#the idea got too big oof and i have lots to write

[tartagliove]

me vs. the urge to spill the beans about the gift fic i'm working on but i can't because what if the person sees!!! they'd know it was for them right away based on the au and character and then it would be all over!!!!

[gilbirda]

Personal coach Red Hood

Idea by @impyssadobsessions where Jazz needs a personal trainer from a gotham hero and chooses red hood. Eventual ship content. This is more of a setting so far but i have ideas. I accept ideas too, im just balling

I'm going to try a more chill and lax posting with this bad boy. I feel like my rigid way of organizing is making me feel restricted so this will be 1000% vibes and let's see where it goes.

Part 2

---

Jazz knew this was a stupid idea. Dangerous. Suicidal, maybe, depending on who would answer her call. But she still had to try.

You may be wondering how a twenty something young woman ends up following Gotham heroes around with a notepad. She wasn’t looking for an autograph, or for the latest scoop on the heroes, trying to uncover their secrets.

She was actually writing down their patterns and observations in behavior, trying to map their patrol routes and create a decent enough file and expectations of the heroes.

What did she need the information for?

She needed a personal trainer.

No, not the kind you hire at the gym. She already tried that and it didn’t work. She also tried MMA, and kickboxing and just to see if she could do it, Judo. All were interesting and gave her a pretty good picture of what her body was capable of, and a guesstimate of her physical limitations.

But no. She needed something else, something more… tailored for what she actually needed the training for.

She needed to intern with a hero. The term “sidekick” felt wrong for what she had in mind, since she didn’t want to be that hero’s trainee forever. Or was interested in the current superhero scene at all. They were doing just fine without her.

She just… she felt left out. Danny was amazing but he didn’t need her, not as much as she would have liked. He was a hero, and a pretty good one, but he wasn’t in any place to train her. Not that he wanted to, since he usually avoided her every time she brought it up.

Her baby brother was all grown up and he didn’t need his older sister anymore. 

Jazz shook her head. She was being ridiculous. Danny would always need her — she just needed to do her homework and keep up with him on her own. If she just trained enough and could hold her own in ghost fights, she was sure Danny would be grateful and appreciate her support. Who knows, maybe he would be happy that he didn’t need to be wary of ghosts day and night, and actually rest and focus on his neglected studies.

She yawned, lamenting another night that looked to be a bust. Maybe the heroes were busy tonight? Maybe they were on a big mission away? Unlikely that all of them were away, there were usually at least a few of the Bats flying around the city.

Why Gotham, you may ask? Of all the funny-dressed crime fighters on Earth, why these people? 

Easy.

They were human.

That piqued Jazz’s interest. She had been between the Arrows and the Bats, but finally chose the Bats because Gotham had one perk over Star City: unlimited supply of ectoplasm. The place was almost as coated in the thing as Amity, which she was grateful for. It saved her from going back and forth to places rich with ghost activity and fishing blobs to eat.

Don’t ask too many questions about the consuming blob ghosts part. It was a necessary evil.

However, it’s been a few months and all she got to show for her efforts was a notepad filled with scribbles she painstakingly copied to her computer and a lot of frustration.

Until one night she caught Red Hood alone as he checked his phone. She waited until he was done texting — she had manners thank you very much — and jumped in front of him before he had the chance to grapple away.

“Hi— oof.” 

Thanks the ancients for her reflexes and Judo training, she blocked Hood's punch and following kick. It would probably bruise but it wasn't the end of the world.

“What the fuck?” 

“Hi,” she tried again, “I'm Jazz.”

He didn't punch her again, which she took as a good sign. Instead, he took a step back and squared up like he was expecting a fight.

“I’m not looking for a fight,” he scoffed but let her continue speaking, “I’m looking for… I guess you’d call it a mentor? That sounds weird… A personal trainer? No, that’s wrong too. Hm, I wonder if there’s a word for ‘person who is the only one that can teach you very specific information in a field of interest that legally, or otherwise—’.”

Red Hood cleared his throat, making her jump.

“Are you for real?”

“Yeah? I am real.”

Hood looked at her in silence for a few moments. Then, he sighed and rubbed one gloved hand against his helmet. 

“Listen, girl.”

“Jazz!”

“Jazz,” somehow she got the impression he grumbled, but the voice modulator did its job really well, “I have things to do, ok? Crimes to stop and stuff. So… yeah. Goodnight.”

He turned around and picked the grapple gun from inside his jacket.

“Wait!” 

He jumped and misfired the gun, hitting the wall of the building instead of the roof, like he was supposed to. As the gun recalled the rope, he looked over his shoulder at her. Jazz understood he was glaring at her, she could feel the daggers on her skin.

“Hear me out, ok?” He didn’t move or said anything. “I need— I have tried hiring a trainer, at… back at the gym. You know? But that wasn’t enough. I think I need to train with an actual hero—”

“Listen,” the word was accompanied by the hook of the grapple clicking into place, “whatever it is you are looking for, you definitely are not going to find it with me. So. Scramble.” 

He made a shooing gesture with one hand and aimed the gun without looking, shooting it and amazingly enough, hitting the edge of the rooftop. He made a salute as he was launched to the air at high speed.

Jazz didn’t follow, mesmerized by the skill. Hood landed with a flip and without breaking momentum, started running to the next rooftop, jumping impossible lengths. The way he moved was confident, powerful and measured.

She wanted to do that. She needed Red Hood to train her.

---

Back to Main Archive

Back to Danny Phantom Archive

Do you like my stuff? You can support me here!

[moonselune]

If your comfortable doing it, fem reader who's been nothing but kind and patient and supportive to everyone, revealing by accident they grew up in a abusive upbringing and it still affects them but they felt compared to everyone else's problems hers were minor and so not worth getting upset over. And of course everyone giving her some support this time

Oof this was hard to write, mainly bcs I'm not too good at writing serious angst, but I hope this is okay !

tw: abuse

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

It was a rare, calm evening around the campfire. The group was in good spirits, sharing stories and laughter. You, ever the cheerful one, were in the midst of recounting a particularly funny tale from your past.

"…and that's when my father threw the table across the room because dinner was five minutes late. Good times, right?" you chuckled, the laughter trailing off as you noticed the sudden silence around the fire. The others stared at you, their expressions a mix of shock and concern.

Astarion was the first to speak, his usual playful smirk replaced with a serious look. "Did you just say your father threw a table at you?"

You blinked, realizing the gravity of what you had just let slip. "Oh, yeah. He had a bit of a temper. But, you know, it's in the past. No big deal."

Wyll leaned forward, his brow furrowed. "No big deal? That's… that's abuse. Why didn't you ever tell us?"

Karlach, her fiery nature tempered by concern, placed a gentle hand on your shoulder. "Yeah, why keep something like that to yourself? We're your friends. We care about you."

Shadowheart's eyes were filled with empathy as she added, "You've always been so supportive and happy. I had no idea you were carrying this with you."

You shrugged, trying to downplay it. "Everyone here has their own problems. I just didn't think mine were as bad as what some of you have been through. I didn't want to burden anyone."

Lae'zel looked at you uncharacteristically gently. "Strength is not only in battle but in sharing our burdens. You should not have faced this alone."

Minthara, her stern demeanor softened, nodded in agreement. Gale, ever the one with something to say, spoke up. "Pain is not a competition. Your experiences are valid, and they matter."

"We are a family here. We support each other, no matter the weight of our pasts." Halsin gave you a reassuring smile from across the fire.

Jaheira, who had seen much in her long life and was not terribley surprised by your admission, added with a soft yet firm tone, "You are not alone. We are here for you, just as you have always been here for us."

The weight of their words settled over you, a comforting warmth replacing the usual isolation you felt when thinking about your past. You took a deep breath, feeling a mix of relief and vulnerability.

"Thank you, all of you," you said, your voice wavering slightly. "I guess I just got used to hiding it. But it means a lot to know I have your support."

Karlach squeezed your shoulder reassuringly, her warm smile returning. "Anytime. You're stuck with us, whether you like it or not."

Astarion, his usual humor returning, gave you a wink. "And don't worry, we'll make sure to give you a hard time about it too. Can't have you getting too serious on us."

Laughter rippled through the group, the tension easing. The fire crackled warmly, and you felt a deep sense of belonging.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

[zepskies]

hi lovely!💗 first, I wanted to say that I hope this next year is filled with lots of love and light for you!!🫂 may all of 2025 be kind. 🫶🏽🙂‍↕️

you are for sure one of my favorite comfort blogs, besides how amazing your writing is you are so kind to everyone, your blog is filled with lovely interactions and it just feels like a big safe space <33 you have without a doubt helped me get through this trainwreck of a year lol :’)💕

for the asks, there are so many good onesss lol but i’ll only ask a few 😅 👉🏽👈🏽

1. describe your journey this year (in three words)

7. comfort character to create for

8. most challenging character to write

12. a concept you’d like to develop next year

13. a fic or artwork by another creator that made you happy

sidenote: I can’t wait to get home & read the final part of ATW :p have a wonderful day!!🤍🤍

Hello my lovely!! Same to you, friend! A lot of us have had a crappy 2024, me included, but you know what, we're here and we're getting through -- hopefully with a little kindness and support from our friends here. 💗

Wow, I'm honored to be one of your comfort blogs. 🥹🥹 I really appreciate you saying that mine feels like a "safe space" because that's exactly what I've tried to do. I'm truly grateful people who read my writing and interact with me on here. Like you, a lot of them have become mutuals and lovely friends. 💕

I talk to some people on here on a weekly basis now, and tbh those connections have not only fueled my creativity to keep writing, but have also just made me happier as a person. Or like you, they've gotten me through the hard times I've gone through this year. (I do reread comments and reblogs btw -- yours have never failed to make me smile. 🥰)

But yep, on to your EOY Asks before I just keep rambling on and throwing hearts at you. 💓💓💓

**Lots of fic recs/author recs below the cut!!

#1. describe your journey this year (in three words)

Oh God lol. Like I said, I've had a rough year personally. But in 3 words?

Exhausting. Painful. Creative.

I've been mentally, physically, emotionally exhausted for the better part of 9 months. I've been in physical pain and discomfort for much of that time and have had 2 surgical procedures, countless doctor visits, and too many life changes to list.

But through all of that, I feel like I've also done some of my most creative writing in 2023-2024 than ever before, including starting a Patreon, and dipping back into writing the fantasy romance novel I've been working on since grad school. Use the pain, I guess. 😅

#7. comfort character to create for

It's changed over the years depending on my fixations, but right now (and for the past 2 years), it's definitely Dean freakin' Winchester.

#8. most challenging character to write

Lmfao. Definitely this guy:

#12. a concept you’d like to develop next year

Oof, how much time you got? 🤣

I have a few WIPs that are already drafted and in the editing phases for next year -- including all of my remaining fics for @jacklesversebingo. (Jacklesverse Bingo24 Masterlist here!)

More specifically, I have plans to write sequel fics for the following series:

Break Me Down (Soldier Boy x Reader): Their son's first birthday, with a flashback to their wedding day.

Unravel Me (Soldier Boy x POC!Reader): The prequel series to Lost in Translation, in which Ben meets the reader (afro Latina).

Every Second Counts (Russell Shaw x Reader): Can Russell make good on his promise to "get out" and start his brewery? (AKA: his past comes knocking, and might just put the reader in danger. Diving deeper into the Shaw family history too.)

Take Me Home (Beau Arlen x Reader): @luci-in-trenchcoats put the idea of Beau and the reader from this series getting married into my head, and I feel like it would be a fun and somewhat angsty road to get there lol.

#13. a fic or artwork by another creator that made you happy

Again, how much time you got? 😂😂

I can rec so many of my mutuals and favorites here, so here's a few:

Dean Winchester

The Dangers of Hope (Endverse!Dean x reader) - @dean-winchester-is-a-warrior

Things Learned and Unlearned (Dean x reader)

Some Sunny Day series (Dean x OFC) - @talltalesandbedtimestories 💞

That’s How It Should Be (Sheriff!Dean x reader) - @rizlowwritessortof - and all of her Jackesverse bingo fics. 🤌🏽❤️‍🔥

NSFT Alphabet [Dean Winchester] - @chevroletdean

Feral (Alpha!Dean x reader) - @luci-in-trenchcoats

Wild Flower (Dean x reader) - @deanbrainrotwritings (so many rereads 🥵)

Remind Me (Alpha!Dean x Omega!reader) - @justagirlinafandomworld

Worthy (Dean x reader) - @thatonewriter15

Girls, Girls, Girls (Dean x OFC) - @spnbabe67 - plus so many of her other Dean x Tori fics.

