#this is unedited but here it is

[captain-gillian]

happy monday from the future & thanks for the tags @lemonlyman-dotcom @bonheur-cafe @nisbanisba @carlos-in-glasses @reyesstrand @paperstorm & @irispurpurea here's sevenish sentences of something new i'm working on

“Marwani, come in. Smoothie?” Captain Strand opens the door with a beaming smile, hands her a grey-green concoction with a glass straw in it, and sits behind his desk. “It has chia for omega threes, goji berries for an antioxidant boost and goat milk kefir for probiotics. It's always important to fortify your gut microbiome in times of stress. And don’t worry, I checked everything, and it’s all halal, even the kefir.”

“Uh, thanks.” Marjan accepts the smoothie, sipping warily as she sits across from her Captain, steeling herself to hear what she screwed up this time.

But he doesn’t scold; he sits forward and asks her sincerely, “How are your parents doing? Your sister?” 

Her shoulders soften as she sits deeper into the chair, relaxing a little knowing this wasn’t a reprimand but a check-in about the record-breaking hurricane that had decimated her former home of Miami. Captain Strand was always good like that to everyone on the team, and that’s another reason the place felt like such a second home. 

“They’re better off than most,” Marjan says, “The destruction missed my parents' place by one block, and they have water and power, so my sister, extended family and friends have been staying with them. They’re helping everyone out as best as they can. It could have been so much worse.”

Marjan wasn’t sure if it was by sheer luck or an act of God that her family had been spared. Either way, she was eternally grateful, she knew so many other families who hadn’t been so lucky. The casualty rates were climbing by the day. If things hadn’t worked out for her here in Austin, she could have been one of those numbers. She’d heard yesterday that the missing crew from her former firehouse had been found. There were no survivors.

as always, an open tag & no pressure tagging:

@nancys-braids @pelorsdyke @carlos-tk @rmd-writes @welcometololaland

@sugdenlovesdingle @literateowl @eclectic-sassycoweyes @alrightbuckaroo 

[magicaldreamfox1]

ONE PIECE (2023) — 1×03 (totally unedited) (insp.)

[gals-other-blog]

Ace attorney textposts that are Objectionable, your Honor :)

[scottstiles]

Girl, I am outta here. There's a DVR at home full of unwatched TV waiting to remind me how ridiculously single I really am.

[starrystevie]

18+ | explicit sex & smoking | read here on ao3

it's 1996 when steve's world gets turned upside down again.

or, well, technically it's a few minutes into '97 when everything changes. he's at a new years party that his ex timothy is hosting and everyone is still hooting and hollering as they ring it in, pressing sloppy kisses to cheeks and lips with arms hooked around necks.

steve doesn't get kissed. not because people aren't eyeing him with a smirk and mischief and open arms of their own. no, he doesn't let himself get kissed because something feels... off about the night. the energy is weird, buzzing through his skin like electricity, keeping him on edge in a way he hasn't been since he left hawkins for boston in the fist place.

it isn't long until he figures out why.

timmy is walking up to him with his hands on some guy's shoulders, pushing him backwards with a wide smile like he's trying to convince him of something. the guy is about his height, short cropped dark hair and a leather jacket, the sight of his back alone getting steve excited. timmy always did know his type to a t.

"hey!" timmy yells over the music as he catches steve's eye. "got someone for you to meet."

once the guy turns around, the smiles on both steve and the mystery guy's faces fall before their minds catch up with them and plaster them back together. even with the short cropped hair, even with the piercing in his eyebrow, even with the stubble spreading over his defined jaw, steve would know that face, that heartbeat, anywhere.

"steve, i wanted to introduce you to someone. jamie, this is steve, you know... the guy i was telling you about?"

timmy's trying to be helpful, not even attempting to be subtle as he pushes the two closer together with a wide grin. steve's going on autopilot, reaching out a hand to grab the one outstretched towards him, but his brain is going a million miles a minute.

"nice to meet you, steve," eddie, or... jamie, says, palm pressed tightly against his own.

steve can't say anything, focusing too much on the warmth on his palm and the way his deep voice shakes through him like thunder and the way he feels like he's 19 again with a stuttering heart.

"what are-" he starts.

eddie shakes his head and tugs on steve's hand. "not here. come on."

they end up in a secluded corner, close enough that steve can smell smoke and leather polish and the sharp bite of his cologne. close enough that he can see the lines starting to appear on the corners of eddie's eyes, the stray grey hairs popping up in his beard, the questions swirling behind his eyes.

"eddie."

"jamie," is all he says back, not even bothering to look away from steve's eyes. "it's jamie now."

they both sigh like they don't know where to start because they don't. steve grapples with all the questions in his mind before settling on one. the one that tore through him late at night. the one that stayed on the tip of his tongue anytime he heard a van backfire or metallica.

"where did you go?" he knows it sounds like an accusation because it is. he doesn't let himself feel bad when eddie (jamie) flinches.

"feds," he replies easily, sneaking a cigarette out of his pocket and putting it between his lips. he tilts his head back to light it away from steve's face, blowing smoke up towards the ceiling. "once i got better, they scooped me up and brought me to boston. new name, new hairstyle, new life. at least they let me choose my name so i didn't get stuck with some thing awful."

steve snorts. "so you ended up with 'jamie' how?"

