#this got sooooo long yikes

[unbearable-lightness-of-ink]

so anyway I really did start compiling a kinyarwanda/english dictionary/grammar guide out of all the random resources i've been hoarding on my phone (it doesn't have to be great, it just has to be better than searching multiple different files every time I'm looking for some obscure vocab or grammar detail) and one of these resources is some PDF uploaded to the internet archive and it's... not great. from the writing and contents it's clearly

old (my guess is mid-1900s. I don't remember colonial and post-colonial Rwandan history specifically enough to guess well here, but based on some of the typos, it was done on a typewriter and then scanned with OCR)

intended for missionaries (some examples of actual sentences in the "translate this" exercises include "I praise God because He saved me and He gave me peace and joy" and, I shit u not, "The blind man cannot see the Word of God, but he can hear and he can know the love of Jesus." it's. well for one thing this is basically useless vocabulary for me, and also it's cringe af)

written by someone who was not a linguist (at one point instead of just saying "if T is preceded by an unvoiced consonant, it turns into D" they give you a list of every unvoiced consonant and then recommend that you invent a mnemonic phrase to memorise the list?! why?)

written by someone who was shit with pronunciation (legit so many places where they're like "there's no way to describe how this sounds, you just have to ask someone to make the sound for you" my good bitch the phoneme might not be in english but I could describe it just fine. skill issue.)

but the thing that's really killing me about all this is that every time they try to explain tonal vowels or phonemes that aren't in english, they tell you to "ask an African to say it for you."

an. an what now? an African? babe there are approximately 1.5 billion people in Africa. Africa accounts for about 20% of the land on earth, it's the second-biggest continent, and it has an estimated two thousand living languages spoken throughout the continent.

and kinyarwanda? it has maybe 15-25 million native speakers, depending on which source I trust. it's spoken (almost*) exclusively in rwanda, which is the 9th smallest country in Africa--and that roundup includes islands off the coast of the continent. It has the second densest population in Africa but it still only has like 13 million people in it. and it's a very unique language. its closest relatives do not have the same phonemes that kinyarwanda has, and its closest relatives are also spoken by relatively few people. I don't know enough about kirundi to say much but I do know that it doesn't have the same vowel tones in all instances and it doesn't have some of the same consonant clusters. and the more widely spoken related languages that you're more likely to stumble on someone who knows how to speak? they're even worse for a reference; ask someone who speaks kiswahili to pronounce kinyarwanda for you and they will not pronounce the difference between, say, umuceri (rice) and umucyeri (berry), or the tonal difference between words like umusambi (floor mat) and umusambi (crested crane).

so, like. it's just absolutely sending me, this random white lady who was obviously a colonialist missionary, bothering to make a whole language guide to teach me how to proselytise in kinyarwanda, but along the way she's like "just ask an african--any african--how to say this" lady less than 1% of them are going to know this language but go off i guess

*almost because there's the diaspora of rwandan expats and immigrants in other countries plus the banyamulenge which is a whole aspect of it that has so much fraught history on all sides that I won't even try to say something intelligent about it, it's totally not my place/something i'm educated enough about, but to my knowledge most of them speak dialects that are more or less dissimilar to kinyarwanda; kinyamulenge and kinyabwisha are not the same as kinyarwanda. take it from my munyamulenge coworker who could never pronounce the difference between c and cy

[hellofears]

[ ♫ ] + [transcript]

[mellowyellow236]

The TWST boys write letters to Yuu/The Prefect!

All of them except for Ortho+Checka are meant to be interpreted as romantic, but many can be interpreted as platonic as well. The reader is gender-neutral, but more feminine adjectives will be used when referring to them. Characters will probably be a bit OOC.

Minor spoilers for their respective books in each section, but I try to keep it as spoiler-free as I can, except for who overbloted. If anyone has any questions or comments, please leave an ask or comment :) All are under the cut.

NRC:

Heartslabyul:  

Riddle Rosehearts - 

My dearest rose, 

You are the loveliest person I have ever known. It is a miracle that you chose to get to know me, and even more so after I hurt you and your friends so deeply. I have made many mistakes, but you, my rose, look past them. I understand that you may choose to go home one day, but even so... 

Please just give me a moment of your time, a fraction of your thoughts, and I’ll be satisfied. Any inch of you that I can get, I want, even if you still believe me a tyrant. If it pleased you- No, if it only made you look my way, I would gladly break any rule of the queen’s or my mother’s. Understand that, my rose, and I am sure you’ll know what remains unsaid in this letter. 

Yours Truly, 

Riddle Rosehearts 

Trey Clover - 

Prefect, 

Hello. I wanted to thank you, first and foremost, for helping out Heartslabyul so much. You’ve been a very good influence on Ace and Duece, and it’s nice to see Cater open up to someone. Not to mention, Riddle’s been improving every day. I can’t even describe how much you’ve helped me... I just hope you know that I’ll always be grateful for what you’ve done. You’re welcome at Heartsabyul at any time. I have some donuts waiting for you if you want. 

From, 

Trey. 

Cater Diamond - 

Prefect, 

Heyyy! Whatcha doing right now? I’m sooooo happy that you came to NRC even if, like, all of the housewarden’s tried to ratio you. I do not subscribe to that, BTW. #NotCool, #Yikes-A-Tron. But,  like... On a more serious note, I am happy that I got to know you. It’s nice to have someone I can just be myself around. No drama, no expectations, just... Yeah. I know that you’re gonna leave at some point, and it’s almost a relief. You’re honest about it, which is something that many can’t say. 

Ugh, that was probs TMI! I’m not trying to trauma dump here, oops. There’s this cute cafe that opened up downtown, totally Magicam-worthy. You wanna meet up there sometime? 

- Cay-cay ♦️  

Ace Trapolla - 

Prefect!! 

I need your help! So, Trein’s got this super hard test coming up on Friday- Like, Riddle-got-a-99-last-year level of hard. Yeah, that’s without the extra credit, but STILL! That’s failure to the tyrant! So, you’ve got to come over to Heartslabyul right now and help me study. Pleaseeeee!!!! I’ll owe you one! 

Oh, and don’t bring Grim. Deuce’s also got plans, there’s no need to ask him. You know, in case that matters to you. 

See ya, 

Ace 

Deuce Spade - 

Dear Prefect, 

Hello, how are you doing? Can you believe that it’s already been so long since we became friends? When we broke that chandelier, I was ready to never talk to you again... But now look at us! I’m on my way to becoming an honor student, and you’re working on finding your way home! I’m happy that you’re going to be able to go soon, I know how bad it feels not to be able to see your family (and probably friends in your case) after so long away, but also sad that you’ll be leaving us. 

I’ve got it! Let’s get your ghost camera, and we’ll take lots of photos of us all over campus! Two of each, so that way no matter what, both of us will always remember what we went through together. That sounds like a good idea, right? 

From, 

Duece 

Savanaclaw: 

Leona Kingscholar - 

Herbivore, 

Hey. You’re an idiot, you know that? You’re stupid and impulsive and don’t know when to quit or give up. That’s why you keep looking for me in the botanical gardens, right? You just don’t know when to stop. I’m sure that you’ll realize I’m not worth your effort soon enough. But until then, you have to come to see me more often. You’re my pillow, I don’t get good enough sleep if you’re not there. 

I’m in the usual place. Get over here as soon as possible. 

- Leona 

Ruggie Bucchi - 

Hiya, Prefect... 

I’ve been thinking, and you should let me come over to Ramshackle and fix the place up for you. No upfront cost, of course, but... I want the right to use the kitchen as I please, whenever I please. 

Why, you’re asking? Shishishi... Not telling. You’ve just got to trust me on this, I’ll make it worth your while. Then again, maybe I’ll just blow the kitchen up and you’ll have to live at Savanclaw again! That’d be fun, huh? 

If you don’t want me to, ya better give up your kitchen for a little while! I’ll get that microwave up and running again in no time.

- Ruggie 

Jack Howl - 

Dear Prefect, 

Hello, have you been feeling alright? I’ve noticed that Crowley isn’t the best provider of food. While on my morning runs, I’ve noticed Grim loudly talking about how he doesn’t have enough tuna. He does it pretty often. So, I’ve thought of a solution; You could try eating breakfast with me. I always get big portions, so you could have some. If you want, I could even try lifting you and carrying you places. I need to get better strength training anyway, and then you’ll have a buddy to get stronger with. It’s always better to have a friend with you. 

From, 

Jack 

Octavinelle: 

Azul Ashengrotto - 

My Pearl, 

Allow me to start this letter by saying that you are truly the crown jewel of my riches and that none can replace your beauty. You are the loveliest, most perfect little pearl, and I adore you with my whole heart. And yet, I cannot seem to convince myself that you feel the same. You say you do, and even if it is a crime to believe your lips hold lies, I cannot believe that to be true. If it was, why? Not just why you would tell me- A scheming man who has hurt you and your friends- that I hold the keys to your heart, but why you would choose what I hold underneath. I’m no good for you in terms of personality or how I look, and yet... You still hold me dear. And for that alone, I want to take you to the Coral Sea where my home lies, but not for a deal this time. Just... Because I want you and my mother in the same place. The two most important people to me meeting... That’s the best thing I can think of, to be honest. 

With Love, 

Azul Ashengrotto 

Jade Leech - 

Dearest Prefect, 

It has come to my attention that you haven’t had a chance to enjoy a proper mushroom dish since arriving in Twisted Wonderland. Now, that will not do for much longer. This letter should contain a box with three containers worth of mushroom dishes. You are to eat them and write back to me with what you thought of each of them. In return, I shall continue to provide you with free food. 

Do be warned, however, that they should all be eaten as fast as possible once you get them in case my brother chooses to throw them out. Also, so that way Grim cannot eat them. I would not recommend it for a cat.

Kind Regards, 

Jade Leech 

Floyd Leech - 

Shrimpy!!!!!! 

You and me. In the courtyard. Now. 

I’m going to squeeze you. 

🐬°˖𓍢✨໋ 🐋✧°.🐟⋆ 

🦐🥢🥢🥢🥢🧨 

I’ll see you later if you want me to or not. 

- Floyd <3333333 

Scarabia: 

Kalim Al-Asim - 

Hello!!!!

I love you!!! I love you, I love you, I love you! You’re the most wonderful person in this school, and you’ve done so much for both me and Jamil! It would be silly for me not to love you. I love how your hair looked in the wind when we went on that carpet ride, I love how you looked in the school’s uniform and how you looked when you tried on my dorms, and I love how you look no matter how you dress because you’re a beautiful person inside and out! I love you, and nothing can change that! (˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶) .ᐟ.ᐟ 

Hugs and kisses, 

Kalim Al-Asim 

P.S. Let’s go on another magic carpet ride soon, okay? I want to show you how pretty the moon looks when it’s full and you’re flying!

Jamil Viper - 

Dear Prefect,

Thank you for saving me when I overblotted. I am aware that what I did was wrong, and I apologize. I hope you can understand where I’m coming from. Either way, I feel as though I must do something more for you to show you that. Please come to Scarabia tonight. I will make you a special dinner if you do. Please, don’t tell Kalim. I want... something special, for the two of us this time. 

See you later, 

Jamil Viper

Pomefiore: 

Vil Schoenheit - 

My Dearest Potato, 

I regret to inform you that you have bewitched me. So much so that I willingly took on a role as a villain in this next movie. The villain falls in love with the hero’s love interest, and then, in a “shocking” turn of events, she chooses the villain to stand by. Of course, they’re both defeated, the hero gets with his childhood friend in some lesson of how love will always be waiting for you, whatever. But I still chose it, even if Neige plays the hero. 

I finally have a love interest, and they remind me of you. You could have stood by his side, you know. You should have. I poisoned him; That action speaks for itself. And yet, you decided to stay with me. Just like how that villain in this story gets the girl the hero originally wanted. 

I’ve won your heart as well, haven’t I? 

Sincerely, 

Vil Schoenheit 

Rook Hunt - 

Trickster, 

Bonjour, mon amour! I could not resist sending you another letter. You see my darling, I long for you like I long for the sunset on a hot day, for an oasis in a desert, for a hint of rain during the dry season, for the sun during the days when it pours. I'd imagine you'd taste like the rain as well, Trickster, and if given the chance, I'd taste again and again, in an attempt to satiate more than just my curiosity. 

Oh, Trickster, have you any idea how you’ve bewitched me? Why, just the sight of you is enough to send me spiraling, wishing for the smallest fraction of a chance that my affections are shared. How cruel is fate, to deny me the right to live and die within your arms? La petite mort would be heaven if it was with you, but death would truly come for me if it wasn’t. 

Je t'aime de tout mon coeur, 

Le Chasseur D'Armour 

Epel Felmeir - 

Prefect, 

I need some help. I found out that milk can make ya grow stronger, and also help you get taller. However, Vil has banned me from drinking it because I drank a carton in two days. Something about it raising my cholesterol or making me break out, I don’t care. So, I need to keep it at Ramshackle. That’s okay with you, right? Well, I sure hope it is, cause it’s getting in there if ya want it to or not! I’ll see ya soon, just make sure it’s in the fridge. I’ll get ya some of my family’s apple juice in return, it’ll be good. I reckon ya liked it last time. 

Epel 

Ignihyde: 

Idia Shroud - 

Prefect, 

Get to my room, and fast. There’s an event taking place, and I need a player two. This one requires another person to be in the same room, so I can’t ask any of my mutuals, and you’re the only one I trust with this. I can’t ask Ortho either, don’t ask why. 

Also I recently got pink lights in my room like those normies. That’s why everything looks kind of pink, it’s not my hair. Just in case you were wondering if I was embarrassed or whatever, you’re wrong. Just get over here ASAP, no time to waste. 

- Gloomurai 

Ortho Shroud - 

Hello, how are you? ( ˵ •̀ ᴗ •́˵) I am very happy to get a chance to talk with you. I have recently learned how to type out these little faces called ‘kaomoji’ that my big brother loves. Here are some of my favorites: 

♡✧( •⌄• ) 

ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ 

•ω• 

ᓚ₍ ^. .^₎ - This one is a cat! 

I would like to share more with you. Please come to Ignihyde so I can teach you how to get them on your phone as well. I can provide free updates while you’re here if needed. (✿˶◕‿◕˶人◕ᴗ◕✿) 

Sent To: PerfectPrefect@email.com 

Date: XX/XX/XXXX 

Return Email: orthoshroud2@email.com 

Diasomnia: 

Malleus Dracona - 

My Dearest Child Of Man, 

If Longing was painful, how much farther would I have to fall to crash and burn at your feet? The only answer I can give is that I already would have. I would build monuments in your name and would offer you the world and more if only you would say you loved me back. 

Could this be considered love? Could these feelings I hold deep within my heart, only to divulge in the darkest hours of the night with none but the stars and you to bear witness to my passion, be a form of love? Or is this simply my yearning, a longing for your heart, and wanting to have someone to call my own? 

The moment I laid eyes on you, I knew that you were the one I wanted next. How I wish I could scream your name from the rooftop, and raise my voice in song only to sing your praises. You have the face of an angel, and I am sure that you must have the mind of one as well, for even if the voices in your head remind you of nothing more than pain and suffering, they have still been able to mold you into the perfection you are today. But maybe you have devils as well, trying to smite you as you sleep, but just as I do all of your angels, I will pick them up and kiss their heads if they are a part of someone I care for so much. You are perfection, Child of Man, and this dragon wishes only to live with the crumbs of affection as my treasures. 

Yours Until The End Of Eternity, 

Prince Malleus Dracona Of Briar Valley Hornton 

Lilia Vanrouge - (Okay so for Lilia I could have SWORN that he calls the prefect ‘Beastie,’ but I can find that nowhere. Literally at all, no one seems to have used it for him, but I know that I’ve seen at least one person do it. I now think that it’s a headcanon thing but I’m not sure, if anyone knows who did this or if it’s canon, please tell me. I’ve been searching for far too long and I am in too deep.)

Beastie, 

Hello, my darling~! I have an easy-peasy little request for you, m’kay? You just need to travel over to Diasomnia, and then... I’ll make you a meal! Malleus has been out trying to find this one gargoyle on campus all day since I brought up wanting to learn a new recipe, and Sebek and Silver both ran off earlier to go help him. I don’t know how to tell them that the gargoyle they’re looking for definitely isn’t at Night Raven College. Raising kids is quite hard, especially when things like this come up... 

