#nora made so many mistakes

[aboutnavi]

I was brushing my teeth, reflecting about life, & my mind went back to AFTG and there is a scene on the first book that it has been stuck on my brain since I read the trilogy again this January and it's about Seth. Now, I know the fandom -in general- barely talk about Seth because Nora decided to kill him off for shock value and when people try to talk about him, it always comes back to 'he was a homophobic, disgusting piece of shit' which yes, valid but also, are we forgetting Aaron? The babyfication of Aaron in this fandom had everyone collectively forgetting he was exactly like Seth (even worse: towards his family!!!). Two wrongs doesn't make one right & I'm in no way justifying Seth's action but if we never talk about characters on AFTG just because they were problematic, we are not talking about any of them, ever (ok maybe some of them, but still).

My point is: the scene. Neil is confused as to why Seth hates Kevin -specifically him- so much, since Seth could get along with most people if he wanted and tried hard enough but he refused to give ground to Kevin & his answer is just so humanly heartbreaking it goes to my list of moments Nora did something right in AFTG. The scene goes like this:

Neil: Why do you hate him?

Seth: Because I'm sick of him getting everything he wants just because he's Kevin Day. Do you know what fame gets you, shitface? Everything. All he has to do is ask for it, and someone will give it to him. Doesn't matter what. Doesn't matter who. The world is dying to give him anything he wants. When he broke his hand, his fans cried for him. They flooded our locker room with letters and flowers. The amazing Kevin Day can't play anymore. Their lives were over. They'd grieve the loss forever. But tell me when's the last time anyone cried over you? Never, right? They're there for Kevin every step of the way, but where were they when we needed them?

Neil, stupidly: So you're jealous.

Seth: His life is not more important than mine just because he's more talented.

Neil first instinct is to say jealousy because jealousy is something he understands (he felt jealous of Kevin for having a future, for being able to play, for the talent, for the life he never got to live when his mother ran away, etc.) but for me what Seth is trying to portrait is more like the painful awareness that you get when you realize you're also worthy of love and care. Seth is such an unexplored character who had so much potential if Nora hadn't killed him for the sake of showing how Riko could be/was dangerous (and she could have done that in so many different ways!!!) & you can see that on, for example, Nora's post about his life. Seth was always the no-priority person, the kid no one payed attention to, the boy that if killed, not even his mother would come for the funeral. He was every aspect a Fox and he spent his entire life being told he was no one and to be able to say his life is not more important than mine shows so much development; the chance he had put on himself for being open to love, to care, to second and third chances... it was all there. It breaks my heart that he never got the chance to become something. & I do not believe he was an inherently bad person? They are so young in AFTG, all of them. Maybe Seth wasn't bad; maybe he was just twenty-two, you know?

& on the extra content when they tell Allison he died and she goes 'He called me not even an hour ago! He was drunk and rambling but he was happy for the first time in weeks. He was talking about how he finally thought graduating would be okay, about how he wanted me to help him look into grad schools. He wanted to go into social work and help people like he helps us. I know he wanted to die! Everyone knows he wanted to die! Every time he said he was done with life I walked away from him and every time he came chasing after me. This is the first time--he wanted to live.' breaks my heart.

Because, ok, Seth dies. Let's pretend it was a good idea for him to die to set some sort of impact on the story for a second. Except his death goes without much fuss. The shock Nora wanted is felt for maybe three seconds, in one paragraph in the last page of TFC and then we barely talk about Seth on TRK and TKM. Neil can't even understand how impactful was Seth's death - he only cares about how it will affect the game & his guilt is more about how Allison would feel towards him then sadness over losing a teammate - and this insight we get from Allison is from the extra content and not everyone goes on to read those so if Nora wanted something out of his death - pity, shock, sadness, or whatever - she should have put this scene IN THE BOOKS.

[kinaesthetiqueer]

it feels better biting down.

ah. seems like you're interrupting... something. maybe just close the door and back away slowly? at the very least, nora seems fine.

still frames, ID, and notes under the cut!

[video ID: a three second looping video depicting Weiss biting Nora's neck. Nora, a pale young woman with neck-length spiky orange hair and freckles, has her back to the viewer, pressed up against a wooden crate. she twists her neck to look over her shoulder, one teal-blue eye is visible, as well as a light blush on her face. she wears a black vest with her hammer emblem in blue on the back, her metal neck brace, and a white muscle shirt. these have been partially undone and pushed to her right shoulder to bare her neck. Weiss, a paler, blushing young woman with bright blue eyes, and white bangs and a long ponytail, clings to Nora. She buries her right hand in Nora's hair, tugging her head at its awkward angle. With her left hand, she pushes Nora's clothes away from her neck. Weiss has her upper fangs in Nora's neck, the wounds from which have soaked her skin and clothes in blood. Weiss' body from the neck down is almost completely hidden behind Nora, with only one red earring and the red inner collar of her bolero jacket visible. Both Nora and Weiss' gazes are locked on the viewer; their expressions are shy and irritated respectively. a dark filter with a stripe of light on them suggests a door has been opened to reveal them. while the image is mostly fixed/static, two elements are animated: 1) various sparks of pink lightning dance around Nora and 2) Weiss' eyes glow and fade from her natural blue eyes to a bright, almost white color. end ID]

🧡💙

some still frames

pose referenced

as always, when i draw something and post it this far ahead (this is volume 2), i'm always going to leave out some spoilers. consider this a heavily idealized/romanticized memory of a series canon scene. one guess for whose memory it is. when we get to this point in v2, i will happily reveal the spot the difference answers between this and the written scene. maybe i'll comm someone to draw an accurate redo of it...

anyways! i'm very happy with this piece :3 it revived all my ssvau brainworms that had taken a hit because of Life and also reset my 'if i don't get to this scene chronologically i will perish' goalpost as well! because the first bite was a major milestone. this is the next milestone. and i, for one, cannot wait! ヾ(•ω•`)o

her pulse in my throat will be back next wednesday!

[confused-wanderer]

The villains are utterly confused.

They remember the first robin. They remember how bloodthirsty the little gremlin was, how he appeared out of the darkness with a “HIYA FOLKS” that gave people near heart attacks with PTSD so bad they flinched everytime they walked into a dark corner. They remember his grin, baring few too many teeth with a glint in his eyes whenever the bat wasn’t around to curb him. They remember the death stare, the brooding that made no one doubt this was the Bat’s son. They remember how a punch would land a lot harder than it was supposed to, or the screaming that followed. Oh they remembered him alright.

The second one thank the stars was better. The second robin was giggly. He would hop around town, offering his help to everyone who needed it. Sure he was rough with abusers but hell no one cared about them. Matter of fact, the villains were glad because those assholes deserved no sympathy. They remember his puns, his wonder, his innocence and his spark. They remembered his laughter, his concern - the kind that only comes from one who’s been on the streets. This one was better, and the villains thanked their lucky stars. They remembered him alright.

But now, as the years passed and new characters emerged, the crime city saw the rise of two characters - a sunshine happy nightwing and a ready to kill red hood. And naturally, from their experiences in the past, the villains ended up making an honest mistake that ruined the two vigilantes’ reputation:

The villains assumed the first robin was Red Hood and the other was Nightwing. And BY GOD Gotham has not seen unhinged chaos like this.

SCENE 1

Red Hood *drawing his pistol* : Please, reach for your weapon. I’m itching for an excuse for my intrusive thoughts to become extrusive.

Two-Face: You dare mock me little bird?! Well.. I may not have my weapon.. but I have something I know you’d like..

Red Hood: Oh yeah?What’s that?

Two-Face: TAKE THIS! *slams button and coconuts start falling from the sky, all cracking and spilling as they hit the ground*

Red Hood:

Two-Face:

Red Hood: .. the fuck was that supposed to do?

Two-Face: .. HOW ARE YOU STILL STANDING?! YOU HATE COCONUTS ROBIN!!

Red Hood: The fuck- .. wait did you call me robin?

Two-Face *grins* : Yea.. robin. The first one. Thought I didn’t notice?

Red Hood: The first one? Does this *gestures vaguely to himself and his weapons* seem like something the first robin would do?

Two-Face:

Goon 1: I mean.. yeah

Red Hood: What! The first robin was nice!

Goon 2 *guffawing*: I beg your fucking pardon??

Two-Face: .. you took my coin and attached a magnet beneath it so everytime I flipped it it wouldn’t stop spinning. Do you know how long that took me to figure out?? Do you know how insane it drove me?? Joker had to help me out of pity. OUT. OF. PITY.

Red Hood:

Goon 1: ..Also you did steal some of our bones

Red Hood: hedidfuckingwhatnow-

SCENE 2

Nightwing: Hey there buddy! You look frostyl!

Dr. Freeze: Aha! You are too late to stop me robin!

Nightwing: .. robin?

Dr. Freeze: why yes! Don’t act coy, I know it’s you there. Now that we’ve got that clear.. I was wondering if you remembered all those years ago when you gave me a source for electricity to power a hospital keeping my Nora?

Nightwing:

Dr. Freeze: well you weren’t careful enough and never told me how much I could take from it.. so I used it to power so many of my inventions that came after

Nightwing *remembering when Jason was robin and every damn time he came to visit Wayne Manor his room would always run out power and the countless cold showers in freezing winters he had to take because of it*: .. oh? Well, sorry to break your bubble, but that wasn’t me Elsa.

Dr. Freeze: no? You joke around, make puns and I’m supposed to believe it’s NOT you?. The first one brooded like there was no tomorrow. He pissed me off so bad once I overheard him saying his favourite ice cream flavour and I made sure it wouldn’t be available in Gotham for YEARS. You’re not as bad as the first one. I’d remember if you were him.

Nightwing:

Nightwing *firing up his escrima sticks to maximum voltage*: Oh let me jog your memory then :)

[empressdede]

Disrespectful

Chapter Two

After that interaction, London tried her best to create some distance between her and Roman. She would avoid his calls, texts messages and if she did finally get back to him, she would decline any outing he would invite her to.

She didn’t trust herself around him. She knew the longer she kept herself around him, the more she would want to jump his bones. The little moment between them made her feel like a horny teenager all over again. She had no business at her big ass age of 34, dry humping another man against the wall like she was some 16 year old virgin. And even though that’s all that they did; she couldn’t shake the memory away.

The way he held her up against the wall with ease, the way he grunted and groaned softly in her ear, and especially the way he demanded that she cum for him. Every time the thought entered her mind, It made her body shiver with want.

And that’s where her problem lied. She knows that she wants Roman; no matter how many times she tries to push it to the back of her head.

“You can’t keep avoiding him, London. Be a grown up and tell that man you need your space.” London’s sister, Nora, advised.

“I don’t have to do anything but be black and die when the time comes Nora. If I don’t want to talk to Roman right now, then I’m not. What we did at that party - his wife’s party no less - was a mistake. We’re both happly married and it needs to stay like that.”

“London, you’ve been with James since forever. Don’t you think this is your body telling you to venture out and try new things?”

“James is a good man Nora. I’m not going to ruin my relationship with my husband just because I’m feeling like I want a quick fix somewhere else.”

Nora rolled her eyes. “Girl, if James was beating the pussy up like he supposed to be doing, you wouldn’t have ran off with Roman in the first place. Then you ran off to go dry hump that man, bitch you ain’t never heard of no quickie?”

“Nora-“

“Bitch I’m being serious. If you was gonna step out anyway, you might as well have went out with a bang. Vibrator to the clit while he hitting it from the back & that 20 minutes could’ve been a whole fuckin round.”

