#which is. responding to his son coming out to him as a teen with 'well everyone has gay thoughts sometimes' and never clarifying

[diamond-rozie]

excerpt from my fic (bio wayne danny)

“Sorry, am I interrupting?” Dick asked teasingly, slipping in next to Bruce. 

“I was just telling Danny how having a space station as a base of operation is a tactical call.” Bruce said, pointedly. 

“As if. It wasn’t a good idea when the JL was just the main seven, but after their expansion project, it’s a liability if not a straight out disadvantage.” Danny scoffed, rolling his eyes.

“How is it a liability?” Dick asked intrigued. 

“Whenever there’s a huge invasion or something, where do you think the evil aliens are going to attack first? The huge space satellite with at least a handful of heroes on it at all times, with state-of-the-art weapons and tech, full of information about literally everything worth having information on probably has no external defenses because no one would think to sneak into a space station, seems like a pretty good start.” Danny explained, Dick watched Bruce appraise his information. “I bet I could get in if I figured out how to get to space.” 

Bruce raised an amused brow at him, “You think you could break into the Watchtower?” 

“Easy.” Danny proclaimed, sporting a wicked grin. 

Before Dick could say anything, someone came up to their table. “Danny!” The boy, Dick recognized as Tucker, said with an exaggerated fake surprise, “What a surprise seeing you here. At the Nasty Burger. Around 6 o’clock. Today.” 

“Tucker? Why- What are you doing here?” Danny asked surprised. 

“I was just passing by,” Tucker said, shrugging dramatically. Danny gave him an accusing and disbelieving look. “My, my who are these people here with you, Danny?” Tucker asked, sliding into the seat next to Danny. 

“Tucker, you know who they are,” Danny said exasperated. 

But it seemed like they had more guests. “Danny! Wow, I wasn’t expecting you here. Small world, huh?” Sam (?) walked over preppi-ly which didn’t match her grunge aesthetic. Her hands hooked with Val’s as they walked together. 

“Small world,” Val repeated with a fake smile. The two of them sat down next to Danny and Tucker. 

Danny put his head in his hands, “I should’ve known.”

“You should’ve.” Sam nodded. 

“But you didn’t.” Val chastised jokingly. 

Next another boy comes dashing into the restaurant wearing a basketball jersey. 

“You’re late,” Val says, admonishingly. Tucker and Sam shake their heads, and Danny sighs in exasperation. 

“I literally ran here.” Wes said in between huffs of air, slumping in next to Val. 

The group of teens who had been teasing each other, in a very strange synchronous action, turn their heads to look at Bruce and Dick. Dick was really regretting watching Anabell last night. 

“I think we’ll need more food,” Bruce comments lightly. 

---

“So, dick.” Sam started, munching on a fry. “Tell us about yourself.” 

“Like what?” Dick asked

Valerie (“Do not call me Val.”) answered, “What do you do?”

“I’m a cop in Bludhaven.” Dick was met with four pairs of dubious eyes. Danny sent him a small-lipped look of disappointment, he wasn’t sure whether it was for him or at him. Maybe Dick should look into getting a new day job.

“Write that down.” Sam gestured to Tucker.

“Already on it,” Tucker reported, scribbling something with a stylus. 

“You guys are taking this very seriously,” Bruce commented, smiling. 

“It is serious.” Tucker responded. 

“What if you guys are in some child trafficking ring?” Wes commented, 

“Why would they be-” Danny started, before Wes turned to him and very seriously said, 

“That’s exactly the question, Danny. Why would they?” Wes thoughtfully turned to look at Bruce warily. 

“Y’know let’s just dive into the important questions shall we?” Sam asked her preppy attitude from before gone, replaced by a hard glare at the two of them. It reminded Dick of Titus. “What’s your opinion on the basements?”

“Basements?” Bruce repeated, confused. 

“Well, you wouldn’t be the first eccentric billionaire to insist Danny be their son. And we’ve noticed a few patterns.” Tucker informed them as if they were talking about something completely normal and mundane. Though, Dick couldn’t really argue. Bruce was also an eccentric billionaire with a secret basement. 

