#there were 2 herons there the other day!

[gendzl]

I recently swapped the treadmill for Actually Going Outdoors and I'm sorry to say that everyone has been right all these years and fresh air actually does make a difference. how disappointing.

[szczylpierdolony]

oh also. there’s a little ghibli marathon during a film festival next month and i’m wondering if i should go….

[roguerambles]

A Moment of Respite

Blood of Zeus - Heron x Hera's!Daughter Reader

Warnings - 18+Only.

I've had this sitting in my drafts for ages and I want to get it out before I try any Season 2 stuff. Plus I just like the idea of these two, okay--

Kind of a Part 4 to Trouble.

Enjoy the Rambles!

-

Training was not going well.

You cringed as Heron flew across the arena, crashing into the sands with a pained groan. The automaton returned to its standing position dispassionately, and beside you Zeus sighed heavily.

It had been days since Mother had left Olympus, taking some of the other Gods of Olympus with her to the Underworld. Hades had apparently allowed them sanctuary, although he declared he would be taking no further involvement than that.

...your wrist ached as the memory of Mother’s hand grasping you, Hera and Zeus’s raised voices, Mother’s betrayed expression melting into a fury you had never had directed at you before flashed across your mind.

You had chosen to stay on Olympus, and Mother and Ares had left, others at their heels.

“Zeus.” Hephaestus spoke from behind you, his voice low and gruff. “This isn’t working.”

Zeus’s jaw clenched as Heron went hurtling across the arena once more, kicking up a dust cloud of sand as he crashed into the ground with a loud, painful sounding thump. “He needs to unlock his potential.” His large hands gripped the stonework of the balcony in front of him. “Soon.”

You were not much of a warrior, but you were fairly certain that if Hephaestus’s contraptions broke every bone in Heron’s body, that would be rather counterproductive to improving Heron’s combat efficiency.

As Zeus and Hephaestus continued to bicker in hushed voices, you felt a warm presence appear at your side. Apollo sighed as he leaned against the balcony, peering down into the training ground where Heron stumbled to his feet once more.

“He doesn’t give up, at least.”

“Is this really the best approach?” You nervously played with your hands as you watched Heron get up and be knocked down, over and over.

Apollo shrugged. “Athena is too busy preparing the defences, and Ares is with Hera. We don’t have a lot of options, training wise.”

You both continued to watch for a while, and you could feel your stomach sinking the longer it went on. Heron barely glanced your way.

You had not spoken since the night Mother had left, but the memory of Heron shocked expression as he looked at you – really looked at you – and the blind panic it had created in you made your stomach churn. You had fled to your room and would probably still be there if Hermes hadn’t forced you out.

“You should say hello.”

Your head snapped around to stare at Apollo, you was still looking out over the balcony. “I should what?”

“You should go over and talk to him.” Apollo replied casually, as though he were suggesting something completely normal. “The staring is getting a little old.”

“I am not—I am not staring.”

“Heron!” Apollo called out abruptly, loudly, and to your horror Heron actually looked up towards you. “Would you like some water? We have plenty over here—”

You turned to flee somewhere far, far away, only for Hermes – where in Tartarus did he come from – to appear, blocking your way with a small, but noticeable smile.

Traitor!

Zeus sounded displeased. “Interruptions are not—”

Apollo grabbed his father’s arm and began tugging him towards the stairs, so suddenly Zeus stumbled. “You are correct, Father, we should check the equipment on the other side of the arena—”

Zeus looked confused as Hermes joined Apollo in practically dragging the King down the stairs. Hephaestus rolled his eyes and stalked towards the automaton, muttering something about “those bloody sons of Zeus”. You were rooted to the stop as Heron slowly approached, his head low, as though he were struggling to meet your eye.

Your heart clenched as Heron busied himself gathering water, taking somewhat longer than was required for the task. The silence was so dense you felt it were almost choking you. You scrambled for something, anything, to say, but your mind was a void of disjointed words. I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you. I couldn’t tell you. Please don’t be angry. I’m sorry for Electra, I’m so—

“…you’re short.”

You were yanked from your frazzled thoughts when Heron finally said something. You looked at him in confusion, while Heron cringed, looking frustrated with himself. “I…pardon?”

“I just mean….” Heron rubbed the back of his neck, looking anywhere but directly at you. “You…the others are….you look different. Not bad, you’re beautiful, I just mean—”

“Oh. Oh! Right, yes, well, I wasn’t born like the rest of them. Mother—she made me out of clay.” Heron lifted his head to stare at you blankly. You felt your cheeks burn. “It is…unusual, I know.”

“…I’m sorry, was that rude—”

“No, no, not at all, you should hear how Apollo and Artemis were born—”

Silence fell over you again as you both fumbled over your words. You were torn between fleeing the arena altogether and staying exactly where you were because awkward or not you and Heron were talking. Over his shoulder you could see Zeus and Hephaestus by the automaton, and knew Heron would be pulled away soon. You inhaled deeply, steeling your nerves. I am the Queen of the Heavens daughter, by the Fates, act like it. “Heron….I am so sorry. About…about your mother.”

Heron looked pained, his fingers clenching around the waterskin in his hand. “…it was Hera, wasn’t it?”

It wasn’t a question, and you both knew it. You bowed your head, yours eyes beginning to sting. Do not cry. This isn’t about you.

“…yes.” You forced out, your throat feeling thick. “Heron…Heron, I know it’s not enough, but I’m sorry—”

“Why?” Heron cleared his throat, tossing the waterskin down. “It’s not your fault. You weren’t even there.”

“But….” You bit your lip. “Mother…I mean… Hera is—”

“Your mother, I know.” Heron wasn’t quite looking at you again, but he didn’t sound angry. Grief clung to his voice, and you fought the impulse to reach for his hand. “And Zeus is my…father. That alone made mother and I targets for Hera’s wrath. You had nothing to do with it.”

“Heron—”

Heron started to laugh.

You faltered, and watched as Heron hurriedly clamped a hand over his mouth, eyes wide as though startled by his own reaction. “I…I am sorry.” He choked out, eyes wide even as you caught glimpse of a mirthful smile behind his fingers. “Please…please continue…”

Your anxiety was briefly overpowered by confusion. “What…what is so amusing…?”

Heron’s shoulders began to shake. “I…I assumed your parents would disapprove of me.” He said, and the words seemed to break something in him. He doubled over, grasping his knees, eyes squeezing shut as he began to laugh even harder. “Now…now it turns out your mother is Hera. And…and I am the bastard son of her philandering husband….!”

You stared owlishly at him as his laugh grew louder – you could see Zeus and Hephaestus watching from the side-lines, their expressions suggesting concern that the automaton had hit Heron harder than they had feared.

“That’s…well yes, that is….Heron….Heron, it’s not funny!”

Heron tried to reply, but it came out as a wheeze. “I…gods…I had no idea…!”

You could feel a smile beginning to creep onto your face and tried to squash it, but Heron’s laughter was infectious, and was the most happy you’d seen him in…well, a while. “Well…no, I suppose…I suppose you are not what my mother would consider an ideal suitor…”

That brought on another wave of near hysterical laughter, and you found yourself giggling along with Heron, until you were both cackling like lunatics in the middle of the arena. You slumped against Heron’s shoulder, clamping a hand over your mouth as you saw Zeus heading towards you both.

“…if you are both finished?” He asked dryly, his eyebrows raised. Heron’s laughter stuttered to a stop, but he didn’t move away from you, the feeling of his body against yours leaving warmth against your skin.

You reluctantly straightened up, brushing away non-existent creases in your dress. “I suppose….” You gestured wordless at the arena. Zeus eyed you cautiously, before clearing his throat and turning back towards the automaton, as though he were examining it. Heron rolled his eyes slightly as you bit down a chuckle – you supposed he was trying to give you both a moment.

“Wish me luck.” Heron gripped his sword, his free hand rising to sheepishly rub his neck. “I think I’ll need a fair share of it…”

You laughed slightly, reaching out to gently pat his arm. He smiled in response, before sighing and trudging after Zeus.