Images immediately flashed through her mind as she thought about it. Her dress bunched up at her waist as he thrusted inside of her at a quick pace. Bodies close together so he could keep the vibrator to her clit and she could practically hear his voice in her ear. “I barely even started and look at you about to cum for me.”

London let out a sad sigh. Her sister’s didn’t help her with trying to push Roman to the back of her mind. If anything, Nora kept trying to push her straight into Roman’s arms.

“If I see him, I’m going to fuck him.” She admitted and Nora shrugged.

“So do that. James will always be here and who knows; maybe this is just a phase and you need him out of your system. Whatever the case may be, I say go for it.”

“You’re not even trying to give me good advice Nora. You keep telling me to cheat on my husband.”

“You already cheated girl and I wasn’t there to tell you that. You cheated emotionally and physically, you might as well just go all the way.”

Her sister’s words echoed in her head and she thought about it for a second, what it would really feel like to go all the way with Roman. She just knew he would snatch her breath away. She could almost feel him, a picturesque expression on his face as he took her hair into his hands pulling it towards him to stop her from hiding her moans. Damn…. She really did see it and even though she yearned to fall into temptation, London decides that she was going to stand on business.

She had a husband for everything she thinks she wants Roman for. She also decided that since she was going to be the woman she promised to be as a wife, she was going to throw herself into her work. What better way to distract herself from temptation than to work?

But Roman though? He was getting tired of waiting on London. He considered himself a realist - if he was going to be cheating on his wife, he was going to fulfill all the fantasies he had about London. They’ve tried to deny their sexual attraction towards each other for almost two years now; if she didn’t want him the same way he wants her then what happened two weeks ago wouldn’t have transpired. So after being ignored for two weeks, Roman decides he’s had enough. If London didn’t want to see him, so be it. Now he was going to go see her…. and with how distant she’s been he knew exactly where to find her.

"Mrs. Murphey, we have a Mr. Heyman downstairs waiting for you. He says it’s an emergency." Mariah states as she walks into London’s office. London lets out a tired sigh; she knew she didn’t have long before he started sending his minions to do his dirty work.

"Tell him I’m busy." London responds to her without even lifting her head to acknowledge her assistant. She didn’t really have time to entertain that bullshit today.

"Don’t seem that busy to me." She heard from where her assistant stood and her head snapped up to see Roman standing behind Mariah. And poor Mariah, she really tried her best, bless her heart but she knew when it came to Roman himself, he was going to finesse his way up here one way or another.

"Um sir you can’t be he-" Mariah tried to speak but Roman cut her off, keeping his dark brown orbs locked on London.

"You ready to talk to me like an adult?" He questioned. Mariah looked between the two of them, obviously sensing the tension but if her boss said she was busy, then she needed to get rid of this Mr. Heyman guy.

"Sir, you can’t be here. I’m going to have to ask you to leave or else I’m going to have security escort you out the building." Mariah warned. Roman stared at the younger woman in front of him with a blank face for a couple of seconds before laughing in her face.

"Okay lady, if you could close the door behind you, that would be great." He instructed, walking right past her to stand in front of London’s desk.

London finally snapped out of it when she got her over her feeling of shock from seeing him. "You don’t get to walk in here and tell my employees what to do. In this building, there’s only one person who runs it and that’s me." She enforced, getting up from her seat to glare at him. "Just like I can’t walk in yours and start telling Paul what to do."

"London-" Roman tried to speak again but was cut off by London’s assistant again.

"Um… Sir, you still need to leave."

"You can close the door behind you Mariah, you can leave. Let everyone know that I’m in a meeting and will be available afterwards. Come find me in 30 minutes." London instructed

"An hour." Roman replies, and this time he raises an eyebrow, challenging her to see if he wouldn’t keep her for the hour.

The two stared at each other for a while in silence, both of them challenging the other. London knew herself, an hour alone with Roman and she would be stepping out of her marriage. She also didn’t want him to think he had any power over her with his dumbass suggestion of having an hour of her time instead of 30. And as much as she didn’t want to admit it, the longer they glared at each other, waiting for the other to succumb in defeat, her sister’s words were ringing in her head.

"Maybe this is just a phase and you need him out of your system."

London finally rolled her eyes in defeat, turning to look at Mariah; "An hour. And not a second less."

When Mariah left, Roman let his eyes roam around her office. "You’ve been cooped up in here, I bet."

"What are you doing here Roman?" London asked getting straight to the point.

"You haven’t been texting me back for a while. So if you don’t want to talk over the phone, you definitely want to talk in person." Roman turned his head back to face London. "I can’t get you out of my head London, I keep hearing you cry out for me and when I try to call you to … talk… you don’t even pick up."

"Because you’re married Roman. To Tiara, not me. What we did a couple of weeks ago was a mistake. It shouldn’t have happened."

"If that were the case, you wouldn’t have worn the panties I bought for you."

The room got silent, energy in the room changing as they stared each other down. London really didn’t want to fall into this trap. That’s what Roman was, coming in here with his tight collared shirt and slacks just to tempt her. A walking fucking trap.

“You could’ve just walked in wearing anything; But you didn’t.” Roman started, walking around the desk in slow calculated steps. Like a predator stalking its prey.

London watched him, and she couldn’t move even if she wanted to; it seemed as if her feet were glued to floor the closer Roman got to her. “You wore my dress and you put on those pretty panties just for me. It wasn’t a mistake… you wanted to cum for me that night; tell me I’m lying.”

With Roman standing right in front of her, she couldn’t really think. His scent was clouding her senses, she should be moving away from him, fighting her temptation. But he was telling the truth, she wanted him that night. Still wants him, she just doesn’t know how to go about it.

“Roman.” She whispered out but Roman didn’t want to listen to anything she had to say unless it was her crying out for him again.

“Tell me.” He demanded quietly, his hands moving to hold onto her waist to pull her into him. A gasp slipped through her lips, her eyes closing when she felt his nose trailing up her neck.

He planted a kiss under her ear before whispering in her ear, “Tell me you wanna cum for me London and I can make that happen for you.” He rasped out.

And she could practically hear Nora now.

Bitch stop fighting and fuck him already!

It was obvious Roman wanted her just as bad as she wanted him, and London was a weak woman.

“Make it happen then.” She replied almost challengingly and it caused Roman to smirk against her skin because he came on a mission.

________________

"Fuucckkk" She loudly moaned when he pushed himself back into her. Legs on his shoulders with his hands holding onto to the back of her thighs. The immense feeling made her forget she was still in her office, where if anyone got close enough, they could hear her. But Roman didn’t give a single fuck. And when he leaned forward, pressing his body closer to hers, which pushed her legs closer to her chest making it easier to get deeper she couldn’t help but get lost in the pleasure.

Loud moans were flying out of her mouth, and Roman’s eyes stared down into her with a dark look in them. She knew exactly what he was doing, that look told her everything she needed to know. He was trying to find her spot, with no other intensions other than abusing it until she was cumming in waves for him.

"You done runnin’ from me?" He asked tauntingly, and she knew he wasn’t talking about running from him during the activity they were currently partaking in. He wanted her to give into him every single time they had the chance to be like this.

He slid his hands down her thighs and pushed them down as close to her chest as they could get, looking down between them to watch his dick slide in and out of her enjoying the small white ring of cream she left coated on him. He slowed down his pace purposefully to sew how loud she would get whenever he hit somewhere new. London couldn’t remember the last time she felt like this.

She tried to bite onto her lower lip to keep from screaming every time he went in deeper. Muffled moans came from her, nails denting his skin as she latched onto his back. Roman looked back up to watch her, eyes squinting as he studied her expressions and slightly moved to the left to hit a new area. He felt her clench around him and watched her eyes water from that specific spot. Found it

"Ouuu shit." She cried out.

"Right there?" He questioned as if he didn’t already know.

"Yesss, right there." Roman started moving against it, poking at her spot faster and faster as he let one of her thighs go and slid his hands up her stomach and breasts until he reached her neck. She let another loud moan as he loosely squeezed her neck.

"You never answered my question, you done runnin’ from me?"

London wrapped her arm around the leg he let go so she wouldn’t be so sore, she was so lost in the pleasure she almost didn’t hear him. "Huh?" He questioned, as he kept poking at her spot even harder now staring right into her eyes. She kept eye contact, responding by moaning louder and nodding her head.

"I can’t hear you, you done runnin’ from me London? Huh? When I ask you to come see me, you gon come see me right?" He asked, squeezing her neck a little tighter as he thrusted even faster.

He could’ve asked her for the world in the same moment and she would’ve agreed to give it to him. That’s how good he was making her feel.

Tears spilled from her eyes as she felt her stomach tightened and she clenched down on him. "Yessss, I’m done runnin’ Roman Please."

"Please what? Tell me."

"I-" She was cut off by her own loud moan, feeling her eyes roll to the back of her head. Roman continued to relentlessly pound into her, pushing to make her cum for the fourth and final time.

"C’mon baby, beg for that shit." He teased, enjoying the mess he was leaving her in. This was what he wanted to do to her the first time and he was glad he was able to redeem himself. The only thing that could be heard were their heavy breathing, her constant moaning and their skin clapping against each other’s.

"Please. D-don’t stop please" She stuttered out as she felt her legs start to shake; she was on the verge of cumming again - this time she knew it was going to me much more intense then the last one.

"You gon cum for me?" And he really didn’t need to ask, she placed her hand on his stomach to try to get him to slow down. Roman let go of her neck and quickly used his thumb to rub on her clit as he hit her spot over and over again. Her hand slipped from his stomach and she tapped on the desk, she couldn’t hold it anymore.

At the sight of her literally tapping out, he smirked and it did nothing but boost his ego. "Go head baby, cum for me." He permitted and with a silent scream she let her body arch off her desk and came all over him. He let out a groan at how tight she clenched around him and quickly pulled out of her and stroked himself with a few pumps and emptied himself on top of her; staking his claim.

If cheating on his wife felt like this - he didn’t give a damn about the consequences.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s been a minute huh? Here’s the second part - and I promise you guy’s wont have to wait that long for the next part😭😭

Comment if you want to be added to the next part and please show me some love🥺🫶🏾

Tagging the lovelies: @whatdoeseverybodywant @theninthwonder @christinabae @2-muchsauce @alichesmi @pitlissa22 @sassginaswanmills @harmshake @po3ticb3auty @unfriendly--blvck--hottie @dersha89 @serena004 @reci1996 @scarlettnoir01 @venusesworld @kill-the-artiste @southerngirl41 @badbitchcentralinc @reignsboy19

[starlight-eclipsed]

Rockets Pointed Up at the Stars (Pt 1/2)

Inspired by this braindead rejected soulmates au post by @im-totally-not-an-alien-2. More art at the end!

Part II

Tim slumped down on the edge of an apartment building, leaning his weight against the rooftop’s fence. The alleyways below were deserted, criminals retreating to get a couple hours of sleep before sunrise. A perfect setting to catch a breather before ending his patrol for the night.

The Red Robin suit still felt wrong on him. He thought waiting a week to get accustomed to it would help, but he might have made a mistake when he tried to adjust it to be as close to his Robin uniform as possible without it being obvious. He’d have to remember to alter it further the next time he got the chance, to see if wearing something entirely different would finally make him stop checking the shadows for Bruce. Patrolling Gotham alone felt too much like admitting he was really gone.

Just as he was about to move on, the rooftop access door slammed open.

Tim nearly jumped out of his skin as he whirled around, ready to either apologize, attack, or flee, when he met familiar glowing green eyes.

Subconsciously, he let himself breathe easy as he took in the other’s appearance.