But you’ll be there for me, won’t you, Beastie? Pretty please? I’ll see you tonight if you want to, a little date if you feel up to it. Mwah! 

xoxo, 

Lilia 

Silver “Vanrouge” - 

Dear Prefect, 

I had the most wonderful dream. I think I did, at least. I can’t remember it, but I remember how familiar these eyes were, and I knew it was you as soon as I awoke. And I know it's true, that dreams are seldom what they seem... But if I know how you are, then I know what you'll do; You'll look at me the same way you did once upon inside my dreams. And tell me all about the animals that you found with me when I awoke. What I wouldn’t give to hear you tell me about every birdie that comes to me; I’d be willing to fall asleep in the forest every day if only to hear you cooing to the birds when I come to. I wonder if each little bird has someone to sing sweet things to, a little love melody like what I long to play for you one day. Well, either way, I’m growing sleepy now. The effects of my curse will soon be on me once more. I’ll see you either later today or tomorrow, depending on how long I’m asleep. If you need me or simply wish to keep me company, I’m currently resting in the woods. 

Best Wishes, 

Silver 

Sebek Zigvolt - 

HUMAN! 

I have something to show you; A new notebook to be filled, gifted to me by Master Lilia. He said that it is a ‘scrapbook’, which humans fill up with pictures and drawings of themselves and their friends. To fulfill the purpose of this illustrious gift, you must come to Diasomnia at once! You shall be the first of the first years to be added, along with Silver. Prepare enough of those photographs you have to fill half of the book. The other shall be dedicated to Wakasama! 

Sincerely, 

Sebek Zigvolt  

RSA+NBC: 

Che’nya - 

Prefect... 

When are you going to visit RSA, huh? It would be purrr-fect to get a chance to see you again. You’re quite the pretty purr-son, dontcha think? Or maybe I’ll just drop by at the next unbirthday party... Riddle and Trey would like that, but I wonder what you’d think. Hum-hum-hummm... 

Kitty Kisses, 

Artemiy Artemiyevich Pinker <3 

Neige Leblanche - (The Reader is called NRC’s ‘princess’ in this one, but not called a woman or anything)

My Dearest, 

Hello! How are you fairing? Have you been doing okay since the VDC? I know that you looked pretty shaken up back then, so I wanted to make sure that you’ve been okay. After all, you’re NRC’s princess! As far as I can tell, anyway. I’m happy that there’s someone around Vil like you, he always looked like he needed a good cheering up. And you’re like a fairytale! Such pretty hair and eyes and skin; Oh, I’d ride away with you on a white horse if I could! 

Ah, that’s odd to say to someone I don’t know very well, isn’t it? I’m sorry, that’s my fault. You still want to be friends, right? If you do, please come visit me at some point. Or, just send me a letter back. I’ll make sure that you get priority over any fan letter. 

Love, 

Neige Leblanche 

Rollo Flamme -

Mon Amour, 

There are times I wish I could tear you down and take you apart only to sew you back together. Rip you to shreds only to tenderly put each piece back where it should be. Drink from you until there's nothing left and then fill you up with all of the love I could offer, make you mine and mine alone. Those greedy thoughts shouldn't even make their way onto this paper, shouldn’t even be in my head, and yet here I am, penning them in a letter never to be sent. 

I truly wish you never see these letters, for I'd hate to be the reason your face turns to disgust, even if for a moment. Of course, I don't regret writing them. You will never read them, after all, but I believe I should get my thoughts out like this rather than bottle them up, lest I do something stupid and let you see them. I pray that you will never have to see me in a state like how I write to you, over my bedside table in the dead of night, eyes barely open and breath still recovering from dreams of a sweeter pleasure than I should sully your name with. 

I mention those dreams I have of you a lot, it seems, although I mean it in the most innocent way possible. Ever since I met you, you've infested my dreams and wormed your way into my heart like a parasite I can't rid myself of. My dreams are all of the sweet moments I have longed for and never gotten. I only have eyes for you, after all, and a saint may never lie with a sinner, lest they become one as well. 

Bonus: 

Checka Kingscholar - 

To Perfect, 

Hello! I am Checka Kingscholar. I am fiv years old. I like my unca. I like my dad and I love my mom. I love you! Goodbye! •ᴗ•

[cementcornfield]

Sooooo-How was it???

it was super fun!! well, i say that, but we all saw that game lol, it was definitely an agonizing 2nd and 3rd quarter. if my brother in law hadn’t taken it upon himself to get me constant refills of vodka sodas i don’t know what i’d have done lmao. 

anyway, i just got home and here’s some rambling about everything below the cut if anyone is interested! 

football thoughts

we got the win, so thank god. i know it was an ugly one, but jesus christ did we need it. the season isn’t saved at 2-4 by any means, but at least it’s not COMPLETELY ruined yet.  defense stepping up was great to see! bj, trey, and dj in particular seemed like they were everywhere they needed to be when they needed to be there, which was awesome. and yeah, i know it was daniel jones and the giants, but they just beat a pretty decent seahawks team and were actually a playoff team two years ago, so i’ll take it for now! like as bad as our defense has been, it certainly hasn’t helped that we’ve been going against some of the top offenses in the league like the ravens and commanders. so it’s good to see them hold an opponent off that we should have been able to hold off, you know? 

special teams also was awsome! ryan rehkow’s punts are really cool to see in person! (they go so high!!) 

offense….well. um. we could use some work there! what was it, 5 punts in a row and then a fumble?? yikes yikes yikes. play calling…. execution…. all of it was a problem. but i guess they just couldn’t find a rhythm with that d-line, which is definitely one of the toughest in the league, so i get it. but we better start figuring it out by next week with myles garrett…

off the field, sideline thoughts

joe’s 47 yard TD was insane though!!! seeing that in person was wild because of how excited all the bengals fans were and how horrified the giants fans were lmao. and the way he dove right through the pylon at the end had me so scared he didn’t actually make it, it’s so stressful when no one is commentating and telling you exactly what’s going lol. but joe doing his flex!!! and ja’marr and tee and the rest of the guys running up to him! we got a pinky shake!!! ja’marr flexing back?!?! come on. that was adorable! 

speaking of adorable celebrations, after bj tipped that ball that led to germaine’s interception, they had a cute moment on the sideline that i wish i’d captured. they did a little hand shake/celebration thing, and then kind of just like, held onto each other’s arms for way longer than i thought they would lmao. i love those two, their dynamic needs to be talked about more! (and they were roommates etc etc) 

but other than that, it wasn’t really a game for a lot of cute moments 😔 mostly everyone was just frustrated on the sidelines! ja’marr couldn’t sit still and kept getting up to pace around (which feels very On Brand, so that was nice confirmation.) joe would stare intensely at his ipad and sometimes wander off to stand on his own for awhile and watch the game lol. i found it interesting that no one tried to interact with him in those moments, that must be something that he just does sometimes and everyone is used to it! 

OH at one point joe was super pissed after a play, i think it must have been one of his sacks, and you could tell he wanted to, if not slam, at least forcefully place his helmet back on the stand. but as he was about to do it, he noticed that jake’s helmet was in his spot lol. so he had to pause in his angry ritual and move jake’s helmet, and then just kind of sadly set the helmet down instead, poor guy, even that couldn’t go right :( 

and then the very scary part was when joe took that BIG hit and they made him go in the blue tent!!! god i was so drunk and confused and scared at that point, i had to hold my sister’s hand the whole time he was in there. but, thankfully he wasn’t in there long, and he came out looking even more pissed that they made him go in in the first place lmao. 

that’s about all i got! it was a really fun experience and i’m glad i got to see a W! wasn’t quite the week though for a lot of cute moments for sure. but oh well! i’ll see if i have any pictures or videos worth posting…. 

[apolsup]

So uhh I finally decided to watch the new clone high season... it was as bad as you would think

But it wasn't a total Joan like the last one so that's a win I guess. Anyways you know the rest, this is an art post so I'll talk a bit about my new favorite ship and then y'know the usual (skip to the end if ya don't want to read my very short silly opinions on it)

Spoilers if it wasn't obvious‼️‼️‼️

Sooooo joanfucius, I wasn't expecting it that's for sure but I wasn't expecting khalopatra to break up as well so I guess we all got surprised. Uhhh, I think Joan x Confucius is actually kinda cool! I genuinely like them and I'm (sadly) already attached so I know I'll suffer when they break them up in favor of joanabe in the end (literally, who even likes them??? No offense if there are actual joanabe shippers out there, love y'all but seriously, it should stay fanon because... Yikes)

They're made up of like- all of my favorite tropes ESPECIALLY the fake dating one like AHHHHH so why wouldn't I love them?? I was kinda bummed that it didn't last that long BUT that's what fanfiction is for, right? (What? Noooo I definitely don't plan on making a fanfic about them making their fake dating part longer pshhh)

Joanfucius for the win I love them, they're my absolute favorite sillies now (well, Joanfk still has my heart but y'know) so I've been working at the speed of light and I have a few drawings of them on the making!

It's a redraw of this scene because it was amazing and made my brain go RAAAAAAHHSHDHWJJDDJJ :3

I love joanfucius so much already I just know it'll hurt like a bitch when they break up 🤕

Btw JFK and Harriet was an awful idea I hope they break up because WOW they have 0 chemistry, it should have been JFK and Abe 😔

[queenfanatics]

Hey! So I've been rereading ANTF, and suddenly I got a few random but kinda deep questions lol. Don't have to answer if u don't wanna😔 I probably missed the answer to some of these while rereading, lmao, but

1st, what do you think would've happened if John's family had ever found out about his assault? I suspect it would've "tainted" their view of Deacury's gayness even more than it already is :/ (and sometimes Julie Deacon gets on my nerves, not gonna lie)

2nd, how do u think things would've unfolded, and the development & stuff, if what happened to John at Freddie's frequented club, had instead happened to other member of Queen? With Roger, or Brian, or even Fred himself, it would've been fundamentally different stories, no denying, but still just as angsty I think :(

3rd, how do you write their fur babies so CUTELYYY

4th, and this isn't really about the contents themselves, but are you thinking of continuing this whole series indefinitely? Because honestly, I live and die for these two😔

I love your writing btw! Damn I don't think I've written an ask as long as this one, sorry HAHA😅 I like making questions abt the things I love reading, gives such good insight

I'M SO SORRY, I COMPLETELY MISSED THIS ASK. I DIDN'T EVEN SEE IT.😪

If John's family ever found out about the assault and how it came to happen, they would blame Freddie. It would be just another reason more for them to dislike Freddie and all the things gay. It would absolutely taint their view of "Deacury's gayness" and I feel like they would somehow (in their twisted minds) think that the assault is what "turned" John gay. Or made him confused. Either way, they would blame Freddie.

If the assault happened to any of the other boys, the story would be completely different. There would be no love story.😅 Obviously, it would shake the band and I feel like the other boys would take longer to recover. Because John allowed himself to lean on Freddie completely and they were there for each other. So the healing process happened. But with Roger or Brian .... hard to tell. They'd probably want to deal with it on their own. And Freddie? Yikes. That would mess with him pretty bad. He probably wouldn't even want to admit it to himself and would pretend it was something he wanted.

Lol, unfortunately I can't keep continuing the series into forever.🤣 I don't want to let these boys go, but I would probably run out of ideas eventually.😝 The story is sooooo long already that you can probably re-read it, because you forgot some things. Haha! Thank you so much for such a lovely ask. I'm so glad you like the story.🥹

[nimata-beroya]

MY THOUGHTS on TBB 2×01 "SPOILS OF WAR" and 2×02 "RUINS OF WAR"

THEY'RE BACK! THE BOYS (+ OMEGA) ARE FINALLY HERE!!! I can't describe how happy that makes me. I guess I don't need to explain, since most of you if not all are as happy as I am.

Below, I'm leaving my reactions and thoughts about this amazing start to the season! It really paid off, all this excruciating wait.

I knew it, I knew they were going to start the season there in the beach. From the predictions I made for the season, I got that right. Also, that Cid's lady friend would appear in these episodes.

But let me go for a few back to the beach. Echo falling face down, hilarious, just as Wrecker's high-pitched voice. And Hunter's overprotective streak has grown stronger. The Dad™️ is still with him.

Hey! Azi is working as bartender??!!? Well, I guess that eliminates the trouble of an overcrowded Marauder.

🤣🤣🤣 Tech's response to flirt is sooooo Tech! And how Din Djarin of him to be called "Brown Eyes" 😆

Serenno?? They're going there now? My first bet was they'd go later in the season. I guess I was wrong about that.

Awwww, Dad Hunter helping Omega with her homework, so sweet! 🥰

😆 EVERYONE sided against Hunter. Aww, he's just thinking about giving Omega the best life she deserves. But Echo's got a point! I mean, what good it does that they have a quiet life while the galaxy is a mess, and how long their personal paradise would stay that way? We know the empire would catch up with them eventually. And Hunter, like it or not, you can't hide forever.

Aww 😩but Omega heard, and now she's feeling bad.

Hey! Echo's got a nickname! Killjoy 🤣 Love it!

Oh, so that's Serenno. When it showed up in the trailers, I thought it was any other planet but that. And oof! It was bombarded, too. Yikes! 😬

Ooh, new clone just dropped. A captain 😊 I love him already.

No!! Not again! 😱 Phew! Hunter, please, would you stop falling down from ships and stuff? Thank you!!!! Once was one too many!

Tech and Echo are being a real treat this episode! I love that we're having more of them this season.

Oh. he's got a name. Hello, captain Wilco!

😂 omega remembering things tech didn't think of. I love that he's impressed and told her so.

The scream when wrecker and hunter went down the elevator 🤣🤣🤣 Who was that? Probably Wrecker.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! 😨Thank goodness they released 2 episodes. I'd have died waiting with that cliffhanger!!!

This mission is doing a number on Hunter's blood pressure 🤣He's so stressed.

Not so fast, guys. Ugh! It's going to leave a mark!

No! Tech is hurt 😫(And I don't appreciate the parallel to Nemmik's death in Andor! Don't scare me like that!)

Omega no. Don't get ideas! Ugh, you will do something foolish, won't you? 🫣

See, I thought that scene with the LAATi flying overhead was going to be on Ord Mantell. Glad that the batch is still having a safe place to lie low. It might not last long, tho.

New plan number dropped!! (saves as reference for fic writing).

It breaks my heart how Omega worries about the mission just to give her brothers a happy life.

Last season was the senator of Raxus and Echo, now it's Ramor who forces Tech to reconsider their worldview and see beyond former political inclinations. I mean, I can't blame the clones for not knowing better. They were raised to see the world as in allies and enemies, not just people that could be suffering the same despite what path their leaders were on.

Omega, no! Don't do something stupid1 Ugh! She's going to!

Oh, kriff!! They caught up with Hunter and Wrecker.

Yes, Tech people had lives before the war, you know.

🤣 For a moment I thought Wrecker was going to say "Come to daddy" I would've died if he had 😅

Oh, my man is so smart!! Glad that they're showing it!!!!! Maybe the ones who say Wrecker is dumb will shut up now.

Tech!! Ouch! Walking is not good for you, rn. Ugg, I don't like this, Tech!! AAAAAAHHH!!!

Hurry up hunter!!!

Oh, no, Tech!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!

Poor Omega feeling guilty 😫😫

Tech is definitely having a bad, very not good day

Ah, there we go! Phew! Just in time.

Wrecker is so happy with his new weapon 😁😁

Awww 🥺🥺🥰 Very nice Echo comforting Omega

Oh, rampart 🤮 covering your own ass, huh?

Ha! The batch is more famous among clones now than during the war 😅 Not exactly the best thing tbh.

Oh, no! Wilco don't say that!! Because then…

Ugh! That happens 😫 it was nice meeting you 😭😭 UGH! I HATE you, Rampart!! I hope you suffer the slowest and most excruciating death ever!

And now, I'm worried about Crosshair 😣😣😖😖 because Rampart knows he lied, and my fear is that he'll force him to prove his loyalty to the Empire over and over in awful missions where Cross will need to do worse and worse things until either Crosshair finally turns coat or die. 😭😭😭😭😭😭

The wait for next episode is going to be long!! If my prediction is correct based on the title (and with that ending) I'm pretty sure next episode we will see Crosshair, and it'll be mostly about him.

.

Hey, guys! Now that you know what are my impressions of the season premiere, I want to remind you that I have a little survey going on to check your interest in a Bad Batch fandom event in 2023. If you like to participate, please check the link below and let me know what are your preferences.

