#weird gay nerds unite

[notedchampagne]

Bro the 6th familial relationships fuck me up so much like the weird Juno and Pal more of a mentor than a mother vibes? And it seems like from Dr Sex that her and Pal's dad are either divorced or just straight up had nothing to do with each other until the genomics department decided they should have a child together?? Like imagine you're a ruthless academic career-woman and one day you get an email from the government like 'congrats! You're a mother!' And they hand you a fresh vat baby that is half you and half your co-worker that you talked to one time at the Christmas party like??? I don't think I would have the most healthy relationship with that child either tbh

And Cam! Earlier in Nona when Pal and Pyrrha are talking about going to the park it is only Kiki that he mentions she might want to save, no mention that apparently both her parents are there too? Her entire family is on the line here. Then she doesn't want her dads to see the Paul transformation because they "wouldn't understand"? You just know there's some long running disagreement there with how far she's yoking herself in with Pal. Do you think they secretly resent him? Did this cause a rift in their family? And what did the conversation look like before or after the transformation? Did Cam tell them she was about to die? Or did they turn away for five seconds and she finally killed herself for her obsessions behind their back? Who broke the news to them? (Who is going to break the news to Pal's dad?) The whole thing just makes me insane!!!!

Also apparently there is some incredible nepotism going on in the 6th oversight body here (or maybe everything is nepotism on the 6th lol)

YOU GET ME i love the 6th house so so much the way the house functions both as a united family w their genetics & a university with the academic quibbling is so fun to me- the sixths weakness was described as "A sprawling organization of erratic loners, the Sixth are chaotic by nature and terrible at collective action." which is 1) hilarious. palamedes is the peoples marxist princess 2) just generally fascinating as a whole. if we take that at face value and consider the 6th house as populated by genius loner nerds, it actually makes sense that they prioritize sending out attractive people to diversify the gene pool - with reference to your statement: dr sex provided a nice handful of evidence that while palamedes and juno have a formal dynamic, theyre affectionate enough that they seem close (at most, to the extent of some gay kid and their favorite english teacher) but seeing juno like a distant mentor is most likely right

taking on more quotes from dr sex, i think its most likely that the Sixth house encourages child bearing / raising through subsidies and an extended work leave of sorts:

Palamedes said, “Enjoying parenting. Enjoying the parenting buyout, I should say. He’s only doing dissertation supervision—and half a year of Immediate History, of course—but he’s got his own projects on the go.”

alexandrites and nireids might be required to go offworld to flirt and have children (i think i came across another post floating somewhere noticing kiki and cam were half-sisters, implying their parent was one of the mentioned) but for residents staying in the sixth house, they probably have about 3-7 other people they could possibly produce children with outside of consanguinity. although forcing them to have children by way of vat birth etc etc is entirely possible in Hell Empire a lot of them probably gave in just for a few years of parental & academic benefits.

one last point - sixth house children canonically live in a dormitory! so if you consider a professor going on paid leave to raise children while doing their own projects for about 7-9 years, then going back to work while their children are sent to a dorm to do nothing but study and train with other peers their age, it falls together so perfectly bro. it makes so much sense. of course pal and cam are nice to their parents but rarely ever close - they were most likely raised and taught communally! god i love worldbuilding

[bernardellinewsagency]

Have any other Galladay shippers gone diving into HSR lore cause you're a little too obsessed with the game and ended up thinking about how you could create parallels between not only Sunday and Dominicus, but also Gallagher and Aelenev (and that you could make it gay)? Or is it just me who's spending too much time wishing we had more lore about the Harmonic Strings?

Putting my ramblings under the cut cause it's long and there's some spoilers in case anyone still hasn't finished the Penacony quests

Sunday and Dominicus, that's pretty obvious. It's the Wisher of the Harmonious Choir that he attempts to bring forth at the Charmony Festival, using his power as well as the Order to spread Ena's influence among all those slumbering within Penacony. When talking about Dominicus, "A Hymn of Charmonic Strings" says "Prayers you suckle from the millions gathered here, and the masses' heartstrings you play," which could very well allude to Sunday's plan of placing everyone into the most perfect dreams they could wish for, dreams they would never wish to wake from. And like, apparently the name Sunday is even derived from Dominicus or something, according to the etymology notes on the HSR wiki page.

But that same readable mentions Aelenev, the Commander of the Eternal Centurion, and first of all that's just a cool fucking name in general. Second of all, there's several points that can stand out when looking upon the full section of the hymn,

"O, Great One of Paradise, Caress this scripture that is stained by blood on the battlefield, and kiss my longsword of bone and soul, Life is howling, and the sharp blade of streaming colors hangs high. Aelenev, do you hear? The soldiers' bones are buried at the end of the world. Comrades' whisper united, and the gospel can be heard for miles long, Blissful rain pours out thus, and one person equals to thousands. Thought they be the invincible steeds and death, they too long for their home deep in their soul."

The main part that I choose to look at is "one person equals to thousands," as there's lots of ways that could be interpreted. There is, of course, the fact that the Family is basically a hivemind, and also how Aelenev was summoned on one occasion and his sword was "unsheathed from the scabbard of 4,630,000 Hounds" which I take to mean as sort of manifested from their collective minds and wills, so to speak. Similar to how Gallagher is a lie manifested from the traits of 52 loyal Family members, no? And longing for a home deep in their soul, soldiers' bones that have been buried, a scripture stained by blood, I personally think that those could easily be taken as references to Mikhail, the revolution that led to Penacony being formed in the first place, and how Gallagher misses those he used to know. Or maybe not references, but they certainly could hold a similar meaning. I don't know, I'm not a fucking literature major or anything, I study animals and nature. This is just me being a massive nerd on the internet.

Anyways, this is mostly just to wonder if anyone else has/is thinking of using these parallels to make really gay stuff. Sunday should get more weird and fucked up with his affection in fics, because I think it would be really fun to see. Have him call Gallagher "my Aelenev" or something, make him want to craft Gallagher into a wonderful embodiment of the Harmony the same way as he attempted to usurp Dominicus' power. Get weird with it!

Or hey go a step further and make yaoi about the Harmonic Strings themselves. I'd do it. I'd fucking do it. I'm insane about this game's lore sometimes.

Also: Robin could be a parallel for Constantina, the singer of the Panacoustic Theater. That just leaves Beatriz, the merrymaker of the Blissful Ball, who I suppose could be parallel to Sparkle? Not to say that all four of them need to be represented by members of the Penacony cast, I'm just coming up with random thoughts about it.

[girldragongizzard]

Chapter 11: Bankruptcy

So. Daniel Säure owns the majority of Morning Glory Corporation. And by extension, the majority of all the businesses that Morning Glory owns.

But unlike the C.E.O. of Morning Glory, he’s allowed himself to become the face of the company. The president.

In the United States, corporations have this thing called fiduciary responsibility toward their stakeholders. Which means that they have to, above all else, make profits for their stakeholders’ investments. The corporation literally, legally owes them returns.

There are a number of things those stakeholders can do if the company fails to fulfill its duties.

And this is one of the biggest reasons why business in the U.S. is so fucked up. Or so I’m told by certain regulars of the coffee shop.

I’ve tried looking it up, but it’s just not my special interest. I have trouble focusing on and understanding the articles on the subject.

But it seems to be a good explanation for what’s happening.

Because, things happen to the stocks of a company when its public facing leader is seen terrorizing an entire city and threatening to crush sections of it with his enormous, terrifying bulk. His window shattering supersonic screams in the middle of the night didn’t seem to help his case much, either.

And it wasn’t just that one night that it happened.

I think we did manage to make him desperately angry. Insulted. Not me. We. I set out to do it, but wow has everyone else really done the work.

And as his own stocks start plummeting, and he’s seeing what he’s doing to himself, he’s lashed out more wildly.

Last night, we got to see what the gaming nerds call his breath weapon. There really isn’t a better term for it.

To make some kind of a point, around midnight, after strafing my building again, and setting off another one of Chapman’s traps, he hit the bay with a beam of ultraviolet light. It created a huge plume of scalding steam, and probably wasn’t great for life in the bay.

Word is, it blinded a bunch of people, and everyone is talking class action lawsuit or even criminal charges. Though no one knows how to bring him to court.

Säure has become a dangerous dragon.

He’s a whole different class of monster, and he doesn’t know what to do with himself.

At some point, he’s going to aim that beam of deadly light at the city itself.

But, for some reason, so far, he hasn’t.

Still, someone’s going to have to do something about it.

But, as a side effect, people are starting to rally around the idea that we neighborhood dragons are preferable in comparison. Maybe even beneficial, and with the hope we can protect the city.

I don’t know about that anymore. But it is a nice thing to hear every now and then.

—

“Nah,” Rhoda says. “That ‘breath weapon’ of his is bullshit.”

It’s late Sunday morning, the 29th of September.

We’re having mimosas and ham and egg somethings at the Sanctum, a weird hybrid Perisian/New Orleans psuedo-Catholic themed goth gay club on Wallace and Halley, the actual center of my territory. They’re open for gay brunch every Sunday, with half off mimosas if you flash them your gay card. A card that they give to anyone who asks for it. There’s no gatekeeping, it’s just a promotional joke and a bit of a dare.

And by “we”, I mean Nathan, Kimberly, Chapman, Rhoda, and I. 

Ptarmigan is missing. None of us have seen her since the night she last spoke to Rhoda. And I wonder if she’s doing something with Wentin, because I haven’t heard from it, either.

The others of my family are off doing their own things. We’re just who had the time and energy to meet here.

“Well,” Nathan says. “Terrifying deadly bullshit he could use to fry us all any time he wants.”

“Nope,” Rhoda says, bringing her mimosa to her lips. “Just bullshit. And I’m having none of it.”

I look directly at her and she meets both my eyes and keeps drinking, a smirk on her lips.

Chapman notices this, I can see, but doesn’t say anything.

“I’d feel better if he wasn’t out there,” Nathan says. “But, at least, we’re not alone in that.”

I have noticed, the general tension in Fairport now feels a lot like the later Cold War fear of nuclear holocaust that was instilled in me as a child by my family.

I know a lot of people didn’t experience it, but it was drilled into me. I was reminded time and again that my parents did the whole duck and cover thing, and then they’d talk about all the times the world came to the brink of self destruction. And, when I looked into it myself, later, when I had the internet and the resources and will to do so, I found they weren’t lying. They’d just underestimated the danger.

