#pronouns referring specifically to bobby but not saying his name…..

[loverboydotcom]

literally when i was in the grocery store an hour ago and i went to open my grocery list note but turns out the last note was my vague playing around w my lover boy new opening idea and i was like oh that’s not produce that’s beau gagging whilst two guys have sex next to him 👍 and then i was like wait let me preserve this roughest of the rough writing so i can capture the evolution of an opening and write an essay about openings one day. can you tell im thinking a lot abt novel openings right now…..

[lizardsfromspace]

I've referenced things sounding like "boomer poems" several times but I don't think that's as universal a reference as I think, but once upon a time the dominant mode of expression for boomers online were interminable nostalgia poems and not memes where the Minions express fascist leanings. I found a lot of these on the old Snopes Glurge boards but sadly those are gone & a lot of these gone with it

Let's take a look at an exemplar of the form, preserved by this glorious Web 1.0 website (and some thoughts on the genre at the end)

Long ago and far away, in a land that time forgot, Before the days of Dylan , or the dawn of Camelot. There lived a race of innocents, and they were you and me,

"Race" is a interesting choice of word here. I also like that this is very specifically 1950s nostalgia and excludes even early 60s nostalgia, even the parts of the 60s that were still the 50s culturally (aka the American Graffiti years)

For Ike was in the White House in that land where we were born, Where navels were for oranges, and Peyton Place was porn.

"Navels were for oranges" Nobody had belly buttons until that bastard LBJ

We longed for love and romance, and waited for our Prince, Eddie Fisher married Liz, and no one's seen him since.

One gender was expected to get married as soon as possible in a more limited social circle than now, a situation that never once went awry!

We longed for love and romance, and waited for our Prince, Eddie Fisher married Liz, and no one's seen him since.

Because his career was destroyed over marrying his dead friend's widow, Elizabeth Taylor (I didn't know who that was, I had to look him up)

Only girls wore earrings then, and 3 was one too many, And only boys wore flat-top cuts, except for Jean McKinney.

We strictly enforced gender standards and we had no choice but to like it!

I have no idea who Jean McKinney is. Searching for "Jean McKinney 1950s" just turns up this poem???

And only in our wildest dreams did we expect to see A boy named George with Lipstick, in the Land That Made Me, Me.

Boy George is a fearful icon of gender fuckery to older people, which makes him becoming a vocal transphobe who makes pronoun jokes even more depressing. Sorry if you found out that way. Also he once kidnapped someone and handcuffed him to a radiator for two days. ...sorry if you found out that way

We fell for Frankie Avalon, Annette was oh, so nice, And when they made a movie, they never made it twice..

We didn't have a Star Trek Five, or Psycho Two and Three, Or Rocky-Rambo Twenty in the Land That Made Me, Me.

I love these lines bc for one they aren't true. 1950s cinema was rife with remakes, extremely long series, and actors who played the same character in the same plots over and over. They made seven movies about a talking mule named Francis (not to ding Francis the Talking Mule, not to ding anything starring Donald O'Connor, who firmly Rules Actually).

But also it's funny that the bankrupt, formulaic era here is the 1980s. Which is now subject to identical nostalgia only now it's people sitting in front of posters for The Fly and Friday The 13th VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan bemoaning that Hollywood used to have ideas man, not all these remakes and sequels today

Miss Kitty had a heart of gold, and Chester had a limp, And Reagan was a Democrat whose co-star was a chimp.

The 1950s were great bc of a Western show that mostly ran in the 60s that had a character who was all but said to be running a brothel

We had a Mr. Wizard, but not a Mr. T, And Oprah couldn't talk yet, in the Land That Made Me, Me.

Oof! Oh boy! Oh yikes! Oh, oh boy! Oh boy! Oh, dear! Oh, man!

I don't think these lines mean...that, but also could've, uh, been more thoughtful about what celebs they picked to say weren't around back then

"Oprah couldn't talk yet" Because she was six, or because if she tried to have a show, she'd uhhhhhhhhhhhhh

We had our share of heroes, we never thought they'd go, At least not Bobby Darin, or Marilyn Monroe. For youth was still eternal, and life was yet to be, And Elvis was forever in the Land That Made Me, Me

Bobby Darin was chronically ill his entire life, and his knowledge that he would die young from his illness was the main motivator of his entire music career, but fair on the rest. In the 1950s, some famous people died young, unlike every other decade

We'd never seen the rock band that was Grateful to be Dead, And Airplanes weren't named Jefferson, and Zeppelins were not Led.

*groan*

And Beatles lived in gardens then, and Monkeys lived in trees, Madonna was Mary in the Land That Made Me, Me.

*GROAN*

We'd never heard of microwaves, or telephones in cars, And babies might be bottle-fed, but they weren't grown in jars.

Something else that identifies this as clearly written in or about the 80s is the jab at test tube babies, part of a full fledged moral panic then. A time where people would sincerely tell parents of children conceived by IVF that their children were abominations born without souls

And pumping iron got wrinkles out, and 'gay' meant fancy-free, And dorms were never co-Ed in the Land That Made Me, Me.

Apparently the 50s were the last decade where "gay" usually meant "happy" instead of "gay", though it did also mean "gay"

Also, *groan*

We hadn't seen enough of jets to talk about the lag, And microchips were what was left at the bottom of the bag.

Tbh I don't actually mind the reminder that, for people of the time, casual air travel was still so new, so seemingly miraculous that all the minor inconveniences wrought by it being a routine thing didn't even occur to people

But also, *groan*

And hardware was a box of nails, and bytes came from a flea, And rocket ships were fiction in the Land That Made Me, Me.

Rocket ships were a fantasy detailed every week on Walt Disney's TV show by a scientist with suspiciously few stated qualifications & a thick German accent

T-Birds came with portholes, and side shows came with freaks, And bathing suits came big enough to cover both your cheeks.

We used to goggle at disabled people in carnivals and cover our entire ass when swimming, unlike now

And Coke came just in bottles, and skirts below the knee, And Castro came to power near the Land That Made Me, Me.

I really didn't expect one of these boomer nostalgia poems to include nostalgia for Castro's revolution. Viva la revolución, comrade

We had no Crest with Fluoride, we had no Hill Street Blues, We had no patterned pantyhose or Lipton herbal tea Or prime-time ads for those dysfunctions in the Land That Made Me, Me.

