#warning ( long post )

[jasonsbruce]

Possessive Brujay? I think it would be interesting if they were both equally possessive in their own (toxic) ways.

your wish is my command 🫡🫡🫡

after jason's resurrection, something changes between them. when bruce finally gets him back, he swears never to lose him again. he can't go through it again—the guilt, the grief, the loss.

bruce becomes possessive, but he hides it behind a mask of concern. he tells himself it's for jason's safety, that jason needs him, which makes it easier to push away the guilt of his behavior.

it starts with bruce hovering over him, always watching. he had always been controlling, but it's different now. more intense. bruce isn't just concerned about jason's safety; he's fixated on keeping him safe.

whenever jason talks to someone else, there's a dark look in bruce's eyes, a possessive flash, like jason is something to be guarded. and bruce always knows where jason is, like he's tracking his every move.

every time jason tries to go off-grid or leave gotham for a while, bruce is already there, making sure he never strays too far from the city—too far from him.

he shows up unannounced at jason's apartment, keeps critical information from him, brings him into the batcave for medical check-ups even when jason feels fine.

bruce even subtly sabotages jason's relationships, wanting him for himself. as jason tries to reconnect with the family, things mysteriously fall apart. texts go unanswered, calls get ignored.

and the most fucked up part is that jason doesn't care about any of that.

because his need for bruce's attention runs deeper. he craves his approval and hates how much he needs it. he wants to be the only one bruce sees, the only one bruce cares about.

jason goes out of his way to provoke him—flaunting his independence as red hood, breaking rules, taking reckless risks—just to see bruce react, to feel that warm flash of anger, that possessive rage that tells him bruce still wants him, still cares.

the more bruce tries to control jason, the more he pushes back. jason wants to see how far bruce will go to keep him. jason thrives on it.

then, one night, after an argument gets too heated, it just happens. it's rough, desperate, all of the tension and the need to own each other, poured into that moment. the next morning, they don't talk about it, don't even look at each other any differently.

but it keeps happening.

every time their bodies crash together, it's like a power struggle, but jason knows exactly what he's doing. he pushes, provokes, teases, waiting for bruce to snap, and stop holding back. jason knows, after everything that's happened, he shouldn't like it this much. he should hate giving up control, hate letting bruce have that power over him.

but he doesn't.

instead, he loves it. he loves the way it feels when everything is in bruce's hands, when bruce pins him down and takes what he wants, when he shows jason who is in control. it only makes him want bruce more. jason lets him have that control, because he likes feeling bruce's power.

the risks keep getting bigger, more dangerous, almost suicidal. jason stepping into enemy territory without backup, defying direct orders, putting himself in harms way on purpose, just to see if bruce will save him in time.

and bruce always does.

every fight is a test, every argument a challenge, and bruce rises to it every time. jason gets a rush whenever he successfully pulls bruce out of his controlled world, every time he sees that mask crack and the raw, possessive want underneath is exposed. he thrives on being the one thing bruce can’t control.

bruce wants to control him, to own him, and jason lets him think he can—until the next time he pushes back.

but there are times when jason hates how much he likes it. but the thought never lasts long—not when bruce's attention feels so good, not when his hands are on him, claiming him.

it's intoxicating—a twisted game. jason pushes and bruce pulls, and neither of them wants to stop it. their equal possessiveness and obsession feed off each other, and they're insatiable.

[lyss-butterscotch]

Hi, i have a problem with making far too many aus! Ima go ahead and drop a zombie au onto you(like i did with the vampire suns idea) and hope you pick it up! I love ur art btw~

Coming soon to theatres near you ✨️✨️

I can imagine pebbles being a sort of Patient Zero that's like the source of it all and he controls all the rot like Eveline from RE7. That's literally what i thought of when you put zombie and rain world together

[aggravateddurian]

"Attention Dogtown residents! This is V. As of this moment, I am imposing a state of emergency during the transition of power. Colonel Hansen's death at the hands of Arasaka agents is a shock to us all, but I assure you that they paid the price with their blood." "There will be changes to the way we do things in Dogtown, and there will be some who will attempt to resist change. This message is directed towards them: fall into line, leave Dogtown, or suffer the consequences of doing business the 'old way.' There's a new vision for Dogtown: my vision. If you can't handle the idea of making Dogtown a true beacon of freedom, then the gate is right there."

A self-indulgent AU where V becomes leader of Barghest and Dogtown, and decides to use Hansen's wealth to make Dogtown a place people want to live. Cue numerous assassination attempts and Myers seething and throwing her agent at Reed every time she sees him (yes, this will be this AU's running gag, like Mitch's coffee machine for Brother's Shadow).