This feels like that.

But people go about their business and are mostly cheerful to each other, at least superficially, as is the habit of the typical Pacific Northwesterner.

I think Rhoda is the most relaxed of anyone in the county, and I might be the second most relaxed. And, looking at Chapman now, I may have found the third.

Unless Ptarmigan is still in the county, then all bets are off.

“Drink your mimosa, Nathan,” Kimberly says. “You need your vitamins, old man.”

“Heel,” Nathan says to her through a smirk, and then looks away and drinks his mimosa.

Kimberly throws a balled up napkin at him.

“Bad girl.”

“Woof.”

Chapman really does want to say something though, and chooses, “What did Ptarmigan say when she last saw you?”

“Oh, nothin’,” Rhoda says and pops a ham and egg bite into her mouth.

I tilt my head at Chapman and then decide to work on a promise I’d made over a month ago.

I tap my tablet several times in quick succession and then hit talk, “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.”

I listen to it carefully and then hit it again.

“Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit,” my tablet says.

Then I look at Chapman and say, “Shit.” In my voice.

“That’s some good shit,” Kimberly says, and Nathan throws the rolled up napkin back at her.

Chapman gives me a look and says, “I don’t think that’s what she said.”

I bob my head and type, “She didn’t. She did say, ‘Holy Jesus fuck, Chapman.’”

“What? Why?”

“Your trap,” I respond.

“OK, that’s fair.”

Rhoda sighs, “Chapman.”

“Yes?” the Physicist asks.

“You’re bullshit, too,” Rhoda says. “And so is Ptarmigan.” Then she points. “But because Meg likes you, I’m gonna tolerate you. In fact, you and Meg can keep working on Säure, just so long as Meg doesn’t get hurt.”

Chapman furrows hir brows in confusion, and Kimberly catches on that something’s happening.

“Rhoda? What’s up?” Kimberly asks.

Rhoda chuckles and smirks and sips her drink.

Chapman starts to look downright unsettled, and asks, “May I? Would anyone object if I scanned the general situation in Fairport right now?”

A month ago, sie wouldn’t have said anything so blatant out in the open. Things have seriously changed. Sie has decided hir vow is defunct.

“As long as it doesn’t interrupt me or my thoughts, go ahead,” Rhoda says. “Actually. I’m very curious about the results, so please tell me.”

I glance back and forth between them. It feels a little bit like a showdown.

“OK,” Chapman says and looks at Rhoda briefly through hir brow before closing hir eyes and touching scan tattoos together.

There’s hir shift. It’s a big one, too. I feel it from tip of my snout to end of my tail. And, once again, it comes from the center of Chapman’s chest.

And then Chapman opens hir eyes and looks at Rhoda with new consideration, blinking hir eyes a few times.

“Yes?” Rhoda says.

“You’re a Bellwether,” sie says.

“What does that mean?” Rhoda prompts hir.

“Well,” Chapman says, glancing at each of the rest of us. “In the sense that I use the word, not really its original meaning, everything chaotic, everything that’s fibrillating around you within a certain radius, is being influenced by you specifically. You’re like the eye of the storm. It’s… impressive? Really dangerous if you want it to be.”

“Hm.”

“What?” Kimberly asks.

“What’s going on?” Nathan asks, finally catching up to the conversation.

“I don’t know what has happened,” Chapman says. “I can probably guess, but I didn’t see it. All I’m seeing is what’s happening now. But, for the moment, Nathan, we’re safe because Rhoda wants to be safe. And if there were a flock of birds flying by right now, she could probably wave her hand and they’d change direction.”

“Hm,” Rhoda makes that noise again. It’s sort of a cross between a hum, a grunt, a laugh, and a sob. Quiet, but it jerks her body.

I lean over and bump her shoulder softly with my brow. It’s a thing I’ve started doing in the past couple of days. She seems to appreciate it. Sometimes she’ll reach up and put her hand on my nose or the back of my skull for a moment. Which usually makes me want to push into her hand a little harder.

This time she just says, “Thank you, Meg.”

“So, are you saying that she’s keeping Säure from nuking us somehow?” Nathan asks.

“Very possibly,” Chapman says. “Along with a whole bunch of other consequences.”

“Well, I mean, I guess that’s a relief,” Nathan says. “Thank you, Rhoda. If you’re doing that.”

“I have to say,” Rhoda says. “I’m doing it for me, if I’m doing it at all. But you are absolutely welcome. Everyone should get to be safe.”

“What’s the radius?” Kimberly asks.

Chapman purses hir lips and looks around, squinting at the sky, then says, “That’s fuzzy. I think it depends on just what you’re talking about. For instance, obviously Säure was able to fry the bay.”

“And that was bullshit, and he won’t be doing that again,” Rhoda says.

“And he won’t be doing that again,” Chapman agrees.

“How long is it going to last?” Kimberly puts her mimosa down on the table and turns to look more fully at Chapman.

Chapman shrugs and says, “I haven’t seen this before. I can only tell you what it is from my own perspective as the Physicist. I’m sure Ptarmigan has other words for it. So, there’s no precedent in the entire history of the Earth. Which isn’t a surprise, because we’ve been feeling that way about the dracomorphosis. But I think I can hazard a guess by the rate of decay I saw.”

“Yeah?”

“Unless something else happens to change it all,” Chapman says. “Rhoda’s remaining lifetime. Which, if she decides that her own death is bullshit, I’m guessing could be quite a while.”

“Woah.”

“All I want is to live in a world that makes sense to me,” Rhoda says. It’s been a morning refrain for her for the past few days.

“And dragons make sense?” Nathan asks as gently as he can.

“I think I want them to,” Rhoda says. “But I don’t know that I have a say in that matter. I don’t know about any of this. But I’ll take it if it’s working.”

I bonk her shoulder again, and she pats my nose.

Then I grab and swallow a ham and egg bite. Then I drink from my bowl of mimosa that’s at my feet. The others went in on getting that for me, since I’ve spent so much of my paltry income this month.

Oh, and I did get my card back from Megan the server.

The bartender here seemed absolutely tickled to serve me a salad bowl of orange juice and alcohol. He seemed to need something to be tickled about, too. The municipal worry has affected him as much as anyone else.

I reach up to my tablet again and say, “Something need done about Säure, tho. Scaring people. Could hurt others elsewhere.”

“Can he?” Kimberly asks.

Chapman shrugs and looks at Rhoda.

“Don’t look at me, spirit. This is all your magic,” Rhoda says.

“It really isn’t,” Chapman says. “It’s currently yours. But I can help you figure it out.”

“Nuh-uh. I don’t want that responsibility,” Rhoda says. “I want to live my life. And with other people who want to live theirs. But like I said. You and Meg can work on Säure, so long as she keeps coming home.”

Chapman and I look at each other.

“How can I help?” Kimberly asks.

“Who, girl. Down,” Nathan says, eyes a little wide.

Kimberly throws the balled up napkin back at him without looking his way.

Chapman looks at her and considers the question, “Well, I think we’ve all been doing pretty well by Meg and Rhoda here already. We’ve survived the chaos of the first month of dracomorphosis, and we’ve survived the tantrums of the local billionaire. I think we start by continuing to do that.”

“Yeah?”

“But, if you want, and you have the time, you can help me research some things,” Chapman says. “Do you like digging around in the library and making the internet give you treats?”

Kimberly squints in disbelief and opens her mouth part way before smirking and laughing and saying, “Yeah. OK. I’m your girl for that.”

“Good girl,” Nathan says.

“Please stop,” Kimberly tells him.

“Sorry. I will,” he tilts his head toward her. Then he smirks impishly and says, “It’s your lead now.”

“Look,” she says to him. “The day I get to be a real live werepoodle, I’m going to hump your leg in public.”

“Ok. Uncle. Uncle for you. I’m done. Seriously,” he says.

“Thank you.”

“You wouldn’t really do that, would you?” he asks.

“Not without your consent,” she shoots back.

He just nods, and she smiles briefly at him.

Coworkers.

This makes me think of another thing, so I type one word, “Molly.”

“Huh?” Rhoda perks up a bit, and looks halfway my direction.

“How can I make sure Molly is OK? Ethically,” I ask with more care.

“Who’s Molly?” Kimberly asks.

“Oh,” Rhoda says, leaning onto the table. “Hm.” She looks at me, then at the others. “She’s a girl who met Meghan the first time she was shedding. Only, Meg got the impression that Molly was her chosen name, and that she might also be a dragon. Or, Molly said she wished she was like Meg.”

I bow my head briefly.

“How old is she?” Nathan asks, leaning forward in interest himself.

Rhoda looks at me.

“Ten or twelve. Don’t know,” I respond.

“Did you meet her parents?” he asks.

“No,” I say.

“That’s tricky,” he says. “For your legal safety, you should stay away. She’s not your responsibility, and her parents could get protective quick.”

“It really sucks,” Kimberly says. “But, yeah. Even if we were just talking about being trans, between you and her. The best thing you can do is do social work and activism and help the rest of us try to make the world better for her. But you’ve gotta look out for yourself, or you can’t do that. This world is a minefield.”

“Add in the dragon thing,” Nathan says, “and who knows how it’ll go?”

“I may have made Meghan promise me something,” Rhoda says.

“Yeah?” Nathan prompts her.

“To make sure Molly gets what she needs,” she replies. “I was distressed and in my way about my own losses. And my beef with the universe is only growing, too, but that’s between me and it now. But, I think I’d ask it again, even now. I know it’s a tall order and a tough one. But if her parents can’t accept her being trans or being a dragon, that needs to change. For the sake of her life.”

“Can you make that change?” Kimberly asks.

Rhoda shrugs and shakes her head. “I can say what I want, but I can’t make it happen.” Then she spears me with a squinty look from her sparkling eyes, and says, “She’s queen, not me.”

I bonk my head against the table, jostling everyone’s drinks but not quite spilling them.

—

If Säure and Morning Glory’s spiral continues as it is, there could be bankruptcy in their future. Either his or the company’s, or both.

Usually, on paper, that would seem unlikely. Säure’s base of wealth, invested in Pacific Northwest land holdings as it is, should be pretty robust.

But even that corner of the stock market is still a complex system and in a constant state of chaos.

And Säure’s feeling like he’s between a rock and a hard place. Being a building sized dragon is really inconvenient for him and his business. And that alone is such a challenge to keeping things stable, apparently.

But it looks like he’s also got the attention of the Bellwether of the dracomorphosis, and he lives a bit too close to her, too.

