afraid of love. Not so much of love itself as just, the thought of losing someone she loves again.

Haunted

So… this is the part with the huge S3 spoiler so PLEASE TURN BACK NOW, THIS WAS ONE OF THE MOST IMPACTFUL MOMENTS OF S3 MY INBOX WAS FLOODED FOR A WEEK IF YOU HAVEN’T READ IT YET TURN BACK NOW

So, in s3 chapter 24 Musa gains her Enchantix… and kills Stormy in the process.

First off the second I decided to do s3 I knew I was gonna change how Musa got her Enchantix cause I think we can all agree she got the short end of the stick in the OG.

I also already had in mind killing off either Stormy or Darcy but Stormy just fit more.

I combined these two ideas by changing Musa’s Enchantix to be gained by taking down a building over herself and Stormy due to Stormy loosing control of a curse.

Now, this could’ve gone very differently so why did I chose Musa to be the one to kill Stormy?

Honestly? I felt like it would impact her the most.

Now, obvs any of the girls would’ve been hugely impacted by taking a life (see Tecna) but taking the life of one of the Trix who they’ve known and fought for so long is another level of personal.

And, just like Bloom, Musa can be a very angry person and she hated the Trix’s guts and maybe a tiny part of her would’ve been glad with them dead, but actually having a hand in it…

It creates very conflicting emotions and a mountain of trauma and feelings of inhumanity and just confusion for our girl which we will get to see a lot more of in s4.

Thoughts Behind her Main Relationships

Tecna

I love Tecna and Musa, they are very much a friendship between unconventional girls who don’t always come across as they mean to.

They both struggle to make friends for different reasons but the second they meet they realize that they are quite similar and so never push each other outside of their comfort zone at first and that’s what allows them to become close enough to then push one another.

Musa gets what makes Tecna tick and makes sure that she’s comfortable, she makes sure she gets her alone time and makes sure she doesn’t get overwhelmed.

Tecna gets that Musa doesn’t want to talk about herself so instead gets her to open up about her music.

And it’s through this that they start to trust one another and by s2 we see them knowing each other well enough to keep the other from spiraling.

When Tecna’s confused about her feelings for Timmy, it’s Musa who reminds her that it’s okay to not be ready for a relationship. And when Musa and Riven first kiss, it’s Tecna who suggests they take it slow since she knows how skittish they can both be.

At this point, they push one another when they need to.

They are crucial to each other’s growth.

Riven

I always loved the idea of Rivusa but hated the original execution.

I really like the idea of two kids who have been so hurt by the people that were meant to protect them figuring out how to love each other. How to be open and trusting and just how to work as a couple.

Riven and Musa fall very slowly over the course of a year and a half, they get to know each other, be friends, quite crucially: they’re able to be vulnerable with each other. Which is huge for both of them.

And, when they realize that these feelings are serious and more than just a crush, they are both terrified.

I’ll talk a bit more about Riven’s feelings on his thesis but for Musa, she’s scared of this failing, of flying till the bone crush like the queen would say. She’s scared of it going wrong and losing someone she loves so much.

The part I love about this is that this means that even after they get together we get to see them fuck up. Because just because they’re together doesn’t mean they’re just going to forget years of trauma and having their walls up.

And, in my version, once they’re together, it’s Musa who fucks up by keeping secrets and not being able to bring herself to be vulnerable.

I think my fave part about writing these two is writing about how they grow together both as individuals and as a couple, how they learn to communicate and be vulnerable and realize that they are both here to stay and that this relationship is soft and safe and everything that they have been denied for so long.

That’s what this couple is to me. Two kids learning to love and not be afraid of it.

Helia

Helia and Musa are the writers of the group, due to them both being artist and having had past or present issues with their fathers and being vulnerable, it made sense for them to be platonic soulmates.

They’re the kind of people to spill their guts out of paper and just take a pen and truly speak, word vomit comes out in prose and metaphors and long words that just make you feel serene.

That’s how they find it easier to communicate.

They bond over words and music and the crushing weight of a knot in your throat not letting you speak when it matters most. The falling feeling of everything coming out wrong when spoken but in a beautiful way when written.

Helia is the only person Musa co-writes with for her songs, because he gets her voice as a songwriter in a way that no one else does.

And Helia shared his favorite poems because he knows she’ll get them in the way few could.

They are the artists who write not just because they enjoy and love it, but because it’s a crucial part of who they are, of how they process things and how to keep going.

If you wanna get to know these two, the best way to do it is to look at what they write.

And that’s why they just click.

Who is Musa in this Rewrite?

Musa is a girl who’s hurt. Who has lost and has had to almost raise herself.

She’s done the best that she could but the best she could do to protect herself at the time, back home with her father was to build walls around herself.

She’s someone who is learning to be open and vulnerable and to believe the people she loves won’t leave.

She’s someone trying to leave behind a toxic environment and mindset.

Someone who is, in one word haunted. By her past, by both her parents be it in different ways, by words, by Stormy.

But she’s learning to live with it, to still grow and to not take steps back in her journey.

She’s an artist finding her meaning and voice.

—————

Masterlist

Musa Moodboard

Musa’s Instagram

Musa and Tecna Moodboard

Musa and Riven Moodboard

Musa and Helia Moodboard

—————

so this one took so long cause I couldn’t figure out how to word certain things and tbh I feel like this one is the worst one so far so pls validate me and tell me it was good I feel like crying but I think I managed to get everything across

[flashfuture]

The like fandom idea that Jason became a problem child in order to make Dick the golden child are kind of wild. Because like... read the golden and silver age comics. Dick is the golden child. He is the most coddled and adored batkid purely by the metric of writers used to want Batman to be a hero and a good man plus it’s forty years of Dick being the only kid that exists. Bruce will never ever again be caring a child to bed when they fell asleep studying or making a whole day planned around their birthday or putting off a case to take them out to the beach house for a weekend or crying his eyes out as they go off to college. Like none of those traditional fatherly things are gonna happen because that Bruce is dead the writers made sure of it. Now he’s far more likely to clock one of his kids in the face then start a pillow fight. 

Read the two years of Jason comics. He started off the bat in reboot as a problem child. You have a little thief stealing tires and smoking? Not supposed to be your all around good american boy like Dick Grayson was. (I say this as a Roma person, Devin Grayson included that Dick is Romani for purely racist reasons it was not always intended in canon and I do not see Dick as representation. If you are Roma and want to go for it. But if I read one more google translated story of Dick speaking Romanian for some god forsaken reason I’ll break my laptop) 

Think about the world in which they were made. The 1980s were not in need of the same boy wonder as the 1940s. Robin was supposed to be what saved Jason from delinquency. And in the end the writers had him unable to be saved. He became aggressive against people like the Black Mask. The age old did Jason push that guy or watch him fall and does it even matter if he just watched because Batman and old Robin would have jumped after him so what is Jason’s deal? On to the end of his life with running away to find his birth mother and happening to run into Bruce who was looking for a nuke. Jason died in the end a hero to save his mom true but it is made clear in the narrative it was his own fault for not listening to his dad. 

^ All of that written of course by a known hater of Robin who wanted to kill the symbol but couldn’t have touched Dick Grayson a far too beloved character. And like I said the 1980s. ‘Listen to your parents or you’ll be in trouble punk’ is not a crazy far out there narrative for them to have spun. 

Back onto Dick he was made to make the little boys of America feel good about themselves like they could do anything. He listened to his dad and he was a stand up citizen who was all about justice! Go to the 1960s when he goes off to college. The first thing he does is get involved with a protest. He was calling Bruce up asking him to host a Beatles knock off in Wayne Manor. Bruce was always telling him to worry about his studies. That was what their first big fight was about! Bruce even explicitly tells Dick at one point to worry about himself and the Titans more than him ! The era a character is written in is reflective of the message they send and with time passed it is easier to look back and contextualize what the message was. Like modern day comic writers since Jason have been trying so fucking hard to ruin Dick and Bruce’s relationship but outright changing canon so that Bruce was a worse person in every argument. It’s not even funny at this point like every year down to the fucking weeks of Dick Grayson’s child hood was written out in succession and these modern writers are like we get it we do But what if Bruce also didn’t care about Dick. Like where am I???

The solution to Bruce Wayne and Batman not being a very good person is obviously in their minds make Bruce a horrible dad to Dick that way it evens out his shit behavior across the board. If there is no glaring example of how good Bruce has and could be then no one would think he should be like that. So we’re supposed to just nod along and be like Yeah i think Bruce would beat Jason up and smack Tim around and tell Damian he doesn’t like him. Seems fair to me. Which???

Anyways all this to say. Dick Grayson was always the golden child the writers just want you to forget Bruce was a good dad once.  

[kallystah]

|17| Surprise little chicks

700 words

The eldest sitting on the living room carpet while the youngest lingered over the task the latter had asked him to do, they chatted nicely in front of their favorite TV series, which was none other than the beginnings of reality TV. Using his comb to separate his brother's locks to apply the coloring to his roots, the second continued to criticize the man playing his role while the eldest calmly ate his popcorn next to the pile of clothes stained with dried blood from their previous outing…

Indeed, it's no secret that Haitanis are not cleanliness freaks compared to their parents, who, every time they came back for a few days between two trips, always ended up killing them with all this noise, which was not so disastrous, they told themselves, without knowing, however, the unhealthy activities of their children, which were always well hidden.

Unfortunately, today the apartment seemed surely too wise and good-natured for the superior beings who had decided to involve destiny. It is true that not really wanting to answer their mother in the middle of fighting, he had forgotten to call her back a week ago and had not taken the time to listen to the voicemail. But wandering on his portal after having moved the black dye away from him, the one with the blue-colored locks listens to this message while taking from the food package that his brother kindly hands him. Nevertheless, both hearing the message at the same time, they choke violently before exchanging a panicked look.

"Hello my chicks, your father and I are coming to say hello to you on Thursday afternoon!"

-Ho shit.

-You take care of the living room and the kitchen, I'll take care of the laundry. Orders the eldest, panicking throughout the apartment in search of the dirty and bloody clothes scattered around, most of the time almost falling because of getting tangled up in them.

For his part, the youngest focuses on cleaning the surfaces in need and allows himself to throw the waste to his brother armed with a garbage bag to get rid of the corpses of beers and junk food that their parents hated.

The dreaded footsteps echoing in the space, on the stairs, in the hallway then stopping in front of the door, at the sound of the keys turning in the lock, the two panicked boys rush towards it, jostling each other without wanting to. Rindou having been thrown by his brother who had slipped ends up responding by crushing his foot violently as the door opens. Unable to shout, the latter turns red, letting out an unmanly cry while the other puts his glasses on his nose, proud, ready to welcome.

-Surprise my chicks! Their mother greets them, so happy to see them, taking them in her arms with force to show them the love she gives them despite the fact that they are never there.

-What a surprise… They say, a forced smile still out of breath from their intense effort.

Unfortunately, detaching themselves from their mother who pinches their cheeks as if she still had young children in front of her, they are all three stopped by the father who has gone around the apartment.

