#obviously followed by the original EiS

[tychos-huzband]

rare charlie smiling moments

(sources: charlie teh unicron 1, charlie the unicorn 2)

[flamingpudding]

Glitterbombs for rogues

A/N: I got sick over the holidays. So I did not do any of the writing I originally wanted to do. So instead of that Christmas Story you get this Mark Rober inspired little tidbit.

Tim had a new favorite Engineer Youtube. The boy was a bit younger than him but a genius Engineer judging by the hand full of videos Tim had marathoned through. According to the listed self-introduction part of the video, Danny was currently an engineering student in Gotham with the goal to work one day for NASA. (Tim held out some hopes that he maybe could snag the kid for WE if possible. He had already sent out an internship offer after the third video he had watched)

Either way, Danny had potential and ideas that borderlined on mad science. But made his videos of his little projects even more entertaining and interesting to watch. Tim's favorite so far was Danny's explanation on how he reconstructed his toaster so that it would launch itself into space after the third his roommate burned toast with it. He did buy his roommate a new toaster at the end of the video though.

Still Tim liked this guy and his videos. So with anticipation he clicked on one of the newer videos. The title having caught his attention: 'Why Glitter'.

Instead of the usual introduction bit with little highlights of Danny's previous project the video started out with a big fat warning in red letter to not attempt to replicate anything in the video. That had Tim very curious already, but then a little video clip following that had Tim spitting out the coffee he was just sipping from.

Thankfully he missed spitting on his phone, still he jumped out of his cozy bed where he had been watching YouTube on his phone and hurried over to his laptop. The video, meanwhile, was continuing playing. He could hear the usual music from the introduction part as well as Danny's voice explaining his reasosn -which were valid, Tim had to agree with some of them- once that part was done.

By now he had fired up his laptop and was researching. The video in the background was explaining how Danny had build his Glitterbombs similar to the once another youtuber had but slightly modified them since he was not going to use fart-spray. Tim eyes widened as he found the first correlating news articles, wondering how they hadn't seen them sooner, but a glance at the date revealed that they were only posted a couple of hours ago.

Danny in the video was no explaining about his fist chooses victim and Tim dived onto his bed from his desk to get his phone back in his hands. Wide eyed, he watched as Danny obviously with a GoPro strapped to his head, crawled through what looked like an air vent. Once he reached an opening he looked through the slits into what appeared to be Riddlers hide out. Danny took the Camara of his head so that he could grin into it making the sign for silence as he barely contained his own chuckles. The other then waited for a moment, the camera work now getting wonky and the video even glitching out but a second later Danny was back in focuse before pointing down and then directing the Camara to his view. There in Riddlers hideout now sat Danny's self engineered glitterbomb.

"No he didn't..." Tim muttered as the video cut to a different scene. Danny was now walking through the sewers, humming cheerfully while explaining why he chose who he choose.

Another cut and... Tim spluttered. How the hell did Danny manage to just walk into Arkam?! So he hadn't seen wrong at the beginning of the video.

Growing paller with every cut on how Danny delivered his self-engineered Glitter bombs, Tim started to fear for his new favorite youtubers safety. Thankfully he had already done his work on Danny's person when he sent the internship offer. Now he just needed to get Danny to freaking safty.

He dragged himself to his laptop still in disbelieve as various clips of the rogues getting glitterbombed from the bombs perspective started playing. And yep, he definitely didn't see wrong now in the beginning. The Joker was one of Danny's chooses victums. Aside from the fact that he was so going to download and save that video for eternity as well as share it with his brothers and friends, (because as funny as it was that most of them were Gotham rogues, Luther and another millionaire by the name of Masters had also been made victims.), he still had to figure out how to ensure this definitely insane youtubers safer from the warmth of 90% of their rogues now.

Great newly discovered favorite youtuber has just painted a big fat red target on himself.

Tim was just about to call everyone in when a bonus at the end of Danny's video started to play.

He recognized that safe house.

He recognizes the weapons displayed on the walls also.

Oh... that's...

Still laughing Tim still sent out a message to everyone. When asked why all he did was sent them the link to the video with to timestamps.

The first one of the Joker getting glitterbombed

The second one being Red Hood getting glitterbombed.

[mossstep]

I set the poll for too long, so anyways,

SAGAU ARCHON HEADCANONS!

I am a minor, don’t be weird

For those not in the know: Sagau means self aware Genshin au!

Gonna test out some formatting with this one, so yeah!

Nahida’s is strictly platonic, while the other archons are up to interpretation!

4.2 archon/story quest spoilers

VENTI

For Venti I think he’d be one of the more chill archons. He’d always try to be by your side, but would give you space if need-be. He obviously wouldn’t want to out his secret as the archon, so the people of Monstadt assume you just like his songs, or pity the bard for his lack of money.

Venti wouldn’t be mad if you outed him as an archon, he’d understand that the creator’s will is far more important than his wishes, but he’d still be disappointed.

Venti would almost immediately recognize you as the creator even if you were trying to stay hidden. After all, it’d be embarrassing if one of the original seven didn’t recognize you.

He’d always try to write you into his songs after you arrive in teyvat. He’d stop if you asked, but If you say nothing he’ll just keep going.

ZHONGLI

Zhongli, being one of the oldest, if not the oldest still living god on teyvat. Because of this, he, like the tone deaf bard, recognizes you immediately.

He is very reverent and respectful towards you after so long, but he does loosen up over time.

Zhongli would come out of retirement immediately (much to Liyue’s shock and surprise) as to properly serve your every need.

Zhongli can be a bit overbearing but will back off if asked.

Zhongli respects you as the people of Liyue respect him. If you vanish for even a few hours without giving him a heads up he will send out a search party. You’re too important to be out on your own.

RAIDEN EI/SHOGUN

Arriving in Inazuma you are able to lay low for awhile, before an accident reveals your golden blood. The tenryou commission is immediately alerted and drags you straight to the almighty shogun whether you like it or not.

Ei is incredibly overbearing, refusing to let you go anywhere without the shogun or at least ten people to protect you. She doesn’t mean to be controlling, she just doesn’t want to lose you like she lost makato.

If you were to arrive during the vision hunt decree she would either become way more strict, or completely end it depending on your reaction.

While making the shogun Ei programmed her to follow whatever you say, since you’re the almighty creator, you must know the way eternity is heading.

NAHIDA (PLATONIC)

Nahida and you likely meet by chance while you two are on a walk around sumeru city. Nahida probably assumes you’re a human, because having been locked up for 500 years she doesn’t have enough experience with gods to be able to tell one apart from a human.

So you probably end up telling her on one of your chance meeting, because as an archon, she should probably know. Nahida doesn’t make such a big deal about it, on the condition that you tell her what you know about teyvat AND earth. Of course the god of knowledge would try to learn as much as possible.

You two probably have sleepovers (which nahida drags Scaramouche into) after you tell her. At said sleepovers you two likely trade knowledge back and forth. (Scaramouche would likely butt in with facts about inazuma’s fucked up flora)

FURINA (IDC SHE’S NOT THE ARCHON, SHE’S AN ARCHON IN MY HEART) and Neuvillette

Furina, as a human, doesn’t realize you’re the creator until you tell her that you know she’s a human. She swears you to secrecy and you agree for the sake of Fontaine, she confides in you about her struggles, and you promise to make it up to her once everything is done.

Neuvillette recognizes you immediately and asks you about what’s up with Furina, you obviously don’t tell him, and he accepts that.

After the prophecy you and neuvillette, and Furina hang out on occasion, because the two likely wouldn’t speak often without you.

Also you smack the shit out of the traveler and paimon during Furina’s story quest because they deserve it <3

[drconstellation]

Michael the Watchful

Updated 11 Nov 2023

I'm going to be upfront - I don't like Michael. But I am intrigued by some of their actions in GO.

The above screen shot highlighting their angel ring came across my dash last week, and there was a comment that the ring looked like "Ophanim rings with pearls for eyes." I have to admit that for all that I am fairly widely read in mythology I hadn't heard of these before, and had to go look them up. I realize its probably because I'm not up to speed with all the religious references yet. Don't get me wrong - I'm not a complete newbie in that dept, its just a muscle I haven't flexed in a while and its a kind of "use it or lose it" kind of thing, you know? Happens when you've been around for a bit.

Ophanim: "The many-eyed ones." Oh. Right. That's tv series Archangel Michael to a T, actually.

(There are probably some parallels to the greek monster Argus here, but not sure if I should digress. The hero Perseus, winged sandals, Medusa's snek-locks, the 1000 eyes that never sleep, rescuing a maiden, the goddess queen's grief over the slain monster...)

Michael was the one that presented the incriminating photos of Aziraphale and Crowley meeting over time to Gabriel in S1, then followed it up with a phone call to Hell on the back-stairwell to Heaven.

And Michael is the Duty Officer during S2, they are "on watch" so to speak.

Michael is also the one that maintains the back channel connection to Hell, "the grapevine that obviously doesn't exist" that Beelzebub mentions to Crowley in S2E1, and that Gabriel also officially denies exists in S1E4.

The fact that in S1 they were seen talking to Ligur originally, who was destroyed by the holy water Crowley obtained from Aziraphale, and then in S2 they are talking to somebody else again (Beelzebub) in S2 via their angel phone again, says that they have to have established a new connection in between seasons. I commented elsewhere it seems to be implied the contact is Dagon, due to the little flirtation the tried to send to the angel that Michael quickly shuts down in S2E6,

but the fact the back channel is still working is still something to be concerned about. I mean, weren't you just a little suspicious when it was Michael who turned up with the holy water for the bath during the body-swap punishment scenes, when Hell only bothered to send a disposable Eric clone with the hellfire to Heaven?

Wondering how this angle is going to play out in S3.

Edit:

Found some information about the golden collars in the Job minisode in S2E2 and the detail on Michael's costume adds to this meta.

Around their neck they have row upon row of eyes, and around their sleeves they have wheels.

[kaylopolis]

Alastor's Shadow (18+) - Paris: Chapter Eighteen

Alastor x F!Reader

Synopsis: There’s a new Overlord in town and it isn’t the Radio Demon. Six years after you fell into Hell, you have finally earned your seat at the table as Pentagram City’s newest and baddest and with the Extermination coming six months earlier than planned, it is now time to implement your ultimate endgame. After all, who doesn’t love a bit of power and chaos? Your plan brings you to the doorstep of the Hazbin Hotel as Charlie’s newest Redeemer, but who you find waiting for you will not only turn your entire plan upside down but also challenge your grab for power… 

Tag List: Slow burn, rivals to lovers, eventual smut

Masterlist Link: Masterlist

(Let me know if you want to be added to the Tag List!)

____________________________________________

Dear Hoteliers,

Why 2 alternate endings? A few reasons; the main reason is because I wrote this first part with Angel and Mikaela and FELL IN LOVE with it. It was so cute and adorable I had to include it somehow. Also, because not everyone loves a pregnancy trope. I, particularly, was genuinely torn. I could not decide how I wanted things to end. "My Fawn and My Shadow" will include a pregnancy trope but "Paris" will not.

I will say, the epilogue I have planned for "My Fawn and My Shadow" had me crying (were they happy tears? were they sad tears? Is she foreshadowing? IDK!) - but, that being said, to each their own. Should you choose to read both, be aware that some sections are straight up copy and paste. The Epilogues will obviously vary greatly.

P.S. Ignore the timeline for the pregnancy trope. In reality, this is not how biology works. But someone *cough* author *cough* forgot to factor in the timeline by the time she got to this chapter... It was part of my original outline, but I got carried away *insert upside-down smiley face here*

<3 Stay smutty

Paris: Chapter Eighteen

Content Warning: Self Harm

T-3 hours until the portal opens…

“Okay, okay, I got this!” Collin breathed. 

Cletus banged him atop his head, “Just open the door!”

The sheep shot a dirty look at the… baby?... before drying his sweaty hooves on his overalls. 

This was it. This was the moment Collin had been waiting for his entire life. He has only ever seen the famous General at a distance and worshipped her from a far during meetings and through photographs. He had every single one of her fan club t-shirts and collector’s pins. He knew her battle strategies inside and out and scored perfect at every trivia night. He was the ultimate fan-girl and this was his moment to shine. 

And he was terrified. 

“Oh, my gosh!” Kennie shoved past him. “I’ll do it!” She prostrated before pulling the bedroom door open. 

The group froze, stunned by the sight of the yellow-eyed Angel ready and waiting for them on the other side. Mikaela Morningstar sat in a clothed chair perfectly perched in the entryway to her bedroom. The Angel had just finished the top laces of her leather boots before the Cherubs burst through the doorway. 

