#they will be with all the others when i eventually finish

[melminli]

BANG BANG BANG

summery - thanos was always just such an easy person to argue with. you really hated the guy and that was something that was never going to change, even if your life was on the line and it fucking was.

pairing: (thanos) choi su-bong x fem. reader

word count: 1.8k

contains: violence, death, dark content - just usual squid game stuff really

prev.

"I ask for your attention. The first game will begin shortly. Each player will have their picture taken, then they will follow the staff onto the pitch."

You eyed the confusing and pastel-colored building you were standing in as you listened to the instructions. It wasn't too loud although, there was a bit of whispering from the crowd, the line to the photo booths was pretty organized as well. That was until you suddenly noticed a commotion from a corner, and look who was at the center of it. You just rolled your eyes when you saw the purple-headed guy standing casually between his fans and looked away annoyed after he winked at you charmingly.

Thanos didn't let your subtle rejection bother him. He called out your name and gestured with his fingers to indicate that there was an empty spot next to him - you know, for the group photo. "Hey, you can join the photo too. Come on."

You continued to ignore his voice and moved forward as the gap between you and the others in front of you widened. Eventually, the loud voices faded into the background, and it was your turn to take the photo. However, while you stood in front of the camera and looked at the smiley face before you, all sense of happiness vanished. If only you weren't so desperate for money, you wouldn't feel compelled to remain in this strange place surrounded by these people.

The flash went off without you even realizing it and caught the absent look on your face. You continued to follow the moving queue like a grazing animal following its herd, lost somewhere in your thoughts until suddenly a person grabbed you by the shoulder.

You instinctively started to defend yourself with widened eyes. "What the hell dude?!" you screamed silently in a panic until you saw the grinning perpetrator in front of you. "Su-bong? What's your problem, I told you to stay away from me asshole, are you stupid?" you grunted angrily and tried again to catch up with the person in front of you so as not to block the way any further.

Thanos just shrugged his shoulders disinterestedly while he casually climbed the stairs behind you. "You really talk a lot, so don't hold it against me when I tune most of it out," he replied, which made you walk a little faster and made him pick up a little more speed to keep up with you.

"Hey, wait a second, woman!" he called out and followed you. "Besides, you know what? You should just call me Thanos, everyone does - it's the name I go by you know? Not that I expect someone like you to understand the creative thought behind it, but come on. At least try."

You raised your palm to stop his flow of words and perhaps also to put up an imaginary wall between the two of you. "You can explain it however you want, but that's not your name, it's stupid and I'm definitely not going to call you that." you laughed at him. "Only someone like you could watch every single Marvel movie there is and then identify with the ugly mega villain, really."

That's why I'm not listening, he thought to himself, running his tongue through his teeth in annoyance. "Can you not be a bitch for a second? You're killing the mood," he spoke out before leaning over the railing and shouting. "The mood is dying!"

"Shut up!" you whispered aggressively as you dragged him away by the arm and rubbed your face in frustration. "What did I do wrong in life besides being born to deserve this..."

Su-bong shook his sleeve from your grip as he sighed himself. "Don't be so dramatic. Are you really still angry about that thing with -"

"Yes," you answer without hesitation, not needing to know how he finished his sentence. Why? Because ever since you knew him, this guy had only made decisions that made you angry. When you thought of the reason that finally broke the camel's back, you had to stop yourself and take a deep breath. "Whatever, someone like you isn't worth it," you declared and then walked with several others through some gate, into the open. No, you were still surrounded by walls, even if they disguised themselves as the sky and clouds.

"Welcome to the first game. All players, please wait a moment on the field. I repeat -"

You continued to look around and noticed people entering from two more entrances. Thanos stood in front of you to block your view. "Are you seriously ignoring me right now? You women are all the same."

You only confirmed his statement with your silence and by averting your gaze from him. Before he could object any further, the gates suddenly closed behind you and the voice from the loudspeakers started talking again. "The first game is called: Red Light, Green Light."

A game for children? You repeated perplex in your head and tuned out the voice explaining the rules of the game. You often played this game as a child anyway, you knew how to play it. Do we really earn money by playing this?

"Listen to me! Listen carefully, everyone!" A man suddenly shouted out, attracting the attention of the crowd by trying to explain that losing in this innocent game would mean death.

Unconsciously, your heart began to beat faster as various thoughts raced through your mind. What is this crazy guy talking about? You get killed if you lose? What nonsense. But on the other hand, there must be a catch, who else would give out money for something like this? Maybe -

"Don't worry, that guy just has a few screws loose." Su-bong's voice suddenly spoke out next to you as he turned his index finger next to his head to visualize it. "I can see that there are a million completely unnecessary thoughts running through your little head right now because you always have this funny look on your face when you do," he explained and you just tried really hard not to pay attention to him. He just had to make life difficult for you.

Your eyes wandered again and you looked at the disbelieving faces of the others, who were also just looking at the front man strangely. I'll just be careful and see what happens. Someone will probably lose and then we'll see if it's true or not, simple as that.

There was an announcement that the game was about to start and you saw the stopwatch at the front set to five minutes. You took a deep breath and finally, the robot girl moved to look away. "Red light, green light."

Your concentration was fixed on watching her movements so that you could stop at the right moment. You didn't want to rush, but the time pressure was real. You found yourself glancing at the time too often and subconsciously started to count the seconds you had left. You usually weren't a person who could work under such circumstances, but you had to manage the whole thing somehow. You really didn't want to lose, especially not be the first to do it.

"Freeze! Don't move!"

Shut the fuck up. This guy was seriously getting on your nerves. Your eyes were looking forward while you just stood still and then, a bee flew in front of you. Stay away you stupid thing, you thought as the distance between the insect and your face grew smaller and smaller.

A female voice next to you finally spoke out. "Is this guy on drugs?" She asked when the strange man started to scream again, you didn't know if it was that which caught the bee's attention or her sweet perfume that was suddenly being carried through the wind in your direction, but it didn't matter. You were just glad that it wasn't your problem anymore. Though, you couldn't breathe a sigh of relief since you didn't dare breathe at all when that creepy doll was turned in your direction. The thing looked like it could shoot lasers out of its eyes at any second or something.

"Nope, that's not how you act when you're high." Thanos replied from beside you, and even if you could hold your breath for as long as you needed to, things looked a lot different when it came to a petty comment. 

Your mouth didn't move when you spoke, like that of a ventriloquist's. "Of course, you would know best, you fucking drug addict." was all that came out of you while you looked at his back. 

Thanos grunted as several ideas popped into his head about how he could twist your words, but he tried really hard not to say any of them. I could really take some pills right now. "I'm about to really hurt your feelings, sweetie."

"No! Really?" you let out as you pretended to be really scared of what was about to happen before your tone changed back to being monotone. "I'm pissing in my pants, please don't."

Ignoring your little argument, the little innocent bee finally landed on the neck of number 196. "Hey, what's that?" she uttered as she felt a slight tingling sensation on her neck.

Thano's eyes turned to her figure beside him as he answered her. "Don't freak out, it's just a bee."

"A bee?!" She exclaimed in a panic and started waving her arms around wildly to scare the insect away as quickly as possible. You watched her, as many others probably did right now, but the girl herself realized her own mistake far too late when she finally stopped moving and looked up at Thanos. "Shit." she laughed out. "I just moved."

As soon as she finished her sentence, a bullet flew straight through her skull and dropped her body motionless to the floor. You felt a cold shiver run through your whole body and your heart suddenly stopped before it started beating like crazy in your chest. That didn't just happen. Your head automatically tried to calm you down with some kind of slander, but your eyes couldn't help but move to the dead body on the floor, which was now smeared with fresh blood. No, it really did.

[wandering-pirate]

Mouthwashing Characters Headcanon

The Crew Found Your "Emergency Snacks"

Captain Curly

Received a month’s worth of scolding, probably set a new record, until you broke out the puppy eyes. The man folded like a lawn chair

Your ego kinda hurt, tho

Confiscated the stash for “safety purposes,” of course

But later, as you were searching for him, you heard that unmistakable crinkle

Turning the corner, you locked eyes with Curly mid-sweetener-binge, guilt written all over his face

You? Yeah, if murder was a look, it'd be yours. His spine shivered, rethinking how you rivalled his mama's look

"Look, I can expla--"

"Wow, cap, just wow"

Let’s just say… compromises were made that day to keep his “responsible captain” reputation intact

Co-pilot Jimmy

Stoic. Cold. Unforgiving. That’s all you saw in Jimmy’s eyes when he caught you

When you asked for him to keep his mouth shut, the co-pilot tilted his head, unimpressed

“Please don’t tell Curly!”

“Beg.”

“Wh—what?”

The audacity to turn his back on you and started walking away

“You had your chance.”

Next thing you knew, you were on your knees, clutching his pant leg like your life depended on it

“Please, Jimmy! Please, please!”

“Captain.”

“Wha—?”

“Say please, Captain.”

You left with your dignity in tatters, but hey, at least the stash was safe

Silently questioned his mental stability after that

Mechanic Swansea

You expected a lecture when he caught you: bulky, log-like arms crossed, face unreadable

Disappointed? Angry? Thinking about dinner? Who knows

You know you only had one way out:

“I’ll share.”

“Deal.”

Seemed easy enough until dinner rolled around, and Swansea casually claimed your entire portion of food

You tried to stand your ground, sticking your tongue out like a defiant kid, but he just smirked

“Cap, about that stock that disappeared last mont—”

He didn’t even finish before you scraped your plate into his. His smirk got bigger

“Easy there, Y/N. Dint know yer so eager to feed an old dog like me.”

Nurse Anya

Caught you mid-sneak with a mouthful of granola. Lucky for you, she’s a nurse. Unlucky for you, she had to Heimlich the oats out of your throat

You coughed up half a granola bar, wheezing your thanks while she doubled over laughing

“You can thank me with some of that stash,” she teased

You were so mortified that you actually stopped hoarding snacks… for about a week. After that, you couldn’t even look her in the eye without turning red

One dinner, the meal was oats. You looked like death warmed over just sitting there, your bowl untouched

Curly frowned. “You okay, Y/N?”

Anya, with the save: “Oh, Cap. Y/N has an oat allergy.”

You gave her a grateful smile. She winked. Meanwhile, Daisuke inhaled your bowl. Unfazed cause his second bowl is a gift

Intern Daisuke

The deal was simple: split the stash 50-50. But Daisuke never knew about your extra stash

When he found out? Heart. Shattered. The man had literal tears in his eyes

“Y/N, how could you?”

He stormed off like the lead in a romcom breakup scene, leaving you grumbling to yourself. But guilt eventually got you, and you chased him down

He whipped around so fast it was like a soap opera in real-time: one hand clutching his (Hawaiian-shirt) heart, the other thrown over his forehead like he was aboutta faint

“Dai, I’m sorry!”

“Words can’t heal this wound.”

“Fine, 75% of next week’s stash is yours.”

“…Aight, cool.”

All of this happened while the entire crew watched from the sidelines, legit done with both your antics (except a certain giggling nurse, who was very entertained)

Swandad claimed 10% of the share after his intern accidentally got caught. Y'all had another breakup scene, this time with you starring it

a/n: happy new year to y'all! hoping for this year to be kind to us ಥ⁠‿⁠ಥ

[waywardstation]

PLA PORTAL AU

I’ve had this AU in my head for a long, long time, but I didn’t start to develop it until around November, when some really cool people were willing to discuss it with me and help me figure out some concepts with their great ideas! Thank you @ingo-ingoing-ingone , @blueisquitetired , @the-digital-pen , and @fraymotiif !

In this AU, an Aperture-like facility was attempting to construct a new legendary Pokémon (think Mewtwo, or Type Null/Silvally). So the facility developed the RKS (Reactionary Knowledge System) pseudo-living program. This program’s job was to put participants — both people and Pokemon — through tests, monitoring them to make sure they solve it, and download their thought process data through chip implants. RKS would use that data to create algorithms, and configure thought processes and behaviors for the bio-engineered legendary.

However much like Portal lore, RKS destroys the facility and everyone as the data it’s trying to filter constructs unstable behaviors. The damaged and abandoned facility is left to rot, and the lower levels are subjected to deterioration and plant overgrowth. All participants from different controlled testing groups are put to sleep — two of which are Ingo and Emmet from the co-op testing group.

However as time passes, RKS wakes Ingo up as a sole participant to test and gather data from. And for a period of months/years, Ingo is forced to participate in this indefinite testing, the sole test subject collecting data for a project that will never be finished.

However, that changes when Ingo is put into a testing chamber that requires two people to complete it. He is finally given a partner — despite hoping it would be Emmet, RKS purposely gives him a random test subject instead; Akari.

—————

INGO, AKARI, AND EMMET

INGO

He’s grown rather pessimistic and jaded due to indefinitely enduring RKS’ constant apathy and belittlement towards him. Akari’s kinder company softens him again.

He remembers who Emmet is to him, and wants to escape the testing chambers and get down to the lowest levels to find him and wake him up. Does not remember most of the finer details of his brother.

Has worn the same clothes and used the same equipment since his first day testing. Blech.

AKARI

Unlike Ingo, RKS’ antagonistic behaviors don’t wear on her; she’s rather optimistic, and the system’s insults harmlessly slide right off her. This attitude builds Ingo’s own resilience.

She is still getting used to being awake after being in cryosleep for so long. She doesn’t remember much about anything other than her own name at this point. She needs lots of help to get up to speed, but she is a very quick learner.

Unfortunately, she cannot swim well. It makes her terrified to do any water-based tests. Ingo tries to make sure she never lets RKS learn that. It may only be a matter of time, though, seeing as it will eventually collect her thought processing data.

EMMET

After RKS Akari’s constant sassing towards them has begun to embolden Ingo as well, the system decides to get back at them both by taking Emmet and putting his consciousness into a busted core. The test subject wants his brother back so badly? He can have him like this, and it’s Akari’s fault.

Emmet’s core unit is badly damaged, and when RKS leaves him for Ingo and Akari to find, he cannot say or do much. Ingo is very careful with him — he’s scared of what further damage can do to Emmet.

Ingo and Akari, once breaking out of the chambers and crawling through the lower levels, look for core repair stations to gradually replace and fix Emmet’s parts. They’re able to entirely fix him eventually, but they still need to get Emmet back into his actual body, which is still asleep.