Run Baby Run

I Just Died in Your Arms Tonight

Five Star (Dean x Indian POC!reader) - @artyandink

Taste (Alpha!Dean x Omega!reader) - @kittenofdoomage

A Simple Kinda Man (Dean x reader) - @impala-dreamer

I'll Be Home for Christmas (Dean x reader) - @wayward-dreamer

Sam Winchester

Samnesia - @princessmisery666

English Cottage-verse - @sam-is-my-safe-word

Soldier Boy

Power Play (Soldier Boy x reader) - @venus-haze

She’s Out To Please, She Pouts Her Best (Soldier Boy x reader) (So many rereads 🥵)

Take a Chance on Me (Soldier Boy x supe!reader) - @lamentationsofalonelypotato

If The Stars Wish It So (Soldier Boy x soulmate!reader)

Beau Arlen

The Change (Alpha!Beau Arlen x Omega!Reader)

The Change: Beau - Sequel from Beau’s POV.

Polaris (Beau Arlen x reader) - @waynes-multiverse

Taken for Granted (Beau Arlen x reader) - @pink-sparkly-witch

The Fix (Beau Arlen x reader) - @waywardxwords

Russel Shaw

Tuesday's Gone (Russell Shaw x reader) - @pamwritessometimes

He's My Man (Russell Shaw x reader) - @luci-in-trenchcoats

Waiting for the Real Thing (Russell Shaw x OC) - @rizlowwritessortof

Thank you again @wvffles for being such a lovely support and friend to me this year! (Aw I hope you enjoy Part 4 of ATW! 💕💕)

[obae-me]

Omg Hi!!! It has been so long since I have seen you on my dash! How are you doing love? I hope you are doing super well ^.^ I recently saw your Mc with trauma post. I loved it so much, and it has also given me a lot to mull over the past few days lol.

Honestly I love the idea of a traumatized Mc and the brothers feeling like absolute shit for the way they treated them in the beginning... but yk another part of me wonders when I imagine my own traumas in that scenario... that for people (the bros- literal demons) who have faced so many things and traumas in their own lives, whether my feelings or pain is even comparable to that. Ik you can't compare things like that and the brothers would probably even be mad if I think of my feelings this way since it's the "Ohhhh someone always has it worse. It's not even that bad so just suck it up" self-deprecating part of me. Despite knowing ALL THAT I can't help but think that I am not traumatized enough to deserve empathy lmao (I realize how stupid it sounds saying it out loud).

So that is what REALLY got me thinking. What about an Mc that is genuinely terrified of scrutiny, being a nuisance and just basically inconveniencing anyone for things that are just basic needs. Idk if I am explaining it well enough oof and a mc like that (like me lmao) certainly won't bode well with Lucifer. Atleast not in the beginning. I could hate him (I could never but if I did) but still be terrified of disappointing him. This is what I mean when I say I love him but he reminds me too much of my father habits wise 🤢.

I am thinking a Mc who is afraid of asking even their basic needs at the beginning once Lucifer mumbled about them being too much trouble. Mc who feels so extremely guilty when the brothers get anything for them, cuz they feel like they have to work for it or they don't deserve it. Mc whose blood freezes over when they break something and try to replace it as quick as possible so no one blames them. Mc who never expresses their concerns so as to not add to the brothers' already full plates or worry them. It hurts to bottle it all up but seeing the brothers' concerned faces with so much PITY is a thousand times worse. Mc who never complains and adjusts to even unfair situations so as to not be a bother. Mc who just takes, takes and takes everything bad and doesn't say a word cuz they feel like they deserve it. Mc who tells little white lies to hide their flaws and be the perfect exchange student and avoid scoldings and criticisms ; only to stew in shame, disgust, self-loathing when someone eventually catches up on one of the lies (the person probably didn't even make a big deal of it/ was only mildly disappointed but Mc feels their heart breaking in two as they think they have broken their trust forever and would never be trusted again)

Gosh this got way longer than I was expecting >.< and a lot of signs like these aren't really obvious until you are close to that person. I think so many of us are so hard and rutheless to ourselves when sometimes the thing we need the most is a little compassion and understanding ;-;

Hi! I love seeing you in my inbox and thank you! I've been in recovery mode for the last few months but am finally coming back out of that cave and working on my hobbies again (seriously going too long without writing almost feels like going without food for me)! I hope you've been doing well too!

And oof, yes, I understand what you're saying completely. I'm like that too in a lot of ways, keeping certain details or complaints to myself because "Oh surely what I've been to is really nothing". And sometimes I let something slip and people get very concerned. Which is validating in a way, not that I need to be validated for it, everyone goes through their own pain and awful things SUCK no matter to what extent it is and I've had to learn that through my life.

(Wow that MC really is just me, huh? Calling me out are you? /j)

Honestly this type of MC is just canon to me. (I mean, the more pithy responses the MC has in original OM might just be due to writing but to me it just seems like the calm and general response of someone throwing out NPC answers as a survival tactic.)

They suck things up and soak up everything that's been said to them and work hard to remain a normal functioning being.

And of course Lucifer is an interesting character to think about with this MC because on one hand the human could absolutely despise him for the way he treats them. Or on the other hand (if you're like me I guess, which I realize is hella unhealthy, oops) the MC could look up to him and work extra hard to try to gain his validation, because getting praise from someone like that means you must not be a failure, right?

And just...the dynamic of that is so appealing to me, because Lucifer loves when people work hard and do what they're told, but then if he finally comes to the realization that they're burning out and actually almost putting themselves in more danger and harm because of HIM? And at the end of the day he's doing more damage than any of his chaotic brothers? (I like to have him spiral and be humbled just a bit)

Just all of the brothers doing some deep introspection once they come to care for MC and needing to sit down and realize that probably made their human feel so much worse and then spending the rest of eternity trying to fix that. And then the "I can fix him" mentality from MC turns into the "I can fix them" from every other character. A special Uno Reverse, if you will.

Oops, this turned into a fairly long ramble of my own...

Thanks for popping into my inbox with your thoughts! Traumatized MC deserves some extreme love

[draco-after-dark]

What were the brothers, Poppy and Viva’s reactions to feral JD?

SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG

I got distracted, then forgor, then relized i have to rewrite this whole things because now i'm atcually writing the story and have new ideas/reactions for them

also some of these are gonna be short because spoilers so i guess wait for each brother chapter to get the full picture sorry

Floyd

okay Floyd is the most caring out of all the brothers. cant tell me this boy isn't wholesome as shit. That and he would go to the end of the world and back to keep his brothers together.

despite not really knowing what's really happened to JD (basically the whole feral behavior) He's the most willing to be near or around JD reguardless of how terrifying he might seem.

He's still his brother and that doesn't change even if he's entirely different now. Floyd wants to get to know his older brother none the less.

Very gentle and calm well JD is around, he knows JD won't hurt him no matter what his brothers say

gentle touches and pats till JD grows more comfortable with being around trolls again.

very carful because he known the whole draining thing took a lot of of the two of them

Branch

A lot of mixed feelings. He's mad, concerned, scared (for both himself and the trolls around JD because of how unpredictable he is) but he also understands the most clearly what JD could have been put through to turnout like this. (mainly the greyness big oof)

He's still mad at JD but he's also the first one to start really questioning and trying to figure out how he came to be like this.

also research go brrrrrrrr mans ate the entirety of the wildlife section of the library to better understand JD

feels weirdly connected to him because he also lived along for years

Also realizes that he could have turned Feral like JD so has a mini existential crisis about that

Bruce

he sad and also concerned and confused

Doesn't really know what to do

Tries to go dad mode but then realizes he doesn't know what to do so he just kinda stands there with a blank expressing and hands on his hips like "well shit."

Clay

scared, he is so terrified of JD you have no idea

anxiety go brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Clay nervousness makes JD nervous which is a bad thing for both parties

So Clay runs away

JD standing in the distance

Clay "He's just standing there MENACINGLY!"

Poppy

Do her damned-est to help Branch anyway she can weather that be researching or asking other Trolls, even kingdoms if they've ever had a similar occurrence (she keeps it discreet though out of respect for the brothers)

She is concerned for Branch (the other too ofc) but knows that this is something the brother have to figure on their own.

number one moral support

Makes a scrapbook based on Floyd's description of JD since he's been the closest to him so the other brothers can see JD

Viva

More chill then Poppy but still greatly concerned for the brothers (mainly Clay)

Talks to him about the whole thing so he can vent

Poppy and her also talk to each other about it all well making scrapbooks (Viva helps poppy with making the JD pictures as close to Floyd description as possible)

anyway hope this answers you question enough for now till i get more story written!

[goldlockets-and-redwine]

You're The Worst | Chapter 1

Pairing: Touya Todoroki x Reader

Word Count: 875 words

Summary: Paw's and Claw's has a fun staff. However, the nosy bad boy, Touya, loves to pick on you. What will happen when he notices the array of bruises hidden under your sweatshirts? Maybe he isn't so bad after all.

Author's Note: So, this fic idea has been in my mind for a while. I hope everyone likes it. This will be a multi-chapter fic as I don't have a ton of time to write. Oof. Please be patient with me. Also, I inserted my cat Thomas because it's almost been a year since he passed, and I think of him every day. I know. So self-indulgent.

TW: Domestic Violence (Not from Touya), Fem!Reader, Violence in general (There will be a fight, not in this chapter though.), drinking, smoking, cursing. Let me know if I missed anything!

“That looks like shit.”

Good god, I wish he would just shut up. This is the third time today he’s butted into my work.

“No, it looks great Touya. You’re just an ass with shit handwriting. Jealous much?” We looked over my work. The sign looked great honestly. I really outdid myself this time. In delicate script it read “Tom” adorned with little hearts around the name. I put up the sign on Tom’s’ kennel, a large grey and white cat sitting at the farthest possible corner of the kennel away from the door. “Do you have his bio?”

“Of course, what am I? Incompetent?” He made quick work of putting up his bio underneath the name card I made. He typed his up like normal. I gazed sadly at the big tom cat sitting in the cage. “Hey doll, he’ll get adopted. You always get too attached.”

I grimaced at the pet name. He always looks for a way under my skin. However, he took it upon himself to never call me by name. I need to come up with my own for him. Maybe he’ll leave me alone if I come up with something heinous.

“Some of us have hearts, jackass.” Wait, that one fits. Still not original enough. I glanced at him to see him already staring at me. If looks could kill. You would think working in a shelter there would be nice coworkers here. Everyone else was nice. Not this guy. His intimidating look didn’t help his case. Tattoos were everywhere but the one on his face gets the most frowns from potential adopters. The row of flames over his left brow. Wait is that… “Touya, did you redye your hair? You should do a better job of not getting that shit on your skin. You look insane.”

“Why you lookin’ at me so hard? Like what you see?” My face was already showing my irritation before, but now I could feel it twist in disgust.

“No. The hair dye stains are really not doing it for me.” I do a swift 180 degrees and make my way out of the cat room and into the lobby once more. “Hey Toga! Any new applications come in?” Her face lit up as she looked up at me. Her sharp canines stuck out as she smiled.

“(Y/N)! We had one come in for Mochi!” She was practically jumping out of her chair. “Dabi! Come and look at the place!” Touya leaned over the counter and looked down above the monitor as I walked around the desk. It was a beautiful house in suburbia with a huge fenced in back yard. “Mochi will love it, don’t ya think?”

“He’ll love it little vamp.” I said. My eyes hovered over the screen to notice the time. “You should head out. It’s 5:30! You know the boss won’t be happy about you staying over too much.”

Toga pouted, but I was right. Tomura gets so pressed when she stays over. It must be that big brother dynamic. She got up to gather her things for the evening and shut down the computer. “He’ll be fine, but I’ll tell him you guys said hi!” With that she gave me a big hug and skipped towards the door and out to the parking lot. Touya turned and stared at me as soon as he had locked the door. Without saying a word I got to work cleaning the lobby. Working with animals was messy and there was a mix of dog and cat hair being swept up. I heard Touya’s heavy boots moving towards the hallway leading to the dog kennels. I instantly relaxed and continued my chores, completely blocking out my thoughts.