“Well, we have a basement,” Dick said hesitantly. “Does that dock us points?” He asked Tucker, half-joking, half-concerned. 

“Tentative.” 

“So what do you do in your basement?” Wes asked, sipping on a milkshake. 

“Normal basement things.” Dick lied. 

“Such as…” Valarie implored, eyes suspicious. 

Dick hesitated thinking about what to say. Bruce hadn’t said anything either. But Danny took the time to tell his friends, “Guys I really don’t think that should be a problem. I mean, would someone like Vlad really go for the ‘let’s have dinner so my family can meet your family and we can get to know each other’ approach when the ‘let me drug and kidnap you and stick you in a cloning pod’ approach was right there.” 

His friends seemed to consider this before they all nodded and agreed. 

“Vlad Masters drugged and kidnaped you to put you in a cloning pod?” Bruce asked, concerned. 

“No,” Danny said, offhandedly, not bothering to elaborate. Someone should really look into that guy. 

“O-M-G, is that Paulina?” Wes said pointedly, a menacing grin on his face as he looked at Danny, who in turn looked alarmed.

“Aw, Danny you should go say ‘Hi’.” Tucker cooed, teasingly, Danny groaned, his ears flushing in embarrassment.

“Guys, stop.” Sam said finally, “We wouldn’t want another spoon incident.” A grin cracked on her face. Danny buried his face in his hands. 

Dick looked over to see who they were talking about. There were two girls, one was a blond girl with her arms hooked around Kwan from The Mall, and the other was a darker skinned girl wearing a pink crop top. Dick wasn’t sure who Paulina was, but it didn’t really matter, as he took his chance to tease his brother. “You have a crush on Paulina?” He asked teasingly. Bruce is smiling next to him. 

“No.” Danny denied it fervently. “I mean- I did. Like forever ago. But not anymore.”

“He’s since moved on to more attainable targets.” Tucker nodded. Received a smack from Sam and a spoon to the face from Valerie. “Ow. What? It’s true.” 

“Y’know what they say. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.” Wes added with a snicker. 

“Wes,” Danny groaned at the same time as Sam and Valarie hissed his name. 

“I sense a story.” Bruce commented, sipping his drink. 

“It all started when we were fresh little freshmen. Danny had his little crush on Paulina. I was just trying to get by, y’know. Not all of us have Wayne genes.” Tucker started pointedly. 

“What- we didn’t know about that till this week.” Danny pointed out. 

“Doesn’t mean it wasn’t there, dude.” Wes spoke up. Sam and Valerie stayed suspiciously quiet. Dick’s smirk only grew. 

“As I was saying, we’re just doing normal freshman things, when Sammy here,” Tucker points to Sam with his head, “starts crushing. Big time.”

“It was not that bad.” Sam points out. 

“It was, in fact, that bad.” Tucker said, looking at Bruce and Dick, “But at the same time Danny and Val have a little enemies-to-lovers thing and then they both start crushing on each other. And they dated for a while, but then they broke up cause Val had a lot on her plate at the time. Danny was all mopey and heartbroken. And then Sam swoops in like his little knight in glowing armor, then they start dating. And all the while I’m here single and alone.” Tucker shakes his head mournfully. 

“I was not all mopey and heartbroken.” Danny defends himself. 

“You so were dude.” Tucker says.

“Yeah.” Sam agrees. 

“But then Sam and Danny decide that they’re better off as friends because Danny kinda had a lot to deal with. And now we’re all best friends.”  Tucker concluded, cheerfully. 

“Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh, Bruce.” Dick says slyly. Bruce huffs. 

“Then what about the spoon incident?” Bruce asked. 

“Oh, that was back when there were a lot of ghost attacks, and the school had my parents come in to run security. And this one time we were having lunch outside, and they just showed up out of nowhere. And I got kinda spooked and…” Danny’s voice trailed off into a mumble, and Dick couldn’t catch the last bit.

“Sorry, what was that?” 

“He said he swallowed a spoon.” Wes spoke up. 

“What?” Bruce asked, alarmed. “Are you okay?” 