And she wants to see him go down.

So, bankruptcy for a billionaire is probably a little different than it is for a commoner, one of us plebes. But, generally, your remaining assets get divided up by the court to pay off your debts and then you are declared free of them. You’re supposed to end up free of both assets and debts, so you can start again.

So, the question we’re all faced with now is, what does a giant UV laser breathing dragon do when he’s no longer hamstrung by his own hoard?

And can the Bellwether’s influence still affect him at that point, when he’s free of some of the bigger complex systems that currently grip him?

Neither Chapman nor Rhoda seem certain of that.

And there’s sort of a countdown to that point.

A fuzzy countdown of indeterminate time.

Some of us wonder if Rhoda could just end Säure somehow, maybe by waving her hand and causing the storm around her to swallow him up in some way. Whatever that might mean.

But she just doesn’t want to do it.

Maybe she doesn’t want to prove to herself that she has that much power. Maybe she doesn’t want to become that kind of being. And I, for one, can absolutely respect that.

So, that leaves Chapman and I, and the rest of us, floundering about trying to think of something else.

And so, one day, after a short time of enjoying my new routines and respite in Rhoda’s apartment, I ask Chapman about that collaborative project Ptarmigan had proposed.

Maybe not the specific project, but the idea of doing a collaboration with her at all.

What could they do if they worked on something together that was big?

Could they focus it on Säure?

We’re sitting outside the coffee shop, and when I ask my question, Chapman stares at me for a long time afterward without saying anything.

[mla0]

You're literally so real. Also PLEEEEEASe please tell me about your transfem OCs i am begging on the floor

THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE EXCUSE

i have one named aurora who is a rebellious little shit who broke away from her old, theocratic society that's basically run by a cult, and i don't mean the shadowy figures summoning demons type you see in the media i mean like a real life one. she was super loyal to them in the beginning, but when she started realizing something was wrong and didn't know what to do about it, just that it was making her unable to do what she was supposed to efficiently (their society was heavily structured around the workforce and can/will kill you if you don't contribute, so it's kind of a big deal to not be able to function normally) because of gender dysphoria, she turned to them for help and only ended up accidentally disrespecting them, only narrowly escaping with her life and later transitioning into the aurora we meet around the beginning of the main story chunk. she's the secondary protagonist essentially, trying to network with as many runaways as she can and fight back against their corrupted society in any way she possibly can, including the main character, who is the prince of this society

speaking of that prince... his name is jesse, and he's transfem too! he's genderfluid, to be more specific. none of these characters are human beings, they can take control of human vessels but can't leave once they enter until that body dies, and they don't always have control over who their vessel gets to be, since it's kind of just a shot in the dark to a degree. and he starts realizing that hey, sometimes i actually kinda like having a female vessel. this is weird. what's going on. and this guy is like, turbo brainwashed, extremely sucked into this society considering he's the prince and all, but he's treated like absolute dirt by the higherups. he's honestly more of a servant than anything, but he's manipulated into thinking he's very important to everything when in reality, he is very much so replaceable, his loyalty and ignorance to what they're doing to him is really the only thing keeping him from being murdered and replaced. eventually, when things in the story change (not spoiling it!) he becomes more comfortable and will appear as a man, a woman, or whatever else he decides in that moment

there is alsoooo a third OC, she's not really "mine," my girlfriend made her but we both built on her character later on. her name is warren, and she's this old, disgruntled "man" who is actually a butch lesbian, yippeee! she just doesn't know that for most of the story. she loves photography and birdwatching, big on nature and long hikes, and she loves to work with her hands to built little things for the houses she stays in, because she finds it fun to put things together or take them apart. she's also a huge d&d nerd and has a stupid gay crush on a entity guy who is definitely not possessed but it never goes anywhere. she's very devoted to her daughter and is a single dad, because her wife died very young. and also spoiler alert, her kid is being ruthlessly followed around by an entity that wants to eat her. warren can see it sometimes and has a very bad feeling about what's going on, so she's always moving around to new places, all across the united states, trying to outrun it for her daughter's entire life. in all of this time, she needs money to keep doing all these trips, so she turns down some... very dark paths, to make ends meet. let's just say this woman would do anything to keep her daughter alive. anything at all. she doesn't really have time or the energy to think about herself, in her own eyes, but it still weighs her down heavily, only making the stress mount itself more and more. so many people die in her story, and she's very alone, especially as she gets older and older. i'm not going to say what specifically happens to any of them because it'd be such a big spoiler, in case it ever gets written one day, but let's just say this story does NOT have a happy ending whatsoever.

[highlifeboat]

In AUs, where Melony ended up with different members of the family, how do you think her relationship with Bela, Daniela and Alcina would be like?

I've definitely talked about Bela/Melon and Daniela/Melon before. But I can't find the post and I'm too lazy to look so...

Daniela/Melony:

Definitely a wholesome duo.

Melony is thriving, Daniela is so warm and soft and just comforting.

Sun and Moon thing going on.

Daniela would totally tease Melony all the time, for the sole purpose of getting her to blush because she thinks it's adorable.

The amount of face kisses Melony received would be astronomical.

Melony would always be making treats specifically for Daniela, because this woman definitely has a sweet tooth.

Heterochromic Queens.

Melony would probably feel the safest with Daniela, honestly.

Also Daniela encourages Melony's age regression/stimming and whatever and would make sure her bedroom is a safe space.

Melony probably wouldn't know how to handle Daniela dissociating very well at first, but she could learn and do her absolute best to help.

So much cuddling. Like. Constant.

Daniela would definitely kind of force Melony out of her shell more, which is a good thing.

They have a mutual love of childish things.

Melony tries to match Daniela's level of romance. She's succesful about 65% of the time.

Bela/Melony:

Depressed blonde babes unite.

The equivalent of These Two Gay Kids From Morel Orel, honestly

The fu ckin g HEIGHT DIFFERENCE??

They'd be such book nerds.

Melony would steal the honey jar out of the kitchen just for Bela.

Who's head lays in who's lap depends on which one sits on the couch first.

Melony and Bela: *Hold hands* *Blushing intensifies*

PDA is non existent, makes it hard to tell if they're dating or just really good friends (until Melony starts sleeping in Bela's room, and even then some people are like "And they were roommates.")

Honestly smooching outside of like... cheek/head kisses isn't much of a thing for them at all. They're more huggers/cuddlers.

THEM BATHING TOGETHER???

Or even just like... cuddling naked. They don't do anything, but it makes them feel closer

Snuggle all night, probably always wake up with one on top of the other.

Kinda looks like a mother and her daughter or siblings instead of a couple.

Alcina/Melony:

Say it with me: "MOMMY 👏 ISSUES 👏"

Alcina would like Melony because she finds her very endearing.

She just thinks the way Melony acts is cute.

Melony's feelings are very confusing.

What draws her to Alcina is that Alcina is somehow the complete opposite of her own mother, while managing to still be painfully similar to her.

The relationship is heavily influenced by the fact Melony still subconsciously takes Alcina's love as maternal, even if she doesn't know it.

It isn't that Melony doesn't love Alcina, either, but the line between maternal and romantic love is incredibly blurred in her mind.

Which... makes the idea that Melony would still very much have a mommy kink a little more complicated. But we won't talk about that.

Melony's phycological issues and mommy trauma aside, it's probably a very sweet relationship.

Alcina adores her little maid, and would provide her with anything she needed.

Melony's love language is just making Alcina oversized desserts. Like ones that are proportioned to her.

Honestly my only other issue is the age gap. Just kinda feels weird.

[soysaucevictim]

Hmmm... given the occasion.

It's a tense feeling - Living in one of the few states that are still in the clear for trans refuge (for now, anyways). Yet also living in a deeply red county. Deep sympathies from a position of very mixed privileges.

Wasn't really heard, the brief times I mentioned the whole being trans thing when it was me, my brother, and my parents. Though at least dad was known to me as more of a moderate (he still had uh, not great thoughts about trans women).

I sometimes wasn't sure about my brother. Which sucked. I feel weird to really say it here, because this is something he should have a say in putting it out there. But he had schizophrenia. One of the ITs he had was about being gay. I told him as often as it came up - I wouldn't care and would support him if that was his truth.

I kind of wonder if he had his roots in a more socially liberal environment, that he wouldn't have been in such a position of quite so deeply internalized homophobia. But I also recognize, I can only make out the outline (I can name other contributing factors) of everything he was going through before he ended it. There's no way I could completely understand.

Before that happened, I'm kinda grateful I had that stint in at least more purple/blue parts of the state, when it was just me and dad (later, mom again; brother stayed with grandparents).

-

When the Shit Uncle Returned to Dad's place while I lived with him, after my brother died, I knew I had to get out. All I'm gonna say is he's volatile and triggering and move along...

I had to live with the grandparents. Who listened to Eff-Oh-Ex News repeatedly. Parroting a lot of the jingoistic garbage TC and company spewed.

Grandpa is a control freak and Grandma is often too soft for her own good. Even though she made the guesting situation tolerable - it was only just. It sucked whenever I overheard some of the stuff coming from her mouth about the gender stuff.

A lot.

So I just shut the fuck up around them. Took a few trips to the Crisis Unit to get breathing space while there (I had no plans nor intend to - med nerd brain + self-pres instinct is still too powerful to entertain without immediate internal dismissal). Coped by talking to co-conspirator and writing up a storm last year... while I waited on getting news on getting an apartment.

My brother's death and all the above were straws that broke the camel's back - I got sick of my own well-being directly in the hands of people who either couldn't or wouldn't have my best interest in mind.

Now that I'm by myself?

I've been considering a lot more seriously gender transition stuff. Light/tentative social stuff (because red county). More just personal stuff (like going on low-dose T - I don't feel like going for the "Male Hormonal Mode" will suit me.) Been more and more considering top surgery - still amused with self on that front.

Still don't know if my IT about having breast cancer is "Surprise, it was me! Gender Dysphoria, all along!"

Or if it's just me being a gd hypochondriac with gender-weird feelings going on (because I'm not entirely dysphoric about my body). But yeah.

(... it's probably a mix of dysphoria and hypochondria, if I'm being honest there.)