“I think that went well.” Hermes said cheerfully from behind you. You nearly jumped out of your skin. “Don’t you think that went well, Apollo?”

“Indeed!” The Sun God chirped, appearing at your side. “See? All is well that ends well.”

“You two do remember…” Artemis sighed from somewhere behind you – when did she get here? – “…the approaching civil war, yes?”

“Small victories, dearest sister.”

You flushed and turned to stride back towards the stands, while Hermes and Apollo snickered to themselves. Artemis rolled her eyes as you sat beside her, although a small, teasing smile began to tug at her mouth. “Although….I did notice he didn’t deny it when you described him as a suitor.”

“Artemis!”

You blushed furiously as the Goddess of the Hunt laughed, and your stubbornly kept your gaze ahead, focusing on Heron on the sands below, feeling just a little bit lighter than before.

[thatfandomslut]

Late Night Calls

Regina George x Reader

Word Count: 1k

Trigger Warning: just two in love ladies talking until 2am on a school night

Request:

Valentine's / Followers Celebration; Regina George w/ quote 18 and chocolate 10. Or: “I like you. So there’s that. I guess I have that.” w/ late night phone call

Valentine's / Followers Celebration Requests are closed.

When Regina George was at school, it was known that she was not someone who you could approach. She wore an icy glare that could kill anyone they laid eyes on, her lips were either twisted into a scowl or a sickly sweet smile, and she was tense. However, as she smiled over at (Y/n) on the other side of the FaceTime call, there was no trace of Queen Bee Regina George. Instead, Regina's features were warm, soft, and relaxed. Instead of her tense shoulder, it was obvious that she was relaxed as she laughed at a story that (Y/n) was sharing about her day.

"There is no way that happened. She fell into a trash can?" Regina asked with wide eyes and a big grin. If it wasn't for the fact that (Y/n) was discussing a story that occurred with Cady Heron, the clumsiest human to ever exist, then Regina would not believe her. "Don't get me wrong, I love Cady, but she is such a mess sometimes. At least it was only you two that saw her fall, right? Please tell me no one else saw her fall into that trash can, (Y/n)."

The corners of (Y/n)'s eyes crinkled as she laughed at Regina's reaction. (Y/n) wasn't talking bad about Cady, she was just shocked at what happened and had to tell her girlfriend about it. "We were alone, yeah. Though I do think Janis and Damian saw it down the hall, I don't think they'd tell anyone." (Y/n) said thoughtfully, adjusting on the bed to get more comfortable. She saw Regina frown a bit at the mention of Janis and Damian, and (Y/n) sighed softly. "Baby, it's okay, I actually think they are okay with Cady. They seem to kind of like her." She said, hoping to ease Regina's worries about how Cady, a Plastic, falling in the trash can might spread.

Regina let out a long sigh and (Y/n) examined her expressions thoroughly. Throughout their relationship, she got really good at figuring out how Regina felt about something with just a twitch of her lips or the way her brows furrowed. But she couldn't figure out what Regina was thinking at that moment. "I just really, really don't like Janis Imi'ike," Regina stated after taking the time to decide what she wanted to say. This was already something (Y/n) knew and there was obviously more Regina had to say, but she decided not to push it.

Instead, she leaned into the phone with a soft, pouty expression pulling at her lower lip. This made Regina smile a bit as she looked over her girlfriend with a questioning look. "Is there anyone or anything you do like, Regina?" She inquired softly as she waited patiently for her response. It was 2 a.m., and (Y/n) found herself fishing for compliments from her girlfriend playfully. They were both tired, but neither of them was ready to hang up the phone yet.

A smirk tugged at Regina's lips before she pulled the bottom one in with her teeth. "I like you. So there’s that. I guess I have that." Regina told her, her voice soft. "Scratch that, I love you. So there's that." This was how Regina chose to drop the first 'I love you.' She couldn't help it when she saw how cute (Y/n) looked with her pouty lips and puppy dog eyes that Regina couldn't find in herself to resist. She adored her girlfriend, and she knew that now was a better time than any to tell her how she felt. It felt like the right time, anyway.

Regina's words caused (Y/n)'s eyes to widen as she perked up. She smiled slowly as she looked at Regina's expression for some long moments. "You love me?" When Regina nodded, (Y/n) had to hold back a little squeal but anyone could read how excited she was on her face. "I love you, too, Regina." Happiness dripped off of every word as she looked over Regina. "And I'm mad I can't kiss you right now!" (Y/n) couldn't even fake pout again with how excited she was. She could barely hold her phone still as moved to sit up and look for her keys.

"What are you doing, babe?" Regina asked curiously. She had a hunch, but she didn't want to jinx her own thoughts.

(Y/n) grabbed her keys as she stood up and pulled on a sweatshirt to shield her from the cold North Shore, Illinois air. "I'm coming to give you that kiss, and tell you how much I love you in person, too." (Y/n) said as she quietly snuck out of the house and got into her car. Their FaceTime didn't end despite (Y/n) driving. It was normal for them to FaceTime and drive, or even to just call and drive. They were always on the phone with each other.

When (Y/n) arrived, Regina ended the call and waited for her with a wide smile. She quickly welcomed (Y/n) into her arms as their lips clashed. "I love you so much," (Y/n) said in between kisses, causing Regina to smile on (Y/n)'s lips. "I love you, too, so much," Regina would respond as she gently brought (Y/n) into her home, both sighing at the warmth that brought feeling back into their fingers.

They were both out of breath from kissing as they looked at each other. "It's a school night. You should just stay here tonight. I'll let you hold me while we go to sleep if you do." Regina teased and (Y/n) playfully rolled her eyes at the offer. As if there was any other way that they would cuddle, Regina was definitely the little spoon.

"Deal," (Y/n) said as Regina took her hand and led her up the stairs to her room.

As they fell asleep, (Y/n) held Regina close, her lips never falling into a frown. It was late-night phone calls that always ended with moments like these. They were so completely in love, and it was moments like these as they cuddled that they were reminded about how lucky they were to have each other.

[fishenjoyer1]

Fish of the Day

Today's fish of the day is the spotted gar!

The spotted gar, known by scientific name Lepisosteus oculatus, is a common North American freshwater fish. Found across the South and Midwestern sections of the country, the spotted gar has a range stretching from South of Ontario Canada, to the Northern Gulf of Mexico. In Longitude their range is from Devils river in Western Texas to Florida, with particularly notable populations in the great lakes and Florida rivers. Within this range they can be found around clear and slow moving rivers and lakes, although they will put up with saltier brackish water, and areas with low dissolved oxygen. Spotted gars in particular are known for hiding along the shoreline, where they use vegetation as a cover from larger predators. However despite their large range, their numbers have been dwindling. Previously large populations of spotted gars, once found in Illinois their numbers have dwindled due to increasing lack of clear waters and habitat destruction by humans.

Gars themselves are an incredibly old living fossil animal, having evolved into existence 240 million years ago, in the middle Triassic period, they can still be found almost exactly the same as they were back then. There are only 7 extant species nowadays, spread almost equally across two families. The spotted gar in particular belongs to the Lepisosteus genus in particular, which it shares with the Florida gar, longnose gar, and shortnose gar. It can be visually distinct from these family members by the spotting patterns along the mature gars dorsal side. Other than the Lepisoteus genus, there is the Atractosteus genus, which is known for their ability to better withstand marine conditions, being made up of the alligator gar, tropical gar, and Cuban gar. Gars can be identified by the armored scales around their body and thin knife-like mouth. All gar contain a swim bladder that can be repurposed as a lung temporarily when not in oxygenated water, similar to many other living fossil fish from around this same time period.