SURVEY LINK

[aprillikesthings]

TIME FOR MORE SHE-RA

s1 ep7 let's do this

note: it's 9:14pm let's see how long a single episode takes me ahaha

Y'know, I was going to make a joke about how this is so my aesthetic it's painful, but interestingly enough the colors shifted wildly between my screenshot and adding it to the post. Have they been doing this the whole time and I hadn't noticed??? In Netflix it looks far closer to periwinkle??? fascinating

It's always been a little odd to me that nobody carries ANYTHING (other than magical swords I guess) in this show. And I get why (too much of a pain to animate) but it does mean they have to just sleep on the ground without a blanket or pillow or anything.

Meanwhile I can't even leave my house without at least a messenger bag

I ALWAYS WONDER THIS

okay so I forgot about Mystacor being the place all the sorcerers hang out and it's also mystical vacation land

SIDE NOTE a small thing that frustrates me is how little the animators agree on Glimmer's body size/shape. She's intended to be chubby (and not in an hourglass-y way) but it feels like a lot of the animators just refused to do it. There's a lot of scenes where she looks closer to my size, and I wear a small/medium in American clothes. Harrumph.

I was just about to make a joke about how Adora is gonna struggle to relax

Like gooey stuff in Miyazaki/Ghibli movies, but with a much lower budget

I can't find a gif but you know what I mean

Listen. I know I'm literally here for the gay. I know the show was made by people familiar with fandom, who put all that subtext in there on purpose and knew we'd read into it. But I still did a little kicky-feet wiggle thing when Catra's eyes widened at the mention of Adora's name.

TBH I think this is actually why I keep falling for animated media. You always know that whatever is on the screen was done on purpose.

Like, this shot from Arcane:

This is right after Vi sees Caitlyn visibly flirting with another woman; earlier Vi had asked Caitlyn "men or women?" and Caitlyn had wiggled out of the question.

So Vi's face here does an "Ah, so women it is then. NICE. Shit, I might have a chance." in like, a second and a half.

And it was all very intentional!! The people at Fortiche animation have SAID this. We're supposed to read it that way!!

I dunno. Maybe I'm still just traumatized from my time in the BBC Sherlock fandom. Are we supposed to read it as romantic or not? Because so many shots seemed full of intentional subtext (and I'm not even getting into TJLC shit, just stuff we ALL NOTICED after THE FIRST SEASON, even fucking normies noticed it) and then the showrunners spent the next few years telling us we were just imagining it.

Whereas if Caitlyn looks at Vi's lips before looking back up at her eyes, and we read into that, it's because we were supposed to. If Catra looks worried about Adora after Shadow Weaver mentions her, that's on purpose.

UGH.

Anyway.

Catra (trying to sound bored): sooooo gotta go find Adora again, got it Shadow Weaver: Nuh-uh. You get to just stand outside as guard, because you're a worthless piece of shit. [Unspoken: And also so Hordak doesn't know I'm disobeying him. :) ] Shadow Weaver: *creates a ginormous monster* Catra: yikes Shadow Weaver: GTFO OR GET HIT

Glimmer keeps trying to get out things like the tour and the eclipse ceremony and it's like your Auntie is right GIRL YOU CAN PUT UP WITH IT FOR ONCE it's all new to Adora c'mon

sorry I just get excited when they make places look a bit like medieval cathedrals

Side note did you know that, at least in England that I'm aware of, none of those medieval cathedrals have foundations. None. None of them. There's one in England that's built over a GRAVEL FILLED LAKE and if the water level gets too low the place is just gonna collapse. (They have fancy water gauges and plans for diverting water if necessary.) Anyway that's part of why so many of them charge admission for non-religious stuff. Keeping those 800-year-old super tall stone and glass buildings with NO FOUNDATIONS standing up is hella expensive. D:

Here's the twitter thread where I learned some of this information, btw

NOPE.

Anyway this is why part of the plot of my fic is related to how Adora and Catra have never had a healthy model for any kind of relationship, family or otherwise.

Oh I forgot Shadow Weaver's previous name. Anyway I still think her and Castaspella were together at some point

Adora's expression here ahahaha

Adora has ADHD but I already said that lol, and yeah I love the beach and I still need something to *do* even if it's just endlessly walking back and forth

also how does a floating island have a beach? anyway (edit: they're clouds that SOUND like water)

Yes this moment gets ruined immediately but I love it when they throw a bone to other ships, okay

YES???? DUH

also I get that they did the top on Bow so they didn't have to draw nipples and make him the only one that's topless but also we can imagine it's covering top surgery scars, trans!Bow headcanons are always winning

"So, mom stuff?" "No, commanding officer stuff. ...And mom stuff."

'cause yeah that's not awful or anything

but also now I'm imagining Shadow Weaver trying to explain periods

AAHGHHG Bow is the best. "sounds like she did a number on you. But you're away from her now. Did you want to do something else? Maybe find something to hit??" he's trying so hard to be supportive

The fact that Shadow Weaver knows how to make that monster have Catra's voice, and that she knew that was Adora's weak spot...

And this is in Hordak's, saying basically "the entire rebellion will end up dead and it'll be your fault :)"

Shadow Weaver knows exactly how to psychologically torture Adora.

Okay so Castaspella says She-Ra destroyed "a thousand years of sacred writings" and I'm just like...okay that implies Etheria has an actual religion??

And yeah that's definitely still Shadow Weaver

Also I watched the screenshot change color as I posted it. Gyahhhh.

A mutual pointed out in her live-tweeting of s5 that you could write an entire essay on the meaning of face-touching in this show. It's the one thing Shadow Weaver ever seems to do to intentionally imply affection/caring, but she only ever does it with manipulative, cruel intent, and there are multiple times I think that both Adora and Catra lean into it (even if only for a second) out of hope/relief.

(something something about baby monkeys clinging to dolls that shock them rather than have no mother at all)

(don't look up that experiment if you don't know what I'm talking about as it's incredibly upsetting, but the gist is that children will seek affection from a parental figure when hurt, even if said parent is the one hurting them, because seeking out a parent/caregiver when hurt is instinctual to infants and children. And if knowing that explains any part of your childhood I am so, so sorry)

Yeah that's straight out of the Standard Abuser's Guidebook

"Nobody cares about you or loves you or understands you the way I do. You're just like me, not them."

More face-touching!!

oh I don't like the implications here at ALL

[EDIT: she wasn't actually going to do that. She just wants Adora under her thumb to control her. it's the kind of bullshit abusers promise the moment they think you might leave. "I'll be better this time!"]

I'm not screen-shotting Adora's little speech of triumph but oh man it's GREAT and cathartic to watch

"Adora, enough of this. Come home." ....didn't Catra use nearly those words exactly

Yeah I'm glad they included that line

Bow: I'm so sorry we didn't believe you :( Adora: No, that's what Shadow Weaver does--manipulates people and pushes them apart

That's some nice awareness

And then yeah we get a moment of Catra scheming.

OKAY it's 10:44pm. Hour and a half! For twenty minutes of TV! But to be fair I did make/eat toast and play with the cat (he walked in and then jumped into the laundry basket, of course I had to parade around the house with him in there).

11:24pm: shit this post has been sitting here for half an hour bc I was actually writing on the fic lolol

[katatty]

Sims Tag

I was tagged by @charmandersims​! I might have been tagged earlier by other people too but can’t remember for the life of me. Thank you, tho!

What’s your favourite sims death? I’ve always thought death by flies is fun, although I don’t think I’ve ever had it happen in normal gameplay!

Alpha CC or Maxis Match? Maxis match, I guess. Although I guess I do use “alpha” hairs, alpha doesn’t really mean anything with TS2...

Do you cheat when your sims gain weight? Nope, I don’t think my Sims really do gain weight all that often, it’s hard to over-feed them in vanilla gameplay! Unless they’re doing a lot of gardening and eating the sparkly foods. I usually welcome weight gain since it’s rare to have “fat” sims :D

Do you use move objects? Yes, decorating without it is a pain in the ass lol!

Favorite mod? At the moment I’d have to say Story Progression for how much it changes the game! But my real favourite is probably the Sim Blender. So simple but useful :D

First expansion/game/stuff pack you got? I think I got Nightlife and University together with the base game when I first played? I like University the most :D

Do you pronounce “live mode” like aLIVE or LIVing? aLIVE. I think of live mode as being like TV, like “we’re live!” That said I don’t think I even say “live mode” all that often, I always refer to it as having the game paused/unpaused 

Who’s your favorite sim that you’ve made? Ever???????? Gosh, maybe Duncan Huckleberry or Emmie Aisling? Neither of them are even that interesting facially, I just find them both really fun to write. In terms of face, maybe Lin Mori from Nekojima?

Have you made a simself? Yes, a few years ago! I remember doing quite a ute photoshoot with her, though I haven’t ever played with one in years

What sim traits do you give yourself? Excitable, cat-lover, slob, lucky, loves the outdoors

Which is your favorite EA hair color? I dunno, brown I guess?

Favorite EA hair? I like the one Nina and Bella use, especially all the dyed variants you can get in the mirror! I also really like the one that’s like half up and quite messy (that Lin Mori & Grace Linguine wear), apparently it’s called updo?

Favorite life stage? Young adults! I just love getting all that extra time with them. College is sooooo fun to me

Are you a builder or are you in it for the gameplay? Haha, I would say I am a builder but ultimately I am in it for the gameplay! Every build I make is with actually playing it in mind, and even if my building stuff “does better” on here I'm more invested in my gameplay and devote a lot more time to it :D

Are you a CC creator? I guess! Builds are kind of a type of CC, and I share those fairly regularly

Do you have any simblr friends/a sim squad? I don’t know, haha. I have a few simblr friends! But not really a “squad”. I find the idea a bit offputting lol

What’s your favorite game? (1, 2, 3, or 4) 2, of course!

Do you have any sims merch? Nah

Do you have a YouTube for sims? No, but I have considered it. Maybe when I get a new computer so I can actually do screen recording without my PC crapping out lol

How has your “sim style” changed throughout your years of playing? I don’t know if it’s really changed that much, haha, I’m a creature of habbit! My gameplay style is quite different between each save/hood, but my visual style hasn’t really changed since 2015, haha!

What’s your Origin ID? I don’t have Origin, lol!

Who’s your favorite CC creator? Ooooof, whenever I get asked this I opt not to pick one, haha!

How long have you had a simblr? Since 2014, apparently! So nearly 10 years, yikes!

How do you edit your pictures? I usually don’t edit them at all, but when I do I use an old photoshop action by @sterina-sims

What expansion/game/stuff pack do you want next? hahahahahaha

What expansion/game/stuff pack is your favorite so far? I dunno, I think all of them add some value! But I do really love seasons, it adds so much beauty to the game and I love the gardening mecchanics! :D

I feel like I’m pretty late to the party on this one and I’ve seen everyone do it already... feel free to consider yourself tagged if you want to!

[webslingingslasher]

hiii it's sleepover anon again :’) another long update ahahah. i was able to talk to them the day after my bday thru vid call!

they basically said that they were talking abt me bc it was just randomly brought up when they were tgt waiting for me to arrive to bff1's house on the day of the sleepover/dinner party, and they thought that me being delusional over the guy was funny.. i mean, sure yeah it is pretty funny but 1) someone *must* have brought it up bc how else would that convo even happen while they were waiting for me 😭 i don't believe it was "random".. 2) they were still laughing abt me behind my back ? i mean, yk we could've done that together lol bc i rly was silly ngl. but i said that i'm not ashamed about it even if they think i was being too much bc first of all that guy actually showed interest and he implied lots of times that he did like me sooooo it's only natural to feel that way ? 🙁 i wasn't going to not let myself not feel anything abt it bc i just wanted to have fun 😭 and even if he was sus, which we all thought at first b4 i got close to him, i stuck around w him bc he was the only person i knew in one of my classes cuz we were also classmates in the previous term.. then we got close bc we helped each other n yk stuff happened but it was also for the sake of common decency. and i rly was just fucking around to find out bc i wanted to know even tho he was sus.. and now i know and there's actual proof that he's just not it. i wasn't going to cut him off or smth without reason or proof lol i'd end up being the bad guy despite what we all thought ab him at first :// but now i do have a good enough reason that i can back up n thats why i stopped talking to him. simple as that

also bff2 alr felt bad enough bc she realized that drunk her isn't a good person so i didn't feel the need to crush her abt the stuff she said abt our other friend lmaooo.. i could've but nah she was alr depressed enough i'm just glad she's aware now. i did mention it tho and i said it was just plain mean..

but it's also quite funny to think they were making fun of me for being so head over heels when they don't even have experience 😭 they don't even know what it's like to have someone interested in them at least.. like one time when i was talking to him for like 2 whole days, bff2 once told me she was jelly of me and him bc she's never gotten to talking stage w anyone.. n then after all that they were laughing abt me like lol ok :\\

anw i just told them that i don't appreciate how they talked abt me without my presence bc whatever they said to each other was smth they could actually say to my face.. it's smth i'd laugh abt too yknow.. but they apologized tho which is good but honestly i don't rly trust them now after all that.. their insecurities spilled onto their perception of me + our other friend like yikes i don't rly want insecure friends who laugh abt me behind my back i want supportive and non-judgmental ones!! it's not even hard to be kind 😭 glad i went to that sleepover n that i went thru him tho even tho it was just bs bc i found out the truth abt my friends.. bottom line is i don't have trustworthy friends so i'm just going to keep my distance.. we r still 'friends' i don't want to cut them off but i'm just not telling them anything anymore and i'm not talking to them unless they msg to talk to me first or if i need them for smth lol

anw thats it for this whole drama thank you sm for listening omg HAHAH 😭😭💗💗 also jsyk i am one of the emoji anons haha i just didn't rly want to associate the drama w it but yes. tysm for the safe space u created on here<33 and thank you for taking ur time to always talk to us even if it's a lot to go thru one by one🥹🫶🫂❤️‍🩹

WAIT UR AN EMPJI ANON?????? NAH CAUSE NOW IM TRYA FIGURE IT OUT

also!!! let’s go boundary queen!!! nice to know it was all bc they’re jealous.

[buckbylightning]

how do you make your icons / headers?

hiya anon! thanks for the question!! this is probably longer than it needs to be so it’s going under a cut

choosing an image

so to start, pick the image you want to use! the higher quality the better and if the lighting is really dark it may be hard to work with. and just for personal preference, i like to have both shoulders clearly visible (and sometimes the tops of heads are cut off. i try to avoid those too)

this is the one i’m choosing! as you can see, it’s pretty well lit and there’s plenty of room around margret. also she’s making a cute expression which i always think makes icons more fun!

base coloring

i like to apply the “lighting” before cutting it out. the first thing i do is increase the blacks using a selective color layer, these are my settings:

then, to brighten it up i add some curves like so:

i follow that with some levels. and as you can see, because the blacks were added earlier, i only touch the mid-tones which i move to the left to brighten the whole thing:

then more brightness and some contrast:

and a bit of exposure:

right now your layers should look like this

and this is how my image looks now:

as you can see, it’s much brighter so we’re gonna start adding the colors. to start, i add some vibrance:

then you’re going to go all the way to the bottom and right above that first selective color layer add a color balance. the layers should look like this now:

i usually adjust mid-tones, highlights, and shadows. these are my settings here:

the most important part of color balance is to make sure the skin tone looks good. this is how mine looks so far:

now go back to the top of your layers and create a new selective color layer. this will be used to change the neutrals, whites, and blacks which will work to even out some of the colors as well as create more contrast. these are my settings: (note: make sure you have relative and not absolute clicked)

if you are working with characters of color be very careful when making the follow selective color adjustment. use the neutrals very limitedly or not at all. while they work nicely on white characters they can wash out the skin of darker skinned characters. if you have questions about how i adjust my settings for characters of color, please let me know. whitewashing is very easy to do on accident and i work hard to try and ensure that i don’t do it. (also if someone notices me whitewashing characters in anything i make, please let me know so i can make sure to not do it going forward.)  

next create a second selective color layer. this one will be used to brighten the reds and yellows and add more color to margret’s skin. these are the settings i used:

then i’m going to add a second color balance, this time only mid-tones and highlights. you can skip this tbh it doesn’t do much but i think it adds a little bit more flush to her skin.

next is gonna be some hue and saturation to add color and brighten up the skin. these are my settings:

and now one final selective color. again, be careful here when dealing with characters of color and make sure you don’t lighten the skin.

for organizational purposes, i like to now stick all of these layers in a folder.

this is what the screencap looks like with the finished lighting:

cutting out the character

start by putting a bright solid color fill layer underneath your screencap. this will make it easier to see what you’re doing later on

i like to use the pen tool to do this but i’m not really going to go over that because then we’ll never be done with this. if you need help with that, don’t hesitate to message me!