"middle name's james. it just made sense." he says it with a shrug and puffs at his cigarette again.

they look at each other for a moment. steve watches his tongue flit out of his mouth to wet his lips, watches the overhead lights glint off the metal of a surprise tongue piercing, watches his throat swallow around nothing but spit.

he can see, feel, eddie doing the same. he hams it up, pulls his lip between his teeth and makes it a show, looks back up at eddie from under his lashes. takes in a deep breath when eddie inches closer to him until their hips are bumping and steve plucks the cigarette out of his lips for a puff of his own.

he's 19 again, in love or like or lust with a boy in a leather jacket that has the world against him. he's 19 again, working a hand over himself to thoughts of his crush who up and vanished without so much as a goodbye. he's 19 again, crying after he comes, wishing he could go back in time before he met curly hair and a battle vest.

"so how do you know tim?" eddie whispers like he has to be quiet even though the part is loud and no one could hear them if they tried.

"how do you know him?" steve asks back, blowing out smoke and putting the cigarette back between eddie's barely spread lips.

his eyes flick down to look at steve's still pursed lips from when he angled the smoke over his shoulder. "we used to fuck, once upon a time when i first got to boston."

steve hums like it's the answer he expected and maybe it is. "same here. dated for about a year."

eddies eyes grow wide and his hip bumps into steve's like it's a question in and of itself and maybe it is. "didn't know you swing that way, harrington."

"well, you don't really know anything about me then, do you? didn't back then either, munson."

his eyes goes even wider, something like fear and shame and comfort and hope swimming in them. "leonard. it's leonard now."

steve hums again, says 'jamie leonard' like he's feeling it out on his tongue. tasting it between his teeth. teaching his mouth how to form the words instead of what he really wants to say like 'eddie' or 'munson' or 'i'm still somehow in love with you no matter your name'.

"jamie leonard," he says again, breath hitting eddie's lips. he shivers when he sees his lips part a bit more like he wants to swallow the sound and air that steve gives him. "we have a lot to catch up on, don't we?"

steve's apartment isn't all that big, isn't exactly small either but it has everything he could possibly need. he has a living room that looks out over the harbor and a kitchen with all new appliances and eddie munson naked in his bedroom. you know, the essentials.

their clothes are all over the floor, eddie's motorcycle helmet flung somewhere in the vague direction of the armchair in the corner but the smack it makes when it hits the wall makes steve think there's probably a hole in the drywall.

but eddie's sucking on his cock, hands wrapped around his thighs as he takes him even deeper, eyes flicking up to meet steve's, beard scratchy as it rubs against his sensitive skin. he's never been blown by someone with a tongue piercing but he doesn't think he can ever go back now.

the last thing on his mind is wondering if there's a hole in the goddamn wall.

"oh fuck, yeah there you go. feels so goddamn good," steve breathes out as he feels the back of eddie's throat on his cockhead. he tangles a hand as best he can in his short dark hair to try and coax him even deeper. eddie hums at either the praise or the tug on his hair or the way it feels as he works his tongue over steve's cock and it makes him jolt unexpectedly.

if he could go back in time and tell his 19 year old self that eddie was alive, that he was okay and breathing and learning how to suck cock like a goddamn professional, he'd do it in a heartbeat. save himself a few years of pining and fly straight out to boston to see it for himself. he's sure robin would have preferred to not have to listen to his whining everyday about brown eyes and dark curls.

eddie brings a hand to cup his balls, finger teasingly pressing into steve's taint, bobbing his head eagerly like he wants him to come in his mouth, but steve has other plans. he tugs eddie off of his cock quickly, lines of thick spit falling between them and sticking to his chin before crowding him up against the pillows.

steve kisses like he's dying and eddie is survival. he kisses him like he is drowning and eddie is the shore that he's clawing his way towards. he kisses him like 19 year old steve could only dream about.

soon enough, steve's sliding into him with a groan that he lets eddie swallow from him. the headboard knocks heavily into the wall a few times making even more possible holes, but all steve can focus on is the heat around him, the way eddie's whines bounce off the walls of his too empty bedroom and cover him like a blanket.

he likes fucking this way. he likes being able to watch as someone's face contorts into pleasure, like to see eyes rolling back and mouths dropping open and sweat beading around their hairline. likes seeing eddie fall apart.

"steve, oh my god," eddie's voice is still deeper than he's used to as he moans so he angles his hips up more to hear it again, the low timbre snaking through his veins and leaving fire in its wake. "don't stop."

"i won't," he groans into eddie's open mouth. "wanted this for so long, for fucking 11 years, not giving you up yet."

it's a bit more open than steve normally is when he first fucks someone but this isn't just someone. this isn't fucking a stranger he picked up in a bar that had almost the right shade of brown eyes and patches on his jacket that are almost the right shape. this is eddie. his eddie. or well... jamie.

"fuck, i'm gonna date you so fucking hard, harrington. yeah, right there keep going, shit-"

he's babbling as steve works his hips faster, tangling their free hands together to press above their heads on a pillow, and it's everything steve could have asked for. hearing his name fall from the lips he's dreamed about for years, sharing the same air as they breath into one another.

he thought he was over it, thought he had moved on at least a little bit from a halfway stranger he knew in his teens, but with the way they're both looking straight into each other's eyes begging each other to see them, he thinks they might both be back in 1986.

"what do-" steve cuts himself off as he whimpers, close, so close to the finish line. "what do you want me to call you? is it jamie or-"

he's shaking his head on the pillow, leaning up to bite at steve's lips and pull it between his teeth. he looks serious and certain when he says, "no, that name's not for you, it's... i need-"

steve brings his hand down to work over his cock and revel in the way his eyes roll back until he can only see white. he hits something that makes his eyes fly back open and he gets to see his favorite shade of brown again.

