#overloaded telepathy

[bigthingsforeverintheworks]

reverse telepathy: everybody can see one specific person's thoughts

[goldenstorm0]

I cannot wait for an Adult Man to fight the Small Child. It'll be a great fight, my money is on the child

ok-ok, more thoughts under the cut

plot twist the thoughts are still not terribly serious

I think in a Donovan vs Anya telepathy fight, the main factor playing against her is simply her being young. She can have trouble sorting through and interpreting other people's thoughts, particularly someone like Loid who just thinks a lot. Donovan probably has a foot up on her in regards to that, just knowing offhand what information is important and what isn't.

However, we need to take into account that for Anya, mind reading is something that simply comes naturally to her. Even if she wasn't born with it and gained that power soon after birth, it would still be crazy early into her development. Although she doesn't know what information is/isn't relevant, she can still process it fairly quickly.

Plus she seems to use her powers in a variety of ways not only in collecting information, but also to help her locate people as seen early-early in the series, and directing people, like when she warned Twilight about the bomb (twice now that i think about it, in Bond's intro arc and the cruise ship arc) or when they were on the ski trip, and in manipulating people and using that instantly to influence them, as in the bus-hijacking arc.

For Donovan, we have far less information about him (or really technically a confirmation that he can read minds, only that Melinda suspects it), but I'm going to speculate that his theoretical abilities are far less attuned or refined as Anya's. Guessing from what Melinda said about when he started to change, it was soon after Damian was born. I'm going to guess probably a year or two, assuming that first Any'a has to successfully gain her powers in an experiment before Donovan undertakes the same process, so maybe a few months depending on what risks he's willing to take. That being said, no matter what, his brain would be fully developed.

So having a new sense added to the mix at such a latter date is going to mess with him more. We know that he no longer participates in events that have a lot of people at them except for the imperial scholar parent events. He is probably overwhelmed by a large groups thoughts and can't process them out as easily. From what we can tell, he doesn't even go out and about for smaller events where large groups can form, not like Melinda anyway. Anya still goes out on ootings, we can see her in crowds functioning pretty normally, and she mainly seems to get overwhelmed if she starts actively focusing on the groups thoughts or when emotions are high and/or negative (the rally in the first ooting and when she was looking at the penguins)

So while Donovan can leverage his experience to know what information to piece out, Anya has him beat in pure processing power. And with her being so young, she has more time to refine her abilities and make up for what she lacks. Her thought processes work seamlessly with her abilities, Donovan however doesn't get that. He is probably easier to overwhelm, needs more time to simply consume whatever he is hearing.

So, in a literal battle of the minds, Anya can just start dumping a ton of the irrelevant information she has to overload Donovan, thus winning the battle.

Sadly, Donovan could definitely just pick her up and throw her if need be.

So the score is kinda even rn

On actual thoughts for this chapter, I'm still processing. We now know that at least Melinda thinks Donovan can read minds, but we art exactly sure what that entails. Is it similar to Anya's, or is it different? An actual sort of dialogue like how Anya reads, or more of vibe, general direction of their thoughts or feelings? And like... is she right? she could be wrong, Donovan could just be a paranoid freak, he could of changed his actions not because he can read minds but because he knows that there are people who can. Idk, all I know is that Loid needs to start working with her to learn some techniques to help her manage her anxiety and to get her the fuck out of her situation, I have a lot of thoughts about what Loid should be doing to help her and at least some of them involve getting Melinda and Yor to hangout more.

[mochinomnoms]

*slams open door*

Mochi! Mochi! I have an idea.

So a troupe I see on pixiv fanart is a character swapping with their future selves. I saw one where Azul wakes up in bed with his future wife Yuu and she's teased him because she can tell it's past Azul and he doesn't recognize her. She gives him a hint how to recognize her by some birthmarks she has on her chest.

I've seen a couple artists do it with Floyd as well, and a fanfic with past and future Yuu swapping with each other and poor younger Malleus is overwhelmed because OMG this beautiful woman is flirting with me and she's my future wife? There's something hilarious about the younger guys just not knowing how to handle the future version of Yuu.

So now I'm thinking how funny it would be for Past!PTMYuu swapping places with future!PTMYuu. Like P!Yuu wakes up in an unknown house in somebody's bed and confused as fuck and gets even more confused because suddenly these little kids are running in, telling Mommy it's time to get up and Yuu's like, who's mommy? Then who should walk in but Jade telling the kids to let Mommy rest and then he notices that the Yuu in their bedroom is not his wife(Yuu's still wearing her NRC uniform and shouldn't fit it anymore after getting older and having kids) and ohh he's going to have fun with this. He'll start in with the thoughts "ohh my beautiful pearl was absolutely adorable back at NRC, look at how tiny and cute you were, I know you can hear me pearl..." And fuck he knows about her telepathy. Poor Yuu overloads with the fact that Jade actually married her, they have kids, and is still so damn in love with her as he was at NRC.

Meanwhile F!Yuu is back at Past NRC and is calming down Yuu's friends. No, your Yuu is fine. If I'm right she's with my husband and kids right now and he'll take care of her. Some of the cast are obviously curious about Yuu's husband and F!Yuu is all "nah... sorry I can't say, don't wanna mess with the future." and of course the one who wants to know the most is Jade. F!Yuu is laughing to themselves because man, they remember how down horrendously Jade was in school and he doesn't know at this time that Yuu can read his thoughts. I'd like to think Yuu learned to better control the telepathy so she just tunes into his thoughts every now and then and it's just his thoughts bouncing around like "Oh seven my pearl is absolutely gorgeous in the future. Please tell me I'm your husband. I have to be! What would our kids look like. How many would we have? Do they look like my pearl or me? I hope one looks like my pearl they'd be the cutest baby!"

Eventually somebody figures out how to send the Yuu's back to their right time. Hugs for everybody but P!Jade gets a quick peck on the cheek before F!Yuu hops into whatever portal is sending her back and the last thought she hears from P!Jade is him screaming in his mind how much he loves her.

P!Yuu gets back and now has to deal with Jade's even more thoughts about the future and apparently a few others people thinking that man, Yuu's gonna be such a milf in the future.

Somebody please help Yuu, poor thing can only take so much.

Ah I love silly time travel stories (I ignore paradoxes) and this is one of my favorite tropes! It's what one of the fics from the poll is based on, but with all of the overblot cast instead!

I'm so excited to write it, I have many ideas for everyone, especially Leona and Idia's chapters!!

For Jade though, I think it would be so funny. He's positively enamored seeing milf/dilf Yuu. He's internalizing everything, of course, so no one except Yuu and Floyd and Azul can really tell he's being affected.

He's staring a little longer than he really should, but he's surprised that future Yuu doesn't seem to mind. In fact, they're much calmer than usual. Usually they'd be excitable with their friends and quite shy and quiet with him. But future Yuu looks at him with such fondness that Jade lets himself dream that they look at him like that because they're future spouses.

(In the back of his mind, there is a mix of hope and dread. That's a wedding band on their hand. They're taken, but was it by him?)

Imagine everyone's surprise and shock when, right before leaving, future Yuu walks up to Jade (even in the future, they haven't grown much) to tip toe and press a sweet little kiss to the cheek as they cup his face with the absolute most tenderness.

Jade's frozen, the others are murmuring to each other, and future Yuu disappears and in their place is their original Yuu. Red-faced, covered in a large brown coat that most definitely does not belong to them, and staring Jade down.

Covering their red-face and all. Poor Jade is now giddy and a bit concerned (he hopes that scream was due to flusteredness and not fear, though he does love how entertaining they always are), while Yuu is screaming into their couch as they try to process several things, including the knowledge that they weren't at all displeased knowing that they married Jade.

[gallifreyinstituteforlearning]

Can you tell a distinctive features of gallifreyan kids from newborn to teens,bodily(biological),psychological and social?

What are the distinctive features of Gallifreyan children and teenagers?

Gallifreyan childhood is more of a slow bake than a two-minute microwave job. Unlike human kids who race through two decades, Gallifreyans develop over about a hundred years, with huge changes in physiology, psychology, and social roles.

👶 Infant

Biological:

Oldbloods may have only one heart until their first regeneration.

Baseline temperature is higher (16.5–20.5°C) and metabolic activity is rapid.

Highly vulnerable to cold, due to underdeveloped internal regulation systems.

Rapid cellular development.

Motor skills are still refining.

Psychological:

Demonstrates early cognitive ability beyond human standards—memory retention and puzzle-solving are noticeably sharp.

Early expression of genetic instincts, like unease near time anomalies or innate threat recognition.

Psionics not yet under control—leakage or feedback may occur, but is usually minor.

Social:

Raised communally by their House, with early life focused on tutors and caretakers rather than a family construct.

Social contact is minimal and highly structured; play exists, but it's closer to enrichment activities than fun.

🧒 Child

Biological:

Enhanced healing and notable physical resilience.

Still vulnerable to the cold and sleep as much as human children.

Psionic activity becomes more erratic—false positives in consciousness tests are likely common due to unstable telepathy.

Psychological:

Developing emotional regulation but prone to psionic outbursts or passive telepathic bleed-through.

Memory probably becomes extremely long-term oriented—what they learn here may last through multiple incarnations.

Time sense may begin to stir, often without explanation or awareness.

Social:

Around 8, they're pulled from their House and placed into an Academy. This is abrupt, isolating, and an honour.

Children are sorted into Chapters, which shapes their sense of identity.

Expect fierce academic competition, House pride, and low tolerance for anyone not conforming.

🧑 Teenager

Biological:

Will appear 16–18 for decades.

Healing abilities and stamina are high; cardiovascular resilience becomes adult-standard.

Sleep as much as human teenagers.

Psionics stabilise just enough to be dangerous—sudden bursts of clarity, and accidental mind-reading or thought broadcasts are all possible if they're not paying attention in psionics class.

Psychological:

Time sense begins to assert itself, causing temporal dysregulation, especially during stress.

Puberty is complex—neural rewiring occurs, and with it comes emotional extremes, sensory overload, and identity instability.

Social:

Teen Gallifreyans begin to really self-define. Many will conform, some will not...

🏫 So…

Gallifreyan children are not smaller Time Lords. They're complex, biologically volatile beings navigating psionic development, sensory overload, time perception, and cultural rigidity. They build themselves over a century, and their Houses keep a very close eye on what they're building.

Related:

💬|🍼👽How long would it take for a Gallifreyan-Human hybrid child to realise they're not human?: All the little clues a new hybrid might pick up on as they grow.

💬|🧸🏡Does a Gallifreyan's House determine which chapter they'll be a part of?: Looking at Academy affiliations and the Academy selection process.

💬|🧸🧑‍💻What are Gallifreyan teenagers like?: Talking about the strange world of Gallifreyan adolescence.

Hope that helped! 😃

Any orange text is educated guesswork or theoretical. More content ... →📫Got a question? | 📚Complete list of Q+A and factoids →📢Announcements |🩻Biology |🗨️Language |🕰️Throwbacks |🤓Facts → Features: ⭐Guest Posts | 🍜Chomp Chomp with Myishu →🫀Gallifreyan Anatomy and Physiology Guide (pending) →⚕️Gallifreyan Emergency Medicine Guides →📝Source list (WIP) →📜Masterpost If you're finding your happy place in this part of the internet, feel free to buy a coffee to help keep our exhausted human conscious. She works full-time in medicine and is so very tired 😴

[what-bot]

Program sense headcanons in Tron.

I have many so there's a readmore

Programs have different senses or level of sensitivity based on their function. They can change if upgraded; Tron shares some of his monitor senses with Beck using the disc

Programs designed to monitor a system or involved in communication have heightened senses, and a lot of processing capacity for them. Some programs are designed to get a broad idea of everything, while others are more specialised

Some see the program equivalent of shrimp colours - seeing radio waves is common in tower guardians or those who communicate with the internet.

Programs do not have a sense of smell

Less of a sense of taste than humans (they usually just eat energy, which tastes mostly similar. They can tell if it’s poisoned. Like irl, water from different taps tastes different but not by much.)

