#so I'm just getting it in under the wire in my time zone

[bethanyactually]

Nancy Drew + text posts (50/?)

happy half-birthday to @catty-words! * :・˚✧ happy late birthday, @perfectpurls! * :・˚✧ happy early birthday, @andsjuliet! * :・˚✧ happy birthday to me! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ* :・˚✧

[ladykailitha]

Batshit Soulmates Part 8

Second chapter of the day. In which I resolve the original cliffhanger and leave you with another.

In Medias Res| Prologue|Pt 1|Pt 2|Pt 3|Pt 4|Pt 5|Pt 6|Pt 7|

****

Steve was not a fan of the plan. Of any of their plans, really. But he went along with it anyway. What choice did he have? It wasn’t as though he just pick up his ball and go home. Not when they needed him.

He was forced to watch Eddie armed with a small bag of tools break into an RV. Once Eddie was in, Steve set about helping everyone else in. Erica first, Lucas, Dustin, Nancy, and finally Robin. Then hauled himself in.

Immediately he sought out Eddie.

He leaned on the seat as he watched his soulmate pull out a pair of pliers.

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to start this thing?” Steve asked, unsure.

Eddie yanked out some wires from under the steering column. "While all the other dads were teaching their kids to fish or to play ball...my old man was teaching me how to hotwire.” He stripped the wires. “Now I swore to myself I wouldn't wind up like he did, but now I'm wanted for murder and soon grand theft auto so...uh, yeah really living up to that Munson name."

Robin came up to them and gently leaned on Steve’s shoulder, careful of the road rash.

“Eddie,” she softly, but clearly concerned. “I’m not sure I like the idea of you driving.”

Eddie grinned. “Oh, I’m just getting her started. Stevie’s got her, don’cha, big boy?” He leaned forward so close that Steve was sure he was going to kiss him.

Steve’s lips pursed without meaning to, but Eddie was already pulling away.

Just then then the RV roared to life and the owners of said RV started banging on the door, screaming.

Eddie and Steve looked at them and then each other.

They swapped places, Steve immediately slamming on the gas pedal. And away they went.

****

They made a short stop at Steve’s car to get his wallet so that he could pay for all the shit they were going to need, but in no time at all, they had arrived at The War Zone.

Steve gave Erica, Robin, and Nancy a list of things to get. Max, Lucas, Eddie, and Dustin would watch the RV.

Nancy went straight to the guns, which surprised no one. She had been able to wear some of Max’s clothes, but Robin and Steve made for the combat gear first. They removed all the tags and got dressed, Steve grabbing two pairs of boots but not stopping to put either pair on. They were in a hurry and there were too many laces.

He came up behind Robin and started putting in more gas cans into her cart.

She looked up to see Vickie standing there, talking to her boyfriend and she just stopped.

Steve followed her line of vision. “I’m sorry, Robs.”

Robin closed her eyes and looked away. But Steve saw that Vickie looked over at Robin and then back at her boyfriend. They were too far away, but it looked like whatever Vickie had seen had made her hiss something at her boyfriend. He turned away just their argument got heated.

He had a world to save.

Nancy came up and touched his elbow. “We’ve got to hurry,” she hissed. “Carver’s here and he’s loading up on arsenal too.”

Steve’s body began to quake at the thought of him getting Eddie. He nodded and grabbed everyone. He paid with his father’s credit card and dashed out of the store as if Venca himself was on his heels. Or more like, as if Jason Carver was on his heels. Because he was.

Still barefoot, he hopped into the driver’s seat and told everyone to hold on. He gunned it and drove to a secluded spot where they could prepare for the final show down.

Erica threw the second pair of boots at Eddie and he put them on.

“Those tennis shoes are going to fall apart if you look at them funny,” she explained when he looked up at her in shock.

Inside the bag she had thrown at him was a tactical vest and bullet belt. He loved Steve’s feral children with all his heart. They clearly looked after their own.

Steve sat down with Robin making Molotov cocktails, having found a few bottles of alcohol in the RV.

He looked out at his ragtag army and a shudder went through him. Nancy and Max were sawing off the barrel of Nancy’s shot gun. Eddie and Dustin had finished making their nail shields and were rough housing in the field. The Sinclair siblings were making spears out of long sticks and hunting knives.

“We shouldn’t have to do this,” he whispered.

Robin looked up at him and then out at their friends. “I know.”

“I’m sorry about Vickie,” he murmured. “I guess I was wrong about her.”

Robin shook her head. “I can’t think about that right now. I have to focus on this.”

Steve nodded.

“I’m sorry about Eddie,” she muttered. “Finding your soulmate like that and not knowing if you two are going to live to make use of it...”

He let out a long sigh. “I know. But at the same time, I’m happy he’s here. He’s been so helpful. A lot of this wouldn’t have been possible without him. And I’m grateful.”

She pursed her lips and looked back out at Eddie, who was desperate to keep the kids’ spirits up.

“Yeah,” she said. “You found yourself a good one.”

****

They got to the Gate and Steve tumbled in first, doing a back flip to land deftly on his feet.

Nancy, Robin, Dustin, and Eddie who were watching from below were surprised at the move.

Robin scoffed. “What does he want us to do, clap?”

Steve winced and went in search of the mattress. When he came back into view Eddie started clapping.

Robin and Nancy glared at him.

“I’m sorry,” he said, clearly not sorry, “but what he did was cool and should be rewarded for it.”

Steve looked back up at them and gave them a thumbs up. Nancy went first, then Dustin and Robin. Eddie coming in last.

Steve helped him to his feet and they were close. Chest to chest almost. Their breathes mingled and their eyes locked on each other’s.

Dustin pushed between them and broke the moment.

Eddie was sure in that moment, Steve was going to kill the kid.

They walked outside of the trailer and Steve looked like he was about to cry.

“Don’t be heroes,” Steve begged. “If things go south, I want you to run. You two are just the–”

“Decoys,” Eddie said with a smirk. “We know. Look at us, do either of us look like heroes?”

Steve nodded and then turned and walked away.

Eddie called out, “Steve!”

Steve looked back, eyes full of hope.

“Make him pay.” He couldn’t make himself say the three words he had been wanting to say since learned the real Steve Harrington.

Steve nodded again, but Eddie could see the light leave his eyes.

Dustin hit him and hissed, “Kiss him!”

Oh.

Then Eddie was running. He spun Steve back around and pressed his lips to Steve’s.

Steve melted in his arms and Eddie knew it was the right thing to do.

They said their real goodbyes and Dustin and Eddie watched as the three of them went to go take on Vecna.

****

Between him and Dustin they were able to get the trailer shored up as best as they could against the onslaught of demobats. The trailer looked less like home and more like a fortress, but it couldn’t be helped. It needed to protect them.

Eddie walked into his bedroom, carefully skirting the vines that taken over his home. And there completely untouched by the vines was his Warlock.

“She looks like she was born to play in another dimension,” he breathed, reaching out to touch the strings.

He pulled her off the wall and swung her over his shoulder. He turned to Dustin, “You ready for the most metal concert in the world?”

Dustin’s face lit up. “Hell yeah!”

They made their way to the roof and Dustin plugged Eddie into the sound system they had rigged up.

Eddie pulled off his pick necklace and gave it a kiss. “This concert is for you, Chrissy!”

Then he laid into his guitar, starting the opening chords of “Master of Puppets”.

The bats that had been tearing toward Steve and the girls suddenly stopped and turned toward Dustin and Eddie instead.

The bats couldn’t attack while the song was playing it was messing with their echolocation.

Dustin crossed his fingers hoped that seven minutes was long enough to defeat Vecna, because that was all the time Steve and them were going to get.

The song was over and they dove back into the trailer. Then the demobats descended on them, clawing and screeching and fighting their way into the trailer. Dustin made it up the rope ladder, but Eddie could see them struggling their way into the trailer.

He yelled at Dustin to get a hold of Steve and booked it.

Steve had told him to run, he just hadn’t been clear where to run to. So Eddie ran toward Steve. Toward the person that knew him best next to his Uncle. Not because they were soulmates. But because Steve cared.

Suddenly they were fighting side by side. As equals this time, instead of Eddie saving Steve, they worked as a team.

But there were too many bats.

They were going to die.

Eddie held his shield above his head and hoped that he could protect them long enough for Nancy and Robin to kill Vecna.

There were the sounds of demobats hitting the ground, some of them hit the shield, but most of them rained down around them.

Eddie opened his eyes and looked out over the barren wasteland that was Lover’s Lake in the top world.

Littered around them were the dead bodies of hundreds and hundreds of demobats.

Eddie stood up and walked over to one to kick it with his foot.

Steve came up behind him and peered over his shoulder. “Are they dead?”

Eddie shrugged. “It appears like it.”

“What the hell happened?” Steve asked.

“Steve!” Dustin cried. “Eddie!”

The two older boys turned as one.

“It’s Max!” he cried. “She’s been hurt!”

****

I couldn't find a way to put in the story itself, but the reason Vickie was with Dan in the first place is that he lied about being her soulmate. He has a treble clef on his back near where her trumpet is on her shoulder blade. And when he comes back for college for spring break she learns that he's been cheating on her with his real soulmate. That's what they're fighting about here because she realizes who her real soulmate is.

Part 9 Epilogue

Tag List: @mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @emly03

@spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @gregre369 @swimmingbirdrunningrock

@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @chaoticlovingdreamer @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi

@messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence @i-must-potato @danili666 @carlyv

@wonderland-girl143-blog @justforthedead89 @bookworm0690 @vecnuthy @bookbinderbitch

@littlewildflowerkitten @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @scheodingers-muppet @cinnamon-mushroomabomination

@genderless-spoon @anne-bennett-cosplayer @irregular-child @oxidantdreamboat @mogami13

@samsoble @xandriumbat @ellietheasexylibrarian @lololol-1234 @y4r3luv

@disrespectedgoatman @king-zacharyy @chameleonhair @tinyplanet95

[dimonds456-but-only-hlvrai]

Can I just say I love the shipping scene in HLVRAI? Like, I've never been in a fandom where it's been this CHILL before. Each ship has appeal and could actually work (unless you're intentionally being weird about it, but I haven't really encountered those people, this is personal experience here), and it's just so-!

Frenrey is wonderful because they're both silly, if those two met under different circumstances you KNOW they'd be friends, and it can be about forgiveness and healing. I love that.

Freelatta is great because Tommy and Gordon always have each others' backs, and those two will see each other through thick and thin.

Sodashipping is delightful because Darnold and Tommy just click SO WELL, they have a lot of common interests outside of soda, and you guys who give Darnold a dog as well as so correct about that omg.

Darzen is really fun because these two have never once interacted in canon but so easily could have. Like Forzen probably had to go through that area to progress as well, what hijinx would they get into?

I don't see Gordon and Forzen being shipped just the two of them often (shoutout to hlvrv, that was unexpected but really fun), but that's another instance I could also see. They're polycule a lot of the time, which hell yeah.

Tomrey is awesome because of the pre-established friendship between Benrey and Tommy, how even down to the final wire Benrey didn't really want to hurt Tommy. Outside of shipping their relationship is just wonderful.

Darnrey is also fun in that regard. Gamer partners.

Benzon as well. This one really depends on your interpretation of canon but it's always fun when it pops up again. The history between those two has so much potential. I don't personally ship this one but it's always fun to explore.

Another I don't have the name for but Darnold and Gordon. Orang. And just the unconditional support from Darnold- wonderful.

Frenreylatta is just delightful. Like you take all the best parts of frenrey, tomrey, and freelatta and put them in a blender and you get pure wholesomeness. I fucking love this one. Absolute winner. And I also really love how usually depictions of this one don't hide the part parts, either, but it's still a generally more supportive relationship overall. Five stars.

Frenreylattarnold is also just *chef's kiss*. Darnold just brings a vibe to the group they don't otherwise have. It simultaneously makes it more chill and more chaotic.

Again I don't know the name, but add Forzen into the mix and you have a really fun, complex dynamic of people who just love each other. I'm so fucking here for it.

I know I'm missing some but AOUGH

I can't not talk about my favorite ship here, though. Boomer sweep. Boomer wins. Every time boomer pops up on my feed I get so fucking happy. Chaos grandpas who fucking love and support each other SO unconditionally. They work through their trauma together while committing crimes. The stark contrasts between them also aid wonderfully to their dynamic, like how Coomer doesn't like video games while Bubby is a speedrunner. They each have their own lives but they want to spend them together. NO I'M NORMAL DID YOU KNOW THAT I SWEAR I'M NORMAL-

Gubby's a fun one, too, and from my understanding that one's a rarepair. But yeah, putting Bubby's firey personality next to Gman's calm and collected one creates a lot of fun opportunities, and helps explore the differences between Half Life and HLVRAI Gman in more in-depth ways. It's always fun when it pops up again, I love it. (Shoutout to catloki for this one.)