Phantom was an anomaly at the best of times. A phantom thief by definition, the criminal had simply appeared one day to cause chaos—lingering only to taunt his pursuers as he made a daring escape with whatever priceless treasure of the month. His motives were unknown, as was virtually anything about him besides his calling card (a green sticky note with nothing but ‘BOO’ written in permanent black marker), appearance, and a meta ability to phase through objects.

Of course, one couldn’t be a phantom thief without a detective rival (or so the thief in question claimed). For some reason, Phantom had outright declared not Batman, but Robin for the role. Tim couldn’t count how many sleepless nights were spent chasing after him, face red from a mixture of exertion and embarrassment. Because it wasn’t enough for the admittedly good-looking criminal roughly his age to run circles around him. No, the jerk had to go out of his way to flirt with him the whole time.

He hadn’t even thought about how Phantom would react to there being a new Robin. But looking at him now, a small part of Tim couldn’t help but feel selfishly glad. From what he could see of the furious expression on his shadowed face and glowing eyes, it wasn’t hard to see that Phantom was taking the change about as well as Tim was.

“I leave for two weeks, and suddenly there’s a new Batman and Robin?! What the fuck, Detective—you’d think to at least have the decency to tell a guy, but nooo, I had to find out through goddamn Victor Fries!”

Tim blinked, “Didn’t Mr. Freeze retire after someone brought his wife back?”

Phantom paused his fury, shrugging a bit. “Nora keeps track of everything happening in Gotham in case something her husband did to save her comes back to bite them.”

“Huh.”

“Anyway! It took me going after Victor to ask why there was a new Robin for me to hear that the actual Batman was dead, Gotham went berserk for a while as every other guy tried to take up the position, and somewhere along the lines you got the grand idea to add ‘red’ to your name! Which makes no sense, since you practically lived for that mantle and I would’ve bet that you’d take it past the grave if given the chance.”

Tim winced. As per usual, Phantom’s words hit home in more ways than intended.

The thief stopped short, the glowing of his eyes intensifying as he looked over Tim’s new identity. Tim didn’t move as soundless footsteps strode forward, not even pausing as Phantom phased through the chain link fence to sit a couple feet away from him.

He could count on one hand the number of times Phantom had done this. One second they’d be exchanging insults, and then suddenly the criminal would stop and stare, feeling like he was gazing into the depths of Tim’s very soul. Each time, he called off their chase, insisting that Tim take a break and talk to someone about whatever was troubling him. It was uncanny how he could somehow tell when Tim’s negative feelings were overwhelming his rational thought—Batman himself would use Phantom encounters to measure Tim’s wellbeing at times.

Looking back, it was odd how Phantom would insert himself into every aspect of Robin’s life, but back off the second he sensed something was wrong. He’d call attention to whenever Tim was particularly anxious, once even physically dragging Bruce over to ‘talk to your son when he’s sad’, but never offer any comfort himself. But here they were, Phantom obviously seeing something Tim could never hope to conceal, with no Bruce nearby to summon and make things better.

Tim’s throat clogged at the reminder of yet another little thing Bruce might never get to do again. He couldn’t be dead, not with how many times Tim checked the body and struggled to recognize the man who’d become like a father to him. 

“...I…I know we’re not exactly friends, Detective. But if you need to get something off your chest, I swear to never use it against you.” Phantom fidgeted with his cloak. From this close a distance, Tim could see the faint glimmer of sparkling purple constellations embroidered on the inside. For some reason, the sight of the soft fabric never failed to calm his nerves.

(It reminded him of a time long ago, when he held a gel ink pen and asked a mystery person to quit whatever they were doing that left his arms covered in star charts that didn’t match anything in the Earth’s night sky.)

He didn’t dare force himself to speak, for fear he might break this tentative peace. Thankfully, Phantom seemed to be taking initiative that night.

“...did you know that I used to be a teen hero?”

Tim’s head jerked upright, meeting Phantom’s eyes. It was impossible to tell exactly what expression he was making behind the mask, but he got a sense of bitter nostalgia. “You never talk about your past.”

A scoff, “Yeah, ‘cause it’s depressing as fuck. Not exactly the sort of thing you can talk about causally.”

He chewed his lip, thinking. “Your suit…minus the cloak, it looks reminiscent of a uniform.”

Phantom fiddled with a cylinder hooked on his belt. It was the only piece of tech visible on his person, a modified soup thermos that somehow served as a near infinite item storage. Impressive, if not odd.

“Yeah, the cloak is more of a blanket than anything else. I added it on when I got tired of looking at the same clothes I used to save my hometown in. It…I didn’t become a hero for fame. It was more trouble than it was worth, honestly. You guys nowadays have so much better support systems than when I was in the business. Makes me wonder if…” he trailed off.

“...why’d you stop?” Tim asked gently, more than willing to throw himself into this new mystery now that he knew it was there.

“It was too much. Everyone wanted me gone, even the people I was protecting. I was hated for my powers, for not always being on the scene when I was needed, for not ending fights faster and for the property damage my villains caused. I didn’t live in a place with metahuman protection laws. The few people that knew my secret identity got tired of superhero life and ditched the first chance they got.” He sighed, “I was hurting, and was desperate for a way out.”

Tim frowned, “So you moved to Gotham and started stealing?”

Phantom snorted. “Nah, I was fucked up for a while after I ran away. It’s funny, one of my rogues was the first to track me down and drag me to a hospital to get my injuries checked. Like a dozen of them got together for an intervention, I thought I was finally losing my grip on reality. I spent a couple months recovering, then took one of them up on a suggestion to try causing trouble for a change. Not anything super bad, but…”

“...enough to feel more in control?” Tim suggested. It wasn’t uncommon for people in bad situations to commit minor crimes, both for the adrenaline and the power rush. Tim himself had once poured his whole soul into tracking and photographing Gotham’s nighttime birds. A hobby that was more than a bit cringe-worthy in hindsight, and definitely creepy considering how much effort he put into stalking his idols. Honestly his young age was the only reason he didn’t get put on a watchlist when he revealed himself to Bruce. That, and the whole I-know-your-secret-identity thing.

“Oof. Yeah, that’s a way to put it. Being hated hurt less when that’s what I was aiming for, y’know?”

Tim tilted his head. “I never hated you.”

A derisive laugh, “Uh-huh. And you loved being led on goose chases when there were more important ways to spend your time.”

“I’m serious.” Tim shifted so that he was better facing Phantom. He didn’t know why, but couldn’t stand the thought of Phantom leaving tonight convinced he was universally hated. “You only make a scene on quiet nights, and you always slowed down for me whenever I had to stop and intervene on some other crime. And you only target the private collections of rich people. Not anyone whose life would be ruined by something getting stolen. You even go out of your way to make sure the guards on duty don’t get in trouble, even when it puts you in a strategically worse position. And…”

He hesitated. Bruce wouldn’t approve…but then again, there was that weird relationship he had with Selina.

“And it was fun. To chase you. It was challenging and frustrating, but your appearance meant that there was nothing else to worry about that night. We could just run regular patrols.”

Oracle was the one to make the connection. Tim didn’t know where along the lines it became an accepted fact, only that Bruce was more comfortable about Robin patrolling alone when Phantom was making a move. A miracle considering what happened to the last one.

Phantom blinked, frowning a bit before his eyes went wide, a shaky smile forming on his lips. “Thanks…it was fun for me too. Kinda the whole reason I kept setting up scenes for Robin to find.”

Tim laughed. The sound startled both of them—he didn’t remember the last time he genuinely smiled like this. It had to be sometime before Bruce was gone, at least.

“So…” Phantom hopped down on the railing of a balcony below, balancing precariously in the way that only he could. He looked up at Tim with an easygoing smile that did little to hide the concern underneath. “As your self-proclaimed favorite rogue, wanna tell me what’s up with the sudden change?”

He shifted a bit, grin fading. “Well…Batman died. He was facing Darkseid and got hit. After the chaos died down, Nightwing took up the mantle and made Batman’s son the new Robin, to help him grieve or something.”

“I don’t know where to start with that.” Phantom adjusted his hood, briefly revealing tan skin underneath. “You sound like you didn’t have a say in it. Wasn’t Robin yours?”

Something bitter worked its way up through Tim’s chest. “It was a borrowed title anyway. I only took it up to help Batman, so it makes sense that I was dismissed—”

“No.”

“—after huh?”

Phantom strode up to him, poking a finger at his knee. “You love being Robin. You don’t have to justify losing your identity. It could’ve been taken in the name of world peace for all I care, that doesn’t make it any less shitty. You just lost someone super important to you, and your connection to them was taken because someone thought your grief was less important. I don’t care who the current one is, you are just as much Batman’s son.”

Tim couldn’t help the small sob that escaped. Or when it doubled, and tears started burning at his eyes. He rubbed at them in an attempt to stop them before they could make his mask go hot and sticky, but was startled out of it by a soft weight being thrown over him. He looked up to see Phantom leaning over him, securing the hood of his cloak over Tim’s own head.

“You looked like you needed some comfort. It’s weighted.” Phantom shrugged.

“...thanks.” Tim pulled it closer, more than happy to latch onto yet another new focus. “How do you move so easily in this? It feels like I’m being hugged by gravity.”

Phantom chuckled, and it was at that moment Tim suddenly realized the other was floating in the air over him. Since when has he been able to fly?

“I use intangibility a lot, but it’s not my only power. It felt like overkill to use more than that in my heists. So I didn’t.”

Tim groaned, “You were going easy on me this whole time?”

“Oh, definitely not. I’m sure you’ve noticed, but intangibility is arguably the most pain in the ass thing to counter. I’m being annoying on purpose.”

Phantom grinned, and Tim couldn’t help but analyze the full sight of him. Everything from his teeth to his ears was pointed, a sharp contrast to the wispy white hair that flowed smoothly in a nonexistent breeze. The most attention grabbing was a glowing green mark resembling a gash across his chest, roughly in the place where a hero would wear their logo. The sight of it made Tim’s own chest ache.

“I don’t think Batman is dead.” He said suddenly.

“What makes you say that?” Phantom asked, reclining on empty air. 

It wasn’t denial, not calling him insane or lost in grief. For the first time since his fight with Dick, Tim felt as though he could breathe again. “I know it sounds crazy, there’s no proof—”

“Woah woah woah,” Phantom reached forward, gently pulling Tim’s hands away from where he had started pulling at his hair. “Slow down. Walk me through your thought process.”

“It just…it doesn’t feel right. Not that I can’t believe it if he died, but this specifically doesn’t feel right. I’d feel it if Br-Batman was dead…there was a whole cloning facility where Batman’s body was found.”

That seemed to spark interest in Phantom’s eyes. “You think the body was a clone?”

“Why would someone as powerful and precise as Darkseid drop everything and kill someone he was in the process of cloning? Why was he even trying to clone Batman specifically? We’re missing something, and I think Darkseid is using everyone’s grief to cover his plan.”

Phantom propped his chin on his hand, deep in thought. “Darkseid…I’ve heard that name before. Does he have something to do with time or space?”

Tim practically sagged in relief. “He can travel freely through both, and has a host of other abilities that give Superman a run for his money.”

He snapped his fingers, “Ah, that Darkseid! Yeah, if he wanted Bats dead there wouldn’t be a body left. I’d bet my collection he’s lost in time somewhere.”

“Thank you!” Tim gestured wildly, “You’re officially the first person to hear me out. Like, is it really so hard to believe?”

“No probs, Detect-o. It’s not the weirdest thing I’ve heard, by far.”

“Exactly,” Tim huffed, leaning back and sighing. “Now I just have to convince the Justice League so they can go back in time and grab him.”