Not here for bemoaning toothpaste polluting our precious bodily fluids but honestly a world without boner pill commercials is tempting

There were no golden arches, no Perrier to chill, And fish were not called Wanda, and cats were not called Bill

Perrier was introduced in 1898, but I also love the specific jibes that fish weren't called Wanda back then. What a weird pop culture property to single out and what a weird way to single it out

And middle-aged was 35 and old was forty-three, And ancient were our parents in the Land That Made Me, Me.

We all ate lead paint and were forcibly sent off to die in wars and we LIKED IT!!!

If you didn't grow up in the fifties, You missed the greatest time in history,

...gender, race, and sexuality permitting!

This is a mild one but there were some much more haughty ones I should try and dig up. I thought these were hilarious when I was like 16.

I think what this exposes is how often nostalgia is nostalgia for being a child. People get lost in the weeds and think their childhood was special for when it happened, but if they're lucky and grew up in a stable situation, people tend to remember the same things about childhood regardless of when it happened. Nostalgia for a specific time becomes a problem when they assume nobody born after, or before, can have something similar, that the modern world took away everything special, but...they're still kids. Their childhood won't look like yours, but twenty, thirty years from now, they'll remember it the same way you do.

The greatest time to grow up is a irrelevant question, because the greatest time to be a kid wasn't great because of the time. It was great because you were a kid

Really can't overemphasize that a lot of these aren't so gentle and are in full "back in my day we RODE IN THE BACK OF THE PICKUP TRUCK and NONE OF US EVER DIED!!! Pansies!!!!" mode

[castielmacleod]

My personal take on spn angel pronouns if the cw had hired me:

They/them for virtually every single angel by default. Angels are agender by nature and so the gender binary is totally alien to them. Most will not even notice whether they are possessing a “man” or a “woman” and to those that can notice, it still doesn’t mean anything to them. Enochian doesn’t have gendered pronouns (at least my version doesn’t) and so angels typically don’t have any cause to gender themselves unless it’s for personal reasons.

She/her Anna always. Even after her grace is restored, she insists. She and Cas still have to correct some of the less human-savvy angels at times who let a “they” or “them” slip here and there because it’s a very foreign and bizarre concept to most of them and there’s no Enochian equivalent for gendered pronouns so they literally have to say the human words (which come out in a wide range of languages).

They/he/she Balthazar. They will variously refer to themself as a man or woman in a playful manner because they find the whole idea of gender hilarious. They might unironically say something like “Looks like I’m the man for this—and a woman such as myself should know.” They don’t actually see themself as a man or woman though, and won’t do this in situations that aren’t sufficiently lighthearted or casual.

They/them Uriel full stop. I think that when Dean called them “him” in 4x07 their trueform whirled around and stared at him like he was fucking insane. They kept their vessel staring out the window of course but their trueform bristled. Later to Cas they were like “what in the name of heaven did that thing call me” and Cas was like “it was a pronoun typically associated with their ‘male’ gender” and Uriel was like 🥴

They/he Cas. The Winchesters and Bobby are the only ones who call them “he” and Cas just kind of allows it. If anyone outright calls them a man though then they have Janet Goodplace energy and will readily correct the error.

She/they Hannah. Critically she only adopts gendered pronouns AFTER letting her old vessel go, as a tribute to her. But yeah she is specifically in her hot guy vessel when going by she/her. Still fine with they/them too though. 

They/them Naomi. Naomi exists very far beyond human gender, to the point where I think that even in all their millenniums of existence they genuinely don’t understand what a gender is, and at this point they’re afraid to ask. If they ever did ask it would be to Cas during one of their clandestine sessions that Cas won’t remember. Cas explains it as well as possible but Naomi still didn’t get it so they just move on.

They/he Zachariah. They didn’t go deliberately out of their way to start using he/him for some meaningful purpose, though—it’s just that they found it really funny when the Winchesters called them a “he” so they were just like. Sure I’ll integrate that into my belief system. They go around telling their siblings “by the way, you can also call me ‘he’ now” and then laughs like it’s a hysterical joke.

They/them Raphael. Like Naomi, they are so far beyond human gender it’s not even funny. Unlike Naomi, they do understand it—kind of—but it’s just a remarkably puny concept to them that it isn’t even a blip on their radar when someone uses one gendered pronoun or the other. I mean they will genuinely not notice if someone genders them because it all sounds the same to their ears. And if someone actually did ask them for their preferred pronouns they would just be like. Hi?

Any pronouns Michael. They were initially as far beyond gender as Raphael if not further until they got stuck with Adam in the cage, and Adam bothered them about it for enough years that they finally snapped and just said to call them whatever he wanted because they literally did not care anymore. For the rest of their time in the cage Adam cycled through every set of pronouns he could think of out of pure boredom and Michael wasn’t bothered by any of them. Still a very puny concept to them though.

He/she Gabriel. Gabriel goes by different pronouns depending on how he feels at any given moment, swinging mostly between he/him and she/her or a mix. She allows the other archangels some leeway when it comes to addressing him, though, since she’s sure the concept would go right over their heads if he tried explaining it.

He/him Lucifer. But in an unmistakably cisgender way.

[angeltrapz]

oosdkk dude im sorry ur mood dropped too.. i hope u feel better soon <3 but like i wld love 2 hear more abt ur thoughts on Art in general bc Boy Is He Interesting, and also a lil more abt Daniel coming out as nonbinary to his dad (whether he knows Eric is trans or not at that moment skjdfhdskf)! + if ur feelin it just more abt Mallick in general ESP cuz we agree that Brit doesn't make it thru V

djhfjdks thank u sm <3

okay Art first. I genuinely wonder abt him so much, something in specific I think abt is that aside frm Amanda (+ Eric, obviously, but talkin abt disciples) Art is one of the only trap victims EVER 2 be tested twice and it’s like... what’s that abt? Why? as u’ve said b4 it rly depends on how you personally view his character: whether he’s a disciple or not. fr me, both options are equally plausible, n honestly I don’t rly confine myself to either; it sorta depends on what I’m feeling/writing. if we’re talking abt art being a disciple, then the Spinecutter not going off (one of my BIGGEST questions) makes total sense, as Hoffman’s side of the trap was never set up to work either, + Jigsaw disciples have a history (aside from Lawrence) of appearing as victims in other tests/traps. if he were not just another pawn and was in fact a disciple himself, then the Spinecutter was never meant to go off - it was there just to make Eric think it COULD go off/make it look convincing to outsiders. which brings me to ANOTHER question: what does Art know abt Eric? does he know anything? what does he think of Eric?