They DO have electroperception, and some have thermoception. Same with grid wildlife like bits.

A combination of the two above things lets monitors do that footprint-seeing thing that Dyson and Rinzler do (even if not directly linked in to be able to see system logs for that area)

Structures and vehicles give off different electrical frequencies. Programs whose function is related to those buildings can sense them, and receive signals from that which can hold information and helps them know where to go like they're ants following pheromone trails. e.g. programs in charge of the trains will have Train Sense

Messing with the above is totally what they used to control people in frame of mind

Programs also have their own signature they can use to tell each other apart

Electrical signals as nonverbal communication. Can communicate with Bits or Bytes this way

This thing that electric fish do called jamming avoidance

Programs can be linked with each other, common in counterparts or parent/child pairings (as in the computer version of parent and child), and share information with each other over the link like telepathy

Full black circuit-covering suits like Rinzler’s are stealthy both due to not giving off light, and masking the electrical signature of a program. They can disguise themselves as others using a similar principle

Users give off electricity, so they seem like a program to other programs on first glance, but those who know what to look for can tell the difference. Given it’s used in communication, programs can get confused talking to users as their electrical impulses don’t follow the same rules, but they can loosely interpret them with practice

Imagining Tron or other monitors getting sensory overload if network traffic is too high, or if in the outside world and standing among a bunch of computers/phones/servers/radio towers etc.

Programs in the outside world get pretty much none of the electrical feedback they’re used to, which can be unsettling for them

Idk how it would be different for Isos. I imagine there’d be a lot of similarities but their senses adapt/change based on their circumstances - getting stronger when needed and weaker when not

[hunters-paradice-sonic-au]

Ok ash plauge TAILS

Background:

Tails was found by the head of the Rising Dragon university, the best school for ash-shapers in the union, deep in the zone and soon after adopted him. Tails at the time acted very bestial due to surviving within the outer limits of the zone and beyond. He has exceptional talent when it comes to ash-shaping, being one of the best only a few months after learning the basics. He is the top student at his adoptive father’s academy despite his age. Tails has always felt uncomfortable in his own skin, whether due to his multiple personalities, transformation abilities or general gender dysphoria is unknown.

Description:

Tails is a heavily mutated fox. Though restraining many of the traits of his supposed kind; orange fur, furry ears, tail, and snout his exposure to the outside wasteland left him with various mutations. Most prominent among them being his multiple tails(4), though other mutations are; incredibly tough scales hidden beneath his fur (though he is still decorated by scars), minor color shifting (when panicked), two extra pairs of eyes, a jaw that can hinge outward into three segments (only fang knows how to do that though), retractable claws and second set of teeth that can cut through tungsten like paper, an extra pair of arms, and retractable wings (this is without ash-shaping). His standard uniform consists of a Cashmere lined puffy jacket with high-visibility stripes along its arms and very baggy silk pants. Tails uses a balenced combination of technology and ash-shaping abilities to fight at medium range. When frightened, angry, or experiencing spikes of adrenaline tails’s personality shifts to a much more feral version of himself named fang. Fang is an ultra violent version of tails that relies on primary their mutations to fight at close range, and does not hesitate to kill any they perceive as a threat. When tails is feeling tired, sad, or overloaded his personality shifts into a calmer, stabler mind named eyes who primarily uses ash-shaping to fight at longer distances. Eyes is cool headed and calculating, willing to befriend or backstab anyone as long as the body survives. Tails and his other personalities’s ash-shaping abilities include earth and metal formation, technology materialization, transformation, mutated beast control, and telepathy.

Views on others(from his perspective)

Sonic: who?

Blaze: she is a bit overbearing and try-hardy but she is kind and caring where it counts!

Silver: I heard he’s from the outside like me, though he seem a bit scared. He’s blazes best friend though.

Ivo: He’s an eccentric man, always in his lab when he’s not teaching or up on the surface.

[hoahoahoahoahoa]

it's always a treat to me when fic writers play with the actual downsides of edward's telepathy. the newborn stage of vampirism is talked up as being so horrific, and edward had to go through it with extra voices in his head (no wonder he played vigilante for a few years; i'd do it if only to purge the world of the very worst thoughts invading my mind)

i love when they play up the stress of having voices in his head all the time. i love the precarity of him not always being 100% sure if someone had said or thought a question at him, so he'd rather err on the side of caution and not answer if he's not certain, at the risk of appearing rude. i'd love to see him preferring to avoid big cities (or just crowded places in general) even after having a hundred years to get used to his gift, because shit that is still such a heavy thing to bear. i love when he's twitchy and distractable because even his multi-tasking vampire mind simply can't deal with the mental overload

[ladybunny44]

Good afternoon, Bunny. Here's my Takumi request No.4. Both Takumi and Isami propose to their girlfriends at the same time, albeit in different places. Bonus points if Isami jokes about twin telepathy.

🌟 "Twin Telepathy and Timeless Love" 🌟

Pairing : Takumi Aldini x Fem!Reader

Genre : ☁️🌷

Word count : ~1800

Summary : Takumi and Isami Aldini share an unbreakable bond as twins, but no one could have predicted how synchronized their lives would become. On the same day, albeit in completely different locations, both brothers propose to their girlfriends, leading to a heartwarming revelation of "twin telepathy."

TW/CW : Fluff overload! Light humor and playful sibling banter.

NOTIFICATIONS ꩜ ₊ ⊹! : Thank you again for the request! Enjoy the oneshot :) 📚

『••✎••』

The day was like any other in Totsuki’s famed Aldini kitchen—at least, that’s what Takumi Aldini wanted you to think. Little did you know, he had been planning something extraordinary for weeks, and today was finally the day.

Meanwhile, his twin brother, Isami, had a similar idea brewing. Despite being in different places, their seemingly synchronized plans would soon prove that “twin telepathy” wasn’t just a myth.

You adjusted your scarf as the cool breeze swept through the small Italian village where Takumi had insisted on taking you for a “relaxing day.” The cobblestone streets and warm glow of streetlights created a romantic atmosphere you couldn’t help but adore.

“Takumi, this place is beautiful,” you said, your voice filled with awe.

He smiled, his hands casually tucked into his pockets. “It’s one of my favorite spots. I thought you’d like it.”

As the two of you walked toward a small bridge overlooking a shimmering river, Takumi’s steps faltered. You turned to look at him, your brow furrowing in concern.

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

Takumi took a deep breath, his cheeks tinged with a slight blush. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you,” he said, his voice steady but tinged with nervousness.

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet box. Your heart skipped a beat as he got down on one knee, his blue eyes locking with yours.

“Being with you has made me realize that life is better when you’re by my side. I want to spend every day making you smile, cooking you delicious meals, and creating memories together. Will you marry me?”

Tears welled up in your eyes as you nodded fervently. “Yes, Takumi. A thousand times yes!”

Across the world, Isami was in a different setting entirely—a cozy picnic under the stars with his girlfriend, surrounded by flickering fairy lights.

“I wanted tonight to be special,” Isami said, handing her a plate of freshly made tiramisu. “Because you’re special.”

She laughed softly, playfully nudging him. “You’re such a sweetheart, Isami.”

He smiled, his heart racing as he reached into his bag and pulled out a similar velvet box. Setting the dessert aside, Isami got down on one knee.

“I’ve loved you from the moment we met, and every day since then has only made me love you more. I want to be with you forever. Will you marry me?”

Her shocked expression melted into a beaming smile. “Yes, Isami! Of course!”

Later that evening, Takumi called Isami to share his news, completely unaware that his brother had been up to the same thing.

“You’ll never believe what I just did,” Takumi began, his voice full of excitement.

“Oh, let me guess,” Isami replied, his tone playful. “You proposed to your girlfriend.”

Takumi froze. “How... how did you know?”

Isami laughed. “Because I proposed to mine too.”

There was a beat of silence before Takumi groaned. “You’re joking.”

“Nope,” Isami said, the grin evident in his voice. “Twin telepathy, remember?”

Takumi couldn’t help but laugh, shaking his head. “Well, I guess we’ll have to plan a double wedding now.”

When you found out about Isami’s proposal, you couldn’t stop laughing at the absurdity of it all. “It’s like you two are synchronized!” you teased.

“Don’t encourage him,” Takumi grumbled, though his smile betrayed his amusement.

That night, the four of you celebrated with an impromptu dinner prepared by the Aldini twins. The warmth of love and laughter filled the room, and as Takumi held your hand under the table, he couldn’t help but feel grateful.

You were his forever, and not even Isami’s jokes about “twin telepathy” could take away from the perfection of this moment.

[year-of-whump-tropes]

Here are the themes we've got:

Living Weapon Whump

Dehumanization

Emotion removal/repression

Orders & obedience

Defiance

Intimate Whumper

Touch/physically affectionate whumper

Manipulation (includes demanding behaviors)

Creepy whumper

Yandere whumper

Team Whump

Bound/trapped together

Hiding wounds

Self-sacrifice

Unhealthy/harmful team

Magic Whump

Used for their magic

Magical side effects

Nonhuman whump (includes immortal)

Magic with a price

Conditioning/Brainwashing

Conditioned whumpee with Caretaker

Conditioning (process) (includes punishments)

Fully conditioned/brainwashed

Trigger/activation words

Recovery

Caretaking/comfort

Relearning/reclaiming things

Regression

Triggers (I feel like nightmares would actually work best distributed throughout some of these other themes instead of as a separate week)

Captivity

Tied up/restraints

Sensory tortures/restrictions (reworded to include overload as well as deprivation/restriction)

Possessive whumper

Torture/abuse

Hero/Villain Whump

Overworked/pushed too hard

Stuck together

"Reformation"

Disproportionate retribution

Pet Whump

Dehumanization

"Training"

Pet paraphernalia (Collars, leashes, cages, etc.)

Institutionalized

Mind Control/Possession Whump

Chemical/tech-based mind control

Telepathy/mind-control powers

Supernatural possession

Parasitic possession

Role Changes

Whumper-turned-whumpee

Caretaker-turned-whumpee

Whumpee-turned-caretaker

Whumper-turned-caretaker

Sickfic

Care/treatment

Fever

Sick while with Whumper

Poison

[phantomdoofer]

Tower Town, Chapter 35 - Baby's Day Out

Peppino walked down the street, carrying Tony in the crook of his arm. The youngster, almost three now, was looking around, pointing at anything that caught his eye, telling his Papa all about it in laughing tones. Peppino dutifully oohed and ahhed at every single one. The world was still new and bright to the child.

He was careful to keep those feelings at the front of his mind. The little boy’s telepathy was getting strong now, almost uncontrollable, and as keyed up as Peppino was, he didn't want to scare the child more than he could help.

For once, Giuseppe wasn't available. Understandable, at least. Anita was in labor with their second child, and Giuseppe already had his hands full keeping Sofia, now a rambunctious toddler, out of trouble while supporting his wife. Gustavo was working. Even Margherita was feeling under the weather. So, for the first time ever, Peppino was having to leave the boy at a daycare. It would be the first time Tony had been left alone, without someone he already knew.

The thought was giving Peppino fits.

As he walked through the doors of the daycare, a matronly Pig walked from behind the counter. “Hello there, Mr. Spaghetti!” She greeted him airily, “I suppose this is little Tony, eh?” She held her hands out to take him.

Peppino hesitated. He'd been extremely unsure about the entire situation, and now he was having second, third, and fourth thoughts. He mentally shook himself. It's just for a few hours, Pino, he thought, and they're the best-vetted place in town! Reluctantly, he handed over his son.

Immediately Tony turned and looked up at the woman's face. He seemed curious, but then he turned and held his arms out to Peppino. “Papa? Wanna come back now.”

For the umpteenth time that morning, Peppino's heart clenched. He put on a smile, but it was very forced. “You'll be staying with Mrs. Iggsley for a few hours, my little polpetta,” he said, trying to keep the quaver out of his voice, “I'll be back very soon to get you, bene?”

