#my thought process was that john was going to prank him by going along with his obvious joke but then dave actually kissed him

[tempestousstocking]

sorry that it’s in german but it’s arguably funnier that way. (translation)

d: well bro what are we going to do now?

j: idk

d: let’s do soggy biscuit

j: no fucking way! (the german is a meme ref i can’t translate)

d: ok then gay chicken

j: lol ok. you’ll embarrass yourself anyways

[skymaiden32]

Soldiers of the Sea

Thundertober/Inktober 2022 Day 16: Aquanaut

The ex-aquanauts of WASP think about the old days.

Continuity: TOS; OCS

Tagging: @dragonoffantasyandreality @thundergeek59 @janetm74 @katblu42 @liseylou (Please ask if you would like to be alerted when I update or write new stories)

Prompt list

------

“Can you believe it?” His friend Seymour said as they walked out of the auditorium, surrounded on all sides by their fellow WASP aquanauts. “Captain Holden taken out just like that…”

Gordon nodded. Their friend’s recent crash had shaken the entire base. “I just hope he’ll be okay. That accident was pretty serious. He’ll probably be under close observation for months.” He sighed. “I’m going to be on that bathyscape by the time he recovers…”

“At least we know who’s taking over Stingray.”

“Troy and Phones are gonna do a great job, I just know it…”

There was a lull in the conversation before the younger lieutenant said anything else, slumping into his seat. “So, any plans for your shore leave in a few days, Tracy?”

“Of course.” Gordon grinned, also sitting down. “When do I not have a plan?”

“Yeah, you always have a plan for a prank in mind…” Seymour scoffed. “Let’s hear it then.”

“Well, my leave lines up pretty well with everyone else’s time off. Scott’s on leave, Virgil just finished his last term at MIT, John’s down from his tour of duty on the satellite NASA put him on, and Alan’s racing season is over, so we’re all going to have a long overdue family holiday. After Virgil’s graduation, we’re off to the Maldives with our father! Dad also said he found the perfect little island to build a holiday home.” Gordon smiled as he thought about the real reason their father had bought the island. “So he’s gonna show us on the last day…”

Seymour smirked. “Sounds like you guys have a fun week planned. Be sure to say hi to your family for me.”

“Sure will.” Gordon nodded. “By the way, how’re things with your siblings?”

His friend frowned. If Gordon thought his parents had a lot of work to do raising five sons, Seymour was the eldest of nine, and had raised his siblings alone since their parents had died in a plane crash.  “Let’s just say Scott’ll feel my pain…”

“That bad huh?” Gordon sympathised. He only had one younger brother, and Alan was a handful on his own when they were kids.

“How do parents do it?” Seymour groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“For what it’s worth, Griffiths,” His friend looked up in his direction, feeling slightly better when he saw the sincere look on Gordon’s face. “I think you’re doing great…”

Seymour sighed. “Thanks, Gordo…” He held up his fist for Gordon to bump. “Aquanauts for life?”

Gordon smiled warmly as he returned the gesture. “Aquanauts for life…”

------

“Aquanauts for life…” Gordon whispered to himself as he stepped out of Thunderbird Four onto the cold metal floor of Two’s pod, watching the pod door close up behind the small submarine, the waves lapping gently outside. That had been the last time he’d seen Seymour. 

He’d gotten back from shore leave to find out his friend had taken a job offer along with Bradley Holden elsewhere, and hadn’t had much time to process the information before he was sent out on his next mission. He’d had his hydrofoil accident shortly after that.

His radio beeped at him, and he had to shake himself to answer his brother. “All set, Virgil. Take us home…”

Sensing the melancholy in Gordon’s voice, Virgil answered as gently as he could. “FAB. Descending now.”

He wondered if they were okay, wherever they were. They just had to be…

------

Green wandered into the Room of Sleep, tiredly acknowledging Captains Scarlet and Blue, who were on their way out to start their shift, with a grunt. They nodded back, moving quickly to avoid the terror that was a tired Lieutenant Green.

Captain Grey smiled in his direction, waving him over. Green groaned as he fell face first on his assigned bed, right next to Grey’s.

“You ever think of what it would’ve been like if we’d stayed in WASP?” Green’s voice was muffled, but Grey still managed to hear it.

“Well,” the older man began, “I’d probably still be stuck behind that desk. I wouldn’t have met Captain Orchid,” Grey smiled at the thought of his field partner, “or anyone else in Spectrum. I don’t regret it at all. Sure, there are things I do miss…”

“Like what?” Green sat up, attention rapt as he looked at his colleague.

“Troy was a blast to talk to… I miss everyone else too.” He huffed in amusement. “Heck, I even miss Commander Shore yelling into everyone’s ears.” He frowned. “Why’d you ask?”

Green lay down again, this time laying face up. “I don’t think we should’ve left without saying goodbye…”

Grey paused, before nodding. He knew exactly who his friend was talking about. “Me neither…”

“I miss him a lot, Brad.” Green huffed.

“I know, Sey… I do too.” Grey agreed. “I know he had a rough time before he left WASP, and I definitely feel guilty about not being there to visit him in the hospital, but from what I hear from my sources, he’s doing fine.” He smiled softly. “The whole family is…”

“That’s a relief…” Green sighed. “Let’s hope they continue that streak.”

“Knowing them?” Grey scoffed. “Seems unlikely…” Green snorted. “Aquanauts for life?”

Green smiled thankfully at his friend, returning the gesture the same way Gordon had for him all that time ago. It seemed like a lifetime had gone by since then… 

“Aquanauts for life…”

[hoboal87]

Carry On

Pairing : Sam x Reader, Platonic!Dean x Reader

Summary : One year after defeating Chuck, Sam and Dean are still hunting, but you’ve quit the life. When the boys take a vacation that quickly turns into a hunt, none of you expect it to change your lives forever.

Characters : Y/N, Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, mentions of Bobby, Jody, Donna and the Girls

Word Count : 3.1k (I tried to keep it below 3k, but...😕)

Warnings : SPOILERS FOR 15X20, Angst, Feels, Fluff (it gets a little gross at the end), A Sprinkling of Pre-Smut, Pregnancy

A/N : This will keep the canon of the finale, and takes place during and after 15x20, but with an added reader insert. This was written as a sequel to “The Tie” but can be read as a stand-alone.

A/N 2 : This is my entry for @negans-lucille-tblr “6k Roll the Dice Challenge.” My prompt is “I didn’t have it in myself to go with grace,” which is bolded.

No Beta, all mistakes are my own.

Check out my Masterlist here

You pull another book down from the library wall; everything has been relatively quiet since Jack took over Heaven, Rowena has put a leash on the demons, the only monsters you and the boys had to worry about were run-of-the-mill, so to speak. Adjusting to this new life is easier than you thought it would be, using the last year to learn that without the necessity to hunt, you and Sam were finally free to live your own lives. After Chuck was rendered powerless, you decided to give up hunting for good. Sam won't, you know that, Sam and Dean had been hunting their whole lives, but you were thrust into the life.

You make your way back towards your shared room with Sam, twirling the small diamond ring on your finger, passing Dean’s along the way. You peer inside, glad to see that the once mass trove of empty beer and whiskey bottles were gone. Sure, there’s still a few bottles strewn throughout the room, but nothing like it was before. In the months following Cas’ death, Dean had been a shell of himself, drinking himself into an early grave. He never told you or Sam exactly how Cas summoned the empty, or why it took him along with Billie. Dean always kept himself bottled up, until he would explode, letting his grief out by way of yelling and screaming. Cas’ trench was usually hanging in the corner, but it wasn’t there now, Dean must’ve taken it with him. Dean was still in pain, that much was clear.

Sam and Dean are off at some pie fest, and you opted to stay behind. You waved the boys off, asking Dean to eat a pie just for you. Sam and Dean needed this; brother time. It was something that rarely happened since you joined them over five years ago, even before you were with Sam, you, Cas or Jack were always tagging along. You saw it as the perfect opportunity to take some time for yourself as well, figuring out where you and Sam would go from here. Sam talked about going back to school, finishing his degree and applying to Law School again, he even had you buy him books on LSAT prep. You talked at length about taking the next steps in your relationship, you couldn’t ever get legally married, but you starting planning a ceremony anyway. Before Chuck was gone, you were content to just be, never needing more, afraid that it would be ripped out from under you the minute you let your guard down.

As you settle into your and Sam’s bed, book in hand, you feel as the weight that’s been sitting on your chest has finally lifted, you can breathe. It's been years since you've been able to truly relax, and as much fun as a pie fest sounded, you wanted to stay at the bunker, taking comfort in your and Sam's shared room. They’d only been gone a few days, but you already missed Sam terribly, pathetic, you know. Never in your life would you have imagined wanting and needing someone like you did Sam. The next morning you wake up to a text from Sam. The brothers mini-vacation quickly turned into a vampire hunt, a nest John had hunted years ago. The boys could handle it, you know that much, it's a milk run compared to everything they've fought over the years. Be Safe, Love You. You responded and went on with your day.

Sam always keeps you in the loop when he and Dean go on a hunt without you, providing you with a source of comfort knowing that they’ve killed the bad guy or solved the mystery. But now, they’ve been silent for too long, a nest of Vamps shouldn’t take more than a few days, and you start to worry. You’re heading towards the garage, determined to track down Sam and Dean, and lay it on thick about how worried you were when they went silent. You’re about to open the door to the garage when it swings open and Sam’s long body fills the frame. It startles you at first, even causing Miracle to bark in surprise. You throw your arms around Sam, all anger gone now that he’s back home with you.

“Don’t ever do that again!” You scold Sam. “You know how much I hate it when you and Dean stop responding.” You want to be mad, but you’re so focused on the fact that Sam’s back home with you again, that nothing else seems to matter. “If you’re gonna keep hunting you have to keep me in the loop,” you mumble.

Sam’s body stiffens against your touch. It takes him a minute, but he reciprocates your hug, pulling you tight against him. You stand there, waiting for some smart remark from Dean, normally barking at the two of you to get a room, but there’s nothing but the echo of the Impala’s engine filling the air. You try to pull away from Sam, but his grip around you only tightens, this hunt must have been more difficult than he or Dean anticipated. Head pressed against Sam’s chest, you can hear his heart thumping loudly and rapidly. Dean would never let you and Sam hold on to each other as long as you have.

“Sammy?” You whisper, trying to pull away again. Sam’s grip finally loosens, but his hands don’t leave you as you take a small step back. Your eyes travel upwards, finally landing on Sam’s face, his eyes are bloodshot and puffy, almost as if he has been crying. “Sam? What’s wrong?”

Sam shakes his head as tears fill his eyes.

“Where’s Dean?” You ask as you watch Sam slowly break down. His head nods towards the Impala, and you pull away completely from Sam’s embrace.

You run towards the Impala as fast as your legs can carry you, a swing open the back door, hoping to see Dean’s shining emerald eyes. Tears blur your vision faster than you can comprehend what you’re seeing. Dean’s lifeless body lays in the back seat, all color drained from him. You scan him desperately, waiting for some kind of sign that this is all a cruel prank, that he and Sam were trying to get one over you for not coming with them on this hunt.

But, there’s nothing.

You scream out, falling to your knees, Dean was just as much your brother as he was Sam’s, he was your best friend, and now, he’s gone. Your cries fill the otherwise silent garage, he can’t be dead, not like this, not on some vampire hunt, something he’s done a hundred times before. Not when you know that he was looking to settle down, find some normalcy, or at least normal for him. He deserved to live, he didn’t deserve to die at the hands of a monster.

Dean wasn’t going to be there when you and Sam got married, when you told Sam about the baby you were carrying. God, how were you going to tell him that? Dean was going to help you surprise Sam, as soon as they came home, he was going to start dropping hints, see how long it took Sam to figure it out. But now, you stared at his body, tearing streaming down your face, you couldn’t stop crying if you wanted to. Sam’s strong arms wrap around you, holding you close to him, and you both sit on the floor, unable to do anything but mourn the loss of the elder Winchester.

Through your sobs, you can hear Sam trying to offer you some comfort, assuring you that he went down saving the victims. You could barely process anything he was saying, and if this is how you felt, you can’t even begin to imagine how he feels. Dean was the only real family that Sam had left, there had to be a way to get him back.

“No, baby,” Sam murmurs in your ear through his tears, “I promised him. No bringing him back.” You didn’t realize you had said it out loud. “He wants us to keep going, he wants us to live.”

Three days later you’re surrounded by all the family you’d gained through the boys. Jody, Donna, Claire, Bobby and Charlie plus too many people to keep track of. You and Sam had already given Dean his proper send-off, dividing his ashes between the graveyard where Mary and John were buried and keeping the rest for yourselves. Jody told the story of the first time she’d met the brothers over ten years ago and how she’d come to think of the boys as surrogate sons. Claire talked about the time she and Dean went mini-golfing and how offended he was when she didn’t understand his Caddyshack references. The bunker was full laughter, it was Dean told you he wanted all those years ago.

You and Sam couldn’t stay in the Bunker after that. You’d left it open to all hunters, you’d still come back occasionally, but it was no longer home. You and Sam packed up most of your and Dean’s things, fitting as much as you could into the Impala, knowing that the two rooms would always be off limits to future hunters. Sam nearly slides into the passenger seat when you leave, and you can see it hitting him all over again. Dean’s gone.

You drive around the country for a few weeks, unsure of where to make your new home. Neither of you ever had a real home before moving into the Bunker, and you were the only family you had left now. You settle in Sioux Falls, Jody and the girls were there, Donna was close enough, and if need be, you could be back in Lebanon in a matter of 5 hours.

You find a small house close to where Bobby’s used to be, it is still a salvage yard, but Bobby’s house is long gone. As the weeks pass you don’t know how much longer you can keep your pregnancy hidden from Sam. Every time you try to tell him, it feels wrong; you are both still grieving the loss of Dean, and Sam has fallen into a deep depression. You have Jody take you to your doctor appointments, and she scolds you for not telling Sam, but when she drops you at your new home, and sees the current state of Sam, she backs off.

At your next appointment, she laughs and cries with you when you learn that you were carrying a boy, Dean. When you first told Dean that you were pregnant, he immediately insisted that the newest Winchester should be named after him, “boy or girl!” He insisted, “I’m named after a Deanna.”

“I think the world only needs one Dean Winchester,” you retorted playfully. Now, it seems the perfect way to carry on Dean’s legacy.

When you leave the doctors, you finally realize how obvious it is that you’re pregnant, your stomach rounding out perfectly under your shirt. You’re almost insulted that Sam hasn’t noticed your ever-growing stomach and the extra pounds you’ve put on over the last month, but he hasn't been himself since Dean died. You hadn’t been intimate with him since you settled into your new house, and he spends most of his day sleeping or in a fugue-like state.

Jody insists on taking you shopping for baby supplies, and by the end you’ve got a shopping cart onesies, blankets, something called a diaper genie, and many other things you didn’t even know you needed. As you walk through the store an iron-on name display catches your eye, and you make your way towards it. The names are written in large cursive lettering, and you hope that you can find the right one. You nearly squeal when you do, and find a plain onesie to attach it to.

You’re glad that the baby store carries labeless bags, especially when Sam is up and about when you get home. He looks good today, he’s slightly sweaty, and you know that he left the house and went for a run. He greets you with a quick kiss, a sheen of sweat covering his face, and makes for your room. He eyes the bags in your hands, but doesn’t say anything, and a few minutes later you can hear the shower running. Thank God, you sigh and take the bags into an empty room, Miracle following closely behind you. You set the bags down in what will be baby Dean’s nursery, Jody’s right, you think, we’ve got a lot of catching up to do.

You find the onesie and the iron-on decal, you place it in the center and carefully attach the decal. After letting it cool you tuck it into a small gift bag. You hear the shower turn off, and make your way back into your bedroom, placing the bag on your bedside table, waiting for Sam to exit the bathroom. You can’t help but stare at him appreciatively when he opens the door, a towel wrapped around his waist. You’re suddenly very aware of how long it's been since you’d been with him. Sam catches you eyeing him, and smirks, sending a jolt straight down to your core. You missed this, not just the sex, but how he takes charge with you, his domineering presence making you melt. He leans over you, and places a tender yet eager kiss on your lips.

You reach for the towel, letting it slide onto the floor as Sam deepens the kiss, and start to work him over in your hands. Sam groans at your touch, and starts to pull at your shirt, pulling his face away just long enough to rid you of it. Sam’s lips are back on yours just as quickly as they were gone. His hands palm at your breasts, and you moan into his hands reach into the overflowing cups, you really loved your pregnancy boobs, but your bras were doing very little to keep them in place. Sam’s hands travel to your back, and undos your bra, letting your breasts fall free. Sam finally opens his eyes when his hands land on your protruding stomach and takes a few steps back.

He quickly pulls on a pair of sweatpants as you pull your shirt back over your head, trying you best not to cry as he starts pacing the floor of your bedroom. You wait for him to say something, anything; you weren’t trying when you realized you were pregnant. You’d just gone off your birth control, and everyone told you it would take at least a few months for your body to get back to its natural cycle. You both knew it was possible but figured you’d have at least 6 months before really actively trying for a baby.

Sam’s face is almost unreadable; you can’t tell if he’s happy or mad, if he’ll tell you it’s too soon, that he’s not ready. He opens and closes his mouth multiple times, as if he can’t figure out what to say. If Dean were here, he’d probably knock him upside his head, telling him this exactly what he’s always wanted.

“How– why–” Sam stammers as you move to the edge of the bed. “Are you– You’re pregnant.” He says it almost as if it’s a question and you nod your head. “How long?” There’s almost an accusation in his voice, you’re sure it’s not intentional, but it doesn’t make you feel any better.