“Why not just get him yourself?”

Tim glanced over to where Phantom hung in the sky. “Unless you’re also hiding time powers in there, we kinda need the League to get to him. Plus I don’t even know when in time he is.”

“Lucky for you, I know a guy,” Phantom grinned. “The Master of Time messaged me this mornin’, something about stopping Batman from breaking the time space continuum. It’s why I’m back in Gotham so soon.”

“You…know the Master of Time.”

“Yep!” He popped the p.

“And they messaged you.”

Phantom hummed, “You can imagine how it went when I tried to confront Batman a couple hours ago. The new Robin’s a menace, if I was any slower you’d have to deal with a Phantom shish kebab.”

Tim winced. It was never fun to be on the wrong end of Damian’s katana. Still, he focused back on the insanity at hand. “So you’re saying you can just go back and rescue Batman right now?”

“Now that I know what’s happening, yeah. Clocky probably already has a portal ready for me. Batman will be back before you can say ‘Gotham’!”

It was inconceivable. To think, the living nightmare of the past weeks would be over, just like that. His brain was screaming at him that this was some sort of cruel setup, that there was no way Phantom was telling the truth. There had to be a catch somewhere, some kind of punchline in the sick comedy that was the life of Tim Drake.

But his heart, the part of him that just wanted his dad back won out.

“What’s stopping you? You’re not usually one to wait for a window of opportunity.”

Phantom rubbed the back of his neck. “No, but I distinctly remember waiting for a certain vigilante. I was wondering if…you’d like to come with?”

Tim’s jaw dropped. “You’re inviting me, a vigilante who has attempted to arrest you dozens of times…to travel back in time to save Batman, another vigilante who has tried to put you under arrest.”

“Emphasis on tried,” Phantom joked, before turning serious. “I mean it—it’s your family. Besides, it could be fun. You come with me on a time heist, instead of sitting back here worrying your pretty head off with all the ways things could go wrong. And you get to tell everyone else ‘I told ya so’ when you save Batman on your own.”

He tried to work his mind through what Phantom was offering. To be able to fix things, maybe not go back to the way they used to be (Damian might actually kill him if he ever wore Robin again) but to have Bruce back. It wasn’t even a question.

No matter how smart Tim was, how he tried to plan things in advance the way Bruce did, he never stopped being the lonely kid who would sneak out at night to shadow his heroes. When Phantom reached out to offer a hand, Tim didn’t hesitate.

“You’re wrong, though.”

Phantom blinked, firmly gripping Tim’s hand without hurting him. “About what?”

“I wouldn’t be saving Batman on my own. We’d be doing it together.”

A fanged grin matched his own, blinding him to the swirling green portal that formed around them. Before Tim could so much as wonder if he maybe should’ve messaged someone about what he was setting off to do, they were already gone.

— - —

This was supposed to be a oneshot, but it got a bit long so I decided to split it up.

I really love this au, but I noticed that everyone has a tendency to hone in on the angst so much that the characters behind it get a bit lost in the process. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I wanted to try my hand at writing the misunderstandings without making either of them at fault.

(Insert rant about how the whole point of soulmates is that this person is a match for you, so even if you fundamentally are not good for each other you still get where the other person is coming from. There's so much more angst potential in not being able to hate someone no matter what they do to hurt you, but I digress.)

But yeah, let the boys heal and be happy! Also this is the closest I've gotten to actually writing romance and that's not saying much XD

Here's the design I drew for Phantom Thief!Danny. Feel free to drop an ask, I'd love to ramble more about this :D

[jeni182]

When I say devastated, I'm not exaggerating.

When we started these I literally said 'these have to be perfect because if they're not, the fandom will riot'

And I was right.

Rightfully so, of course. This set was expensive. International buyers especially because they had to pay so much more in shipping. I don't blame them.

When I made the joke post about Andrew being listed as a backliner, that was the only issue I was aware of and on my AFTG Twitter timeline people were joking about how mad he'd be and I posted it thinking it'd ease any tension. When we announced the series I was posting in the same manner and bantering with people about the series, and thought this would be the same. I wouldn't have posted it if I'd known how many other issues there were. Either way I was wrong and the guilt I feel over making this situation worse is eating me alive.

I created content for this fandom for years. I've made incredibly close friends. It saved me in a lot of ways. The love I have for those people and these books and Nora is soul deep, and I wanted to badly to give something back to the fandom that gives me so much joy. To think people think there was no care or thought put into these is soul crushing. I understand not everyone will like them. That's just the business. But we worked alongside Nora to try our best to bring really beautiful editions for people, including checking in with my AFTG circle to get opinions on design.

I'm so incredibly sorry. I'm so sorry for the post that was insensitive about the whole thing. I'm sorry for the mistakes. I'm sorry these were less than perfect. I'm sorry people who haven't even gotten their books yet are already disappointed in them. I'm not trying to make excuses here. There are none. We fucked up and we have to have accountability for that because we HAVE to learn from this. Our readers are priority number one and we let them down in the worst way.

We're going to make it right the best way we can, and I know some people will still be mad. Again, I don't blame them. We're not a rich company. We have 5 employees that all handle different aspects of the business, and between paying them, the artists, printing, etc we actually don't make all that much on the boxes. But income isn't the point of Rainbow Crate. It's to bring queer books to more people and to help authors to create the editions they want to see in the world.

That's all I guess. I hope we can make this right for everyone and not just for the dust jackets. For anyone who has any sort of other damage issue with the books.

I'm sorry.

[rachetmath]

RWBY x Video games pt 2

Ruby: Okay so this time we were paired or geouped for some games. Me and my team were in Borderlands.

Jaune: Really? Which one?

Yang: All of them.

Jaune: *laughs* Okay. Okay. So who was right, the hunter or the deemed villains?

Ruby: Simple it was-

Weiss: Villains.

Blake: What?!

Yang: Babe we have to admit in a world like Pandora it might as well be the insane, and probably the most irredeemable place to live in.

Ruby: Doesn't matter. Jax is more evil than all those psychos. He knew what he was doing.

Weiss: Yeah but he was trying to get rid of psychos and provide people who are less crazy a safe place to live. Even though it's madness considering he’ll tax people.

Blake: What about the twins?

Yang: I mean shoot they were more of an after-product. They might as well represent that being a hunter ain't all what it is cracked up to be. Cause there will always be somebody bigger and badder who will one-up you in every way. Not just that they probably have brought more order to Pandora than we ever did.

Ruby: But-

Jaune: Okay! Forget I asked before you tear each other apart.

Ruby: Fine. Anyways what games were you guys in?

Nora and Ren: It Takes Two.

Yang: Oh. I mean it's easy considering-

Nora: No, we had issues.

Ren: A lot of them.

Nora: But the levels were beautiful. And Jaune.

Jaune: ?

Nora: If you ever want to talk I’m here.

Jaune: Hm.

Ruby: Wow you and Jaune have… tension.

Nora: I know.

Yang: Anyways, what about you, Jaune?

Jaune: O well I was by myself-

Emerald: Oh hell no. You lying ass bitch.

Weiss: Woah, hold on, Emerald why are you mad?

Emerald: I was with his pussy ass in the game. It took hours to get out.

Jaune: Cause you couldn't let me do my objectives.

Emerald: And make the game easier to where the Grimm will suspect us? No.

An incoming message saying, “The objective is to clear the game. The NPCs would have made his job hard enough considering there is no save button. You just made it more difficult for him by getting in his way. You could have stood still.”

Jaune: See.

Emerald: Well I gave you a fair shot.

Jaune: Please, it took you killing me I don't know how many times for me to even want to settle the score. By the way, I didn't appreciate the dry humping.

Emerald: Fuck you.

Jaune: Fuck you too. Don't be mad because I managed to outplay you. You are just trash.

Emerald: Okay. See-see we can fight. We can settle this now.

Jaune: Girl I will have you on your knees, begging. In fact I will have you scream my name and call me ‘Daddy’ like you ain't my daughter.

Nora: Are you two trying to insult each other or-

Emerald: Yes!

Jaune: Probably both.

Ruby: I feel disturbed to ask but what game was-?

Jaune and Emerald: Death Loop.

RWBY: Ew.

Nora: Gross.

Ren: I mean-no, I- I second that. Ew.

Emerald: *blushes* Shut up!

Ruby: Anyways where’s Oscar?

Oscar: Here.

Ruby: What game were you in?

Oscar: I wasn't in a game.

Jaune: What?!

Emerald: Don't tell me you have been sitting here the whole time.

Oscar: Yep.

Jaune: Oscar we are going through hell trying to stay alive. You didn't think to go and try to find us a way out?

Oscar: Sorry.

Jaune: Damn it!

Emerald: Stupid ass- Hazel made a damn mistake sparring you!

Jaune: Hey now don't get out of line.

Emerald: Or what?!

Jaune: I-

A door appears.

The message said, “If you two need to blow off steam then take a break here.”

Yang: Seriously? Like they are that tense to-

The door closes immediately with Jaune and Emerald gone.

Blake: *jaws dropped*

Weiss: They-they… impossible…

Ruby: Weiss claim down I sure-

Emerald: Ah~ Yes~ Harder. HARDER!!!

Ruby: Oh I hate being wrong.

Weiss: Fuck.

[pseudophan]

some post wad weekend thoughts...

i just wrote all this on the plane and haven't read it through so apologies for any mistakes

first of all, this weekend was incredible. i usually just kinda sit at home doing not much of anything, and this was a much needed break to actually have some fun. london in general always lifts my spirits but i suppose that danisnotonfire guy contributed a little as well.

guys i think i've met more people the past few days than i otherwise have in years. like. holy shit. i started listing people but i'm petrified i'll forget someone so i chickened out, sorry about that. but you all know who you are. i've met friends i've had for years, people i used to know but haven't spoken to in what feels like a decade, newer friends, and a frankly baffling amount of people i didn't know yet but who told me they've followed me for ages. like holy fuck you guys lmao what the hell??? and i mean did the reaction ever get old no of course it didn't. bad for my ego i'm sure but totally worth it. there's something very amusing and incredibly surreal about being chronically lame in most aspects of life and then suddenly finding yourself in an environment where you're kinda cool???? SO fucking fun oh my god, but also i do kinda feel like i've tricked you all? but hey i'll happily let you keep believing i'm cool, that is more than fine with me.

most importantly though everyone was SO lovely. like i said i don't think i've spoken to this many people in such a short amount of time in years and every single person i talked to was awesome. guys did you know phannies are kind of great... don't tell anyone but, lowkey... everyone is so funny and cool and absolutely insane but in a good way (shoutout everyone left at the gates until the very end, we should probably get some help).

and then lastly of course, mr howell himself. i talk about this a lot i feel like but fuck me that man was born to perform. whether you think he's actually funny or not, nobody can argue he doesn't absolutely thrive on a stage. he plays off the audience so well and he's so very obviously having the time of his fucking life. i'd already seen the show twice before this, and i didn't think anything would top the previous london show but man... the first night he came back out after the show having clearly been tearing up backstage, apologising for being an inconsistent absent parent, and i can't lie the "i had daddy issues and THEN i subscribed to dan howell" got me cause yeah no literally dude, you nailed it, exactly, well done. i think something about doing this show again, his magnum opus as he considers it, now after the dapg return was very special to him. he seems genuinely surprised that so many of us were ready to just jump back in like nothing happened, i don't think he was expecting so many people to still be waiting and it's... man. he comes off so grateful for us all and it's so fucking sweet. and then on the last night, i think that was my favourite, when the show ended and he got the standing ovation and people throwing him flowers.. he was so HAPPY. and clearly overwhelmed with emotion which, i gotta say, there is something honestly kinda funny about daniel howell standing in front of you trying not to cry. like no by all means dude go ahead, please, you've made me cry an endless amount of times it's only fair.

ugh. i'm proud of him or whatever. dick. and i'm proud of our ridiculous fucking community. i'm not sure what 14 year old nora would say if you'd told me i'd still be kicking it in the phandom a decade on, but at almost 25 (fml) i'm so so happy to be here still. you know, we get a bad rep, but i genuinely think as far as fanbases go we're pretty solid. and i love you all so much.

i believe i will have to rob a bank or something because the next time dan and/or phil do a tour i think i'll have to just show up at every date like i'm sorry but this was too good of a high we need to do it again immediately

anyway. back to work 💪

(by which i mean giffing dan and phil. i am still very much unemployed. fr though i'm two whole videos behind this has never happened i feel weird. who am i)

[puppetwoman17]

@ace-is-undead It’s nice to meet a new fan! I hope you make lots of friendships on here❤️

For anyone who’s curious, this person asked me:

as someone taking interest in Captain Marvel because of the movies (never heard of him before :/), I'd love to know why you think the movies ruined Billy's image! Bear in mind, I recently started reading some comics about Shazam

I knew I’d be making a hella long comment, so I thought, hell, let’s make a post!