"eddie," he whispers. leaning down quickly, steve presses a kiss to his ear before whispering his favorite name there too. "eddie, baby, come on. let me... come on, eddie."

it feels silly to be chanting a name of a ghost as intensely as he is. but he can see it crawl over eddie like it's bringing him back to life. like he isn't bones on the ground in an alternate dimension. like he isn't a plain headstone in a graveyard next to a forgotten trailer park. like he isn't playing pretend with a fake name and a fake life.

steve says eddie and it brings him home.

afterwards, they lay together in steve's probably too soft bed, tears drying on both of their cheeks as they catch up. as they tell each other secrets that their younger selves could never dare. as the piece together the lives they have and the lives they want to have and slot each other into the mix.

steve has a hand in eddie's hair, eddie has one trailing over steve's arm that's slung over his chest. he's always been a fan of cuddling after sex.

"y'know," eddie mutters, "tim's been trying to get me to meet his hot teacher friend for months now."

steve hums, presses a kiss to his temple. "and he's been trying to get me to meet his hot motorcycle tech for months, too."

there are a few holes in the walls from the headboard and eddie's helmet, but steve thinks that they can patch those up, too.

he's still jamie leonard to the outside world. he's still a guy who doesn't have much family other than a mysterious uncle in indiana and doesn't have many friends other than ex boyfriends. he still introduces himself with a handshake and says a fake name like it's real.

but when he gets home, when he crawls onto a couch that overlooks the harbor and has arms wrapped around him, he gets to be eddie munson once more. and with the ghost of a man in his arms, steve harrington feels more like himself than he ever thought he would.

[louisferrignojr]

It’s a little past midnight when they stumble through the threshold of Tommy’s house, and Buck’s equal parts drunk and sleepy, the workday’s events taking their toll on him, and the two bottles of wine they shared between them painting his cheeks a pretty pink and sending him into a bit of a daze. All he can think of is stripping down to his underwear and getting under the covers and wrapping himself around his boyfriend like a koala bear on a eucalyptus tree. 

“Did you know koala bears have a pouch too, like kangaroos?” he says as he takes off his shoes at the entryway, kicking them towards the coat stand. “Where the baby lives. In its mother’s tummy.” He pauses for a second before he adds, “Wish I was a baby koala bear.”

Tommy laughs softly. “Okay, big baby, let’s get you to bed,” Tommy’s hands are on his hips, spinning him around and leading him down the corridor to his bedroom.

Buck grins, slips out of his grasp and turns around to face him. “I’ll go to bed if you come with me,” he says, trying to be sexy, but it doesn’t quite hit the mark. He’s really not sober enough to make his voice take on that sultry tone that gets the message across no matter how ridiculous the line.

“Yes, I sleep here, too, Evan,” Tommy’s smiling fondly at him, and Buck can’t help it, he throws his arms around the man’s shoulders and pulls him in for a kiss, keeps him close as he stumbles backwards and falls on the mattress, pulling Tommy with him, a surprised gasp breaking their interlocked lips. 

Tommy’s laughing then and pulling out of his grasp, moving off of the bed to start undressing. “How are you still horny when you’re this drunk?”

“I’m always horny when you’re around.”

“Such a smooth talker.” 

“Okay, but wait, wait, Tommy, listen,” Buck pushes up to his elbows, grabs the front of Tommy’s t-shirt in a mistaken effort to pull himself up the rest of the way, only succeeding because Tommy reaches for him with his arms outstretched and helps him sit up. Buck frames his face between his palms as his gaze locks with Tommy’s. “You want − do you want to be my baby-daddy?”

Tommy snorts a laugh, which is not the reaction Buck was hoping for. “You might have to retake Biology 101, Evan,” he says then, and Buck’s face breaks into a grin, relief washing over him. Of course his boyfriend’s only teasing him. Of course it makes his stomach do a flip in response.

“I’m serious,” Buck says then, though he’s still grinning like a loon. “I wanna have your babies.”

“Mm, still not technically possible, honey.” Tommy’s hands are working on the buttons of his shirt while he speaks, having removed his own t-shirt already. 

“Tommy,” Buck whines now, evidently having run out of patience. “I’m serious. I want this.”

Tommy nods, pauses for a minute to cup Buck’s cheek in one hand, the other finding Buck’s to interlace their fingers. “I know,” he says in a gentle tone. “We can talk about it when we’re sober, yeah?” And with that he leans in and presses a soft kiss to Buck’s smiling mouth. “But in the meantime…” he trails off, pulls back to meet Buck in the eye, and the twitch at the corner of his mouth is all Buck needs to catch on to Tommy’s intentions. 

Finally, they’re on the same page, and soon enough, Buck’s horizontal and fully naked, with Tommy lying next to him, kissing him sweetly, one hand tangled in Buck’s hair while the other is wrapped around his cock, jerking him off with slick, rapid motions, each upstroke bringing Buck closer to the edge until he comes all over Tommy’s hand, toes curling and back arching off the mattress as his orgasm washes over him.

Tommy’s still pressing a myriad of soft kisses along his jaw, down his throat and over his collarbone, and Buck’s expression melts into a hazy smile, head sinking further into the pillow − until he feels Tommy shift, moving away, and that won’t do at all.

“Gimme,” Buck stretches out his arms, making grabby-hands motions at Tommy. “I can’t get up. Bring it here to me. Please.” He accentuates the request with his puppy-dog eyes that he knows works like a charm on Tommy, pushing out his pouty lips that he knows Tommy can’t resist. 