Focusing once more on just spotted gar, their diet consists of fast moving prey. Primarily minnows, bluegills, sunfish, and other small fish in their shared environments.Other than fish, the gars diet is made up of freshwater shrimp, learvae, and other crustacean invertebrates. This diet supports them getting to a length of 2-3 feet, relatively small compared to other gar. Other than acting as a predator though, the spotted gar is predated on by larger fish, alligator, and heron. The life cycle of the spotted gar is like that of all other gar. Spawning occurs in the months of late spring to early summer from April-June, depending on sufficient water temperatures (70 degrees or higher) and amount of vegetation. Females can lay up to 20,000 eggs in a single breeding season but on average lay only 13,000. Like many gar eggs, these are adhesive and toxic to predators, taking only 10-14 days before hatching. over 80% of all fry hatched will die in this stage. But, of those who survive, they will sexually mature at an age of 2-4 years old, with most only living to the ripe age of 8-10. Although, in captivity some spotted gar have lived as long as 18 years before meeting their end.

That's the spotted gar, everybody! Have a wonderful day!

[confessedlyfannish]

Six Years Ago

Part 1

Part 2

Jon wakes slowly, warm and clean and strong for the first time in weeks. His stomach growls and he wants food, craves a thick juicy cheeseburger instead of feeling nauseous at the thought of it. Breathing comes easy instead of the slow rattle that was making its way through his chest, though the straps going around his face and the back of his head are itchy and the air itself is chilly, a strange icy patch around his mouth and nose amidst what feels like the best heated blanket in the world.

Strong arms shift around him, and the relief is so palpable tears of it form in his eyes as he slides them open, ready not to waste another minute of not seeing Superman, because Dad's found him—

Instead he sees a slight smile, inhuman in the jag of the canines and green eyes that glow in the vast abyss of space.

"Hey there, hey—" the man is saying, white hair drifting around his face, and he's saying other things but Jon is still looking for his Dad, his Dad was here wasn't he, those were his Dad's arms—

Except they weren't. They're this man, this alien's arms, one around his back and the other under his knees, cradling him in the flames of Earth's sun, and he was there, in the lab.

One moment Jon had been hiding from the robot that had been hunting him for days, taunting him as he dodged booby traps and ate leaves that made him sick. He'd grown weaker and dirtier even as Damian's voice in his head urged him to fight, to stay alive, and he'd fallen asleep to a violet sky and the ghost of his mother's hand on his forehead, cool against his warm brow.

He'd awoken inside of a tube, a concave shape of a person, holding his eyes open long enough to see the man peering at him as if he was an exhibit. Don't tap the glass. Or do. Jon wouldn't bite. He couldn't remember how.

And now he is here, threads of plasma tickling his skin, feeling better than he has in days. Behind the man is Earth. Home. Jon is only 93 million miles from home.

He can make it. He will make it.

He stares at the man keeping him from his home, his family, and the tickle in his eyes turns to fire in a matter of blinks. Red light hits the alien straight in the chest and with a shout, he releases Jon.

Jon wastes no time, flying in the direction of Earth. He'd struggle with this, all of this, but adrenaline sharpens his abilities. The mask strapped over his mouth and nose provide oxygen from the pack taped to his chest. He wants nothing more than to rip it off but he leaves it be.

His focus is singular, the apartment in Metropolis. He can feel his Mom's arms around him already. He's formulating what he will say to his Dad, how he will explain about Jor-El. He is worried they won't believe him. Ashamed of what he committed to and then ran away from. He told his Mom to go. He said he would be fine.

He doesn't want to think about the floating island, or talk about it, and he decides he won't. He is a runaway, a failed Superson, but he is not the boy on the floating island. He didn't shiver from fever, tearing at his cape to bandage the wounds from the robot's green metal claws. He did not scream in fear when a trick arrow carved a path down his cheek. He did not give up, covered in bush and counting his ribs like a messed up lullaby.

His Dad can make the trip to the Sun in ten seconds. Jon thinks he flies even faster, and later he will think that is the reason he doesn't notice the Watchtower is missing.

But he does notice Metropolis is gone. Instead of the Daily Planet's gleaming golden globe, he lands in a marsh. Herons fly up and away, squawking in startled choir as he touches down, water lapping up to his knees. He looks to his left but there's nothing but tourists on a floating wooden path in the far distance, taking photos of geese as they weave trails through the water that was supposed to be home.

He looks to his right, and the man from space is there, floating above the water.

Jon flies to Kansas.

By the time the man catches up with him, Jon is curled up in his grandparent's corn field, except it isn't their corn field. He digs a hand into the ground and brings up light, loose soil that tastes like citrus, acidic and unbalanced in a way Ma Kent would never let stand (and he lets it fall from his palm with a shudder, reminded of the mud on the alien island he'd eaten, before the nausea had set in but long after pride had fled). The barn at the far end of the field has a blue door, not red.

"Dad," Jon mumbles into the ground. "Dad."

Feet lightly touch down, but this time Jon knows they aren't his father's.

The man has no heartbeat, nor breath. Even the silver robot softly whirred. But the man is silent as he touches down beside Jon, who will not go back to the tube.

Survive, Damian's voice demands. Jon closes his eyes to the world, this utterly wrong world, and he flies.

Part Four

[amazingmsme]

Brotherly Antics

AN: day 2, here we go! This has been one of my favorite fics to write so far! It’s just so fun & playful, & I just love these characters so much! If you haven’t already, go watch Blood of Zeus! Now, on to the fic!

The fight was far from over, Heron knew this well. Their victory on the battlefield will be short lived, but for now, they could enjoy the rest and relaxation.

His friends remained on earth while he resided in Olympus for the time being, talking things over with his half siblings and training by their side. Their father would be proud.

Heron sat on the side of the field, drinking water as he watched his brothers spar. In a flash, Hermes ran behind Apollo, hooking both arms under his before slamming him to the ground in a cloud of dust.

"Why you little-" Apollo growled, swinging his legs to knock Hermes off his feet. His back hit the hard packed dirt with a pained groan. His eyes flew wide open as he felt an arm wrap around his legs and he began kicking with all his might, the wings at his ankles flapping frantically.

"Apollo don't! That's cheating!" he cried, a smile playing at his lips as he tried to shove him off.

"You cheated first! Attacking from behind like that, really Hermes?" he taunted as he began scribbling against the downy feathers. Hermes shrieked so loudly, it made Heron jump in shock, head snapping up to look at the pair.

"Ohoho plehease, you're just looking for ahan excuse to- NOHO WAHAHAIT!" Hermes cut himself off with a giggly squeal before hysterical cackles burst free from his chest. Heron found himself chuckling along to the infectious, goofy sound, though a blush was quickly spreading and he found he couldn't bear to watch the scene for long. He grabbed a whetstone and began sharpening his sword to appear busy, watching from the corner of his eye.

"Stick around long enough, and you'll be next," a gentle voice warned from behind, startling him enough to turn around. He relaxed slightly; it was only Athena.

"Trying to scare me away so you can have the field all to yourself, sister?" he teased, looking down to hide his blush. She snickered, something sly and knowing behind the sound.

"It was a warning. You're fresh meat for them, and if they see you sitting here..." she trailed off, looking him up and down. He squirmed under her gaze, furrowing his brows. "I'm afraid you'll be serving yourself up on a silver platter."

"That's ridiculous," he hissed, dragging the stone across the blade harshly. "They're all the way other there, and a little busy, if you haven’t noticed," he reasoned, a fair amount of sass entering his voice. "I'll be fine." Right? he didn't say aloud, but looked up at her expectantly, hopefully.

Athena arched a brow at his tone, cocking her head to look at him.

"Do you know what Hermes is the God of?"

"A lot."

Athena snorted and rolled her eyes, resting her hand atop his head and leaning on him like a table. "Be specific."

"Speed, travel-"

"Mischief," she cut him off, and he snapped his mouth shut, eyes wide. "And Apollo is almost as bad, though he may have you fooled. But, I mean, just look at who started this mess?" she nodded to the pair subtly, not keen on drawing their attention by pointing.

Heron followed her gaze, watching the pair roll around and laugh. Hermes was flopping around like a dying fish, cackling and pleading for mercy as Apollo pinched and rubbed the wings between his fingers. He scratched at the base of the wings where they met the ankle and his laughter spiked, surging forward with renewed energy to launch an attack of his own. He buried his hands under Apollo's arms and he jolted, slamming them down to his sides with a bark of laughter. Hermes let out a triumphant, giggly war cry as he fought for the upper hand. Heron smirked as they watched it all play out, but there was the faintest touch of sadness to it. These were brothers, who grew up wrestling and playing with one another, who loved each other wholeheartedly. This was everything he and Seraphim never got to have, and he bit back the vile taste of jealousy.