Emmet is almost certainly the train facts core. He can tell you so much about trains. Did the damaged core unit have all this info loaded into it already, or did Emmet already know this on his own? Ingo can’t remember enough about him to know.

RKS (not final design)

Built to look like Arceus — that is where the similarities end.

It has participants test with portal guns and jump boots to help gather data more applicable to the legendary’s own powers and abilities.

The damage to the facility and the bio-engineered legendary’s unit that RKS is connected to has destroyed the program’s ability to recognize the project’s end point, leading it to fall into a cycle of endless testing. It will never be satisfied with the amount of data it has.

The facility was not as careful with monitoring its participants’ temperaments and mentalities as it should have been. Filtering data from so many varying (and somewhat dangerous) personalities and behaviors and thoughts overrode the program’s pseudo-living deep learning processes. It all clashed as the algorithms it was creating was more connected to its system than it should have been, and the unfinished thought processes drove it insane before it could perfect and unify it.

Over time this behavior had smoothed itself out and developed into a generally apathetic and uncaring personality, who is quick to be hurtful if it feels it will mold others’ behaviors to do what it needs. When Ingo was first woken up, he had to deal with the scarier, less developed and unpredictable personality.

—————

I am excited to do more with this AU! It’s been fun to develop ^^

[mmso-notlikethat]

So, the prompt. Only if you vibe with it of course.

Just our guys in bed, lying together with the covers over their heads and talking. About childhood or some other topic you find interesting. The two of them in their perfect little bubble.

Thank you! This was so soft 😇

Beneath the cocoon of soft covers, the world was reduced to shadows and warm breaths. Buck lay on his side, one arm lazily draped across Tommy’s chest, his head propped on his hand. Tommy was sprawled on his back, staring up at the barely visible fabric ceiling above them, his skin warm and flushed from their recent exertions.

Buck shifted and leaned half on top of him, his lips pressed to Tommy’s collarbone, his hand resting against Tommy’s side.

“Evan,” Tommy murmured, his voice tinged with amusement, “are you planning on kissing me all night, or are you eventually going to let me breathe?”

Buck grinned against Tommy’s skin, trailing a series of soft, lazy kisses up his chest, then to the hollow of his throat. “Why would I stop when I’ve got you right where I want you?”

Tommy huffed softly, instead of answering, he tilted his head, his hands sliding up to frame Buck’s face pulling him, and leaned up, capturing Buck’s lips in a kiss of his own.

When Tommy pulled back, Buck’s grin had widened, and his cheeks were flushed. “See?” he said softly, brushing his thumb over Tommy’s jaw. “I knew you couldn’t resist me.”

Tommy smiled fondly, his fingers lightly tracing Buck’s neck, the faint blush on his cheeks giving him away. “If this is a dream,” he murmured between soft, lingering kisses, “I never want to wake up.”

Buck let out a breathless laugh, his own cheeks flushing a deep crimson. “You are such an old sap,” He countered, punctuating his words with another kiss—this time to Tommy’s jawline. Then another, just beneath his ear, where he knew Tommy was most sensitive. Tommy squirmed slightly, his breath hitching, and Buck smiled against his skin.

Finally, Buck settled onto his side, propping his head up with one hand so he could face Tommy. His other hand lightly rested on Tommy’s chest, feeling each steady heartbeat beneath his fingertips. “And I love it,” he admitted ginning widely.

“You know,” Buck began, his voice hushed but filled with that familiar playful tone, “when I was a kid, Maddie and I used to build forts like this—well, not exactly like this. We used couch cushions and blankets, not...you know, like… this.”

Tommy chuckled, the sound vibrating under Buck’s arm. “I don’t think couch forts came with this kind of satisfaction.” He tilted his head toward Buck with a teasing smirk. “What’s the most impressive thing you ever built?”

Buck’s face lit up. “Oh, that’s easy. There was this one summer—Maddie and I tried to make a treehouse. Well, I tried to make a treehouse. She mostly just went along with it to keep me from doing something stupid, like trying to climb the tree with a hammer and nails in my hand.”

Tommy raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. “Let me guess—you didn’t exactly finish it?”

“Oh, we finished it,” Buck said, his grin widening. “Sort of. We didn’t know how to hammer nails properly, so by the time we were done, it was more like…a pile of wood strapped to a tree with way too much duct tape. Maddie kept saying, ‘Evan, this thing is going to fall apart if you sneeze too hard.’”

“And did it?” Tommy asked, the corners of his mouth twitching with amusement.

“Surprisingly, no,” Buck replied proudly. “We sat in it for hours pretending it was a castle. Well again, I did. Maddie just humored me. She was probably thinking about all the ways it could collapse under us, but she stayed up there anyway. Even brought sandwiches so it felt official.”

Tommy laughed. “She is such a good sister.”

“She is,” Buck said softly, a nostalgic smile tugging at his lips. “She’s always been there for me, even when I didn’t realize I needed her. Like that treehouse—it wasn’t much, but she made it feel like the greatest castle in the world because she knew how much it meant to me.”

Tommy’s lips curved into a fond smile, his eyes warm as he watched Buck. He shifted slightly, his hand coming up to rest on Buck’s. “I never got to do stuff like that as a kid.” His smile softened. “My dad was...not the treehouse-building type. I think the closest I got to a castle was hiding out in a broken-down shed in our backyard.”

It was one of the many things Tommy had started doing since they found their way back to each other—letting Buck in, bit by bit, into the places he used to keep hidden. Tommy had always been careful, guarded with the pieces of himself that felt too raw or broken to share. But now, it was different. With Buck, he wanted to give everything, from the smallest details of his day to the life-altering moments that shaped him. It wasn’t always easy, but with each story, each vulnerable confession, it felt like he was rebuilding something—something that Buck not only cherished but also helped him carry. And in moments like this, under the safety of their shared bubble, it felt like healing.

Buck shifted, his other hand sliding up to Tommy’s shoulder, his thumb drawing soothing circles. “Did you ever pretend it was something cooler? Like a spaceship or something?”

Tommy’s lips quirked upward, but his eyes turned distant. “I… guess I didn’t really get the chance to pretend much. I was more worried about making it through the day without pissing my dad off.” He hesitated, the weight of the admission hanging in the air between them. Then, with a small shrug, he tried to brush it off, as if it were nothing. “It’s fine, though. It just...made me good at finding the silver lining in things, I guess.”

The silence that followed wasn’t uncomfortable, but it was heavy. Buck’s gaze lingered on Tommy, his fingers still tracing soothing patterns against his shoulder. He studied the man beside him—not the strong, self-assured Tommy he knew in the present, but the boy he could imagine in that broken-down shed, finding solace where there was none.

Finally, Buck spoke, his voice softer now, almost a whisper. “You deserved better than that. Every kid deserves a treehouse or a spaceship…or a crappy couch fort.” His thumb paused on Tommy’s shoulder for a moment, then resumed its gentle motion. “Something that feels like their own little piece of the world. A place where they can feel safe.”

Tommy turned his head, meeting Buck’s eyes, his expression unreadable for a moment before his features softened, He  gave a small, genuine smile. “I think I’ve made up for it. I mean, look at me now—lying in a blanket fort with a ridiculously good-looking firefighter who’s annoyingly good at…everything.”

Buck grinned, his cheeks dimpling. “Damn right.” He leaned in, nuzzling his nose into the crook of Tommy’s neck, his breath warm against Tommy’s skin. “For the record, you’re not too bad yourself, old man”

Tommy groaned, rolling his eyes even as a laugh escaped him. “I thought we agreed you wouldn’t call me that.”

“We didn’t agree to anything,” Buck murmured, pressing a soft kiss to Tommy’s neck.

Tommy huffed, feigning annoyance, but his arm came up to rest across Buck’s back, holding him closer, his hand brushing through Buck’s hair as Buck nestled more. Buck didn’t say anything, just tightened his arm around Tommy’s waist, his lips pressing a gentle kiss to Tommy’s collarbone, as if to silently declare, I’ll always be your safe place.

Tommy let out a quiet hum, his fingers idly tracing patterns on Buck’s back. The covers above them shifted slightly as they adjusted, both on their sides, limbs tangling as they burrowed deeper into each other.

“I could stay here forever,” Buck whispered after a beat, his words soft and sincere.

Tommy tightened his arm around him and closed his eyes. “Me too, Evan. Me too.”

They lay there for a moment longer, the silence warm and comfortable, until Tommy finally broke it. “But we really should hit the shower.”

Buck groaned, burying his face into Tommy’s chest like a petulant child. “Ugh, do we?”

“Yup,” Tommy replied, dragging the word out with playful exaggeration as he tightened his arms around Buck. “We reaallllyy do.”

[cybershock24601]

I was doing some brainstorming on what the Rookanis kiddos would be like and it's somehow turned into me contemplating how the inevitable crow civil war would go after Lucanis ditches the crows after he has kids.

So I was thinking that when rookanis finally has kids, they end up with a set of twin boys (one is definitely named Ezio) and that ends up bringing up a lot of emotions for Lucanis because its one thing to contemplate how his kid is going to be raised as a crow but it is a whole other to see the very obvious parallel between these two innocent baby boys and himself and Illario. Lucanis just can't stop thinking about his boys growing up the same way he did with Illario and the inevitable resentment and pain that would come with constantly being forced to compete for a title.

When the babies are a couple months old, Lucanis finally tells Rook he thinks they should leave because he cannot raise their children to be crows and Rook is like "thank the maker, I've been thinking we should ditch for months but haven't been sure how to bring it up" and so that night the two of them start planning their exit strategy. They decide to wait until the boys are a bit older because going on the run with two infants seems like a terrible idea and it will give them time to figure out how to best avoid the inevitable reprisal Lucanis will face for leaving because you don't just leave the Antivan Crows without consequence.

Unfortunately those plans are shot when another Talon decides to get rid of these future competitors while they're still in the crib. Thankfully the assassin fails but it spooks rookanis bad. Caterina is ready to go to war for this, but Lucanis isn't willing to risk his family for a stupid title he never even wanted in the first place. He is not Caterina and he isn't willing to sacrifice his own children for power.

Just a couple weeks after the incident, Lucanis, Rook, and their two boys disappear into the night, sneaking out of the same tunnel he and Rook snuck in through the same night Lucanis was appointed First Talon. All that's left behind is two letters from Lucanis, one addressed to Caterina and one left to Illario. Caterina and Illario never discuss the contents of their individual letters but it is clear whatever Lucanis said to Caterina wounded her deeply. Illario can't help but be hurt Lucanis left without a word but bitterly understands why he did because even if they had done a lot of work to repair their relationship, Illario's betrayal was a wound that never fully healed. As much as it hurts, Illario gets why Lucanis wouldn't trust him enough to tell him that he wanted to leave the Crows.

In the wake of the First Talons abrupt abdication, Caterina goes to take up the mantle again but Lucanis' depature was a major blow to House Dellamorte. Caterina is an old woman and has no heir because its not like anyone is going to let Illario take the seat of First Talon after what he did last time he tried to claim it. It is inevitable that the Crows would descend into chaos as they all started jockeying for power. At least the chaos did keep a lot of crows from going after Lucanis and his family as they bounced around from place to place in an odd parallel to how the Hawke family spent their time on the run.

Teia immediately wants to jump in and assist Caterina but Viago convinces her to stay out of it because there is no point. They both know that without Lucanis, House Dellamorte is finished. It is best to sit back and let the other Houses exhaust themselves fighting amongst each other.

The fighting likely lasts for a few years and there are a lot of dead crows and dead Talons by the end of it. Caterina dies too though whether due to old age or she's eventually taken out by another Talon I haven't decided yet because after Lucanis left, something died in Caterina, perhaps because she finally had to face what had become of her family, what she had done to her family but she definitely lost some of the edge that kept her at the top for so long which made her easier prey. Lucanis is has a lot of feelings about his grandmother dying whether its due to not being by her side or he feels responsible for her death if she was killed by another crow, he is left to deal with a lot of confusing emotions mostly rooted in mix of guilt and grief.

By the end of it, Viago manages to swoop in after most of the other houses have exhausted themselves fighting and take the seat of First Talon in a magnificently executed coup. As his closet ally, Teia ends up in the spot of Second Talon and between her idealism and Viago's pragmatism, the Crows do enter a period of reform and start to become the symbol of Antivan patriotism and pride they appear like in Veilguard.

Illario manages to emerge out of the chaos alive and even keeps House Dellamorte intact as he takes the now vacant role of Fifth Talon. It stings that Illario is not First Talon but there is a vicious sense of satisfaction in managing to secure his own spot as a Talon through his own merit because no one can deny that Illario earned his position, that Illario is a good crow.

Meanwhile Lucanis and Rook are vibing as they travel around Thedas for the first few years of their boys' lives before eventually settling in the Necropolis and raising a lot more babies there. Rook is happy to be home because that what the Necropolis is to her and Lucanis misses Treviso and his family and has the occasional thought of what could have been but is happier taking care of his home and raising his children with his loving, amazing wife as Lucanis Ingellvar then he ever was living the life dictated for him from birth as Lucanis Dellamorte. There is an undeniable sense of freedom in shedding the Dellamorte name and becoming someone new as Lucanis finally lives the life he wants for himself.

[copilot-crashout]

Could i request some general fluff x reader relationship headcanons for curly, both pre and post crash/recovered? Just pre-crash is okay too if you’re not comfortable writing for him post crash :)

Pairing: Pre-crash Captain Curly x gn!reader ; Post-crash Curly x gn!reader

Content Warning: None! [except Jimmy... Does he need a warning? (ᐡ๐ ·̫ ๐)〣 ] Post-crash Curly is slightly angsty, I hope that's okay! ♡

[A/N]: I'm hoping for more requests soon! I like writing for you all! More importantly, I hope you enjoy reading! ( ⩌⩊⩌)✧ I truly hope my love for these characters shines through my writing...

(PRE-CRASH) CAPTAIN CURLY:

-> #1 wife guy. He'd go giddy if you got him a mug about how much he loves you (or anything of the sort). He would love to match with you. He'd have a pair of matching pyjamas at home and a set of matching keychains attached to his keys. Has a picture of you both from a date you went on before working on the Tulpar in his leather wallet. He keeps it on him at all times and stares at it when he feels especially bad.

-> Jimmy rolls his eyes and sinks back into his chair when he watches Curly look at the picture like a man who's been at war for a decade.