Now, as a preface, I worded what I said a little too strong. The 2019 movie isn’t the worst piece of Shazam/CM media ever. There are definitely parts of it that I liked. The humor was 10/10 for me, and I did like the costumes. There are things about the story I don’t like, but for the purpose of all of us not sitting here for the next two hours, I will stick with just Billy’s personality.

This post will probably have stated everything more eloquently than me lol:

Many Golden Age heroes were created/used to combat war trauma. To the kids who read those comics, it made them feel safe. To read about these people with fantastical abilities, who regularly fought Nazis, supervillains, and entire armies.

Captain Marvel was a little different, though. It wasn’t an adult who was doing the protecting. Or, it wasn’t JUST an adult. It was also Billy Batson. A kid, like all of the other kids reading these comics. And it was different from kid heroes like Robin because he was the hero. The main hero.

Before the New52 reboot, basically from the 40s-2000s, but I could be wrong, Billy was a homeless kid. His uncle Ebenezer threw him out after his parents died and stole his inheritance. He got a job at Whiz Radio and became a reporter, giving him enough money to get his own apartment.

In one continuity, his friend Dudley becomes his guardian. In the most famous interpretation, the Power of Shazam series from the 90s, he is, after some time, adopted by his twin sister Mary’s adoptive family the Bromfields, and Nora Bromfield happens to be their mother’s cousin.

The important thing to grasp from this is that Billy was independent. Responsible. And when he got his powers, he was also responsible with them. He has a few fumbles, but he was always able to keep them and do good with them.

His Captain Marvel persona was also like that. He led the Squadron of Justice, a team of Fawcett heroes. There are also instances of heroes like Batman and Superman praising him as a trustworthy hero, even knowing about his identity.

It’s also important to note that, while in some times the Captain character is childish, he is never stupid. He makes mistakes, is a little goofy, but he never does anything outright cringe worthy.

A prime example of a good interpretation is the JLU episode Clash. The whole JL really likes him. For some reason my tumblr is acting up today so I can’t put any videos without it not allowing me to type afterwords. But the series is on Netflix. Like holy heck, Bruce says they all like him because he’s sunny. Bruce!

There’s also comic examples, like Action comics #768, which is in the POV of Superman. I’m just gonna put everything Clark thinks as text.

“And then it happens.”

“Armed with the wisdom of Solomon, the patience of Atlas, and the focus of Achilles, a teenage boy in the body of a man defends human kind to a frog goddess.”

“I can’t imagine anything more ludicrous. I can’t imagine anything more moving.”

“With unmatched eloquence, he explains humanity’s needs, our weaknesses, and our relationships with nature to a being as old as time.”

“She retorts. It’s not the act itself that enrages her, but the fact that her people are taken for granted.”

“Bred, butchered, wasted. Without appreciation for the contribution to the lifecycle.”

“He emphasizes. It is a horrible thing to be underestimated, unappreciated, forgotten.”

“His sincerity is a living thing. They speak for an eternity until Heqt has been heard and appeased.”

“Then, the war is over. Diplomacy and reason succeeds, where force…where I… simply would have failed.”

This is another example:

I mean the whole Captain Marvel-focused panel is Clark and Bruce arguing with Diana that Cap will be a great asset to the League, and how Bruce wants him on because he’s just GOOD. They all knew he was a kid, and they didn’t care because they trusted him that much!

Many 80s and 90s comic showed Cap as this beacon of hope, very akin to his Fawcett era, which is why so many of us liked it. He was still goofy at times, but it never overshadowed how much of a hero he was. Hell, the Fawcett heroes never gave a damn about him being a kid. All they saw was a person doing good, and they automatically began working with him.

He would get into friendly tussles with Superman, and him and Diana hugged one time, and she confided in him about how she might die. I can’t find the issue, but it’s drawn by Alex Ross, so that may narrow it for you.

Cap was genuinely respected. There are even some comics where Billy’s is interacting with the League as himself and they treat him like any other friend!

And Billy was chosen not because he was a last resort, but because the Wizard saw so much good and purity in him. He still made mistakes, but he was never not worthy.

Compare that with, not just the Shazam movies, but the DCAMU movies(JL War & Throne of Atlantis), and you get a whole other monster. I mean, he is just dumb, awful. He’s good when he’s Billy, a little snarky while also being a good person and comforting Cyborg(before taking his jersey, lol). But when he’s Shazam(his name in the DCAMU) every single thing that came out of his mouth was just… not it. If gets even worse in Throne of Atlantis. Literally almost everyone on the team hates him. The only reason Cyborg doesn’t is because he knows his identity.

In the 2019 Shazam movies, hes very similar. They made him a lot more jaded, which just ruined his character for me because Billy is the type of person who would rather die than talk down to other kids going through what he did. I’m cool with the rebelliousness, it’s just that that I’m worried about. It’s even worse in the 2013 shazam comic series because he’s actually way meaner there. Like jeez, why do you want me to hate this boy so much DC??

And as his Shazam self, he’s like ten times more goofy and irresponsible, which is such a backwards take it’s insane.

The character of Captain Marvel was beloved by so many children because it showed that they could be just like those other heroes. They could fight the monsters and get the job done, and no one would look down on them. They would be taken seriously. Seeing this kid bond with and interact with and be trusted by these seasoned adult heroes was EVERYTHING.

I may not have a grown up in the 40s/50s, but I did get introduced to him in JLU, and then Young Justice, and then obscure media, and then comics. And through that journey, the take I loved infinitely more was of Captain Marvel being this guy who made mistakes, but always tried to do the right thing.

Making him out to be this…immature dude who never knew what he was doing just stomped on all of us. It also really irks me because that is how some people will be introduced to him. As opposed to who he really is. And they won’t be interested because the face value is all they’ll see.

Heck, some people think he’s one of the weakest DC characters when he ranks in the top ten. He’s the Champion of Magic and guardian of the Rock of Eternity for Pete’s sake! He’s fought and almost won against the Specter himself! (Day of Vengeance comic series, it’s so good!)

It’s unclear why his character has been so diminished. Some people, including me, think DC is trying to lower his…everything in general so he can never measure up to the Man of Steel, which is so petty it’s ridiculous.

Hopefully he’ll get something in James Gunn’s new DCU, a movie or a show. Because I feel like there’s a chance to reintroduce the true Captain/Shazam to people.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my petty-fueled rant😅. Sorry for the angry spews. Anyway, there are some good reading lists for Shazam/Cap on tumblr. I really advise you to check those out. Though there are also a few articles on google listing all of his appearances, so if you wanna get detailed then those are where you should go.

We also have a Captain Marvel fan club! Go over to @im-not-buying-it-ether and ask for an invite for more content.

I hope you have a fulfilling journey!

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is:  @stevestark ! With fourteen Stranger Things fics and twelve in the Steve/Eddie tag, their charming works make waves in the fandom!

Our anonymous nominator recommends the following works by @stevestark:

they told me all of my cages were mental (so I got wasted like all my potential)

i think your house is haunted (your dad is always mad)

i was hitting my marks ('cause i can do it with a broken heart)

Eddie and Robin's Very Real Heterosexual Adventure

it’s hard to be at a party when I feel like an open wound (it’s hard to be anywhere these days when all I want is you)

Whether their fics are under 5k or over 10k, their world-building is so good! they have a way of making our boys feel so natural and the progression of the relationship always feels realistic. they were one of my favorites back in 2022 when s4 dropped, and they've made a sudden return to the fandom this year with new stories that are just as good if not better than what they had written back then! I'm always so excited to see they've posted something new, no matter if it's a new chapter or a whole new story. -- anonymous

Below the cut,  @stevestark answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

After watching ST4 Vol. 1 I was obsessed. Steve Harrington was one of literally two characters I loved from the very first time I “met” them (the other being Jim Hopper, which is why he tends to feature heavily in my works as the resident Dad) but I had never really been into any ships for him up to that point. The immediate chemistry he had with Eddie Munson though? Woof. I knew I had to write them, and it honestly was like I blinked and had suddenly churned out multiple fics. I stopped writing in general around the end of 2022, but when I got fired from my job in April, I got bored and reread my own works, which drew me right back in, especially because I had already written about 10,000 words of they told me all of my cages were mental (so I got wasted like all my potential) but had yet to finish it. I wanted to read the ending so badly myself that I simply picked it back up, and then next thing I knew I was writing more and more.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

There’s so many. I’m always a sucker for some good old fashioned Hurt/Comfort or Angst With a Happy Ending, but I think my all time favorite has to be Enemies to Friends to Lovers.

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Definitely Angst With a Happy Ending. I don’t think I really know how to write anything that’s just straight fluff or even straight smut. There has to be some angst in there, and I’m not really one for an unhappy ending. I’ll maybe do ambiguous, but I was raised on Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers ⸺ we’re happy ending girlies.

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

The One In Which A Time Loop Is Fucking Exhasuting. by badpancake on AO3. I think about that shit daily. Every part of it is absolute perfection, and I'm in love with it.

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

Fittingly with the last question, time travel! I have a title for a time travel fix-it already, I just need to let it ferment a little in my mind so I can figure out how to do it in a way that feels at least somewhat unique.

What is your writing process like?

Step 1: Put Taylor Swift’s folklore on repeat. Step 2: Open GDoc. Step 3: Stare at GDoc. Step 4: Start writing the first thing that pops into my head and hope it comes out coherent in the end. Step 5: Publish and then immediately reread my work after it’s already live, and pray I only find minor mistakes that I can quickly fix before anyone else reads the fic and spots them.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I always have the title before I even know what the fic will be! 99% of my fic titles are Taylor Swift lyrics, and it’s usually a process of me hearing a specific phrase and thinking “This is so Steddie coded.” After that, I begin the above process, and hope I do the lyrics justice, because I tend to choose the ones that are the most poetic to me personally.

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

Definitely when I finish writing. I’ve tried holding myself to a schedule before with multichaptered fic in other fandoms, and it just never works out the way I want it to. I actually have an ongoing Steddie WIP that I haven’t touched since April, because I’m waiting for the next chapter to come to me fully before I start writing it, and I do kind of regret posting it as a WIP in the first place. I feel much more accomplished when I can just push the whole work out at once, i.e. my season 2 rewrite where Eleven is found and taken in by Eddie and Wayne, which I had debated posting as a multichaptered fic as I wrote chunks of it at a time. I talked myself out of it though, and despite the fact that it took me weeks to finish, once I got there it was so satisfying to hit that publish button.