He wasn't jealous that he wasn't included! That's not what he meant, so don't go putting words in his mouth. He was jealous of the bond that never was; the brother- the best friend he should've had. It was like looking in a twisted mirror of what could have been.

His lip curled in a sneer as he scraped the stone along the sharp edge. "So?"

"Do I really have to spell it out?" she asked, more amused than annoyed. "You're our brother. That makes you just as much fair game as the rest of us," she teased softly. His mouth hung open in shock, but she cut him off before he could speak. "So if I were you, I'd get a head start. Hermes is quite fast."

Heron sat there frozen, looking between her and the wrestling Gods on the ground. He locked his gaze with hers, "Are you being serious?"

Athena chuckled, shaking her head fondly. "Trust me, I'm one of the few who won't pull the wool over your eyes." He nodded before heaving a deep sigh, accepting the truth of the matter. If she's right, he'll be quick work if he sticks around. So he gathered his things as quietly as he could, but by that time, he could hear their fight beginning to wind down. Still, he crept towards the exit, praying they wouldn't notice.

"Just where are you off to?"

Of course they fucking noticed.

"I'm done training," he said curtly, glancing over his shoulder to call out, trying to play it casual. When he looked ahead, he stopped in his tracks with a choked gasp as Hermes stood blocking the exit.

"Actually, I don't think you are."

"Excuse me?" he asked, tossing his things to the side, knowing it's best to ditch them now than while he's running for his life.

"You have to get a full workout. You can't just hit the weights brother, cardio is very important," he practically purred, taking a step towards him. Heron took three steps back.

"I think I'm good-"

"No, he's right brother," Apollo spoke from behind, and he tensed up when he felt a large arm rest over his shoulders. He slipped out of the hold, stepping away and turning so he could keep both of them in his vision.

"Why so jumpy Heron? Did our dear sister warn you about us?" Hermes asked with a smirk. Heron didn't move a muscle, and that was all the confirmation they needed. "She knows us so well," he mused.

"I'd hope so. Otherwise we'd need to give her a little reminder," Apollo piped up.

"I think we should anyway. She did tip him off," Hermes shrugged nonchalantly.

"Guess it's settled then," Apollo agreed. As the pair spoke, Heron took off running across the field. They gave him a few more seconds to believe he had a fighting chance before they gave chase.

Heron came to a screeching halt when Hermes suddenly stood in his path and he turned on his heels. He screamed when he saw Apollo coming up from behind, and he made a B-line for the rows of seats. He jumped over the wall into the stand, heading towards the exit. Apollo paced him on the field while Hermes circled around from behind.

Apollo jumped into the stands with ease, quickly gaining on him. Heron should've known better than to look behind him. It was the same kind of fear as when you're up high, and you look down. A small scream escaped his throat and he ran even faster.

He was grabbed from behind, and panic surged through his body. He shot forward with God-like speed, breaking free of the hold. Hermes cut him off at the last second and he froze, caught between his half brothers.

"You're trying awfully hard to escape. You must be rather ticklish to go through this much trouble to avoid it," Hermes teased, flashing him a smirk. Heron took a step back.

"No, I just know you two are awful together," he justified with a smirk of his own.

"Thank you, you're too kind," Hermes hummed, taking another step towards him, and Heron took that as his cue to start running again.

"Great brother, you let him get away," Apollo rolled his eyes.

"Relax, it's not like he'll get very far," he quipped, dashing off and returning in less than a second with a struggling Heron in tow.

"Noho, let me gooo!" He leaned back as far as he could, running in place as he tugged on his trapped arm.

"Oh dear, laughing already?" Hermes cooed, chuckling at the blush that spread across Heron's face.

"No! Shut up!" he snapped defensively. He landed with a thud on the ground when Hermes let him go, watching Heron launch himself into the dirt with his own momentum.

"Is that any way to speak to your brother?" Apollo asked, crouching down to grab his arms while Hermes straddled his waist.

"I'm sorry! Let me go!" Heron put up a good fight, trying to get away. However, he had a twitchy, nervous smile and the struggling was mostly for show.

"No can do. See, you haven't gone through initiation yet," Hermes drawled, resting his hands on his sides. "I mean, are you really our brother if we haven't tickled you until you cry?"

"What?"

"Oh please, you're scaring him. Don't worry Heron, we'll stop once you beg for mercy. We're not animals."

"No way, I'm not gonna beg from a little tickling," he argued. His defiance was adorable.

"Won't you?" Hermes asked, arching a brow. Heron faltered in his confidence.

"No?"

"Oh my, you sound a bit unsure of yourself," Apollo spoke up smugly. "What's the matter, afraid you'll crack?" he taunted. Heron grunted and strained to pull his arms down, but they were firmly pinned beneath Apollo's knees.

"I won't!" he growled, kicking his legs against the ground. Hermes smirked down at him, leaning in a little closer.

"Let's test it then, shall we?"

Heron's eyes flew wide open and he shook his head. "Wait, that's not what I meant!"

Hermes threw his head back in a shrill, hysterical cackle of his own. "Oh dear, sweet, baby brother, there really is no escape. So you might as well just accept your fate now." As soon as he finished speaking, he began squeezing his sides softly, relishing in the way Heron jumped beneath his touch, yelping before biting down on his lip. Still holding onto the last shreds of his dignity, he shook his head.

"Oh good! I was so hoping you'd go down fighting," Hermes chirped, clawing just beneath his ribs.

Heron grit his teeth together, sealing his lips shut as tight as he could, but muffled giggles and shrieks still managed to make themselves known.

"I just love it when they try to hold it in, don't you?" Apollo teased, walking his fingers down his arms. Heron jerked under the touch, arms straining to come down. His breathing came in quick bursts through his nose, sounding more like laughter by the second.

"It's only one of the best parts," Hermes agreed before clawing at his stomach. Heron immediately crumbled at the touch, allowing loud belly laughs to escape. Hermes couldn't help but giggle at the reaction, "Aww, you really are a ticklish one, aren't you?"

Heron felt a blush rise to his cheeks, and he tried to hide his face in the crook of his arm. "SHUHUT UHUHUP!"

"I didn't hear a no," Apollo pointed out, scratching his bare armpits. Heron shrieked and arched his back before flailing uselessly beneath his half brothers.

"You're one toho tahahalk!" he managed to taunt back.

Apollo gasped loudly before drilling his thumbs in the center of his pits. Heron was thrown into hysterics, and the God had to raise his voice to be heard over frantic laughter, "You little shit! Just for that-" He didn't finish his sentence, instead he brushed Heron's hair away from his neck and took a deep breath.

"Wahahait! W-what ahahare you- AHAHAHAHA OHOH SHIHIHIT!" Heron tried to scrunch his neck to block the feeling as Apollo blew a raspberry on his neck. He pulled away, watching as Heron giggled and rubbed his neck with his shoulder, panting heavily to catch his breath. "Whahahat the hehell was thahat?"

"Oh? Don't tell me you've never had a raspberry before."

Heron scrunched his face, "That's what you call it?"

"Well, that's what humans are calling it," Hermes reasoned.

"Why?"

They both chuckled, and Heron felt his face grow warm. "I don't know. Say, you're half human, why don't you tell us?" Hermes asked with a smirk. Heron whined, tugging on his arms and bucking his hips.

"Just lehet me gooo! You're being mehehean!" he giggled, throwing his head back in defeat. The mischievous pair replied in unison.

"Oh I'll show you mean!"

"What? But we're being so nice!"

Hermes rolled up Heron's shirt, taking a deep breath just as Apollo had moments before. He shook his head, eyes wide with giddy fear as he realized what was coming.

"Nohoho wait! Please, I'm sorRYYYYY!" his pleading dissolved into a shrill squeal as the trickster God blew a raspberry in the center of his stomach. Heron kicked his legs and bucked as much as he could, snorting and cackling when Hermes blew another raspberry, followed by one on each side of his belly, still quivering with laughter.