-> Anya can only giggle when she glances at the two of you in the kitchen before your shifts start, voices hushed as Curly presses a soft kiss to your forehead before the day starts.

-> Swansea grumbles whenever he sees you two getting overly affectionate, you leaning against Curly during a heated game night aboard the ship. His demeanor changes when he notices the familiar glimmer of adoration in Curly's eyes, reminding him of how he felt about his wife back on Earth. At least you two didn't have to deal with long-distance dating.

-> Daisuke hopes to have a relationship like yours! He playfully banters with Curly, asking how he pulled someone like you. Wants to hear everything about your relationship. Treats you two like his pseudo-parents, giving you a sneaky wink whenever he steals another sweetener packet, a shared promise not to tell Curly.

-> Much more affectionate in private. He still needs to play captain, after all. Professionalism is important in the workplace! He's the type to play soft music in the background while you both relax, holding each other under thin blankets as he places gentle kisses on any part of you he can reach, stubble tickling your skin. He loves to hold your hand in any way but enjoys more subtle touches (like locking pinkies together). When walking with you in the dim halls, he places a gentle hand on the small of your back to let you know he's there.

-> However, his idea of love causes him to be more reserved when it comes to his problems. He does trust you! He just doesn't want to sag you down with his issues. He's the Captain. He should be strong enough to handle his burdens. You'd have to comfort him and remind him that it's okay to talk it through. Your willingness to help him only makes his love deeper.

-> A huge sap for the cheesy and romantic. Surprise him with breakfast in bed, and he's pondering whether to marry you now or after he finishes eating. Dreams of your future together, too. A small family in a quaint, little home with friendly neighbours. Don't want kids? How about some pets to keep you company?

-> Loves to tease you. He wants to see you smile, especially because of him. Expect feather-light touches on your waist that make you shiver, followed by a deep chuckle at your reaction. He leaves his post early (relying on his co-pilot and Tulpar's autopilot system to pick up his slack) to visit you, ensuring you're "doing your tasks correctly." Not to see you jump at his voice or when he places his large hand on your shoulder. Not at all!

(POST-CRASH) CAPTAIN CURLY:

-> He's sorry. He's so, so, sorry.

-> Initially, the pain of his injuries causes him to cry. Eventually, the thoughts of you burn more than the searing pain that reminds him of his consciousness. He weeps as if he has truly lost you, for how could someone love a man so misguided?

-> If you ever visit him, he feels sick. How could you still want to see him after all this? He was a failure of a man, yet here you were with a kind smile as if nothing happened.

-> He'd love to hear your voice. It was more pleasant than the silence of the Medical Bay or from Jimmy's ramblings. How were the crew? How were you? He'd feel especially guilty if you talked about your relationship and what you hoped they could do before the crash. The date plans, the simple times spent together. He could dream of it, still.

-> Read him a story. It'll help him sleep easier. It reminds him of those nights when the two of you chatted about nothing, dozy and delirious off each other's presence, lulling yourselves into a comfortable sleep when Pony Express couldn't care enough to provide a good sleeping quarter.

-> His heart breaks at the sight of you dishevelled, tired of surviving on the Tulpar. He wished he had his hands back to gently trace the curves of your face and hold you close to him as you forgot about the world. He still tries to comfort you, a garbled noise here, or a small movement of his arm to try and show his support.

-> As he recovers back on Earth, he'd be ecstatic to have you by his side. Having you by his side was the quickest way for him to recover.

-> If he recovers his voice, the first thing he says is a quiet thank you and a simple "I love you." The apologies came later. He just needed to make sure you knew how lucky he was to have someone so perfect.

-> Likely during recovery, I'd imagine him needing some kind of service animal. It may not be the kids he was hoping for, but having you and a pet was something he only dreamt about while staring into the fake sunset.

-> He becomes much more open about his emotions. The pain of not being able to vocalise them is one he never wants to face again. Tender nights and open communication become commonplace in your relationship.

-> He's still the #1 wife guy, only cranked up to 1000. If you thought he was bad before, you haven't seen the man now. If he ever gets drunk, he sobs about how much he loves you to anyone in his vicinity. He could do it sober but doesn't want to embarrass you (too much). He takes the time to learn your favourite recipes, making them when he can and makes sure to compliment you at least once a day. He just wants you to love yourself the way he loves you!

-> Your time together is peaceful and he wouldn't want it any other way.

[laswells-ashtray]

I’m scrolling through your blog like a creeeeeeperrrr just yeah and I saw the autism Kate and motorbike Rudy and can we get more?

AUTISM KATE WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Okay, I'm calm and collected.

Like it is for a lot of women, Kate's autism goes unnoticed by anyone who doesn't know her closely. She prefers it that way. hell, Shepherd doesn't know and she works far too closely with him.

But some of the others know.

John had never really considered it until the porridge incident years back, Kate had stayed at his and he made them both porridge for breakfast [at 11am, they'd been drinking the night before]. Kate had taken one spoonful of it and looked positively revolted but she'd swallowed it down without complaint. John asked her at the time what the issue was and if she preferred it sweeter or had a specific taste. She had insisted it was fine. He'd watched her force down two more spoonfuls before thieving it back from her until she fessed up that it was a texture issue.

John stared at her blankly for a solid forty seconds and she mentally prepared for some lecture about how she was too old to be complaining about things like that. The Englishman simply responded with "Toast?"

He didn't care, he was more offended that she didn't feel like she could tell him. He'll never judge and he has thrown a punch at a man once while drunk in a pub because the guy had been casually throwing around an ableist slur while talking about autism and other things.

Will get her started talking about birds when they're drunk and will leave remembering none of it, they have the same conversation every time and it's great fun for both of them.

When Simon learns she's autistic he says nothing, and then when John lets it slip that Kate's birthday is coming up he perks up but says nothing. That year she gets a weighted blanket in a nice blue with no note. Eventually, Simon lets it slip to John that it was him. Joseph had been autistic and he's always liked the soft texture with the weight to keep him calm and comfortable. He thought Kate might like the same but he wasn't sure if they were close enough to give it to her so he sent it anonymously.

John tells Kate and a while later Simon receives a thank-you note with no name and a picture of several cats lying on top of a blue weighted blanket. He keeps them both.

Soap learns Kate has autism and it's a very short interaction.

"Is this why you know so much about The Muppets?"

"Maybe."

"Who was the first every guest st-"

"Juliet Prowse."

"Cool."

Gaz doesn't care, working with an autistic lesbian is just casual to him given that he works with a man in a skull mask, a man with the gayest haircut of all time and a man with the gayest facial hair of all time. Kate is the most competent of all of them, nothing changes that.

Motorbike Rudy, I'm so glad you asked.

He buys an old one second-hand from someone he knew growing up, the man is getting older and can't go out on his bike anymore. He tries to give it to Rudy for free, but Rudy pays him the asking price only doubled. He replaces a few parts just because they're older and he can, he likes the work. It gives him something to do when he isn't working and he likes manual labour. If he sits around aimlessly for too long it makes his skin crawl.

When he finishes fixing the bike, he decides he'll take her for a spin. He'll only be gone for maybe twenty minutes and it's just to get used to her so he doesn't need to tell anyone he's leaving.

Five hours later when he comes home, Alejandro smacks him over the back of the head.

He loves going out in the morning when the sun has just risen and the sky is a picture of oranges and yellows. It's his favourite thing to do outside of the job.

Whenever he gets on the bike [Salma, her name is Salma] Alejandro glares at him until he puts on his helmet. he'd never ride without it, he likes his skull intact, thank you very much. But until the helmet is actually on his head, Alejandro is standing with his arms crossed, glowering at him.

At one point the 141 are back in Las Almas, for casual reasons this time and they see him on the bike. John asks him about the make and model, any work he's done to it and how he takes care of it. Gaz asks him if two people can ride or only one, he isn't jumping for the chance to but he's curious. Soap checks out the bike but he's more curious about Rudy's opinion of it, how he got into bikes as a whole and how he learned to ride.

Ghost turns towards Alejandro but his eyes are glued to Rudy as he stands next to the motorbike.

"Your man looks good on the bike."

"Watch your tongue, hermano."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Ghost likes men on bikes, sue him. It helps that it's Rudy and there's no denying that Rudy is hot.

[rafesslxt]

Happy New Year

summary: when your bf JJ doesn‘t give you your new years kiss, Rafe takes matters into his own hands warnings: kind of cheating?, friends telling you you deserve better, kissing, pda notes: thought about this under the shower words: 1,8k

2025 was only 10 minutes away. Hopefully the new year would be better for all of us.

"Oh we need new drinks to clink glasses!" Sarah‘s voices interrupted my thoughs about the last twelve months. "Yeah probably, let‘s get a few for everyone. I‘m gonna gelp you." John B said, wrapping an arm around his girlfriend‘s shoulder.

I looked at JJ and smiled softly at him. "You wanna come too? Gonna help them." He just shook his head and mumbled something under his breath that I didn‘t quite catch, but what I did catch were the reactions from the rest of the group.

That‘s how it‘s going for the last two weeks. JJ was in a bad mood lately and everyone got a taste of it here and there but I did the most.

"Alright.." i sighed and stood up from my seat between him and Kiara who looked at me, her eyes telling me I deserve better. As If she wouldn't tell me everyday. 'JJ is one of my best friends but so are you and you really deserve better than this.'

"You know.. we all love JJ but.." Sarah started as the three of us started to walk towards the bar. "I know. I deserve better and I -" before I could finish my sentence, I bumped into something.. someone.

"What are you doing here?" I heard Sarah‘s voice asking in disgust. My eyes wandered over the body I just crashed into, slowly upwards to the chest, then his neck and jawline. "Like watcha seeing, doll?" The voice sent shivers down my skin but the face put a slight scowl onto mine.

There was alway some kind of friction between me and Rafe but I always chose to push the little tingling in my stomach away when he smirked at me or when I felt his eyes lingering on my legs while walking in the heat of the island.

I always thought it wouldn‘t make any sense. First of all he‘s my best friend's brother and second of all the definition of trouble. And I think I had enough of that this year. Oh, and besides the fact, that he's the 'enemy' how the Pogues like to call him.

I just then noticed his hand on my hip, probably from crashing into me and stoppIng me from falling onto my ass. " Well I would If it wasn‘t for the unmatching character showing through your words." We always did this. Throwing a bait and wait for the other one to bite back.

"Hmm, why‘s that even you have such a sweet mouth, there are only so nasty words coming out of it?"

My cheeks turned red just the slightest bit and I rolled my eyes to conceal the effect his words had on me. "Let‘s go." I murmured to Sarah and John B, letting Rafe stand there with a smug grin on his face and his eyes laying shamelessly on my ass as I walked away.

As we arrived at the bar, we ordered drinks for the whole group. "I'll bring them to your table." One of the bar girls told us while writing down our order and then smiling sweetly at us. "Thanks." Sarah and I answered smiling back, John B giving her a polite nod, then walking back with us to our table. We were seated on a rooftop, right in front of the railing so we could see the fireworks at midnight.

Unaware of anything, Sarah pulled me back before I could walk back outside. I turned my head towards her with a confused look on my face when I saw her giving John B a look that told him to let us be alone. "What's wrong?" I asked her.

"I'm meaning this seriously, y/n. We really love JJ as a friend but as a boyfriend? When we say you deserve better, we mean you are selling yourself off way below your value and yes maybe he's gonna catch himself and get the stick out of his ass but do you really want to wait for that to eventually happen?"

I was taken aback by her words but not because they were cruel or mean but because they were true. I ran a hand through my hair and slightly pulled at my roots, trying to release some stress. "I get it, but what do you want me to do? Break up because he's acting off for two weeks?" She shook her head. "No, maybe don't break up but don't try to do everything right and nicely and just in the right tone so he won't get mad. Show him he can't treat you like that. I mean come on, even my brother is giving you more attention." She twisted her face a little at the end of her speech, looking over my shoulder and seeing her brother looking right back at us like a hawk.

Another deep breath ran through my lungs and back out of my mouth. "Alright, will do that." She smiled at me and took my hand. "Now come on before we miss midnight." I giggled and walked back with her, sitting back down between Kiara and JJ just when the waitress came with our drinks. Everyone smiled at her and thanked her expect JJ.

I rolled my eyes at his behavior, especially since he's always the one who complains about the kooks treating service people like trash. "What's with the eye-roll?" He snapped at me. "What's with your attitude?" I snapped right back, remembering Sarah's words. I didn't want to fight but I also wasn't in the mood to always nod and smile back as soon as he was acting like a bitch.

"Maybe it's just you." I gasped at his words and looked at him with wide eyes. "JJ..come on man." John B sighed and shook his head at his best friend. "What? Maybe it is her. Always complaining and shit. Can't I be in a bad mood sometimes?" I scoffed at his words and had to held back my laughter. "Sometimes? It's been like that for the last two weeks!" "Okay then fuck off If you can't live with it!"

The table went silent and everyone looked at him in shock. Without a word I took my purse and stood up from the couch we sat on. I pushed myself past him and the rest. "Y/n wait.." Sarah rushed but I turned around and looked at her. "No it's okay because indeed I can't live with this shit. I do deserve better. Enjoy midnight, please. I'm just going inside."

I gave her a small smile at the end, meaning it. I didn't want them to follow me. I wanted them to enjoy this moment. I got back inside and down the spiral stairs we came through an hour ago. I pushed through the doors as I crossed the hall, past the security's.

As soon as my heels hit the ground, I took them off and walked down to the beach where all the people responsible for the firework worked on it.

I took a look at my watch and saw new year was only a minute away. I rushed further down the beach, a little bit away from the firework but near enough to enjoy it. I was able to see the rooftop from here, guessing they were able to see me too. "There goes my midnight kiss.." I sighed to myself, looking over the ocean, the waves silently crushing against the shore.

"Depends on who you're hoping for." A deep voice followed my thoughts. My head spun around in surprise. "Rafe?!" There he stood almost right in front of me now. He came closer and looked at me like I was some kind of pray and about to run away. "What are you doing here?" "Could ask you the same. Letting your boyfriend treat you like shit again?"

Then I heard the people from the club screaming the countdown down from 10.

I turned back around, my back towards him. "What do you know." I scoffed, not really asking. Suddenly his voice was right beside my ear and I could feel the warmth radiating off his body onto mine. "I know that I would never treat you like he does. I would read every wish right off your lips, doll."