“18 weeks,” you murmur, trying to hold back your tears. “I wanted to tell you sooner, but it’s– it never seemed to be the right time. When you and Dean–” Sam winces at the mention of Dean’s name, you hadn’t said it out loud in almost a month, not since you left the Bunker. “I found out right before you left, I was going to tell you when you got back. But… after… I was afraid that you’d say it wasn’t the right time. That it was too soon.”

“It is too soon,” Sam mutters under his breath, you’re sure it’s not meant to be malicious, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less. “You said it would take at least 6 months.”

“It’s different for everyone,” you offer, as Sam runs his hands through his hair, still pacing in front of you. “Please, Sam, can you sit down? You’re freaking me out.” Sam moves to the edge of the bed, and sits down next to you.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Sam whispers, eyeing your belly. “I don’t know how– I don’t know how to be a dad.”

“Yes, you do,” you grab his hand, and place it on your belly. “Dean taught you everything you would ever need to know.”

Sam smiles sadly, “I ever tell you about the night I left for Stanford?” You shake your head. “Dad and me, we got into this huge fight. So of course, Dean steps in– gets between us, attempts to calm us, but we were both just– just too fucking stubborn to listen.” He removes his hand, focusing down on them as he fidgets. “When dad said don’t come back, I called his bluff, and I was– I was so pissed at Dean, I thought he was taking Dad’s side, that I didn’t even say bye to him. I didn’t have it myself to go with grace. I walked away from him, the only family that I had, and I regretted it for years. I- I feel like he should be the one here, that- that we’re moving on too quickly.”

“Dean, he– he wouldn’t want you, us, to live like this, we owe it to him to keep fighting, to live our lives. I know how much you miss him,” a tear slips from Sam’s eye. “I miss him too, but you know what keeps me going everyday?” Sam shakes his head, and you take his hand in yours again, and place it back on the swell of your belly just as little Dean decides to kick for the first time. The smile on Sam’s face is instant, you can’t stop the happy tears from falling as Sam shifts in front of you, and lays his head on your swollen stomach. “Our son.”

Sam cries, truly cries for the first time since the day he brought home Dean’s body. You hold him against you, he’s been so pent up for the last 3 months, bottling up his emotions, he needs this, you both do. You’d been so focused on the baby growing inside of you never realized that you hadn’t realized that Sam had never come to terms with Dean’s death.

“It’s a boy?” Sam asks as his cries cease. “We’re having a son?”

“We’re having a son,” you nod, and hand Sam the gift bag still sitting on your bedside table.

Sam opens the bag, and you smile as he pulls out the green onesie, his eyes lighting up as he reads the lettering.

“You’re sure?” He questions.

“The world lost one Dean Winchester, let’s give it another.”

Please give let me know what you think! Reblog or send an ask

Forever Tags:

@that-one-gay-girl​

@akshi8278​

[gwen-of-myth]

Horribly Wrong, Bad, Terrible Choices (But I Don’t Regret a Thing): Chapter One

Stiles is a mess. His sleep schedule would line up with a neurotic bat, his diet consists of mainly Cheetos, and if he doesn’t have a caffeinated beverage every twelve hours he gets shaky. And his eye starts twitching so people thinks hes crazy. At this point he might as well be, he thinks.

Something has to change. He’s taking the most college classes he can a quarter and working full time to help support it since his dad can’t help him with college.

He’s sympathetic, because he knows John’s financial issues come from hospital bills. Stiles would never blame John for that. So much money went into trying to save his mom’s life... She received the best care money could buy, but at the expense of, well. A lot of money.

The process was agonizing for both him and his dad. Lots of late nights and alcohol were the new norm for John, and a lot of the time Stiles stayed at a friends house. Usually it was Scott.

At the same time, if you can’t ask your only parent for money, what can you do? Work, of course, and he’s trying, he really is! But to keep his scholarship afloat requires so much of him.

He’s running out of ideas and his mid term is due in two days and he doesn’t even have a thesis and—he’s overwhelmed. Panic attack time.

The pack is meeting tonight, and Stiles almost cancels. He has to study but at the same time he hasn’t seen Scott or anyone in nearly a month. He even misses Derek’s grumpy face. When his heart aches for a moment after pausing to think about studying, he’s made up his mind.

He’s going.

When he shows up to the loft, everyone else is already there and setting up. They’re watching bad werewolf movies and eating pizza. Free food sounds wonderful to Stiles, having only had a granola bar that morning, so he piles a few slices on his plate, accidentally making eye contact with Peter when he does.

Peter isn’t smirking, which is odd to Stiles. There isn’t really amusement on his face; rather, there’s a concern that makes Stiles’s stomach turn a bit. No one has looked at him like that in a while. Maybe not for years.

It makes him shiver, and he looks away quick, almost dropping his plate with how hard he turns his head. Stiles’s ears burn as he turns and walks away, sitting on the floor at the edge of the gathering.

He eats ravenously, and sighs when he realizes he forgot to get a drink. Before he even has a chance to get up, there’s a tap on his shoulder. He looks behind him and sees Peter sitting close (closer than Stiles knew) and is holding a glass of ice water expectedly.

“Drink.”

Stiles licks his cracked lips a bit before nodding and taking the glass. He flushes a bit before taking a sip, then a gulp before he chugs it empty.

“Good,” Peter murmurs, low and rumbling.

The pat on the shoulder he gets after warms him like praise, addictive and consuming—but the word? The word is everything. He takes an unsteady breath and tries to focus on the tv, the back of his neck burning.

The movie is unendingly predictable and bad, so naturally, he dozes off. For once, he’s full and content, no worries, just cheesy gore and the rest of the pack talking.

It’s a nice nap.

When he wakes it’s with a start. There’s denim on his face, and when he turns, he sees it’s Peter he fell asleep against. He’s looking oddly fond, but Stiles is sleepy enough to write it off. He runs at his face for a minute and yawns.

“Sorry, dude. It’s just, uh. A boring movie.”

Peter quirks an eyebrow.

“Don’t call me dude.”

He rolls his eyes, but before he can snark Peter continues.

“Sweetheart, you’re wearing yourself out. You need to sleep more, and eat more. I could count your ribs through that plaid.”

Stiles scoffs.

“That’s an exaggeration!”

“But only just. I’m worried, Stiles.”

Peter’s serious, he realizes. Or he’s pretending to be. Oh god, what if this is all some sort of evil plan to fatten him up and eat him? But then he looks again and there is an uncharacteristic amount of sympathy and well...maybe he really is worried.

“I’m fine. Just a little stressed,” Stiles mutters, looking at the floor.

Peter doesn’t press anymore, but he does watch Stiles the rest of the night.

After everyone starts leaving, Stiles drowsily gets up off the floor, stumbling a little. A hand drops onto his shoulder. He startles briefly, but it quickly morphs into annoyance.

“It’s like you’re watching my every move tonight. What do you want creeperwolf,” Stiles hisses. He hears a sigh, and for some reason his heart rate picks up. He pushes away the instinct to apologize.

“I want to talk with you. But not here. How about I pick you up tomorrow?”

Stiles bites his lips and chews on it for a second, thinking.

“I’m working tomorrow until ten at night. Why?”

“Time isn’t an issue. I’ll cook you dinner. How about... a risotto with salad and fresh baked bread? I’ll even pick you up.”

Oh god.

“Well...okay, but I’m telling Scott so he knows who poisoned me.”

Peter rolls his eyes.

“Dear boy,” and Stiles blushes, trying to ignore the slant in Peter’s smile growing with the heat in his face, “if I wanted you dead, I would have done it already. Besides, poison is traceable, do I look like a fool?”

Before Stiles can snark anymore about his death, Peter pleads with him.

“You’re pack, Stiles. Please let me help you.”

He nods stiffly, then shivers when Peter brushes his hand against his neck. Scenting. Appeasing his wolf by claiming pack.

“Good boy,” he whispers. Stiles bites his lip to seal the moan that tries to break free.

He leaves quickly after that, avoiding eye contact and has to adjust himself right after he steps outside. He isn’t sure why he agreed to meet Peter. But fuck, does he want to.

When he gets home he showers, almost feeling like he’s doing something wrong when he feels the soapy water slide down his neck. Washing away the claim on him...

Damn, he needs to get laid.

He slides a hand down to his dick anyways though, mind focused so hard on Peter calling him a good boy that before long he’s coming with a choked “D-Daddy”.

He’s so screwed.

Stiles dries off and slips into bed. After a minute of scrolling through his phone, a notification pops up.

Peter: Did you make it home safely?

Stiles: yea. Just showered

Peter: What a shame that is. Although I understand the necessity for hygiene’s sake, I must say that the thought of smelling myself on you is delectable

He gasps. It’s very forward, but... If Peter really is flirting and not just being him, Stiles needs to know. He's so tired, but he knows he--for whatever reason--is very attracted to Peter Hale. So he'll play along with this game.

Stiles: i’m not interested in being some guys fuck toy

Peter: I would never. A boy like you deserves the finer things. Is it wrong to think one of those finer things could be me?

Stiles: how can I trust you though

Peter: Let me show you tomorrow how a boy should be treated

Stiles: wined ‘n dined? Or 69’d?

Peter: Let’s stick with the first for now and see where the evening takes us

They say goodnight, and Stiles stares up at his ceiling wondering if this is all some prank the universe is pulling on him. Being Peter’s boy sounds better than it should right now.

Why does he want this so much now?

[willow-salix]

It’s here, Virgil’s FabFiveFeb

A nice little bit of Virg fluff for @gumnut-logic

"I think he'd like someone that has an interest in creative pursuits," Gordon mused, poking one of the boxes to tick it. 

"And someone that likes to go for walks, you know what he's like for wanting to wander and take in the scenery, maybe even snap some pictures to paint later," Scott added, touching another box to tick it. 

"More of a home body than an adventurer, he gets enough of that with work," Gordon added it to the list. "And they definitely have to believe that family is important, he can't have someone that won't understand his commitments."

"OK, next, all about him," Scott scrolled down to the next section. "His interests…"

"Classical music, obviously."

"Enjoys visiting art galleries and concerts."

"And eating out."

"Don't we all?" 

Gordon nodded at that, there was nothing they liked more than picking up some tasty food. 

"Ideal date? What's that movie he likes? The one with the lake house?" 

"Oh, I know the one you mean, with the…the…" Scott's brain failed to make the connection, romantic comedies were not his thing, that was what Virgil watched with Selene, not him. 

"Doesn't matter," Gordon assured him, brushing it aside. "He liked the date so I'm putting it down. A relaxed stroll along a lake side at sunset," he murmured to himself as he quickly typed it out. 

"That's the one," Scott nodded. "He-" 

"Allie! Have you seen Scott?" The sound of Virgil's voice floating up from the kitchen made them both jump guilty. 

"I think he's in the lounge," Alan shouted back. 

"Shit!" 

"He's coming!" 

"Quick, submit it, submit it!" Gordon smacked at the submit button, growling in frustration when a flashing red 'incomplete field' warning mocked them. 

The sound of steel capped boots thumping up stairs spurred them on. 

"Just tick anything!" Scott yelped, fingers flying as he randomly poked boxes in between Gordon whacking the submit button like it had personally offended him. 

"Yes!" Gordon sighed as the 'congratulations' sign appeared in green. "Done!" 

Scott just had time to hit the x and pull up a report before Virgil strolled his way in. 

"What are you two doing?" he asked suspiciously, stopping dead in the doorway when he was greeted by the sight of the two brothers least likely to be discussing a report seeming to be doing just that. 

"Nothing!" Gordon yelped just as Scott yelled "Reports" which was definitely upping the suspicion levels. He didn't believe them. 

"I don't believe you," Virgil told them firmly, attempting to give them the kind of 'don't lie to me' eyebrow raise that Selene or John managed to pull off but knew he had failed. Damn the fact that he was the nice one and they both knew that any and all threats he might issue would go unfulfilled. 

"You doubt me?" Scott gasped in mock outrage. "Me? Your big brother? The one that always has your back?" 

"And me, your wingman? The one that always fixes your hairdryer fuse?" 

"One time Gordon! That was one time! And it wasn't my hairdryer!" 

"I don't know, you bought it, you keep it in your bathroom and you warned us all that we couldn't borrow it on pain of death, so that evidence all points to it being your hairdryer…" 

"I won't stay here to be insulted," Virgil sniffed indignantly, "I'm gonna go find Kayo and see if she'll help me with the inlet manifold, at least she can take instructions and won't lie to me."

They watched him stomp away in a huff, breathing a sigh of relief when the sound of his boots faded into nothing. 

"Damn, that was close," Scott gulped, clicking back onto the dating website to check it had worked. His eyes widened when he looked at the screen. 

"What? What's wrong?" 

"He's got three inboxes already."

"Seriously? Already, it's been what, five minutes?" 

"Yep."

"We’re gonna be spoilt for choice."

"I guess that just means we have more chance of picking him a good one, he needs to get out more."

"He'll thank us for it in the end."

       ***

"I don't understand, why do I have to dress up?" Virgil groaned. "I'm tired, I've had a long day, why do we need to go to the mainland just to pick up pizza?" 

Gordon glanced at Scott for help. None was forthcoming. He nudged him for emphasis. 

"Fine," Scott sighed, admitting defeat. Honesty was always the best policy anyway. "We arranged a blind date for you."

"You did what?" Virgil exploded. "Why the hell would you do that?" 

"We thought you needed to get out more," Gordon shrugged. "We were trying to help."

"I don't need your help, I didn't ask for it."

"Not like you were going to meet anyone on your own, was it?" Gordon continued to needle.

"John did! So did Scott. I am perfectly capable of getting my own dates."

"John is an enigma that none of us understand and Cat's my ex, I was recycling, that doesn't count."

"Do not let her hear you say that," Gordon laughed. 

"My point still stands," Scott insisted waving away the worry about his girlfriend, "we don't have a normal job or the chance to socialise much, and unless fate decides to be nice and throw someone at you like it did for John or you have an ex hidden away somewhere, you can't use us as an example."

"You don't want to let her down, do you?" Gordon tossed in, knowing that his softie brother would feel guilty as hell if he upset anyone. "How would you feel if you got dumped before you'd even met the person?" 

Virgil wanted to argue the point some more, but honesty and his vow never to lie to himself stopped him. They did have a point, a small one, but still pointy and therefore he was unable to ignore their logic. He decided to give in, although he refused to do so gracefully or with any forgiveness of their plotting. Plus, they were right, he wouldn't want to be responsible for anyone feeling like they weren't good enough in any way, shape or form.

"Looks like I don't have much of a choice…" he started only to be interrupted by the victorious cheers of his brothers. "Do you have a picture of her?" 

"Nope," Scott grinned. "We signed you up with that new site where pictures aren't allowed, you pick based on shared interests and compatibility, not looks."

"That's…actually a nice idea," Virgil acknowledged reluctantly. He wasn't one to judge people on looks, he cared more about personality and morals. 

"See, we knew you'd approve," Gordon grinned, slapping him on the back. 

"I didn't say I approved of this-" 

"Come on, hurry up, you don't want to be late for your date!" 

   ***

Virgil waited nervously on the picnic bench, clutching the single sunflower Scott had thrust at him like it was a weapon, ready to fend off anything if his blind date turned out to be some kind of psycho.

They couldn't be too careful, they were far too used to people trying to find out details about them or to trick them in some way. No one was ever as they seemed. 

Scott had assured him that they hadn't used his real name and that no one would associate it with him but he couldn't help the little nagging doubts that gnawed away at the back of his mind. 

Plus he still hadn't forgiven them for pulling this stunt on him. Did they really think he was that bad at dating that he needed such help? He wasn't bad at dating, he got plenty of offers for a hook up, they all did. Well, not John but he was hardly ever out on rescues and Selene was common knowledge now but, to the rest of the world, him and his "single" brothers were all fair game. 

Butt gropes and comments about their hard muscles were a common occurrence, so much so that he often felt like a piece of meat being squished and tested before purchase. Another reason why he rarely managed to meet anyone that he could actually see himself wanting to date. 

Maybe their idea, while badly executed and heavy in trickery and taken liberties, hadn't come from a bad place. He'd worried the whole way to the meeting spot that they might have picked the worst candidate they could, but he firmly forced the thought out of his head. His brothers might like to indulge in mutual pranking and to push the limits sometimes but they would never do anything to hurt or embarrass someone, especially not a stranger. The thought had calmed him down enough that he hadn't had to make use of Two's on board bathroom facilities for an emergency freshen up because he'd stress sweated through the nice shirt and jacket they had forced him into. 

He'd managed to relax a little but, now that he was sitting here alone, waiting and looking out for someone he had no clue about, he was starting to worry again. 

Seeing an abandoned pen on the picnic table he snatched a few napkins from the dispenser and let his eyes roam the scenery. 

It really was a gorgeous place, something often referred to as a little slice of heaven in the city. The urban park, man made in the center of the mass of concrete and steel, sported a carefully constructed lake that was home to a teeming ecosystem of endangered species that exhaustive conservation efforts had made possible. 

The sun was just beginning to lower towards the horizon, painting the sky and the surface of the lake with the most beautiful colours. Virgil's fingers itched to paint them but he settled for snapping a couple of pictures on his phone. 

Trees of all types surrounded the lake, creating an attractive backdrop to the whole scene and before he even realised he was doing it he was deep in concentration as he sketched the lake area on the napkin. 

The process was calming, helping to soothe his nerves and slow his thumping heart, allowing him to stop and breathe for a second, helping him to resist the urge to cut and run. 

"Are you Virgil Grant? You have a sunflower." 

The voice behind him made him jump and drop his pen. 

"Yes, yes I am," he admitted as he turned around to face his date. 

      ***

"So, how did it go?" Scott asked when they arrived to pick Virgil up, less than half an hour after he'd text for a ride. "Did you have a good time?" 

"I had a great time," Virgil smiled. 

"You were gone a long time," Gordon grinned, nudging his older brother playfully with his elbow. "Did you go back to her place or something?" 

"Yeah, we did."