I'm going with a softer approach than I initially intended. I was going to turn V into just as much a warlord as Kurt, but a discussion I had yesterday with @wayfaringellie made me realise that I don't really think V would become that, unless she was a completely amoral corpo bloodsucker. None of my Vs, or V-adjacent OCs, are ever like that, except for Vince at the start of Brother's Shadow (but he was also a Corpo, so it makes sense).

There are some (like Takemura) who would swear to kill V, or cut V out of their life, but I think that most people in V's life would at least be optimistically wary (knowing V) to downright supportive (enter Rogue, Mr Hands). This leads me to V's relationship with Judy, which will be tried at times.

In much the same way that Judy believes in the idea of the Mox, she likes the idea of V using all of Hansen's misbegotten wealth to actually help the people of Dogtown, to make it a place where the downtrodden can actually live a life of dignity. V aims to make the old Barghest propaganda true. She's also worried that V's drive to make Dogtown an actual paradise might drive V down the same path as Hansen.

She wants to believe that V is still a good person, the same V she fell in love with, before she fell in with Barghest, and became enamoured with the idea of fixing Dogtown.

Ultimately, V proves to be the same V she fell in love with before she underwent her treatment using the Neural Matrix she stole from Hansen, but V is so worried that she's slipping down Hansen's path (and more than a little worried that she might lose Judy) that whenever she's worried her plans might be extreme, she checks to see Judy's reaction. This means that essentially, Judy is, to a degree, dictating the future of Dogtown.

V always jokes that Judy has her leash, ready to pull it if she starts barking at the neighbours. Trust me, the double entendre of Judy having V on a leash is not unrecognised, but I need to fit as many dog puns into the Barghest AU.

"Has anyone noticed that all the serious decisions in here are being made by a girl who edits smut BDs for a living?" - Jago Szabó, 2078

[stars-sakuras-and-heartbreaks]

What you are doing is disrespectful and hurtful. Not only do you involve people who had nothing to do with this drama, but what you are doing is not ok for several reasons./srs

I formatted this by point, so it's easier for you to Digest an Understand.

- Sources an Opinions • Just because a person uses characters from a source material does not mean they agree with the creators' opinions. In fact, some people take from media and rework it to be more acceptable.

- Misinformation • Spreading misinformation Claims can be hurtful to a person enjoying the media and make them afraid to actually fully indulge, so you should really go through your facts critically before sending something.

- "Cringe" • Also "Cringe as Fuck" Are you serious? When has that ever been an excuse to go and harass a person. And the term cringe inls an undefineable descriptor, anything can be "cringe" I could say "you're cringe" an taht would have absolutely no meaning. Being cringe does not make it right to hurt others.

- Friends • How you hurt your own friends really shows the type of person you are, abandoning people who are accepting for the sake of your own lack of ability to understand another person's perspective. Why? Why hurt others you don't know and go out of your way to threaten and hurt others you do know.

- Beyond • We are not in control of what happens in the latest Episodes in fact, I don't much care for them, but that still give you no reason to harass someone out of your own hatred. Distasteful jokes will happen, but we are not responsible for that. What we are responsible for is voicing how we feel in a calm manor so that we can send the right message of what we want changed. Someone screaming and voicing several opinions at once only throws off your motivation and makes you sound unreliable.

Respectfully. Keep it, to yourself, if you have nothing kind to say to others say nothing at all. I mean, really, we learned lessons like that in Kindgarden.

Disrespectful and hurtful? So is all of Beyond and what the team is doing, bitch!!!! Stop supportig them!!!!!!!!! Which aslo ties into your last point there, so I guess I don't have to adress it, hehehe!!!!

"How you hurt your own friends really shows the type of person you are" - Yeah! Someone with standards!!!! And morals!!!!!! Something all of you clearlt lack!!!!!!!

Sources and opinions/misinformation - Really? That's all you have??? " ""misinformation"" makes it hatder to enjoy things" and "sometimes people can actually take bad thungs and make them good"????? What if this wasn't about Eddsworld and it's fan-content. What if it was about H*rry P*tter??? Wiuld you still claim it was just "misinfo" avout r*wling and that it could be enjoyed without ties to her????

The cringe point - cringe IS a valid argument, and coming into my asks with a whole-ass essay is the definition!!!!!!!!! Cry a little more, why don't ya????? ;P

And honey, why don't yiu take your own afvice and keep THIS to yourself????? You're super annoying, and I totes hate annoying peeps like you!!!!!! xD -✨❀

[kensatou]

"i would know her by reformed body alone... i would know her in death"

also... there's official art

[annaberunoyume]

Big Tarot Spread with all 78 cards: What does (Insert Major Arcana) wanna tell me?

