#we as in i put them on the stick and my mom grilled it

[autobahnmp3]

gooood evening we successfully grilled meat

[generalllimaginesss]

The Good Old Days

I just feel like Jack would be such a good girl dad and this idea popped into my brain.

When Jack had finally decided to take a more backseat position with professional hockey, it was a decision that both him and his wife made. The money was amazing, but when it was becoming evident that the game was taking a toll on Jack’s body, his wife had brought the idea into his head first. Jack wasn’t going to put the stick down easily, but a bad hit to his shoulder made the decision for him. As much as he dreaded not playing anymore, he was excited because that meant he could help coach on the ice, but be more involved with his family.

Him and his wife had 4 girls: Beck, who had just turned 15, Emerson (aka Emmy) who is 13, and Piper and Presley, twins that brought up the rear at 4 years old. The twins were his last hope at a boy, but it seemed that God had a cruel sense of humor and blessed him with even more estrogen in the home.

There wasn’t anything significant going on this particular night, so Jack decided to invite Cole and Alex over to eat some steaks that he had grilled. Which led to what they were doing now, drinking a couple of beers at the kitchen table and talking about the glory days.

In the midst of talking about some of his favorite plays back in the day, a screech abruptly stops the conversation that Cole was carrying on. Alex and Cole look to Jack for reassurance that everything is ok, but all Jack can do is sigh, closing his eyes and rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Is everything ok with them?” Alex had a worried look on his face as he looked back and forth from where the screech came from, now replaced with yelling, to Jack who continued to massage the bridge of his nose.

“I’m sure we’re about to find out,” Jack groaned as the sound of stomping came from one side of the house, down the hall, and into the living room revealing a furious Beck. She was holding a poster of a young Joe Burrow in his early NFL career, but there appeared to be sharpie scribbled all over it.

“Dad, I told the twins to stay out of my room and look what they did! Not to mention they dropped my brand new eye shadow palate and broke it! They’re such brats and you and mom let them do whatever they want!” Beck was on the verge of tears, and as if on cue the pitter patter of little feet was approaching quickly.

“Daddy, she’s lying! Beck isn’t right!” The twins protested as they prepared to make the case for their innocence.

“Shut up!” Beck shoved Piper who was trying to cover her big sister’s mouth with her hand, but failed miserably.

Alex and Cole were desperately trying to suppress their laughs, as Jack was already giving them a glare as to say “shut up or you’re going to make it worse.”

“Beck, don’t call your little sister brats—”

“See, they get away with everything because they’re your favorites!” Beck interrupted as her tears were beginning to flow freely.

“If you’d let me finish young lady, I was going to get onto them,” Jack put on a more stern voice while talking to his oldest. He had learned early on that the girls would walk all over him if he let them, so he had to stand his ground. Even though every fiber of him wanted to give Beck a hug and kiss on the cheek and high five the twins for the immaculate mustache that Joe Burrow was now sporting, he was the parent and had to control the chaos.

“Piper and Presley Hughes, did your sister ask you both to stay out of her room?” Jack turned his attention to the twins.

“We didn’t do it daddy,” Piper was the spokesperson for the two, but both had the biggest blue eyes that screamed they were innocent.

“Oh really? So why are there sharpie hearts all over Presley’s arms and smiley faces on Piper’s cheeks and forehead?” Jack raised an eyebrow at the little ones.

He watched as the twins looked at the art that each one had decided to draw on themselves, realizing that they had been caught.

“Piper made me do it, Daddy,” Presley’s bottom lip quivered as a tear ran down her cheek.

“Presley made me do it!” Piper quickly followed, tears brimming her eyes as well.

Jack was unsure how he had 3 girls crying in front of him and how in the world he was responsible for them. Being a middle brother didn’t exactly prepare him for the task of being a girl dad, but he was trying his best and learning along the way.

Jack heard a vehicle pull into the garage, signaling that his saving grace, his wife, had arrived home.

“Do we want to get mom involved, or can we apologize to each other and help Sister clean her room?” Jack put the options out for the girls, their eyes growing in worry that their mom would be involved in the little spat between the three of them.

“Sissy, we’ll help clean,” the twins quickly ran from the kitchen to their older sister’s bedroom.

“Dad, they literally just went back into my room without my permission!” Beck whined, apparently choosing the latter decision.

Before Jack could say anything, his wife walked through the door from the garage and sat down her bag that she carried to and from her teaching job.

“I’m home! Alex, Cole, it’s so good to see you both!” She obliviously made her way to give the two a hug, unaware of the ordeal going on in front of her.

“Hey babe,” She kissed Jack on the cheek and then went to give Beck a kiss on the forehead when she saw the poster in her hand.

“What’s this?” She asked, grabbing the poster from her daughter and assessing the damage that had been done to it.

“Your spawns and their idea of fun,” Beck grumbled and made her way back to her room.

“What did I miss?” She asked Jack, confused as to what the big problem was.

“MOM!” Beck’s voice echoed across the house, and Jack was sure that the entire neighborhood could hear it. His wife immediately ran to the source, leaving Jack alone with Alex and Cole once more.

“Should we come back later?” Cole questioned his friend.

“Please don’t leave me,” Jack was partially joking, but Cole and Alex laughed nonetheless.

Jack braced himself once more when he heard footsteps come from the hallway that lead to the girls’ rooms, but once he realized that it was Emmy, his tension eased and he motioned for her to come sit with him.

“Mom is grounding them,” She said, rolling her eyes as she could hear Beck’s protests.

“She’s a lifesaver,” Jack shook his head and grinned.

“You should’ve just had boys, Dad. I’m the only normal one and you know it,” Emmy smirked at her dad, knowing the button to push to put him into defensive mode.

“Why do you all think I have a favorite? I love you all the same!” Jack’s voice raised an octave as he was determined to convince his daughter, and now his friends, that he didn’t have a favorite.

Cole and Alex laughed at Emmy, finding it humorous that she had Jack’s personality, just in a teenager form.

“Emmy, have you studied for your math test tomorrow?” Her mom appeared from the hallway with inquisitive eyebrows and crossed arms.

“Mom…” Emmy groaned, but knew that was her queue to retreat to her room before getting her iPod taken away.

“Jack, we need to work on your discipline skills,” his wife smirked at him as she wrapped her arms around him and replaced Emmy’s spot in his lap with herself.

“Birth control, guys….just use it,” Jack deadpanned.

He joked about it, but he couldn’t picture his life any differently. He had 5 girls that he loved so very much, even if they drove him absolutely crazy sometimes.

“So Jack,” Alex spoke up, “…did Ellen and Jim have a favorite?”

“Oh, most definitely me,” Jack chuckled, but his friends laugh bounced off the ceiling around the kitchen.

“Jack,” his wife stood up from his lap, thumping his ear before she left the room.

“Love you!” He called to her, finding joy in getting on her nerves.

If somebody would have told the three men sitting at the table that this would’ve been their future when they were in their early 20s, they would’ve denied it.

But now that the time is here, they cherish these chaotic nights, knowing one day the house will be quiet, the visits with friends less frequent, and the good old days but a mere unspoken memory.

*

*

*

*

Double post in one day? I think so. You couldn’t tell by my writings, but I’m a die hard Quinn fan. I just think Jack would be such a funny dad and I love writing about him like that. Also I have major baby fever right now…..but ANYWAYS. Thanks for reading!!! Please send in request as my good ideas feel like they are few and far between! If you want a specific person or plot, let me know and I’d love to make it come to life through writing!! Winter break just began and I have time!!

[generalluxun]

Gift Giving- An Aro Alix Kubdel Ficlet

Second Pride Month ficlet. This one taking pace in what is very clearly an early divergence AU so, the specific time doesn't matter much. 😁 This one was longer than the 750 limit, but I didn't want to shave any off so, oh well, 978 words it is.

“Should I get her chocolate? Chicks dig chocolate, right?”

“Alix, you’re a ‘chick’ too, you know.”

“Ehn, still up in the air.”

Marinette leaned around the display to peer at her friend. Alix was setting down a small gold-wrapped and expensive looking box. Caught, she snatched her hand back quickly, sticking her chin out and tilting her head up at the same time.

“What?” She challenged.

Marinette blinked, “What what? You literally pulled me here after school.” She rubbed one wrist as she looked around the gift shop and mumbled, “How do you do that on wheels.”

Alix shuffled over to some cards. “You were just going to go moon over some new pictures of Adrien anyway.” 

Marinette adjusted her backpack, which completely coincidentally happened to contain the latest issue of La Verve Paris and a 10 page spread on Adrien. The scrapbooking tools already laid out on her desk at home could be for anything.

“Why me though?” She deflected.

Alix was frowning at a card she’d picked up. She opened it, made a face, and put it back down again. Her hand moved back to it, but became a fist. She let out a frustrated growl.

“Because you and Alya are like, best friends. You’ll know what she would like.”

Marinette beamed at the thought of being helpful. “Okay, you got it! So what’s the occasion?”

Alix shuffled to a shelf with some figurines on it and poked one despondently. “Three month anniversary.”

“So cool! The three month anniversary is very important. You have to-” Marinette’s brain caught up with her mouth, “Wait, whaaat?”