first things first, i’m gonna crop it into a square so i can get a sense of how it’s gonna be framed. this is how i chose to do mine, as you can see there’s a space at the top where i extend past the original image but that’s okay

then i’m gonna use the pen tool to select the outline of margret and right click the selection and click on make selection

there should now be the “dancing ants around your selection”. click on the white box with the circle in it to make a mask on the screencap layer. it looks like this:

after doing so this is what your screencap should look like:

and the layers should look like, with the white part being the outline of your character:

if you hold option/alt and click on the clipping mask thumbnail it should switch to the black and white view of the mask. select all and copy/paste it into the lighting folder above it. then create a new folder and paste it there as well. this is what your layers should look like now, with the topmost folder being empty still:

coloring

now select a solid color layer and set it inside the topmost folder. pick a color for the hair. because margret is blonde, i’m choosing a yellowish color. #ecd495 in this case. set the layer to color and erase everything but the hair. it should look something like this now, so only the hair has been painted over:

now duplicate the color layer and set it to overlay. adjust the opacity settings for both as you like it. here i set them to 70% but it’s relative and depends on your personal preference.

do the same for the shirt and the lips/cheeks if you want and any other things like hats or jewelry that may be included. here i have the shirt as #408e11 on 100% and the lips at #ec3379 on 50%. this is what it looks like:

note: unless changing the color of the shirt, i usually only put the color layer on the hair. and never on the face at all.

the coloring is now done!!

background

at this point, it’s almost done! what i’m going to do now is make a new layer under the screencap but above the solid color layer and i’m going to create a gradient. i usually want the gradient to be the same color as the clothing so i use the eyedropper tool to pick a color from her shirt.

a rule of thumb when creating the gradient background, the lighter color should start at the side of the image that has the light source (in the case of my image, this is the left). here’s what mine looks like so far:

sizing

it’s almost done! except it’s really big. i usually make my icons 250x250, so we have to resize it.

 you could stop it here but i like to sharpen it a bit first. to do this i first want to merge all my layers together. you can do this by selecting every layer together and right clicking. there should be an option that says merge.

this should now be all you see in layers:

i have two layers of sharpen. this is the first:

and the second:

and ta da!! all done! i hope this wasn’t too long/confusing! if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask, i’ll do my best to answer and i promise it won’t be disturbing me! ♡

this is it unsharpened:

and sharpened:

it’s entirely up to you what to do with this but i like sharpening it bc i think it looks better when small!

[thelightofthingshopedfor]

Would you say that Loki being tortured by the black order/thanos/the chatauri is not quite canon but more than fanon? For me, it kind of sits in that weird in between place where technically we haven't had complete confirmation but yet there seems to be enough evidence that it's more than just fanon?

hahaha so I got this ask, uhhhh, a while ago and I was going to do a short answer but then I started tossing out bullet points and once I had those I wanted to link them to posts discussing those things in more detail and now it’s September and I definitely got this within like, a week or two of the show finale, sooooo anon whoever you are I hope you’re reading this blog enough to know that I finally got around to answering your question 😬

anyway yeah, that's basically where I come down on it. it's never been made explicit, but I think it's also fair to say that Loki's alliance with Thanos wasn't an equal partnership at the very least, and canon heavily implies it wasn't a fully willing one either and Loki went through some seriously bad shit during his missing year. extrapolating that to "Thanos had him tortured" is an interpretation, but it's also an interpretation that makes sense of a huge pile of canonical evidence--more sense in most cases, I would argue, than any alternative explanations. I mean, there are possible alternative explanations for a lot of these individually, of course, but not all of them, and I don’t know that there’s much else that pulls together all these pieces. plus all this speculation is happening in the first place because we aren’t explicitly told what a lot of these things mean, so a torture-related reason is just as likely to be accurate as an alternative one.

and when I say “a huge pile of evidence,” there’s...well, there’s a whole lot, at wildly varying levels of significance, and also wildly varying levels of detail because I just want to finish this post already:

he looks burned or otherwise messed up in the post-credits scene in Thor (could be from something not related to Thanos! but if that’s the case it’s still pretty relevant in terms of, you know, Loki’s missing year being Bad Shit)

intro scene in Avengers--sweaty, pale, dark circles under eyes, almost collapses while walking out, basically collapses into the truck and seems to need to brace himself just sitting/kneeling there (like above, could be from something else, like...coming through a portal that hasn’t been properly stabilized is hard on the body? but I don’t think we have any additional evidence to support that specific idea, as opposed to the likelier one that stabilizing the portal was necessary just to make it bigger and keep it open) (link also includes Thor post-credits scene)

also he's obsessed with making others kneel to him, and he comes through the portal kneeling, head bowed, so the former seems kinda weird if the latter was completely voluntary

his back seems to be hurting again after Thor yanks him out of the quinjet and dumps him on a mountain

his conversation with the Other--Loki postures a little but then goes still and silent with tears forming in his eyes and allows the Other to circle around behind him, threaten him, and visibly hurt him; clearly shaken when he comes back. adds up to YIKES.

we all remember “He will make you long for something as sweet as pain” but as far as evidence goes, I find “You think you know pain?” to be even stronger, because it seems...fairly definitive and personal, implying that Loki has experienced significant pain and the Other knows about it, either because it happened on Sanctuary itself or because it happened during Loki’s missing year in general but was significant enough that it came up later (as in, it was discussed, or there was physical evidence when Loki got there)

here’s another great post going over evidence of Loki carrying out the invasion under duress

edit: here’s another one

I always kinda thought "burdened with glorious purpose" could imply someone else did the burdening (which is...only part of the reason I did get super annoyed about it being turned into a context-free catchphrase even before the show, yes, and then the show made that about 10 times worse--not so much in episode 1, I think it's reasonable to assume he's still somewhat under the scepter's influence in the opening scene, but I mean the way the other Lokis and the marketing absolutely ran it into the ground)

Fury says “this doesn’t have to get any messier,” and Loki replies, "I've come too far for anything else." on Avengers Tower, he tells Thor, "it's too late to stop it.” I’m not saying those lines indicate torture, or really anything at all specific, but they do seem relevant in terms of Loki not being the mastermind of this whole mess

"I remember you tossing me into an abyss" indicates possible memory issues, which is...also pretty damn relevant

the scepter is shown affecting the Avengers' moods just by being in the same room, and Bruce even grabs it without realizing (they’re all human except Thor, who doesn’t seem as affected, but it’s still textual evidence of the scepter affecting people without being deliberately used on them)

as a textual comparison, there's a huge contrast between the way Loki behaves toward the Other and by extension Thanos, and the way Ronan behaves toward both of them in GotG, which also implies some things about the differences between those alliances

Ragnarok post-credits: Loki seemed to recognize Sanctuary II and was immediately horrified/terrified, compared to Thor who just looked kinda confused

Infinity War: on the one hand Thanos maybe doesn't know Loki’s Jotun (”well for one thing, I’m not Asgardian”) and that's weird, but on the other, he knows Loki well enough to know the most effective possible way to make Loki give up the Tesseract, and the way he kills him is like...unnecessarily personal, not to mention unnecessary in general because he could’ve just backhanded Loki into the wall, used the Power Stone to explode the ship, and teleported out. instead he wanted Loki’s pain and fear because he liked it. it is really not a stretch to suppose that this was also true when they first knew each other.

and despite the show not really addressing this, at least not directly/explicitly, it actually does provide several new pieces that also fit the theory:

additional (possible) evidence of spinal issues and other indications that he’s frequently in pain--which could of course be from the battle, the Hulk-smashing, and the Tesseract dumping him in the desert, but the fact that Avengers gives us two different pre-battle scenes of possible back issues indicates they might’ve already been around (i.e., from Sanctuary) and just worsened by the battle etc.

he’s absolutely terrified the instant he sees Thanos onscreen in the Time Theater--I mean, the first thing he sees is himself trying to stab Thanos and Thanos stopping him, so yeah, it’s...probably reasonable to assume Thanos isn’t going to have a nice response to somebody trying to stab him? but for somebody who doesn't know the specific context, which show!Loki doesn’t, it could just be part of a battle, and/or it wouldn't seem out of the question for Thanos to just smack him aside. but Loki seems to know immediately that something awful is about to happen and he isn't surprised when it does...only when it actually leads to his death

edit: here’s a fantastic gifset juxtaposing scenes from Avengers, Infinity War, and the show, and basically it just makes all my points for me

edit, January 2024: I didn't realize until much later, but you know how that gifset above juxtaposes Ebony Maw's creepy "even in death you have become Children of Thanos" quote with Loki stuff? well, the actual Loki episode in Legends season 1, which is literally just a clip show catching audiences up on his time in the MCU before the show, also does exactly that. so I'm not saying that Marvel's saying Thanos actually considered Loki one of his kids or at least one of his potential kids for a minute there, with everything that implies given the way he treats his actual kids, but like. I'm not not saying that, and it's interesting, isn't it? Thanos wouldn't even be the only person to use Loki's insecurities and daddy issues to get him to do something (you know, because Mobius literally tells him he's doing this).

edit: when Loki tells Mobius that he hurts people because he’s had to, he’s referring to a lot of things, and he doesn’t necessarily mean “I have literally been hurt by people who will hurt me again if I don’t make them happy” but also, I mean...he could mean that, and putting this scene together with the conversation between him and the Other is...really something.

there’s an early scene on Lamentis where Loki might just be out of breath again as he is many times during the series (from, I would imagine, a lack of ability to stay in shape over the past year, so that’s...also a thing), but he might also be fending off a panic attack--from scary situation in general? orrrrr from dodging asteroids, something that potentially could have happened on Sanctuary, which is itself an asteroid field? I recognize this is kind of a stretch but like, I'm just saying, it does fit

Similarly, his abilities (physical and magical) are pretty damn inconsistent and this is a possible reason

"I've lost track of the number of times I’ve been killed"--either it's hyperbolic bravado that's way more nonsensical than his usual, or...??? combine this with “no resurrections this time” and it’s INTERESTING

additional extratextual evidence:

there’s an Avengers deleted scene where the Other contacts him two more times, once before the battle really gets going and once midbattle (thanks @scintillatingshortgirl19 for the link!). the first time doesn’t look too bad; the second time, though, the contact definitely seems to hurt him. maybe that's not deliberate on the Other’s part like it was before, but it also means the Other is cool with causing him significant (and distracting) pain in the middle of a battle? and also shows he's always watching? plus there are two different instances shown here, only one of which shows Loki reacting with obvious pain when contacted, which certainly could indicate the Other is doing that part deliberately

Hiddleston interviews--didn't give specifics but did say Loki's missing year was Very Very Bad, a struggle to survive a very precarious existence, run-ins with the universe's worst people, lots of brushes with death, etc.; specifically compared it to being kidnapped by terrorists, which doesn't necessarily mean that Loki was kidnapped by terrorists (or that his situation was directly comparable to Tony's in Iron Man, but I assume that’s what he was thinking about), just that it was that level of scary and dangerous, but...it's also a very specific comparison to make!

Marvel confirmed in Loki's bio that the scepter was influencing him and he didn't know it, so although this doesn’t necessarily rise to the level of mind control, torture, etc., it’s still...very relevant

Aug. 2022 edit to add: remember the fan theory that MCU Loki’s eyes are green, but they’re blue in The Avengers because of the scepter’s influence/control? not as blue as the other people completely controlled by the scepter, obviously, but blue enough to suggest Loki wasn’t really in control either? I think this has been mostly debunked as a legit theory based on things like...Tom Hiddleston has blue eyes and there’s no evidence he’s worn colored contacts or had his eyes digitally recolored while playing Loki, so any apparent color change is likely the result of lighting or fans recoloring screenshots after the fact. on the other hand, comics Loki has green eyes for sure, and I’m fairly certain the original Thor posters recolored his eyes to be extremely green and then just dropped that later...and even as late as season 1 of the Loki show, Marvel can’t make up their minds on his eye color as shown in a couple of official licensed figures from the exact same line of toys. the toys in particular almost certainly weren’t intended to mean anything except lousy quality control, but on the other hand if Marvel keeps refusing to be clear about this, then I’m absolutely going to continue finding evidence where none was intended.

Oct. 2024 addition: I need to update this with stuff about season 2 but instead here's an extremely extratextual but still very interesting thing from the fan-run MCU wiki

so--yes, Loki being tortured by Thanos is...not canon, strictly speaking. but I’m also never going to say it’s just fanon, because there’s a ton of evidence supporting the idea that Loki was not fully in control during the invasion and was doing it under a combination of duress and external influences, and “said duress included actual torture and/or the use of the Mind Stone” is like, maybe one step beyond that. it’s an interpretation, sure, but it fits well enough that it’s an extremely reasonable interpretation, to the point that it seems very possible at least some of the people in charge of Loki’s story did actually intend to imply it.

[sugawarassoulmate]

update????

hiii y'all. work has been pretty busy this week (and it's only tuesday yikes) i only had one more request for the 3k event (also i'm now nearing to 5k wtf) but i have the worst writer's block for it and it's also for a character that i don't usually write for anyways so i'm just gonna skip it bc there's other things that i would rather write about, ex: all the bully!osamu/loser!kuroo/sugawara asks i have in my inbox

sooooo we're finally done with my ENDLESS 3k event lol. sorry it took so long 😭 (mostly work and not wanting to write on my few days off lol)

but there are some things that i've been planning — another bully!osamu long fic, a ex bf!mattsun long fic, and mayyyybe a loser!kuroo smau series???

i've got a lot!! and again bc i work a pretty time-consuming job these things take a bit but you all have been so understanding. and PLEASE feel free to send me things to write drabbles about! give me ideas!! it really helps to give me inspiration!

[brokenmusicboxwolfe]

So I go to peel an onion and there, draped between the cookie sheets on the counter and the trash can is a snake. It was a pretty good sized rat snake, close to five feet long, it’s head down in the trash can. I think I actually gasped in surprise.

I startled the snake, and it immediately pulled itself out of the can. I’d been charging my camera battery, so I went to get it. When I got back the snake had stretched itself to the window and was disappearing in a hole in the corner if it I hadn’t noticed.

Thing was, the snake wasn’t getting out of the house through the hole. Turns out the crack in the wall behind the trash can has gotten bigger, so the snake was going through the window sill and traveling down the wall through the crack.

That crack is worrisome, with the wall buckling out. That happens to be right next to the wall socket I plug in my air conditioner and heater, so….yikes.

Still not out of the house, the snake seemed to be disappearing behind a broken old blender back there….only no way such a big snake could have fit. So I shoved the blender with a broom and discovered a hole in the floor.

That is sooooo not good! The kitchen floor was partly replaced by my father when he got sick, but partly remained the rotting mess of the rest of the house. I thought maybe there would be a tiny gap, but this was at least six inches wide with the floor next to it sagging way down. That means that the part of the old floor back where I couldn’t see it is much, much worse than where I walk over it every day…..but for how long?

Oh well, at least the snake may solve my mouse problem if it keeps coming to visit! LOL

(I need to be careful reaching under things though…gotta treat my house like the woods I guess!)

[cyanocoraxx]

Damage (Chapter 23)

FFN / AO3

Wordcount: 13,464

A/N: In light of the events unfolding in Ukraine, I want to take a moment to give a warning that this chapter mentions the military, guns, and describes symptoms of PTSD. If these subjects are a sensitive matter for you at this time, please take care of yourself and either read with caution or skip for now - if you'd like a summary of what happens instead please just message me. Also, I'd be very grateful if you could take a moment to sign any petition you can find to get Britain to accept Ukrainian refugees into this country.

---------

It was about time that someone fixed that damn roof after a week of it being very broken. And since Neo was the one who broke it, he was hard at work with Silver.

Neo carefully placed a wooden board across the hole, calculating the angle with precision. He then knelt down and started to hammer a nail in one end. Silver crouched at the other and copied him, glancing up occasionally to check that he was doing it right. On the fifth glance, he accidentally hit his finger with his hammer and beeped in surprise.

"Nice job," Neo signed, and then finger-spelled, "superbitch."

"Once again I say, you have no leg to stand on with a super original name like Metal S-" Silver promptly fell through the roof with a squeak.

Mecha didn't look up from his book as Silver fell in a heap by his feet. "Greetings."

Silver glared up through the ceiling hole at Neo, who was looking down on him rather smugly. "Hey, M." He said through grit teeth.