-

“Doll,” My body was on autopilot as I put away the cleaning supplies. “Don’t ignore me doll. It’s time to bail.” I quickly finished putting things up and grabbed my bag. Both our footsteps synced as we made our way to the door. Touya held the door open. “Ladies first.” I could hear the cockiness in his voice. He wasn’t going to get a reaction out of me so late in the day. My car’s taillights blinked as I unlocked it. Today was a hot one. The evening sun was shining on me. I pushed up the sleeves to my sweater and was nearly to my car when I heard Touya’s deep voice closer to me than expected. “That’s a nasty bruise.”

The sweaters I wore for the last 6 months were to avoid these questions. It was no secret Kai, my boyfriend, wasn’t the best guy. His record was a mile long. No one would know he mistreated me, however. Kai made a good show of being a loving boyfriend while also being a piece of shit in every other aspect of his life. He won me over with gifts and treated me like a princess. He said I was his perfect girl. Do men treat perfect girls like this?

“Mind your business.”

Touya’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not a dumbass, (y/n).” With that he got in his black 5.0 mustang and pulled out of the parking lot leaving me standing next to my car.

[serendertothesquad]

Favorite OS fanfics? If you read them

Oooooh well do I got some for you, anon! Shame a lot of my favorites are restricted to Google Docs and aren't publicly published anywhere, but I'll give some a shoutout anyway.

Ships Ahoy!: An absolute classic. Lilac's entire slate OS-wise, really, but Ships Ahoy will always be a favorite. Beautifully crafted with great character dynamics, big old lore, and lots of gut punches that make me go "oof" and then sob eternally. There is also...

Full Circle: An unofficial sequel to Ships Ahoy that focuses on Olive and Oscar's relationship, with Otto, Otis, Oona, Oprah and Olympia all playing matchmaker to try and get them back together. Holy shit is it one of the funniest Odd Squad fics I've read, especially as far as Otis not knowing what shipping is and Olympia and Oona's shipping war is concerned. The A/N at the end is also something that resonates with me a lot, and as someone who writes OS fanfic, I like to look back on it every once in a while because it's very true.

Forever and a Mile: This one is a bittersweet and adorable one-shot that focuses on Octavia in the time she was tube-blocked by O'Brian and was confined to Precinct 13579's HQ, as well as Opie, the mysterious ballpit agent. I love this one because it gives a lot of depth to the ballpit and shows off some of the levels within it, while also making me feel sympathy for Octavia for all that she's going through.

OSMU: Fanfiction Friction: I'm putting this one here mainly because it's one of the few OSMU fics I've seen. It follows the Mobile Unit as they realize that, well, there are no fics written about them, and they do all this wild and crazy stuff in an effort to get a story out of it. There are an absolute fuckton of jabs to various things -- Elon Musk, ABBA, the comic book industry, and even the author himself, among others. There's even a bit where the author makes a jab at someone who was a bit of a pervert who liked to make up stories about agents naked and/or in bathing suits (key word is "was"; they got banned from Deviantart twice and AFAIK they are not around anymore), but you might not know that without context. If you're uncomfortable with that, though, the rest of the story is just as enjoyable if you skip it.

Viva La Vida: Villain Olive is a popular concept in the fandom. This is one of the earlier instances of it! The winner of a trivia contest held by Lilac, the idea for this one was conceived by Joshua Kilimnik and the story was written by Lilac. It features Olive slowly turning to the odd side due to a rapidly declining sanity with Odd Todd giving her all the pushes she needs. I like Olive's internal struggle throughout the story, as well as the (bad) ending which caps things off perfectly. (There's also a good ending, added for those who don't like to see Olly-child suffer. Just as beautiful!)

Icing: Fuck your two-sentence horror stories. All my homies hate two-sentence horror stories. Have a 91-word horror story that's one hell of a flashfic and puts a terrifying spin on what was already a pretty terrifying line in-series.

Through Frostbitten Stone: There is another fic I read a long time ago where Olympia manages to get hypothermia while trying to save Otis. (That's the gist of it. The full context would derail this bit.) This fic takes a bit of a different turn from that, with Otis getting hypothermia instead of Olympia, and is also one of the longest Odd Squad fics I've ever seen (and that is barring my own, thank you). It's a hefty read at nearly 30k words, but it's a beautiful read that showcases the Otis-Olympia partner dynamic perfectly.

...Okay fine. FINE. Two more and then that's it. God there are way too many good ones.

Star Agents: This was one that was Google-Docs-exclusive and has now been published onto AO3. And thank God, because it is incredibly good for an AU story where Otto and Todd are partners while Olive is on the villains' side. There are more chapters that are buried in Google Docs currently, but I recommend keeping an eye on this one for updates.

From The Desk of Doctor O: I like the format of this one. Dr. O trying to reform Odd Todd through court-mandated therapy sessions is also a really neat concept. Mainly because, if Odd Squad's judicial system were more realistic, I can 100% see court-mandated therapy being a thing. Definitely looking forward to seeing where this goes.

---------------------

This isn't an exhaustive list by any means, but there ya go, my list of favorites. I do like how the fic scene is still going strong with this fandom 10 years later lol.

Of course, I'm also nominating my own stories: my FiMFic catalog of crossover stories, and my AO3 collection of stories. Enjoy!

[dracothedeatheatingcupcake-ao3]

Dinner Disaster (Ishimondo Week 2024, Day One)

Hey all!! So, like I promised, here's my first entry for Ishimondo week!

It's... okay, honestly. I struggled a lot more with this one than the others, and I think it's kind of obvious, but that might just be me and my tired brain finding everything I write awful, so who knows, ha. I hope y'all like it!

It's not super complicated, just a little exploration of Taka and Mondo having a dinner with their respective families. I honestly completely lost track of time, and while I knew that Ishimondo week started on the 14th, for some reason I thought that was tomorrow?????? Even though I knew that yesterday was the 13th and that today, inevitably, had to be the 14th???????????????? I have no idea, oof. Anyway, because of that I kind of rushed the ending, but if I hadn't, I likely never would have finished the story, so I hope it's not too bad. I also got like... no sleep last night since I'm trying a detox from my sleeping medication while I'm off work for the summer, so I'm a bit loopy right now, oof. Let me know what you think!

EDIT: I changed the name of the story, just because I wasn't a big fan of the original title. Not sure how I feel about the new title either, but eh. It's better I guess.

You can find the story here

Summary:

It should be a simple dinner, all in all. A way for them to blend their families and their lives, showcasing to the world at large that they are not only together, but that they are going to last. Of course, nothing is ever quite as simple as it should be. Ishimondo Week, Day 1 Prompt: Family/Date.

[onboardsorasora]

girl i keep thinking about your enchanted au and I find myself craving more 🥹 I can’t wait for the kiss 😭💗 how is daniel doing with christmas approaching? are they going to spend it together? will he do the mandatory christmas cleaning with all of his animal friends? so many questions 🤓

Oh my dear! I know we've already gushed about the actual factual fireman's hose of ideas this ask inspired, but I am SOOOO excited to write it all🫨🫨!!! Here is the first bit, that includes our hive mind 😍

Part 1 | Part 13

Part 14

Max opened his front door, wearily depositing his suitcase in the entryway and letting the door click close behind him. Jimmy came to greet him with a small chirp and Sassy wasn't behind him so that meant Daniel was either holding her or doing something silly so she was watching over him.

Now that he focused on the absence of Sassy or Daniel, he heard Daniel's voice coming from the open patio door.

“But Chellie I don't have Jessie or Rii to help. I can't clean by myself! There's so much” Max could hear Daniel's pout a mile away. He had no clue who Jesse or Rii were or what he was cleaning however.

“Well if you want to prepare for Christmas properly you have to clean, Bub.” Michelle's voice was at least suitably sympathetic. “Why don't you ask Max to help you?”

“Well I dunno if he even celebrates Christmas. That's a whole thing first.” Daniel sounded hesitant, his lips forming his words over the thumb that was in his mouth. No doubt he was biting the nail in worry.

Christmas was coming up, Max had forgotten with all of the recent changes. He normally went home for the holiday so he wouldn't have to think about decorating his place here. He doubted that would be happy news for Daniel to hear. Max didn't want him to think that once again he was changing his plans because Daniel’s presence was ruining them.

Max took out his phone to send out a text to his mother and sister suggesting they have Christmas celebrations here in Monaco instead of back in Maaseik. They both responded quickly in the affirmative and Max felt a small relief in his chest. That was one problem down, now to try to figure out what Michelle and Daniel were talking about in regards to preparations. 

Max never really paid much attention to the whirlwind that usually happened around Christmas time. He was always too busy with work. He only knew it was coming closer when businesses and cities would start wrapping their trees with lights and ornaments. Then he would get a text containing a wishlist from his family and then he’d have his manager buy all the gifts. Then, he would fly home to spend the holidays with his family, his mother’s house would already be fully decorated by the time he got here and his contribution to dinner was more often than not a salad that he made off to the side of the kitchen so as to not get in the way of his mother and sister and their big cooking.

Were there special traditions that they had in Australia? Did Daniel’s family do anything specific that he would be missing? He walked into the kitchen while typing ‘christmas traditions in australia’ into his phone. Quite a few things popped up, some blogs and a few news sites. A lot of them made absolutely no sense to Max, including Christmas meals of prawns and seafood barbeque. He hoped that wasn’t something Daniel was particularly married to. He wasn’t sure he could provide any surfing– there was no telling with the waves in Monaco, but there could absolutely be a beach day and a Christmas lunch. Max had no clue what a pavlova was, but it was on every blog as one of the top three things about Aussie Christmas so he needed to see if there was a bakery nearby that would be able to bake it for him.

He was so deep in his research that he didn’t hear when Daniel walked into the living room and shut the patio door behind him.

“Maxy! You’re home!” Daniel’s grin was bright and he skipped through the common areas to throw himself into Max in a big hug. Max made a small ‘oof’ sound but his arms wrapped around Daniel’s smaller form quite easily.

“I am back.” He confirmed unnecessarily. He’d only been gone for a few days (with strict instructions to Lando that Daniel wasn’t to get drunk again), but it felt way longer in ways he wasn’t sure he was ready to confront. An american holiday was coming up and the team had wanted him to film some content. Christian and Adrian had also used that time to lock him in the sim to go over data for the new car.

He had been fine when at the factory, being distracted by work. But when he got back to his flat in Milton Keynes, he had felt the absence of everyone acutely. He’d gotten used to having a full house. Jimmy and Sassy used to prowl around silently and give him their attention, nowadays they were chirping and meowing when not with Daniel. Max always knew where they were as if they were keeping him updated on their whereabouts. He hadn’t realized how much he’d come to appreciate or listen out for it.

And Daniel, of course Daniel was louder than the cats. And his presence filled the flat. When he wasn’t singing or humming, or shimmying, or frolicking, or anything that was the complete opposite of staying still and quiet, he was in the proclaimed cat nest whispering sweet nothings to the cats. Or chatting on the phone to his family (or Max’s, he’d overheard many short conversations between Daniel and Vic or Luka). Daniel was a very bright spot in his home life. And his flat in Keynes felt very dull and grey while he had been by himself.

Daniel disentangled his octopus limbs from Max and filled a glass with water from the tap and handed it to the slightly confused man. A blush bloomed on Daniel’s cheeks.

“Jimmy said you normally drink water when you come back and you haven’t yet.” Daniel whispered, a tad embarrassed. Jimmy chirped from the countertop as if cosigning.

“Thank you Daniel, and Jimmy.” Max accepted the glass and drank it down in a few gulps. He watched as Daniel started picking at his cuticles, biting the small bit of skin by his thumb. He was nervous. “Is everything alright, Daniel?”

“I… uhm. Do you have plans for Christmas?” Daniel rushed out almost in a whisper, as if he was afraid of the answer. Max knew he was.

“Mom, Vic and the boys are coming here. Is that ok?”

Daniel sagged with relief and Max felt his own shoulders lose their tension. 

“Oh good! Thats– thats good.” Daniel muttered to himself. He looked at his phone as if checking the time before looking back up at Max again with hesitant brown eyes. “Uhm, do you guys have any traditions that you do?”

Max made a show of thinking to himself, looking to the ceiling as if he was pulling from distant memory and not that he had spent the last maybe twenty minutes freaking out about the same subject.