Mikaela had been waiting for them. 

Collin’s jaw audibly hit the floor at the sight of the warrior, legs crossed, one eyebrow perched in question, staring down at the three of them. She was like a goddess in material form - not to disrespect the Maker, of course. Her beauty practically radiated off of her in golden light as captivating as her irises. Although she had changed her hair and her wings were tucked out of the way, she was a vision. Collin couldn’t help but drool at the sight of her. 

“About time the three of you showed up,” the Angel laughed. “Talk about keeping a girl waiting.”

“You…” Cletus stumbled over his words. “You knew we were here?”

“Knew?” The Angel tipped her head in question. A habit she had picked up from a dear… friend. “You’ve been following me for days. Nifty’s collection of wool can only grow so much before a girl gets suspicious.” Mikaela laughed it off as if it was a joke, but Keenie’s head was still very, very sore. 

The Cherubs had no answer for her. 

“What can I do for you?” With hands perched in her lap, the General inspected the three of them, lazily soaking in their forms as they collectively entered the room. 

Wow. Mikaela Morningstar had expected them. Well, duh! Of course! She was God’s General! How could she not have seen them coming? She probably knew about everything: the phone call from Velvette, the orders from Rachel, their banishment from Heaven. She was, after all, an Archangel. Collin still couldn’t comprehend the situation. 

“Ms. Morningstar,” Collin began. Did he sound as nervous as he felt? “We have been sent from Heaven to return you to the Seraphim.”

The Angel blinked, but didn’t respond. Her face remained neutral as Collin spoke and even for a few moments after. He wiped his hooves on his pants again. The Cherub was thoroughly drenched in anxious sweat, which, hopefully, no one noticed. 

“Why?” 

“Why?” Kennie shoved her way forward. “Because you belong there? You’re Mikaela, the General, Heaven’s Archangel. You’ve been gone for over a hundred years doing…”

“God’s work.” Mikaela interrupted the sheep. 

“What?” Cletus asked. 

The Archangel chuckled. “You didn’t seriously think I just ran away from Heaven on a whim, did you?” 

The three Cherubs looked at each other for an answer, but it was the sheep who spoke first. “No, of course not!”

“Thank you, Collin,” Mikaela smiled. 

The Cherub’s heart jumped right out of his chest. “You know my name!?”

“Of course,” her eyes softened. “Why wouldn’t I know one of my biggest fans?”

____________________________________________

Yesterday…

“Hello, thank you for calling, C.H.E.R.U.B., how may we bless you today?”

“Hi! I’m calling about a loved one back on Earth who needs some help. It seems he’s lost his way a bit and I’d really rather not see him down here.” You twirled the cord in your hand.

Alastor sat across from you, a cup of tea in hand, one leg crossed over the other as he enjoyed the dyling light of day. 

“Of course! Can I get a name?”

“Well, actually… I’m quite protective of him, you see, and I want to know that you are sending your best.” The sweetness in your voice was practically sickening, but it made Alastor chuckle. “I was wondering who would be going. Would it be the three from the television commercial?”

“Cletus, Collin, and Keenie? By golly, no! They don’t work for us anymore.”

“Interesting…” You smiled. 

“Can I get the name of the person who needs a blessing?”

“No,” and you hung up the receiver. 

Alastor chuckled as he sipped his tea. “You make this look too easy, my doe. If it weren’t for the circumstances, you'd be running the place.”

This place... As in all of existence.

You grabbed your jasmine tea and clanked your cup with his. “How unfortunate the plan is to destroy it all instead.”

____________________________________________

Now...

The Cherub nearly feinted. 

The Archangel leaned in, speaking to the sheep directly. “You have to promise to keep everything I tell you a secret. No one can know that I am here.”

Collin blinked the stars from his eyes, “Of course! I would never!” 

In a whisper, Mikaela continued, “I’m on a secret mission from God. I can’t go into any detail, naturally…”

“Naturally!” Collin was nodding his head so hard he could have been mistaken for a bobble head. 

Mikaela leaned in a whispered, “... I’m here to find Roo.”

Collin stopped nodding. “Roo?”

“Roo.” Mikaela repeated, as if that answered all of their questions. 

“Wait!” Cletus interrupted once more. “You’re telling us that you are supposed to be here? Cavorting with demons!”

“Shhh,” Mikaela shushed. “Yes.”

Keenie scratched her sore head. “To find someone named Roo?”

“She’s the biggest threat against Heaven. Rumor has it that she’s planning an uprising against God. That’s why he left with me and went into hiding. Couldn’t have him unprotected while I hunted down this rebel.”

Too much information? Nope! Who the fuck is going to believe a bunch of banished Cherubs anyway? They can’t get back to Heaven and no one in Heaven would take them seriously even if they did. Negatives of fucking up with the Upstairs Management but a positive for you.

You could have told them any story that convinced them to leave you alone, and it would be no sweat off your back.

“Oooooooh,” Collin nodded. “That makes so much sense!”

“What!?” Keenie and Cletus echoed each other. 

“What?” Mikaela looked confused. “Do you think I’m lying?” She laughed. “Come now. I may be surrounded by demons, but I am still an Angel.” 

The three Cherubs blinked at her. 

“Oh.” Cletus awkwardly scratched his large head. 

Heaven Natives are so naive. Were you this gullible way back when?

The Angel adjusted the tie on her leather bracer. “And the three of you are interfering with my plan.” 

“What!?” Collin gawked. 

“I can’t exactly have Heaven stalking my every move while I’m on the job,” Mikaela rises from her chair, a towering figure over the tiny Cherubs. 

“Right! Right!” Collin was already headed for the door. 

Mikaela quickly ushered the other two out, ignoring the look of disbelief on their faces. 

“Thanks for understanding, guys.”

And then door shut behind them. 

Collin continued to drool in the direction of the doorway. 

“Now what?” Keenie asked as she dragged him by the collar down the hall.

“She’s so cool,” Collin gawked. 

Cletus smacked his face and rubbed the tension from his temples. “We return to Earth. I need time to think about this and I’m starving. I sure as fudge am not eating anything down here…”

____________________________________________

You shut the door behind them. 

“See,” you turned to the shadow at the back of the room. “I told you they’d believe me.” 

Alastor materialized from the darkness. With his cane in hand, he snaked the other around your waist and pressed a kiss to your forehead. 

This was not the first time you had run into one of Father’s minions. With Eve’s wild party streak, the two of you didn’t exactly keep a low profile. In fact, it would be odd for the two of you to not run into one of the Ishim or even a few Cherubs while they were on the job. You were recognized - because of course - and typically played it off as a happenstance run in while on a mission.

After all, the rumors in Heaven were that you were on some top secret mission with Father anyway. What were they more likely to believe: you were being a good little “Golden Girl” or playing Armageddon with Eve?

Eve on the other hand, either slept with the Holy invader if able, convinced them she was mortal if they were too young to know her face, or simply disappeared leaving you to fend for yourself.

What a friendship the two of you had…

“I never doubted you, my doe,” the demon mumbled into your hair. 

You grabbed for Alastor’s lapels to pull him down and…

“Alastor, what’s in your coat pocket?” Your fingers met something hard and boxy. 

The demon ignored your question. Instead, from the Void, Alastor pulled a hair clip - a new one. The metal was red, and pointed, with a small “A” pressed into one of the tongs. 

“I had Carmilla make it,” the demon holds the clip between the two of you, pushing you back so you are no longer pressed so closely together.

The red was a perfect match to Alastor’s eyes. 

How intentional… 

“Thank you,” you reached for it, but he pulled away. 

The demon was distracting you, but you allowed it. Your nerves were shot anyway and Alastor felt… off…

“Allow me?” He offered. 

Turning towards the mirror above the dresser, Alastor flipped your hair into a bun, clipping it at the back of your head perfectly square with your shoulders. 

You stared at the demon’s reflection in the mirror, noting the lack of music playing on his radio, noting the loss of static in his voice. He was nervous… 

“Al, everything changes after today. This is where the Endgame plan truly begins.” You tested the waters to see if that was what was bugging him.

“Hmm,” the demon continued to inspect your hair, his mind clearly stuck on something else. Not Armageddon plaguing his thoughts?

“But,” you turned to him, your back leaning against the dresser. “If I know war, and I do, there is always a lull after a battle. Perhaps, if just for a few days, we get out of here?”

“Oh?”

“I have safe houses in every Ring of Hell and in a few major countries on Earth - including an emergency backup in Heaven if things end up truly terrible… I have an apartment…” God, why were you so nervous? “In France.” 

The demon’s eyes sparked. 

“It’s in Place de l'Estrapade, not a far walk from the Pont Neuf bridge, just across the way from Jardin du Luxembourg*. I know it’s not Louisiana, but… There’s this adorable bakery in the square that I know you will love and…”

The demon swallowed your words with his lips. “Mes valises sont déjà faites. My bags are already packed.”

Right, why did you ever think Alastor Hartfelt would turn down a trip to France? 

Alastor’s shoulder slacked just a bit.

Then it hit you.

It was the after that was bugging him. After the battle that is. He comforted you last night in regards to your qualms with the battle, but funny how facing imminent death felt like an everyday for the Overlord.

But the after made him nervous.

The after…

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

“You lovebirds done shackin’ up o’ what?” Angel screamed from the other side of the wall. 

“Seriously?” Husk scoffed. “You called me up here for this?”

“What? Come on, Whiskers, you love spendin’ time with me,” Angel teased. 

You could practically hear the disbelief on Husk’s face through the door, “I thought you wanted me to help you bring something down, not hold your fuckin’ hand because you’re too scared of the Boss.”

“I ain’t scared of nothin’!” The spider demon protested. 

You smiled at Alastor, grateful for the spontaneous distraction. The demon pressed a kiss to your cheek and melted into shadow. 

Throwing the door open, both Husk and Angel jumped back in surprise before they realized it was just you. 

“Ha!” Angel crosses his arms. “See yous was scared, too!”

“I..!” Husk’s face turns red. “I was scared because she fuckin’ appeared outta nowhere, not because of…”

“Me,” Alastor melted from the floor, appearing behind the two of them. 

Angel jumped into you, grabbing onto your arm for support, while Husk remained utterly unphased. 

“Yeah, him,” the cat crossed his arms. 

You giggled at the sight of the two of them, the laughter breathing life back into your chest.

Just don't think about it... Yeah? Yeah! Don't think about it. Everything is going to be okay! It's fine. Everything is fine!

Taking a deep breath, you planted a smile on your face. “Come on, boys, we have an army to ready.”

You snuck a glance at Alastor, who looked distracted, wholly unaware of the nerves in your belly. Whatever was captivating him, you were thankful for it. It was quite uncharacteristic of him, but then again, you’ve never seen Alastor in the hours leading up to battle.

For whatever reason, you were disappointed in the last few remaining private moments you might possibly have had with the demon. Not that you were expecting a big declaration of love from him.

Holy shit, you still hadn’t even told him you love him!

Oh, no, no, no, no.

You put the brakes on.

You’d been so distracted by the Cherubs that you completely forgot about everything from last night! “Al, I need to talk to you-“

“There she is! There’s my little tomatuh!” Rosie had you in a hug so tight one would argue it was a chokehold.

“Rosie, dear! How delightful to see you!” Alastor pressed a kiss to the top of her hand. “Is that a new scarf? It looks astonishing on you darling, absolutely astonishing!”

The Overlord’s eyes shined like stars, “Oh! Al, stop! You flatter me.” Rosie ran a hand through her new purple boa.

“It isn’t flattery if it’s true!” Al came to stand beside you, his hands wrapped around the top of his cane.

The smell of the forest after rain calmed your nerves.

It’s okay. After. You can tell him after because there will be an after.

There will be an after.

Heading down the hall you ignored Angel's worried eyes on you. You ignored Alastor's shadow swirling about your feet with concern. And you ignored Husk's offer for a drink. For you had too many things to focus on right now...

A battle to win...

An identity to keep hidden...

A Human Sinner who still didn't know how you truly felt about him...

Welcome to the Endgame.

____________________________________________

T-1 minute until the portal opens…

“This is it,” you press your forehead into Alastor’s. “Al, I -”

“Shh, my doe. Entre deux cœurs qui s’aiment, nul besoin de paroles,” and then the demon melted into shadow, to find his place atop the Hotel.

Goddamit, the demon switched between French and English so fast you couldn’t keep up half the time.

Charlie appeared next to you, a hand on your shoulder. “You’ll get a chance to tell him.”

You blinked. But how did she…?

“Uh,” Vaggie cut in. “I don’t mean to break up this moment, but we have Angels incoming.” The ex-Exorcist pointed her spear at the sky, where a large portal had cracked through the walls of reality.