She grabbed Alix by the shoulders, looking her in the eyes, “Anniversary? Dating? You and Alya? How do I not know about this?”

Alix squirmed free, “I don’t know. It’s not like… a thing.”

Marinette took a deep breath, calming herself. She was fine, it wasn’t a thing, no big deal…

“When did you start dating?” She yelped.

Alix shrugged, siddling to another shelf. “Iunno. It just kinda happened. She’s cool, right?”

Marinette followed, “Cool, right, very cool. You know that, I know that, but…” she pleaded with her eyes for more.

Alix sighed and gestured vaguely. “Well, she was always running off after Ladybug -Did you know she can do some wicked Parkour?- and getting herself in trouble. I just… followed her a couple times, my wheels made it easy. I pulled her fat out of the fire, but she would keep at it. She always wanted those pictures, and the latest scoop. Nothing slowed her down. Eventually I had her give me the camera. Wheels, right? I can get in and get out. She’d want info though after an akuma so she’d spend all night grilling me. Her mom makes awesome food by the way. Since we already hung out a lot, and she’s a hottie, when she asked I said yeah.”

Alix shrugged again.

“It’s no big deal.”

It was a lot to take in, but it made Marinette smile, “That sounds so cute! A match made in danger!”

Alix grimaced.

Marinette scooted back in, taking a porcelain elephant out of Alix’s hands and swapping it with a half kilo bag of fine ground coffee and a mug that read, ‘I’ll sleep when I’m published.’ The mug had a stuffed bear stitched to look like it was sleeping tucked inside.

Alix examined the offerings, “This is good for an anniversary?”

Marinette nodded, “You see the bear is a classic and coffee she likes but it also says ‘I want to stay awake and spend more time with you’ and-”

“Ouch!” Alix had looked at the price tags while Marinette rambled.

Marinette wilted a little, “Too much? I can pick out something cheaper…”

Alix glared at the numbers a moment longer as if she might intimidate them into vanishing. “It doesn’t matter, I can kiss new bearings for my skates goodbye for a while, no matter what.”

Her expression shifted from anger to resignation, and even timid.

She asked, “She’ll like them though?”

Marinette nodded, but also tried gently to take the mug from Alix. “You know, Alya’s not like that. If it’s a problem right now, I’m sure you don’t need to get her anything.”

Alix pulled it back quickly, snapping, “Yes I do. You don’t understand.”

Marinette held up her hands, “Seriously, Alya won’t think you love her less, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Ugh!” Alix threw down the gifts.

Marinette saved the mug by a quick dive. She blinked at Alix’s back as the other girl stalked away. In five steps though she’d turned around and trudged back. She crouched and helped Marinette up.

“Sorry,” She grated, brushing Marinette off. “You don’t get it though.”

Marinette held onto the gifts, “Tell me?”

Alix pulled her cap off and ran a hand through her hair. She gave the bag in Marinette’s hand a desultory swat with her hat. “I hate this stuff. Well, not hate, I just think it’s lame. it’s all schmoopsy junk to me. Alya likes it though, and she deserves it. It’s just not easy for me. Some people know when you are just supposed to. I don’t, but I can remember dates and times. One month, three months, six months, birthdays, holidays, you get the idea.”

Alix replaced her cap and took the gifts.

“That way, she gets what she deserves, even if I don’t understand it.”

Marinette thought about that long enough for Alix to start shuffling her feet awkwardly. Finally Marinette plucked the coffee from Alix’s hands and replaced it with a card. “Write what you just told me, in here. This’ll cost you half as much and she’ll like it ten times more.”

Alix fumbled the card uneasily, opening it to the blank interior. Her features set slowly and she glanced hopefully up at Marinette, “You really think so?”

[bengiyo]

Step by Step Ep 12 (Finale) Stray Thoughts

Last week on HR violations, Jeng faced the weight of the homophobia on the board of the company and apologized for inconveniencing them with his queerness. He convinced Pat to stick around and commit to the proposed test of their project and joined the new bubble at work of all of the people who know about them and support them. Though they were required to complete this ad campaign with no money, they used Ying’s skills as a fic writer and Pat’s former relationship with Put to pull off the campaign. Put was also forced to essentially closet himself and play up his fake relationship with his costar. Jaab and Jen are a hot mess, because now Jen is all the way in Japan. Unfortunately, Jeng blew it and used his own money for ads, undercutting Pat’s success. Pat, understandably furious, has broken up with Jeng and left Jian Group. Jeng fell right into his dad’s trap.

Two years later? The girlies are going to riot.

Okay, I love that they formed their own team, and also that the Wi-Fi password is so easily compromised.

So Pat, Ae, and Chot run a successful ad company together, and are about to compete with Jian Group for the Fjord contract. I am excited.

New Intro song in the finale??

I’m with Chot. I don’t care about all this other gay drama. I wanna qiqi with my former work besties if we are at an event together.

I love Chot and Nan so much it makes me feel silly. Chot has to rush off because he knows Pat and Jeng are gonna mess each other up again.

I know meeting Jeng is a stressful situation, but Pat didn’t wash his hands!!!

I get Pat’s stress. The entire problem with Jeng was about Jeng flirting through work. I’m totally with Pat on not accepting overtures that are tied to work.

Damn, Jaab ain’t have to cut his brother like that, comparing his behavior with Pat to their dad’s with Jeng.

I’m enjoying the cross-cutting on the different pitches.

Oh shit, Pat is bitter bitter.

Okay, I’m with Tae. He extended the correct professional courtesy by offering the karaoke night ad campaign to Pat’s company. It’s not his fault that Pat always suspects Jeng of trying to manipulate them into contact.

My man is eating sad noodles and chicken!!!

Chot realized things were bad enough that he called in Pat’s dad.

Ying is now a successful BL writer. OMG.

I feel so bad for Pat. He’s right that Jeng’s presence brings into question any accomplishments he had. Sure they got the Forge account, but Pat can’t be sure that Jeng wasn’t involved somehow. It’s really sad that Jeng perverts acts of service as a love language.

I am still with Tae. My dude said he is tired of these two sucking all the life out of the room. They need to grill this beef and eat it.

My current sexuality is Pat in these blue jeans and this oversized black shirt with a slutty amount of chest showing.

I love when people write and delete messages in modern dramas. That’s so real.

I just know Up suggested he dance.

GOOD NEWS! Chot and his man are still together!

Shrimp nuggets?? I’m gonna McFuckinLoseIt.

Up Poompat is so goddamn pretty. Holy shit.

Sometimes the only person who can really kick you out of your romantic shit is your ex.

Karaoke emotional processing? Bracing.

I’m feeling a bit mixed on the kitchen reconciliation. I don’t think Pat should apologize about being irrational, but I can accept that ghosting Jeng may have felt like too much. Overall, I’m okay with them recognizing that they’re still stuck on each other and want to sort that out. Im okay with them taking it slowly.

I respect the dad for leaving to give them space to work this out.

Jeng traveled with that porridge. How is it so hot? Or did they just throw it in a microwave?

Oh, roleplaying a new first meeting is kind of cute.

He wore all blue to quit his job. I’m so glad this man finally quit his job.

I want some green curry now, too.

Very excited to meet Jeng’s mom. She has two queer sons. She has stories.

So if Pat started this show at 25, turned 26, broke up with Jeng, and now it’s been two years, Pat should be 29, right?

I am with Pat. It hurts to be called your partner’s friend, especially when they know.

So they really had Jeng cover his lips in white icing and then kiss Pat.

Okay so the rest of that was wind down.

Final Verdict: 7.5, Recommend for Fans of Queer Cinema. Despite how much I enjoy the characters and the performances, none of the elements of this show fully connect for me into something greater than the sum of their parts, and I feel like we had to work far too hard to understand the intent of much of it. In many ways it has the opposite problem of A Boss and a Babe, which cared more about character moments than big thematic ideas. This show cares a lot about its ideas about queer people in the workplace, but struggled to use its queer characters to elegantly express them.

[the-night-writer1]

Lil boys Big City

When shanyao and Red boy are deaged into small children by yin and jin with none of their future memories. They must navigate Megalopolis to get to at least one of their parents.

How'd Shan get here? The little guy was confused on what was going on and why he was in a massive jacket. Pigsy was gonna be so mad that he was clearly too far away from the shop. He didn't have his inhaler either, he had a phone though! When did he get a phone?

"Are you okay?" A red headed boy asked, his clothes didn't fit either. He was nice, maybe he knew what part of the city they were in.

"Do you know where we are?" Shanyao asked before coughing in his hand. He really needed to get home, he clearly had a cold.

"No but I can probably summon my mama " The boy said as he rubbed Shan's back," we just need soft dirt and then I can summon her ok?"

"Okay, I'm Shanyao but everyone calls me Shanny " Shan said as he coughed into his hand again . Before he could even complain he was being piggybacked by the Red head with a cheerful smile. He wanted to call dadsy but he didn't know the phone password so this Boy's mom was their only option.