The way Tony's face shifted was almost a caricature - his bottom lip was stuck out in a frown, and his eyes were huge, shimmering with unshed tears. He'd inherited a powerful set of emotions, and they frequently overloaded the little boy. He's too young to learn to control them yet, Peppino thought sadly. 

Peppino put a hand on Tony's head. “It'll just be for a few hours, Antonio. I have to go…”

Immediately Tony burst out into a full-throated bawl, his eyes showering tears, and he reached up and grabbed Peppino's forearm with both little fists, gripping on with superhuman strength.

Peppino was on the verge of a breakdown. He hated doing this, but he didn't have any other choice. Gently (but having to use his own super-strength) he prized the boy's hands off his arm. “I'm sorry, polpetta, I'll be back as soon as I can!” He looked up at Mrs. Iggsley. “I hope he doesn't give you too much trouble…”

The woman shrugged and smiled. “He's not the first, and he won't be the last, Mr. Spaghetti. If anything happens we'll let you know, all right?”

As she turned to walk away, Tony's wails turned into full-on screams, and Peppino reached out a hand reflexively. “You, ah, you-a know about-a his strength, tu no?”

She turned, smiling. “Oh, yes. We'll take good care of him, Mr. Spaghetti, never fear!”

Peppino nodded sadly. He knew there was no way yet to make his son understand that this was only a temporary thing - even as developed as he was, some things just took time to understand.

So he waved, turned, and left.

He broke into a run so fast he had to check himself from breaking the glass around him with a sonic boom.

~~~~

Fake was in the kitchen, happily grumbling to themself, when the young woman who Peppino had recently hired came quietly through the doors.

“Mister, um, Mister Fake…” she said meekly.

Fake turned gently, carefully trying not to surprise her, but not so slowly they seemed more creepy than they already were. She'd already proven a shy, nervous type. “Yes, Carrie? Can I help you?”

She looked down and shuffled her feet. “It's, um, it's Mr. Peppino, sir. He's acting… strange.”

Fake nodded. “Morrrre than usual, you mean?”

She looked up and nodded. “Could you please come check on him?”

Fake quickly wiped their hands on a towel. “Of courrrrrse.”

The young woman quickly went back outside, moving towards the register. Fake followed behind.

Peppino leaned forward onto the counter, one arm draped and dangling off, the other clutching his chef's hat. He was staring off into space, his eyes distant and blank. He seemed to be muttering to himself.

Fake felt a twinge of concern. While he was much better than he'd been before (by Peppino's own words, anyway - Fake hadn't been there for Peppino's many, many breakdowns), and especially so since Tony's birth, he seemed in the middle of a full meltdown. 

Fake glanced around - the pizzeria was empty for the moment. A mercy, there. They moved forward, gently touching the man's shoulder. “Peppino?” Fake said quietly. “Arrrre you all right?”

The man seemed to be muttering to himself in Italian. “Come potresti farlo? Si fida di te! E lo hai lasciato solo! Deve odiarmi! Come potrei farlo? Mio figlio! Sono un padre orribile…”

Fake leaned back. He was castigating himself over leaving Tony. It's a daycare, it's not like he abandoned the boy on a street corner! Fake shook his shoulder. “Peppino. Peppino! Stop! You'rrre spooking the customerrrrrs!”

The man seemed not to hear them. He continued muttering imprecations on himself.

Fake harrumphed. We have to snap him out of this! Then they had an idea. This is a bit dirty, but it should work…

Fake leaned back and carefully reshaped their voicebox to as close as they could remember. In a great bellow, Bruno's voice rang out…

“Spaghetti! Vieni qui ORA!”

Peppino yelped and leapt to his feet, spinning, his eyes wild with anxiety. He looked around quickly, confused. “Signore Tagliatelle! Mi dispiace! Non volevo... aspettare, questo non è…” He paused, his eyes cleared, and he glared at Fake, who was crouching back down. “That was a nasty-a trick, Fake.”

Fake shook their head, but they didn't seem too contrite. “It worked, didn't it?”

Peppino grumbled, but agreed.

Fake put their hands on their hips. “So, what's the problem, Peppino? If we had any customerrrrrs right now, you'd be spooking them quite nicely."

Peppino looked to the side, rubbing his right arm. “I-a feel so bad, leaving-a Tony with-a strangers. He was bawling his little-a eyes out when I left…”

Fake shook their head. “We're harrrrdly the person to come to for parental advice, Peppino,” they said, “but we do know that it had to happen evennnnntually. We can't stay with them forever.”

“I know, I know,” Peppino grumbled. “But…”

Carrie ambled over. “Mr. Peppino, I know I'm just butting in, but… I have to say, you acting this way about it just means you really care.” She paused, nodded, and scurried back to the register, looking terrified.

The two men, looking a little stunned, turned back to each other. “She's got a point, Peppino,” Fake said.

“But what do I do??” Peppino said, almost wailing. “I can't-a stand it!”

“I'd say look forward to getting him back,” Fake said cautiously. “It's not forever, Peppino, just a day. One that you'll have to repeat. It's part of life.”

Peppino stroked his goatee, thinking on Fake's words, as the being ambled back to the kitchen. Why am I reacting so badly to this?

The answer came almost immediately. I'm afraid of hurting him. Of hurting someone I care about again. Of failing them.

Despite his realization, he knew it wouldn't be as simple as that to resolve. He resolved to call his Mama that night. I could use some motherly advice.

Peppino felt his pocket vibrate, and quickly pulled it out. Giuseppe! He clicked the link from his brother -

The image showed Anita, looking tired but smug, in a hospital bed, in the background. In the foreground, a hugely-smiling Giuseppe held a small bundle, out of which peered a red, wrinkled face.

Meet Gustavo Sergio Spaghetti!

Peppino smiled brilliantly. The name said a lot. After all the vitriol they felt towards him after our breakup, at least they've managed to remember who he is, not just how he was, for a time. “Hey, Fake! Come-a back out here for a minute!” He waved Carrie over. “Let me show you my new nephew!”

The young woman seemed reluctant, but moved over. Fake came back out and leaned over Peppino's shoulder.

The young woman’s demeanor changed entirely. “Aww, he's adorable!” She cooed. She leaned in closer, making baby talk at the screen.

Fake and Peppino looked at each other, smiling. “Didn't take herrrr long, did it?”

Peppino chuckled. “Optimized health can-a do that. And it's-a not like it's her first. Mothers often-a have less trouble with later births.”

Carrie leaned over, making a questioning noise. “Mr. Peppino? Is something wrong with the baby's eye?”

“Giuseppe didn't say anything about it…” Peppino said, zooming the image in; then, seeing what it was, he laughed loudly. “Ha ha ha! Those are-a crosshairs! He's-a inherited Anita's power!”

Carrie looked at Peppino, confused. “She has powers, too?”

“Oh, just-a the one,” Peppino said airily, “but it's a doozy! She can zoom in and-a out like a scope, and once she's-a locked on to something, she almost never misses!”

“Like Sheriff Lantte?” She said.

“Yep! Exactly alike, in fact,” Peppino crowed. “Strange-a coincidence, that.”

“Does… does everyone in your family have powers?” Carrie said quietly.

Peppino nodded. “Sì, everyone I know, anyway.” She looked uncomfortable. “Does no one in-a your family have powers?” Peppino said, surprised.

“No,” she said. “Well, I think one cousin can make wood change color or something, but no big, special powers.” She looked envious.

Peppino turned to her. “Ragazza, having powers is as much a curse as a blessing,” he said firmly. 

“It must be nice, though,” she said wistfully. 

Peppino reflected on all his broken furniture over the years, the repair bills… the number of times I've almost killed someone by losing my temper… “It has-a its problems.” He pulled at his beard. “I mean, look at-a little Tony. He's-a already showing the same strength that Seppe and I have. But he's so young… he can't control it. I'm afraid…” his eyes lit up.

Carrie looked surprised. “What is it, Mr. Spaghetti?”

“Call me Peppino,” he said absently. “I think I just-a figured out the other reason I'm-a worried. I'm afraid Tony could-a hurt someone… or himself.”

Carrie giggled. “There's probably a good dose of daddy-worry in there, too.” Then she put her hands over her mouth and gasped. “I'm so sorry, Mr - I mean, Peppino! I didn't mean to be so familiar!”

Peppino shook his head, coming back to reality, and laughed. “Non c'è problema, ragazza. I told you before, I don't stand on ceremony.”

“But Mr. Brando calls you Signore,” she countered.

“Brando is… a special case,” Peppino said. “He’s-a my student, not-a my employee. He insists. I'd prefer others weren't-a so… formal.”

“Oh, right,” she said hurriedly. “He's so good that I forgot you said he's still in his apprenticeship.”

Peppino chuckled. “He insists I still have a lot to teach him… but I'm-a not so sure. As you said, he's-a quite good.” Peppino shrugged. “He just-a needs to realize that.”

“He seems to enjoy working here, though,” Carrie said. “Maybe he just doesn't feel ready to go out on his own yet?”

“Probabilmente è vero,” Peppino said. “You have another good point, ragazza.” He waved a hand. “Now, as-a your boss, I'm ordering you to be less-a stiff and-a more relaxed. Inteso?”

The girl seemed to argue with herself, then stomped her foot. “All right! I'll try!”

“Bene,” Peppino said, smiling. “Now. I'm-a sorry for spooking everyone. That's-a being said…” he said, scratching the back of his head and looking embarrassed, “I think I'll-a call and just… check in.”

“All right,” she said, smiling. “I think I can handle out here. I can always ask Mr. Fake for help.”

“Grazie for understanding, ragazza,” Peppino said. “You know, you should-a be more assertive more often, too. You're sharper than-a you seem.”

As the chef went back through the doors, Carrie contemplated what he'd said. Then she felt a wave of suppressed panic wash over her, and she sat down, giddy. I can't believe I talked to my boss like that! And he was Ok with it! Even told me to do it more often!

As she sat, turning her thoughts over in her head, the bell jingled, and sheleapt to her feet. “Oh, so sorry! Welcome to Peppino's!”

~~~~

Peppino sat down at the desk in his new office. A recent addition, everyone other than Peppino had insisted. “Listen, Pep, if you're gonna run a franchise, it's not gonna look good to be doing it out of the closet of your kitchen,” Gustavo had said. 

It wasn't as big as everyone had wanted it to be, but it was well-appointed.

He leaned back in the chair. He'd splurged a bit more with it; well-padded and sturdy, he leaned back and smiled. I really should do things like this more often. Pulling out his phone, he dialed the daycare. After several rings, a perky female voice chimed through. "Little Smiles Daycare, can I help you?"

Behind the chirpy voice, Peppino heard several little voices screaming. Peppino's alarm rose. Oh Mio Dio, I hope that isn't Tony! “Ciao, signora, this is Peppino Spaghetti, I was just calling to check on-a my son, Tony?”

What sounded like a small avalanche came through the phone, and Mrs. Iggsley's voice clearly said, “get off of that, you little devil!” 

“Mio Dio, signora, is everything all right?” Peppino said.

The young woman laughed. “Thank you, sir, but this is nothing unusual. In fact, your son is the only one that isn't causing trouble. He's just been playing by himself. Until, um…”

Peppino's heart jumped. “ ‘Until-a, um’ what?”

“Er, well, one of the other kids decided they wanted the toy Tony was playing with, and, um, a scuffle broke out.”

“Is he OK??” Peppino tried not to yell, standing up in alarm.

“He's fine, sir, he's fine,” she said hurriedly, “but when the other child tried to hit him, he pushed them away… across the room.”

Peppino sat back down heavily. “Oh, Madonna Santa… are they alright?”

The voice perked back up. “Oh, it's nothing unusual here! The walls are quite well padded! The other child received no real injuries. Just a bruise. And frankly, the child in question is quite a little bully. Always terrorizing the other children. Personally, I think little Tony put some much-needed fear in them!”

Peppino relaxed, but just a little. “So he's-a OK? They're not-a filing charges or anything?”

“No worries, Mr. Spaghetti,” she responded. “We have very good insurance. Everyone knows some children are powered. We keep an eye on them.”