1. Mix the deck.

2. Search for your major arcana.

3. Separate the deck in two piles: 1: All cards before the Major Arcana and 2: All cards after the Major Arcana.

4: Look at each card in the first pile, starting from BACKWARDS (all cards right BEHIND the Major Arcana). This is your journey until this moment.

5. Do the exact same thing with Pile 2, but with the cards AFTER the Major Arcana. This is what lies ahead.

6. Intuitively listen to the message of your chosen, special Major Arcana.

BACK TO MY MASTERLIST

[tofixtheshadows]

I've been thinking a lot lately about how Kabru deprives himself.

Kabru as a character is intertwined with the idea that sometimes we have to sacrifice the needs of the few for the good of the many. He ultimately subverts this first by sabotaging the Canaries and then by letting Laios go, but in practice he's already been living a life of self-sacrifice.

Saving people, and learning the secrets of the dungeons to seal them, are what's important. Not his own comforts. Not his own desires. He forces them down until he doesn't know they're there, until one of them has to come spilling out during the confession in chapter 76.

Specifically, I think it's very significant, in a story about food and all that it entails, that Kabru is rarely shown eating. He's the deuteragonist of Dungeon Meshi, the cooking manga, but while meals are the anchoring points of Laios's journey, given loving focus, for Kabru, they're ... not.

I'm sure he eats during dungeon expeditions, in the routine way that adventurers must when they sit down to camp. But on the surface, you get the idea that Kabru spends most of his time doing his self-assigned dungeon-related tasks: meeting with people, studying them, putting together that evidence board, researching the dungeon, god knows what else. Feeding himself is secondary.

He's introduced during a meal, eating at a restaurant, just to set up the contrast between his party and Laios's. And it's the last normal meal we see him eating until the communal ending feast (if you consider Falin's dragon parts normal).

First, we get this:

Kabru's response here is such a non-answer, it strongly implies to me that he wasn't thinking about it until Rin brought it up. That he might not even be feeling the hunger signals that he logically knew he should.

They sit down to eat, but Kabru is never drawn reaching for food or eating it like the rest of his party. He only drinks.

It's possible this means nothing, that we can just assume he's putting food in his mouth off-panel, but again, this entire manga is about food. Cooking it, eating it, appreciating it, taking pleasure in it, grounding yourself in the necessary routine of it and affirming your right to live by consuming it. It's given such a huge focus.

We don't see him eat again until the harpy egg.

What a significant question for the protagonist to ask his foil in this story about eating! Aren't you hungry? Aren't you, Kabru?

He was revived only minutes ago after a violent encounter. And then he chokes down food that causes him further harm by triggering him, all because he's so determined to stay in Laios's good graces.

In his flashback, we see Milsiril trying to spoon-feed young Kabru cake that we know he doesn't like. He doesn't want to eat: he wants to be training.

Then with Mithrun, we see him eating the least-monstery monster food he can get his hands on, for the sake of survival- walking mushroom, barometz, an egg. The barometz is his first chance to make something like an a real meal, and he actually seems excited about it because he wants to replicate a lamb dish his mother used to make him!

...but he doesn't get to enjoy it like he wanted to.

Then, when all the Canaries are eating field rations ... Kabru still isn't shown eating. He's only shown giving food to Mithrun.

And of course the next time he eats is the bavarois, which for his sake is at least plant based ... but he still has to use a coping mechanism to get through it.

I don't think Kabru does this all on purpose. I think Kui does this all on purpose. Kabru's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder should be understood as informing his character just as much as Laios's autism informs his. It's another way that Kabru and Laios act as foils: where Laios takes pleasure in meals and approaches food with the excitement of discovery, Kabru's experiences with eating are tainted by his trauma. Laios indulges; Kabru denies himself. Laios is shown enjoying food, Kabru is shown struggling with it.

And I can very easily imagine a reason why Kabru might have a subconscious aversion towards eating.

Meals are the privilege of the living.

[cookinguptales]

So I’ve been enjoying the Disney vs. DeSantis memes as much as anyone, but like. I do feel like a lot of people who had normal childhoods are missing some context to all this.

I was raised in the Bible Belt in a fairly fundie environment. My parents were reasonably cool about some things, compared to the rest of my family, but they certainly had their issues. But they did let me watch Disney movies, which turned out to be a point of major contention between them and my other relatives.

See, I think some people think this weird fight between Disney and fundies is new. It is very not new. I know that Disney’s attempts at inclusion in their media have been the source of a lot of mockery, but what a lot of people don’t understand is that as far as actual company policy goes, Disney has actually been an industry leader for queer rights. They’ve had policies assuring equal healthcare and partner benefits for queer employees since the early 90s.