I don't member the ship name but adding Coomer in there is also really fun. Chaos grandpas take over the world together <3

I haven't seen Coomer and Gman being shipped individually before but I could also see that one. Coomer would be able to simultaneously meet Gman where he's at while also encouraging him to step outside his comfort zone, and also probably being a terrible influence on him gGFDHSJAKGF.

All this to say I'm not really a shipper. These guys could be just friends and I'd be okay with that, which I guess lends itself to the RTVS crew and how well they all stepped into character. Everyone just has dynamics with each other, that come out naturally, and makes it easy for us to really see where each relationship could go.

I just fucking love this fandom.

[morgana-lefay]

Ciao (◕U◕)ﾉ You are walking around in your city, minding your own business, when suddenly Till appears. He materializes out of nowhere! After the initial surprise, what would you like to say to him? (•̀ω•́ )

Ciao, completely unknown Anon! 👀 Come stai?

Oh my...It took me a while to focus, as I was thinking about an answer (this was VERY hard), while creating a few scenarios in my head.

So let's see...First, yes, you bet I'd be surprised, because how the hell would he find this place?! 🙈 It's not in the middle of nowhere, but still, it's a small city. Anyway, this is my daydream take on how I imagine it going. I got a bit carried away, as usual.

I would be taking one of my walks along the sidewalk, by the sea, up until my favourite place, at my favourite beach that, at this time of year, is mostly deserted. I sit on the sand, distracted with my thoughts, contemplating the ocean, as I always do, while listening to my favourite music. I have Rammstein, Lindemann and Till's solo songs on shuffle. It's almost lunch time, so I start getting ready to get back home, as it's another hour walk back and I enjoy taking all in.

(photos by me)

I stand up, shaking off the sand from my pants and quickly turn around, when I completely face-bump into this huge, dressed all black body that came, literally out of nowhere, as there wasn't anyone at the beach, besides me. [it would be something like this, but not on purpose and without the squeezing]

I get jump scared, my headphones fall, hanging from my neck (yes, I still use wired heaphones) and when I realised it was a person and not a fucking imaginary wall, I automatically say, apologetically, "Ai, desculpe!" ("Oh, I'm sorry") and hear something being mumbled back, in what I believe sounded like German. Somehow, the "not a wall" person (at this point I still didn't look up), heard the music coming from my headphones and comments, little smile on his voice, "buena música" (the song was "Entre dos Tierras" 🤷🏻‍♀️). I promptly answer, while starting to look up to the actual person, slight irritation in my voice, because the person spoke in Spanish, "I think so, but I'm not Spani--", "Oh shit!", I say when I finally look up at the person's face and realise who it is.

He gives one of his shy little grins and says "I don't think that's Portuguese either", while frowning under his sunglasses, because the sun was shining directly on his lovely pale, slightly red, face.

The only thing I could manage to get out of my mouth was "What the hell are you doing here? How do you know this place?". He started to tell me about how he was chilling by the lake in his place and suddenly, he felt something pulling him and ended up here, like some kind of teleportation.

We both thought that was silly at first, but couldn't really find a better explanation...I jokingly apologised to him, saying I might have caused it, as, during all my walk, I was thinking about him and the next Tour, while listening to his voice, which always gives me a sense of comfort and makes me feel happy. He gave me a tight hug, which felt like I always imagined it would (warm and familiar) and I told him how the other day I read somewhere that "Thoughts become things", so that might be it. We both laughed, slightly nervously, pondering about what kind of Twilight Zone episode was this, but decided to embrace the madness for the time being.

He asked me my name and said it was funny the way I pronounced it, as it sounds different in German. We sat back in the sand, close to the sea and I told him I was reading "In Stillen Nächten" and that I was really enjoying it, even if at first I had my doubts about it. I shared which kind of poems were my favourites and that some I didn't really understood and others I just thought were weird. He laughed, in one of his adorable laughs. (You know, those...)

[me inside...]

[me on the outside, trying my best...]

...and remembered how the book is called in Portuguese ("Nas Noites Tranquilas"), which made me laugh and make fun of his accent, because I'm a little shit. 😏

We talked a bit more about his poetry, music, Portuguese food and Port wine, of course and he also asked me about myself, while we just sat there until the tide started rising and I completely forgot I was on my way home to have lunch.

[redactedgoose]

I cannot believe that I forgot to post this yesterday. This was the day that I was most excited for!! Since, uh, this may have spiraled away and now I'm still working on it as a multichap fic. Here is the link to Ao3 where I'll be updating it in the future, if anybody is interested.

Anyway! Phantasy Phest day 5- "The Doctors Fenton should have planned for all eventualities." @phantasycentral

---

"Alright, kids!" Madeline Fenton beams at her children, fists on her hips and chest puffed out, nearly bouncing on her toes with just how excited she is. "Remember—stay back behind the line of tape and keep your goggles on at all times! If it gets too bright even with the goggles, look away! Don't just cover your eyes."

"Yes, mom," Jazz says, looking up from her book for a second before turning back to it, posture perfect as she sits at one of their workbenches.

"Danny?" Maddie asks, turning her gaze on her youngest.

"Yeah, mom. Stay back, keep my goggles on. I got it," he says. He, at least, looks more attentive. It makes her smile grow to see him interested in her's and Jack's work.

"Great! Jack, how are we doing?" She turns on her heel to call her question to her husband, back straight and smile wide.

"A-OK!" He booms out, sending her a thumbs up from where he's checking over the wiring and electronics and everything one last time before they start their first attempt to power on their magnum opus. "I'm almost done! Just need to double check the soldering on this..."

Everything's going perfectly.

Jack comes to stand next to her where she stands next to the generator. It's job is to get the spark going for the initial power before the ectoplasmic battery kicks in to handle power generation and supply, making the portal self-sustaining. A genius move, in her opinion, and a really neat piece of engineering due to Jack's prowess.

"Alright!" She glances over to double check that her children are standing back behind the line they'd taped onto the ground. Satisfied that they are, in fact, in the safe zone and do, in fact, have their goggles on, she nods. Even if Jazz wasn't really paying attention, that wasn't too much of an issue. The main show was still to come.

"Let's get that countdown going!" Jack yells out, a wide grin on his face.

Maddie nods at her husband, the movement sharp and decisive. It's time. It's time, after all these years and all that work.

She clears her throat.

"Five."

Jack picks up the plug connected to the portal.

"Four."

Maddie hovers her hand over the generator's switch.

"Three."

She clicks it on, the rocker switch flicking over to the on position.

"Two."

The generator hums to life, rattling under her hand.

"One."

Jack plugs the power cord into the generator. A spark races through the portal and—nothing.

"...what?" Maddie's jaw is slack.

How... how could it not work? After years of research? Of—of blood, sweat, and tears, missed grants, of years of widespread ridicule from the rest of the scientific community...

Jack unplugs the portal from the generator before dropping both cords and smacking himself on the forehead so loudly the sound of his glove hitting flesh rings throughout the room.

"Whoops! Forgot to turn the darn thing on!" He laughs, jogging over to the side of the portal. "Silly me!"

Maddie takes another breath, heart beating harshly in her chest.

There, sitting proudly on the wall next to the frame, sits an on and off switch. The 'off' button is depressed. Jack clicks the on button and jogs back over to Maddie.

Please... please let it work this time...

"Let's give that another go!"

Maddie nods, clearing her throat again and starting up another countdown. Her hand shakes slightly where it rests on the warm plastic of the generator. "Five... four... three... two... one..."

Jack plugs the portal into the generator again and another spark skips through the portal. Then another spark, and then, in a bright flash, everything changes.

Green floods the portal, swirling out from the center point. It audibly roars to life, sounding like a great waterfall.

Maddie watches, enraptured, as it stretches out to the anchors in the portal's frame.

And stays.

Maddie watches the portal with wide eyes for a second, two seconds, ten seconds. Time ticks on as the portal continues to swirl in its housing, not showing any signs of degradation or mishap.

"Jack!" Maddie gasps his name out, hand coming up to clasp over her mouth. Tears spring to life in her eyes as she watches the greatest creation of her life sit there and swirl away.

"We did it!" Jack roars, scooping her up in a backbreaking hug.

Her hand comes away from her mouth in that instant and she pulls herself up him, wrapping her arms around his neck and returning the hug.

"We did it!" She echoes, almost screaming it, cheeks aching from how widely she's smiling. "We did it!" She repeats, hugging her husband back and laughing into his chest, her own light with pure joy. "The portal works!"

"Oh, Mads..."

One of their children makes a faint noise of disgust behind them as Jack presses a kiss to her lips.

"After all these years," she murmurs, still grinning like a fool. "After all these years, we did it."

"We'll have to send Vladdie a letter!" Jack grins, finally setting her down. "Maybe he'll want to get the band back together," he says, waggling his eyebrows. "His chem focus would be wonderful right now!"

She hums, moving to the camera they set up to record the portal's opening. "We should. I'm not too sure what he's up to these days..."

Even if Vlad didn't want to join their research team, there was still so much to do. The portal was open, which meant so many possibilities for experiments!

---

"So, man," Tucker starts, shoving spoonfuls of meatloaf into his mouth, "I saw the news. Your parents did something, right?"

"Yeah," Danny replies, pushing his own meatloaf around his tray. "They opened a portal to the Ghost Zone. Afterlife? Whatever they called it. Got it open a couple days before school started, on the first. I'm surprised that the news only picked it up just now, though. Must've been because the city came by to check it out after they finally finished disconnecting entirely from the power grid."

"So you have a portal to hell in your basement? That's cool. Can we check it out?" Sam asks, forking a pile of lettuce out of her packed lunch.

Danny shrugs, pushing his sad mashed potatoes around his lunch tray. None of it was really appetizing, but he knows he should eat. "Maybe. Mom and Dad have been down there a lot recently, and I'm pretty sure they wouldn't let anyone go in."

Finally, he scoops up a combined bite of meatloaf and mashed potato and shoves it into his mouth.

Blegh.

"You should totally ask them!" Tucker says, wagging his spork at Danny. "It's your birthday, after all, D. They might feel more inclined to do things for you."

Danny hums noncommittally. He doubts he could pry them out of the basement for much more than two minutes, and there's no way that he would subject his friends to the inevitable lecture about the evilness of ghosts and the importance of telling them if they saw anything.

Like, sure, ghosts were real at this point. They had, as Sam said, a portal to hell in their basement. Danny's seen a couple little blobby things floating around, mostly near the wooded area on the east side of town. They look cute and not at all evil, though, so Danny's not really sure about any of it.

"Oh, yeah. Speaking of my birthday and people doing things for me, are we still on for Nasty Burger today after school?" Danny asks. "I wanna do something with you guys, but I'm pretty sure Jazz is planning a surprise party. She's been harping on about family time recently, since they've been working so much."

"Yeah," Sam nods. "Sorry for being busy tonight, again," she scowls. "My parents are total... downers."

The way she says it very clearly implies she'd rather be saying something else.

"It's all good," Danny says, waving his own spork. "Tuck, you too."

"Sorry, man."

Danny just shakes his head. Them going to Nasty Burger for a meal after school was enough, really. "If you want, you guys could always make it up to me by coming to see the meteor shower with me in a couple weeks. It'll be cool!"

"I'll ask my parents," Sam says, scowling again.

"Pretty sure Mom and Dad will be fine with it, so yeah, I'll come do your nerd stuff with you!"

Danny snorts. "Tuck, you're also a nerd."

"Says Mr. 'I need all the straight A's and extra credit, I'm going to be an astronaut,'" Tucker teases back. "You rank higher in nerd-dom than I do."

"Dude, you made your PDA run Doom."

Tucker sighs dramatically. "It was my test run for DOOMED. Besides, somebody got a high end pregnancy test to run Doom, I'm not that special. I will be, though, if I get it to play DOOMED. I'll get it one day, mark my words," he says, banging his fist against the table. "But you, dude, nerd about science. On the other hand, I nerd about practical things—computers."

"Your PDA doesn't have a mouse, Tuck. How are you even going to play?"

"Heresy!" Tucker gasps out. "There's always a way when you're passionate enough! My baby can do anything!"

"What'd you name your PDA this time?" Sam asks him, smirking and sounding deeply, deeply amused.

Tucker narrows his eyes at her.