"You did? You dog you!" Gordon leered with an exaggerated wink. Virgil just smiled, taking the teasing with his usual good grace. 

"You gonna see her again?" Scott asked, pleased that their plan seemed to have gone so well. 

Virgil nodded. "I told her I'd drop in as soon as I'm free."

"Come on, give us all the juicy details, tell us all about, Emma, wasn't it?" Gordon pushed, desperate for gossip. 

"Nothing much to tell," Virgil shrugged. "She's sweet, we had a nice time hanging out, she gave me her number."

"That's it? That's all you can tell us?" Gordon groaned, disappointment evident in his voice. 

"No, that's all I'm going to tell you," Virgil corrected. "You've interfered in my private life enough already, thank you."

"Oh, come on, Virg," Scott pleaded. But the big guy wouldn't budge, staying smugly silent the entire journey home. 

Gordon and Scott had given up by the time they eased the little jet back into the hangar, going off to do their own thing, hopefully to remove his dating profile, leaving Virgil alone. 

Selene and John were cuddled up together on one of the couches, watching something on the holoscreen when he made his way into the lounge. 

He hadn't meant to disturb them, especially when they were actually getting some time alone for once, and was about to make his excuses but Selene had other ideas. She patted the couch beside her, shifting over to make room for him. 

He accepted the offer, sitting down and getting comfortable. He didn't know what they were watching, possibly some kind of documentary. 

"Cookie?" he offered, pulling a baggie of what looked to be pretty decent cookies out of his jacket pocket. 

Selene glanced up from the screen, looking first at the bag of cookies and then at Virgil, her eyes widening in surprise. 

"You're all dressed up."

This got John's attention as he reached for a cookie. "Have you been somewhere?" 

Selene selected a cookie and took a big bite. "Oh, damn, these are so good, where did you get them?" 

"My date made them for me," Virgil grinned, consuming almost half a cookie in one bite. 

"Wait, wait, back up, date?" Selene actually paused the documentary, something about William Shakespeare by the looks of it. 

"You had a date? That wasn't on the calendar?" John frowned. "Were they cleared by security?" 

"The romance is strong in this family," Selene drawled, rolling her eyes. 

"Scott and Gordon decided that signing me up to dating sites is their new hobby," Virgil sighed. 

"They arrange the date? What were they like? Did you have a good time? Witchy needs details," Selene gently shoved John's face away from her as he chewed loudly in her ear and leant closer to Virgil.

"We actually had a nice time. Emma, my date, is a local, lived there all her life. She's been a bit lonely so her friend set her up on the site. We wandered around a lake for a bit and then we went back to her place."

"Awww, so romantic," Selene sighed dreamily before mock glaring at her husband. "Why don't you take me on dates any more?" 

"Because we only got back off our honeymoon a few weeks ago and we live on an island?" 

"No excuse."

"Dinner on the mainland next week?" 

"Thought you'd never ask," she stole a quick kiss as he rolled his eyes in defeat. "Got any pictures?" 

"Of the restaurant? Are you needing to inspect my reservation making skills now?" 

"I was talking to Virgil."

"Oh, then carry on."

"Virg, pictures?" 

"I did take one, yes," he pulled out his phone, scrolled through for a couple of seconds then turned the phone to show them the screen. "I took a selfie of us at the lake." 

Selene and John blinked, unsure if they were seeing the right picture. 

"Erm… not to be a judgey judgerson or anything but…" Selene trailed off. 

"But she has to be older than Grandma," John finished for her, blunt and to the point as always.

They both looked at the picture again, showing a goofily grinning Virgil next to a sweet older lady, her blue rinsed hair set in a helmet of curls, her half moon glasses perched on her nose. 

"Again, not with the judging, you do you, but does she have to watch her heart? She needs to be careful if she's going out picking up handsome young men."

"Stop, please stop," Virgil groaned. "She didn't know how old I was. Gordon and Scott set it up and apparently they somehow, and I choose to believe it was unintentional, managed to upload my profile to the over 60s side."

"And you didn't correct her?" John had to ask. He knew his brother was the nice one of the family but that was a little ridiculous. 

"Of course I did, but we were there and she hadn't been out in a few weeks. Her grandson moved away for work and her husband died a few years ago so I bought her dinner and we had a nice walk around the park. She wasn't actually looking for a romantic date, she just wanted a companion, someone to chat to, go for a walk with and maybe see an exhibition or two. Her friend at the widows club set it up for her."

"So you were both set up by others?" 

"Yep. She's a really nice lady."

"And that walk around the park turned into cookies at her place?" John's fingers snuck into the bag again to take another. 

"And banana bread. She mentioned that she was going to hire a handyman to fix her sink because her daughter was too busy and she didn't have any help now."

"Ahhh," Selene could see exactly where this was going. 

"And so I offered to unblock her sink for her."

"Of course you did," John sighed, hiding his smile against Selene's shoulder. 

"And while I was there I put up some new shelves for her and took her trash cans out to the kerb and retuned her TV. She made me cookies to say thank you."

"She sounds lovely," Selene cooed, already in love with the thought of her. She could take or leave it when it came to little kids, usually leave if she was being honest, but she was a complete suckee when it came to the elderly. 

"She is, smart too. I complimented some of the paintings she had on her walls and she told me she'd painted them, her and her husband met at art school and used to go on vacation to different countries to visit galleries and take classes. I showed her a few pictures of some of my pieces and it turned out she'd seen one of mine in a gallery in New York, you know that one of the Sphinx I did from that picture I took after that rescue?"

"Do I take it that our darling brothers don't know any of this?" 

"Nope," Virgil grinned. "I'm letting them stay curious, they asked me all sorts of questions on the way back but I stayed quiet. I'll tell them eventually, once all the cookies are gone." He picked another out of the rapidly depleting stash. 

"I have never heard a more Virgil story in my entire life," Selene laughed, shaking her head. "So when are you seeing her again?" 

"Gonna try and visit next week to mow her lawn," Virgil admitted, looking somewhat sheepish. 

"Hey, no," Selene grabbed his hand, squeezing it tight. "No looking embarrassed. You're amazing, it's a totally you thing to go on a date, not get what you were expecting and still come away with an old lady best friend and having had a great time. That's one of the many reasons I love you, because you're just so you."

"She's right," John added, patting his brother's shoulder. "One thing I've learnt the last few years is that you shouldn't make excuses for who you are or try to change. Don't belittle the fact that you have probably made her happier than she has been in months just by giving her some time and treating her with respect. Don't undervalue that."

"Yeah," Virgil acknowledged. "I know I did the right thing, it doesn't hurt to help someone and I had fun too." 

"And that's all that matters," Selene said, patting his hand one last time before she let it go. 

"Yep," he smiled, settling back against the cushions, munching on his cookie, his cheeks bulging like a hamster's, muffling his words. "That and the fact that her granddaughter is a nurse and she's going to introduce us next month."

[theouterbankpogues]

after sarah doesn’t invite kiara to her birthday party (a jj x kiara fic)

author : theouterbankpogues aka vi

fandom : jj x kie, jiara | outer banks on netflix

tags : the angst, the fluff, the hurt, the comfort y’know!!

warnings : none

i love writing for this ship bc it has a chokehold on me and i just... i’m so helpless lmao. i read this hc set by @lemon-patches​ (which you should definitely go and read bc it’s amazing and all the feelings) and it talked about how jj and ki were each other’s first kiss and no one else knows. this is basically how i imagine it happened. enjoy!! as always the validation feeds me so yeah if you like it pls share it and stuff (i love reading tags on reblogs so lmao do with that what u will). i imagine they are 15/16, about 6-8 months before s1 idk if that adds up but lol thats what i went with. sorry for any errors u may find xx

a little preview so u know what you’re getting into hehe: “They stood like that for a while, long and quiet breaths synced, arms entangled in waist and shoulders, hearts rhythmically beating, just enjoying the warmth of the best friend they dearly missed.”

Tears streamed down Kiara’s face. She knew that calling the cops was petty, she knew it was the worst of her manifesting itself, but tonight Ki couldn’t bring herself to care. She found herself toppling some books off of her bookshelf. She had always known that she wasn’t good enough for Sarah. The Sarah Cameron. God, she felt so stupid.

Another wave of regret coursed through her. The pit of her stomach hollowed when she re-remembered that she’d actually listened to her parents and decided to give her kook year a genuine try. She had distanced herself from the cut and the pogues, her best friends, the people that she could always count on, the people who always cared. She gave it all up for the superficial bullshit she knew would eventually fall apart.

That entire evening, the anger and regret approached her in harsh and unforgiving turns. She couldn’t escape her own thoughts, she was so mad at herself. She had let herself become vulnerable, given herself up for someone to use and dispose. She felt so weak. All she really wanted to do was fit in, to have a normal year where she wasn’t disappointing her parents, where she wasn’t out at unreasonable hours getting her friends out of messes, watching their string of luck grow thinner and thinner with every prank and practical joke. She was tired of being the middle between the kooks and pogues, she loved the latter and she could’t escape the part of her that was the former. She just wanted to resign to one side, she just wanted things to get easier. Kiara had decided to leave everything for some peace of mind, and now she knew she’d made a mistake. She hadn’t even checked in with John B, his dad was missing and she hadn’t even checked in with him. God, she felt so stupid. Her sobs overtook her as she sat at her bed.

She was so exhausted from the crying she could scream, it had been a few long hours. And Ki, in a moment of clarity, convinced herself that she was too strong for that. Even though she felt horrible, she reminded herself that she was too careful to let this anger get the best of her. Instead, she resorted to taking a few deep breaths and cleaning up the various books and stationary strewn across her bedroom floor as a remnant of her anger. What had happened had happened, she was just going to have to figure out how to cope on her own.

Yeah, I just have to figure it out on my own. I’ll be fine.

That’s when she heard it.

Thud.

Thud. Thud.

Thud.

‘What the-’

She realised that the sound was coming from her window. Stepping toward the side of her room facing the balcony, she realised that pebbles were currently being thrown at her window by a silhouette below it. She couldn’t tell who it was because the backdoor lights had been switched off for the night. It was well past midnight and her parents were soundly sleeping in the next room, she swore she would never forgive the person currently trying to break her window if they woke up. She didn’t want anyone to see her as the mess she was right now. So as quickly and as safely as Kiara could, she opened the balcony window, “What the actual— JJ? JJ is that you?” Kiara couldn’t really understand what was going on, she had stopped talking to the pogues months ago.

“Yeah, hey Ki! Come down!”

“What?”

“You heard me bro, get dressed and come down!”

After a curt nod, she went back into her room, changed out of her PJ’s into some joggers and a hoodie and found herself sneaking out the back door out of genuine curiosity. When she was outside, she realised that neither Pope nor John B were with JJ. Along with that, she realised that he had two boxes of pizza and some beer cans set down on the grass next to him.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“I was scrolling through Instagram, realised you weren’t at the party, thought you might need a pick me up,” He seemed to register her tired face and puffy eyes under the dim starlight because he continued, “guess I was right!”

And that’s how, twenty minutes later, JJ and Ki found themselves in a clearing near her house. They sat down opposite each other, the pizza boxes separating them.

“Got your favourite, double cheese, double pepperoni and half the jalapeño.”

Except for the occasional direction here and there, Ki had been quite their entire walk. She couldn’t really even process what was happening. How was JJ here? Why was he talking to her after she’d treated them him like shit the past few months? None of it made sense to her, least of all why this was all from JJ. With all of it perplexing her, the only thing she managed to say was, “You remembered.”

‘Yeah of course I did Ki, just because you stopped talking to us doesn’t mean we stopped caring about you. Come on, dig in, it’s getting cold.”

She didn’t know how to respond to him so she just followed him in picking up a slice from the box. Warm pizza , cold beer and melted cheese heavily complemented the gentle breeze that surrounded them. They fell into a comfortable silence as they ate.

“I’m so sorry.”

“I know Ki-”

“No, everything I did these past few months, the way I cut you guys off, the way I left y’all when you needed me I-”

“Ki we know-”

“God, I’ve been so stupid, I left you guys, like y’all were nothing, y’all needed me and I-”

“Ki, Ki-” Ki just continued, she felt horrible, “KIARA!” JJ saying her full name was so foreign to her, especially since he hadn’t even call her by her nickname these past few months, it undoubtably got her to stop talking.

“I know the pressure your parents put on you to start at that kook academy. Look we all know how hard it is for you to manage these two parts of your life. I know Ki, you don’t have to keep apologising, I know. We know! Why do you think we didn’t try to talk to you when you told us last summer? We want you to do what’s best for you Ki, you are better than us.” At that, Kiara got up and paced back and forth a few steps, remorse hitting her unbearably. 

“I’m not better than any of you. A part of me wanted to leave you all behind.”

JJ’s response was almost instantaneous, “I don’t blame you for it!”

“Well you should! I left you and Pope. I left John B for god’s sake. His dad is most probably dead and I wasn’t theRE.... I-I’m not there.”

At this point the tears had returned to her and she broke on her last word. Her voice wasn’t steady anymore. “I left all of you... I left you.”

JJ couldn’t stand hearing Ki like this, there’s nothing he hated more than having to let down his guard and get real. But JJ, when she said that, realised that this wasn’t about him. 

“Yeah Ki you did, but fuck that. We know you love us, we know that it was a difficult call! You have to forgive yourself. The reason I came tonight was to let you know that you have the people that care about you Ki.”

He stepped toward her and looked her right in the eye, Ki had never seen someone so determined with compassion before, “Whatever you do Ki - if you wanna go to the kook academy, if you wanna be friends with Sarah Cameron, if you wanna cry about how horribly she treated you, if you wanna listen to your parents and not talk to us, if you wanna leave the cut- we’re never not going to have your back. You’re a pogue. You’re our pogue! And if Sarah Cameron can’t see how kickass you are, she doesn’t deserve you and she never did. You got us Ki, we’re always right here. No matter what.”

And throughout all of that, he hadn’t stopped looking directly at her. She was enamoured to say the least, she couldn’t remember the last time JJ talked about something that real, let alone carry an entire conversation himself. Knowing her words wouldn’t suffice, she hugged him. She smelt the sea salt in his hair and pizza grease on his shirt and it was the epitome of comfort to her. JJ hugged her right back, it meant the world to him that he could make her feel at least a bit better. They stood like that for a while, long and quiet breaths synced, arms entangled in waist and shoulders, hearts rhythmically beating, just enjoying the warmth of the best friend they dearly missed. 

Before they could completely untangle from the other, Ki looked back at JJ, god, how did she get so lucky to have someone like him in her life? The air lightened around them as she looked at him, his eyes regained the mischievous glint they always had. It might’ve been because she was slightly tipsy, or because he was staring so intently at her, but for some reason, it felt right. There was no waiting or thinking, she rested her hands on either side of JJ’s face and kissed him. His lips were chapped and they tasted like beer but she loved it. A rush of adrenaline ran through her, it was new and exciting. 

When JJ processed her soft lips on his, and her hands caressing his face, he pulled back. Along with confusion and surprise, there was something in his eyes that Ki couldn’t recognise. But before she decided on asking him what it was about, he was already kissing her again. 

And this time there seemed to be nothing holding him back. His hands were wrapped around her waist, she was grabbing fistfuls of his hair in reciprocation. They knew that they would never be able to do it again so they just gave in. His hands travelled to the small of her back and her neck and she swore that she had never felt something more intoxicating. 

Ki had forgotten where they even were when they broke for air. They were both just breathing, eyes closed and foreheads touching, it was the closest thing to perfect the either of them had ever felt.

When they opened their eyes and looked back at one and other, they were surprised at how comfortable it felt. How... un-awkward, it oddly felt right. But they knew what the rules were, they knew that when Ki got home, they would never talk about it again, and they were fine with that too.

As they approached her doorstep, JJ couldn’t help himself but ask, “Was that your first-” “Yeah.” “Yeah, mine too.” “What?” Kie thought he was joking, JJ had flirted with every other tourist at the boneyard since they were like ten, “Mine, too.” He repeated. There was an honesty to his response that stopped Ki from asking any further. 

She hugged him again. “Thank you for this. I missed you.” He hugged her right back.

“I missed you too. When you come back to us, more beer will be waiting for you no questions asked, don’t ever doubt it.” With that, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead and left. 

Ki had a small smile playing on her lips; she had never felt lighter in her life. 

[onlydylanobrien]

Finding hope during the monsterpocalypse

Love is explored honestly and equally throughout the film — whether it's the love between Joel and his pup, Boy, romantic love, or the love between found family in the aftermath of the monsterpocalypse. What drew you to this project? And what do you think audiences can take from these stories of hope and love in 2020?

It's a good question. Let me think what a good answer is. [Laughs] That is a big thing for me, and what drew me to it was the positivity of the film. I love genre stuff: the concept ideas within a film like this and the fun within the sequencing. The scary [parts] and the bit of the gags and playing with all that stuff, for me, is really great fun — and I love those sorts of things in film. But then, I also just really liked the honesty of it and the positivity of it overall.

It's a film that doesn't have an ego or something. It doesn't become like Joel is all-important, and he's the chosen one. I don't quite know how to articulate it, but it's not trying to do something or trying to be more than what it is. There's just a bit of an honesty to it and a positivity in the end in the messaging and that sort of thing where it's about caring for each other and about humanity. And it's not like, "I'm going to take what's yours for me, and I want this, and we have to fight each other for each other's resources," and all the usual stuff that you have in these sort of end of the world movies. I just liked that it didn't have that, and it was just this guy who's passionate about something and makes friends with this dog and is trying to get somewhere and kind of grows up in the process.

O'Brien slays every take

What was it like working with Dylan O'Brien?

It was awesome. We really get along well, and I consider him a pretty close friend now. I didn't know him well at all before going in, so I sort of met him for the project and talking about it. And he was the guy from the start that was right for it. And we just chatted and found what we thought was interesting about the character and the tone of it and how we wanted to work together. He's just got really incredible instincts for things in the moment — both a movie genre point of view of what's cool in the moment and what really works, but also just on character point of view in terms of humor, little things, the way he reacts to stuff, all that. It's just really entertaining to watch while you're making the film.