“Oh yeah, I got it out.” Danny waved dismissively. 

“How?” Dick asked, confused.

“Uh, I just did.” He waved again. Before Dick could ask any more questions, someone else decided to show up.

“Oh good, I thought I missed you guys.” Another red-haired boy showed up. “Hi, I’m Adam, Wes’s brother.” Dick recognized the accent the boy had. He stuck out a hand for Dick to shake.

continue reading (ao3)

regular boy: daniel wayne - chap 9

[dcdreamblog]

Hey there! I've been reading your blog for a little bit now, and I've been trying to think of questions to ask about the supers of my homestate (Texas!) and I realized there aren't all that many that come from here aside from Blue Beetle. I'm sure there's probably some that you'd know of from before my time if you wouldn't mind enlightening me lol

Thanks in advance!

Well of course, spreading knowledge is the best part of doing what I do after all!

(The most recent Selfie on the Blue Beetle's Instagram page, which currently sits at about 12.92 million followers making him the 3rd most popular superhero run social media page ever) The most famous Texan hero, like you said is the 3rd Blue Beetle who operates out of El Paso on the state's extreme western edge. As I've said before his connection to the other Blue Beetles is unknown but he has been seen working with the second Blue Beetle during his recent return to activity.

He is of course beloved by the state's, the country's and the world's Latino community as most likely the most visible Spanish speaking superhero of all time. He's been a member of the Teen Titans through multiple runs in good standing and is considered, in general, a highly beloved member of the superhero community's next generation. Predictions that he will eventually grow into a position within the core Justice League are rampant and easily justified.

As for more obscure offerings...

(An image of El Diablo attacking gangster, The Amarillo Globe-News) As one can imagine, Texas was a hot spot during the Wild West era for gunslingers and masked law men. One of whom was the mysterious Lazarus Lane AKA El Diablo. Nobody knows for certain whether the motorcycle riding protector of the panhandle town Dos Rios (located about 65 miles south of Amarillo) is related to Lane or simply inspired by him but the Amarillo area has him to thank for much of its safety into the modern day.

Also obviously Latino and often seen speaking in fluent Spanish no truly superhuman abilities have ever been glimpsed aside from a near military grade custom motorcycle and a killer right hook. And last but not least, my favorite.

(An image of Air Wave, in his energy form, responding to a brush fire just outfit Dallas)

The second hero to call himself Air Wave works out of Dallas in the state's northeast. With the ability to transform himself into living electrical energy and radio waves he carries on proudly in the image of his predecessor. His "fan base" being what it is is limited, though he is often known as Dallas' favorite son. I've been told by those from the Southwest you can tell that he's not native to Texas and I've been told by other people that you can tell he was born or originally raised in Brooklyn, some things you never lose I guess. There are a few more unknown ones here or there but those three are the most active and the most effective that I've seen coming out of the Lone Star State at some point in the last century!

[halitis]

Teen Roy Harper and Oliver Queen shenanigans? I usually just see grown up Roy with Ollie but I crave more of a father - son bond.

ty for sending through the ask! they send me fucking INSANE!!! i love complex parent-child relationships and i think a lot of people see roy’s speedy era with ollie as just. all bad. but it isn’t! ollie is a good dad overall, yes he has had horrible moments and made lots of mistakes but he did work hard to fix his wrongs (n-52 ollie and roy's first re-meeting can go suck my left tit).

(sorry i took so long to respond! these posts actually take quite a while to type out, and get my thoughts down.)

the first time roy got sick while he was with ollie, ollie was stressing. he’s not ready for this! stitches? easy. girl troubles? no problem. but a fever and runny nose? oh god oh fuck. he’s relying on what he’s seen parents do in movies, so he decides to read roy a story! roy is certainly too old for this and also Doesn’t Love reading, but he bears it because it’s kinda funny for a bit. after like third time ollie tries, roy just goes “pls. you don’t have to do this. lets just watch a movie or something.”. now it becomes a tradition that whenever one of them gets sick, the other will just chill and watch movies with them. they don’t need to talk, the quiet company is much better.

roy genuinely looks up to ollie, so much. he admires the man in everyway, roy grows as a person in ollie's presence. roy developed his sense of justice and ethics from ollie (you can see it through how they both prefer to try and change the system over the individual). i think for the longest time, ollie could do no wrong in roys eyes, which is why their relationship fell apart so harshly because roy had unrealistic expectations of the man and ollie wss just... Not being a good father in this moment. it took a while to adjust his self worth to not be based off his perceived value to others.