"I'm Red boy! Not to be confused with my brother Red Son. Don't worry I'm really strong so you just save your energy " Red boy said cheerfully as he started walking and looking around. The houses in this village were tall, so how would he find a mount of dirt? This kid needed medicine and they surely had some at the fortress!

" we're close to the big park at that stop sign turn right" Shanyao stated as he pointed to the sign up ahead. Got love his navigation skills from collecting cans for money. So he at least knew where the parks were.

"Oh okay! Away we go!" Red boy said as he did as instructed . As he carried Shanny he made reassuring small talk," Don't worry we had tons of medicine at home. We'll help you feel better. "

" I just need my inhaler and an anti inflammatory" Shan said softly as he coughed into his hand again. Thus kid was nice but weird. Shan was a bit weird himself so he didn't mind. It took a little while to get to park. Where Red boy made sure to find a nice shady spot to put his sick friend before finding a stick.

"Just give me five minutes then I'll summon mama. Her symbol takes a little while " Red boy said as he went to draw the symbol in the dirt. What he wouldn't give to be able to create it with bite.

"Okay" shanyao said giving him a thumbs up before coughing a bit harder. He was tired. He really had a cold huh? Pigsy be so mad he left the shop.

To say Red boy's mom looked confused was an understatement when she showed up. Red boy grabbed her hand and didn't seem to notice her confusion, " Mama my new friend needs medicine! His name is shanyao and he's wheezing mama!"

"Red boy?" Iron fan asked as she was being dragged by her suddenly child son to a suddenly child version of Macaque's student, " shanyao?"

"Hello" Shanyao said with a tired wave. Iron fan quickly picked him up, it be better to get them both to Red son for analysis. Lil Shanyao was so light and it was concerning, " can we call my daddy he'll be concerned I'm not home "

"Of course dear" Iron fan said softly as she rubbed the small child's back gently. He clearly wasn't feeling well and she couldn't help but baby him ," what about we get you both in better fitting clothes "

-----

"And Red son said the effects will last a few weeks " Iron fan said over the phone as Shanyao was asleep on DBK. Red boy was playing with blocks.

"My boy's going to be a child for a few weeks?" Pigsy said concerned as he went to grab a notebook, " I still got the recipes I made fer him when he was lil. He had a picky palette thanks to all the meds. Tomato soup is always a good call I'll text ya the recipe he likes and how to make the grilled cheese with it.We'll come get him around 8 after the dinner rush so tang can safety check his room."

"If he needs to stay the night that's fine Pigsy. We have doctors here if he needs them and he's fallen asleep on my dear husband's chest" Iron fan said reassuringly as she watched Dbk gently rub the Boy's back with his finger. One of the few areas of her husband that was still fluffy. It seemed to be the perfect place for a lil child to sleep.

"Oh ya got send pictures " Pigsy said with a chuckle, " I got add that to the album"

" oh of course " Iron fan said with a giggle.

[redrydersrequiem]

Reunited chapter 8

Ok people here we are. This isn’t a terribly long chapter cause i felt it ended really well and didn’t want to role it into the next one. Again im a baby fanfic writer this isnt prof read, I’m just writing to write. Love you all who read this.

Your pov

The week went by both fast and slow. Early mornings of breath/physical training, fishing and gathering breakfast mixed with afternoons of swimming with ilus and training to ride skimwings. It was particularly funny when lyles skimwings squirted him right in the face like a water gun when he tried to “bond” with the animal. I wanted to stick to the ilus more no offense to the skimwings but if I was going to fly it would be with my ikran.

Speaking of toothless, once we got settled and found where the ikrans roosted while we were near the ocean we made it a point to regularly take them out for flights gliding around the ocean territories and exploring well into the evenings. Fun outings with the kids and quality time learning with neytiri, since she was one of my only native friends, I spent my days waiting for the approach of the predestined date.

Spiders pov

Todays the day. By the end of the week I could finally be a Navi. At long last.!!!! The last week has been fun, further bonding with mom, dad and my new uncles/aunts/older siblings (since some of them act like babies). The sully kids have all been by me the entire time, neteyam and lo’ak pumping me up with stories of what i will be able to do once i transfer. Tuk just always cheered a bundle of sunshine whenever she was around just saying she couldn't wait for me to be more like all of them. Kiri was different though she always makes sure I'm in a good mental and emotional place about what's about to happen. Telling me to truly think and meditate on what i wanted but i found her worries while well founded weren’t needed, i was ready. I've wanted this since I was old enough to have wanted it. It's like….

“Lets go spider "I hear dad yelling, waiting for me as mom and all the sullys stand waiting for me to board our ikrans and take off. Uncle Lyle was put in charge of the group till we got back, he hugged me lightly and told me he couldn’t wait to see call me a blueberry, and finally get his revenge for all the teasing i've been through in at everyone. I just take it in stride saying goodbye to everyone and heading over to mom. She gets me settled on toothless as we all take off. Ready to start a new chapter of my life.

Your pov

Jake and neytiri lead the pack, the kids not far behind them as miles and I take up the caboose.It takes the majority of the day after the early morning take off to reach the edge of the Forest, before we take a break for the night, not wanting to fly in the dark as it's unsafe. We all grill some food and have a nice night listening to the familiar sounds of the forest.

As soon as there was light we started the final stretch back into the failure land. It’s not until Jake starts banking upwards that I grow concerned.

“Where are we going?” i com to jake

“You’ll see y/n”

It’s not till we enter a giant cavern. Tents and pods set up on floating rope bridges and hanginging platforms that I realize. The beautiful wooden village i had seen so long ago through grace and jakes recording, is well and truly gone.

Cheers fill the air as the omatikaya see their former olo’eyktan and his family return. We all hop off quickly, other Navi coming up to help us with the little luggage we had before we all walk over to the growing group of Navi. A younger male walks forward with the garb of the olo’eyktan covering him, while an older woman dressed in the garbs of the Tsahik follows the kids all running to her with the word grandma tumbling from their lips. Jake and Neytiri step up saying their hellos. The man from earlier now addresses jake. The two exchange greeting before jake turns to my family

“Y/n, quartich this is tarsem. He took over the role of olo’eyktan when my family left.”

“We see you olo’eyktan.” Miles, spider and I all greet. Tarsem reciprocating the gesture

“And this is mo’at the clans tsahik and neytiri's mother.”

We repeat the gesture, her doing the same before excusing herself from her grandchildren’s grasps to come over to us.

“Mo’at will be the one who will perform the transfer ceremony”

“Thank you ma’am i couldn't begin to describe how much this means to me,” filling miles hand on my shoulder i turn my head to him.

“To us ma’am” Miles says nodding to the older women in front of him.”

Moat simply tilts her head her eyes studying miles and i

“So you’re the sky demon who led the charge all those years ago?”.. I feel all the air leave my body trying to gulp it back down, ready to speak up in miles defense but he beats me to it. Stepping in front of me

“Yes, that was the old me. If you want your revenge do so now , just don't deprive my son of the gift ive been given. That’s all I ask..”

Mo’at simply stares at miles, his ears and tail twitching worriedly alongside mine, even though he keeps his face set in his stony expression. I'm about to intervene but neytiri grabs me shaking her head. I hear mo’at simply tut at miles unflinching in her stance

“The past is just that, the past. Eywa has shown me your path, showed me your change, she has blessed you and your compatriots so i will follow in her stead……. Welcome to our village”

I almost feel like falling over before the calling of our names comes from the back of the group. Norm and a few other avatars, all coming to greet us all.

“Hey norm- jake

“Hi norm- you

“Spellman-miles

We all greet Norm. He just smiles, patting Jake's arm before giving spider and I a hug, nodding at miles.

“Oh my eywa y/n, it's so good to see you.”

“You as well norm i can even begin to start, thanks for everything you’ve done for spider. Growing up and now.”

“It’s nothing i actually kind of like the kid

“Just like me! norm that's cold.” Spider says as he advances on norm trying to pull at the avatar's tail. Norm simply laughs batting away spiders hits

“I can’t believe you guys grew me an avatar without me knowing”

“That’s the point of a surprise.” Norm jokes back. “Anyway, would you guys like to see it.” Norm asks excited to show off the project hes worked on the past five years.Everyone in the group nods eagerly.

“Ok well we’ll have to go in groups then.”

“You three go ahead.” Jake says gesturing to us.

“We can see him later right, kids?” they all sigh out a fine but I can tell they won't be so easily stopped. I simply smile at them as we follow Norm through the village towards the labs.

Once near norm tells us to wait a minute so he can end the link with his avatar and show us around. I just take the moment to continue to try and calm the growing anxiety in my body. I can tell Miles has noticed but before he can say anything the dorms open once more, a human norm now looking up at us and handing us masks. Kneeling through doorways and having to duck around machines and tucking our tails to our bodies we make it into the incubation room. A group of them stand around four in total. Only two are being used. Taking in the figure in the first tank my eyes widened.

“It’s grace” i gasp out turning norms head

“Yeah, that's a very long story. It’s probably best for now to just focus on Spider. Ok?”

“Ok” :(

“Here his, is this way.”