“Fucking shit, Buckley,” Tommy leans over to kiss him before he gets to his feet, taking his jeans and briefs off in one quick motion, then proceeds to climb on the mattress. He swings a leg over Buck’s torso and settles down with a hand wrapped around his beautiful hard cock just inches away from Buck’s mouth. “This okay?” 

Buck nods eagerly, arms wrapping around Tommy’s thighs to pull him closer, lifting his head off the pillow and taking him in his mouth. Tommy moans loudly and Buck smiles with Tommy’s dick in his mouth, starts sucking the head of it, lapping at it eagerly with the tip of his tongue, until he suddenly drops his head back on the pillow.

“Just fuck my mouth, Tommy. Please.”

Tommy doesn’t need to be asked twice. He shuffles even closer and guides himself back in, starts with shallow little thrusts into his mouth - because as much as Buck might want to take more of him in, Tommy knows it’ll trigger his gag reflex, at this awkward angle. Buck makes a note to tell him afterwards, how good Tommy is to him, how careful and gentle and patient he’s been from the very beginning, giving Buck another chance that he didn’t really deserve. It sends another rush of emotions flooding through him, and Buck makes a high pitched keening noise at the back of his throat, his fingers digging into the meat of Tommy’s ass hard enough that his nails will surely leave little crescent moon-shaped imprints, but it only makes Tommy moan louder. Buck tries to reach further in between his cheeks to push two fingers against Tommy’s perineum, and just like that, Tommy tips over the edge, spilling into his mouth. 

Buck swallows him down and licks his lips, making sure he gets every last drop, before he says, “That definitely won’t make a baby,” with a cheeky grin on his face.

It makes Tommy laugh. “You’re unbelievable.” 

“I’ve been told.” 

Tommy shakes his head. He climbs off of him and lays down on the bed next to him, snaking an arm underneath Buck’s neck to pull him close to him, fingers under Buck’s chin tipping his head into a soft kiss. 

“I love you.” Tommy says, his expression the very definition of fond. “I’d love to be your baby-daddy, Evan.”

Buck can’t help the grin that splits his face in two. “Yeah?” he asks, and Tommy’s smile mirrors his own.

“Yeah.”

[flamingpudding]

Part 3 of Ghost Kid in Gotham

<<1 Previous Next

Feral brother of mine

When Damien first saw the video from Todd's helmet he only thought of his older brother as an imbecile that apparently couldn't handle children that was until Drake paused the video on the child's face before the video cut off.

Then Richard pointed out the similarities to Damien and of course his first thought was that his mother had made another clone again that they would need to dispose of. That was until he took a closer look at the image when Drake zoomed in. It was still blurry but Damien would recognise that face anywhere and in any state.

Despite his memory being faded it was the face of someone he never wanted to forget and would let freely hunt his dreams. Even if it was to recall the good times or even the bad times through nightmares. Freckles that mirrored constellations and scar by the ear from a training session when the others' dodging ability had not yet been up to par when they were five. Hair longer than his own and less tameable.

Danyal Al Ghul.

His twin that he killed at the age of eight when their grandfather forced them into a fight to death. This was not a simple clone of Damien himself and the teen was pretty sure that his mother must have lost it. Because what else then a clone of his own brother could this be, she probably must have preserved some of Danyal's DNA if not his entire body for this. He must also applaud her cruelty, for the clone was at the exact age his brother had died at.

He does not know why nor how his mother had managed to cause glowing Lazarus green eyes. None of his clones had ever shown these before but a part of him didn't want to know. It already made him sick enough to know that his mother would go so far as to clone Danyal.

All he wanted was to get rid of this cruel clone that wore his long dead brother's face. The knowledge of his brother was something Damien held dear. It was something that belonged to him only and the burden of his death was not something he ever wanted to share either. Besides what use would it be to his family to mourn a member they never would have gotten to meet.

Even as he glared at Todd, who had let loose the feral clone. He could not bring himself to tell them that this was most likely not just a simple clone of himself.

"Come on guys, there is a child running around the Bat Cave. You can fight later about how to safely keep the boy in check."

Clicking his tongue he turned away from his older siblings and drew out his katana. "<tt> I will get rid of that thing myself."

A thing, that was what it was. Damien didn't need his personal feelings or his memories of a twin that could smile brighter than the desert sun despite their pain, get in the way of his rationality. He could not allow this mockery of his twin brother to live on.

He went for the darker areas of the Cave knowing the league trained mind and he was in luck as he was the first to find the feral child hidden away in the area that lead to the medbay. By now the thing was even armed. Damien recognised the dagger as one of his training once, he probably had accidentally left it out of its casing after training right before patrol.

The ex-league prodigy did not give the clone time to react as he attacked without warning. Chasing it through the Bat Cave as it avoided his attacks yet made no move to attack him the way it had Todd. At times the way it dodged made Damien stutter slightly something that never happened before. He slashed at it, ignoring his siblings that shouted for him to stop from the side lines. Ignoring the flashes in his mind of a fight years ago that was similar yet so different.

"I will not let this mockery run free." He muttered pointing his blade as it hissed at him in return. What a feral thing it was, he waited for it to make the first move this time. Clones were not perfect, their forms were lacking, They might retain skills of their original but they rarely were the same let alone cable of thinking outside of what their creator, his mother wanted. He pointedly ignored anything he new about certain clones. They weren't created by his mother, therefore did not count in regards to his conclusion. Yet it was painful seeing this mockery of his dead brother appearing like a perfect copy.