[continued under read more]

ollie may be a lot of things, but he is Not dumb enough to not give roy the sex talk. is it the best? probably not. but he was VERY serious about having it when roy moved in, because he remembers himself as a teenager and is just like "oh god. oh GOD..." (he likes to think hes not like regina georges mum, but he deffo is.... ur getting old dude :/ sorry to tell you)

(DONT COMMENT ON THE FACT THAT HES WATCHING PORN. IM AWARE. I DONT QUESTION ANYTHING THIS MAN DOES ANYMORE)

when ollie first starts going out with someone, roy goes and gives ollie the exact same talk. in front of his date. ollie is just like "ahaha.... kids right?" roy has to spend the night at hal's house hiding out from him. (not out of any serious fear of repercussion, more playful).

i know the stereotype is that ollie's always getting into fights over politics, but it is actually so incredibly both of them. these two only increase in energy and passion when with each other. catch ollie going "YEAH THATS MY BOY!" when roy is chewing the fuck out of someone.

to me? they are both so autistic... idc no one can convince me otherwise. ollie doesn't realise till he hits his late teens, and even then hes in denial about it. he comes to terms with it a bit better after the island, so when he starts to recognise the same things in roy? he is quick to give that boy all the support he needs. he refuses to even let anyone talk shit or about it near roy, because he is so petrified of the the same internalised ableism he had manifesting in roy too.

ollie gets a small tattoo for roy, nothing big. probably just a little one on his back or ankle or something. he didn't even really plan to do it? it just happened. he sends roy a pic after its done and roy is just. emotionally wrecked.... he does not know what to say.... how does he even express what this means to him? its a permanent commitment to him. (he ends up just messaging back "looks ugly :/", ollie can read between the lines well enough to know what he means).

the first near death experience roy has with ollie he gets Fucked Up over it... he's already lost 2 other father figures, he can't lose another. he doesn't say anything about it, but hes attatched to the hip for ollie for at least 2 weeks... ollie didnt even realise why till he mentioned it off handedly to diana and shes like.... thats a child. hes scared. Fix It. they still dont talk about it, but ollie stops getting snappy at roy for following him around.

okay i have more to say, but im actively about to get in the car so i gotta go!!! anyone feel free to send another ask if they want me to finish up laterz!

aND FOR U ANON... WHO WAITED 50 YEARS FOR ME TO FINISH THIS.....

I <3 U

[quitealotofsodapop]

HOLD ON THE F€€k YOU MEAN FEMALE SAI TAI SUI-

IF THIS IS HEADING WHERE I THINK IT IS DOWS THAT MEAN JING IS- OR NEZHA MIGHT-

prev.

Well its more like...

LEF: "Hey since you denounced me as your goddaughter - mind if I steal your strongest (and now mortal) son as my husband? K thanks! Byyyyyeeee!!!" Li Jing: "EHHH!?" Nezha, on earth:

The character I'm referencing is: Lady Earth Flow/Half-Guanyin/Golden Nosed Albino Rat/Mouse Spirit. An infamous literal and figurative maneater, so much so that most adaptations show her as a vampire. Her MO is to target monks to SA and eat them for their yang energy. Tripitaka is nearly a victim in the novel, if not for the fact he was deep inside the monastery with a cold. Wukong however is nearly assaulted in his monk glamour - which he responds understandably by trying to kill the spirit with Ruyi Jingu Bang.

Later it is discovered in the villain's lair that she's a goddaughter to Li Jing - he spared her life after she became an uplifted mouse spirit. But she took the opportunity to become something even worse...

Curiously, Li Jing mentions having a little daughter in Jttw - a six year old girl named Zhenying who's not even old enough to fly or cause mischief. He briefly gets very confused when Wukong shows up claiming his daughter is assaulting and eating monks. Though Zhenying likely only exists for the joke.