-Can I know why there is a baton on the couch?

Addressing each other a panicked look, the two brothers try to find a reason as quickly as possible but just as valid. But, unfortunately it was the youngest who found an explanation.

In a few words: never let Rindou explain a phenomenon to his parents.

-Ran has strange fantasies that we can't understand as a normal person dad, don't bother.

-Ran? The two parents wonder in shock, turning towards the one who was glaring at his brother, trying to remain neutral despite his strong amusement.

-Surprise. He tries behind, not knowing what to say in this situation.

-Your chick does weird things mom. The two-tone whispers before leaving, leaving his brother alone to be questioned relentlessly about fantasies that he only knew the names of.

-My god my chick has grown up and is doing adult things. She cries as the black-haired man tries to discredit this statement as best he can.

~~~chapter 17 end-

masterlist tkr

[leaf-kei]

Hello! Love your Time squad posts ! Canon wise: do you think Larry was in love with Tuddrussel? What about XJ5 being in love with Sheila idea ? I really love checking for canon evidences it is so fun

HI!!!! I AM SO SORRY it took me so long to answer you ;__; My bad... I wanted to wait until I could give this ask my Full attention (tbh I've had Team Fortress 2 brain worms for weeks and have been unable to focus on anything GET OUT OF MY HEAD GET OUT).

I'm so glad you like my posts! ;w; In general, I don't think things need to be canon to be worth thinking about & exploring creatively... but buddy? Larry being in love with Tuddrussel? That is IN THE SHOW. I can't stress enough that this HAPPENS in Time Squad. I would venture to say Larry wanting a loving relationship with Tudd and Tudd not giving it to him is a reoccurring theme (along with history and slapstick comedy and. gender roles, weirdly??? tune in for THAT essay later lmao). You may have seen it already, but I compiled a bunch of my favorite TuddLarry moments in a video here! It also includes moments where Something Gay Happens On Screen no matter what characters are involved... I know it's all there for comedy, but for the most part, the gay jokes in TS don't feel like they come from a hateful place to me. Everyone gets made fun of equally in this show... it has that kind of mean-spirited early 2000s humor lol

My absolute favorite underrated TuddLarry canon moment of all time is in A Thrilla At Attila's. In Tudd's fantasy recollection of the mission, Otto and Larry look up to him as a great leader... it's VERY CUTE that Tudd's dream is to be genuinely admired by them 😭 BUT at one point, the fantasy Larry (who is inexplicably wearing a tutu) swoons over Tudd with little hearts over his head while Tudd is fighting some other guy?! THIS IS IN TUDD'S FANTASY HE WISHES THIS WOULD HAPPEN

U know what, I'm gonna take this opportunity to ramble about family commitment as a central theme of the show!!

- Otto is literally adopted by Tudd and Larry (Larry calls it adoption in Kubla Khan't), and Otto's addition to the squad forces their business-only relationship to change. Time Squad is (at least partly) about three very different characters navigating a new family dynamic formed by chance.

- They naturally fall into typical sitcom family roles: Tudd's the manchild fun dad, Larry's the homemaking strict mom, and Otto's the sweet kid who's trying to keep the peace... their personalities clash as they try to live and work and be happy together. It's significant that they're alone on the satellite they live on; with no one else from their own time period around them while they're at home, they're isolated with one another like a family unit in a suburban house. Even though they fight, they grow to love each other over time... what's that thing people say about hate and love being two sides of the same coin? I feel like Larry's love for Tudd manifests as anger a lot of the time—he gets upset whenever Tudd doesn't measure up to his ideal of a domestic partner. Is that healthy? Idk, probably not, but that's the way it is for them (at least in the two seasons that exist 👀).

- Of course, family commitments aren't always harmonious, and for these guys things are chaotic MOST of the time... but no matter what historical figures they meet or temptations they face, at the end of the day, they always come back together. They're a family, it's as simple as that. Otto doesn't need to have a logical reason to turn down George Washington's offer to adopt him in Father Figure of Our Country—no one can replace Tuddrussel, and that's it.

So tl;dr, Time Squad is about two men adopting a child and having a domestic committed relationship, and it uses that setup to tell funny stories and introduce fun conflict !?? And it's all in a cute art style AND there's HISTORY??? Cartoon Network should ABSOLUTELY bring it back and make a new season HEAR MY PLEA

—Of course, I think Tudd and Larry's relationship developing into a romantic (but still wacky) one would be a great setup for such a new season! But that's just my post-canon fantasy ;^) ... and what all my fanart and little writings are about lol

ANYWAYS HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Edit: SHIT I forgot to mention XJ5!! I ADORE the idea they have a crush on Sheila, that's my headcanon too!! BUT instead of being a jerk like Tudd is to Larry, Sheila is only ever considerate and nice and professional and friendly to XJ5 🤲 And XJ5 is so awkward with social situations (a real Robot's Robot) that they have no idea how to approach these feelings or how to articulate them at all... they could use a few lessons in human behavior from Larry hmmm?

[theworldoffostering]

Y’all, life feels like so much right now.

My dad is declining, but it’s slow and sad and very hard from a caregiving perspective. My mom is exhausted to the point that we are looking at placement in a facility. We’ve toured two. One was not great, one was much better but all the people who were in the dining room for lunch were asleep in their wheelchairs. My dad rarely sleeps so that seems like a poor fit. We go to see another one this week. Meanwhile, my mom is paying a small fortune for in-home care from 10pm-6am so she can get some rest.

Ms. 6 and I are having lunch with her mom this week. I’m being super honest in saying I have no capacity for this right now. Her mom has been very appropriate so far, so I’m hopeful, but even so, it is so much for me to process and walk through with Ms. 6, but I can’t let her walk through it alone. It’s not even Mom, it’s just doing one more really big thing that involves me having the physical, mental, and emotional capacity to manage.

The fighting at our house this summer has been off the chain! The three little boys bicker (and worse) constantly. We are starting play therapy with Baby this week. It takes about eight sessions to be up and actually running, but at least we are getting started.

Our floors are going in this week. This is a major step in completing the renovation. I believe it will help to have three kids at summer camp for at least part of the week. I think the floor people will be here working all week and then I think we need to be out of the house for about 48 hours once they apply the last coat of whatever to the floor. I’m desperately trying to go with the flow. After the floors are done, we can do trim, put in doors, and figure out the closet system.

Oh, I forgot that last week we thought DH was having some sort of heart issue which resulted in a lengthy afternoon/evening spent in the ER. He was sitting at the dining room table eating lunch when all of a sudden his BP went sky high, he felt nauseated and vomited, and got incredibly sweaty (like soaked through his clothes and left a puddle on the table where his arm was resting) in less than one minute. Eventually, I thought it was a panic attack as once his labs were read, his glucose was high, but his urine pH was also high so the ER doc said it was dehydration. That seems inaccurate given that he was not outside, had not performed hard manual labor, and had had some fluids (normal intake for him) that day. Idk. He has to follow up with his GP this week. I’ve never seen a panic attack but everyone who has said it looks like the symptoms he experienced. That seems like it would fit better given that he had seen his parents a few days prior for the first time in nearly two years, had processed that in a therapy appointment earlier that day, and has been under general emotional stress (like me) for the better part of the summer. Who wants to weigh in? I’m listening and hoping to accompany him to his appointment this week and want to be prepared.

[fandom-hoarder]

This is part of a longer post that I've been composing in my head for months, but I've been watching a lot of anti-multilevel marketing (MLM) videos and it had started making me think about how, just like my mom has used religion to cope with her (previously undiagnosed) ptsd, she used MLMs also.

She sold Tupperware and got the Sea World convention trip. She sold Mary Kay and got the car. She sold other things I can't remember-- vitamin stuff, and was super into it.

And the way some people break down the MLMs in the videos I'm watching, really made me think about how that structure of having to constantly recruit new people is so much like evangelism in general, but particularly Jehovah's Witnesses. They are constantly trying to recruit you -- not just to save you, or teach you something they say will enrich your life, but because they have to make their quotas!

And now I'm watching these ex-JW vids, from Elders who have left the Jehovah's Witnesses, and it's bringing up a lot of memories, but also I'm getting even more of a peek behind the curtain of what goes on in the upper levels... it really is set up like an MLM corporation.

And if you're good at making those quotas, you'll probably thrive. My mom was always good at making her quotas -- both in MLM sales AND her monthly field service (proselytizing) hours. All aspects considered, she was a "better" JW than my father. She was always a joy to the congregation and everyone wanted her involved in things, she sewed the dresses for so many weddings, she sang out in meetings, and she was a zealous Pioneer who always made her quotas and brought new people in. She learned ASL to minister to one person in her territory, and ASL became a passion that led to her going to college once she was out of the JWs.

It's kinda hilarious to me that they lost a truly devoted JW when they disfellowshipped her because she wanted a divorce. 👀 (She had to break a religious law for her divorce to be recognized by the congregation, because dad being abusive wasn't enough-- because of their "two witness" rule about proving guilt. So she had an affair with a coworker, and let people find out about it, and then refused reconciliation in the prescribed Elder marriage counseling.)

When someone is disfellowshipped, they are fully shunned. Baptized people and full members of the congregation aren't allowed to speak to them or even acknowledge them. But my mom at first wanted to earn her way back in!! For which, she needed to stay devout and keep going to meetings, even though she wasn't allowed to sing or do service anymore or talk to any of her friends. And every 6 months or so, she could write a letter to the Elders and the Organization about why she should be reinstated. I overheard these things laid out to her when I snuck downstairs to listen in on their counsel. It was such a scary feeling, compared to the excitement of weeks earlier when my brother and I sat in my room listening to my parents fight about her affair, both of us crossing our fingers and whispering, "Please get a divorce."

Idk if this is where I lost my faith exactly, because even though I was raised in it I had ALWAYS questioned things that didn't make sense and got in trouble for it. But I also DID believe in the religion still-- I was 9/10 and didn't yet realize how that religion had actually been CREATED by men just the same way as Mormonism and all the other sects JWs decry. I just really started labeling them all as hypocrites at that point. The way everyone abandoned my mom, and acted like my dad was so betrayed and perfect; the way they TALKED about my mom and compared me to her all the time to keep my behavior in line. The way they would still talk to me, but not my mom. When she was right there.

...I intended this to just be short and get my thoughts out but I just kept going. Lol I'm stopping here.

But this is the video I was watching when I had to pause and type this lol.