"Plehehease! You're killing mehehehe!" he squealed, eyes shut tightly and nose scrunched adorably as he laughed.

"What? Come on, you can take a little tickling, can't you?" Apollo asked smugly, scratching behind his ears and earning a choked off giggle in response. "I mean, you're half God, so it would be pretty embarrassing if this was what did you in, after everything-"

"OHOHOKAHAY I GEHET IT! SHUT UP!"

"Oh, he gets angry when he's flustered. Good to know," Hermes noted with a smug smirk, clawing at his sides.

"Noho I dohohon't!" Heron argued, blushing profusely and trying to look at anything else besides the two Gods grinning down at him.

"Agree to disagree," he shrugged smugly. He moved down to squeeze his hips, and Heron bucked with a loud, giggly shriek.

"Ohoho shihihit! Nohot there, plehease!"

"Not there, you say?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. He squeezed his hips, making him thrash with another yelp. "See, when people say that, they usually mean it really tickles. So, is this a bad spot?"

"Ihihhi'll kihihill you!" Heron growled through his laughter. They both rolled their eyes.

"Sure you will. You look quite threatening with that smile plastered on your face," Hermes taunted.

Oh, that was the last straw. Heron summoned what little strength he could and thrust it out through his hands. He latched onto Apollo's knees where they were keeping his arms pinned and let the electricity flow from his fingertips, hoping for the best.

Suddenly, Apollo jumped back with a startled shriek of his own, rubbing his knees frantically. Hermes stared at him quizzically.

"What-"

"He used his damned lightning," he explained in a rush, cutting him off. He turned to look at Heron, hoping for a truce.

"I'll help hold him down if you promise to do that to him-"

"Excuse you, but what the fuck?" Hermes snapped, staring at Apollo with a look of utter betrayal.

Heron nearly choked on the air he was sucking in. He looked at him in bewilderment, furrowing his brows.

"You do know you'll be next, right?"

"Of course, I'm just biding my time, same as you. It's why you ran, is it not?"

"Just stop talking." When they looked up, Hermes was already halfway across the field. Apollo smirked and pointed at him.

"See, if he really wanted to escape, he'd be halfway to earth by now."

"I can still hear you!"

Apollo stood and stretched, "And yet, you don't hear him denying it." He smiled down at Heron and winked, offering a hand to help him up.

"No, you don't," Heron agreed with a genuine grin of his own.

"Well, he's waiting for us to catch up. So? What do you say?"

Heron just smirked and cocked his head before taking off in a sprint.

[blaithnne]

ok i forgot that goldie isnt canonically 5'1 on a good day so i have to restructure this ask

1) thoughts on short goldie

2) is heron short also

3) (contingent on answers 1 and 2) thoughts on scrooge and beakley both falling for tiny evil women

1) & 2)

I think the toxic yuri polycule height chart is something like this—!

They all wear heels so it’s not exact (also I whipped this up in like 5 minutes lol)

Huifen is tall, she’s a black heron after all, and though they’re not the tallest birds ever they’re still pretty long! But she looks short standing next to Beakley, because everyone does (also I undersized her a little bit in my first human drawing by accident, whoops). Goldie is a short queen LMAO, she’s not minuscule, only slightly shorter than the average person, but she looks tiny next to these two (she might be slightly shorter than I drew her here, idk, I struggled to scale her LOL). Scrooge, for the record, is around the same height as Goldie!

In terms of their builds btw, Beakley is, obviously, very muscular! Though she might seem like a tank, she’s actually very soft — big ol squishy teddy bear! Heron on the other hand is a gangly mf, long, skinny, and sharp. Goldie is sort of in between them, an hourglass build like Huifen, but with more muscle on her (not half as much as Beakley, though).

3)

Heron might not be tiny but Beakley treats her like she is, picks her up like a feral cat when she’s being too much 😌 Scrooge and Goldie only have a very slight height difference, but I think he’s very smug about it lol

Also, my funniest headcanon ever is that Beakley has a thing for bad girls, and she HATES IT. She’s so embarrassed about it and fully intends to take it to her grave. This also leads to her hating the aforementioned bad girls even more, bc she’s so frustrated with herself for liking the in the first place. So Beakley can spend 24 hours a day ranting about how much she hates someone, and be blushing the entire time. All this to say, Beakley might not technically have a leg to stand on when it comes to criticising Scrooge’s relationship, but that doesn’t stop her.

I think they’re both massive hypocrites about it, bc they wanna protect eachother despite the other really not needing the help. They’re also endlessly frustrated with eachother’s toxic Yuri partners. Beakley to a much bigger degree because she definitely has a thing for Goldie, which only makes her hate her even more. Scrooge is more annoyed by Beakley and Heron than anything else bc he just does not understand what the hell is going on there, but he’ll also occasionally be all,

In conclusion, Beakley and Scrooge being a disaster sibling duo is my favourite thing ever. Scrooge is practically immortal, nothing can take him down. Beakley is a walking tank, she could walk off a bullet. They looked at eachother and went “that idiot needs me to protect them from their own love life” and they were kind of right??

[acorncoffeeformysweetheart]

Falloutober day 2 - Neon

Mama Louise Mulligan and her companion neon-legged black-crowned night heron Chickpea

Louise is the elder of Mulligans, the closest neighbor family (only 8 hours by foot! Easy!). She was already 86 when the bombs fell and she ghoulified. But nothing could break her; she remained a cheerful and active woman. She doesn't see very well and always calls Gage “my pretty boy”, which causes  a lot of giggles from the others. Oddly surprising, they got along well (despite the fact that he is wary of ghouls) and spent a lot of time talking.

Night herons were common in Massachusetts prewar, but now only few remain. Chickpea is a very rare type with neon colored cyan feet. She follows Mama Louise everywhere, but remains calm and silent.

[idontknowwhatimdoinglol]

Modern blood of zeus x reader (assistant) pt. 2

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

Zeus led you down the hall of glass meeting rooms, stopping at his office which was the only one on the floor that had solid walls. he unlocked the door of it and stood aside letting you enter. his office was spacious, probably even bigger than at least 4 of the smaller glass meeting rooms put together. it was filled with only the finest of furniture and other small items, and a view of the city line. "your desk is over there, sorry about not having the privacy of your own office. It's simply because I prefer to keep my assistants close in case I need something quickly." he says with a kind smile.

you give him a nod in return, walking over to sit at the desk. he clears his throat before saying "I must attend a meeting now, I will return shortly. Please fill out the papers to your left." then he leaves. you set your purse down under the desk and grab the papers reading them over, they were about the company's stocks. you knew that being an assistant meant you may have to file papers like this but you expected at least some training.

you grab a few more papers hoping that if you read more of the topic you would understand what to do with them but all the papers had were graph charts or numbers. you sighed knowing you had no choice but to find someone to help. standing from the chair you walked to the door, before even touching the handle someone opened it quite fast hitting you in the face. you turned away a bit holding your nose in pain. "my apologies I didn't see you there. are you alright?" a man asks softly leaning to your height.

when you looked towards him you saw a tall man with long light brown hair and pretty sky blue eyes. he had pale skin and was wearing a black suit with a more rainbow and iridescent tie. "yes I'm fine. it was my fault I should've paid more attention." you laugh a little. "no no I should've knocked." he says laughing with you, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

"I'm y/n, the new assistant." you say holding your hand for him to shake. "it's a pleasure to meet you, I am Hermes son of Zeus." he says with a kind smile. look at him and give a subtle laugh "I don't suppose as his son you would know how to file these graph charts?" you ask a bit embarrassed. he laughs before saying "Just check off rising and stack them neatly on his desk. he never looks them over again." you sigh in relief.

"thank you. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't walked in." you say relieved. "probably not had a hurt nose." he jokes. the two of you laugh a bit. "well since my father isn't here at the moment I will leave you to your work. I hope to talk again soon" he says before leaving. you sit down at your desk once more. within the hour you had managed to finish the work your boss had left for you, now you were just answering some emails on your laptop. the sudden slam of the office door opening causes you to nearly jump from your seat as Zeus storms into the office, his wife Hera following, the both of them in a heated argument.