I’m not sure how many people reading this right now remember the early 90s, but that was very much not industry standard. It was a big deal when Disney announced that non-married queer partners would be getting the same benefits as the married heterosexual ones.

Like — it went further than just saying that any unmarried partners would be eligible for spousal benefits. It straight-up said that non-same-sex partners would still need to be married to receive spousal benefits, but because same-sex partners couldn’t do that, proof that they lived together as an established couple would be enough.

In other words, it put long-term same-sex partners on a higher level than opposite-sex partners who just weren’t married yet. It put them on the exact same level as heterosexual married partners.

They weren’t the first company ever to do this, but they were super early. And they were certainly the first mainstream “family-friendly” company to do it.

Conservatives lost their damn minds.

Protests, boycotts, sermons, the whole nine yards. I can’t tell you how many books about the evils of Disney my grandmother tried to get my parents to read when I was a kid.

When we later moved to Florida, I realized just how many queer people work at Disney — because historically speaking, it’s been a company that has guaranteed them safety, non-discrimination, and equal rights. That’s when I became aware of their unofficial “Gay Days” and how Christians would show up from all over the country to protest them every year. Apparently my grandmother had been upset about these days for years, but my parents had just kind of ignored her.

Out of curiosity, I ended up reading one of the books my grandmother kept leaving at our house. And friends — it’s amazing how similar that (terrible, poorly written) rhetoric was to what people are saying these days. Disney hires gay pedophiles who want to abuse your children. Disney is trying to normalize Satanism in our beautiful, Christian America. 

Just tons of conspiracy theories in there that ranged from “a few bad things happened that weren’t actually Disney’s fault, but they did happen” to “Pocahontas is an evil movie, not because it distorts history and misrepresents indigenous life, but because it might teach children respect for nature. Which, as we all know, would cause them all to become Wiccans who believe in climate change.”

Like — please, take it from someone who knows. This weird fight between fundies and Disney is not new. This is not Disney’s first (gay) rodeo. These people have always believed that Disney is full of evil gays who are trying to groom and sexually abuse children.

The main difference now is that these beliefs are becoming mainstream. It’s not just conservative pastors who are talking about this. It’s not just church groups showing up to boycott Gay Day. Disney is starting to (reluctantly) say the quiet part out loud, and so are the Republicans. Disney is publicly supporting queer rights and announcing company-supported queer events and the Republican Party is publicly calling them pedophiles and enacting politically driven revenge.

This is important, because while this fight has always been important in the history of queer rights, it is now being magnified. The precedent that a fight like this could set is staggering. For better or for worse, we live in a corporation-driven country. I don’t like it any more than you do, and I’m not about to defend most of Disney’s business practices. But we do live in a nation where rights are largely tied to corporate approval, and the fact that we might be entering an age where even the most powerful corporations in the country are being banned from speaking out in favor of rights for marginalized people… that’s genuinely scary.

Like… I’ll just ask you this. Where do you think we’d be now, in 2023, if Disney had been prevented from promising its employees equal benefits in 1994? That was almost thirty years ago, and look how far things have come. When I looked up news articles for this post from that era, even then journalists, activists, and fundie church leaders were all talking about how a company of Disney’s prominence throwing their weight behind this movement could lead to the normalization of equal protections in this country.

The idea of it scared and thrilled people in equal parts even then. It still scares and thrills them now.

I keep seeing people say “I need them both to lose!” and I get it, I do. Disney has for sure done a lot of shit over the years. But I am begging you as a queer exvangelical to understand that no. You need Disney to win. You need Disney to wipe the fucking floor with these people.

Right now, this isn’t just a fight between a giant corporation and Ron DeSantis. This is a fight about the right of corporations to support marginalized groups. It’s a fight that ensures that companies like Disney still can offer benefits that a discriminatory government does not provide. It ensures that businesses much smaller than Disney can support activism.

Hell, it ensures that you can support activism.

The fight between weird Christian conspiracy theorists and Disney is not new, because the fight to prevent any tiny victory for marginalized groups is not new. The fight against the normalization of othered groups is not new.

That’s what they’re most afraid of. That each incremental victory will start to make marginalized groups feel safer, that each incremental victory will start to turn the tide of public opinion, that each incremental victory will eventually lead to sweeping law reform.

They’re afraid that they won’t be able to legally discriminate against us anymore.

So guys! Please. This fight, while hilarious, is also so fucking important. I am begging you to understand how old this fight is. These people always play the long game. They did it with Roe and they’re doing it with Disney.

We have! To keep! Pushing back!