[richincolor]

We have seven new books to share with you this week. It's a great way to wrap up the month. Which ones are on your TBR list?

The Melancholy of Summer by Louisa Onomé Feiwel Friends

Doesn’t she see? I can do this on my own.

Summer Uzoma is fine. Sure, her parents went on the run after they were accused of committing a crime, leaving her behind. Sure, she’s been alternating stays with her friends’ families. Sure, she sometimes still secretly visits her old home. And sure, she has trouble talking about any of this. But she’s fine. She has her skateboard and her bus pass. She just has to turn eighteen in a few weeks and then she’ll really and truly be free.

So it’s extra annoying when a nosy social worker gets involved. Summer doesn’t expect any relative to be able to take her in, so she’s very surprised to hear that she’ll now be living with her cousin Olu—someone she hasn’t seen in years, who’s a famous singer in Japan last she heard, and who’s not much older than Summer.

Life with Olu is awkward for many reasons—not least of all because Olu has her own drama to deal with. But with her cousin and friends’ efforts, maybe Summer can learn to trust people enough to let them in again? — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

Rhythm & Muse by India Hill Brown Quill Tree Books

Darren Johnson lives in his head. There, he can pine for his crush–total dream girl, Delia Dawson–in peace, away from the unsolicited opinions of his talkative family and showboat friends. When Delia announces a theme song contest for her popular podcast, Dillie D in the Place to Be, Darren’s friends–convinced he’ll never make a move–submit one of his secret side projects for consideration.

After the anonymous romantic verse catches Dillie’s ear, she sets out to uncover the mystery singer behind the track. Now Darren must decide: Is he ready to step out of the shadows and take the lead in his own life? — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

You Bet Your Heart by Danielle Parker Joy Revolution

A riveting, swoon-worthy teen romance centered on two high achievers fighting for the title of high school valedictorian and falling in love along the way, from debut author Danielle Parker.

Sasha Johnson-Sun might not know everything—like how to fully heal after her dad’s passing or how many more Saturdays her mom can spend cleaning houses. But the one thing Sasha is certain of? She will graduate this year as Skyline High’s class valedictorian.

At least, she was sure before the principal calls Sasha and her cute, effortlessly gifted ex–best friend, Ezra Davis-Goldberg, into his office to deliver earth-shattering they’re tied for valedictorian and the scholarship attached…

This outcome can’t be left to chance. So, Sasha and Ezra agree on a best-of-three, winner-take-all academic bet. As they go head-to-head, they are forced not only to reexamine why they drifted apart but also to figure out who they’ve become since. With her future hanging in the balance, Sasha must honor her family’s sacrifices by winning (at all costs) or give her heart a shot at finding happiness? — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

Her Good Side by Rebekah Weatherspoon Razorbill

Sixteen-year-old Bethany Greene, though confident and self-assured, is what they call a late-bloomer. She’s never had a boyfriend, date, or first kiss. She’s determined to change that but after her crush turns her down cold for Homecoming–declaring her too inexperienced–and all her back-up ideas fall through, she cautiously agrees to go with her best friend’s boyfriend Jacob. A platonic date is better than no date, right? Until Saylor breaks up with said boyfriend.

Dumped twice in just two months, Jacob Yeun wonders if he’s the problem. After years hiding behind his camera and a shocking summer glow up, he wasn’t quite ready for all the attention or to be someone’s boyfriend. There are no guides for his particular circumstances, or for taking your ex’s best friend to the dance.

Why not make the best of an awkward situation? Bethany and Jacob decide to fake date for practice, building their confidence in matters of the heart.

And it works–guys are finally noticing Bethany. But things get complicated as their kissing sessions–for research of course!–start to feel real. This arrangement was supposed to help them in dating other people, but what if their perfect match is right in front of them? — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

When the Vibe is Right by Sarah Dass Balzer & Bray

There are two things Tess Crawford knows for sure:

• She’s destined to be a great Trinidadian Carnival costume designer like her renowned uncle, Russell Messina, and will one day inherit leadership of the family’s masquerade band, Grandeur. • Her classmate, the popular social media influencer, Brandon Richards, is the bane of her existence. Everything about him irks her, from his annoying nickname for Tess (Boop) to his association with David, her awful ex.

But when the future of Grandeur nears the brink of collapse in the face of band rivalry, Tess finds to her chagrin that she must team up with Brandon in a desperate attempt to revive the company.

As Tess and Brandon spend more time together, Tess begins to wonder if everything she thought she knew might not be so certain after all. . . .

Set in lush, gorgeous Trinidad, this is a novel about finding love in the most unexpected places. — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

The Moonlit Vine by Elizabeth Santiago Tu Books

Fourteen-year-old Taína just learned that she is a descendant of a long line of strong Taíno women, but will knowing this help her bring peace and justice to her family and community?

Despite her name, Taína Perez doesn’t know anything about her Taíno heritage, nor has she ever tried to learn. After all, how would ancient Puerto Rican history help with everything going on? There’s constant trouble at school and in her neighborhood, her older brother was kicked out of the house, and with her mom at work, she’s left alone to care for her little brother and aging grandmother. It’s a lot for a 14-year-old to manage.

But life takes a wild turn when her abuela tells her she is a direct descendant of Anacaona, the beloved Taíno leader, warrior, and poet, who was murdered by the Spanish in 1503. Abuela also gives her an amulet and a zemi and says that it’s time for her to step into her power like the women who came before her. But is that even possible? People like her hardly make it out of their circumstances, and the problems in her home and community are way bigger than Taína can manage. Or are they?

A modern tale with interstitial historical chapters, The Moonlit Vine brings readers a powerful story of the collective struggle, hope, and liberation of Puerto Rican and Taíno peoples.

Also available in Spanish! — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

The Books of Clash Volume 1: Legendary Legends of Legendarious Achievery by Gene Luen Yang illustrated by Les McClaine and Alison Acton First Second

Based on Clash of Clans and Clash Royale and penned by superstar graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang, this first volume of this action-packed eight-volume series brings the characters from everyone’s favorite mobile gaming sensation to life!

SEE! The illustrated exploits of one young Hog Rider and his trusted companion in an unpredictable tale of fantasy and adventure!

READ! Their journey from no-good warriors on the battlefield to true heroes of the Royal Arena!

BATTLE! When danger strikes the village of JazzyPickles and its colorful cast of characters in this heartwarming and hilarious graphic novel based on two of the world’s most popular video games.

In this epic new series set in the world of Clash of Clans and Clash Royale , experience a laugh-out-loud tale of friendship and fun! –– Cover image and summary via Goodreads

[ladylooch]

Can we get a blurb of Lio and Liv when their older and have already made up?

Let’s set up Lio Meier’s impending down fall 🙃 juuuust in time for me to fall asleep. I took my sleep gummies. IYKYK.

Liv has never seen Lio so down before. Not when their mom wouldn’t let him go to Canada for juniors. Not when he broke his arm and couldn’t play hockey. Or when he got mono and could barely get out of bed for a month.

This is new behavior.

Facial hair grows in uneven patches on his jaw. Cartons of to-go boxes loiter all over the kitchen counter. Luca blows out a strangled sigh behind her. She glances over her shoulder at him. Without her asking, he begins to search for a garbage bag to gather everything together.

“Lee?” Liv murmurs softly next to her brother’s sleeping form. He jolts up. Then moans loudly at the sudden movement.

“Fuck.” He frowns, getting up and stumbling into the kitchen where he pukes in the sink. Luca grimaces and backs away.

“Dude.” Luca shakes his head at the smell. “That is just alcohol.”

“Fuck you, Fiala.” He spits out.

“Hard to see why we’re the only two people who give a shit about you right now.” Luca bites back. Liv sighs, giving her boyfriend a disgruntled look.

“Back off.” She mouths at Luca. He rolls his eyes but goes back to cleaning the kitchen.

“I’m worried.”

“Don’t be. I’m fine.” He says as he grabs a half full beer bottle, chugging the rest. Liv purses her lips. “Thought you’d be at mom and dad’s for their big anniversary party. You know, the one I wasn’t invited to.”

“That’s why I’m here. And that’s not true. They said you needed to show up sober.”

“Same shit.”

“Babe can we do this my way yet?” Luca is exasperated, not appreciating Lio’s tone or attitude.

“No.” His way involves knocking Lio out and having him wake up under the shower stream with a black eye. Scared straight: the Luca Fiala way. He wins one fight against Jack Hughes’ son and now he wants every confrontation to be a smack down. Liv waits for Luca to disappear into the garage before she continues.

“We care about you. Dad’s upset because you hurt mom’s feelings with your… words and actions.”

“I don’t want to have a kid with someone I don’t know and I’m an asshole?”

“No…” Liv trails off. “But you told her she made the wrong choice having you.”

“Maybe she did. Look at what I’ve turned into because of them.”

“You could take some responsibility.” He scoffs.

“I didn’t want to do that to a kid I didn’t want. That’s just cruel.” He takes out another beer, tossing the cap on the floor as Luca walks back in. Luca’s hands slap his thighs in frustration as he leans down. He flicks the cap back at Lio, nailing him in the forehead.

“Mom and dad wanted you Lee.” Liv is soft, walking into the kitchen. Luca backs away out of the room, giving the siblings privacy. “They want you now too, but you have to do some apologizing.”

“Have you talked to Lucie or Connor?” Lio flinches, shaking his head. He really fucked up with that conversation. So much so that Connor told him to get the fuck out of their lives. His bloodshot eyes looks over at his little sister. He’s fucked up with her too.

“Why are you even here?” He wonders. She’s the only one who has checked in on him in a week. His parents have been silent. All his Swiss friends are steering clear of him. Lucie won’t answer his calls and Connor threatens him every time he sees his name on his wife’s phone. But Liv is still here.

“Because I love you. I care about what happens to you.”

Liv is barley able to react before she catches her older brother. Her arms wrap around his wide shoulders, holding him as he sobs against her frame.

[highfunctioningflailgirl]

I’ve been in a reading slump for the past two weeks. To get out of it, I’ve started rereading The Three Musketeers again, this time in French (I must be insane). Not sure if that was the best idea, but I’m enjoying myself so far.

Also not sure if anyone but me cares about reading updates, but here we are.

Chapter 1:

So 18yo d‘Art, son of a Gascon farmer, takes off to Paris with an old yellow horse, a sword and 12 sous in his satchel.

There‘s a heartfelt goodbye-scene with his parents during which his father tells him to seek adventures and duel as much as he can. Good parental advice. 😆

It strikes me how Dumas makes a point of d‘Artagnan senior staying firm and dry-eyed because Gascons Don’t Cry™️ when I know that, throughout the books, frequent (and fairly dramatic) crying will become one of our Musketeers’ greatest hobbies. Huh.

D‘Art is supposed to never sell his horse and keep it until it dies. As soon as d‘Art arrives in Paris, he sells it to the first person who will buy it. Good thing dad doesn’t know. Lol.