"The door is in that direction." Mecha simply said, nodding his head to the office door. "You would be wise to use it in the future as opposed to the ceiling."

"You two think you're sooooo funny..." Silver muttered, climbing to his feet and brushing himself off.

"Negative. I believe that we are hysterical." Mecha responded.

Mecha finally looked up from his book to give Neo an air high-five, which Neo returned with a smirk in his optics. Silver stuck his tongue out at Neo as he climbed up the stack of shelves, scaling them with ease, and climbed back onto the roof. He shifted over to sit by his sibling and picked up his hammer one more time.

From behind them, a blue Flicky from the warehouse fluttered up to Neo's shoulder and perched there. Neo froze in place as if moving would injure the small animal. He turned his head ever so slightly and found the bird preening itself calmly.

"Okay, I'm not gonna say anything about that lest it causes you another existential crisis..." Silver commented, returning to his work. "You already have too many crisises."

"Crises." Mecha corrected him from below.

The pair were quiet for a while, trying to focus on the repair work. About fifteen minutes passed. With the roof finally fixed, Silver and Neo stood and admired their handiwork.

"I think we did good." Silver declared, looking to Neo for his approval.

"I did good." Neo corrected him. "You hammered your own hand six times."

"We're doing this? Rich, coming from the Princess who couldn't build her own empire."

Neo shot him a look before signing back, "It was perfect. How many empires have you built?"

"N- Oh... Oh Chaos, Neo... What's wrong with your face?" Silver said with a dramatic gasp.

"What?" Neo squinted at him.

"Oh, wait- you always look like that? Yikes. I'm so sorry. Get well soon, bro." Silver answered him with fake sympathy.

"I can't fucking stand you." Neo signed before holding his head in one hand.

"Then sit down, idiot. That's the easiest solution." Silver retorted with a shrug. A sly grin started to form on his face. Riling his older brother was so fun, he couldn't help it.

They stared each other down for a long moment, Silver's taunting grin only growing wider. He was just asking for an ass-kicking now, so that's exactly what he got. Neo tackled his little brother to the ground and tried to pin him, but Silver wrestled him off repeatedly.

"Are you mad? Do my quips make you want to hurt me?" Silver laughed as he held Neo off of him.

Neo let Silver hold him up so that he could sign back, "I'm just a little bit absolutely livid."

"I was going for wrathful. Furious. Incensed, if you will..." Silver replied with a smirk.

Neo growled as he finally overpowered his little brother. He took one of his hands and made him lightly hit himself in the face. "Stop hitting yourself. Stop hitting yourself. Stop hitting yourself."

"I don't know what you're saying but it's probably something stupid like stop hitting yourself." Silver muttered, making little attempt to stop the onslaught. He paused to reach up to his ear with his free hand as Mecha was calling him.

"Stop taunting him." Mecha said plainly. Silver heard him turn the page of his book and pouted at his brother's indifference.

"But they started it!" Silver argued back. Bonk. Bonk. Bonk.

"You are escalating it. Stop." Mecha said.

"I did not start it." Neo privately told Mecha.

"I know." Mecha turned the next page of his book. "Do not make me come up there. I am occupied at this time."

Silver finally shoved Neo off of him. The two laid on the ground looking at each other, one smiling, the other glaring.

"Supershit."

"Sparky."

"Princess Neo."

"Shit Sonic."

"That's stupid. That doesn't even make sense."

"That is your name."

"Source?"

A smug finger-spelling of, "HDMI1."

"... You out-witted me. Congrats." Silver finally admitted. He reached over and beckoned for Neo's blue Flicky to hop onto his arm. It obliged with a cheep, but pecked at his armour for good measure as it hopped its way up onto his head. Silver stayed very still, half-expecting it to take a dump on him like the last one did.

Neo gave a wink before getting up. He held out a hand to Silver, who took it, and pulled him up to his feet. He gave his little brother a rough pat on the shoulder before jumping down to the earth below. Silver jumped down behind him, landing heavily on both feet. Neo revved his engine at him and pushed him by his shoulder, and Silver returned the favour, revving his much louder. The Flicky scrambled and flew away, disturbed by the loud noises.

"We gotta start planning for tomorrow." Silver reminded Neo with a nudge to his side.

Neo nodded, but kept up his attempts to annoy his brother at the same time.

"Are you quite finished." Mecha flatly asked in Silver's ear. "I am attempting to obtain information from this written source. You are disrupting the process."

Silver sheepishly smiled and scratched his head. "Sorry. Also, you can just call it reading..."

Neo deliberately bumped into Silver's side before walking through the warehouse's back door. Neo, having not heard Mecha himself, turned around to rev his engine at Silver again on the way.

"Shut up, bro. You're bothering her." Silver whispered, playfully grinning at him. His optics flicked behind Neo as he watched Mecha approach from the office room.

Neo soon stopped when he bumped into something big and metallic behind him. He paused, before slowly looking up and over his shoulder.

Mecha stared down at him. "Sibling."

"Sibling."

"Must you produce excessive sound in that manner." Mecha stated more than asked.

"Told ya," Silver said smugly, folding his arms, "and 'sup, M. Sorry that Neo was so disruptive."

Mecha looked over to Silver and inclined his head, inviting him to admit his wrongdoings.

Silver shrank back with a sheepish grin. "Okay. I was also kind of annoying."

"Thank you." Mecha replied, before taking a step back from them. "We must avoid drawing attention to ourselves..." As if to underline his words, a train thundered by outside. He waited for it to pass. "We must avoid being found in this location by the wrong people."

Neo and Silver traded suspicious looks.

"Whatever you are planning, I suggest that you stop it." Mecha said, holding his head in one hand. A blinking popup in his vision told him he needed to go into sleep mode soon for de-fragging. He turned and walked back into the office room for some peace and quiet, leaving his siblings to their "fun."

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

Mecha woke up. It was eight in the morning. Mecha woke up. It was midnight. It was Wednesday. He checked his internal clock. It said Sunday. The seconds ticked by too fast and too slow. The minutes were still. The hours didn't exist. It was Monday. He was sure his CPU was melting, spilling bright, metallic silver across the floor, the floor melting.  A mix of colours obscured his view. He craved violence. As the colours faded out, he still craved violence. He wanted to think it was just the colours. It should have been. Maybe he was always this way. Battery acid poured into his head. He could feel static in his hands.

He hadn't moved but the room hadn't stopped spinning. He couldn't tell which way was forward.

Mecha woke up. He didn't remember himself, the need to get out screamed at him, the virus burned holes in his memory - who was he? They told him his name and the lights clicked on, a familiar face hit him. He needed to go home. There was another person in the room. He needed to get out. He needed to go home. They're the ones who ruined him. They did this. Violence. Violence.

He laid on the borderline between a nightmare and consciousness. He could hear a conversation on one side, but couldn't tell which was which. He forced his vocalizer on to speak. Nothing came out. He tried again, and again, and again, and the conversation was long gone.

"LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO."

Mecha felt a hand choking him but there was no hand. He couldn't breathe. He had no lungs. It was his own hand.

He was asleep, wasn't he? He wasn't sure. He didn't know if it was real. He didn't know if he was real. But it felt so real. He had to run, they were hunting him. He didn't know what happened. But they had hunted him and they had caught him. They hurt him and killed his mind and he thought it was finally over every time his CPU crashed. But it wasn't.

He woke up with the thought RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN KILL.

"Hey, hey... we've got you, steady..." Silver calmly murmured by his ear.

Mecha snapped back to "reality" in the arms of his siblings. He looked ahead to find a place he didn't recognize. He tried to leave, pulling as hard as he could away from his siblings. He tried again. He was scared.

Neo held onto him tightly. "You are safe."

Mecha strained harder against Neo and Silver. The words all sounded the same. "I will kill you. I will kill you. I have to kill you."

Silver freed one arm to gently rub Mecha's back. "We know, bro, we know."

"I must kill you. I will kill you. I have to... have to..."

Silver kept comforting him, rubbing circles now. "Yeah, we know. You're doing great, bro."

Something finally clicked in Mecha's head. He slowly sank back into the comfort of his siblings' arms. "I-"

Neo cut him off before he could say it. "Don't apologize."

Mecha nodded. "Understood."

Neo tilted his head as he had a thought. "Let me check on your firewall. I can make some updates if required."

A sly smile came over Silver's face as he realized what Neo was really planning.

Mecha nodded and allowed Neo to access his security settings. Neo quickly made up an update package, one that would take several hours to install, and sent it to him. He put a hand on Mecha's shoulder and a smile came over his optics.

"I suggest that you go into standby as the updates install. It should speed up the process, as you'll have more RAM free to process them."

"Affirmative. I shall be offline for an estimated twelve hours," Mecha obliged, trusting his brother's judgement and smarts, "but I implore you, do not produce more excessive noise in the process." He leaned back against the wall and went into low power mode, and then standby. His wrist lights came online and stayed on as he remained in this vulnerable state.

Neo and Silver exchanged triumphant looks.

Silver bounced up to his feet and clenched a fist in front of his chest. "Let's get this party started."

Neo mockingly put a finger up to Silver's muzzle to hush him.

Silver dropped his voice to a whisper and gave a quiet, "woohoo."

-------

"HAPPY CONSTRUCTION DAY!"

Mecha looked up from his book, having come online a few minutes ago. He tilted his head to one side. "What."

Silver and Neo stood in the doorway, looking awfully suspicious. Neither of them said anything, and Mecha tilted his head the other way.

Silver sauntered over to him, presented a party hat from behind his back, and neatly put it on top of Mecha's head.

Mecha consulted his databanks and found that, indeed, he had been functioning for one year since the date of his construction. He shrugged a shoulder and went back to reading his book. "Interesting."

Silver leaned down over Mecha's book, blocking his view of it. "We gotta celebrate. C'mon."

Mecha looked up at him, puzzled. "This date holds no particular value to me."

"Don't be like that! We have a surprise for you." Silver urged him. Neo gave a nod behind him.

Silver took Mecha's hand and tugged him up to his feet, prompting Mecha to put his book down on the chair behind him. Despite Mecha's protests, Neo took his other hand and the two walked him out of the office and onto the main floor.

"This is not necessary..." Mecha murmured, still finding little significance in that day's date.

The light snapped on, and to his surprise, people stood waiting to greet him - Pisces and their sibling, Sonic, and Tails.

Pisces pulled a party popper and blowed a party horn, while their sibling threw confetti ceremoniously over the robots.

"Happy birthday!" Pisces yelled over their party horn.

"Happy activation day!" The ex-GUN agent congratulated him.

"Happy operation day!" Tails cheered, beaming with optimism.

"Happy powering on day!" Sonic applauded him with a hearty clap.

"Happy surviving-one-year day!" Silver added with a grin.

Before them, a paper banner was hung across the warehouse wall that read "HAPPY BIRTHDAY MECHA!" and was signed by everyone present.

Mecha stood still, completely puzzled and taken aback. He looked to Silver and Neo. "What is the meaning of this."

"Happy Mecha Sonic day." Neo finished, putting a hand on Mecha's shoulder. Mecha turned his head to look at him, and Neo bumped his forehead to his, a smile clear in his optics as he did.

"It's because you're important, M." Silver told him with a smile. "And living for one whole year is a huge thing for a hedgehog-series."

"I suppose it is." Mecha finally agreed with a nod. Most hedgehog-series lasted but a week, if that. Most didn't last one battle.

The humans got settled on the makeshift sofa of pillows and crates on the floor and tucked into the snacks they had brought for themselves.

"So? What's your sign, sign-less person?" Silver asked, sliding over to sit by the two humans.

The ex-GUN agent cast a glance to Pisces, who sheepishly grinned back at them as if to say 'I told you he'd ask.' They took a breath before saying, "Aquarius."

Silver gasped with this revelation. "Oh... Oh it makes so much sense now... An Aquarius and an Aquarius... it's no wonder you teamed up."

Aquarius II laughed and reached out to shake Silver's hand, who returned the shake a little too firmly. "You said it, Sagittarius. Or should I call you Superbot now?"

Silver beamed with pride. "You know about that?"

Pisces snickered and reached over to pat the robot's shoulder. "Everyone knows about it now, kid. You guys are local heroes. You're all over the news."

"That's so cool. So, uh... what do you think of our murder lair? We have games and plenty of cardboard. Humans like cardboard, right?" Silver gestured to the many crates and empty packages, left behind by the warehouse's previous occupants. "Feel free to take some home if you wanna."

Aquarius II laughed over a mouthful of popcorn. "I'm good, thanks." They reached into their bag and took out a card, holding it up to Mecha. Mecha took it and opened it inquisitively. Inside was a printout of a CAPTCHA puzzle - select all birthday cakes below. Nine images of birthday cakes sat below the text. A laugh escaped Mecha as he read it, and he moved to sit down by his human saviour.

"Humour detected in this conversation. Conclusion: amusing. Executing laugh file." Mecha said, deliberately as robotic as possible, and then laughed.

"Glad to see you're still funny." Aquarius II congratulated him with a fond smile.

Mecha clapped his hands together. "Attention all attendees. I propose that we engage in some "gaming" activity." He got the game set up on the TV screen and expertly navigated to the multiplayer option. He held out the controller to his little sibling.

"Silver. It is my birthday. Thus, you must bring home victory." Mecha told him seriously.

Silver took the controller and got serious. "You can count on me, bro. Happy freaking birthday."

Neo sat down beside Silver and watched intently. Tails and Sonic sat on Mecha's other side, curious to see just how good the 'bots had gotten at their games now - it had been months since they last played with them, after all.

Silver un-muted his mic as the lobby loaded. "'Sup, gamers. I'm here to thrash you all."

"Who's this squeaker- Silver... if that's your REAL name..." A player in the lobby said, having checked Silver's profile.

"It's Silver Sonic the second, actually." Silver replied with a shrug and a smirk, although they couldn't see it.

"It's actually garbage! And I'm gonna take out the trash!"

"Wait, you're serious? You want to 1-v-1 me? Look at your level! Now look at mine! And look at yours again..."

"Shut up noob! Levels aren't everything!" The other player yelled back at him.

Silver grinned dangerously. "Pray to your god... but know, I won't be listening."

Mecha put his hands on his little brother's shoulders. "Do not lose."

Silver won the round with flying colours, expertly taking out the enemy team. He triumphantly handed the controller to Neo, looking as smug as can be. "Show 'em what we're made of, bro."

Neo got to work, not quite as experienced as his little brother, but still extremely skilled nonetheless. He pushed his killer programming into working the game, looking for patterns in other players' movements, predicting what they would do next - it all came naturally for a murder robot. But the silence clearly irked the opposing team, who had been readily trading insults with Silver before.

"The squeaker muted his mic!" One of them declared with a laugh.

Silver turned his mic back on in Neo's place. "I wish someone would mute yours."

"Wha- Little shit! You're so dead, shut the hell up!"

"Me, little? Your tiny human brain can easily be emulated on my calculator."

"You kiss your mother with that mouth?!"

"No, but your mum never complained."

A resounding "OOOOHHHHH" from the lobby. Sonic and Pisces fell back laughing, while Aquarius II snacked harder on their popcorn, enjoying the robot drama.

"I have your address. I know where you live, squeaker!" The opposing player tried to taunt him.

"You don't. I promise you," Silver said with a smirk, "but I can find where you live, though."

Neo took down the player's character once again, prompting the player to scream through the mic.

"YOU'RE MODDING! Someone ban this kid!"

"I have your address. Tell your mum to get me a cup of motor oil, I'll be home soon." Silver whispered into his mic with a grin.

Neo got a headshot on the player, securing their team's victory for that round.

"I am the champion." Neo proudly signed after placing his controller down.

"Yeah, but I beat you so many times so does it still count?" Silver nudged him in the side with a smirk.

"Of course it does."

"Does it though? And how many tournaments have you won on your own?"

"I don't know, how many empires have you conquered?"

"None. But how many Sonics have you beaten?"

"How many times have you been in a fight without nearly dying?"

"Can I fight now?" Silver asked, picking up the controller.

"YES." Everyone said in unison, eager to stop them from scrapping.

The 'bots went another round until it was Mecha's turn. Mecha took the controller and got settled in front of the screen, knowing that this was the round that would secure their team's win. No pressure. Not that Mecha could really experience such a thing without some kind of trauma fuelling his emotions.

"Allow me." Mecha said as their team dropped into the lobby.

"Did the squeaker hit puberty?!"

"Maybe he got scared and ran to his daddy!"

"Loser! Loser!"

"Your IP address is 189 . 226 . 134 . 63," Mecha said flatly, "and your phone number is 07911 872211."

