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buckyownsmylife · 4 years ago

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v e l o c i t y - chapter ii

The one where John’s your true mate, but he doesn’t want you to be his.

In a universe where fate grants you a new mate whenever you lose yours, John has lived quite comfortably for many years with the knowledge that he was alone after Mary. That all comes crumbling down the second that he meets you. How could the universe choose someone so young to be his omega?

for general warnings and author’s notes, please go to the fic’s masterlist. It’s being constantly updated

John’s P.O.V.

God fucking damn it. Just what the hell was going on back in Bobby’s house and why the hell wasn’t he picking up the phone?

For the first time since I left her behind, I found myself considering I should have at least given my omega - no, not my omega, just Y/N - enough attention to ask her for her number. At least it would have been handy in a time like this one, where my heart was pumping loudly, shortening my breathing, and making it difficult for me to focus. I just wanted to know what was going on, but there was no way I could tap into an unfulfilled bond to see what had scared Y/N so badly.

A sharp pang in my stomach had me abruptly turning the impala around and returning to the direction we had left behind two weeks before, much to the boys’ surprise. I made sure to ignore their open mouths and raised eyebrows, but I should know better than to hope that they’d quietly accept this change of plans.

“Where are we going?” Dean asked, while Sam rubbed off the sleep from his face.

“Back to Bobby’s,” I barked, and I knew that my tone didn’t allow for any follow-up questions. Still, Dean couldn’t help himself. He had been (sometimes not so) subtly teasing me about the girl, making jokes about how I probably wouldn’t even be able to handle the needs of a young body, anything to get a reaction from me.

“Forgot something there?” I knew what he was implying, and even though it couldn’t be further from the truth, I couldn’t find it in myself to explain just yet. Terror made my heartbeat clear and quick on my ears, and I hated it. It wasn’t a feeling that was familiar, but considering it truly belonged to someone else, it was just beyond irritating.

“Something like that.”

Stepping on the pedal as I was once again flooded with a panic that didn’t belong to me, I found myself praying I’d be able to make it there in time to stop whatever the hell was going on. To whom I was praying, I didn’t know, just as I couldn’t explain why the hell I cared.

Y/N’s P.O.V.

I squeezed my knees tighter to my body, trying to make myself smaller while attempting to control my breathing at the same time. It wasn’t easy, especially since my heartbeat was all over the place.

At least the screaming has subdued. Although that did little to appease my concern, it did help in my task of hiding in this safe room inside the empty basement. Just before Bobby managed to shove me in here, the last thing he told me was to keep quiet and still until someone came to get me, but now that his voice had been gone for a while and he still hadn’t reappeared, I doubted anyone would come looking for me.

Still, I couldn’t find it in myself to uncurl my body from this somewhat calm-inducing position and actually step out of the room to go explore the house. Not when I could still remember so clearly what I found when my dad was murdered. And I couldn’t see the same done with Bobby. I just couldn’t. Not when that meant that I was completely alone, with no one to worry about me in this entire world.

Tears rose, prompting me to blink them away, scared that once I allowed myself to grieve, I wouldn’t be able to stop. This wasn’t the time or the place. My life could very well still be in danger. And I couldn’t let Bobby’s… disappearance be for nothing. No. He put himself at risk for me, I’d abide by his wishes.

First things first, I’d stay right here, not moving a muscle. If nothing came to find me, then I’d slowly make my way out of this hiding spot… once I deemed it was safe enough to do so.

But for now, there wasn’t much I could do, other than focus on my breathing and keep quiet. Real quiet. And watch time slowly go by. Praying that if something did come to find me, it would come in with a friendly face.

John’s P.O.V.

“Shit.” It was all I said as I barely managed to park the car right outside Bobby’s place before leaping out of it. It was pretty obvious something had happened over here, if not by the fact that the front door was slammed open, at least by the tracks of something that had been dragged over the front lawn, looking too much like a body not to make every single nerve end on my body stand to attention again.

At least I was feeling something again, and even if it was from my own system and not hers, I considered it a good sign. Halfway through the drive the panic that had been steadily building had completely disappeared, and I almost believed, if only for a second, something had happened to her - only to realize that if someone had killed my mate, I would have definitely known.

I still didn’t want to think about her as being my mate, but the existence of this connection between us was undeniable, especially as I bursted into the house, gun in my hand, to find blood fucking everywhere. The feelings of worry skyrocketed - I wanted to attribute them to her, but I knew they were mine. Just what the fuck had happened here and where the fuck was her?

I could hear the boys walking around the house behind me. I couldn’t give them any attention. My mind was occupied with her and only her, needing to know that she was safe, almost desperate to know where the heck she was.

Bobby was a smart man. If he had noticed even an inkling of something going South, he’d have found a way to protect her. I just had to figure out what it was. Gun still in hand, although it was pretty clear that whatever it was that had been here had left long ago, I encircled the sofa and started to make my way down to the basement, remembering a conversation I’d had with Bobby one of the many times I came to visit.

“There’s an old closet in the back of the room downstairs,” he’d said. “It’d make for a good panic room, if I ever ended up having something I needed to keep safe.” Despite never having seen it, it wasn’t too hard to find it once I managed to turn on the lights. It really was made to be imperceptible for someone who wasn’t looking for it, but since that wasn’t my case, the difference in the wood texture of the walls sorely jumped out to my eyes, and I reached out to curve the barely existent nail of my thumb on the indentation until I was able to pull it open.

And there she was.

She was asleep, head resting on her knees, tucked away into the corner of the closet-sized room. A sigh of relief fell out of my mouth before I could reel it in, my heart clenching at the adorable sight before I snapped myself out of it. Fuck, no. This wasn’t any sentimental mate shit. This was me, worried about another living human being - one that had been placed under my friend’s care after having lost her entire family. That was all there was to it.

Still, I was careful when I reached out to put a hand on top of her, hoping it would suffice to pull her from her slumber. What I wasn’t expecting, however, was for that fucking connection to call out at the feeling of her skin under my calloused fingers, her eyes snapping open in shock and her mouth opening in clear intent to scream her lungs out.

“Shhhh… It’s just me. Shut the fuck up,” I groaned, one hand clasped over her mouth as I pulled her up with me and drag us out of the panic room. From the corner of my eye, I could see the boys had caught on to what had happened, and were clearly relieved to see her safe, despite the lack of indication as to where Bobby could be.

After the initial shock, she finally stopped mumbling against my palm and took a deep breath, probably taking in the reality of the situation. It was just us. No immediate danger around.

I don’t think she even noticed when I slipped out from behind her, finally uncovering her mouth so I could try to understand what the hell had happened around here. The lack of contact between our skin, however, was sorely felt by my alpha genes, that begged me to look for her softness again, keep it close to me.

“Bobby?” Just that question made it clear we wouldn’t be getting much answers from her. Before I could say anything, Dean shook his head with an apologetic smile, and despite her falling down on a couch nearby, much to my surprise, she didn’t start crying or screaming again. If anything, she took the news (or lack of them) with quiet resignation, something that intrigued me to no end.

She’d lost everything, but instead of behaving like some poor little omega, she just accepted that this was her life now.

“Didn’t you hear anything?” I finally asked, and had to suppress a smug grin when her eyes immediately snapped up to meet mine, easily abandoning Dean’s gaze.

“Screams. But I couldn’t make out what was being said, it just seemed…” She hesitated then, like she needed to gather some strength to keep talking about it, but still, she pushed through. “It just seemed like they were torturing him, you know? It didn’t last long, but it was…”

She didn’t need to say it, it was easy to understand. Haunting. Devastating. I can’t imagine how it must have been like to be stuck in that spot, desperately wanting to help - because I knew it had been the case, I could feel it through our… bond, as nonexistent as it was - and being absolutely terrified about what could be waiting on the other side.

I had the overwhelming urge to wrap my arms around her, feel her body against mine again and comfort her mind with my presence. It was so strong, in fact, that I had to bury my fingernails in my palms in order to stop myself from doing that, but since the urge remained, I distracted my animalistic side with some practical tasks that needed to be dealt with.

“Okay, let’s get the hell out of here. Sam, did you pack her stuff?” Knowing my youngest had gone up to the second floor and was easily the most prepared out of all of us, it didn’t surprise me when he answered by simply holding up a duffel in his hands. “Alright, then let’s hit the road.”

Y/N’s P.O.V.

Taken by surprise and ripped from my admittedly dark thoughts, I whipped around to stare at the older man who looked like this was just another ordinary day, like he hadn’t just very clearly tried to alter the course of my existence. But instead of providing me with any sort of explanation, he just reached out for my arm and pulled me from the couch, dragging me all the way to the main floor of the house and out of it before I was able to speak again.

“Stop! Hold on!” I managed to release my wrist from his grip, but I don’t think he would have even realized I was speaking if it weren’t from the sudden lack of contact between our bodies.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” The omega in me wanted to recoil at the sight of her alpha looking at us with such anger, but he wasn’t our alpha. And he definitely had no right to come here and take control of my life like I had no say in the matter whatsoever.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I shot back, and his mouth hung open in surprise. It almost made me feel smug about myself, knowing I had the power to shock the great John Winchester, who thought he was too good to become someone’s mate, but I was too angry to even acknowledge that. “You can’t just come in here and take me away, that’s not how it works.”

“I’m trying to keep you safe.” From the little I knew of him, considering our limited encounters and the stories Bobby and other hunters had told me about, I knew he was a man of few words, but even my irate state of mind could identify the warning bells on the way he uttered that simple sentence, paired with the sight of the veins on his forearms as he clenched his hands into fists.

Still, I pressed on.

“Who gave you that responsibility? Bobby was my godfather, my father trusted him, I know next to nothing about you. In fact, I want to keep knowing next to nothing about you. Just the same as you want when it comes to me, I’m certain.”

Waves of anger radiated from him, and even Sam and Dean seemed tense from a distance, where they stood by the car, watching our altercation. Guess seeing their dad this furious wasn’t as usual as I figured it would be, considering the Alpha inside of him.

“Why is it so hard for you to just obey? Get inside the car. I’m not gonna ask you again.” Of course, he could have made me obey, if he wanted to. One order from their alpha and any omega would fall to their knees, the genetic pull too strong to ignore. But he didn’t use his alpha voice, he used his John voice, and if at first that surprised me, believing it to be from a place of respect, the realization that it was most likely because he didn’t want to recognize that our bond even existed only filled me with even more anger.

“I am not getting in that car with you.” I braced myself for what he could do, trying to harden my soul so it wouldn’t hurt to see him leave - that’s what I wanted, right? - while also preparing to fight if he finally relented and took advantage of his manipulation power, but there was just no way I could anticipate him shortening the distance between us and easily throwing me over his shoulder like I was nothing more than a sack of potatoes.

John’s P.O.V.

Fucking stupid ‘mega. Is she actively trying to get herself killed? Everyone around her has died in the last few months, what makes her think she can survive on her own? Why the fuck couldn’t she just be a good fucking girl and obey me? I hated that I had to resort to this, I hated having to touch her again, and especially have her over my shoulder, where I could feel the smell of her hair as it fighted against the wind and she tried to punch my back.

I grunted as I deposited her on the copilot seat, immediately locking the door so she wouldn’t be able to run away. The boys took their places in the backseat while I made my way to the driver’s seat, and although Dean didn’t look all that happy to be confined back there, it couldn’t come close to the burning expression with which she regarded me.

“Don’t you look at me like that,” I growled. “You’re coming and that’s final.”

“You don’t want me! Why are you taking me with you?” She was nearly yelling by then, arms waving around like a lunatic, and I had to to grind my teeth together so I wouldn’t reach out and…

I don’t know what I wanted to do, to be honest. I just knew that my head was pounding and I could still fill the weight of her body over my shoulder, like her skin had burned the fabric of my shirt and imprinted the shape of her body on my soul.

“You must be really fucking stupid if you think I’m gonna leave you out there, all alone.” That, thank the lord, was enough to shut her up, but I figured out pretty soon that she didn’t need to open her mouth to find new ways to annoy me.

“Driver picks the music,” I warned, lightly slapping her hand when she reached for the radio, but the infuriating little thing only slapped mine back and changed the station anyway.

“Maybe on a road trip. If you don’t want this to be recognized as a kidnapping, it’s the least you can do.” God, she was infuriating. I clenched my hands on the wheel, mulling the words I wanted to say over my head and I still wasn’t able to stop the threat from spilling.

“I swear to God, I’m not above pulling over and spanking you until you’re not able to walk for a whole week.” The second her eyes met mine, I knew trouble was coming my way, and still I was unprepared when the next words fell from her lips.

“And you think that’s punishment?” I couldn’t help it, the question provoked me into thoughts I definitely did not want to be having about her, my ears burning up as I realized that she could very easily read my reactions to figure out what was going on through my head - especially since my eyes automatically trailed over her body.

“You know what? I changed my mind. Take me wherever you’d like.” And with that, she threw one leg over the other, a dangerous smile taking over her face. “I think you and I are gonna have a lot of fun together, John Winchester.”

#my series #john winchester angst #john winchester #angst #john winchester x reader #john winchester reader #john winchester reader insert #john winchester reader inserts #john winchester fanfiction #john winchester fan fic

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marvelousecology · 4 years ago

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Archaic Genomics

Every hair on my arms stands to attention whenever I hear the haunting downward hum. Hrrmmmmm. The bagpipes drone until portions of the fleet transition to bleating as the battle song, Scotland the Brave, surges through the open field. The resonance of its echoing sound leaves me awestruck with a powerful sense of connection to my ancestors. My mother always said, “We’re German, Irish, English, Scottish, French, and Dutch, in that order,” but her knowledge wore thin the further back she went, while I longed to visit the old country and experience the cultural roots my family has long forgotten since coming to America.

An unfortunate byproduct of being a late generation American is that my inheritance of these ethnic backgrounds, which links me to my ancestors, is practically nonexistent in my life; yet, an integral part of myself is knowing where my family came from because it affects my identity. I’m German, Irish, English, Scottish, French, and Dutch, in that order.

Nonetheless, there is no family heraldry hanging on our walls or a cherished crest passed down from generation to generation. No symbolic colors, animals, or objects showcasing the values or convictions our family once embodied. What’s our tartan colors? Is there a schnitzel recipe? Whatever Pagan, Celtic, or Germanic customs and traditions would have been celebrated were either Anglicized or Americanized. So, attending events or festivals that celebrate our national heritages is as close to experiencing the motherland as we will get and by venerating cultural practices like music, dance, sports, feasts, wearing the attire, and sharing the vernacular tales, imbues us with a sense of pride, belonging, and appreciation for our ancient kinfolk. Otherwise, the closest familial ties to my cultural heritage have been deduced to the commodified four-leaf clover, death by green, Saint Patrick’s Day or Mel Gibson’s Braveheart.

One afternoon, my mother’s oldest sister, Ruth Putrus, calls to tell us we’re one fifth Viking. The chronicle of her genetic story unfolded after submitting her saliva sample to 23&Me, which revealed a shared mutation that occurred 6,500 years ago from an offshoot of the previous gene that’s mostly found in Iceland. Enthralled by the news, I proudly add Viking to the mix.

Daydreams of Norsemen traveling from Scandinavia, dominating the Baltic coast and the Dnieper and Volga trading routes sail across my imagination. Hurling myself into Viking history as they colonized, pillaged, and traded during the Viking Age (800-1000 AD), spreading throughout various regions of Europe and settling in Iceland and Newfoundland. Imagining the dark black clouds of smoke from burning monasteries ransacked of its gold and goods as brutal bearded raiders took what they wanted, painting a medieval tale of Vikings sailing up and down rivers, always attacking England and Scotland, then seizing the women for wives.

These results wildly intrigued me, but it isn’t until much later when I take a DNA test of my own that I realize how complicated genomics can be. According to Ancestry, I’m 50 percent English, 37 percent Scottish, 5 percent Welsh, 4 percent Irish, 2 percent Swedish, and 2 percent German. The results conflicted with the phrase I’ve known my entire life; I’m German, Irish, English, Scottish, French, and Dutch, in that order. Not an inkling of Dutch or French and just a smidge of Irish and German? Sweden is home to Scandinavians who are descendants of Vikings, but only 2 percent? What happened to the one fifth?

Online, Ancestry’s website states that they test individual autosomal DNA because it reveals more information compared to Y-chromosomal DNA and mitochondrial DNA tests, but their ambiguous explanation is devoid of digestible information relating to how exactly it was determined or the science behind the reasoning.

A plant genomics laboratory researcher at Oregon State University, Amanda Roelant, comments on Ancestry’s statement. “Vaguely talking about a complicated process is necessary otherwise everyone would need to be a geneticist,” she says.

Geneticists specialize in the interdisciplinary field of biology called genomics, which studies different living organism’s genome. The genome is the entirety of genetic code stored within that organism and the genetic code is comprised of DNA—the blueprint of our lives—and it’s found within our cells and within our cells it’s found in the nuclei. Try to envision DNA as the sacred written text on the pages of archaic scriptures occupying the many shelves of a library hidden deep within the city. A geneticist reads this intricately coded text, a language foreign to most, and transcribes it for us to see; mostly revealing ancestry or underlying medical diseases.