[superspunkus]

basically a lot of white nerds apply high fantasy d&d warhammer-style racial essentialism to transformers fanon lore, interpreting various shared body types, altmodes, and other recurring motifs as “frametypes” - that is, literal biological races who all have unique “cultures” defined by their vehicle modes. this has gone mostly unchallenged for most of the fandom’s life, with anyone who questions how weird this shit is usually being shouted down.

yes, they completely missed the point that functionism was made up by in-universe fascists and has no basis in reality.

putting all of this under the cut because it’s a lot

common tropes include “racer frametypes” (including sports cars and motorcycles) who are naturally super horny and addicted to stimulation, big frametypes (such as tanks, cranes, etc.) who are naturally predisposed to violence and are brutish and genetically stupid, and seekers being asian-coded bird people.

this has always been a problem, but tfp and mtmte inadvertently opened the floodgates to a whole new level of this shit. racer tropes were used to justify why knock out was camp gay (because he’s genetically predisposed to it and is HORNY you see), why the decepticon revolution became a violent warband (because megatron is NATURALLY VIOLENT you see), and more. i dont think i have to explain what’s wrong with making a literal “race” naturally predisposed to being stupid, savage, violent brutes.

seekers though are a whole other dumpster fire. “seeker culture” has always been exoticist and orientalist, fetishizing asians (predominantly east but others too) to a surprising degree. this got way worse with tfp, which attracted a WHOLE LOT of white women who just couldn’t be normal about that starscream. a lot of modern additions to seeker “lore” have largely been conceptualized solely to cater to making starscream exotic and sexy by extension. bird themeing is often applied to them owing to bayverse starscream’s vague bird inspiration and tfp starscream’s wing-emoting, which wouldnt be so bad on its own if it weren’t very deeply tied to the rest of this mess.

starscream is mentioned in passing in very early canon stories as being the former political figurehead of the cybertronian city vos, and this was spun into starscream being this juicy, foreign, exotic oriental prince type deal, an epithet sometimes denoted in the fanmade moniker “Prince of Vos”. stories sometimes depict seeker “culture” as being akin to japanese feudal politics period dramas, again solely to capitalize on the idea of starscream as an exotic “oriental” prince.

another common trope is using really gross explanations for why seekers tend to come in trios. in official transformers stories, this is simply a method of unit organization. seekers come in three because that’s what a seeker formation is. it’s a mundane military structure thing, nothing else. sometimes trios are interpreted as a gang of loser friends, triplets, or even polycules. nothing wrong with that on its own, and it exists outside the more tasteless side of tf fandom.

this genre of tf fan “lore” however often ascribes weirder, orientalist reasoning for this, building onto the aforementioned interpretations with a VERY common trope: that being that seeker trios develop a “unique special mental bond” between one another. this is distinctly the classical orientalist phenomenon of exoticizing asians as being uniquely spiritual, even magical, compared to other races, and this manifests in exotic acts and traits their minds and spirits exhibit that no other race has. this often further crosses into how, in japan, families bathing together isn’t always weird, and has even been used with seeker “bond-trios” to capitalize on incest fantasies.

and lastly, if you ever see fanart of starscream wearing something like this? that’s a red flag. this is specifically a type of asian jewelry with very specific connotations in different cultures, often appropriated as a superficial aesthetic by white artists to make starscream more exotic.

[rubykgrant]

A relationship chart for these two (because I’m predictable~)

Some explanations-

-The only time we see them with unique heights and body-types is Room Zero, which took place within the Epsilon Unit (and we see later, he gets some facts mixed-up)... however, I’d like to think this much is fairly accurate, so I imagine Simmons being taller, and Grif being pleasantly plump (he’s actually not that “short”, but Simmons is a big ‘ol tree)

-I’m kinda putting their ages for where they are in my story-line, because we never get a concrete idea for the main series (pretty sure they were both about 20-22 in Blood Gulch though, not older than that)

-I’ve said it before; Simmons is trans and gay (just all in denial and oblivious about being attracted to men, and Grif is bi~

-In terms of “hornyness”, the only reasons Simmons’ level seems so high is because of SEXUAL FRUSTRATION, but once he and Grif get to be all romantic and intimate, he relaxes, and they’re about the same on a regular basis

-Simmons is awkward, and water is wet. Grif is definitely capable of feeling awkward in specific situations, but mostly he’s to chill to care

-Simmons isn’t “possessive” (and he isn’t all weird about Grif doing stuff on his own or whatever), but he definitely needs EVERYBODY to know that Grif is HIS BOYFRIEND, SO BACK OFF. Grif kinda enjoys clingy-Simmons, so it’s fine

-They tend to just get all wrapped up in each other while they sleep, so who is the big/little spoon is random

-Neither of them fit into each other’s clothes very well, but jacket-sharing happens

- “Nerd” and “Dumb-ass” are basically pet-names at this point... but they also get a little thrill out of saying cutesy stuff like babe and darling occasionally

-Simmons is a mega intro-vert, and Grif finds it easy to go and bop around with other people (but they both find it easier to go out or stay home with each other. they’re so co-dependent, it ain’t even a joke)

-They’re both pretty even when it comes to expression affection with words and also doing little things for each other

-Again, in my own story-line; Grif tried to confess first, but it went right over Simmons’ head. He finally got a clue, tried again, and they were finally boyfriends~

-They aren’t SUPER afraid of bugs (unlike bats and snakes), but Grif will wither ignore them or freak out if it seems like a danger-bug. Simmons will try to shoo it outside, or if there’s no other way, be the one to make bug go squish

-Grif is ABSOLUTELY the driver (Simmons isn’t terrible, but yeah, he’d rather just let Grif do it)

-Simmons isn’t an amazing chef, but he learns how to make perhaps 7 decent meals, while Grif is PASSIONATE about food being GOOD

-Once they work through different levels of bashfulness, they’re pretty comfortable with being all touchy-touchy

-Simmons shows his affection by WORRYING, but Grif can also have some fussy moments where he shows his concern

-Grif has been dating since middle school, experiencing both good and bad relationships... Simmons has been in a weird kind of limbo; desperate to be with SOMEBODY but utterly TERRIFIED about being intimate. When they’re finally on the same page and get together, Grif wants this to be GOOD, dang it! So he takes lots of steps to make sure they enjoy their time together, and have nice dating experiences (Grif doesn’t get to be all romantic much, and Simmons thrives on the attention, so it works just fine and dandy)

[ridiculously-over-obsessed]

Happy 10 year anniversary to Pitch Perfect, the movie franchise that changed my life. Weird that a movie franchise about acapella nerds and frustrating and unrealised gay tension is the reason I know my favourite and perhaps the most important people in my life... grateful for it every day, and grateful for these weirdos most of all (among many because I will forget people kjdlfkgdf I’m sorry): @chloebeale, @djbubblegum, @chubby-maimaki, @forthosebelow, @snowydot, @trainwrecks-unite​, @177-8, @pinkpastels113, and @asweetmelodytrickling

[meiko-komoko]

The Stranger Things kids love Doctor Who because I love Doctor Who and I say so, an essay

They are the nerdiest boys in Indiana, of course they like Doctor Who.

Disclaimer: I don't know how accesible could some Doctor Who be in the US in the 80s, I hope this is accurate.

Mike is an average Fourth Doctor lover, he is his childhood and thinks that no other actor can play the role like Tom Baker.

His favourite companion is Sarah Jane, but he likes Romana a lot too. He loves the classics: City of Death, Pyramids of Mars, Genesis of the Daleks...

He lost interest on the show after Tom Baker left, and didn't like Davison very much. Doesn't care for Colin Baker either. But still enjoys watching some stuff outside of the Fourth Doctor era if the story is good enough.

Dustin is a massive whovian. His favourite Doctor is the Fourth too, but he loves every single one of them, even the First. He just really likes the Doctor in general as a character. And he's the biggest Sixth Doctor defender ever. I have a feeling that Sixie is gonna end up being his new favourite Doctor.

He is literally in love with Zoe Heriot, basically because she is Suzie in futuristic clothes. He just adores that genius girl companion type: Romana (especially Romana I), Liz, Vicki, Nyssa, even Susan... He really likes the Time Lord lore, the Master and adored the Rani.

He owns a lot of novelisations and lends them to Will all the time.

Lucas doesn't like Doctor Who as much as Dustin and Will, he's more on a Mike page. He says that the Fourth is his favourite Doctor, but his favourite era is definitely the UNIT one and he adores everything he has seen of the Third Doctor. Definitely the Brig's number one fan.

He didn't like the Davison or Colin Baker years that much, but he loves Peri – I know that he made a comment on her cleavage during that scene of The Caves of Androzani. His favourite companions are Sarah Jane and Leela, but Ace is probably gonna take that title in a few years.

Will also loves Doctor Who. Maybe not as much as Dustin, but he finds such comfort on the show.

He simply adores everything related to Five. He is his favourite Doctor, loves the season 19 TARDIS team and his favourite companion is definitely Nyssa.

He didn't know that it was because every single person on the TARDIS at that point is canonically queer, poor thing. Shipped Teganyssa in secret though.

Also, I know something awoke in him the moment he saw Jamie McCrimmon and his kilt in The Two Doctors and immediately went to watch some Second Doctor stuff with Dustin.

Bonus!

Suzie is also a massive whovian! Another thing she and Dustin have in common. Actually, she is a 60s Who nerd; she canonically loves The Wizard of Oz, so I'm assuming The Mind Robber is her favourite story ever.

Eleven watched some Fifth Doctor stories with Will in California and, actually, she enjoyed them a lot, she just loves the vibe. She also shipped Tegan and Nyssa – like, two girls couldn't marry in Australia or the US, but maybe in space...

I just know she always likes the most underrated companions, like Harry, Adric or Peri.

And she was the one to convince Max to give the show a chance, actually.

Max is another casual watcher, and she just stans every woman on the show. Biggest Romana and Rani fan ever. Definitely ships Teganyssa as well.

She likes the more sci-fi, imaginative part of the show, even if she makes fun of the wobbly sets and lame monsters all the time.

Erica will never admit it, but she loves that nerd British TV show. She adores the Sixth Doctor, his rainbow outfit and the camp aesthetic.

Dustin has lent her most of his Doctor Who novel collection, and she loves the comics too.

Robin is the unexpected weird whovian. She is actually into the more obscure shit, like lost episodes, comics and books. And she is a pure historical supremacist, she owns every novelisation available of the genre.

Also, she made sure Family Video brought every possible Doctor Who VHS release.

Firm believer that the Doctor and the Master have something gay going on. And Tegan and Nyssa, of course. And the Doctor and Jamie. Turlough is very fruity, too.