"it is just an event among the thousand this company throws yearly it doesn't matter!" zeus shouts. Hera gives him a glare in return "This is the company's anniversary party, an event that every partnership we have along with the press attends. I will not be humiliated once more like I was last year when you brought your bastard son!" she shouts back. Zeus glares down at her "Don't speak of heron that way. he will inherit this company one day it is his job to attend events such as that" Zeus says, they both silently glare at each other for a moment before Hera turns to you. You freeze under her harsh gaze. "you. come." she says firmly turning to leave the room. you stand there hesitant, looking to Zeus who gives a reluctant nod.

you hurry to follow Hera who has already neared the elevator. the elevator ride to the lobby was quite uncomfortable, she was very intimidating and you could feel her stare burning through you. when you reached the lobby you followed her outside, ignoring the surprised glances of Apollo and Artemis who were sitting at the receptionist's desk. you follow Hera to a limo, having to speed walk at her pace. the driver, a man with black hair and a black suit, opens the door for her, and once in she calls for you to follow. you sit awkwardly across from her, the driver walks to the front before driving the car away. "where are we going mam?" you say a bit nervous. she looks at you nearly offended. "never call me mam. I'm hardly that old." she says coldly.

She pours herself a glass of champagne and takes a sip before speaking. "we are going to the east side of the city, i need to finish a few errands." she says staring out the window. "why not ask your assistant? you ask curiously earning a look of annoyance. "they are sick. now be quiet." she says harshly. you nod looking down to your lap fiddling with your hands. occasionally you would look up at Hera, she was beautiful and almost goddess-like with how she held herself. it was so elegant and perfect. she of course would notice you and shoot your glances away with a glare. by the time you arrived at the first store, Hera had finished her glass of champagne and had probably burned a hole in your sole from her glares. She waits for the driver to open the door for her before getting out. "follow" she says gesturing to go with her, you nod and follow her into the fancy store.  

- - - - - . o 0 O 0 o . - - - - -

[lockwoodandcobigbang2023]

2023 Lockwood & Co Big Bang Master Post

(Currently updating every day)

January 27th, 2024 Fics & Art:

Team 32: Fic: The Boy Out of Time Art: Here Team 31: Fic & Art: so this is love Team 17: Fic & Art: Boy's Dont Cry Team 24: Fic: journeys end in lovers meeting Art: Here

January 28th, 2024 Fics & Art:

Team 3: Fic: (the horrors of the night melt away) under the warm glow of survival of the day

Art: Here Team 7:

Fic & Art: Stone Walls and Light Cracks (This will be us)

January 29th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 8:

Fic & Art: When All Is Said And Done

January 30th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 4:

Fic & Art: Wrapped Up In You

Team 12:

Fic: Liminal Spaces

Art: Here

Team 18:

Fic: 55 Minutes Isn't Nearly Enough

Art: Here

Team 21:

Fic & Art: Reason In Madness

January 31st, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 2:

Fic: if you knew what the bluebirds sang at you (you would never sing along)

Art: Here

Team 9:

Fic & Art: Welcome to My Table, Bring Your Hunger

Team 34:

Fic: Part and Parcel

Art: Here

Team 37:

Fic: We Don't See The Sun Anymore

Art: Here

February 1st, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 11:

Fic: Educational Content

Art: Here

Team 19:

Fic & Art: On The Wings of a Wild Grey Heron

February 2nd, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 15:

Fic: listening to lovers rock

Art: Here

Team 20:

Fic: Nobody Knows You, The Way That I Know You

Art: Here

February 3rd, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 36:

Fic: Who You Gonna Call?

Art: Here

Team 43:

Fic: the sum of our shadows Art: Here

Team 44:

Fic: truth's got its eyes set on you

Art: Here

February 4th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 28:

Fic: lazarus syndrome

Art: Here

February 10th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 10:

Fic: When You Tell Me You Love Me (I Can Actually See It)

Art: Here

Team 38:

Fic & Art: Lockwood & Co. The Other Side

February 14th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 35:

Fic: Vertigo

Art: Here

Team 39:

Fic & Art: when the night was full of terrors (and your eyes were filled with tears)

Team 42:

Fic & Art: to live for the hope of it all

February 19th, 2024 Fics & Art

Team 30:

Fic: Only The Strong Survive

Art: Here

[the-path-to-redemption]

Thoughts on Blood Of Zeus Season 2: AKA, wow /neg.

Long Post Ahead. Seriously, it will be long.

I literally binged the entirety of Blood of Zeus Season 2 in one day, and I'm going to be honest, I was massively disappointed. While there are parts that I enjoyed in it, Season 1 was much better for me because of the potential it had for its characters, especially Heron. Season 2 left a pretty bad taste in my mouth for a lot of its characters though, as well as the conclusion as it felt rushed like Season 1. So let's start with the goods.

The Goods

It's expected, but the best part of this season was the Hades plot line. He's a great adversary for this season, with a believable and understandable reason to why he's doing everything that he's doing. He got screwed over by his family, and I know Poseidon's betrayal hurts him the most; they spent their childhood together in Kronos' stomach, I don't doubt that they were closer to each other than with Zeus, so when Poseidon knew that Hera and Zeus screwed his brother over and said nothing, letting Hades suffer the poison of living in the Underworld without the ability to leave it for long for centuries, I know it shattered their bond greatly.

We see that bitterness in Hades in his sequence with Seraphim, and personally, I think it's nice that he wanted to sink himself into a body of water when he was on the surface as well as him flying between sky and sea. Maybe in a way, he wanted to connect with his brothers again, and it does play into the themes of power ruining the good things in one's life that all gods suffers from. It's a good sequence, and Hades is a great character. His consistency is seen throughout the season, and it shines best when he's with his family.

I also like that he doesn't really know how to approach Seraphim initially, which makes sense. He's all business, and Seraphim is business, so there's that initial wall between them that's still there because of their dynamic as god and mortal, I like that. Seraphim isn't wrong for feeling the way he does, and it has to be a gap that the two must bridged, which they did! Hades took Persephone's advice to be a father to Seraphim, and while he's still rough around the edges due to their inherent dynamic, he still lets Seraphim do what he wants as long as they get to where they need to within the time limit. Yes, there is the whole "holding your lover's fate over your head" thing that he has over Seraphim, but arguably, Hades treated him the best out of all the gods that screwed with his life. It's about deals and fairness in the Underworld, so it makes sense why Hades wanted Seraphim to work for his deal. Again, they understand each other, and I did like their dynamic a lot.

Moving onto Seraphim, who continues to be the best character in the series. Like Hades, his reasons are understandable, especially now with more context to his rage and how it affected him. It sets him on this journey of self-reflection, and I did like that in the end, he still admits to Heron that he's the villain and will suffer the consequences, as long as someone he cares about finds peace. That's great grey morality right there, and it contrast him with Heron's journey very well.

For Heron, I was more conflicted with his story. I liked that he began to play into his justified anger at his divine family; he didn't asked to be born, yet his birth was the catalyst for the world almost ending and his father dead (not like Zeus is any better) when all he wanted to do was provide for his mother despite being outcast. And he barely had time to bond with his siblings before the war started, so I was excited to see the trailer opening with him conflicted with his current situation. And it somewhat delivered?

Him trying to leave was good, him not liking Hera's presence at the Funeral Games was good, him not taking Ares' shit was good, and him still doing good things for the people in his old poli yet not forgiving them for what they did to him was great. Heron is clearly still trying to process his parents' deaths and now his was coming, he's trying so hard to prevent his demise and finding some good in the situation and that's admirable to me, especially when he confessed to Elektra's grave that he can't forgive Seraphim (another great scene portraying the turbulent relationship between brothers, which reflects Hades' inability to forgive Zeus and Poseidon with Heron's active efforts to forgive Seraphim). I'm gonna fight on this hill, but Heron was actually good in the series; he's kind but not perfect, and he's trying his best to do the right thing even when the world scorn his existence, they just needed more time to let him work through his problems that they couldn't, because war.