Fixing your hood atop your head, you summoned your two short blades from the Void and readied yourself next to the Princess.

On the other side of the portal, you could make out the beautiful golden glow of Heaven. God, you did not miss it.

Two figures stepped through: Adam and Lute.

And then the onslaught began - but not before Alastor summoned his dark shield. The mass of magic covered the Hotel in a dome. Some of the Exorcists made it through, but the less fortunate ones bounced off in a wave of broken bones.

“It’s working!” Charlie screamed.

Until it wasn’t.

With a flick of Adam’s wrist the shield melted and then the Exorcists fell through.

It was a dance of a battle. A beautiful pirouette of savagery and desperation, impregnating the air with the stench of golden iron.

You would have found yourself riding the high of battle had you not had Charlie to look after. Yes, Vaggie could well protect her on her own but it was the deal with Lilith that ensured no harm came to the Princess.

As the Princess shot sparkles you shot daggers. As she sang apologies, you delivered death. Constantly you were forced to grab her by the wrist and twirl her from danger. It was hard work, one that captivated all of your attention.

Good. You needed the distraction.

BOOM!

Cherries’ explosions began, the next line of defense before the Exorcists reached Sir Pentious and his battery of cannons.

This was good! Things were looking good!

Fuck you might actually all make it out of this thing.

BAM!

The next thing you knew, you were on the ground, a pain so powerful ripping through your core it blinded every sense, every fiber of your being.

Green light exploded from the scar which cut you from neck to hip, a beacon of agony which temporarily halted the onslaught from Heaven as Human Sinners and Angels alike were forced to shield their eyes. The wall of light shot up into the atmosphere of Hell before dispersing into a rainstorm of sparks that fell upon the whole of Pentagram City.

You felt, rather than saw, hands upon you. The green had burned your retinas, completely blinding you. Your body healed fast, however, but not fast enough to clearly make out the fuzzy grey/red blob shaking your shoulders.

“Come on, kid! Come on! Don’t quit on me!”

The pain numbed your body, but your Angelic blood quickly fought against it. Your fingers and toes tingled as your mind reset itself over and over again. Where are you? What happened? The memory of pain threatened to spill as the ability to breathe found your lungs, as your eyes remembered how to blink.

“Holy Hell, what da fuck was that!?”

“I don’t fucking know, but both Boss and her went down at the same time.”

“What da fuck kind of Voodoo shit did he do ta ‘er?”

You forced your mind to clarity, forced the blurriness into - somewhat - sharper objects. A vague outline of Husk and Angel came into view, along with a background of Exorcist Angels flying overhead. The fighting had resumed despite the interruption.

“Husk?” You mumbled. Grabbing onto the cat’s paw, you slowly pulled yourself into a sitting position. Despite the pain which had surged through your scar, no wound was visible. You hadn’t been struck after all. “What…?”

There was a pull behind your navel - it was weak, oh-so weak.

Alarm bells immediately went off.

Alastor.

Without a thought, you shoved away from the cat demon and shot into the air, not caring that your wings were now on full display for the entire Angelic Army to view. Not caring that the hood Charlie helped make you was now shredded to pieces.

You hit the roof, landing practically on top of the red and black mass crumbled in a heap of blood. Using your black wings, you attempted to shield as much of Alastor as you could.

You couldn’t make out Alastor completely, your vision was still sluggish to return despite you willing your blood to heal as fast as it could, but you could feel him. You could feel his heart beating wildly, feel the pain with every breath, feel the one ounce of panic the Overlord allowed himself to feel in this moment as he watched you take up a defensive fighting stance over his prone form.

The demon was hurt and bad.

Like a panther protecting her wounded mate, you unleashed the full force of your power. Dark and twisted horns grew from your skull as you morphed into your demon form. A spiked tail uncurled from your backside, your fingernails sharpened into claws, and your fangs elongated to a point. The sclera of your eyes flashed black as the rune on your back was unlocked, the text from the Book of Knowledge melting into your hands, forming an exoskeleton of Newtonian fluid that flowed over your appendages.

As your vision healed, the Angel’s stupid helmet sharpened, a look of pure shock reflected in the metal. Adam had his guitar and Alastor’s blood was still fresh as it dripped off the blade.

“Don’t…” Alastor protested, but his sentence was cut off with a cough.

“Mikaela?” Adam’s jaw dropped.

Your only response was a low growl. Pure instinct had kicked in. You were more animal than Angel.

You felt the coldness of Rolf wrap around your ankle, but it was barely a whisper compared to how solid the shadow normally felt. The shadow tugged, threatening to whisk you away from the rooftop, but be it the weakening of Alastor’s magic or your stubbornness, you did not move.

“Holy shit, it is you! How you doing, sister?” The First Man smiled, lowering his sword.

Behind you, you could feel the blood flowing from Alastor’s chest as real and as solid as it would your own. It only added to the panic and anger and desperation you were feeling in this moment.

“Where’s Eve?” The Angel looked around as if the Second Woman might turn the corner at any moment and join the conversation.

“Dead,” you bore your teeth and growled, your voice laced with Alastor’s radio static.

“What?” Adam did a double-take.

You pulled your sword from the Void, your blue fire licking the steel’s surface as small green bouts of static danced its way down your arm and disappeared into the heat. “And you’re next,” you threatened, your voice filled with static.

“Wait,” Adam narrowed his eyes, his pupils darting back and forth between the two of you as he slowly put the pieces together. “Wait. Wait. Wait.” He put up a hand. “You’re defending this loser?”

You growled, your teeth itching to sink into flesh.

Kill him. Kill him. Kill him. Kill him. Kill him. A voice rang in the back of your head.

“Woah, there, sister. We’re on the same fucking team!” Adam had a look of pure terror on his face.

From your crouched position on the ground, you moved forward.

Adam immediately dropped his sword and began backing up. “Listen! Listen! Listen!” He stammered. “Let’s just take a fucking second and talk like bros. Okay?” His laugh was strained. “I’m sure there’s a perfectly good explanation for why you’re down here defending the scum of existence? Ha, ha. Right?”

Kill him, the voice commanded.

You growled again and attempted to take another step forward, but a clawed hand wrapped around your tail and tugged. Finally, you turned to face Alastor and the sight knocked you out of your bloodthirsty trance.

The demon was pale, a deep gouge sliced right across his chest in an exact mirror image to your injury from Velvette. You felt the anger flee from you then, only to be replaced with pure terror. You met Alastor’s stern eye and the look he shot you stopped you dead in your tracks.

But it was already too late. All of Heaven had seen. Mikaela Morningstar was alive and well in Hell, defending Lucifer’s daughter in a battle against Heaven. You had killed Exorcists. A war was brewing, and you were a part of it.

The demon shuttered out a pained breath, one you felt reverberate through your own chest. You dropped your sword, the steel popping back into the Void before it even made contact with the ground. Falling to your knees before Alastor, you cupped his face in your hands and pressed a soft but shaky kiss to his forehead.

“What, the fuck?” Adam gawked behind you.

Every part of you was screaming to rip the Angel limb from limb, but you fought the instinct, and instead channeled that energy into the connection that had ripped open between you and Alastor. You let your magic flow through your inky fingers and into the demon, willing his heart to beat faster, to slow the blood seeping from his wounds, to staunch the pain in his chest.

Alastor’s eyes fluttered closed as he took a deep breath, already the color returning to his cheeks.

You turned to Adam then, your black sclera burning pure hatred into the Angel’s heart. “I won’t be the one to kill you today, Adam.”

“I am so fucking confused,” the Angel scratched his head.

“Adam!” Charlie appeared atop the rooftop, royally pissed as she hung from the Hotel sign.

And with that, you shadowed the two of you from the rooftop, landing in the only place you could think of to go right now: Alastor’s radio tower.

Atop the balcony, you pulled the clip from your hair and slit open your wrist, dripping a waterfall of golden blood into Alastor’s wounds.

“Stop,” the demon tried to shove your hand away, but he was too weak at this moment to do anything other than lay there and breathe.

Clenching your jaw shut, you didn’t let up until you watched the first stitches of skin begin to form. Jesus Christ, the wound was deep. It had cut through several ribs but, thankfully, had not nicked his heart. Alastor would have been dead before you had even landed on that rooftop had it gone any deeper.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! You knew! You fucking knew this was going to happen!

A tear fell from your cheek and landed in the mixture of black and gold liquid swirling atop the demon’s chest.

“Stop,” Alastor said more forcefully. The demon wrapped a hand around your wrist, the golden liquid bubbling through his fingers. He pulled you down into him and pressed his forehead into yours. “I’m alright, my doe.”

“This is my fault,” your voice cracked. Green static danced across your skin, your demon form still out in full force. Sucking in a breath, you forced yourself to your feet. Sinking your inky hands into your hair, you paced the floor, your wings dragging behind you.

Alastor’s magic jumped off your form in sparks. Which was impossible but you didn’t have the mental room to even consider why.

Alastor had almost died! He could’ve died! Adam almost killed him!

“My doe,” Alastor attempted to sit up, but the pain from the wound was too much, his body demanding every ounce of power to heal.

“My fault,” you shuttered. “My fault. My fault. My fault!” You bent over the handrail and threw up.

Alastor jumped to his feet then, one hand wrapped around his middle to stop his insides from spilling out. “Mikaela!”

Using his cane for support, the demon forced himself to stand next to you. His red irises bled into your soul, his brow crinkled with worry.

Your entire body was shaking as he wrapped his arms around you. “It was not your fault.”

“I almost lost you,” you mumbled into his coat jacket, drenched in blood.

____________________________________________

Somewhere Else in Hell…

“Ha, ha,” Striker plucked the cigar from his mouth and tapped the lit end into the cement lining of the roof.

The imp pulled the rifle to his shoulder and aligned the scope with his eye. “Too easy.”

And pulled the trigger.

____________________________________________

You saw the bullet before you heard it.

BANG!

The metal object soared towards you as if in slow motion, the iconic swirls of Angelic Steel clearly coating its surface.

But the bullet meant for you did not hit its mark.

For Alastor shoved you at the last moment, appearing between you and the shooter.

Red irises met yours, “Mourir d’amour, vivre de haine…”

The bullet met its mark right between Alastor’s eyes.

Dying for love…

“Nooo!”

The demon went down, his cane smacking against the metal balcony in an explosion of green sparks.

You spun, immediately knowing where the bullet originated from. You didn’t care who or what was on the other end. Fuck you didn’t even care why.

Kill, the voice echoed as a blast of dark ink shot out from your hand. Like a wave of a tsunami, the mass collided with the building the shooter was perched atop of, taking out the top twenty floors. You swung down, collapsing the building in on itself in one fell swoop.

Whoever it was - plus the inhabitants of the building - were dead.

“Alastor!” You screamed as you collapsed onto the ground next to him. Dark blood pooled beneath his head. The wound between his eyes steamed with green as his magic desperately fought to heal.

But fought in vein.

You watched as Alastor’s eyes fogged with the veil of death.

“No! No! No!”

And felt his Soul fade from his body.

“Alastor!”

You screamed. You begged. You cried.

“Don’t!”

You even heard yourself begging with God to let him live.

“You promised you wouldn’t leave me again!”

But you could do nothing as his Soul slipped from his body…

“No! Don’t! You can’t!”

… and faded from this world entirely.

“Don’t leave…”

Alastor was dead.

“Don’t leave me…”

____________________________________________

You don’t know how long you lay there.

Minutes?

Hours?

Days?

Years?

Long enough that Alastor had grown cold next to you. Long enough that the blood began to crust against your skin. Long enough that your joints hurt and your body begged to move.

He was gone.

Alastor was gone.

You curled into him, praying somehow your warmth might leech into him and warm his cold body back to life. Praying he’d brush a hand through your hair and tell you everything was going to be alright.

Praying this was just a dream.

Praying that you were the one dead instead.

Praying that you were both dead and this was some sick version of Purgatory Father had concocted for you as a punishment.

“Al…” You mumbled into his jacket, your fingers curling around his lapel as if he would fade beneath your touch entirely.

Too soon. Too fast.

And all your fault.

All your fault…

And then your fingers brushed something hard.

In his jacket, hidden away in a pocket you didn’t know he had, was a small leather box.

Fuck.

No. No. No. No. No.

Sitting up with alarm, you dropped it on the balcony and scooted away.

That better not be what you think it is.

Open it.

You jumped.

A young woman with hair as brown as mud and eyes to match sat across from you. Cross legged, arms folded neatly in her lap as her curls pooled down her back, the girl stared intently at the small leather box.

Open it, she repeated.