[occult-roommates]

The poor man’s Area 51

On the 20th of September in 2019, the day which took the internet by storm when a bunch of nerds tried to raid Area 51. Oh, how much did Audrey wished she could be there. Sadly, she is an adult with a job now, so she couldn’t go. Furthermore, at this point, living alone with only a cat in the middle of the desert was starting to drive her insane. So, Dawud caved in, and he accepted to drive the 24 hours to visit her. 

Ok, caved in sound like it’s something he didn’t want to do. It’s more that he didn’t really want to drive all alone for so long. Especially since he knows how to drive, but he kinda hates it and has never owned his very own car. So he got Daniele to come with him...only to find out Daniele never even tried to pass his driver license, so he obviously doesn’t have a car. But you know who knows how to drive and has a car? Matteo. And you also know who Daniele has been trying to introduce Dawud to for a while?

Eventually, they made it to Strangerville, and you know, as compensation for the fact she couldn’t be at the Area 51 raid, they decided to bring Audrey UFO haunting in the outskirt of the small town. After all, if there’s one person who can confirm that indeed, weird things are flying above the Strangerville’s sky, it’s Dawud.

Daniele: Finally, you get to meet my best friend since we were babies. Her name is Audrey Newberry. She works in a chemistry lab, she loves aliens, and she’s also extremely smart. We used to be in the same program for gifted kids. Daniele: Ciao bella, I’m Daniele, should have been the heir to one of the most powerful spellcaster family in the world but they disowned me when I was around 12. Audrey: Are you flirting with me? Dawud told me you’re gay so I’m confused. Daniele: I love your honesty and straight to the point approach to conversation! Dawud: And me, Matteo, I’m your cousin’s roommates. Matteo: I kinda know you at this point, I spent the equivalent of an entire day with you in a car, and we took a break in a shady hotel room. Dawud: To be fair, it wasn’t that shady. You just grew up rich so you have squewed expectation of what a hotel should be and that place smelled kinda bad. Daniele: “Kinda bad”. It smelled straight up rancid. But anyway, next time I should try using a teleportation device.

Hearing this, Matteo just popped off at him. Doesn’t he know teleportation device are not only extremely rare, less than 10 models left in the entire world (though it’s highly likely the Rossinis have one lying around considering their status), but they’re also illegal for several reasons. First of all, just having anyone be able to teleport anywhere would be a mess, which you could argue only spellcasters can use one as it is magic powered...But more importantly, it also has a 15% chance of killing you, and that is when it’s used perfectly and as intended, so imagine when it’s like...not.

Matteo: And also, magic is cheating. It’s the 21st century, you don’t need it 99% of the time. Daniele: Boohoo, we get it, you’re a self-hating spellcaster. Nobody cares, get over yourself. And don’t act like you never threw a healing spell on yourself when you were sick. Audrey: ANYWAY! Gentlemen, the sun is setting, which mean potential UFOs might be seen at any time now. We got to start looking now.

And so, the four of them looked at the sky, laid on the desertic ground, stargazing for hours upon hours, waiting for something. Though, every single time they saw something flying above them, it was very obviously an airplane, though Dawud did get lucky and manage to spot a shooting star at some point. What did he wish for? Well, he could have wished for Daniele to love him back, but he decided to be a bit less selfish and have a wish that has less...weirdly brainwashing implication assuming he doesn’t love him. In short, he wished for Audrey to be united yet again.

...Actually, he could see how this would play off. She sees a flying saucer, the same government agent who sent him to San Myshuno does the same to her, and there it is. Her loneliness is fixed, she has some proof of alien life, they live near each other again and she can join his new friends group, which will allow her to meet Kino. All would be great!

Sadly, it was eventually 3 AM, and still nothing. At that point, everyone in the group was exhausted, and as much as Audrey did not want to give up, she’ll wait til sunrise if necessary. But the boys wanted to leave, so she had to take the L.

Audrey: I-It’s so unfair. It seems like everyone in this town has an alien story, except me. Even you Dawud, your alien story in fact changed your life for the better. Do even extraterrestrial life form think I’m a weirdo and want nothing to do with me just like humans do?  Dawud: Look, we’re staying with you the entire weekend, we still have three days to see UFOs.

That wasn’t enough for Audrey, now she was afraid. What if the aliens really do indeed not like her?!

Prev - Next

[shyvioletcat]

Rudely Interrupted

It Takes Two managed to get 20 000 hits on Ao3 and I wrote this little thing to celebrate because I was just so excited! (I also bought myself some delicious cookies) Thanks for reading everyone!

Ps. This is set just after the beach trip with the other couples.

PPS running into some tagging issues bar with me

~ It Takes Two Masterlist ~

~~~~~

It was not surprising at all how they found themselves in the current situation, all things considered. Aelin had taken the first shower, Rowan heading straight in after once she had appeared in their bedroom in her towel. He’d given her a look, but all she had done was given him a playful shove out the door. They were at home together today so Aelin didn’t bother to put on much more than one of Rowan’s t-shirts. By the time Rowan had finished his shower Aelin was in the kitchen eating the last of her toast. Then her boyfriend had waltzed right in, looking devastatingly handsome with his damp hair and bare chest, his athletic shorts sitting low on his hips. He’d come up behind her and wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck, letting Aelin lean back into his chest. She’d closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh scent of his body wash. It was a scent she had become obsessed with the past few months, a weird pregnancy thing according to Rowan’s book.

And his scent and warmth and steady hands was all it took for her to turn around and kiss him.

It didn’t take long for Rowan to lift her up onto the counter to more easily kiss her senseless, it took Aelin even less time to slide his shorts off his hips–Rowan kicking them away with a soft chuckle before kissing her again. His hands were firm on her thighs, pulling her just that little bit closer as best he could with her stomach in the way.

What was surprising was the lock on the front door unlocking and then the door opening, something completely unexpected for the two of them. For one stuttering heartbeat they looked at each other with wide eyes–then they were moving. Rowan helped Aelin ease off the counter, making sure she was steady before frantically looking around for his pants. Ever the gentleman, he now didn’t have time for that as the footsteps came closer. All he had time to do was drop to the floor as their guest finally came into view, Rowan’s head smacking soundly on the cupboard.

“Hey, cuz,” Aedion said, hands in his pockets. “How are you this lovely morning?”

Truthfully, Aelin was still trying to catch her breath from their previous activities, she knew her face would still be flushed from the heavy makeout session. But she tried.

“It’s great. Good.” Aelin kept in her cringe at her own words. “What brings you here?”

Because she may or may not be quite annoyed at the intrusion, but was trying her hardest not to show it.

“Just came by to grab something,” Aedion explained. “Is Rowan around?”

Aelin nearly choked and couldn’t help the quick glance at the floor where Rowan sat, knees up and looking downright horrified.

“He’s ah– around here somewhere,” Aelin managed to get out. “Why?”

“He said I could borrow the book.”

Oh. The book.

“Um, yeah. I… Rowan knows where it is.” This time Aelin couldn’t stop the face she made at her own incompetence. She should offer to get it, but she was not keen on showing exactly how little she was wearing. Granted, it was a lot more than Rowan was wearing at this current moment.

“You okay?” Aedion asked, no doubt picking up on her weird vibe.

“Mhmm,” she hummed, leaning a little bit closer to the counter.

Aedion looked sceptical. “So, Rowan is around, yeah?”

“Yes,” Aelin tried to say confidently. Then the idea struck her. “Bathroom, he’ll be out in a minute.”

There was the softest snort from next to her and she resisted the urge to glare at her boyfriend. Yeah, it was a flawed plan. She just needed Aedion to go towards the door again.

“Hey, um.” Aelin cursed herself, she needed to pull this together. “Did you lock your car? There’s been some issues with thefts from the cars in the carpark.”

“I parked on the street and most definitely did,” Aedion said with all the confidence Aelin wished she had. “While I wait, can I grab a drink of water?”

“No!” The reply was far too quick and the look that Aedion gave her just proved it all the more.

Aedion’s eyebrows furrowed as he asked, “Why?”

Aelin didn’t have a good answer, she was too busy thinking of something to do that she didn’t exactly notice Aedion stepping around the counter. But her mind managed to catch up but not quick enough.

“I would stay there if I were you.”

Aedion scoffed. “Why would I–”

There was a ghastly moment of silence as Aedion saw everything: Aelin wearing Rowan’s shirt, Rowan sitting there in the corner of the cabinetry with his shorts bundled in his lap. She had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing as Rowan gave her cousin a small wave.

Then Aedion slapped a hand over his eyes, his hip catching the corner of the counter in his rush to get out of the kitchen making him grunt in pain.

“Gods! Aelin!” Aedion exclaimed as he reached the empty space between the living area and kitchen.

“Don’t Aelin me. I tried to warn you,” Aelin said with a shrug. “And hey, at least I’m not the nearly naked one. Lucky you.”

“Really?” Her cousin was not happy.

Aelin shrugged again, feeling braver now that had the safety of the counter again and the cat was well and truly out of the bag. “I don’t know what you want me to do here. Rowan can go and–”

“Nope, nope, he can stay right there thanks.” Aedion was looking at the floor like he wanted it to open and swallow him up. “I’ll go.”

Aedion didn’t spare her a glance as he walked past the kitchen towards the door.

Aelin lent over the counter the best she could to call out to Aedion. “Did you want that book?”

“No. Just tell Rowan to bring it to work,” Aedin said without looking back.

Aelin laughed. “He’s right–”

“I know!” Aedion all but bellowed as he slammed the door behind himself.

The slamming door echoed around the apartment, then it was followed by Aelin laughing.

“It’s not funny,” Rowan said from his hiding spot.

“Oh, yes it was.” Aelin’s voice was shaking.

He stood finally, shorts in his hand. “If I could have crawled into one of the drawers and died I would have.”

Aelin laughed again, resting her hand on his chest, fingers rapping on his skin. “And you two had made such progress since the beach trip.”

Rowan’s hand rubbed at her shoulders as he finally laughed, kissing Aelin on her forehead. “Thanks for trying though. Commendable effort, although entirely not smooth at all.”

“Anything for you, my love.” Aelin shifted to the side slightly, so she could lean her chin on his chest as she looked up at him and grinned. “So, what do you say we carry on from where we left off before we were so rudely interrupted?”

Without anymore prompting Rowan’s hands began wandering as he grinned right back. “Anything for you, my love.”