“It would be better to ask Mom or Vic, I think. But, of course, we are having a tree and Christmas lunch and dinner. The boys normally wake up really early to open their presents and they help Mom make breakfast. I think there is a Christmas market as well.” He looked over at Daniel who was paying close attention with his active listening face. He looked like he didn’t want to miss a detail.

“Oh! Ok, I can call Vic. where do you keep– no that's ok I can ask Sassy–”

“Where do I keep what?” Max asked quickly, a bit of dread creeping down his spine. He looked over at the cat in question quickly, she tilted her head questioningly before he looked away. He needed to have a quick talk with Sassy so she wouldn't give him up. Never before now would he have ever considered his cat a secret keeper….but look at him now.

“Oh, well I just wondered where you kept your decorations, is all. When do you normally put them up by? Mama likes to get everything started on the first.”

Max felt a cold sweat on his neck and he swallowed the lump in his throat at the thought of lying to Daniel. He didn’t lie– didn’t see the point of saying something that wasn’t true, not even to spare someone’s feelings. But he couldn’t make himself come clean about this, he didn’t want to see the sadness on Daniel’s face.

“I need to buy new ones.” he blurted, not a lie. Not the whole truth either, but Max was considering it a PR win, a media spin. Like when a journalist asks him a question Vicky already told him he wasn’t allowed to answer.

“You do?” Daniel’s eyes lit up at the thought of christmas shopping and Max knew he said the right thing. He nodded, so he wouldn’t have to think of more incorrect statements. “Oh that's perfect! I’ll make a list!”

And then Daniel was off, and Max felt his shoulder’s sag in his own relief. Jimmy jumped off the countertop to follow after the Aussie whirlwind and Sassy stayed on her perch atop the fridge. She gave Max that look again, the one he was starting to recognize as being way too smart for any cat to be.

“He doesn’t need to know, ok. We keep this secret to ourselves.” Max muttered to his cat, complete with putting his finger on his lips in the shushing gesture. Sassy tilted her head again in the opposite direction before chirping again and jumping to the countertop. He offered up scritches and she purred in response, it seems they came to an agreement.

“Good girl, you’re the best Sass.” Max murmured lovingly.

Part 15

[sassysnowperson]

Why am I not writing anymore?

I've been kicking this one around inside my head and have decided to share here. See if it helps me get it out of the incoherent jumble in my head and into some orderly thoughts.

Burnout?

This was why I stopped writing. I should have stopped writing at the pace I was probably about a year earlier, but I really wanted to hit a million words on AO3. I did! I'm glad I hit the goal, but oof, I felt it. But I don't think that's what's happening right now. I've had time to recover, work got a lot less stressful when I changed jobs, I'm happier. I'm not exhausted when I think about writing anymore. But I'm not doing it.

Well, wait, AM I not doing it?

I do have a couple people I chat with about fandom things. It's not writing for an audience, but it is creative. That's where I figured the energy was going. But interestingly, I started doing word count on my therapy notes, out of curiosity. Yeah, I'm writing at least 2k a week at work. It's not creative writing (but it is narrative writing) and its THE EXACT OPPOSITE of for a public audience, but it is burning similar energy in terms of sit down at computer and type time.

But is that really a bad thing?

Maybe not! I think the time at the desk is bad, but I don't have to write at my desk. Laptops enable gremlin writing everywhere. And maybe it's easier to write when I'm already in the habit of writing.

Really?

Maybe? I'm not pivoting from notes to fun writing, so the momentum isn't quite there. But I gotta admit, word counting the therapy notes did wake something up inside me.

Word counting? Seriously? What about The Story That Needs To Be Told? Creativity?? Having something to say?

Wow, inner voice, you got judgy real fast there. I think...I think you're part of the problem. Aside from like, three fics out of that million words I wrote, I never started knowing the complete story. I have a rough idea of what I want to say, or a dynamic I want to explore, and then I find the rest as I go. So if I'm waiting for The Story That Needs to be Told, I'm probably not gonna write again. I think I need to fall back in love with the process.

You wrote a million words in four years. What was the process that worked then, and why isn't it working now?

Well, part of it was the wordcount. Not making words for words sake, but having a solid metric to point to in terms of progress. I have ADHD, and the fact is if I want to do something, I need to make it fun and measurable. Tracking wordcount is both. But it wasn't just wordcount. It was also talking with people about things, gift giving, writing hangout time, and other people's excitement motivating me. I don't have that consistently right now. I have people that have made it clear they'll cheer me on (♥️), but I don't have it as a habit, as a part of my regular day to day life.

Why not?

Well, I stopped writing. That's kinda a big one. But also...writing took up a lot of time. I stopped watching new media, basically. I wrote the most while I was in a reading slump. I'm not comfortable with this idea, but I think I need to wrestle with the idea that I focus on one thing at a time. I don't know if I can watch all the Dimension 20 seasons and write like I did. I don't know if I can have a good reading life and a good writing life. That makes me sad. I don't want it to be true.

But is it? Sometimes sad things are true.

Too right, inner voice. And I don't know! I think I can safely say that without intentionality, I will tend to do 1-2 leisure activities at a time. But I now that I'm thinking about it, I suspect the trouble is in task switching, not the task itself. If I make a goal to task switch, maybe I'll be more able to.

And set more reasonable goals. You probably can't write 250k words a year and do other stuff.

Yeah, probably not. Maybe I should set a wordcount maximum, to make sure I do other stuff too.

But do you *want* to write? Do you miss it?

...yes?

Oh man I hoped I'd be more confident in answering that. Do I want to write, or do I miss being A Person That Writes?

Well, we already established you are actually writing a lot right now. So maybe let's phrase it as: Do you want to tell stories to a wider audience?

...Yeah. Yeah I do! I miss that! I miss being a storyteller.

So either you find some other way to tell stories...

Like framing my self-analysis as a conversation?

Maybe this whole method should have tipped you off sooner, yeah.

Good point. On both counts. Either I start a podcast or a twitch stream or something, or I go back to the way I'm most comfortable telling stories.

Writing.

Yep.

So what are you going to write about?

I don't know, inner voice! But waiting on that to be clear hasn't worked. Think I just need to start somewhere. But it's good to know I want to start.

[hugsandchaos]

What Comes After Four?

Summary: Five short stories based on @zumbieve‘s list of little plots and headcanons.

Notes: Please know that I tried doing a bit of research on how to grow lavender, but I don’t have any myself. Or any plants. So to any lavender gardeners reading this, I apologize in advance if I get things wrong. Also, I’m sorry if the hinted sonadow bit isn’t as great as hoped. Any tips or suggestions on how to write it better would be very helpful! Oh, and I’m sorry if the last bit seemed rushed. It didn’t go according to plan, but I think it fits after watching the shenanigans in the Netflix series.

Word Count: 7,624 (This is the longest post I’ve ever made, y’all, my poor fingers)

1.Two Hearts Racing

If there was one thing Shadow truly appreciated about the universe, it was moments like this. Moments when he could relax and enjoy the scenery. The clouds above looked like if someone took cotton balls and glued them together, then made the finished products big and tossed them into the sky. The sunlight was pleasantly warm and bright. It felt as if no matter how much shone down on him, he was stuck between being happy with the right temperature and wanting more.

Shadow stood still in the field close to the edge of the nearby forest with his arms crossed. His head hung low and his eyes were closed. He occasionally opened them to look around, but other than that, he was busy taking in his surroundings with his other senses. It had rained recently, so the pleasant smell or petrichor still lingered in the air.

As for what he was hearing, Shadow’s ears were more sensitive than one would think. He heard all sorts of animals around him, but none of them seemed keen on approaching him. Except for one thing. A pair of footsteps.

Shadow opened his eyes again and turned towards where the footsteps were coming from. They were fast, really fast, and heading right towards him.

Sonic came out of the forest and skidded to a stop next to Shadow.”Hey, Shads!” He greeted. He raised an arm and leaned to the side to try to use Shadow’s head as an arm rest, but Shadow stepped backwards and almost let the taller blue hedgehog fall down. Almost. He grabbed him by the arm to hold him just an inch off the ground. Sonic made a noise of surprise and moved his arms around for a second. He turned to look up at Shadow, who looked down at him with slight irritation.

“I’m not an arm rest, hedgehog.” Shadow said.

Not only was this Sonic taller, but a lot of other anthropomorphic animals that were as big as Shadow were bigger, too. Amy, Knuckles, Sticks, but thankfully not Tails.

Sonic smirked and crossed his arms below him.”Well, why else are you short?” He asked. Shadow resisted a small laugh at the snarky remark.

“Because Professor Gerald knew if he made me any bigger, I’d truly be unstoppable.” Shadow replied. He let go of Sonic and let him fall the very short distance to the ground. Sonic’s face collided with his crossed arms, so there wouldn’t be much damage to it. Sonic let out an “oof!” when Shadow let go.”Now what is it?” Shadow asked. Sonic stood up and brushed himself off.

“I’m bored.” He said with a groan. His arms hung downward as he leaned forward a little to express his statement.”Eggman hasn’t attacked in a while, and there’s nothing to do.” He added.

Shadow raised an eyebrow at him.“Is that supposed to be my problem?” He asked.

“It is now.” Sonic replied. He poked Shadow’s face. Shadow didn’t care much for it the first time, but then the blue hedgehog had the nerve to continue. This time, Shadow turned his head away. Sonic persisted and stepped around him to poke the other side of his face. This time, Shadow lightly smacked his hand away. Sonic crossed his arms and furrowed his eyebrows.

Shadow turned his head to look up at him and simply stared for a short while. It wasn’t exactly his job to entertain Sonic, but what was the harm in doing it for a while? Shadow got an idea.”Alright, let’s race.” He said.

Sonic smiled and pumped a fist, almost hitting himself in the midsection.”Yes! Where’s the finish line?” He asked. Shadow looked around and pondered it for a moment. He pointed at one of the cliffs in the distance. It was so far out that there was a slight tint of blue to it.

“That cliff.” He said.

“You’re on.” Sonic said. He stepped forward to be even with Shadow.”Ready? One, two, three, go!” He said, rushing through the countdown. Sonic was off as soon as “go” left his mouth, and for a split second, Shadow watched the blue hedgehog take off. He fondly shook his head a little. That was an old trick. Then he followed after Sonic.