You didn’t respond, your mind was too preoccupied with trying to comprehend how this was happening.

It’s a ring, obviously, but you already knew that. You think that’s why he was so distracted today? She motioned to the blood. How pathetic…

“Shut up!” You bit, your throat raw from years of crying.

Ouch. Is that anyway to greet an old friend? Oh, wait, sorry. Were we even friends? I mean, you did murder me and all. Did Alastor…

“I said, shut up, Eve!”

Her eyes found the box once more. Do you think he’s an emerald man or a diamond man? Emerald is more classic for the 30s but diamonds! Ugh, I’m just dying to know, aren’t you?

She went for the box, but you were faster. You held it against your heart, “Don’t touch it!”

Eve gasped, Is that why he asked you to take him to Louisiana to visit his Mother!? Awww, he stayed behind to tell his Mom about the ring. How sweet. Too bad she wasn’t actually there. - ya know, being in Heaven and all. But I suppose it’s the thought that counts.

“Why are you here?” The words seeped out from behind clenched teeth.

She smirked. Because you let me out.

You followed her eyes to your hand, still black from the ink. You never sealed the power away after desecrating the building.

Fuck, you were still in your demon form.

You’ve never let me out this long before. Figured it was time to stretch my legs and finally introduce myself. She stood and made her way to you, stretching her limbs as she went. Holding a hand out to you she made to help you stand.

Hello, I’m the Book of Knowledge, but you can call me Eve and we are going to have so much fun together.

You didn’t take her hand.

Your eyes found the dark jacket seeped in blood laying a few feet away.

You went to him, your fingers brushing the curls away from his face. With his eyes closed he looked as if he was sleeping - so peaceful.

Even in death, Alastor smiled.

The girl frowned, clearly annoyed that you weren’t giving her your full undivided attention. What about power and chaos, and all that jazz? What about revenge!?

To power and chaos…

“There is no power and chaos without him.” Pressing a kiss to his forehead, you whispered, “I love you, too.”

Wait, so that’s it? Eve threw her hands in the air. The plan is over? The big Endgame we’ve been planning for over one hundred years is just done!?

You stood, “New plan.”

New plan? Eve scrunched her nose. What new plan?

You smiled softly, the dark ink slowly invading your arm, “The one where everyone dies.”

Oh! Oh! Oh! I like that plan. Where do we start?

You turned to the pile of rubble 100 yards away. “Greed.”

-> Paris: Epilogue

Annnnnnnd yet another cliff hanger. Come on guys you know me by now. Not everything is as it seems!

Tagged Hoteliers: (Let me know if you wish to be added!):

@sirens-and-moonflowers @saccharine-nectarine @wonderlandangelsposts @mommymilkers0526 @alastor-the-radio-demons-blog @eris-norwega @goyablogsstuff @missgirlsstuff

@sillywormtrixareforkids @its-a-dam-blue-brick @cloverresin20 @blue-bird251 @speedycoffeedelight @littlebluefishtail @sawi1987 @mopeyghost @beelz3bub @fraugwinska @minamilinaqueen @demoarah @diffidentphantom @divineknightmare @animecrazy76 @sleepykittycx @graunta @reath-solia @satansdaughter123 @mysticatto @freshonyourpages @chibistar45 @rapunzelbro @stephydearestxo

[wintersettled]

Honestly the way different archons in genshin impact have such different interactions with their nation is very interesting to me, especially with how its further expanded in fontaine recently.

The archons who are closest to the way we traditionally (in the west) think of a god (ie. all-powerful and on a completely other level of existence to humans) would probably be Barbatos first, then Rex Lapis.

Barbatos/Venti having churches dedicated to him and not appearing (as far as most are aware) in society for centuries is very similar to how the christian god is seen, as someone worshipped but never directly interacted with on a level beyond the spiritual. Meanwhile Rex Lapis/Zhongli has tons of myths and stories dedicated to him across lands and made appearances for years until his "death". In this way he's somewhat comparable to Greek gods (or even Jesus, to keep the christianity analogy going). He's far more openly entrenched in humanity but still remains separate and "above".

It's more-so with the three other archons we've encountered that our understanding of what gods must be like in teyvat based on Rex Lapis and Barbatos is totally altered with Ei, Furina, and Buer, all three being the "replacement" archon for their respective nations.

Ei, the third archon we meet, takes a direct role in Inazuman government as the Shogun, a totally different approach than the previous two which i find more similar to various rulers claiming divine right of kings. Also, despite not being the original electro archon most dont actually know this because Ei took on the identity of her sister, who died during the calamity. I think Ei taking on her sisters identity definitely helped her maintain her "divine authority" where other archons (buer) failed to maintain it in their nations.

Speaking of Buer/Nahida, you'd think the whole changing the past to everyone except descenders thing would complicate our interpretation of her but it doesnt at all. I think the reason for this is that destroying the previous archon in irmunsul didnt actually change the past. I also dont think the wanderer/scaramouche actually changed the past. I think they just changed peoples memories of it. but anyway. Nahida also takes on a governmental role at the end of sumerus archon quests while still remaining a somewhat holy figure. She was obviously shut out/disregarded following the passing of the previous dendro archon, unlike Ei she wasn't able to maintain her authority. After the archon quest however, her position in government kind of reminds me of the queen of england early in her rule. There was still a democratic governing body in the prime minister and other representatives but she maintains power.

Furina/Focalors also reminds me of the queen of england but at the end of her career instead. Furina appears to be more of a mascot in fontaine than a proper ruling body. It actually seems that the machine and neuvillette hold more authority that she does. Obviously we havent really explored fontaine much yet (its only been out a few days but im loving it) and we've only gotten so much info from the archon quests but as far as i can tell, furina appears to be kind of scrambling to live up to the previous hydro archon who was seemingly so well liked that fontaines people are repenting to this day. (as am i misremembering or did they say the previous archon didnt side with celestia but her people did?? what!?). Its even actively pointed out how people in fontaine do not view their archon to even a similar level as people in other nations (i mean their archon does meet and greets and is very reckless with her accusations but-).

anyways 👍 yes.

TLDR: zhongli + venti = traditional gods ei + nahida (now) = government furina + nahida = queen of england idk also i dont think they actually changed the past, just people interpretation of it. btw whats up with the fontaine profecy and the whole "they sided with celestia" thing??

[stardustdiiving]

I would love to hear more about your thoughts regarding Wanderer being trans whenever you find the time to write about it more!

(follow up to this post)

AWESOME. okay. So. This got super long and I keep nitpicking if it clearly says every single thought that goes through my head or not so I’m just going to post it

There’s many interpretations about this headcanon I enjoy, but one particular angle I would find interesting to explore that I’ll pitch here is basically centered on a characterization where Wanderer’s internal relationship with his own transness is very tied with his non-humanness, maybe even more so than his gender.

The appeal of this angle for me is essentially having a character’s queerness tie into genshin’s overarching themes about identity & personhood, especially in regards to the relationship between divinity & humanity—themes that obviously apply to Scaramouche (and also basically every other not human genshin character I can think of that people generally agree are engaging characters)

Scaramouche (which name I use for him is intentional & reflects what era of his life I’m talking about) to me is someone who basically enforces a sense of apathy over his own emotions, especially ones relating to his sense of identity—he seeks godhood in hopes of being able to purge himself clean of experiencing (human) emotions, and therefore the vulnerability & trauma he associates with having them.

Intuitively I can see him feeling a similar conscious apathy about his gender: I see him as viewing gender identity as a “too human” trait and therefore something he’s above, basically—which is really a deeper deflection of his own insecurities with his personhood/identity.

So to Scaramouche, internally, anything about his transition or transness is less about gender and actually far more about his desire to obtain godhood, and this is a mental narrative he really sticks to because it fits in comfortably with his hatred of humans and desire for a purpose/identity for his existence as a non human entity “without a heart”.

If this were a fic I were writing, Scaramouche would undergo a lot of physical/medical transitioning during his time as a Harbringer and he would essentially be narrating & viewing anything gender affirming thing he does as him becoming closer to godhood and further from being human. This would contrast how I’d portray Kabukimono earlier on in his arc—where I imagine Kabukimono took on a lot of social transitions based on observing humans and building a sense for what human things he liked to participate in or mimic.

Kabukimono, in a manner similar to Scaramouche, might sometimes categorize some of his transness as relating to being more of a puppet/nonhuman origin thing than a gender thing, (ie getting gender dysphoria from having long hair but rationalizing it has more to do with not wanting to look like Ei), Kabukimono was more in a position of building towards his transness being a positive thing that affirmed him his sense of personhood & sense of belonging with others. By the time Scaramouche reaches the point of resenting humans, and in turn resenting his own sense of humanity in his arc, he needs to establish all parts of his identity as the farthest thing from human as possible

The irony, however, that I’d highlight in the hypothetical fic of this, is that Scaramouche’s experiences with his transness are narrated as being things no one could ever understand because of how inhuman he is—while in practice you see a lot of his trans experiences are actually pretty common ones many trans people would understand.

So like, Dottore does his canon typical physical experiments/modifications on Scaramouche, and the entire time Scara is undergoing but also gloating the entire time how he’s able to endure this because he’s not as weak as humans are—and this continues when, at Scara’s request, Dottore gives him Evil Mad Scientist Top Surgery, and he’s having this snide internal monologue about how godlike he is because of all the inhuman ways he can physically modify and mold his body to be to his liking, and then suddenly he looks in a mirror and sees himself with a flat chest for the first time and just has… like, a moment of very genuine happiness with feeling more like himself for the first time, and processing all the ways he can exist more comfortably in his body without having to work around dysphoria constantly. He imagines himself existing among humans in these brief thoughts without even realizing it, and the idea is this is written in a way that makes him sound very human—and how he seems happier when he lets himself be.

Meanwhile Dottore in the background is just, very nonchalant about this and makes some bored comment about they ought to not delay more important procedures any further if he wants to ascend to godhood anytime soon. Scaramouche kind of snaps out of it & back into his usual sort of headspace/mindset and kind of sneers at him how this was a far more significant step in ascending to godhood than Dottore could ever understand.

And after he says this he mentally pauses, because he really hadn’t been thinking of it like that before—and then wonders if it was true, because it wasn’t an experiment that made him feel more powerful like the other ones had. What he feels now is something other than more powerful—but there’s not really any other explanation for this reaction. More godly, maybe. It makes him feel not more powerful, but closer to what he wants—which is a god.

So from there my idea is Scaramouche kind of…attributes the joy associated with his top surgery, and other similar major landmarks in his transition, with his pursuit of godhood. It spurs him on to want to be a god even more, because it's solidified in his mind as the one thing he really needs to be himself/truly happy

And then he does finally reach godhood—and is plugged into the Everlasting Lord of Arcane Wisdom’s body, he’s just finds himself feeling disappointed.

He has this minor mental crisis about it where he’s not unsatisfied—he’s more exhilarated than he has ever felt in his entire life, because he feels unspeakably powerful in the way he should be. It /is/ everything he wanted, and he savors the sheer triumph and power of the movement, but it’s just not the same. It’s not enough to make him regret what it took to get here but he’s really frustrated, because he doesn’t feel happy. Which is not an emotion Scaramouche really cares about, but even one thing he wants being somewhat out of his reach when he had hoped to suppress all the unpleasantness of having emotions is deeply unpleasant for him.

I think the next time Scaramouche really feels something close to what he’d been missing is post Inversion of Genesis, after he becomes the Wanderer.

In this narrative I think it would be an extra kick in the face that Dottore had helped him with part of his transition while Scaramouche watches Dottore kill Niwa, where Dottore basically affirms Scara’s dehumanization while Niwa insists on affirming his humanity with his dying breath. There’s the obvious violation violation of realizing someone basically sabotaged your support systems to isolate/alienate you from the world, then manipulated and groomed you into joining the fatui so they could experiment on you for their own satisfaction and intrigue, but he also finds himself grappling with recontextualizing alot of his interactions with Dottore, and coming to this conclusion that Dottore was only ever vaguely interested in Scaramouche’s potential for godhood, and doesn’t care about…this other part of why that was important to Scaramouche as a person. (Which is his transness, basically)

It’s not that he ever believed Dottore cared about him or wasn’t pursuing his own interests, but I think recontextualizing how dehumanizing Dottore’s treatment + view of him is, forces him to really pick apart his transness vs desire for godhood, and realize there’s sort of a distinction between the two he hadn’t been making.

Post IoG I think this line of thinking, along with learning Niwa hadn’t betrayed him making him hate humans much less, lets Wanderer start developing a much healthier relationship with his transness, and also just his entire identity in general. He can reconcile with his own humanity, which lets him reflect on himself more, and I think eventually he can come to an answer on why becoming god wasn’t what he needed to be happy with himself + his gender.