The stance it held with the dagger, despite the feral hissing and movements, it was the exact same his brother had. Sword stances, like martial arts stances had a basic form, every wielder learned and then developed further into their own unique one with time. Danyal had one where he tended to hold the dagger or even swords backwards in his left hand while his right arm covered his empty side with a slight tilt to the back, always ready to reach for any weapon he would carry in hidden pockets on his back.

It was painful to see this clone, this thing mimicking his brother's stand this perfectly. Damien could only narrow his eyes in determination, or was it desperation by now? This was just one more reason to get rid of it. It just hurt even more when with a quick gaze towards the hand that held the dagger Damien also noticed a bad habit his brother had always retained and the league had also never been able to train out of him. It was a small habit, unnoticeable if you wouldn't look for it, yet dangerous to the sword / dagger wielder if they were inexperienced.

Danyal tended to let his thumb rest against the guard if the blade had one or against the blade itself even if it didn't have one. He knows that his twin used to have scaring on his thumb from this habit, especially from their early training years.

This thing was even imitating his brother's habit.

He wanted it gone. Rip it apart and present it to his mother with all the anger and grief it brought to him.

"Guys stop Damien now! That is not a clone!" He heard Drake yell from where the Batcomputer was but he didn't care. This was a clone, so he lunged at the it again. Ignoring how the clone had studied him like he had it. Ignoring how its stance had changed the longer they had watched each other and how that thing let its guard down all of a sudden.

"Damien! Stop!"

It dropped all defenses and Damien could only see that as his chance to deal the final blow to get rid of it. But what he didn't expect despite the dropped defenses was for the clone to also just drop the dagger, close its eyes and smile. The same smile that still hunted his nightmares. His mind flashed back to eight years ago.

"Demon brat! Calm the fuck down!"

The blade stopped inches from the same fatal placement that had killed his brother before. Drake and Richard were right behind him while Todd was by the clone's side gripping at the blade with his bare hands, most likely bleeding already.

"Why?" Damien uttered quietly, his eyes trained on the thing. Richard must have thought that his question had been directed towards them stopping him but that wasn't the case.

"Look Dami, how about listening to what Tim found out first before we decide what to do with that child?"

"Not you." He couldn't help but snap back at them as he withdrew his katana, hearing Todd mutter something about sharp blades and bandaids as well as several curses under his breath. His eyes stayed on the thing. "Why would you let me kill you? Why drop your defence ces? Why not dodge?"

The thing titled its head its glowing green eyes were trained on Damien and he noticed how they flickered into a blue that was so familiar yet so different with the way they glowed. It made chirping noises before it whispered something.

"ahbak, Dami"

Damien froze for a moment there at the quiet words the thing had whispered. How was he supposed to react now? Was this even a clone, no he knew this was a clone. There was no way Danyal was alive let alone still eight years old. He had killed his own brother, he had held him in his own arms as Danyal took his final breath, smiling at him and uttering the same words he had just heard again after so many years.

Even if Danyal had survived somehow then he should be the same age as him. Not the age he had died at. Besides, their grandfather would have never allowed them to use the pits to revive his twin.

"FUCK!"

Intentionally or not Todd's outcry had ripped him out of his thoughts by a rather pathetic yowl of pain. It was like a switch had been flipped in the clone's mind as his brother had reached out to probably detain it again. The moment Todd had touched him, the thing had bitten into his hand before letting go, hissing and running away from them once more.

But instead of running after that thing Damien stood frozen in place, his mind still racing. He could feel Richard's hands on his shoulders, grounding the teenager with the warmth they provided. "You okay there Baby Bird? You seem rather out of it suddenly."

"<tt> I am fine." His only offered answer, ignoring the worried looks he was getting as he moved to wipe Todd's blood off his blade. He needed a distraction before his mind became any more chaotic and unreasonable. "What did Drake find out?"

"Right… you sure you want to hear that right now?" Giving Richard an unimpressed stare, the oldest sighed looking over towards Drake.

"Well I got good news and probably bad news." Side eyeing his brother Damien kept silent waiting for him to continue.

"I can safely say that the child is not a clone. His DNA does not 100% match yours. It differs too much but - and this is where it's probably bad news - it matches with you to 45%, with a matching to Bruce to about 50%, same with Talia. If I run a paternity test I am sure it would be a hit for Bruce and Talia."

Damien swallowed taking in that information, knowing what it meant. Was he horrified? Yes. Did it also awaken a strange sort of hope? Also, Yes.

"But there was a third compartment of the child's DNA structure which was impossible to test. It could even corrupt DNA samples if not taken apart from the rest. It probably has something to do with the green specs I found in his blood too. So I ran a substance analysis and - you probably won't like this - but it got a hit from a substance we have recorded in our database."

"What substance?" Damien knew, he just knew he wouldn't like the next words Drake would say. He could feel Richard squeezing his shoulder as if to help him keep stable.

"Lazarus Water. It matched with what we have recorded from the Lazarus Pits."

"Drake, are you telling me that after eight years, my mother who apparently had preserved my dead twin brother's body, dropped said body into the Lazarus Pits to revive him and then drop him off with Todd of all people?"

"Yes, wait… dead twin brother's body?"