Shadow pushed chaos energy into his shoes to give them the power needed to gain speed. Soon enough, he not only caught up to Sonic, but passed him. He heard Sonic laugh and say “Oh, no you don’t!” before the blue hedgehog picked up the pace to catch up. Seeing him return, Shadow pushed ahead and let a small smile appear on his face.

~~~~~~

“Ha! I won!” Sonic said.

Shadow stopped and felt a very, very light thud as the power in his shoes vanished and let him back down onto the ground. He rolled his eyes at Sonic.”Yeah, yeah, act like I didn’t go easy on you.” He said.

Sonic smirked and bent over a bit to be at eye level. Honestly, Shadow was a tad bit insulted by it. Not enough to actually make him mad, though.”I know you didn’t. You seemed to be having fun, so I know you were trying.” Sonic said. Shadow turned away and walked towards a cliff.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Shadow said. He stood the cliff edge and looked out at the ocean below. He crossed his arms out of habit.

Shadow wasn’t unfamiliar with tropical climates, but that didn’t mean they were his favorite. The high temperatures and humidity that was pretty much year-round got irritating after a few weeks. And being in the middle of the ocean like this meant storms must be common, especially with an island that was ultimately small like this one.

Surprisingly, he’s only experienced a few regular storms while being here the past few weeks. Still, Shadow much preferred the temperate climates. He liked the changes through the different seasons. Thinking about them, Shadow suddenly missed the snow a little. It was freezing and a bit of a problem in some missions, but still beautiful when he could take a minute to enjoy it.

There were a few mountains high enough that snow somehow remained on the peak everyday. He could go there in a few minutes.

“What are you doing?” Sonic asked.

“Enjoying the moment.” Shadow replied. Sonic sped from the opposing side of the cliff to the other and stood next to the hybrid.

“One of those “slow down and enjoy the moment” times? I didn’t think you were that kind of person.” Sonic said.

He hadn’t said it in an insulting manner, but he did sound a little sarcastic or like he was mocking him or others when he mentioned slowing down to enjoy what’s around you.

“Sometimes.“ Shadow replied. His eyes moved from one small wave to another. He could see several sea birds fishing down below. Their white feathers were a pretty stark contrast to the blue water they were soaring above and diving into. Shadow thought he saw some black moving in there as well. Did he know any black sea birds? Puffins were the first to come to mind, but he doubted they lived on the island.

Sonic sat down and let his legs dangle off the ledge. Shadow felt his heart pick up for a second seeing this, instantly worried that the blue hedgehog would fall. He stopped himself from reaching down and pulling Sonic away from the edge.”I guess it is kind of pretty.” Sonic said. Shadow nodded and soon turned his gaze back to the sea.

This Sonic was different from the one he knew. The most obvious difference being their height. Another thing was their attitude. This Sonic was more impatient and rather dumb. Sometimes, Shadow would watch him and Knuckles and think to himself that there’s only one braincell between the two of them and they either takes turns with it or can’t find it when it’s right next to them.

Not to mention immature, and what was it with hating pants? That didn’t mean he had no good qualities, either. As mean and sassy as Sonic can be, he clearly cared about his friends. He made fun of them, but meant for it to be lighthearted. His love for them often overcame his urge to make comments about things like Amy disliking fun when they were in danger.

Shadow recalled that time Tails had a migraine and Sonic spent the whole day looking after him. He tried setting up a perimeter fence around Tails’ house to prevent anyone from coming in and being loud, then proceeded to close every single curtain and try to get around only by flashlight. Tails was practically grounded that day and restricted to foods easy on the stomach.

Sonic had actually come to Shadow for his help with food that would be okay for Tails to eat without making him feel worse. Shadow helped out, and Sonic kept pacing back and forth as quietly as he could.

He also helped out the rest of the group at times, and when he does, there’s often a lot of effort put into it underneath some snarky or sarcastic comments and jokes. He also cared a lot about the village, despite how stupid and ridiculously rude the villagers can be. Shadow heard about how they got upset at Sonic for calling someone “a guy” and said he needed a lesson in compassion and empathy, even though he saved them from Eggman so often.

He thought it was absolutely ridiculous and ungrateful behavior. Shadow made sure to tell Sonic how he thinks that his efforts to help despite their behavior towards him was respectable and admirable later that day.

He had his flaws, but he also had his strengths. Taking care of his loved ones was one of them.

Shadow paused his train of thought immediately. He pulled the brakes so fast, they snapped and he hit the wall behind him.

His loved ones…

How was he going to explain to Rogue he’s fallen in love with a taller, goofier version of Sonic?

“You know,” Sonic piped up. Shadow blinked and glanced down at him.“I wonder why Eggman hasn’t attacked in a while. It’s honestly suspicious.” Sonic said.

Shadow resisted laughing at his comments.“Yeah.” He said, looking back at the ocean. He could practically hear and feel Sonic turning his head to look at him. Shadow gave no indication that he knew Sonic was looking at him.

“You did something, didn’t you?” Sonic asked. It wasn’t really a question. Shadow briefly thought back to his late night activity of breaking into Eggman’s base and unscrewing several robots and appliances, including but not limited to every pot and pan in the kitchen, then scattering them all around the island.

“I plead the fifth.” Shadow said.

2. Flowery Language

Shadow didn’t like Hedgehog Village one bit. The people were stupid and impolite, and Dave’s voice constantly sounding like a whine just angers a part of Shadow, like a knee-jerk reaction. The people were very noisy, and the town was usually bright. Not to mention the smell. That was partially thanks to the fact that being the ultimate life form obviously meant Shadow had to have good senses, but it turned out to be a double-edged sword.

To put it simply, Hedgehog Village was a small sensory nightmare. Obviously, he could tolerate it and keep his mouth shut, but if he didn’t have to, he wouldn’t. However, Amy asked for his help going to the library to look for a specific book. The library might be at least a little quiet, so he agreed.

He honestly envied her and the others sometimes for not being so irritated by these things in the same way he was.

Surprisingly, he was right about the library. He still heard lots of things, but it wasn’t as loud. Shadow knelt down to look at the lowest shelves and scanned the books from one end to the other. He stood up and shook his head at Amy, who looked disappointed.

“It’s gotta be here somewhere.” She said. She closed the book she had in her hands and put it back onto the shelf.”Let’s check the science section. Maybe it has botany books.” She suggested. Amy turned around and started walking towards the science section of the library. As a whole, it had quite a few shelves for such a small library.

Shadow followed her.“Why the sudden interest in lavender?” He asked. That plant was the reason for the trip in the first place, and they hadn’t found anything in the “Plants” section. He wouldn’t be surprised if it was to research what it symbolizes or if it can be used as a tea, which it can, but he figured he’d ask anyways.

“I want to buy lavender for my garden, but I have to learn how to grow and maintain it, and no one in Hedgehog Village knows how to do that!” Amy said. She’d accidentally let her frustration get to her for a moment and raised her voice.

As if on cue, the librarian — a purple monkey — peeked around a nearby shelf and shushed Amy.

Amy paused and smiled sheepishly.”Right. Sorry.” She said, this time in a much quieter tone. The librarian gave her the probably universal “I’m watching you” sign before rounding the shelf again and vanishing from sight. Amy’s expression fell and she glanced at the ground.“It’s ridiculous because it’s such a nice flower. You’d think at least one person would know how.” She said.

Shadow stood beside her and crossed his arms.“I’m not surprised.” He said. Amy looked at him confused and Shadow felt he needed to elaborate.“Lavender doesn’t grow in high humid climates, and unless you provide it the proper care, you won’t be able to. Lavender typically prefers full sun, well-drained soil, and a climate with cool winters and hot, dry summers.” He explained.

Amy’s eyes widened and she gasped. She suddenly grabbed Shadow by the shoulders. The action was fast enough to startle him, but he didn’t pull away, just glance at her arms.“Do you know how to grow it?” She asked hopefully. Shadow waited a moment to respond.

“Yes. I have a few seeds, actually. Would you like me to help you plant them?” Shadow offered.

Amy pulled her hands off him and nodded.“Yes! Let’s go!” She said.

The librarian shushed at her from around another bookshelf.

Amy’s shoulders scrunched up a bit and she looked at her apologetically.”Sorry!” Amy whispered.

~~~~~~

Back at Amy’s house, Shadow showed Amy the seeds.”These are French Lavender seeds. From what I know, they grow better in warm climates than other types of lavender.” He said. Amy nodded to show that she was listening.”It’s a good thing you brought this up now. Winter is the best time to grow lavender in tropical climates.” He added.

“As you know, the sun can get intense in the summer and afterwards, it rains, which increases the humidity and makes it pretty intolerable for the plant to thrive. I suggest we plant them now in a seed tray.” Shadow said.

Amy nodded.“Got it! I have a spare one in my shed. I’ll go get it!” She said. She stood up and rushed outside. A moment or two later, she returned with a black seed tray. She set it down on the table in the middle of her living room.”Got it. Now what kind of soil will we need?” She asked.

“This lavender grows best in well-drained, slightly alkaline, nutrient-poor soil with a pH between 6.7 and 7.3. You can avoid amending the soil with organic matter before planting. I heard we can mix it with a bit of sand to improve drainage.” Shadow replied. Amy nodded and went out to the shed. Shadow placed the seeds on the table and stood up to go help her find the best kind.

Shadow scanned the bags of soil before he picked out what he believed to be the best choice. He’d done research on how to grow lavender in a tropical climate out of curiosity, so he hoped that this would turn out well for Amy. It only took a few minutes to plant the lavender seeds into the tray.

After that was done, Shadow took a piece of paper from Amy’s Arts & Crafts drawer and started writing down things that Amy would need to remember. That the lavender would need full sun for at least six hours, to water it only one or twice a week when they’re still seeds, and to water them every two or three weeks once the roots are established.

What to look out for and how to fix the problem was written down, too. After, he put the pencil down and looked at Amy. She reviewed it and smiled.“Thanks for the help, Shadow!” Amy said. Shadow could see from the way that her arms moved for a moment that she wanted to hug him, but resisted.

He felt a little grateful for her restraining herself from hugging him without warning or asking. However, now was a time he’d accept a hug, so he stepped closer and offered one. It was just a brief side hug, but Amy’s smile grew, so Shadow took that as a success.

“You’re welcome. If you have any questions, let me know.” He said.

“Well, here’s one! Since it’s lunch, wanna stay for lunch and tea? I’ve got a new kind I think you’ll like.” Amy suggested.

Shadow pondered it for a moment before he nodded.

3. Campfire Talk

It was an odd thing to know how you got yourself into something, and yet still question how you got into it. Shadow knew this, now more than ever, but not in a bad way. There weren’t any threats around, and the weather wasn’t bad. It was good, actually. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, which allowed Shadow a nice view of the stars through the canopy.

However, when he agreed to go on a camping trip with the group, this wasn’t what he was expecting. He expected them all to go together, not be split up into three groups. Shadow also expected Sticks to want to go with Shadow the least given how she acted strangely about his chaos abilities. Shadow wasn’t going to argue, though. One of the things he appreciated about the feral badger was that she could easily keep quiet and not make it feel awkward.

Sonic and Tails teamed up while Knuckles went with Amy. Everyone else was close enough that they could shout for each other, but they were far enough apart that they wouldn’t hear much of what each other would say. Shadow sat in front of the campfire and stared up at the stars. The fire crackling, wind in the trees, crickets, and occasional owl hooting was little more than pleasant background noise.

Sticks was sitting by her tent and hadn’t spoken much in a while, which was appreciated. Moments like this, when Shadow could take a moment to look around, listen, and relax, they were precious to him.

Unfortunately, it was cut short too soon by the sound of rope being disturbed and pulled, followed by the frantic squeaking of a rabbit. Shadow and Sticks both looked over and Sticks sighed.”Just a rabbit.” She said to herself. She stood up and walked over to the trap that’d been set off with a hunting knife. She cut the rabbit free and started resetting the trap that was meant for actual threats.

The rabbit bounded off like its life depended on it. In a way, it did.“I’ve got some food in my bag if you want any.” Sticks said. She finished setting the trap back up and walked over to the log they dragged to use it as a seat.

“No thanks. I don’t feel like eating.” Shadow replied.

Sticks sat on the log and sighed.“Okay, be completely honest with me. I’ve got to know. If you say yes, I won’t tell anyone of you don’t want me to.” She asked. The atmosphere suddenly turned serious when she said that.

Shadow had conflicted feelings about the badger. As much as he can deal with her paranoia and conspiracy theories, the ones about aliens, science experiments, and agents strike a nerve in him. At least she’s toned it down a little since he said he wasn’t a normal hedgehog and repeated that he was the ultimate life form. They made him sound less of a person.

“You say you’re the “ultimate life form” and not only a hedgehog. My question is; Are you an alien or not?” Sticks asked.

Shadow was used to not showing how he feels, so he was able to avoid letting the conflicted feelings from that question reflect on his face. Shadow could lie, but she promised. Then again, people do lie about promises and break them. But maybe he could give her a chance? She’s his friend now, isn’t she? Friends trust each other with what species they truly are.

“Complicated question. I was created on a space colony, and half of my DNA is from the Black Arms alien race.” Shadow replied. He glanced over at Sticks to see how she’d react.

Her eyes were widened a little in shock, but they’re not also looked curious. Her eyes moved up and down as she looked him over. Shadow would’ve preferred it if she didn’t do that, and he was going to say it, until she looked at something behind Shadow.“Is that why you have those red stripes? And why your quills point up instead of down like Amy’s and Sonic’s?” Sticks asked.

“Yes.“ Shadow replied. He thought for a split second that the reason she looked behind him was that there was something behind him. Guess she was looking at his quills. Sticks nodded in understanding and turned back to the fire.

The campsite descended back into silence. This time, there was something hanging in the air. Nothing heavy, but rather light. It was like a silent understanding, and glancing over at the badger, Shadow soon realized what the “understanding” part was. Sticks was probably realizing that being an alien didn’t inherently mean someone wanted to control people’s minds.

Shadow couldn’t help but think that it was about time she realized that, but better late than never.

“What was it like? Growing up in space?” Sticks asked quietly.

Shadow pondered that question. He thought back to what the ARK was like before and how to put it into words.“It was… quiet. There was the constant noise of the engines and machines, people going about and doing their jobs, but it was overall quiet. Instead of a sunrise or sunset, a lot of the automatic lights would slowly dim until the room was dark. The view of the Earth from the windows never got boring.” He said.