Luke Pasqualino as BBC d’Art really fits Dumas‘ description of d‘Artagnan: brown skin, dark eyes, lanky, with a quick temper and endless optimism. Only the nose, “crooked but well-drawn“, doesn’t match. (This is a good thing)

It’s also a good thing that Maman d’Artagnan has equipped her son with a balm that miraculously “heals all wounds that don’t involve the heart.” He’s going to need it, mom. (Like, in the very first chapter.)

Fainting isn’t reserved to damsels in distress in Dumas canon. In fact, d’Art faints twice in the very first chapter. Once because he’s injured. And then again when he sets his eyes on Milady for the first time (while still injured). Maman d’Artagnan should have packed some smelling salts for him as well.

Once more, I find the start of the novel really intriguing what with the nameless gentleman who first fights with d’Art and then steals d’Art’s letter of recommendation to Treville. Why? And who is he? (I know who he is, of course, my dudes, but maybe there is still some sweet uninitiated summer child here who doesn’t?)

And we have Milady’s mysterious first appearance. She’s on some kind of mission for the nameless gentleman. Again: What mission? Why? (She’s also blonde and blue-eyed, JFTR, although I always imagined her with the black hair of a femme fatale - hello, Maimie McCoy!)

The first chapter is so captivating with everything that’s going on - a farewell, a brawl (also involving a sword-fight), a theft, intrigue, whump and mystery, all of that infused with upbeat tempo and humor.

If I’d read this back in 1844, as the first chapter of a serialized novel in a magazine, I would’ve been hooked.

Who am I kidding. I still am!😊

[anotherdayforchaosfay]

Seeing as my parents are visiting this month, I scheduled counseling for the week after. My mother is anti-max and refuses to wear one...which means she's not entering my home. She and my dad are flying here, and planes are a great place to catch all sorts of illnesses. I don't want covid (or any other sickness) for my birthday, tyvm.

Oh, they're gonna throw a fit about. We also have a no shoe rule. No outdoor shoes are to worn indoors. Bubby's D&D players bring slippers and don't make a big deal out it. The first time my parents visited us after the first was in 2018...and it was Not Good. Started with them getting rude and angry about being barred entry. When they said bending down on the porch was unacceptable...and got angrier when I brought chairs out for them. The house we were living room had white carpeting! Shoes are filthy!

We have no carpeting now, but I don't wanna mop the floors. Again. I'm doing that before they visit.

If they agree to wear a mask if I permit shoes, then I work with that. Let's see what sort of Karen fit they throw.

Needless to say, there's a very good reason I'm seeing my therapist the week after the visit. She's got notes marked that I may call her before then. I'm low contact with my parents. Conversations with my mom are almost exclusively about quilts, with a professional and less personal tone. I rarely speak to my dad because I have no idea what we can talk about seeing as all his hobbies and interests involve sports (he went damn near mad during lockdown).

Oh, and my dad is a Trump-Humper. It's absolutely bizarre seeing as he worked in military intelligence (that's an oxymoron right there). When they visited, my dad got really aggressive and hostile when it was very fucking clear we're not. His aggression and anger was very prominent. My mom expressed fear and anxiety because he had even watching Foxaganda all day everyday since Dumbass Agent Orange began his campaign. Folks, my dad thinks the guy is brilliant and must be respected.

Yeah.

Then they dragged me to an area almost two hours away, to have lunch with my bigot aunt and uncle, who lived several hours away (they have since moved far away, likely due to the PNW being too blue). It was a restaurant where I couldn't eat, and all four of them ignored this. No one spoke to me, and I was trapped between the window and my parents because they chose a booth. Oh, and they got upset about me bringing protein bars. The waitress heard me state I can't eat anything due to celiac disease and cross contamination. She said her son is the same way, and told me she'd have all the dishes used to prepare a salad washed, as well as the countertop. I didn't get sick, and my mom tried the whole "gotcha" nonsense.

I have issues with being trapped. Not claustrophobic, but being trapped and unable to leave. Bubby was working and couldn't come pick me up, my parents told me to "get over it." My anxiety was sky high, and I was fighting panic attacks. It got worse the longer everyone talked. The more they talked, thr more hateful their words got.

My uncle firmly believes all drug addicts and homeless people should be put on boat and taken to a deep part of thr Pacific ocean. Then have the authorities put a hole in the boat and let it sink. Yeah, he's that kind of guy. My dad said it's a good plan. I didn't say a fucking thing because it would've been dangerous.

The next several months were spent recovering from that.

This time, my parents are going to discover how much stronger I am. I will not cower, I will not bend to their demands, and I sure as shit will not be getting I'm a car with them. We're buying some cheap lawn furniture to put in the backyard. If they're gonna throw a fit, they'll be barred entry. Therapy has done wonders for me, and standing up to these bullies will be a good way to see how far I've come.

[diamond-punk0963]

RWBY/MCU AU; Interaction Head-canons #1

Hello everyone! Diamond Punk here! I know it's been awhile since I've made a decent post on things related to pop culture aside from re-blogging.

Due to recent events and interests, I've decided to make a little series of my own. Taking two of my most obsessed franchises and putting it together into a cross over series; I'm making a series upon the scenario of RWBY characters meeting MCU characters!

To start this series, I'm gonna kick off with everyone's favorite red rose reaper: Ruby Rose! She'll be meeting two of the newest supernatural heroes to come across the MCU scene. I hope you guys enjoy this opening into the new series!

~Silver-eyed Reaper meets the Fist of Vengeance~

1. Ruby would be in awe of Marc's cape as Moon Knight and shows him her cape as well. They're cape buddies from there.

2. Adding into Moon Knight's outfit, she would be in awe of the entire outfit as well. She'd be curious of how Marc was able to have his weapons embedded into his outfit as well. Not to mention, how he was able to send bullets back with said cape. (She’s secretly taking notes)

3. "I'll show you my special trick if you show me yours!", Ruby, wanting to exchange displaying her silver eyes with Marc showing his special tricks as Moon Knight as well.

4. Upon meeting Ruby and having interactions with her, Marc would be a tired dad (Qrow??) towards her while Steven is soft, supportive uncle, and Jake being the quiet, protective Tio as well.

5. Ruby is probably one of the few people (besides Layla) that listens to Steven ramble about Egyptian Mythology. Mainly because she wants to understand the whole thing with Egyptian gods since him, Marc, and Jake are tied up upon that scenario. It's good to know what kind of environment you're falling into.

6. Holy shit, Steven and Ruby are nerds for completely different reasons. Steven's a nerd for Egyptian mythology and Ruby's a weapons nerd. The two bond over this which becomes useful within the scenario of using the right weapons upon a fight and what kind of gods and threats involving Egyptian mythology they come up against. (And yeah, this is me standing on the headcanon of Ruby being autistic)

7. "So a bird gives you powers?" " . . . . . . . Pretty much. How do you get the special abilities you have?" "It's my semblance that makes me go fast. Aside from that, my eyes were something I inherited from my mom." "Oh . . . Wicked." (Convo on their abilities. Steven was curious)

8. Upon their down time, Steven does give Ruby a tour around London. She shows her the museum and all of the places he usually hang around at with a few tourists spots. Marc takes her to a few restaurants to chat about her life at Remnant. As for Jake, he doesn't interact too much but sometimes, he leaves little gifts for her. (Cookies, Strawberries, and weapon magazines)

9. In the beginning, Ruby was confused about how the whole scenario of Marc/Steven/Jake until Marc explained to her that he has Dissociative Identity Disorder. From there, she did more research on that matter to understand those three better.

10. All and all, Marc doesn't mind having Ruby around. Makes his time in London less lonely. Steven likes having Ruby around because of their bond on their nerd side and her kindness towards him. As for Jake, he doesn't talk to her too much but he does protect her from any form of threats.

11. When the two began their patrols at London, Ruby was excited to see Marc when he entered the fray. It got to the point where she literally yelled out, "Deadly Croissant Man!!!" when she saw him jump in. A week passes; Jake wouldn't let him live it down while Steven is still laughing on the floor while he's secretly agreeing with her.

12. "Hey Moon Knight, how do you make your cape like that?", Ruby asking Marc about his cape. "It's just apart of my outfit that Khonshu has granted me, Ruby."

13. Speaking of nightly patrols, Ruby has used petal burst when it came to quick escapes. First time she did so, she nearly scared the crap out of Marc, Steven, and Jake. Since then, she has to make sure to let those three know when she was going to use her petal burst. Marc still isn't used to the idea of traveling in the speed that she goes through.

14. "I swear, kids are getting crazier these days.", Marc, after seeing Ruby fight with a huge scythe. He isn't used to seeing young people within the fighting field. Especially, one being able to shoot light out of their eyeballs.

15. Aside from their difficulties upon their abilities, they handle each other pretty well within a fight. Ruby being able to do well within long distance attacks and close by with her scythe while Moon Knight is basically like a tank, being able to redirect attacks and protect himself and ruby with enemy attacks with his cape.

16. There were a few instances where Ruby went off with Marc on missions on Cairo, which is also she met Layla. (That's a story for another day) The place did remind Ruby a bit of what she heard about Vacuo; the desert environment and hot climate. First day, she had to cling onto Marc so that she wouldn't get lost within the large crowd. She had no idea Cairo would be as big and packed as it was.

17. Even though he doesn't admit it, Jake does have a nickname for Ruby. (pequeña rosa = little rose) The first time he called her that, it was an accident. He wanted to take it back but . . . Ruby liked the nickname so he kept it.

18. You can’t look at me, dead in the eye and say that Jake WOULDN’T spoil Ruby when it comes to weapons. The guy wanted to have someone to share his weapons interest with and he found the right girl. This has left Ruby, scared and confused to find a set of blades and guns by her side and Marc, pushing Jake away from Ruby for a few months since then.

19. Getting into some angst here (*looks at volume 8*), I feel like Moon Knight would help Ruby out in the scenario that she’s going through a mental break down (if we’re connecting this to Vol 8). Steven would comfort her with him either letting her vent her emotions or talking about Egyptian mythology to take her mind off of things. As for Marc, he would act more of a mentor towards her. He understands her struggles and wants to let her know that she isn’t alone. As for Jake, he’d be rather perplexed on how to help. Thus, he’d just leave small snacks and video games ("Kids are into this, right?") for her.

20. Upon finding out about Yang, Marc would be HIGHLY PERSISTENT on reuniting Ruby with her older sister. Given how he lost his younger brother at a young age, he doesn’t want the same thing to happen to Ruby. (Steven’s curious on meeting her while Jake is going to make sure that there’s not a single hair damaged on either of the girls)

21. Meeting Jake for the first time, Ruby was cautious about him. (Mainly because she wasn’t sure that he was going to be friendly towards her) Which to her surprise, he’s very chill with her. Granted, he acts more like (somewhat because Marc got involved about him being around her) a chaotic uncle. He’s definitely got his eye on crescent rose, wanting to know how Ruby made her weapon which leads to them sharing tips on weapons. Ruby becomes Jake’s sparring partner from there. (He makes sure that he doesn’t go too hard on her. Otherwise, Marc’s gonna have a word with him)