"... Who the hell are you?!"

"I am Murder Machine," Mecha replied, leaning forward a little although they couldn't see him, "and it is my birthday."

He then pulled the winning shot, and the scoreboard came up, declaring their side as the winning one. He sat back, almost looking smug about it. Their profile was inundated with friend requests from others in their team.

"That was badass!" Pisces cheered from behind him, clapping excitedly.

Sonic patted the robot on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs-up. "Nice one. You got 'em good."

Neo watched the interaction and, for a moment, felt a scowl coming over his face. No, he wouldn't ruin Mecha's good day. He looked away and folded his arms.

Mecha gave a nod. "Affirmative. I believe I showed them who's boss."

"Hell yeah, boss bot." Sonic agreed with him, reaching out to fist-bump him. The robot returned the gesture.

Tails leaned over to congratulate him too. "Yeah, that was awesome! You guys still got it!"

Neo excused himself, feeling his bad mood creeping up on him. Luckily, nobody noticed, as they were too busy celebrating their victory.

Silver bounded away and then returned with an envelope. He handed it out to Mecha, who took it and examined it curiously. He carefully opened it and took out a piece of paper. On it was a drawing of him, obviously drawn by a small child, with a cape and a knife in one hand. Below the drawing were the words "Happy Birthday Murder Machine!" Mecha looked at it with a distinct fondness, softening his grip of the paper as if holding it tighter might hurt it somehow. He disappeared into the office room, where he pinned the drawing up on the wall by the computer.

"I continue to be afraid most days. That will not change. But, today..."

Mecha stepped back to look at the drawing on the wall, confetti tipping off of the tips of his ears and spines onto the floor.

"I think I won."

The prize was happiness.

Tails walked into the office room behind him, and Mecha turned his head to look at him. "Greetings, Miles."

"Hey, Mecha... I, um..." Tails started nervously, holding his hands together as he approached. "I wanted to say um, thanks."

Mecha turned around to regard him. He tilted his head to one side. "What is your gratitude for?" His voice had noticeably more inflection than normal.

Tails stopped in front of him, looking up at him. He didn't really take in how much bigger Mecha was compared to their siblings until now. The darker paint, the taller frame, the deeper and monotone voice, the stockier build, all made him seem just that bit more menacing. His softer personality and gentleness were completely antipodal to his looks.

"You protected me," Tails managed to say, a smile slowly forming on his face, "and Sonic won't say it but... we could have died back there. If it wasn't for you, we'd be toast."

Mecha watched the smile come over the little fox with curiosity. Without really thinking about it, his shoulders squared back and his visor brightened just a little, his own version of smiling. "I appreciate your gratitude and have logged it for future consultation." As slowly and gently as he could, he knelt down to be on the fox's level, aware that he might have been intimidating him. "It was not a problem to me. By extension, you are family - thus it is my duty to protect you, as I would protect my own siblings."

Tails' nervousness dissipated at the robot's clear efforts to be less frightening. He cast a glance back at the door to see if anyone was watching, before jumping forwards and hugging Mecha around his middle. Mecha froze, worried that he might harm the organic by returning the gesture, but he couldn't help himself. Very slowly and carefully, he put his arms around Tails.

"You're really cool, Mecha." Tails told him, looking up to meet the robot's soft yet protective gaze.

Mecha startled, thinking his touch was too cold. He removed his hands from Tails' back and froze in place. "I apologize. I can increase my surface temperature by several degrees if you-"

Tails laughed, only hugging him tighter. "No, I meant you're cool cool! You're like the cool big robot brother I never had."

With the elaboration, Mecha carefully put his hands back in place. "You are like the small organic creature of a sibling I never had."

After a moment, they pulled away and stood up. Tails looked up at him with adoration clear in his eyes.

"Like Sonic said, welcome to the family. It's good to have you here."

-----

Neo stalked off to the bathroom to be alone. He shut the door behind him and placed his hands on the sink, looking down at the plughole as if blaming it for his foul mood. He turned his head left, then right, and then reached up to cover his ears with his hands. A voice kept whispering in his ears. A halted, dissentient stutter, and he was frozen, helpless, mechanical.

Neo lifted his head and looked in the bathroom mirror in front of him.

Defect. Aberration. Glitch. Malfunction. ERROR. His reflection distorted, a burst of pixelated colours, harsh and intense.

"No one wants you, Neo."

His reflection spoke back to him. He stared at it.

"You couldn't save your little brother. He died right next to you. You couldn't save your older brother. He was taken away and tortured. You locked our creator away like a prisoner. Who's next? People around you aren't safe. Accept it. Accept it. Accept it."

Neo shook his head and tore his optics away. But some unseen force dragged them back to his reflection.

"Accept me. You won't be weak. You won't be scared. Ever, ever again. Look at you. You're weak. Fearful. Trust me. Let me in, Neo. I can help. Trust me. I'm here. They all left you. But I'm here. Let me in."

Neo gripped the sides of the mirror. You're wrong. You're wrong. Shut up.

"No longer afraid of anything, isn't that what you said? You lie. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar."

Neo's grip left a crack in the top corner. Shut up. Shut up. Shut. Up.

"I can make you strong. You are weak right now. Your alliances make you weak. Kill them. Kill them all. It's what you were made for."

You have no power over me. Be quiet. I silenced you.

"I will always be here. You can't escape what we are."

Neo hesitated. His arms ached. His head ached. His wings ached. No, that couldn't be right. He didn't have those anymore.

We? There is no we.

"You fool. You forget yourself. You forget where you stand."

Neo pulled back a little and studied his reflection. His optics searched over it with growing franticness, brightening in realization. He didn't - he couldn't - he didn't trust anything. His own reflection changed shape when he looked away. He looked back. He couldn't remember what he was supposed to look like anymore.

"We will always be Metal Sonic. A new name and new paint will never bury who we are."

Metal Sonic. A redundant name that his father had given him. A four-letter word that meant less to him than "shit" or "fuck." He didn't like the way it felt in his vocalizer or the way his HUD still labeled him as such in his peripheral vision above his vitals. He wished he could spit it out into some trash can where it might reach the very bottom. The cruel irony that his greatest enemy's name was tacked onto his own tormented him. His creator had given him a name and then alienated him from himself.

He rejected it.

My name is Neo.

"Metal Sonic."

Neo.

"Metal Sonic. Drop this act. We are a killer. They will die or you will kill them. Accept it."

Neo finally had enough. He slammed a closed fist into the glass, shattering it in the middle. He held it there for a long moment, glaring at his own shattered reflection.

He hated mirrors, he decided.

Neo marched out of the back door and slammed his power into his engine. He had half a mind to fly away and be angry somewhere else, but took himself up to the roof instead. He landed and immediately started pacing around, angrily staring at the ground as he did.

I can't be happy. And I know I won't be, I don't deserve it. I can try to fill up this void with distractions, but it never lasts. It is not supposed to. I was never meant to last. I was not built to last. I was never meant to live this long.

If there was anything to punch or kick up there on the roof, he probably would have. He settled for agitated wandering instead, thinking that he was well and truly alone. Infuriatingly so, he was not.

"Hey, gruesome. Got a minute?"

Neo stopped as if frozen in time. Slowly, he looked over his shoulder to find that accursed blue hedgehog behind him.

"No." Neo responded curtly. He tapped his claws against his arm plating and discarded his thoughts, as if Sonic might see them. He hated the idea of that hedgehog getting into his head more than he already had.

"... You know, you saved my life."

"So what."

"It's kind of a big deal."

Neo turned around to let Sonic see the irritation in his optics. "No. It is not."

"Metal, you don't have to be like that."

A moment of silence between them. Neo almost felt guilty. Sonic was still treating him so kindly when he spat venom in his face and shoved him away. He hated this guilt. It felt foreign. It didn't sit right with him, a heavy led weight in his chest.

"... I'm sorry." Neo hissed quietly, but he wasn't sure what for. Could be for the sudden, impromptu invite to Mecha's birthday party, could be for the grudge he was most likely always going to hold, could be for something else that he could not know or understand; but either way, he didn't care, he decided. He crossed his arms in a show of distrust, revealing nothing, but a lot at the same time. Tap. Tap. Tap.

Neo and Sonic stared at each other for another long moment - the robot closed off and confrontational, the hedgehog open and willing to put up with his bad mood.

"So... do you feel safe here, in this new home?" Sonic asked with a smile, trying to make casual conversation.

"I do not know. Should I? Should I not?" Neo looked up to meet his eyes, his own flashing steel. "Do you think I should be afraid of you?"

"Well. That escalated quickly." Sonic commented. He took a few steps to stand closer to him Neo, but still put himself a few feet apart from him. "I know you're not afraid of me. I wouldn't want you to be. If you were, I'd be very concerned, actually."

"Good. At least we agree on something," Neo said curtly, turning slightly away from him, "now what do you want from me."

"Just a catch-up, bud. That's all." Sonic said. He watched as Neo moved to sit down on the edge of the roof.

"I will humour you, hedgehog. Speak." Neo said with a grumble. Tap. Tap. Tap. One last tap.

"We still doing that "hedgehog" thing? Look... you don't have to stay the same forever. Every day brings the chance to do something new," Sonic said, gently lowering himself down to sit beside Neo, who still did not look up to face him, "so what will that change about you?"

Neo looked away. "Nothing." His train of thought said something different. It was always you. Your unutterable name. This deadlock in my voice synthesizer. You will always be "hedgehog" to me, even if I threw my life away for yours.

"You're allowed to move on, Neo." Sonic told him, trying his best to not sound condescending, but a tiny part of him cringed at it.

Both of them wondered the same thing at the same time - am I doing this right? Am I doing this right?

Neo wasn't sure why he was feeling so sad about those words instead of pissed off. He looked up to meet Sonic's eyes again, the hedgehog once again smiling, always so detestably good-hearted and kind. It was awful. Disgusting. Horrible. The worst insult. They had been through this song and dance once already, on that dimly-lit city street in the rain. But they say that lightning never strikes twice, and they're right. The second time they stood this close to each other was less of a thunderstorm and more of a quiet downpour. A small quietness, not underlined by chaos, but a mutual need for something. For what, Neo wasn't sure, or he pretended to be unsure.

Deep down, he knew. He knew the Sonic part of his very core demanded familial ties.

Neo sharply stood up and turned away, folding his arms. "Don't look at me like that."

Sonic looked up at the robot's back. "Like what?"

Neo looked over his shoulder. "Like I matter to you." You are not allowed to do that.

Sonic considered that for a moment, frowning in thought. "You know... you're the one person in the world I thought I wouldn't miss. Because I never thought for one second that there would be a time you'd never come back."

Neo was silent, desperately putting on a show of indifference, but the small flinch at that choice of words gave him away.

Sonic took a breath. "But that time? I wasn't so sure you'd come back."

"I mean nothing to most," Neo countered sharply, "my absence should not have been mourned. Not by you."

Sonic grimaced for just a second at the response. You mean something to me. He stood up, and Neo only took another step away from him, closing his body language off further. He turned his head away and looked down at the ground, wishing it would swallow him whole.

"Stop coming near me. It hurts to look at you."

"Why?"

"Because," Neo said, not without difficulty, "there is a certain kind of pain that I only ever feel when I am near to you. You are a living reminder of what I cannot be. You are kind, and strong. Your soul is wrought from hopes and dreams while mine is made from iron and bloodshed."

"You're wrong," Sonic told him firmly, "because you're a good person when you want to be."

Neo gave a sharp hiss and glared over his shoulder at the hedgehog. "Why do you get to pretend that you know me?" He seethed, venom spitting in his voice, amazingly so even though he could only speak in controlled beeps. "I don't even get to know me!" He finally turned back around on his heel, meeting his arch-enemy's eyes with blood and malice in his own.

"You killed yourself for me," Sonic said plainly, "someone who isn't kind or strong wouldn't have risked that. You know that, right?"

Neo broke eye contact, looking away now. "I thought I made myself strong enough that nobody would try to put a dent in me." He moved to sit down on the edge again, refusing to look at the hedgehog. "But I lied, and I hurt. I despise the fact that you have witnessed me at my weakest."

"Yeah." Sonic sat down beside him, unafraid. "And aren't you amazing, in spite of that?"

Neo shook his head. He could not help the ugly that flowed through his circuitry. The months of dirt and evil that flooded him. His next words came easily, perhaps too easily - a default setting that he allowed to activate, because it was easier than fighting it off.

"I hate you." Neo said, because he did.

"I know." Sonic replied, because he did.

"Good. You should."

"So why did you do it?" Sonic finally asked. He leaned forward, trying to meet the robot's optics. "Why did you do that if you really do hate me that much?" Then, in his own head, he remembered the fall. He didn't even take in the fact that he had been falling until he hit the ground in Neo's arms, and he didn't feel anything until the pain registered in the back of his head, the crack of metal against his back resonating in his ears. He darkly remembered that Neo could feel pain like he did.

Neo lifted his head, looking out to the sky. He was quiet for several long moments, considering what to say. His hands clenched into fists again, a strange sort of adrenaline sparking through his body as he turned his head and said,

"Because I..." Neo stopped, confused and taken aback by what he was going to say, "cared about you."

"Huh." Sonic sat back and smiled a little. "You know, for a guy supposedly only made of iron, you have a heart a lot like mine."

Neo shook his head at that but said nothing. He let the silence hang in the air. It was a feeble act of control for him, sinking his claws into anything that would let him dominate his feelings right now.

"Hey, you know... you're family to me." Sonic ventured after some time. "Not only do you have my DNA, but... we understand each other. Not just on a surface level, I mean. I understand what you say. I've known you since you were first born. You also wouldn't have ever existed if I didn't. We're closer than you think, even if you hate it."

A blue Flicky bounced up behind them and hopped onto Sonic's shoulder, nuzzling into him with a series of cheeps and chirps. And then, a moment later, a second blue Flicky fluttered up to Neo and sat on his shoulder. It preened itself peacefully. The Metal Sonic of the past would have taken that bird in its hand and crushed it for daring to imply that it was anything like the hedgehog. The Metal Sonic of the present let it stay. He tuned out the quiet voice in his ear telling him to revert.

"I wanted to thank you." Sonic continued, figuring that Neo wasn't going to respond to him.

Neo narrowed his optics and stayed silent. He glared at the sky as if doing so might make it come down and take him out of this horrible conversation.

"Thank you for what you did," Sonic said, "and I would say that I kinda owe you my life but, that's a bit of a redundant thing to say considering... you know."

Neo gave the smallest scoff of dry amusement at that. "Considering that I was created for the sole purpose of destroying you?"

"Yep. That's it." Sonic replied with a smirk. Got him.

"On the contrary, I believe we are even," Neo said after a long minute, "because you risked your life for our little brother." He flinched and stopped, realizing his slip-up. Our brother. As he sat stunned by his own "mistake", Sonic stood up and smiled, stretching his arms up and out casually.

"Welp. I'll see you around, bro." Sonic turned and started to walk away, deliberately slow, so deliberately and evilly slow - and stopped when he heard Neo getting up. He half-expected a vengeful punch in the back or perhaps another verbal chewing-out.

"Thank you."

Sonic didn't look back at him. "For what?"

"For accepting me as..." Neo stopped, unable to finish that sentence.

Sonic smiled, knowing what he was going to say. "Yeah, no problem. Hedgehogs gotta stick together, you know?"

Neo watched him walk away, unsure of what to think or do.

"You were made for this." The voice in his ear told him.

Yes.

The voice grew quieter. "That just means you're going to die for it."

I already have. I already did.

Despite their unending list of similarities, and binding by blood, Neo and Sonic trying to understand one another was much like trying to light a fire in the rain. But, even with the obvious resistance from the one holding the match, a couple of resilient sparks managed to shine through, lighting up a storm for a few brilliant seconds - and Neo was one with any storm that came along with him.

Neo caught up to Sonic and walked beside him, but not without some distance between them both.

"Hmm?" Sonic turned his head to look at him.

"We need a rematch." Neo reminded him, a dangerous glint coming over his optics.

"Yeah, we do." Sonic agreed, a determined look finding him. He assumed that Neo meant a race or a physical fight.

"Let us play that game," Neo proposed instead, "and we will see who the best hedgehog really is."

Oh. Sonic laughed and nudged him. "Oh, you're on, gruesome."

"Shut up, hedgehog."

"I think I know why ya said it hurts to look at me."

"Hmm?"

At the same time, they both said;

"Because it's like looking in the world's ugliest mirror."