He spoke in a quieter tone than usual. He could feel a wall coming down slowly, and he decided he’d let it. It was a simple, innocent question.“Sometimes, my sister and I would stand in front of one of those windows in a room not very frequented by other people and talk about… everything, I guess.” Shadow said. He hadn’t even realized he was still going until he was halfway through.

He looked back at Sticks again and was a little surprised to see that she had an excited look on her face.“You have a sister? What’s she like?” She asked, eager to learn more about Maria.

If she’d asked that before they became friends, Shadow might’ve been saddened by the question, and that sadness would almost immediately turn into anger. He’d probably have turned around and leave quietly, not wanting to speak and hold himself back from lashing out. Or maybe he would’ve said “She’s dead” and hope it would get her to shut up.

Now, however, Shadow actually felt a little happy she asked. He felt happy to have the chance to talk about her. The corners of his mouth curved up into a small smile.“She was very kind and caring. Professor Gerald might’ve been my creator, but she was my first friend. Her name was Maria. She made me feel safe, especially during the first few months of my life.” He said.

There were a million more things Shadow could say about her. He could talk about her love for the cosmos and prehistoric life, and how she’d request books and even a curriculum for those two subjects whenever she was asked if she wanted anything from Earth. He could talk about how she would fly off the handle at the scientists whenever they’d harm him to test his healing and regeneration abilities.

He could go into detail about the many times Maria would be both encouraging and cautious when he wanted to practice his abilities, or that time he declared her his favorite person and she pointed at Professor Gerald and laughed at him as he dramatically said that Shadow had broken his old, frail heart. Shadow could go on and on about his life on the ARK, and a good portion of it would be spending time with his sister.

Then again, everyone else was often busy, and given their close bond, it sometimes felt like they were the only thing the other truly had during the bad days.

“Would she like me if we met?” Sticks asked. Shadow snapped out of his memory trip and came back to reality. He took a moment to process the question before he answered.

“You know what? I think she would.” Shadow said. Sticks lit up a little at that and smiled as well.“She would’ve joked about how since she grew up on the space colony ARK, she was technically an alien. And something tells me that if she was still around for me to introduce you all to, the first thing she would’ve said was “Oh my goodness, you’re all short” and then laugh.” Shadow added.

Sticks’ face suddenly fell while he was talking. It took Shadow a second to figure out why, but once he did, he wanted to turn away.”Oh. I… I’m sorry for your loss.” Sticks said.

“It’s fine. I’m still going through it, but… I think this was one of the times I wanted to talk about her.” Shadow said. He turned his gaze back up to the stars. Just as he did, a shooting star flew across the sky in a brief streak of light.”Thanks for giving me the chance to talk about her.” He said quietly.

He heard a small hum from Sticks, and surprisingly, it sounded like she was saying “I want to say you’re welcome, but that’d be awkward”. After that, the campsite fell back into the sounds of the crackling fire and other such noises. The air felt a little lighter and Shadow felt a little more relaxed than before.

4. Twenty Thousand Questions

The heavy rain from the storm hit the roof of Tails’ house like a very loud, metallic pitter-patter. It hit the windows with a ton of tiny thuds, and the faint sound of water rushing down the rain gutters was only noticed during moments of silence between the two hedgehogs and one fox kit. Shadow sat on the hanging couch and smiled a little at the fort built in the living room using rearranged furniture and carefully placed blankets held in place by heavy books.

Inside the fort, Sonic and Tails were sitting together side by side. Tails was leaning against Sonic and huddled close to him while he tried to calm himself down. Just like in Shadow’s world, this Tails was afraid of lightning. To help him calm down, Sonic and Tails dipped into their routine and made a blanket fort for them to hide in.

Shadow chose to stay outside of the fort. He simply didn’t want to go in. He’d rather be able to look out the window and watch the rain smack against the glass. The dark grey skies weren’t very intimidating to him, and neither were the flashes of lightning or clap of thunder. He had no reason to hide in there. Although, he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t feel a little bad when Tails seemed disappointed that he wouldn’t join them.

“Shadow?” Tails piped up.

Shadow hummed and glanced down at the entrance of the fort closest to him. Tails had poked his head out of the fort and was holding a clipboard and pencil. Which was a little odd considering Shadow hadn’t noticed him bring it into the fort. Then again, it was Sonic who brought some things inside.“I have a few things I’d like to ask you.” Tails said.

A distraction! Shadow could try to distract him from the lightning by answering his questions. The hybrid gave him a nod. Tails lit up a little bit and he looked at the clipboard. Shadow wondered if he had these questions for a while and just never got around to asking them.“First question; Why do you wear those rings all the time? Even Amy takes hers off every once in a while.” Tails asked.

Shadow’s eyes flickered down to the golden rings on his wrists at the mention of them.“They’re my inhibitor rings. They stay on for everyone’s safety.” He replied. For a moment, he thought back to the last time he had them off for too long. The blast from the chaos energy when it went from gradually building to shooting up in power was enough to knock the rings and himself back.

Luckily, he managed to get them on since he landed very close to them. Still, it hurt a lot, and Shadow needed a day off to recover from the injury he suffered from the blast.

Tails raised an eyebrow at his response.”What do you mean?” He asked. His hand hovered above the paper, ready to write.

Shadow turned his gaze back to Tails.“I was created with chaos energy flowing through my body. Far too much for my body to handle, actually, so I have to wear these rings to help me keep the chaos energy under control.” He explained.

Tails perked up a little and raised an eyebrow.“Oh, yeah, you mentioned that before. What is chaos energy anyways?” He asked. It wasn’t the first time he’d asked that, but at the time, Shadow didn’t answer. He was busy trying to wrap his head around the concept of chaos energy not being present anywhere in this world.

It was funny. Even after a few weeks spent here, Shadow still felt a little shock hearing that question.“It’s… hard to say. It does all sorts of things, and it’s nearly impossible to control. There are seven chaos emeralds in the world where I’m from, each one with the ability to control an aspect of the universe. With all seven, one could turn their thoughts into reality.” Shadow explained.

Tails’ eyes widened and his jaw fell. Sonic scrambled to poke his head out above Tails’, which was honestly a little funny.”What?!” Sonic asked, just as baffled by what Shadow had said as his little brother. Shadow nodded and simply watched as the both of them simply sat in stunned silence.

Soon, they both looked to be zoning out. They weren’t staring at what was in front of them anymore, and frankly, Shadow began to worry that he just broke their minds. He was about to move or speak up, but Tails beat him to it.

“Control… reality?…” Tails muttered under his breath. Then he shook his head.”There’s no way!!” He blurted out in disbelief.

Shadow almost chuckled at this. He knew that in this world, chaos energy didn’t exist. He sensed it from the moment he appeared. The complete lack of chaos energy that he could usually feel around himself, some places more than others, had actually scared Shadow for a while. Ironically, Shadow being a creature of chaos energy seemed to be the reason why he was able to be there without causing some great damage to this universe.

If it didn’t exist in this universe, then he should’ve expected this sort of reaction from someone. Especially a kid. Shadow had a bit of a soft spot for kids. He wouldn’t say he was good with kids, but he definitely wasn’t the worst. He was patient with their endless questions about everything. Sometimes, he rather enjoyed answering them.

Their reactions to the answers he’d give them were often fun to watch. Just like right now. He smiled at Tails and nodded.”It’s true.” He said.

“Wait, so like magic?” Sonic asked.

Shadow deadpanned at him.“Chaos energy.” He corrected. Yes, chaos energy was largely unknown and worked differently than the rest of the laws of the universe, but calling it magic just didn’t seem right. From what he was told, there was magic, but it was different from chaos energy.

“Aaand you have some in your body?” Sonic asked, pointing a finger at him. He seemed to ignore Shadow’s correction.

It was a little irritating, but the hybrid tried to ignore it in favor of answering his question. For now.“Yes, an exceptional amount for any other living being. In fact, it’s how my shoes work. I can push chaos energy into them to power them. The more energy I push, the faster I go.” He replied. Tails started writing furiously on the paper.

The sound of the pencil tip moving around and against the paper was pretty small under the sound of the rain, which was still assaulting the house and ground with as much strength as when it suddenly came down.“So they won’t work if we tried putting them on?” Tails asked, not looking up from his paper.

“No, they wouldn’t.“ Shadow confirmed. Tails scribbled some more before stopping and looking up at Shadow.

“What else can you do with your chaos energy?” He asked.

“I don’t need to eat to live. I can survive off of the chaos energy, which I didn’t realize was something that seemed impossible until I told Rogue about it.” Shadow said. He had more to share, but he waited until Tails had it written down to continue. He found it endearing that Tails

“I use it to teleport. I simply imagine where I want to go in enough detail that it’s as if I’m there, and I’m there, but without any boost, I’m limited to close range teleporting. I can channel raw chaos energy as a form of electricity into a spear-shaped energy construct and fire it as an energy bolt from my hands. The damage done can be manipulated as well, so I can control if it stuns someone or inflicts major injuries.” He continued.

Suddenly, a loud boom from the storm followed by a flash of lightning interrupted the moment. Tails yelped and pulled himself further into the fort, his clipboard and pencil forgotten as the fell to the floor. Shadow leaned forward and turned his body to hop off the hanging couch, but paused.

Sonic was already wrapping his arms around Tails and giving him quiet words of reassurance and encouragement. Perhaps his comfort wasn’t needed. Still, Shadow moved off the couch and walked over to the fort. He sat next to the entrance, hoping that simply being closer would help so he wouldn’t interrupt.

A few minutes later, Tails had calmed down enough to turn back to the entrance. He saw the dark hybrid was closer and moved to grab the pencil and clipboard, then make himself comfortable next to Sonic. Now he wouldn’t have to peek his head out if he wanted to speak to Shadow. It was a small act, but he hoped it would help.

As time stretched on, Tails asked more and more questions. Questions about chaos energy, what Shadow can do with it, how the chaos emeralds and the master emerald work, what the rest of the world is like, and even asked about Rouge and Omega. Before they knew it, the heavy rain slapping the window faded away and the thunder grew more distant until it couldn’t be heard anymore.

The more Tails became fascinated with chaos energy and Shadow’s world as a whole, the less he paid attention to the storm. He was still startled badly by the lightning, but at least Sonic’s hugs and Shadow’s answers helped him relax and calm down easier. At end of it, the kit moved away from his main source of comfort and protection to get closer to Shadow to show him all that he wrote.

The dark hybrid took this as a win, and he hadn’t failed to notice Sonic smiling at Shadow with a certain look. It was like a silent thank you, to which Shadow nodded.

Tails looked up at Shadow from his paper and smiled.“This is all pretty unbelievable, but if you’re here, then it must be true. Still, I want to see some of it for myself! Since the storm is gone, let’s go outside and you can show me!” He said excitedly. He grabbed Shadow’s hand and started pulling him towards the door.

Shadow stopped himself from being pulled very far as Sonic got up. Tails looked at Shadow confused when he suddenly stopped. Sonic walked over to them and put a hand on Tails’ shoulder.“I don’t know, little buddy. It’s pretty dark out and you’ve been yawning for a while. You should head to bed.” He said.

Tails looked disappointed at that.”What? But I’m not even tired!” He said. That was bad timing since as soon as he said that, he opened his mouth wider and yawned. Sonic raised an eyebrow and smirked, silently asking if he was sure about what he just said. Tails glared at him. Shadow almost shook his head fondly at this.

“I’ll show you some of it tomorrow.” Shadow said.

Tails gave him a look of betrayal and stammered. Eventually, he groaned in resigned frustration and let go of Shadow’s hand.“Oh, fine. But I’ll hold you to that!” Tails said. He climbed onto the hanging couch and pushed the back down so he could use it as a bed. He grabbed a pillow and blanket, made himself comfortable, and closed his eyes.“Goodnight.” He said.

“Goodnight.” Shadow said back.

“Goodnight, Tails.” Sonic responded.

5. Brawn Gets A Little Brain

Shadow stood firm on the grass covered ground, refusing to move back even a single step and pushing forward against the red echidna. This other version of Knuckles was easily twice Shadow’s size, but he was far from twice his strength. In fact, it was Shadow who was currently winning. Knuckles grunted and gave another shove, but Shadow remained where he was.”My turn.” He said.