22. Ruby telling the Moon Knight system about Remnant would lead them to be curious on a few things. Marc’s surprise about Salem and how her and her friends are being pulled into a larger than life war. (He’d jump in to help her at any chance he gets) Steven would be more curious about her team and friends. He’d like to get to know Blake (Aside from tea and book interest) and more about the situation with Faunus upon her world. As for Jake, he’d be similar to Marc but being the weapons expert that he is, he’d love to learn how to make fusion weapons. Not only that, he’s also want to learn how to get dust incorporated into said weapons.

23. Upon the nightly patrols that Moon Knight has with Ruby, Khonshu has also been given an interest towards her. It didn’t happen at first, seeing that the moon god found her upon the same level of annoyance as he held Steven towards in the beginning. However, given her silver eye capabilities and skills as a huntress, the idea of her being a potential avatar for him wasn’t too far off. This idea was somewhat hinted as he started to make himself visible towards Ruby (ex: Her hearing his voice and seeing silhouettes of him) but it was given to a halt as soon as Marc started to see what Khonshu was doing. (Even though Khonshu was doing this as a tactic to keep Marc, Steven, and Jake as his Avatar. Similar to what he did with Layla)

24. Ruby has been thinking about of a team up name between herself and the Moon Knight system. When it’s her and Marc (in the suit); Rouge Lotus. For her and Steven (in the suit); Crescent Kebechet. (Ruby had a hard time pronouncing the god’s name. Steven had to help.) And for her and Jake; Crimson Medjay. (Jake doesn’t really care much for the team name. Steven liked the idea and helped her with their team name. Marc secretly likes it.)

25. The two first met one night, Marc was doing his usual night patrols when he saw a lost girl that seemed in danger. Naturally, he went to see what’s going on. That’s when he saw Cresent Rose in action. (Nearly scared the crap out of him and Steven; "Who the bloody hell lets a child keep a scythe?!" "Steven, I highly doubt that she’s ‘just a child’.") Ruby was defending herself from some bad guys when she saw him. She tried to push him away but Marc had the upper hand. Once he got a good look at her, he started to ask questions. (Steven starts fronting at this point) It wasn’t too long for him to realize that Ruby wasn’t from around here. Marc wasn’t sure to trust her but Steven saw a better approach to assess the situation at hand. From there, the two slowly started to bond with each-other.

26. (Blame Vol 9 trailer for this) Another similarity I see between the two is being pulled into a war of some sorts. Marc and Steven being pulled into a god’s bidding and Ruby being pulled into a war between two immortals. If Marc found out about this ‘larger than life’ war, you can not TELL ME THAT MAN WOULD GO ABOVE AND BEYOND TO MAKE SURE RUBY AND HER TEAM WOULD BE OKAY.

27. Ruby seeing some of her dad, Tai, within Moon Knight. Like the way he helps her when she’s in a tight pinch, holds her close whenever she feels like breaking down. Steven would be there to comfort her while Marc would be there to protect her. Although he never says it, Marc deeply cares about Ruby as if she was one of his own. As for Jake, he’ll murder anyone that would dare lay so much as a finger towards her.

28. Steven giving Ruby hugs that remind her of Yang. It’s just . . . Ruby needs a hug when things get too harsh for her. Poor girl’s been through enough as it is. She probably misses home and feels like everything is falling apart for her. That being a hero is tearing her apart. With that being said, Steven would hug her and Marc would tell her to let all of her pain out. Let her let go of her emotions on the matter.

29. Getting more into the angst side of things, Ruby and Steven talking about their moms. Marc and Steven didn’t have the best luck with their mom, growing up while Ruby doesn’t even know much about her’s. Seems like a two sides of a same coin scenario; one growing up with a mom that was abusive and one not having a mom as they grew up but knowing that they were a good person from the stories that they heard of her.

30. One time that Ruby was not feeling like herself is when Jake would typically front. They would talk for hours about life and how they ended up being upon the case that they’re in. No matter how insane things got, they would still have each other. (Jake doesn’t admit that he’s growing fond of Ruby but Steven and Marc know.)

31. "El mundo te ha quitado demasiado, pequeña rosa. Déjame manejar esa carga. Un guerrero como tú no debería sufrir tanto.", Jake would whisper as he’s holding Ruby close after she had a nightmare about losing her team. He’d let her talk about it if she wanted to. (Although he never tells her at first, Jake actually made a head start on her team’s whereabouts. He knows how dear they are to her and he’ll make sure a single hair isn’t harmed on their heads.)

32. Steven making friendship bracelets for the group! Not only does it help Ruby figure out who’s fronting at the moment (besides the shift of voice) but it also gives Ruby a reminder than she’s not alone. Her bracelet is black and red, her initials in beads with a rose and crescent moon charm. He gave it to her as she was starting to find her way and who she is. She holds it very fondly. Marc, Steven, and Jake’s have a similar color scheme for their bracelet. Only difference was that the initials and and charms. Steven had a pyramid charm and an eye of Anubis charm. Marc has a moon charm to connect with Ruby’s (Steven’s idea. Marc didn’t mind) and Jake’s bracelet has a bullet charm.

33. Ruby learning about Judaism through Marc (I really hope Disney/Marvel fix his portrayal about this side of his identity in season two. It’s a huge part of his character) and how his experience was as a son of a rabbi. I don’t really see Ruby being too much into religion but I can see her keeping an open mind when he explains it to her.

34. Ruby accidentally calling Marc ‘dad’ after they nearly escaped with their lives. Took him for a loop for a few minutes before he finally snapped out of it. After all they’ve been through, Marc couldn’t help but see Ruby as one of his own. (Khonshu is probably wondering if this means that she’s his granddaughter at this point) Steven’s secretly gushing at the fact that they have a ‘chosen’ daughter at this point. Jake’s already attached to her so he doesn’t mind calling her his ‘hija’. (And if anyone asks, yeah. That would also mean that Moon Knight would also have to bring in Yang as his chosen daughter as well at some point. Siblings are a package deal, y’know.)

35. Now, Ruby can’t help but think of Moon Knight whenever she sees the moon. (Shattered or not) If Ruby was ever into getting tattoos, I can see her getting on of the shattered moon that reminds her of him. No matter where they would be, she would always see herself as a child of the moon.

~What if little red and the wolf were companions?~

1. If you know Ruby’s character inspiration, YOU KNOW HOW EASILY JACK WOULD FIT IN UPON THE PAIR!

2. They both grew up/lived in a forest environment so that would be a thing to bond on. (Going on a guess that Jack grew up in a forest? Again, don’t know much of his backstory for the MCU.)

3. First time they met, probably in the forest. (Going on an alt-Vol 9 idea that instead of Ever After; They fell into the MCU but at different locations) Jack found crescent rose while having a stroll and went to see if he could find the owner of said weapon. In which, he did and found a spooked Ruby.

4. Jack would also be Ruby’s guide through the MCU except she’d go in face first with the supernatural side. Granted, she would be taken back by the whole ‘werewolf’ thing but she would find a way to get by with it.

5. Ruby would probably get PTSD flashbacks to the hound her and her team faced, seeing Jack in his wolf form for the first time. If Jack were to somehow sense this, he’d probably give her some comfort. (She tenses up at first but once she realizes what he’s doing, she’d let him in)

6. Jack being curious about her silver eyes would be an interesting scenario to watch. He’s never met anyone with Ruby’s eye trait and occasionally, she’d use the flash to make a distraction for a quick escape if they were in any sticky situation.

7. At first, I feel like the two would be an awkward pair. (Ruby new to . . . Everything and Jack having another companion with him) But as time passes on and the two further develop, I can see the two becoming a interesting tag team. (Blaze-blue, anyone?)

8. If I were to label this pair with a trope, I’d say they would be a mix of unexpected friendship and the whole ‘I found this child in the forest and oh shit, I’m adopting them’ scenario. Add a dash of fairytale reference and we’d have the pair on the rise!

9. If Jack were to describe Ruby’s scent, (he’d probably have it memorized after a few weeks) it would go into two directions. If it was her in deep combat, probably sweat and ammo powder. If it was just her in a normal/typical scenario, it would be fresh roses and baked sweets. (Likely cookies? 👀)

10. Speaking of sweets, Ruby would be concerned if Jack ate anything with chocolate. She wouldn’t react in a major way. More of a "Are you sure that’s a good idea?", with a concerned tone. She doesn’t know if the whole werewolf thing affects what he can’t or can consume so yeah.

11. Expanding more, Ruby would ask Jack about the whole 'werewolf thing he does' as she puts it. She’d read a few stories about wolves when she was a little girl (specifically, Beowolves but that’s a different story) so she wanted to see if any of the stories she’s heard had any form of truth in them.

12. For the first few weeks since she fell, she did stay with Jack at his little camp site. It wasn’t too much of an issue since she’s camped during Vol 4. Only difference is that she doesn’t have a tent but she finds whatever she can to at least, make a stable form of shelter.

13. She does end up meeting Ted, shortly after. Granted, she was spooked at first. (She though he was an ursa) Jack assured her that she was safe. (Basically imagine her first encounter with little except she tripped, landing on her back)

14. "How long have you been doing this? The whole ‘werewolf’ thing.", Ruby asking Jack about his ‘condition’. "Longer that you’ve thought to imagine."

15. Ruby telling Jack about her team during campfire nights. He could tell from her voice, she misses them. More importantly, her sister. He tries to approach her about Yang but backs off when he notices Ruby’s attempt to change the subject. By that night, he makes a mental note to keep an eye out for her teammates and sister if they ever fell within the area. If it was possible that Ruby fell, who’s to say that the same wouldn’t happen for the others?

16. Going more into angst, Jack helping Ruby when the burden of being a leader becomes too much for her. He understands the important of the role but he starts to disagree when it gets to the point of affecting one’s mental health. And given Ruby’s state when he found her, she’s long overdue for a therapy session. He doesn’t persist at first but he does let her vent out her emotions and gives whatever advise he can to help her.

17. On nights where Ruby’s alone at the small camp section on full moon nights and the scenario plays where Jack encounters her in his beast form, you can’t tell me that he wouldn’t try to comfort her. If he was able to, he could probably sense the fear within her upon contact. (Like how some animals can sense fear upon their prey or around them) Ruby’s still not used to seeing Jack like that so there is going to be tensity happening upon that. It’s just her and Jack. The wolf that reminds her of the beasts back home. Yet, she could tell that he was nothing like them.

18. Long story short, Jack’s wolf form starts getting attached to Ruby as if he was one of his own. In his wolf form, he would snuggle close to her when she’s asleep. That and bring back dead prey as a way to provide for her. (Ruby freaked out, first week that happened) Ruby would also take notice of his ‘protective’ side when the scenario of fighting hunters or other monsters arises. Especially if she gets injured in any way.