Which fic are you most proud of?

Definitely i was hitting my marks ('cause i can do it with a broken heart). There’s a whole entire 58 track playlist to go along with it that I carefully researched and curated before writing even a single word of the story, broken down into specifically themed mixtapes in a GDoc; it's linked at the end of the fic, with a breakdown of which mixtape each set of songs belongs to, and it is my absolute pride and joy.

How did you get the idea for they told me all of my cages were mental (so I got wasted like all my potential)?

I had a passing thought one day about the fact that Steve seemed to just tangentially know who Eddie was by the time we met him in canon, and wondered what it would be like if he had actually sort of known him, and what that would look like. Then I thought about the legend of King Steve, and the fact that he probably did know Eddie, if only as a dealer, and the whole thing sort of wrote itself after that.

When writing they told me all of my cages were mental (so I got wasted like all my potential), what was something you didn’t expect?

Definitely how long it ended up being! The plot was truly just a passing thought, and I honestly believed I would write little vignettes of the two of them getting to know each other at parties over the years, but what actually transpired was some deep character work and a true slow-build to anything substantial between Steve and Eddie.

What inspired i think your house is haunted (your dad is always mad)?

Honestly the title itself! Sometimes, when I pick a Taylor Swift lyric and decide it would be a pretty fic title, that’s where the inspiration ends. With this one, I thought about the fanon (and somewhat canon) belief that Steve’s parents are assholes who don’t really love their son, and even though I’ve known the lyrics to folklore backwards and forwards since the album dropped in 2020, for some reason that line hit extra hard in April of this year, and all I could think about was how badly Steve Harrington wants to be loved and wanted, and I just started writing and didn’t stop until I was satisfied.

What was your favorite part to write from Eddie and Robin's Very Real Heterosexual Adventure?

The entire thing. I’m not just saying that, either. Sometimes, such a good idea falls into my lap that I actually do a proper outline, and with this one, I fully had little sketches going on and everything. I meticulously planned every date they would go on, and I knew exactly how it would end. Though, if I had to isolate any single part that was the most fun to write, it would be the last few lines. Just pure chaos. It makes me laugh every time.

How do/did you feel writing i was hitting my marks ('cause i can do it with a broken heart)?

That was one of my favorites to write, and it flowed out so easily; I had just finished rewatching all of ST, start to finish, for the first time since right before ST4 Vol. 1 dropped. And the only thing I could think about after finishing was that even though it made sense for Max to be cursed, it would have made infinitely more sense for it to be Steve. All we ever see in canon of Steve Harrington is his insecurity and feeling that he’s never enough for anyone; season 1, he thinks Nancy is cheating on him with Jonathan, and they try to keep him out of the Upside Down stuff. Season 2, Nancy actually leaves him for Jonathan, and tells him that he ⸺ and his love, and loving him ⸺ is bullshit. Season 3 is literally the story of how King Steve became a nobody who never wins a fight and falls in love with people who will never love him back. Even season 4 ⸺ when Dustin comes rushing into Family Video to try to track down Eddie somehow? Steve’s immediate reaction is “Oh, your new best friend Eddie who you think is cooler than me because he plays your nerdy game.” He’s never not a mess of insecurity and self-loathing, and nobody around him ever really does anything to rectify that feeling for him, so he’d be perfect Vecna bait. And the whole thing started with the playlist, really, because I had this idea that Steve is a vibes guy for music, rather than a style or genre guy, and then it was just a matter of writing around the mixtapes I’d mapped out. Which, naturally, led to breaking my own goddamn heart writing what I think it feels like inside his head, because I was  ⸺ and still very much am ⸺ that person in the friend group. Never the first pick, always an afterthought, the one people always think is fine but never bother to actually check if they are. So, I guess, it felt cathartic to get it all out somehow, but it was also just so deeply sad, because that feeling never really goes away completely, and I hated doing that to Steve.

What was the most difficult part of writing it’s hard to be at a party when I feel like an open wound (it’s hard to be anywhere these days when all I want is you)?

Probably just the physical aspect of shotgunning, honestly, and also trying to accurately describe the high. Weed doesn’t do anything for me mentally, and I don’t like what it does for me physically ⸺ to the point that I actually wonder if I have a mild allergy to it ⸺ so it’s not really something I can pull from personal experience in regards to describing it, which made it more difficult than I was prepared for.

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

Definitely the opening bit of there’s something about you in the moonlight (but your eyes go so well with the day). Both the Eddie intro and the Steve intro. It was just so fun to tap into that feeling of being a kid and getting hit with the lightning bolt of why people have crushes, but I especially have a lot of love and fondness for the way I described Steve’s desire to find his perfect match, and how it’s not rooted in sex like people thought of King Steve, but in his desire to find someone he’d have fun with forever.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

I’m currently working on a multichaptered fic where Eddie lives, but leaves Hawkins the very night he’s released from the hospital without telling anyone; he does stay in contact though, and he and Steve end up falling in love through letters and phone calls, until, eventually, Eddie realizes that he ran away from the one thing that made him feel the most alive. At last edit, which was yesterday, it’s at 15 chapters and 18,000 words, and I’ve only just gotten to the point where Eddie and Steve are playing phone-tag. Also, if anyone is interested in a non-Steddie but still relatively Eddie-centric fic, I rewrote the entire season 2 canon in are we out of the woods? (are we in the clear yet?) and I am currently working on a season 3 rewrite, which will be followed by a season 4 rewrite, wherein Steddie will become canon. It’s definitely for the long-haulers, but I think it’ll be worth it. Actually, despite being non-shippy so far, it’s probably my favorite thing I’ve ever written. There’s just something about Wayne Munson as the world’s best dad that does it for me, and, as we’ve seen in canon, Eddie is surprisingly really good with kids. I like to think that he’d have been an excellent brother, and I got to explore that with him and Wayne deciding Eleven was theirs.

Thank you to our author, @stevestark, and our nominator! See more of @stevestark works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[cy-lindric]

Hi! I love your historical pants. Did you use an existing pattern, or did you draft your own? And if so... Do you sell patterns at all? I'd love to make myself a pair but I haven't learned enough to make my own patterns yet

Hello ! I got this question a lot so I hope you won't mind if I use it as a springboard to make a general public reply about it ! For reference, I started sewing a year and a half ago. I don't have any formal training and started from zero, so I kind of just rely on enthusiasm and trial and error.

For most of my projects, I use a mix of patterns and draping. I mostly do men's clothing and the patterns I find don't always match my body type exactly, so I rarely get to use them as is. I'm fairly tall and narrow so usually the smaller men's sizes are a good base, but not all patterns include sizes small enough, and there's still much to fix for me in terms of chest length, leg length, thighs, etc. That'll be something to keep in mind if you're smaller or more hourglass shaped for instance.

For the fall front trousers, it was kind of an impulse project, so I didn't work from a book and I bought a pdf pattern from Laughing Moon Mercantile. It was very useful to construct the front, which is quite complex by my second-year-of-sewing standards, but it only came in fairly big sizes so there was a lot of alterations to do pretty much everywhere else. Also worth noting is that the pdf is made for an A0 format, and although you can print it at home on a mosaic of A4 paper using Acrobat, it's impossible to select which "tile" section of the A0 page you want to print. The pdf pattern contains many options and printing everything to get just the pieces I needed was just too wasteful to do. Instead, I printed only the pattern pieces from the first page, and drafted/copied the missing pieces from other pages myself directly on pattern paper. If you're willing to go through the printing and resizing hassle, it's a great pattern with very clear and exhaustive informations on construction and options for both historical and modern notions.

I picked that one because I wanted to do trousers specifically and it matched my needs best with many options to potentially combine, but if you're looking to do shorter breeches or just want to use it for the fall front, patterns are fairly easy to find on etsy or elsewhere. I like Reconstructing History because their smallest men's size works great for me and they cover a huge range of eras and styles. Unfortunately the instructions don't contain as many diagrams and are sometimes a bit more difficult to follow. I almost never buy paper patterns so I can't recommend any. When it comes to actual historical garments that aren't like, halloween costumes, I find it very difficult to encounter paper patterns and I only find what I'm looking for in books or pdf patterns. I find that both is best where you're a beginner ; the book gives great insight, and the pdf is a good base to work off. I'm still fairly new so I only have a few books (some of them physical, a lot of them pdfs, because they're expensive and sometimes out of print) but they're great classics and they help me a lot :

The Cut of Men's Clothes, 1600-1900 by Nora Waugh 17th Century Men's Dress Patterns by Braun, Costiglio, North, Thornton and Tiramani The Medieval Tailor's Assistant: Common Garments 1100-1480 by Sarah Thursfield Patterns of Fashion - Books 3 and 4 by Janet Arnold

Sorry this was so long ! If you're a beginner reading this, keep in mind I just threw myself at this with no prior experience quite recently and I'm having a lot of fun so go for it and don't be afraid to make mistakes and start over ! Good luck :)

[999thspookyjester]

Here is my take on why the author makes jeremy and Nora mirror each other’s behavior throughout the story, from a side it makes jeremy look like a more suitable ml/love intrest. Maybe it also gives a bit of rivalry between the two to make the audience think jeremy has any chance. Which he doesn’t have at all.

The only behavior that made Jeremy look suitable was the fact he had blocked any other potential person from becoming his partner/companion.

He stayed focused on shuli for many years and probably in some of them he never pictured Shuli as his step mother.

However Jeremy’s character is only there to strengthen Nora’s role as the ml, since later Jeremy finds his most suitable partner.

Which brings the conclusion that nora was the best option for Shuli and she was never/or would never be a great companion (romantically) to Jeremy, he only loved her because she was there and gave him the attention and validation he needed after feeling neglected.

Also being the eldest child played a role in Jeremy’s character.

This might not sound so accurate due to the fact I’m manhwa only and haven’t checked the novel yet.

So forgive me for my mistakes.

[buckysgrace]

10. I Remember You

Billy Hargrove x Fem!Mayfield OC

Now That We Don't Talk

CW: Stepcest, cheating

Kim

The hotel they stayed at wasn’t fancy, but they did offer free breakfast the next morning. She made sure that Nora got enough to eat, that she was happy and fed before they retreated back to the room. They had it for another two hours, just enough time to figure out what they would do next. 

She sat huddled on the bed, unsure of how she’d let herself get into such a sticky situation. She felt ridden with guilt, so upset with the way they had managed to hurt Tommy. She didn’t want it to be like this and she hoped that he could realize that one day. 

“Are you okay?” She asked him, tilting her head at the way he kept tapping his foot and pacing through the room. She could tell he was probably wanting to smoke, but was being kind enough to keep from doing that in front of Nora. She appreciated it. 

“Yeah.” He nodded his head, looking just as stressed as she felt. She frowned, sighing at the way he was keeping from opening up to her still. They couldn’t push each other away, not now. 

“No you’re not.” She told him seriously, glancing at where Nora was balancing her stuffed bunny on her hip. She probably missed her dolls that were safely packed in the car. 

She took Billy’s hands gently, pulling him towards the bed with her. She squeezed his fingers softly, smiling gently before she brought her lips against his knuckles. His blue eyes were a storm when she met them again, mixed with anguish and sorrow. 

“I don’t think I’d be a good dad.” He said at last, taking her by surprise as he pulled his hand away to rub against the nasty bruise that had formed on his cheek. She shook her head quickly. 