[kyra45]

Scammer pretending to be in Palestine v2

This post has been remade with better info! Please go to this one:

Got an ask from someone claiming to be in Palestine needing mutual aid? Unfortunately there is a scammer going around and it’s likely the ask you got sent is the same one being sent by multiple accounts who target users interacting with Palestine posts. These blogs use the text/images off a real fundraiser and then post it here pretending to be the person it’s made for. Their accounts are usually only a few days old and they don’t interact beyond the ask/follow. Lately they might make the link to their PayPal account in different colors or claim their GoFundMe is pending so you will assume the real one is theirs. They don’t have any GoFundMe’s set up. They steal from them. If you need proof of something being stolen, searching the text of their post in a search engine should pull up the source. If you know how to report PayPal accounts, please report those used by the scammers.

(Moved to new list)

Below is a growing list of fake/stolen names used across the accounts:

Nour Samar | maryline lucy | Fred Odhiambo | Jeff Owino | Valentine Nakuti | Conslata Obwanga | JACINTA SITATI | David Okoth | Martín Mutugi | Daudi Likuyani | William Ngonyo | Fred Agy | George Ochieng | BONFACE ODHIAMBO | Sila Keli | John Chacha | benson komen | Alvin Omondi | Jacinta Sitati | Daudi Likuyani | Noah Keter | Faith Joram | Rawan AbuMahady (any PayPal’s using this name are scammers who have stolen it off a real GoFundMe. The real person does not have a PayPal account that they post on tumblr.) | Asnet Wangila | Remmy Cheptau

Keep in mind this post isn’t saying all accounts asking for mutual aid in Palestine are scams. Rather, this post is meant to bring awareness of a scammer stealing money from those who really need it by pretending to be a person in Palestine. To report scams, use this:

Report -> Something else -> Illegal uses or Content -> Phishing

[tardxsblues]

Because you and Mr. Fell don't ever talk to each other. We talk all the time. We've been talking for millions of years. Bla-bla-bla-bla-bla-bla-bla-bla-bla. I say something brilliant, and he says something unintentionally funny back. It's great. You never say what you're really thinking.

[angstandhappiness]

Fascinating!

About “Shadow Play”

Warning! Spoilers ahead!

Okay, so, after watching “Shadow Play”, I had to write this out because a lot of people are talking about it and I had to lay out my two cents without being limited to a tiny box…

Possible spoilers for both Lego Monkie Kid Season 2 episode “Shadow Play” AND for Journey to the West, so be warned!

Keep reading

[jasonsbruce]

i heard that in the arkham games Bruce gets infected with Joker's disease (whatever the fuck that is) and that he gets some of Joker's memories. Is that true? (I didn't play the games), and if it is, how does Bruce feel about having memories of "torturing Jason" (I don't know if it's something that looks like 1st person pov) and how do you think that would interfere in AK Brujay?

first: I LOVE AK BRUJAY! it's no secret that AK Jason is my favorite. so basically, joker is sick after using bane's titan and he's dying. so he infects bruce with his blood. bruce makes a cure and joker dies. but after that, he keeps hallucinating joker (up until the end of the game where you "get rid of him"). whether or not he actually gets joker's memories for real, i have no idea. but for the sake of the plot, let's go with it and let's say joker is still in his mind! 🤠

bruce doesn't tell jason about it. he buries it, pretends to be fine. he convinces himself he can handle it, that he's strong enough to deal with the burden alone. but as time goes on, it gets increasingly harder to ignore joker's voice in his head, reminding him of all his failures.

and while bruce can feel himself deteriorate, jason seems to heal.

slowly and surely, jason start to stand taller. the darkness that used to hang over him begins to fade. he smiles a bit more, seems to be more at ease.

it is a relief. but at the same time, it's anything but.

because as jason heals from his trauma, bruce is haunted by memories that aren't even his. visions of jason broken and bleeding, tied to a wheelchair, joker's laughter blending with jason's cries and whimpers. it taints everything, affecting how bruce reacts to him, making him pull back, trying to keep distance between them.

but jason does the opposite. he stands a little too close, lets his hands linger on bruce's arm a little too long. subtle hints that jason wants more. and bruce wants it too—but he can't.

because every time jason touches him, bruce hears joker's voice in his head, bragging, mocking, "i know him better than you ever will. he still wears my mark."

it's the prominent scar on jason's cheek—the letter J—burned into his skin like a brand. every time bruce looks at it, he's pulled back into those memories. hears jason scream and the sizzling sound of burnt flesh.

he can't help but see the boy joker broke, even though jason is standing there in front of him, stronger than ever.

bruce blames himself for that scar. for all of it. and sometimes the guilt is so overwhelming it leaves him feeling nauseous, or waking up drenched in sweat from nightmares. joker still lingers in his mind, and it makes bruce hesitate. it keeps him from reaching out, from letting jason in.