(lil side note: if Art is a disciple, then I kinda wonder if it’s a lil bit of a Hoffman + Lawrence situation where Hoffman didn’t know abt Art either? just bc he looks so shocked when he sees Art’s face fully fr the first time... that could’ve just been acting on Hoffman’s part but IDK. food fr thought)

personally, I feel like Art probably does know a lil bit abt Eric - at the very least, he’d know tht Eric had been previously tested + failed by John’s rules, but then I feel that he wld also know Eric didn’t rly have a chance in his second test. that is why Art trying so fucking hard to keep Eric alive is interesting 2 me: what is his motivation 2 do that? like he’s been told Eric’s basically just there to get Rigg to participate, he doesn’t have any personal obligation or anything like that. sure, the aim is to keep Eric alive + see if Rigg can pass his “test,” but nobody said anything about grabbing a man you barely know around his ankles to keep him frm hanging himself w a noose made of chains. nobody said anything abt speaking to him so softly, not even raising your voice beyond saying “hey,” and asking him do you understand? when you tell him to keep still and prevent him frm killing his counterpart (which, if Art is a disciple, he knows it won’t, but he still speaks to Eric so softly, so compassionately, doesn’t he?)

nobody said anything abt grabbing him around the waist and steadying him again after being punched by said man. but Art does that. he stabilizes Eric’s feet on the ice as best he can and he keeps his hips straight and he basically says “look, we’re all stuck here, you need to keep it together ‘til that clock counts down if you want us to live, but I’m giving you a choice,” and he presses the gun w the single bullet into Eric’s hands and tells him it’s up to him. nobody said Art had to care but he does, I think, and it’s just like. he really didn’t have to keep Eric alive over the course of Rigg’s test. he didn’t. but he did and I just,, where does it come from? why does he care? this is even going beyond the fact that we’ve talked abt them being together after their test in a scenario where they both survive - I just think that Art at his core is a very stubborn but very compassionate person, whether he wants 2 be or not. like he HAS to know that kind of involvement cld prove to be extremely detrimental but he cares. I feel like that says a lot abt him (even if he does call Eric an asshole a couple times while doing it,,).

plus I also just. I think his reason for being tested (as it seems to be in most cases) is extremely flimsy. he was doing his job. he’s a LAWYER. often times it has nothing 2 do w personal feelings; they’re there to do their job and sometimes, unfortunately, that is defending possibly reprehensible people (in cases like Rex’s & Ivan’s). + John was already upset w him regarding their argument abt the urban renewal group so like it just feels So Very Petty, y’know?? even in the scenario where he IS a disciple, testing him twice seems entirely like John having a personal vendetta against him. Amanda is the only other person to be tested twice aside from Eric, so like. what. is that abt Mr. Kramer.

like I’ve said b4 in dms one could argue that Art is grey morally, bc we never rly see anything of him outside of flashbacks + acting as a test controller in IV, esp given that he... rly doesn’t seem too bothered abt it all? which is fair. but I also feel like the concern he shows towards Eric is smth to be considered as well.

-

+ YESS NONBINARY DANIEL I know I’ve mentioned it b4 but for reference, I read Daniel as masc nonbinary (he/they)! so I feel like Daniel wld b pretty comfortable w his identity, he’s never rly had a reason not to be (it’s rly anyone’s guess here tho bc we never see Eric + Daniel + Kate... as a family unit, for obvious reasons), so I feel like he’s vry chill abt it? and in the scenario where Eric survives n is dating Adam, I feel like Daniel wld talk 2 him abt it first (Adam is an adult they quickly come to trust + he’s vocal abt being trans himself so there’s that added layer of understanding - other than his mom maybe Adam might b the first person they come out 2). they’re just kinda like “so I wanna tell my dad I’m nonbinary but like I’ve literally never thought abt coming out what do I do” and Adam’s just like. Aha. bc he knows Eric is Also Trans so like, he doesn’t tell Daniel that bc it’s not his info to share, but he’s definitely like “oh it’ll totally be fine. trust me you have no reason to worry” so Daniel’s just like Okay. I Got This

+ I know I mentioned this in dms but Daniel wld absolutely wear those floral ripped hem skirts over jeans, so I feel like on one of his visits to his dad’s, he just. wears that combined w a completely random niche graphic tee he bought when shopping w Adam (I adore this hc n I am Holding Onto It) n is just like. not super open abt it bc he doesn’t know what to expect? he just kinda waits fr Eric to comment on it but when he doesn’t, Daniel gets nervous n is like “do I look okay?” and Eric’s rly chill abt it, like “yeah! it looks vry cool, vry alternative.” n like Daniel is relieved, of course, but also he’s just like God Pls Say Something so he just comes out w it like “okay this is not working. I’m nonbinary.”

and he’s COMPLETELY SHOCKED when Eric is just like “oh why didn’t u say so? do u have a different name u wanna go by? is Daniel still okay?” bc he wasn’t sure how much Eric knew, so he’s just like “uh no Daniel is still good, he/they pronouns though” and Eric’s just like alright cool but internally Daniel’s just like ??????

n THAT is when Eric asks him 2 come sit out on th front steps w him n is just like. “I don’t think I ever told u this but I’m trans. I transitioned during training in my early 20s” n Daniel is nodding while internally he’s like Adam I’m gonna throttle u. he worked himself up fr NOTHING. he just kinda laughs abt it and Eric is like “are u good?” ‘cause he’s a lil worried but then Daniel just smiles and is like “yeah I’m fine! just realizing I had nothing 2 be worried abt” and it’s a rly good moment fr them. they sit out there together talking abt their experiences for quite a while n at some point Adam steps outside 2 find them deep in conversation + he just smiles n goes back inside bc he cares abt them both so much and seeing them talk like that makes him so 💞💞 (Eric is SO PROUD u can see it on his face)

-

ohhh gosh Mallick,,, I spend a lot of time thinking abt him actually. he’s just one of those characters I feel vry connected to (me 🤝 Mallick: Ambiguous Disorder 💕) n one I got surprisingly attached to? hello (he IS one of my f/os)