Genetic information is inherited from our parents at the time of conception when the sperm and the embryo meet. Simply, half of mom’s DNA and half of dad’s DNA. Humans have a total of 46 chromosomes that breakdown into 23 pairs and 22 of those pairs are autosomes 22, while remaining are the sex chromosomes, XX or XY. Inheriting the Y-chromosomal DNA directly links men to a paternal lineage of ancestors descending from all fathers to sons. Meanwhile, the maternal line is found within the mitochondria; an organelle of the cell, like the nucleus, that stores DNA, which is directly passed from mother to child. Since, the mitochondria is the site for energy production and the mother creates a child inside her body, with her body, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is passed onto them by her.

23&Me provided Ruth with more resourceful information on her test results and the science behind the answers. Providing citations from archaeological studies laying down the foundation for genetic comparison using archaic DNA extracted from ancient skeletal remains, Ruth is positive we share a female Celtic-Viking ancestor.

One of the founding women of Iceland was most likely taken from Scotland by the Vikings. Was she a wife, slave, or servant? We may never know but there’s speculation because the first mtDNA references, to a maternal haplogroup called I2, has the highest concentration in Iceland. Vaguely speaking, haplogroups refer to a sustained change or mutation in the DNA that sticks with a certain population through a period of time. Detecting these changes or mutations can help group different organisms to different lineation’s.

“Grandma is the one with the I2 haplogroup and that would’ve went to all her female descendants, so your mom and I had it from her and we passed it onto our descendants, which means you have this haplogroup too,” she says.

Icelandic scientist from the University of Oxford, Agnar Helgason, specializing in genetic anthropology, and analyzing new mtDNA control-region sequences, published, “mtDNA and the Islands of the North Atlantic: Estimating the Proportions of Norse and Gaelic Ancestry,” that’s evaluating the matrilineal ancestry in Iceland. Roughly 37.5 percent is Scandinavian. “More recent analyses of mtDNA and Y-chromosome variation in the Icelanders suggests that a majority of the female settlers may have originated from the British Isles, whereas 80 percent of male settlers were Scandinavian.”

This haplogroup doesn’t necessarily represent Viking DNA since it’s very rare in Denmark and other parts of Scandinavia. “Some of our ladies got up there but not to a dominant extent unlike Iceland where there was an early presence,” says Ruth. The theory is that haplogroup I may have been carried to Iceland by the Vikings when they took British, Scottish, and Irish women from their homes in the 8th, 9th and 10th centuries, which changed to I2 and continued descending.

Ancestry provides me an ethnicity estimate without verifying its origins, whereas 23&Me correlates their findings with scholarly reviews and related studies. Although, I’m 2 percent Viking, arguably the 37 percent Scot is interrelated to the Celtic woman taken by the Vikings centuries ago. Culture is not inherent to genetics.

Geneticists are trying to crack a code and what that means for us. Everything we know about genetics is based on something a modern-day human theorized. “It doesn’t mean it’s the only truth,” Amanda says, “And as a scientist, I believe in a lot of it, but on a human level, there’s such limitations on what we know. So, it’s something to keep in mind when you’re taking it seriously.”

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fruityyamenrunner · 1 year ago

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I don't particularly want to leave out the part about atoms because if you did want it to be left out you would have left it out. you're free to disavow your own beliefs, but you should do your own disavowal, rather than politely asking me to do so and suggesting an insult i might like to call you while doing it.

I see how the story about the mythological butterfly creating evil twins of yourself in some other planet, dimension, heaven, pacha, world or loka is a good way to describe a sort of seizing up in the presence of something vast and wondrous, but it doesn't worry me because what is the point of trying to judge *nonexistent* people for committing *non-events* who, even if they do, in some sense, exist, live in a world we cannot go to?

And similarly, it seems unimportant to worry about "genes and environment" because this is, a way of feeling concerned that not only are people made of matter, but they live in a material world -- well, every decision and action i or anyone around me has ever made was made in a material world. i see no reason to be paralysed by this in the slightest.

I especially don't particularly see what being made of matter has to do with blamelessness. everything and anyone i have blamed for anything in my whole life has been made of matter and i don't find it silly to do so, otherwise I would be going around giggling all the time, so what is the alternative?

One answer, suggested by your *absolute* and specific disavowal of retribution and also by your despair in human reasoning and sentiment, is some nonatomic entity who is known to us by a power superior to humanity, and I have one right here in the form of Jehovah, who famously, and so pertinently, said "To me belongeth vengeance and retribution". Splendid, if true! That would be an excellent reason not to practice retribution or vengeance, if we could rely on Jehovah to do it for us "in due time" in the "day of their calamity... at hand"

But I don't think we can. Certainly many people have lived long lives not receiving any such retribution, which you have also probably noticed, which may be a reason you have not appealed to Jehovah, which would have been wise.

Anyway, I am glad you admit you have feelings even if, for some reason, matter makes you nervous, and you are suspending them in deference to some unspecified nonatomic entity. What are your reasons and feelings concerning Sam Bankman-Fried and do you have any *particular* reasons in his case about what should be done to him, including whether he should be shot?

Just to start shit: prison abolition and SBF?

I obviously have anti-carceralist tendencies and can't help but feel that it's horrible that this human being will be confined to a torture box for > 30 years. Supposedly he's likely to go to a medium-security prison, which is obviously not the worst but is still pretty fucked up. On the other hand, it's hard for me to come up with an example of what restorative justice would look like for stealing 8 billion dollars off the top of my dome. So there's that.

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grace-likes-things · 5 years ago

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Chapter One - Something Different

Masterlist

A/N Hello! Fic #2 of my whole life and it is a friggin long one. But I felt inspired, and I’ve been letting the outline sit on my laptop for months so I though I had to get to writing it. Chapter one is bit longer than the next few, (I think it’s gonna be about 25 overall, yikes lol but I want some good plot practice) and it has some nice father daughter moments and sets up a lot of the context for the story. It’ll only take a few chapters to get real interesting, so stick with me! Enjoy <3

~~~~~~

“So… how much of a wreck was the world while I was gone?”

I sit with my father on the steps of his — our? — lake house. It’s the first time since my being brought back that we’ve had a moment of peace alone. My eyes scan him over for the millionth time; the new wrinkles, the greying hair, scars from the latest battle, his demeanor in general. He’s not exactly the old Tony Stark the world knew, the old dad that I knew. Not so high strung, not as in need of a project to keep his mind off of the latest trauma. He’s surprisingly peaceful, and although not a bad thing, it’s unfamiliar. I guess it’s just another one of the many strange things i’m going to have to get used to.

He doesn’t take too long to answer my question, “Oh, it was torn to shreds for a while. No one knew what to do with themself after finding out Y/N Stark was gone. Jeez, I mean, you shoulda seen the looks on people’s faces—“

“Dad,” I say with a pitiful laugh, “for real. How long did things take to get back to normal?”

“If I can tell you one thing it's that nothing ever got ‘normal’ again. Hell, to be honest with you I’m not so sure when the world started to recover. I was too busy being a wreck of my own. Came out here to hide in the woods with Pep. And then we found out about Morgan… it was all a lot in not so much time.”

“She’s adorable,” I mumble with a smile over my warm mug, “Can’t believe you managed to pull off another kid that cute.”

“Ha, yeah well I had help. Pep did all the hard work. I just freaked out most of the time.”

“God I wish I could’ve seen it —“

“Yeah, yeah, make fun of your dad,” he sends a sly smile my way, and raises a brow, “You know it’s not easy work preparing for a baby in the middle of an apocalypse.”

“Oh I bet…” I say, although it’s mostly to myself. I try to picture it. My dad and practically adoptive mother, living through the largest extinction event known to man, my dad having witnessed his child go…. and then finding out he’s soon going to have another to care for.

My dad suddenly speaks up, “It went through my head, so I know you probably thought it too. I want you to know we never intended on replacing you. That was never the goal. It was hard… to say the least, after losing you. And then she just surprised us and everything changed so quickly, and I couldn’t help but feel guilty — “

“You shouldn’t have.”

“I know, I know, but I did. And I just — it would be horrible if you thought that was what happened. So I want to make sure you know.”

“Yeah, of course.”

We share a beat of silence, sipping our coffee and enjoying the morning sounds of the lake. A question begs at my mind.

“Can I ask you,” I hesitate for a moment, “how did everything happen? You know, when we disappeared? I’m sorry, it’s just… no one talks about it, and I can hardly remember anything.”

I see the look on his face and I know it wasn’t a great idea to ask. From what I’ve gathered, for me it was a 5 minute nap, but for anyone else it was 5 years without their loved ones. And most watched them go. I know how bad this must have been for him, the man who has constant nightmares about being responsible for his loved ones’ deaths. But my father and I have an honesty policy - ever since I was old enough to understand what had happened in Afghanistan. So he takes a breath and informs me anyway.

“All we could do was wait. He had our stone, ran off for the rest. That’s when Mantis started fading, then the big guy, then Quill. The Doctor.” Tony pauses for a second, remembering.

“Dad?” Y/N stares up at him from across the clearing. Tony and Peter both watch, praying she isn’t going too. Praying she’s just afraid, but safe.

She stumbles forward, wanting desperately to reach her father before her arms no longer exist to latch on to him — but Tony finds his prayer’s haven’t been answered when her legs quietly turn to ash, the remnants of a reaching hand breeze past him, and a final cry is silenced when her lips fade into nonexistence.

“No,” he mumbles, refusing to comprehend the fate of his daughter, “no, no—“

“Mr. Stark?”

“Then you and Parker were gone…” he says, voice catching, and I watch my thumbs rub against the warm mug of coffee in my hands while he gathers his thoughts, “That was the only thing I could see for a while.”

“Well… sounds like I didn't miss anything fun, that’s for sure.” And he laughs weakly at my attempt to lighten the mood.

“no, no you really didn’t. Just worldwide mourning and me getting even less sleep than usual. God, but I wish you could’ve been here when Morgan was born. Although I guess you did get to skip the diaper phase, so that’s a win on your part. Oh, and me inventing time travel, but it’s no big de-“

“Dad,”

“Oh come on, it was iconic! History made, right in this house.”

“Alright, alright, i’ll give you that. I guess I have to thank you for that one.”

“Yeah, speaking of things you have to thank me for, have you checked out your room yet? I could tell Pepper was a little concerned for me when I started decorating it with your stuff. Rhodes called it coping. He thinks I thought that if I had a space dedicated to you, it wouldn’t feel like you were gone, but to be honest I don't really think I had any cohesive thoughts at that time. So I put the extra room in the floor plan, and threw all of your things together.”

“Yeah dad, it’s great. Thanks.” I say, trying to give him a smile despite picturing him working away in that room after I was gone. I wait a beat before saying “it is kind of weird, though, having a five year old sister all of a sudden.”

“it’s weird having my seventeen year old back all of a sudden, but what can you do? I guess it’s alright, you’re both cute.”

I laugh into the mug, thinking I haven't been cute since I was 8.

“You know, if you didn’t have these golden genes Underoos probably wouldn't be so into you,” he says, and he’s smirking teasingly.

“Where did that come from?” My eyes widen while his turn to the sky, feigning innocence, “Seriously? Come on dad, he was at the compound all the time, of course we’re gonna be friends.”

“Friends? Oh that’s all it is? Okay then, I’ll make sure to weave you both some nice matching bracelets. You didn’t happen to notice the way he had an eye on you at all times back on our space adventure, did you? Literally, not once did I see him look awa-“

“So he had my back! We were looking out for each other,”

“If you call constant heart eyes having your back, fine, okay,”

“Alright,” I pick my coffee up, turn toward the door, “we’re done here.”

But a smile hides itself behind my hair while I push open the screen door, my father following my lead into this new home.

We can all agree it’s nice to be back.

~~~~

There’s chapter one for you! I have the next few chapters written but I’m gonna try to space them out a little for sake of giving me time to stay caught up. I hope you enjoyed chapter one! If you want to read my only other work, you can find it below.

Labyrinth - my lovely angsty one shot

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squirrel-moose-winchester · 5 years ago

Text

Chapter 29

Title: Falling for the Holidays Ch. 29

Pairing: Dean x Reader AU

Word Count: 2215

Series Summary: With October ending and the holidays underway, that only meant one thing for Dean Winchester. It meant returning to his childhood home and spending time with his family. It meant listening to his parents, especially his mom, ramble on and on about when he was going to find himself a nice girl, bring her home for the holidays, and then eventually get married and have children. However, Dean wasn’t ready for that sort of commitment, so in order to get his family off his back, he comes up with an elaborate scheme! But like the saying goes, “sometimes lies become truths.”

Warnings: SMUTTY goodness, Fluff, and a pinch of Crack :)

A/N: Here’s chapter 29! One more chapter and it’s finally all over! Thank you guys for being patient with me, and for sticking with me through my first series! You guys are amazing! Please enjoy the smutty goodness that I’ve written just for you!! xx

It’s only two days until New Years and Dean is doing much better. He’s still can’t do anything strenuous, but the Doctor says that he’s healing faster than suspected. On the phone, John gave credit to the Winchester genes. Whether he’s right or not, you can’t help but agree with him one hundred percent!

“Baby, c’mon. Quit teasing,” Dean groaned from the couch in your now shared apartment.

After the two of you returned to Dallas, Dean couldn’t really live alone, and it made no sense for you to keep going back and forth to your place and his, or for him to stay at your place where none of his things were, so one night, while snuggled up in his bed, he abruptly asked you to move in. Shocked at first, you eventually agreed. There was no way you could deny him and no way that you wanted to.

“But I’ve missed you. Work was so boring and all I could think about was being home with you,” you breathed into his neck, kissing, nipping, and licking. Dean grunted again, and as you peered downwards, elated to see the effects you were having on him. “Need a little help down there?” you asked, running your hand over his chest, down his torso, before stopping at the waistband of his sweatpants.

“You’re gonna be the death of me,” he huffed, breathing unevenly.

“Oh, I think it’s the opposite. Baby, I can make you feel alive. Only if you let me,” you cooed, pulling away and biting your bottom lip. Dean’s darkened eyes zeroed in on the soft, plump, flesh caught between your teeth.

“Fuck—”

“Want me to get you off with my mouth?” you asked hotly, “because I will. Just like last night and the night before.”

“You’re insatiable, you know that?” Dean growled, his reserve crumbling.

“Well Dean… I usually get what I want,” you grinned.

You were back to your old self, teasing, flirting, and doing things you knew that drove him crazy. He had witnessed you flirt with guys many times, easily wrapping them around your fingers, him being no exception. The only difference between them and Dean was that you weren’t doing it for the free drinks, and you were in love with him.

“Little minx.”

“Your little minx,” you winked before pressing a soft kiss on his lips. Dean didn’t hesitate to respond back, leaning into you with fervor. A moan managed to escape from you, and suddenly, you were on Dean’s lap, straddling him. “What do you think you’re doing?” You pulled away with a smug look on your face.

“Doctor said I couldn’t do any strenuous activities…”

“Yeah… and? What’s your point?” you teased, knowing exactly were he was going. You had used the same excuse the other night and the night before.

“If you did most of the work…” his eyes glinted with excitement.

A grin took over your lips. “Well, giddy up, Cowboy!”

You were about to slip off of his lap when his grip tightened around you. “No blow job… I want to feel you. I need to be inside you.”

“Dean… I don’t think that’s a good idea. I really don’t mind sucking you off. In fact, I love it,” you admitted for the hundredth time.

“I know, but I can’t take it anymore. I need you more than that.”

With your resolve ebbing into nonexistent, it didn’t take long until the two of you were bare, you bouncing on Dean’s dick, reveling in the feel of him filling you up so generously. You had missed the way he made you feel so impossibly full, his cock reaching heights no other man was capable of. The look on his face only drove you to work harder, loving the way his lips hung open as moans of pleasure spilled out continuously, and the way his eyes were shut tight, struggling to stay open so he could watch how your tight little pussy swallowed his endowed length.

“Fuck! Feels so good!” Dean grunted, hands sliding from your hips to your waist, urging you to move faster and hit harder, but all he got in return was you grabbing his wrists and pinning them to the couch on either side of his head.

“Nuh-uh. I’m in charge,” you smirked as his emerald orbs sparkled.

Leaning forwards, you wrapped your arms around his neck, whispering dirty nothings in his ear as you picked up the pace, practically twerking on his cock. Dean yelped in overly satisfaction and bliss.

“Fuck! That’s good shit!” He bellowed, voice vibrating through the entire apartment. A smirk graced you lips, thinking that there was no way the neighbors couldn’t hear how good you were fucking your boyfriend.

“Can you feel that baby? How wet you make me? Maybe I should ride you like this more often. Take charge and have you at my mercy. What do you think of that?” You whispered in his ear, your hot breath sending wave after wave of goosebumps to erupt across his skin.

“Oh, Sweetheart. As tempting as that sounds, this is just a one-time thing until I’m all healed up. Once I’m back to tip top shape, that’s where I intend to stay – on top. The only time you’ll be riding me again is under my instructions, you understand me?” He asked, the gravel in his voice making your pussy clench around his cock. “Fuck—” Dean moaned, head falling back against the sofa.

“Then I guess I better make the best of my time,” you breathed with desperation, grinding yourself down flush on his lap, rotating your hips in a circular motion. A loud moan tears from his throat and you can’t help but feel delighted at how much you could drive him crazy, and obviously vice versa.

You continued to gyrate against him, noticing the rapid rise and fall of his chest. He was close, and so were you. “Fuck!” He cursed again. “So fucking tight. You gonna come for me, baby?” Dean asks through struggled breaths.