Before I could answer him he grabbed my hips and spun me back around, my front crushing against his for the second time today with my hands landing on his chest. I looked up into his ocean eyes, feeling myself drowning in them like I do every time I look at them.

"3...2...1... happy new year!"

And out of nowhere, I got my first new year's kiss. My lips crashed against his and while his eyes were closed, mine were ripped open in shock.

His hands wandered over my waist und pulled my body even tighter against his, my hands now slowly gliding over his chest and my eyes falling shut. One of his hands found their way to my face, laying on my right cheek. He cheekily but softly bit my bottom lip, my lips parted with a little gasp. He took his chance and slipped his tongue right into my warm and desperate mouth, groaning when he felt the tip of my tongue on his.

„Fuck..“ he growled, pressing me even harder against him if that was even possible. I moaned right back into his mouth before I pulled away just the slightest bit to lick his bottom lip and softly nibbling on it with my teeth in a teasing way.

It was like I forgot the whole world around me in that exact moment. I didn't remember JJ and me fighting. Damn I didn't even remembered JJ himself for a moment. My fingers grabbed his shirt, the need to feel him as close as possible slowly taking over me.

A little gasp, almost inaudible left his throath, his cheeks heating up just like mine.

We were so into it we didn‘t eve notice the whole group, also including Toppr and Kelce catching up with us after a few minutes. Sarah gasped loudly with big eyes and her jaw almost falling to the sand. "Oh my-" "what the fuck!" I heard JJ screaming.

I opened my eyes but didn‘t pull away. I saw Rafe lifting his arm behind me, not seeing the middle finger he showed JJ but I definetly felt the little smirk against my skin.

"Looks like you didn‘t took your chance.." Kiara giggled, earning a glare from JJ while Kelce and Topper clapped their hands and cheered loudly for Rafe.

Maybe the new year really is going to be a better one than the last one.

taglist: @supernaturaldawning @cardi-bre91 @aegonsslxt @juliet-017 @whyamireadingthis @gxdsfavgal @synicaljah @tiaajosephin

thank you guys for reading, let me know If you liked it 💌

xoxo sarah <3

[atleastpleasetelephone]

Walter hale 50 covering their mouth to shut them up. 😏

Hungry

A/N: Well this was fun. Any excuse to get dirty with Walter.

Pairing: Walter Hale x reader

Word count: Just a smidge over 1K

TWs: This is a smutfest. Walter is a soft dom, praise kink and some really dirty stuff with panties. Maybe the tiniest hint of orgasm denial.

You're the piano lady at the Chautauqua - you do all the accompaniment for the children’s singing during the daytime. You have no idea what Walter sees in you, when he has his pick of all the singers and dancers in every town. Not that you're under any illusion that you're the only woman he's sleeping with, that would be ridiculous. But he has been spending a lot of time with you lately. You run your fingers over the piano keys, doing a few scales absent-mindedly as you wait for the next kid. It's almost lunchtime. You can't wait for a break from this. 

Walter wanders into the tent where you're playing, eyes roving until they finally land on your figure, sitting behind the piano, just as he expected. He likes you a lot. You've got a little extra padding, in that kind of mid-thirties way, and he’s really been enjoying the effect it has on you. There’s a point that women hit at that age where they stop caring about what other people think of them and start caring about having a good time instead. He can’t understand why you haven’t been snapped up by someone already, but then maybe you’d never have got to this stage. You love sex, and he loves doing it with you.

He stands at the side of the stage until someone shouts something about lunch, and then you feel his presence behind you. 

“Hungry, honey?”

You somehow find yourselves in a walk-in linen closet, which would be spacious if it wasn’t for the shelves of linen, you and Walter all being in there. The shelves dig into your back and Walter, pressed against you, digs into your front. Your arms are around his neck and he’s kissing you passionately, grinding against you just a little. You let out a little pleasured noise as he moves from your mouth to your neck. 

“Still hungry?” He asks, with a raised eyebrow and a smile playing on his lips. 

You don’t need to be asked twice, nodding and getting onto your knees as best you can in the cramped space. Freeing his dick from the confines of his pants, you set to work licking and sucking, and he bites his fist to stay quiet. It’s hard not to make a noise when you’re so good at this, but he doesn’t want to be found. Eventually he decides you’re getting him dangerously close with your mouth and he wants to finish somewhere else. He taps your cheek and you let him slide out again, and stand up, obediently. He pulls your long skirt up around your waist and your panties to one side, and then he’s inside you in one quick movement. Grunting, his cheek pressed against yours as he rolls his hips into you again and again. 

“Oh, Walter! It feels so good.” You can’t help yourself, something just makes you want to tell him how his dick makes you feel. How much you love it. 

He moves his head just enough so you can see the smirk spreading across his face. 

“Is that so, honey?”

You nod quickly, and then the moaning starts. You don’t mean to moan, but every time he fucks you it drives you crazy and the noises just pour out of you. He’s still smirking, because he can’t help loving hearing you like this, but he starts to shake his head just a little too. 

“Uh-uh. You’ve gotta be quiet, honey.”

“Mmmm. I… I c-can’t…” you stumble over the words, brain feeling like mush. “...’s too good…”

He’s still slowly rolling himself into you, and he shakes his head a little more as he presses his hand over your mouth. 

“Gotta be quiet,” he says again, and then he starts to really fuck you. 

Your eyes roll back in your head as he thrusts harder and faster, his fingers pressing against your soft lips, fingertips digging into your cheek. 

“Good girl,” he mumbles, knowing he’s getting close and thinking you probably are too. But he doesn’t want you squeezing him and tipping him over the edge right now. 

Keeping his hand over your mouth, he slows down and pulls out, and you stare at him in gasping surprise. Not that it’s very easy to gasp with your mouth clamped shut, a snort of air rushing out of your nose instead. 

“Shhh,” he reiterates, before moving his hand. He needs both of them for this. 

Jerking himself with one hand, he pulls the top of your panties down with the other and rubs his dick through your folds, struggling to hold back a moan as he feels his release growing closer and closer. You look down at what he’s doing, dazed, and gasp as he cums all over your pussy and in your panties, making a mess in your underwear. Putting your own hand over your mouth instinctively, you watch as he moves back, letting your skirt fall back down to hide what he’s just done. Taking a few steadying breaths, he puts himself away again and then looks at you. You’re completely dumbfounded, and really, really horny. 

The smirk is back when he sees the look on your face. He puts his hand back over your mouth, and his lips to your ear. 

“Want ya to sit and think about me for the rest of the day now, honey.”

You groan into his palm. As if you were going to do anything else after that. 

“Then tonight I might give ya what ya want.”

He moves his hand and looks at you. 

“Yes, Walter,” you breathe. 

Another little smirk. “But no takin’ those panties off. Want you in ‘em all day.”

You accidentally moan out loud again and he tuts, clamping his hand back over your mouth. 

“What did I tell ya? Shhh.” He softens then, smiling down at you. “Not that I don’t love those pretty little noises of yours. But save them for tonight, hm?”

“Yes, Mr Hale,” you tell him, when he moves his hand again. 

He hums approvingly. “Good girl. And keep those panties on. I’ll be checking.”

***

Taglist:

Please let me know if you want to be added or removed:

@vintagepresley @arg-xoxo @from-memphis-with-love @msamarican @blursedblegh @returntopresley @eapep @everythingelvispresley @i-r-i-n-a-a @sissylittlefeather @arrolyn1114 @jhoneybees @cattcb @polksaladava @lookingforrainbows @jkdaddy01 @ccab @epthedream69 @lustnhim @elvisslut @pomtherine @that-hotdog @ladelinee @angschrof @fairybloodsucker @deltafalax @makethemorning @elviswhore69 @ilovequeen978 @wildhorseinkansas @pocketfulofpresley @dkayfixates @iloveelvisss @kxnnxy

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

2024 Fic Roundup :)

I was tagged by @exhuastedpigeon to do a 2024 fic roundup!

This year, I have posted 47 new fics, finished 1 2023 fic, and still have one from 2023 ongoing. Which is roughly 1,019,891 words. Excluding things I have written but not posted yet! (a lot of Eddie as a Swedish forest monster, for example).

I am just going to copy/paste the list directly from my masterlist doc:

January

Eddie Diaz is NOT a Birthday Person(4,704 words)

Summary: Eddie doesn't put much stock into celebrating his birthday, as an adult. But for the first time since moving to Los Angeles, it happens to fall right in the middle of a four-off. Buck schemes. Romance ensues rather accidentally.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨

Winter Prayer (18,229 words)

Summary: When a work conflict prevents Athena from accompanying Bobby to Minnesota for the ten year anniversary of his family dying, Buck and May offer to go instead. Over the course of the trip, they all learn more about each other, and Bobby faces his grief.

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

You Can’t Surprise Evan Buckley(4,971 words)

Summary: Ten months into their relationship, Eddie has not been able to execute a romantic surprise for Buck. But on Buck's birthday, things are about to change.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨

February

Spinning Out (2,326 words)

Summary: The sun always rises in the east and sets in the west. What goes up must always come down. And if Eddie Diaz is in a helicopter with his team, it must fall from the sky.

AKA: Speculation into Eddie's reaction to flying on a chopper with his team into a storm, as per the trailer dropped on February 17th.

Rating: General 

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨😨

Precious and Fragile Things (46,918 words)

Summary: Buck is the Fallen Angel of Petty Temptation, who has been tasked with tempting human Eddie Diaz to sin and enjoy life, but just a little. He thinks the job will be easy - get in, get out, go back to Peru to continue messing around with eternity. But when Buck arrives in Los Angeles, he finds Eddie is harder to tempt than expected, and more compelling than Buck had hoped.

AKA the Small Miracles by Olivia Atwater AU that you don’t need to have read Small Miracles to enjoy.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

March

Loose Threads (3,745 words)

Summary: New to dating and keeping it quiet, Buck and Eddie get a little carried away on a slower shift at the firehouse. But when the alarm eventually sounds, a spur of the moment mistake leaves them a little mixed up.

Rating: Explicit

Angst Meter: 😨

a mouth full of teeth with nothing to sing  (7,060 words)

Summary: Post 07x03, Hen struggles to process the cruise ship rescue and drunk driver call in the midst of ongoing tension with her friends.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

April

 Pennsylvania Under Me (22,391 words)

Summary: When unexpected circumstances require Buck to travel back to Hershey for the first time in over a decade, Eddie and Chris are right by his side.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

May

Cowboy With A One Track Mind (22,439 words)

Summary: Spin-off Sequel to Evan Buckley & the Coma-Verse of Madness - Chapter 7 (Land):

Grieving and tortured, Evan Buckley has been living alone in Montana in a remote cabin for nearly a decade. After an incident that leaves him missing six months of his life, and suddenly in connection with a group of strangers from Los Angeles, Evan must decide whether to remain in his self-imposed exile, or take a chance at life again.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

change the prophecy (30,150 words)

Summary: Buck has never felt secure in any of his relationships; he’s been searching for someone to see him the way he feels he’s meant to be seen, but after things start going downhill with Tommy, he thinks that person might just not exist. Eddie cannot figure out what’s wrong with him when it becomes clear things with Marisol aren’t going to work out. But what if they’re both forgetting something?

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨😨

A Lot Like You (14,236 words)

Summary: The dynamics between everyone change when Buck and Eddie have another child and Bobby moves on from the 118.

Affectionately referred to as the "Grandpa Bobby fic"

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

June

i told my future by reading your lips (7,295 words)

Summary: In 2018, on their way to a call at a child beauty pageant, and feeling a little strange, Buck and Eddie are suddenly thrown into a fast-paced look at some key moments from their future. And, what they see? Well it can only lead to one logical conclusion.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

like a bird stealing bread out from under your nose (21,661 words)

Summary:If you’d asked Eddie back in May what rock bottom looked like, it was his son leaving him. That felt like it; everything ruined so entirely that there was no way to ruin it further.

There’s always more to lose.

---

Eddie Diaz breakdown, Season 7 finale fix it fic

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

Slow Broil (2,975 words)

Summary: Five times Bobby helped Eddie cook a meal for Buck over the course of their relationship, plus one time Eddie did it all by himself.

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨

you could make light (4,171 words)

Summary: When a sudden blackout leaves May and Buck trapped for hours, the two find themselves getting a lot off their chests, and bonding over several important parts of their lives.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨

are you not the lost and found? (15,764 words)

Summary: In which Bobby has the opportunity to meet an alternate universe version of his daughter, who has lived to adulthood, but her life has not been without its own complications - including their relationship.

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨😨

i’ve seen a couple suns that set forever (7,041 words)

Summary: Freshly home from Texas and faced with the prospect of his dad's feelings for Buck, Christopher's abandonment issues surface. A conversation with Bobby, and realizing the parallels between Buck's relationship with Bobby, and his relationship with Buck, gives Chris the perspective he needs.

Rating: General Audiences

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

July

Jumper Cables (2,396 words)

Summary: Right around the time they're both wrapping up their time at Dispatch, May calls on Eddie for help when her car battery dies and she doesn't have jumper cables. He ends up giving her a boost and talking her through some stress.

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨😨

this postcard tells you where we’ve been (3,452 words)

Summary:.Eddie finds a collection of postcards Buck sent to Chris over his summer in El Paso.