I feel like Mallick is a very lonely person at his core. the way he sort of clings to Brit (w out the whole like. adrenaline of being in very very real danger w ppl trying to kill u SEVERAL TIMES) somewhat confirms this fr me. this is someone who has no reason to look out fr him, no reason to keep protecting him when their fellow captives hit him over th head w a club or attempt to push him into a bathtub to ELECTROCUTE him, but she keeps doing it and he’s just. in awe of it a little bit? ‘cause she could just let Charles knock him tf out or let Luba push him in but she fights for him, some1 she has no obligation to n met fr the first time literally when they woke up.

the moment they share b4 they stick their arms into the saws to activate the 10 Pints of Sacrifice is so very vulnerable and maybe even a little tender. yes he calls her a monster, yes she calls him one back, neither of them deny it. it’s an admission and an acceptance. they’re monsters, sure, fine, okay. but they are monsters and they are in this together. Brit tells Mallick it’s okay when he says he can’t do this alone. she says okay, okay, it’s okay, we’ll go together. and they help each other secure their tourniquets and they stick their hands in together bc it’s the two of them, literally hand in hand, fighting for their lives n for each other n they’re in so so much pain but they are doing it TOGETHER. I lose it thinking abt it!!! they even have a head bonk moment!!! I very much feel like it has some cinematic parallels to Adam & Lawrence’s moment in SAW 2004!!!!

+ as u mentioned, we both share the thought that Brit likely died since she wasn’t present at Bobby’s meetings, and. I want to touch on how fucking despondent and lost Mallick looks when we see him again in 3D. lights on but no one’s home. I feel like for Mallick, losing Brit was losing the first chance at a real connection he’s had in god knows how long - and for him, that’s just very shattering. he’s been thru hell, he’s watched three people die right in front of him, he sawed his ARM IN HALF, n the person he went through all of that with didn’t make it. but he did. and I feel like for Mallick that’s just like... he doesn’t understand it. but he feels even lonelier than he ever has b4 because the One Person who was there w him thru it all, the one person who could ever possibly understand what happened that night, is gone.

the Mallick we see in V would NEVER sit down n willingly listen to Bobby Dagen’s bullshit abt loving yr scars n taking pride in the fact u survived. he wld hate that man with a passion n I am very much sure of this. the fact that he’s sitting in that chair looking numb and glassy-eyed and silent? Mallick is trying to find some1 to connect to, find a place where maybe he belongs. trying to fill that hole that losing Brit made. why else wld he be sitting there, listening to someone he would ordinarily tell to shove his self-love bullshit up his ass? he’s lost. he’s just trying to keep his head above water and find a way to shore even though everything in him is fighting not to. he’s adrift without her.

+ ALTERNATIVELY, bc the reality of that is just. crushing n maybe not where I needed 2 go, in the scenario where Brit survived + just doesn’t want to put up w Bobby’s bullshit, I imagine them to actually move in together after a lil bit of time getting 2 know each other better w out the pressure of “oh god we’re gonna die.” she kinda helps him build up a sense of self-worth bc GOD it’s practically non-existent n thinking abt possible reasons why makes me sad. she’s definitely just like “no, you do deserve to be cared for and you deserve help when you need it, you deserve good things n to be happy.” she just kinds shuts it down while still making sure to talk 2 him abt WHY he feels that way (she’s not dismissing, but she’s trying to nip it in th bud) n Mallick is just like. huh. bc no one’s really done that fr him before. but it rly does end up helping in the long run, even if it is a very slow pace toward actually getting 2 a place where he recognizes his own worth + realizes he deserves all the things he wants Brit 2 have too. they’re there for each other thru thick n thin and if they made it thru their game, they can make it thru anything.

[baodurs]

i want someone besides me and the 2 friends who know all the lore to meet my detective, but i’m too impatient to let you get to know her via fic so i filled out this questionnaire instead. she is veronica and she is so important, here is some stuff about her if you are interested :’)

QUICK READ OF YOUR DETECTIVE

Name: veronica langford

Pronouns: she/her

Sexuality: bi

Love interest: adam

Best friend: morgan

Main skill: science/technology

Secondary skill: combat/physical

Main personality trait: impulsive

Secondary personality trait: sarcastic

Why did they join the Wayhaven PD?: best use of her science skills

Relationship with Rebecca: not great

Relationship with Bobby: ex, finds it hard to be around him

Verda or Tina?: both! but she’s on verda’s branch

Murphy bite?: wrist

Murphy's fate?: captured

Rescue LI or Rescue Sanja?: sanja

GENERAL

Name: veronica “it’s been 3 years and i never gave her a middle name” langford

Nickname: just veronica. people around wayhaven called her ronny growing up, and a few still do despite her trying to grow out of it. maybe a few people from college and sometimes tina call her v or vee or something.

Birthday: please you all know i am so scared of concrete dates

Age: 26

Pronouns: she/her

Sexuality: bi

Hair color: brown

Eye color: dark brown

Height: 5′10 (178 cm)

Piercings: just one in each ear

Tattoos: something retro sci-fi on her shoulder. not a reference to anything specific, but like a little planetary landscape with a UFO in the background or something.

Clothing Style: casual. lots of tank tops and muscle tees (weather- and occasion-permitting), concert t-shirts, warm colors. flannels and leather jackets. jeans, sneakers, combat boots. think like rocker chick vibes, but cozier and more colorful.

Apartment Style: basic. she really did not plan on living there long and kept putting off decorating because it’d be a waste if she was just going to move out. this rationalization went on so long but since the end of book 1 she has slowly bought a few things to push it towards “cozy,” still pretty sparse though.