“Mhmm,” was all you could say as you caught your bottom lip between your teeth, biting down hard enough for it to sting.

“Come with me, Sweetheart. I need you to come with me.”

Nodding, you started bouncing on him again, desperate and uneven. Dean managed to thrust his hips upwards making you scream as he hit that perfect spot. Pleased with the reaction he drew from you, he continued to thrust his hips upwards, driving you to the edge of pleasure.

“Dean!” You shrieked, trying to speak, but the sensation was too much. “No s-stren-uous work,” you finally managed to get out.

“It doesn’t hurt,” he grunts, hands tightening around your hips again, trying to keep you steady as he hammered upwards into you. It didn’t take long until you were both howling in euphoria, breaths short and frantic. Your body leaned into his as his arms completely wrapped themselves around your bare back.

“How are you feeling?” You finally questioned.

“Amazing–” he replies. “So fucking amazing.”

You let out a soft chuckle before planting a lingering kiss on his lips and lifting yourself from his lap and dislodging his softening cock from your sensitive pussy. You both moan in tandem before landing beside him.

“We need to get ready,” you reminded. “Your mom will give you an earful if we’re late.”

Dean groaned in response. “But I want to just stay here with you and have sex all day and night long.”

You giggle at his words and shook your head. “C’mon you cripple. Let’s get ready.”

“Cripple? Can a cripple make you come like I did just a minute ago? I don’t think so!”

Laughter slipped your lips again. “Well, I did most of the work!”

“Whatever,” he grumbles and you just laugh, making your way towards the bathroom.

By the time you and Dean left, you in the driver’s seat, you were making perfect timing. It was the day before New Years Eve, and Mary was adamant that the two of you return to Kansas to celebrate. They had offered to come to Dallas since Dean was still healing, but there wasn’t enough room at the apartment, and there was no use in wasting money at a hotel when they could just drive over to Kansas and all stay at the house. It made more sense and it was much more practical.

You were singing along to Bob Seger’s, Old Time Rock and Roll, when you heard soft snoring. Glancing beside you, Dean was knocked out, seat reclined back and mouth hanging open. You remembered seeing a photo he had taken of Sam a few years back on his phone.

During a brotherly summer road trip one summer, Sam had fallen asleep in the passenger side, and Dean, being the typical big brother that he was, shoved a spoon into Sam’s mouth and snapped a picture. With that in mind, you figured, why not give him a taste of his own medicine? Besides, you knew Sam would really appreciate it.

Giggling, you reached over for the used spoon from the ice cream the two of you had stopped to buy in the spur of the moment. With the spoon in hand, you reached over for you phone sitting in one of the cup holders between the driver and passenger seat. With steady hands and constant glimpses towards the road, you carefully placed the spoon in Dean’s mouth. Struggling to keep your laughter at bay, you managed to snap a decent picture before sending it to Sam.

To: Sammy *Image* You’re welcome!

Returning your phone back to it’s previous abode, you sang obnoxiously loud, “I like that old time rock and roll!”

Dean leaped from his seat, spitting the spoon out then wincing in pain. You burst into laughter, while trying to apologize and ask if he was okay, even though you already knew that he was. “Y/N!” He drawled, sounding a little disgruntled and annoyed.

“I’m sorry. I really am, but I couldn’t resist. Besides, I didn’t think you were going to react so enthusiastically,” you giggled. “I really am sorry.”

“You’re lucky I love you,” he grumbled.

“I know I am,” you smiled.

Finally entering the state of Kansas, your phone dinged. Without tearing your eyes away from the road, you took hold of your phone, peeking at the screen to see that Sam returned your text, after forty-five minutes. Scanning your fingerprint over the home button of your communication device, you read the text.

From: Sammy This is awesome! You’re awesome! *6 cry-laughing emojis*

Pleased with the response you received, you locked your phone back and dropped it into the cup holder. “Who was that?” Dean inquired, eyes still casted out the window, taking in the familiarity of the state he grew up in.

“Sam. He’s excited to see us.”

Dean scoffs, shifting to grab his phone from his back pocket. He scoffs again. “Bitch didn’t text me…” he humph – adorably – if you may add.

“Well, I actually texted him first.”

“Why?”

“Just giving them a heads up that we’re almost there,” you lie.

“When did you do that? I didn’t notice,” he finally looks at you curiously.

“I did it while you were zoning out the window, like a loon. I thought you were shot in the stomach, not the head,” you chuckle.

“Ha-ha. Already making jokes, huh? Laugh it up baby, because you’re gonna get it,” he warns, unable to keep a straight face.

Finally, the Winchester house came into view, and by the time you were parking the truck, Mary was already out the door, swinging your door open before you turned off the ignition. “Y/N!” She squealed, yanking you out of the truck and into her arms. “I’m so happy you guys are here!”

“Hey, mom. Injured son over here. You know, your flesh and blood. Nice to see you too,” Dean joked, trying to seem emotionally devastated.

“Oh, my sweet boy. You were always the jealous type. My mama’s boy,” she teased back, filling Dean’s cheeks with a tint of red.”

“Gee mom, not in front of my girl,” he rolls his eyes, but you all fall into giggles.

“Oh, please. Well, my little piggy made it just in time for dinner,” Mary cooed, pinching Dean’s cheeks in order to further humiliate him. You couldn’t help but giggle along with Mary as Dean groaned. “C’mon, John, Sam, and Jess is setting everything up as we speak. You can take your bags in later.”

With quick formalities, dinner had gone by fast. It was filled with easy conversation, laughter, jokes, and eventually, the picture you had taken of Dean sleeping on the way to Kansas had come up, thanks to Sam’s inability to keep secrets. Sam laughed to tears as Dean grumbled at you and him, declaring that the two of you delete the picture. It was great.

When bedtime finally came, Sam and John helped you bring the bags in, while Mary helped Dean up the stairs, even if he didn’t need it. As Sam set your bags into the bedroom, you thanked both Winchesters and bid them goodnight.

“Delete that picture,” Dean commanded from the bed.

“Never,” you replied, sending him a wink.

Liked it? Please reblog and share with your friends. I also would appreciate any feedback! xx

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#dean winchester x reader #dean x reader #dean winchester au #dean au #dean winchester #reader insert #falling for the holidays #squirrel-moose-winchester #dean winchester x reader au #dean x reader au #dean winchester series #dean series

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jbuffyangel · 6 years ago

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The New Eve: Arrow 7x16 Review (Star City 2040)

“Star City 2040” is a backdoor pilot and I loooooooooved it! GIMME.

Let’s dig in…

Mia, Felicity and William

The nice thing about backdoor pilots is if the episode is not announced as a backdoor pilot and the show isn’t picked up or doesn’t happen for some reason, then the episode can just be a regular episode. However, if the spin off does get picked up, then the audience will point to this “regular episode” as the one that launched the new show.

This is the situation we find ourselves in for “Star City 2040” and Mia Smoak. There’s no official word yet, but there’s been some buzz about a potential spin off centering on Katherine McNamara’s character and Beth Schwartz signed an overall development deal with the WB. Throw in this episode, add it all up and it spells

“Star City 2040” is setting up Mia’s backstory and the writers don’t waste any time. We open on Felicity delivering the PRINCESS THAT WAS PROMISED (yes that is her nickname) in the Olicity love cabin. Y’all I want the back story on this love cabin. How long did Oliver and Felicity stay there? How much sex did they have? I’m only asking for the important details. For science.

There is a beautiful shot in the mirror as the camera pans into the room where Felicity is laboring.

Source: feilcityqueen

Oliver’s bent forehead is resting against Felicity’s head as she struggles to bring their daughter into the world. Labor and delivery is one of those deeply intimate moments in life no matter who is in the room with the mother. It’s such a simple yet profound moment of devotion from Oliver.

Maybe it means even more because we know Oliver is missing in the future. Felicity is going to raise Mia entirely on her own, but in this time and place Oliver is here, witnessing the birth of their daughter. He is loving and supporting Felicity any way he can. In this moment she is not alone and they are in this together.

Source: oliverxfelicity

Facts. Your affection towards the man who impregnated you dramatically increases once labor and delivery is over. During delivery it may be a different story. For me it was weeks upon weeks of never ending pain, so by the time the doctors knocked me out for the c-section I was pretty much done with everyone.

Source: oliverxfelicity

Felicity squeezes Oliver’s hand tight, her wedding ring shining in the sun, as she pushes one final time. This image of them holding hands as she brings Mia into this world is a powerful symbol of where their story began and what their love created.

The reason we wear wedding rings is because they are an endless circles. The commitment we are making to our spouse is forever. We wear our ring on our fourth finger of our left hand because the Romans believed the vein in this finger lead directly to a person’s heart. Love is eternal.

Their daughter is entering the endless loop of love that resides within Oliver and Felicity’s relationship, the commitment they’ve made to each other and their children.

Source: oliverxfelicity

Mia will always be wanted and adored. Oliver and Felicity’s marriage is forever and, as we’ll soon learn, there’s nothing they won’t do to keep their family safe.

Source: oliverxfelicity

This child represents so much of what Oliver believed he could never have. He was a lost soul who thought life was merely about survival and he didn't deserve one worth living for. Oliver couldn’t fathom being worthy of love let alone creating new life from that love.

And yet he found himself hoping and dreaming. Mia is the final piece of the Queen family and Oliver Queen puzzle. She is proof sometimes dreams come true.

Of course, Oliver and Felicity’s daughter is born in the morning with the sunlight brightly shining on them.

It’s always the light. Oliver lost his innocence long ago, but this child is a new beginning. We can recapture what was lost because children open and fill places in our hearts we never knew existed. Mia shines her light the moment she was born. This is why children are a gift.

Felicity whispers a soft and perfect, “Hi,” as she welcomes her daughter to the world. As the tagline in the 7x16 promo said, “A hero’s legacy is born.” This is how the story continues. What Oliver and Felicity built can live beyond them through Mia. She has her own hero’s journey to walk, but this is how the light never fades.

Source: oliverxfelicity

We watch as Mia grows from a small child, to a tween

Source: ebett

and finally into a young woman through a series of training scenes with NYSSA AL GHUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Source: ebett

YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!

I screamed with delight over Nyssa training Mia. Do you believe Mia is a badass? Damn right you do because she was trained by the best. Nyssa trained Sara, who was under her tutelage with the League of Assassins for years.

Mia spent even longer training with Nyssa than Sara did. She has something no other character on Arrow has, including Oliver. Mia was trained to fight almost as soon as she could walk.

Arrow has a bad habit of characters learning skill sets it took other characters (cough*Oliver/Sara*cough) years to learn in a few short months. I’m not just talking about L*urel. Thea and Roy were guilty of this treatment too. However, Oliver trained Roy and Malcolm trained Thea. It took a slightly smaller logic leap to believe those characters could get up to speed in a few months because of their instructors.

L*urel was a mess though. BOXING?

She went from barely being able to throw a bunch, falling off cars and incapable of handling one guy with a knife to taking down five assassins in a matter of a couple weeks. REALLY?

The only mildly believable explanation for her newly acquired skill set was Nyssa trained her OFF SCREEN.

We watched more training with Mia than we ever saw with L*urel and it occurred in a believable time frame. Way to learn the lesson, Arrow writers. BRAVO.

Ready for some petty? I legit cackled, yes CACKLED, they went out of their way to bring back Katrina Law so Nyssa could train Mia. Katrina has another television show and just had a baby. One would think it’d be easier to use an actress already contracted with the show. So many of the antis were convinced Bl*ck S*ren trained Mia or maybe even raised her. After all, Felicity and L*urel have a burgeoning friendship in Season 7, but noooooope! Classic.

I love the shot of Felicity holding a cup of coffee and watching little Mia intently as she trains with Nyssa in the backyard of the Olicity love cabin.

Source: hollandrooden

First, her hair is long again and swept up like it was in 2x08 and I LOVE THAT HAIR STYLE.

Fair warning, Felicity’s hair is really important to me this episode. I’m bizarrely excited she grows it long again in the future.

Second, keeping Mia safe requires more than keeping her hidden. Felicity turning to Nyssa to train her daughter so Mia can protect herself is a direct result of everything she went through with William while Oliver was in prison.

Witness protection wasn’t enough. The bad guys always find a way. When Diaz came for Felicity and William they barely escaped with their lives. Felicity gave as good as she got and saved William, but the only reason she survived was because A.R.G.U.S. showed up.

Felicity Smoak is a badass in many ways, but her fighting skills don’t compare to Oliver’s. That’s just facts. Felicity was never more acutely aware of this fact than when her husband sacrificed himself, went to prison, and left his family wide open for the wolves to feed on.

Felicity can’t depend on the love cabin to keep her daughter safe anymore than she could depend on A.R.G.U.S. or Witness Protection. If Mia has to deal with all the dangerous consequences of being Oliver Queen’s daughter than her mother is going to make damn sure their daughter can fight like her father.

Source: felicittysqueen

This might make me the stupidest person on the planet, but I was really jazzed when Nyssa broke out the bow and arrow.

Source: ebett

We haven’t seen Mia with a bow yet, so I wasn’t entirely sure what her choice of weaponry would be. Listen, sometimes I don’t know stuff and am easily surprised by this show. It happens.

Mia had to work her way up to the bow. She learned all the hand to hand combat first. I feel like it went in the opposite order for Oliver. Didn’t he learn the bow first from Yao Fei and then Slade taught him how to fight later? I need to rewatch Season 1… and maybe write some reviews (ducks as people throw things at me).

Honestly, Mia’s life with Felicity in the love cabin seems almost idyllic in many ways. I’m not saying Oliver missing is unimportant. Of course, he is a huge gaping wound, but when you think about all the ways the writers could have written a miserable childhood for this girl I was surprised by how regular it seemed. The character descriptions for Mia included a wildly unpleasant sounding past, but essentially she grows up in a small town and doesn’t ever venture into the city.

Neither does Felicity. She runs Smoak Tech from home because she is a mind blowing genius who can run can operate a multi billion dollar corporation from a forest.

Felicity’s aging makeup is practically nonexistent

Source: felicitysmoakgifs

because if you came from the gene pool of the immortal Donna Smoak you’d look banging at fifty one too.

Also, Felicity Smoak is the Queen of DCTV and as such it is mandatory she look amazing in any timeline.

How much do I love her hair let me count the ways? It has a very Moira Queen vibe and I dig that.

I questioned if it was Emily’s real hair for a second, but @callistawolf assured me it’s a wig. So it is possible for Arrow to create good wigs. This might be one of the seven signs of the apocalypse. PREPARE YOUR SOULS.

Future Felicity is very… chill. There’s a reserve to her twenty years later. It’s almost a quiet calmness. Still waters run deep sort of vibe. There’s less babble and exuberant cheerfulness, but she’s still Felicity.

Source: lucyyh

She talks boys with her daughter, weaving in all the Wizard of Oz references, without missing a beat in her rapid fire delivery, but there’s a measured tone to it. This is older and, if possible, even wiser Felicity. Life has taken its toll, but it hasn’t stolen her light. Felicity is still our girl and she’s created some kind of happy life with Mia. No matter where Oliver is this is what he would want for his wife.

But Mia is getting antsy to spread her wings beyond the small town of Bloomfield as young women often do. If Oliver was the hero Felicity claims then why does she have to keep it secret? Why can’t she scream she’s Mia Queen from the mountain tops? Yeah, I wanna know that too. Unfortunately, we aren’t offered an answer other than Felicity ticking the “It’s complicated” box.

Source: olicitygifs

Mia shatters a photo of Oliver and Felicity holding her as a newborn. One perfect, happy moment when life seemed limitless and their family felt complete captured on film and frozen forever. The arrow goes through the apple Mia was aiming for and straight through the glass picture frame.

This photo constantly reminds Felicity what she’s fighting for, which is why it leads to the Overwatch lair. Extremely on brand Ms. Smoak. I totally fist pumped when the arrow short circuited the tech and revealed the secret door GoGo Gadjet style. The whole room has a very Dr. Claw vibe, except we know Felicity is not evil, so it’s more like Penny grew up and got herself a do-gooder lair once her uncle retired or something.

The screen savers on the two computer screens are photographs – one of Oliver dressed as the Green Arrow and the other of William with Felicity. The same photograph Oliver kept with him in prison at the beginning of the season.

If you feared William was out of sight and out of mind think again. He was with her every moment of every day. Everything Felicity lost and is fighting to get back encompassed in two photographs. Both are powerful images and we realize how much Mia doesn’t know about her mother.

I love the shot of Mia sitting down at the computer. She is sitting directly in the middle of the split between screens like a missing puzzle piece. The past meets the present and Mia is split between the seam. For the first time all members of the Queen family are represented in one room. The screens are connected and angled at a point. It almost looks like the photos and screens make the shape of an arrowhead and Mia is the shaft.

Mia tries to get into the system and immediately an image of old man Rene and resident Flash Forward bad buy Kevin Dale. We first met Dale in 7x10. Rene had a meeting with Dale to inform him the Canaries have “the plans” and questioned him about Felicity Smoak’s death. More on Rene later though.

The system starts to shut down and Felicity overrides the self destruct protocols. The cat is out of the proverbial bag and Felicity tells Mia she’s been trying to take down a corrupt company in the city as Overwatch. Except, she’s not Overwatch because there’s no team so it’s a totally different thing!