"It's Delilah," Danny pipes up, hiding his shit eating grin behind another bite of the gross lunch food, this time with the sad little green beans in there as well.

"Danny!"

Sam cackles.

The rest of the day flies by quickly. Danny's had more than enough time to do his homework, even reading ahead when he gets bored on weeknights and his stupid curfew's too close to actually go out and do anything and none of his books sound interesting to read for the fifth-sixth-seventh-etc time. Today's not a P.E. day either, so he gets to walk out of the school not sweaty and gross.

Tucker's arm catches him around the neck as they walk out of school, Tucker animatedly recounting his Home Ec. period and how Josh from sophomore year lit his omelet on fire.

"Like, who even does that?" Tucker laughs. "How do you light eggs on fire? They're, like, wet. They're literally liquid when they go into the pan."

"I dunno, man. Sounds like my dad."

"Remind me to never eat at your house," Sam says, walking on his other side.

Danny snorts. "You—neither of you would want to anyway," Danny says. "You know how annoying it is to re-kill a turkey after you've already cooked and served it?"

"Danny dude, what the hell, man," Tucker deadpans. "The more you mention stuff about your house, the more I get concerned."

"What, you didn't realize that in elementary when your mom would never let you come over to my house?" Danny asks. "You didn't think it was weird that I only went over to your house and you never came over to mine?"

"Nah, man. I think I was just happy that it was my house."

"Ooh, look at his ego, already so big, so young," Danny coos mockingly, squawking in indignation seconds later as Tucker pulls his head down to attempt to noogie him. "Dude! You have to be nice to me, it's my birthday!"

The three of them get a booth at Nasty Burger.

"Happy birthday," Sam says, shoving a twenty at him as he goes for his wallet, standing there at the counter. "I can use my allowance for something good."

"Thanks, Sam," Danny grins.

She makes him keep the change, too, all six dollars and forty three cents of it. Tucker whines about having to buy his own triple patty Nasty Stacker, but Sam just flips him the bird.

"I have a present for you as well, Danny!" Tucker says as they slide into their chosen booth. "It's just, uh, not done yet."

"You're making me something?" Danny asks, curiosity rising. As much as he ribbed Tuck earlier, the dude was a genius with computers.

"Yup," Tuck nods, taking a sip from his milkshake and refusing to answer any of Danny's wheedling follow up questions. "Ooh, the mystery flavor is chocolate cherry!"

Soon enough, their number is called. Sam waves him down when he attempts to get up to get their orders, going herself.

Conversation stills for the first couple minutes as they all rip into their respective burgers and fries.

Danny's the one to get it started again after he's gone through about half of his burger. "Tuck, how's the robotics club stuff going?"

"Robotics and A/V," Tucker corrects through a mouthful of burger. He swallows before continuing, thankfully for the integrity of his shins. "Really good, actually! Falluca's talking about getting us into a state competition, probably a maze-solver. I'm teaching a couple upperclassmen how to code, actually, since most people are just in it for the hardware side of things."

Danny nods.

"All the shop kids, yeah?" Sam asks, taking a sip of her own blueberry milkshake. "They talk about the club during class. Any luck in getting the astronomy club off the ground, Danny?"

He groans, clutching his own milkshake glass. "No, none at all. We've only got like, three people and no sponsor. And don't say ask Lancer. We've tried. He's club sponsor for like seven clubs or something and has no time."

"I'm surprised that he does all that and teaches like three different subjects," Tucker says.

"Jazz says he only teaches one, but he's the school's default substitute teacher," Danny says. At their looks, he goes on to say, "One of the clubs he runs is the peer mentoring thing that she does."

"Ah."

Eventually, they work their way through their food.

Sam's phone trills, loud and harsh. She yanks it out of her backpack only to scowl at it. "The shrew's demanding I come home. Sorry, guys."

"No problem," Danny says. "See you tomorrow? Or Monday?"

"Tomorrow, hopefully," she grumbles, gathering up her tray and glass. "I'll get bubbe to help me sneak out if I need to."

"Don't get in trouble!" Tucker yells after her as she leaves.

Outside, the sun is just barely setting, the horizon turning a bright yellow-orange. The stars will be out in a little while.

Danny and Tucker finish the last of their fries and milkshakes in peaceful silence.

"Sorry, man. I gotta go before it gets dark," Tucker says after a while. His tray is clean, save for a mostly demolished squirt of ketchup. "See you... Monday, probably, depending on how the thing with Grandma goes."

"See you, dude," Danny waves him off. "It's all good."

"Night! And happy birthday, man!"

"Night!" Danny replies.

Eventually, he gets up and goes to dump his own tray off at the trash, sliding the paper and wrapper into the bin and stacking the tray on the others, his glass going with the other two.

Time to go home, then.

It's warmer than normal for this time of September, with only the slightest chill in the air. It's the twenty second, after all. Not only is it his birthday, it's the start of fall. The fall equinox, when night and day are the same length. After today, the days will get shorter and shorter until the winter solstice when the light is the shortest and the night is the longest. And then it'll start to grow again until the spring equinox, when the day and night will be balanced again and the amount of daylight will start to increase again afterwards.

It's interesting to see such an obvious sign of the earth's tilted axis, Danny thinks. When he was first learning about the earth and how it functioned in space, he was over the moon (heh) to know that his birthday fell on one of those special days.

By the time he reaches his neighborhood, the Ops center having been visible from a couple blocks away, the sun is fully below the horizon, stars blanketing the sky. He can't really see them all very well, but Amity isn't that big of a city.

The house is dark when he gets back.

His heart starts to pound in his chest. Is Jazz really throwing him a surprise party? Maybe Sam and Tuck having to take off early was a cover.

Danny slips his key in the lock, their security system chirping at him. He steps into the house and shuts the door behind him, cautiously walking forward to the light switch. As he flicks it on, his phone buzzes in his pocket. At the same time, the door to the basement is thrown open with a loud crash and Danny just about jumps out of his skin.

"Sweetie!" Mom says. "You're home!"

Danny straightens up slightly, a smile on his face. It's... not exactly jumping out of the dark and screaming happy birthday like they did that one time, but it's close enough. Right?

"Don't stay up too late," she continues. "Your dad and I got a ping on the ghost radar!" Dad bustles out from behind her, arms laden with all sorts of stuff that he's pretty sure look like weapons. "Stay inside and remember to lock the door!" She says, rushing after Dad straight out the door without a glance back or another word to him.

Danny's left there, standing in the entryway, key still in hand and his heart in his stomach.

That's the first time he's seen them all week and...

They didn't even say happy birthday.

Numbly, he takes his phone out of his pocket. One new message from Jazz.

[Hey Danny. Something came up; I have to go do something for one of the kids I'm peer mentoring, a middle schooler. I... might be able to tell you about it later? It's kind of really bad.]

[Sorry, little brother. Don't wait up for me. I'll make it up to you later.]

[Good night! <3]

That's... gosh, that's just so Jazz. Danny blinks hard and sniffles, laughing a little.

It's understandable as well. Jazz wouldn't just not help whatever middle schooler it was. Just like he understood that Sam's parents were overbearing, and Tucker had to go visit his grandma with his parents.

[no prob, jazz]

[i think im just going to go to bed]

[night]

He sniffles again, phone loosely clutched in his hand as he trudges up the stairs. It doesn't ding again. Jazz must be really busy.

Danny tosses his backpack into the corner, the overburdened thing hitting the carpet with a dull thud. His phone goes on his bedside table next before tosses himself this time, straight down onto his bed.

He presses his face against his pillows.

Really, he shouldn't have expected anything different. Not from his friends or Jazz, god no! Sam's parents are notorious douches. The few times that he's met them, they've been cold to him every time; plus, they refuse to let him and Tucker come over to their house to hang out. Tucker's grandma is really old and not in the best health, so much so that she's up at Amity General. Jazz is a bleeding heart at the best of times and it's some kid that's got a problem, so of course she's going to go help them.

His parents, though...

You'd think that physically pushing a little human being out of you would make you remember the date that it happened on. Dad's usually the more forgetful one. Mom looking him in the face, talking to him, and then blowing him off... that hurt.

It was nice to see them so excited the other day, opening the portal. It was their end goal for so long... well. Danny forgot that there was a goal after it, he guesses. The ghosts.

They actually had something new to work towards. And it's not like he's a little kid anymore. He can look after himself! It's...

Mom would at least attempt to make a cake, usually. Dad would be the one to present him with his gift, almost more excited than Danny himself sometimes. Jazz would be taking pictures, the shutter going off throughout them all singing happy birthday and Danny blowing out the candles.

Even if it was usually just the four of them after Danny's disastrous fifth birthday party, they usually had one. Heck, if they didn't because of some accident or mishap or whatever (like when they all had to go down to Spitoon because Aunt Alicia broke her leg and her neighbor was on a trip, leaving her to take care of herself) they would at least still say happy birthday to him.

He grits his teeth, releasing a shuddering sigh.

Danny doesn't want to be mad or sad on his fifteenth birthday.

"Screw it," he mutters, flipping around and pushing himself up. He'll have a good time on his own. It's his birthday, he can do whatever he wants to.

Just in case Jazz comes back before he does, he stuffs his bag and half of the contents of his dirty clothes hamper underneath his blanket, wrapping a black shirt around more clothing to be a stand in for his head. The only thing that he takes with him when he slips out of the house is a flashlight, phone left on his nightstand.

The night air is nice and cool, brushing over his bare arms and cheeks.

Danny meanders to the east, heading towards the woods. His hands are tucked into his pockets, fingers of his right hand toying with the butt of the flashlight. There's a clearing there where he's gone to stargaze before, so it's not like he's just going to go get lost in the woods. He has some sense.

It's far enough out that the lights from the town fade a lot, but not far enough away that it would take him forever and a half to get there and back. It might be Friday, but he'd still like to get to sleep sometime before midnight, thanks.

The temperature drops the deeper he goes into the woods. Maybe he should've brought a jacket.

He just had to get out of his house. His empty house.

A branch snaps under his foot as he walks deeper, intent on the clearing—or any clearing at this point, really. He keeps half an eye on the sky, trying to figure out just how deep he should go to get the best view.

Danny had only ever gone to the clearing with his mom before, after all. She was the one who led the way.

He sighs rather forcefully.

The entire point of doing this was to get away from his thoughts of his parents, not make more of them. All he should be doing is walking to the clearing—a clearing—and watching the stars as his birthday gift to himself. Maybe he'll do a little recreational planning for the yet-to-be made astronomy club. There's got to be more than two other people at Casper High that like astronomy. Maybe tempting people with watch parties would be the way?

He perks up as he spots a light spot up ahead. A clearing!

Danny speeds up, but still takes care not to trip over anything. Breaking his leg out in the woods with no cellphone would really put a cherry on top of this already crummy day.

As he steps into the clearing, he notices a little trail of mushrooms a few steps ahead. It seems to circle much of the empty space, sealing the area in a ring. He steps closer and crouches down, studying them.

His first thought is that Sam would absolutely love them.

In the pale light of the moon, the mushrooms are almost violently purple. With the way that the tops of them—the caps, he's pretty sure they're called—are speckled with tiny white dots, it almost looks like it's glowing. They aren't though.

He almost touches one before one of Sam's screeds on, quote, 'idiot wannabe foragers getting themselves killed by being idiots' rings out in his head. If he couldn't tell what it was, touching it was a bad idea. He's... not sure they're not poisonous, but sitting in the clearing should be fine, right? It's not like mushrooms released any sort of toxic gas or whatever.

Danny straightens back up and steps into the ring, intent on the mossy log nearer to the center of the clearing. It'd be nice to sit and lean against it while looking up at the stars.

The grass is soft and lush under his hands as he lowers himself down, the bark and moss on the log scratching lightly against his back through his t-shirt. He tilts his head back with a sigh, thunking lightly against the log.

There's not much of a moon in the sky tonight, though that'll change soon. It's waxing, just almost a crescent currently. If he remembers right, the next full moon will be in... just a little over a week? It makes seeing the stars even easier.

As he traces the constellations he knows like the back of his hand with his eyes, though, his mind wanders.

Going off to be on his own and look at the stars won't do much for the uncomfortable, squirming feeling that sits at the base of his rib cage. At most, it'll just be another band-aid over a bullet wound, as it were.

He huffs, scrubbing a hand over his face.

Danny loves his parents. He knows, he knows, his parents love him as well. His parents just... also really love their work, too. And it hasn't even been long since they finished their biggest and best invention ever. It's the portal, the one that they've been working on for years and years now. He can't really blame them, can he? They've put so much of their life, of their time and effort, into building it. And now that it's done, they can continue their lives' work.