And he would always do different things pretty much every take, giving it a different angle and trying to find something [new]. I think that was what was really cool about it was just trying to find those things. You know, you're not showing up to just execute this exact thing. Obviously, the script is a script, and you're making that movie, but it wasn't like it's just a given exactly how something should be. And so there was always an openness to how to make the most of a moment or how to bring it to life in a different way. And so it was really awesome. It was great to work with him.

Did you have a favorite scene from him?

Probably the boulder snail one, funny enough. Just when Joel's shirt comes off, and then he can't move, and he's stuck in fear. There was just something about it where on the page I sort of had an idea of what I thought, and then just watching Dylan do it in the moment. It's just funny and kind of absurd, and he just did it really well. And at the end there, those were improvisations where they were going, "Thank you, boulder snail," and he's like, "Thank you," and he can't really talk, but he's kind of stuck in this moment. He's like overwhelmed. I thought that was really funny. I enjoyed that day. It was cool.

Dylan O'Brien, prankster extraordinaire

So during the New York Comic-Con panel, Dylan [O'Brien] and Ariana [Greenblatt] teased some on-set shenanigans. It sounded like set was a lot of fun. Were there any other notable moments or funny jokes and pranks on set?

It was pretty much ongoing. Dylan was filling the older brother role, really pushing it quite far. And so she was trying to taunt him all the time with things, and he was just being really mean to her in a funny way — like an older brother kind of way. Or she would do a really amazing take, and then he'd go like, "Come on, get it together," whatever it might be. Or during a scene when it's on his close-up, and she says something, and then he's like, "It's my shot now, this one's about me, it's not about you, so just do your lines." They just had this really funny thing, and she would just say the same things to him when it was her when she was in close-ups, and he wasn't on the camera. So they just had a really fun time. And I think it helped with the relationship onscreen.

Because she's quite mean to him and quite precocious and pushy, and I think him doing that also helped her feel comfortable being like that with him, and being kind of bossy and mean, because he let her be really comfortable like that off-set and they have a good vibe. It was great.

That's fun! While, at its heart, Love and Monsters is a love and survival story, the movie has some brilliant comedic scenes. You touched on this a little bit, but were there any ad-lib lines or improvised moments from any of the actors that stood out?

Oh, that's a tough one. Honestly, there were a lot. From Dylan's point of view, there were a lot. Often, it's in the heart of what the scene is and what's on the script. The work is in the script, so it's not to put down anything in terms of him changing things because it's not good enough or something, but it's just in the moment there were lots of things he changed. I'm trying to think what would be a good example. I don't know, to be honest, there are a lot.

He does that in a lot of his projects, and it's always hilarious. So that's not a surprising answer.

Yeah, and it's great. I love it.

Dylan O'Brien nails it

But it's also a testament to the quality of Dylan in being able to nail stuff. There were never times when it was like I'm sitting there as a director going, "Oh, he's just not getting this right." It's more just a case of if we could keep playing, we might come up with some other things that are really cool here as well. So that was the challenge: knowing if something is funny or not in the moment and going, "We've got that. It's funny, and it worked," but feeling like you're under quite a time constraint the whole time.

But everyone really loved the film that worked on it. We had a really passionate and amazing crew, and my AD James McGrady and John Starke, the line producer, as well as Dan Hennah, the production designer, and Lachlan [Milne], the Director of Photography. They were all very high-level people that I was really fortunate to work with. And we all were an amazing team, super positive and just trying to do the best we could with what we could.

The tween's the boss now

But we did see a lot of different young girls for [Minnow] because it's not as easy with older actors where you love someone from all these movies, whereas we wanted to see a lot of different people and see what the energy was. And she just had a really strong, confident vibe to her that really worked. And then at the same time, with casting, she went from that to turning to then starting to cry, and with Dylan, she actually did it with Dylan there, and was like, "Why you got to leave?" And then these tears just came there, and we thought, "Oh, if she can move between those spaces, then she's awesome."

And she brought a lot. She was super easy to improv little things with Dylan, or if Dylan said something, she would just say something back. She never got thrown by it or anything like that. She was great.

[weathergirl8]

Pranks and Tempers (3/3)

I thought about adding more to this, but for now I like where it ended. Enjoy! I’m in college and working fulltime, but trying to work on a sequel to my story Always the Hero. I’ve also got another disaster angsty Alan and Gordon fic in the back burner that hopefully some day I’ll finish.