Hera was also great to be honest. I wish that we have more time to see the disgraced queen of the heavens, because her showing her regrets of starting the second Gigantomachy and the death of Zeus was a great progress for her character. She's not without her pride, shown in Zeus' trial when she defended him and herself, but she is with remorse. It was nice seeing her stepping away from the Olympians' bullshit in the end after failing to convince them to not fight, which I appreciated. Kinda wish we saw her more this season, helping out Heron or at least trying to see past her hatred for him, but she's not the worst offender.

Oh no, I have gripes with several others.

The Bads:

Let's just get it out of the way; that is not fucking Ares bro. I was seething when I saw the writers make Ares, who is the only Olympian who does not fucking sexually assault people, be a creep towards Persephone. Yes, he was one of her suitors, but Ares in most interpretation does not push himself onto women. That's what makes him distinct from his father and brothers, but Season 2 further bastardize him by making him a fucking goober towards Heron instead of making their conflict with each other even have a hint of nuance in it.

In Season 1, Ares was the unstoppable force that Hera needed, and his loyalty to her makes sense. Zeus intimidates him in front of everyone during a competition, his own heir that he has with his wife, and clearly favors Heron over him. Ares has all the rights to forsake his father and the siblings who stood with him, but making him a purely spiteful bully coupled with being a coward is just so fucking lazy when it comes to any iteration of Ares. He's more than just war, he's also a loyal son, a protective father, and a complex character. I would've rather have the season be focus more on how the other heirs of Zeus views each other as both competition and siblings than just another fetch quest plot. I understand that there are time constraints, but the plot needed better planning and execution for the ideas they wanted to have.

What I'm saying is, sibling moments between the heirs of Zeus and how their relationship with him affected them. Make them more complex damn it, because yet again, Athena and Artemis barely have shit, Artemis the worst of the two.

Demeter.

Holy shit, I hated the route they took with her in the second act. I get it, she has beef with Hades. IT'S EXPECTED. But making her NUKE PEOPLE like The Last of Us is not the fucking way to make Hades more sympathetic. I already liked him, you didn't have to make her a complete bitch to accomplish it. How about you go more into her perspective of her daughter's choice, and have Persephone tell her off by reminding Demeter that she didn't even visit her grandchildren at all? How about you see their relationship finally changes with Zeus and Hera gone, instead of bastardizing Demeter and making Persephone a hostage at the end? Disservice to both of them.

My favorite interpretation of Demeter is still from the game Hades; she's capable of being cruel, she's capable of being spiteful, but she does love her daughter and grandchildren and puts in the efforts of seeing Persephone as her own person. She deserves at least that level of respect to her characterization.

Now, we're moving into the territory that I know I will get flamed for. Feel free to disagree, you're entitled to your opinion.

But Gorgo did not need to exist in the narrative.

Seraphim's lover did not need to exist in the narrative for his story to continue or for Hades to relates to him, especially when he already has someone else who can fulfill the purpose he needed for his plot line. His adopted mother.

You know, the woman who rescued him, raised him, protected him and was one of the people who his uncle murdered and sets him off on the journey of vengeance? That woman?

Nope, make another female character who is fridged for Seraphim's sake. For HIS plot. It doesn't matter that we have flashbacks to show the audience how good she was to him, she was fucking disrespected as hell because HER EXISTENCE IN THE SHOW WAS JUST TO MOTIVATE THE MAN IN HER LIFE. You can literally replaced her with the woman who raised Seraphim (who died in the forest. I doubt they gave her a proper burial.) and the story would still worked. I just feel bad for Gorgo.

Speaking of her death and fate, I might be missing some details. But if her fellow priestesses gathered up her remains to give her a pretty swanky grave site, why didn't they fucking pay the obols for Gorgo to pass? Because she didn't have a skull to put money on? That's wack! Put some fucking money in that poor girl's grave, what kind of bullshit is this? Literally her purpose was to serve Seraphim's character, making her the 3rd woman to do so after both of his mothers.

RIP Gorgo, you were a victim of writer's misogyny. I will pray for you. This past couple of years has been hell on me because of the amount of female characters I see with potential gets FUCKED over by their respective writers made me lose sleep. I barely got over Jill Warrick from FFVI and Yoshizawa from Persona 5 Royal, Gorgo was the third bullet to my brain.

And of course, Alexia and Kofi got shafted. Avios did the right thing and noped out before his ass got screwed over too. I wanted these four to have a FFXV style road trip goddamnit, why do ya'll do this.

The Conclusion

I did not like Season 2 at all. Season 1, while rushed, had a lot of potential that could've been explored in Season 2. And when I saw the trailers, I genuinely thought that we could've have a more melodramatic plot following the death of Zeus. The creator's video on the synopsis said that Season 2 was focusing on the relationship between the 3 brothers, but that was a fucking lie because Poseidon was nowhere to be seen after Zeus' trial. We didn't see him trying to keep up the pieces of the family for the sake of his brother's children or see him clash with Hades after that fall out. He just fucked off back into the ocean.

Hestia got one cool thing going on, and I liked seeing her grief after losing her little brother and watching the rest of her family tear each other apart. But like Athena and Artemis, she got shafted because she wasn't evil enough like Demeter. Lame as hell. They introduced Zagreus and Melinoe to make me hopeful, only to fucking Thanos snappeed those kids into oblivion after 5 minutes.

And the ending...

Narratively, it makes sense. And the cliffhanger makes sense. Heron's death happened because Hades cannot move on from his anger and forgive, something that Heron learned with his brother and even vouched for Seraphim, so they are screwed. But the lead up was so disappointing that I'm with Gaia on this. They should all blow up via Typhon.

That's all I can muster up to even word my displeasure towards this season right now. As always, feel free to disagree with me, that's cool. But personally, I'm gonna pretend that Season 2 does not exist.

[wifiwuxians]

Hear me out... Tokyo Mew Mew AU for the Yi City Fam

STOPPP I LITERALLY HAVE A TOKYO MEW MEW AU FOR LIKE A BUNCH OF CHARACTERS AND THEY'RE IN IT LOL BUT THIS NEEDS SOME REWORKING UH

first off, the cast. XY is Kisshu. he has to be. not because of any choice opinions on how to treat a lady or anything but because they're both the little shit who has given me gender envy. AQ is Pudding because look at them. enough said. also ever since i was a kid i was obsessed with the idea of Kisshu and Pudding having a sibling banter bond and i was robbed. i suppose XXC would be the obvious protagonist so Ichigo? I only say this bc I really REALLY WANT SL TO BE DEEP BLUE LMAOOO THAT HAIR!!!!!!! SL is in his villain era now

That aside, obviously it's not all 1:1. I still want to make AQ a monkey girl because that's too cute, but she fights with a staff! The cafe, which in this would be run by XXC himself (inherited it and the research from BSSR?) is less cutesy because they don't need to lure in teenage girls, but it's still a cozy and traditional place where you can rent out hanfu for the day or something adorable like that. Still 100% a front for a secret lab though. XXC's animal would be a great white heron, he'd get majestic wings and a flowy outfit that would still allow him to fight (and fly)! Since it's sort of lame to just have 2 animal people I sort of want SL to also be an animal person (a human-alien hybrid thing who is now also an animal person... save some for the rest of us), so he'd be a leopard >:) XY is just a cute lil alien showing his midriff and fucking around and waiting for his Great Leader to wake the fuck up so everyone can go home and he can kill every human on earth

XY's reason for hating humans, aside from the fact they stole his homeland and poisoned it, is that he was captured as an infant on a recon mission and terribly experimented on. that same recon mission resulted in the death of BSSR and SL's adoptive parents, who were working with her on her alien research. however, they were not the ones to cut this poor boy open, but it doesn't matter. All Scientists Must Die and all humans too.