So essentially I’d write present day Wanderer as being more comfortable with his gender than Scaramouche would be. If I were to apply our contemporary English labels/language to his gender I think he’d more or less jsut view himself as a trans guy, but I guess by technicality has a sort of “non binary” gender bc he just doesn’t view himself in terms of human binaries due to being a puppet?? That’s just my own characterization tho. All in all I bend characterizations of characters’ queerness in line with what whatever sort of transformative work I feel like doing so this isn’t even the only way I’d write trans Wanderer. Just usually the one I go off the most when portraying him as a character

[escapist-of-fiction]

Title: Let the games begin. Pairing: Troy Otto x OC Evie

Summary: Lots of these one shot scenes take place in the infirmary on the Ranch, potentially other locations further down the line. Pre-apocalypse Evie was a med student in her third year, so knew enough to adopt this role when she arrived. Troy is obviously a regular visitor because, well, he's Troy and he's one, hot mess and chaos seems to follow him around. I guess this is the beginning of their slow burn relationship. Up until this point, Evie and Troy had not really had a reason to speak to each other or spend time together. All it takes is one small decision, and the rest is history.

Dislaimer: I will use characters from the Fear The Walking Dead series and some details from the show but that's as far as it goes really. This will mostly be an original plot. ---------------------------------------------------------------

It had been forty eight hours since the Militia had left the ranch and, when Evie had bumped into Jake during lunch earlier that day, he had seemed unperturbed by the group's absence.

"Evie, this is a regular thing. Troy goes off on idiotic missions to satisfy his curiosity. Things take a little longer than planned." He paused, forkful of pasta halfway to his mouth as he eyed her suspiciously, "Why do you care so much?"

She tried to ignore it but Evie could hear the underlying tone of 'who do you care about?' as well. Placing her hands on her hips, she scowled and answered without so much as skipping a beat,

"As resident Medic, amongst other job roles, surely it's my duty to care?" Jake immediately smiled in surrender.

"Point taken. Listen, if I know Troy as well as I do, he'll have them back by sundown."

-----------

On the quiet days, everyone milled around the ranch completing their jobs, busying themselves with idle chit chat. Evie, personally hated those days. Time moved incredibly slowly and it gave her too much time to think, about what could have been and what the future held. A monotonous task, like taking a medical supply inventory and basing herself in the medic tent, kept her occupied until the familiar skidding of tyres on gravel sounded at the main gate. Listening carefully, she heard the regular shouts of greeting from friends and family alike. No one sounded like they were raising the alarm for any emergencies. She continued with her job, seemingly satisfied with the outcome.

She found the Militia still unloading the trucks a little while later. Evie nodded at a few of the more familiar faces, hauling barrels off the back of a truck,

"Where did you end up this time?" She asked. George, one of the older and more established members of the Militia paused to fill her in,

"We went a bit further afield, past the two main towns, found an abandoned warehouse. It must have been a clothes supplier once upon a time. Then Troy decided it would be a good idea to chase down a herd." Evie nodded in understanding, she knew how that story always ended and didn't need him to finish. She sighed.

"Where is he now?"

"He headed towards the pantry with Jake. We managed to raid a store on our way back."

With a little nod, Evie headed in that direction, her pace quickening as she got nearer overhearing raised voices. Jake and Troy stood facing one another, deep in their heated discussion, surrounded by the boxes of supplies that they had just carried across the yard. Jake was staring furiously at Troy, who looked almost bemused by his brother's overreaction.

"Christ, Troy. What were you thinking?" Jake hissed, gesturing wildly in the trucks' direction, "They are our people, they have families. We don't go searching for danger for the hell of it. Do that on your own time!"

Troy scuffed his boot in the dirt and folded his arms across his chest indignantly before responding,

"Stick to being the house wife of this ranch, Jakey. What I do with the Militia on our missions is my business." A smug sense of satisfaction washed over Troy as he watched his brother twitch in annoyance. He didn't like this 'tit for tat' arguing but his brother's constant need to be the responsible one riled him to no end.

Evie could see this had hit a nerve with Jake instantly so decided it might be a good time to take it upon herself and interrupt them.

Up until now, neither of them had been aware of Evie's presence, so her sudden approach startled them both and distracted them from the heat of the moment, fortunately.

"What's wrong?" Jake huffed, hoping nothing serious had happened but equally looking for a reason to walk away from his brother before he really lost it with him. Evie felt she needed to think quickly for an answer or it would seem a bit odd that she had approached them in the first instance. She wasnt even sure why she had gone to seek Troy out in the first place. She found a reason soon enough as she cast a glance over Troy, who was staring at her inquisitively.

"You need that wound treated," she said, pointledly nodding at his hand that he had obviously tried patching up himself, which was now dripping with blood. Troy lifted his hand dismissively,

"This old thing? It'll be fine once I've washed up." Evie marched up to him and grabbed his wounded arm, holding it up for inspection. This bold movement from the medic, stunned both men into silence. Evie wasn't known for her forwardness, in fact, it was rare to see her outside of the infirmary at all most days.

"By my reckoning, you treated this wound yourself and you've done a terrible job of it. So unless you want it to get infected? Infirmary now." Evie didn't wait for a response from Troy. She simply took a hold of his good hand and pulled him in the direction of the medical tent, leaving Jake staring after them, a little perplexed.

Neither of them spoke at first. Evie tapped the empty bed and Troy hopped up obediently. She began to unwrap a roll of gauze and make a solution to disinfect the wound. He watched her every move carefully, enjoying the way Evie's nimble fingers treated his injury with effortless care. Evie, on the other hand, was completely unaware of Troy watching her, she was too engrossed with the task in hand. She unwrapped the scrappy fabric, now caked in dried blood, that he had twisted around the cut to stop the bleeding. She threw it in the nearby bin and held Troy's hand up to study it carefully in the daylight that was now seeping in through the tent's doorway as the afternoon reached it's peak.

"You know I could have sorted this out myself back home..." Pausing the careful treatment of his hand, Evie locked eyes with Troy, an eyebrow raised as she responded,

"You're welcome?" Her sarcasm earned a wry smile from Troy.

"You know that's not what I meant. As much as I'm enjoying this little Florence Nightingale routine, I'm not sure what I've done to deserve this treatment. Other than being a dick to my brother back there."

"Well," Evie began, winding the bandage around Troy's hand tight enough to watch him wince ever so slightly, "as I said to your brother earlier; it is my duty to care for everyone - even stubborn, reluctant patients like yourself." She lifted her gaze from Troy's hand and found him staring at her intently. Evie felt the heat to rise to her cheeks. "Anyway, " she babbled on, "You are in charge of the ranch and we kind of need you alive in order to keep it running. Sort of." She placed Troy's hand gently down at his side. "There. That's you all patched up."

Troy turned his hand over, seemingly impressed with her handy work.

"Thanks Medic. Permission to leave?" A tiny smile spread across Evie's face at Troy's gentle teasing.

"Permission granted," she said, playing along with a little chuckle, stepping aside to let him past. She soon realised that there wasn't a lot of room in the Medic tent as Troy sidled past her so closely that his body briefly brushed up against Evie's.

What was most alarming was how her body reacted to the physical contact with Troy, however fleeting it may have been. She watched him lift the canvas and duck out of the tent, stepping into the sunlight and she exhaled slowly, realising she had been holding her breath. She waited for the tingling sensation in her stomach to subside, a mixed feeling of confusion and realisation washing over her.

And it was in that moment that it dawned on Evie...she was falling for Troy Otto.

[lemoncrushh]

Meeting Harry Styles

Summary: After actress Mia Tangelo meets Harry Styles at a One Direction concert, he surprises her by showing up at her film premiere.

Warnings: None. I still ask that you be at least 18 to read my fics though.

Word Count: 3820

A/N: A cute one shot from 2016. Harry x OC. I believe this was a request where the woman was famous too. Obviously, this is 1D Harry.

My sister had taken me to a One Direction concert. Neither of us were particularly huge fans, but I'll admit I'd been known to sing along to a few of their songs on the radio. When she originally told me about the tickets I raised a brow, but ended up agreeing to join her, thinking it would be a fun night out with my sis. I'd recently wrapped up filming for my latest movie, and between that and press and promo for my previous film that was opening in a few weeks, we rarely got to spend time with each other anymore.

Halfway through the show, and a few beers later, Nora let the cat out of the bag. I wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or the sheer excitement from the crowd, but with her arm looped through mine she informed me she'd always had a crush on Niall. I giggled at her as I leaned my head on her shoulder, watching the four boys on stage. My eyes, however, were not focused on the Irish one, but rather the tall, long-haired one in jeans so tight you could practically see-

"Mia!" Nora shouted in my ear, interrupting my dirty thoughts. "Did you see that? Oh my God, he's so cute! That smile!"

"Yeah," I grinned. I knew she was referring to Niall, but I wasn't.

I continued to stare at him in awe as he pranced around the stage, getting the crowd more riled up with each "make some noise!" and flip of his hair. A couple of times he came our way, and I could swear we made eye contact as he gave his dimpled grin and a thumbs up.

Harry Styles. I knew the name. I knew who he was. I guess for some reason I'd never really paid attention. One Direction was just a pop band with a handful of catchy tunes. But standing there in the audience, watching him in his element, I realized what Harry Styles really was - a rockstar.

When the concert was over and I was nearly deaf from all the screaming (okay, I might've contributed to it some), Nora and I grabbed our things to hurry toward the exit. In the early days, my sister and I would stay at the venue long after the show was through, and the seats had cleared out. But now that I had an acting career, I got recognized a lot. Not that I minded it, but sometimes fans would crowd around for hours, and I'd finally have to tell them I needed to leave. I still wasn't very good at turning people down and it made me feel bad, so it was just easier to leave the premises early.

As we made our way down the aisle, I caught the glimpse of camera phones snapping photos. Of course, I knew phones had been out during the entire concert, but I also knew people were getting pics of me. I even heard my name shouted a few times. Deciding to hold up a hand to wave, I felt Nora poke me in the back.

"What?" I turned to ask her.

"That guy's calling for you," she pointed ahead of me.

Twirling back around, I saw whom she was talking about, nearly bumping into him. He wore a white t-shirt that simply said STAFF on the front.

"Mia Tangelo?"

"Yes," I nodded.

"Harry Styles wants to meet you," he stated with a small smile.

My eyes about popped out of their sockets as I stared at the guy. "Are you serious?"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied.

My jaw dropped slightly as I eyed Nora who was practically up against my back, her arm still holding on to mine.

"Oh my God!" she squealed.

"You wanna come with me?" I heard the man ask.

"Oh, sure," I muttered. "Yeah."

Nora and I followed him through a maze that led us to a backstage area. I wasn't even sure how we got there without running into other bodies, but before we knew it, we were standing in front of a doorway.

"Just have a seat in there," the guy instructed, gesturing toward a sofa inside the room.

"Thank you," I said pleasantly.

I could feel Nora's nerves radiating off of her as she sat next to me. I chuckled low, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Honey, calm down," I whispered. "I've introduced you to my co-stars before."

"I know, and I was nervous as hell every time," she spewed.

I smiled. "They're just people, like you and me."

Nora raised a brow. "Like you, maybe, but not like me. Not even close."

"I hate when you talk like that," I scoffed.

"Hey, I wasn't just in a movie with Le-"

"Hello," I heard a British accent say. I lifted my gaze to the doorway where a very tall and handsome Harry Styles stood.

"Hi!" I greeted, rising from my seat. "Mia Tangelo, nice to you meet you." I extended my hand and Harry took it. A smile spread across his face, revealing his dimples again.

"Lovely to meet you, too, Mia. I'm a massive fan," he remarked, shaking my hand before leaning forward and kissing the air on either side of my face.

"Of mine? Really?"

"Yeah," he nodded, his gaze not wavering from mine. It was then that I noticed he still had a hold of my hand, and I had yet to acknowledge my sister who had stood up from the couch.

"Um," I cleared my throat. "Harry, this is my sister, Nora."

Nora, who had just been a ball of nerves less than a minute ago, suddenly found her courage and shook Harry's hand, giving him the lowdown on herself and how much she enjoyed the concert and wished she had seen them years ago. Harry was a gentleman, taking in every word. I took the opportunity to take in his beauty, my eyes traveling down his slim physique to his boots. He was even better looking up close, his thin t-shirt revealing a few tattoos underneath. I liked the way he kept combing his long fingers through his hair, and how full his lips were.

"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed the show," I heard Harry say.

I blinked just as I caught a glimpse of someone else walking in the room. I nudged Nora with my elbow. She let out a slight yelp when she saw him.