Rating: General

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

I Hold It Like a Grudge (11,665 words)

Summary: Buck and Maddie come into unexpected and unwanted conflict when their parents meet Buck's son for the first time, by surprise, when he is under Maddie's care.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

Steal My Sunshine (30,473 words)

Summary: Memories hazy and unreliable, Eddie Diaz wakes up every morning in a house at the end of a cul de sac, goes to his office job at a petroleum engineering company, and comes home to his wife and son. But something is missing, and the more Eddie begins to put the pieces together, the stranger the predicament he finds himself in.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

no one can be born too many times (10,114 words)

Summary: When Ravi's younger brother shows up at the station unexpected, the 118 gets a better glimpse into his life, and Ravi gets a better perspective on both his families.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

If You Can Make the Music (14,878 words)

Summary: Spin-off Sequel to Evan Buckley & the Coma-Verse of Madness - Chapter 5 (Seaside): A year after a whirlwind two week love affair with bartender Buck in Galveston, Texas, Eddie Diaz finds himself coincidentally relocating to the area. But when he attempts to reconnect with Buck, he's in for an unfortunate surprise.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

treat an opportunity like it’s treating you (12,771 words)

Summary: After losing his leg as a result of the fire engine bombing, Buck is presented with the opportunity to have a service dog donated to him.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

I Always Wanted My Own Spark (5,752  words)

Summary: In 2040, during the midst of a family crisis, Christopher Diaz and his younger brother butt heads.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

August

Jeep Talking (2,252 words)

Summary: A ride in the backseat of Buck's Jeep with Buck and Eddie in the front gives Chim new perspective on his brother-in-law's strange dynamic with his so-called "best friend.' And Chim is sick of them being so oblivious.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨

this could be the year for the real thing (8,780 words)

Summary: It's December, 2016 and Chimney is a bit down on his luck. But a chance meeting with Beverly Hills heiress Maddie Buckley, right before her parents' big annual New Year's party, might be just what he's looking for. OR a Madney Cinderella AU.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨

april love is for the very young (6,269 words)

Summary: May is deeply frustrated with her college roommate. Everything about her. Until a conversation with Hen and Buck makes her rethink what her problem is. (Lesbian!May Grant college rivals to lovers).

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨

the best endeavor waiting (12,477 words)

Summary: When quarantine puts the 118 on the front lines of the pandemic, Eddie asks Buck and his service dog, Cranberry, to stay with Christopher.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

Weary Memory (11,872 words)

Summary: After an argument about the circumstances of Bobby's sudden retirement, Buck and Bobby each find themselves inexplicably experiencing one of the other's difficult childhood memories.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

September

Long Death (79,506 words)

Summary: In the summer of 2024, a never before seen form of vampirism breaks out in Los Angeles. Just as Eddie is about to get his son back.

Six months later, Buck's life is permanently changed.

Rating: Explicit

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨😨

Clammed Up (11,868 words)

Summary:  Captain Gerrard dies suspiciously at a murder mystery party held at Tommy Kinard's condo, with most of the 118 present. As the case unfolds, Athena finds she no longer knows who among her friends she can trust.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

Sweet Talk (6,563 words)

Summary: Eddie asks to crash at the loft while Christopher is gone, struggling to be on his own. Only problem? There's only one bed, and no couch.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨.5?

time likes pulling my teeth (24,349 words)

Summary: Buck is enjoying the last day of a family vacation with Eddie and Christopher. Over and over and over again. And Eddie seems determined to keep it that way. (Buddie Time Loop Fic)

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

A Little Wisdom (8,623 words)

Summary: Christopher comes home from Texas and needs his wisdom teeth removed, which leads to a larger discussion on hurt and comfort and needs that Eddie doesn't see coming.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

watch out, you might get what you’re after (2,272 words)

Summary: Buck unintentionally woos Eddie. And then has a hell of a time processing the way he feels about that.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨

October

Late Fines (12,750 words)

Summary: Buck is a children's librarian at the branch closest to Eddie's house. When he gets himself involved in the lives of a cute kid and his handsome single dad, he gets a glimpse of what he wants in life. It might just take a few years to get it.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

Any Other Way (102,659 words)

Summary: In a switcheroo alternate universe, Buck spends young adulthood in the military, while Eddie, who has no idea Christopher exists, spends his twenties messing around, finally enjoying freedom away from his family’s expectations. When they both end up in Los Angeles, at the 118, some things are different, and others will be the same in any universe.

Rating: Explicit

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

Advice For the Young At Heart (3,630 words)

Summary: Buck and Bobby overhear big news about Eddie. Buck spirals. Bobby talks him through it.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨

a cold world for such a long life (12,977 words)

Summary: Eddie befriends Bobby's estranged older brother in a virtual support group for queer adults struggling to come out. The only problem? He has no idea that's who Charlie is.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

 all our bruises beg for a chance (10, 257 words)

Summary: Buck is adjusting to life living with Eddie, Chris, and his service dog Cranberry, when his parents visit for the first time since he lost his leg.

OR:

A Cranberry-verse take on the events of Buck Begins.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

i just might turn to smoke, but i feel fine (2,957 words)

Summary: A few days before his first date with Buck, Eddie comes to the fire station early to work out and blow off some pent up steam. Only problem? Buck's already there.

Rating: Explicit

Angst Meter: 😨

we won’t look back, we won’t be lost (37,526 words)

Summary: Over six years after the 118 rescued a baby from a pipe, Buck meets that same child again on a different call. And in all that time, she never found a home.

OR:

Buck adopts Pipe Baby while Eddie waits for Christopher to come home.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

November

we all assume the worst the best we can (6,059 words)

Summary: When a rescue goes wrong, Buck and Bobby are trapped, while Eddie and Chim scramble to save them.

Rating: Teen

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

December

go and kill, go and die (59,935 words)

Summary: The 118 are a group of survivors in a small California town in the wake of a zombie apocalypse. For months they've been isolated and safe. But the arrival of some new players, the search for some missing loved ones, will shake everything up and put their little team in jeopardy.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨😨

take what the water gave me (20,701words)

Summary: New transfer to the 118, Eddie Diaz, has a secret. And upon getting to know his coworker, Buck, who is also hiding something, he begins to suspect their secret is the same. He's wrong.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

Promising Light (20,145 words)

Summary: Buck and Eddie fall asleep drunk and in separate rooms after the night of Buck and Tommy's breakup. They wake up seven years later, in an unfamiliar future, only to find out that they're married.

Rating: Mature

Angst Meter: 😨😨😨

No pressure tagging @pantsaretherealheroes @goldenbcnes @aroeddiediaz

@theotherbuckley @tizniz @steadfastsaturnsrings @diazsdimples

@mangacat201 @wellcollapse @alliaskisthepossibilityoflove @kultiras

@wildlife4life @adarkermiserablecrow @epicbuddieficrecs @diazheartsbuckley @kwills91

@watchyourbuck @buddieswhvre @your-catfish-friend @l0v3t0hat3y0u @lyricfulloflight

@theautumnbard @lightningmcqueer8 @nibblyssacrifice @swiftiefirefighters

[max-the-many]

It took a while until I acted, but this one sure got my attention fast.

We chattet back and forth a while ago, sharing guys we like, exchanging experiences with some of the pictures beeing this guy on a bike that happened to live near Ves. Or as least we assumed as he saw him severl times, even taking pretty good pics of him.

So as I was chilling one day, thinking of what to do I figured, I could give this one a try. I didn't know where he might be found and as I didn't wanta ask, I found the area myself. It's kinda scary how essy that is, but some geotracking guys really came in handy bye giving me the exact spot those pictures were taken.

On top of that I even found more pictures of the guy, scattered about on several pages, confirming that he probably was living there.

So the next day I was up for a ride, contemplating on my way on how would procede further on. When I happened to pass bye a police car an idea popped into my head. Why not see, how those serving the state could be useful.

So I hopped off the bus I was in to look around, getting to know the city until I saw two officers parking infront of a café, one of them hopping of to get some brew, the other one staying in the car.

Why not, I figured, walking towards the car, getting a good look on the beefy, dadlike cop probably checking his phone.

As I got to his car I knocked at the window so he let it down. But I didn't even bothered to speak, took all my force that I gathered walking towards him in a single quick touch on his neck to bolt over like electrical charge, feeling like bouncing in like a flipper ball.

I needed a moment until my view cleared again, showing the inside of the car, reaching out to pull my phone out of the pocket of that confused guy I just left.

"Thanks" I just said before engaging in same meaningless conversation to cover this guys confusion.

"Whatup?" I eventual heared 'my' colleage before he got into the car with two cups of hot brew.

"No problem" I said to my former host, adding "happy to help" before I started the car.

"Did I tell you about that guy?" I asked as we drove away, lying about some reports I got before showing pictures of that motorcycle guy, asking for some assistance in "personal interest".

Long story short, after a pretty interesting shift I had managed to gather the adress of my dude, finishing my day as an officer off bye a rather exciting session with his beefy features, having driven off with a police car. And let me tell you, feeling those beefy, hairy pecs under the uniform, moaning at myself in the back mirror, eventually spreading his excitement all over the stiring wheel really was a session to remember.

Sure the other officers had some questions at me, leaving after shift, but this was quickly sorted out. So I was on my way shortly after, changed into Jeans and shirt, searching for his car, still sticky and smiling.

The adress I found was on the outskirts of town. I stayed in the car to examine the area. So this was it. All veins of my body, or rather the cops body, pumped in anticipation. I loved to do stuff like that! To head out in a whim, up for a surprise, surprising myself with that hot cop-intermission.

So after savouring the fruits so far a bit mire I left the car, walking up the simple front yard to ring. I listened. Was he at home? Then, when I heared heavy steps that I couldn't help but imagine coming from leather boots got louder.

"Yes?"

There he was, standing tall infront of me, even wearing biker gear like he just waited for me to come, scanning me with pearcing eyes.

"I just wanted to head off, so please be quick"

"Sorry to bother!" I replied with a serious tone I acquired on that shift, offering my hand "Hendricks my name. I..." I said before he grabbed it, allowing me to force out of my beefy dad, over from arm to arm, from hand to hand, filling up his body until I opened my eyes with the view of this gritty cop.

And in a whim I pulled him in as it would take some time for him to get straight, placing him besides the door just to open his pants for a second look at his manhood.

"Oh man, this was good" I just said as the cop got clearer bye the minute, looking slightly confused bye the plesures he just received before I send him off with some random excuse.

"Really nice" I commented, looking at myself in the mirror, drawing a finger across my lips before taking the phone I placed on a nearby cabinet.

"He Ves" I texted "up for a hang?" sending a seöfie that surely would hit him unprepared...

[serperioranimations]

BUCKLE UP KIDS, ITS TATER TED TALK TIME

I can definitely be on board with this. I am a disabled artist myself, (neurodivergent/ADHD), and I have a range of characters with physical and mental disabilities, and this also includes Red leader Tord. As well as Tom. And Matt. I’ll put my thoughts and response down below.

I also agree with the scarring points, how in film, evil characters have scars to look more “scary”. There is three examples off the top of my head that literally have the word “scar” in their name. However, I won’t really be discussing that here.

I wouldn’t say MY version of red leader is a bad guy(at least not to Edd, Matt and Tom), he’s moreso just a guy who went about things the wrong way while trying to get his friends recruited. Whole thing. He made up with them eventually. And while he has the ability to come off as intimidating, it’s moreso about the level of power he holds in a room rather than his “scary” appearance.

My portrayals of disability, at least with with red leader tord, mostly focus on the mental effects of his disability. Sure, the physical stress is a lot, but the mental stress of having to worry about your perception and how you are viewed as a disabled person makes a lot of disabilities ten times worse.

He fears that he could get into another accident and lose more of his body and therefore his humanity. Sometimes he has to take his arm off because he hates that he now has to have machinery as his arm. He has nightmares where he’ll be full robot and it freaks him the hell out.

Obviously, there are things that affect him physically too. In the crash, he lost some of his teeth and his cornea had a piece of glass stuck in it and it was damaged. His depth perception is greatly impacted because he’s now blind in his right eye, and he has to wear dentures. He had to change parts of his lifestyle in order to keep them in tact, such as quitting smoking. He also quit because he was scared of getting robot/synthetic lungs and further losing his humanity.

Not to mention, he has to do a lot of work to make sure he can actually LIFT his arm, as it has a lot of machinery in it and that can get quite heavy. He has a lot of frustration surrounding that as well. My version of tord is a tinkerer and always is trying to find new ways to improve something. So his arm is never quite finished. It’s more of an extension to his character than it is a replacement for his arm.

My portrayal of future Tom also has this concept, in the fact that he is blind. His visor does do a lot of things for him, and Tord spent a very long time even trying to get it to work AT ALL.

In a comic I made, it’s implied he had to go through several versions and tests over multiple months to even get him to see ANYTHING. And that comic also implied that it was only a START.

And even if it allows him to see, he still needs to take care of it, he has a backup incase something happens, he has to charge it, all this stuff. And also, it cannot help him see all the time. Like when he turns into a monster.

It can’t help him see when he turns to the size of a building. In fact, when he feels himself turning, he often tries to get the visor off of him as to avoid breaking it because he knows how hard Tord worked on it. But without it, He’s just a giant blind monster who has no idea what’s going on or where he is. And that is a recipe for disaster, my friends.

I will say my representations of technology are not exactly “realistic” and I’ll fully admit that. However, I think it’s important to take into account that sometimes, people just wanna design cool robot stuff that can do cool things. It’s the whole reason people love the idea of flying cars. Yes it’s unrealistic, and we have so many other vehicles that would be way more efficient, but come on- the idea of a flying car is very entertaining. And most of the time, that is what I focus on. If it’s entertaining or interesting.

Plus I’m just like “you know what, I like you- here’s some cool shit you can do cool things with.” That’s how I see the technology in WTFuture. Or at least that’s how I go about it.

In a more realistic and grounded universe outside of Eddsworld, such as my own original story “The Bad Hunters”, I would obviously go about this differently.

But in a world where people can turn into vampires, superhero’s, giant monsters, and just overall break most rules of physics and real life, I think it’s understandable why people in the fandom often default to “because it looks cool” when it comes to designs. After all, I think Edd Gould himself shared this sentiment. 90% of the decisions or jokes he made in his show, I guarantee he made “because it’s funny” or “because it’s cool”.

Like, for example, I have this joke that Tom during meetings will play minesweeper in his headset, because 1- it’s in character that he wouldn’t pay attention to meetings, and 2- it’s funny as hell. And let’s be real- if you’ve been on a zoom meeting that was boring, you’ve probably pulled up minesweeper or solitaire. Is that something realistically that a blind person would be able to do if they had a headset that allowed them to see? Absolutely not. But is it funny? Yes.

Future Matt also has a pretty big disability- that being he has some memory loss related to a brain injury. He got shot in the head and his eye was replaced with a metal one. He also had to get his jaw fixed. He often struggles with remembering what people just told him, and sometimes he forgets where Edd is and that he left. It also, much like Tom and tord and their disabilities, took some getting used to.

He’s also got a mini super computer in his eye that allows him to calculate bullet trajectory and allow him to dodge bullets matrix style. Because fuck it- future Matt is cool, he deserves cool shit. Also because tord was like “aight bro what if I made sure you never got shot in the face again”. Again- is it realistic? No. But is it cool? Yes.