STATS

Personality:

Charming | Intimidating

Impulsive | Cautious

Sarcastic | Genuine

Friendly | Stoic

Easygoing | Stubborn

Traits:

Heart | Mind

Optimist | Pessimist

Team Player | Independent

Skills:

Main Skill: science/technology (but mostly science)

Second Skill: combat/physical

By the Book | Bend the Rules

KEY DECISIONS

Reason for joining the Wayhaven PD: best use of her science skills

Murphy bite:  Wrist | Neck | None

Murphy’s Fate: Captured | Escaped

Rescued: Love Interest | Sanja

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP

Love Interest: adam

Why them?: for veronica it’s kind of retroactive. the way i imagine their True Canon, they don’t have any real romantic moments in book 1, so she doesn’t seriously consider that adam might have feelings for her until well into book 2. (the training scene is when she’s like “oh. ok. i get it now.”) even then it takes a few more chapters for her to really process that, figure out how she feels, and recontextualize everything. like realizing that he loves her and then thinking back on their relationship, knowing that, makes her feel so held (sorry i have no better way to say it) in a way that just makes her want to cry.

to give some actual specific reasons, it’s his dedication and his constancy and hidden care/softness. and his very specific brand of... selflessness might be just left of the word i’m looking for, but hopefully you get me.

Bold, shy, or mixed?: neither! in theory it’s closer to bold, but it’s more just earnest.

What were their first impressions of each other?: disastrous. on top of finding him condescending and unpleasant, there are also a few moments where veronica genuinely wonders whether he’s even a good person. or, like, cares about people. but once she learns the truth of things, a lot of her initial anger gets transferred to rebecca.

adam, with the benefit of knowing what’s actually happening, has a slightly more favorable impression of veronica. yes he thinks she’s difficult and reckless and too emotionally driven, yes she’s making his job absolutely miserable, but he does begrudgingly respect that her accusations are always on the right track and she’s good at her job.

What do they find attractive about each other, mentally or physically?:

for veronica: she loooves his sense of humor. and how much faith he has in the people he cares about. physically, dimples <3. but everything about his smile really. and his nose!

for adam: veronica has a very blunt, unadorned sense of kindness to her that he really loves. the way she is kind before she is nice and values directness. physically, her eyes, they’re deep brown and so expressive.

What do they do to spend time together?: they’re both competitive so anything where they can compete on the same team is fun. (competing against each other is fun too, but also like. exhausting. for them and everyone.) maybe puzzles or other things where it feels like they’re “winning” or solving something together. i have spent an embarrassing amount of thought on veronica and overw*tch esp*rts and she would absolutely make adam learn how to play main tank so they could queue as a tank duo. but most of the time i think they don’t Do specific things together; they just hang out. just talk with each other. perhaps snuggle.

What is their favorite memory together?: in current canon... lol. veronica really just treasures any time adam relaxes around her but those moments always get Ruined. even once they’re well into a relationship, i think veronica’s favorite memory would still be something small like a random time he said something funny and they both laughed together and they were outside and the sky was pretty.

What are their love languages?: acts of service for both of them, but especially adam. veronica... probably lots of words of affirmation and physical touch. they’re both bad at blocking out time for themselves in the first place, so quality time can get neglected especially at first.

How do they handle being apart from one another?: pretty well i think! once they’re in an established relationship at least, before that it’s probably harder. but adam can distract himself with work, and veronica is good at focusing on whatever’s in front of her (whether that’s work or she’s away on vacation or something). if neither of them is too busy, veronica calls every night and they stay on a while, half talking and half just keeping each other company.

Do they argue? How do they handle arguments and disagreements? How do they make up?: i think arguments are fairly rare! yes they’re both insanely stubborn, but they also understand each other pretty well (especially once in a relationship) and are very sympathetic to where the other is coming from. unless both of them are extremely stressed, one of them crumbles when they start genuinely arguing like "i don't want to fight ok, let's take a second."

What does their future look like?: who knows! i haven’t decided whether veronica will turn. i think she probably will, just because i do not want my main pairing for this IF to make me very sad all the time, but like. i’m not fully committing until i see a reason pop up in canon. as of book 3′s final demo, it’s not on her radar at all; she knows she loves adam and wishes they could Talk, but ultimately doesn’t expect or even want a relationship right now (because she doesn’t want to deal with dating one of rebecca’s agents OR with the logistics of being in a committed relationship with an immortal being). it’s just all so foreign to her current state of mind that it’s really hard to say!

Anything else you'd like to share: do you know how hard it was to answer some of these considering veronica wasn’t sure they were even, like, on decent terms for such a large portion of the canon content

BEST FRIEND RELATIONSHIP

Best friend: morgan and farah are essentially joint besties but i’ll go with M

Why them?: i think they appreciate each other’s no bullshit attitude. morgan likes that veronica doesn’t take herself too seriously and respects/relates to the way she tackles problems (quickly, head-on, and without complaint but also without pretending that it doesn’t suck?). veronica appreciates morgan’s bluntness, likes bantering with her, and in general just likes being around people that have quiet/steady presences.

What were their first impressions of each other?: neither of them had much of a first impression honestly. morgan barely thought of veronica at all beyond “she’s annoying,” and kept to herself so much that any dislike veronica had of morgan took a backseat to her dealing with the rest of unit bravo.

What do they do to spend time together?: lots of just sitting in the same room and listening to (low volume) music, veronica spends a lot of time hunting for songs morgan might like. morgan is also her go-to sparring/training buddy. and there are semi-frequent movie nights where veronica shows farah her favorite old shitty B movies, and sometimes morgan will tag along just to sit in the room with them or affectionately talk shit.

Anything else you'd like to share: i’ll talk a little about N! obviously veronica and nate respect, trust, and like each other, but she finds him the hardest of UB to connect with. they’re both people who wear their compassion on their sleeves but keep a lot of their hearts/themselves held back, so they just kind of circle each other, especially since like... nate values politeness and is very sweet in how he relates to people, while veronica values directness and is more jokey/lighthearted to put people at ease. idk how well i’m communicating this; as of the book 3 demo it’s getting easier, but their friendship is still newer/more... nebulous? than the others.

OTHER RELATIONSHIPS (Feel free to go in depth!)

Relationship with Rebecca: so strained. veronica has come to terms with rebecca’s absences throughout her childhood, but there’s newer resentment over... a lot of things, but how she handled the murphy case especially. veronica hates being kept in the dark, and even more than that she hates being rebecca’s priority. it’s difficult to reconcile her childhood and present images of rebecca, and she’s angry that rebecca is so freely and recklessly choosing her, now, to the point of endangering others if she has to, especially when she never felt like rebecca’s choice before. and incredibly frustrated/confused by how often the lines between their professional and familial relationships are blurred and what rebecca actually wants from her.