Part 1 | Part 2

~~~~~~~~~

Jeff sat quietly at his desk as he tried to process the morning’s events. Running an exasperated hand over his face, he composed himself. Turning to the computer monitor, he initiated a line with Thunderbird 5.

“Hey, Dad,” John’s cheerful image appeared upon the screen before him. “A little early for our noon update, aren’t we?” the blonde inquired as he noticed it was barely eleven o’clock in the morning Tracy Island time.

Jeff chuckled. “Got anything to report?”

“Not much,” the astronaut informed. “There’s a typhoon off the coast of the Philippines heading for the open ocean, and a 2.1 magnitude earthquake hit Japan, but the authorities have it under control.”

“Looks like our quiet streak continues for now,” Jeff acknowledged.

“It does!” John smiled, watching his father. Hidden lines of worry were etched upon the patriarch’s face. “This isn’t just a formal call, is it, Dad?”

Jeff smirked at his always insightful second born. “No, John. It isn’t.”

“What happened?” John frowned.

Jeff sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time this morning. “Gordon is on medical leave for the next twenty-four hours at least, and then light duty for a few days after.”

“Is he okay?”

“He will be,” Jeff reassured as he met John’s concerned features. “He has a mild concussion. He and Alan got hurt during an altercation.”

“Altercation?” John asked, confused. “Between each other?”

“I’m afraid I don’t have all the facts yet, only Scott’s account of things,” Jeff explained. “It appears Gordon pulled a prank on your older brother, and as you can imagine, it wasn’t well received.”

John gave his father a curious look. “What’d the little creep do this time?”

“Paint in the showerhead,” Jeff chuckled, unable to hide his amusement.

“My new paint I just ordered, I might add,” Virgil’s voice suddenly echoed as he walked up, joining them.

John shook his head, picturing the image. “Let me guess, it was yellow?” the blonde said, putting a hand to his face.

“How’d you know?” Virgil questioned from behind Jeff.

“While you were heading to the cockpit on the last call, Gordon was securing the equipment. I might’ve allowed him to vent about Scott’s nit-picking on the previous rescue. He was pretty adamant about making our older brother pay for his remarks about Four and his criticizing.”

Virgil groaned. “Of course, he was.”

“So, what happened, and how did Alan get involved?” John asked, still trying to understand the situation.

“Well, as Dad had Scott’s point of view, I got Alan’s,” Virgil said, putting a hand on his father’s chair. “Alan told me Scott confronted Gordon right outside his bedroom. When Alan opened his door to see what was going on, Scott started in on the two of them. Words were said, and Scott shoved the two of them on his way to tell Dad. Both were standing on the ledge of the landing and lost their balance. Gordo smacked his head on the old armoire. Alan hit his back on the edge of the other table and has some cuts and scrapes from a glass vase that broke.”

“Wow,” John whistled, amazed. “That definitely could’ve gone better. How are Scott and Alan?”

“I had to separate them,” Jeff said. “Both were ready to go at each other.”

“They’re too much alike,” John replied, rubbing his neck.

Jeff nodded in agreement. “I’m giving everyone a moment to step back, and then we will talk about what happened. You boys know I don’t like violence. This can’t happen again.”

“Do you want me to talk to Scott?” Virgil asked, looking down at his father.

“No,” Jeff shook his head. “Let’s just let them be for now. Both Scott and Alan do better if you just give them space to cool down.”

“Gordon say anything to you, Virg?” John wondered.

“Not much. Gordy’s feeling pretty guilty, and dare I say stupid at the moment,” Virgil answered honestly.

“Never a dull moment around here is there?” John said, trying to lighten the mood.

“Never,” Jeff exhaled, grinning.

“This too shall pass, Dad,” Virgil said, squeezing their father’s shoulder.

“It’s been a rough week and a half of tough rescues. Tensions are just high. These last few days have been our first real break in some time. Something was bound to happen,” John said. “We’ll be laughing about this by next week.”

Jeff allowed a small smile to graze his features, grateful for their words. “I can only hope.”

-TB-  

Alan walked along the beach, taking in the warm late afternoon breeze as he was making every effort to distract his mind. He watched each wave roll toward the shoreline, it’s sound relaxing him.

As he strolled along the sand, he felt his foot land on a rock. Pausing, he went to reach for it but stopped as he looked at his bandaged hands. Groaning in annoyance, he kicked the object instead, knowing Virgil wouldn’t be happy with him if he got his hands infected with sand.

Noticing he was approaching the path that led back to the house, the youngest Tracy followed it. He’d spent a solid hour wandering the island, and the blonde knew that if he didn’t return soon, Virgil would send a search party.

It had taken some coaxing and sneaking to get his older brother to allow him out of the house. Alan knew Virgil was just overcautious and concerned. Whenever the medic went into doctor mode, nothing was safe from scrutiny. Alan loved his brother for caring, but as he calmly tried to explain, his injuries were superficial. Just a bruise on his back and a few small deep cuts on his hands and knees. He wasn’t dying anytime soon, and a walk around the beach wouldn’t hurt anyone.

He was fine.

Gordon was the one Virgil needed to fuss over. Alan had only been allowed to see Gordon once since the early morning events, and it frustrated him beyond words. It was no secret how close he was to the swimmer of the family, and Gordon was the main person he went to when he needed to vent. Unfortunately, his person was off-limits right now as the ginger’s aching head needed some peace and quiet.

Sure, he could’ve reached out to John as a substitute. John was a great listener and generally had a way with words. An asset the youngest Tracy had utilized often while he had been away at school. Today, Alan didn’t feel like troubling John with his issues. He didn’t need another brother getting drawn into it.

Walking up the steps that led to the pool deck, Alan froze as he came face to face with his eldest brother. The pair stared at one another, unsure who should speak first. Alan made a quick decision and moved to side-step Scott, intent on heading inside without a word.

“Alan, wait,” Scott pleaded.

“Not now, Scott.”

“Alan, would you just quit and listen for once?” Scott cried in frustration.

Alan stopped and immediately turned around. “I’m the one that needs to listen?” the youngest scoffed. “That’s really rich, Scott. Especially coming from you on today of all days.”

“I said I was sorry. What more do you want from me? It’s not like I did it on purpose!”

“No, but it happened didn’t it,” Alan muttered.

“If you two would just grow up and quit your stupid immature games, maybe it wouldn’t have,” Scott fumed.

Alan walked toward his oldest brother, meeting him head-on. “Don’t tell me I’m immature and need to grow up, when after today you are no better. I might get angry and blow up, but I’ve NEVER hurt anyone.” Alan clenched his fists in an effort to keep himself in check, backing away marginally from Scott. “You always do this, Scott! You’ve always made it us against you. Gordon and I labeled just too young and immature to ever understand or be on your level when something doesn’t go your way. I’ve been putting up with it for years, and I’m done!” Alan yelled.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Scott seethed.

“It means I’m sick of it! I can’t speak for Gordon, but something has to give. All I’ve ever wanted is to be seen as your equal and damn it all if I haven’t tried, Scott. I’m definitely not perfect, and I’ve made my fair share of mistakes, but you can’t always hold them over my head. I might be the youngest, but I’m not an idiot. I’m not a kid anymore, and you can’t keep treating me like I am.”

Scott remained silent as he took in his baby brother’s words. Relaxing his body, he ran a weary hand over his face. “Is that what you really think? That I think so little of you?”

“Why not?” Alan scoffed. “Ever since I returned from college, you’ve made it hard not to see otherwise. Almost every decision I’ve made on a mission you’ve shot down, rebuked, or called crazy. For the record, there’s more than one solution to a problem. I might not always be right, but haven’t I earned the right to at least be heard?”

“Does Gordon feel the same way?” Scott asked quietly.

Alan shrugged. “I can’t say for certain, but he’s vented to me after a few calls when I was at Harvard.” Alan watched his older brother as Scott took in his words. “Look, Scott. I’m not trying to make you feel like an ass, but I’m just stating facts. You tell me I need to listen more, but so do you. You accused me of being apart of Gordon’s prank this morning when I didn’t have a single hand in it. You wouldn’t even let me get a word in. You had your mind made up, and that was it. What happened after that was well…” Alan paused as he fiddled with the bandages on his hands. “I know you didn’t mean to hurt Gordo and me, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I feel betrayed.”

“I feel horrible, Alan. I would never intentionally hurt one of you, but it appears I’ve been doing just that for a while,” Scott said solemnly. “Allie, I had no idea you felt that way. I’ve been an idiot.”

Alan looked up at Scott in shock. “Scott…”

“No, Al, I have,” Scott started, meeting Alan’s eyes. “You’re right, this is all my fault, and I need to listen more. I need to step back. It’s not easy...”

“Believe me, I know how hard it can be,” Alan smirked.

“When did you get so wise?” Scott said with a suspicious stare.

“I’ve always been, you guys just never let me show it,” Alan chuckled.

Scott studied his baby brother’s features once more. Closing the gap between them, he placed a hand along Alan’s left shoulder. “Allie, I guess it boils down to the fact that it’s hard for me to accept that you are as old as you are. That you’ve become an adult and that Gordon is an adult.”

“Sometimes,” Alan laughed.

“Yeah, sometimes,” Scott smirked, returning the laugh. “To me, you’ll both always be my kid brothers - especially you, Allie. I just want to protect you at all costs, and in doing so, I lose sight of what’s standing right in front of me. It’s my job as field commander to make sure all of you make it home from a rescue, and sometimes that blinds me. I’ll work on it, okay? It’s not going to be easy, but I’ll try. Deal?”

Alan smiled. “Deal.”

“Come here,” Scott said as he enveloped Alan in a hug. “Thanks for giving me a kick in the pants and sorry for hurting you guys.”

“It’s okay, Scooter,” Alan replied, returning the hug.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” the brunette asked, as he pulled Alan away to get a good look at him. “Dad forced me out before I saw the rest of the damage I inflicted.”

“It’s nothing but a raised bruise that Virgil is making a thing out of,” Alan laughed. “I’ll live.”

Scott scowled. “Hands?”

“Again, I’ll be fine,” Alan said, swatting away his brother’s hand as he reached for the bandages. “Honestly, there’s maybe four or five cuts that are worth all this white gauze. If you ask me, it’s overkill.”

Scott smirked. “That’s our Doc. Virgil is anything but not thorough.”

“Yea. Um,” Alan paused as he looked at his watch. “Speaking of, Virg. If Gordon is feeling better, he should be released from the infirmary by now. If you wanted to see him, that is.”

“I need to talk to him too. Clear the air, you know,” Scott acknowledged.

“I could go with you,” Alan offered. “Maybe help keep the peace for once.”

“Now there’s a first,” Scott bellowed, ruffling the youngster’s blonde mop.

“Fine, I take it back,” Alan pouted.

“Thanks, kiddo, but I think this is one I need to handle on my own,” Scott said, putting an arm around Alan’s back as they headed inside the house.

“Okay, well, you know where to find me,” Alan said. Both looked up to see their father approaching them with a questioning gaze. “Hey, Dad!”

“Everything good here?” Jeff questioned warily.

“All good, Dad. Sorry again about all this,” Scott said.

“Me too,” Alan agreed. “Won’t happen again.”

“It better not,” Jeff said sternly. “I won’t tolerate violence in any form from any of you. Especially at home.”

“Have you seen Gordon?” Alan asked.

“I just came from the infirmary. Virgil allowed him to leave the infirmary as long as he took it easy. Gordon said he was headed to his room for a bit. He wasn’t too keen on the pool being off-limits to him until tomorrow,” Jeff said. “I’ve got a business call in my office if you need me. Be good, boys.”

“No pool, huh?” Alan grimaced as they approached their bedrooms. “Are you sure you want to go it alone?”

Scott playfully shoved his little brother into his room. “Don’t rub it in, brat. I’ve got this.”

“Alright,” Alan smirked. “But if I hear shouting, don’t expect me to come running this time.”

Scott glared at him as Alan quickly shut his door before he could comment. Taking in a deep breath, the brunette knocked on Gordon’s door. “Gordon?”

After a few seconds, the redhead opened the door. “Scott?” he asked, surprised.

“Hey,” Scott greeted. “Can I come in?”

“Sure, I guess,” Gordon responded, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.

“I’m not here to yell,” Scott tried to reassure. “I’m here to apologize and to check on you.”

Gordon took a seat on his bed, remaining quiet. He was unsure of how to respond. “Have you spoken to Alan?”

“I have,” Scott said, leaning against Gordon’s door. “We’re good, Gordon. Now I need to make it up to you. I never meant to hurt you, kid. I never should’ve reacted that way.”

“It’s not entirely all your fault,” Gordon added, studying his brother.

“No, but I’m the reason you’ve got that headache,” Scott replied. “Alan also made sure to remind me how much of an idiot I’ve been.”

Gordon looked up at his eldest brother in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“It’s been brought to my attention that I’m a horrible listener,” Scott smirked, earning a chuckle from his brother. “Allie pointed out I’ve also been a tyrant in the field lately.”

“What else did Alan say?”

“He made it pretty clear I’ve been a jerk all around, Gordo. To you and him,” Scott said, as he moved forward to join Gordon on the bed. “I’m sorry if I’ve made you feel anything less than a valued member of the team. That was the last thing I meant to do.”

“The rescues over the last few months, unfortunately, have required a lot of tough calls on my behalf. It’s not an excuse, but it’s my job to make sure you make it back here, Gordon. In performing that job, I also got in my head. Bottled a lot of the bad stuff up, and it just exploded. Sadly, you bore the brunt of that. I can’t tell you how sorry I sincerely am for hurting you and Allie.”

“I accept your apology, but only if you’ll accept mine as well,” Gordon replied, meeting his brother’s sapphire eyes. “Wow, that must’ve been some talk the Sprout gave you,” Gordon chuckled.

“More screamed at me, but he opened my eyes,” Scott sobered. “I mean it, Gordon. I’m going to try to be better at listening to you guys. I never want you to feel like your opinion doesn’t matter on a call. I might not always see the merits to your perspective, but as Alan pointed out, you deserve to be heard.”

“Even when you’re an asshole?” Gordon asked, honestly.

“Yes, especially then,” Scott simpered. “I’m sure you’ll be the first to remind me.”

“You bet I will,” Gordon smiled with glee.

“How’s the head?” Scott asked as he placed a gentle hand on his younger brother’s forehead.

“Throbs every once and awhile, but I’ve dealt with worse,” Gordon confessed. “Quit beating yourself up about it. What’s done is done. I’ll be good as new in a day or so, and this will just be another cherished memory.”

“It could’ve been worse.”

“Scott, just let it go,” Gordon groaned. “Or do I need to find Allie to knock some more sense into you?”

“No, I’m good,” Scott laughed. “Can’t let Alan get too big a head, now can we?”

“I think that ship sailed long ago, big brother.”

Scott chuckled and stood up from the bed, making his way toward the door. “I’ll let you get some more rest. Need anything?”

“No, I’m good. Besides, I give Virgil an hour before he checks in on me,” the redhead reassured.

“Take it easy and don’t give Virgil too hard a time,” Scott ordered, giving his brother a knowing look. “I’m headed to do some work in the silos. Never know when we’ll get our next call.”

“F.A.B,” Gordon saluted, earning an eye roll from his older brother. “Oh, and Scott? Just remember who has the better Thunderbird,” the redhead winked as Scott left his room, muttering about him being delusional.

Maybe another prank was in his future….

FIN 

[blueprint-0]

Inspired by the prank wars of Season 1, Episode 17: Hell House

Rated T - Just a lot of fluff

***

Dean remembers when Sam’s baby hair grew out enough for no-tear shampoo bubble mohawks. He was about 2 years old and Dean, only 6 years old, was in charge of every aspect of Sam’s care.

A few months later, Sam was constantly blinking his bangs out of his eyes. He would shake his head or push his hair up, only for it to fall back 5 seconds later.

John didn’t notice. He rarely noticed the little things about Sam. Or Dean.

“Dad,” Dean spoke up. “Sam’s hair is too long. Can you cut it like mine?”

John put down his newspapers and red sharpie. He looked at Dean, holding the electric shaver up for him.

“I don’t have time for this, Dean.”

“But Sammy-“

“Don’t,” John cut him off with a sharp look. “I’ll teach you how to do your own, then you can do it for your brother, ok?”

“Ok, Dad.”

Dean’s hair turned out alright with John’s guidance. He didn’t know what he’d do when they stayed at a motel without a body-length mirror attached to the door, but he supposed that was a problem for another day. 

When John left to go back to his newspapers, he called for Sam to go in the bathroom with Dean.

“Gotta cut your hair, Sammy,” Dean explained.

“Why?” he asked, like he did all the time these days. 

“Because it’s getting in your eyes when you play. It’s annoying, isn’t it? Now, come here.”

Sam stepped into the tub and took off his shirt, like Dean. He eyed the dirty blond hair littering the bottom of the tub apprehensively. 

Dean brushed his fingers through Sam’s hair. He never realized how much softer it was than his own. Perhaps he shouldn’t shave it off the way John did. But he didn’t know any other way to do it. 

He clicked on the razor. It was a noise Sam heard almost every day, but when it got closer to his face, he jerked away.

Dean groaned, feeling exasperated already.

“Scary,” Sam said quietly, looking at his feet.

Now neither of them wanted to do this. Dean put down the razor, running his fingers through Sam’s hair again.

“Hmm,” Dean hummed thoughtfully. Then he pushed his bangs to the side, giving them an adorable little swoop.  

Sam blinked up with his bright green eyes. Maybe this would work. “Alright, go play Sammy.”

Throughout the day, Sam’s hair would fall in his eyes. But Dean would be there to swoop it back. Before too long, Sam got the hang of it and did it himself.

John either chose not to comment on Sam’s lack of a haircut or he didn’t notice.

     - - - 

The topic of Sam’s hair didn’t come up again for a few years. When Sam was 5 years old, he was about to enter Kindergarten. Dean was 9 years old and going into 4th grade.

On a rare afternoon when John wanted to take Sam out for one-on-one time, Dean went out to the arcade and played for hours.

When he returned to the motel, Sam’s hair was buzz cut like his and John’s.

“What did you do?” he gasped in shock. 

John raised an eyebrow in warning.

“I’m sorry, sir,” Dean said quickly.

“He’s starting school tomorrow. Sam’s not a kid anymore, needs to be brave like a man. Now he looks like one, too. Got a problem with that, son?”

“No, Dad,” his oldest replied with a sigh.

“That’s what I thought.”

     - - -

When John went to sleep that night, believing that Sam and Dean were both asleep, Dean stayed awake. He got out of bed and walked quietly to the couch.

Sam was fast asleep, half covered by his blanket, laying on his stomach.

Dean carefully stroked his short hair. He knew he couldn’t get away with this affection in front of John anymore.

Sam’s eyes fluttered open. “Dean?” he whispered.

Dean hushed him quietly, continuing to pet his head and neck. “Do you like your hair?”

Whether Sam actually liked it or not will always be a mystery. But Sam remembers the pained look in Dean’s eyes.

“No?”

Dean sighed in relief, ignoring how Sam wasn’t really telling him. He just wanted to answer the question right.

“It’ll grow out again. Just tell Dad you don’t want it short the next time he mentions it, ok?”

“Ok, Dean,” Sam said quietly, closing his eyes and leaning into his big brother’s touch.

     - - -

Over the years, Sam told John he didn’t want his hair like his and Dean’s. John began to realize how “rebellious” and stubborn Sam could be. 

Somewhere along the line, Dean started teasing Sam about his hair. But that was his job – Teasing his little brother. Annoying his little brother. And pranking his little brother.

That’s what lead to the inevitable escalation of their prank wars.

Sam is 14 years old and Dean is 18 years old. During their brief time at Truman High School in Indiana, Dean paused his pranks while he was distracted by a few of his female classmates.

But Sam was so bummed as they checked into their first hotel in the next state over – Dean felt compelled to help his little brother out by taking his mind off his disappointment with a prank.

Dean snuck into Sam’s duffel and emptied out his shampoo. He nicked a bottle of Nair hair removal from a convenience store and filled the shampoo bottle with it.

He waited impatiently outside the bathroom, watching the door. He felt a little guilt when he heard Sam’s panicked gasps.

Several minutes later, it seemed to click for Sam. The shower was still running when Sam yanked the curtain back. The door opened to reveal a steamed bathroom and Sam holding a towel to his crotch.

“God fucking damnit, Dean!” Sam screamed at him.

Tears of laughter blurred Dean’s vision. Wet fists aimed at his kidneys didn’t lessen Dean’s amusement.

The bathroom door slammed shut. Dean recovered and used a blanket to dab at his wet shirt and tear-stained face.

He was still chuckling when Sam emerged, fully clothed now.

Dean always talked about this prank as one of his favorites, mercilessly teasing Sam for being bald. But he only does this so Sam thinks it could happen again.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Dean’s heart breaks when he fully processes Sam without his long, silky hair. His face dropped for only a moment. He couldn’t let Sam see how he really felt, so he forced out more laughter.

     - - -

Decades later, Sam and Dean find themselves in the Bunker, finally embracing their love for each other on every level. It’s beyond family. It’s soulmates and wanting and needing and things that words can’t begin to describe. 

Dean strokes Sam’s hair, kissing his temple. They’re naked, satisfied, and cuddled up together. Dean’s about to fall asleep when Sam inhales to speak, pauses, then lets out the breath with a sigh.

Something as simple as breathing is enough for Dean to know exactly what his little brother is feeling.

“Just say it,” he murmurs.

“Do you like my hair?”

Dean pulls back to look into his eyes. “Of course, Sammy. I love everything about you.”

“Then why did you put Nair in my shampoo?”

Dean huffs a laugh. “That was 30 years ago.”

“26,” Sam corrected.

“Fine, 26 years ago. It was a prank. We were kids. Why are you asking this?”

“Just always wondered why you did it,” Sam looks away before pressing his forehead into Dean’s chest.

“I wanted to get under your skin, like I always do,” Dean trails his fingertips down Sam’s neck and spine before pressing into Sam’s ribs to tickle him.

“Stop, Dean!” Sam laughs, trying to wiggle away. 