[luvrodite]

candles

gn!reader, jason's pov, kind of introspective ?? not so much a fluff fic as it is a stream of consciousness (is that even the right phrase?)

the smell of candle wax reaches his nose, burning, acrid. the flame burns bright spots into his vision, bleeding gaps of yellow and orange that glimmer in the dark when he blinks. jason todd, a year older, unsure as to how much wiser, sits at a table in front of a birthday cake and wonders how he got here.

he thinks about your hands. about the curve of your palms, fingers folding over the plate as you'd carried the dessert. your smile, shaky, unbidden love in the corners of your mouth. adoration had pressed into his shoulders, warmth bleeding from your touch.

make a wish, baby.

it used to be that when he was younger – another lifetime ago entirely, before the fire, before ethiopia, before bruce – he'd play this game. to count all that he longed for. money, mostly. money, money, money. at the centre of it all, green dollar bills. what couldn't you do if you had it? money, so he and mom didn't have to go without, money, so he could take care of her.

he looks up at you, milky eyed, feels the scar on his cheek jump as the muscle twitches.

sweeter than sin, honey soaked, you smile. head tilting, liquid moonlight bottled in your eyes. a wish, he thinks. old aches, a new body, the grief of estrangement, all briefly forgotten – he stares at you, and thinks. a wish.

time passes strangely after the pit. murky, sluggish. it could have been an eternity that he spends, tracing your features in the candlelight, light bleached spots in his vision flickering over your face like burnt film. each breath feels distant to him, air passing faintly through his lungs.

a wish, a wish, a wish.

it seems a foolish thought. all that he so desperately desires, he cannot have. money, he has plenty, but it is worthless in the face of his longing, hard as it is to conceive. what he wants cannot be bought.

he blinks, lids heavy, lashes brushing against his skin. that all familiar buzz in his head, again, the one that threatens to unstitch him inside out, cleave him in half.

– your hands. warm, soft heat, bleeding through the fabric of his shirt.

all is quiet, once more. he moves, stiff limbs breaking an invisible cast to loop around your waist. the weight of you atop his thigh, the startled sound you try to muffle, it lends him a bit of strength. the edges of him feel more solid, and he heaves a breath. a quiet exorcism, an expulsion of the remaining traces of ichor in his lungs.

he blows out the candles.

dunno what this is. thoughts about jason and his birthday, thoughts about love, thoughts about resurrection and rebirth – forced from eternal slumber, the choice to live.

happy birthday jason todd, i love you so dearly.

[vanmarkus]

I was having thoughts about groomzilla Buck planning the bucktommy wedding and this happened...

“Oh, and did you know that Lucy is now bringing her girlfriend? So I have to change the entire sitting arrangement?” Buck waved his arms around in frustration, taking a deep breath to replace the one he just used for a rant that may or may not have lasted for an uninterrupted minute and a half.

“Could we just pull up a chair at the same table?” Tommy asked naively as he walked out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but the pair of sweats he liked to sleep in and one of Buck’s old, stretched out t-shirts.

“Could w—” Buck gaped at him in disbelief. “Baby, do you understand h-how tight we are with the guest list already? This- this means a whole another meal added to the menu and a new name card a-and I don’t even know if they are coming together. What if she needs a parking space? Do we even have enough space? God, Tommy, we didn’t even ask the venue about parking, I-I gotta call them and—”

“Bello, you gotta relax.” Tommy put his hands onto Buck’s forearms to stop him from flailing. “It’s almost midnight, the venue is closed and you have a shift in the morning. We can worry about the guest list tomorrow.”

Tommy’s voice was like thick honey, soothing Buck’s sore nerves, but still…

“I just want things to be perfect.” He said a little sheepishly, knowing full well how childish it sounded.

“A perfect wedding? I’m not sure that’s a thing.” Tommy gave him one of those wide, closed lipped grins he loved so much and Buck couldn’t help but drop his shoulders as finally, the tension slowly started to seep out of them.

“Okay, m-maybe not perfect, just not li—”

“Not like Chimney’s?” Tommy huffed jovially with a meaningful arch of his eyebrows that told Buck he was having similar thoughts on the matter.

They all went through some truly wild things last year, but his sister’s wedding sure surpassed a lot of them — not the capsized cruise ship though, that definitely defended its title on the top of that list, possibly for years to come. (God, Buck hoped so anyway.)

“Yeah,” he sighed quietly in response, “n-not like that. One hospital wedding was enough.”

“Okay, how about this? I talk to the caterers and the venue tomorrow, while you’re at work. And if I do end up in the hospital on our wedding day, I promise to wait until I’m out to put that ring on your finger.”

“Don’t even joke about that.” Buck swatted at Tommy’s elbow playfully, still unable to help a small huff of a chuckle bubbling past his lips. “B-but uh, okay.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Buck tipped his forehead against Tommy’s and closed his eyes in contentment, letting the lingering scent of their shared body wash and toothpaste wash over him. “Can you believe it?”

“Hm?”

“We’re getting married in a week.” He whispered it into the small space between them like it was his most cherished secret, only to be shared with someone special. And even though it was most certainly not an actual secret, if anyone was special enough to hear these words, it had to be Tommy.

“Mm.” He ran his hands down Buck’s arms, until he could lace their fingers together, squeezing them lightly. “One week and we’ll be pronounced husband and husband.”

“Husband, huh? I- uh, I like the sound of that.” Buck smiled, tilting his head to the side just enough to press his lips to Tommy’s; lightly at first but soon enough, starting to prod to get him to open up and allow Buck’s tongue into his mouth, gently tugging him towards the bed all the while — it was pretty late, after all.