and jason sees it. the way bruce's eye flick to the scar before quickly looking away. at first, jason doesn't know why bruce keeps pulling away, why every time they get close, bruce seems to retreat. it gnaws at him, makes him wonder if bruce only sees him as something broken, something ruined. jason wants bruce to see him—not the broken robin, but the man he is now. strong, capable, and in control.

jason isn't broken anymore. he's ready to move forward, leaving his past behind. the physical and emotional scars will always be there, but he's learning to live with them. he has already given enough time to revenge, pain and hatred. so every time he stands close, every time he lets his hand linger on bruce, it's a silent invitation. i wan't this. stop pulling away.

and bruce can't keep pulling away forever.

one night, when they're alone together, jason is looking at him, his eyes so intense it makes everything tighten inside bruce. the guilt, the fear, the memories—they're all there, wrapped around his throat, threatening to choke him.

but then jason reaches out, his hand slides up, fingers brushing against bruce's neck, and bruce is hit with a wave of something stronger than guilt. it's want—need. "i want you, bruce," jason murmurs. "don't pull away."

hearing the words out loud, spoken with such certainty, makes something inside bruce snap.

he pulls jason into him and when their lips finally meet, it's messy and heated, filled with everything bruce couldn't say out loud.

bruce can still hear joker's voice in the back of his mind, but it's fading, drowned out by jason—by the feeling of him, solid, real and alive.

[supreme-leader-stoat]

[sp0o0kylights]

Part One / Part Two (You are Here) / Part Three 

A03

Hopper had undersold Harrington's condition. 

Wayne hadn't expected anything pretty, but the face that turned to them as they walked through the door almost had him freezing in place. 

Black eye, bruised chin, split lip. 

More and more bruises, some faded and some very new, trailing down the kids neck. 

 The rest was hidden by his preppy little polo shirt, but Wayne didn't doubt that there were more.

Harrington tried to stand when they entered the room and the way he moved--entirely unbalanced, clearly in a lot of pain--made Wayne think the only thing the kid really needed was a hospital. 

Because Steve Harrington hadn't just been beaten. 

He'd been tortured--and very recently strangled. 

(Abruptly, Wayne realized that Hopper had implied the boy had been in the mall fire--just as much as he implied the mall fire was anything but. 

He also hadn't stated how Harrington had escaped the Suites trying to break into his house.) 

"Sit down." Hopper commanded, and Wayne expected Harrington to do anything but listen. 

Say something cocky, or act the part of a demanding little shit maybe, despite the condition he was in.

Instead the kid just sighed in relief and dropped like a stone, right back into the chair. 

Hopper came around his desk, talking all the while. "Steve, this is Wayne. Wayne, Steve."

"Hello Sir." Steve croaked politely. His voice was wrecked, no doubt from the necklace of finger shaped bruises around his neck.

"You're going to stay with him for a while, and you're gonna pay him for the privilege." Hopper informed him, as he began digging around his desk. "Money, chores, whatever Wayne wants." 

Wayne held his gaze as Steve turned to appraise him. 

Would Harrington pitch a fit? 

Would he look at Wayne's work clothes, streaked with dirt and sweat, with the name of the warehouse embroidered in the corner and crinkle up his nose, just like his daddy did? 

Hopper didn't lie, but a part of Wayne wanted to see just how different this Harrington was. If the respectful demeanor was an act done for Hopper. 

Or perhaps, Hopper had mentioned Steve's father for a reason, instead of his mother. Did he adopt her ice-like approach to life? 

Micro managing and long-held grudges were Stella Harrington’s game, and she excelled at it. 

Steve however, did nothing of the sort, instead settling with the situation in a way that reminded Wayne far too strongly of the men and women who'd come home from war.

"Okay." The kid said simply, after a long moment of consideration. He turned back to Hopper. "But we need to tell the rest of the Par--" 

Here he cut a look back to Wayne, correcting himself. "the kids. I don't want them showing up at my house trying to find me and freaking out." 

"They wouldn't--" Jim paused, fingers freezing from the rummaging they'd been doing. "they absolutely would, goddammit." He muttered darkly.  

"I'll tell the kids. The only thing I want you doing right now is laying low. I need to get a hold of Owens, but it's gonna take time to do that, and more time to fix this, so as of right now, Harrington? You're on vacation." He pointed sternly, as if Steve might argue.

The kid looked too tired and messed up to bother trying. 

"I mean it. You're out of the country, where is anybody's guess. No one's seen you and no one better be seeing you, got it?" His voice held firm, and Wayne had to blink because the tone here wasn't one of a police chief warning a teenager--but of a father talking to his son.