Miles and Spider follow Norm but I can’t help but stay behind. Entrapped by the sight of Grace's avatar floating sleepily in the liquid, unmoving and unchanging, from how I saw her all those years ago. I know she's not there, that this is just her avatar but it brings tears to my face. I respected grace so much. She was witty and brash but caring. Willing to do whatever she had to to help people, to help further others lives through knowledge. She was truly one of a kind. And to see her now just asleep, I couldn't decide what to feel so I simply pressed my forehead to the container, closing my eyes and saying my goodbyes to the former scientist. Saying a prayer for her before leaving to join my family.

Spider miles and norm all stand in front of the last pod. Spider pressed against it as hard as he could. The glass leaving marks on his scrunched up little face

The avatar looks just like he did in the video we saw. Gently swaying and twitching in the amniotic fluid

“I'm happy to say he's developed excitingly well, all vitals are good, all he's waiting for is to bond with his host. Spider runs around hugging the man tightly, miles and I just watch on with a smile. The other scientist, namely Max and Abby come see us and we all talk for a moment, before a call for help comes from the front door. The sully kids are all standing there waiting to see their brother's avatar. I smile at them as they expertly make their way around the lab to go stand with Spider. The room becomes cramped so miles and I leave, heading back to the heart of the village to find Jake again.

“Hey jake”

“Hey how was it?”

“It’s amazing he can’t wait”

“Good mo’at says the ceremony will be ready by eclipsed just…

“……”

“Are you all sure about this?”

“We’re ready” Miles answers for us. Noticing I was at a loss for words. Bickering turns our heads as The adults all now watching the kids filter back to us. Neytiri notices im quiet from her peripheral,

“Are you ok?” she asks me quietly.

“Is it possible y to rest somewhere before dinner?”

Neytiri smiles, taking my hand and gently leading me away from the group. I don't notice the worried look mile fix’s me with as he watches me walk away

Miles pov

Watching y/n walk away I could tell her mood had drastically changed since we first landed here. I feel Spider tap my hip, looking at him I see he has a worried expression on his face as well watching neytiri and his mother leave.

“Excuse us,” I say to those around us. Spider and I are going after his mother. Seeing neytiri exiting she gives me a knowing look before pointing to the tent she had led me to. Opening it I see the lanterns are low as y/n is laid on a mat curled in on herself. Worrying her tail between her hands.

“Darlin?” Y/n doesn’t answer so i simply nod to spider seeing if maybe he can get her to answer. “Mom?.” Spider asks but I can see even that is only met with a twitch of her ear. Well this isn't working plan c then. I grab Spider and place him on the other side of y/n so she's facing him before cuddling up behind her. My arms wrapped her in my embrace, feeling her lightly sniffling. Spider even joins our pile. Hugging his mother around her waist waiting for her to speak first.

“Darlin what’s wrong, what happened?”

“Nothing ,

“Darlin, i know when you get inside that head of yours

“It’s nothing”

“Y/n”

“Fine ok…….. It’s that just so much has happened in such a short time. We’ve come back from the dead twenty years old, reunited with our now teen son, to then have to protect him from Ardmore the entire time he's with us. To now running from the rda and trying to find a home in this world. And now it's all about to change again. I think it's all just catching up with me. Im sorry”

“It’s ok mama, nothings going to change ill just be taller”

She laughs out at that. Bringing a smile to both Spider and i’s faces.

“I guess seeing Grace's avatar just sitting there it dawned on me how much has actually changed how much time has truly passed.

Spider im sorry i want this for you i truly do, i just wish i could have experienced everything with you from the start.

“Well if that's the issue darlin we could always start again. Have another little quartich running around” I say purring into my mates ear

“Miles!/ dad gross”

I just laugh, though the thought of seeing y/n pregnant again does bring a pur from my throat.”

Your pov

I hear miles pur behind me and have to nudge him with my elbow even though he's being naughty the thought does grow a feeling in me. We'll have to come back to that thought though.

“Miles behave”. Fine fine he says but continues to nuzzle his face into the crook of my neck.

“Anyway spider i just want to make sure this is without a doubt what you want

“It is momma. Without a doubt it is.”

“Good That’s all i need, do you mind if we just stay here though. Just till the ceremony?

“That’s fine momma spider says laying back down beside me so i can cuddle him to me.

“Thank you my baby

*Authors note i did the best to make some clothes using doll divine*

The rest of the evening is filled with cuddles, before Jake comes and checks in, telling us the run down of the ceremony and giving us some fancier clothes and paints for Spider.We were able to convince miles to wear the traditional garb all be somewhat more covering then most. Neytiri had given me a beautiful set of purple beaded and braided clothing. I felt beautiful but it didn't ease my troubles, we painted the markings onto Spider preparing him for his big moment.

After everyone was dressed , eclipse had fully settled into the forest, all the plants coming to life. Jake ushers us on our ikrans towards the tree of souls, the roar of the villagers voices reaches my ears as we descend towards the glowing forest floor. Miles and I are both on Spiders' sides, our hands on his shoulders as we approach the pink glowing tree. All three of us were in awe at the spiritual sight, Never having seen it before.Mo’at, neytiri and Jake all stood at the base of the tree, their kids all taking up space in the front row singing out with the other villagers. I see norm and another avatar come forward holding Spider's avatar now dressed and painted similarly to Spider minus the mask. His lengthy form looks so peaceful like its ready for what is about to happen

They place the avatar in front of mo’at. The tsahik maneuvers his body into a laying position one hand crossed over the other arm. Connecting his que to the glowing foliage around him. One last hug from everyone and he's ready. We all watch as he moves forward laying in the same position as his avatar. I watch in fascination as glowing moss starts to cover them. Attaching them to the earthen floor as though it was eywa herself embracing them.

Neytiri comes to my side nodding telling me everyone will be ok. She knows the anxiety I feel having gone through the same with jake. So she takes my hand miles holding my other one as well as watching mo’at begin to chant. I hear nothing but my own heart beat, not the singing going on around me or the echos of a heart beat that goes through the ground from the tree.

Miles is just as worried as me not taking his eyes off spider for a second, every inch of him stiff as a board.

Mo’at is still chanting the very air around us, feeling charged when she suddenly stops silencing everyone. I can’t help but perk up even more watching and waiting for any sign that my baby is ok. I watch the moss recede from Spider's skin, I step up wanting to see him, but once I'm there I'm unable to move. Neytiri sees this and comes up to me, guiding me into removing the mask on Spider 's precious human face and setting it beside him. He looks so peaceful. Like if I didn’t know better I could say he's just asleep. Neytiri gently nudges me, her eyes telling me all is well as I place a final kiss on my baby head. Caressing his golden hair before moving over to his avatar.

Miles comes up as we both watch with bated breath for any sign of movement.

His ears twitch lightly a gasp coming out of my mouth as now golden eyes stare up at me

“Hi mom.”

Tag list @headsincloud9 @dyingofcookies @totesnothere04 @ratchetprime211 @myh3artttt @ducks118 @navs-bhat @im-in-a-pansexual-panik

[hollywoodxwhore]

wanted (epilogue)

Colson x Original Female Character x Pete

Warnings/Content: Major fluff, kids/pregnancy, Pete & Kells being cute dads

Really short. I just couldn't help myself.

And wanted is COMPLETE!

Ten Years Later

“Can you hurry up? We’re starving,” I say teasingly as I sidle up to Colson. He’s standing over our grill, flipping burgers, but his free arm surrounds my shoulders. He sets the spatula aside and turns to face me.

“We, huh?” He asks, hand going to my swollen belly. 

“I’ve told you,” I say, looking up at him. He looks so handsome in his sunglasses, his face tan. “You and Pete make giant babies. Those fuckers make me hungry.”

Colson laughs and bends to kiss me, giving my belly a little rub. “Sorry,” he says with a smile, but I know he isn’t. I’ve never seen the boys prouder than they are of their children, running around and not yet born alike. 

I glance out at the yard where Pete has our son James in a swing, making him laugh hard, a laugh that’s identical to Colson’s, just in a higher pitch. He looks like Colson, too, blue eyes and a cheesy smile. Stick skinny. 

But Scott, James’s little brother, is just as skinny. They take after their dads. Scott is my bookworm, sitting at the table with his bony knees pulled against his chest, a book propped on top of said knees. He starts first grade in the fall and is already reading at a third grade level. I let go of Colson long enough to drop a kiss on Scott’s head, his hair brown just like Pete’s.

Each time I’ve gotten pregnant, we haven’t bothered to do a paternity test. It doesn’t matter. Colson and Pete are both the father to our children. But as the boys grew from babies to toddlers, it was pretty obvious who came from who. Not that it matters. Colson and Pete love our boys the same, a fierce, protective love that takes my breath away. 

I waddle to a chair and take a seat, running my hand over my belly. I can’t wait to see what they’ll be like with a daughter. The protectiveness is only going to get worse, even though I warned them that if they’re those misogynistic dads that won’t let their daughter date, I’ll leave their asses fast. They both assured me they’ll behave, but we’ll see what happens sixteen years from now.

“Mommy!” James is breathless as he bounds onto the deck, and I lift my three year old into my lap. 

“Hi honey,” I say, brushing back his sweaty blonde hair. 

“I’m hungry,” he says, leaning his head on my chest.