Shadow gave the echidna a shove with enough force to push him back, and nothing more. Knuckles made a noise of nervousness as he started to loose his balance and stumbled back. This was it. Shadow’s chance to end this. He gave another shove and stomped forward to make sure he pushed Knuckles onto the ground.

He let go of Knuckles’ hands when he started to fall back. There was a very small thud when Knuckles hit the ground. Shadow couldn’t help but feel smug and cross his arms. It was only a few minutes ago that Knuckles approached Shadow with a request. It was a simple one. Just a game of wrestling. Originally, the hybrid was going to decline, but Knuckles said he wanted to see how strong a short person can be.

Of course, he didn’t use all his strength, but it wasn’t entirely easy. Knuckles was still pretty strong. Shadow watched him take a moment to lay on the ground.”How’s that for “short person strength”?” Shadow asked sarcastically.

“Awesome! I’ve never been able to actually wrestle with someone.” Knuckles replied. He spoke with genuine happiness and he gave Shadow a thumbs up. He stood up and smiled at Shadow.”That was fun! Let’s do it again!” He said. He wiped a few beads of sweat off his head. Today was especially warm, and frankly, Shadow was most excited for a dip in some nice, cool water.

“Again? Even though you just lost?” Shadow questioned.

Knuckles shrugged and held both arms out.“What can I say? I’m suddenly feeling competitive!” He said. He quickly changed his stance and readied himself for Shadow to tackle him, hands open to grab.“Now come at me!” He said with a smile and playful glare. Shadow rolled his eyes, but obliged. He shoved himself forward and had to reach up to grab onto Knuckles’ arms and start pushing him back. He was met with resistance, but he wasn’t going to give up anytime soon.

(Twenty minutes of wrestling later bc I can’t figure out how to write it T_T)

Once again, Shadow won.

He was sitting next to the panting echidna on the ground and smiling a little, working to catch his breath as well. He breathed in through his nose, and out through his mouth.”You’re a respectable opponent, Knuckles.” He said. He continued the breathing exercise.

“Thanks. You too.” Knuckles said.

Shadow breathed out sharply through his mouth like a laugh. Of course he was. One should expect nothing less from the ultimate life form.

Once they both caught their breath, Shadow stood up and brushed himself off.”Are we going Round Three?” Knuckles asked.

“You mean Round Four. We just did Two and Three.” Shadow corrected.

“Oh, right. Sorry, not good with numbers.” Knuckles said. That was an odd thing about him. Sure, the Knuckles from Shadow’s universe was no genius, but he knew how to count. This one didn’t, and it became clear over time that it wasn’t just some joke between the group. Shadow didn’t really understand it. He figured someone would’ve taught him by now. If not a parent or teacher, at least the others. Should he teach him?

Wait a minute… If they weren’t joking about the numbers thing, then…

Shadow turned to Knuckles as he stood up.”Honestly, I can’t read, either. Or predict the weather! I wonder how the tv people do it.” He said. Shadow looked at Knuckles in disbelief and searched for any hint that he was lying and it was another weird joke. After a moment or two, he realized it wasn’t. Looks like his plans to cool off in the water would have to wait.

“Change of plans. Come with me.” Shadow said. He grabbed onto Knuckles’ arm, and in a flash of blue light, both of them vanished.

(Two Weeks Later)

“I want your love and I want your revenge.”

“You and me could write a bad romance.”

In the kitchen, Shadow worked on the waffles for breakfast. The window to his right let some of the golden morning light in, and his phone was placed on another counter safely out of the way. It was playing a karaoke version of “Bad Romance”, a song that was one of his favorites. It wasn’t on blast or anything, just loud enough for him to comfortably hear while quietly singing along.

The quiet music, pleasant smell of waffles cooking, and gentle morning light in his cabin made for a nice moment for the dark hybrid. Shadow paid no attention to the sound of the group moving around and talking in the next room, as long as they’re left him to his music.

“I want your love and all your lover’s revenge.”

“You and me could write a bad romance.”

Shadow opened the waffle iron and checked them. As expected, they looked great and ready to eat. He turned it off and unplugged it so he could get the waffles out and onto the plate.

“Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh.”

“Caught in a bad romance.”

Shadow left the waffle iron open to let it cool down. He looked over at the plate of waffles and the bowl of scrambled eggs. He was finished. But who said he couldn’t take a moment to let the music finish? It was almost done, anyways. Shadow smiled to himself and turned around the lean against the counter. He paused.

Sonic and Tails were standing in the doorway and staring at him. Both of them had eyes wide in surprise, but Sonic seemed more so than Tails with his mouth slightly agape. Shadow stared back at them. If it wasn’t for the karaoke music still playing, it would’ve been a slightly awkward silence.

Okay, the music ended. Now it was a slightly awkward silence.

Not wanting to appear embarrassed, Shadow raised an eyebrow at them.“Can I help you?” He asked.

Tails nodded.”Oh, yeah! Knuckles said you’ve been him how to read and count?” He asked. Sonic showed no sign that he heard him.

“Someone had to.” Shadow replied. He stood straight and looked over at the food on the counter. He grabbed a waffle off the plate, then his phone, and started walking towards the doorway.”Food’s done. Help yourselves to what’s on the counter.” He said. Sonic finally reacted when he came closer, shaking his head and stepping to the side to let him through.

Tails smiled.”Sweet! Thanks, Shadow!” He said. He rushed to the counter to start getting some food.

“Yeah, thanks! Oh, and Shadow?” Sonic said. Shadow paused and turned around. Sonic smiled nervously.”This is gonna sound really cheesy, but seriously, you sounded like an angel.” He said.

Shadow’s face suddenly felt warmer hearing that compliment. Damn it, how was this idiot making his heart skip a beat with one simple compliment?! He’s heard the same thing before from Rouge. He hoped to whatever god there was that he wasn’t blushing, and if he was, that Sonic wouldn’t notice.

“Thank you. Enjoy your breakfast.” Shadow said. He turned around and promptly made his way outside to stand on his porch and eat in peaceful solitude.

Ironically, Knuckles was sitting on the steps, but he was focused on the book Shadow got for him to start reading. Looks like he was enjoying it. Shadow stood to the right of the door and took a bite out of his waffle.

[bluelolblue]

📚 ⇢ what's the last thing you wrote down in your notes app? 

❄️ ⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best?

AAYAYA THANK YOU 💖💙

YAPPING TIME

📚 The last thing I have in my notes is me loving my two oc's. These two are special in some way

Okay, Romano and Luna complete each other. I honestly love this ship so much, and yeah it's canon. Just that I'll make it more meaningful. Romano x Luna is living in my head rent free. Romano needs someone like Luna and Luna needs someone like Romano, they are perfect for each other.

Nothing too exciting, but they mean a lot to me ^ ^

I'll also give what I have last written for a wip fic, why not :>

“What are you doing?” He asked, slightly annoyed with that action. “Just focus on what you're doing, Santi. Everything's okay, I promise,” Gianna said,

❄️ AAHHHH ommgg but there's so many ideas that I have in mind for Santino and John... like not just me writing it, but in general, it would be amazing if it was written by anyone. I was gonna say something with omegaverse, and yk it can be that, too why not but it's not necessary.

Hmm, a long plot of them never having peace. OOOH Santino having arranged marriage to keep the bloodline going (so he would also have to have a kid), even though he doesn't want that, he wants to be with John. Yk, Camorra... D'Antonio's... old-fashioned and have very strict rules. I mean, it can be without this, but it's something I was thinking about. Can't go without Santino having childhood trauma. Just make it even more intense... like it's really bad (why... why can't I just make him happy?) Hmm why not throw in the impossible task and them both nearly dying in the whole process. Basically, one nearly ended up sacrificing themselves for another. Like, it's really intense. Blood, crying... panic attacks >:] oof I got a bit too evil... and I'm not done yet! I had this idea of John cutting off his finger (like that scene in the 3rd movie), but like idk he had to do it for some other reason and it's not in the desert. And Santino managed to find him, sees all that, and wants to help him but ends up getting pushed away for his own safety. So everything kinda becomes too much for Santino and he has a breakdown and ends up destroying his room or idk wherever he is, he just destroys things. And even if Gianna or someone else tries to stop him, he pulls out the "I'll kill everyone and myself" talk. Like... he lost it a little (a lot 💀). So it gets dark... BUT OF COURSE it gets horny, too. We can't forget the horny ^ ^

So that's a big idea for a fic I kinda can say that I dream about. I did say anyone can write it, I'll gladly read more Santino x John fics. BUT @mrssimply I think is already doing such a great job of writing something already traumatizing and hot, like you have a fic that makes you feel it emotionally, that's a win for the writer (remembering how I was a little sobbing puddle with so many compliments and was shaking irl HHSHS). The way she writes Santino and John is really unique, and I think this could definitely work in that way. So, I think this idea would be written amazingly and make you really feel it! ^ ^

Ask game

[finniestoncrane]

Could I request the different riddlers' opinions on CnC? Are they into it? If so why? Why not?

I love your writing btw, you're my favorite blog! <3

CNC Opinions

Riddler Headcanons in my head they're all into it lmao BUT LET ME NOT BE SELFISH FOR A FUCKIN MINUTE HUH? 💚 request info • prompt list • send me a request • kofi • masterlist minors DNI!! 🔞 cw: cnc, safe words, aftercare, trauma

gotham

oof i do not think he'd be up for it

he's got a flair for the dramatic sure, but i think it'd hit too close to home

sure, he could play the part of the villain no problem

but the thought of even pretending to hurt or overpower you

seems a bit too risky, especially with his previous... unhinged... outbursts...

young justice

i think he'd try anything if he thought it would make you happy

but you wouldn't enjoy it, because he'd be so tense and nervous the whole time, which is not what you want from him

ALTHOUGH he would be... amenable to trying it the other way around

if that was your thing... if you wanted to maybe try and take control over him

anything for you, seriously... anything

twojar

listen, if he gets to fuck you and feel like a proper villain, he's into it

he enjoys playing into the bad guy role, in anything

so getting to have you whimpering under him with scared little eyes and a trembling little lip

clawing at his big, strong, overpowering torso as you beg for him to be gentle

music to his ears

unburied

he could take it or leave it. it would require a lot of convincing for him to participate

there's a lot of factors to consider, and he'd need a shit tonne of aftercare, regardless of what part he was playing

plus for him, he likes to know he's wanted

he needs to feel like you're grateful for getting to be with him

so the idea of taking that unwillingly, even as a form of roleplay, is something that'll take a lot of thought

dano

oh heck yeah he's into this, but only if you let him wear the mask

just gives him that boost of confidence and the sensation of true villainy that he needs in order to get into character

plus, eddie is a soft and gentle lover

the riddler however, he takes what he wants and no one can stop him

unless they use the safe word or they look too upset, then he'll stop oh god he'll stop please don't look too sad look he's taking the mask off and getting you tea omg

btaa

look, he loves roleplaying as much as the next person

but he enjoys separation of his career from his relationships

and playing the villain during sex wouldn't work for him

nor would it work with him playing the victim because he can't imagine a world where that's the case

(haha just kidding, but he's got a lot of trauma from being made the victim by batman so not for him thanks)

arkham

yes yes yes a thousand times yes

getting to dominate someone, listening to them beg and plead and promise him everything just for some mercy

which he has no intention of giving them? but will taunt them with the prospect of?

everything about it appeals to his more sadistic nature, which he's happy to indulge in every so often

so get your best eyeliner on for smearing and prep the duct tape

telltale

oh he's into it. really into it. kinda concerningly into it at first before you realise how much the rules and regulations turn him on

safe words are his kink, turns out

but he'll commit to the bit, for any roleplay scenario

and this is no different

but you might have to build up your pain tolerance a bit for what he has planned

capullo

maybe somewhat surprisingly, i don't think this is his thing at all

not the ego-boost he's looking for, having to force someone to be with him, even if it's just pretend

doesn't feel good

he might like it the other way round though

getting to scream no when he knows he's secretly enjoying it would be a good cover

[ghost-in-the-stalls]

asking for holy blue because thats my jam (this being sagemoderocklee)

Oof okay this one's rough, but I'll do it for you <3

Down below, I gave an explanation and then a small snippet, because that's the most you'll get of this fic in likely a very long time. But it turned into a pretty big rant about my insecurities surrounding this fic as explanation for why it hasn't had any progress in literal years, whoops. Sorry this is so long!