“So, um, why-a all the noise?” Peppino said, perplexed.

The woman snorted. “Your son isn't the only one here with a strong power, sir. Mrs. Iggsley can handle it.” A pause. “Did you want to come pick him up?”

Peppino thought for a moment. “No. No, I think we'll be fine. Thank you for-a humoring me.”

“It's nothing unusual,” she said happily. “Especially for first-timers! If anything happens, we'll let you know ASAP, okay?”

Peppino agreed mechanically, and they hung up.

Fake slipped in while he looked at the ceiling. “Everything allllll right?”

Peppino filled Fake in, and the clone chuckled. “Glee hee hee. Kids will be kids, we suppose.” They paused, then crouched down a bit farther. “Peppino, can we suggest something?”

Peppino raised his eyebrows. “Have you come up with something new to put on-a the menu?”

Fake shook their head. “No, something for you. Go pick up your son early.”

Peppino leaned back. “Weren't you the one who was suggesting I don't-a do that earlier?”

Fake shrugged. “The day is slow. And your son is probably missing you. He's used to his uncle caring for him, after all. And…” they stopped.

“And…?” Peppino prompted. 

“Peppino, we must ask - is anything different between you and…”

Peppino sighed. “We still talk, Fake, but it's-a purely business,” Peppino said. “Gustavo… from what I hear, he hasn't so much as-a glanced at another partner since our breakup.”

“But… how do you feel?” Fake prompted.

Peppino turned, looking out the small window. “I wish… I wish he would come back. Everyone has buried the hatchet… except-a him. It's-a been a year.”

The pair sat in silence for several minutes. “Doooo you really think he's reformed?” Fake finally said.

“I think… I think he's not ready to forgive himself,” Peppino said quietly. “He hurt us all badly, Fake. And I think he hurt-a himself, in the deal. I've-a talked to his employees, and… they say that, while he puts on a smile for-a the customers, as soon as he's alone, he's almost… mechanical.”

Fake looked thoughtful. “Perrrhaps he should seek the assistance of a professional. A therapist. Not everrryone can manage on their own.”

Peppino shrugged. “Probabilmente. I'll-a mention it to him.” 

Peppino's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the screen. Gustavo. “Speak of the devil…” He clicked the Connect button. “Pronto?”

“Peppino!?” Gustavo's voice was high-pitched, frantic. 

Immediately Peppino's adrenaline shot up, and he started shaking a little. “Gustavo? Amico, what's wrong?”

“Peppino! Turn on the TV! Hurry!”

Immediately Peppino ran to the dining room of the restaurant - the TV in the dining room was always on. 

“This is a National News special report… members of the infamous Susapien League have launched an assault on several locations in the city of La Crosta, taking hostages of friends and family members of their recent targets. The police, as well as local Special Operations agents, are working to resolve the issue, but tensions are high. The Leaguers have taken hostages, including several children, and weapons have been brandished as…”

Peppino's mind seemed to crash. Tony. 

Mechanically, he raised the phone to his ear again.

Gustavo was almost babbling, and his voice was edged with fear. "They attacked here, the hospital, and the daycare. We fought them off here, and Giuseppe took down the ones at the hospital, but they surprised him, and he's unconscious, injured. And the daycare…!”

Peppino felt his heart stop… and then his head exploded in murderous rage. My son! My friend! My brother!! They could have hurt Sofia and Gus and Anita!!

They're threatening MY FAMILY!!! 

A blood-red haze filled the edges of his vision…

A hand landed on Peppino's shoulder. 

He spun around, his eyes bloodshot -

Fake stood, their expression as cold as ice. “Peppino, we know you are furious now. We are, as well. Soon, we will likely hear as much from our friends. But we must be cautious. Haste could result in these terroristi harming someone.”

Peppino's rage began to temper itself. He breathed hard for several seconds… then growled. “Damn you, you're right. We can't-a just charge into this.” He heard a crack in front of him. Looking down, he realized he'd unconsciously shattered the edge of the stone counter in front of him.

Peppino pointedly pulled his hand away from it before he broke something more expensive.

Several patrons rushed to the counter, their faces a mixture of fury and concern. The babble of voices, asking questions, offering support, expressing anger and worry and concern, both comforted and irritated the big Italian.

Peppino raised the phone back to his ear. Gustavo was still frantic. “Peppino! They have Tony!! What do we do? I heard you say we shouldn't charge in, but- !”

Despite his burning fury, mixed with the terrified shaking of his body, Peppino managed to keep his voice even. “Amico, respirare. I'm-a sure the polizia will let us know our-a options as soon as they know. We…”

The front door bell jingled…

Peppino looked up in time to see Vigi ooze quickly into the restaurant. The cheeseslime had the same expression on his face he'd had when he and Peppino had faced off in the Tower, years before - a look of cold fury.

He waved his gloved hands at the crowd as he oozed up. “Alright, alright, folks, give the man some room. Understand yer concern - we share it - but right now I bet he needs air.”

The patrons all expressed agreement, and backed off.

“Gustavo, Vigi just-a came in. I'm-a gonna put you on speaker.” He clicked the button, setting the phone down on the semi-fractured counter between them. “Go ahead, sceriffo.”

Vigi climbed up onto a stool. “Kinda surprised yer not already on yer way to La Crosta, Peppino,” he said.

Peppino snarled. “I started to, but Fake talked some-a sense into me.”

Vigi nodded. “That's good. The ones at that daycare are the only ones left. They're th’ only ones who actually took hostages.” Vigi snarled the last word out with undisguised disgust, spitting to the side. 

For once, Peppino didn't chastise him for the mess.

“They didn't just attack yer people, Peppino… but you were one of th’ biggest targets,” Vigi growled. “Giuseppe took a hit t’ the head. One of ‘em had th’ brass to try and come inta the nursery! Nurse told me yer brother did some real damage. An' it was a good thing they were at th’ hospital already. Heard it got a little… bloody.”

Peppino recalled the talk they'd had on the roof, years ago, when he and his brother had discussed their respective murderous insanity when they truly snapped. “They should-a count themselves lucky.”

He heard Gustavo snarl in absolute fury over the speaker. “I swear, I’ll kill them all. Just let me at them-”

“Gustavo, as a friend, I understand, but as a Sheriff, I gotta say - stop talkin’. Yer getting on dangerous grounds w’ words like that. I already had t’ send some of my people over stop Noisette - whoop, there she goes…”

An almighty ruckus broke out outside, and everyone looked out through the broad windows just in time to see Noisette burst out the front door of her cafè. The little rabbit-woman, normally gregarious and happy, was practically shrieking at the poor officer in front of her, who was backing away with their hands held up defensively. Noisette's eyes and hair were literally on fire with rage. 

Everyone's eyes were wide with fear… except for Peppino, Vigi, and Fake. Noise always said she was the most dangerous of us after Fake, myself and Seppe, Peppino thought bemusedly.

Waving a finger in the officer's face, Noisette turned, stalking towards Peppino's. Peppino saw Noise quietly walking behind her, their toddler son, Timmy, on his hip. He looked unusually serious.

Noisette slammed the door open, striding over to the counter, the crowd parting like an ocean in front of an oddly-cute prophet. She slammed her hands down on the counter. “I'm gonna kill ‘em,” she said. 

Vigi growled. “Listen, y'all are friends, but y'all can't be sayin’ stuff like that! I gotta take it seriously.” He turned to Peppino, who was grim but quiet. “Honestly a little surprised at how quiet y'are, Peppino.”

Peppino's lip twisted. “Trust-a me, it's-a taking real effort.” 

Noise, standing behind Noisette and looking upset, cleared his throat. “Uh, I know I ain't normally th’ voice o’ reason, but Vigi’s right. We gotta play this cool.”

Noisette rounded on her husband, who stepped back. She was as fond of Tony and Giuseppe's kids as her own. “I ain't standin’ around and letting some brain-rotted Pigs hurt those kids!” She shouted.

Timmy whimpered, and Noise bounced the child with unexpected tenderness. “Sette, yer scarin’ Timmy. And me.”

Noisette leaned back, and the flames in her eyes and hair died down. She blinked. “Oh, Timmy-poo, I'm so sorry. Mama's just a little upset, is all.” She turned back to the counter. “But what're we gonna do?”

Fake leaned down. “Weee could go into camouflage mode. Sneak in, take back the child."

Vigi shook his head. “But what about th’ other kids? An’ this bunch have guns. They could start shootin’. Naw. We gotta let experts handle this.”

Everyone other than Noise growled in frustration. Peppino shook his head. “Experts or-a no, I'm-a gonna be there. I'm-a not going to stand by and leave-a my son alone.”

Noise nodded. “Tell ya what, Peppino. I'll get one of my cars t’ take ya. All of ya.” He bounced Timmy up. “I'll stay here with the nugget.”

Peppino’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “That's… molto carino da parte tua, Noise.”

Noise looked his son in the eyes. “Y’know, I wasn't sure about havin’ a kid, but…” he grinned a bit, and Timmy giggled, “the little guy has grown on me. I know how I'd be behavin’ if it was mine.” He grinned wickedly, his teeth shifting into vicious fangs. “Half the city'd be a crater by now.”

Vigi looked from Noise to Peppino. “Y’know they won't be able t’ let you get very close. Y’know that, right, Pep?”

Peppino nodded. “Lo so. But I'm-a not going to stand around when-a mio figlio is in periglio!”

Vigi nodded. “All right, Peppino. I'll go with ya, say yer with me.” He raised a gloved finger, looking stern. “But if I say to do or not do somethin’, ya do what I say, OK? Hero or no, they'll run ya off if they think yer a problem.”

Peppino nodded.