He knew, because his own voice did that now. Took on a worried tone that masqueraded as something more like annoyance and seriousness. 

"Yes, Sir." Harrington said, remaining weirdly compliant. "Consider me gone." 

A hand came up to briefly press above one eye, and Wayne wondered if the kid had been looked over, or if they had just crammed him into Hopper's office without offering so much as a tissue box. 

How many painkillers did they have back at the house? Wayne usually kept a good bottle around, but Steve was going to need more than that…

He found himself once again cataloging Steve's wounds, this time comparing them to the medicine cabinet he had at home. 

"I expect you to be a damn good house guest, you hear me?" Hopper continued, trying to cut a menacing figure. He finally found what he was looking for; pulling out a large, padded envelope. 

He handed it over to Harrington, who took it without looking, shoving it into the duffle bag he'd had sitting at his feet. 

There was a smudge of red on the handle of said bag, that matched perfectly up to a shittily done wrap on Steve's right hand. 

Wayne mentally added 'buy more bandages' to his list. 

Steve nodded at Hopper again. "Yes, Sir."

Jim’s eyes narrowed. "Quite that, you know I hate that." 

The briefest glimmer of mischief crossed Harrington's face. "Sorry, Sir. Won't happen again, Sir."

'Ahh.' Wayne thought. 'So there's a teenager in there after all.'

Jim rolled his eyes. "Get out of my office."

"Thanks Hop." Harrington said, finally dropping that odd obedience, a hint of a smile on his battered face. 

He stood, and Wayne had to stop himself from offering an arm out as Steve reached for his bag and limped towards him. 

He paused right before he left Hopper's office, hand on the doorframe.

 "You'll check up on Robin too, right?"  He asked, and for the first time his tone took on something more alive--and filled with worry. "And Dustin? Erica?" 

"Dustin and his mom are finally taking me up on my suggestion to see their family in Florida for a while, and the Sinclairs are taking a sabbatical from Hawkins. I'm working on the Buckley's." Hopper drummed his fingers on the desk. "So far, no one else besides you and El have been targeted, and we're going to keep it that way."

Steve let out a breath, and while Wayne could tell the worry hadn't left him, he could almost physically see Steve force himself to put it away.

Another act that was far beyond the kid's years. 

A different officer popped up as they walked down the hall towards the exit, waving his hand madly. "Harrington! Chief says you forgot this!" He barked.

(Or tried to anyway. Callahan wasn’t the most aggressive of officers and frankly, never would be.)

A slim sports bag was held in his hands, and Steve nearly tripped over his own feet when he tried to turn and claim it.

"I'll get it." Wayne said, knowing his tone sounded gruff.

No use for it. He could either sound gruff or sound sad, and Wayne knew better than to start off the relationship with yet another hurt young man by acting sad.

Pity wasn't gonna win him any favors here. 

He took the bag, slinging it over his shoulder, uncaring of the wince on Harrington's face until something sharp poked at his shoulder. 

Several somethings, in fact. 

"What the hell do you got in this thing?" He asked once they hit the parking lot, voice low as he escorted Steve to his truck. 

"Just a baseball bat, sir." Steve said, in the exact same tone Eddie used every time he thought he was bein’ slick. 

Considering the thing in the bag could have passed for a baseball bat if not for the sharp pokey bits, it wasn’t a bad attempt. Steve just hadn’t accounted for the fact that Wayne lived with Eddie. 

An unfair advantage, really. 

‘Least there can’t be any baby racoons in the damn bag.’ Wayne thought idly. 

Went on to gently put the bat in the backseat, watching as the kid struggled to lift himself into the truck.

"You can drop that, I take too being called Sir about as well as Hop does." He said, keeping his tone nice and calm, hoping to ease into calling Steve out on his lie. 

Fussed with a few dials on the stereo, giving Steve an excuse to take his time before starting the engine and taking the long way home.

Wayne wanted to talk a little-- without the chance of Ed’s interrupting. 

"Son,” He started off. “I was born in the morning, but not this morning. I'm hoping to make the next few weeks as easy as I can for both of us, and I can't do that if you're starting off with a lie." 

Steve blinked, turning to face him in a matter that was too fast for his injuries. He didn't bother hiding the hurt it caused him, but his voice stayed even as he spoke.

 "What do you mean Si--Wayne." 

"Nice catch.”  Wayne said. “We’ll get you there yet.” 

It was a trick he'd learned with Eddie--little tidbits of praise went a long way when it came to gaining trust.

Especially with kids who hadn't ever been given much. 