The squirming at the base of his rib cage twists, heat building behind his eyes.

He just... he just wishes that their lives' work didn't mean ignoring him and Jazz.

Danny tilts his head back again, tears pooling in his eyes. His head rests against the bark, staring sightlessly up at the stars.

God, he wishes he could be up there with them. He wishes he could just... get away from here, go somewhere else. If he could snap his fingers and fill in the rest of high school and college and be standing on NASA's front steps, about to go up there, he would.

Finally, the tears fall from his eyes, tracking down his cheeks. They catch the chill in the air and cool against his skin quickly, even as more keeps coming.

He cries. He's not exactly sure when he stops, but eventually no more run down his cheeks and his sight is clear once again.

Danny stares up at the North Star. Polaris. Part of the constellation Ursa Minor. The way the little bear's tail is shaped, connecting up to the body, is reminiscent of a small ladle, the Little Dipper to the Ursa Major's Big Dipper. Polaris isn't actually just one star—it's three stars all bundled together in the same star system.

He racks his brain.

Polaris Aa, Polaris B, and Polaris Ab, or P. Right. Polaris Aa was a... yellow supergiant. The other two were main sequence stars, or dwarf stars. Polaris Aa is a cepheid, making it an important standard candle.

He yawns, the resulting tears making him squeeze his eyes shut for a second.

Standard candles... used the brightness of stars to gauge distances. Since Polaris is so close to the Earth, it's... studied a lot.

His eyes start to drift closed as he continues to mentally rattle off the facts he knows about Polaris, just as he used to instead of counting sheep when he was younger.

It takes no time at all before he's out like a light, sitting right there against the mossy log in the forest.

---

The Doctors Fenton pierced a hole through the veil to the Infinite Realms.

However... the thing about the Veil, and veils in general, is that they are not, by definition, flat. They are not rigid objects such that can be punctured easily. Veils and the Veil... twist. Layer.

True enough, on the other side of the Veil lies the land of the dead, the underworld, the Infinite Realms—but in the folds in between lies the Others. The In Between layers.

The Doctors Fenton should have taken care to plan for every eventuality of things Other than ghosts coming to their little town.

That night, in the forest outside of Amity Park, the Doctors' son Daniel sleeps in a clearing in the woods ringed by mushrooms.

Faerie rings, faerie circles... humans know them and are wary of them from their various mythologies and legends. By and large, a circle of mushrooms in the woods or the plains means nothing at all. It is simply a biological quirk of the formation and life cycle of mycelium.

But in areas where the Veil is thin, that changes.

And in Amity Park? The site of the largest, most stable, most permanent hole in the Veil in human history?

Danny goes missing that day.

In one moment, he sleeps. In the next, there is nothing in the clearing beside the flashlight that slipped from insensate fingers.

It's hardly noticeable that the boy went missing—he's in his bed in the morning, after all. Staying out for a single night can hardly be called missing, especially when his parents were none the wiser to his location being anywhere else than his bed.

Sure, there may be twigs and leaves in his hair and his eyes are slightly too sharp, too keen, too bright, his teeth much the same and his ears coming to a point, but no one notices.

Except his friends. His friends know.

They get the story the next day, squirreled away in the town park, Danny's back pressed up against a tree, about how he went out into the woods and stepped into a ring of mushrooms and fell asleep sitting against a mossy log, looking wistfully up at the stars and begging, pleading with them to be taken away. How he woke up under sheets that were much too soft to be his own, in a room that looked more like the inside of a living tree than a wooden house. How the person that greeted him upon his waking wasn't human.

And—he looks to the left, to the right, and lowers his voice—how he wasn't human anymore.

[ieatedrawegg]

woaahh oc alert check tbis guy OUT

My cool and definitely coherent rant about him and his world under the cut (totally coherent trust)

heres Ainsley, and some basic info about him. He's 22, around 5'9 and really fucking annoying on purpose. He was part of a paramilitary type gang a few years back but escaped after coming to the eventual conclusion that such a life just wasn't for him after the novelty of being in a cool murderous manly gang wore off and also probably the turf wars and the guilt of directly and indirectly killing people. Hunter later runs into two other survivors, Ronan and Harper, and tags along with them. Normal dude stuff .

He likes to think hes so cool and strong and will act mean to people, pull stupid and dangerous stunts to impress people and prove himself, and internally hype himself up as a tough guy when he's really the opposite. Hunter is very much horrified of his past actions, a bit cowardly at heart, and afraid of what he and everyone around him is capable of in terms of hurting or killing other people.

Hunter's wings are stolen from the gang he used to run with, and they are one of a kind. For a good reason. they fucking suck. The red handle on the engine needs to be pulled like starting up an old lawnmower and is just as difficult some times. It runs on diesel, which can be tedious to come across unless one can buy it from one of very few companies left because so many people are wiped off the planet, steal it from someone else or take it out of a vehicle OR a machine. The little thing with the wires attached to it stick to the back of the neck and pick up on electric signals sent through the spine. Basically it lets the user control the wings and move them at will.

the engine is held onto the user by literal car seat belts. This pair of wings was taken from a community and was basically tinkered with and pieced togethor like a diy wardrobe by barbarians.

The world Hunter traverses is post apocalyptic. Basically a fully automated future isn't as chill and nonchalant as it first seemed.

A rogue and volatile AI, AXCSIS has taken it upon itself to become God, and punishes anyone who has not committed to its mission of helping it retain eternal life (or existence, I guess), by sending various robots and machines out around the globe to kill indiscriminately unless one has found shelter in a human made safe zone that blocks the computer's signals (often safe zones are operated by really corrupt gangs and arent really safe zones because of the constant threat of other people, the only reliable safe zone is very hard to reach but run by well meaning communities) or a safe center made by the AI.

However, once one is in a safe center, there is no way out. If you go in you have to commit to the bit. Then you get deported to God knows where and indoctrinated into the post apocalyptic equivalent of an elon musk fanboy meetup, except its a crazy religious order and they're glazing a machine 24/7.

AXCSIS has entire factories at its disposal and creates its own nightmarish concoctions of robots. Chimera are the most common. They are amalgamations of scrap metal like pieces of bonnets from cars, guns, metal sheets from the top of your nans shed, cans, anything. They vary in appearance but will generally have a canine like body and one or multiple 'faces'. There are others such as locusts and shit but I'm getting carried away as is

Communities, gangs and stragglers are the main three factions. Communities are groups of around 15 or more people who work together in an effort to survive. They will usually occupy a certain area for a certain amount of time before moving off to find another.

Gangs are violent groups of individuals and will often attack communities for resources. If they are small they will usually be tied down to one area, if they are bigger they can split into smaller groups and spread out. Gangs can be as small as three people or as large as fifty, its the violent actions that qualify them as such. Most people only join gangs as a last resort for protection if they feel that communities cannot keep them safe from gangs.

Stragglers (also just called survivors or wanderers) are anyone who is not affiliated with either communities or gangs. These people are generally more susceptible to being attacked by AXCSIS machines.

there are robots who aren't associated with AXCSIS or evil or anything because we need some chill nonchalant guys anyways rant over

Ermm did I just write the song of the summer dooiijhhhnb

[quirkless-accident]

Toddler's Day Out

This one was DM'd to me a while ago and now that I've got a bit more time on my hands, I'm actually able to finally write it. Enjoy!

----------

Shouta Aizawa is nothing if not patient. He has to be to have the jobs that he does. However, his patience is running thin due to a certain loud blonde that's very audibly freaking out next to him. And don't get him wrong, Shouta's freaking out too. He's just better at controlling it.

"Mic, we'll find him," Shouta says, peeking down an alleyway. The chances of their runaway is slim to none, but it doesn't hurt to be thorough. Except that it does, every time he looks down one and they don't find him.

Their day had started out normal. They were going grocery shopping for the teacher's dorm, and since Danny needed to pick up a few things from the electronics store right next door, they let him tag along.

Mistake number one was not sending one of them to go in with him.

Shouta and Hizashi had been in the middle of checking out when Danny had come through the automatic doors with a brand new box in hand and a grin on his face when someone had bumped into him.

Several things happened all at once.

Danny was turned into a toddler, and the person who had bumped into his student picked him up and carted him off as another accomplice used his quirk to make several smoke screens, causing Mic's voice to shut down due to the smoke inhalation, and blocking Shouta's vision at the same time.

They ran outside as fast as they could to try and catch a glimpse of the kid, but the kidnappers were long gone.

So, here they were, looking for a toddler in the alleyways while practically every hero in this particular zone searched for the kid. Including the majority of the U.A. who seemed more than a little overprotective of their resident Casper.

Shouta just hoped and prayed that the kid was alright. He couldn't even imagine the kind of twisted shit the villains could be doing to him right now.

----------

"He won't eat it," Misaki, the smoke bomber, said as he waved a piece of toast in front of the toddler's face. The little guy just glared up at him though, nose turned away from the food. "Don't kids like toast? I know my niece went batshit for it."

"He's a kid," Hina, the one who had turned the boy into a toddler, replied without looking up from her cell phone. After a moment, she growled with frustration before slamming her phone down into the old couch cushions. "Our buyer said he's running late and won't make it today. We'll have to keep an eye on him for a little while."

"Which means feeding him," Misaki said, turning around to face his partner in crime. "Kid needs a healthy snack."

"And you think toast is the answer?" Hina asks, exasperated beyond belief. Misaki just shrugs and takes a bite of it before turning back around to offer it to the kid they just stole.

Only to find that he wasn't there.

Misaki looked around for a moment, but found no trace of the kid. He stood back up and looked under tables and chairs, behind the couch, and in the bottom cupboards. He wasn't anywhere to be found.

"Uh, I think we got a problem, Hina."

-------

Danny was having the time of his life. Or, at least as much as one could when they were three years old and had the power of a god at their fingertips.

Danny hadn't wanted any toast, simple as that. He wanted to go outside and play, so he just...Did. Going through the wall had been easy, and he had laughed uncontrollably as he saw the people moving around on the ground, looking like tiny colorful bugs. Not falling immediately was also pretty fun. In fact, he could go even higher!

Danny grinned and flew to the bright orange beam held up by several wires. It was just like the one on the playground that he dances on with Jazz. Or maybe it's like the see-saw, he thinks, as the end of it dips under his weight a little.

He's really high up, but he's not afraid of falling. He knows how to catch himself. And he knows that if he gets a scratch, his mom will come and kiss it all better.

So he shakily get to his feet, swaying with the wind, and sticks his arms straight out like Jazz taught him. The beam was wide enough to where he didn't really need to put one foot in front of the other, but it was more fun that way.

The wind is strong today, and that makes it a little harder to stay upright as the beam moves with it, but he manages like the bog boy he is. It's way more fun this way anyway. The normal balance beams at the playground were too easy.

"Wh-hey!"

Danny looks up, confused as a hero running along the rooftops spots him. He says something Danny doesn't care about, a hand on his ear, before he's jumping up on small trampolines made of light to get to him. But Danny just keeps walking.

A couple of things happen next.

Danny moves forward, intent on making it to the end. The hero, not expecting this, ends up hitting the part of the beam where Danny had been standing. The force makes Danny lose his balance completely, and he tips over the side.

The hero lets go immediately, saving himself with one of his light trampolines, but the kid has disappeared. There's no body falling down, no splat on the pavement, no anything.

"Hey!"

The hero whips his head around, only to come face to face with a very pissed off three year old. His arms are crossed and his face is puffing out as he glares at the hero.

"Kid! Oh, you can-hey, come here, kiddo! We can get you back home, safe and sound, yeah?"

"No! I don't wanna go with you! You ruined my game!"

"Awe, I'm really sorry about that, Buddy. But when we get you home we can play a new game. How does that sound?"

"No! I don't wanna play with you!"

And before the hero can do anything, the kid disappears.

----------

The phone rings, stopping Hina and Masaki in their tracks. Hina looks down at her phone, her face going pale as she looks back up at Masaki. He makes a motion for her to answer it.

"Hello? Oh, Plasmius! So glad that you could make the rendezvous after all! Oh, no, everything is fine, no need to worry about us! Yep! We'll have the kid to you at eight! See you then."

Hina looks down at her phone, looking even more dejected than she had a moment ago.

"Eight? Seriously? That only gives us like, three hours to find the kid!"

"Well, we better get to looking then, if we wanna get paid!"

"You may also want to be a little more quiet next time you're talking about your kidnapping victims."

Hina and Masaki whip around, only to come face to face with Present Mic and Eraserhead. Neither of them have any time to react as Eraserhead moves, faster than anything they've ever seen before. Once the villains are unconscious, Eraserhead turns to Present Mic, an eyebrow raised.