“What?” She looked at him softly, “Billy, you’re already great with her. You’re going to be a fantastic dad.” She meant every word too. He had been so soft with Nora thus far and she could remember when he taught children at the pool. He was great with kids. 

“I’m a deadbeat one.” He laughed bitterly, making her furrow her eyebrows together. It wasn’t his fault. Not really. Many mistakes were made. 

“No,” She said sternly, “You’re here now and that’s what matters. Things are going to work out. We promised they would.” She told him seriously, wishing she could reassure him with a kiss. But she didn’t want Nora to get too confused yet. 

“I don’t want to hurt her.” He mumbled as he glanced towards the toddler who was humming to herself, rubbing her palm over the bunny’s ears. 

“You won’t,” She reassured him as she squeezed his hand, “You’re doing great already, you’ll see.” She promised him, resting her cheek against his skin gently. He breathed in deeply, rubbing his thumb across her cheek. 

“What’s the plan?” He asked her, making her begin to seriously sort through their plan once again. There wasn’t much of one at all. It was sort of sporadic. And she hadn’t heard from Tommy, which made her worried. She wanted to make sure that he was okay, that he wasn’t drinking himself silly. 

“Addi said we could stay for however long we need,” She replied, “She lives in the town over if you remember?” She explained, scooting over so Billy could join her on the edge of the bed. 

“Eddie doesn’t still deal, does he?” He asked her slowly, making her feel bad as she recalled the issue that they might bump into. She really hoped Billy would be strong enough to get through this. 

“No,” She said softly, “Not anymore. I took the money I had saved up, but it won’t last us long.” She explained, pulling her smile to her lips as Nora approached. 

“Whewe daddy?” She tilted her head in confusion, blue eyes shining as she held her bunny tightly to her chest. Her whole world had just been tipped upside down and she didn’t realize it yet. 

“He’s resting,” Kim lied, unsure of what else she was supposed to say, “You know he works a lot.” She pressed a strand of strawberry blonde hair behind her ear, wishing she could be honest with her.

“I miss him.” She sighed deeply as she crawled onto Kim’s lap. She rubbed at her back, feeling bad at the frown that formed on Billy’s lips. 

“I’m sure he misses you too, baby.” She reassured her as Nora dropped her head to her chest, sighing deeply. She rocked her back and forth, not sure how they were supposed to do this. 

“Did you ask your mom?” Billy asked suddenly, smiling in acceptance as Nora handed him her little bunny. He held it to his lap, looking a little at ease. 

“I’m terrified to even try.” She admitted, wincing as she thought about what Susan would say. She’d be furious. Disgusted. But none of that mattered. She was happy with Billy, even in this mess. 

“I could talk to my dad.” He said softly, making her eyes widen. She didn’t want Neil brought into this mess. He’d never let them live it down. 

“And say what?” She asked seriously, “It won’t be long before everyone knows. And that’ll be a whole different can of worms.” She huffed, furrowing her eyebrows together as he began to laugh

“Sorry,” He wiped the back of his mouth, “Just a funny way of saying we’re fucked.” She shook her head, feeling her own laughter coming forth when Nora spoke up again. 

“I wanna go home.” She sat up on her knees, pressing her little fingers against Kim’s cheek. She sighed once again, hoping she didn’t break her daughter's heart. 

“I know baby,” She said softly as she kissed the top of her head, rocking her back and forth, “I think I need to call my dad.” She replied as she finally came to the right conclusion. Sam would let them stay with her. 

“He’s going to hate me.” Billy grumbled as he dropped his head in his hands, sighing deeply. She rubbed his back this time, unsure if Sam would be that upset. Maybe a bit. 

“He’s never been a fan of Tommy, so maybe that’ll help,” She paused softly, “Do you want to go visit grandpa?” She asked Nora instead, watching as her eyes filled with excitement. 

“Yeah!” She shouted as she began to bounce on the bed, holding onto Kim’s shoulder for balance. She kept her hand on her leg, ensuring she could grab her if she fell. 

“Should I try to call Tommy?” She asked suddenly, wondering if she should do it before they just disappeared. She didn’t know if he’d want to know, however. 

“Why would you need to?” Billy asked as he raised his head to look at her, his eyebrows furrowed together. 

“I just want to make sure he’s okay right now.” She admitted a second later, more worried about him than she had originally thought she would be. She didn’t want him to hate her either, but that was inevitable. 

“He’s not going to be okay.” He told her gently, eyes softening as he squeezed her knee. She nodded her head in agreement, licking at her lips that felt too dry. 

“I feel awful.” She admitted a second later, feeling like she was safe to do so. He watched her for a second, analyzing her features before he spoke up. 

“Did you want to keep pretending?” He asked, turning away from her as Nora bounced her way to him. She giggled as she fell against him, toppling against his side. 

“No,” She defended herself quickly, “I just didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. And maybe he’d want to talk to Nora.” She added, watching the way the toddler plopped onto Billy’s lap with her feet in the air. 

“And say what?” He questioned her, still smiling as he tickled at Nora’s sides. She squealed loudly, holding her arms to her chest as she began to giggle. 

“I don’t know,” She admitted, “I’m just thinking out loud.” She told him truthfully, taking a second to brush her fingers through Nora’s soft locks. 

“I am too,” He offered as he rubbed her back gently, “I think calling your dad is a start. Then we could stay with your friend for a day or two before we made the trip out there.” He helped Nora stand back up, accepting the way she hugged onto his shoulder. 

“It sounds like you’ve got it figured out.” She nodded as she dropped her head against his, biting back a smile as Nora began to tap her palms against their heads. 

“I’ve been thinking,” He hummed as he brushed his nose against her cheek, “You should call Sam.” He told her, making her nerves grow in her stomach. She knew she needed to, but she was worried about what he would say. 

“I know,” She breathed in deeply, “Do you want to get the car set up?” She asked him, hoping that the camaro could take them on such a trip. Surely it could handle a few back to back trips to California. 

He nodded, then turned his attention to Nora, “Do you want to go play outside?” He smiled, tilting his head as her jaw dropped in surprise. 

“Weally?” Her features turned ecstatic as she hugged him fully now, eyes twinkling in joy. 

“Sure,” He smiled as he accepted her arms, picking her up, “We can get all of your dollies out, how’s that sound?” He questioned her, making Kim smile. He was doing such a great job and didn’t even realize it. 

“Wike fun!” Nora added as she clapped her hands, kicking her little feet back and forth. Billy stopped to grab her shoes, but kept her balanced on his right hip. 

“I thought so too,” He replied as he carried her out of the room, making Kim sigh gently, “Maybe they can sit by you in the car.” His suggestion carried out of the room, leaving Kim alone with her thoughts for a moment. 

She stared at the phone for a moment, reminding herself that she put herself in the situation. She needed to be an adult and face her consequences. Which meant calling her dad and explaining what had happened. Even if she was humiliated.  

“Hey daddy.” She spoke up when she heard Sam answer, trying to bite back her nerves that were threatening to come up. 

“Hey, monkey,” He answered, sounding confused, “What’s wrong?” He asked her, sounding tired as she glanced towards the time on the clock. It was still early where he was at. 

“I was wondering if I could come stay with you for a few days?” She asked him, deciding it was best to keep from beating around the bush. She closed her eyes tightly, waiting for his response. 

“You know you don’t have to ask,” He chuckled softly, “I can pick the three of you up at the airport.” He added, sounding like he was rolling over. Probably searching for his glasses. 

“We’d be driving there actually,” She breathed out deeply, “And Tommy wouldn’t be coming.” She added softly, listening as the other side of the line went quiet. 

“Just you and Nora?” He asked her, sounding almost excited about it. She shook her head, wishing she could be amused. 

“And Billy.” She added slowly, listening for any sign of protest. She heard nothing. That had to be a good sign. 

“I can drive out there,” He offered, “Or I can send you some money if flying would be easier.” He suggested, doing his best to help them out. She appreciated it. 

“I think driving would be smarter,” She said honestly, “Tommy and I are divorcing so-, we have all of our things with us.” She admitted, deciding it was best for the truth to come out. If they were staying with him, he’d know anyway. 

“Are you okay?” Sam asked softly, making her surprised. She breathed in deeply, shaking her head. She really wasn’t, but she wouldn’t be. 

“No,” She breathed out, letting her tears fall for the first time, “I just feel so horrible. I did something really bad.” She admitted, rubbing at her chest as if she could heal her sore heart. 

“That doesn’t mean you can’t make it up,” He replied softly, “Everything is going to work out.” His tone was nice and reassuring. She appreciated it, and needed it at the moment. 

“I know,” She sniffled as she rubbed her fist across her cheeks, “I just feel like I’ve messed everyone’s lives up.” She admitted, thinking about Billy too. All of this was her fault. She just hoped they wouldn’t hate her for it. 

“I told you that you should’ve moved out here with me.” Sam told her, making her shake her head as she thought about the many times he’d said that. 

“I guess you did,” She smiled, wishing she could laugh, “I haven’t told mom yet.” She told him, even though she knew that he wouldn’t bring it up. 

“My lips are sealed,” He promised, “When should I expect you?” He asked, fumbling on the other end of the line. Probably writing it down. 

“I’m not sure yet,” She admitted, “We’re going to stay with my friend for a day or so before we get our surroundings. Then I’ll call and let you know.” She promised him, feeling like she’d forever be grateful. 

“I’m excited to see you, despite everything.” Sam added, making her feel a little better. Maybe it wouldn’t be that bad. Hopefully Nora would understand. 

“I’m excited to see you too,” She promised, “Thank you.” She added, playing with her hair as she wondered if she was disrupting his life too. She felt selfish. 

“I’ll get the guest room set up,” He spoke, sounding a little more excited, “Sending you all of my love.” He added before they hung up, making her feel a little better. 

She joined them outside once she ensured everything was out of the room and it was clean enough to leave. Their future wasn’t stuck here. 

“Well?” Billy asked, his arms stuffed full of baby dolls as Nora explained their various personalities to him. It was a cute sight. 

“He’s going to set up the guest room,” She smiled gently, accepting the huge that Nora gave her, “I’ve never driven so long with her before.” She told him seriously, hoping she’d enjoy it. He smiled at her in a loving way, making her heart flutter as all the bitter feelings seeped away. 

“I guess we’ll just have to figure it out together.” 

Tags: @cassandracorvo @mrprettywhenhecries @eyehartart @losingmygrasponreality

[ramonaboat]

More Alex Claremont-Diaz in NYU

Because if Casey was to write a book just about him navigating student life, having more of the college experience he didn’t get in Georgetown, while being Henry’s bf… I would read it hundreds of times over. So to fill in the need, I will supply my own headcanons

Alex gets a solid stable friend group throughout, and somehow he’s made friends with who many consider underdogs. One of them is the daughter of a plumber in NYC, who got into NYU for her undergrad under a full scholarship. One of them is a gay man who was disowned by his family, but is happily married now. His more privileged friends are more aware about the advantages they have and are not assholes about it. He himself is privileged guy after all

He does have classmates who he can sense want to use him for their own gain and social brownie points. His friends are protective about it

When it was apparent to the students that their friend group was a thing, all of a sudden the once underdogs became more popular just by association with Alex. Social climbers want in. Alex kinda feels bad about it but his friends reassure him

June and Nora are happy that Alex has friends from school and outside the Super Six

Alex’s NYU friends get close to Henry eventually, as the former hosts a lot of study sessions at the brownstone as soon as he’s sure he can trust them

Alex’s friends are fascinated by the fact that he can be so ordinary sometimes. Like yes, he’s a brilliant student, was summa cum laude for his undergrad, was a freaking prodigy, but he also gets toothpaste stains on his hoodie and forgets to shave his stubble when he’s busy. He also falls asleep in the library, waking up to one side of his curls flatter than the other. He trips and sneezes and makes mistakes and had to take several trips to the bathroom after insisting on eating his leftovers gone bad (he didn’t have time to get anything else that day, okay?) He was extraordinary but ordinary

They help him get through his fear of disappointing people, of always needing to prove that Alex Claremont-Diaz is deserving because of his own brilliance and not because of his parents (particularly his mother)

The friends also freak out when his Mom calls. They have moms that call them too but like.. hearing the President’s voice on the other line just talking to her kid and asking normal mother questions was a surreal experience. That they don’t quite get used to it.