Yeah Mia ain’t buying that either. She gets angry fast and furious style. There are multiple levels to Mia’s anger, which took me a couple viewings to understand because the writers were throwing so much information at us so quickly.

Bottom line is Mia feels betrayed. Oliver being a vigilante is the entire reason Mia was never able to go to a normal school or go anywhere outside Bloomfield. It’s also the reason she grew up without a father. Oliver wasn’t killed in a car crash. He isn’t living in Zurich with his new wife and family. Regardless of what happened to him we know it was vigilante related because that’s the show.

Now her mother, who is the only person in the world Mia loves, is engaging in the same type of behavior that cost Mia her father annnnnnd Felicity lied about it.

Just switch hacking with snorting cocaine. It’s like Mia walked in on Felicity doing a line. Extremely dangerous behavior Mia thought her mother had left behind. She thinks Felicity is a vigilante junkie.

Source: olicitygifs

Of course, we know different. We know being a hero is who Felicity truly is, but to Mia she’s just Mom and she feels betrayed. Felicity tries to explain the promise she made with Oliver, but she can’t really get into what she’s trying to save beyond “the city.”

Listen, I get saving Star City is the entire mission of Arrow, but it doesn’t really pack the same punch as, “I’m trying to save the city so we can be reunited with your brother.” Am I right? Unfortunately, William is another secret Felicity is keeping from Mia. I am confident all of these decisions are to keep the kids safe, but the lies can’t stop the relationship between mother and daughter from cracking.

Mia cannot understand why the lies are necessary if being a vigilante is so honorable. She’s starting to believe the “propaganda” as Felicity calls it, which is more evidence that Oliver working with the police and the city accepting Team Arrow doesn’t last long. Eventually, the city turns against Oliver AGAIN. Ungrateful twats.

Mia is fed up with being kept on the sidelines while her mother plays vigilante. She feels like Felicity has lied for her entire life. Eh. I mean… kind of?

I love Mia but I’m automatically programmed to defend Felicity Megan Smoak at all costs. The writers needed Mia to separate from Felicity, run off to the city, and become a bitter and cynical soul to throw us off the Olicity baby scent. This scene doesn’t entirely work for me in terms of creating a wedge between mother and daughter. It feels a little bit like Mia throwing a temper tantrum, which hey happens with the youths sometimes. I had far less issues with this scene once the episode ended and I’ll explain why in a bit.

Just to play devil’s advocate with my own brain (cause it’s fun), Mia’s reaction isn’t any different than Tommy, Quentin or even Diggle’s when they found Oliver was The Hood. All three were spectacularly ticked off and did not view Oliver’s nightly extracurricular activity as a good thing. Of course, they all came around (some faster than others) and viewed Oliver as the hero he truly is.

Mia is struggling with what she sees and what she’s been told in the same way. She’s been told vigilantes are heroes by her mother, but everyone else is telling her vigilantes are to blame for all the misery. It’s not a difficult to understand why Mia would start to believe vigilantism is to blame for everything wrong in her life too. Also, Felicity lied and her daughter is just ticked off about it.

She runs away from home and writes Felicity a letter that’s basically a neon sign blinking “MY HERO’S JOURNEY STARTS NOW.” We meet a rougher, darker and far more depressing Mia in Star City.

Source: ebett

She chooses the name Blackstar because she wants to be erased. Whatever light we see in Mia isn’t really there. It’s already faded to black.

Yeesh, girl. You don’t need to be as broody as your old man. At least Mia hasn’t skinned anyone for practice, but she’s getting a tattoo and is generally pessimistic about life. Close enough. The cage fighting pays homage to Oliver’s Bratva initiation. The writers want to make sure we really see the parallels because OLIVER AND MIA ARE THE SAME.

In case you missed the Bratva parallel, they follow it up with two more. Mia is doing handstand push ups and she pulls her bow from the case just like Oliver did in the pilot. But they aren’t thinking about a spin off. Nope. Nothing to see here!

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William and Mia join forces for another brother/sister team up. First up is scaling the wall to enter into The Glades undetected.

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I feel William on a spiritual level in this scene.

This polar-opposite-yet-so-much-in-common thing between Queen siblings is really working for me. Ben Lewis is hysterical and he’s the perfect funny man to Katherine McNamara’s straight man err woman. They are way more fun than Oliver and Thea. I say this as someone who deeply loves the OG Queen siblings, but we never quite found our way to fun with those two.

I also appreciate the begrudging mutual appreciation of one another’s skills.

William marvels at Mia’s physicality while she is thoroughly impressed with whatever tech he’s cooked up.

Source: ebett

Yeah, I could do this for another eight years. Sign me up.

William finally gets annoyed with Mia’s whole anti vigilante shtick. Listen, my little lemon drop love child. You are on a vigilante show. You are the offspring of vigilantes. You are going to star in a vigilante show. It’s time to get on board with vigilantism, Mia. It’s in the blood baby. Listen to your big bro.

Felicity’s coordinates lead directly to Galaxy One. Their headquarters is in The Glades and they are one of the richest and most powerful companies in the world. It’s safe to assume this is the company Felicity was trying to expose as Overwatch.

William and Mia assume Felicity is being held there and they are gonna break her out by going undercover. YASSS! Let’s do this 1x22 style.

Where’s the elevator shaft?

William pretends to be a CEO while Mia is his executive assistant

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and this is such a feels inducing and hilarious callback to Season 2 Olicity my heart almost burst. William had Oliver’s smug arrogance and pragmatic thinking down cold while Mia adamantly refuses to be anyone’s assistant. Like mother like daughter! But someone needs to tell these kids a single cup of coffee is one of the main reasons their pine tree of a father realized he was falling in love with their mother.

William, as CEO, gets through the body scan just fine, but drops bombshell information on us. HIS NAME ISN’T CLAYTON ANYMORE. IT IS HARRIS.

I know a lot of people have been concerned with the William side of things. If Oliver and Felicity went to such great lengths to keep Mia safe why did they leave William hanging with the grandparents in Central City?

Like I’ve been saying you don’t keep two precious jewels in one spot. It seems anywhere outside Star City was safe, which is why Felicity kept Mia in Bloomfield for her entire life. If we follow that same logic then William should be fairly safe in Central City or anywhere other than Star City. Perhaps, Oliver instructed the grandparents and William to change their last name. If Olicity is afraid enough for their baby to go into hiding and not tell anyone about her existence, I’m thinking requesting a name change for their son wouldn’t be too outside the realm of possibilities.

Connor shows up at just the right time and he’s done recon on the Galaxy One building. He thinks Felicity is being held on one of the sub levels, but they need the CEO’s DNA to get through security - Kevin Dale. And it all starts connecting.

As William works Dale he reveals the name of his company is Harris Consolidated. Immediately, I feel a flood of warm fuzzies as I remember the dynasty which made the Queen family their billions. But then it hits me.

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. (Yes. I type all my thoughts. I’m weird. )

William changed his name from Clayton to Harris. How much do you want to bet that when Arrow is all over William changes his last name to Queen? Perhaps he changes the name of his company to Queen Inc. It could be the reason we’ve seen the name Queen Inc. in The Flash’s future newspaper.

All this time I thought Oliver would get the company back, but nope it’s William’s company. I suppose Felicity and William could also merge their companies to form Queen Inc. when Arrow ends and Felicity wants to retire to Aruba with her husband. Of course I could be wrong, but the use of Consolidated in William’s company’s name feels more than just a nod to the past for me.

As William flirts with Dale, so Mia can steal the necessary DNA, he explains the quick success of his company was due to an angel investor named City of Emerald’s Capital. I legit yelled, “It was Felicity, William,” but he couldn’t hear me.

Source: smoaktechs

I’m a tad disappointed a boy this bright hadn’t figured it out yet. Of course, Emerald City is a nod to Felicity’s love of the Wizard of Oz as Mia explains later, but also EMERALD = GREEN. She hung a sign out there kiddo. Pay attention.

Connor has some technology that can replicate a DNA signature and fool a full body scan. Yeah, I don’t really get it, but Connor says it works and where he goes so goes my nation. I’m sold buddy. Also, take of your shirt please while hero-ing. Why didn’t we put that in Joseph’s contract? Someone get me legal!

This feels like more technology Felicity invented and is somehow related to Archer. Diggle did say A.R.G.U.S. would love to get their hands on her technology. If the tech sounds awesome then it is safe to assume Felicity invented it.

Source: smoaktechs

There’s some fun brother sister banter in the elevator because that’s the family way and Mia actually admits to caring about William. QUEEN SIBLINGS FOREVER.

After battling their way through some security goons the trio finally finds Felicity. It is such a great reveal.

Mia: Mom.

William: You are alive.

Felicity: I told you not to come!

Me:

QUEEN OF DCTV IS ALIVE AND IN THE FLASH FORWARDS.

Dear antis and annoying anons in my inbox insisting Felicity is dead,

These writers would rather write the show in the depths of hell while burning in eternal torment than kill Felicity Smoak.

Love,

The Flash Forwards immediately felt 800% more hopeful with Felicity’s presence. God I missed her. The writers must never again keep her out of a timeline for sixteen episodes. It is just wrong and hurts my soul. There are only a few episodes left and I demand my goddess in all show timelines. I shall not be deprived of Felicity Smoak goodness any longer. Yes, I am saying this in my very best Scarlett O’Hara voice.

Of course, she gives the classic mom response which immediately ticks Mia off, but it is William’s reaction to Felicity that touched me the most.

He hugs her and his forgiveness is almost immediate.

Source: felicittysqueen

William truly believed Felicity was dead (thanks for nothing Dinah), so whatever mistakes she made seem smaller in comparison. William is so much like her. He wears his heart on his sleeve and is guided by his compassion as much as intelligence. Felicity never forgot her son. She watched over him and has been fighting every day to be part of his life again. This hug is twenty years in the making.

Twenty years apart is awful. I agree Oliver and Felicity deserved to raise their children in peace together. But this is Arrow and the story is not going to end without a big sacrifice because there is always sacrifice in a hero’s story. Oliver hasn’t “deserved” any of the horrible things that have happened to him. That’s not really the point.

The point is suffering can be redemptive. Good things can come from bad things happening. The upside is the really bad thing already happened. Oliver and Felicity have made their sacrifice, so there’s no way the future isn’t going to end happily for them.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the reunions in the future knowing this family has been separated for so long, but I found myself quite affected by William and Felicity’s hug. I didn’t have to live through the twenty years. They’ve been separated for a couple of episodes in terms of actual hours spent watching Arrow. I don’t know if relieved is the right word, but as I watched Felicity and William reunite I thought, “Okay. They are together now. They can at least begin rebuilding whatever damage has been done to this family.”

Source: arrowdaily

As Mia watches her mother hug her brother there’s a mixture of feelings on her face. She is happy, angry and maybe even a little jealous. Mia can’t forgive as easily as William and I think part of her envies the way he can access all of his emotions so easily. Mia doesn’t know how to do that yet. It’s almost as if she shut down a part of her heart after her fight with Felicity because the betrayal hurt too much. Sound like someone we know?

Mia is furious Felicity wants to stay and dismantle the bombs because, once again, she is choosing being a vigilante over her family.

Felicity doesn’t deny sacrificing her safety and her family for the greater good. That’s the job.

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Being a hero is who Felicity Smoak is and selflessness requires sacrifice. She can’t shut that part of her down because she’d only be half alive. This isn’t just Oliver’s hero’s journey. It’s Felicity’s too.

Yes, Felicity is a mother, but her love for her children is not all she is. It’s okay Felicity has a purpose beyond her family because women are not just one thing. Fighting for Star City is what fuels Felicity and it is the life she chose. It’s why we love her. Felicity does what others can’t or refuse to do. It’s what makes her a hero.

William, as Felicity 2.0, chooses to help his mother stop the bombs. It is a team up worth waiting twenty years for. Not so long ago, Felicity was explaining to William what it was like loving a hero, the strength it requires and the sacrifice.

As furious as young William was at Oliver for being the Green Arrow and being unable to provide the normal life he craved, he also understood who his father was. Oliver’s heroism is what William loves most about his father and what he hates most. It’s the same with Felicity.

Derek: You stood in front of a bullet for me. I know why you do all of it. It’s what I love about you.

Meredith: And what you hate about me.

Derek: Yeah.

I love these lines from Grey’s Anatomy so much, and I quote them often in these reviews, because it perfectly encapsulates what it is like to love a hero. William and Mia love their parents very much, but it doesn’t mean loving them is easy.

Rene shows up to tell the team the bombs have already been moved off site. I thought it was weird how he used the phrase “impeccable genetics” when describing his daughter, but then I realized the writers wrote it so Felicity could use the same terminology when she dropped the bomb on Rene.

Source: feilcityqueen

LINE. OF. THE. SEASON.

Felicity needs to destroy the brain of the bomb, which is the cube Dale was fidgeting with during the meeting with William. Rene gets the team into the masquerade party in The Glades where Dale will be. Everyone wears a hooded cape and mask, which is a fun homage to Mia Dearden’s superhero suit in the comics.

Felicity and William track Dale

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and Mia zeroes in on him prepared to take him out all on her own.

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This is another one of those “this feels like a pilot” moments, because Mia’s fight with Dale and his goons is almost exactly like Oliver’s fight in Adam Hunt’s office in the Arrow pilot.

They even turned the lights off. It’s a great scene and proves Mia is just as capable of taking down twenty guys just like Oliver Queen. Plus she gets to throw on her cape in a very superhero way at the end, which is just nifty.

Dale escapes so Team Arrow ditches the capes and a fight breaks out in order to find him. Mia zeroes in on Dale and Connor tosses her the bow.

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The lights of the party stream behind her as she takes aim at Dale. Mia Smoak looks like a star and she’s anything but faded.

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The light seems to stretch out infinitely as it guides the arrow along its path. She destroys the cube and stops the bombs from detonating just as the party fireworks explode in the night sky.

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Once again, Mia is illuminated like a star in the night sky and looks like the hero she is destined to be – just like her parents.

The bomb plot is foiled, but the team still needs to take down Galaxy One from the inside. Rene will continue to play patsy and has issued a dead or alive reward of ten million dollars to capture Arsenal, Bl*ck C*nary and The Calculator. Galaxy One’s plan was to remake Star City just like The Glades, so they could expand Archer globally which is like Skynet launching the nukes. We don’t want computer programs going global. It always ends badly in television shows and movies.

Felicity thanks William for holding on to the hozen and answering her prayer.

Source: feilcityqueen

It’s a little too much emotional family bonding and makes Mia uncomfortable, so she walks off in classic Felicity Smoak style

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fueled by her Oliver Queen genetic broodiness. I love this kid.

Mia and Felicity have an outstanding mother and daughter scene where they hash out all their issues. Mia hated vigilantes because she hated her mother. She hated her mother because Felicity lied to her. But no matter how much Mia hated the lie, she also understood why Felicity did it.

It’s reminiscent of the hospital scene in 5x20 when Felicity forgave Oliver for lying about William.

Felicity had to walk in Oliver’s shoes to understand his perspective (and vice versus), which is exactly what happened with Mia in “Star City 2040.” She walked in her mother’s heroic shoes. Mia finally understands the danger, responsibility and sacrifice this life requires, which is how she finally reaches compassion.

Source: oliverxfelicity

Because after everything her parents sacrificed, including a peaceful life with their children, the city turned their backs on vigilantes. Welcome to the Star City Is A Bunch of Ungrateful Twats Club Mia. Have another scotch, honey.

The break in Mia’s wall gives Felicity the opportunity to tell her what we’ve all thought and needs to be said.

Mia Smoak is just like her dad – a stubborn, lethal, compassionate, badass with a heart of gold. Mia loves deeply and when she’s hurt it cuts just as deep, so she shuts down. But she cannot wall her heart off forever anymore than Oliver could because love is what fuels the fire in Mia. Her light is not extinguished. It shines brighter than she ever realized possible because of course it does. Mia is Oliver and Felicity’s girl.

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As independent as Mia claims to be, she also yearns for what any child wants. We all want our parents to be proud of us. As much as Felicity wishes she could keep Mia away from this life and these choices, she also recognizes it is her daughter’s decision to make. At the end of the day, Mia stepped up. She is so much like both her parents. As Felicity and Mia find some healing between them, somehow it feels like Oliver is in the room with them too.

Quite frankly, I am floored they resolved the fissure in Felicity and Mia’s relationship so quickly. I was mentally prepared for Mia to hate her mother at least for all of Season 7 and perhaps well into Season 8. I love that I was wrong. This is the reason why I have fewer problems with their big fight. It may have felt rushed, but since it was resolved within the hour I’m bothered by it less. Now we get to watch Felicity, William and Mia become a united force and find a way together to bring Oliver back to the family he loves more than anything else.

Maybe Oliver is dead and will be resurrected (although I really doubt the writers killed him at this point). Maybe Oliver is simply missing and cut off from his family. We may not know what happened or where he is, but we do know how this family will be reunited. Felicity told us tonight. It’s what she said to Oliver not so long ago, when they were first falling in love, and they often repeated it when whatever struggle they were facing seemed impossible.

“There’s always another way.”

The Yellow Brick Road and the Garden of Eden

There are many references to the Wizard of Oz because it is Felicity’s favorite story. Her Scarecrow remark to Roy in 3x19 wasn’t a toss away line. The reason Felicity Smoak loves the Wizard of Oz is because she loves heroes and that story is one of the great hero’s tales. There are a lot of really important lessons in Wizard of Oz, which we can apply to “Star City 2040” and ultimately Oliver’s legacy.