“Tell your daddy that,” I say, and just like that, James is off my lap and has an arm wrapped around Colson’s leg. 

Pete chuckles and sits beside me, his hand going to my belly. They can never keep their hands off my belly, either of them, but I don’t mind. It’s just a reminder of how lucky I am to have two dads to help me care for the kids. 

“Scotty,” I say. He peeks up above his book. “Time to eat. Put the book away for now, sweetheart.”

Scott pouts but does as he’s told, his little hand slipping an alien bookmark between the pages and setting his book on the table. Colson comes over with James on his shoulders and a platter of burgers. 

“Dinner is served,” he says, setting it down. And then, it’s the chaos of making plates for two young boys, then plates for a hungry mom and two very tall dads with big appetites. It’s a good thing Colson grilled a lot of burgers. 

The back gate swings open and both boys gasp, wriggling out of their chairs to sprint across the yard, unison squeals of “Aunt Casey!” blurted out as they run to Pete’s sister. She scoops up James and hugs Scott with her other hand. Pete’s mom is close behind with some sort of dessert, and Scott rushes to her. She bends down to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. 

She comes over and kisses my cheek first, then loves on her son and son-in-law. We consider ourselves spouses even though we aren’t married. Colson fixes Casey and her mom a plate, and as they sit down, the gate opens again, and Casey and Grandma become old news as Nana, my mom, enters the backyard. More shrieks erupt as the boys bombard my mom, this time Scotty making it first to be scooped into her arms. She greets us all lovingly and sits down, Scott in her lap. James runs to Pete’s mom and climbs up into her lap, and then we all start eating.

Colson’s dad passed away five years ago. I know it’s hard for him not to have his dad around, but my mom and Pete’s mom have both taken him under their wings. He’s gained two moms in the process of falling for me and Pete. 

As we sit around, enjoying Colson’s grilling and each other’s company, I think back to that day on the couch where I was panicking about what everyone would think. I chuckle to myself when I look at us now, happier than I could’ve ever dreamed.

“What’s funny?” Colson asks, leaning in to kiss me. 

“Nothing,” I say, rubbing my hand over my belly. 

“You doing okay? Need anything?” Pete asks me.

I lean back in my chair and look around, at my babies sitting with their grandmas, spitting images of their fathers; at my two partners, tan and smiling and so happy; at the big belly that carries our daughter, not yet named. 

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, wondering how life could ever be better than this. “Nope,” I say. “Everything is perfect.”

[klcthebookworm]

WIP Wednesday

So Chuck volunteered to go get Milly so he could crawl through the ventilation shafts.

One of the pairs of legs jerked under the blanket and then moved to the side as it sounded like someone sitting up on the mattress. “What’s wrong?” Milly-ma’am’s sleepy voice asked.

“Heard something,” a male answered her with a rough voice. “What the hell are those freaks up to?”

“At this time of night?” Milly-ma’am sounded a little more awake.

“They’re getting antsy and Knives hasn’t done anything to you yet.” A human man wearing just a pair of pajama pants left the bed and stalked to the room’s door. “I’ll just remind them to save it for daylight.”

Chuck held his breath. Had Hannah figured out this chance and that’s why she was so grouchy about the priest?

The black-haired man pressed buttons next to the door. The door didn’t open. He tried again. It didn’t open. “What the hell? It’s locked?”

Fish sticks. Now he had to deal with a guard. Hopefully Hannah wasn’t having problems.

“Let’s rock,” flashed up on his faceshield.

“And ride,” he whispered. He shoved forward. The grill gave way and he curled up in the air so he landed on his feet. He bounced on the mattress. Milly-ma’am squealed and scrambled back toward the wall. Chuck pressed his tail against the mattress to steady himself and pulled the blaster out. He had it out and leveled with both hands like he saw Dad and Vash do by the time the priest whirled around.

“Chuck!” Milly-ma’am exclaimed behind him.

Chuck didn’t twitch. Dad never did and neither did Vash. Wolfwood lifted his hands open wide up by his head. “You are a wrenchhead. I have been kidnapped or captured once a week starting when I was a few hours old and I know only wrenchheads have the keys after you’re locked up.” Chuck smirked. “Only you don’t because we changed the key, we changed the key.” He sang the last bit. Greasepit always hated when he and Hannah sang songs.

“Chuck, how did you get here?” Milly-ma’am asked.

“Rode the bike. Hannah had her look for plant power not on the map so we could get all of you out.”

“Does Hannah know where you are? Does she know you have that gun?”

Chuck jerked and looked over his shoulder at Milly-ma’am. She was frowning. “She gave the blaster to me; I didn’t steal it!”

“And where is Hannah?”

“She went after Vash and Meryl-ma’am.” Chuck turned back to watching Wolfwood. He hadn’t moved.

“So we’re all supposed to meet up and?” Milly-ma’am asked.

Chuck sighed. “Mom’s way. Mom’s way is sneaky. There’s too many of Vash’s sisters here to go boom.”

“Okay, no going boom,” Milly-ma’am said. “And no shooting Mr. Wolfwood.”

“What?”

“If you shoot him, it will make me sad. And it will make Vash sad.”

“He’s a wrenchhead!” Chuck looked over his shoulder at Milly-ma’am. “He had the key; he’s working for Knives!”

Milly-ma’am took a deep breath. “Knives threatened his children. So he has worked for Knives and trying to help Vash. Have your parents or uncles ever pretended to help Limburger to actually stop him?”

Chuck looked back at Wolfwood but he was thinking hard. “I think Uncle Modo had to be a duplicate agent but that was before Hannah so a really long time ago. Limburger doesn’t fall for that now.”

“Wolfwood has been doing the same thing,” Milly-ma’am said. “He has kept me safe from the other Gung-Ho Guns, and he got my stun gun back.”

“Vash needs help to defeat Knives and keep everyone alive,” Wolfwood said.

Chuck snorted. “Good luck getting him to listen to a teamwork lecture. Bro has ignored Hannah about it and you all got kidnapped.” He put the blaster into its holster.

Milly-ma’am sighed and climbed out of the bed. “Okay, I’m not escaping in my pajamas. Nicholas, go change in the bathroom.”

He lowered his hands. “Are you sure about that?”

Chuck rolled his eyes. “I have an older sister. I give her clothes privacy or she’s gonna tie my tail into a knot.” He climbed off the bed and went to the table.

“Fair enough,” Wolfwood said. He gathered his clothes and went through another door next to the bed.

“Knives let you have your stuff?” Chuck asked.

Milly-ma’am dug into her suitcase. “I don’t think Mr. Knives cares since he has Vash. At least, the weird box monster brought back my clothes that it stole.”

“Wow, he really is bad at kidnapping. Limburger’s goons know to shake us for stuff Hannah can use to blow up everything.”

“They’ve had practice. Now face the wall.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He stared at the wall behind the table and stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets so he didn’t press the buttons over there.

[portraitoftheoddity]

Lena's Christmas report...

So, I headed up north the 18th to spend the week of Christmas with my family, and when I get there, Dad is sick. I work remotely Monday and Tuesday. Within two days, Mom and I are also sick, and I spend a good three and a half days as a coughing, sniffling disaster, though I still managed to do a pretty good job on the jigsaw puzzle mom and I got out. My aunt and uncle get there around the 22nd when I'm pretty much in the middle of it, but thankfully avoid getting sick.

Then, Thursday night, the storm rolls in. It's been snowing every day up until then and mostly in the 10s-20s temperature wise (ºF), but the pressure front comes in with drastic temperature shifts and winds gusting at 60mph. (If you don't know what a 60mph wind feels like, imagine standing in the bed of a pickup truck traveling down the highway at 60mph). At 2am Friday, the power goes out. It comes back briefly, then goes out for good at 5am.

At 6am, my mom and I both go downstairs (it is still pitch dark out) because the wind is too loud for either of us to sleep, shit keeps banging around, and the house itself is shaking from the wind (my dresser was rattling. FROM THE HOUSE SHAKING FROM THE WIND OUTSIDE). The christmas tree on the deck, which is in a heavy metal stand wired to the deck, keeps blowing over, then getting blown back up, and the grill has been blown clean over. As the sun comes up, it becomes clear multiple trees are down, though luckily none of them landed on the house or the driveway (some of the neighbors weren't so lucky -- a couple down the road had their roof partially torn off).

Friday, it pours and the wind roars most of the day. It gets up to 50ºF, which is insane.

The power stays out. Apparently something like 6% of all the people in the state have no electricity.

With not a lot else to do, I end up running D&D for my mother, aunt, and uncle (on their request) and we play through the first half of a homebrewed adventure I wrote with a dungeon crawl, by candlelight. (It was delightful.)

Luckily, my parents have a backup generator because they've lived through enough winter storms to know power outages out in the sticks can last a long-ass time. The generator is wired to a few circuits for essentials like keeping the fridge running and the water pump functioning so the pipes don't freeze. Also the internet router, because priorities.

This is important, since Saturday, it's fuckin' -5ºF out.

Have you ever gone hiking when it is -5ºF?

Because I now have!!!