"Plasmius? Does that name sound familiar to you?"

"Yeah, but I can't place where. Maybe the Little Listener will have some answers once we get him turned back to normal."

----------

Danny yawns as he tips backwards, catching himself mid-air so he's floating, looking up at the sky. He's only like that for a moment before there's a large shadow looming over him. His face is covered in flames, and he looks like the actual devil.

Danny bursts into tears and flies away, Endeavour chasing after him.

----------

Shouta swings from lamp post to lamp post, gritting his teeth at the incompetency of other heroes. He's one kid. Sure, he's got superpowers, but how hard could it fucking be?

Case in point, as he swings around the corner of one building, something small and cold crashes into him, sending him sprawling on the sidewalk. In his arms is Danny, crying his little heart out.

Shouta cradles him, and rocks him back and forth as relief floods his veins. he ignores the civilians giving him confused and/or dirty looks as he sits in the middle of the sidewalk trying to calm the kids down.

After a couple of minutes, Danny sniffs and leans back, rubbing the tears from his eyes. Shouta pulls out a handkerchief and wipes the snot from Danny's nose, making the kid scrunch his face up in a totally not adorable way. No, Shouta doesn't know what you're talking about, shut up.

"All better?" He asks, his voice low and calm. Danny just nods, and lets out one massive yawn, leaning back far enough that Shouta has to catch him. "Is it nap time?"

Before Danny can give any kind of answer, the number one hero comes barreling down the sidewalk.

"Come back, you little brat! Time to go home!"

Danny stiffens in his arms and buries himself in Shouta's chest before disappearing, though he doesn't leave the safety of Shouta's hold.

"Endeavour," Shouta says, picking himself up off of the ground without the use of his arms. "I think you've done enough damage today. Besides, I got the kid."

"Hopefully the brat listens to you," Endeavor huffs.

"Don't misunderstand me, Endeavor. This conversation isn't over. You've just done enough damage for one day."

He doesn't bother waiting for a response as he shifts Danny to one arm and fishes for his cell with the other. Once he has it, he contacts everybody who's on the lookout that they don't need to search anymore.

Shouta's got his kid back, and that's all that matters to him.

-----------

Danny groans as he wakes up, blinking stars out of his eyes. Above him is Mr. Aizawa and Present Mic, who's cradling his head as he slowly sits up.

"Geez, what happened?" Danny asks, rubbing the back of his head. "And where are we? I thought we were at the grocery store."

Mr. Aizawa and Present Mic share a long look, communicating with no words, before his teacher sighs and helps him to his feet.

"Well, Kid, you've had a very eventful day."

[chonnysinferno]

miauuuu puts source memory writing under the keep reading thing or whateevr

(note: if you tag this as cj shipping or anything related i will hit you with a bat thank you)

It was snowing outside. It always was.

[Temperature's a good -1.6° Celsius outside.]

(Could you translate that into Fahrenheit? I don't follow.)

[Whatever. That's 29° Fahrenheit to you.]

We were both there, he was always finding something to nitpick about me. He always did. But this time, he was actually curious about how I was. Maybe it was only to find a weakness about me, although there were so many I couldn’t put it all in a list.

(Why’d you have to take me out in the snow anyways?)

It was so funny. It was all before the incident. Even saying that brought it up, fresh, like it was just yesterday. Before he became more of a monstrous machine, hooked up to wires and all sorts of blinking lights. Everything was so bright in there, I guess it had to be in his room. Besides the fact that his eyes pierced in the dark like eyes of a predator watching their next meal, everything lit up now. Before, it was just us. It feels like I’ve somewhat lost whatever humanity he even had to his desire to become perfect. It’s hard to remember anything when he was still alive to me.

[It’s nice out here.]

He preferred the cold comparing to the nice warmth of my room. He always insisted to talk somewhere frigid and freezing, much like his personality. I never got close to him, even if I tried, maybe he was trying to stay guarded, and he saw my attempts to get to know him better as “attacks”. They never were, but it felt like I was trying to fight him every time. It never was easy, but I wish it was. I wish everything could just be how it was back then, but we can never have anything we want, can we?

(You know why I hate being out here. I can’t understand why you’d ever want to be out here anyways, but I guess that comes with the Grinch-like personality.)

He scoffed. Maybe that was his attempt at a laugh.

[Ha ha. Very funny, Heart.]

(Genuinely though, why would you pull me out here? You know this isn’t my domain, and I hate being out of my comfort zone.)

[Good. That makes you more vulnerable.]

(Why are you like this?)

[Don’t ask me.]

(Since we’re being formal for some reason, what do you want, Mr. Mind? To mock me again?)

[No. I wanted to ask about your wings, and the fact you have 2 sets. Maybe you’ll sprout another pair of them, who knows?]

(Was that a joke? You have humor? Shocking. Where’s Mind, and what did you do with him?)

He rolled his eyes, sighing at me.

[I can crack jokes too, you're not the only one.]

(Youuuu sureee? Thought that wasn't in your system.)

[You suck.]

(Thank you!)

[That wasn't a compliment, idiot.]

(I know, but you take comments way too literally, stop being so concrete. Read between the lines! Think outside the box for me.)

[1. Those two lines don't correlate. 2. Thinking outside the box is for being creative and doesn't apply to this specific situation. 3. What lines, and what box?]

(My point is proven, I'm done here. Goodbye, Mind.)

I started to get up slowly, but he pulled on my scarf, a little too hard, forcing me to fall to the snow in an unmannerly fashion. What was he trying to do, embarass me?

(What was that for?? Don't you want me to leave?)

[No! I mean, no, I still haven't asked you my questions.]

(Ohhh, you want me to stay soo bad!)

[You KNOW that's not what I meant, Heart, don't play with me.]

(I know, I wouldn't want to date you anyways. I bet 100 dollars you couldn't even comprehend romance if you tried to.)

[Not like you can either.]

(You little-)

[Looks like I've struck a nerve. How's your love life, since you flaunt it so much?]

He grinned.

(Ugh, you wouldn't understand anyways. Not like it's any of your business, so buzz off.)

[I'll have you know I know more about romance than I let on, so tell me. What of your failures?]

(Uughhhh.. No, I'm not sharing my little stories with you, Mind.)

[Okay, then I'm leaving. Bye bye, Heart.]

(Good riddance.)

[What was that?]

(GO!)

[Okay okay, I'll take my departure.]

He cackled loud. He was only trying to get under my skin, after all.

I layed down on the white snow on the ground, letting the powdery material bury my face and body slowly. Wings outspread, shoes sticking out in the growing mound.

[realityhelixcreates]

Boarded Up Paradise pt 6

Nash tries to figure something out. Everyone tries to help.

Warning: extremely minor character death

song: Salt in Our Wounds-HIM (Both versions because I can't decide which one I like better)

Warning: Nash is still underage and some sexual-ish things do happen in this fic. Certain non-consensual actions are implied here and there.

@cardwrecks @captainbaddecisions @whocares-idont

“Huh.” Narci said, staring at the steaming corpse.

“Yeah.” Nash said, echoing his consternation.

“Kinda disappointing, honestly.”

“I expected him to last longer.” Nash approached, poking the body with his cane, to confirm its state of death. “Not to win, of course, but not to just die instantly either. Is the cube defective?”

He turned his cane on the puzzle cube, but it was inert.

“I'll have to take it apart and check. In the meantime, we need to get him to the harbor.”

It was easy to find enough junk to tie to the corpse in order to make him sink instantly under the waves, and it was no more polluting than anything else that went into the water around there. The dissatisfaction sat in Nash's stomach like a bad meal.

“Hey Narci, you...does it ever bother you? When they die?”

Narci draped an arm awkwardly over Nash's thin shoulders. Narci often acted like someone who had just been introduced to the concept of touch; like it was something that he wanted, but did not know how to do. In a way it reassured Nash; Narci obviously cared about him, if he was so willing to step outside of his comfort zone to offer Nash affection in a way unfamiliar to him. Nash was also unfamiliar with affectionate touch, but they would learn together.

“Sometimes.” Narci admitted. “Not really though? When I'm on a heist, I try to avoid people. If someone gets in my way, they're dead, and that's that. I can't afford to be seen most of the time, or Nightwing will be on my trail. No witnesses. When it comes to traps though...well, the spectacle is part of the point, isn't it? They aren't supposed to die fast, so it's disappointing if they do.”

“Yeah...Maybe?” Nash murmured, uncommitted. He wasn't so sure that was it. Well, that was partially it, but also...

Wasn't he supposed to feel something?

Wasn't there supposed to be horror? Regret? Wasn't there supposed to be satisfaction? Why did he still feel empty?

“Do you want to go get a snack?” Narci asked. Nash shook his head.

“No. I...I think I'd like to go to bed actually. This was all kinda tiring.”

“Oh. Well yeah, and you've got school still too, don't you? Are you still going?”

“Yeah. Keeps me in a warm place for most of the day, even if it does feel kinda pointless.”

“So you'll need your sleep. Just...just be careful okay? If you ever need me for anything at all, just say so. Nothing will get in my way.”

Puzzles helped him dismantle the cube, Nash examining every little part. A misaligned wire, a tiny mistake on his part, had cost a man his life. Nash was of the opinion that he probably would have died anyway, but the point was to at least give him a chance. Make him confront his inadequacy, come to understand where he went wrong. Nash was perfectly willing to free his targets if they performed adequately, it was just rare. But the chance was still there, it had to be. It had to be, or he was just another mundane murderer.

They were murderers, Nash knew and accepted this, even as some tiny part of him knew that very acceptance was concerning. They were murderers, but they were not mundane. They were not brutes, or madmen. They were principled. They all had their reasons, and Nash knew, if nothing was done about the state of his world, nothing would change. Things had gotten so bad...it would take something equally as extreme to even begin to address it.

Puzzles agreed with him.

“People at the top of the heap have no incentive to change their ways.” he pointed out. “That incentive needs to be forced on them. Look at every revolution ever. Kings and Tsars, colonizing states and business owners given chance after chance, plan after plan to make things better. And each time, they ignore, they imprison, they slaughter anyone who dares to suggest things aren't already perfect. Then they are so surprised when those changes become written in their own blood. It isn't wrong to fight back against what's trying to kill you. Even insects do that.”

“But...shouldn't I feel guilty?” Nash asked. “Even a little bit?”

“Maybe. Maybe if you hadn't seen the rot beneath the bricks, you would. There comes a time in everyone's life where they become disillusioned, it just happened early for you. That simply means you have that much more time to become what you want to be. Initial mistakes like this-” Puzzles held up the dismantled cube. “-can be ironed out early.”

He had a point. Maybe not feeling that guilt was a blessing, rather than an indicator that something was terribly wrong with him. He'd been filled with guilt since his mother had died; maybe he had reached capacity.

Puzzles offered him a meal and a bed for the night, and this time Nash took him up on the offer. He was tired, and though he couldn't finish the meal-not just because he couldn't eat much in one sitting, but also because Puzzles liked his food blisteringly spicy-the awkward and overly formal care Puzzles showed him filled the emptiness inside just a little.

Nash kept his head down at school the next day, diligently taking his notes, and doing his best not to get on anybodies nerves. The girl who had been noticing him kept stealing glances his way. Normally, he would have ignored her, but right now...

Did she suspect him? She'd been paying so much attention to him lately. What did she want?

She caught him after school, just as he was leaving. What was her name again? Amy? Yes, Amy.

“Eddie! Hi!” she called, her voice sounding falsely chipper. She definitely wanted something from him, and it put him on edge.

“Er, hi Amy. What...what is it?”

She frowned slightly, just for a moment.

“Annie. Anyway, I was thinking, I've gotten a bit behind in class, and I noticed, you're really smart. You always do really well on the tests. I'd love to know your secret.”

The clumsily sly tone on the last sentence. She did suspect him, didn't she? Accusing him of having a secret. How much did she know?

“Well, actually, I was wondering if you'd like to study together, say tonight?” she continued, looking up through her eyelashes at him. “We could maybe be really helpful to each other, you know?”

Oh. He understood now, what her intentions were, and nearly blushed at the audacity of it. No one had ever tried that with him before, though he supposed it wouldn't be the last time someone made the attempt.

“O-okay. Well...Meet me at around six?” He gave her the address and she hurried off to her extracurriculars, a lively spring in her step.

Nash hadn't expected anything like this to happen for a while yet, but it might be interesting. In the meantime, he had someone he needed to talk to.