Lady Earth Flow is subdued by Li Jing's army and is denounced as Li Jing's goddaughter, her fate left up to the Tathagata Buddha.

-

So here comes the TMKATI au; where its been a couple hundred years, and Nezha is on earth after getting exiled from Heaven by the Jade Emperor. He's about his awkward and rebellious late-teen years, and he and the Noodle Family have been arguing for some time about what he'll want to do when he graduates.

Lady Earth Flow, having escaped/revived, decides to exploit a boy's trust so to take a hit at him and his father... Living as a school counsellor, she has many victims ripe for the picking - but for the Lotus Prince to fall into her lap is a chance far too good to miss.

Don't worry, nothing too bad happens to our dear boy. Even if him and his guardians are arguing, he still shoots off a text to his little siblings + Sandy about where he's going. And no matter his age he's pretty distrusting of authority.

LEF severely underestimates how much the depowered god can fight back. And how much Li Jing cares for his son...

LEF has gained power in last few centuries, albeit lazily; pinning the Pagoda King with spiritual clones when he comes to his son's rescue.

LEF discovers the poppet made from Nezha's shorn hair and laughs. He's still crying about him? His little boy is about to become a man!

The mouse spirit alights the poppet with the fire from her oil lanterns.

Li Jing sees his youngest son's life flash before his eyes. And sees red.

He hugs Nezha tight afterwards, telling him that it's ok and that it's all over, all whilst covered in his former-goddaughter's blood. Nezha stares blankly, hugging his father tighter than he's ever had in last thousands of years. He saw the memento his father held so dear - one made by a parent in mourning.

The rest of the parents show up shortly afterwards, worried out of their minds for the same boy.

Lady Earth Flow is sent packing to King Yama himself. But not before she gets arrested by mortal police for her crimes.

[allthelittlecreepycrawlies]

Pulling an idea over from Bluesky.

Since I tend to headcanon that Mingjue's mama died in some cultivation-related incident like Papa Nie did, while I headcanon that Huaisang's mother died in childbirth, imagine a modern au where Papa and Mingjue's mama are still alive because there's no cultivation (maybe there's another form of urban magic, idk, but whatever, the specific scenarios that killed them wouldn't be happening) but Huaisang's mama still died from pregnancy complications.

God, Mingjue would be so different, wouldn't he? Parents alive, doesn't have to be a teen dad, or run a sect, or prepare for an inevitable war. He's lighter, happier, more boistrous, makes friends as easy as breathing because everyone gets hit with the Good Da-ge Energy and wants to bask in it.

Except for, ironically, Huaisang.

Because Huaisang's different here too, and not in a good way. He knows that his father and Mingjue's mother love him... sort of. He sees it more in the way that someone might love a stray kitten that got dumped on the front step. They definitely don't love him in the proud, loudly joyous way that they love his perfect, endearing, athletic, didn't-kill-his-mother brother.

He's used to it, because eeeeeverybody loves his brother more. Hell, his mother probably would have loved Mingjue more, if she'd still been around to see what a disappointment her own son seems to be.

Most of the time, people only associate with him if they think it'll get them closer to Mingjue, and even if he manages to make friends on his own, as soon as they meet his brother, he might as well have stopped existing.

Most annoyingly of all, Mingjue doesn't seem to realize the imbalance between them and frequently tries to drag Huaisang along on outings or just generally wants to be a doting big bro to his baby bro, which Huaisang wants absolutely none of because he's sick of always being the odd man out when it comes to anywhere Mingjue wants to go.

So he responds by practically puffing up and hissing whenever Mingjue tries to be affectionate, which gets him painted as an ungrateful brat, which makes him retreat further into his shell, and the spiral keeps on spiraling.

(patpats Huaisang on the head) It's okay, my dude. There are a number of other sidelined siblings, we just gotta find you the right one to bond with.

(I say, as if y'all already don't know my choice.)