We headed to the conservation trail area down the street (maybe a 2 mile drive?) and passed not one, not three, but TEN DOWNED POWER LINES. Just on one road. We then put on microspikes and went out on a trail I've gone on dozens of times but which had been turned into ICED OVER CARNAGE (Remember that 50ºF? And all that snow we had before? Followed by a rapid freeze? Whooooo boy). Whole sections of trail are turned into ice slides, which, HALLELUJAH MICROSPIKES. Holy shit those are amazing. You can just... walk up ice. Also, there were downed trees everywhere from the windstorm, many over the trail. We started clearing what we could as we went, dragging branches and smaller trees to the sides of the trail, though a few big ones we jus had to climb over or under and leave for the trail maintenance crews who would be out with chainsaws. It was a hell of a workout, so despite the temperatures, I was goddamn toasty.

Power stays out.

At this point we're not sure how much fuel the generator has, but Dad checks on it and says the gauge looks okay. Just to be safe, we fill up a ton of water bottles and some buckets and stuff with water and make sure there's batteries in all the flashlights and lanterns.

The stove and oven run on gas, thankfully, not electric, so dinner is delicious. Mom and Dad and I take turns alternating sitting by the fire or the one functioning light in the house and reading aloud to each other from a book by a local author while my aunt and uncle are out visiting a cousin.

(That night, it's so cold I can't sleep)

Christmas day: Still No Power, about 9ºF out, but sunny. We get a roaring fire going.

I get my own pair of microspikes. ^_^ (along with some further hiking gear, some nerd shit and some drinkin' supplies).

In the afternoon, family D&D continues. Uncle solves a puzzle, Aunt picks some locks and Mom kills a Wight. We watch probably a dozen utility trucks going by up and down the road, between tree cutting crews and those trucks with the people-buckets they can lift up to power lines. Then Dad gets the TV hooked up to the backup power after dinner so we can all watch the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (which was so dumb and so fun and that song will be stuck in my head forever).

Then, at the end of the evening, in a Christmas Miracle -- the lights finally come on!

Today I headed home, and my apartment seems to have come through unscathed with no apparent power loss. But despite the sickness and cold and lack of power, it was honestly a really fun holiday break and I'm being pestered for another D&D game by my relatives and mom wants help leveling her ranger.

Hope you all had a good week!

[unhingedwomandiaries]

Number twenty-eight on my list of fifty things to do before I'm fifty is to reconnect with an old friend. Sounds simple enough, right? Like something you'd see on one of those insipid Facebook memes your aunt shares between pictures of her cats and thinly veiled QAnon conspiracies. I wasn't expecting to check this particular box so soon, and I sure as hell didn't know who I'd be reconnecting with. Life's funny that way, I guess. One minute you're contemplating the existential dread of your own mortality, the next you're getting a LinkedIn message from a guy you haven't thought about since Obama was president.

So there I am, fresh off the Amtrak from New York City, where I'd just spent a week pretending to give a shit about fashion while secretly wondering if the models ever eat anything more substantial than cigarette smoke and their own self-loathing. I find myself in the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, because apparently that's what passes for excitement in my life between classes and work. I'm about to park my ass at a table when I notice someome left their book behind. Inside, there's a brochure about suicide prevention, which is about as cheerful as finding a used condom in your grandmother's purse.

Now, I've always had this weird savior complex. It's like a superhero origin story, if that superhero's power was an overwhelming urge to stick his nose where it doesn't belong. I once raised a litter of baby squirrels that fell through a vent in my mom's bedroom. Why? Because apparently I thought I was some kind of rodent messiah. Their mother had chewed through the wiring in our attic, probably driven mad by the constant loop of "Bargain Hunt" reruns my mother insisted on watching.

So there I am, suddenly consumed with the need to know who this suicidal bookworm is. I corner some poor intern who looks like she just stepped out of a Tennessee Williams play and start grilling her like she's a suspect on "Law & Order: SVU". Turns out, the book belongs to a guy named X, a microbiology junior with a minor in pharmacology. The intern describes him as "handsome in a bookish way," which I'm pretty sure is Southern Belle code for "wears glasses and probably hasn't seen sunlight in three years."

Now, armed with this utterly useless information and a renewed sense of purpose, I decide to track down X. Because apparently, I've appointed myself the Batman of the depressed Ivy League set. I enlist the help of another microbiology student who leads me to X's dorm room.

X is exactly what you'd expect: pale, fragile, and looking like he's one bad grade away from a total nervous breakdown. I introduce myself with all the subtlety of a hammer to the face, telling him I know he's planning to off himself and that I'm here to stop it. Because nothing says "I care" like accosting a stranger in their own room and accusing them of being suicidal.

X doesn't even put up a fight. He just kind of... acquiesces. Like he's thinking, "Well, I was going to kill myself, but this crazy lady seems pretty adamant about keeping me alive, so I guess I'll go along with it." So I do what any rational person would do: I drag him to the beach and force-feed him fried cod and chips. Because nothing cures suicidal thoughts like arterial blockage, right?

Somewhere between his third and fourth fish, X confesses that he's got 500 ibuprofen tablets waiting for him back in his room. And let me tell you, if you're going to check out, ibuprofen is a hell of a way to do it. It's like deciding to travel across the country by pogo stick - sure, you'll get there eventually, but it's going to be a long, painful journey.

So, naturally, I decide the best course of action is to kidnap X and take him to New York City. Because nothing says "life-affirming experience" like being forcibly removed from your comfort zone by a stranger who's clearly operating on a different plane of reality. We end up at the Paradiso Film Emporium, where I drop $470 on a 16mm copy of "Fantastic Planet." Why? Because apparently I think watching a French animated film about giant blue aliens is the key to unlocking X's will to live.

Back at the Isle of Man, I reveal my piece de resistance: a makeshift movie theater in a car park. We watch the film on the roof of some poor schmuck's BMW, because nothing says "cinematic experience" like potential property damage and trespassing charges.

And you know what? It worked. X didn't kill himself that night. Instead, he fell asleep on a car roof watching a movie about blue aliens. Sometimes, that's all it takes to keep going: a reminder that the world is weird and wonderful and full of surprises.

Fast forward to now, and X just reached out on LinkedIn. Apparently, a freak thundersnow storm took out my old dogwood tree. But you know what? I'm not sad. That tree was never meant to last forever. Neither are we. The point is to bloom where you're planted, even if where you're planted is on the roof of a BMW in a car park, watching French animation with a stranger who's taken an unhealthy interest in your continued existence.

Life's weird like that. Sometimes you set out to reconnect with an old friend, and instead you end up saving a life. Or maybe you just end up watching a movie about giant blue aliens. Either way, it beats the hell out of dying.

[keefwho]

June 13 - 2024 Thursday

10:36pm

4.5/10

This morning I put away my clothes and asked mom to take me to the store for drinks. I had to ask this guy stocking the drinks to please excuse me but he didn't seem to be in a good mood. I got a chocolate twinkie to have with my coffee this morning which was a great idea. When I got home I showered a little too long and then made spicy ramen, spam, and green beans again using leftovers. I really didn't wanna draw today.

For work I warmed up by studying back muscle drawings. Then I worked on 57's commission for 1 hour before quitting early. I was going to quit earlier but DS told me I could DO IT so I at least wanted to do the bare minimum I needed for my finance sheet instead of having to make up for it later.

After I quit early, I took some time to lay in bed with Sporticus to try and identify some of the thoughts and feelings I was having so I could put them to words. I also played some War Thunder and watched this video grilling EPCOT. For lunch I made a tuna melt of sorts using a homemade tortilla.

In the afternoon I didn't stick to traditional work. I started looking up other people's workflows and methods to keep up with different projects and personal life. I got my old robot themed notebook from 2006 and am going to use that to jot down any thought I have about doing something. I can use that as a checklist or transfer those thoughts to more robust systems if need be. I also got out a big box of pens I had collected throughout the years and tested them all to keep the ones that worked. About when I was finishing up, I joined TK and WX in a vc and watched them play Roblox before joining. We talked a lot about WX's recent date and how he's feeling about all of it. I personally don't understand how he's doing this dating culture thing, literally scoring a date a week. It just sounds desperate to me but he seems really sure of himself and solid about who he is and what he wants. Ive come to accept that this kind of thing is okay for some people and exactly how they operate. Its just not my thing.

After they left, I made dinner and started watching Invincible again. I thought about hitting up RS to watch it with me since we watched the first season together awhile back but I just didn't feel like it.

When DS was free I whipped out my new dragonology book and started reading a little bit of it. I also had written down a few topics to discuss since Im always forgetting things throughout the day that I wanna talk about and that was a good idea I think. Towards the end of chillin, we found out this old pedo associate of hers is sort of coming back into the furry community scene which was big news to her. I hate the guy too from what I've seen and it sucks that he might get away with it all and remain present amongst us all. In bed we did our puzzles REAL late.

Up front I have hope in embracing my desire to make systems of all kinds for different things. It seems like an autistic way to behave and maybe because I am and thats been one reason I've denied this urge of mine. I know how often it might get pointed out as weird, the way I act and plan. But finding my voice and expressing my wants/needs means embracing this idea of mine and trying it out. Maybe I'll find that this isn't the best way to handle things but I won't know without trying. I might also find that this IS the best way for me to be my best productive self. And thats an urge to be productive thats coming from my real values, not what society or the people around me expect of me. I want to do things. LOTS of things. And so much committed action needs a lot of organization.