The Glades/Star City is clearly Emerald City. The twist in Wizard of Oz isn’t when Dorothy kills the Wicked Witch of the West. It’s when she pulls back the curtain and discovers there is no wizard. There is no magic man granting wishes.

All the characters already had everything they needed deep inside their souls to be exactly who they wanted to be. William, Connor, and Mia all have what it takes to be heroes even though they may not fully realize it.

They need to tap into what’s already there just like Scarecrow, Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion did. Just like Felicity, Diggle, and Oliver.

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The grass is not always greener on the other side, which Mia quickly discovers when she leaves Bloomfield for Star City. Dorothy realizes she had the power all along to go back home. She simply had to choose the people she loves. Mia makes the same choice as Dorothy when she forgives her mother and accepts what Felicity has been telling her about vigilantes is true.

The Yellow Brick Road is symbolism that lacks any real subtle because it’s literally the road Dorothy walks on her hero’s journey. It can’t get much clearer. Dorothy never wavers on the road. She is determined to find the Wizard so she can go home, despite all the trials and tribulations the Wicked Witch throws her way. Felicity is Mia’s home. She will always be home and Mia stopped at nothing to get her mother back.

Trust is another massive component to Dorothy’s story. She made friends in the unlikeliest of places and their success was truly a team effort. Each person had special gifts, which proved vital in the defeat of the Witch and ultimately the salvation of Emerald City. Mia is so much like Oliver and she is always ready to go it alone, however she couldn’t this time. She needed William and Connor to help save Felicity. And she will need the whole team to save Star City and her father too.

Honesty is freedom. Once Dorothy pulled back the curtain the Wizard was free of the lie. He no longer had to live behind the curtain hidden away. I view Oliver as the Wizard because what happened to him is shrouded in so much mystery. However, the Wizard is just a man who wants to return to his normal life like Dorothy does. The Wizard wants to be free of the curtain as much as he needs it. This is no different than Oliver needing the hood and wanting to be free of it someday.

Mia: I need to find out the truth about everything. About who our family really is. What I’m meant to do with my life. I can’t hold back anymore. I need to forge my own path.

Mia may mourn for what was lost like Oliver does, but she is at the beginning of her Yellow Brick Road whereas Oliver is at the end. Salvation for Star City is not the eradication of crime. There will always be another Wicked Witch. So, there must always be a hero lighting the road in the dark.

The gift Oliver Queen will give the citizens of Star City is hope. His legacy will live on when someone else chooses to become that hope. And then Oliver will be free to find his happiness at the end of the Yellow Brick Road.

This brings me to Galaxy One being a front for Eden Corps, which is a supposedly defunct terrorist organization that nuked cities at some point. Since Dante funds terrorist organization I feel the Chart of Evil will ultimately connect from Dante to Eden Corps to Galaxy One. It’s all fruit of the same poison tree.

The name Eden is not coincidental. Mia shatters the family photo aiming for an apple. The arrow goes through the apple and directly into the family photograph, which opens Felicity’s secret lair. Eden is from the Garden of Eden or the paradise Adam and Eve lived in until they disobeyed God’s command. They ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil after being tempted by the Devil. Adam and Eve’s eyes were opened and were cast out of paradise.

Galaxy One’s goal is to eradicate vigilantes and create a new world order with the Archer program. This new world is promised to be a paradise behind walls and Galaxy One/Eden Corps decide who lives or dies. It’s like extermination based on zip code rather than religion/ethnicity like the Nazis did in World War II. This biblical reference feels somewhat similar to Damien Darhk’s Genesis plan in Season 4. It is mass genocide in exchange for paradise. Not unlike Malcolm Merlyn’s Undertaking in Season 1. The ends justify the means to these villains.

No one can say with 100% accuracy what kind of fruit Adam and Eve ate, but the apple is the fruit most commonly depicted in popular culture. Mia shoots an arrow through the apple and it immediately launches her hero’s journey. She discovers Felicity’s lair, they fight, and she leaves for Star City. Then she must enter The Glades to save her mother. Mia’s eyes are opened to the truth about her mother even though she doesn’t fully grasp what that truth means in the moment. She leaves her idyllic life in Bloomfield for the harsh reality of Star City.

Mia is essentially at a crossroads in “Star City 2040.” She can either continue alone as a fading star or she can embrace the truth of her past and let it lead her towards a righteous path. The greatest gift God gave us is free will. Every hero has to decide to be a hero at some point.

I often say superheroes are Christ like figures because of their pure hearts and willingness to sacrifice for others at the expense of their own happiness and/or lives. I’ve been teasingly calling Oliver Jesus this season because he is a fully realized superhero. We are witnessing an evolved Oliver who has grown leaps and bounds from the man we first met in the pilot.

Oliver no longer lives in a black and white world. He sees the grey and operates from a true sense of justice where killing has no real place. He lives openly as the Green Arrow, which means no more lies. Oliver has embraced his team and is leading from example. He is far more patient, understanding and accepting of others, particularly when it comes to opinions which differ from his. Oliver has accepted he deserves love and has embraced it. He’s living life fully as a husband, father, brother and friend. Most importantly, Oliver is trying to save his city by instilling hope and honor through his example. His light shines on the darkest corners of Star City.

Do you know what Jesus is also called? The New Adam. Christians believe Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose again in fulfillment of God’s promise that one day we’d be delivered from the sin Adam and Eve introduced into our world. Our souls are saved because God loved us so much that he sacrificed his only son. Jesus’ mother Mary is sometimes called the New Eve. She was born free of original sin and remained sinless until ascending body and soul to heaven.

But this a superhero story, so it’s not going to be an apples to apples comparison (HA! Get it?), particularly since this is coming from the CW and not the Vatican. However, the writers are using biblical symbolism for a reason. Star City has gone to hell in a hand basket without Oliver. Eden Corps is essentially the Devil and Star City needs their superhero-Christ-like-figure to deliver their souls from the eternal torment of hell. Cool right? Oliver is that deliverance. He is the Christ like figure. Oliver Queen is the New Adam.

Arrow is not stopping with Oliver Queen. Saving Star City will be a family effort. It’s impossible for Oliver to eradicate crime just like we can never truly eradicate the evil Adam and Eve’s sin allowed into the world. But there is promised salvation.

Oliver may save the city, but he cannot be the Green Arrow forever. He doesn’t want to be the Green Arrow forever. What Oliver wants more than anything is to hang up the hood and live his life in peace. However, in order to do that he needs someone to take up the mantle of Protector of Star City. There must be a new superhero waiting in the wings. Not the New Adam, but the New Eve like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz.

Mia.

SmoakNHawke

DID Y’ALL HEAR THAT? IT’S THE SOUND OF MY SHIP SETTING SAIL!

Connor gets Mia through security scan because he’s AGENT Hawke. Umm… say what? Honestly, I don’t know why I was so shocked by this. Both of his parents were A.R.G.U.S. agents, but I’m wildly excited and dumbfounded when any of these children pick up their parents’ tools of the trade. I AM JUST SO HAPPY FAM! I’m overwhelmed by the wealth of goodies.

Connor started working on credentials and clearance once he realized Mia and William would be heading directly into the belly of the whale. It’s 100% apparent Connor is going to be the planner in this group. He obtained a pass to Galaxy One as an agent for Knightwatch, which is the good version of A.R.G.U.S. It seems A.R.G.U.S. goes all evil no matter what timeline we’re in.

The details on Connor and Knightwatch are fuzzy for a reason because the writers don’t want to fill all the blanks in the backdoor pilot. Then there’s no show. However, I think it’s safe to assume Knightwatch may be perceived as anti vigilante, otherwise why would the Galaxy One security guard release Mia into Connor’s custody? However, the reality may be Knightwatch is operating on some kind of undercover/double cross capacity.

Long story short – Connor is one of the good guys and he has a badge. So he’s hot and useful. Excellent.

He apologizes for not telling Mia the truth and she responds by slamming him up against a wall.

Oh my friends, scenes like this are how ships are made. Get it girl. I was not expecting this line to come out of Mia’s mouth though -

Source: mia-smoak-gifs

WHAT DID YOU SAY CHILD? DID YOU SAY “WAS ANY OF IT REAL?” MEANING Y’ALL WERE HOOKING UP? IS THAT THE REAL WE’RE DISCUSSING? JUST SO I AM CLEAR – REAL IS A EUPHEMISM FOR SEX?

SmoakNHawke is definitely a go and more importantly THEY’VE ALREADY HAD SEX. You could hear my screams for miles.

Yeah, I know we didn’t get to see anything YET. Listen cupcakes, this is what the spin-off is for. They’ll fill in the blanks. Arrow uses flashbacks and flash forwards. The probability is high the spin-off will too. I ain’t worried about it.

The backdoor pilot just gave us a canon ship to root for without a disastrous backstory like sleeping with sisters or foster siblings hooking up. I wasn’t expecting SmoakNHawke to happen this quickly. The OTA babies falling in love is a wonderful idea the fandom cooked up and I was sure the writers would either ignore completely like most of our good ideas or let it simmer for years on end. We just went from zero to sixty with one sentence. This is a moment to rejoice.

More importantly, if the spinoff doesn’t happen, and this is where the story ends for the Flash Forward characters too, then the writers made damn sure Mia and Connor were a thing before Arrow went off air. They understand the importance of Diggle’s son and Oliver’s daughter being together. It’s Christmas y’all. All we do is win.

Connor assures Mia “all of it” was real and I’m swooning. Felicity asks what Mia’s type is in a later scene and I yelled, “HER TYPE IS CONNOR HAWKE.”

As angry and hurt as Mia is, she still couldn’t let Connor get his ass beat and saves him from a couple of the security goons. I love this flip of gender dynamics. Not that Olicity remain rooted in traditional roles, quite the contrary. However, it’s not all that often we see a female hero saving a male.

Mia is too angry with Felicity’s choices to help her with the bombs. William leaves with their mother, but Connor stays with Mia. He is ride or die. If she wants to help then he’s there. If she wants to leave then he’s cool with that.

They have a pretty epic fight too. Mia can’t decide if she’s angrier about the lying or Connor believing she needed protection.

Mia defines whatever is between her and Connor as a relationship, so I feel they are more than just a hook up, but short of boyfriend and girlfriend. Connor is sorry he lied, but he’s not sorry he stuck around and kept an eye on Mia just like his father instructed because he truly cares about her.

“When you like someone, proximity is a good thing, regardless of how they feel about you." (Pacey Witter, Dawson’s Creek)

They sure fight like they are boyfriend and girlfriend. Connor gives a fairly epic speech about choosing to be a hero and learning how to selflessly share their superhero parents with the world.

Connor didn’t like Diggle and Lyla choosing the city above their family time and again, but as he grew older it became something he admired in his parents. Their sacrifices only made Connor love them more.

Source: oliverxfelicity

I’m curious about Connor’s backstory because he says he chose to be a superhero in training whereas it was more or less forced upon Mia. But today is the day she can make the choice for herself. If Mia walks out on Galaxy One then it is her decision. She can’t put the responsibility on Felicity this time.

Mia simply doesn’t trust Connor anymore and believes he has an ulterior motive just like Felicity and William. So, he uses a little reverse psychology. Mia walking away from danger is exactly what her mother wants and doing directly opposite of what Felicity wants is extremely appealing to Mia right now. God bless the rebellious youth. I swear Diggle must have discussed with Connor how to manage a Queen. This is straight out of the Yoda playbook.

Connor has to earn Mia’s trust back, but their story is just beginning and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Roy, Dinah and Rene

Once again I am the least interested in Team Newbie. Yeah, they are still Newbies after twenty years. I wish I could be more positive about Roy, but he listened to Dinah’s nonsense about Felicity being evil and dead. It’s swell they are all happy Felicity is alive and one of the good guys, but none of them get any points because they believed the worst about their friend who has proven to be a spectacular human being time and again. Dinah’s first inclination should have been Felicity is pretending to be evil to infiltrate a Big Bad because DUH. Morons.

They decide to finally look into Felicity’s death in EPISODE 16 and discover the shock of all shocks, “The case files are a mess.” YEAH BECAUSE SHE ISN’T REALLY DEAD YOU DINKLE TWITS!

Rene confessing he knew about the bombs isn’t a shock because we knew he was in on some kind of plan in 7x10. Galaxy One can expand The Glades in a fraction of the time and he thought Star City would be evacuated before the bombs. Rene being the biggest dumbass to ever live isn’t a shock. That’s just a regular Arrow Monday.

Rene aligned himself with Galaxy because he liked feeling powerful and respected. He was no longer living in the shadow of Oliver Queen. Now he was the mayor who saved the city. Unfortunately, aligning with the Big Bad at any point requires a redemptive arc. It’s great Rene is working undercover with Team Arrow now, but I am not expecting him to survive Season 8.

Source: felicitysmoakgifs

Dinah is thrilled to see Felicity alive, but she is not overwhelmed with joy over seeing Dinah. Felicity almost looks distrustful as Dinah hugs her. At the very least she’s ticked off Dinah believed she went all evil. There’s definitely more to the story and everything is not one hundred percent between these two.

The only other piece which interests me is Roy’s rage issues. It’s not Mirakuru related, but it’s completely possible he took a dip in the Lazarus Pit and banished himself to Lian Yu because he couldn’t control the rage. The fact Nyssa is available to train Mia for several years means the Lazarus Pit mission was over. Thea is LOA trained and Oliver’s sister. She would have been Felicity’s first choice to train their daughter, but instead it was Nyssa. This does not bode well for Thea’s fate. Everyone mentally prepare. Thea is dead.

Stray Thoughts…

It’s like Mia was tailor made for us. I will never tire of Arrow sticking it to comic book fans with lines like this. Yes, that’s right folks. The non comic book couple is canon on the TV show and they spawned a non comic book character to carry on the Green Arrow’s legacy. Suck it. Source: oliverxfelicity

It’s a little odd Mia’s first question wasn’t, “Hey! Who is the kid in the photo?” but given the potential canyon sized plot holes this storyline could have I’ll let it slide.

Itty bitty Mia was played by Bam’s daughter. I was wondering where you find a mini ninja and of course she is BABY BAM. Source: ebett

Clary Fray was a pretty physical role on Shadowhunters, but Katherine has really had to step it up as Mia and she’s doing a fantastic job with the stunts. She’s no Stephen, but he’s insane so we won’t grade her on that level of madness.

Oliver’s Yao Fei box keeps showing up everywhere. First it’s on Lian Yu and William digs it up. Now it’s in the backyard of the Olicity love cabin. This thing gets more miles than Delta.

WHAT DOES THE KEY TATTOO MEAN?

Where the friggin frack is Bloomfield? I’m sure there’s some comic book explanation.

The pairing of Mia and Connor romantically makes me smile because I always said Diggle was Oliver’s first wife. Hehehehe.

“Oh good now there are two of you.” William is Felicity 2.0 officially. It’s canon now.

Felicity’s mask was sparkly green. I was wildly excited about this color choice.

I love how Felicity pesters Mia about boys because Donna used to do the same thing to Felicity and it drove her nuts, which is proof we all become our mothers someday. Source: felicitysmoakgifs

I’m still not over Mia’s loft being the same set as Olicity’s loft back in Season 4.

“No one gets to kill my mom except me.” I have a super great relationship with my mother, but I don’t know any woman who can’t relate to this line on some level. Sometimes your mom just drives you nuts, but she’s still your mom and only you get to murder her. Nobody else can mess with her.

Rene didn’t think Roy was alive. Thinking people are dead is like an epidemic with the Newbies. Not blown away by their powers of deduction.

So much same William. Source: mei-pellegrino

Felicity blames herself for Galaxy One and Eden Corps because she invented Archer and somehow the bad guys get their hands on it. However, I do not think Felicity is blaming herself for Oliver. There’s two different trains moving at the same time on parallel tracks. There’s Dante/Eden Corps/the Ninth Circle/Archer and there’s the promise Oliver made to the Monitor. I believe the reason Oliver is missing/presumed dead etc is because of the deal he made with the Monitor. Perhaps Archer is a hurdle when Oliver is finally free to come home to Star City, but I don’t believe it’s the reason Oliver is gone. The reason Oliver was not around to help protect Felicity and Mia from Dante/Eden Corps/the Ninth Circle/Archer is because of his promise to the Monitor and Felicity had nothing to do with that. Source: felicitysmoakgifs

Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me. 7x16 gifs credited.

If you’d like to support the blog, please buy me a cup of tea!

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celebratinglucychen · 6 months ago

Note

Lucy was raised in a Chinese household by two Chinese parents. Even though the surname Walsh has Anglo origins, carriers of Walsh come from various backgrounds and ethnicities through marriage, adoption, immigration, Anglicization of their original last names, etc. So we don’t know canonically if Lucy is fully Chinese, half Chinese+half another Asian, Latino/Asian, whatever. We do know that Patrick Walsh’s identity has no bearing on Lucy's life. Yes, half her genes are his. But genes, as research shows, can be turned on/off/etc through our environment (upbringing), choices (which are influenced by culture), and lifestyle (also influenced by culture).