This makes Dean remember the last time they touched each other playfully like this. It was long before the Nair incident.

Dean lets up, his own smile fading.

“I regretted it, you know?” Dean confesses.

“You did?”

“Yeah, Sammy. Promise I’ll never prank you with Nair again,” Dean pulls him back in to get comfortable, holding Sam tight. When he resumes stroking Sam’s hair, Dean closes his eyes and takes in the moment.

How Sam’s hair feels and smells. How Sam’s muscles relax throughout his whole body under Dean’s touch. And how Dean feels warm and whole in a way he hasn’t felt since he was making those no-tear shampoo bubble mohawks.

~ AO3 post

[themanicgalaxy]

SPN 5X6 I Believe the Children are our Future

oh boy that doesn't sound ominous at All

oh boy this is fun, she's just casually brushing her hair, like you do

boy I genuinely thought that kid was dead

and the fade in, yes we are a tv show

AMBER IS D E A D

she did it to herself..? bs

AHAHA AND THEY BOTH ITCH

Dean you didn't have a babysitter

ah he's trying to Get with the Kids

yeah Jimmy's sus

AHAHAH DEAN

oh it was a prank but then it wasn't

IT COOKED THE PIG?

and no batteries

ah yes Dean must get the snack

he's a barrel of laughs this guy

these Kids and their iPhones

but it's not him, they just traumatized the dude

oh GOD WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT TOOTH FAIRY

B I T C H THAT WAS HORRIFYING

the horror has been a lot more this season

IT JUST TOOK ALL HIS TEETH

oh he's not kidding

ah so we don't know either this time around I see

Reshaping reality, that people believe

"we don't have a fridge" ahaha

it's the food scarcity

"do not use my razor" *grins*

I do love the green screen sky

ah it was masturbating I see

"you can trust us we're the authorities" oh BOY THAT'S POINTED TOO

this kid is fun

"my dad told me different stories" pfft

ah the kid is sheltered and goes off of Wack Information

but his beliefs end up being right oh NEAT

AW Dean made the kid smile

he's good with kids

ah unknown father, time to find the mom

boy that is a lot of locks

boy '98 kids would be about like...11 jeez

her eyes actually look unfocused neat

"you're not demons" "how do you know about demons"

ah she was possessed by a demon

it forced her to kill people

BOY is that sequence fucked up

Violation of Bodily Autonomy jesus

ah yes the salt wow

jesus this is disturbing

and yeah, put the kid up for adoption

Virgin birth? uh oh??

CASTIEL!!!

..kill him?

o GOOD it's the antichrist

PFFT THE FART CUSHION

"bible gets as much right as wrong" oh?

demon spawn

AH so thanks to the apocalypse, it got triggered

boy someone in the lighting department really likes Dean

Cas vs Sam...ok yeah I get it Sastiel shippers DAMN

but him and Dean are more chill rn tbh

also the kid was had specifically so it would be around now OUCH

"he might make the right choice" "you didn't" O h D A M N

JEEZ IT'S THE ONE THAT GOT HER WHAT THE FUCK

LEAVE THIS POOR WOMAN ALONE

boy the visuals are unsettling

BE NOT AFRAID

cas you're gonna kill him that's your plan bruh

HE ACTION FIGURED CAS OH MY GOD THAT'S SO GOOD

"you're a superhero" AW

speaks his language

Dean understands escapism(and kids)

"he's even in a wheelchair" BOBBY PFFT

"like the XMEN"

ah cuz Sam's lucifer's vessel but Dean is Michael

ok but it's also so easy to turn him

"always known you were different" SAM WHERE ARE YOU

"I wanna hear what he has to say" oo

ah this kid has POWER

Sam trying to stop this kid from making a bad choice Aw

"kid you're awesome" aw

heheh fallen angel

HIS FUCKING HAIR WHO MADE THE CAS FIGURINE

"what if I don't want to fight" oop

"we're kinda freaks ourselves"

the appealing to him with their dead dad is GOOD aw

do NOT GIVE THE KID ULTIMATE CHOICE WHAT THE FUCK

ah yes the pan onto the mom

ah but he wants to go places, do things

He ran

CAS BACK

He made things normal and YEET

and he can no longer be found

"we destroyed that kid's life by telling him the truth" oof

yknow protect them from the real evil, yeah ok

...oh Dean's the parent

"I wish dad had lied to us" oof

1. this feels like hbo supernatural. Like the subject matter is MUCH darker, it feels like a pointed setup, the iconography is More, the violence is more. It's GOOD, it's just a bit Jarring to just...get a lot of all the time. Like boy they were putting in ALL of the budget, all of the stops for this one.

probably the most clear one was Julia's violation of bodily autonomy. Like they NEVER did much with that but there was So Much

2. Kid + toys. Kid processing the world through toys(turn the scary into an action figure, turn the pranks into deadly), and gags, etc + Dean relating because he does that too

3. aw SAM. Sam having a plot once again about "hey being fated doesn't mean it's gonna have to happen." The violation of bodily autonomy(along the thing with it happening to Julia right in the same episode) is..Like it feels like a mangled metaphor, but it..is there.

4. Dean + kids. Just..I like that he's good with kids. Like it's super super consistently shown(if not told, Dean is a character that has those two constantly at war with each other), and It's neat

5. yes choice is important but that is a CHILD. OH this ties into the bottom point of how John treated them as adults, and they did it only to realize oh..that's fucked up

6. lies. The "parents lie" plotline felt a bit shoehorned in/underdeveloped, but it was an interesting analysis of their sibling relationship+how things could have been good with their dad. Their dad expected them to grow up super super quickly, like they did with Jesse, but then it fucked them up Horribly and they're still figuring that out.

like boy it felt like when you say something and everyone goes quiet and you're like..oh was that actually trauma?

Also! can no longer find the antichrist! just because you're traumatized doesn't mean your choices live in a vacuum!

whee

[unordinary-analysis]

Episode 171

Honorable mentions:

Blyke smiling at the beginning was so endearing I love him

I have to admit to you guys, I did read this episode when it came out and at the time I still had yet to write the episode 170 thing. Didn't affect me though so it doesn’t really matter lol

I want Darren to bring up Blyke’s injuries to Isen because he obviously thinks that Blyke got his injuries while fighting Isen, but whenever I want things like this to happen, they never do :(

Isen’s reaction to confrontation is always to hide

I can’t see Sera’s eyebags in this one that's a good sign

Not a lot of actual things to say about Sera learning about John’s past because we already know it and she’s just repeating things that other people have said

Evie getting attacked by Joker? I’m torn between thinking this is some prank and thinking that we’re getting the Sera/John confrontation right now. The whole call was just presented in such a strange way, I have no clue what that’s about?

finally getting on track with updates, hopefully they won’t always be a week late now r.i.p.

is it analyse or analyze because google docs says 1, but tumblr says 2

Have low expectations for this one, friends. But there is 0.1% substance in this post, so still worth it ;)

Somehow this got kind of long? This isn’t read through or edited, I just typed and posted

The fucking bruise:

    I hope you don’t mind the obvious contrast in professionalism between this episode analysis and the one for 170, but the fuckkksufkhsk? Starting this off with Blyke’s confusion when he is significantly more healed than he was last night that it wouldn’t be possible for him to be so okay? You really gotta do me like that huh? Dropping a bomb like that so early on? But the thing about this is that I cannot think of a logical answer for this? I even considered that what he said just meant that doc got hella good at healing, especially because John has complimented doc on that a couple of times, but it was clear that that was not possible and not what was meant to be understood. 

    I’ve already apologized for lack of professionalism, so to hell with introductions and transitions: this implies one of two things:

Blyke has regenerative powers that are emerging from him now that he’s leveling up

Someone healed Blyke without him knowing

    Starting with #1, the possibility of Blyke having healing powers of some kind at first looks like the more likely answer until you realize that Blyke’s ability is deadass “energy beam” and that makes no contextual sense. But this is the first thing that I, and I’m positive most of you, thought. It’s the most logical reason as to why Blyke went to sleep with noticeably worse injuries than when he woke up. I’m kind of stupid regarding abilities in UnOrdinary, so I’m not sure if this blend of two totally different powers is something special or different, but could you imagine how overpowered Blyke would be? That would be insane. And would give him a total edge over John, or anyone for that matter, because he has both an offense and a defense. The thing about this though is that I’m almost positive that this is wrong purely because I do not think Blyke would have healing powers along with his laser powers. Like I cannot see that happening and that fact makes me sad. But there’s just no way. Right? ???

    But now #2: someone else did it. And, yes this looks a bit iffy at first, but that’s the second thing I thought of and I literally have nothing else so sit down. Anyway, this is also a very interesting option, so I’m hyped about that. Because if this is the case then that means it’s either Elaine, Tanner, John copying one of their abilities (this entire post is a bit of a stretch why can’t I include this huh), or an unknown character. But the thing is. However unlikely it is, I can’t help but wonder if this is Kuyo’s doing. We don’t actually know his ability yet and he was watching Blyke last night. I think this is probably the most possible thing I’ve said so far, and that’s saying something, but yeah. Otherwise, there’s really nothing I can think of because I can’t even imagine why someone would 1. Be able to find out Blyke was hurt and 2. Sneak into Isen’s room to heal him. Anyway, I’m just confused in general. Excited, but confused.

    Call me stupid in the comments if I missed something else that this could mean because sometimes I just forget things or don’t think of things lol. And right now I especially feel like I’m missing something?

Sera:

    Okay, it’s been weeks and I still get excited because Sera’s learning everything about John. For multiple reasons: one, because she’s known him since the beginning and everything she learns just hits that much harder and two, because she’s probably the character who is going the most in depth with her discovery. She’s for sure the character that has cared the most about knowing who John really is and I really think because of her investigation into John, we’re going to learn something new about him too, maybe if she goes online or something. Maybe she’ll remember something personal that John said and that Isen didn’t know about and she’s able to look online about it and finds something, wouldn’t that be heartbreaking because not only did John betray her, but he was very genuine about it if that makes sense (it doesn’t)? Ignore me, I like to imagine things though and I can really see just Sera’s whole process as a whole go somewhere emotional for both her and John.

    The thing about this, though, is that I do think she’s going to confront John really soon. Probably like in a few episodes or something based on how she’s talking in this one to Isen, so not really sure if what I just talked about is going to fit, but maybe that stuff can happen in their conversation. I don’t know. I just want a moment where Seraphina and John really realize that they’ve lost their friendship and both get sad about it, is that a bad thing to want? Probably. But who knows, John’s in a weird state right now, I don’t really think he’ll get all sad and stuff, he’ll likely get angry or something. Wait, now I want a build up when Sera confronts John where you think he’s going to blow up on her or something, but suddenly he breaks down, letting us see the person behind all of his decisions and actions because John knows he’s a monster (I’m using the fact that he pretended to be a cripple for literally a long ass time to prove this) and that he can’t hide from that. I want to see John confront himself with that and I want Sera to be there. And I know I sound like satan right now, but screw it, this is already very unprofessional. I'm not even analyzing I’m just typing anything that I think.

    On a genuine note, though, I was very happy with Sera explaining how she didn’t think that cripple John was ‘faking’ it. She said, “All the stuff he used to preach to me about… I don’t think he was faking it. He meant everything he said. He regretted his previous actions… and he tried to change.” This is probably the first time another character has really thought about John’s developing character over these events rather than just what he did. Sera is the only one who truly reflected on John and I’m grateful for that. I have to admit, when I first read this episode, I got excited because I thought it kind of supported the big and dramatic claims I’ve been making recently about John, but it doesn’t really. It, however, does nothing to harm it so that’s a win :).

    Anyway, something very interesting to me was Seraphina’s question regarding John’s decision to become a cripple. I don’t think I’ve considered this in depth before so this question was pretty surprising to me to see from Sera. She doesn’t understand why John enrolled as a cripple in Wellston as opposed to a mid-tier or someone who would have less chance of being singled out in general. And I’m going to answer this based on what fits with what I’ve been saying about John. If you haven’t read it, go to my page and either scroll or search for episode 167 because I really tried to be detailed there. Anyways, I think John decided to be a cripple just because he felt like the farther away from his bad self he was, the better off he’d be because what Sera doesn’t understand yet is that John wasn’t just trying to hide from other people when he transferred to Wellston, he was also trying to hide from himself. He probably felt distance was the best way to do that and I use the fact that he moved from a town relatively far away to Wellston (according to Isen’s early interrogation of John) as evidence. Anyway, Seraphina doesn’t think about this or maybe just doesn’t believe that and says that it was a bad idea for John to pose as a cripple purely because it forced him to place himself in a position similar to his before he gained his powers, and obviously it didn’t lead to the best place last time. 

    I do think Seraphina is wrong in one thing, however. She thinks that John doesn’t want to be put in the same situation as he was before New Bostin, she labels that as his downfall, but I personally believe that John might have done this on purpose to feel as least powerful as he could. But I don’t really have any reasoning behind that though so, dead end. But something else that I disagree with Seraphina on was how she said, “And just like before… He couldn’t handle the pain of being a cripple.” I read that for the first time and just thought damn. That was such a cold statement. And in response all I have to say is that John was handling the pain of being a cripple just fine, it was only when he was forced to shed that that he lost grip of his facade. Seraphina is completely wrong on this point, and I hope she learns that in the future. Like, I’m sorry, but that statement could literally not be more incorrect. I’m stunned at how much that contradicts reality.

[abundantchewtoys]

Homestuck^2 re: Chapter 8 “A Daughter Astray”

So, I thought of something. John positively losing it at a silly picture and letting go of some pent up stress in the process. It reminds me of Dave's reaction in the Game Over timeline to his old pictures in his room.

I wonder if Harry Anderson will try to apologize to his father for the events next time they meet, only for John to let him know how proud he is of him, helping his friends like that. :P

Now, let's see what Rose and Kanaya were up to on the battlefield, while Vrissy was getting acquainted with Vriska.

I'm also wondering whether Vrissy will realize what a bad influence Vriska is, what a risk she is to her relationships with Tavros & Harry Anderson. And whether the thrill she brings outweighs those risks. Also, I wonder if Vrissy knows about her cerulean blood mindcontrol powers?

---

Page 192

Ah, first to the reactions about the astray SON.

Oh, brain ghost Dirk.

Huh, so I guess Jake's attempts at espionage weren't that succesful yet.

Who in heck is Jane talking about that abondoned her, though, in the context of her son being kidnapped. She can't really feel "betrayed" by the trolls opposing her, can she?

---

Page 193

Sooo... Were the kids followed to Roxy's place? Maybe that getaway car really WAS too obvious.

Also, heh, Earth C has its own author "Steven" King, and his book about clownkiller kids is soaring to new heights in the charts because of current events, heheh.

And there Jane goes, she HAS the delusions. Really, she's convinced herself of being right and now everything is the others' fault due to being wrong.

Why, she's even so far gone, she thinks that equivalent retribution is a thing a good leader would do...

You know, I was kind of theorizing the new teens & Vriska would play a session of Sburb to escape Earth C, but it was kind of always looking like a far out idea. A way for them to connect to the session on Deltritus, in the Meat path. But now... Yeah, I wonder if the rebellion's going to be in time to save them.

---

Page 194

CCOOOOOOOOL new theme here.

It reminds me of the split pages during the B2 kids time recovering from the Trickster Mode, with the 45° ==> arrows.

So, yeah, I was thinking Harry Anderson was cumbersome to type everytime, too. Glad Vriska and Vrissy have separately come to the same conclusion. :P

And heheheh, Vriska's presence is shining a light on the thing John was saying all along, that nothing really feels REAL about the Candy Earth C.

So it would almost seem as if the teens might actually leave and find a more "real" version of their parents or something. By playing Sburb. Though wouldn't they like, miss their adult guardians?

Still, cool to get some insight into Harry and Vrissy here. He's always seen an invisible border between the past achievements of his parents and their friends and their current situation. But Vriska is forcing him to acknowledge it's all more real and closer to home than he might be comfortable with.

Meanwhile Vrissy is going through the weird situation where she's jealous of anyone getting Vriska's attention.

And Tavros has shown to be a good supportive partner. Though I still don't really get how their kismesittude works in other ways. How does Vrissy get under his skin, for instance?

Also, it's hilarious to see how badly Harry misjudges his Dad, just like the previous generation once used to do. I really just want to hear John say how proud he is of him now, both for the emotional punch and the hilarious reaction Harry's going to have.

Also, good to see 23 years have done nothing to cool Roxy's affection for all things feline.

And it was cool to see Harry go in one conversation from John-esque "there's this scene in the beginning" to Dave-esque metaforgotten similes. Heredity at its finest.

Right, so, that reminds me. Harry is Dave and Rose's half-brother, let that sink in for a bit. And Tavros is genetically his uncle.

---

Page 195

Hahahahahahahahah Oh yes.

Oh HELL yes.

I thought I might have actually been projecting this, but it's LITERALLY the first thing John says to Harry. And in all caps (cause shouting), just like Dad used for his notes. Perfection.

But, pfffffff, okay, just like the father in a comedy, he misinterpreted the events and thought Harry was trying to prank him, oh my god. He literally saw Gamzee's death as part of a prank or something, heeheeheeh.

"JOHN: now, harry anderson, i know that you and tavros haven't always gotten along. JOHN: but i am going to have to ask you to try and look out for him for the time being. JOHN: your uncle jake and i... well, i'll explain later. JOHN: let's just say that gamzee isn't the only family member jane is losing today. HARRY: dad... if you wanted me to KILL tavros, you only had to ask. TAVROS: (Um,,,) HARRY: couldn't resist."

I didn't really think pranks were Harry's shtick, but his sarcastic jab at Tavros' expense near the end proves me wrong. So John seems to be saying he's in cahoots with Jake, they're probably chatting covertly.

But actually, considering Jane's Dad is dead, John actually made a bit of a bad joke there, even if he probably doesn't know about Jane's Dad's death.

---

Page 196

Okay this? John being his son's partner in crime? This is great.

And eesh, I thought for a minute it was Karkat or an undercover troll outside, but it's a member of Jane's secret police.

So, Harry and his friends have to make a getaway before the drones arrive. Reminds me of how they came for Dirk in B2 Earth's future.

And yup, that bell tower is a real prominent place, isn't it? And for some reason... For some reason, it must be close by to Roxy's house. Even though, I'd wager she and Harry moved to live in the human kingdom, after Roxy sided with Jane. The school was a human school, for one. And the bell tower's part of the carapace kingdom! Huh.

Somehow, I think their distraction is going to be a bit bigger than Jade's "OH MY GOD WHAT IS THAT *points*", but you never know. :P

---

Page 197

So majestic. They're most DEFINITELY not standing agape looking at the picture making the rounds.

You know, the fact that you don't SEE the hustle & bustle around them reminds me of Ed, Edd 'n Eddy, where no other people than the main cast were ever shown besides some silhouettes & limbs.

The fact that the Maryam-Lalondes are a beacon is so deliciously punderful. Light and Luminiscence. Also, actually, it's good to learn how they're in fact more of a symbol as well, through their union as troll and human.

---

Page 198

Oh my god they're freaking out, but as mature adults. Rose's hair is cut short, wow.

So they don't have eyes in the human kingdom. And Kanaya can't even savour the death of Gamzee now. Rose finds her Light powers lacking, but that's just because of the timeline they're in - though I suppose they must work some of the time for her to still rely on them.

So, I do wonder how Kanaya and Rose are going to cope with the fact that the one they're idolized in a sense, by naming her daughter after her, is now back in the flesh. They'll have to deal with the realities of a living, breathing, fucking-things-up Serket.

Hah, another new named troll. Alfonz, heheh. One of Nepeta's blood type, it seems.

I wonder if it's news from Karkat or John. The distraction might be under way, so that's why none of the kids are replying.

---

Page 199

Oooooh, Blaperile has a good point, this is probably Jade coming back from the reconnaissance, bearing Dave's dead body presumably. D:

... I wonder if they're going to pin this on the humans, for want of evidence to the contrary. Seems like a good way for things to start escalating even further.

Meanwhile, it appears Alfonz' quirk favors the A and Z.

Kanaya kind of looks like the Dolorosa now from behind.

---

Page 200

Seems like Jade was wearing an Iron Lass - ish outfit. Sorry Alfonz, you're about to be forcibly removed.

---

Page 201

Okay no, that isn't an armour. Her gloves' colour remind me of Grimbark Jade. And that commando outfit reminds me of an old sprite edit I made of a GI Jade, heheheheheheh.

---

Page 202

Wait, huh? I could have SWORN Dave would have been found right now. So, what does that... mean? Didn't Dave's ascension take place yet???

... It seems then that Jade was sent to retrieve Vrissy and the others, but she was too late?

Blaperile has a good theory - perhaps Jade was pulled away from her mission with Dave, and just texted him as she left, thinking he'd read her message shortly thereafter.