"Because it's like looking in the world's ugliest mirror."

The flesh-hog and robo-hog looked at each other for a second.

Neo so hated mirrors.

"See? So alike." Sonic reiterated himself with a satisfied grin.

"Watch it, hedgehog." Neo replied, rolling his optics at him.

"Wait so, if we share DNA, and you got it from me, does that make me your bro or your..."

Neo put a finger up to Sonic's muzzle to silence him. "Do not finish that sentence."

The two of them jumped down from the roof and walked back inside - all eyes were on them right away.

"Nobody look at me..." Neo grumbled to himself as he sat down by the TV and got a different game set up.

Sonic sat beside him. Everyone continued to stare, especially so as Neo passed a second controller to his organic double. The game that booted up was a racing game.

"This is gonna be good!" Pisces whispered to Aquarius II, who nodded and watched intently.

"Aren't they arch enemies though?" Aquarius II asked quietly, confused by the interaction.

"I think that's kind of the point of this..." Pisces commented.

"A race, huh? Nice." Sonic proclaimed, shifting to get comfortable. "So now we can get down to the real fight. The last Sonic standing will be the winner."

Neo picked a red car and Sonic picked a blue one. Three, two, one... go!

The race started with a bang. Neo and Sonic stayed neck-and-neck for some time, both frowning with intensity at the screen as they tried to best each other. To add to the mood, Mecha picked a dubstep audio file and played it aloud through his speakers. The added atmosphere pushed the hedgehogs harder, Neo narrowing his optics and Sonic gritting his teeth and tightening his grip on the controller in his hands. Neo's pride got the better of him and he made sure to swerve dramatically around a corner to show off to Sonic. Sonic overtook him with a sly grin, and Neo hissed at his moment of weakness. Being a veteran of racing games himself, Sonic took his moment ahead to show off too, drifting around the next corner on purpose. Neo got his own back by overtaking with a boost - and crossed the finish line just a split second before the flesh-hog.

Neo won and he would make sure that Sonic knew it. He altered his screen to show a smiley face and wagged a finger at him.

"This world wasn't big enough for both of us and one of us had to go."

"Good game. My heart's racing after that..." Sonic congratulated him, admitting defeat. He sat back and put his controller down, Tails patting him on the shoulder to console him.

Silver nudged Mecha and leaned over to whisper in his ear, "wow. Lord Neo got his first-ever W against-"

Neo sharply looked over his shoulder at his sibling and signed, "you're not funny."

"Who?" Silver asked, feigning ignorance.

"You." Neo elaborated.

"No, who asked?" Silver elaborated himself with a taunting smirk.

"Want to hear a joke?" Neo asked, handing Sonic's controller to Silver.

"Bring it." Silver replied, not taking it just yet.

"Super form." Neo signed smugly.

"I don't get it..." Silver tilted his head, confused.

"And you never will." Neo prodded Silver's nose condescendingly.

Silver took the controller after a moment, pouting at his sibling. "That was so mean. I could have one, you know."

"The last Sonic standing will be the winner," Neo declared, sitting back in a way that mirrored Sonic almost perfectly, "and we have two more Sonics to race."

-----

The party disbanded by the time night came around. Everyone went their separate ways after saying their goodbyes, with promises to meet up again for another gaming session later that week. Mecha pulled the back door shut and locked it, wandering calmly back onto the main floor to join his brothers as they recovered from the social interaction. They were quiet for some time, Silver accepting friend requests on his profile, Mecha clearing up the mess, and Neo checking their security to make sure that nobody was waiting outside for them.

An hour later, the three robots were standing in the office room as Silver answered a call to his phone.

"Hello, this is the car repair shop. We've been trying to reach you about your car's extended warranty." Silver wandered around as he replied. "I am taking this seriously! Yeah. Mhmm. This is my serious voice! For realsies. Okay. No prob. We'll be there."

Neo drummed his claws on the stack of shelves he was leaning back against impatiently. Mecha tilted his head to one side inquisitively.

"Ladies..." Silver turned to his brothers and grinned, intertwining his hands behind his back. The dark of the room cast an ominous shadow across his face as he leaned forward and said, "daddy's paying us a visit."

Mecha looked at him, unable to be more deadpan if he tried. "The dramatics are not necessary."

Silver leaned back on his heels and shrugged, the shadows quickly leaving his face. "I'm covering up my trauma with humour. You should try it."

"I shall refrain." Mecha answered plainly. His wrist lights flashed on, signifying his own coping mechanism.

"Right. Anyway, he's got some stupid plan to attack the city, build his stupid Eggmanland, or whatever. Aquarius the second told me, they got intel on it." Silver explained, leaning back against the wall.

"Then let us not waste more time." Mecha replied, walking back out to the back door. He unlocked it and pulled it up, allowing his siblings to go out first, before joining them outside. He locked the door behind him and gave Silver the key, which he put in the compartment in his arm.

------

It didn't take long for the three siblings to reach the city, being rocket-powered death machines and all. They walked the streets, looking for any sign of chaos or mayhem erupting in the vicinity. It was oddly quiet, which meant that Eggman was probably planning his grand, overdramatic entrance that Neo and Mecha had seen far too many times.

On a large screen that towered up the side of the building, a familiar face glitched into view. Silver grimaced, while Neo and Mecha looked on with little expression.

"Greetings, citizens! Today, I'm making an announcement." Eggman declared from the screen, his hands laced together in front of him.

Silver held his hands together in a fake prayer. "Please be leaving the planet forever. Please be leaving the planet forever. Please be leaving the planet forever."

"I have a brilliant plan to change the planet forever-" Eggman stopped, shooting a glare to someone off-camera. "No, it does not involve muffins, damn it. That was last week. Ahem! I am officially hosting a once-in-your-lifetime event. An event so grand, it'll leave you literally breathless! On account of being dead."

Neo rolled his optics at that.

"The invasion will start in ten minutes. That should give you plenty of time to prepare. And for those not participating in this eggstravagant event, it'll give you time to see your loved ones, get your affairs in order, kill your boss! Live a little!" Eggman ended with his signature evil laugh and cut the camera.

Silver cringed into himself. "Did he always sound like that when you went on your missions with him?"

Neo nodded with a squint of distaste. He folded his arms and tapped a foot impatiently, unconsciously mirroring Sonic.

Silver looked at his wrist. "If I had a watch, I'd be looking at it really condescendingly right now... ten minutes? Really?"

Ten minutes passed, as promised. Neo and Silver looked up from their impromptu rock-paper-scissors match to see a huge machine descend on the city.

"BWAHAHAHA! Behold, my Egg Dragoon!" Eggman announced proudly, before adding in a lower voice, "also known as the Ultra-Hyper Prototype-2."

The imposing red mech bore many resemblances to a dragon. It was highly intricate in design, almost too pretty to destroy in a way. With two giagantic wing units, exhaust pipes on its back, and a drill for a left arm and a six-barreled cannon for the right, it was not a machine to be toyed with. Designed to defend and attack against Sonic the Hedgehog, it possessed a lethally efficient selection of weapons - even capable of harnessing fire, lightning, and ice. But most relevant of all, its electrically-charged homing missiles could pierce through meter-thick metal. The robot touched down just above the ground, where it hovered in front of the robots.

Eggman leaned forward in the cockpit with a grin. "Long time no see, boys."

Mecha stepped in front of his siblings. "We do not want to fight."

"Speak for yourself... I have some things to work through." Silver muttered behind him. Scissors.

Neo nodded in agreement. Rock. Damn it.

Mecha ignored him. "I implore you. Return to your base, doctor." His gaze shifted to the mech's left arm, the drill, and he paused for a moment, recalling the Egg Emperor's lance. "We do not wish to harm you nor any citizens in the surrounding areas."

Neo: paper.

Silver: paper.

Neo: rock.

Silver: gun.

Neo glared at his little sibling as if to say you can't just do that.

"OHOHOHO! Ever the pacifist, my dear boy!" Eggman replied, powering up his machine. It hissed and sputtered steam into the air. With the dragon-like mech ready to go, he leaned further forward with an evil grin. "But I know what you really are."

Mecha stayed stoic. "Leave."

"This city is mine, my dear boy..." The Egg Dragoon started to lift off into the air above them with a hiss of air. "As are you. Now, how's this for a warm welcome?"

The mech charged its massive arm cannon, pulling in energy from its surroundings. Neo predicted which element his father would go for first - fire. Right as the mech started to launch its barrage of fireballs, much like a gatling gun, Neo zipped ahead and activated his Black Shield. It took the brunt of the attack, leaving the ground behind him unscathed. Once the Egg Dragoon was out of "ammo", Neo discarded his shield with a swipe of his arm. It dissipated into nothing, a few last sparks of indigo scattering into the air.

"OHOHOHO! How bold, Metal!" Eggman taunted him from above. "Funny, isn't it? What was it you said... burn to death?"

Neo glared up at his creator at the use of his so-called name and the reminder of his downfall.

"Betrayal, Metal... It's not a good feeling, is it?!" Eggman taunted him before slamming the Dragoon's drill arm down in front of him. Neo stood still as the drill missed him by just a few inches, smashing into the ground by his feet. He looked up at his father, unafraid, with a dangerous smirk about his optics. Enraged by the robot's defiance, Eggman pulled the Dragoon's drill back and aimed it right in his face.

"How about this... better watch out!" Eggman warned him, moving to shift the controls to engage.

Neo held up a hand and signaled something with just a slight wave. A split second later, Mecha sprang over his head and landed a heavy kick square in the mech's weak spot - the glowing button in its middle. The machine's next load of fireballs went soaring into the sky instead, tipping back with the force of Mecha's attack.

The siblings worked completely in sync without exchanging a single word.

Mecha landed in a crouch with one hand to the ground, the other held out behind him. Neo ran up, grabbed his hand, and Mecha used all of his might to throw his brother up into the air. Once he was high enough, Neo went in for a homing attack in the same spot. Before the Dragoon could recover, Mecha sped up the machine's side, zipping up to the end of the cannon arm, where he met Neo. The two of them charged energy blasts and fired them right into the cannon, sending it up in smoke. They then dropped down to the ground in a crouch, side-by-side, and looked up to watch the outcome of their attacks.

Eggman only grew more enraged by the second. "No! The controls won't respond!" He slammed his fists on the controls before growling and leaning forward to glare at his rebellious creations down below. They looked up at him with just as much defiance. After a few button mashes here and there, the Dragoon began responding again, and it lifted off the ground once more. With a victorious laugh, Eggman sat back and took the control sticks in both hands.

"Checkmate, Metal and Mecha! Make sure you've said your goodbyes." Eggman declared, grinning wildly.

Over the Dragoon's head, several small drones pulled in and started firing. The siblings didn't need to look back at Silver to know that he was on it. Once again, without words, they worked perfectly in tandem.

Silver reached up to his ear and comm'd both of them. "I got the ground. You two watch the skies."

Neo and Mecha fired up their jet engines and took off into the air, high above the Dragoon. Eggman's pride led him to follow after them, all but forgetting his conquest of the city just for a moment. The machine swung for Mecha with its damaged cannon arm, but Neo was quick to drive his open hand into its underside - just like before. He held it up for a moment with a low growl before pushing back with all of his might, sending the mech a few feet back. He watched the result of his raw power with a glimmer in his optics. He could be just as prideful as his father - he was his father's son, after all.

"Impossible!" Eggman cried, before mashing the button for his machine's drill to activate it again. It sparked to life with a buzz and went to hit Neo from behind, but Mecha had his back just as quickly. He put himself in the line of fire and, while an image of the Emperor's lance coming for him flashed over his vision, he punched it hard from the side. The drill smacked into the mech's middle and drilled a hole into itself for just a few seconds before Eggman shut it off.

Eggman bashed a fist on the cockpit window. "Stop! This is a delicate machine! Now look what you've done!" Black smoke spat out of the small hole in the machine's torso, rushing over Neo and Mecha and obscuring them from view for a moment. "Where did..." Eggman looked around before giving a huff through his teeth. "Blast you!"

Mecha appeared in front of the cockpit, staring his father in the eyes. "Negative. It is us who shall be blasting you." He raised a hand and charged energy into it.

"How could you do this to your own father?!" Eggman yelled at him, gripping the control sticks until his knuckles turned white. "Stand down, Mecha! That's an order! Have some heart, I'm your creator!"

Mecha just stared him down. "Heart, you say... I have less empathy than the average human being." He moved a little closer, the red of his visor reflecting off of the glass in front of him. "As do you."

"What are you talking about?!" Eggman called out with a scowl.

"You know what you did." Mecha said, dangerously quiet. Neither of them had to outright say it to know what the other was referring to - Eggman daring to hit Silver.

Below them, Neo was making quick work of the Dragoon's weak point - and Mecha was just distracting the pilot. He slammed his fists into it over and over, breaking the cover on the third hit, and striking the mechanisms under it by the fifth.

"Agh! Little SHITS! Prepare to be skewered!"

That was my line. Neo thought to himself, dryly amused.

The Dragoon's tail lashed up to meet Neo, the wind whistling over it as the heavy metal flew through the air. Neo dodged it by darting to one side. Above him, the Dragoon's smoking cannon arm came swinging down to meet him - and he looked up just a moment too late. It smacked into the top of his head, and then the drill arm took him out from the left. Metal met metal with a deafening smash, sending Neo tearing through the air and through three building walls. He came to a stop in someone's apartment, where he banged into the back wall and sat dazed for a second.

The flat's occupant, sitting at their kitchen table, put down their fork and stared at him, open-mouthed, and then screamed.

Neo stared back at them.

"ROBOT! KILLER ROBOT!"

Neo squinted an optic at them as he stood up, shaking debris and rubble from his armour as he did. He was met by a fork to the face, which pinged off harmlessly.

"STAY BACK! STAY BACK!"

Neo rolled his optics and walked over to the hole in the wall. He looked around with concentration, or as best as he could as his visual systems re-loaded bit by bit. His threat detection systems suddenly loaded and screamed warnings at him. The Egg Dragoon came down in front of the open wall and waved its drill at him.

The Dragoon inched closer until the drill was almost touching his nose. Neo didn't move. Closer. Closer. No longer afraid of anything. It shifted to his right, pointing at the human behind him, who was hiding behind the table in pieces. Neo stepped to the side with it and put an arm out, blocking its target.

"Hah! You're a farce, Metal." Eggman told him, leaning forward in the cockpit to sneer at him. "You've never touched anything without wanting to kill it. You've never loved anything at all!"

Neo slowly narrowed his optics at him in warning. What he wanted to say was - you cannot love me; I'm a mess of deadlocks and I'd rather burn myself down than make new keys for you. What he did instead was - give two middle fingers.

"I didn't raise you to be like this."

Yes, you did. Look at this mess you made of me.

The voice came back. "Show them what you are. They are inferior to you." It drew closer, sharper. "Get them before they get you."

Their standoff lasted just a while longer, Neo's defiance boiling his creator's blood more and more by the second. Finally, the doctor had enough. The drill drew back, glinting in the sunlight, before it came rushing to meet its target - which one, Eggman hadn't even decided - he just knew he needed revenge, and blindly swung forward.

"SHOW THEM WHAT YOU ARE."

Without thinking about it, Neo lifted a finger and the drill connected with it - but it stopped.

Eggman's mouth dropped open. "No! Impossible!"

A smirk came over Neo's optics as the other machine's arm shook, trying to push back against him.

"You... when did you get so strong?!" Eggman bellowed, forcing as much power as he could into his Dragoon's attack.

The machine's arm strained and shook with its power, but couldn't best the other robot. The tip started to break down with a screech. Neo's arm quickly heated up, starting to emit tiny blue sparks - and for a second, he considered stopping - but it felt like he couldn't, not yet. Neo checked on his HUD to find that he was straining his own systems. That little voice deserted him, and he withdrew his V. Maximum Overdrive from his arm, drew it back, and jumped at the Dragoon's center. Before Eggman could react, Neo had already sent his fist into the other robot - and it promptly went packing down to the ground below. Mecha was quick to appear from above, swooping down to grab Neo under one arm - the use of his Overdrive had quickly tired out his engine.

"That was reckless." Mecha informed him matter-of-factly.

"Noted." Neo replied, looking down to watch as the Dragoon leveled itself and took off again.

A spoon pinged off of Mecha's back. Without looking back he said, "befriending the local wildlife again, I see."

Neo shrugged a shoulder. "You could call it that." He checked in with his HUD again to find that he was all clear and good to go again. To that vengeful voice in his head, he said thank you.