Overall, as an author with disabilities myself, the portrayals of disability I enjoy the most are the ones that acknowledge “this shit sucks” but also are ones that allow for some levity and lightheartedness. This applies to both mental and physical disabilities.

Like toph from ATLA. Yes, she can’t see through the earth and she’s insanely powerful, but also, girlie can’t swim. Obviously, her drowning is no laughing matter, and they don’t make fun of that. But her confidently putting a poster on a wall the wrong way because she can’t see is hilarious.

Or like in arcane, when sevika gets a sick new arm made by jinx, only for it to turn out to be an unpredictable hunk of junk that will do random shit like blast music or shoot fireworks, and sevika is just like “bro are you fucking kidding me”. That may be the most realistic portrayal of a disability aid/tool I’ve ever seen. Sometimes it works great, but sometimes it’s a fucking piece of shit. It also helps that Sevikas arm links to her gambling addiction, hence the slot machine. Sure, it’s not the most “realistic” portrayal, but it does further her character and I think that is also a valid way to write it.

Overall, what I’d say is that I definitely agree with all of what was said above me! These are all valid points and the portrayal of scarring being used the characterize “evil”, or make them look scary, as well as just treating prosthetics as perfect replacements definitely don’t always sit right.

But also I would say that with portraying disability, don’t go the easy way out and basically get rid of their disability by giving them a perfect replacement with no issues that would realistically go along with this. Not just because it’s harmful and disability erasure, but also because it’s boring as shit.

Challenge yourself. Do some research. And most importantly, HAVE FUN.

-your friendly neighborhood tater

The Problem With the Eddsworld Fandom's Depictions of Red Leader/Future Tord, A Disabled Perspective

Disability is a contentious concept for most of society, with most either treating us with disgust, confusion, refusing to treat us as human, or to see our struggles as what they are. Ableism affects all people in many different ways, but as someone who focuses a lot of my energy in fandom spaces, the pervasiveness of ableism with how media and their fans interpet and react to disabled characters is a very personal situation for me. While many may argue that an ignorance to these topics in fiction has little bearing on real life, the prevalance of these tropes have echoed and led to feelings of othering for many disabled people, and oftentimes support the same notions that lead to the day-to-day ableism in our own personal lives.

In recent years, I have experienced this most often with the prevalance of negative disability tropes perpetrated by fanfiction surrounding the character of Tord, also known under the alias of Red Leader in some fanworks. It is a problem not just common in the Eddsworld fandom. A more recent, and much larger fandom in Mouthwashing also shares a common trend of repeated ableism in fan depictions and interpretarions of disabled characters. Most fan creators are unaware of these tropes and the harm that they cause, but as a disabled person, I am unable to ignore it.

For context on myself, you can call me Fish. Get it? Or"fish"eus? I like to think I'm funny. I am a mentally ill, disabled, and neurodivergent creative who has niche interests in representation in media and the intersection of intersectionality and fandom spaces. I experience chronic pain due to a multitude of conditions, all of which are invisible disabilities. I am NOT an amputee or have a facial difference, like the character I am analyzing. I can only speak based on my own research in my attempts to portray him positively, but I want to mainly focus on the ableist tropes I see and the real life effects they have. That is something I CAN focus on, because I've been dealing with it for years from conditions that came onset later in my life. I will be speaking from that perspective, but will be doing my best to try to educate on what I do know from my research to help authors, artists, and creatives create a better portrayal of him in fanworks.

The most common tropes I see with him are what I will call "The Disabled Villain", "The Innacurate Disability", and "The Ignored Disability". There are a few tropes in each, but for ease of organization (and the sake of your (and my) time), I will be talking about them together in these sections. There are also overlaps in many, but I will define the main issues with them.

The Disabled Villain

James Bond, Wonder Woman, The Witches. You name it. You have most likely seen this trope at work in cinema. A malicious evil-doer is revealed to have a "horrid" face symbolic of the true evil within their soul, while the beautiful, able-bodied hero is meant to stop them. It's a trope as old as time, one that goes back to even Plato. Tropes are tropes, people subvert them, so a few cases down the line may be excusable. But that has not been the case For many years, the most prevalent form of representation for disabled people was in these villains. Imagine if the only representation you had for yourself was narratives surrounding how the way you look or what your disability is and have it only be equated to evil people. It leads to a villainization of disabled people. People react to facial differences with disgust, because they are "shown" that it is "evil", or "ugly", or equal to being a horrible person. As stated by The Nora Project, "According to the book Disabilities: Insights from Across Fields and Around the World, disabled students are two to three times more likely to be bullied in comparison to their nondisabled classmates. The disabled villain trope contributes to this phenomenon in overt and subtle ways. For example, the trope implicitly encourages fear of disability and difference, while validating, and even elevating, those who fight against the evil, Disabled Villain. Bullying based on fear and disdain is almost a natural consequence of the trope when viewed in this light". Another big issue is that disabled characters have not been given space to exist outside of villainy. There are not many complex narratives surrounding them. This leads to our disabilities being downplayed, us being dehumanised, and we are seen more like props in real life, or simply tools to achieve a message in a narrative.

Tord's disability is never explicitly shown in the show. It is something more prevalent in Fanon, specifically in fanworks that focus on the "Future" era of the show's timeline, where the narrative and outside discussions on the show implies a high tech society, potentially dystopian, potentially a consequence of his actions. These ideas have taken a life of their own in the fandom, with many creators fully expressing these ideas. The problem arises when Red Leader falls in line with this trope. In many works, he is the sole disabled character, a figure of pure evil, or given little nuance in the narrative. Artists illustrate his scars as bright red, crimson, or, in TBATF, green. For some reason. In this way, they attempt to highlight the villainy by equating him with common symbols of evil: facial differences and disabilities. Unfortunately, these are not just symbols. These are conditions and scars that real people have, which the fandom tends to ignore in favor of dramatization.

This was a trope I most commonly saw explored in fanfiction when I first joined in 2016/17. The show, unfortunately, subtly and accidentally perpetrated it by having the only character visibly and irreparably "damaged" by the giant robot fight be Tord, despite the fact that Tom, who had a whole missile directed at him and got buried under a house, was fine with at most a leg injury and a cut on his arm. Luckily, we have grown past the need for ableist tropes, and the faults of the show can be left in the past!

... Not.

Disability tropes have simply evolved in how the fandom treats Tord. Even if it is now done with more consciousness and sympathy towards his character, ignorance still prevails. Let's talk about common pitfalls people fall into when writing him.

The Inaccurate Disability

In fanon perception, Red Leader is an amputee with a high tech prosthesis and a facial difference resulting from burn scars. Like many disabled characters, he suffers from a collective fandom lack of research. But never fret! That is what I have subjected myself to for the past four years, so your friendly neighborhood disabled Fish can tell you how to right your fandom wrongs! Just kidding! Take this as a pointer, and do your own research.

As is common with fictional prosthetics, his arm prosthetic is treated as a perfect fix for his amputation. It acts just like, if not better than an actual arm. The issue with this is that is isn't realistic. Yes, I know, I'm criticising Eddsworld fanfiction for not being realistic. STAY WITH ME HERE. Once again, if it was one instance, or a few, that explored prosthetics being incredibly functional in science-fiction, then it could be a cool concept. But when every sci-fi work has it, then that is no longer a concept. That is a misconception. And I have interacted with people who believed that prosthetics were 100% functional! The thing is, like all disability aids, it does not suddenly make us able-bodied. For example, I have ear defenders that I wear when I experience pain within my ears. But that does not mean my hearing will now become normal, and I will no longer experience pain from the sound I'm hearing. What WILL happen is that I will straight up not hear you. Like, literally. Can you repeat that? I had my ear defenders on. Oh, you're saying that my ear defenders aren't prosthetics and are not a fair comparison? Well, that's fair, but take this as an illustration of a disability aid and how they differ from able-bodied experiences. Also, many prosthetic users do many things without their prostheses, and some even prefer NOT to wear them. Blogs that explicitly cover disabled representation, such as @/cripplecharacters, have posts that cover WHY many amputees are not fans of this trope. The problem comes with that it erases disability, and yet also treats us like we are given a space at the table of representation. It's just another way that authors avoid actually doing research.

Other things that people tend to ignore are how burn scars, or any scars, would not only appear on a character, but also affect them. I have seen, aside from skin tones that looked like they were picked out of a crayon box instead of what would appear on a person, teeth exposed, wounds that look as if they are fresh from the explosion YEARS after they occurred, and what I like to call "paper shredder" scars. Because instead of them looking like burn or shrapnel scars, it appears as if his skin was put through a shredder. Once again, another consequence of the show's at most-30 second scene with questionable decisions that made massive ripples in the fandom. With the injuries Tord received, it is most likely that he would have two kinds of injuries: a burn on 18% of his body (minimum, based on rule of 9s), and/or shrapnel scars from debris. While shrapnel scars would manifest as darker scars, the burn scar would likely be a hypertrophic scar, as "70% of patients develop hypertrophic scars following burns" (Finnerty et. al). The scars, when healed, are warm toned on the boundaries of their areas and cool in between. When on a pale skintone, they are not too dissimilar, and would therefore not have such a drastic color difference as seen on skin. They would also not go down to the bone or skin, as that would be a completely different kind of injury, and are also commonly done to make him look "scarier", which then aids the Disabled Villain trope. It also treats these scars and injuries more like a work of fiction, rather than something that many real people have experienced, adding to continuous misinterpretations of real life disabilities and facial differences.

For writers wanting to include consequences of burns, what would be more likely to be affected are his hearing, vision, and nerves on the right side of his face, as burn scars can go as deep as nerve endings. Also, burn scars, especially third degree burns, require treatments, such as burn-specific skincare. Scars, especially burn scars, can affect you and become disabling. For artists, the main thing I don't see artists do is draw him with damaged hair follicles. Burn scars damage the scalp and eyebrows, preventing hair growth. I am sorry, but he would not still have fluffy, luscious hair. Do not kill me. He just wouldn't. And if you are saying that he had it in the show, I can't hear you because my ear defenders are on, but I hope you heard me, as we've gone over that the show is inaccurate and we should do our own research.

Even well intentioned authors and artists ignore many aspects of the disabilities he would likely have!

Which brings us to the last trope...

The Ignored Disability

Many well meaning people intend to give him nuance by trying to avoid the Disabled Villain trope. Accidentally, however, they end up completely ignoring his disabilities instead.

Just like the high-tech prosthetic, the real disabling aspects of having a disability are at best rarely mentioned. I have seen, in some fanworks, that he goes straight from amputation to having a prosthetic. And that is where his disability ends. Because the prosthetic ends up being a fix-all situation. Authors refuse, or forget, to include aspects of amputation, such as the healing process, stump or phantom pain. Artists will cover up his scars with a helmet or a mask, another trope that undermines his disabilities and attempts to brush it under the rug. I understand that there is a discomfort for able-bodied authors in thoroughly exploring how a character feels about their disability. That is something I think we should. Avoid. If you're not familiar with the experience of being that minority, you do not need to add commentary on it. And if you do, and it just falls into more negative tropes, I will send a salmon cannon at you (/j). However, I do not agree with brushing every disabling aspect of his life under the rug.

People can assume it's not a problem, like it isn't something blatantly apparent. But, if you assume that disability and being disabled is not a "big thing", you end up where your medication is denied because your insurance refuses to see your common procedure as not a necessary medical intervention because you're "too young". And that is not fiction. That is what inspired me to write this essay, because the day that I got that news was the same day I sat down and told myself that I needed to share my perspective on the perception of disabled characters by honing in on one of my favorite characters and how the fandom treated him.

Disabled characters deserve to be included in media, disability and all, with care given to how their life would operate as a result and what they would experience with their specific disability. That's why many people recommend sensitivity readers who can give proper insight upon that disability and can advise people to properly portray it.

But if you cannot afford or access that resource, what can you do?

Fish's Non-Cohesive List of Ways I Tried to Write Tord as a Non-Amputee Without a Facial Difference

Do research!! The more you are to try to understand what you are writing about, the less you are to misinterpret or misrepresent it.

Look into resources that focus on portraying disabled characters, especially with those you wish to write about. Read blogs, research tropes that are common in disabled characters, and hell, read medical journals. They can provide great insight (<< nerd who likes reading medical journals)

Include more disabled characters. Make the other boys be disabled! Want to be canon compliant? Create OCs who have disabilities! I have a bunch! It's 2024! Be cringe and be free! The character's disability would go against the traditional narrative form of "usefulness"? I'm an animator who can't wear headphones and a theatre performer who can't physically handle the volume of a band. And yet, we find ways to persist, to exist. We will always find our way to live in the way we want to, in whatever way we can.

Look into disability activism. Learn the difference between the Medical Model and Social Model of disability. Know what an invisible disability is. Listen to us when we say that we don't want to be treated as special or an inspiration for simply living (inspiration porn). The more you are aware of what we struggle in real life, the more aware you will be to not repeat those mistakes in your fiction.

Write what you can. Highlight little talked about aspects of having a burn scar or being an amputee, such as the recovery, or treatment for the chronic pain, or how different he would be in battle due to decreased depth perception. As a disabled author, I have personally touched on the experience of gaining a disability later in life, and how he copes with it. Now, not all of y'all can do that. But that is a personal experience I do have, and it is something I have highlighted in my own work. So, while I couldn't tell you the ins and outs of having a burn scar or a prosthetic arm, I could describe the shock and frustration that comes with suddenly experiencing difficulties, or even being unable to do what you had done before.

I ask that, if you are willing to do better, or to start on the right foot, you take what I have written, reflect on it, and treat disabled characters, and in turn, disabled people, better from here on out.

Fiction is not reality, but the way we deal with it is reflective of who we are and what we believe. The boundary for our own personal being does not suddenly stop within fiction. When we interact and interpret it and create for it, it is integral that we remain conscious that bigotry runs rampant, albeit often as an unseen force, within fandom spaces, and do our best to counteract that.

I have doubts that the new eddisode will treat this topic with the same respect. I hope you can all go forward with what you have read in this WAY LONGER than I expected essay, and do what those grown British men cannot. Even if they erase it, retconn it, or do not treat it with respect, let's all go forward and do better!

As for always, you can discuss more in the tags or my inbox!