~~~~~

I thought this up a little too late and it didn't really fit in any of the remaining chapters, so it'd a fun deleted scene. Also it is qyute kate so I hope it makes sense. Thanks again for all your support guys. mwah!

Tags:

@fucking-winchester-trash // @literary-licorice // @galyxsy // @tangledraysofsunshine // @highqueenofelfhame // @3am-reading // @soup-that-is-too-hawt // @aelinfire-bringer // @nalgenewhore // @highladyofthesith // @http-itsrebecca // @sleeping-and-books // @alifletcher2012 // @westofmoon // @ttakeitbacknoww // @tswaney17 // @starseternalnighttriumphant // @rowaelinforeverworld // @theoverlyenthusiasticwriter // @they-call-me-cuatro // @musicmaam // @secret-lil-rendez-vous // @armixers-unite // @mariamuses // @chocolate-eating-bitch-queen // @velarian-trash // @queenofxhearts // @heroesofterrasen // @highladyofstoriesandmusic // @tothestarswholisten // @chemicha // @therapeuticrambling // @mydarlingfireheart // @mybbyfeyre // @unassumingsodalovesherbooks // @amitynotpity // @loysydark // @queenophelia // @empire-of-wildfire // @crackedship // @camerooonchiu // @worldoffae // @notaddictedtoanything // @sierrareads // @lowhangingtreebranches // @over300books //  @yourwhisperingshadows //  @thesirenwashere // @hellolenas // @sjmsstuff // @shadowstar2313 // @pilesofriles // @impossiblescissorspeachpaper // @cat5313 // @judelovescardan // @ellenoftroy // @flowerspringsea // @petrichara // @the-regal-warrior // @viajandosinalas // @chaoticskyy // @fanfictrash3000 // @blueeyes425 // @bamchickawowow // @rosegoldannie // @msalazar3 // @thehuntressofmoon  // @whiskeybusiness1776 // @court-of-fuck-me-daddy // @giorgia-the-trashpanda // @sailorsassley // @szklanydwormaas // @flora-and-fae // @thereaderandfangirl // @illyrian-bookworm // @meltalgel-ig // @gay-book-nerd // @amren-courtofdreams // @booksmusicandgoodvibes // @that-odd-puzzle-piece // @aelin-rowan-whitehorn // @i-love-all-books // @in-love-with-caramel-macchiato // @girl-who-reads-the-books // @1islessthan3books // @mynewdreamwasyou // @superspiritfestival // @hizqueen4life // @the-third-me // @bestmelle // @aesthetics-11 // @flourishandblottsx // @keshavomit // @x3hopeless-dreamer // @girlgotattitude448 // @annejuilanneh111 // @cursebreaker29 // @b00kworm // @mu-si-ca-l // @awkward-avocado-s // @maastrash // @the-last-apprentice // @charincharge // @aelin-queen-of-terrasen //  @firestarsandseneschals // @scarznstars // @absolute-dissapointment // @fireheart-of-your-dreams // @thesurielships // @sad-book-whore // @qoingcrazy // @df3ndyr // @but-she-was-aelin-galathynius // @silentquartz // @sjmships // @officialasianbitch // @jesstargaryenqueen // @catthefeminist // @trinitybailey2003 // @hellasblessed // @alyx801 // @amandaswallowtail // @louiseleblancdiggory // @magicalunicorngypsy // @ae-lingalathynius // @tottenhamboys20 // @rosesandglass // @abookishfreak // @littleboxofthunder // @booknerdproblems // @grandma-noob-lord // @starbornvalkyrie // @booknerdproblems // @larisssss // @sevenfreckles-for-sevenloves // @rolltide7 // @scandinavianromantic // @tillyrubes10 // @starwarsslytherin // @minaidss // @paytin77 // @curlyredqueen06 // @courtofjurdan // @anntheintrovert // @fourshizzle149 // @hsilberfarb // @acciowests // @psycho-bookaholic // @loudphantomdragon // @woollycat22 // @claralady // @perseusannabeth // @fangirlprincess09 // @maddymelv // @thatsowlmazing // @booksbqueen // @azymondias05 // @feylien // @thegreyj // @more-espresso-less-depresso-xx // @jlinez // @lysandra-ghost-leopard // @empress-ofbloodshed // @rowanwhitethornisbae // @post-it-notes33 // @rowaelinismyotp // @pullnpeeltwizzlers // @anne-reads // @jadeaffliction // @gracie-rose // @elriel4life // @swankii-art-teacher // @dangerouscherryblossompenguin // @danibutterr // @lizzyfirebringer // @miserablesmusings // @tothestarswholistentodreamers // @thenerdandfandoms // @castielspelvis // @vanzetanze // @magnifique1807 // @highlady-brittney // @story-scribbler // @linguine-panini // @cookiemonsterwholovesbooks //

[klaineccfanficlibrary]

Hi! I was wondering if you could recommend any fic written in text or email format? The only ones I managed to find are Little Numbers, Is it weird? and Don't do it... and I've already read them. Thank you for all the work you're doing :)

We’ve got a Social Media tag for you to browse, and HERE is a previous ask with several wonderful stories for you to choose from. You should also check out our texting and sexting tags.

I’ve listed some of my favorites below.

For those who are interested in the fics in the ask, HERE is a post that details them.- HKVoyage

Boy Meets Boy by @munchkinpandas24

AU!Klaine. Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson are college fanboys who meet on Twitter because of their mutual adoration for David Levithan and his amazing books. Through their words, they quickly discover that they could be exactly what the other has been looking for.

~~~~~

Unexpected: A Tale of Two Gays by congotsja, illusemywords

It started with a thank you.

~~~~~

I Hoped It Was You by @jayhawk-writes

Kurt is ready to immerse himself in New York and hopes that his college experience is amazing. The only problem, his roommate doesn't seem to want to interact with him much at all.

~~~~~

Across the Ocean by snugglesweaters

Kurt and Blaine never got together and they slowly drifted apart after Kurt transferred back to WMHS. 4 years later Kurt is working at Vogue.com in New York and Blaine is studying Musical Theatre in London. They email.

~~~~~

The President's Son by nineofhearts, Rindle

When Kurt is in 8th grade, Burt is elected President of the United States. Eventually, he decides to get a tumblr (despite an explicit ban on all social media accounts), where he meets Blaine, who has no idea that he has just met Kurt Hummel, son of President Hummel.

~~~~~

k_hummel and 7 others like your picture by @klaineanummel

Two likes on Instagram change the course of Blaine Anderson's life.