Lucy’s a Chinese-American who was raised in both worlds because she’s also Californian. Her version of “American culture” is a mix of everything because she's from LA. LA’s multicultural environment means that the "American" part of Lucy contains a significant Asian influence, moreso than someone in a region with a smaller or nonexistent Asian population. In some parts of LA, English isn’t even the primary language; instead, residents speak Spanish, Armenian, Chinese, Arabic, and more. This multiculturalism allows someone to live in America without learning English while still being just as "American" as anybody else.

Melissa’s first language is Cantonese. There are videos of her teaching Eric and Titus how to play games (according to the caption) the Cantonese way. I'd guess that Lucy's first language is also Cantonese. And 100% agree that it’s important to acknowledge and validate the impact her culture has on how she operates in daily life. I think that, despite her not being an immigrant, this influence is still pretty significant although it would play out in her life differently than someone from China. I do think that, when she and Tim were on good terms, that she would've shared it with him.

I'm glad that Anon later on recognized their comment as rude. But I'm not sure they understand how generalizing something as ingrained into Lucy's culture as the Chinese Zodiac into fictional astrology is landing. A quick internet search shows that the Chinese Zodiac dates back to around 280 BC. When you think of how ancient this practice is and how it's still being carried out throughout the world and adopted by many, this tells you that it's way more than folklore. If you take the magic and the mysticism out of it, it's culture, tradition, heritage, and so much more. Then you place the Chinese Zodiac into a context where it's commonly used (Chinese New Year) and it becomes everything about what the New Year symbolizes - hope, growth, a fresh start, family, progress, family, friends. Speaking of progress, I want to give Anon the benefit of doubt in their intent and hope they continue taking steps in the right direction.

so because the show won’t tell you Angela’s baby girl name you’re gonna act like she doesn’t exist ?? lol okay youre just blindly ignoring reality to suit your not real astrological beliefs. Lucy is 10 years younger than Tim. 31ish and 41ish. Deal with it.

I agree Lucy and Tim are 31ish and 41ish in the current season. I’m only disputing what years they were born.

The very first indication of Lucy’s age is in season 1 where she’s 28 which takes place in 2018 and 2019 making her birth year 1990 or 1991. Time starts and moves forward from there. It’s been 3-4 years in the rookie world which would make her 29 come season 4 and turning 31 in season 6.

And to comment on reality… it’s a scripted tv show… not real.

#aapi lucy chen #chinese zodiac #the rookie #Lucy Chen #aapilucychen #culture

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thetakenpokemon · 6 years ago

Text

Act 2 - ‘Gas’ Station

[PoV: Bladesong]

Back before I was a cyborg, I used to be able to walk for a little while before needing to rest. Sure everyone can walk quite a distance, but eventually your feet will start aching to the point where you really need to sit down.

Now a few miles? I admit that my feet weren’t really tough enough for something that far, especially since it takes about an hour to walk that. Now that I’m a cyborg though, walking that is laughable since I can travel several miles at a full sprint and not feel an ounce of exhaustion - the travel time being far less than an hour I might also add.

Chimera’s the same way in this regard, due to his Deoxys genes he experiences exhaustion on a level different from us. So trekking several miles is simple to us two. Velvett however? Not quite as simple. We had to make a brief stop for her to rest her feet, but it didn’t take very long since she was ready to continue after around ten minutes.

For the walk itself? It wasn’t until we were getting close to our destination I began to see traces of Progrian life - the most noticeable being the roads.

I’ve seen asphalt roads before, since some cities and places in Evolutia have cars. But these roads? They’re different. It’s white with glistening yellow lines on it, the road being so smooth that it only seems like metal. Lining it are countless metal lamps, their similarly white bodies strangely not reflecting any sunlight.

Not a single car though.

“The station is over there~” Velvett says, pointing towards a small building in the distance. “Once we get into my car, I’ll take us straight to my place in New Falkhom City.”

“Sounds good.” Chimera responds neutrally.

His mood still hasn’t improved much since the name fiasco, sadly.

The rest of the walk was in relative silence, although not quite as uncomfortable - from what I can tell at least. I spent a lot of my time observing the road mostly, the whole shininess of it making it incredibly tempting to just walk up and touch it. I didn’t do this though, since Chimera gave me several rundowns on Progrian laws involving traffic and what-not.

‘Unless during an emergency or if there’s no assigned walkways, pedestrians aren’t allowed to walk on the roads where vehicles drive.’

Well, honestly that sounds less like an actual law and more of a personal rule of his. I didn’t argue though, and I won’t do that now - especially since there’s a sidewalk beside the road for us.

Once we arrive at this gas station, I notice that the place really is...rather tiny. It’s just a small convenience mart, and it only has enough fuel dispensers to house up to two cars.

Sheesh, I guess this area doesn’t get much traffic.

As I’m checking the place out, the second thing I notice is that the fuel dispensers look...very different. Back in Evolutia I’m used to seeing the standard gasoline pumps - with the nozzle and all, but these? They look akin to that of generators, and their ‘nozzles’ share a strong resemblance to plugs.

Then I saw the sign.

"Zach’s Charge Shack?” I say aloud, reading the prices for how much it costs to charge vehicles. “Wasn’t this supposed to be a gas station?”

Velvett shrugs. “That’s what the people in Progria still call them, although they’ve long since switched from gasoline to electricity for their cars.” She taps her lip with a finger. “They’ve massively increased the efficiency of electrical cars from what I remember. That and combining the fact that they’ve found far superior methods of producing power? Fossil fuels are practically nonexistent in Progria now.”

Chimera nods his head. “Various corporations realized how profitable it was to sell electrical power instead of gasoline, so the switch was relatively fast.” He crosses his arms, his expression becoming thoughtful. “This was also due to the fact that vast amounts of technology being made also depended on electricity, and with nuclear fusion now being a staple for power plants? It’s-”

“Wait wait wait wait!” I interrupt him. “Nuclear fusion?! They’ve succeeded in creating fusion reactors?!”

He looks at me with confusion. The look didn’t last though since he realized that I’m not well-versed in Progria - besides the essential stuff he told me. “I don’t remember the exact date, but I do know that it was around twenty years ago that fusion reactors were being produced wide-spread for commercial use within Progria.” He cups his chin with a hand. “I often forget that us Progrians tend to guard our knowledge on technology, not only from Pokemon of Evolutia but also from the rest of the outside world.”

“Us Progrians?” Velvett repeats, stopping and turning to him with her own confused look. “Are you saying that you’re a Progrian?”

Both Chimera and I blink.

Hold on, she doesn’t know that he was originally a Human? I kinda thought that the GoT might’ve informed her about this, since...well...that’s kinda important since we’re right in the middle of a country consisting ENTIRELY of Humans.

Chimera looks at her for a long while before shaking his head. “Forget it.” He mutters. “We need to keep going, we’ve hung around long enough.”

Velvett didn’t look very happy with this response, but she wisely chose not to press the issue. Instead she turns and walks towards one of the corners of the lot in the ‘gas’ station, in which I see a black car.

Now, I’ve seen a few cars when I’ve went to the more advanced towns and cities of Evolutia. They looked pretty cool and all, ranging from ‘SUVs’ to ‘trucks’.

But this car? Damn.

It has a very smooth and sleek design, reminding me that of the rare Sports Car in Evolutia. However this thing looks much bigger than those - since said Sports Cars tend to be rather cramped for size. But besides that, I have a strong feeling that this car would easily beat any regular Sports Car in a race tenfold.

Velvett reaches behind her back and pulls a set of keys seemingly out of thin-air. The only explanation I could give would be that they were hidden in her extremely long hair - which is currently disguised to be very short from her illusion. With the keys in hand she presses a button on it, and the car immediately lights up with several flashes from its headlights.

“Alright, time to load up!” She says, pressing another button that causes the trunk to open.

The trunk was surprisingly spacious, being big enough for us to fit the numerous stuff we brought with us. Once everything was packed away we all climbed into the car - carefully in my case due to my extremely heavy weight. Much to my surprise though the car didn’t even budge when I got in - nor is it even slightly leaning towards the side I’m sitting in. All this can tell me is that this thing is built to carry heavy loads - whether this is a specialized trait though I’m not sure.

Also...damn... The inside looks just as nice as the outside too.

The seats are very soft and comfortable, being made of a black fabric that I don’t recognize. There’s lots of buttons and knobs around the place as well, allowing the people inside to adjust the interior to make themselves more comfortable.

Currently I’m sitting in the right-rear side of the vehicle while the suit-case holding Trojan is on the left, Chimera is currently in the passenger seat while Velvett is obviously in the driver’s.

“Buckle your seatbelts!” She says, tapping the keys against a glowing blue light on the side of her steering wheel. Upon contact the car starts up, unlike the normally loud rumbles that a gasoline engine makes, the sound coming from this car is instead soft hum.

It took me a little bit to figure out how to put on a seat belt - to my embarrassment, but I managed to wrestle the thing into the slot.

With all of us secured in our seats, Velvett shifts the vehicle in drive...

...and then we were off.

#bladesonggothitelle #velvettdelphoroark #chimera???#guardiansoftwilight #plot #act 2-3

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likeshipsonthesea · 7 years ago

Text

And We All Fall Down (2/?)

[1] [2]

A continuation of Ooby Dooby, this thing I wrote where Nursey accidentally tells single-father Dex that he has a child, too. Oops. Also the title is from another children’s song (Ring-Around-the-Rosie) and is meant to signify Nursey falling even further down the hole he dug himself. Oops again.

*~*~*

Finding a toddler to borrow for a certain amount of time is more difficult than Nursey would’ve thought. Like, he thought it would be really hard to start with, but it turns out its even harder than that. None of his friends have kids, as they’re all fairly young and/or like to drink their cares away for the majority of their weekends, and it’s not like Nursey can just go to a cat-shelter type establishment and pick out a cute two-to-three year old who might possibly look like they share his genes.

He flirted, briefly, with the idea of putting an ad on Craigslist, but not only did the idea of what he’d get in response scare him into double-checking the locks on his apartment’s front door but he’s also pretty sure that someone in some kind of government room with no windows and a thousand computer screens is monitoring shit that goes down on Craigslist, and Nursey really doesn’t want to be put on any kind of list that makes flying even harder than it already is.

Dex texts him, a few days following their meeting- days Nursey has spent debating on whether or not he can die of heartbreak from a guy he’s spent not even an hour with- and he sends a picture of Parker wearing his Spider-man pajamas. It’s probably the most adorable thing Nursey has ever seen in his life, Parker looking so proud of himself with this huge grin on his face, sitting on a rug that looks old and homey, in his apparently favorite outfit. Dex captions it with he wanted me to make sure you knew how cool his pjs were. Nursey dies with cuteness and tells Dex to let Parker know that they are, indeed, the coolest pajamas in existence, and hopes that this isn’t a tit-for-tat type situation in which Nursey is expected to reciprocate with a cute picture of his own adorable, superhero-loving, non-existent kid.

Nursey lets himself into Jack’s apartment, hating himself and also craving some pie for some weird reason. He collapses on the couch with a pitiful sigh-groan-whimper and Jack, who is sat next to him, looks constipated, which he usually does when faced with emotions. He reaches out awkwardly and pats at Nursey’s shoulder, which is actually pretty nice so Nursey gives him a weak smile.

“No luck in the toddler search?” Jack asks, then winces at himself as he realizes how weird what he just said was.

Nursey sighs again. “No. It’s almost like parents don’t want to give their kids away to strange men so they can get dates. Go figure.”

“Thirdy said you could babysit his daughter if you want,” Jack says, a little hopeful. “Mostly because he wants to know how it is going to turn out.” Nursey loves Jack, he really does, because there’s only so many friends that would actually ask their coworkers if his friend could borrow their baby for a bit.

“I told Dex I had a son,” Nursey says, waving his hand for no reason. “But thanks anyway.”

“Marty has a son,” Jack says, almost like he’s thinking to himself. He winces again, momentarily forgetting that this isn’t the weirdest fucking situation ever.

Nursey gives Jack a flat look, which isn’t fair because Jack is trying to help but- “I show up with a white baby and he’s definitely going to think I’m more of a creeper than I already am.”

“I don’t see what the big issue is,” Holster says, returning from Jack’s kitchen with a giant bowl of popcorn. Shitty trails behind him, a similarly sized bowl of chocolate covered pretzels in his hands. Lardo has a three six-packs of beer in her hands, which she quickly dumps across the coffee table for everyone to grab. Nursey looks at them and whines to himself. He doesn’t even feel like drinking, he’s so upset. “You met the guy, what? Once for like an hour? Just never talk to him again.”

“I can’t just-” Nursey cuts himself off with a whine and reflops onto the couch, because he’s apparently regressed into childhood maturity once again. He briefly wonders if he could pass his own self off as his son and then hurts his head thinking about the logistics for a minute. “I- you didn’t see him. He’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Shitty raises his eyebrows. “More beautiful than Jack?” Nursey nods solemnly and Shitty swears. “Wow.”

“Yeah.”

“You can’t risk being arrested because he’s pretty,” Lardo says, throwing away a can of beer she’s already finished even though they haven’t even started the movie yet.

“It’s not just that,” Nursey mumbles, fiddling with the hem of his sweatshirt. “He’s really good with his kid and he’s funny and he plays hockey, and I don’t know.” He shrugs, looking up at Lardo and feeling embarrassed and vulnerable and shitty. “I just felt good being around him. I- everything was okay for a little bit.”

Lardo, who has dealt with Nursey’s shit almost as much as Shitty, considers him for a moment. Nursey lets her look her fill, baring his soul to her even though he knows she can see it whenever she wants. After a few heavy moments, she finally shakes her head. “Derek,” she says, her voice soft, “if you really do like this guy, you can’t pretend that you’re a father. It would ruin any chance you had.”

“Yeah, brah, fake babies are good for a one-and-done but long-term?” Shitty makes a face. “Not kosh.”

“But what do I tell him?” Nursey says, whining more but mostly just because why not.

“The truth,” Jack says, his voice quiet but firm, and he gives Nursey a reassuring smile when Nursye turns to look at him. “If he’s worth it, he’ll see how sw’awesome you are despite the whole-” Jack winces again, “-lying about having a kid thing.”

Nursey sniffles, wiping at a nonexistent tear. “That was beautiful.”

“Group hug!” Shitty cheers, then jumps onto the couch like a starfish. Nursey coughs all the air out of his lungs, and before he can rectify it, Holster and Lardo join the pile. Nursey and Jack are busy complaining, loudly and with much laughter, that it’s too much weight, then Shitty starts sobbing because he accuses them of calling him fat, and it’s at that moment that Ransom bursts into the apartment, grinning from ear to ear.

“Tell me I’m the best bro,” he says.

“You’re the best bro,” Holster says without pause.

“Want to know why I’m the best bro?” Ransom asks. Before anyone responds, he continues, “Because only the bestest of best bros could help his bro get a little bro to take to a bro date with another bro!”

Nursey blinks confused. What does bro even mean at this point? Holster, it seems, is better at deciphering it. “You found a toddler?” he asks, shock and awe in his voice. Nursey panics momentarily, wondering what “found a toddler” means. Like, a friend of a friend promised to lend the baby to a stranger for an afternoon kind of found, or like, someone left a stroller unattended at a grocery store and now the whole cast of Law and Order: SVU is going to be at their door in a few minutes kind of found?

“It might be cool to meet Mariska Hargitay,” he mumbles to himself. Everyone else, who is used to his mumblings, begins inquiring via yelling how exactly Ransom found a toddler.

“My sis is going on vacation and I convinced her to let me babysit my nephew while she and her wife go to Paris.” Ransom grins, incredibly proud of himself, and Nursey is thankful and he feels bad but-

“Thanks, brah, but I kinda decided to nix the fake baby idea.”

Ransom deflates. “Dude. Now I have a toddler for a week all by myself.”

“You love Wade,” Holster protests. “We can dress him up like Broadway characters again.”

Ransom winces. “Yeah, Sabrina nixed that after the Pippin ones. Gave her a bad vibe.” And he shakes his head, changing the subject physically. “And yeah, I love Wade, coolest little dude who can’t form sentences, but, like, for an afternoon, a day at most. A whole week is going to be brutal.” He collapses in the armchair, already exhausted at the mere thought of entertaining a toddler for an extended period of time.

“I could help you watch him,” Nursey suggests. “It is my fault you’ve got him in the first place, and I still need to do research for the book anyway.” Nursey doesn’t know why he’s doing this; he has no experience with kids and he’s probably just going to make the whole thing worse, but maybe a part of him is hoping that if he gets enough practice hours with a baby, Dex will be more inclined to let him into his and Parker’s lives. Possibly. Improbably. Would you let a guy who lied about having a son to look less creepy about watching children play in a park around your toddler? Nursey would, but he might be biased.

“Sw’awesome!” Ransom cheers. “Bro-parenting.”

“Bro,” Holster says, wounded. “I thought we were gonna be bro-parents.”

“That’s when we have our own kids,” Ransom says, like it’s obvious, and Holster is apparently pacified. The rest of the people on the couch exchange looks; they’re not sure if Holster and Ransom are actually dating and just never thought it pertinent to inform any of them or if they’re just planning to keep living together forever, bros ‘til death do they go off to the big kegster in the sky.

“When does Wade get here?” Nursey asks to change the subject.

“Tomorrow,” Ransom says. His eyes go wide and excited. “We can go to the aquarium!”