“Hey Swag? How do I flirt?” Nash asked, lightly sipping a small glass of ginger ale. It was before business hours at the club, so he was allowed inside. Those were the rules.

His elder counterpart leaned against the bar, his face splitting into a charming, weathered smile.

“That's so cute. You're growing up.”

“Don't talk down to me.” Nash sulked. “ I just figured you're probably the best at flirting.”

Swag shrugged.

“Maybe not the best ever, but damn good enough. Well...at your age? I'd say just be yourself, but...”

“But I'd point out the hypocrisy immediately.” Swag put on an act around other people, and everyone knew it. It was part of the draw. But Nash couldn't do that, not yet.

“Nail on the head. Flirtin' ain't necessarily something that can be taught. It's not just a series of pickup lines, though that can work if you play it right. It's a bit more like exaggerating whatcha got. Playing to your strengths. Me, I like to gas up my looks, and maintain that delicate balance between bragging and humor. Keeps people on their toes, and they love it. You though...”

“I'm not very humorous.” Nash stated. He knew that already. There were class clowns, and there were charmingly witty people, and he was neither of those things. Too serious, too weak, too focused on whatever he was doing. He stretched his thin brown hands out in front of him, and placed them to his cheeks, the only part of him that retained any of the round softness of childhood. They would probably melt away soon too, just as the rest of his body had.

“Looks, huh? I don't have that going for me either.”

Not when compared to the others, the unearthly perfection of Detective, Puzzles and Narci's sculpted beauty, Arkham's rough masculinity, Swag and YJ's warm, mature handsomeness. He wasn't even done growing yet! He was short and ungainly, and far too thin. His eyes were sunken, his skin neither dark enough to be striking, nor pale enough to be conventional. And people didn't find intelligence attractive when it was in the wrong body, when it used words awkwardly, when it was shy and hostile, and wounded.

“Ehh, well. It's not so bad.” Swag interrupted his musings. “At the risk of sounding weird, you've got some good points. Nice smile, nice hair, beautiful eyes. You're prolly gonna grow up pretty handsome. You maybe won't knock 'em dead right now, but you've got potential. Anybody getting in on the ground floor now might be in for something good. Just be responsible, okay? You need any, uh, supplies, you can ask me, it's fine.”

Nash made a face.

“Yeah that does sound kinda weird.”

“I figured. Sorry little man, I'm still working on this big bro/weird uncle thing. So, it maybe depends more on what you want out of...whatever it is that's on your mind.”

“Well...something came up kinda suddenly, and I thought I might need help. But maybe I should just be myself. If somebody wants me, then I'm what they're gonna get, after all.”

“Not a bad philosophy.”

“And I'll have a gift for them too. Everyone likes gifts.”

“Sounds like a plan, little man. Good luck.”

Shadows surrounded Nash the instant he stepped inside, a whirlwind embrace of worried demon.

“~You didn't come back~” Lust exclaimed. “~You went out after that officer of yours, and you didn'tcome back! I remembered that these officers sometimes carry guns, and the human body is so fragile. You're not hurt are you? He did not hurt you~”

“No, I-I'm fine! He's dead, it's nothing. I just got caught up in what I was doing and crashed at Puzzle's place. And then I had school, and...you were really worried about me?”

“~Yes! Why wouldn't I be? Do I not know all the terrible things that can befall a mortal soul? And with no contact from you, how could I know you were safe~”

“No, I just-I mean...I didn't know you cared about me that much.”

The demon pulled back, eyes as blue and round as always.

“~Well. It looks as if I do. You and I, we have no one else in this world, do we? Currently, all our allies are in other realities, and are not always available. But the two of us have this domicile, and this shared space feels better with you in it.~”

“Oh. I...um...” he should say something, he thought, but the words clung to his tongue, refusing to be released.

A tentative knock at the back door saved him. He rested his hands on Lusts shadowy shoulders, stepping out of the demon's embrace.

“Wait here.” Nash said. “I've brought you a gift.”

[icechippies]

The dream I had last night:

Zombie apocalypse. Most zombies can't see because the eyes rot first so staying quiet is of upmost importance. These aren't just "bite you and be done with it" zombies, these are tear you apart alive zombies.

My family barricaded themselves in a house and large fenced in yard. It was not their house because in an argument with my little brother about safe use of lights at night I pointed out that my room has only two windows that point towards the fenced in yard and not out into unsafe woods but my room irl only has one window and it isn't on that side of the house. (perhaps it was a mix of the house we lived at when I was like 6 and the one they live at now)

Eventually we secured the front yard as well, killing any zombies there and setting up a fence (chicken wire, babyyy)

While I was having the argument with my little brother in the room with the TV, my watch and the lights suddenly went out. We came to the immediate and obvious (/J) conclusion of an EMP and ran to warn the rest of the family. (idk how realistic that is but it's a dream, I'm not going to question it)

Anyway, lots of fighting off looters with guns (AMERICA🦅🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸🏈🇺🇸) it was clear they were not going to win but the lead guy (who might have been Giancarlo Esposito?) had something to prove and made it to the front door. I stabbed him three times in the chest with my pocket knife (I fucking hate killing people in my dreams idk why it always feels so realistic)

We recover and fix up the fence. We realize that we are starting to run low on supplies and will need to expand our safe zone to neighboring houses to get them and also to have more space to spread out (holy shit if I thought quarentine was bad, at least during covid you could still take a walk if family was driving you crazy)

Anyway, cut to the dog's pov (also weird because we have a dog but that was not our dog, this was some white poodle mix thing) who escapes and manages to open the fence to the neighbor's yard across the street (where we are planning on going) dog goes in through the open back door to find a child in a high seat at a kitchen table, 2 cats, and a dunken mother on the couch talking to herself. The dog spends some time chasing cats around.

Cut back to my family, we have dug a tunnel under the road because that was deemed safer than going above ground where everything would be very open. We get to the house, find the baby and the lady in the house. Bad vibes from the place. We send my dad and my little brother back through the tunnel to guard the house (there is a gate in the tunnel, just in case) and start to look around to figure out what we are working with, we decide to bring the lady and the child to our house because she did not seem to be taking care of them very well at all. The dog walks in the back door and that suprises us. We are hit with the realization that there is an open gate on the property, an open door, a loud child, and quickly approaching zombies. The zombies start to break in, I have the kid and my mom (the more I think about it the more I don't recognize her, I don't think she was my mom) is trying to get the lady to move her ass to the tunnel. Zombies start lunging through the back door and I wake up.

[financefista]

 The nation's first wireless-charging road for electric vehicles debuts in Michigan

I just found out Michigan made something pretty wildly new - a road that can charge electric cars without having to plug them in! It's like a magic carpet for cars, since they get power as they drive over this special street, which could really change things. Now, even more people might start driving electric cars, thereby shaking up how we get around.

The Future of EV Charging

Your car won't need a cable soon. Charging can happen without plug-ins. With this exclusive new road under your wheels in Michigan, power hops to your car as you cruise—that's way different.

You used to reach for a charging cord. At home or in town, you'd plug in. Only parts like roads from a sci-fi movie can give electric juice to your car while you zip past traffic lights with no hands-on fuss at all.

How Wireless Charging Roads Work

Imagine a special road that can charge electric cars as they drive, kind of like magic. While you' reeling on it, there are hidden spirals under the street that make a power- making zone. As your electronic vehicle, which has a special power catcher, rolls over them—weird but true—it picks up energy to charge up without even stopping. So, you keep zooming forward and suddenly, your car's got more juice, all without visiting a plug-in spot.

The Benefits of Wireless Charging Roads

Convenience:

The most obvious benefit is the sheer convenience of wireless charging roads. Drivers no longer need to plan stops for charging, as their vehicles can charge while driving. This reduces the need for extensive charging infrastructure.

Increased Range:

My electric car keeps getting power while I'm driving, which unbelieveably means I can go really far without my car running out of juice. It's like I barely have to stop for longer drives – that makes my car really handy for big trips. Wow, that's some magic trick, huh?

Reduced Battery Sizes:

When they make electric cars, if they can figure out how to let them charge up while they roll, they won't need such big and heavy power packs. That makes the cars use less juice and it doesn't cost as much to run them. It's unbelieveably cool because it could lead to all sorts of weird and wondrous cars that don't weigh a ton.

Less Grid Dependency:

Wireless charging roads can potentially reduce the load on the electrical grid. This is especially important during peak charging times when grid congestion can be an issue.

Environmental Impact:

The air is made more fresh and less greenhouse gases are sent out when streets let cars charge with no wires as they move along; however, this is done because people are prompted to use cars that run on batteries.

The Michigan Project

In Michigan, cars can charge without wires while they drive. They've made a small part of a road (only one-mile long) into a special kind where your car can power up, like a toy car on a magical track. This is to try out if it's a good idea and that it really works. The company called Electreon worked with them to build it.

Nevertheless, even though it's only an experiment, it’s quite the big thing. You might not study this in school yet, but think of it like making new friends using walkie-talkies without chords. They're checking if this new way to fill up a car's battery is something that might be smart to use way more in other places too. This project is about finding ways to get from here to there that don't hurt our planet.

If this project works out well, you might soon see Michigan using special roads that can charge electric cars while they drive – how cool is that? And guess what? If it does good in Michigan, other places all over might copy the idea. So, if you have an electric car in the future, you won't have to stop to charge it – it'll get powered up right on the road. Because of that, this project is pretty important.

The Road Ahead

By use of unseen cords in the ground, cars that run on battery power could get charged while moving. The making of this stuff everywhere would need a lot of money and the building of new things. To let all the different cars use this stuff meter-square-the same rules for all need to be set.

The debut of the nation's first wireless-charging road in Michigan is undoubtedly a momentous occasion for the EV industry. It marks a significant step toward making electric vehicles more accessible, convenient, and practical for consumers. As technology continues to advance, the road to a sustainable and electrified future becomes clearer, one wireless coil at a time.

[pattywagon2go]

Transit Talk Thursday

Transit Talk Thursday: Time for a shorter post this week, but I'm hoping it will still be good fun. This will be me ROASTING commuter rail systems here in the United States! And also, a cameo from Canada. I'm doing this mainly cause I don't want to burn a lot of time doing an overly elaborate post which will drive me up until midnight. And also because I think it will be fun. The commuter rails that will be up for the flaming will be: -Long Island Rail Road -Metra -New Jersey Transit -GO Transit -Metro-North -Trinity Railway Express -MBTA Commuter Rail -MARC Train -SEPTA Regional Rail -Caltrain

Depending on whether I run out of ideas again I'll maybe do a few more that I missed, or do some light rail systems as well. Who the hell knows.

Oh, one last thing, don't take this too seriously, this is meant to be in good fun, and what I say is very much exaggerated just for comedy value.

Anyway, it's time to get roasting!

Long Island Rail Road

Oldest and most popular commuter rail in the country, but I'm starting to wonder how many of those people actually like using the LIRR or are just riding it for the novelty of it being the oldest railroad under it's original charter. Ah whatever, it's fine enough, as long as you get off before fare zone 7. Just ignore what's out there. There's literally nothing special out there. Trust me.

Metra

The word "ineptitude" if it was made into a commuter rail. Make the system better in general through a few very easy fixes? FUCK YOU! Let's just do incredibly dumb shit instead just for the hell of it, and people who don't like what we do can go to heck!

New Jersey Transit

This is the example of your ideal commuter rail system. So many extensive lines running all over the place, as long as you forget about that weird part of the state known as "South Jersey". But hey, it's all worth it to shuttle people into the heart of Hell itself known as New York City.

GO Transit

GO? Yeah, I'd like to GO. I'd like to GO with GO by parking my car at my local GO and GOing all the way to Toronto to work my 9-5 job, then GOing back to my local GO station to GO back to my car and GO home. Ah, I love it when I can GO to the city without a car while still GOing to the station with one. Truly, this is the way to GO.

Metro-North Railroad

If New Jersey Transit shuttled people from Connecticut and upstate New York into the heart of Hell itself. Comes with a bonus of the inability to decide which electrification system to use on the New Haven line. But it's ok. You can tell us which one you want whenever you want. We'll still love you the same.

Trinity Railway Express

This thing's only purpose in life is to shuttle people between Dallas and Fort Worth, Hell-I mean, Texas. Yeah, that's it. Normally I'd make some rude remark about it's quality or some quirk it has, but with how low of a bar there is and this thing slamming face-first into it I don't think I have to add anything.

MBTA Commuter Rail

I almost feel bad about even including this here, as it really feels like kicking a man while he's down, with the whole rolling stock mishap and the obvious infrastructure projects that should be happening but just not happening at all thing. Buuuuuttt, it is run by a French company, so it deserves to be on the list for that alone.