Harrington seemed smart to it, or perhaps was just hesitant to speak in general because he remained quiet, not offering up any info. No further lies, but nothing towards the truth, neither. 

Which was fine. Wayne didn’t think a little pushing would hurt.

"That bat of yours was digging into my shoulder like a bee swarm." Wayne continued, when it became clear Steve wasn't talking. "I'm more a fan of football than baseball, but last I checked they hadn't changed the design of a bat." 

"What teams?" Steve asked, perking up a touch. "Of football. Which ones are yours?"

Wayne could ignore it of course, or demand Steve give him an answer to the question he asked. 

He did neither. "I’m liking the Colts since they got moved here. You?" 

"Green Bay Packers, though I like the Colts too--that trade in 84’ was crazy." Steve said. After a second he proved that answering instead of pushing was the right move because he added; "What did Hopper tell you? About…" He trailed off, making a gesture Wayne didn't bother trying to interpret. 

"He said some things. I've guessed a few others." Wayne admitted. Cut a little look out of the corner of his eye as he came to a stop sign. "I know the feds are real interested in you after Starcourt." 

Steve took that in, hands tightening on the handle. 

"It really is a baseball bat." He said, a little fast and with the tiniest hint of that challenge Wayne had been looking for. "It just also has nails hammered into one end." 

Wayne took that in with one nice, slow blink. 

"A bat with nails in it." He said, and it made a hell of a lot of sense compared to the sensation he'd felt carrying the case. "You use it against anyone?" 

"Some of the feds." Steve admitted, and even with his eyes on the road Wayne could tell he was being stared at.

Judged.

Not in the way one expected a rich kid to judge, but in the way Eddie had, those first few months he'd lived here. The times when  he'd push, just a little, to see what Wayne's reaction would be. 

Eddie hadn't done it in a damn long time, but Wayne recognized the behavior nonetheless. 

"Anybody else?" He asked. 

"Nobody human." Steve replied. 

"Alright." Wayne said, and made a mental note to drop all questions related to that. 

He didn't need to know, definitely didn't want to know, and had a feeling if he did know he'd find himself being watched by the same spooks after Steve.

"I've got a few deck boxes that lock on my porch. Think you'd be agreeable to leaving the bat in one?" 

Steve paused, hand clenching tighter around the strap of his duffel bag. "If you gave me a key so I could get it in an emergency,  I'd be happy to." 

He tried to sound calm, even a little charming in that sort of upper-class businessman sort of way, but the fear bled through. 

The kid wasn't happy separating from the bat, and given it sounded like it might have saved his life recently, Wayne understood the hesitation. 

With an internal apology to Eddie, he promptly threw his nephew under the proverbial bus.  "I've got my nephew at home and he'd be far too interested in it, is all. Blades and weapons and such tend to attract him, and I don't need to be rushing anyone to the ER." 

All of which were very true facts (one Wayne learned the time he'd allowed Eddie to bring a sword  home, only for him to nearly cut his own nose off winging the thing around) but he figured it might make Steve more amenable to separating from it. 

Sure enough, some of the tenseness bled out of Steve's shoulders. "Yeah that's fair." 

The truck hit a few potholes as they finally turned into the trailer park, and the kid hissed, a quiet sound. 

Judging by the uncomfortable wince, and hands clenched into his jeans something painwise was giving him trouble. 

"When was the last time you took a pain pill?" Wayne asked, doing his best to weave around the other holes that dotted the gravel roads.

Steve blinked. "Uh…" 

"You take any today son?" 

Steve his head. 

"Didn't have time to grab it." He said, offering a sad look to his pack. 

Course he hadn't. 

"Let's get you inside then and get you some." Wayne said with a sigh. Thankfully Eddie's van wasn't here--Wayne was fairly certain he had band practice today but knowing him it could be a million other things.

Just meant he had to acclimate Steve as fast as he could, to try and get the poor guy settled before Ed’s came in. 

He just hoped life and lady luck would work with him, for once. 

[beartitled]

Mini post real quick, bc noticed something interesting💥-

Book of Bill discussion may contain spoilers

I know tags are usually enough, but ya know just in case

Okay this is a speculation corner 👀

While I was colouring a new comic I noticed that the cage in the series was blue

Some ppl theorise that the fact that bill was red, while angry, represented his father

The parents roles can be swapped of course, bc we’re not really sure about who’s red, who’s blue (as far as I’m aware)

My personal headcanon: dad - red, mom - blue

But like

What if

The cage represents mom cipher 👁️👁️

An overprotective parent, who isolated her son “for his own good”

Hm???

There are probably ppl who already noticed it, but I just wanna feel smart for a second 😈

Oki back to colouring 🎨

[four-pointed-leaf]

rough night, huh.