“I'll meet you there,” Gustavo's voice piped up from the phone. “I'm not gonna leave my son alone, either.”

~~~~

The car, just big enough for all of them, stopped several blocks away. “Sorry, folks, can't get no closer,” the Pig driver called over his shoulder.

Vigi opened the door. “S’alright, son, we can walk. Thanks for the ride.”

The others - Peppino, Noisette, and Fake - called agreement and piled out.

As Peppino passed the driver's window, the Pig waved a hand. “Hey, Mr. Spaghetti, I need to tell you something.”

Peppino paused, curious.

The Pig blushed just a little. “Just want you to know… not all us Pigs agree with the Susapiens. I hope it all goes all right.”

Peppino smiled and shook his head. “I never even enter-a-tained the idea you would, young man. But grazie, nonetheless.”

The Pig smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Spaghetti. Take care.”

Peppino looked ahead as the car slowly turned away. This part of the city was tightly packed at the best of times… and now it was cramped with police and Spec Ops. Ahead, beside a distinguished-looking human, stood Gustavo and Brando.

Brando and Gustavo turned, quickly moving towards the group. Brando locked arms with Peppino, his face stricken. “Signore, I'm so sorry this has happened. I wish there was something I could do.”

Peppino did his best to stifle his shaking. “Lo apprezzo, amico. But we must be prudente.”

Gustavo looked up into Peppino's eyes, his face quivering with fear and grief. “Peppino… our son…”

This is the most emotion he's shown in ages, Peppino mused. He knelt down, and the gnome wrapped his arms around the Italian, bawling out his grief. 

Peppino felt his own resolve break, and he bent his head down, choking out his own tears.

As the two fathers shared their pain, Vigi spoke to the officer beside them. “Sheriff Lantte,” he said, shaking hands.

“Captain Kowalczyk,” the man replied. He turned, seeing the others behind them. “You're… you're Peppino Spaghetti,” with a slight bit of awe.

Peppino looked up and stood, flushed a little as tears continued streaming down his face. “Sì. My-a son is in there… I couldn't just stay away.”

Kowalczyk frowned. “I understand, but it's a delicate situation,” he said, his words terse and clipped. “These Susapiens have lost their minds. Their sponsors have already publicly renounced them - the ones that survived themselves.”

Noisette's ears perked up. “What do you mean?”

The captain grimaced. “These fanatics staged a coup. They murdered most of their financial backers, stole their fortunes, and did - this. There never were a huge number of them, but…”

Everyone's eyes went wide. “Mi… mio dio,” Brando whispered.

Captain Kowalczyk nodded. “Yep. In fact, only one survived.” He pointed at a well-dressed Pig - one Peppino found to be familiar. 

Peppino growled deeply and marched towards the Pig, the others following, swept up in his wake.

The Pig, shivering and cowering, turned, saw the Italian, and squealed in abject terror. “Please! Don't hurt me! I'm sorry! We didn't know - how could we -” he stopped, unable to speak anymore. “We didn't want this,” he choked out. “We just wanted… justice!”

Peppino went blood-red with rage, but managed to hold his temper in check… mostly. “Justice? Justice?” He grabbed the Pig by the lapels, picking him up.

Kowalczyk raised a hand, but Vigi stopped him. “Let it play out, Captain.”

Peppino held the terrified Pig up to his face. “What kind of-a fucking justice is there in-a what you’ve-a done?? Shutting down small-a businesses? For serving pork?? How-a many poor lost their livelihoods - their dreams - for your god-damned so-a-called JUSTICE??” Peppino was practically shooting steam out of his nose. “How many-a lives have you ruined? For what?? You arrogante, odioso, MALVAGIO-” 

Peppino paused - the Pig was almost delirious with fear.

Peppino took a deep breath, and set the Pig down… but didn't let go. “Listen to me, you fucking sciocco arrogante. People have been hurt. People have-a died, because of you. Now a group of people - children, one of whom is-a my infant son - are being threatened with pain and-a death. Because of-a you, and-a your so-called fucking justice.” He pulled the Pig back into the air. “I swear… if-a anything happens to-a my son… or any of these-a people, for-a that matter… I will make it my life's-a work to make sure you spend the rest of-a your days in the deepest prison in the world, paying the price for your-a justice.” 

The last word was spat with the vilest venom Peppino could muster.

The Pig whimpered. “I… I…”

Peppino set the Pig down, his rage having transmuted into nauseated disgust, and turned back to his friends. “Mi dispiace, Capitano. Had a bit of atemper-a tantrum. So. Tell me what's going on.”

Kowalczyk cleared his throat, pointedly ignoring what had been perilously close to a death threat against the Pig. “Well… right now we have negotiators speaking to the terrorists.” They turned, and Peppino noticed several Spec Ops agents speaking into radios, and even one with a megaphone. “So far, all we've gotten is demands for ‘justice.’ Whatever they mean by that,” Kowalczyk said.

The Pig spoke up. “We… the Susapiens made it our mission to have all pork products eliminated from public use,” he said quietly. “In truth, we knew it couldn't be completely eliminated, but… some of our number apparently took it far more seriously.” He put his cloven hoof-digits to his face. “At our most recent meeting - this morning - we were actually discussing… giving in. But some of them… some of them…” the Pig's eyes began to water. “They turned on us. I happened to be… out of the room. They… they murdered the others. Seized what funds they had on them. Then… they did this. There was a helicopter on the roof - that's how I eacaped.” The Pig looked up at the tall Captain. “I swear to you… we never intended this.”

Everyone stood in stunned silence. Finally, Vigi spoke. “Intended or no, it's your teachins’ that have these folks in a tizzy. Ya got blood on yer hands, sir.” He turned towards the daycare. “If anythin’ happens to these people… I'll be helpin’ Peppino put you away.”

Everyone other than Kowalczyk added their affirmations to Vigi's words.

Kowalczyk cleared his throat again. “Anyway. They're getting nowhere so far. The worker in the daycare are refusing to leave. Say they want to protect the kids.”

Gustavo smiled weakly, looking up at Peppino. “Told you it was well-vetted.”

“We can't risk an assault. They have too many hostages,” Kowalczyk said.

“Have they made any demands?” Noisette said, strangely serious.

Kowalczyk shook his head. “None, actually. They seem to be… locked-up. They don't want to give in, but they don't seem to know what they want.” He sighed. “It's a true standoff.”

Fake growled - the sound reverberated like a giant frog’s croaking. “Is there nothing we can do?”

Suddenly Brando’s eyes lit up. “Un attimo… I think I saw one of their weapons earlier. It didn't look like a standard gun.”

Kowalczyk nodded. “They're energy weapons, based off Old Tech.”

Brando’s smile turned almost malicious. “Could Paolo do something about that? Almost all Old Tech these days is descended from the stuff from the Tower, no?”

Everyone looked perplexed. Finally Kowalczyk spoke. “I suppose it's worth a try. Can one of you contact him?”

“Way ahead of ya, big guy,” Noisette said; she already had her phone out.

Gustavo looked unconvinced. “But… Paolo's in Boiler City. Maybe he could remotely access them eventually, but… what could he do right now?”

Noisette grinned mischievously. “Watch and learn, Gussy-wussy,” she said. “Noisette got me the latest phone tech! I can do so much with this thing,” she said in a happy sing-song voice.

Everyone stared at the rabbit-woman, looking a little stunned. “I guess it pays to have connections,” Kowalczyk said weakly.

Vigi shook his head. “T’ be fair, even we didn' expect that,” he said with a hint of amusement. “Noisette, that's all well ‘n good, but that still leaves us with a bunch o’ hostages.”

“Aaaand there's no guarantee they do not have other weapons. Knives, for one,” Fake rumbled.

“But maybe if they realize their weapons are disabled, they'll give up?” Brando volunteered.

Everyone shook their heads. “Going by what… what he said,” Gustavo said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder at the quivering Pig, “these guys are zealots. Fanatics. I bet… I bet they know the cops know about the murders.” His eyes walked up. “All those kids… they…” he sucked in a shaky breath.

Brando placed a hand on the gnome's shoulder, and Gustavo turned, weeping into the man's shirt.

Peppino felt his own heart breaking at the sight. If anyone doubted his real feelings, this ought to set them straight. 

Then he noticed something else: the gnome was twisting something in between his hands. Looks like a shank of… gray fur? 

His eyes widened. Gray. Rat fur? Brick?

Peppino walked over, kneeling down. “Gustavo,” he said quietly, “has-a something happened to Brick?”

Everyone froze, turning towards the little man.

Gustavo shivered, twisting the hank of hair. “She… she disappeared a while ago. I don't know why. Not long before… before everything happened. She was just… just gone.” He choked, barely able to speak. “I was… I was alone. So alone. Here, alone, everyone gone, expecting me to come to them…” his face was streaming with tears. “I couldn't… I couldn't stand it! Not… not again! So I… I started… and then… then you found out, and everyone was so angry, and-and I hated myself for treating everyone so bad, and… and…”

Peppino felt his throat close up. “Oh, mio caro amico…” He wrapped the gnome up in a bear hug… and found himself surrounded by the entire group. “Mi dispiace tanto, amico. If I'd only known…”

Gustavo sniffed. “That's doesn't excuse what I did, Peppino,” he whispered. “To you. To Tony. To Anita and Giuseppe and everyone. I… I deserve to be alone.”

Everyone broke away. “Everybody deserves a second chance, Gussy,” Noisette said, her eyes misty. “Everybody.”

Fake nodded. “Nearrrrly everyone here is here noww because of second chances,” he croaked.

Gustavo looked around, his eyes wobbling. After several moments, he looked down. “Grazie mille, i miei amici. I'll… I'll try to be worthy.”

Kowalczyk cleared his throat. “I hate to interrupt this heartfelt moment, but… we still have a group of fanatical murderers holding a bunch of toddlers hostage.”

Noisette's phone started ringing,and everyone broke away so she could answer… but Peppino out his hands on Gustavo's shoulders. “Lo giuro, amico, when this is-a over, we'll all help you find-a Brick.”

Gustavo nodded.

Noisette was chatting amiably to whoever was on the phone, then paused. “Actually, hang on, the guys here should hear this, too. I'm gonna put you on speaker.” She clicked, holding the phone up. “Go ahead, Paolo.”

“All right,” the voice of the Ninda rang out. Noisette wasn't kidding, it doesn't even sound like a phone call! “I saw what's going on - it's all over the news. I think I can help, at least a little. Captain… sorry, didn't get your name?”

The captain cleared his throat. “Captain Kowalczyk, sir, of the La Crosta PD. I assume you're Mr. Totino?”

“More’s the pity, sometimes,” Paolo said ascerbically. “Noisette's right; if I can find out what kind of weapons they have, I can give her a code to disable them. You don't happen to have a picture of one, do you?”

“No need,” a quavery voice said behind them. Kowalczyk turned; the Pig had stepped forward, shaking but looking determined. “They're PT-307 Fireflys. I recognized them from one of my cohort’s private stores.”

Kowalczyk shuddered. “Small but powerful. Glad we didn't try to rush in.”

“On the other hand, I'm familiar with those,” Paolo said smugly. 

Kowalczyk looked unconvinced. “And you can… shut those down, Mr. Totino?”

“Most of that sort of tech is descended from the Tech we took out of the Pizza Tower, Captain,” Paolo said. “As such, some of the code of the Tower is there… and I know override codes.” Noisette's phone beeped. “I just sent you the current codes you can use, Noisette. You should be able to send a Lock command from your phone. Be careful, it'll only work for twenty minutes.”

Noisette saluted. “On it, Paolo! Thanks!”

As the woman typed furiously, Kowalczyk leaned over. “Not that I'm not grateful, Mr. Totino, but… doesn't this mean you could essentially shut down any advanced tech, anywhere in the world, at any time?”

“Anything descended from my tech, yes,” Paolo said. “But I don't give that information out to just anyone. And I know better than to exploit that sort of thing.” Pause. “I’m not my ancestor, Captain. I'll take these secrets to my grave. I'm only doing it now to help those kids.”

Kowalczyk nodded. “It's appreciated, then, Mr. Totino. Thank you.”

Peppino could almost hear the wide grin. “Happy to help, sir. Everyone? Take care.”

The line clicked as he signed off.

Shortly Peppino's phone buzzed. 

A message from Paolo. Your son is in there, isn't he?

Peppino shuddered, and replied. Yes.

The phone buzzed again. Didn't want to call you out. I'm sorry. It'll be Ok. With all of you there, I know it.

Peppino smiled. Thank you, amico.

He stared into the distance. Hard to believe we used to be mortal enemies.

Noisette dramatically pressed a button on her screen, and a grating brrrrp sounded. “Aaaand done! Those guns are no better than toys now!”

The group turned towards the daycare. “Now we just have to figure out how to get a group of murderous fanatics to give back their hostages,” Kowalczyk muttered.

~~~~

An hour later, the group stood just outside the police line. Peppino was trying to maintain his composure, but the wait had been excruciating.

Giuseppe had messaged him about the minutes in. I'm OK. Anita and the kids are OK. But I heard about the daycare and the restaurant. Is Gus OK?

A few scrapes, he said, but they're OK, Peppino sent back. But there's a standoff at the daycare. They're at a standstill.

Do you want me to come down there? He sent back.

Peppino felt his heart lfit at that. To offer to be away from his wife and children… he thought. No, fratello, he sent back, there are plenty of us here. And someone might try again. Stay with your family. I'll feel more at ease knowing you're safe.

Well, Spec Ops has this place locked down tight, Giuseppe replied, but all right. I had to talk them down, to be honest. Guess these guys take attacking a retired general's family seriously.

Peppino smirked. As they should. Be careful, fratello.

Same, fratellino. 

Kowalczyk walked over; he'd been speaking to Fake. “Your friend's camouflage abilities are coming in handy, Mr. Spaghetti. They've been scouting.”

“And what did they find?” Gustavo said.

“Something… strange is happening,” Kowalczyk said. “The people are… disappearing.”

Everyone paused. “Disappearin’?” Vigi said, confused. “How?”

“Weee’re not sure,” Fake said. “Any person not in the hands of a terrrrrorist disppearrrrs. The terrorists, as well.” They smiled grimly. “Onnnnly Tony and one other are left.”

Kowalczyk nodded. “Whatever's going on, they're probably getting desperate. No weapons and almost no hostages… we have to be very careful.”

“ATTENTION!” A voice called from inside the daycare. “OUR DEMANDS HAVE CHANGED!”