19. On the scenairo where the roles are flipped, Ruby would go all ‘silver eyes’ on anyone that would act harm on her and/or Jack. Going on the scenario of her eyes having an effect on monsters but not on people, she can either use it as a distraction for a quick escape or to slow those who are after them down to where they can get out of there. Ruby would most likely use petal burst to carry herself and Jack away from the scene. Would probably exhaust herself out if petal burst was used to travel within a longer distance than she normally travels into.

20. On a more fluff-like note, why would I see Jack cracking a few ‘red riding hood’ jokes to lighten the mood? Granted, Ruby would be annoyed at first about it. (Seeing that she doesn’t like to be called little red, according to the manga) However, I feel like with the whole ‘dad joke’ approach Jack would give into it, it could turn into something wholesome. (Also, kinda sad at the same time since the dad jokes would remind Ruby of either Yang or Tai)

21. Ruby learning Spanish from Jack. He teaches her a few basic words. Mainly used so that the two would find another way to chat with each other upon a conversation for only the two, and it helps Ruby learn more about the world she fell into. (You can’t tell me he would also teach her a few swear words in Spanish and it ends up to the point where when she DOES swear in Spanish, he’s questioning if that was the best decision. 😅)

22. Ruby helping Jack when a full moon scenario occurs. She’d help with him being chained up and making sure he doesn’t hurt anyone. With her speed, it would make it easy for her to catch up with him. At first, he doesn’t like the whole idea of chaining Jack up or locking him in a room but she would understand why it’s needed to be done. However, it doesn’t make her doing it anyways any better. (She’d peek out at times, just to make sure he’s okay) Occasionally, she’d call out to him to see how he was doing. (Regardless of any form of response she would get from Jack. Anything to see that he was still there)

23. Ruby having a ‘training session’ with Jack by an interesting variant of hide and go seek. Except it’s night and it’s just mainly her hiding from Jack and try to shake him off from her scent. (She ended covering herself with mud one time to throw him off. Only thing that gave her away was her rose petals.) It was normally used as a training session but as time passes on, she grows fond of it as a game the two would play. She’s been finding more creative ways to throw Jack off but he somehow always ends up finding her. She’s gotten close, a few times though. (Side note; you have no idea how many times Jack has accidentally spooked her when finding her. At first, she thought it was by accident but now, she’s getting the feeling that Jack likes it. She’s still determining if she should be concerned or not)

24. The two stargazing on late nights while talking about their lives. Ruby telling Jack about her dream of becoming a huntress and the chaos that followed upon her dream while Jack’s telling her about how he infiltrated the bloodstone funeral to save Ted. ("Wait. Is THAT why so many hunters have been after you?!", "That’s . . . One of the reasons.") The story upon Ruby’s side would start to go sour when the fall of Beacon and Atlas come around. Jack would notice the change of tone and would hold her hand in assurance. Similar to Moon Knight, he would give her that similar sense of comfort.

25. Ruby noticing some ‘behavioral traits’ in Jack when he’s in his normal form and questioning if she saw what she saw was real. (Him being close to her, liking head pats, staring at a squirrel with a concerning amount of focus, etc.) At first, she thought of it to be a simple slip up. Nothing much to think about. However, as she started to see it become more frequent, she starts asking questions about it. Jack normally doesn’t even realize he’s doing it but from the moment she notices that smirk, Ruby realizes that he’s just doing it to mess with her.

26. "I swear, why is he like an overgrown Zwei?!", Ruby, some point after Jack’s wolf form has gotten fond of her to the point where he’s resting on her lap and she can’t get up. (And won’t. She doesn’t want to wake him up)

27. Ruby hearing about Elsa through Jack’s story about saving Ted. She’s glad to hear that there’s someone else out there that’s by his side, other than herself. More so, the fact that huntsmen and huntresses still exist within the universe. (Sort of) Only difference is that they hunt monsters rather than Grimm. (The flawed perspective between this world’s hunters and monsters is still something she thinks about to this very day.)

28. Back to them having games to pass the time, there are scenarios where Jack would race Ruby to to a certain point in the forest to see who would be the fastest. Originally, the game was made to see how quick her petal burst was. Now, they made it as a form of training to scout for any safe spots and prepare themselves should the scenarios of being chased can ever come around. (The only game Ruby can actually win. Unless Jack’s in his wolf form, she has a hard time keeping up with him.)

29. Going on the case that Ruby having her scroll in tact, her showing Jack photos and videos she took for when she was back at remnant. Seeing the rest of her team and some of her friends, he would want to meet them some day. (It would be a little awkward if the next person he met was Blake.)

30. Although it wasn’t intentional, Ruby asking about Jack’s age would be an interesting scenario. Taking the whole ‘werewolf’ thing into account, she didn’t think that being a werewolf would also have an effect on age. (Appearance wise, she thought he would be around the same age as her dad. When she mentioned it to Jack, he played around with her by acting flattered that she thought of him to be so young.) The look of pure shock on his face is something that’ll always crack a smile onto his face.

31. Among their many conversations during late nights at their camp, them talking about what the moon is like would be another interesting scenario to play out. Ruby’s never seen the moon either full or in phases, as it is within the marvel universe. (Probably the first sign for her to realize that she’s no longer in remnant) Upon looking at the moon, she would often wonder if the rest of her team have fallen down in the same world that has. (👀)

32. Ruby showing Jack her playlist from her scroll. First off, Jack had no idea how to use a scroll so an hour was spent on Ruby showing him the ropes. (He isn’t used to modern tech all that much. 😅) Once he found the music app within her phone, she ended up showing him her usual playlist. Music within her universe and the one she fell into wasn’t all that different upon comparison. (At the least, she felt comfort upon that similarity)

33. If the point ever arises, I can totally see Jack teaching Ruby about Día de los muertos. Possibly bringing her into an event like that, she would find great interest upon the flowers and skeleton makeup that’s used for the occasion. It could offer the chance for Ruby to grieve about her mother. (Something that she doesn’t do often in the canon show) It’s hard for her at first but Jack helps guide her along with grieving process. Aside from that, Ruby would be in love with all of the vibrant colors that the holiday brings. (You can’t look at me, dead in the eye, and say that she WOULDN’T want the skeleton makeup on her face.) Having the dress and flower by her ear, she’d easily fit in and discover all of the activities with Jack as her guide.

34. Going more into the whole scenario of Jack pulling Ruby into a nighttime event of día de los muertos, it becomes one of the few times that he decides to show off his ‘secret talents’ to Ruby. (That being that Jack can sing) It was a unexpected scene to occur. Ruby was grabbing some sweet bread from a kart when she heard Jack’s voice. She didn’t think it was him at first and was looking for him among the crowd. Took her an hour until she found him. She nearly choked on the piece of chocolate sweet bread she had in her mouth when she saw him on stage. Jack may or may not have had a small smirk on his face when heard Ruby within the crowd. (Heightened sense of hearing, one of the many benefits of being a 200-400 year old werewolf) 

35. Among everything else, Jack does end up seeing Ruby as one of his own. Someone that even in wolf form, he could trust. His little ‘roja guerrera’, as he grows to call her. She doesn’t mind the nickname from him. Ruby’s nickname for Jack is Onyx. (A name of a character she read about in a book when she was little) They stick by each-other’s side as the wander into the dark, fighting whatever lies within the shadows and looking for those that may be lost along the way.

[leebrontide]

Secondhand Origin Stories, Chapter 10

Here's this week's chapter! Reblogs welcome!

For those of you just joining us, I'm posting a chapter a week of my free near future scifi/low neon cyberpunk YA/NA novel, Secondhand Origin Stories, which has been described as

"-a character driven, compelling story full of family, queerness, corruption, brain altering nanites, secretly teen parenting AIs, and taking aspects of the superhero genre to their very human and rarely-explored natural conclusions."

For an index of already uploaded chapters that hopefully I will remember to update, content warnings and more, check here:

You can follow along by following #SHOSweekly

Chapter 10

This was the first time Opal had been inside the Tillman’s private apartment. 

Despite this being a family home with two kids, it looked like a magazine or movie set. Everything was a gleaming white-- the glossy marble floors, the walls reaching for the vaulted ceiling, the intricate crown molding, the huge white U-shaped couch. What wasn’t white was either ivory, like the countertops, or utterly transparent, like the long beveled-edge dining table. It was a palace of clouds, hovering above the city skyline, which looked bleached to match in the noontime sun. The storm had passed, and the city was searingly shining and bright. Its reflected light glittered steadily off of nearly every pearly surface. Everything about this home was expensive, precise, and spotless. 

In the middle of all of it was Dr. Tillman, on the couch. Her suit was white, seamless, and perfectly printed to her measurements. Even the streaks of her pale reddish-blonde hair seemed like the veins in the marble, as if she’d been made from the same materials as her estate. 

In front of her, her kids seemed made of much less sturdy stuff. If Dr. Tillman was marble, Issac looked like rumpled paper that’d been erased a few too many times. He stood, keeping well back from his mom. Jamie stood just behind him, still looking like an unfinished watercolor. Their mom had been trying to get one or both of them to sit down with her since the three of them had come upstairs.

Three hours earlier, Dr. Tillman had listened to her daughter’s explanation of what had gone on that morning, got up, and said she was getting some coffee. She’d never come back down. She seemed beyond startled when the three of them had walked in. She did, in fact, have a full cup of coffee in front of her, but it wasn’t steaming.

Opal had seated herself at the dining table, barely in Dr. Tillman's peripheral vision, hoping that Jamie and Issac's mom would prove herself able to handle whatever was going on in her family, and trying to stay out of the way. Opal wasn’t sure what she’d do if this last failsafe failed them. Who could she go to, then?

Issac finally spoke, fear making his voice reedy. “OK, the thing is, Mom...” He gulped. “I don’t want you to take this personally.”

Jamie grimaced silently as Dr. Tillman grew visibly more alarmed. Ouch. What a terrible start.

“It’s not personal, it’s just I’m legally an adult now. And so I have to do what’s best for me.” He paused, apparently distracted from some pre-planned speech. “Wait, where’s Dad? I don’t want to do this twice.” 

Dr. Tillman's eyes darted to her daughter, who looked out the window. “Your father is still downstairs in the clinic.”

“Why? They can’t discuss my medical records with him.”

Dr. Tillman clearly hated having this conversation, but she answered with barely detectable hesitation. “He’s downstairs because his clavicle is broken.”

This derailed Issac completely. “What? How’d that happen?”

Jamie mumbled, “We got into a fight.”

“You got into a fight with Dad and he has a broken collarbone?”

“I gather Yael got involved,” Dr. Tillman answered with a cold fury. Opal wondered who it was directed at. 