MARC Train

Decisions decisions, do we continue using our old electric locomotives, replace them with shiny new ones because the old ones need replacing soon, or just run Siemens Charger locomotives under electric wire instead. If you picked the Siemens Charger locomotives, congratulations, you just became MARC.

SEPTA Regional Rail

If you took the ineptitude of Metra but with a fully electrified system. It's the transit equivalent of putting sprinkles on dog turds. But hey, it's not all bad. There's some good stuff going on with SEPTA. Like...

Caltrain

The ineptitude of Metra if it served the Bay Area. But hey, there's hope for that curse to be broken since electrification is coming eventually (tm). Originally I didn't think this was gonna make the cut, but then I realized that this commuter rail serves the Bay Area, in California. Then I realized that this perfectly makes the cut.

And that's all of the roasts! Maybe I'll do more in the future, maybe not, we'll have to see. And once again, don't take any of this seriously, about 90% of this was exaggerated, it's all in good fun. Everything here was just in good fun, as long as you don't defend the French owning the MBTA.

[2headlightshine]

project #3 - e-textile monster

when the prompt of "plush monsters" was brought up, i immediately had a concept in mind.

i have been trying to figure out a design for a children's character based off one of these bunny sea slugs. they're a real sea slug native to japan and they just... look like this. naturally. i can't believe they're not a made up creature. translating this little cotton ball into a character has been challenging and i figured this project might help provide some insight

i made some test sketches and a pattern for the body

this was my first experience actually sewing so i had to figure out a lot of things as i went. i was trying to leave a seam allowance because i know it's important to do so, but i don't think i executed it nearly as well as i'd like to have. regardless, it was a good learning experience for patternmaking.

the point of the project was having the plush interact with tech -- with help i set up a circuit and sewed it together with conductive thread

although i was trying to be careful i definitely crossed my positive and negative wires somewhere. because it was all one color i couldn't tell where the cross was, so i pulled everything out and started again. (sad) (depressing) (nightmarish) (worst day of my life)

it actually wasn't that bad the second time around. i was more comfortable with a needle and thread at that point, and color-coding the positive and negative circuits helped me keep everything organized. because the lines aren't crossing, the lights successfully turn on.

i think it was worth messing up the first time because now i'll never go into a sewing project without making myself a guide on the plush again. referencing a drawing just doesn't click with my brain.

then i had to sew my bunny's body together and stuff it

it's a bit of a hackjob -- when you hold bunny in your hands, there are spaces where the fabric has gaps and the stuffing pokes out a bit. i also had to cut the ears off and redo them because the patterns were totally misaligned. from there, i brought some detail back into her face and her ears, and sewed buttons on for eyes. (a little creepy, but a little cute, too -- like coraline!)

from there, all that was left was putting together some clothes to protect the stuffing holes and hide the circuitry. i designed some simple overalls with a limited color palette that could play off the pinks and purples on her body already.

once i had sewn the body together, i was able to add details and embellishments. i decided to play up the button details to emphasize that homemade quality. i had to cut out the fabric under the buttons so the lights would shine through -- it's very subtle, but still visible

here's a recording of the lights in action

overall i'm very happy with the result, and i think i learned the basics of some skills that will help me a lot with my senior thesis project next semester.

What does your plush monster say about you?

my bunny has been a workshopped project for a long time and i will be spending a lot more time with her in the near future. she's a testament to my stylistic/artistic passions -- cute and nostalgic things, children's entertainment and design, weird and silly animals -- and the artistic commitment i'm trying to stick to.

i have always found it difficult to sit with a project and explore all possible avenues of it -- my brain often works faster than my hand, and once i have a rough idea on paper, i want to immediately move onto the next. i'm trying to sit and get to know bunny in as many ways as i can. i think it's a good way for me to leave my comfort zone.

What was a surprising moment?

crossing the wires for my first circuit attempt was devastating. reworking it the second time gave me another surprise -- it wasn't nearly as painful as i thought it would be. at that point, sewing had even started to become relaxing.

If you had more time, what is one thing you would change? Do next?

i'd like to learn more about dollmaking and pattern drafting, so she could be more three-dimensional instead of pillow-shaped.

[memes-saved-me]

Let's Be Alone Together - The Last Of Us AU

TW: Implied Abuse, General Apocalypse Topics

"Oh, shit," Billy exclaimed calmly as the concrete floor moved. 

"Billy?" Steve turned to see him frozen in place with a terrified look dawning his face as he watched the cracks begin to surround him. "Shit. Don't move." 

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he hissed as fear took hold. "I'm gonna run for it." 

"No, wait let me get a rope or something." 

Just as Steve stepped backwards to head into the next almost identical office room something dropped below. The floor Billy was standing on jolted a few inches to the left and before he could even take a step towards safety ground it went. 

"Billy!" Steve almost screamed rushing to try and grab him but missing his hand by a second as he fell with the floor. 

He landed on his shoulder, fire under his skin as he looked around to see nothing but darkness and the sound of clicking filling his ears. Knowing he was at least in the basement, spores and infected probably around the corner he looked up to see Steve three stories above looking for a way to climb down. 

Billy waved his hands and shook his head, no noise could be made with how irritated the clickers sounded nearby. He stopped looking and pulled off his backpack to pull out one of the gasmasks before dropping it so Billy could catch it, pull it over his head and gesture towards the way they were originally heading. Steve nodded and disappeared. 

That had gone far too smoothly for something bad not to happen. Their wordless communication and trust much stronger than when they first started this journey. The far ago night back at the zone was a blur of fear, adrenaline and somewhat excitement as they managed to sneak their way through the city and then the smuggler's tunnel until they reached the outside. It hadn't exactly gone to plan, at all really. Originally they would choose a night, leave a note and disappear without notice. What actually happened was almost the opposite. 

"You punched your dad in the face?" Steve's eyes widened as he took in what Billy had just told him. 

"Yeah," Billy replied walking past him into the apartment. "He started talking about...about me not pulling my weight and I could tell he was going to snap so I just hit him first." 

"Shit," he sighed closing the door behind them. "Good you finally showed that piece of shit but the timing could be better." 

"I know." 

Before Neil could find them or the guards could come storming in ready to arrest Billy they took off. Nothing but the supplies Steve had managed to save up, sealed food that would last until they decided to leave but that choice had been taken. How they had even come to the conclusion that they would leave together never made sense to him but he was thankful he was even considered to be taken out of the hellhole that was the San Diego quarantine zone. 

Billy had never been outside of the military borders, seen someone infected or shot a gun at someone or something but Steve had. Steve had done it all. Born in a community and raised there until it was raided and escaped with a few of his friends, Steve knew what the world was actually like beyond the walls and barbed wire. He just didn't talk about it all that much. 

When he showed up everyone was talking about him. The first new member of the city for years, an outsider with information and stories about the real danger that surrounded them but he didn't want to make friends or tell his tales. He was pissed and Billy respected that. So much so that he approached him, offered him some of his food and introduced himself in an attempt to at least make sure he had someone to talk to. After that, they were inseparable to the point Billy's father started to take notice. 

Over the years they shared things, confided in one another about nightmares and Steve pieced together what was going on at home. Something no one else knew of but after that Billy could run away to his apartment when it got too much for safety which he gladly offered. Long nights spent talking about everything and nothing at all. Their plans for the future but most importantly Steve's being one of the most prevalent. The location of Hawkins Indiana came up over and over because that was where his group were heading when they got separated, he just happened to be picked up by a scouting group after getting lost. 

The truth was, Neil hadn't set out to punish Billy for his laziness that night but rather his behaviour around Steve. Ever since his 15-year-old brain caught sight of him that day in the street, he was obsessed. It was just a confirmation that the crush he once had on Wayne wasn't because there was no one else around to be attracted to but something else which scared him, but worse angered his father. Steve was everything Billy wished he was and kind at the same time. He smiled whenever he saw him, hugged Billy after a few days of not seeing him and laughed at his jokes as if they were actually funny. There was just something about him which sent him running headfirst into the closest thing to hell on Earth. 

Billy sighed and crawled to hide behind what looked like some sort of machinery, the clicking only getting closer as he felt fear begin to set in. He had three bullets and two lessons of shooting to get him out of this but worse he knew Steve was making his way down there. He peered into the hallway and saw the flash of a door at the far end, the way out within reach but then he saw the familiar silhouette of an infected. It was too dark to tell if it was a runner or not so he shot back through the doorway and tried to ready himself. 

That was when he saw the television remote sitting on the chair beside him and reached for it. If he couldn't fight them off he could at least run past them. His shoulder burning as he lifted his arm to throw it as far as he could across the room and hope they entered through the other doorway. It hit what sounded like metal grating and sure enough set them all off running towards it. 

With his shotgun loaded and his mind trying to stop him, he took off down the hall. His fingers just gripped the metal bar handle when he glanced behind him to see a running heading right for him. Instinctively he went to fire his weapon but logic kicked in and before it could sink its rotten infected teeth into his flesh, he grabbed his pocket knife and managed to jam it just behind what looked like an ear but was slowly becoming something much more disturbing. It slumped to the group which caught the attention of the clickers but before they could even detect him, Billy was through the door and sprinting up the crumbling staircase without a sign of stopping. 

Running from infected had become commonplace. Multiple times Steve and him were left no choice but to hope they could reach the exit before a fungus covered hand could grab them first. Thankfully, they always made it just in time to slam the doors and barricade them well enough to buy them some time. The incident that played over and over in Billy's mind most nights wasn't too long ago. Probably about two weeks into this adventure of theirs, a clicker had wandered into their makeshift camp in an old gas station in the middle of the desert leaving them frozen on the floor eating what canned food they found in the back room. 

It clicked and twitched, searching for movement but they didn't dare even breathe as it walked closer and closer until they both moved at the same time to take it out but in the process not only missed but landed entwined. Steve's leg flung over Billy's waist, his arms stuck underneath which resulted in Billy shooting the thing in a panic. 

After it dropped to the ground they stayed there listening for anything, even a creak and they were out of there but nothing happened. Instead, they were left pressed against one another with their faces inches apart. It felt like some sort of rom-com moment but Steve very quickly pulled himself free before anything could happen, even if Billy wanted nothing more than it too. 

They laughed it off, said they should come up with non-verbal cues to stop that from ever happening again so for the rest of that night they sat coming up with ideas which made each other laugh until Steve got some rest. Billy left running through what would have happened if he had just gone for it. The years of waiting for a chance and there it was. Gone. 

It just felt so good to be around Steve constantly. The random topics which they rambled on about to distract them from the fear of being out in the open while going through cities or driving until the cars ran out of gas and continuing on foot, how he mumbled in his sleep, the shared meals which always ended in Steve eating more than Billy, the way he smiled when he woke up, how gently he would warn him of danger with a soft hand on his arm or shoulder, the songs he would sing to himself but most of all that he seemed to genuinely care. 

No one had cared about Billy. Steve, however, always asked if he was alright. If he was hurt, tired or hungry. At first, it felt strange, like he wanted to know something deeply personal but then he realised it was normal to ask these things. Especially in a situation like theirs. The relentless need to watch every corner of every room for any sign of movement. Listen for a click or a groan as if Billy hadn't been slowly developing tinnitus from the gunshots, falls and that one car crash because Steve tried to drive and it ended as Billy had expected. This drop was the final accident to cause the quiet static noise in his left ear, the right having a low pitched beeping which would come and go.  

When his converse finally reached the first-floor exit he heard the door only a story below burst open and what sounded like at least three infected coming through it, groans and screams filling the stairwell as he tried to push open the door and for a brief second panicked like he never had before but then saw that he needed to pull and soon enough he was on the other side with the infected having a difficult time getting in. For a moment he caught his breath, let himself laugh and almost cry as the absolute terror and fear that he was actually going to die was let out at last. His hand gripping his shirt as his lungs struggled to take in air for a moment before he heard something running towards him and looked up to see a runner. 

He dodged and managed to push it back just enough to pull out his shotgun and aimed for its head. Perfect shot. The noise echoed throughout the office room, the cubicles now even more of a threat than he had even realised. Knowing if something was on this floor it would be coming his way without a doubt. 

"Shit," he sighed and took off running again looking for any signs of an exit so he could get out and find Steve. "Come on." 

Everything was falling apart. The exit signs on the floor and the departments were smudged and covered with either blood or plants but just as he managed to find the directions to the reception he heard shouting. Steve. It was coming from the floor above. 