[littlecarnet]

As much as I say I hate summer (bright sun hurts my eyes and I sunburn too easily), I do love the many things it brings.

June is the time I hang up my wind chimes and wind bells, it's a childhood summer sound to me, and soothing to fall asleep to. I start hearing crickets outside my window in the evenings, and I'll spot geckos running across the walls near the outdoor lights trying to catch moths and lacewings.

When I lived with my parents, June meant BBQs, and we'd dine outside almost every night, weather permitting. We'd usually get wet under a fine mist or lounge in the pool as the food cooked, then gather around a traditional circular grill table from Aswan. It cut the chill on our skin as we sat on low seats and took our pick from the many meats, vegetables, and fruits grilling in the center. My mom would make her homemade chai or smoked pear tea too. BBQing outside would last til the end of October, since the southern part of the region had very mild falls and winters. We would make special foods during celestial events like a super moon or meteor shower. My favorite special food to eat is a sweet soup made with white snow mushroom, dates, and peaches. It's full of collagen too, which is nice for the summer heat. Keeps your skin nice and dewy, your nails strong, and your hair shiny.

I still keep the BBQ tradition alive even though I live on my own. I have a smaller grill, but I'll cook and eat outside for most of the summer and early fall. I live in the north, so around the end of September it starts getting too cold. Though I do make bonfires in December to January, or attend one if the many bonfires and lantern festivals during that time. I've added my own traditions too, such as June being a seafood month, mostly mussels or octopus. Lots of fish tacos and crispy dried hiney glazed anchovies. I'll rotate all my teas to summer flavors like mint, hibiscus, anise, and barley. I like drinking Italian sodas like pomegranate, mulberry, and peach, or drinking floral waters like rose or lavender with honeysuckle as a slush. Rose petal iced tea or blue butterfly pea tea is a summer staple in my pantry. Sometimes I'll make a dried fruit tea, which is exactly what it sounds like. I boil unsulfered dried fruit and honey til it makes a small concentrated batch, usually half a cup, add a gallon of water to it, and stick in the fridge. Its like a light flavored fruit juice without much sugar. My mom kept a big pitcher of it during the summer, but it never lasted more than three days. Everyone drank it all. XD

During the summer my house becomes very fragrant. Its the time to dry fresh herbs, sort through last year's herbs to toss out any expired ones, and restock certain ones I use up the most. I use these in cooking, beauty, teas, incense, and medicine, they're essentials. I'll spend a weekend labeling, restocking, grinding, and storing them. Ill take the time to make oil infusions or balms with beeswax to restock my first aid. My counters get absolutely crowded with little glass jars, tins, and amber vials. It almost resembles an old world apothecary, which it kinda is. I'm not against modern medicine, as I'll use aspirin if I need to and I get physicals every year, but because of where I live, it's hard to just go to a pharmacy to pick up things, so I have to make my own stuff. I believe diet plays an important part in health. I'll eats lots of things that I know how lots of what my body needs. I tend to be prone to iron deficiency anemia, so I'll be sure to eat lots of foods that are iron rich with something made of citrus. My favorite is a strawberry and mandarin orange spinach salad, or oysters with a bit of lemon juice.

I'm also allergic to many cosmetics and soaps, I'll develop a really bad rash sometimes, so I make a lot of my own things with soothing ingredients like rose, calendula, aloe, and green tea. I love making lavender and mint witch hazel toners in the summer, putting them in the fridge, and spritzing myself with it. Instant cool down while also keeping my pores clean of sweat and oil. I'm usually pretty good about using a parasol or staying out of the sun during the hotter times of the day, but every year it seems I'll forget once, and get so sunburned. My cure is using cotton pads soaked in green tea to cut the redness, and a mix of calendula and aloe to soothe the pain and add moisture back into my skin. To heal over the next few days, some primrose oil or cotton pads soaked in a concentration of rose hip tea.

In the late summer, I start canning things, mostly fruits. I go through fig jam pretty often, its a daily thing I like in yogurt or on some bread, so I preserve whole figs in jars then crush them when I need them. I sometimes crave strawberries in winter, and it's not always easy to go down the mountain just to buy them out of season, so I'll make jams from the ones I've grown, foraged, or were given to me. Finding wild strawberries is like the holy grail for me though! If you've never had them, they're like candy! They're tiny, but the flavor is so concentrated, nothing like how store bought ones are. I mix them with rose jelly sometimes and use it to top ice cream, or drizzle on pancakes and crepes.

I also make a medicinal jelly made from three different citrus fruits: Sweet lemon, yuzu, and grapefruit, their pulp is preserved in honey, ginger, and clove. It's my go-to for vitamin c during the winter and to help with coughs or sore throats. I just mix a teaspoon in hot water, and sip. Another one is a goji berry jelly with honeysuckle, it's so delicious by itself but I make only enough to use for a month. Goji berry can get very bitter over time as a jelly, kmething to do with the oils in it. I use it for a daily sipping tea to get my vitamin c. There's a lot of pine nut trees in my region, and after I gather enough to send to my mom and brother, I use my portion to make pine nut butter! Fresh ones are loaded with oil and are usually very soft, they crush so easily into a butter. I'll pair it with pine needle tea, which is a good medicinal tea for the winter too.

During the monsoon season, I'll either join my dad's mother to forage for mushrooms (there's many in the southwest that are edible with few poisonous lookalikes...still gotta be careful!) But for my own paranoia, I honestly like growing my own. She'll give her batches of oyster mushroom mycelium, and all I do is put them in a glass jar or clean plastic shoebox, them let them grow. I'll get a nice bunch within a week, sometimes multiple crops if the mycelium was really healthy. I'll use them in soups, stir fries, and freeze them for the winter. Last year I grew so many that I had to give them away to my neighbors! It just kept coming almost every other day for that month. Mushrooms grow extremely fast!

And that's what summer means to me. Lots of things to do, lots of things happening, and traditions I'm very fond of.

[fairykukla]

Oh! Same hat!!!

So my father is:

A math teacher

A sports coach

A contractor (his self-employment summer job)

A shade-tree mechanic

Autistic

Raised in desperate poverty

An absolute master of jerry-rigging/jury-rigging/macgyvering

Has the right tool for the job

Has the wrong tool, too

Collects scrap building materials like his life depends on it

Our 74 Ford E-line vans that were standard transmission wound up in his possession for a variety of reasons, including the peculiarity that the gears would lock up sometimes.

"Don't worry, I just have to park the van and climb underneath."

Mom didn't like doing that, so he machines a special tool. Now when the gears would kick up it was "Don't worry, I just need to park the van get out, and stick this tool into the grill to pry the gears apart."

He made our swing set/jungle gym out of old wooden ladders. If a knob fell off something there was always a (non matching, often very weird) replacement he could come up with. He nursed the furnace along well past its elderly years, and if the house got too cold he'd go down and swear at it. He made table tops out of old doors, stage flats, or any other large flat thing. My childhood bedroom had two kinds of hardwood in the floor because he recycled.

After the second divorce, he bought a building in a little rural town. It's one of those "warehouse in back/store fronts in front" buildings you see in little towns in the American Midwest. He lives there. He's converting it.

After the divorce, the house basically started disintegrating around my mom. The sewer pipes collapsed from the tree roots, the furnace finally passed away, weird plumbing problems started dropping up and she discovered many weird temporary fixes when she'd hire someone to work on the house.

He only ever fixed things with the intention that "It's fine. I'll know what to do if it breaks again."

So naturally, when I decided that I didn't like the spoiler on my Impala, I went to his house and asked if we could make a steampunk art piece to replace it with. He was delighted. He had a collection of copper pipes and bits and bobs that we put together to have something to cover the four holes left behind when we removed the spoiler.

(later, I removed them before trading in the car. I still have both pieces.)

my family is fucking addicted to macgyvering and it's becoming a problem. every time something in this house breaks, instead of doing the sensible thing of replacing it or calling someone qualified to fix it, we all group around the offending object with a manic look in our eyes and everyone gets a try at fixing it while being cheered on or ridiculed by the rest.

it's a beautiful bonding activity, but the "creative" fixes have turned our house into a quasihaunted escape room like contraption where everything works, but only in the wonkiest of ways. you need a huge block of iron to turn on the stove. the oven only works if a specific clock is plugged in. the bread machine has a huge wood block just stapled to it that has become foundational to its function. sometimes when you use the toaster the doorbell rings. and that's just the kitchen.

it's all fun and games until you have guests over and you have to lay out the rules of the house like it's a fucking board game. welcome to the beautiful guest room. don't pull out the couch yourself you need a screwdriver for that, and that metal rod makes the lamp work so don't move it. it also made me a terrifying roommate in college, because it makes me think i can fix anything with enough hubris and a drill. you want to call the landlord about a leaky faucet? as if. one time my dad made me install a new power socket because we ran our of extension cords

[purpsimmies]

Purp Podcast

Addisyn's giggles fill the audio as 1000 Blunts from $uicideboy$ plays in the background. There's more voices and probably the tv on a sports channel.