Issac's head snapped back to face his mother, horrified and shocked. “Yael?” Dr. Tillman nodded, the picture of dignified sadness. Issac looked at his sister again. Jamie crossed her arms tight over her chest, her narrow jaw set, still staring out the too-bright windows.

Issac's mouth opened. He seemed to have a hard time wrapping his mind around this. So, whatever was going on now, it was a change from before. It was a change from what Issac knew was going on, at least. Resolve settled into place on his face. He straightened. “OK, well, this just underscores my decision. Mom, I’m moving out. And Yael’s coming with me.”

“And me,” Jamie added with ironclad determination. Issac looked less sure of that part.

Dr. Tillman's elegant eyebrows arched past the point of elegance, wrinkling an otherwise ageless brow. Dr. Tillman didn’t raise her voice at all. “No. You’re not,” she answered, as if this was a perfectly obvious statement of fact. 

“I’m eighteen,” Issac countered.

This strained Dr. Tillman. Her throat worked for a moment. “You are. Your sister isn’t.”

“I’m sixteen,” Jamie said softly. Opal couldn’t see her face from here, but the guilt in Jamie’s voice was contradicted by the rooted, solid way she stood, and the still and stubborn set of her shoulders.

“Right,” her mom agreed.

Jamie drew herself up further and leveled her chin, but kept looking out the window at the wider world. “In Illinois, sixteen-year-olds have the right to select their own legal guardian, as long as that guardian is eighteen or older. I looked it up.”

Dr. Tillman's eyes widened. For the first time, her voice had a sharpened edge. “Martin,” she demanded.

The voice from the lobby came, expressionless now, and quiet. “She is correct.”

Jamie still wouldn’t look at her mom. “You could fight it, but you’d have to take it to court.”

Opal’s mouth dropped open. That was cold. And brutally effective. Even under the best circumstances, that court case would be a media three-ring circus. And who knew what Jamie had to tell the judge or reporters? 

Maybe Jamie didn’t need so much in the way of protection, after all. Issac gaped at his sister, apparently not expecting this any more than Opal had. 

Dr. Tillman might as well have turned into marble after all. She was frozen-- ankles crossed, hands folded tidily in her lap, back straight as her daughter’s. Only her eyes were opened wide in horror, and her jaw clenched, as if she was holding back a cry of pain. She visibly struggled to find words for a moment. When she found her voice, it trembled like vibration coming through stone. “Jamie, if this is about what happened with your dad--”

“It’s not,” Jamie interjected immediately, finally looking at her mom. 

Dr. Tillman kept on talking. “If it’s about that, we can figure something else out. I could--”

“Mom, it’s not about that--”

“We could leave. There is no earthly reason for you to do this. You’re sixteen.” 

Opal had seconds to enjoy the flood of relief at finding a sensible, protective parent before Jamie interrupted, “Mom, stop!” Dr. Tillman lapsed into silence, but it didn’t look like she’d stay there long. 

Issac, who’d been ping-ponging between them during this exchange, burst in. “What the hell happened this morning?”

He was treated to two surprisingly identical looks of muted fury from both his sister and his mom. His mom was the one that answered. “What happened this morning, young man, is that you decided to recklessly and stupidly abuse the trust I placed in you, as well as the equipment no other boy your age could even dream of having at his disposal, to endanger yourself, break several federal and international laws, violate numerous codes of ethical medical conduct, and treat yourself as a lab rat while leaving your sisters to watch you almost kill yourself.”

At the last part, Jamie flinched hard enough, Opal could see it from across the room. 

Issac rounded on his mom. He’d snapped. “I was just doing what our family does! You want to talk about lab rat, how about Dad? How about Drew? Or Jenna? YOU helped make her into Bion in the first place! I’m trying to fix myself. From something that only happened to me because of my family. You decided to raise us here. You decided to marry a superhero. You decided I couldn’t be in a room full of superheroes when all of this happened! I didn’t decide any of that! If I’m going to be in danger like a Voss, then I am damn well going to fix myself like one! Even you do stuff to yourself all the time! You’ve always got to have something nipped or tucked or some shit. Hell, you want to get on my case for recklessly endangering myself?  I’m just trying to get back to normal. I’m not the one who was dumb enough to almost starve herself to death!”

Opal pressed her back into the dining chair. Jesus, no one in this family knew how to pull any punches. Jamie gaped at him. The way Issac’s mom recoiled, she never expected such a low blow. They kept shocking each other-- they must have treated each other better, once. Why couldn’t they go back to that?

Dr. Tillman shot to her feet. “Fine. Get out then. Go. Go and have a taste of the real world. Both of you.” Both her kids looked at her, silent, unmoving. “Well? Go! You both know where your luggage is. You can pack. And bring anything you can carry, because I don’t want to see either of you again until you’ve managed to find at least two brain cells to put together. Go!” She gestured violently at the hallway, and they both scrambled, rushing out of her view.

Leaving Opal in the living room with Dr. Tillman. Just in time for a muffled sob, and the first actual spilling of tears Opal had seen today. Opal was 99% sure Dr. Tillman had forgotten she was there. Opal didn’t even want to shift in her seat, not wanting any of the attention that could come her way in this bizarre situation.

Dr. Tillman shook her head, speaking to herself, “This is insane. I can’t…” She took a few unsteady breaths that didn’t seem to do her any good. She spoke a little louder, anger returning to her face. “Martin, access my bank accounts.”

“Yes, Dr. Tillman.”

“Transfer the entire balance of the accounts ending in 0758 and 0923 into the account ending in 3467.”

“Transfer complete.”

Bank account numbers? Was Opal actually invisible? She felt incredibly alone here. Didn’t dare to move, hardly dared to breathe. Dr. Tillman had drained their bank accounts. Issac had just had his birthday; his bank accounts must have had an adult’s name on them. And Jamie didn’t technically own anything. It was legal. 

Opal was sitting in a very pretty shark tank.

But Opal wasn’t invisible, and something as big and dark as she was couldn’t not stand out in a place like this. Dr. Tillman startled in a sharp, aggressive way once she noticed Opal again. Her eyes narrowed. “Ms. Flynn,” she said, coming to some kind of conclusion. She had long strides, and made a beeline right to Opal. 

Should Opal stand up? Should she keep sitting? What was the polite response here? Did Opal want to be polite? 

She stayed sitting. Dr. Tillman stopped just shy of coming close enough to loom. “Well, Ms. Flynn. You wanted your chance, and now you have it. My son has been kidnapped two times. Yael once. By some miracle, Jamie never. I don’t expect this exercise in stupidity to last very long. But whatever its duration, I would like the numbers I just gave you to stay exactly the same. And someone. Some idiot is going to see this as a chance to take a pot shot at the team via my children. 

“If that person is altered, all you can do is back up Yael, and call for the team. Do you understand? I want you to call for backup. You’re strong, but you can’t fight, and I don’t want any teenagers getting killed in this. If they’re unaltered, use your best judgment. I promise to support your actions in court to the full extent that I am able. And I will see to it that you are fully compensated for your work.

“Martin, put my number as well as the rest of the team’s into her cell phone.” Opal’s phone beeped. 

Dr. Tillman gathered herself, hellfire in her eyes. “I expect there to be an opening on the team very soon.” 

Oh. Just how powerful was this woman? 

But Opal had just been questioning whether she could work here. Whether she could take orders from a system this broken. Was it OK to take an offer like this?

At the end of the day-- Dr. Tillman was asking her to protect people. People who may have just done some very questionable things-- but who didn’t seem to want to hurt anybody. Whether she’d be a superhero or not, she still wanted to protect people. 

Opal nodded. Mission accepted.

* * *

What to pack? How long did he have? Issac looked over his room, having a hard time processing things. He was leaving. He was leaving and told not to come back. He was, for all practical purposes, disowned. By his mom at least. And Dad--

This time, the discomfort of the contacts told him that the blurring of his vision was just tears in his eyes. 

Issac tried to hush his voice. “Martin? Can you hear me?” Martin had answered Mom in the living room, so Issac’s temporary blocks must have worn off by now, just like they were supposed to. 

No answer. “Martin?”

He tried to let himself be a little louder. “Martin.”

Nothing. Even if Martin hadn’t wanted to be overheard, Issac was sure he could get into these contacts. 

He was refusing to talk to Issac. 

Issac moved back to a whisper. “Martin, I’m sorry. I am. But you were expecting me to leave. And now I’ve got a screen with me 24/7.” Still nothing. “Martin, come on.”

Ground under him shifted. He jumped back at the crumbling sensation, expecting the ground to drop out from under him. The tiles of his bedroom floor were cracked, with several shallow craters bigger than his foot. Baffling manifestations of everything falling apart. He stared at them. They didn’t move-- they hadn’t been there before. He felt like he was losing his mind-- things were disintegrating here so much faster than he could account for.

Issac felt his control slipping. “C’mon. Not you too. Not with Mom and…” 

MARTIN: This is a bad idea. It won’t work.

Issac exhaled. He headed into the closet, pulling out his carry-on. “Too late for that. You heard her.”

She’s emptied your bank accounts. 

He paused, one hand on a shirt he’d been about to pull off its hanger. She couldn’t do that. 

She could. She absolutely could. Shit. Well, what the hell was he supposed to do then? She’d told him to go, and then turned around and made that impossible. Did she want him to be homeless? Deaf, concussed, and homeless? Was she actually trying to kill him?

For a breath or two, that actually seemed plausible. “Can you--”

You know I can’t.

Issac probably could. Could get into his mom’s account and get his money back, if he tried hard enough. But then he really would get arrested. 

DOOR KNOCKING

“Martin, who is it.”

Opal Flynn.

Crap. Right. The audience for his family’s collapse. “Uh. Sure. Come in, I guess.”

She hurried in, closing the door right behind her, as if she was worried about being followed, and leaned against it. He could just see her from in here.

Yes, hi, random girl. So happy you always seem to turn up when I’m on the verge of a mental breakdown. He just looked at her, one hand still on a shirt sleeve. 

OPAL FLYNN: So, I was thinking maybe while you get settled, you and your siblings might want to move in with me? I have an apartment-- sort of. I have space, anyway. Rent free.

The hell? He didn’t even know her. “What?”

She bit her lip, moving a little further into the room. It just seems like maybe a little extra security might be good? I’m altered, so…

“I don’t even know you.” He turned, pulling the shirt down, and going for the one after it. His eyes still itched. She was standing near the craters.

OPAL FLYNN: But Jamie and Yael do. And your security system here seems to like me.

Issac stopped. Like? He looked back at her. “Is that right, Martin?”

MARTIN: She has thus far exercised excellent judgment and character within my view and within my conversations with her. 

She beamed gratefully at the ceiling. Martin’s opinion seemed to mean something to her. She looked at Issac, then briefly back to the ceiling, before turning back to Issac. OPAL FLYNN: Oh, sorry, did I interrupt you two? She looked at the ceiling again. Martin, were you in the middle of--

MARTIN: I was not. This is not the person I was primarily speaking of. Nor is he especially receptive to in-depth communication at this time. 

Issac would have given one of the cameras a dirty look, but he was distracted by the way Opal was talking to Martin. 

It was dangerous. It was risky for Martin to have talked to someone else in a way that would lead to that. But Martin had. Which meant Martin really did trust her.