[takuyas-boyfie]

Omegaverse Mizo mid five Headcanons

god why am I doing this

trigger warning: porn magazines mentioned (they're teens what do you expect, they're not saints)

Atsushi (Akkun) Sendo:

Very protective Alpha

Not necessarily violent tho, actually very calm and collected

Has in control his instincts super good, knows when to back out and when to let his alpha rush out

Which usually comes out trying to stop the other from doing dumb shit

Did I mention protective? Especially towards Takuya.

He’s got that soft spot for him, in a brotherly kinda son-ish manner.

Not romantically is what I’m trying to imply

Or is it? (Leaves it up to reader interpretation)

Strongest alpha out of them all

Has so much respect for Takemichi is insane

Only alpha he respects to be honest

Takuya Yamamoto

Omega, would I need to explain more?

Would worry about the others getting hurt, but that would get him hurt anyway

Surprisingly resilient

The emotional support of the bunch

CUTE PUPPY EYES

Doesn’t know, but all the alphas have in common to protect him, as he gives so much little brother energy is insane

The first heat was… weird

The school bathroom stall became like his second home that day

And now he carries suppressants on him always, even taking them when the heat hasn’t hit yet, just to be safe

Kazushi Yamagishi

Independent bratty omega

Would brag about how much he doesn’t need an alpha, but runs towards Akkun or Makoto when in danger

Tad bit jealous of Takuya being pampered the most, but ultimately would fall for his cute ass too

Ironically, would babble about how he will get the most gorgeous alpha ever…

Kinda inconsistent but oh well, tennagers be teenagers

Talking of teenagers, would give Takuya porn magazines to “toughen up”

Reason of that, would get subjected to Akkun’s pheromones a bit too often, so just he stops doing weird shit

Makoto Suzuki

In comparison of Takemichi, actually playfights with Akkun

Not “playfighting” per se, more like challenging Akkun to be proven strong, but the older would not respond very amusingly, leaving Makoto’s pride wounded

Very similar to Yamagishi, taste wise, so he would also give Takuya porn magazines

Definitely had too many bruises because of that

Has that loser alpha pheromones so he doesn’t get that much game tbh

Takemichi Hanagaki

The only one with a mate (Hinata), making Akkun and Makoto jealous

More Makoto than Akkun

Very protective of everything

Toman, his girlfriend, the mizo mid five, like REALLY protective of everyone special to him

Result of said protectiveness, would get in fights real often

Oh, I should mention, he’s not a physically strong alpha

Connect the dots together

Also the emotional support of the group

Growing up side by side with Takuya made him also very emotionally connected

He and Akkun are like brothers, despite of being alphas, they are inseparable, like brothers

Was skeptical of him at first because he seemed a bit too lovey with Takuya

Some punches later, they went out and had some sodas

Time later, bffs

[infoactionratio7]

(you) on my arm - s. adamu

summary: sydney is at a wall, she has no ideas when it comes to the new menu at the bear. she decides to go to a bookstore for some new inspiration, she finds it, but not in the way she was expecting.

pairing: sydney adamu x fem! bookseller! reader

word count: 2,514

note: annoying! carmy bc he literally is insane, kinda fluffy meet cute vibes, reader just moved to chicago, inspired by the song (you) on my arm by leith ross cause the song is rlly cute! also sydney gives me sapphic vibes, she definitely would have a crush on a girl!

monday morning -

Sydney was pissed, she had sent at least ten messages to Carmy in the last twenty minutes. Some about the new menu they were working on together, some about the fact that he had been a bitch the night before when he kicked everyone out because Claire just had to see the new restaurant. She ran her hands down her face in frustration as she sat at her dad's kitchen table, the sun streaming in through the blinds into the apartment. It warmed the floor as she got up from the table, debating what to do. She had no ideas left, everything was either not working out, or it just didn't fit the menu for the new revamped restaurant.

"Sydney, where are you headed off to today?" Her dad walked into the room with a steaming cup of coffee, freshly brewed from a new coffee blend she had found shopping the day before.

"Uh well Carm is not responding so I'm gonna head over to The Bear and meet up with him for a little then see where the day goes from there I guess." She walked out of the dining area and put her breakfast dishes away.