"Hello," I held out my hand when Niall walked up to me. "I'm Mia."

"Yeah, I thought I saw you in the audience," he nodded, shaking my hand. "Thanks for comin'!"

"You bet," I grinned, turning to Nora. "It was her idea."

As soon as I introduced Niall to my sister, she returned to her chatty self. I stood back and watched her in action for a bit until I felt those green eyes on me. Yes, I'd already noticed they were green.

"So, what did you think?" he asked.

"Sorry?" I turned to face him.

"The show," said Harry. "What did you think?"

"Oh," I mouthed, "I loved it."

I quickly found myself biting my lip like I did when I was nervous. I never told Nora, but I still got nervous from time to time. And the way Harry's eyes were burning into mine didn't help. Fortunately, I had learned how not to look away from someone when they spoke to me. It kind of came with the professionalism and red-carpet etiquette. And from the looks of it, Harry had been schooled as well.

"I'm glad," he grinned. "It's actually funny that you're here. I was just watching one of your films on the bus this weekend."

"Really?" I lifted my brows. "Am I allowed to ask which one?"

"Surrender," he replied a little sheepishly, his accent omitting the R at the end.

I felt the color rise to my cheeks though I tried my best to play it off. Surrender had been one of my earlier films, only my second major motion picture and my very first love scene. Although millions of people had seen it by now, and I'd done several movies since, the knowledge that Harry had watched me naked on the screen made me feel something I hadn't been prepared for.

I cleared my throat. "And did you like it?"

The corner of Harry's mouth curled up on one side, that damn dimple making its appearance once again. "Yeah...I did."

I pressed my lips together and nodded.

"Although, I think In the Dark Daylight may be my favorite," he remarked.

"Oh?" I widened my eyes. Although In the Dark Daylight seemed to have a bit of a cult following, it had been met with mixed reviews. Still, it had been my favorite to shoot thus far. "You know, we just finished filming the sequel."

"I heard about that!" Harry nodded, lightly gesturing to me. "And I hear there's a new film coming out soon?"

"Oh, yeah," I swallowed. "Yes. On the fourth."

"What's that one called again?"

"No Man's Land," I replied. "We're um...I'm really excited about it."

"Me too," Harry commented. "Can't wait to see it."

Despite my nerves, Harry's gaze certainly had a pull on me. I hadn't even noticed Liam and Louis had entered the room until Nora's laugh rang in my ears and I looked over to see them chatting with her. After introducing myself, the guy from earlier with the STAFF shirt peaked his head inside, announcing "twenty minutes". I wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but I figured it had something to do with them getting on their buses and heading to the next city, so we quickly said our goodbyes.

"Really lovely to meet you, Mia," Harry said softly after the other three boys had left the room, his hand gently touching my arm.

"You too, Harry," I beamed, allowing the heat from his skin to warm mine.

"Thanks so much for coming out to support us. I hope I get to return the favor someday."

I smiled wider. "You bet."

Harry and Nora said farewell and I followed her out into the hall, giving Harry one final glance and a wave, catching his dimpled smile one last time.

I could see the cameras flashing as soon as the car pulled up. Adjusting my dress and taking a deep breath, I waited for the driver to open the door. I was never going to get used to this, no matter how many movies I made.

I stopped along the red carpet to wave and do short interviews, my picture being taken every step of the way. I smiled as much as was necessary, but once I was indoors, I felt my body relax. I met up with several of the cast and crew for No Man's Land, taking more photos and sharing a couple glasses of wine that somehow had arrived in my hand. I chatted with a few other celebrities that I'd met before, as well as some that I hadn't. By the time I was seated for the screening, all nervousness was gone.

The audience applauded enthusiastically when the film was over, and I followed the rest of the cast down the aisle, making our way back to the crowd. Several of my peers congratulated me, telling me it was a stellar performance. I took their compliments graciously, thanking them for coming. I'd just turned from one conversation, prepared for another when I felt a hand on the small of my back.

"You were wonderful, Mia," a low voice sang in my ear.

I jerked around to see Harry, his tall, slim physique hovering over me. He looked amazing in a black suit and shirt, minus a tie so as to give a peek of his tattooed chest in typical Harry Styles fashion.

"Harry!" I whisper-shouted, grabbing his forearm before I could catch myself. "I didn't know you were coming!"

"Told you I was gonna return the favor," he said, covering my hand with his before leaning in to kiss my cheek. Unlike the air kisses he'd given before, his lips actually pressed against my skin.

"I-I'm so glad!" I exclaimed shakily. "It's good to see you."

"You too," he grinned. "You look stunning."

"Thank you," I said.

Or at least I thought I said it. Even in the dimly lit room, I was suddenly lost in his eyes, the pull even stronger than I'd remembered. I was also suddenly aware of what I was wearing. From the moment I'd stepped out of the car and the first camera flashed, it was like I was no longer in my body. I was on autopilot, knowing where I needed to stand, what I needed to say. But now standing next to Harry, his eyes on me, I was finally back inside my own skin, aware of all my senses.

My nervous habit of lip biting returned as I reached down to tug on the lace hem of my short dress, catching Harry's gaze as it travelled down my body.

"So, um..." I swallowed hard. "So you liked the movie?"

"Yeah," he eyes shifted back to mine. "I might've actually liked it more than In the Dark Daylight."

"Really?" I asked, surprised.

Harry shrugged, giving a cheeky smirk. "Alright, maybe about the same."

I chuckled, feeling a bit of tension release. "That's still pretty good. I'll take it."

Harry and I chatted for a while about the film, and a couple of my others, though I was a bit grateful he didn't mention Surrender again. Some of my co-stars joined us and I introduced them to Harry, and even some people who knew him but not me came up to us. It turned out to be a really fun evening, and the more I was around Harry, the funnier and more charming he seemed to be, true to his reputation.

After more cocktails, I excused myself to the ladies' room. I hadn't expected Harry to wait for me, so when I returned and was greeted by another fellow actor, I stopped to talk to him. Halfway through the conversation, however, I caught a glimpse of Harry out of the corner of my eye. He gave me a smile which I returned before quickly averting my attention back to the man in front of me. As he droned on about something I knew nothing about, I couldn't help but keep the grin on my face as I saw Harry coming towards me.

"Hello," he said cheerfully. My stomach flipped when I felt his arm slide around my waist.

"Hi," I licked my lips. I hastily introduced him to the other actor.

"Do you mind if I steal her for a moment?" Harry asked.

The other man shook his head, cordially turning around to start a conversation with someone else. I looked up at Harry, a tiny giggle escaping my throat.

"Thanks."

"What for?"

"For saving me," I chuckled.

"Oh, I wasn't really trying to," he grinned. "Just wanted to be with you."

My face softened as I continued to stare at him. "Oh," I breathed.

"It's difficult to know the most beautiful woman in the room is over here, when I'm over there," he gestured with his head to the area he'd been standing before. It was then that I noticed his arm had loosened only slightly from around my waist, his hand now on the small of my back.

"Oh," I said again, sounding like a broken record. I blinked, my lips curling into a smile. Harry mimicked it, sending shivers down my spine. The way his eyes danced, I could swear he was about to kiss me, but I figured he thought it best not to in our current setting.

"Do you wanna get out of here?" he finally asked after staring at each other for a moment or two. "Or...do you have to stay?"

"No," I shook my head. "I mean, no, I don't...have to stay."

Harry's smile grew as he turned slightly and nudged me with his hand, leading me toward to the exit. When we made it outside, several cars were lined up to take various guests home (or wherever else they wished to go) as they climbed in. Some people had stopped to chat which made me feel more at ease, seeing as I'd just walked out of the theater with Harry. I didn't want our exit - or whatever this was - to appear too obvious.

"Do you wanna take yours or mine?" I heard him ask softly. I noticed then that he had his phone in his hand, no doubt ready to cancel his car if need be.

"Um...mine's fine I guess."

Harry nodded, typed something on his phone and shoved it back in his pocket. I didn't even need to call for my car. It was already pulling up to the curb by the time we stepped up to it, as if by magic. The driver opened the door and I slid into the back seat, Harry following me.

We were both silent for a couple minutes and I took the opportunity to take a few deep breaths and second guess what we might be doing. The intoxicating aroma of Harry's cologne weakened my senses, and I felt my mouth go dry.

"So, I suppose now," said Harry, interrupting my thoughts, "before we get to your place, or wherever it is we're going, I should probably confess something."

I blinked once, my eyes wide as I looked over at him. "What's that?"

Harry smiled his dazzling smile before looking down at his hands and back up at me. "I've fancied you for a while now."

I returned his smile. "You have?"

"Yeah. That wasn't the first time I'd watched Surrender."

My entire body was suddenly on fire from within, like someone had lit a match and tossed it inside. I bit my bottom lip, though this time not from nerves. Harry leaned over and brought his hand to my cheek, his eyes focused on my mouth, his thumb urging my teeth to release my lip. When it popped out, he slid his thumb across it before tilting his head and pressing his mouth to mine.

He kissed me softly and gently, his fingers tickling my cheek. Then his hand slid down to my neck as he pulled me closer, deepening the kiss. He tasted like whiskey and cherries. That mixed with his cologne made my head spin, and I was perfectly fine with it. My left hand had found a resting place against his chest, and my right was somehow holding his in my lap. As I felt the car come to a stop, I pulled away.

"Are we there already?" Harry asked in a raspy voice, his eyes still closed and his mouth mere centimeters from mine.

I giggled lightly. "No. Just a red light."

"Oh," he said, his eyelids fluttering open. I grinned at him for a minute as he stared at me. There was no denying how handsome he was.

When the car began to move again, Harry sat back, his hand still holding on to mine. I looked down at them in my lap and smiled. Then Harry lifted them to his lips, kissing the back of mine.

"I'm glad you came," I muttered.

Harry gazed over at me. "So, confession number two," he said sheepishly, "I wasn't originally invited."

I narrowed my eyes. "What?"

"As they say, I had my people call your people."

I let out a loud cackle. "You did not."

"Yeah I did. I wanted to see you."

"You couldn't have just gotten my number?" I inquired.

"And miss out on surprising you?" Harry quipped.

"Harry Styles!" I teased, shoving his arm.

"Were you surprised?" he asked.

"Very."

"Mission accomplished, then," he smirked.

I watched him in silence until I noticed we were turning into my neighborhood. My stomach flipped at the anticipation, and my palms were sweaty.

"Mia?" I suddenly heard Harry say as I was gazing out the window.

"Yes?"

"I've been thinking about this the whole drive...going back and forth in my head...and maybe it's because I'm sobering up but..." his expression softened as he shifted in his seat to face me. "I don't think we should sleep together tonight."

My face fell. "Oh. Okay." I felt like I was going to throw up.

"Please let me explain," he added. "It's not that I don't want to. I very much want to." He said the last sentence with a nervous chuckle.

"It's fine," I remarked, my jaw set to keep from revealing any real emotion. I felt like an idiot.

"Mia..." Harry sounded, scooting closer to me. He lifted my chin to look at him. I blinked fast, worried that a tear or two might sneak through. "I wanna get to know you more. I really like you. I wanna take you out, on a proper date. I don't want this to just be a hook up."

My eyelids fluttered a few more times as I let his words sink in.

"Really?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "Tour's over. I have some time to actually spend with you, get to know you better. Would you like that?"

I felt my cheeks rise as a smile slowly spread across my face. "I'd like that a lot."

"Good," he grinned just as the car pulled up to my house and we were let in the gate.

I quickly gave Harry my number which he programmed in his phone. When the driver opened the door, Harry got out first, holding his hand out for me. As I dug my keys out of my bag, I saw Harry talking to the driver before following me up the sidewalk.

"Wow, I get a gentleman walking me to my door," I commented. "It is like a first date."

"Well, I am a gentleman," remarked Harry.

"Do I get a goodnight kiss too?"

"Are you kidding?"

Harry slid his hands under my ears and kissed me like he had in the car, only with a bit more fervor and spark. I felt light-headed before he even let go, and by the time he did, I could barely stand.

"Are you sure you don't wanna stay?" I whispered.

Harry rested his forehead against mine.

"Next time, love," he breathed, his fingers dragging down my neck. "Promise."

With one last kiss, he turned back to the car. I watched him get in and wave goodbye before I unlocked my front door.

I had just climbed the stairs and was walking into my bedroom when my phone rang in my bag.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mia, it's Harry," he said. "Would you like to go out with me Saturday night?"

I giggled like a schoolgirl as I sat on my bed and kicked off my shoes. "I'd love to, Harry."