Relationship with Rook: veronica takes after rook a lot. in stat terms, the only trait they don’t share is stoic, and even then that’s veronica’s least extreme stat. people always told her how like her father she was growing up, and it’s a comparison she took/takes a lot of pride in! she looks up to him based on the stories, but more recently is uncomfortable with the comparisons. veronica would never have even come back to wayhaven if her life panned out as planned, let alone become a detective or joined the agency. that makes her doubt herself, and she feels like that doubt is letting rook down somehow.

rook is also part of the reason her relationship with rebecca isn’t as bad as it could be. she knows that rook loved her, and that he would want his family to be there for each other, so she feels obligated to at least try to make things better. but it’s really hard for her to move past everything to connect with rebecca (which also makes her feel like she’s disappointing rook).

Relationship with Bobby: they were together for a long time and veronica thought she loved him a lot! it was her first relationship, so she wasn’t sure a) what a “bad partner” looked like, or b) how to even be in a relationship or rely on someone in that way. so they spent a lot of time together and had great superficial chemistry, but veronica didn’t have enough experience with not feeling neglected to realize how shallow it was, or notice the red flags when she did occasionally open up. the plagiarism fiasco was a slap in the face, especially because it cost her internships/grad school apps/whatever, i don’t have the details, and forced her to move back to wayhaven after school. she’s still very hurt by it and finds it hard to be around bobby.

Relationship with Verda: due to the above plagiarism fiasco, veronica was pretty depressed when she moved back home, and disliking her job didn’t help. she was extremely jealous when verda was hired and wanted to hate him. but it did not take long for that to crumble into respect/admiration, and eventually into close friendship! verda is a role model for her; they bond over science; they joke easily and have good chill fun. she was really excited to see him piecing together the truth about the supernatural and then devastated to see how he reacted. she feels insanely guilty and thinks it was selfish of her to let him figure it out, but is also cautiously optimistic about making it up to him as of the book 3 demo.

Relationship with Tina: very close! veronica isolated herself when she came back to wayhaven after school, and she is so grateful to tina for being her closest friend and link to the rest of the world during that time. hates keeping the supernatural from her, though. she didn’t like lying to tina to begin with, but she feels even worse about it now that verda knows, and now that tina has clearly picked up on something being wrong but she still can’t say anything.

Relationship with the Mayor: cannot stand him. hates the way he talks about rook, hates the way he talks to rebecca. she cooperates as necessary but doesn’t bother hiding her lack of patience/respect for him.

Relationship with Capt. Sung: basically fine. i think veronica might be a little too casual for him in the way she works, but she always gets the job done so he’s not too bothered by it. (she is ‘bend the rules,’ but more ‘strict rules aren’t important as long as you’re still doing good work’ than the ‘boooo fuck paperwork’ variety. so it’s mostly fine.) she also appreciates him as a minor link to rook.

Relationship with Haley: very friendly, but not super close. they get along great and could make pleasant conversation for hours, but ultimately don’t know each other super well despite the familiarity of growing up together.

Relationship with Elidor: such a comforting presence for veronica during her recovery! she is so grateful, so fond.

Relationship with Tapeesa/Vieno: veronica loves vieno’s cranky-yet-friendly vibe and they get along well! not close, but will stop to chat whenever they pass each other.

Relationship with Unit Alpha: loves their energy. always looks forward to the next opportunity to chat with them, and fully supports any harmless dunking on UB even if she rarely joins in.

Relationship with the Maa-alused: going through the house of mirrors and then coming home for them to appear in her apartment and infect bobby was one of thee worst experiences of her life, and it’s hard for her to get past that + the illness in general. sympathizes with them, and got them to sign the treaty, but is still kind of unsettled by everything that happened and by falk.

Do they have any other important relationships, past or present? (Relatives, friends, etc.?): some vague figures i have in mind but no one i’ve really developed. a couple friends from college, and maybe an elderly couple that lives on her childhood street and used to check in her.

PERSONAL BIO

Describe their personality: her usual demeanor is very warm and casual. sincere but private--she’s pretty blunt and likes to be direct with people, but steers conversations away from personal topics. likes to joke around and doesn’t take herself that seriously. but behind all this, she’s extremely stubborn and won’t shy away from conflict if she thinks you’re in the wrong (which is why she seems like a different person in the first half of book 1. UB is surprised by how like... chill and nice she is once they clear the air). a workaholic, self-reliant and secure but still pretty hard on herself, takes a lot of responsibility for the people around her.

Strengths: so dedicated. honest and trustworthy, has a strong moral compass and can always be counted on to do her absolute best. flexible and intuitive, her brain works really fast.

Weaknesses: cannot compartmentalize or separate herself from a case, throws herself so recklessly into everything (in terms of both physical danger and emotional burnout). doesn’t necessarily hold grudges but has a hard time letting go of hurt, still can’t think objectively about bobby or rebecca.

Where in the world is their Wayhaven?: somewhere on the US east coast idk what to tell you. perhaps a carolina or a virginia.

What is their personal history?: veronica was pretty social and well-liked around wayhaven growing up. she was known as just a really good kid; she was an overachiever and got along with almost anyone. in college, she felt like she was free of something and took a very work hard/play hard approach to life. always doing or going, whether it was for school or work or fun. she really enjoyed life during this time but crashed and burned pretty hard when she and bobby broke up; a lot of her plans were delayed until the plagiarism incident was resolved and she didn’t really have the heart to pursue them afterwards.

a year or so after graduating, she returned to wayhaven with the intention of taking one more year to regroup, and she has been stuck there longer than she meant to be and has kind of hit a wall when book 1 starts.

If they weren't a detective, what would their dream job be?: she was on track to become a biochemist and it was her dream job but then the main plot happened to her.

Anything else you'd like to share: i don’t really know enough to fully explain this, but no OC i love is a cop so like. i think maybe the job she took when she got back to wayhaven was a douglas-esque receptionist role for detective reele’s private office. then reele retired and small town politics + veronica’s history of useful contributions to cases in her downtime at work led to her being pressured to take up the mantle. it’s hard to explain why she’s a detective when she so deeply does not want to be one but i am Trying (or maybe she would have jumped at the chance to do something marginally closer to forensics?? who knows)

RANDOM FACTS

Zodiac sign: aries is what i assigned her when i first made her and i think it suits her! plus it’d be fun for her and M to be twins. this goes hand-in-hand with my birthday commitment issues though

Hobbies: music (she plays guitar and bass and sings a little), running, gaming unfortunately. i could also see her having been into boxing or some martial art but idk what exactly!