Maybe things will end up a little messy, or, well… knowing their luck; a lot messy. But Buck decided it didn’t really matter. As long as he got to have this; as long as he got to have Tommy by his side, nothing else could possibly be more important.

[pencap]

someone once told me there is no demon more frightening     than a good man     who has gone to war.

someone once told me      the only things we get to choose      are a hero's death      or a villain's life.

so they said. so they said. so they say.

but no one ever told me      what happens when a good man       goes to war      and becomes the demon.

but no one ever told me      you can die a hero     and be resurrected     to a villain's afterlife.

- by sylvie (j.p.)

[cupcakesmoothie]

I did all three backstories for Touchstarved (I have 12 hours on this thing and it's only the demo)

Kuras and Vere don't seem to have red options, but Vere does have a secret ending and Kuras... I don't know, holds you for a bit longer?

For Mhin, it really is just picking The Alchemist backstory. You can call them short or whatever and you'll still get it.

For Leander, you have to take the flowers and keep touching him. It's okay if you hold back the first time even.

For Ais, you gotta tell him fuck you and pet the soulless, and after that red option pretty much all yours.

Differences I found between the three backstories:

It is pretty much like how they tell you, Oracle gets premonitions, Hound has experience with people and survival, and Alchemist has knowledge about magic and science, so there's different things you find out with each one.

The Alchemist:

I may be a little bit biased, but think The Alchemist is the most informative (It's also the first one I picked). There's the expected info of noticing that Vere's collar is enchanted, or knowing about how strong Leander really is when it comes to magic, but it's got the added bonus of MC's mentor having been in the Senobium in the past.

Compared to the others, The Alchemist is more familiar with Senobium, albeit through word of mouth. It's interesting how many times the MC says something similar to "I didn't know the Senobium did that." It calls into question whether MC's teacher was lying, or more interestingly (and what I think might be the case), the Senobium has changed a lot recently. It's talked about, even without the Alchemist backstory, that the Senobium used to be somewhere you could go to for help, but now most of the characters you meet do not like the Senobium, so what changed?

The Hound:

The Hound (the least popular option, apparently) was pretty fun. The Hound notices more about Ais, specifically that he's very suited to be a leader, and that the number of scars he has (one) seems suspicious for his temperament (or "how seasoned he acts", as the MC puts it).

One thing that I found very fun was doing Mhin's route as the Hound. They're somewhat able to keep up! They can (or tried to) recognize tells, and noted that Mhin was one of the few people who was able to sneak up on them. They also weren't sure how Vere managed to get their key. They were also prepared to steal to survive.

The Oracle:

While The Hound notices physical things, the Oracle notices... how do you say, otherworldly things. The Seaspring seems to be hiding a lot (of course it is), but the MC notices a heartbeat. A presence. They feel something from Ais. The name Ocudeus means something, they can feel it. They feel like they can see Ais' tattoo move.

Also, the MC feels something from Mhin and Kuras (in his clinic at least), which is interesting!

If I had to decide which love interest was better with which backstory...

Vere: The fact that the Alchemist thought that they could tell what enchantments were on his collar if only they could touch it feels promising! And both their connections (though I mean connection in the loosest term for MC here) to the Senobium makes it feel like you might very well find something.

The Hound might be one of the few who can actually survive this guy if I'm gonna be honest. (I mean you can still get killed by him but. You know.)

Ais: The Oracle's sixth sense makes going to the Seaspring a lot more interesting compared to the others, and the way they can feel something from Ais is very cool.

The Hound can tell his character better than the others, and I wonder how that will come into play later on.

Kuras: The Alchemist knows their way around spell-crafting and alchemy (When I picked this I wondered if they would be able to help Kuras around the clinic, which doesn't happen, but hey it might).

The Oracle seems to also feel something from him.

Mhin: First things first, their red option literally requires you to have the Alchemist backstory. Mhin's precision is noticed by the other MCs sure, but not to that detail.

Watching the Hound observe where they could be was so fun to watch. It feels like this MC will be able to keep up.

The Oracle feels something from Mhin, something inhuman.

Leander: The Alchemist was able to tell that the flash of magic was a barrier spell, and that most magic (or at least the ones they're familiar with) uses an incantation or spell circle. His didn't.

But either way, there will be things to find no matter the backstory you choose, and all of the character's stories are intertwined, so don't let this dissuade you from a specific backstory! There will always be things to find, you just need to look.

Extra: I found it pretty cool how each MC has a different way of knowing what a Groupmind is. Story-wise this makes sense of course, but each of their reactions to it are slightly different, from I heard this from rumours of people in cults (Hound), to I used to be told I could put people in a groupmind (Oracle), to legends suggest it was possible with a strong enough catalyst but it's never been done before (Alchemist).

Also, it's interesting to know what they each think of surroundings (specifically the Amaryllis district). They all have different opinions from I used to be told bizarre things about this place and now I kinda get it (Alchemist), to it's not that different from the place I grew up in (Hound), to it's VERY different from where I grew up in (Oracle).

And if I'm not mistaken, the reason Vere gives for your desperation is different for all of them!