"Steve!" he started to yell sprinting towards the main staircase but when he got there the steps themselves were gone. He pulled off his mask to get a better look but that just made the outlook of the situation worse. "I'm in the stairwell!" 

"Billy?" Steve finally replied. 

"Come to the stairs. I know the way out." 

That was a lie. He knew that if they went straight down here they might get back onto the street where they had started but if that was safe or actually a way out, he didn't know for sure. Still, he continued to make sure Steve could hear where he was until finally he came running around the corner and almost fell but managed to stop just as his sneakers tipped over the edge. 

"Are you okay?" Billy asked getting as close as he could. 

"Well, there's a room of infected about to get out and get us but other than that? Peachy," he tilted his head and crouched down to reach for Billy's hand. 

"If you jump I'll catch you." 

"How romantic," Steve tried to joke but there was no charm or smile to go with it. Just fear. 

Yet, he did jump and send the two of them onto the dirty floor with a thud. Steve landed on top of Billy as his hands moved to hold his waist out of instinct while trying to catch him but when Billy looked up at him, the fear was gone. A smile had appeared on his face and he was looking right at Billy with such joy he almost had to look away. That was when Steve leaned down slightly, his eyes closing. Lips less than an inch away from Billy's when a door on the floor above gave way and the infected started piling out towards the stairs. 

Without saying a word he pulled back, jumped to his feet and pulled Billy up with him. Their fingers still interlocked as he made a run for the stairs. Steve jumped down first, a five-foot drop to where the steps had fallen. He waited for Billy and the two of them made it onto the still functional staircase until finally, they reached the ground floor, Billy's mind racing as he tried to focus on staying alive rather than what had just happened. 

The reception was empty, glass walls surrounding them as they saw the main entrance only metres away. Neither of them stopped until they almost crashed right into the clear door only to find it was locked. Steve looked to Billy and then around the room for any other exit but there was none and the crowd of infected were just getting to the bottom of the stairs. 

"Fuck this," Billy grabbed one of the chairs sitting nearby and threw it at the door. 

Somehow, it shattered and without hesitation, they climbed through and began running down the street until they reached a flooded patch. The infected far behind and only a few now heading their way so they jumped. Neither of them knew if the other could swim or even swim fast enough to get to the other side before one of the runners could grab them. Billy, so focused on seeing if Steve was close he almost lost his weapon but managed to stop it from slipping off his shoulder to the bottom of the water. 

They both made it to the other side where Billy climbed up onto a half-submerged car pulling Steve up to look back to see they were no longer being chased. The infected looking around for them, clearly unable to see at this distance but as he let out a sigh of relief he felt his body being pulled and suddenly Steve was hugging him. Arms wrapped tightly around his body, face buried in his neck. 

"I thought you were dead," Steve breathed into his skin, setting it alight as he moved his hands to return the embrace. "We need to be more careful. I can't lose you." 

That took his breath away. Every fibre of his being screamed that this was different. That Steve felt something just as he did but he couldn't bring himself to do...anything. Instead, he savoured the moment. Held on as he took in the rather eye-watering smell of them both as the stagnant floodwater took hold of their clothes but he didn't care. 

Finally, Steve pulled away but kept his hands on Billy's arms, looking into his eyes with a smile before letting go to pull his backpack around himself and squat down to riffle through it.  

"I found this," in his hand was a small children's toy of a wolf. He let Billy take it, inspect it and then look back at Steve confused. "I know you mentioned liking wolves and I found this." 

It was old and scuffed, probably left when everyone abandoned the cities all those years before either of them were even born. A world they never got to see or know but the remains gave them an idea of what society used to be. The toy, however, was kind of a mystery to Billy for a moment. He had never been given a present for no reason, his birthday being the only time he received something for nothing, so as he stood there surrounded by the buildings overtaken but nature he almost cried. Tears welled in his eyes, his voice unusable or he would crack so he nodded and smiled. 

"I know it's a kid's toy but we all deserve a little someth-." 

Billy almost knocked him off the car as his arms flung up and wrapped around the startled boy who had just managed to put his backpack back on. "Thank you." 

Steve let out a soft laugh, his arms coming up to hold Billy in return. "Of course." 

The two of them pulled away but instead of letting go, Steve ran his hands down Billy's arms until he interlaced their fingers. His eyes moved to look into Billy's as the world seemed to go silent. No, singing birds or rustling trees in the wind. Just them and the sound of his own heart hammering against his chest. 

"Don't freak out," Steve began. "But while I was running around freaking out because I thought you were dead I realised I really can't lose you. I'd be a disaster and without you, I would never have left the zone. You're the only person I have left for sure and I just...oh, I can't breathe." 

The entire time he was speaking Billy was falling apart, his tears finally breaking free and streaming down his cheeks. Caught on every word coming out from his lips as he processed them one by one but now it was Steve was needed help. His eyes shifted and looked away for a moment before focusing back on Billy. 

"Me too," Billy said trying to calm him. "I'd be screwed without you." 

"No," he sighed. "How do I say this?" 

"What?" 

"Fuck it," Steve took in a deep breath and moved. 

His hands cupped Billy's face as his body pressed against his, their lips meeting as he felt his legs go weak, overwhelmed by his nerves firing off all over his body. Steve was kissing him, he was kissing him back. It was all too much but before he could overthink it he fell into it. Hands running up his sides to get a grip on his jacket as it went deeper. Tears and floodwater took hold of his tastebuds. Neither of them showing any signs of pulling away until Billy did to catch his breath for a mere second as he let out a laugh, never losing Steve's eyes as he grinned in return before going back in. 

The two of them completely oblivious to the world around them, the danger hiding somewhere waiting but they didn't care. It wasn't until something moved nearby that Steve pulled away to look in the direction of the noise, hands still holding Billy as he watched him checking if there truly was something to be worried about. 

"I should almost die more often," Billy chuckled trying to break the sudden awkward tension. 

"But if you die how are we supposed to have sex?" Steve smirked and jumped off the car without looking at Billy's red face. 

"For real?" he asked chasing after him. 

"Wait, you've had sex right?" 

Steve stopped and spun around to see Billy avoiding his eyes. "Not exactly. I kissed Stacy once." 

"Oh, this is going to be fun," he teased turning back to continue to the main road. 

"What does that mean?" Billy shoved him slightly. 

"You'll see. I'd tell you but we better find somewhere safe to get dry and stay the night." 

The two of them laughed as Steve playfully nudged him but all Billy could do was look at him, watch his hair move in the wind, his eyes glancing his way every so often, their hands brushing against each other as they walked but it was the sudden realisation that after all these years Billy wasn't as abnormal as he was made to feel. What was possibly about to come next for them almost making him glow at the thought. If this was a different world they would discuss it, have a long conversation about what had just happened but they didn't have the time in that moment to stop and talk. Night was coming and with that brought the reality of where they were, Billy would just have to wait and see what Steve had in mind. 

AO3

[authorangelita]

WIP Wednesday 11/2

I'm sneaking in just under the wire in my time zone. I made a list of all my WIPs this week, so I could try and have some focus. But all it really did was give me anxiety. I have so many things I want to write, and work is sapping all my energy. Anywho... here's a bit more of the story where Mac gets shot on his deck while he's minding his own business.

~~

It felt like an eternity passed with just the sound of Mac's gasping breaths until the Phoenix medics burst through the back door with their medical bags and a backboard.  Bozer gave them a rundown of what happened and Mac's vitals as he moved out of the way.  He went to stand a few feet away anxiously shifting from foot to foot.

Jack held pressure on Mac's wounds until the medics told him to move, and it took him a moment to get his muscles to respond and to hand Mac's care over to someone else.  He knew the medics, was friends with them even, but this was Mac bleeding out beneath his hands.

"He's crashing!" were words that Jack absolutely did not want to hear.

[sirfrogsworth]

First things first... if anyone gives me shit for getting a Ring doorbell I swear I am going to find you and bop you on the nose. It had payments on Amazon and it was the only one I could afford. We needed this urgently because my mom can't hear deliveries and we just switched to getting all of our medications delivered.

I had to do what I had to do. We live in a society and all that.

Okay?

Moving on...

As you may have noticed by the tape, this did not go according to plan.

I can't seem to do anything handy without there being *some* janky shenanigans involved. But I don't think this was my fault.

You see, our house used to be owned by this guy called Fred Salmo. He thought he was quite the handyman. But in the past 25 years we keep uncovering horrible "home improvements" that he did that end up taking us a long time to unfuck and then do properly. Every time this happens we say we "got Salmo'd."

Decades ago he decided to install the doorbell in the grout between two different kinds of brick. Just stupid. It left a cavity behind the doorbell where all kinds of crap built up. I had to blow it out with compressed air and it was very gross. I am shocked the wires never shorted out in the rain.

Unfortunately, I could not install the doorbell in exactly the same spot. The grout was uneven and some of it was eaten away so I could not place screw anchors on the same plane. One would stick out more than the other. And because the Ring doorbell is wider, and the brick on the left sticks out farther than the brick on the right, and the brick on the left is very uneven, there was just no way to make it work. Fred purposely had to find a skinny doorbell faceplate to fit in between. I just don't understand why he didn't just install it a few inches to the right. It is just a silly place to mount a doorbell.

OH.. and the worst part, because of his placement, the doorbell was very hard to see visually. So 2/3 of people just thought we didn't even have a doorbell.

SALLLLLMOOOOOOO!!!!

So I had to move the doorbell slightly to the right. This meant exposed wires. Ugh. So I wrapped them tightly in electrical tape and then filled the cavity with hot glue. The tape was just a temporary aesthetic thing to cover up the giant glue booger I created.

Unfortunately, it still looks dumb.

And when I get the all-weather gorilla tape to replace the current tape, it will probably still look dumb. I'm unsure how to make it not look dumb.

But I am not a handyman and this is the best I can do with the energy I have. We are just going to have to live with some jank next to our doorbell.

It is fully functional.

It does what we need.

If this were a normal install and not a Salmo install, I can imagine it going rather smoothly. Especially if you don't have to deal with any bricks. I got the wired Pro 2 version so I don't have to recharge any batteries. And it has an extended viewing angle so I can see packages left on the ground.

The video quality is excellent (for a doorbell), the app is well designed, and it even has a nice quality speaker for talking to people at the door. And if Ring didn't have all of the law enforcement baggage, I'd say this is a pretty damn good doorbell. But if you can afford a different one of similar quality, I'd definitely consider other options. Like I said, I just couldn't pass up the 5 month, no interest payment plan under the time frame constraints.

I can use custom "motion zones" along with GPS satellite photos to map out where I want the motion to be detected. That way a passing car or squirrel running in the distance will not trigger a notification.

Here I am making sure the motion zones are working as they should. Sneaky Froggie.

That said, we did get a motion alert at 4:30am. I thought maybe it was a false positive. But I actually ended up filming the world's shortest horror film.

I was also able to link it with our Echo Dot speakers. We have them in every room so if my parents fall or have an emergency, they can call me. And now, if there is someone at the door, every room will chime so my mom will definitely hear it.

This 20 minute installation ended up taking 3 hours. I just kept getting Salmo'd.

The doorbell was on a circuit that made no sense, so I had to keep turning random things off, going upstairs to check, and repeating that 5 times.

The drill bit that Ring lists as the proper size for the anchors was way too small.

I had no way of marking the proper place to drill. The holes on the doorbell were way too small to fit a pencil tip through. In the install videos I saw people had a little template jig. It even had a tiny level on it. But I guess they didn't include it in the model I got. I did my best to scratch the brick with a paperclip. But regrettably, the doorbell is canted about 15° off level. Thankfully the giant ugly piece of tape distracts from that fact.

And because I turned tons of shit off with the circuit breakers, my WiFi went all screwy. Spectrum's cheap modem needs things done in a very specific way. You have to reboot the router. Wait 30 seconds. Then reboot the modem. I forgot to do any of that and so linking the doorbell to our network was just maddening chaos. I ended up forcing the Ring app into an infinite loop and it would not pair.

It took me half an hour to find a support article that mentioned the damn doorbell reset switch on the side that I did not see. It's hidden when you have the cover on.

Also, my multimeter measured 18 volts of power at the wires. But the Ring app says it is receiving 14-15 volts. Which is below the required 16 volts. That said, the doorbell seems to be functioning perfectly right now, so I'm going to have to chance it. Installing a new transformer in the chime box is above my skill level.

I read that the biggest power draw is the infrared lights for the night vision mode. But we leave our porch light on 24/7 so those will never be needed. I'm hoping that will keep me in the 1-2 volt margin for normal operation.

Soooo... yeah.

We have a video doorbell.

And I installed it all by myself.

Poorly.