For one of his friend’s birthdays he gives her an Apple Pencil, because she saved up to buy an iPad from her corporate job so she can annotate her readings from there but mostly used non-Apple styluses cause she didn’t have the budget for an Apple Pencil yet. When she received it she was shocked cause it was expensive for a stylus but Alex insisted. He doesn’t throw around his money, he doesn’t like to make his friends uncomfy with expensive gifts, but he knows when to help

They know Alex loves him when people genuinely don’t know things about him. There are loads of facts about him online and in the press, so when people ask him about things they know are out there and are public knowledge he gets excited. People often already know things about him, it gives him a semblance of normalcy

He still occasionally likes the spotlight though, he is ACD. He loves it most when he can use his influence to do good, like give spotlight to certain charities

He has a cool prof one semester that made them have a karaoke session during the last class. Used the class projector for it and everything. Alex sang London Boy and the class went wild

He once brings a tupperware filled with cookies to share. “My boyfriend baked them,” he said nonchalantly as if his boyfriend weren’t the Prince of freaking England. “He doesn’t have much kitchen experience but he’s been practicing and he’s pretty proud of this one” This was when his friends hadn’t met Henry yet so they were astounded

Eventually they get used to Henry making them tea, handing them drinks, serving them food (a lot of it takeout 😅)

Some study sessions end up being board game sessions, Henry’s included

Alex’s friends often tease him about how in love he is with Henry. Some fake gag when they’re being too sticky-sweet

Alex loves hosting dinners and study sessions and stuffing his friends. He knows a lot of them are struggling with scholarships and rent and jobs that barely pay the bills so he knows it helps them get their mind off a couple meals for the month. He also gets so much food that they all have leftovers to bring home and microwave for breakfast. He chalks it up not being good at estimating how much food they need, but really its his way of helping them. His friends catch on when they notice they always have their favorites ready.

This makes Henry love Alex even more

They discover Henry has a thing for when Alex uses legal jargon. They tease him about it. Henry threatens to throw them in the dungeon

His friends were once sharing horrible college dorm experiences. “Did you stay in dorms, Alex?” one of them asks even if they know the answer is now. “I, err, stayed at home” Home being the freaking WHITE HOUSE, one of them points out

His parents, June and Henry come during graduation. There was media coverage.

That’s it for today. To be honest with you I want to turn this into a fic in the POV of his classmates but I don’t have the time so let’s settle with this brain dump for now 😅

[ezekiel13]

Lamplight creation story told as if it were a myth by Fo4 MacCready

(I don’t write so sorry if I’ve made any mistakes)

It’s about 1,200 words

If MacCready was honest, visiting settlements with Nora was definitely one of his least favourite parts of his role as a “friend of the General”. But he could see some joy in it- for example, killing the gunners when they came to visit.

Unfortunately, it seemed that all there was to do this time was help shore up some defences, which Nora was busy doing with some of the Settlers, while MacCready was told to “find something to help out with.”

He would admit, Jamaica Plains was quite a nice place, even if the “treasure” was just a bunch of old world trinkets. Nora had seemed pleased with them, which he supposed was worth something.

In the end, helping out came to find him. He had just been cleaning his rifle in one of the mostly fixed up houses when a group of the settler’s children appeared. There had been six of them, with one around 10 leading the others in.

One thing had led to another, and they had sat around him, before the youngest- a girl aged approximately 4, if he had to guess- had asked him a question, “Can you tell us a story?”

Why they had decided he, the hired gun, had better stories than his pre-war boss, he didn’t think he’d ever know. He’d considered saying no, but at the end of the day, he didn’t have anything better to get up to.

He sighed, and begun to tell a tale he didn’t think he’d ever be able to forget, one he’d been told since before he could even remember, “210 years ago, south of here, in the Capital of America, there was a group of children on a field trip- which was not going to a field, but rather being taken by a teacher to visit an interesting place. They had been members of a school, known as ‘Early Dawn Elementary’ and 87 children,”

One of the young boys had looked up at him, “87 children? I know,” he looked around at her friends, pointing at them to count, “I know… 5 children!”

“Hmm- schools before the bombs were a lot larger.” That seemed to satisfy her, so he continued, “The children had been taken to visit a group of caves, known as the Lamplight Caverns. They had gone with their teachers, and some of their parents. For an adventure. What they hadn’t known at the time, was that it would end up saving their lives,” he paused, looking at the children’s faces, and remembering telling this same tale so many times,

“The class had been ready to leave when the caves began to shake rapidly. The lights flashed, and went dark, causing the children to panic and scream. One of the parents volunteered to see what had occurred, believing the now dark caverns to be a danger- what he hadn’t known was that they were the only place they were able to live. He returned after a few hours, his face pale and eyes wide. Him and all of the mungos-“

He stopped, realising that his audience was staring at him, before the eldest piped up, “What is a mango?”

MacCready laughed slightly, “A mungo? They’re adults. Anyone over 16, like myself, is a mungo.”

The group nodded solemnly, as if he had imparted worldly wisdom to them.

Seeing their acknowledgment, he continued the story, “The adults had huddled together, as he told the tale of what he had seen out of the caverns. His voice had quivered, stumbling over words as he explained what happened. Washington was destroyed. There had been large mushroom clouds all over the area. It was no longer Washington D.C. It was now the Capital Wasteland, and nobody was safe.

As the days past, the mungos left, one by one, to look for supplies. However, they stopped returning, until it was only the children and their teacher, Miss Delaney left. She had stayed in the caverns with the children, but knew they couldn’t continue, as their food was running scarce. She had to make a choice- risk everything by getting supplies, or die within the caves?

She chose to leave, telling the children that she would return with food, and that it would all be okay. It had been one month since the war. She never came back.

All hope was not lost, as one brave child, Jason Grant, protected them all. He wasn’t scared like the others. He told everyone that the caves were safe- it was only outside that was bad. He wasn’t worried. He became their leader, aged 10.”

The eldest child looked horrified at that, and the others were staring wide-eyed at him. MacCready wasn’t entirely sure why, he had been Mayor aged 10 after all, but then he remembered Nora’s horrified looks when he told her his life story. 10 year old mayors seem to scare people a bit.

He shrugged, “Someone had needed to be in charge, and everyone there was afraid. Their homes were gone- but they had each other. They would survive. He had been leading a group to look for supplies throughout the caves shortly after taking charge, and the group had found some mushrooms that glowed, a bright and sickly green. He had found them food!”

MacCready hesistated, and decided to not say where it is that the mushrooms came from. Their parents would probably not be happy if he shared about the influence of the… corpses on the mushrooms.

“The children were overjoyed, and life in the caves improved. They fixed the lights to celebrate, filling the caves with Lamplight once again, and becoming ‘Little Lamplight’ a town of safety.

Two months after the Great War, a group of children ventured deep into the caverns, finding a door. The children had banged and pleaded at it for days, begging entrance to what should have been a safe haven. A mungo on the other side had told them they were dead already. Jason made a choice. They didn’t need any mungos. They would do fine as just the Lamplighters. A wall was constructed to block off the Vault, to keep them safe from the mungos who couldn’t be trusted.

Three months after the world ended, the children had conspired, and held a vote, officially claiming Jason as the Mayor, on the 26th of January. Little Lamplight was their own city. A town of children. They were independent.

Nobody knew how, but word of the town of children had grown, and over the years many people had visited- mungos turned away, and children welcomed. It wasn’t uncommon to go to patrol and find a baby outside of the caves, but they managed. The children had a few books, and taught each other what they could.

6 years after settling in Lamplight, Jason and many of the original children found themselves becoming mungos. It was Jason who decreed they couldn’t stay- no adult did. If the Lamplight ones did, who knew what they would become? They left, saying they would create ‘Big Town’ for all of the Lamplighters who left. Eventually, Jason himself returned, giving a map with Big Town on.

He told them all how perfect it was, how aging out of Lamplight was a gift, because in Big Town they saw the sun every day! They ate foods from the wild and it was a safe haven.

Every Lamplighter wanted to join Big Town, but nobody truly wanted to leave. Little Lamplight was safe. New Mayors were elected, and trade was set up with nearby groups, as the world adjusted.

Big Town, and Jason himself became myths- a tale of a world that was, and who they had became. The lamps stayed lit every day, to honour the child who had saved them- us all.”

It had felt odd, to tell their story to children not in Lamplight. The last time he had told it, it had been to Duncan, just before he had to leave.

The children were all staring at him, and looking up, he noticed Nora was too. Ah. The pair of them probably had to leave.

[dragynkeep]

I genuinely could have excused the whole lying to Ironwood cheap subplot if the show had done two things;

1 - Replaced those scenes in which RWB sip tea at the manor feeling sorry for themselves with the scenes where the two of them (not all three because I admit that someone physically capable has to protect Nora and the others who for whatever reason didn't evacuate to the underground IIRC) with scenes in which they either join the Atlesian army and actually fight Salem and the grimm or went to Mantle to kill the grimm there, or they split forces to help both. This at least would've shown that the heroes' actions match their words. "This is my home. And I'm not giving it up without a fight", my ass.

2 - In the Ever After they continued to elaborate on the heroes' despair and have them think that it's their actions that led to so many deaths and destruction. And the narrative wouldn't brush off Ruby's doubts and regrets as a flaw like "If you as much as presume that we didn't do everything less than perfect then there must be something wrong with you, don't listen to that demon on your shoulder whispering that evil shit to you"

It may not have been enouch to "save" the show from the clownery it proudly presents as a mOrAlY gRaY cONfLicT, but at least there would've been a good theme about how sometimes even with one's utmost benevolent intentions, they can still end up making horrible mistakes, good intentions don't necessarily make you a good person. And the characters wouldn't have been such blatant hypocrites lmao. I mean that manor scene proves that these characters have no idea who they are and what they've gotten into.

It's so annoying because these are simple ways to not make me wanna pull my own teeth out whenever the show tries to do anything interesting with the plot. The whole lying to Ironwood plotline could've been good, and in V7 it WAS good because it was setting everything up for Ruby to realise that, like Ozpin, it's hard to know when to trust when you've been betrayed and hurt before.

But the show doesn't want Ruby to be wrong. Every time it's brought up that she, and Team RWBY as a whole, fucked up, they just hide behind sad eyes and that they tried so that's all that matters. When no, just because you had good intentions doesn't mean you're washed of the consequences of those actions you made.

And while Ruby was slightly saved in V9 with how she was actually reacting to everything she did, WBY are just horrible people and horrible characters.

Who cares about the people that died in our plan, or the lives displaced or the impoverished kingdom forced to clean up our mistakes? We did our best so that's that, and anyone who still calls us out is like the comically evil Ironwood who wanted to bomb the poor.

No wonder the FNDM has a poor comprehension of grey morality and actual good writing if this is the show they stan so hard.