You can find gameplay from me on my Youtube channel, or watch me getting all the red options and secret ending here:

I didn't read it out loud cause my mic sorta sucks and sometimes it peaks and gets a bit shrill. Also you see how my mouse moves sometimes? It means I'm screaming. I don't think I'd have been able to keep calm enough for this. Also my reading kinda sucks anyway hope you like it lol

[chosobaby]

he doesn’t hate his birthday, nor does he love it. it’s just another day; sakusa kiyoomi never really felt the need to look forward to it. but you do — you always do, because his existence, according to you, is something worth celebrating.

so he pretends to stay asleep when he feels you move out of his arms fifteen minutes before midnight. he pretends not to hear you shuffle to the kitchen. he pretends not to hear you whisper a quiet shit! as you drop what he correctly assumes is a fork with a ‘msby #15’ engraved on it.

he pretends not to hear the bedroom door creak open, and he pretends not to hear you shift next to his side of the bed while you wait for midnight. he pretends to have just woken up when you tap his shoulder and cup his cheek —

and kiyoomi pretends the smile on his face isn’t that big when he sees you grinning down at him, a plate with a singular slice of cake with one yellow candle in your hand, as you softly say happy birthday, my love.

sakusa kiyoomi says he doesn’t look forward to his birthday, but he actually does, because it’s the saccharine smile on your face that you show only to him every year on the twentieth of march that makes his existence worth celebrating.

[gals-other-blog]

5th batch of textposts yey :)

[okkalo]

best big brother ever.

rindou x reader

genre(s): fluff, crack

hi, this is a tiktok trend for anyone wondering

“if you wanna get to him, you gotta get through me first,” your possessive and bold words immediately drew rindou’s attention towards you. his lilac eyes narrowed as he confusingly tried to make sense of the situation.

rindou had been minding his own business on the couch, listening to some songs out loud. when you had come over to sit next to him, which was just a second ago, he paid it no mind. but, now you were threatening your phone camera?

as if he wasn’t already in a confused state, you turned to face him with that mischievous smile he’s come to dread. then, your hand clawed around his chin, pulling him closer to smash your lips against his.

now he was in complete shock.

before he could even comprehend what the hell was happening, you pulled away just as swiftly as you came and turned back to your phone.

“best brother ever,” you enunciated, a proud smile adorning your lips. rindou’s heart stopped. his hand immediately flew to snatch your recording phone away from you, throwing you a disgusted glare at the same time.

“what the hell is wrong with you?” his question made it hard not to just burst out laughing then and there.

“what do you mean, big bro?” you innocently asked, your tone much softer as you tilted your head at him. he hated the way his heart fooled him to feel a pang of guilt at the sight of your obvious act.

“i’m not your big bro!” he hurriedly replies, giving your shoulder a small shove. unlucky for you, he was quick to move his attention back to your phone, obviously about to delete the video.

“rindou, it’s a prank! don’t delete the video!” you hastily beg, moving to try to claim your phone back from his hands.

“i’m not letting you make people think we’re siblings,” he grumbled, practically jumping over the joke and continuing to hold the phone out of your reach. his fingers were quick to delete the video, much to your dismay. his reaction truly would’ve gone viral.

“rin, that’s a whole trend. no one’s gonna believe we’re siblings,” the whine leaves your lips, upset that he deleted something so funny. in his eyes, he couldn’t believe that you were the one pouting. still, he couldn’t help but feel a tinge of guilt.

he huffed, tossing your phone back to you. “don’t care, that was probably the stupidest thing you’ve ever said. i’m saving you face,” he claimed, moving his arm around your shoulders to pull you closer. despite his words, he was obviously trying to make you feel somewhat better.

“geez, rin, i take what back what i said earlier. you’re actually the worst brother ever,” you mirrored his huff with an eye roll, not being able to resist teasing him.

“i’m not your brother!” he immediately replied, pushing you away from him once again. unlucky for him that he’s just so easy to poke fun at.

[kitnita]

jake oettinger postgame   —   DAL vs VGK;   game 4   —   04.29.24

[ah, you know ty very well. how hard is it to stay focused throughout everything he’s been through?] yeah, it’s … you know, there’s no one in here that deserves that more than him, and, you know — i live with him, so, i get to see … i’ve been through, you know, everything that he’s gone through this year, and, just, the way that he carries himself, and — you know, there’s no one that puts the team more in first than him and he works his butt off and never has a bad attitude and has just stayed ready for when he got his name called, and played great tonight and, you know, showed that he can step in and, and be a great piece to this team. so, you know, there’s not a lot of people that are gonna be happier for him than me, that’s for sure. 

[i was gonna say, the body language that he shows, just when he’s out there – first one on the ice – i mean, he does all the little things you’re supposed to do to show that you’re a big member of the team, even when he goes, whatever, six, eight games without playing.] exactly. and you’d never know … you know, some guys, you know, carry the way that they’re playing on the ice on their face and you’d never know with him. he’s just, you know — puts the team first, wants what’s best for the team, and, you know, he knows when his number’s called he’s gonna step up. and he’s done that. and, uh, like i said, just so happy for him. and there’s tons of guys in our organization who’re like that, you know, just — everyone wants to win, and you know, not everyone’s going to have the exact role that they want but, you know, if you win the championship at the end of the day it doesn’t matter. 

[just for color, here — you and ty share a house, a condo?] he lives at my house. me and my fiancée’s house, yeah. yep. [does he pay rent?]  uh, we’re still working through that (laughs) yeah. he’s, uh, he’s been on dish duty, so, that’s kinda how he’s paying for his rent right now. [let’s say, maybe give him a little break off — get a goal, you know, goal’s count.] yeah, for sure. for sure, yeah, exactly.  [and, just for color, what type of jersey does your brother wear?] he wears delly’s jersey. yeah, i know — second favorite player, yeah.

[ps-cactus]

Gossip Guys to Plotting Crimes Guys

I love how Leander and Ominis are talking and then Sebastian gets jealous and just joins them