Likes: early morning stillness, DIY projects, t-shirts with inexplicable slogans and other weird thrift store finds

Dislikes: overly sweet food or drink, when cold weather lasts too long, being lied to or “protected” from the truth

Drink of choice: something with gin maybe. also feels a great fondness and gratitude for cheap wine.

Starbucks order: i truly know nothing about coffee. is it weird to order black coffee at starbucks

Favorite food: variations on spicy chicken soup! she eats a lot of crockpot meals for convenience and they’ve grown on her, and she has a few different recipes based on whatever she has on hand.

Favorite color: maybe like a rusty orange

Favorite music: she will listen to anything, but her favorite is probably folk rock, or sometimes stuff with soul or old school country vibes. big thief is a good example of an artist she’d be into i think! also was very into the indie music scene in her college town and still follows some of those bands.

Favorite genre (and favorite movie/book/etc): loves old, campy, unselfconsciously optimistic sci-fi. loves star trek tos. also a fan of documentaries of all kinds.

Favorite season: summer

Anything else you'd like to share: a kiss for you reading this mwah

[gwaciechang]

Love Run (9/15)

“And as the world comes to an end I’ll be here to hold your hand ‘Cause you’re my king and I’m your lionheart.”

This chapter is written entirely from Bobby’s POV and will contain no fluff whatsoever. Spoilers for the episode “Run Rabbit Run” of Stan Lee’s Lucky Man are all over this part. I’ve also tried my best to be inclusive by avoiding Robin’s name, and by using gender neutral pronouns whenever possible, which might not be the pronouns you use. I’ve also changed Chloe’s name to Maisie because “Chloe Choi” looks super weird to me when it’s written out. There is also a near-relapse for Bobby, as well as references to a stabbing murder, implications of prostitution, mention of human trafficking, and implications of dismemberment.

@wackiekebab @sunflowergrlpwr @danilanidingdong @scratching-wingless-thing @farewellfelidae @whatevermonkey @the-winter-witcher  

Bobby jerked up at the sound of the gunshot, heart almost ready to pound out of his chest. He strained his ears, but he couldn’t hear anyone over the screaming of other people who also heard the gunshot. It took one count of six off the bed, two counts of six to the door, three counts of six down the stairs, and four counts of six to the tire tracks and glitter on the ground. It took nine counts of ten before he could kneel down and pick up the pieces of Robin’s phone.

One, two, three, four-wait. He looked at the pieces in his hand. Except for the glass screen, they were all whole. Phones don’t shatter like that, he thought, breaking into their individual components. Someone specifically designed this phone to break in a way that, if he could put all the pieces back together, would be returned to perfect working order. He spent nearly three hundred counts looking for the pieces before going back inside.

The world fell away, silent, as he worked. By the time the sun came up, he realized he didn’t have the SD card. But he couldn’t possibly have missed it, he’d practically combed the ground. Just as he was about to go back outside and look for it again, the phone rang.

Without the memory card of stored contacts, the screen just showed the number, so he had no idea who he was answering. “Hello?”

“Robert Hayes, where the fuck is my youngest sibling?”

His throat closed up at the idea of talking to a lady he’d never met. But Maisie had agreed to store hard drugs, to lend her car to take him to a methadone clinic, and most importantly, had previously gone to extraordinary lengths to find the person he was looking for, too. “Someone with a gun took them. I didn’t see who, I just heard the gunshot, and there are tire tracks next to where I found the pieces of their phone. I didn’t find any blood,” He could feel bruises forming on his arms from how hard he was tapping.

Someone typed frantically on the other side of the line. “Turn your computer on.”

“W-what?” he had been expecting her to scream abuse at him, to which he would respond with endless apologies.

Maisie hissed something under her breath before saying, “You put the phone together, so you’re clearly very good at technology. You looked for blood on the ground, so you care about Robin’s wellbeing. Now, go to your lab or office or whatever, and turn your computer on. I’ve just emailed you a map of the area with convenience stores and banks highlighted, since they’re the most likely to have working security cameras. I already logged the kidnapping with the MET and I’m in the process of registering myself as lead investigator, so I need you to make a detective inspector’s ID for me. You can pull any picture of me within the year.”

“How did you-”

“I’ll be there in twenty minutes, have the footage loaded and ready.”

Having clear instructions helped immensely. He knew how to hack into cameras, he knew how to analyze security camera footage, and he knew how to make fake identification cards. He would be able to help Maisie find Robin, because the alternative was unacceptable. 99% of kidnappings ended in death within 24 hours, and the clock was ticking.

The camera from the front gate ran out of battery in the middle of his download.

The footage from the bank was useless, due to a large food truck passing in front of the camera.

The footage from the first convenience store was useless because of the same food truck. The camera from second convenience store was knocked into a different angle before he could see anything useful. When he got to the footage from the third store and discovered some sort of interference distorting it, he stood up to go to Maisie’s car for his emergency stash.

“Robert, I’m coming in,” Maisie called as she unlocked the door. Bobby felt angry for a second before relief flooded his system. She’d probably saved his life, and Robin’s, by extension.

Bobby checked the time. “You’re late,” he said. “You said twenty minutes, that was more than forty minutes ago. Do you not care?”

“I had to see a friend,” she said cryptically. “You have the footage?”

“Yes, and I’ve isolated the time frame we need, but they’re all obscured.” He’s tapping and counting, everything smelled like blood, any second Pearl was going to ask what was wrong with him, and once she knew she wouldn’t allow him to help her look for Robin, and he couldn’t-

“What do you mean, obscured?” Maisie motioned for him to sit down next to her without making a single move to touch him.

“There’s always something blocking it, or moving the camera. Here, some bird knocked into the camera. Here, there’s interference from a different device. Here, here, and here, there’s a food truck!” his voice echoed off the wall. Oh god, he’d been shouting.

“Show me the last one with the delivery truck,” Maisie spoke like he hadn’t said anything. “Aaaaaand pause, look,” she pointed to the reflection of the cars on the other side of the food truck from the store across the street. “Screenshot all those license plates.”