~~~~~

Hang With Me by pulling-the-puzzles-apart

AU college - Nerd!Blaine meets Kurt online while he is studying at NYADA, Kurt is in LA studying at AMDA. Despite the distance they start up a friendship that could lead to so much more but can their love survive with over a thousand miles distance between them?

~~~~~

Your Entertainment by Switch842

Kurt Hummel has finally made it to New York, but nothing has worked out the way he imagined. Lonely and scared in the big city, Kurt turns to the internet to help him meet his needs. What happens when the literal man of his dreams walks into Kurt's life?

[ETA] Thank you @teddyshoney for the additional recommendation. - HKVoyage

Better Knot Bow Tie Company: Act One by @gleefulpoppet

Blaine Anderson has been a Better Knot Bow Tie Company monthly subscriber for years. He's taken a hiatus from Broadway to facilitate the Journey Performing Arts School's summer program in New York. What happens when a zany bow tie sets off a chain reaction of events that may change their futures forever?

Sequel: Better Knot Bow Tie Company: Act Two 

[emy-loves-you]

Wrong Numbers and Useless Gays Chapter 6

Who the F*ck’s Rebecca? OR How the 3 Gays got Together

Virgil learns about Roman’s childhood, specifically his sister and how he ended up dating Patton and Logan.

Warning: Misgendering of a character (but no one knows that the character is trans)

Yes, Roman and Remus are brothers. Explanations are listed at the bottom

Chapter 5 | Masterlist | Chapter 7

V- (2:07 PM) Let it Go was the best song in Frozen and you cannot convince me otherwise

R- (2:07 PM) I respect your opinion, but hear me out: Love is an Open Door

V- (2:08 PM) No

R- (2:08 PM) What about Fixer Upper?

V- (2:09 PM) Still no.

P- (2:09 PM) I really liked Olaf’s song about Summer!

L- (2:10 PM) I personally enjoyed the reprise of First Time in Forever.

R- (2:10 PM) You like almost any song with a reprise

L- (2:10 PM)I will not argue that, as successfully executed reprises are “lit.”

R- (2:11 PM) Ah, and who among us could forget the absolute BOP that is… that weird ice-cutting song.

P- (2:11 PM) I don’t know, Roman. I think that song is, pretty COOL

R- (2:11 PM) Oh, lookout

V- (2:12 PM) What? He’s just saying it’s a CHILLED out groove.

R- (2:12 PM) Ugh

L- (2:12 PM) We might need you two to leave this chat if you don’t stop.

Virgil laughed, throwing his phone on the bed and stripping out of his clothes. He just finished jogging home from Janus’ (he didn’t own a car right now, preferring to walk or have Janus pick him up). It was a lazy afternoon in late September, and all Virgil wanted to do was get out of these sweaty clothes and maybe take a nap. He heard his phone go off multiple times as he got dressed, probably Patton and Logan arguing about the purpose of puns. He flopped down onto his bed and grabbed his phone, checking the new messages.

P- (2:14 PM) Lo, the Princes are calling.

L- (2:14 PM) Tell Roman not to answer, Patton. We’ve been over this.

P- (2:14 PM) They’re asking about us, Lo.

L- (2:14 PM) Tell Roman to hang up. They’re not worth it.

P- (2:15 PM) They’re yelling now, L. They brought up Rebecca. What do I do?

L- (2:15 PM) Just walk into another room, Patton. Ignore them. Do you want me to call you?

P- (2:15 PM) No, I’m good. Just keep texting me. I need a distraction.

Now, Virgil had no idea about what the fuck was going on. But he knew how to distract someone. He’d just have to trust them to tell him later.

V- (2:16 PM) Did you know that octopi have 3 hearts?

L- (2:16 PM) What

P- (2:16 PM) That just means they have more love to give!

V- (2:17 PM) The longest recorded flight of a chicken is 13 seconds

P- (2:17 PM) Such a good bird!

V- (2:17 PM) Babies do not regularly produce tears until they are 1-3 months old

L- (2:18 PM) Ah, I think I understand now

V- (2:18 PM) A ‘jiffy’ is an actual unit of time. It stands for 1/1000th of a second

L- (2:18 PM) Falsehood. A jiffy is 1/100th of a second

V- (2:19 PM) Sorry, my hand must’ve slipped.

L- (2:19 PM) You would be unable to walk on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus or Neptune because they have no solid surface.

L- (2:20 PM) An asteroid about the size of a car enters Earth’s atmosphere roughly once a year. However, it burns up before it can reach us.

L- (2:20 PM) The highest mountain known to man is on an asteroid called Vesta. It is approximately three times the height of Mount Everest.

P- (2:21 PM) I think they hung up. Thanks for keeping me company, Kiddos!

L- (2:21 PM) It was not an issue, Patton.

V- (2:21 PM) Yeah, no problem Pat. Now can someone explain what just happened?

L- (2:23 PM) As you can probably tell, I am not home at the moment. Apparently, Roman’s parents decided to call him and an argument broke out. The rest is not my place to say.

Virgil bit his lip, refusing to look at his phone screen. Did Virgil have the right to ask about that. It was obviously a very sensitive topic, and Virgil had only known Roman for about 3 months now. Virgil felt like he knew a lot about his 3 crushes (their quirks, their favorite sweets, their goals in life), but he knew very little about their lives before Virgil had met them. Which was fine; they knew very little about Virgil’s life, too. But he desperately wanted to help Roman; to make him feel happy and safe and loved. Virgil sighed, setting his phone on his nightstand. If Princey wants to tell me what’s going on, I’ll listen. If not, I’ll just have to deal with it.

Virgil woke up from his nap to the sound of his phone going off. He blindly felt around for it, his face still firmly planted in his pillow. He finally found it, turning it on before he lifted his head to read the text. It was a private message from Princey.

R- (3:02 PM) You’re probably wondering what happened today.

V- (3:02 PM) I am, but you don’t have to tell me if you’re not comfortable. I’ll respect your privacy.

R- (3:02 PM) As much as I appreciate that, you still deserve to know.

R- (3:03 PM) Do you mind if I call you? This doesn’t feel like a conversation to have over text.

Virgil thought about it for a moment. He originally never wanted to call Roman, simply because he might recognize Virgil’s voice as Anxiety’s. However, not only was Virgil 99% confident that Roman had never even heard of The Dark Sides, Virgil’s head was still foggy after his nap. Before he knew it, he was already calling Princey’s phone.

“Virgil?” Roman didn’t sound as… grand as Virgil expected. His voice was subdued and slightly hoarse, probably from the screaming match with his parents.

“Heya, Princey.” Virgil cringed at how gravelly his voice sounded. He’ll need to get some water after this conversation is over.

“You sound so tired. Oh my stars, did I wake you up? I’m so sorry. I’ll let you get back to sleep-”

“Princey, it’s okay. Just finished my nap. Might not talk much, but ‘m all ears.”

“Alright. Where do I even begin?”

“Take your time. ‘m not pressurin’ you or anythin’.”

“(sigh) You’re right. I guess I should start at the beginning. I grew up in a very... conservative household. My parents expected me and my sister, Rebecca, to be perfect. ReeRee was my partner in crime. We did everything together up until highschool. My parents expected me to get a football scholarship and date the hottest girl in school. I did those things, not because I wanted to, but because they wanted me to. ReeRee was a different story. When my parents signed her up for cheerleading, she tried to join the football team instead. When they told her she should wear her hair in a ponytail, she cut it off to match mine. I didn’t understand, and it made me angry. It was like looking in a funhouse mirror; she was starting to look more and more like me, and yet each change made my parents angrier. Why was looking and acting like me a problem? I thought they liked this version of me! One night in the summer before junior year I was really frustrated and I took it out on her. I told her to stop acting like me. I knew she didn’t deserve my anger, so I went to Patton’s place to cool down. By the time I came home, my parents refused to acknowledge that I even had a sister. I pushed her away, and now I’ll never get her back.

After that, things changed. I was so angry, and everything I saw reminded me of her. I quit the football team, because every time I went down to the field I expected to see her. I dyed my hair, because every time I looked in the mirror I saw her staring back. I stopped caring about what my parents thought, ‘cause it was their opinions that dragged me into this mess!

I had already been friends with Patton since Freshman year, but me and Logan had been at each other’s throats . We were always bickering about something, and sometimes I used our arguments to vent out my anger at whatever was wrong at the time. I didn’t even realize how much I had cared about Patton and Logan until I learned about the LGBTQ+ community. My parents were super strict, and Patton and Logan didn’t exactly flaunt their relationship. I had no idea that liking guys was even an option . Once I learned about it, my parents quickly tried to shut it down. Everyday, they’d start their day telling me that ‘homosexuality is a sin’ and ‘God made you to be the gender you were born with!’ If they had told me that before ReeRee left, I might’ve believed them. But by this point, I didn’t care about a single thing they told me.

So one day, I’m arguing with Logan about who knows what, and suddenly we’re inches apart, and I remember pa saying ‘ a boy should never kiss another boy.’ And just think, ‘Fuck it.’ And now me and Pocket Protector are suddenly making out behind the school building. Microsoft Nerd asks why the hell I decided to make out with him of all people, and I break down right there. He agreed to keep it a secret, but he refused to do anything more than a simple make-out session until he had Padre’s consent to do so. Which I understood, consent is important, cheating is bad.

Now we’re having these ‘sessions’ at least once a week for almost 4 months. Patton eventually walked in on us and he was understandably upset. I explained what had happened and that I’ve had a crush on both of them for a while. And they’re like ‘cool, we’re polyam.’ And now I’m starting senior year dating two men, which mom and pa were not okay with. I told ‘em to fuck off and we moved away as soon as we graduated. They still call occasionally, asking when I’m gonna get my life together and get over losing ReeRee. I haven’t blocked ‘em yet in case they find her or change their minds.”

Roman finally took a deep breath. “Sorry about the rant. Didn’t realise how badly I needed to get that off my chest.”

Virgil snorted. “Don’t worry ‘bout it. Told ya I’d be a good ear. And Princey?”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t gotta do anything to impress someone else. You bein’ you is good enough. And if Rebecca could see you, I’m sure she’d be proud as hell. And don’t be ‘fraid to hit me up if you need someone other than your SOs to rant to; I’ll always be here for ya, Princey.”

“... Thank you, Virgil. I didn’t realize how much I needed to hear that until you said it.” He sighed, and Virgil could hear the sound of running water. “I’m gonna go drink some water. My throat burns like a bitch right now.”

“Same. Catch you later?”

He could hear Roman chuckle to himself. “I guess you shall. Farewell, Storm Cloud. And pleasant dreams!”

Virgil blushed. The way Roman said his nickname… it made Virgil’s gay heart nearly explode. He quickly hung up and buried his face back into his pillow. I’ll get water later. AFTER my heart stops racing.

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

Now, for those of you wondering about why Virgil doesn't realize that Roman and Remus are brothers, I'm gonna put a quick explanation here, 'cause I don't know how to casually fit this into the story. 1.) Remus has never told Virgil his deadname or his last name. He's probably told Janus (since their pretty close) but Virgil doesn't know. 2.) Remus has never told Virgil that his brother's name is Roman. Additionally, when Virgil is talking about the 3 gays, he only calls them "Pat, Lo and Princey." 3.) Roman's parents didn't tell him that Remus transitioned, so he doesn't know that Rebecca now goes by Remus. Also, none of the characters have actually sent pictures of their faces, so none of them have any idea what the other looks like. 4.) It is a total coincidence that both twins moved to the same town. Remus believes that Roman still lives in their hometown, and Remus could be dead for all that Roman knows. There is no logical reason for them to think "maybe Virgil's friends with my long-lost sibling" 5.) Virgil would NEVER out his friends like that. He tells Janus and Remus everything, but he would NEVER betray Roman's trust like that. Same thing for telling Roman about Remus. Roman might know that Remus is trans, but he doesn't know about Remus' background. ONE LAST THING: Roman and Virgil will eventually see each other face-to-face but WON'T recognize each other's voices. This is because during the phone call Virgil is still groggy from waking up and Roman is still hoarse from screaming.

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

Taglist: @bisexualdisaster106 @self-taught-mess @itawalrus @arodynamic-enby @sanderssides-angst

[iamatt122]

A Biography Within a Eulogy

I have been kicking around ideas for a blog for a while now. I suddenly had the inspiration to write today from a muse that is no stranger to me but may seem a bit macabre to others.

This morning I heard about the passing of Richard Trumka. Trumka was the president of the AFL-CIO for the last 12 years. He was secretary-Treasurer for the 15 years before that. The 13 years before that he was president of the United Mine Workers. His father was a coal miner with a Union job that put him through college. He worked in the mines as a young man as well. These are the same Mine workers who are in the middle of a 5-month strike in Alabama as I write this.  

I had the honor of hearing him speak multiple times and I met him on one occasion. The day I met him changed my life. Here is where the introduction to me comes in.