Malcolm Landgraab tells someone in the background, "we're starting, shut-up!"

"Ey, let's grill those hot dogs we stole that other day." Addi's grandfather was talking to her dad about dinner.

Malcolm groans and proceeds on another friendly banter with Addi's grandfather. Malcolm just wants to start the podcast already. "Go on, baby. Tell us why we're here, Addisyn."

Addi blushes. "Yeah like I was telling you the other night, I wanted you to start a podcast." There's silence, but Malcolm is smiling at Addi. Of course, she continues to blush. "What?" she moans. "You said to tell you."

"Yeah but keep talking. You had way more to say that night than just start a podcast. Also, who have you been hanging out with? Who put you on Suicide Boys?"

"You did!"

"When!?"

"Every time we're..."

Malcolm chuckles after Addi trails off. "It's okay we don't gotta tell people our business like that."

"Stop."

"Stop what?"

"You making it sound like we're dating or something. Don't confuse your listeners."

"That's something else we talked about. It's okay, because I know what you're doing. You want to keep it professional on here, but I'm letting everyone know right now I'm marrying this woman."

"Malcolm!"

"You hear that!? Hear how she says my name? I know you hear that!"

Addi laughs. "You're not getting the purpose of this podcast."

"I understand, perfectly. I understand the assignment. I want you to keep telling them what you were saying that night, tho. I'm not going to interrupt anymore, I promise."

"You ran away from the Landgraab mansion and I want to dive a little deeper into that all while helping you gain recognition and money and power."

"You really think I'm going to gain recognition and money and power out of all of this?"

"I do. I think so. I hope I can keep asking you questions and advising you the way I've been doing since I first met you."

"I want you to. I'm here, because of you. If this shit makes you happy, I'll do whatever you want."

...

"My mother, just recently, got addicted to cocaine. She quickly realized she was burning through all her money so her team did a little bit of research and concluded she should enter into the marijuana business. So to support her cocaine addiction, she ran to her long lost brother, Johnny... Landgraab? Who fucking knows. Johnny was kicked out of the family one Christmas, because my great grandmother caught him smoking marijuana in the bathroom during the holiday dinner. He's been living in a trailer ever since he was shunned from the family. That motherfucker has some jokes, we gotta bring him on sometime. Anyway. Johnny grows some stank ass weed. Nancy bought the rights to his strain and now makes him grow the plants for her industry. Johnny is pissed but he still sticks around to oversea the progress of his plants. I was seeing how my mom was manipulating this whole thing to her favor and I ran away. The only place I could think of running to was this trailer, Johnny's trailer. He welcomed me with open arms. I was a little shit when I first got here and he put up with a lot from my part, but he never made me feel like this wasn't my home. I learned a lot about weed through him. I'm in love with the plant now and so I had my father make some phone calls so that I can legally smoke this shit. I'm just chilling right now, but Addi is right... I'm gonna get that money and power."

[bolshevik-rpf]

put a pan on the stove at medium heat. take two slices of your favourite bread. doesn't matter which one as long as you like it. it can even be just what you have laying around. when i'm at my mom's place i use the sourdough she buys but here i use cheap ass white bread. it'll be tasty either way. butter one side of each slice. now take your favourite cheese for grilled cheese or whatever you have. hell, use more than one kind if you want. i like marbled cheddar. slice enough so that the cheese layer covers the bread. make sure - this is crucial - that the corners of the cheese extend past the curves of the bread. now put on your extra seasonings. this can be anything. my go-to is fresh chives, but i also like garlic powder or cajun seasoning. rosemary and thyme are very good also. sometimes, if i want to pair sweet and savoury, i cut an apple up into tiny pieces and use that. adding seasonings is what's really going to elevate your grilled cheese experience. now put the other slice of bread on top. your pan should be warmed up by now. put the as-of-yet ungrilled cheese on the pan and leave it alone until the corners of the cheese that we left sticking out melt and start sizzling against the pan. let them sizzle for about a minute, then flip your grilled cheese. you should have a beautiful golden-brown char on the side you've just exposed. again, leave your grilled cheese alone until the cheese melts against the pan. it won't take as long this time because the pan is hotter. once you have as much crispy melted cheese at the edges as you want, flip it again to warm up your first side. you don't need to keep it on the pan very long, just enough to warm it up again. maybe fifteen seconds. take it off the pan. i'm going to say something controversial here - don't cut your grilled cheese diagonal. don't cut it at all. cutting it just makes the insides solidify again faster, and we're going for warm, cheesy goodness here. eat it as a whole sandwich, paired with tomato soup or just by itself

[vigilethefabulous]

Attempts to fight my extremely sensitive sense of smell

I kinda want to documwn this for my friends, since I'm the first one among us to get pregnant.

Oh and yeah, I'm 14 weeks pregnant. :) But announcing it here is OK because there isn't really anybody else around.

Anyway, back to the point of this post. Starting at 8 weeks, I've been having an extremely sensitive nose. Anything that is cooked in our apartment somehow sticks to the walls and stinks to high heaven for days. I can't even enter the kitchen anymore without gagging (though I've learned that breathing through my mouth helps if I really have to venture into the kitchen).

Just the other day, my husband and I went for a walk to the nearby bakery to have some cake and beverage because he noticed that I have an appetite for sweets (and nothing much else). It was tasty, the cake. And we were both pleased that I finished my slice - I haven't been finishing anything savory recently. But when we got back to the flat, the moment he opened the door and the odor of yesterday's cooking hit my nose, all that good cake went down the toilet.

That story actually indicates that my attempts at combating my hypersensitive nose has yet to be successful. But let me at least tell you about the things I've tried:

Airing the flat

Charcoal

Citrus fruits

Airing the flat

Airing the apartment is a very common practice in Germany. Most landlords insist that tenants "luften", i.e. air their whole apartment, multiple times a day. And by airing, I mean opening all the windows for at least five minutes. The purpose is to allow stale air to leave the apartment and fresh air to come in, and also, to let all the moisture inside the flat out, avoiding molds. Molds are a big thing here in Germany, and can cause health risks - something I learned the hard way.

Similar to airing clothes to remove unpleasant smell, airing the apartment is usually good enough to remove an unwanted stench... When you're not pregnant. In my case, airing the apartment does nothing, except make me cold (winter is no excuse not to luften).

Charcoal

Something my mom suggested was to place bowls or charcoal around the flat. Apparently, charcoal can absorb unpleasant odors. An easy Google search will tell you that activated charcoal is the most effective for odor removal, but I didn't know how to get that so I settled for normal charcoal.

My husband and I went to the nearest depot and bought a medium-sized bag of charcoal from the grill section. We thought that was a lot of charcoal. But actually, it only filled several bowls. The big bowl I left inside the kitchen, and the rest I spread around the hallway, the second stinkiest part of our flat.

Did it work? Well, I guess a little. But it wasn't really enough to make be breathe easily in the apartment without gagging. But maybe I also did it wrong. Maybe the air near the floor was fresh, but not further up. Maybe, I should've put the bowls at nose-level? That would require some furniture shopping since we didn't have that many tables in the apartment.

Long story short: operation charcoal was a failure. (And suddenly we had all this charcoal that we didn't know what to do with - grilling in the winter isn't really a thing.)

Citrus fruits

My mom also suggested: when there is something that smells icky, that I get myself a citrus peel (like a clementine or lemon peel) and smell it. It works. The downside is that I'd always have to have a fresh rind with me, and would have to smell it constantly.

At the beginning, it was not such a big downside, because clementines (aka. ponkkan in Filipino) were one of the few things I actually could eat a lot of. Whenever I got hungry or nauseous, I'd eat a clementine. Which means, I always had clementine peels nearby. And many of the rooms I stayed in had peels lying around, which probably made the room smell like oranges.

Gradually though, I started getting tired of clementines (after eating dozens a day), and the fiber in them started to leave a bitter taste in my mouth. So I waned off of them for a bit, and had less and less access to citrus peels. Seems like a waste peeling a clementine only for the skin, and I can't expect my husband to eat it (he already eats everything else I can't finish). So smelling citrus peels works, but wasn't a very sustainable solution.

My mom-in-law, however, suggested another way. She said I should try peeling and slicing lemons and placing them in bowls around the house. A similar concept to the charcoal, except it's not to absorb the bad odor, but to cover it with a pleasant smell.

I thought that might work, because I recalled that the rooms where I ate clementines in did have a nice orange-y smell shortly after. The question is how long the smell will last, and how many fruits do I have to cut up per day to keep it up.

I only started this strategy a few hours before writing this, so I can't tell you yet whether it is successful, or for how long. I can tell you though that a few hours after placing two small bowls of peels and slices of one lemon, it still smells stinky in our hallway, and I don't smell anything citrus. Maybe it takes more than a few hours to work. Or maybe I have to peel the lemon in the hallway instead of in a relatively odor-free room. Or maybe, it has to be nose-level. I'll test the different theories, with different amounts of lemon, and give an update. 👍🏽

Fingers crossed!