Thank you so much for reading! If you enjoyed, please like, comment, reblog or send me a msg!

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[bluemantics]

Julance Week One: Broadsword/Youth

I've decided I'll follow @callmelyc's Julance prompts! HI LYC i missed you lots <3 Please give Lyc lots of love and consider following their prompts too!

--

A broadsword. Lance stared blankly down at the weapon he held, red and white, gleaming under the harsh training deck lights. Its weight in his hands was unfamiliar, and yet, somehow felt right in a way he loathed. The sword had manifested seemingly at random-- one second, he'd been shooting at bots in the training room, satisfied with the way they dropped at his feet.

"Fuck yeah," he muttered under his breath as another clang sounded. The blue holographic screen lit up with a happy 'ding,' signifying another slain foe. He whipped around to face the next batch, no hesitation present in any of his movements as he dodged, shot, dodged, kicked out, moved faster, sharper, panting for breath.

So the sword shouldn’t have had any reason to appear! Really, it was all a misunderstanding. As the training drones closed in on him, their little propellers whirring in violent chirps, Lance had only barely conjured the idea for a split second. It wasn’t even a thing! Lance had been standing there, face flushed, sweat trickling down the back of his neck, his trigger finger aching. The idea came from an exhausted daze.

Man, he inwardly lamented, eyes focused on the drones closing in. I wish Keith was here.

Boom. Sword. Lance slashed through the clump of bots without pause until the program had run its course.

That thought had been purely utilitarian, of course. First of all, Keith was with the Blade, and was doing much better there! Obviously he couldn’t actually have Keith’s help in a stupid fucking training exercise. It was just that the robots seemed to get in too close for his weapon to be really effective, it being a rifle and all. He hadn’t expected anyone to be listening to his stupid wandering mind and its stupid wandering fixation on a stupid, wandering, mulleted asshole.

He should have known better. Everything about space had been freaky and magical, so why couldn’t his own goddamn gun have a brain?

Lance let out a small, quiet sigh, watching the way his wrist rotated the sword around in a move that he’d seen plenty of times between urgent missions. Rotate in. Rotate out. The tip of the blade formed little infinities in the air, while the flat of it reflected his lost expression back to him. His eyes were half-lidded and his teeth were gritted.

Lance McClain truly couldn’t have one goddamn thing of his own, could he? Doomed to have Keith’s leftovers for the rest of his life, Lance couldn’t help but draw up images of this exact moment happening fifty times before.

A starry-eyed kid who only got to be an attack pilot after a dropout punched a commander. A throwaway paladin who only assumed the red lion once the original pilot had left for brighter things. And now this.

Being the youngest in a large family meant he was no stranger to hand-me-downs, but Keith Kogane’s always left a bitter taste in his mouth. Like he was almost strong, almost talented, chasing after a perfect Grecian champion he’d never catch.

Keith always left him behind with some nagging reminder of his existence, of the fact that Lance could try as hard as he wanted and still never quite meet his standard.

The sword fell to the ground, transforming back into a bayard. Its clatter echoed off of sterile walls with resonating finality. Lance didn’t spare it another glance as he walked out of the training deck.

He was tired of running after an apparition.

[dragon-communion]

Okay so here's my wild speculation on the DLC.

The major fault in the current Golden Order, and what caused it to fall to shit, is the separation of life from death. Marika tries to hold the land in a ceaseless golden age, a ceaseless citrinitas, that is entirely unsustainable, though she supports it well with bread and circuses. That's the point of coliseums- turning conflict into entertainment, and her early reign was very characterized by war. Hence marrying Hoarah Loux, and then civilizing him into Godfrey to maintain her preferred image.

I digress.

Elden Ring has a constant theme of twins and duality. Malenia and Miquella. To a certain extent, Ranni and Godwyn. Marika and Radagon. But we know that there's something false and unnatural about Marika/Radagon, or else their children wouldn't have been cursed.

Here's my opinion on the childhood curses:

I think omen children come from making babies the "primal" way. I think Marika literally banged Godfrey, and the result was omen children. It's said that omens could happen in any family, and I really think that's because it's unnatural to have babies come from tree amber or flowers or whatever, so people would do it the animal way sometimes, and then omens would happen. Sex has just been... phased out of the Lands Between entirely by the time we get there, to the point that hugging Fia is "vulgar".

Marika and Radagon, no matter what the real origin of their duality, are incomplete somehow. They don't count as two people anymore. Children born of a singular god leave room for a second influence to attach to them regardless. We don't know what attached itself to Miquella. Based on the trailer, his "fate" involved St. Trina somehow, but we really don't know enough about what she is to him or what her real goals were. Malenia, obviously, had the metaphorical gap in her filled by Scarlet Rot.

However.

Each of Marika's children has expressed a variation of Death. She excised Death from her Order- now Malenia presents with Rot, Miquella has some affinity for Sleep, Godwyn is the Prince of Death (yes it was Ranni's fault, but still), Melina has something to do with Destined Death and has that strange eye.

I don't think that's an accident.

I think the seduction/betrayal mentioned in the trailer involves Marika's own duality. Separating light from shadow, life from death. She's the light. The Lands Between are bathed in light. She tried to peel out the pips in Yin and Yang and deny that each exists within the other. And following Fromsoft's theme of endless light and endless life probably being a horrible idea, it's all breaking down now.

The Numen are stated to have come from a different land, possibly a different world. Marika's people. What if the Land of Shadow is where the Numen came from? What if it's only called the Land of Shadow because she tried to quarantine everything that would obstruct her light there, and then she left her most fanatic son there to play Satan and burn the unworthy forever in a hell away from her and her Order?

I'm not sure what Miquella is looking for there, though he obviously is searching, but I think it would make sense if he's looking for the Gloam Eyed Queen. Yes, he probably feels pity for everyone subjected to Messmer, and I think he would support the idea of helping the people there, but his chief motivation has always been his sister and their curse, and I think it would be a wild departure of character for him to abandon Malenia. His flesh, sure. His power, sure. But unless we're wildly mistaken about who and what he is, Miquella's interests involve defying the gods and fate so that he can cure his sister. And who would be more diametrically opposed to Marika than the Gloam Eyed Queen, the woman who specialized in killing gods?

She obviously might be dead, but death doesn't really seem to be stopping anyone from being present or causing problems.

I think Miquella is investigating the nature of Death and Shadow, because the existence of these things proves an existence outside of the Order and Light, and therefore something removed from the influence of an outer god. Hell, he has to make us his own sites of grace, from what it looks like.

What do you think?

[mesmir-ized]

also apparently forgot to post p2ponies 😞… sorry !! orz

(cutie mark rambles below~)

i always think crazy hard about cutie marks they are like my #1 stressor when it comes to ponies……. so here’s why i chose certain cutie mark designs !!

also i tried really hard to make sure they all shared some colours , especially making sure to include each others’ colours !! i wanted to have the original masked circle all have a star somewhere (BC.astrology or something…) LOL , maya sort of stands out both in colours and cutie mark , but that was on purpose !!

tatsuya: his was 100% the easiest to come up with . it’s gotta be his lighter !!! not only is it like His Thing but also very much representative of the bonds with his friends , as well as everything that got them into the events of IS … both in the game and here , the lighter is a symbol of both destruction/power and connection/creation !! which really fits tatsuya :] you can also think of it being like he “lights the way” !! the little teal star is in lieu of the little prince quote , and it’s kinda clear who this star is meant to represent ;U

jun: THIS ONE TOOK FOREVER TO DRAW . my issue was i had an idea , but couldn’t figure out how to make it work !! i wanted to include both flowers and a shooting star and fought 1 million battles trying to figure it out….

i wanted to include a shooting star for many reasons !! stars obviously for jun’s love of stars , but also because the shooting star is a symbol of something to follow (like Jun making himself a leader/savior as joker) as well as being representative of wishes and dreams (which is joker’s whole thing !!) !!! i wanted to add 4 forget-me-nots for both the obvious meaning of memory and his love of flowers , but also to mimic other stars and represent both masked circles he was involved in ! i love jun if you can’t tell

lisa: though this one looks simple it actually was pretty thought-out !! i wanted to figure out a way to both have her love of kung fu and role as an idol represented , which led me to these sort of boom-flash symbols ! these symbols are meant to be representative of her personality (feisty and explosive, but also fascinating and even lovely !) as well as what i said earlier , both of her paths~ they can be read as punch SFX , as well as the flash of cameras/lights on stage !! they’re pretty simple , but i feel like they pack a lot of punch (LOL)~!!

maya: the standout girlie of the whole bunch !! i immediately had the sort of idea for an intersection of heart/moon , and came up with this ! the heart is for ahh.. reasons most people know , but also she’s just associated with hearts in general (think mr bunbun) !! they obviously are related to her compassion and big heart , and if we want to have a sort of more darker and serious inspection of it.. how she’s the heart of her friend group and the loss of that heart (literal and figurative , in many instances) makes everything fall apart .. i also wanted to include the moon for her association with the moon (and Artemis !) , which also serve to show her duality and antithesis to the heat and light of the tatsuyas ! i like to think the EP cast’s colours would be more based around her cutie mark colours , like how IS were all based around each others’ !!

eikichi: i struggled with this one the most & i think it’s obvious.. U~U; .. i wanted to , again , make a symbol that’s not too complex , but is able to encapsulate so many different elements of a character ?! i ended up coming up with this skull (for his association with death/self proclaimed title as the “death boss”) and rocker/vkei/darker alternative aesthetics in general~ the starry eyes are BC welll…! star ! and also because it’s like he’s “starry-eyed” and looking towards the future :] the little glowy shine thing is meant tp be a spotlight , like he’s in the spotlight ! maybe one day I’ll come up with soemthing better , sorry eikichi , i love you ! 😞💦

Okies that’s all !! hope you like my cutie mark rambles , i love explaining my thoughts !!! ^7^

[casinodove]

✧ DIVINE ADULATION . sagau headcanons

✧ SUMMARYzz.. 1111

So, divine creator descends and the acolytes are ofcourse beyond pleased, yet there's a problem. Divine creator had a significant other back in their original reality, whom they weren't able to say goodbye to before descending since it was so sudden. Don't even worry though, significant other also descended! So, one day the creator and their lover get reunited, what would the acolytes reactions be?

✧ PAIRINGzz.. 2222

Sagau x GN!Reader (no pronouns mentioned)

Reader x GN!S/O

✧ WARNINGSzz.. 3333

Slight yandere if you squint , cult au , religious themes , stalking , privacy deprivation , relationship sabotaging .

✧ SIDE NOTESzz.. 4444

Merry Christmas to whoever celebrates it <3

THE divine creator was thought to be a being ancient, not exactly incapable of feeling love but unwanting to waste their time on such matters. So, seeing you be so sad, devasted even, when you descended because of a certain someone surely caught the acolytes off guard.

A few weeks passed, you seemingly calmed down yet your opinion on getting a spouse within teyvat was always negative. Something about loyalty you said, something about unwavering faith and about missing someone you said.

At first the acolytes weren't sure what to think about it, yet during a seemingly normal day you were spotted running toward an unknown person. Time once again passed, and within the following days the acolytes were able to see you walking around with the same person, hell, you even invited them to spend the night in your room, the two of you requested for snacks to be brought during the late hours of the night multiple times, seemingly enjoying each others company so much that you were barely able to stop talking about things all night.

Yet once every acolyte got the news, and once they spread throughout teyvat, was when the real chaos began.

Surely, everyone wanted to know who this mysterious person who would spend every night and every day with the creator was, they were beyond certain said person couldn't just be a regular person to be able to receive such adulation from you.

Probably refuses to believe that you could have a lover, teyvat is full of rumours, especially surrounding the important people. It isn't a surprise they'd spread rumours about the divine creator. Surely their just a bunch of lies, right? Nobody is worth of even standing one stair below you, let alone stand by your side, especially not some random mortal!

Zhongli , Ei , Tsaritsa , Kamisato Ayato , Pantalone , Ningguang , Arlecchino .

Interesting, interesting. Probably doesn't care all that much, not like they were planning onto turning into a potential love interest for you, they'll continue their duties as worshippers and all. If the rumours are true though, they believe you're fully able of picking out a significant other, so for aslong as you're fine and happy in the relationship, it isn't their place to say anything.

Rosaria , Capitano .

Probably throws a secret tantrum if they see anything romantic happening between you and said person. I mean come on now! You want them? Seriously now?? Easily the most likely to start plotting on how they can sabotage the relationship. Oh, and don't get me started on what would happen if the two of you got engaged..

Wanderer , Childe , Venti , Kaeya .