My father was a Master-at Arms in the Navy, and my mother was a telephone operator for Pacific Bell. As a child in the 80′s I watched as our nation went through this extravagant decadent period of economic prosperity (for the wealthy). Meanwhile, I was the kid with the Payless buy one get one for a penny shoe, and the chip on my shoulder about being in what should have been a middle class working family that couldn’t quite make ends meet enough for my brother and I to participate in some of the extracurricular activities of our peers. My brother was teased about the pink banana seat bike we inherited from somewhere as the other kids rode new BMX racing bikes.  

I didn’t do well in school despite being tagged as a GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) student. My grades suffered and I was sent to live with my uncle who was a teacher in the L.A. area. It was here that I encountered more diversity than I had ever experienced before. My openly gay uncle and I stayed in Long Beach in an apartment about 2 blocks from Martin Luther King Blvd. (If you know you know). I went to school in a predominately Chicano neighborhood near where he taught in Whittier. 

It was during this time I also learned about racism and police brutality. Even before Rodney King was beaten by four officers over 50 times, I had run-ins with the Whittier Police and LAPD. The most memorable impression was an incident where my friends and I were out skateboarding after curfew. We were pulled over and placed spread eagle on a wall. I was the only white kid in the bunch. An officer walked over to me and said, “It’s late. Go on home.” He was taken aback when I told him I was staying with one of my Latino friends and I couldn’t go without him. They patted everyone down and released us. But I could feel the malice towards my friends.

It was also around this time that I got into alternative, punk, and hip hop. I was raised on Country and Western, R&B, Metal, Big Band, Surf Rock, Pop, and Hard Rock. Music is and was a gateway to all kinds of different worlds for me. I never learned to play an instrument. However, music played a huge role in my career path. More on that later.

The rebel DIY attitude and Gen X grunge nihilism did no favors to my grades or my future as a model citizen for that matter. I made dumb kid mistakes and did dumb kid things that I won’t go into detail about here. Suffice to say, “easy money” for a teenager in LA County in the 90′s came with a lot of strings attached. Despite being a white kid raised in suburban San Diego County, I molded myself to fit my environment. I wouldn’t give any of it back for all the money in the world. In the “hood” I learned about friendship, community, loyalty, and respect. I also unfortunately became a Raiders fan and a Dodgers fan, where I learned more about those values along with disappointment and defeat. 

High School brought me back to North San Diego County. My grandparents didn’t want me attending the school in the neighborhood my parents and I lived because there was “gang problems” there(translation: Hispanic and Pacific Islander students). So, I went to Carlsbad High School, where not only was I not a minority, but I am pretty sure the minority population percentage was in the low 30s. This is where I got to lean into being a weird punk rock, goth kid and enroll in Drama. My grades never recovered, and I dropped out in my Senior Year. 

I had been doing technical production for Drama and found a passion for the arts that didn’t involve me being front and center and allowed me to play a supporting role in a small community of nerds on campus (foreshadowing). This new passion led me to an internship at a theatre and eventually my first real Union job (I don’t count the 3 months I worked at a grocery store).

I became a pre-apprentice with IATSE Local 122. I was a professional stagehand. I experienced live music, theatre, comedy, drama, board meetings, tv shoots, conventions, arena tours, stadium tours, and so much more as I honed my craft. I was literally shining a light on some of the music I grew up listening to. 

I was an apprentice when I met Richard Trumka. We had set up audio at the Convention Center for him to speak at a rally for one of the many labor battles we were fighting in San Diego at the time on behalf of hotel workers, grocery workers, teachers, or other workers in what had been a very conservative bastion of California. 

Now, I have ADHD, so I don’t remember specifics. I do great with ideas though. President Trumka’s words inspired me to become more involved with my union than the transactional experiences I had to that point. I was already beginning to learn the value of the Camaraderie in a union thanks to a few wonderful mentors who frankly took on father figure roles in my life that had been absent or temporary until then. Richard Trumka and the AFL-CIO represented something new in the labor movement for me personally despite the long history behind it. I finally realized how much community matters and how the labor movement is centered on that community. 

Since that day, I became a trustee of IATSE Local 122, and I returned to school at 36 years old to receive two AAs in Political Science, and in Social Science. I am now finishing up my B.A. in Political Science, minoring in Art and Media Technology. During the 2020 election cycle I was Assistant Campaign Manager for the first Asian American La Mesa City Council Member Jack Shu, as well as acting as volunteer coordinator for the first openly bisexual Black and Latino National City Council Member Marcus Bush. I am still a card-carrying Journeyman of IATSE Local 122, and I hope to be attending Law School next Fall. Everything that I have done has been in an effort to create the community that President Trumka painted for me that day. 

Those who walk uprightly enter into peace.

RIP President Trumka.

[sentient-stove]

Crashing Down.

Fandom: Sanders Sides

Characters: Logan, c!Thomas Sanders (mentioned), Virgil, Roman, Patton, Remus, Janus, Nico Flores.

Relationships: c!Thomas/Nico, Logan/Nico, Logan&Virgil, Platonic DRLAMP, Roman/Patton

Additional tags: MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH (x2), Angst with a happy ending, Sad Logan hours, Homophobia, Protests.

Summary: What if gay marriage was made illegal again? What if you never got the chance to tell the person that you loved that you loved them? What if they were torn from you?

Notes: Hey, gay marriage is actually super close to becoming illegal again in the United States, so catch me being killed because people hate me for who I am. This is a very sad story, but it has a happy ending. enjoy.

AO3

Virgil can’t breathe.  There’s a knee pressing into his neck and as he chokes, the leering face of the man looms over him.

God, he doesn’t want this to be the last thing he sees, but his vision is swimming and the way that stars are dancing in his vision reminds him of Logan…

The darkness wins.

…

Logan is at work when he gets the call.

Logan is twenty five when he loses his best friend at a protest.

Logan is twenty five when the world comes crashing down.

It had been something that Virgil had offhandedly brought up that morning, when the two were in bed, using each other as radiators so that they didn’t have to pay for heating.  A protest that someone had organized that was directly fighting against the ban on gay marriage that had been reinstated after only being legal for five years.  He understood where the anger came from and he promised to meet Virgil there after work.

It never happened.

Instead Logan was asked to identify a body in a morgue.  Virgil looked like shit as a dead man, the dark circles under his eyes matching in a horrible way with the strangulation marks on his neck.

He didn’t cry.  Not until he was knocking on his brother’s door, falling into the arms of Patton and sobbing as his older brother easily lifted him and carried him to the couch.  Logan lets himself be hugged, even if it isn’t what he wants, it’s what he needs in the moment, someone to hug him and whisper lies that everything will be okay.

But it’s not.  Patton can’t marry his husband, (they were married but it was nullified after gay marriage was banned), and Logan is alone.

Gosh, it’s only been seven hours and he misses Virgil more than anything.  Roman came in sometime during the crying fest and joined the pile, simply giving Logan a knowing look.

The protest wasn’t supposed to get violent.  That man wasn’t supposed to try to kill that girl and Virgil wasn’t supposed to push him away, knowing that he was fighting a losing battle.

According to the people that managed to pull the guy off of Virgil, his best friend’s last words were along the lines of telling the dude to fuck himself with a hot iron.

It’s fitting.

…

Would it be lying to say that it snowed the day of the funeral?  Janus looked up at the sleet that was coming down, tilting his umbrella back just enough to catch some in his face.

His brother had always wanted to be cremated and then scattered in a Walmart parking lot at the witching hour, and so here they are at three am, scattering ashes like how Virgil wanted.  Twins were weird that way.  Janus never felt like they were related, but Virgil had always loved the strange and obscure, almost the exact opposite of himself.

Logan hasn’t said a word for a week and it scares Janus.  He knew that the pair were close, but this was concerning.

The ashes blend well with the sleet, disappearing as each take a turn to scatter some.  Janus saved the last bit, and the others pretended not to notice.

…

Patton finds the journal when they’re cleaning out the small apartment that Logan used to share with Virgil.

It’s tucked under the floorboards, it’s really a miracle that he stumbled on it and when he opens it, he can see Virgil’s beautiful cursive filling every page.

Who knew the emo could write so pretty?  The journal itself is not that old, the first date from less than six months ago.  Each page has a snippet from his life and it’s the words on the last page that prompt Patton to fresh tears.

I think I’ll tell Logan tomorrow.  Ask him if maybe… after all this is over, maybe he’ll go out on a date with me?

The entry was three days before he died.

Patton doesn’t show Logan the journal when his brother comes back into the room to carry out a box.  The timing isn’t right and Logan is still fragile, barely eating, barely speaking.

…

Roman sat across from the man who did it, the man who’s now in cuffs, blank stare boring into his soul.

“Why?” “He was in the way.”

Roman refrains from showing any emotion, although if there wasn’t a pane of glass between them, he’d beat the man until he was black and blue for what he did.

“Do you regret it.”

“Yes.”

“But not for the reasons you should.”

…

It’s Remus who finds Logan one night.  Both of them are on the wrong side of the bridge railing, tempting fate.

“I miss him.”  Logan admits softly.  Remus doesn’t blame him.  It’s been three months since the funeral and so much has changed.  Roman and Patton are married again, Janus disappeared to Italy and has yet to send out another text confirming if he’s alive and Remus?

He finds Logan.  He takes Logan home and helps him eat, helps him stay alive as the world tunnels for the nerd.

He misses Virgil.

But he moves on.  Remus doesn’t dwell on things for long, it’s part of the reason why Virgil called him heartless as a joke.  It rings false, they both knew it.

Logan was his first friend.  They had met in high school, back before Virgil was in the picture.  Logan had found Remus on a bridge like this.  He’d sat down and coaxed Remus back over the right edge, concern lacing his voice as he talked him through his intrusive thoughts.  Logan had later met Virgil and the three became unstoppable senior year of high school.

  Remus knows that Logan misses that feeling.

Because he does too.

…

Logan is under his covers when the package arrives, addressed to him in flowing cursive.

It’s Virgil’s handwriting, he’s seen it enough times on the grocery lists that they put together.

It’s a simple bracelet.

Logan didn’t realize that it was Valentine’s day until almost a week later, when he went to the post office to mail a letter and the mailperson processing the letter asked if he got the package okay.

Apparently Virgil had set up the package almost a year in advance, hoping to have forgotten by the time Valentine’s rolled around so his friend could have a surprise.

Logan went home and sobbed for an hour after.

…

Janus returns, a new scar cutting across his cheek and a tattoo on the back of his neck that is a simple padlock with a lightning bolt on it.

He brings with him a delicate glass blown pendant.  The glass was mixed with the leftover of Virgil’s ashes and he gave it to Logan.

It rests against Logan’s heartbeat and he pretends to be okay even though everything is crashing down.

…

Virgil’s murderer is released from prison.  He later kills another gay man at a protest and is given the death penalty.

It’s too merciful. 

…

Logan turns twenty six.  He doesn’t celebrate.

…

Patton gives Logan the journal one day, on a whim when Logan asks if he can help with cooking the anniversary dinner for when Roman and Patton got remarried.

…

Logan is twenty seven when he meets Nico in a mall.  They ran into each other- literally and at a later time, he finds out that Nico lost someone too.

Virgil and Thomas.

It’s strange how you lose the ones you love the most.

Together, they pick up the broken pieces and struggle forward.

…

Logan is thirty when he becomes Logan Flores.

Later, after the wedding reception, he’ll hold his husband close and promise, no, vow to always be there for him.

They fall asleep tangled together and everything seems to click back into place.  For Logan, he still feels like a vase that's been shattered at a teenager's party, but he's slowing fixing himself, slowly getting better.

…

Sometimes you lose your first love.

Sometimes it snows and you think of them.  

Sometimes you pretend that it's okay.

Sometimes everything comes crashing down.

Sometimes it gets fixed.

This is one of those times.