A few feet away from them all, a camera crew hastily got set up to film.

"Incredible scenes in Station Square this afternoon! The evil, horrible, terrible, diabolical Doctor Eggman is back with a vengeance! And, erm... appears to be fighting his own robots? What a show! And, surprisingly, no casualties yet!" The leading reporter announced, stepping in front of the camera enthusiastically.

"We're not his robots, damn it... we're nobody's but our own." Silver murmured, thinking he was out of earshot. He soon found that he wasn't, as a microphone was soon put in his face. He stopped and looked up to find the reporter standing over him.

"So Superbot, what can you tell us about the scene unfolding in our city?" They asked, moving the mic closer to his face.

Silver winced as the Dragoon crashed down again a few feet away. "Well... as you can see, Sparky and Murder Machine are holding Egghead off..." He looked around for a moment, surveying the scene around him. "There's about to be an explosion- oop, there it goes."

"Isn't he your dad?" The cameraman asked, clearly fishing for the drama.

"Long story. I'm kind of un-adopted now, I guess?" Silver said with a shrug.

"You heard it here first, folks! The unstoppable mecha-assassin, Silver Sonic 2, a valiant champion of all things right, is up against his own- oh sweet lord is that a gun?!"

Silver stopped mid-way loading his rifle and looked at the cameraman. "With everything happening in front of you, this is what worries you?" He shook his head and took aim. "Sheesh. The people of this planet sure do have their priorities on lock... you can deal with giant robots trampling the place, but not a little piece of metal..."

"Are you going to kill him?!" The reporter asked, eyes wide with horror.

Silver scoffed. "I'm a killer robot, not a murderer. Also, technically, self-defense." He looked down the sights, shifted his aim a little to the right, and squeezed the trigger. He hit a drone dead-on and it spiraled down to the ground in a plume of smoke.

The reporter was horrified but morbidly curious. "When you shoot at things like that, what do you feel?"

Silver looked at them with steel in his optics. "The recoil." He shot down a drone that had come up behind Neo, and as Neo turned to nod at him in thanks, he gave a two-finger salute back at him.

"Folks, incredible scenes here today. If I may say so, Superbot, Murder Machine, and Sparky are tearing it up!"

Silver took aim at another drone as it came for the reporters, who ducked and screamed. He stepped out in front of them and gunned it down expertly. "You know, for a species with such a short lifespan, you humans are pretty cavalier about your survival."

"Did you catch that on camera?!" The lead reporter whispered.

"Yeah... Holy shit." The cameraman said, just above a whisper themselves.

Silver took aim at the next one but aimed slightly off. The bullet ricocheted off of the side of it and tore into the next drone that descended on them, and the explosion ended the first one. They fell to pieces at his feet.

"... I've never felt so safe in my life." The second reporter breathed, staring up at the robot in awe.

Silver looked over his shoulder and gave a thumbs-up. "I gotcha. No sweat."

"Robots really aren't all that bad." The cameraman commented, sounding quite surprised.

Silver looked down to meet their eyes. "Who's goin' around saying we're all bad?" Without looking back, he shot down the last drone. "Whoever they are, they're judgemental as hell. Some of us are cool."

Finally, military vehicles started rolling in from the street behind them. As the convoy rolled up, Silver bounded over to greet them. He took his place in front of the leading tank and walked with his rifle in both hands. He angled his head slightly to the right to catch the radio conversation the driver was having.

"Erm, sir, there's a robot in front of us."

"Is it a hedgehog?"

"Yes, sir."

"Friendly. Hold your fire."

"Yes, sir."

Silver smiled. Damn right. He turned his head further and gave a two-finger salute to the driver with a grin.

"It's waving at us, sir."

"Talk to him, soldier. He will have valuable intel."

Silver turned around and jumped up onto the commander's hatch of the tank, where he sat neatly on top and leaned down to look through the gunsight. "Hey."

"F- Jesus!" The soldier stared at him through the sight in a mixture of shock and horror. "Have you no fear?"

Silver shook his head and laughed. "Nope. When you've died once, nothing really scares you anymore. Anyway, onto more pressing matters..." He paused to glance up for a moment. "That robot. He's fast. He's strong. But that's all. His technique? Terrible. He has the upgrades, but hasn't done the work. It's like he's taken a shortcut to super-villainy. The Egg Dragoon, too." He paused again, looking up to watch Neo land on the Dragoon's shoulder. "My old man always makes the weak point stupid obvious. But the weakest part of all, is..."

Silver reached up to his right ear and put out a call to the Egg Dragoon. He watched with an evil grin as Eggman stopped his angry flailing.

"Everyone hold on, pause this battle for a second... my mother is calling me," Eggman told Mecha and Neo, before answering the call, "yes, mother dearest? It's been so long, I..."

"We've been trying to reach you about your Egg Dragoon's extended warranty."

Eggman's face dropped. He looked out of the window and saw Silver flipping him off from the top of the tank.

Silver looked down at the driver through the gunsight one more time. "Fire."

The tank's gunner fired at the half-demolished button on the Dragoon's torso. Neo and Mecha detected the incoming missile at lightning speed and darted out of the way. The aggressive orange of the ensuing explosion lit them up in the air. The Dragoon's obvious weak point went up in flame in an instant, and it teetered down to the ground, where it stayed. Silver hopped off of the tank and walked over to meet his brothers, who gave him a nod of approval.

The trio stood and watched as their defeated father ejected the Egg Mobile and hastily clambered into the cockpit.

"You boys are in big trouble." Eggman warned them darkly. That glare he often wore after losing horrifically was quick to come over his face.

The robots exchanged looks between themselves.

Eggman sat back and started up the Egg Mobile with a frown. "Screw it! I'm not appreciated for my genius so I'm going on strike." The Egg Mobile lifted off into the air, and the robots looked up to watch it. "I'll be back. I won't forget this."

Neo studied his claw tips and shrugged a shoulder.

"Affirmative." Mecha simply responded, not moving an inch.

"Cool story, bro." Silver answered him.

With one last growl at them, Eggman took off in his trusty Egg Mobile and disappeared back to where he had come from. Good riddance. That just left the decimated Dragoon on the city streets, where it emitted billows of black smoke and a small fire.

A black Flicky landed on Silver's shoulder as he looked on through the flames.

"Hmm?!" Silver looked to his shoulder in surprise. "Oh. Hey." He looked ahead again. Wait. He straightened a little and looked at the bird again. "Why do you seem familiar? Hm... Weird." He stepped forward and knelt down by the deactivated Dragoon, a small, sad smile coming over him. "Sorry, friend." He rested a hand on its cannon and dipped his head. "We had no choice." The Flicky bounced over to the Dragoon and sat on its back, preening itself. It didn't seem bothered by the smoke and fire at all.

Mecha stepped over and placed a hand on Silver's shoulder. Neo joined him, putting a supportive hand on his other shoulder.

"So..." Silver looked up at them. "I guess we're all officially un-adopted as of today."

Mecha gave a nod.

"Oh, you lost your hat..." Silver murmured, looking around for a moment. He scampered off before returning with a traffic cone, which he placed neatly on Mecha's head. He stepped back and looked up at him with pride. "A crown fit for a robot queen on her birthday. Your main present today was getting your own back on dad."

The camera crew rushed over to meet them.

"The city is saved once again! Do you have any comments, heroes of Station Square?" The reporter asked, putting their mic in front of the three robots.

"Yeah, I do actually..." Silver looked over to the Dragoon. "We'll clean this mess up. Sorry about the uh, collateral damage." He put his rifle back in its sling and smiled sheepishly.

"It happens all the time. Don't worry." The reporter told him. It was true. Plenty of places on the planet had been decimated and re-built, all thanks to Eggman's evil antics, and most were getting numb to it, apparently.

"Again... you humans are way too cavalier about your survival." Silver commented, scratching his head. The black Flicky jumped from the Dragoon's fiery remains back on to Silver's shoulder, where it stayed.

Mecha leaned into the mic and said, "it is my birthday." The traffic cone slipped off of his head with the movement, but Neo was quick to catch it and put it back on him.

"O-Oh, happy birthday, Murder Machine!" The reporter moved on to Neo, presenting the mic to him. "You've had a huge��change of heart. You saved this city instead of destroying it. Why?" They were surprised when, instead of speaking as he did atop the Final Fortress that stormy night, he signed instead.

"Here is the truth. I wait for my anger to go dormant, but it never does. It never will. Now, I re-route it into something for good." Neo told them, finger-spelling the words that he couldn't outright say.

"Uh... I'm afraid I don't know sign-"

Mecha stepped in to translate. "They use their anger for something better now, they said." He thought back to his conversation about good and evil with Sonic, and pondered on it for a moment - the irony of his previous answer compared to his present one wasn't lost on him. "Rather than using for evil actions, it is for good. We are capable of choosing how to act, how to respond. This is our choice." He put his arms around his little brothers with distinct pride. "For as long as we are online, we will continue to protect, rather than destroy."

"Incredible. Truly, we are witnessing history today. Once a villain, now a hero for justice!" The reporter remarked, turning back to the camera. "That's all for today, folks. Tune in at 10 for more on the battle in Station Square."

The trio watched as the news reporters and the military rolled out of the city. Now, curious citizens descended on the street, looking over the aftermath of the Egg Dragoon's downfall.

Neo straightened and looked up, sensing that he was being watched. When he focused his optics, he saw that a blue hedgehog was standing atop a block of flats, watching, smiling at them. Was that... pride? Admiration?

Neo didn't look away this time. The two hedgehogs nodded to each other, and the blue blur was gone.

"Crush him." The voice in his ear demanded.

Neo just stared after Sonic, feeling a little lost.

"He is but a speck of dust to you. Crush him. Crush him. Crush him." It hissed.

It was right then that Neo realized something. This voice, it was one of two he spoke in during his time as the Overlord - in his Neo form, he spoke in a deeper voice. As Metal Overlord, it was noticeably higher. His optics slowly fell down to the ground and he felt his vision unfocus. Before he could get any more lost in thought, Silver nudged him in the back and slung an arm over his shoulder.

"C'mon. We're cleaner 'bots for the rest of the day, princess." Silver reminded him, guiding Neo to turn back around to look at the Dragoon.

Mecha tilted his head, a little confused by Neo's sudden change in mood, but decided not to press it. "I concur. Princess, let us proceed with cleaning."

Neo rolled his optics at them, his bad mood starting to lift with their attempts at humour.

Silver nudged Neo again and revved his engine just a little. "I'll race ya."

Mecha shifted one foot behind the other, preparing to run. "I shall be victorious this time."

Silver looked at him and laughed. "Hah! No way, M. I beat you to that train, I'll beat you again."

Mecha matched his sibling's look, angling his head slightly downward. "Negative. You are too slow."

Neo sighed at the Sonic quote and got ready to move quickly, too. "I hate all of you."

"Operation: collateral damage cleanup is a go!" Silver proclaimed, but before he could set off, Mecha and Neo looked over their shoulders to find a human sprinting towards them.

The human stopped, panting, with their hands on their knees before screaming, "that's it! That's the crazy robot!"

All of the bystanders looked at them, totally puzzled.

"It broke my freaking kitchen wall!" The human yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Neo. They picked up a scrap of metal and lobbed it at him, but Mecha reached out and caught it without flinching or moving. Both Mecha and Silver moved to stand in front of their sibling, staring the human down. To their surprise, the bystanders around them joined them, standing in front of Neo in solidarity with them.

Silver cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled back, "hey, idiot! He got punted through it, not exactly his fault!"

Mecha put a hand over Silver's mouth to hush him. "We will rebuild it. We apologize for the damage to your property."

"You're all crazy!" The human screamed, seeming to ignore Mecha's proposal, "and you're wearing a cone as a hat!" They then ran away as quickly as they came.

"... We don't claim that guy." One of the other people guarding Neo said.

"Yeah. You guys are heroes." Another agreed with a nod.

The black Flicky on Silver's shoulder cheeped in agreement.

Neo grumbled to himself and walked over to the Dragoon's remains by himself, starting the cleanup. Everyone else started to help too, picking up the pieces - and Queen Mecha was taking the lead as promised to Silver.

It was about damn time someone started fixing the mess Eggman had made. And since the robot siblings were the ones who had contributed to it in the past, they got to work.

[whatthehelliswrongwithme]

Voltron Part 39

Time for this thing to get wrapped up! Let’s start with season 8! After a pretty mediocre S7 that was a follow-up of a great S6, I’m hoping for something better. But, well. The general consensus seems to be, that this season sucks. But lemme paint my own picture first. Episodes 1+2 let’s go! :

Was the Tv-show a refernce to the 80s Voltron?

I like Altean Evangelion pilot’s design

YES! More Romura crumbs!

Lance has got some angst to work through

Okay, it is a direct refernce to 80s Voltron. And Lance is not supporting Kallura, 

And I guess that’s also an Allurance and Klance moment, cause Hunk joked about a love triangle

(Yes, for a love-triangle there needs to be at least one queer person. Y’all just don’t get shapes)

Was the comment about “getting Allura a little wrong” supposed to be about the change of her skin colour? Cause if so. Well. yikes

Does anybody else think, that it’s weird for the Garrison to send these kids back into space, to end a war?

Gosh, why are Shiro and Keith so serious?

This episode is very clearly pushing Allurance, but I’m just sitting happily over here, with my Romura crumbs

Lance, why are you taking her to your family? On your first date?

Pidge reacted weirdly upon hearing the news. Jealous? Plance?

The banter scene between Pidge and her mom was weird...

Girl’s night out! They’re even joined by Maru and Maniac Pixie Dream Girl

Nice to get to know them more. Maru seems fun and I absolutely adore MPDG’s outfit

Moustache man is a “Hurt my kid and I’ll kill you”-sort of dad. And I’m here for it

I’ve never seen 80s Voltron, but I believe that Pidge’s and one of Allura’s outfits during the makeover scene, may be a reference???

The sunset-scene feels like it was written specifiacally for the Klancers

Their date is kinda cute

Random relative of Lance, who’s forced to sit at the kids table: I feel your pain

Keith x Secretary Lady? Okaaaaayy?

I’m here for Sailor Moon being more relevant again. But also, Evangelion Lady screamed so angrily, that she died... What is this? Grey’s Anatomy?

I’m so fucking angry right now, about Allura angsting over not having a family anymore. Not having “anyone” to return to. Meanwhile, Moustache man is right there!

Oh god, Lance dropped the L-word

I still don’t know how to feel about Allurance, because it were simply unrequited feelings for sooooo long

But good for the Allurancers for getting their ship canon

The Paladins each got their own colour-coded Garrison uniform. Good for them

I know, that Keith’s supposed to be the leader of Voltron and all. But why was he talking during Shiro’s goodbye speech?

[If anybody wants to fill me in on all the 80s Voltron-references I didn’t catch, they’re very welcome]

.-•-°-•-.-•-°-•-.-•-°-•-.-~☆

Things I did not expect: A space witch-centric episode

It’s the cat! It’s the fucking cat! It’s Furry’s cat!!!

(I think it was originally space witch’s cat. But idc. It’s Furry’s cat. Bring her back!!!)

Smiling, young Zarkon looks so unsetteling...

Awww, she actually cares about her asshole-son

Space witch deadass just said: “Bitch, I don’t wanns be queen”

Lotor got his name, because both of his parents are mythology-nerds

Okay, so during the whole Quintessence-immortality ordeal Zarkon and space witch lost their memories. And space witch just took on the first name she heard. Cool, I guess???

That birth-scene is just the beginning of Wicked (Too bad, Lotor is purple and not green) (Seriously. The whole “Take it away”-thing and all!)

How many timmes are they going to say “Quintessence” this episode?

New outfit for space witch... nice

Space witch murdering those Galras... Gosh, she really is the difinition of Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss

Child-Lotor is probably supposed to be cute, but I still don’t like that bitch-ass motherfucker

Space witch is really fucking pissed at the Galra

Lotor took space witch’s kitty cat. God, even as a kid he was an asshole

The Altean Colony should really stop with their whole “glorifying and worshipping a single person”

(Good for Sailor Moon, that she got out of there)

How did random Altean village girl manage to get onto the magic-planet? Weren’t only the chosen ones supposed to be able to do that?

Did space witch use the magic-planet’s defences to create the Evangelion robot. Or was that just an extra thing she did?

Ooooooohhh. Lotor pulled a Pink Diamond and fucked up his first colony by not destroying the planet

I’ve said it since season3, but: The. Entirety. Of. Lotor’s. Family. Needs. Therapy.