*~*~*

Okay, so, babies? Much cuter in the abstract than the physical. Like, meeting Wade, A+ experience. His mothers had cleaned him of any and all fluids, deceiving Nursey into thinking babies were generally clean. Guess what? Not true. They were pushing the stroller along, happily pointing out all the fish to a Wade who probably had no idea what was happening aside from colors! Then all of a sudden there was spit-up and crying (mostly Nursey and Ransom’s) and then Ransom was abandoning Nursey to “go get paper towels” and Nursey was left alone with the crying, vomit-covered toddler in his arms.

He’s hastily rummaging through the stroller, looking for anything aside from his own t-shirt for something to get the vomit off of Wade’s face, ignoring the judging looks from the moms around him. Fuck them, he thinks, at least my kid is the cutest out of all of them. He glances around to make sure and he’s totally got the cutest kid, sans-vomit. Wade’s got these huge chubby baby cheeks and a happy wide smile, with short curly hair and the most adorable button nose there’s ever been.

“Except maybe for Dex’s, kid,” Nursey tells Wade just as he finds a thing of wet-wipes. He manages to finagle a wipe out of it with some vigorous jerking that makes Wade giggle. “He’s got a very cute nose,” Nursey informs him, rubbing at the vomit, and it’s actually going away! Score one for Nursey, zero for toddler digestive tracts. “And there’s all these freckles over it, I bet you in the summer he gets thousands of them.”

“Fishy,” Wade says happily, pointing at a Nemo looking thing behind him.

“Yes, fishy,” Nursey says, proud of Wade’s developmental skills even though he has no right to be. He throws the vomit-wipe into the trash can to their left and then tickles Wade’s tummy, making him shriek with glee. “This is what fishy kisses feel like,” he says seriously, which just makes Wade giggle more.

Wade leans in and smacks a kiss to Nursey’s cheek, which is endearing even with the lingering smell of puke, and Nursey gives him a warm smile as Wade pats at the place he just kissed with his chubby baby hand.

Then Nursey hears, “Nursey!” in an excited, high-pitched voice, and he turns just in time to see Parker running up to him and stopping just before he barrels into Nursey’s knees.

“Parker.” Nursey blinks down at him, shocked considerably. Last night, Nursey and Parker’s father were texting like crazy, going from talking about hockey to books Nursey loved and Dex complained about to Marvel movies and more. It was so easy, companionable and flirty and comfortable. Nursey spent most of the night afterwards agonizing over if he was going to explain his lie to Dex or just not respond to anymore texts, and now here Parker is, bright and smiling and-and sans-Dex.

Nursey looks up and around, eyes programmed to lock onto that gorgeous fiery hair, and he finds Dex looking panicked a few tanks over. He raises a hand in the air and calls Dex’s name until Dex looks over, his eyes locking on Nursey. He jogs over, pushing his way through extended families and stroller walls. When he’s within earshot, he hears Dex asking, “Have you seen Park-”

“Daddy, it’s Nursey!” Parker cheers, bouncing on his feet. Dex instantly floods with relief, his shoulders loosening and his expression relaxing. He kneels down onto the ground and hugs Parker close, his eyes closing as he squeezes.

“You scared me, Parker. Don’t run away from me like that.” Dex pulls back and Parker’s lip is wobbling a little.

“I’m sowwy,” he says, blinking rapidly. Then he points up at Nursey. “Nursey here.”

Dex squeezes at Parker’s shoulders for a few seconds, not able to look away from him, probably still half-panicked from losing him, but eventually he pulls his eyes away to look up at Nursey and offer a tired, almost self-deprecating smile. He stands up, taking Parker with him so now they’re both standing with babies in their arms, and Nursey almost forgot about Wade until he waves, big and obnoxious, over at Parker.

“Hi!” he says, cheerful, and Parker seems a little shy, ducking his head, but he does wave back, just a little spasm of his fingers, and it’s probably the most adorable interaction Nursey’s seen in his life.

“Oh, this is Wade,” Nursey says, remembering his manners. “Wade, this is Parker and Dex.”

“Hi!” Wade says again, and Dex smiles fondly. Nursey is almost jealous of Wade in that second. How dare a toddler get Dex’s fond eyes when Nursey doesn’t? He may possibly be crazy. I made up a toddler, he thinks, I’m definitely crazy.

Fuck, Nursey thinks as he realizes, Dex probably thinks Wade is my kid. Oh shit, oh fucking shit, how the hell is he going to dig himself out this? He was going to tell Dex he lied- or never talk to him again, he hadn’t decided yet- and it’s so much creepier to explain when he’s been spotted with a toddler that is not his own. Oh, yeah, I just like to hang out around children’s playgrounds alone during my free time and I just have this random toddler who’s my friend’s sister’s kid, a friend who just happens to not be here right now, haha, he’s totally real, this isn’t just a story I made up to explain away my kidnapping of this child, I would never make up something like, that’s almost as ridiculous as making up the existence of a child, who would do that, hahaha.

He is so fucked.

“Hi Wade,” Dex says, his voice softer somehow. “Do you like the fishes?”

“Fishy!” Wade says, which Nursey thinks is an affirmative. “Nemo,” he adds, solemnly, and Parker seems to understand because he nods back seriously. Dex shakes his head and gives Nursey a look, like kids, right? and Nursey tries to nod like a father would but he has like absolutely zero idea of what that would look like.

“My friend Chowder really likes the aquarium, and he conditioned Parker into loving sharks, so this is a weekly trip for us,” Dex says, faux-exasperated but mostly just pleased.

“This is our first time,” Nursey says, because lies fit in his mouth easily. He adjusts Wade on his waist. “We like it for the most part.” Then Nursey thinks for a second and amends, “The jellyfish exhibit was dark.”

“Dark scary,” Wade says.

“Weally scawy,” Parker agrees, and they exchange a happy, oblivious child smile.

Just then, Ransom comes bounding up to them, a wad of paper towels clutched in his hand. “I found-” He pauses, noticing the puke-less toddler in Nursey’s arms.

Nursey shrugs. “There were wet-wipes in the cart.”

“You couldn’t have texted a bro to let him know?” Ransom grumbles, throwing out the towels in the nearby trashcan.

“Jus’in,” Wade cheers, making grabby hands for Ransom. Ransom takes him easily from Nursey, and Nursey hopes that it doesn’t make it seem like his own “son” likes Ransom better than him.

“This is Ransom,” Nursey says, looking back to Dex- and God he’s pretty, how is Nursey ever going to walk away from Dex and Parker without dying inside- and seeing the amicable smile Dex offers Ransom. “Ransom, this is Dex and Parker.”

“The Dex and Parker?” Ransom has a shitty grin on his face, and Nursey feels his face warm (though it’s probably not a visible blush). Dex, on the other hand, flushes across his nose and cheeks in a pleasant, soft pink that Nursey wants to memorize. “I’ve heard a lot about you guys,” Ransom adds, probably as payback for the time Nursey helped Holster fill the pockets of his salmon shorts with actual salmon. Ransom leans in a little towards Parker. “I hear you’ve got some pretty sw’awesome Spider-Man PJs?”

“Spider-Man!” Parker cheers, and proceeds to ramble about superheros for a few minutes, to which Wade responds in kind, and as they have their own conversation (with Ransom watching and interjecting as he pleases, because both he and Holster are most comfortable in the presence of toddlers), Nursey manages to talk to Dex about the newest Marvel movie out, which leads to them talking about representation in media, and diversity and the importance of kids having role-models who look like them, and, just.

Dex speaks so carefully, choosing his words deliberately and trying to get what he means across so Nursey can understand easily, and Nursey can picture them talking about their days and Parker’s drawings and movies and pointless things and important things and he just wants, wants to have the chance to talk to Dex for- for as long as Dex will let him. And he realizes, with startling horror, that he is never going to get that. Because he made up the existence of a person and now he can’t even explain it because Dex caught him with a toddler (that Nursey once again lied about and passed off as his own), and, just. Halfway into their conversation, Nursey starts mourning the relationship he and Dex will never have.

Ransom’s phone goes off, and he tells Nursey that they need to get back for lunch with the gang, and Nursey tries not to whine pitifully at the thought of leaving Dex. Dex doesn’t seem to have the same qualms. He says, “Yeah, we’d better get going, too. But we should set up a playdate sometime.”

Nursey is going to say no, he is, but Dex looks so hopeful, and the expression is mirrored on Parker’s little face, and fuck, but, “Sure.” Nursey can feel Ransom staring at the side of his face and studiously ignores him.

Dex lights up, as do Parker and Wade. “I get off work early on Tuesday,” Dex says. “We could do around four if you’re free?”

“Sounds great,” Nursey says, thinking you’re an idiot, you’re an idiot, you’re an- “We can work out the details tonight.”

“See you then.” Dex is smiling, casual but devastatingly beautiful as always. He adjusts Parker in his arms. “Say bye, Park.”

“Bye-bye!” Parker waves goodbye, and Wade mirrors it with a big smile. Dex waves, too, and then they’re both disappearing into the crowd. Nursey deflates as soon as he can’t see the back of Dex’s head anymore.

“Dayum, Nursey, you’ve got it bad.”

“Yeah.” Nursey sighs. He’s so fucked.

“Fishy,” Wade says, almost consolingly, patting at Nursey’s shoulder. That helps.

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lovemychinchilla · 4 years ago

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Do Chinchillas Live in Pairs?

A pet chinchilla is great fun, but what's even more fun is having more than one chinchilla. If you do, you could either keep them as a pair/group, or keep them in separate cages. But which is best?

Do chinchillas live in pairs? In the wild, chinchillas live in large groups. As pets, they can be kept alone, in pairs, or in groups. If you keep a chinchilla on its own, you must interact with it to prevent it becoming lonely. Same-sex pairs of cage-mates are ideal.

Monitor your pet to see whether it prefers living alone or with another chinchilla. Then, give your pet whatever it wants.

Do Wild Chinchillas Live in Groups?

Wild chinchillas live in groups called herds. These herds can be large, anywhere from a dozen up to a hundred individuals. Living in herds offers distinct advantages:

There will always be mates available nearby. This allows chinchillas to reproduce quickly and easily. It also helps them avoid inbreeding.

Chinchillas can warn each other of danger. A chinchilla which notices a predator will announce its presence with a loud bark, and the others in the herd will run and hide.

The chinchillas will then hide in rock crevices or under bushes to escape whatever predator is nearby.

Alongside this warning bark, chinchillas have at least ten distinct sounds they can make, each of which has a different meaning. Furthermore, they display social behaviors like grooming and playfighting. This underlines how the chinchilla is a naturally social species.

Can Wild Chinchillas Live by Themselves?

Wild chinchillas have interesting group dynamics. An individual chinchilla may not necessarily stay with the same group for its whole life.

This is one difference between wild female and male chinchillas. Males can travel between groups. This allows them to mate with many different females, and thereby diversify the gene pool of a group. Females are more territorial because they form the core of the group, and stick with the same group for most of their lives.

In the meantime, a male can live on its own while it searches for another group. However, it will prefer living with a larger group as bigger numbers mean more protection.

Unfortunately, evidence relating to how chinchillas live in the wild is almost nonexistent. That's because both long tailed and short tailed chinchillas were hunted to near extinction. Now, only small groups in arid areas in and around the Atacama desert survive. Scientists have to use night-vision cameras to even find them, so studying their group dynamics is practically impossible.

Can You Keep Two Chinchillas Together?

Keeping two chinchillas together is the default setup for owners. Doing so allows the pets to display natural behaviors like grooming and playfighting, which is good for their wellbeing. It also means that you don't have to dedicate lots of time each day to spending time with your pet, as it already has company.

If you do want to keep two chinchillas together, you have to introduce them first. Otherwise, they'll fight. You do this using the split cage method, which is where you keep the two chinchillas somewhere they can smell each other but with a dividing wall between them.

What most owners do is keep them in two cages separated by a couple of inches, and allow them playtime together on occasion. Over time they become used to each other and you can house them together.

Can Chinchillas Live Alone?

Pet chinchillas can either live alone or in a group. Many owners keep single chinchillas, and report that their pets are happy. But chinchillas are naturally social, so they can also live in groups.

Also, not all chinchillas are the same. Some are far less social than others, and will get aggressive when they see another chinchilla. This especially applies to females, which are more territorial than males. However, this is the exception rather than the rule, so assume that your chinchilla would be happier living with another until proven otherwise.

Can Chinchillas Get Lonely?

Loneliness is a difficult emotion to define. The need to be social is not unique to people, but it's incorrect to assume that other animals feel 'lonely' in the same way that people do. What we do know is that chinchillas enjoy living in groups, and can display negative behaviors when kept alone.

So, if your chinchilla seems lonely, the easiest fix is to find it a cage-mate. You could also consider spending more time with your pet, as solitary chinchillas do best when they get lots of care and attention from their owners.

Can Chinchillas Die of Loneliness?

Chinchillas cannot die of being alone. But what can happen is that loneliness contributes to ill health through stress and unhappiness.

A neglected and lonely chinchilla will display negative and repetitive behaviors, such as biting at its cage bars. This in turn can cause malocclusion (teeth pointing the wrong way), which can kill a chinchilla. Or, loneliness might contribute to stress as the chinchilla feels vulnerable, which negatively affects overall health.

So, loneliness cannot directly kill a chinchilla; but it can contribute to things that do.

Do Chinchillas Like to Be Alone?

Again, this depends on the chinchilla. Some clearly want to be left alone, and will get aggressive if you try to spend time with them. A female which wants to be left alone may rear up on her hind legs, for example, or spray urine.

Other chinchillas clearly want to spend time with other chinchillas, or with their owners. You may notice your pet scrabbling at the wall or jumping up and down when you come near in anticipation of playing with you.

And like people, sometimes chinchillas want to be social, and sometimes they don't. So, a pet which enjoys spending time with you may occasionally get defensive if you try to handle it because it wants to be alone for a while. There isn't necessarily any reason why; just like people, sometimes they want to be left alone.

Advantages vs Disadvantages of Keeping a Single Chinchilla

Some owners dislike the idea of keeping chinchillas alone; but it does have its advantages, provided you spend lots of time with your pet. Below is a table highlighting the benefits of keeping your chinchilla alone, vs. the advantages you get from keeping it in a pairing or group.

AloneIn a GroupIt's cheaper to keep one chinchilla rather than a pair or group.Chinchillas naturally live in groups; it's your job as your pet's owner to give it as close an approximation of its natural life as you possibly can.Your chinchilla is more likely to bond with you, as you provide it with its dose of social interaction.The chinchillas can spend lots of time with each other, so leaving your pets alone won't send them stir-crazy.Your pet won't be territorial of its belongings, as it doesn't feel threatened by any other chinchillas.If you have a male and a female, you can breed them (not advised for novice owners).You won't have to divide your attention between several pets.Your chinchilla can display social behaviors, which helps it de-stress (e.g. grooming).Chinchillas living in pairs or groups can fight, over-groom each other, injure each other and even kill each other (although introducing the pair properly should prevent this).Chinchillas which used to be paired or grouped up before you bought them will miss being social. It's fun to watch a chinchilla pair or group all interacting with each other.

The fact that there are advantages to both approaches is why owners take different views. The most important thing to note is that good care goes a long way, whether you keep your chinchilla alone or not.

Keeping Two Chinchillas in Separate Cages

An alternative setup is to keep two chinchillas, but have each chinchilla in its own cage. They won't be living as a pair/group, but they can at least 'talk' to each other and see each other. You can do this to keep a territorial chinchilla happy; it won't want another chinchilla in its enclosure, but it will benefit from seeing and 'talking with' another chinchilla.

Below, you can find our chinchilla quiz, new posts for further reading, and a signup for our Chinchilla Newsletter!

Continue Reading:

#chinchillas #chinchillacagesetup #malevsfemale #pair

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katejezzz · 4 years ago

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LESSON 1

Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications[ and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless signals) and computers, as well as necessary enterprise software, middleware, storage and audiovisual, that enable users to access, store, transmit, and manipulate information.

The term ICT is also used to refer to the convergence of audiovisual and telephone networks with computer networks through a single cabling or link system. There are large economic incentives to merge the telephone network with the computer network system using a single unified system of cabling, signal distribution, and management.

ICT is an umbrella term that includes any communication device, encompassing radio, television, cell phones, computer and network hardware, satellite systems and so on, as well as the various services and appliances with them such as video conferencing and distance learning.ICT is a broad subject and the concepts are evolving.It covers any product that will store, retrieve, manipulate, transmit, or receive information electronically in a digital form (e.g., personal computers, digital television, email, or robots). Theoretical differences between interpersonal-communication technologies and mass-communication technologies have been identified by the philosopher Piyush Mathur.Skills Framework for the Information Age is one of many models for describing and managing competencies for ICT professionals for the 21st century.

Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to store, retrieve, transmit, and manipulate data or information. IT is typically used within the context of business operations as opposed to personal or entertainment technologies. IT is considered to be a subset of information and communications technology (ICT).

Communications technology, also known as information technology, refers to all equipment and programs that are used to process and communicate information. Professionals in the communication technology field specialize in the development, installation, and service of these hardware and software systems.

Emerging technologies are technologies whose development, practical applications, or both are still largely unrealized, such that they are figuratively emerging into prominence from a background of nonexistence or obscurity. These technologies are new, such as various applications of biotechnology including gene therapy. Emerging technologies are often perceived as capable of changing the status quo.