I hope you have a wonderful life,

Fish

[undreaming-fanfiction]

Home for Christmas

Written for @thefreakandthehair's Spicy Six -Ber Month Fanworks Challenge, thank you so much for organizing this, Lex! Prompt: Haunted House.

Also on Ao3.

"How is the turkey?"

Eddie peeked inside the oven and frowned at what was soon to be come their dinner. "I'm sure it's not feeling great," he said slowly, and then dodged a kitchen towel thrown at him. "Hey, I don't know what you want me to say. You can't ask me things like that! You know I don't cook!"

Steve rolled his eyes. He had that expression he'd perfected over the years, the one saying I'm suffering from all the stupidity in the world. Eddie loved it. "I thought you knew colors. We all learned them in the kindergarten, right? Is the turkey less pale now? More golden?"

Squatting in front of the oven again, Eddie did his best to assess the state of the unfortunate bird. It didn't have feathers anymore, which counted as good enough in the Munson household. "Look, Steve, I'm really trying, and I can tell you the thing is darker than before. Looks crunchier. But gold...how are you even able to tell? The light in the oven is yellow."

In a few quick steps, Steve was next to him and nudged him away from the oven. Of course, the turkey was still pale. "Out of all people in the world, I had to fall for a clown," he sighed.

Sneaking behind him, Eddie wrapped his arms around Steve's middle, smooth, perfect. "You love me," he whispered in his ear.

Steve didn't need to answer that, but he decided to do so anyways.

--

"Do we have potatoes?"

"Not sure. Things keep moving around here. Who knows where she put them."

One desparate and thorough search later, Eddie and Steve were standing in the kitchen, empty handed. "OK, unless she buried them in the backyard, I'm pretty sure we're potato-less," said Eddie, rubbing his eyes. "Do you want me to start digging?"

Steve shook his head. "Nah. I think...let me try. Sometimes it feels like she knows we want to contact her, so...uh. Hey, El?" He involuntarily looked upwards, as if she resided somewhere in heaven. Even if he knew it wasn't true. "Could you...uh. I know this is a really bad time and all, but we really need some potatoes.  Would you by any chance-"

He didn't even need to finish speaking. The cupboard doors flung themselves open, and in the place that they'd checked at least twice, there was a bag of potatoes. On it was a bright sticky note with a wobbly handwriting that said Sorry, forgot. Merry Xmas!! and the world's most crooked smiley face.

"Thank you, the same to you!" smiled Steve. "Do I...uh. Can I ask how is everything? I know you don't-"

He was interrupted again. Another set of cupboard doors moved, but this time it just swung from side to side, as if it was a head, shaking in a silent "no".

"I thought so. Thanks, El."

--

They pinned the sticky notes next to the other ones, on the fridge. Steve absentmindedly stroked his fingers over the tiny drawing, lost in thought, or maybe a memory. But then he remembered Eddie, the Christmas dinner they were making, and he turned away from the fridge. What was it that Robin once said? What I can't change, I have to let go. Or something like that.

The turkey was taking forever, but neither of them minded. There was no rush, everything else was ready, and so Steve decided to whip some egg whites to prepare Eddie's favorite meringues for when the oven would eventually be free. From time to time, a small amount of sugar would get dropped into the bowl, even before he could tell Eddie he needed his help. "I appreciate it," he muttered, "but don't you have better things to do?"

In the flour spilled from their earlier baking, an invisible finger drew a sly smiley face, and then - NO.

"That's okay then."

--

The tree was ready. Well, almost. Eddie was running around the house, looking for the last, most vital piece. He was one hundred percent sure he had seen it somewhere. Maybe in their room? No? What about the storage room? In the washing machine? His short term memory wasn't great, but this was a bit too much even for him.

There were still sounds of whisking coming from the kitchen, but that had to stop eventually. And Eddie didn't want to put more on Steve's plate.

He glanced at the familiar looking electrical tablet thingy that they used what seemed ages ago to communicate from the Upside Down. Had that always been there? He decided not to worry about it. Steve worried enough for the both of them. "Uh...hey, El?" he asked, glancing around the room. "Wasn't there a star for the top of the tree somewhere? Did you...did you maybe hide it?"

A moment of hesitation, and then - YES.

Eddie curled a strand of his hair around his finger. "Okay...but, why? Can we have it back?"

Another moment, then another message. NOT YET.

Eddie wanted to repeat himself, ask why, because El wasn't malicious, so there was obviously something else. But before he could speak up, the lights revealed another word. VISITOR.

--

Normally, Eddie would leap down the stairs, superhero landing style, but now he was walking down slowly, lost in thought. "Hey, Steve. Please don't freak out, but. Uh. Apparetly we're gonna have a visitor. Or something."

Steve's face grew pale. "Do we know who?"

Eddie shook his head. He didn't want to think about it too much, and he didn't like putting another worried frown on Steve's pretty face. "Nope, but hey, now we know what we need to do, right? A third plate!  I bet they're hungry. And the turney smells so good. You'd better guard it, Steve, or I'll bite into it right as it comes out of the oven!"

Just like magic, Steve's frown disappeared. He grabbed a kitchen towel and slapped Eddie's outstretched hand. "No, you absolute goblin! It's for the Christmas table. And you'll burn your mouth!"

Eddie fake gasped, hand clasped over his mouth. "He knows goblins! I have spoiled the pure, formerly incorruptible paragon of jockery, Steve Harrington! He's a Dungeons and Dragons nerd now, oh what a joyful days, what an achievement-"

"I'll give you a nerd-"

This time, the kitchen towel slapped Eddie's ass, and he lunged to the side, cackling. "There's no changing that now, Steve! I have ruined you for everyone else!"

And wasn't that the truth?

They had just finished preparing the third plate when their doorbell rang. Hearts wildly beating in their chests, they opened it. And there she was, with the same scowl, same snark, in her light blue jacket and jeans.

Max was wringing her fingers, looking anywhere but at them. "I think..." she said in a unusually quiet voice, "I think I got lost for a while. It's that stupid fog. Sorry it took me so long to get here."

As she got pulled into a tight and "absolutely non-consensual hug, Steven, what are you doing?!", and Steve just muttered "I don't see you letting go of me either, Mayfield!", Eddie closed the door behind them, just as he too got pulled into the same hug.

When they finally let go of each other and looked towards the table, the star was there, gleaming in the light.

Max kept walking around, exploring, touching the table, the plates, even the turkey with awe. "How the hell did this happen? I have so many questions-"

The cabinet doors did their usual no-no routine.

Eddie laughed. "It seems our hostess thinks that Christmas should come before your questions. Let's finish the tree, and then-food! And then maybe we can fit some of your questions into our inevitable food coma. Did you know that Steve cooks? I mean, really cooks. Deliciously. Stylishly. And he's hot when he's doing it."

She gave him a deer-in-headlights look. "He's what?"

Steve clicked his tongue and ushered them into the living room, grabbing the star on his way. "I knew you two together would be insufferable."

The star was placed on top of the tree. The dinner was delicious and question-free, except for one - "how the hell did this," Max said, pointing her fork at the two of them, "happen? When did this happen?"

Steve squeezed Eddie's hand. "It happened...after. And how...do you really, really want the details, Mayfield?"

She immediately dropped her gaze to her turkey. "Ew. No. Thanks, no." But even over Eddie's cackling, Steve could make out her next words: "But good for you two, I guess."

After the dinner, Max wished them good night and retreated into her new room. Eddie wanted to note that he was pretty sure the door wasn't there before, that he'd never seen it, but Steve shook his head. "Gift horses and all that," he smiled at Eddie and pulled him into their own bedroom. He hoped, for Max's sake, that the magical walls were soundproof too.

--

They unwrapped the presents together, with hot cocoa and quiet carols playing in the background. There was one for Max too, because Christmas miracles were a thing now, even if Steve and Eddie knew it hadn't been there before.

When Max tore the wrapping paper off and saw the Wonder Woman comics inside, she may have cried a bit. But Steve and Eddie won't confirm nor deny that, because they value their lives.

Clutching it to her chest as if it was the holiest of books, Max turned her eyes upwards, just as Steve had done, and mouthed a quiet "thank you."

The cabinet door waved at her. "It was nothing", it seemed to say.

--

They talked afterwards. Not too much, not about everything, but enough to understand.

"It started with me," said Steve, clutching his mug. "I...well. You know what happened. I mean, not the details, but...it was two demogorgons for me. And I mean, it was fine, I figured it would end that way eventually, but...then I heard her. El. She told me-"

"You're not going," whispered Max. "She told me the same. After the Creel House."

Steve nodded. "Yeah. And then I found myself here. It was beautiful, but...I was alone. And I think she knew I couldn't handle that, because the next thing I knew, Eddie was at the door."

The other man scratched his head, wincing. "It was wild. One minute I'm demobat feast, it's going dark and all that. I can't remember much, but then I see a light, which, wow. Great, I think, I made it to heaven. But then I see the light is coming from an open door and it's none other than Steve Harrington greeting me. I thought the pearly gates were supposed to be different, but hey, I'm not complaining. And that's it. We've been here for a while. Nowhere to go. No one to fight."

"I mean, we tried, at first," laughed Steve. "Broke a window. Tried to climb up through the chimney. Couldn't get anywhere past the backyard. We thought it was all a trick. But then El started leaving us notes. This is her work. Her way of saving her world, that's what she said. She must have been trying to guide you here ever since."

Max's fingers were restless on her mug. She was tapping it, almost spilling the hot liquid. "So you're telling me that when there's other people-"

"Yes."

"And we can't do anything. Anything to prevent it."

Eddie shook his head. "Nope. We can't prevent it. We were talking about it a lot, you know. We wanted to help, but in the end, the best we can do is give El what she wants us to have. A future. I don't know what she did, if she just," he wiggled his long fingers, "did some magic and created a piece of reality for us, if we're in another dimension, if this is our personal afterlife or something, but I won't waste my second chance wondering."

"The one thing we can do," continued Steve and, despite her glare, put his hand on Max's shoulder, "is to be here for the others when they arrive. With a warm bed and a good meal."

Max dropped her head and blinked. There were more ripples in her cocoa mug, even if her hands were still. "Then you'd better teach me how to cook, Steve," she muttered.

--

There would be more, of course. Some older, some younger. Some beaming like the sun itself, some crying. A lot of them would do both.

One day in the future, Eddie would barely be able to speak through his sobbing when Wayne appeared on the doorstep. Moments after that, a small collection of very strange mugs would find their way into their kitchen.Another day, Steve would greet Hopper, with his beard now fully grey. They wouldn't talk much, but Steve would see the pride in his eyes when Hopper learned what his daughter did for all of them. "I knew she couldn't just let you guys go," he'd mutter and pour himself another cup of coffee.

The house would remain warm and loving, with the number of rooms still growing. Everyone would have a place there.

Finally, the hostess would come home one day, her hair long again and hopefully grey, with crow feet from a fulfilled and happy life. She would knock on the door, unsure what she'd find, but she wouldn't need to wonder for long, because there would be many voices saying the same thing: "Welcome home, El."

And then...who knows?

[midnight-mourning]

Stave off the Cold

❄️❄️Midnight's DCA December Day 24❄️❄️

guhhh i went a LIL angsty for part of this, but you'll like it dw, it'll be worth it in the end ;) hope you enjoy!

Prompt: Perhaps post ruin, since its snowing so hard the power goes out. Yn and ruin snuggling to stave off the cold and are sappy together or something along those lines. ^-^

Word Count: 1313

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️

You're in the middle of the most delicate of work when it happens. The lights cut, and you curse, almost dropping the new CPU chip in the dark. Carefully, with another slew of curse—that probably wouldn't have been approved if they'd hear—you step back and search for your workbench, setting down the chip and pulling out your phone. 

Flashing it to the window, you can see the snowstorm blowing outside. That must've done it. Great. Just great. 

You glance over to the bot lying motionless on the table, heart twisting at the sight. You've been working for months to fix them, you knew there had to be way, knew that somewhere they still had to be in there. The fact that you'd been able to charge their body and get their limbs to move independently proved that. 

You rub your face and check the time, you could still work in this, as long as there was still some heat in here. The power had to come back on eventually, right?

You search for your lantern, finding it and lighting, hanging it from the ceiling above. Once everything's settled, towels stuff under the old door to help keep heat from leaking out, you get back to work. 

When you'd found them, having decided to take a look through the long abandoned Plex, you'd been horrified at their condition. Tattered clothes and broken parts, that's what remained of your beloved attendant. You remember cradle their cracked faceplate in your hand, tears welling up at the thought that'd they shut down alone, afraid, not knowing where they'd wake up again. 

That had been back in the fall, it was the dead of winter now and progress had been progressing best you could. You weren't well versed in this type of thing, you were relying on videos and online forums to guide your progress. And you were just hoping and praying you were doing all this correctly. 

You'd started with the surface level damaged and worked your way in, scrounging the Plex for spare parts and replacements. Anything you couldn't find you'd snatch up in eBay auctions or the likes. 

With tender love and care, you rebuilt your attendant back into the bot you loved. You just finished repairing Sun's rays the other day, but you kept Moon's hat on him, something about the look going along with their mismatched pants. 

Now all that was left was the hard stuff, the internal components. 

So much of their inner workings had been fried, smashed, or damaged in some other capacity. You'd feared for the worst, truthfully. Having to accept that they may actually be gone for good. It was something that haunted you for weeks before you finally bit the bullet and opened up their head. 

You had teared up a bit when you found their hard drive was in perfect condition, letting out a cheer loud enough to probably disturb your neighbors. 

Your hands are shaking now, you realize. Shivering, your shivering. You check the time again, it's already been two hours. But, you argue, it's not that cold yet. You can keep going, keeping working, keep fixing. Keep saving. 

You have to. You have to do it for them. 

You take short breaks every now and then, warming your hands on their casing. They may not be awake, but at least they're alive. 

Your breath is showing up in front of you now, your fingers feel stiff, but still, you keep going. You just have one final thing to do, give them a reset. 

Your legs hurt as you stand, walking up to where their head rests. You pull out the Faz wrench you'd found on your last trip to the Plex. A find that had you dancing around the abandoned building like an idiot. 

With a shaky grip, you insert it and turn, waiting with bated breath. 

Nothing happens. 

You step back, waiting a solid two minutes for the attendant to sit up, either AI greeting you like how you've been waiting six months for them to do. 