“I’ll bet,” Kowalczyk muttered. He turned to the Spec Ops officer near him, a tall Ninda. “You're the negotiator, Major Ingerah,” he said. 

The brown-skinned man raised a megaphone. “We hear you! What are your demands?”

“WE KNOW SOME OF THE PARENTS OF THESE CHILDREN ARE HERE,” the voice called. “ONE IN PARTICULAR. WE DEMAND TO SPEAK TO MR. PEPPINO SPAGHETTI!”

Everyone turned to Peppino, who had gone white. “M-me?” Peppino stammered. “Why-a me?”

Ingerah and Kowalczyk looked at each other and frowned. “They probably feel like they can get something from you,” Ingerah said.

Peppino felt a panic attack already starting. Gustavo reached out and took one arm, Noisette the other.

Their touch calmed his nerves… slightly. “What… what should I-a do?”

Ingerah held out the megaphone. “Ask,” he said.

Hesitantly, Peppino stepped forward. The crowd had gone quiet; everyone knew the situation was delicate. He held up the megaphone… “I am Peppino Spaghetti! What do you need?”

“WE KNOW WE STILL HAVE YOUR SON,” the voice replied. “WE DEMAND ASYLUM!”

Peppino turned; Ingerah shook their head. “They can't ask asylum, they're all citizens! Tell them that.”

Peppino relayed the message, and there was a pause. “WE REFUSE TO BOW TO CANNIBALS!”

Peppino turned again, and Ingerah shrugged. “We've been hitting this snag all day. They're fanatics.” He pursed his lips, then nodded. See if you can get him out in plain view. Maybe we can take him out.”

“He's sure to have the kid, though,” Kowalczyk countered heatedly. “We're not risking the child!”

Ingerah nodded. “Agreed. But we need to see if the kid is still OK. Mr. Spaghetti? Over to you.”

Peppino was shaking badly, but nodded. “I-a need to see if-a my son is hurt! Step out-a-side so we can see you!”

The voice replied with derision. “OF COURSE! SO SOME SNIPER CAN GUN ME DOWN?”

“I-a promise, that won’t-a happen,” Peppino called back. “Please. I just-a want to know my son is OK.”

There was a long pause, and finally, a response. “ALL RIGHT, I'M STEPPING OUT! ALL OF YOU, LOWER YOUR WEAPONS!”

Kowalczyk and Ingerah both signaled to their people, and everyone lowered their weapons. “All-a right, you're safe, whoever you are!”

Shortly, a surprisingly-thin Pig stepped out, with Tony in his arms… and a gun to the boy's temple.

Brando had to restrain Gustavo. “TONY!” The gnome cried out. Noisette put her hands to her face. Fake growled loudly, and Vigi put a hand on Peppino's leg. “Easy, amigo.”

The Pig looked disheveled, wild-eyed. “I don't know how you got the other hostages, or what you did to my friends, but… I refuse to go down alone!” He hoisted the child up, brandishing the gun. “I'll… I'll have justice!” 

Peppino put the megaphone down. “Giustizia?” he said. “What-a giustizia is-a there in threatening to murder a small child, Signore?” 

In the throes of instinct, Peppino stepped around the blocking tape. Ingerah reached for him, but Kowalczyk grabbed his shoulder. “Wait,” he whispered.

The Pig terrorist was wild-eyed. “I-I know what you can do! You can kill me at super-speed! I'll-I-I’ll kill the boy first!”

Peppino held out his hands to the side. “I won't-a do that,” he said calmly. The shaking had stopped. Saving my son is most important. “Please. Just… give me my son. We can-a talk. I won't-a let them hurt you.”

Suddenly, from the side, a huge gray blur shot past… 

And Tony was gone.

Behind him, Peppino heard everyone cry out. He turned…

Gustavo was holding Tony, and both of them were bawling. Beside them stood -

Brick?? Peppino thought incredulously.

Then he remembered the Pig in front of him. He turned…

Unsurprisingly, the Pig now had his gun trained on Peppino's chest.

“How did you do that??” The Pig squalled. “You planned that, didn't you??”

Peppino shook his head. “Sinceramente, I'm as-a surprised as you are,” he muttered. “But we can still talk, amico. Please. Put-a the gun down.”

Peppino held out a hand.

The Pig, tears in his eyes, lifted the gun.

He pulled the trigger…

And nothing happened.

The Pig's eyes went wide, and he slumped to the ground. “How - how did…”

Peppino knelt, smiling sadly. “Friends in high places, amico. Now-a please. Give-a yourself up quietly. It'll go better for you.”

The Pig looked up, defeated, and nodded.

As the police and military took him into custody, Peppino walked back to the crowd. Everyone was cheering.

Peppino had only eyes for his son.

As he walked up, Tony held out his arms. “Papa,” he said. “Papa!”

Peppino wrapped the boy up in his arms, pulling him close, and started bawling. “Mi dispiace,” he blubbered. “Mi dispiace tanto, mio figlio.”

Peppino heard new voices around him, and looked up…

Giant Rats were appearing from everywhere, carrying children, escorting adults.

Peppino turned to Brick. “Did… did-a you save them all?”

Brick nodded, squeaking proudly. Then she knelt to nuzzle Gustavo.

The gnome reached up, rubbing her muzzle. “Oh, amica, I've missed you so! Tell me-”

Suddenly both gnome and rat froze, and Brick stood up, looking surprised.

“Brick?” Gustavo whispered.

Brick nosed the gnome over, looking confused.

Brando walked over. “What's wrong, Signore?”

“I… I can't hear her,” Gustavo whispered. “I can't hear her!” He looked up, grabbing fistfuls of Brick's fur. “Can you hear me?” he said, his eyes full of tears, his voice desperate.

Brick sadly shook her head.

Everyone stared as Gustavo buried his face in the Rat's fur, sobbing.

[bloghyperfixes]

Daishinkan would struggle with his emotions and sometimes have a mental breakdown, and poor Celestia tries to call the Lil angel down singing songs or saying loving things like "You're not a mistake, you're the most beautiful angel in existence"

Yes I love angsty shit and yes I wanna make U cry

I LOVE GLASS WHERE PERSONS ARE GROWING

I think about how Daishinkan at some point can't put his thoughts into words, his head is swimming, his brain is overloaded with what's going on, causing him to freeze, searching his empty head for the right word. He could switch to telepathy, but something prevents it, if the children or partners call out to him, asking him to answer something, he looks at them with a blank, dull stare. Daishinkan slowly, very slowly shifts to vocalization, the unrestricted angelic larynx freely allowing sound communication. And it's not a cat's meow for a status check, Daishinkan can mimic the sounds made by a Yautja or a xenomorph, he lets out a disgruntled growl at his inability to function

[jessmindspace]

Imagine being able to sense everyone else’s emotions around you. Now imagine whenever your own emotions get heightened that sensing everyone else’s maximizes so that you don’t know what you’re feeling is your own emotions or everyone else’s anymore. This is what it’s like for Cris with her empathic powers 😔

I like including small aspects of myself in my characters, and her powers can be a bit like sensory overload for me: if she’s around large crowds for extended periods of time, it can be terribly exhausting and emotionally draining. She needs to isolate to recharge and retune herself with her own emotions, otherwise she’d mix up the nexus of emotional signatures around her with her own and eventually lose herself 8’D Telepaths and those with telepathy-related powers are at much higher risk of going insane, which is why they need a lot of self-regulation and discipline in their lives to avoid that.

[lilmissnatcat24]

it is so ridiculously entertaining writing a subplot that a) the media thinks that shepard and kaidan are secret lovers, and b) khalisa bint sinan al-jilani holds a grudge

HeWOES of the Citadel: The Definitive Timeline Between Delia Shepard and Kaidan Alenko’s Steamy Romance and Devastation Separation 

Written by Khalisa bint Sinan al-Jilani 

Romeo and Juliet. Jack and Rose. Heirax and Sarve’er. Timeless love stories that all have one thing in common: a tragic and devastating end. With the heaviest of hearts, we fear to add an iconic duo to the list in the near future: Delia Shepard and Kaidan Alenko. While the search for the decorated Alliance Commander is underway, let’s take a walk through their not-so-secret romance, and all of the clues that humans missed of the love blossoming between the two marines. 

Shepard and Alenko were said to have met in 2179. Both skilled biotics in their own rights, they were both part of an elite club of Alliance biotics called the Alliance Biotic Force, or the L-Squad informally. Though Alenko is three years Shepard’s senior, it was theorized that he was initiated into the force around the same time as Shepard. An L2 who suffers from the horrendous side effects of the often faulty implant, such as migraines, glitchy fields, and an inclination towards extreme violence, may not have been the first choice for the fraternity. 

But it seems as though L2s are not the only ones that fight such violent urges. Delia Shepard, known previously as the Butcher of Torfan, the Iron Hand of C-Sec, and the Black Death, and has numerous warrants out for her arrest related to her crimes against the press, found herself naturally drawn to Alenko’s vicious and savage tendencies. The two struck up a friendship nearly immediately on the basis of bloodlust and carnage. 

Whether a romance was immediate or happened over time in the L-Squad is unknown. Reports indicate that the pair often had difficulties keeping their eyes off one another. Perhaps a sort of biotic telepathy, one that is theorized to exist within humans tampered with eezo abilities, was necessary to communicate their barbarity through eye contact-- 

Garrus set the datapad down on his cot, momentarily disgusted with himself. Then, for good measure, he wiped the history off of the datapad and overloaded its matrix, leaving behind a stark white screen and a faintly acrid smell. As a failsafe, he stomped on the datapad a few times until it was nearly unrecognizable and shards of plastic were wedged firmly underneath his boot. 

[gallifreyinstituteforlearning]

⚕️Psionic Emergency Pathways

Problems with psionic abilities can make Gallifreyans extremely distressed and disorientated. Here's a guide for managing problems in psionics, because you need to be PEP-ared!

BIGGER - Google Drive: PDF / Image JPG / Image PNG

This guide is for use on Gallifreyans and Time Lords only. Always seek your human advice from human health providers.

✨ What Are Psionic Emergencies?

Psionic emergencies disrupt the delicate psychic networks of Gallifreyans, resulting in a range of acute or chronic complications. These emergencies can impair telepathy, cognitive function, and emotional stability, with potentially severe consequences if not managed promptly.

📝 How to Use PEP

📊 Recognising Psionic Emergencies

Each type presents specific symptoms that caregivers must identify. List your symptoms according to each category, and take the pathways that has the most symptoms.

⚠️ USE CLINICAL JUDGEMENT: Psionic symptoms cannot always be neatly categorised, please use clinical judgement at all times to determine the most appropriate pathway.

1️⃣ Psionic Overload

Overloads are usually acute episodes, where short-term excessive psychic input causes intense distress or collapse.

👤 Causes: Short-term exposure to environments highly saturated with psionic energy.

⚕️Symptoms: Intense headaches, Telepathic noise (uncontrollable mental chatter), Hallucinations, Confusion, Fainting and/or collapse, Nosebleeds, Psychic 'leakage' (unintentional sharing of thoughts/emotions), Hyperarousal (heightened sensitivity to sensory stimuli)

📋Management:

Environment: Move the patient to a low-stimulation space with dim lighting and minimal noise. This would ideally be a Zero Room, but if unable to access one, the caregiver should establish a cool, quiet, dark room.

Grounding Techniques: - Get them to name 3 things they can see, 2 they can hear, 1 they can touch. - Encourage deep breathing: Inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 6. - Have them focus on tactile objects like textured stones or fabric.

Isolation Fields: Use psionic isolation technology to block excessive input, if able.

Mental Shields: Guide the patient to visualise a protective psychic barrier, such as a dome or glowing wall.

Pain Relief: Administer analgesics for pain if required.

❗When to Escalate: Overloads can lead to seizures, vomiting, or uncontrollable haemorrhaging. If symptoms worsen or persist beyond the initial intervention, escalate immediately.

2️⃣ Psionic Deprivation

Deprivation arises from a prolonged lack of telepathic interaction, leading to cognitive and emotional decline.