Emerging technologies are characterized by radical novelty (in application even if not in origins), relatively fast growth, coherence, prominent impact, and uncertainty and ambiguity. In other words, an emerging technology can be defined as "a radically novel and relatively fast growing technology characterised by a certain degree of coherence persisting over time and with the potential to exert a considerable impact on the socio-economic domain(s) which is observed in terms of the composition of actors, institutions and patterns of interactions among those, along with the associated knowledge production processes. Its most prominent impact, however, lies in the future and so in the emergence phase is still somewhat uncertain and ambiguous."

Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions. The term may also be applied to any machine that exhibits traits associated with a human mind such as learning and problem-solving.

Robotics is a branch of engineering that involves the conception, design, manufacture, and operation of robots. This field overlaps with electronics, computer science, artificial intelligence, mechatronics, nanotechnology and bioengineering.

Biometrics is the measurement and statistical analysis of people's unique physical and behavioral characteristics. The technology is mainly used for identification and access control or for identifying individuals who are under surveillance.

Quantum cryptography is the science of exploiting quantum mechanical properties to perform cryptographic tasks. The best known example of quantum cryptography is quantum key distribution which offers an information-theoretically secure solution to the key exchange problem.

online learning platform is an integrated set of interactive online services that provide trainers, learners, and others involved in education with information, tools and resources to support and enhance education delivery and management.

Computer-assisted translation (CAT) software translates one language to another using translation memory—which stores previously translated texts—or crowd assistance to provide translations that are consistent with previously used language to ensure proper spelling, grammar, and phrasing.

3D hologram is defined as a 3D projection that exists freely in space and is visible to everyone without the need for 3D glasses. Holography is the next stage of photography and conventional film and its three-dimensionality creates completely new possibilities for use, such as for product presentation.

Virtual reality (VR) refers to a computer-generated simulation in which a person can interact within an artificial three-dimensional environment using electronic devices, such as special goggles with a screen or gloves fitted with sensors.

Online systems – are online versions of information systems, which is “the process of and tools for storing, managing, using, and gathering of data and communications in an organization. An example of information systems are tools for sending out communications and storing files in a business.”

Social Media Platform means a mobile and/or internet-based platform used and controlled by a Seller or any of its Affiliates for the exclusive purpose of promoting the Business,

ecommerce platform is a software application that allows online businesses to manage their website, marketing, sales and operations.

online video platform (OVP), provided by a video hosting service, enables users to upload, convert, store and play back video content on the Internet, often via a structured, large-scale system that may generate revenue. Users generally will upload video content via the hosting service's website, mobile or desktop application, or other interface (API). The type of video content uploaded might be anything from shorts to full-length TV shows and movies. The video host stores the video on its server and offers users the ability to enable different types of embed codes or links that allow others to view the video content. The website, mainly used as the video hosting website, is usually called the video sharing website.

Netiquette is a combination of the words network and etiquette and is defined as a set of rules for acceptable online behavior. Similarly, online ethics focuses on the acceptable use of online resources in an online social environment.

Online search is the process of interactively searching for and retrieving requested information via a computer from databases that are online. ... Research Skills  “Research” sometimes just means finding out information about a topic.

online safety refers to the act of staying safe online. ... Being safe online means individuals are protecting themselves and others from online harms and risks which may jeopardise their personal information, lead to unsafe communications or even effect their mental health and wellbeing.

Cyberbullying or cyberharassment is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Cyberbullying and cyberharassment are also known as online bullying. It has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers, as the digital sphere has expanded and technology has advanced.Cyberbullying is when someone, typically a teenager, bullies or harasses others on the internet and in other digital spaces, particularly on social media sites. Harmful bullying behavior can include posting rumors, threats, sexual remarks, a victims' personal information, or pejorative labels (i.e. hate speech).Bullying or harassment can be identified by repeated behavior and an intent to harm. Victims of cyberbulling may experience lower self-esteem, increased suicidal ideation, and a variety of negative emotional responses including being scared, frustrated, angry, or depressed.

Hacking is an attempt to exploit a computer system or a private network inside a computer. Simply put, it is the unauthorised access to or control over computer network security systems for some illicit purpose. ... They can destroy, steal or even prevent authorized users from accessing the system.

Identity theft is the crime of obtaining the personal or financial information of another person to use their identity to commit fraud, such as making unauthorized transactions or purchases.

Plagiarism is presenting someone else's work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement. All published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form, is covered under this definition.

WHAT I’VE LEARNED?

I’ve learned to this lesson to know what and how to use some online platforms and to have some knowledge in using it in a good way because there are some issues that we shouldn’t do in the internet. Also I’ve learned some techniques on searching like you should find your web browser based for what we are going to search, we should limit our search and we should check if our spelling is correct when searching ,the safety tips also I’ve learned that we should avoid some scams in the internet, to protect our info’s and our password should be a unique or hard to know so that our accounts will be safe, we should use this searching or using internet in a nice and good way we shouldn’t not use it in unnecessary things.

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officialjkhogan · 7 years ago

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STRAY: Chapter Four

by J.K. Hogan

Noah let himself inside the house, and turned to look through the peephole to see if he’d been followed. He couldn’t believe he’d let his guard down like that. Beltrane was a harsh city, and he was a young, pretty seventeen year old with parents who barely gave enough of a shit to make sure he was still breathing. He was constantly being targeted by criminals, degenerates, and pedophiles who thought he was younger than he really was, so he knew better than to stop paying attention to his surroundings even for a second.

But there was no sign of the creepy stalker, or the peculiar man with the long blond hair who’d run him off. In fact, the only thing out of place was the very large, white cat that sat on its haunches on the sidewalk across the street, staring straight ahead as if it were watching Noah’s house. It was big for a domesticated cat—he thought it was probably one of those big-boned breeds like a Maine Coon or something—not that Noah new much of anything about cats.

It was odd to see a stray cat out and about. Decades before Noah was born, a disease called hypertoxicosis had ravaged the world’s population, much like the bubonic plague had centuries before. And like the black death had spread by fleas on rats, hypertoxicosis—or the leeching, as it had been called due to the rapid exsanguination from every pore—had been traced back to a certain few breeds of domestic cat. Since cross-breeding was rampant and uncontrolled among strays, there’d been no way to tell which cats carried the leeching gene, so there had been mass extermination of non-purebred and stray cats. The disease had been almost completely eradicated, but most people still wouldn’t touch a cat with a ten foot pole, and many people would still kill them on site. Not Noah though. He liked them. And he knew exactly what it felt like to be stuck in a world that didn’t want him.

Even from such a distance, Noah could see the feline’s big blue eyes blinking at him, as if it somehow knew he was watching. Satisfied that there was no movement out on the street apart from the cat, Noah turned away from the door. The foyer was dark, but then again, his parents had never bothered leaving a light on for him before, so he had no idea why he’d thought they’d start now.

That wasn’t exactly right. When he was little, they’d doted on him like something precious. They’d been good parents, saying and doing all the right things. His mom had been a stay-at-home caregiver for a while, and she’d been great at it, thinking up fun projects for them to work on and taking him places. But slowly, little by little, they had changed. Their eyes faded, and the love in them dissolved until they treated him like nothing but a roommate, or a pet they’d brought home and realized they were stuck with.

When Noah really thought hard about it, he always believed that the tipping point had been when they joined that church. Not that it was like any church Noah had ever seen. They had a building a few streets over, but the real action happened at a facility on fifty acres of former farmland outside the Beltrane city limits. Noah had no idea what happened out there—he wouldn’t attend, which drove an even deeper wedge between himself and his parents—but it sounded just like every description of a cult he’d ever heard of. Like, textbook.

Church of the New Hope was what they called themselves. The “worship leaders” had been trying to get his parents to move out to the main facility for a while now, but they’d held out this long because Noah refused, and he was their responsibility. But he wondered how long that would last. He was already an adult under the laws of the land, age being a mere formality these days, and in a few months, he would be an adult in the eyes of the almost-nonexistent official law.

Shaking his head, Noah shrugged off his backpack and dragged it by the strap as he walked into the living room. In there, only a single lamp was lit. He dropped his bag with a gasp when he realized his parents were sitting in the dim room, rigid and silent.

“Fuck! You guys scared the shit outta me.”

“Language, boy,” Bob Cowan said in a voice so devoid of emotion, it sucked all the air out of the room.

Anxiety sparking nerves all over his body, Noah’s gaze flickered to their feet, where sat two matching suitcases. He licked his lips and made eye contact with his mother. “What’s going on? Mom…” he prompted when she didn’t answer immediately.

When she looked at him, eyes wide and unblinking, she looked through him.

“Dad?”

Noah’s father turned dark eyes on him, the color so like his own. “We’re leaving.”

It was like a bullet to the heart, the way those words punched through Noah, all the more devastating for their dispassion. “You’re going to that commune, aren’t you? The one with the church?”

“Yes,” Emmy Cowan answered, finally making true eye contact. “We are. It’s time.”

“I won’t go with you,” Noah blurted, his voice raising an octave when he had a sudden image of them forcing him into a car and driving him out to some cult.

“We know. You don’t believe the way we do,” Emmy replied with a wealth of censure in her voice.

“We’ve signed the house over to the New Hope,” Bob said. “You can continue living here until they come to claim it for whatever they plan to do with it, but there’s no telling how long that will be so you might want to start thinking about going out on your own—sooner rather than later.”

“Wait, what?”

“They might let you take your proficiencies early, so you can start working.”

“Wait, what? You’d do this? Just leave me, abandon your…child?”

“You’re not our child,” Emmy whispered.

Noah stared at their impassive faces, hoping he’d see something that would make their words make sense. “I don’t understand what that means.”

Bob narrowed his eyes. “It has become obvious that you do not belong with us. We’ve realized the truth—with the help of the church. It became painfully obvious with the way you resisted the Light.”

“T-The truth? Which is w-what?”

“You’re a monster,” Emmy hissed.

Noah gasped and reeled away from the two strangers, parents who were not his parents. He took a step back, then another. His mind whirled with a hundred different thoughts that wouldn’t quite coalesce, because those blank, shadowy faces were etching themselves into his grey matter. He’d remember them for the rest of his life.

When spots swam in his vision, Noah realized he’d stopped breathing. He tried to take a deep breath, but only managed a strangled wheeze. He took one step back, then another, and another, until he felt the doorframe with his fingertips. All but falling through the door, once he was back in the foyer, he turned and scrambled up the creaky staircase to the second floor. Skidding around two corners at top speed, he burst into his room and slammed the door shut behind him.

Backing up against the decrepit wood, Noah slid down until his bottom hit the floor, where he curled up in a ball, wrapped his arms around his head, and bawled until he couldn’t speak and could barely breathe.

The musty smell of the mildewing carpet invaded his senses, choking the breath from his lungs. He couldn’t move.

You’re not our child.

What did that mean? Maybe they were disowning him. Maybe he was adopted.

Noah guessed it didn’t really matter because they were leaving him. He heard footsteps downstairs. Doors opening and closing. Sounds of objects being moved around, dragged. The final sound of the heavy front door slamming shut. And then he knew.

He was alone.

Noah needed to breathe. He tried to stand up, to open the window, but he couldn't force his extremities to cooperate. He’d heard of this, sometime while studying for his proficiencies, this thing that happened to a person who was traumatized. Hysterical paralysis, they’d called it.

He couldn't move his legs, but he had partial control over his arms, so he crawled. Gasping for air, he dragged himself across the room, over the moldering carpet, until he reached his workbench that was situated in front of the window. Noah’s muscles trembled as he hauled himself onto it, sending tools and mechanical parts raining to the floor. With a gasp and a groan, he forced up the sash, dragged his body over the sill, and tumbled out onto the rusted fire escape.

Crisp night air filled his lungs. The mist of light rain settled on his skin like dew on a spider web. Finally, Noah could breathe. And move. But he didn’t. He lay there on the fire escape, staring up at the swirling gray nimbus above him. Breathe. Just breathe.

Noah heard a noise to his left. Barely a whisper. Weary, like moving through molasses, he turned his head and saw the cat. The big white cat that had been staring at his house was padding along the metal railing, impossibly balanced on a surface no more than two inches in width. It blinked at him, waiting.

“You’re a big fella, aren’t you? Surely you belong to somebody or you probably wouldn’t have survived this long, so why are you following me around?” Noah rolled to his side, the cold from the corrugated metal fire escape seeping through his clothes to his skin, and faced the cat. “Don’t you have a home? A family? I don’t. Not anymore.” His voice broke on the last syllable, and dissolved into a sob.

The cat leapt off the railing, landing on silent feet beside Noah. It crouched into a sphinx position and watched him. Unblinking. Still.

Noah sniffled, then rubbed his face with the sleeve of his pullover. “I can stay in this house at least. Until they come and take it.”

The cat remained, so Noah kept talking, saying everything and nothing. “My parents left to join some religious commune. Church of the New Hope. I think it’s a cult, but they don’t much care what I think. They said I wasn’t their child. They said I’m a monster…” His breath hitched. His lips trembled.

“I’m almost a man now. I take my proficiencies in a few weeks. In the eyes of practically everyone, I’m adult enough to survive, except I have nothing. No money, no job, only a temporary roof over my head. The only income I have is from the electronics I build. I can sometimes sell them to people who can’t afford the store-bought kind. Sometimes being the operative word. And you know what else? I’m lying in the rain, pouring out my life story at the feet of a stray cat. Gods, what a mess I am.”

The cat inched closer, crawling with its belly to the floor, approaching cautiously. It obviously decided that Noah posed no threat, because it curled up in the hollow of his stomach, its tail wrapping around its body and face until it was nothing but a furry white ball. Grateful for the warmth of life that penetrated his numbness, Noah drifted off to sleep. It wouldn’t be the last time he slept outside in the rain.

****

Weeks later, Noah had abandoned his room upstairs, for the heat of the fireplace on the main level. The central heating had cut off shortly after his parents left, since nobody paid the bill, and the electricity soon followed. It was still a roof, he often told himself when the weather was particularly foul. He was occasionally able to get firewood that people dropped off at the agri-dump, but mostly he burned pieces of furniture or his parents’ books, things that would never get used again.

Noah’s mother had been a gardener and a canner, so he’d had quite a bit of preserved food. That was something that had probably saved his life. He treated himself to a real meal whenever he was able to sell some of his electronics, but he mostly existed on canned vegetables, fruit preserves, and dried meats. It would have to do, because until he passed his proficiencies, he wasn’t legally employable.

He was soldering a circuit chip when the pounding started—heavy fist-falls on the door—and he knew what it meant. The church had come to claim the house. Whether they had plans to rent it out for profit, or to tear it down, he had no clue, but he knew they wouldn’t let him squat there. And something told Noah he shouldn’t be there when they came in.

Turning off his portable torch, he let it cool while he stuffed his tools, safety gear, loose parts, and a few unfinished projects into a wide leather duffel. The torch went in last, and he prayed it was cool enough to not burn a hole in the bag.

The knock came again, louder this time, more insistent.

Noah looped the shoulder strap over his head, across his body, and hefted the bag. He dashed up the stairs as fast as his load allowed. He’d taken to keeping his backpack stuffed full of clothes and the few trinkets he couldn’t live without, in case he needed to make a quick exit. His instinct proved correct. After setting the duffel down long enough to shoulder the backpack, he picked it up again, grunting at the weight of it. He’d have to find somewhere safe to stash his gear, and then find somewhere safe to stay the night.

The loud crash from downstairs echoed through the house just as Noah was stuffing his bags through his bedroom window. They’d kicked the door in—they’d had to, because Noah had scraped together enough money to change the lock. He couldn’t say why he felt it was so important that the church people didn’t find him in the house—maybe they’d try to have him arrested for squatting, or worse, try to force him to come with him to their creepy commune. Noah wasn’t sticking around to find out.

His dirty sneakers thudded on the fire escape as he jumped down from his window. He could hear the faceless intruders rummaging around inside the house as he hoisted his bags on his shoulders and descended the rusty stairs. It was dark, as dark as it had been the night that terrifying man had stalked him. Noah vowed to be more aware of his surroundings as he plunged into the emptiness, intent on finding a place to spend the night.

****

Sometimes when I’m in a dream, I know I’m in a dream. From the moment I fall asleep, I dream, straight through until I wake up again. Every night I die a thousand deaths.

Tonight I am me, but someone else. A boy of about ten, with a halo of golden curls. I only know because I catch a glimpse of myself in a store window as I walk down the sidewalk. My pale skin is flushed pink from the whipping wind. It is day, but the streets are shadowy. I sense a presence nearby but I see no one else on the block.

I turn a corner, head down an alley, and stop short. A girl appears before me. Older than me, but not by much. Her hair is dark as midnight, her skin, pale as the moon. I’m intrigued by her, so when she turns to leave, I follow. She leads me around another corner, on another darkened city block. I follow her until I lose my bearings and my surroundings no longer look familiar.

Suddenly she stops, then turns to face me. She smiles, the moonlight glinting off her teeth. She crowds me against the crumbling brick of the side of a building. I think she’s going to kiss me and I am paralyzed. But instead, she sinks her teeth into my neck, and my mind goes blank, my thoughts like quicksand as she sucks the life out of me.

#stray #chapter #m/m romance #m/m paranormal #m/m fantasy #gay #gay fiction #paranormal romance #dystopian fantasy #gay romance

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