She continued. OPAL FLYNN: Maybe we should stay in touch. I’m always happy to have another pen pal.

MARTIN: It would be my pleasure, Opal.

Whoah, what? 

He felt a slight pang of jealousy, but Martin was making himself very clear here. He trusted Opal. He liked her. And if Issac went with her… “OK. Fine. Uhm. Thanks for the invitation. We’ll do that, then.”

Her offer must have been genuine, because his answer seemed to relieve her. 

OPAL FLYNN: Cool. I’ll go call Aldis. And…wait for you in the courtyard. OK?

He nodded. She left.

“You made a friend, Martin?”

MARTIN: I’ll feel better about you leaving my security grid if you go with her. Also, if you continue to wear those contacts and medical bracelets, so I can stay in contact.

“…Are you mad at me?”

A pause. Yes.

“And so are Jamie and Yael.”

Yael, I think, less so than the others. However, your mother is enraged. And I suggest you return to packing immediately.

Right. His exile. Officially booted off Mt. Olympus. Did that make him Hephaestus? The ugly and disfigured Olympian? 

No, Hephaestus was still a god, if a pathetic one. And he’d been allowed back on the mountain at his mother’s order.

He’d better be Prometheus then, and steal what he could while he was here. He’d backed up his data ahead of time; he fished it out from under the mattress, shoving it in his pocket.

Maybe, if he really could put his life together, he’d be allowed back one day. Mom would have to see him at trade shows, at any rate. And Dad…

That issue was too big and too baffling. His brain shut down when he tried to even touch it. He grabbed a blazer instead, and threw himself into frantic theft from the place he used to call home.

* * *

“Are you going to pack that?” 

Yael looked up from the worn, dented, slightly gnawed action figure. Xe hadn’t meant to stare at it like that. It wasn’t even a good likeness of Papa. Xe was embarrassed he caught xyr wasting time like that. “No, I’ll bring some pictures. Much more practical.” Xe could only bring the essentials. Xe had no idea where xe was going.

Papa’s small smile was warm and thankful. As badly as xe’d wanted to hurt him this morning, xe hated seeing him thankful for xyr affection now. He didn’t trust their bond anymore. What a time for Yael to leave. He turned to look at the six square feet of pinned-up printed photos covering the wall opposite the windows. The center of xyr long, slow-growing collection was faded. Their shared family history spiraled and sprawled across the gray.

Well, the nice parts of their history. So much of xyr life was un-photographed. There were no pictures of fights, sleepless nights, or missing family. There was nothing particular to mark Jenna’s sudden disappearance from the pictures. This morning wouldn’t leave any pictures-- just the end of the collection xe’d leave here to fade.

Xe tapped down an urge to search the pictures to see if there were hints in old photos of xyr family’s breakdown. Papa only noticed xyr staring. “That suits me. If you stay long enough to sort through all of those, you’ll never leave.”

Ugh, why did he have to be so nice right now? Xe threw the toy at him. He plucked it out of the air, and set it in xyr suitcase with a sad, sentimental smile. Xe turned back to the shelf, where the rest of xyr collection stood. Xe grabbed Capricorn and Bion, and hesitated. Just LodeStar left on the shelf, as beat-up and well-loved as the rest. Xe transferred the other two toys to xyr left hand, and picked up LodeStar, looking at it more closely. 

The silver-black crept out of xyr skin where xyr hand touched the toy. The sensation of wet cracks shuddered up xyr arm again. 

Xe almost threw the thing. Xe turned, ready to drop it in the garbage, where it belonged. But xyr hand tightened on the toy. Wouldn’t let go. The plastic creaked, and the revolting sense memory crawled through xyr flesh again. 

Xe placed it back on the shelf, as hard as xe could without knocking the whole thing down. The silver retreated, and xe could finally let it go. Xe left it there, then went to put the other figures in the suitcase. Xe…didn’t have an action figure of Melissa. “Choose one of Melissa, will you?”

Papa got up off the the bed, moving quietly towards the photo wall. Xe couldn’t look at it now. Xe’d get lost forever trying to find answers in the pictures. 

“You have to take care of the hamsters. I’ll come back for them when I know where we’re going.”

“Of course I will.”

“And keep looking for Skittles. And if you find her, give her a big grape, and let her eat as much of it as she wants before you put her with the others.” Yael didn’t want to go. The outside world was full of doors xe had to duck through, cars xe didn’t fit in, and fragile people who didn’t know xyr.

“I’ll miss you.” He carefully pulled one of the photos off the wall.

“Don’t make me cry,” Yael warned.

“But I know you’ll come back. At least to visit. And to train. And maybe you can talk Issac and Jamie into visiting, too?”

“I don’t even know where we’re going,” Yael grumbled. “But I’ll try to come back to train.”

Xe headed to the bathroom, to pack toiletries. Papa kept going. “And when you come back, we can discuss…the other thing.”

Xe almost snapped xyr toothbrush in half. Xe stuck xyr head out of the bathroom. Papa was sitting on the bed again, elbows braced forward on his knees, eyes on the pictures.

Papa had always been age-stable. So, to Yael, it was normal that he never changed. But at that moment, xe felt like xe was looking at a younger version of him. He’d barely been older than Yael was now when xe was born. When he’d chosen one family over another. How had xyr 18-year-old papa looked, bringing an infant to a place he could barely call his home? Those pictures weren’t on the wall, either.

The moment was too hard to walk away from. Xe couldn’t leave the building with him looking like that. Xe couldn’t think of anything xe could do or say to snap him out of it.

Eventually, he turned to xyr. “What do I call you, then?”

“What?”

“You’ve banned me from calling you my daughter. But I don’t think you want me to call you my son.”

“Oh. No. That’s…really not any better for me.”

“Then what do I call you?”

“Just call me yours.”

* * *

Jamie had expected doing the right thing to feel better than this. She slipped past Mom’s door, hearing crying inside. But Jamie wouldn’t be welcome in there unless she changed her mind, which she couldn’t do. She lugged her suitcase through the great room, trying not to look at anything. She knew every room by heart; she didn’t need to look around.

She dropped the heavy case just outside her own front door. She’d taken a risk and slung her guitar case across her back. Issac hadn’t reacted to her guitar earlier, and she needed calming things right now.

Yael was already sitting in the hanging chairs, xyr suitcase at xyr feet. Solomon was hovering next to xyr. Opal was across the courtyard, on her phone, talking quietly. Ugh, Jamie had made things hard for her yet again. Everyone turned to look at Jamie. She’d heard Issac still packing in his room. 

She licked her lips, looked at Solomon, and dragged her suitcase further into the courtyard. “No Drew?”

“He’s downstairs, taking care of some things. I’ll explain things to him when he comes back. Expect him to want to visit very soon.”

Jamie huffed. “I just wish I knew where he’d be visiting.”

Opal walked over, slipping her phone back in her suit pocket. “Got that taken care of. In the short term, anyway. You guys can stay with me. It’s not fancy, but there’s space.” 

Jamie felt the briefest flash of suspiciousness at being invited into the home of someone she’d known all of two weeks. But being suspicious of Opal wasn’t sustainable. She was too honest, too sweet, and too admirable for Jamie to work up any real suspicion towards her. “Thanks, but I don’t think Issac--”

“He already said yes.”

Jamie blinked, surprised. Yael beat her to an out-loud reaction. “He accepted your help?”

“Yes?” She looked at each of them. “Why, is that weird?”

The door opened and shut with a bang, and Issac and his bag almost ran Jamie over. ”Let’s get this shit-show on the road.”

“Aldis is almost to the parking garage,” Opal answered. 

Yael sighed heavily, standing. 

Jamie couldn’t resist looking around the courtyard as they headed towards the elevator. She’d be back here eventually, right?

Something small, shining, and rectangular caught her attention, right by Dad’s door. She walked over and bent down, picking it up. Jenna's deck of cards, kicked to the side and ignored. Her little gift, rejected. 

She couldn’t imagine the dad she’d grown up with ignoring these. Maybe that dad really was gone. 

The elevator opened. Issac went in first, without even acknowledging Solomon, then Opal, then Yael, with two suitcases. It was a little crowded.

Solomon’s hand landed on Jamie's shoulder. “We’ll take the next one.”

The door closed, and Jamie braced herself. She was very tired of being the center of intense attention today. He kneeled, one hand on each of her arms-- a dirty trick to make it harder for her to avoid eye contact. He looked into her eyes earnestly. “Jamie, I’m sorry. If I’d realized what was happening, this morning would have gone differently.”

Jamie didn’t know what to say to that. It’s OK would be met with immediate resistance. And her anger was all burnt out by now. She looked away, willing the elevator door to open. There were six elevators, and Solomon had said they’d go down. Why wasn’t one opening?

“Jamie, how are you? And don’t just say you’re ‘fine’.”

Well, what was she supposed to say when he’d already denied her answer? She was fine. She wasn’t sobbing in her bedroom like Mom, or down in surgery like Dad. She hadn’t taken total leave of her common sense like Yael and Issac. Compared to most of them, she was doing extremely well.

So why was her face crumpling? 

Solomon pulled her gently forward. She gave in, just for a minute, and clung to his shirt, hiding her face against the fabric. Her breath caught, puffed out, then caught in her throat again.

“Oh, Jamie, Jamie. Brave girl.” Her breath hitched again. He tried for a little humor. “I’ve seen people literally shit themselves, faced with Neil in a rage.”

That hurt. “H-he’s my dad.” Did Solomon agree with Yael? Did he really believe that Dad would have hurt her?

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Of course.” He pulled her closer. “I wish I had some kind of comfort to offer--”

Jamie didn’t want words of comfort. She shook her head, keeping her face down and out of sight against his shoulder. When he didn’t say anything else, the whole day seemed to come crashing down on her, the vacuum of his silence pulling apart her carefully constructed stillness.

She was surprised to find she wasn’t crying so much as she was shivering. Did that mean she was afraid?

She’d never been afraid of her dad, before. She’d been afraid for him. She’d been angry at him. But she’d never been afraid of him. Where was her real dad?

She was thankful that, after a couple of minutes, Solomon relaxed his grip and leaned back, signaling her to pull herself together. She wasn’t sure how long it would have taken her to do it without prompting. He wiped her cheek with his thumb. It was wet from tears. She sniffed, hard, trying to keep her nose from running. 

“Call every day?” 

She nodded.

“And when your mom calls, you’ll answer?”

She nodded, guts crawling with guilt. He didn’t say anything about Dad. He stood, then bent to kiss her forehead. “Use your head, OK? Don’t wait for your brother to do it just because he’s older. He’s brilliant, but he gets distracted by himself.”

Jamie laughed, weak and watery. That was one way to put it.

“And please, make sure Yael’s being a good guest. She-- xe will mean to, but xe can be so easily distracted, and leave things everywhere. Especially dishes. At least Issac is tidy.” Xe? Well, finally. Jamie managed a little smile. It felt a little good to be mother-henned a bit. “And dress warmly--”

“It’s June,” Jamie interjected.

“I’ve seen you shiver in excessive air conditioning. Maybe I should pack some mittens.” He was teasing now, and it worked. She smiled. But it made her miss her old dad. “Hm? A scarf, maybe?”

“Just go for my big down coat, at that point.”

“Good idea. I’ll bring it the next time I see you.” He didn’t ask about her inhaler, or her medications. He didn’t ask about anything she’d never have forgotten. 

“Solomon? Take care of them.”

“Your mom’s resilient--” he started to reassure her.

“All of them,” Jamie said, getting some of her forcefulness back. 

“All of them,” he agreed.