👤 Causes: Lack of use of psionics over a long time.

⚕️ Symptoms: Depression, Anxiety, Cognitive decline, Weakened psionics, Fatigue and muscle aches, Increased irritability or frustration, Social withdrawal, Suppression or loss of symbiotic connection with a TARDIS

📋 Management:

Reconnection: Facilitate telepathic contact through psychic bridges or entrelacement, ideally with another trusted Gallifreyan.

Exercises: - Memory recall: Encourage revisiting positive memories to reawaken dormant psionic pathways. - Symbiotic resonance: Use a TARDIS to help stabilise their psionic baseline. - Introduce mind-stimulating puzzles or telepathic games.

Emotional Support: Address depression or anxiety through verbal reassurance and emotional presence.

Check-ins: Begin regular telepathic check-ins to track recovery progress.

❗ When to Escalate: Escalate if the patient becomes unresponsive to verbal contact or shows other signs of severe cognitive decline.

3️⃣ Disease/Injury

Illness or trauma affecting the brain or psychic systems, leading to acute symptoms.

👤 Causes: Telepathic infections/parasites, or head injuries.

⚕️ Symptoms: General signs of illness or injury (e.g., known infection, visible head trauma etc.), Cold-like symptoms (e.g., congestion, mild fever), Persistent migraines, Psionic distortions (e.g., difficulty sending or receiving telepathic signals), Hallucinations, Disorientation or dizziness, Localised pain around the epiphysis cerebri (pineal gland), TARDIS systems affected (if applicable)

📋 Management:

Isolation: If a disease is suspected, activate containment fields to prevent psychic transmission to other telepaths.

Treatment: - Stabilise their physical health using emergency medicines and GASS and ABCDE protocols. - Treat any visible head injury. - Administer antibiotics or antivirals for bacterial or viral infections. - Use psionic cleansing devices to remove psychic parasites (if able). - Apply neural therapy to repair damaged telepathic pathways, ideally through using a zero room.

Pain Relief: Administer analgesics for pain if required.

Monitoring: Watch for worsening symptoms like persistent fever, seizures, haemorrhaging or loss of consciousness.

❗ When to Escalate: Escalate if infections or injuries show no improvement, or if telepathic distortions worsen.

4️⃣ Degenerative Conditions

Chronic conditions impairing telepathy and cognition over time.

👤 Causes: Long-term or terminal diseases and conditions, such as psionic dementia.

⚕️ Symptoms: Impaired memory recall, Disorientation or inability to differentiate reality from dreams, Psychic 'leakage' (unintentional sharing of thoughts/emotions), Progressive loss of psionic abilities, Progressive loss of language, Emotional instability (e.g., mood swings, paranoia), Sensory hallucinations, Telepathic 'ghosts' (phantom presences or voices)

📋 Management:

Degenerative conditions can often be terminal, so for any degenerative psionic condition, a care plan should be made tailored to the individual Gallifreyan. These care plans should include...

Stabilisation: Establish a physical and cognitive baseline from which to measure all future interventions.

Therapeutic Interventions: - Engage neural therapy or consult psycho-healers if able. - Initiate regular telepathic and sensory exercises to maintain connections and slow progression of condition.

Medications: Consider long-term medications for physical, mental, and psionic discomfort, including pain.

Quality of Life: Assess continually to ensure the patient has the best quality of life possible at all times.

End of Life: Put in place support for regeneration or end-of-life care.

❗ When to Escalate: Escalate if the patient becomes a danger to themselves or others, or if their quality of life significantly declines.

📌 Key Points to Remember

Low-Stimulation Environments: Essential for managing overload or degeneration.

Prompt Treatment for Disease: Act quickly to contain and treat psychic infections.

Specialist Care for Chronic Issues: Degenerative conditions like psionic dementia need long-term professional support.

Medical Guides These are all practical guides to assessing and treating a Gallifreyan in an emergency or medical setting.

⚕️💕Gallifreyan CPR

⚕️👽Gallifreyan Assessment Scoring System (GASS)

⚕️👽ABCDE Assessment

⚕️⚠️Sepsis Emergency Response (SER)

⚕️⚠️Severe Trauma Protocol

⚕️🌡️Gallifreyan Thermoregulation and Emergency Response

⚕️🔮Psionic Emergency Pathways

⚕️✨Post-Regeneration Management

⚕️💤Gallifreyan Healing Coma Management

⚕️🩸Interpreting Gallifreyan Bloodwork

⚕️👶Gallifreyan Paediatric Emergencies

Any orange text is educated guesswork or theoretical. More content ... →📫Got a question? | 📚Complete list of Q+A and factoids →📢Announcements |🩻Biology |🗨️Language |🕰️Throwbacks |🤓Facts → Features:⭐Guest Posts | 🍜Chomp Chomp with Myishu →🫀Gallifreyan Anatomy and Physiology Guide (pending) →⚕️Gallifreyan Emergency Medicine Guides →📝Source list (WIP) →📜Masterpost If you're finding your happy place in this part of the internet, feel free to buy a coffee to help keep our exhausted human conscious. She works full-time in medicine and is so very tired 😴

[ladypiscesmoon]

LAST PART MATT BOMER/JONATHAN BAILEY/questions part 3

This is the last part of the q&a for Matt and Jonathan. Sorry it took me so long, but I was a lot of work.

Tomorrow I will put the list of readings on here, so everyone can see what to expect in the coming weeks

*alleged/for entertainment purposes*

22. Hey dear i've got questions for Matt & Jonny reading😘: has jonny become reluctant to be with Matt or show him affection?

Answer: Four of cups reversed, the chariot, ace of coins

No, not at all. He will always hold a torch for Matt. But Matt knows what Jonathan wants. He is not going to push him to make a decision. he knows what the relationship could be and focuses on his own career and life.

23. i somehow think Simon(matt's husband) is a male equivalent to Lizard chambers(armie's evil ex wife)! He kinda gives me weird and sly vibes?

Answer: I pulled six cards: two for the past, two for the present, two for the future (Pantheon deck, telepathy oracle cards): past: goal, observe/present: triumph, moment/ future:inducement, confusion

I don't get the same vibes from Simon, like I get from Elizabeth (Armie's ex). But I have been feeling him trying to be in control. Past Simon was also goal oriented and like to stay in control of his emotions, but without a shadow of a doubt, he loves Matt. At the moment he relives very much a lot of good memories and likes to remind Matt of those special moments as well. In future he will understand he's got to talk about the difficult stuff if they want to go forward together.

24. Saying this,will matt ever have the courage of letting him go or getting a divorce?

Answer: I think I have answered that a few times. I did not pull for it again. The energy changes all the time because they have not really talked about stuff and they have a long history and Matt goes back and forth in his mind. Earlier this year I thought for sure Matt was going to end it and I still think this is heading in that direction. There's love, but they seem to have lost the sparkle and the connection and he feels that connection with Jonathan instead.

25.do you think during the recent campaigning in NY did they like had any intimate moments off screen obviously? Or they just tried to be just friends?

Answer: panther oracle: perseverance, friendship, overload, cosmic insights: give it time, they'll be back

definitely know both they don't want to be just friends. At the Emmy's there was a lot going on, so other than the things we saw I don't think they could have a moment, but a quick word here and there. But I do strongly feel they are in contact often and hold less back in their affection than when they're in public.

the picture below is for question 22-25

26. do/ will they miss eachother as strongly as they did?

Answer: telepathy oracle cards; observe, enlightenment, confusion, link

Yes, they do. The feelings are not fading, but Matt is confused sometimes and they have to overcome obstacles

27. do you think they've ever talked about their feelings for each other? (Off screen i mean) Thank u😘💕

Answer: I have pulled for this before. Yes, they have. Especially Jonathan has been very vocal about what he wants.

28. Isn't every time they're gonna meet super hard for them?

Answer: I feel overall a lot of joy when they meet, but Matt is the one that needs to be reassured, he's very afraid to lose everything and Jonathan too in the process of things. But Jonathan is not going anywhere if Matt wants him to stay (picture below needs no explanation in my opinion)

29. Could you pull out a card if you see Matt Jonathan working again with Ron nyswaner(writer/showrunner of fellow travelers )

Doesn't seem so at the moment

30. Matt 2/3 days back liked this video on Instagram also confirms that all is not like before and he’s really really trying to make the connection work. Where do you see this marriage heading??? Will Jonathan’s presence strongly influence his decision coming months?even though Jonny lives in another country! Becoz seeing this video⬇️ Matt liked only makes your reading (old one)true that he’s the one holding on to the marriage(and the honour gala for them as a couple next month only puts pressure to hold on that image)

Link : https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_cglQgN1UN/?igsh=ZTR3aTYxNmYzb24z

Answer: I think I have answered your question already by pulling cards for similar questions. And because this post took a while, I'm not sure if the liking of the video is really relevant anymore.

31. Do you see wedding/engagement for Jonathan with someone else (without that person being Matt?)

Yes/no oracle cards: No (heavy energy, blocked, weighed down by worry), situational oracle deck: date, cut down, death

At the moment: no. The energy felt really blocked around this topic. I think that's because he is not thinking about someone else at the moment. But, I said this before: he will not wait forever, so when I asked for some clarification I got date, cut down and death. He will date again at the least if things are not working out with Matt. but not at the moment

32. Jonathan Bailey is on the rise . JW rebirth stills and storyline came out and even the haters are shocked by how wrong they were to have judged him for being part of the movie.Literally him waiting for 35 years is all coming together now. do you think this superstardom will effect his friendship or whatever the term is to describe… with Matt or it will only make it stronger? Will he forget Matt or will Matt always be super special to him? what does cards say🙏

Answer:confession messages: learning, insecure, new beginnings, transparency

I don't feel he will leave Matt behind, he admires the man fervently. IIf anything he's sometimes insecure about being enough for him. I will not forget Matt, he feels like he has learned a lot from Matt and that Matt sees right through him.

33. Jonny’s health and then matts health . How is it going to be in the coming months ?

Answer: Matt: the empress reversed, ace of swords reversed, three of coins reversed

He seems to take poor care of himself. This mental tension is not good for his health, he may have symptoms like headaches, migraines, and an inability to focus.

Jonathan: knight of cups reversed, ace of cups reversed, four of cups: he seems to be a bit moody, maybe he was turned down for a role or something other that has to with work. He may feel emotionally a bit drained. Could be because he's working so hard.

34. as Jonathan is distancing himself do you think he will just give up and distance him from Matt completely just to protect his heart as times just going by fast?

Answer: Like I said in a previous answer, he will only "move on" if there's no chance of Matt choosing him. And this doesn't necessarily mean that he doesn't love the man anymore, just that he will back off if Matt asks him.

35. Do you ever (through the cards) Jonathan taking that huge step in wanting this relationship to go beyond this as hes been restraining a lot (the death card you posted in your last reading) and hiding it all in which is unlike him. Or he wud never ? Since that person is in a marriage. but according to your readings so far you did say they will eventually one day get together. The cards cud have said a FLAT NO but so far your readings said they wud but not anytime now.

Answer: I feel like I have answered this before as well. I can only pull so much and get the same answer. They're not in a relationship at the moment, because Matt is married. The feelings are there, and yes they're strong because they're soulmates and they could make it work. But unfortunately, sometimes loving someone is just not enough.

36. Are their feelings still the same?🥺 Do they still want eachother or just want to cling to this "just friends/brothers" thing?🥲(which is really lame cuz they've never been just friends,they've been waaay more than friends since they met)

Answer: I think I have already answered this through all the readings I have done for them. They don't think of each other as brothers, but yeah, would you say anything else if you were married to another man?

37. Jonathan baileys biggest pillar of strength is his grandmother. hope you cud take cards on how she’s doing health wise …

Answer: justice, the chariot reversed, six of wands

She may have had some setbacks or problems, but she is recovered or recovering. She has to take her health seriously though.

38. is Jonathan Bailey and Hugh skinner (British actor) dating? Becoz I see him everywhere with Jonny everywhere. And there are strong rumours as well. Could you take out cards on that?