But they don't. 

You feel too tired and too cold to cry. Just a feeling of utter defeat overtaking you. Your head feels heavy, so do your eyelids. Maybe you just need to take a nap, and you can figure this out afterwards. 

You climb back up onto the table, laying down on the warm but empty shell of your attendant. Curling up, you pull your coat tighter around yourself and close your eyes. 

As you start to drift off, you swear you feel a shift underneath you, something laying on top of your body. 

You have a strange dream. 

In it, you're being carried through the snow by something. It has two bright eyes, one red, one white, with spikes coming off its head, and a blue hat. It speaks to you, murmuring sweet nothings that you can't recall. 

When you wake up on your couch, you realize it wasn't a dream. You go to get up, but a firm grip around your waist prevents you from doing so. Looking down, you realize your laying on top of Sun, or, Moon? You don't know, you don't care, because it clicks to you that his eyes are open and he's looking at you and he's awake—

"Hello, Starlight. We missed you."

Your voice is just a whisper. "You're awake... You're okay."

Before he can say anything, you wrap your arms around him, kissing his faceplate over and over. 

"I, I thought you guys were gone. That, that it wouldn't work, that I had to live without you." You're crying now. "I, I can't believe you're actually here."

"Silly Star. We never left." A shift in tone. "We were right there with you, Sunbeam!"

You realize what they mean. "Oh god. That means you heard all of that."

"You mean all your lovely conversations with us? Your laughter, your beautiful singing?" They take your hand, pressing it to their faceplate. "Because if so, the answer is yes."

You feel your face heat up and not knowing what else to do bury it against their neck as they laugh. 

"How awful." You mumble. 

They pet your hair for a few moments, fingers staying laced in it as you sit back up to look at them. 

You trace your hand down the side of their face, taking it all in. "I can't believe it, after all this time. Picked a terrible time to wake up. Can't even give you a proper tour of the place with the power out."

You start to get up, wanting to go grab a lamp, but they immediately pull you back down, arms firmly around you. 

"No leaving. Too cold. Stay here, we'll keep you warm."

You give in rather easily, especially when their hands start to explore just under your shirt, snickering at how you tense up. 

You scowl at them, taking their faceplate in both hands and leaning down so your foreheads are touching. "How did you two manage to get worse?"

Just another chuckle in response, their eyes nothing but thin, devious crescents. 

You kiss them then, soft, sweet. And then you do it again, and again. 

As you kiss, you feel the blanket you'd shoved off in your excitement be placed back over you both, adding to the warmth and coziness between you. 

You have to break away for a moment, panting ever so slightly. 

They tilt their head, watching you keenly. A thumb comes up to swipe against your lip. 

You smirk. "Thanks."

They nod. 

"I really missed you, you know?" You lay your head against their chest, listening to how with every tick and click and whirl, it's a sign that they're really there with you. They're actually home. 

Their hand comes up to stroke your hair, other arm snug against your hip. 

"We missed you too."

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Thank you @rosescarletful for the request! I had a bit of fun with it as you can see, very much enjoyed the concept your prompt allowed me to think up :)

Masterpost link

Tag list (if you would like added, see this post for more info):

@scarletcowboy @beemyhuneybee @fishm0ther @deviouscrackers @elsajoyagent8

@luckyyyduckyyy @zenkaiankoku @jogimote @local-shrub @amarynthian-chronicles

@robinette-green @everlightreader @sinister-sincerely @starredeclipse @dangerva

@juukai @crystalmagpie447 @mothgutz236 @lizyxml @divinit3a

[ramblings-of-a-chaotic-neutral]

Hello everyone! Here's another Epic au that's be rattling around in my brain! Enjoy! :D

(Also, I'll probably have one or two more Epic au's before I switch back to my usual Merlin au's.)

This premise of this au is kind of similar to my last one, but a also very different different. In this au, when mortals interact with gods or monsters, they're left with some sort of marker, as a way to show other mortals that they have gotten the attention of a powerful entity, whether for good reasons or terrible ones.

Most mortals never encounter any of the gods, so they don't have to worry about any marks, but for people who have been the subject of a god's attention or ire, they're left with a permanent reminder of it. These marks are either physical, showing up on the person's body, or take the form of some ability granted to the mortal. However, these marks can be either a blessing or a curse.

So, in this au, Odysseus has had a physical marker of his connection to Athena since a young age. Ever since he was a boy, his eyes almost glowed at night, his gaze far sharper than any humans' should be. At times, his neck could turn to a far greater degree than what was physically possible, allowing for him to quickly catch enemies attempting to sneak up on him from behind. He keeps these abilities for his entire life, even after Athena has left him.

While all of this helped make Odysseus a warrior beyond nearly any other, as the Trojan War ended and he set out to return home with his crew, he learned through many brutal lessons that the marks left behind from encountering the gods were not always a boon.

The first time a new mark (in what would eventually become quite the collection) appeared on his journey, it was as he was sailing away from the cyclops's cave, having just finished shouting his name at the beast.

After defeating the cyclops, Odysseus gains physical strength beyond anything he or his men have seen before. However, he cannot control it at first, leading to Odysseus accidentally breaking everything he holds and even accidentally injuring his crewmates just by touching them. This Odysseus fears this mark greatly, because how is he supposed to hold his wife and son if he cannot hold anything without breaking it?!

Next, when Odysseus is given the wind bag by Aeolus, he gains a mark that gives him silent steps, as if he weighs nothing more than air. He spooks many of the crew with this, but luckily they're able to adapt fairly well to this mark.

After encountering Poseidon the first time, Odysseus, to his horror, grows gills on his neck, as a cruel reminder from the god of the seas that Odysseus had escaped the watery grave that so many of his men were mercilessly thrown into, and they're by far his most noticeable mark. Odysseus spends many hours staring at the gills in horror, wondering if Penelope will even be able to recognize him when he gets home.

Hermes, much like Athena, decides to be helpful with his mark on Odysseus. His mark is a swift and sure stride, allowing Odysseus to move quicker and more nimbly than he ever had before.

After Circe, Odysseus gains yet another mark, which he is beginning to dread at this point. Circe's mark is the ability to conjure realistic illusions of just about anything, from Odysseus himself to any of the monsters he's seen.

After killing the sirens, Odysseus gains a mark from them as well. This time, he gains the ability to mimic voices, any voice he's heard. Sometimes, in the dead of night, he uses it to mimic Penelope's voice, the voice he's missed so dearly, softly singing to himself.

After Scylla, Odysseus gains his most grotesque mark yet. All of his teeth transform into sharp, ferocious fangs that are stained blood-red despite how many times Odysseus washes out his mouth. Odysseus avoids talking for a while after that, too horrified at the sight he now makes.

He certainly looks like a monster now, but his journey is long from over.

Next, after his fateful choice from Zeus, Odysseus wakes up on Calypso's island with yet another mark. This time, when Odysseus gets angry, the air around him becomes almost charged, humming with energy that sets everything around on edge, a primordial fear running through them.

Calypso's mark is put on him near-immediately after he meets her, allowing him to persuade any mortal with his voice alone. Odysseus curses the fact that the ability doesn't work on goddesses every single day for seven years when he pleads for release from the island.

The second time Odysseus meets Hermes, the god of travelers decides to bless him again with yet another helpful mark. This time, Hermes gives him the ability to locate anything he wants, including Ithaca, to guide his way home.

After outmaneuvering Charybdis, Odysseus gains its mark as well, allowing him to pull nearby objects closer to him, just like Charybdis with its whirlpools.

And finally, after Odysseus is done torturing Poseidon, he gains one last mark: his nails sharpened into long claws, the ends pointed like Poseidon's trident and permanently stained ichor-gold. One last transformation for Odysseus to become the monster Poseidon accused him of being.

For the entirety of his journey home, Odysseus hated most of his marks, despising them for turning him into something else, something not quite himself. He hated what he was becoming with each mark that took him further and further away from his humanity.

However, when Odysseus finally set foot in his palace once more only to find over a hundred suitors plotting to do terrible things to his wife and son? Odysseus finally understood. He realized, at long last, what the marks, given to him by gods and monsters, allies and enemies alike, were meant to be used for.

All of these marks that he had acquired, they had indeed turned him into the perfect monster. Namely, the marks had transformed him into a monster well-suited for hunting down any mortal that had dared to invade his home.

Odysseus doesn't even use his bow, as the string snapped under his strength when he pulled it back, ready to silence the most vocal of these pests with an arrow through his neck. Instead, it seemed like he was going to have his already blood-stained hands claws dirty.

Calling upon Aeolus and Circe's marks, he hid his presence, filling the air around him with an illusion that where he was standing was empty. Then, he silently crept forward, until he was only mere steps behind the boasting pig, which didn't even know that it was about to be slaughtered.

Using Charybdis' mark, he pulled his prey back towards him and, before anyone in the room could blink, tore the vermin's throat out with his claws.

There was a moment of stunned silence among all of the suitors prey before Odysseus dropped his illusion, revealing his full visage. His face and torn tunic drenched in the blood of a god, his blood-stained fangs bared, his gills flaring, his eyes nearly glowing in the light of the torches, his claws

The moment the prey set their eyes on him, terrified screams of "oh gods" and "what is that?" ring out from the crowd, but Odysseus pays them no mind. No, he ignores all of the cries from the crowd, because he has only one goal in mind:

To hunt.

(Much, much later, after blood has coated nearly every surface in the palace and there are no more suitors to kill, Penelope and Odysseus reunite at long last.

And if, after everything, Penelope gains a mark of her own after "slaying" the monster that Odysseus had become in order to bring her husband back to her, then neither of them would think too much of it.)

And that's all for now on this au! Please let me know if you'd like a continuation!

And, as always, thank you for reading through my ramblings! :D

[shini--chan]

Yan face with human! reader (they are analytical cold and don't like hugging (tend to be sociopathic)

Scratching the sociopathic part because it doesn’t entirely fit with the analytical and cold part. Besides, I already had this finished and then my laptop decided to stage a rebellion. To say I’m a bit pissed would be an understatement

Yandere Allies - Winter Solstice

America

Alfred would see it as a challenge. In his eyes, you would just be so closed off because you wouldn’t have met him yet and have had somebody to open up to. It would just be like those old (as well as modern) Hollywood films where the love interest of the protagonist would make him chase them to prove his worth. Every slap to the face would just be a hint to try harder and every no would be a yes in disguise. Like the main character in those movies, he would just have to wear you down and you would just be playing hard to get. Never would a rejection of yours be taken seriously and it would just be seen as one of those silly games people like to play with each other. An important thing to keep in mind would be that the faster you would try to run from him, the more stubborn and passionate he would become in his pursuit of you. Even after he would have you bond to his side, he wouldn’t let go of that delusion. It just would compute for him that you aren’t enamoured with him, especially after you played hard to get for so long. 

You can bet your life that he wouldn’t respect your boundaries when it comes to touch, a feature that would be amplified after the two of you would “establish your relationship”. Wriggling out of his embrace, brushing off his hands, turning your cheek when he would go in for a kiss - that and many other rejection of his advances would just lead to him repeating the action more intimately and longer than before. It goes without saying that this would lead to some very … uncomfortable situations. 

Canada

Matthew would actually be relieved, There wouldn’t be such pressure to be a romantic this way and there wouldn’t be much difference between courting and living with him. This man would be from casting you lovelorn gazes while stalking you to casting lovelorn gazes at you while you go about your business in the isolated cabin he would keep you prisoner in after kidnapping you. His relationship would consist a lot of just observing you - he would act very much like a naturalist in that respect, so it wouldn’t matter much if you wouldn’t reciprocate his feelings. 

China

Yao wouldn’t have a big problem with it. Of course he would prefer it if you’d be more affectionate with him, yet he’d take what he is given. If being cold and distant is your baseline personality, then so be it - he’d have become obsessed with you for who you are after all. However, if you’re just playing at being standoffish to scare him off, then he wouldn’t have any of it. He’d increase his pursuit of you, maybe even going as far as forcing you to cooperate with him by pulling some strings and having you assigned to him. Then he’d have time to file away at your armour.

England

Arthur would actually be disturbed by your coldness and aloofness. The partner he would seek would be sweet and tender in the right moments, and have recognisable emotional expressions. You being so closed off, so one dimensional in character wouldn’t sit well with him. Which is why he would become quickly convinced that you would be hiding most of your personality from him and putting up a cold front to scare him away. As such, he would use any method to thaw that icy heart of your’s. Romantic gestures aplenty would be employed - from flowers to poetry to strolls in the park. Eventually though, he would become fed up with his failures and lure away to the woods. A scene would occur, that would culminate in him kidnapping you. 

After squirreling you away to his estate, he would put you through various trials in order to make your hard shell break. All good romantic relationships would have their own obstacles, and this would be one of your’s. For England, it would be alright if you’re cold to others, however you should be willing to grant emotional tenderness and warmth to him. He would also be very merciless in his pursuit of that. 

France

Francis would pity you. Who on earth would have harmed his beloved so much that they would have become closed off and introverted and distrusting? How dare the cruel world harm his petite little love. His notions of your relationship would lead him to directly skip the courting part and straight up kidnap you. When you would continue to be closed off and cold, he would sit you down to explain at length that you’re safe with him and that you no longer have to retreat into yourself to ensure you remain unharmed. With him, it would be alright to be vulnerable. To extend on this, he would see it as within his right to play therapist to you and if you wouldn’t cooperate, then he would resort to underhand methods. Romantic dinners would turn into interrogations, and every menial problem of your’s would be traced back to your childhood. 

Additionally, he would enact your “revenge” for you so that you can get over your past “traumas”. Your “abuser’s” head would be served to you on a silver platter. While it can be so easy to label him as a sappy, romantic fool, there would be instances like this where he would remind you that that would just be a singular facet to the personality of a warfaring empire.France would be like a cat bringing a mouse to your doorstep, and be as expectant as a hound for praise. 

Russia

Ivan would be alright at first - he would see it as a normal reaction to meeting somebody new. True smiles and real tears are only shared with family and friends, yes? If things would continue that way, then he’ll assume that he wronged you somehow or needs to step up his game. Eitherway, you’d be on the receiving end of a parade of flowers and chocolates. If you’d be naturally cold, then he’d come to terms with it. However, if he’d think you’re trying to get rid of him by giving him the cold shoulder, then you would be kidnapped.