The first to know about the relationship, they watched every single thing the two of you did within your private chambers. Unless the two of you were covered up with the sheets that is, obviously. Their just making sure you're safe! How can they trust you to be alone with a stranger hm? (This came out as sexual even though I had no intentions of making it sound anywhere near sexual, forgive me shhxjsks)

Xiao , Wanderer , Ganyu .

Regrets not making a move before you found someone, won't try to interfere with your relationship for now, respects your relationship, for now.

Albedo , Jean , Xiao , Ganyu , Kamisato Ayaka

Destroys the relationship after careful planning, either makes you seem disloyal either makes them, doesn't matter for aslong as the two of you aren't together anymore. Comforts you if you allow them to.

Wanderer , Childe , Venti , Kaeya , Ei , Zhongli , Kamisato Ayato , Albedo , Jean .

In conclusion, don't let the acolytes know of your relationship. Or do, we do not care.

[As]

✧ ENDING NOTESzz.. 5555

Rushed and bad but I got caught up in family stuff today so ykyk,, may remake but probably won't. Anyways, goodnight 🫶🏻

✧ casinodove , 25/12/22 .

[heavenssexiestangel]

In Darkness, Light Chapter 2

Arthur Ketch/Dean Winchester Masterlist

In Darkness, Light Masterlist

Any Fandom AU Bingo Masterlist (Coming soon)

Rating: Explicit

Ship: Arthur Ketch/Dean Winchester

Word count: 3768

Tags and Warnings: Vampire AU, Vampire Dean Winchester, Jewish Dean Winchester, Trans Dean Winchester, Vampie Arthur Ketch, Jewish Arthur Ketch, Poet Arthur Ketch, Arranged Marriage, original poetry, Eventual Pregnancy. Eventual new tags and characters will be added as they appear.

Summary: Dean Winchester lives in Lawrence, Kansas, with his Nest. It’s both a peaceful and harsh life, but he is not sure he’d want to change it. One day, his father tells him they must go to Lebanon, Kansas, to meet another vampire Nest - a famous and strangely big one. John tells him he’s been talking with their Alpha for months, because it’s the Nest his father came from, and he wants to be part of it even though Henry Winchester left him when he was still young. The agreement is for Dean, John’s oldest son, to marry the other Alpha’s son, Arthur Ketch. Vampires mate for life, and there would be no way for Dean to get out of it - not without jeopardizing the relationship between the two Nests and dooming theirs. Despite Dean and Arthur disliking each other since the very first time they meet, they must learn to trust and be loyal to each other, no matter how rocky their path is.

Beta by @spn-fanfic-reblog-writes. Thank you!

Excerpt:

Dean eyed the house in front of them, squinting against the lustreless darkness as if it might help him find any kind of detail that might give away the fact it was the premises of a Vampire Nest. Obviously, there was none, although Dean had expected the biggest Nest in the United States to have a much bigger headquarters. From what he could see, it was just a classic American family house surrounded by a bunch of identical ones, but something in the back of his mind told him there was more than what met the eye. “C’mon, Dean. We need to talk to the Alpha.” John got out of the Impala without even looking at him, gently closing the door in a way he had never done before – usually, the man rushed out and almost broke it while closing it; Dean, from his other end, sighed and tightened his hands before stepping out and slamming the car door behind him – he’d feel guilty about it later, he already knew, but now the rage boiling inside him at being once more the family’s sacrificial lamb was too much to bear. He wished he could slam himself against something too, break his own bones or something, but it would have to wait.

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[dreaisgrayte]

Fragments | Satoru Gojo x YN [TEASER]

“Wow.” Is all you can muster, but it riles him up enough. His energy is icy hot, running all over your skin as he buzzes through spots. You feel like throwing up by the time he’s taken you back to your room. You’re surprised you didn’t melt away and by the looks of it, Satoru is liking the fact you could handle him. You wonder if he’d share the same look if you were able to take his cock all the way. You’d clutch the sheets as he slowly pressed himself into your entrance, grinning like a fool when his hips snapped against your thighs. You’d be his pretty girl, a true match for him. 

“YN?” Satoru is blinking down at you from where you sit on the bed. Your brows draw together in confusion. Your stomach had that conflicted mix of emotions again. Then again, maybe you just had to throw up. 

“Your fucking teleportation messed up my brain.” You whack his arm, harder than you mean to. He tilts his head while you throw yourself back on the bed. The coolness of the sheets are a welcome change from the clammy mess he’d made you. He always had to put you through one thing or another. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He questions, sitting next to you. 

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?” You grumble, shoving him to no avail. He was always pestering you. Asking for you to clarify the meaning of your words, wondering how you were feeling, if you had a good day or not. It made your stomach churn in an angry storm. He laughs softly leaning back against the wall. 

“Probably, but I kind of just want to stay here.” He replies, studying the clothes you’d hung up to dry in the nice breeze. Your body cools as his words hit your brain. Which wasn’t working right. Damn it, you needed to get away from this fuck face. The only option was to push him away with your words. If that didn’t work you’d have to move onto the final card. Besides, getting some of your pent up frustration would probably feel good. Lord knows you’ve had years to think about what you’d say to him when you got the chance.

“So people can change?” You laugh dryly. Satoru sucks in a breath, picking up on your change in tone.

“Okay, obviously you want to talk about it. So let’s talk about it.” He sits up and you follow suit after a pause. Well, that worked a bit better than you’d originally thought it would. 

“I’m only allowed to tell my therapist my feelings.” You shrug, moving to stand from the bed. Satoru stops you with a gentle hand reaching out for your hand. 

“YN, I’m a dick.” He states. You roll your eyes. That and so much more. 

“They say you are what you eat.” His serious look cracks into a smile then falls just as quickly. This whole conversation was making you feel gross. 

“I missed you.” His words send a poisonous coil up your spine. You flip to look at him, a genuine scowl on your face. This asshole could send you hurling into a frenzy of confusion and then make you want to stab him about eighty-thousand times. 

“But you saw me every month.” You snap in a faux sweet tone. His eyes widen and for a moment you want to stop. Stop all of it. You just wanted your best friend back. “Listen, I can’t do this right now Satoru.” Even his name feels foreign on your tongue. 

“I thought you wanted to reconcile.” He whispers and it stings almost like an insult. You stand and nod your head in agreement. 

“Oh I do, but it’s going to take me a while to get used to the big city again.” You shoot a look over your shoulder. “My life is still controlled by the clan and unlike you, I don’t get off when I disobey. I didn’t have a choice, at any point.” Your face twitches as your eyes well up. Fuck – this was getting to real for you. The aloof flip between just trying to get him to leave and actually having this conversation was tearing you up inside.  

“Then…why are you here?” Fucking blue eyed freak. Your body feels hot and cold, both temperatures running up your nerves like pinpricks. Time for the last card. 

“Want me to show you?” His brows are constantly drawn together around you. You don’t blame him, even you were perplexed on where this conversation had gone.

“What?” He sounds like he’s both asking a question and answering you. He scoots to the edge of the bed and you position yourself between his knees. His hands absentmindedly trail up the back of your thighs. The sensation of his fingertips on your bare skin make the world around you swirl. It could be the dizzy feeling or the way his hands felt against your skin, either way, you lean down to press your lips against his. His mouth moves against yours this time, wrapping his hands around the back of your knees. He pulls lightly to where you’re straddling him. With his mouth still connected to yours he shifts you back a bit more. You break for air, smothered by his presence again. “Fuck.” He hisses. He moves one of his hands to your ass, the other one playing with the dip of your hip. 

“That tickles.” You say under a hitched breath while your eyes roll shut. Betrayed by your own body. By this point you should be used to those close to you betraying you. Satoru hums in content as his hand slips under your top. 

“Like you fuckin’ care.” His long fingers slide against your skin, finding the soft material of your bra. You press your hips down, begging for friction against his thigh. “Slow down darlin’, enjoy the ride.” 

Your eyes open suddenly and you place your hands on his chest. Don’t make it obvious. He’s looking at you expectantly. Waiting for you…willing to listen. Damn it. 

“I need to go.” You blurt. His eyes widen as you scurry off of him and out of the room. Before his eyes can peer into your body, find the truth behind your words, you nearly jump off him. You scramble outside and bite down on your finger to hold in the scream. You weren’t ready for that, in no way were you ready to have Satoru touching your bare skin. Have his…burning hands all over your body, trancing the curves and dimples. 

You definitely weren’t ready for it to feel that good. You weren’t supposed to like this. You cover your face and scream inside your hands. Fuck.

[echoxbuggs]

Paint

Cw: angst. Mentions of Cody and Obi Wan. Cody thinks Obi Wan is dead. Grief. Admiral Rampart (yes, he needs a warning). Mentions of order 66.

Summary: After completing Order 66, Cody and his men get instructions to update their armor.

A/n: I originally wrote this a while ago—I think when Tbb s2 was coming out—but held off on posting it here just kinda out of nervousness I guess. this is 100% inspired by that one scene in Tbb s2 when Crosshair doesn’t recognize Cody until he takes the helmet off because there’s no more 212th yellow-

"Commander Cody. The time has come, execute order 66."

"Yes, my lord."

.　 . • ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆

As the gunship took off towards the great expanse of space, Cody stared into the inner wall of the ship. He still had his helmet on. His brothers around him were all standing still, unmoving, like statues. They had all gotten the order as well.

It didn't seem to bother them, however, knowing that they killed their own Jedi general. Truthfully, it was all Cody that did it. Cody told them to fire. Cody was the one who personally received the transmission. Cody killed General Kenobi.

Cody killed Obi Wan.

Cody's jaw clenched, I killed Obi Wan. He couldn't bare the thought. When he had first gotten the message he had felt the strong need to follow the order. He hadn't felt anything wrong with the order then, why did he feel so terrible now?

Once Cody and his squad reached the imperial base, he went straight to his quarters. Once inside, he removed his helmet, setting it on a table, and sat on his cot. He put his hands in his lap and let his head hang. Why did the order suddenly feel so wrong?

After a few hours Cody was called into Admiral Rampart's office. As Cody stepped inside, helmet on, Rampart eyed him with a strange look. "CC-2224, thank you for coming." Rampart greeted, Cody nodded and clenched his fists at the use of his CC number.

"Now, about what I called you in for today; as you are now part of the Imperial Army, it is only customary that you remove that hideous yellow from your armor. Same goes to any members of your battalion. I expect this to be done by two rotations from now." He explained.

Cody felt his heart drop. Remove the yellow? Why would they be forced into removing the very thing that made the 212th the 212th? Cody doubted his brothers would find this instruction okay.

But good soldiers follow orders.

Cody finally nodded his head, clearing his throat. "Yes, Admiral. I'll get right to it." He managed to get out. Rampart hummed and dismissed him, Cody swiftly left the room.

That night, Cody sat on his cot, paint scraper in hand and armor scattered around the floor. He held his vambrace in his free hand. He stared into the yellow paint. When he first joined the 212th he was honored to be fighting along side an amazing Jedi general such as Obi Wan. He had first felt intimidated by the man, but after getting to know him, Cody had found he was quite pleasing to be around. Obi Wan was kind, brave, loyal, and he cared about Cody and his brothers.

Cody began scraping off the paint of the vambrace. When order 66 was first given, he didn't even feel like himself. It was just the constant reminder 'good soldiers follow orders' and it felt like he was just there. He had no memory of actually wanting Obi Wan dead. Just before, he had handed him his lightsaber for the hundredth time. Obi Wan had lost the thing so much that Cody had put a special attachment on his belt to hang the laser sword.

Cody moved on the the other vambrace, beginning to scrape the paint off of that as well. He remembered when he first painted his armor. He was a shiny, obviously, and he had just joined the 212th. Him and a few of his brothers sat around their new barracks with buckets of yellow paint. They were all so proud and excited to be apart of the 212th. It was always the color that identified them.

Whenever Cody's armor would get scratched badly he would repaint it. Always the same design that he originally came up with. He didn't have any crazy designs like some of the members of the 501st, but he still took pride in his work.

Obi Wan had always encouraged the artwork, often sitting amongst the clones and even helping out when they would paint their armor.

After a bit, Cody picked up his helmet. He stared into the visor, this old bucket had been on many campaigns and had seen so much. It protected him from blaster shots, punches, knives sometimes.  The yellow on the helmet had helped people to identify him. Now that the paint was being removed, would they still look at him and think 'That's Commander Cody of the 212th'?

Cody reluctantly brought the scraper to the gold visor, pressing down on it and sliding it across, taking paint away  with it. He continued the same motion several times until there was no yellow left on the visor. That was the last of the yellow, the 212th yellow.

He rested his helmet next to him on the cot and put his head in his hands and sighed. It was done.

No more 212th yellow.