Basically this was one of the first fics I planned out back in 2022 when I really started properly writing fic. The last fics I'd written had been DC comics fics back when I was like 12. I think I said this once or twice, but your stories specifically actually inspired me to be like "no I CAN write a long fic actually!! Those non-porn-oneshot ideas don't just have to stay ideas forever!! I do have it in me!" which led to me plotting this fic.

I then got wayyyy too overzealous, posted a prequel (that I'm not super happy with now and would like to make some changes to before I continue posting), and plotted out the first half of a two-part longform series before I was really ready. It's halted for a number of reasons. Partly because I'm struggling to figure out what I want to really have happen in the second half of the story. The half I have plotted could be a full story in its own right, but it's meant to be continued, so the ending would be depressing and frustrating in an unsatisfying way if it wasn't continued in a second story after that. I'm stuck on a resolution, though, and on turning the ideas I have for the second half into a proper story.

Also, I got overthinking and made myself super insecure about characterization (especially in regards to Lee), as well as how much of the story was very directly inspired by several other big, incredible fics in the fandom by several different authors I hold in really high regard. The stress of living up to that inspiration combined with the fear that the story wasn't original enough in the form I had planned kind of put the brakes on the whole thing. And then I got distracted by a bunch of other fics that I felt more confident in. Horror is my strong suit, I think, and this is not that at all haha

On top of all this, there's a major plot point that comes to light near the end of the first half. It's the type of thing that I've seen written so well in a couple different fics, and so poorly in so many others. It's something that I know is not everyone's cup of tea, even when it's well-written. And I've been torn about how much to be up-front with this plot point and how much to hide it. I want people to know the direction the story is heading in for the sake of their own enjoyment; so people who wouldn't be into it can just avoid it from the get-go instead of getting invested first. But I don't want to spoil things too much. But also, if knowing the outcome of a story ruins the whole thing, then it just wasn't very well written, right? Knowing what happens later SHOULDN'T completely ruin the story. If it does, that's on me for not writing it as well as I should have.

This is the overthinking I've been doing lol this is why there's been no progress on this story. It's funny, because I probably have a higher percentage of this fic written than most of my other WIPs.

Basically, if/when I finish and continue posting this story, it's going to come after a great deal of planning and work. And I'm not going to continue it until I really sit down and parse through exactly what stories inspired it and in what capacity. And after that, if I feel that it's original enough, I'd still want to give links to the stories that inspired it when I post it.

I don't want to say TOO much about the premise, because there's a lot that's meant to be *dramatically revealed* as the story goes on, but I can give a general teaser: It starts with Lee, along with the rest of Team Gai, spending a year in Suna. In that time, Lee and Gaara begin a bit of a secret, illicit affair. Obviously, Gaara's position as Kazekage complicates things, but Gaara intends to make it happen for them anyway. Lee, however, has some hidden commitments of his own that puts an even bigger wrench in those plans. Then, the year is up, things have snowballed, and no one is ready to handle the fallout of Gaara and Lee's rush into things.

You get two mediocre snippets to make up for the lengthy anxiety ramblings <3 featuring Sand Sibs Bantering (+Shikamaru) and a first second kiss between Gaara and Lee.

---

Temari grinned wickedly, a look rarely seen outside the company of the family.

“Alright. We’ll be stuck with them for the next year, so get any negative comments you have out of the way now.”

“If Neji’s still got a stick up his ass, I’m gonna have to be sick for a lot of meetings down the line.” Kankurou jumped in, ready to complain at any opportunity.

“He’s way more polite when he’s in diplomacy mode, trust me.” Shikamaru had finally - after years - adjusted to the siblings’ mean streaks. He took it in stride now. “Besides, he’s mellowed out recently now that Hinata is the acting head of the clan.”

“I don’t think Tenten likes me very much.” Gaara added, unwilling to speak too ill of allies, let alone friends.

Kankurou laughed at that, “She probably just doesn’t know what to do with you, man. You know how Konoha shinobi are, they wear everything on their sleeve. Sometimes Temari and I can’t even tell what you’re thinking."

“Besides," Temari interjected, with the slightest note of griping in her tone (which Gaara knew she would vehemently deny should she ever be accused of it; Temari did not gripe, according to herself and everyone in the world, save those who've known her their whole lives.) "I’m more worried about bowl cuts one and two. There’s only so much of that energy I can take before I want to pull my hair out.”

Gaara found himself responding before he even thought about it, “Lee is just… passionate.”

“Okay we’re supposed to be complaining about Team Gai here but I honestly gotta say–” Kankurou leaned on Gaara’s shoulder, “I really don’t get what it is with you and idolizing guys who beat your ass when you were twelve.”

“I’m not an arm rest.” Gaara’s sand pushed Kankurou away, “And it has nothing to do with that. He’s very dedicated to what he does. It’s respectable.”

“What you got a crush on the guy now?” Gaara’s almost choked on his own saliva, collecting himself when he realized his brother was just – once again – taking a joke further than it needed to be.

The last thing he needed was his siblings catching wind of his ridiculous train of thought as of late.

“That’s enough, you wasted your time with it.” Temari elbowed Kankurou until he straightened out his posture, motioning to the four who had just approached the chuunin on guard duty.

“Didn’t even get a good joke in about the jumpsuits…” She muttered.

---

Lee’s rambling was cut off as Gaara sighed, seemingly fed up with the circles they were going in.

“Did you enjoy it or not?” Gaara crossed his arms and shut his eyes as he asked, almost like he was waiting for a blow to come.

Of course Lee enjoyed it. That was the problem, not that he could reveal that to Gaara at the moment. He enjoyed it far too much, and if he was smart he would nip this in the bud before it continued any further. Unfortunately, that would require lying, which he was never very good at.

“Yes…” but- he tried to say. The word stuck in his throat.

He didn’t want there to be a but.

Gaara’s eyes opened at that and his posture seemed to relax a bit. His torso shifted slightly as he breathed in, like something flowed through him, bringing him to life.

He took a step closer to Lee. Lee leaned in unconsciously. Gaara had to tilt his head up to look directly into Lee’s eyes.

“Do you want to do it again?” His eyes flicked down to Lee’s mouth, his neck, his chest, before pulling back up to his eyes. There was something there on Gaara’s face – a challenge, almost.

Lee could never resist a challenge, even against his absolute best judgment.

If the question was that simple…

“Yes.”

The word had barely left his mouth before Gaara reached up and pulled their faces together.

This kiss was different from the first. Where the previous evening was all hesitance and sweetness, there was a desperation behind this one – a heat coming from them both, creeping down their necks and filling the room.

One kissed turned into two, three, four… And Lee found his tongue creeping out to meet Gaara’s halfway.

[fandomfluffandfuck]

Please do the Chris Evans pottery fic! I legit have always thought about for years! Like him taking a night class or a private class for anxiety or hobby (that Scott guilted him to take) so he doesn’t get recognized and the reader (please preferably male) vaguely knows who he is and doesn’t care and teaches him and he falls in love with reader. Like a slow burn. Bro please I’m on my knees begging 🙏 your writing is god tier for Chris fics

related to this

First and foremost I have to say, goddamn, you really went back into the archives to find that post 💀💀 don't get me wrong, I appreciate the hell out of you for that but, also, oof, have I already been on Tumblr for 3 fucking years!?

What? When?

Second, I actually never thought too much about that idea haha. I just couldn't get past the idea of Chris using his hands in that way 🥴 because look, I'm much more of a sculptor than a potter, but it has never been lost on me (a) how much skill it takes to throw on the wheel, and (b) how fucking hot it can look lmao

So, because I never thought too deep about the idea beyond the look, I have to say That's A 👏🏻 Top 👏🏻 Notch 👏🏻 Idea 👏🏻

I love that idea, like:

Chris rolls up to a night pottery class with a baseball cap pulled down real low, trying not to be noticed, squeezing his shoulders in to be less big and noticeable.

You notice him though--he looks a little funny, trying so hard not to stand out and obviously not realizing that a long sleeve, chunky cardigan is 100% the wrong thing to wear when you're about to be playing with clay. But, you don't care about him being Mr. Movie Star (or dressed badly for this activity lol) because, obviously, if he's here for a class, he wants to learn

(Later you'll learn that Scott was the one to push him into it, telling him, lovingly, to quit just talking about beginning to work with his hands and actually Do It)

and so, he's gonna learn.

You are the teacher though, so... it's your duty to keep the secret that Captain America is in their midst.

(But that won't keep you from teasing him subtlety by asking him if he'd perhaps like a blue or red or clear glaze)

Chris might not pick up the skill of throwing as quickly as some of the others (mostly because he's never messed with clay before while many of the other students have even if it was years ago in high school or college or wherever), but he's dedicated.

He puts his all into learning throwing.

You learn quickly, instructing Chris, that he has this tendency to squeeze a little too hard and over-correct the clay. The strength he's got comes in handy with wedging clay and assisting in reconstructing the electric kilns by putting in the heavy shelves, but, when on the wheel, it's not about how hard you can press the clay, how hard you can squeeze it, or anything like that (unless you're working on huge, HUGE projects with massive amounts of clay... but, these students are not there yet). It's about letting your hands glide over the clay, it's encouraging the clay to stretch and compress delicately.

Pottery very much more finesse than force.

And you tell him that a lot in the beginning, "relax, for now, don't try to control it too much. Try to let go and just feel. Keep your elbows anchored in your hips and thighs, but, otherwise, stay loose and relaxed. Breath out. Sink into it, y’know? Relax."

Chris laughs, looking up at you from the little mound of clay he's been centering on his wheel head, "I didn't know this would be so... spiritual? I mean, shit, this feels like therapy."

"Ha," you say, "just be glad it's therapy and not Ghost."

Chris chuckles, "are those my only two options?"

"Right now, rookie? Yes." You point back at his unattended and still spinning wheel, "now, please put your nose back to the grindstone before I'm forced to saddle up behind you. I don't need to be shot in the streets before I get hands-on with my teaching"

You swear, under that cap and beard, Chris blushes. But. He also gets back to work, so... you can't be sure you're not just seeing things 👀

There are a lot of little moments like that throughout the class. Flirting. Maybe. Maybe not. Chris might just be that charming. You can't be too sure.

It's very charming to watch Chris pick up his wobbly creations after they've been put through the bisque kiln and laugh at their unstable bumps and lumps as he tries to set them flat on the table. Plus, when he sands his pieces, he murmurs to himself, talking about all the silly mistakes he finds. Nail marks. Dips. Bulges. Extra bits of clay he missed when trimming. You swear you hear him call himself a "meatball" once...

That is a challenge to not laugh at, but, you don't because you don't want him to know you're paying such close attention to him. (You can't have favorite students after all 😘)

And later, it's very sweet to watch him admire his first glazed pieces. He's very gentle with them, running his fingers back and forth, back and forth, over the smooth glaze. He seems to enjoy the smooth sensation.

Also, listen, I have no proof but I feel like Chris is gonna be the type of potter that gets Really Messy. Like, clay and slip all over his hands, of course, but also all up his forearms and flecks of it on his face and in his hair. His poor apron and shoes.

Also, I think Chris would be the type of potter that wipes their hands on their thighs over their apron 😮‍💨

Chris takes one class then another and another. He's getting much, much better.

But, he still looks like he's watching you perform magic when you quickly throw a vace or pie platter for a demonstration. It's really endearing. You'd love to see more of his face while watching you work, but, no matter how good you are at pottery, you can't do it without looking. Not yet... maybe someday, if you keep practicing.

And eventually, I'd like to think that you exchange numbers. Chris no longer takes your class and so it's fair game.

He comes over to your place and you cook a meal together because you already know each other well enough. So, you skip the more public dates that are better for strangers.

Chris seems mystified by the fact that ALL your plates, bowls, mugs, etc. are things you've made. Thrown on the pottery wheel. He just thinks it's very cool and personal. Also, he swears because of taking your class that he can't look at a factory-made plate or bowl or mug the same. They look so plain and lifeless now. In return, you tease that you'd offer to make him a set for his own home as a present (maybe for his birthday or Christmas) but, you're gonna insist that he at least try to make a set himself first.

And, hey, if he needs more encouragement maybe that Ghost option could come true...

Sorry, this is so short but I just had to get some real quick thoughts out between study sessions lol

Thank you so much for bringing this up again and thank you for reading!!