Crack theory: Jane's forces caught A Vriska, just not the one they were sent after. :P

---

Page 203

... WAIT WHAT???

WHO THE HECK IS---

Did Jade and Dave actually ADOPT a kid and called it Yiffy???

Please just be a dog, please just be a dog, please just be a dog.

... Unless it's a real punderized name for Vrissy. Ugh, god.

---

Page 204

Glad to see we are all in agreement with Rose and Kanaya here.

---

Page 205

Ah. Okay, so we're doing this again. Jumping back to Vriska when things are angling for an explanation. Sure. :P

Well, okay yeah, at least we know Yiffy isn't any of these kids then.

Vriska's looking bored. That's not good.

---

Page 206

Wow. Okay yeah, we're getting to some juicy bits here.

Harry desperately wants to reconnect with John. And he is sucking up his father's "BELIEF" in him like it's nobody's business. (Kind of a Jake thing to do.) Vrissy correctly assesses that John's advice wasn't great and that John is not being a good adult, but she's wrong that John is to blame for Tavros' hangups. Meanwhile we're getting some good black vibes from Tavros now, as he gets flustered at Vrissy using his baggage to win an argument. And on another note, Harry rescents Tavros' mom, but in the process has made Tavros out to be a snob or something, which he clearly isn't and which Vrissy calls him out on.

But Vriska couldn't care less about any of their shit. :P

---

Page 207

Ahahaahah. Okay, actually, Vriska is a lot better at assessing their situation than I'd thought she'd be. Didn't think she cared enough to notice some of this stuff.

Her calling out Harry on not being grateful for John is weird. Maybe she meant it as in - this planet is fucking pointless but John still loves you.

Hah, but her calling herself an adult - she's just as old as them.

Coooooooool, though. Harry's getting a strife specibus! Yeah, so, they all must have sylladices, but apparently no strife specibii.

I do wonder what in god's name he could weaponize from his room. Does he end up with Shoekind? Shoes seem at least like they could do some damage, better than scarves at least.

---

Page 208

OMG.

Actual Honest To God Chumhandles!!! Hahahahaahhaahahhah.

I guess it was because we're back in Act 1 shenanigans that it was finally time to reveal them? Awesome, Harry's the same's as Dave & Roxy, TG, and Vrissy has, of course, Vriska's.

So I suppose Tavros' chumhandle will contain a C. I don't remember Tavros Nitram's chumhandle of the top of my head, but that seems legit. Oops, no, adiosToreador, my bad.

So... Harry COULD end up with sewing equipment as his strife specibus, but that seems like a red herring. All those shoes are poking my eyes out.

---

Page 209

Yeah, them needles are way too small for a strife specibus.

Although scissors, hmmm, that could actually work and be interesting as he upgrades them!

Reading Vrissy and Harry arguing here, I'm reminded of Dave pestering John to apply something to his strife specibus.

---

Page 210

Oh hell yes, second person narration. :D

(Wonder what his sylladex modus is.)

---

Page 211

Oh hell yes, this list :D

---

Page 212

Awesome callback to John's first reaction on creating hammerkind.

Awesome to see the return of all this early-act vocabulary and imagery.

Hah! Harry was even about to say "you have a feeling it's going to be a long day", pffffff. Nice.

---

Page 213

Oh my god.

So I suppose this page was preceded with a break between updates, cause Vriska's feeling like she's been stuck here for a month.

I think Tavros already has a strifekind bought for him by Jane. And Vrissy definitely has one already too, since she apparently has all those weapons in her room.

Vriska's so confident she can just waltz out of here. Okay, with ALL the luck on her side, and her rocket boots, that might actually be true.

Blaperile theorizes the other kids will use HER as the distraction but have to strife against some Crocker Cops to get away. Maybe it'll be drones though. Of course, I wonder what he could do--- Hey, maybe there's actually a hedge scissors in the house! He could equip that! They have that nicely trimmed bush out in the front yard, so yeah, that could work!!!

---

Page 215

....

....

........

Yes I suppose there really was no way she was going to actually RELIEVE the situation.

She's appalled that the paradise she helped create didn't have the decency to be an actual paradise. I follow her way of thinking. But yeah, she's not being a mature adult about all this, that's for sure. Although it is true it's insane the people of Earth C actually believed in Gamzee. And from Vriska's perspective, there's no one that came closer to killing LE than she, so I'm not even really mad at her for believing it.

---

Page 217

Ooooooh boy. Now we'll see if she still has any luck on her side. That's a sniper homing in on her throat!

---

Page 218

Oh geez. That didn't seem like it graced her.

So yeah. Her god tier judgment.

Heroic because she was trying to be a saviour? Just because Just Vriska? Or neither because irrelevant Candy Earth C?

---

Page 219

Oooooh snap. It went through her shoulder.

And now she's REALLY had it. Oh snap.

Is this picture by the way showing on a computer screen? The way the top is coloured in a blueish hue... Jane is watching.

---

Page 220

Uhm...

This for another SBaHJ interlude?

No, really, she's not using her dice, so... What's a snap going to do?

---

Page 221

Ooooooh, RIGHT!!!!

Yeah, this would definitely get some people on her side, revealing herself as a god tier.

Also, it would serve as a good reminder to Jane that she can't just have a random sniper shoot her and think she'll stay dead.

---

Page 222

Oh hell yes. This works so well, describing this scene instead of showing it.

Vriska is absolutely terrifying when she cuts loose. At least she didn't kill anyone (that we know), not even in retribution. And because the kids were on her side, they shared in ALL THE LUCK, fortunately.

Right, so Tavros actually has more stamina than Harry, makes sense with Jake for a dad. And Vrissy is so enamored with Vriska's coolness, it's definitely going to become a Thing someone has to address at some point.

---

Page 223

There John is!

I didn't think the tower looked like it was built from lime, in my mind, actually. But yeah, I guess not EVERYTHING in the carapace kingdom can be coloured gold and/or purple, right?

---

Page 224

Hey, he has his god tier outfit back on! And Vriska's coming over to greet him!

... Is it me, or is the outfit grown too short, since I can see his waist? :P

---

Page 225

Okay, she actually likes seeing him again, under better (well, sort of) circumstances. Maybe it's the thrill she just went through.

Heheheh, but Adult John is a head higher than her.

---

Page 226

Ooooooh, awesome.

Glad to see John finding an actual way to bond with Harry!

He could've probably alchemized a bigger outfit, or magicked one, but having Harry redesign it is WAY better. So I guess his sprite is bigger now, but I wonder if the same is true for the other adults.

Also, yes, John is again very good at pointing out the obvious shenanigans of having two Vriskas could entail. He's always been good at making those connections. And cool to see how his inherent dweepiness has turned into being an embarrasment to his son, now that John himself is an adult. :P

Hah, so Rose & Kanaya are coming over - Vrissy's already feeling embarassed by getting fawned over. Though with Jade along, I hope we'll get to know about "Yiffy" - who's apparently held close to Jane.

---

Page 229

Hahahah, nice to have at last the 3 remaining B1 adults together.

So, Yiffy is something John doesn't know about and is being kept in the dark about. Weird... Like, I don't think it's like a polyamorous CANINE lover for Jade, right? Not sure what to think at this point.

And Kanaya is too busy fuzzing over Vrissy to comment on John's clothing.

---

Page 230

Hahahahah, the idea of Vrissy turning into a little hissy-fit goblin as her mothers try to clean her up is delightful.

And the others seem to want to keep John in the dark on some of the things about the war, but they really shouldn't. I'm very curious about the truth, but also, John would definitely be able to help.

... Wait a minute. Yiffy doesn't mean Roxy, does it???

---

Page 232

Ahhh, things were turning up so dramatically... And then John goes and leaps to the most WRONG conclusion he could make. I mean, no offense to him of course, he's been kept out of the dark.

---

Page 234

I wow.

I.

W---

Jezus H. Christ.

This does indeed read like a chapter in a bad fanfic. But it's real. Real as can be.

Jade and Rose have a daughter. That's... Wow. This I gotta process.

It feels as though the chapter is winding down, and with it, this little interlude on Earth C. What a day.

But yeah, Vrissy will definitely have some FEELINGS about this revelation.

... The fact that the name started as one-upmanship and stuck because of carapacian bureaucracy, and this was the reason for the secrecy of years. That's just wild.

Her name is a play on Pippy Longstocking of course. And long stockings are what Jade wore. Dear lord, this is insane. This really fucks up the family tree some more, too.

---

Page 235

Pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff----

Yeah, the issue of Dave's absence kind of got sidetracked there.

So I wonder if Davebot actually had the decency to look Jade up before leaving.

---

Wow. Let's take some time to digest THIS whopper of a revelation.

Also: of course the 8th chapter would be full-on focusing on Vriska.

[mythicallore]

The Strange Case of the Hammersmith Ghost

All over the world there are supposed hauntings, and while very interesting these cases seem to come and go, creeping up into the public consciousness only to fade away into history. Yet some of these alleged hauntings have gone on to become far more than what they began as, and actually reach out to change the world as we know it to some extent. One such case happened in England in the 1800s, and it is a weird case that has managed to change the course of British law, and remains a fascinating look into another time and place.

In November of 1803, a very strange visitor seemed to have emerged at the Hammersmith District of West London, in England. Reports began to come in of some sort of supernatural entity lurking within the dark Hammersmith Churchyard and cemetery, which most often appeared as a tall male figure that emitted an eerie white glow, but also on occasion as dressed in a calfskin garment with horns and large glass eyes, and it showed some very aggressive behavior. In addition to the typical ghostly behavior of shambling about, moaning and generally freaking people out, the sinister ghost was also said to actively chase anyone who came near the area, and that if it actually caught up to the victim would physically assault them.

This happened on one occasion when a woman was passing through the churchyard only to encounter the notorious ghost, which grabbed her in a vice-like grip and caused the terrified woman to lose consciousness and die a few days later. In another infamous report at the time, a man named Brewer Thomas Groom claimed that the ghost had roughly grabbed him by the throat and that he had barely managed to fight the apparition off, and he would say “I saw nothing; I gave a bit of a push out with my fist, and felt something soft, like a great coat.” One elderly woman also reported having been knocked to the ground by the wraith, and another younger pregnant woman was also attacked, with both instances allegedly proving so utterly horrifying that the victims allegedly later died from pure fright. There was another case in which the ghost stepped out of the night to stop a horse driven coach and caused the driver to flee in a desperate panic. On yet another occasion a night-watchman named William Girdler actually reversed the roles and chased the ghost, only to have it vanish before his eyes.

Rumors began to swirl that this was the restless and vengeful spirit of a local man who had had committed suicide and then been buried on consecrated ground, which was believed to have been against church policy and had turned the poor man into a wandering revenant. Whatever the origin of this strange specter, the sightings and terrifying encounters with it increased in number and intensity until no one was brave enough to walk through the narrow lanes of the area at night, and certainly no one went near the cemetery itself. It got so bad that at one point businesses were worried because no one would even pass by the area to make deliveries, and there was a general haze of panic hanging over the whole neighborhood.

This climate of fear and terror spurred the forming of armed groups of locals, who took the law into their own hands to go out and patrol the area in the hopes of finding out more or chasing the intruder away. It is unclear what they hoped to do with their weapons against a supernatural entity, but many of them believed they were actually dealing with a normal criminal who was terrorizing people and running amok. One of these patrolmen was a man named Francis Smith, who on the evening of January 3, 1804 was patrolling a dark street called Black Lion Lane when he would have an encounter with what he thought was the notorious ghost.

As Smith walked along in the quiet night there was movement ahead, a flash of white, a figure that bloomed from the dark to make its way down a row of hedges towards him. It is unknown whether Smith himself really had believed there was an actual ghost in the area, but at point he certainly did, and after a call out for the figure to halt went unanswered he is said to have exclaimed “Damn you. Who are you and what do you want?” before firing his shotgun at the intruder with a thunderous boom. Strangely, for a ghost, the shadowy figure stumbled and fell upon the road, and this is because it has not been a ghost at all.

Residents of the area came running, and when the body was examined it was found to be a man, dressed in the traditional white clothes of a bricklayer, and he was very dead. The man was soon found to have been a local bricklayer named Thomas Millwood. Francis Smith was promptly arrested on the charges of murder. By all accounts Smith was a rather decent man and completely shocked by the fact that he had killed someone, and he proclaimed as he was taken away to Newgate Prison that he had thought he had fired at the Hammersmith Ghost, but these pleas fell on deaf ears and he would go to trial for the murder of Millwood.

As Smith was awaiting trial several interesting details came to light. One was that the fatal incident had not been the first time that Millwood had been mistaken for the ghost, and he had startled a few people who had passed by, keyed up by all of the talk of wandering specters, to the point that his wife had begged him to change his attire. Another was that Millwood wasn’t even the “real” Hammersmith ghost, but that this honor rather belonged to a local shoemaker named John Graham, who came forward to admit that he had been dressing up as a ghost at night as a prank to scare his apprentice, who had been absolutely terrifying Graham’s children with spooky ghost stories at night. It is unclear if this twisted prank had any connection with all of the many ghost attacks and sightings around Hammersmith, but at the time it was considered case closed, except for Smith, who faced execution for his crime.

In the ensuing trial Smith was found guilty, and despite many testimonies to his good character and the fact that he had not meant to kill Millwood, he was condemned to the sentence of death by hanging and dissection. Luckily for him, the sentence was later commuted to a far lesser punishment of 1 year of hard labor. Through it all, the case presented a legal conundrum for the courts and UK law as a whole, in that it posed the question of whether acting on a mistaken belief, in this case that Millwood was a ghost, was a sufficient defense for a criminal charge, and whether someone could actually be held liable for their criminal actions under this false belief.

While it may seem at first glance like a simple question, and that guilty is guilty, it presented quite a tricky legal precedent, and would actually be argued and debated for nearly two centuries, until 1983 when the issue would be legally resolved with a Court of Appeal case concerning a man by the name of Gladstone Williams, who had attacked a man he thought had been assaulting another when he had actually been in the process of apprehending a thief. Williams was charged but the ruling was later successfully appealed in a groundbreaking decision by using the defense that he had misunderstood the situation under a mistaken belief, in a case now known as “ R. v Williams (Gladstone),” and this precedent was successfully written into law in 2008. At the time, Lord Chief Justice Lane would say of all of this:

In a case of self-defence, where self-defence or the prevention of crime is concerned, if the jury came to the conclusion that the defendant believed, or may have believed, that he was being attacked or that a crime was being committed, and that force was necessary to protect himself or to prevent the crime, then the prosecution have not proved their case. If however the defendant’s alleged belief was mistaken and if the mistake was an unreasonable one, that may be a peaceful reason for coming to the conclusion that the belief was not honestly held and should be rejected. Even if the jury come to the conclusion that the mistake was an unreasonable one, if the defendant may genuinely have been labouring under it, he is entitled to rely upon it.

The decision has changed the landscape of the law in the UK, and it was all thanks to the “Hammersmith Ghost.” In a strange twist of fate, although the ghost was eventually deemed to have been the doings of pranks and mischief, the area truly would seemingly take up a ghostly resident in the form of a supposedly real haunting by none other than the ghost of Thomas Millwood, which supposedly hangs about the Black Lion Lane and a pub located there, spooking patrons with strange noises and manifestations. This presents the rather odd situation of a fake ghost causing a death of a man who was mistaken for a ghost, leading to a real ghost originating with the victim of that crime. Mind blown. The case of the Hammersmith Ghost has gone on to become a rather curious historical oddity, and a landmark instance in which the paranormal, or at least the belief in it, changed the law as we know it.

[area50dununiverse]

prompt: tyler starts to hear josh’s thoughts. he is surprised to discover that most of the time josh tries come up with a plan to woo him.

Hello sweet, sorry this took so long and it’s trash!

Tyler’s eyes slowly opened. He instantly felt sick and he was in pain.“You’re so stupid, please be okay.” The room was crowded but he picked the voice out as Josh’s right away. “What hap-“ Tyler tried to sit up but the room began to violently spin and there was that pain again, like the worst headache he could imagine.“Oh my god, just stay still, lay down, you’re so stupid!” Josh said, his voice full of panic. “I told you not to climb, I said it was too slippy and you almost died.” Tyler focused on the faces around him, Mark, a few tour managers and some first aid workers. Josh was peering over the crowd from the back, his face ashen. Tyler tried to sit up again and was supported by one of the first aid guys who told him that he had a fall whilst trying to climb the stage.“Nasty knock to the head, we need to take you in for a scan and some tests-“ he was saying but Tyler could still hear Josh. He couldn’t see him anymore, the crowd of people had blocked his view of him but he could still hear him.“Scans? Oh god, what if it’s bad? What have you done? Please be okay,”

“Josh, stop panicking, all I can hear is you worrying,” Tyler finally said, wanting to put his mind at rest but mostly wanting to shut him up. Mark looked at Tyler like he was crazy before Josh appeared over his shoulder saying, “I wasn’t even talking Ty, is he okay?” The question was aimed at the first aid people who had started to move him, standing him up and steadying him. “Now he’s hearing things, that can’t be normal,” he heard Josh say as he was lead out to the waiting ambulance.Four hours he spent at the hospital, having scans and tests and being monitored. He had a lump on the back of his head where he had hit it but he was given the all clear and sent home with some painkillers. Tyler called Josh as soon as he and Mark got into the car. They had decided that Josh should wait behind due to the unwanted attention they may attract and Tyler wished that he was with him.He picked up on the first ring, talking a mile a minute and obviously still panicked. “Josh-“ Tyler cut into the stream of words, “I’m fine, we’re on our way back.”After a long discussion of whether or not Tyler was okay to sleep in his bunk on the bus, one of which he eventually won, Tyler was soon laying in his bunk. Josh was mumbling something from above him, some nonsense that Tyler put down to talking in his sleep. He was anxious and when they arrived back from the hospital he had hugged Tyler close for what felt like hours, which Tyler had no intention of cutting short. Tyler closed his eyes and listened to Josh’s rambling, soon falling asleep.•“Tyler, wake up,” Josh’s voice broke Tyler’s sleep, along with a gentle shake of the shoulder. “Maybe flowers,” Josh mumbled, “/flowers are a nice get well soon gift.”

“What?” Tyler mumbled, getting himself up. He looked at Josh’s concerned face and smiled because yes, flowers would actually be lovely right now.“I said wake up,” Josh smiled, “how are you feeling?”“I have a killer headache but I’m good,” Tyler said, watching Josh’s face.“Is that normal?” Josh asked, his mouth closed and face still. “Should he still have a headache?”Tyler stared at him.“What’s wrong?” He asked, this time for real and Tyler frowned at him. “He looks scared”

“How are you doing that?” Tyler asked, his voice quivering. He was tired, maybe a little concussed.“Doing what?” Josh asked, looking at Tyler with a confused expression. “he’s going crazy”

“You’re right,” Tyler answered, making Josh even more confused.“Are you okay man?” Josh asked and Tyler slowly nodded. “he’s not okay, I should’ve brought flowers, shall I call someone? A doctor or-“

“Josh, just shut up for a second,”“I wasn’t talking, shall I take you to see a doctor?” ‘Why is he looking at me like that?’