Answer: No, they're not dating, they are friends

39. Matt just spoke in an interview for Emmy’s about Jonathan . The words he used were so emotional and too profound tbh for Jonathan and then he ended by saying “we are bonded for life because of this experience “ and suddenly as if he didn’t want ppl to take it in a romantic or shipping way he said “as brothers” and it felt really awkward coz if we’ve seen nothing looks like brothers offscreen as well. so cud you take cards on if he meant as brothers as in soldiers in arms which is understandable. Coz no one look at a brother like they way these two do offscreen. Could you take cards on this statement of him pls.?

Answer: From the blocks to love oracle: complaining, people pleasing, anger

Someone, or multiple people have complained about the way he behaves around Jonathan. He didn't want people to be angry, he doesn't like it when people are angry with him. He's a people pleaser at heart

40. has the distance made the heart grow even more fonder and stronger in this case (for Matt ?)

Answer: not necessarily fonder. His strong feelings scare him also. He's afraid that Jonathan could leave him if they would be together. He also fears the judgement of his inner circled fans if he leaves his husband (aren't they a sort of an icon?) I think he has abandonment issues or something like that, because he has some things from his past he has to resolve.

the picture below is for question 39/40

41. Who will tell it to the other that they are in love with the other person between Matt and Jonny.?

Jonathan has been very clear about his feelings for Matt:

42. how is matts relationship with his kids. Sometimes it feels like it’s becoz of them he doesn’t want to give up on the marriage?

what does the cards show regarding ⬇️⬆️

Answer: the hermit, the sun.

I think him being the calm, more retrospective parent, is good. Their relationship with him seems good, it makes me feel warm inside. (hence the sun, maybe?)

43. do you think the kids will be supportive in matts decision and do you see Matt finally choosing to walk away.

Answer: queen of cups, the magician, ten of cups

Should he get a divorce, they will understand in the end and be supportive because they love him very much.

44. yes you’ve said matts marriage is the obstacle for Matt Jonathan but do you think it’s how the kids wud react is what he’s most worried about in all this or it’s just the societal facade that wud all start crumbling down (coz they as a couple are kept on a pedestal in the LGBTQIA + community)

Answer: Think I answered this above. But I have to say I can feel it's one of the factors. Matt doesn't seem to take a decisions lightly anyway. but yes, breaking up a family isn't something you should take lightly. I understand why he's afraid.

45. Matt has been vocally thanking Simon his husband during his awards even now. But do you see (the cards) marriage sustaining the next year? Who do you think will finally take that step to be vocal that it’s over?

Answer: Would be really strange if he wouldn't support someone he has been with for the last decade or more. Anyway, I don't think Matt doesn't love his husband. It is possible to love someone but the relationship could have run its course. Anyway, I pulled a card from the mystical moon oracle. I've said this many times before: Timing is difficult in Tarot. So do with it what you may.

[sunnyie-eve]

34 | Helpless

Series: Indispensable | Teen Wolf

Paring: (Stiles Stilinski x OFC Martin)

Word Count: 1.9k

Warnings: noncon, rape, void being a creep

| MASTERLIST |

~

Julia was still at the Stilinski house alone while Noah went to work. To help out a bit she just felt like cleaning the house for Noah since it seems like he never has time. And knowing Stiles she sure he's never did it.

With Stiles, now as Void, he finds Julia cleaning up the kitchen. Quietly he watches her every little move as she was completely unaware of his presence. "I'm not surprised to find you here alone." He speaks up causing her to quickly turn around to face him.

Just by the tone of his voice she knew that it wasn't Stiles, "What do you want with me now?" She asks him.

"Nothing for my gain... but I want you." He slowly walks towards her as she was cornered.

"What?"

"You heard me, doll face. I want you." He puts his hands on each side of her onto the counter really trapping her.

"No," She stares deep into his eyes seeing how dark they were. They weren't ever that way when Stiles looked at her.

He chuckles, "But I can convince you, Julia. To give in. Give into the darkness. You're so much more powerful than you know. You can do so much than just scream. You can use it as a weapon. It can produce so much power and force that it can shatter bulletproof glass, overload electronics, shatter skulls and eardrums, and even create concussive blasts strong enough to throw grown men across a room. Some Banshees possess a form of telepathy."

"Why would I give in?"

"Oh beautiful beautiful, Julia..." He smiles staring into her eyes, "You won't be looked down on by anyone. You would come first and never last. You wouldn't be the pathetic one in anyone's eyes anymore."

"I'm not pathetic and I'm not looked down on. And I'm definitely not last." She stands her ground not showing fear since she wasn't scared of him.

"But you are still by your family and friends. Your parents still favor Lydia more. Your mother didn't care I kidnapped you. Did she notice you were gone? No she didn't, did she. Scott puts up with you even though you turned him down. You were just fun for Isaac while he actually likes Allison. Stiles realized Lydia will never feel the same so he just fucks you instead."

"Fuck you," She growls causing him to smile more.

"Give it to me. Come on, let it out. Scream for me Julia." He leans in towards her ear nibbling it so she lets out a powerful scream that tosses him across the room.

Void chuckles on the floor getting up looking over at her, "You could do better. Protect yourself from me or are you scared you'll hurt Stiles too? He ends up beside her roughly grabbing her shoving her against the wall.

He was right. She was scared of hitting Stiles as well since he was Stiles too. "I'm not giving you what you want. Not again."

He closes the space between them brushing his lips against hers as she whimpers, "How bad does this hurt?" He whispers against her lips as his fingers dig into her hip.

Tears welled up in her eyes as her kept his locked with hers but she blinks them away as her eyes darken, "You're just wasting your time."

Void takes a deep breath in, "Aww, Julia, Julia, Julia. You don't have to say a word because I can see it in your eyes."

Julia heart drops knowing there was no way to beat him. In a blink of an eye, Void's hand goes to her throat gripping it roughly as he shoved his tongue into her mouth. No matter how badly she tries to fight him off he had the advantage.

His lips left a trail of kisses along her jaw, his touch making her skin crawl. Closing her eyes taking in a deep breath she screams making him fly back so she takes off running but he catches her before she could get to the door. He tosses her across the room before pining her down onto the floor.

"You're still too scared to hurt me."

Julia whined when he painfully twisted her wrist, and he shifted on top of her, nudging her legs apart with his knee. A shameful, disgust settled within Julia when she could feel her panties growing damp with unwanted arousal.

Julia squirmed in his grasp, back arching as she tried to pull away. Fear gripped her throat as she looked up at Stiles. She knew it wasn't him and she wish it was him so this situation could feel different.

Julia tilted her head to watch him begin unzipping his pants and removing them. Again she felt horror and nausea rise inside of her as she saw what was coming.

"Void!" She sobbed pathetically, grabbing at the hand that was clamped around her other wrist and scratching at him. "I'll give in but please not this. I'll use my powers in the way you want."

The feeling of Void's hand trailing beneath her skirt and between her legs set a blaze across her skin. His fingertips ghosted over the edges of her lacy panties, making her shiver.

When Void grabbed them and started tugging them down her legs, Julia couldn't bring herself to snap them shut as he slide her panties off.

Void pulled his boxers off and Julia looked away till a hand clamped on her chin, turning her head forcing her to make eye contact with him. Julia quickly squeeze her eyes shut refusing to look at him.

"Relax Julia, it's okay, I promise. You trust Stiles remember? I'm still him." He tells her as she tensed when she felt him rub his tip up and down her soaked slit, teasing her clit a bit and she squirmed beneath him.

He wordlessly grabbed her wrists, easily pinning them to the floor and using the new position to push himself deeper.

Tears were streaming down her cheeks now as her possessed best friend she had feelings for pinning her  to the floor and slowly forced himself deeper. The pressure between her legs was immense. He bottomed out, the tip of his dick kissing her cervix, and his arms trembled slightly above her as he sucked in a shaky breath.

Julia does everything to remember and imagine the night she and Stiles actually got together. She wanted to zone out so badly that she could hopefully forget what was happening to her at the moment.

"Are you sure about this? Seriously?" Stiles asks to make sure.

"I'm 100% sure, Stiles."

"You really trust me?" He smiles as their eyes lock.

"Of course I trust you."

Void thrusted into her faster, picking up his pace as he finally broke the kiss and allowed her to gasp for air. Julia's trembling legs wrapped around his back as she tried to steady herself and the feel of his length dragging along her walls.

A horrible mixture of emotions flooding her body. He was one of her best friends. She had feelings for him and m she still loved him right now, even as his possessed body violated her in the most violent way imaginable. She felt so confused about how her body's reaction to him forcing himself onto her.

His fingers twitched against her clit, his cock was repeatedly hitting a spot that was making her head swim and vision blur. Each masterful motion of his fingers was building inside of her, pulling her closer to the brink, even though she was trying to fight the inevitable.

"Say my name." Void growled, his pace growing downright punishing. With her eyes still tightly closed she shock her head no. "Look at me and say my name!"

Julia opens her eyes making eye contact with him right away, "Void." She tries to hold in her moans even though she was failing miserably. She was pushed over the edge suddenly, and she closed her eyes and loudly whined as she came around him.

She hated how she m gave him exactly what he wanted, even though her eyes were still squeezed shut as he fucked her through her orgasm.

"You didn't... it just... I don't want to make us awkward. I don't know what I would do if we drifted apart. I'm so much closer to you than to them." She explains wiping her tears away.

"Julia, there's no way we could ever drift apart. Plus, I made the move to kiss you. I've been wanting to kiss you since you stopped my panic attack at school." He now wipes a tear away so she leaned forward, reconnecting their lips.

-

As Noah and Allison were in the elevator, his phone goes off, "What's that?" She sees the notification on his phone.

"Someone's breaking into my house while Julia is there alone. After Stiles started sleepwalking, I had some security precautions put in. Motion sensors. Cameras." He explains to her.

"Is that is room?" They both see Stiles on his bed waving while Julia was passed out laying next to him with her hands tied behind her back and a blindfold on.

"We need to get to my house quickly." Noah puts his phone away while Allison calls her dad who calls Derek to meet up there.

On the drive Allison could tell Noah was worried as he speed a bit, "He's not going to hurt her. At least we know that." She tells him.

"Do we?" He asks, "He twisted a sword in Scott and that's his best friend." Noah pulls up and they get out as the other two show up.

When they get to Stiles room Julia was still laying there tied up with a blindfold on whimpering now that she was awake thinking who just opened the door was Void. "Julia!" Allison rushes over to her and Julia cries more as she takes the blindfold off her and Noah unties her.

"Where is he?" Chris asks Julia.

"She obviously doesn't know being here." Derek tells him.

"I'm texting Lydia to come get Julia." Allison says as Julia stares into space still in shock from earlier. She wishes her memory could just be wiped.

"Julia, what happened?" Noah asks her causing her eyes to tear up again.

Derek watches her body slightly shake in fear as tears start to fall as she raises her head up a little, "She's terrified from whatever he did to her."

"Did he hurt you?" Allison sits next to her.

Julia still doesn't speak a word so they all go over to Stiles chessboard talking about him and what game he's playing. Lydia arrives in time to get Julia as the others were going to head to Derek's loft.

"She's hasn't spoken a word to us so we don't know what happened to her. Derek said she's terrified." Allison lets Lydia know as Julia sits in the car.

"No idea at all?" Lydia asks.

"I have an idea about what happened. With things I can sense... Honestly, I think things are going to be different whenever we get normal Stiles back." Derek walks over to the two, "She's not going to tell us what happened to her. She doesn't want to relive it." He looks at Julia in the car now still staring into space.

"Well tell me what your idea is. She's my sister damn it!" Lydia crosses her arms.

Derek shakes his head, "You don't want to know. You really don't want to."

"Yes, I do. Tell me Derek." She glares at him so he whispers in into her ear so Allison couldn't hear.

Lydia starts to tear up looking back at Julia in the car, "Okay..." She wipes her tears away, "I'm taking her home to rest and things. We need to get Stiles back as quick as we can." She rushes over to her car to leave.