XXC took AQ off the streets where she was performing for cash and had been doing so for years, he's trying to get her paperwork in order so she can go to school properly. she has no family save for him. they met on a rainy day, where XXC got in an accident trying to prevent AQ from suffering the same fate. she took him to the hospital and stayed by his side and they've been inseparable ever since. XXC never intended for her to get infused with animal DNA, as he wanted this to be a solo thing (it's XXC, he's self sacrificial to a fault), but the machine malfunctioned and she got caught in the blast. she's fine with this, as she would do anything to make XXC happy, even if she hates dealing with customers at the cafe and prefers to be the bookkeeper.

SL was also caught in the blast, as he was visiting the cafe to try and return a book to XXC. they both take the same environmentalism course at uni!! SL is unaware of his adoptive parents' work (until the story conveniently reveals it to him) and only knows they were researching the environment, so he's very studious and dedicated, serious and passionate, so their memory can live on and he can make them proud. but also he just loves nature. he's also unaware of the Darkness Inside Him though he has scary dreams sometimes. XXC is at first horrified to get him involved, but soon loves having him by his side; they train together and uncover more of their parents' research while fighting big weird aliens. XXC has been so alone ever since his mother's passing, putting on a brave face for everyone and trying to keep his spirits high, but AQ and SL becoming important parts of his life has been a balm for his soul. but then XY is there outside his window at 3 AM demanding they throw knives at each other until someone dies or some shit so his studies are falling behind a little bit lmao

as a fun extra, in the original massive AU with a bunch of non Yi City characters, XY was split into two (as i tend to do) and one was Kisshu and the other was Ichigo. think of XY in fun lil strawberry shorts and with the whole cat getup. it was great

SORRY THIS IS SO RAMBLY LMAO I LOVE TMM SM AHHH

[swift-kwikster]

Due to how the comic pages were resized, some extra jokes in the background are almost impossible to see - So I'm gonna show em on here!

On Page 1, the plane has a sticker on it that's based on the 'Protected by Sam & Max Freelance Police!' sticker from the HTR days, because there's a jokey rumour about how the stickers are cursed (some people from the HTR crew who had the sticker on their car had a mishap happen to their vehicle). The one I made for the comic just says 'Protected by Sam & Max ????' because they haven't formed the Freelance Police yet.

On Page 2 during Sam's flashback to childhood, Granny is looking at single's adverts in the newspaper-

Page 3 has Max looking at photos of himself and Sam (and a random picture of a mountain, and fire).

The gibbon from the yet to be finished comic 'The comic where Max gets shot' is in the window on page 5.

The food trolley in page 6 has some generic Flintstones cereal-

This one is due to the speech bubbles covering it up, but here's the cinema from page 10, the posters contain stuff from the referenced comic titles on the coming soon sign (thank you @/gaycrittercentral for that idea aaa!!)

Sam's twirling his keys around his finger- and these keys have a teeny little dinosaur attached to it that's a nod to the same one from the comic 'Night of the Gilded Heron-Shark'.

The signs on the last panel in page 10 are hard to see as well, so I'll put them here too!

Also- the other stewardess seen in the comic has a name, I just didn't get to put it in there! Her name is Trina!

[sagescented]

Hubby took me out to the Lake to see the Duckies today; stopped by WalMart on the way over there and grabbed some Peas to feed them.

There was a Great Blue Heron (Ardea Herodias) right on the edge of the pond as we got there. It flew off to the other edge of the pond when we parked, but stuck around the whole time we were there- just at the further distance. It's been a while since we saw one.

Sadly there's only one of the Cackling Geese (Branta Hutchinsii) left in the flock. The one with severe wing deformities has vanished. But the one that's left is as lively as ever. And I spotted a metal leg band on it today! I almost got it to come close enough to me to nab it and read the tag, but no luck.

The Chinese (Swan) Geese are as lively as ever. There's 3 of them now; I remember how we just had the one originally. She's slowly getting more comfortable with me, and almost comes all the way up to me to observe me now. But the other 2 that've been born to the flock since then aren't quite sure of me. They'll still come closer than the White Geese will, though.

The flock now has 4 Mallards, as well- up one from 3 the last time I saw the flock. And the little brown mottled girl's still around as well. Plenty of "Aflack"s too. Plus 2 groupings of Canadian Geese (Branta Canadensis)- one mated pair, and then a group of 4- that are clearly distinct from the usual migrating groups.

I got to sit and watch their social structure today since no one was around to bother them or us for once. It was nice actually getting to watch them without interference, once they'd eaten all the Peas and waddled off to do their own thing again. I could literally sit there and do it all day. Unfortunately I forgot my sunscreen and my hat, so I couldn't stay long (not with me burning in minutes with all the meds I'm on that make me photosensitive af). So we left after about 30 minutes. So not a lot of time today, but that's fine!

[wacky-nameless-inventor-24]

hey hi uh. pirate au snippet wahoo. angst >:3

She could smell the sea before she was even awake.

The princess could hear the waves crashing on the shore, the patio doors must be open. The maid had closed them last night. Someone had opened them.

Eyes closed, Black Heron smiled faintly.

Sure enough, a second later she felt the bed dip as someone knelt at the edge, she could feel a presence hovering above her. There was a hand on her chest, another resting on her bare shoulder, sliding up her neck.

"Hmm," Heron grinned, tilting her head up. Eyes still closed. "You're back."

"Got in last night," the captain's breath was soft against her jaw, Heron lifted her arms above the pillow and tilted her head to give her more room.

"You didn't come see me?" Heron sighed as Beakley gently kissed the side of her beak, settling down more next to her.

"It was 2 a.m., I didn't want to wake you." Her voice was low, Heron shivered as she leaned into the hand absentmindedly massaging her chest.

"You're waking me now." Heron laughed at Beakley's annoyed huff. "I missed you, you were gone too long this time."

"I tried to get back to you as quickly as I could." Beakley kissed her forehead.

Something slipped, the scene suddenly broke.

Heron's eyes flew open.

The princess sat up in bed with a gasp, floundering in the sheets for a moment as she screamed for her guards. Her hand flew to her chest, feeling for the pirate's hand, but all she felt was her nightdress.

The patio doors crashed open, the two guards rushed in from outside. "Is something wrong, Highness?"

"She- she got in- she was here-"

"From the door?"

Heron glowered at them. "No, you idiots, from the patio, where she always comes in from! You two imbeciles couldn't-"

"Who, your Highness?" Another voice cut across the conversation from the other side of the bed.

It was Dee, Heron's maid, who'd entered from the doors to the hall when none of them had noticed. Heron waved her arms at her, incredulous. "The captain, of course! She- she was just here, she-" Heron broke off.

Dee frowned, while the guards looked only more confused. "Sorry, Highness, which captain?"

Dee intervened before things could get worse. "There's been no one here, it was a dream, your Highness. Thank you, you two, the princess is awake, you can be dismissed for the day."

Wanting to get out of there as soon as possible, the guards nodded and departed.

Dee crossed to the other side of the bed, reaching to close the glass patio doors.

"Wait," Heron called, staring at a random section of blanket in front of her, still catching her breath. "Leave it open." She could smell and hear the sea outside.

She could hear Dee's disapproving sigh, and the maid crossed to her. "You're lucky the guards don't know who you're talking about, if this got out-"

"I'm aware." Heron snapped, still staring off into space. "I was just disoriented, she told me she was back after so long..."

There was a moment of silence as Heron tried to gather her thoughts. Dee sat at the edge of the bed, listening. "How long has it been since you last heard from her?"

"Forty years since we split." Heron whispered. "Twelve since she disappeared."

"I'd say that's 'so long.'" Dee stood. "I'll draw you a bath, and there's a storm coming in so I can't leave that window open long."

"No- no water." Heron finally looked up at her. "Not after this."

"She's not going to materialize in the tub," Dee called over her shoulder. "But alright, I'll get your clothes ready. You have a garden lunch in a few hours, though with this weather I wouldn't be surprised if it's cancelled."

The garden was the last place Heron wanted to go, and she let out a breath. Her gaze wandered to the figure on the shelves across from her bed.

A severed octopus tentacle, in its own glass case. It's glow couldn't be seen in the cloudy morning light.

Heron let out one slow breath, steeling herself with a dark smile.

Perhaps it had been too long.