“What’s happening?” Tyler mumbled. He felt suddenly dizzy and confused and had to lay down. “I need some sleep,” he said.When Tyler woke up the second time, Josh was nowhere to be seen. Brad was there and there was nothing but silence filling the room. “Brad,” Tyler mumbled, getting out of his bunk and stepping towards the sitting man, “think something, anything-“There were a few more moments of silence before he said “Why? You reading minds now?”Tyler laughed and shook his head, “nah, I thought I was going crazy earlier and-“ he looked at Brad and smiled before saying, “don’t worry, everything is perfect.”It was an hour later when he heard Josh’s voice, the door of the bus opened and he and Mark were walking in. ‘Tyler’s awake-‘ Tyler blinked at him. This is a prank he thought. It has to be some kind of prank.‘he looks terrible.’ “How you feeling? You look well dude.”Lies, Tyler thought as he smiled at his best friend. ‘He looks really terrible and I forgot flowers again.’“Josh, stop.” Tyler sighed and rubbed his temple. He was tired again and wasn’t in the mood for whatever this was.“stop what?” Josh asked, taken aback by Tyler’s mood. He stared back at him and nervously laughed. “I need some food,” Tyler said before quickly leaving.•After a whole day of listening to Josh’s thoughts, Tyler had decided that it wasn’t so bad after all. He was given a gift, a special gift that Josh seemed to have no idea of and it was amazing. He heard Josh’s thoughts on everything and was pleasantly surprised to find that he, himself took up most of Josh’s thought process.romance,’ Josh thought, peaking Tyler’s Interest. He looked at his friend and saw Josh, staring off into the distance. ‘dinner would be nice, just us two, somewhere nice maybe.’ Tyler tried not to look at him as he listened. He wanted to know who Josh was thinking about, who he wanted to romance but he could hardly ask. clubbing, we could go out and dance... maybe get drunk? No, no getting drunk.”’“Okay?” Tyler asked, casually. Josh looked and him and nodded.“How’s the head?” He asked, laughing when Tyler shrugged back at him with a small groan. It still hurt.“We should do something, go out and paint the town?” Tyler mentioned, “we can ask the guys... Mark? Brad? John?” Tyler watched for Josh’s expression to change, a flicker to give away who he was thinking about just now. There was nothing though and Tyler sighed. “Or anyone else you want to invite?”“Why?” Josh frowned before looking down at his phone. Tyler heard him read through the Tweets in his mind.“Just a thought, might be fun?”“I’m too tired, and so are you.” Josh looked back at Tyler and continued, “plus, with your injury, it’s probably not a good idea.”Tyler nodded and gave up. He went back to listening to Josh read through his tweets and messages.•cool,’ Josh thought as he read through a magazine. Tyler had been trying to stop himself from listening and invading his privacy but he couldn’t help it; it was too amazing. Tyler heard him silently read through what he was reading, a film review of the latest Star Wars. ‘me and Tyler could go and see that together,’ he thought, flicking his eyes up towards the singer. Tyler met his eye and smiled, trying to look innocent.“The new Star Wars looks good,” Josh said aloud.“Yeah?” Tyler asked, “we should go and see that together.”“I was just thinking that,” Josh grinned and Tyler smiled back, trying not to say, “I know.”that's when I’ll do it,’ Josh thought a little while later, ‘we can go for lunch, see the film and I’ll be the perfect date.’Tyler frowned a little as he listened. Was Josh thinking about him? ‘but what if it goes wrong? What if it freaks him out? Tyler gets freaked out so easily.

’“That’s not true!”Josh looked at Tyler, startled by his loud voice in the silent room. “What isn’t?”Tyler shrugged and flipped his phone around his hand as he said, “just someone posting stuff about us, doesn’t matter.”•what if he thinks I’m lame?’ Tyler heard Josh’s thought as he entered the room. He didn’t look, acted normal. Josh appeared and cleared his throat, making Tyler look at him. He held out a bunch of flowers and quickly said, “get well soon?”Tyler broke into a wide grin and accepted the bunch of bright flowers. “Thanks, man,” he said, “I love them, you’re the best!” ‘he feels sorry for me, he’s pretending.’

“Honestly Josh, I’ve never been brought flowers and always secretly wanted them, I’m so glad you’re the one who brought them!”

Josh physically relaxed and Tyler wanted to hug him. “I love you man.”“I love you too Ty.” ‘I wish I could kiss him.’ Tyler snapped his head up to look at his friend. ‘I’ve never wanted to kiss him more than I do now

.’“Do it,” Tyler said, confusing Josh again. “Josh, can I tell you something?” He didn’t wait for him to answer before he said, “you don’t have to try to make me want to kiss you because I do, I always do because you’re you.”There was so many words going around Josh’s head that Tyler couldn’t make them out. Josh’s lips pressed against his and suddenly, everything fell silent.They broke the kiss and Tyler stared at him, unable to hear what he was thinking. “Thanks for the flowers,” Tyler smiled as he leant in for another kiss.

[rudemaidenswrite]

You Can Hide Here

part 14

author: @pusantheamazonian

P.S. If any are interested, the fanfiction on our page 'Ice Cold and Mind Games' will eventually crossover with the ‘You Can Hide Here’ series.

part 1: https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/161717451846/you-can-hide-here

part 2 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/161717668251/you-can-hide-here

part 3 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/161717998306/you-can-hide-here

part 4 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/161718268416/you-can-hide-here

part 5 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/167972312781/you-can-hide-here

part 6 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168462055071/you-can-hide-here

part 7 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168535611451/you-can-hide-here

part 8 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168538267861/you-can-hide-here

part 9 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168539193221/you-can-hide-here

part 10 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168539788521/you-can-hide-here

part 11 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168568276186/you-can-hide-here

part 12 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168679184446/you-can-hide-here

part 13 https://rudemaidenswrite.tumblr.com/post/168681944041/you-can-hide-here

tag list: @1800-fight-me

                             “Solana...Solana.” Loki shakes your shoulder trying to wake you.

“What Loki.” You grumble rolling over to look at Loki who is fully dressed for battle and squatting beside your side of the bed.

“I’ll be back.”

“Back? We’re are you going?”

“Director Fury has a mission.”

“At three in the morning?” You stare at the clock and try to process this information in your sleep fogged brain.

“Yes but I will be back. So go back to sleep.” Loki brushes the hair out of your face.

“....Be safe.” You quickly fall back asleep not even sure Loki heard you before he left.

~

The tower is eerie silent as you walk upstairs to the kitchen. Since Rufus was being cooperative when you woke up, you was able to stick her in your sweatshirt pocket. While making toast you kept expecting someone pop out from a corner to scare you but no one does.

“Jarvis, did everyone leave?”

~Yes Miss Solana, they should be back this evening. ~

“Thank you Jarvis.”

You make the living room couch your new home by gathering all the pillows around you. Rufus decides to make herself comfortable and lay down on your chest. Good thing you had grabbed the remote, you flip the TV on to watch Red vs Blue.

“What are you watching?” Director Fury asks as season two starts. He stands beside the couch looking slightly more annoyed than usual.

”Red vs Blue. In the distant future, two groups of soldiers battle for control of the least desirable piece of real estate in the known universe: a box canyon in the middle of nowhere. They become frenemies as they quest to find out what they are really doing. It’s a parody show of the Halo video games.”

“Whatever, this is John Peterson correct?” Fury holds a picture up.

“Yup that’s him.”

“Good.” Fury leaves with no reply.

What bugs you is not the way Fury just randomly shows up and disappears but something that caught your eye in the background of the picture. You wait a few minutes to make sure that Director Fury really did leave before googling something.

~Miss Solana they will be arriving soon. ~

“Thank you Jarvis.” You quickly clean up. You throw the pillows back to where they original were and throw the trash away. While snatching Rufus to put back in your pocket, you see a ship slow down as it enters the tower a few floors below. “Whoa, now that’s how you hide a ship.” You press your face against the glass.

“You’re smudging the glass.” Loki whispers.

Jumping around you see Loki smirking. “You jerk.”

Everyone begins to slowly trail into the living room. Until lastly Tony walks in with Steve arguing something about doing a treatment.

Well you guys look grumpy and what are they arguing about? 

They are as you say grumpy. Steve was electrocuted by a machine we found, there were several machines. He has a burn across his chest.

Did they treat it?

Yes but it will heal slowly.

Why didn’t you heal it?

Solana, not everyone trusts me like you do, as you would say I’m still on probation.

Oh. 

“So what have you been doing all day Solana?” Tony asks messing with a screen he popped up from his phone.

“Nothing.” You wander to the kitchen grabbing some random things from the cupboard. Spotting the pop tarts, you grab one and toss it over your shoulder. “Thor catch.”

“Thank you Solana.” Thor bellows in gratitude.

“So did ya’ll have fun?” You ask while mixing a few ingredients into a mason jar while looking at them being blobs on the couch.

“Loads of fun.” Clint sarcastically replies, propping his feet on the coffee table.

“Problem tip toeing through the tulips?”

“Not exactly but your friend has been busy.” Fury comments walking in and you inadvertently look away.

“So what are we going to do about it?” Steve asks relaxing into the couch, with a slight quince.

“First we need to figure out exactly what this is and how to disarm it.” Fury has Tony pull up a picture that you know all too well.

“And stop the production of these machines but all we know that they give a hell of a shock.” Clint smirks.

"Come on you guys are the fucking Avengers, do you know nothing?" You just blurt the words out.

"What?" Fury asks making sure he did not just hear that correctly. Everyone is staring at you.

“Oh god... I said that out loud.” You groan, covering your face.

“Solana.” Fury says your name like he is the pissed off mother who just cracked.

"Let me introduce you to something called the interweb." Stealing Tony’s phone, you pull open a screen for everyone to look at and begin to google ‘home of fandom’. Clicking on the wikia you then type in M2 shocker and enlarge the picture to show everyone.

“What is this?” Bruce asks while cleaning his glasses. Everyone starts to surround you in the kitchen.

“The M2 shocker; this particular item is what your lovely friends at Hydra have.”

“How would you know exactly what it is called?” Fury demands.

“What? I google random stuff when I’m bored. Besides you guys never google yourself?” You defend you random googling.

“Why would we google ourselves?” Steve doesn’t see the point of it. 

Slash fiction

“Why not? You should see what fans do in their free time; fan art, comics, stuffed animals, posters, books, fanfiction, all sorts of stuff about you guys. Also lists like this, where it has every weapon ever used by avengers, shield and hydra exist to the public.” You ignore Loki’s face about your last thought.

”Stony or Stucky?” Tony interrupts looking up from a different phone. Everyone is bewildered by the random question. While you just freeze, trying to process if you should actually answer the question but Tony is staring intently at you.

“Stony all the way. Now Tony pay attention and stop googling that, do it later.” Tony high fives you with a smile. He obviously just searched himself on google and found the Stony fangirls.

Well at least he didn’t find Frost Iron.

What?

Nothing...fuck I need to stop thinking, I keep forgetting that you can hear my thoughts. 

“You can’t be telling me that one day you just randomly found this on the internet.” Clint highly disagrees that this was just random.

“No, John named it that. It was our group project for our midterm. It was one of those prank shocker gadgets you can buy; we built one. It consists of a heavy magnet with a hand cranked electrical coil in the center. The unit produces an electrical shock to the two hand-held wands when the crank is turned. It wasn’t until Director Fury showed me a picture with the multiple copies in the background, did I then go look somethings up.”

“So you helped build this?” Natasha inquiries walking closer to you.

Great, now they probably think I’m working for Hydra.

“No just the original one. These have been changed; the magnets look like they have been changed from electromagnets to Samarium Cobalt magnets, there is the satellite dish where the hand held wands are supposed to connect and he has added two extra gears to the rotation system thus probably causing the voltage to skyrocket. Which would make it probably deadly if hit at the right spot.” You point to the different changes in the picture.

“Can you disarm them?” Tony asks.

“Probably but I would have to actually see it.”

“Come on then.” Tony grabs your hand and pulls you to the elevator. Without thinking you hand the jar to Fury as you pass him to the elevator.

“Steve put that on the burn.” You hope Steve heard you.

Down in one of Tony’s many labs is the M2 Shocker sitting on a table.

“Is it armed?”

“Yup.”

“How did it go off?” You cautiously walk closer.

“Motion sensor triggered it but it still has to be cranked to fire.”

“You have any chopsticks?”

“Here.” Tony hands you a pair of bamboo chopsticks.

“Thanks.” You’re surprised that Tony actually has chopsticks down here. Pulling Rufus out of your pocket, you squat down at the edge in the table and concentrate on propping the spring up off the magnet with the chopstick.

“What the? A cat, you had a cat in your pocket?”

“Ya, that’s Rufus.”

“How did you get a cat here?”

“Loki brought her from my apartment when he brought me some of my clothes.”

“Isn’t Rufus a male name?”

“So what, my friend had a bunch of kittens. I named all of them the day after they were born. So Rufus has no gender it’s just the name I picked before we knew what their genders were.”

“But why is Rufus here? Did you have her in your pocket the whole time?”

“Where I go Rufus goes. She is what you call an emotional support animal.”

“But a cat?” Tony seems to drop why Rufus is there but is confused on why I picked a cat.

“My dad is allergic to dogs. I need a Philips screwdriver.”

“So how long do you think it will take to figure out what we are dealing with?” Tony nods to the M2 Shocker.

“Not long once I get the cover off.” Tony brings over a Philips and flathead screwdrivers along with a socket wrench set. You undo the screws and slowly take off the outer shell of the machine. Working the gears off you notice a red light blinking, it’s hidden behind a gear near the spring. “Tony.”

“What?

“There’s a red light blinking.” You point to it as Tony leans in.

“Out...now!” Tony hands Rufus back and pushes you at the door. “Jarvis safety protocol: cherry bomb.”

~Protocol activated.~ 

Looking back you see the ceiling open up and a metal box dropped over the table. Tony shuts the door in time for a muffled boom to be heard.

“Did what I think it was, just happen?”

“Ya.”

“You got to be frickin’ kidding me. They hide tiny bombs in shit?” You start to slowly squeeze Rufus tighter.

“You better believe it.” Tony sighs slowly opening the door back up. Smoke instantly pours out flooding the hallway.

“Oi shut the door, shut the door!” You cough at the sudden amount of smoke.

“Jarvis clear the smoke and check to make sure everything is safe.” Tony rapidly closes the door.

“Stark what the hell is going on?” Director Fury looks livid as he stands in the hallway, looking more menacing than ever.

“There was a bomb hidden in the M2 Shocker. When Solana took the cover off, it activated.” Tony ignores Fury as he waves at the smoke that still lingers in the hall.

“All I saw was a blinking red light.” Rufus climbs half way up your shoulder and begins to nuzzle the side of your head. Automatically your hand comes up and begins to scratch Rufus’s head.

“You telling me that hydra has rigged all the machines to explode if tampered with?”

“Yes, they must have known that we would take one apart.” Tony begins to pace back and forth, getting impatient.

~Sir everything is safe now. ~

Jarvis thankful eases the tense and hastily opens the door. Tony heads back into the room. Something things are knocked over but everything is basically ok. The metal box is dented but intact.

“Jarvis raise the box.” Tony motions upwards.

~Yes sir. ~

“Someone want to explain how we missed a bomb hidden in that contraption.” Fury repeats harshly as he and tony circle the table. The M2 shocker is destroyed to tiny pieces and Tony’s tools are dented.

“We didn’t think there would be a bomb, so we glossed over the possibility.” Tony inspects his damaged tools.

“Solana give Tony a diagram of the original design and one of the changes you saw. Tony figure out how it works and disable it.” Fury heads back to the elevator.

“Okay.” You quickly answer watching Fury so you can stay out of his rampage.

“Solana what was in that jar?” Fury questions before leaving.

“Oh just a home remedy for burns. It has aloe vera, honey, baking soda and tea bag contents mixed together. I used to work grill in a restaurant; I got burnt all the time.”

Fury looks at Tony for a moment before finally officially leaving. You begin drawing the sketches on a touch screen Tony has given you.

“Solana, how did you know that Steve got burned today?” Tony asks quietly once beside you.

“Loki told me.”

“Ah, why?”

“I asked why ya’ll looked so grumpy. He said it was because Steve was electrocuted by one of the machines and got a burn from it.”

“Quick on the updates aren’t you.”

“Yup and there you go.” You smile presenting the screen to Tony.

“Thanks, you can go back. I can get this.” Tony wanders back to his main work table.

“You sure?”

“Ya no problem I’ll see what I got.” Tony doesn’t even look back at you as he waves towards the door.

“...Okay.” You walk away slowly getting the feeling that he is shooing you away.

To your discomfort the elevator opens to find Natasha and Clint already there. The ride back to Loki’s apartment is awkward. Natasha and Clint are talking about useless stuff as a diversion to their judgmental stares that you are pretending to ignore. This elevator ride seems to be taking forever and you are afraid that you might crack from the pressure building up. You almost break down Loki’s door trying to get inside, away from the judge-a-roos. Grabbing the pillows on the bed you plop down face first and scream into them. The rest of the evening you don’t leave the bedroom. You just stare at the ceiling and cuddle with Rufus. You even ignore all of Loki’s attempts of getting your attention.

~

“No...nhh, no.” Half asleep you keep wiggling in bed. Loki throws his arm around your waist to stop the restlessness. When it doesn’t work Loki’s arm slowly starts to tighten its hold.

“Solana stop squirming.” Loki mumbles.

You elbow in Loki in the chest and kick him in the leg in response of to the tightening around your waist and not being able to move. In the process you roll off the bed, pillow in hand with a thud and back up against the wall. You first response to Loki trying to touch you is to whack him in the face with the pillow.

“Solana stop!” Loki takes the pillow away. Fully awake now you can see what you have done and Loki is disgruntled.

“I-I...uh...I don’t think I can do this.” You crawl towards the door.

“What? Solana stop where are you going?” Loki blocks the door.

“To run away.”

“Solana talk to me.” Loki’s eyes are full of concern that his face would never show.

“I...these emotions are so overwhelming and I can feel literately feel the burn from their stares. Their stares full of shame and judgement of these coincidences...I’m starting to feel smothered and when you started squeezing my waist it made me feel trapped like I was being forced down and didn’t have a choice like...like before.” You grab the pillow back and cry into it.

“My opinion is the only one that matters, forget what they think. You are innocent and have nothing to hide.” As reassuring as Loki’s words may be, you can’t find the strength to speak or look him in the eye.

It doesn’t feel like it and I don’t like all of this attention.  

Try to calm down Solana, you can just stay in the apartment until you feel comfortable to go out. What emotions are making you overwhelmed?

...I don’t know what to call it... but I think I’m starting to like-like you and it scares me. I’ve never felt this way before and I’ terrified that it’s all going to be a lie. With my past no one is ever gonna want to be with me.

“Try to relax Solana, love is a difficult thing. It’s not your past that would ruin everything it's mine. You seem to forget that I tried to take over the world. Only death can separate us now I’m not leaving you for anything.”

Loki sits beside you and pulls you in; pillow and all, so can reset on his chest. You sit there in silence while the anxiety slowly goes away so you can sleep.

[utopianparadoxist]

Dirk Strider is made out of love, prince of my heart, i love him so much.

You didnt ask for this but you put Dirk and love in the same sentence and this is what i’ve been thinking about so lets goIm gonna ramble about how much Dirk would love John Egbert and Jade Harley like, instantly, he did conceptually before he even met them but the instant they meet Dirk is permanently owned and has that many more people he’d happily die for because: Dirk loves Jane and Jake more than life itself, and John and Jade are…their kids basically. And early on Dirk cannot unsee that. The biggest treason this fandom has ever committed to my person is ignoring the fact that Dirk Strider would fucking melt himself to death even looking at John Egbert or Jade Harley and deconstructing all the little ways they’re like Jake and Jane and thinking about his typical self-loathing shit like “god those two would’ve been so happy together I’m such an ass for getting in the way look at them their kids are perfect they’re so good–”  

before Jake like puts his arm around Dirk’s shoulders and all thoughts immediately stop if they’re dating again, it’s probably a source of great angst for Dirk before they are and one of the bigger reasons he stays away. Maybe Jake and Jane will get the idea and be happy together. Someone write this for me thanks. 

Anyway that got too sad so back to Dirk’s relationship with the ectokids. Early on in Earth C John gets the impression Dirk hates him early on and pranks him pretty hard and often but while it kind of annoys Dirk when all his meticulously set up horsecam figurines get their heads swapped (and john breaks some of them in the process) he’s mostly just reminded that things with him and Jane are still awkward enough that he hasn’t gotten this from HER and he’s a torn up bag of “Fuck I miss her” and “Fuck I can’t believe how much I care about her goober ecto-son already” and NONE of this gets across his stoic demeanor so all john gets is that poker face. It takes them fucking forever to be actual friends and I’m not sure what does it but its probably the formidable teamwork of Jake and Dave who get sick of the awkwardness eventually. Meanwhile Dirk is 100% in awe of and terrified of disappointing Jade Harley who he A) cannot stop thinking about as JAKE’S GRANDMA and “OH GOD WHAT IF SHE DISSAPROVES WHAT IF I’M NOT GOOD ENOUGH WHAT IF-”- and B) Cannot stop thinking about as SO MUCH like Jane it kills him. She’s so no-nonsense and down to business and whenever he starts rambling too much about philosophy or some bullshit she just looks at him like … and he’s like “Ok I’ll shut up.”  The way Jade moves in a science lab is EXACTLY like Jane moves in a kitchen (or later, a business meeting) and Dirk knows because he learned the ins and outs of that movement by heart across so many video cam sessions growing up. Everything about Jade Harley destroys Dirk and he thinks she’s the fucking coolest and there’s basically no part of him that didn’t love her from the word go Dirk manages to work up the will to keep everyone else (but Jake) out of his private garage but not Jade, Dirk’s got all this futuretech practice and as SOON as Jade catches wind of this she’s like “Hey dirk! Alt!Callie handed me the secrets of the universe and basically i need a bigger workshop and better science can you help me out” and that’s basically his main project for the next two years is catching Jade up on 400 years of scientific progress (Jake tags along) and having to work on his weirdo animatronic shit that he was GOING to use his garage for originally in like, one of the cramped floors of Jake’s jungle globe insteadBut it’s fine cause it makes Jade happy and getting to be helpful to Jade is like a dream come fucking true and Jake is so happy whenever he and Jade get to talking about some interesting intersection of philosophy and science or furries or whatever. The first time Jade gives him a friendly smack on the back Dirk jumps so hard he hits the roof.

Give Dirk Strider love thanks