Bobby just stared at her for a few seconds. Was this what it felt like to have a reasonable voice in one’s head, instead of a voice that screamed out for heroin?

“Now, please,” she didn’t raise her voice, but it echoed through his head all the same, and he could only obey. It only took a few seconds, which he felt a little bit proud of. “Do you have a way of finding out who drives each of those vehicles from here?” she asked once he was done.

“I can find out from here,” he was already running the program when he spoke.

“I need to make a call. And don’t bother trying to take your heroin while I’m gone, I already went into my car and put it where you’ll never find it. Well, probably,” Maisie took out her phone and pressed a single key. “Laurie? It’s Maisie Choi. I need you to listen carefully.”

The rest of the conversation was too muffled to hear, but Bobby didn’t care, because he had a list of several names. He pulled out his phone and dialed the nice detective.

“Is everything alright, son?”

“Robin’s been kidnapped. There was a gunshot, but I don’t think it hit them. I’ve got their sister here, and we’re looking together. I’ve used the license plate to match owners with cars that drove near the apartment complex.” He left out the bit about the detective’s badge, he didn’t think Harry would approve of it as much.

“Who’s on your list?”

“Um, Alice North, Daniel Simon, Pierre Aladin, Connor Anderson-”

“Go back, what was that last one? Before Connor?”

“Pierre Aladin.”

“Send me that list, and don’t do anything until I get there.”

“Toss that idea right in the trash, Det. Clayton,” Maisie suddenly took the phone from Bobby. “We don’t have time to wait for you to meet with Elsa and then come here. We’ll go to you.”

“Who are you?” Harry demanded.

“I’m looking for a bracelet to match my hairpin,” Maisie said before twisting her necklace.

Bobby’s call cut out.

“Laurie hasn’t heard from Pierre for a few hours, ever since somebody broke into their apartment this morning. Interesting, huh?” Maisie smiled knowingly.

“You have a signal jammer in your necklace.” Bobby’s eyes flicked up to the pink butterfly on her hair. “Is your hairpin another signal jammer?”

“No,” she took it off so Bobby could see the USB drive under the center pearl. “There’s a tracker on Robin’s phone, attached to-”

“To the SD card,” Bobby made to snatch the hairpin out of her hand, but she moved her wrist at the last second and stuck the drive into the computer herself, and she kept her hand on it the whole time. “Why didn’t you say you could just find them?”

“I needed to know who took Robin in order to know how to move forward, and I need a way to keep you busy, so you didn’t overdose in my car,” her voice was ice-cold.

“I wouldn’t, not when,” his throat closed up before he could finish. He almost had. “How did you know Pierre Aladin was involved?” he asked instead.

“I’ve cleaned up enough of his hits that I know what kind of car he drives,” she said absently, focusing on the shrinking dot on the screen until it pinged an exact location. “Give me a plastic bag for this,” she said, producing a bloody cleaver out of nowhere. “They’re in the cabinets under the counter, to the right of the sink. And if there’s any liquid left in the green bottle with the words you can’t read, pour it out so Robin needs to go out and get better wine. Wow, this is a very good badge,” she pocketed the fake ID he made. “Come on, chop chop,” she clapped as best she could while one hand was wrapped around a giant knife when she noticed he was staring.

He decided not to ask about the knife and just do what she said.

“Thanks,” she said, now with her hair tied back and two pink pearls dangling from her ears. “Let’s go,” she motioned with a hand holding a piece of folded paper.

Rather than walk toward where her car was parked, Maisie went to where several men had just finished loading the garbage truck and hopped in the back. She cleared a space for him and motioned for him to sit down, something he wouldn’t have done if he hadn’t essentially spent the last two days covered in various bodily fluids of his own and Robin’s.

“Why are we taking the garbage truck?” Bobby asked as he settled in.

“Because we need to pick up your friend,” Maisie responded cryptically. She didn’t say another word, preferring to twist her earrings.

“We’re wasting time!” Bobby finally exploded. He was getting itchy. “They could be doing anything to Robin!”

“They’re not,” she closed her eyes and gestured to her earrings.

Bobby stared at her until he understood. “You can hear them.”

Maisie hummed her assent and closed her eyes as a man fell somewhere behind Bobby. “We picked up your friend,” she said by way of explanation. “Please don’t interfere,” she said. “I’m trying to do you several favors.”

Bobby twisted his head to see Harry looking just as bewildered as he felt.

“And what favors are those?” Harry asked warily.

“Sheldon Blake, for one. And the stabbing at The Catalyst is also of interest to you, isn’t it?” Maisie smiled at Harry’s gobsmacked face.

“Do you know everything that happens?” he asked suspiciously.

“This is our stop,” Maisie linked Bobby’s arm with hers and hopped off the truck, steadying him when he almost fell. A flop and a groan a few seconds later let Bobby know that Harry was following them to the building that seemed abandoned, except for a single man in a blue tweed jacket and a surprising amount of makeup at the door.

“Hello,” the man waved cheerfully.

“Hello,” she purred back, nearly draping her body over his. “And who might you be?”

“Dixie,” he answered with an easy grin.

“What a beautiful name!” Maisie stepped back and showed him her badge. “Now, Dixie, would you mind taking me and my friends inside?”

Dixie swallowed. “I-I can’t-”

“You won’t get in trouble,” all the fake seduction fell away, replaced by soft concern. She whispered something in his ear before unfolding the paper she had taken from Robin’s apartment. “Go to this address right here and tell Shelley King that a friend of Laurie’s sent you. He’ll let you in. And then tell him the knife is in Callum Ballimore’s apartment.”

Dixie gave her an odd look, but didn’t leave even when Maisie gestured for him to go. “Miss, I don’t mean to insult you, but do you know what’s in there?” he asked, pointing his thumb to the building behind him.

“A human trafficking operation, right? One that took in two very willful people today as punishment for aiding investigations into Sheldon Blake.”

Harry gasped and stiffened next to Bobby, who felt like he might faint. He’d known Robin had been kidnapped for what he helped Harry with, but hearing it spelled out made him want to shower until he flayed himself.

Wait, two people?

“But here’s what he doesn’t understand: the past catching up to you refers to both your enemies coming to harm you and your friends coming to rescue you. There’s no sadness without joy, too. Now, let Shelley protect you and extend my apologies for making him do this again.”

This time, when Maisie pointed, Dixie ran.