"Okay honey, have a good day. Hope he stops being an ass." She laughed, "Me too... me too."

Sydney grabbed her shoes out of the closet she had thrown them in last night, slipping them on and grabbing her bag. "I'll see you later dad." She grabbed her keys, and started making her way to the restaurant where she could deal with Carmy in person.

-

You looked around the bookstore, you had only been open for a month but it had been a hit within the community. You had almost any book anybody could want. There were teens coming from the school a few blocks away to get some cheesy romance novels to bring to the park and read with their friends, and there were grandparents coming in to get their grandchildren a new picture book about god knows what. You even had some people come in and request books you had never heard of before, you promptly ordered two copies of any book you didn't have. One for the customer, and one for you, to read and explore the pages.

It was a beautiful space, tall ceilings strung with fairy lights and lanterns, trying to bring some sense of whimsy to the dull days in Chicago. The books were arranged in every which way, requiring the customers to truly search for a book they wanted to read. You had tables full of recommendations, from people online and the employees of the bookshop. You really enjoyed curating all the titles you had in your collection. Tourists looking for a cute little magnet or souvenir adored the hole in the wall place, a safe space to just cuddle up and read a book.

You had a few customers that day, a mom and her son looking for his first chapter book to read. You had suggested he read The Magic Tree House, a series, about a brother and sister and their time traveling tree house. There was a tall guy with a buzzcut, who said he worked just down the street and was looking for a book about how to get rid of mold in the structure of a building. He seemed in dire need of some help, so you found the best book possible, The Toxic Mold Recovery Guide. You had no idea you had the book but it was meant to be. He thanked you immensely, leaving his name and number just in case you ever needed anything. His name was Richie, he seemed pretty nice.

Low music played as you restocked a shelf, you hated the idea of having Colleen Hoover books in the store but they were a big source of income. They absolutely flew off the shelves. The least touched section of the store were the cookbooks, it seemed like everyone in Chicago was moving too fast to just dedicate one hour of their day to making a meal from scratch. It was disappointing, because you had a large selection, from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child to Momofuku by David Chang and Peter Meehan. You knew that someday it might come in handy and you would be lucky to have all the cookbooks.

-

Sydney walked into the restaurant in a sour mood, Carmy had still not responded to any of her texts and she knew he was here. She walked straight into the office, passing the locker room, sans lockers and covered in black powder. Richie furiously flipping through a book that said something about mold on the cover. He glanced up at her

"Shut the fuck up." She was taken aback

"I didn't even fucking say anything Richie," he scoffed at her

"Well I was preparing for you to say something dumb as hell, and you did so I stand by my first statement." He looked back down at the book and mumbled something unintelligible to himself. She rolled her eyes and made her way into the office.

"Carm are you here?" Turning the corner she saw the chef, surrounded by papers and various file folders. He had his phone in his hand and was about to dial a number, "You little bitch, you fucking had your phone this entire time." She couldn't believe what was right in front of her.

"What do you mean chef?" Carmy looked confused, "Of course I had my phone, I'm about to call the fridge guy."

Rolling her eyes she brought her hand up to her face, holding her forehead in her palm. "I texted you at least ten fucking times, you couldn't even bother yourself to respond!" Shaking her head she sank down into the office chair Carmy had abandoned an hour ago.

He looked around the room, trying to get her to understand how much work he had been doing, "Syd I've been trying to make sense of this paperwork for hours, I haven't had time to respond to your messa-"

Fak's head popped into the doorframe, "Carmy I got your text about helping Richie clean up the mold but he's being mean to me." Sydney turned from Fak to the red faced chef sitting on the floor. He had been caught in a lie, of course Fak came in at just the right time for this to happen.

"Okay fuck you chef, I'm leaving." Sydney shrugged, stood up and left the room. She heard heated words from Carmy as she walked out of the office and passed the locker room again, now he was pissed at Fak, as usual. She heard her name as she turned around,

"Sydney, wait a sec come here."

"What do you want Richie, I thought you wanted me to shut the fuck up." She crossed her arms tight and shot him a pointed look.

"You should go to that bookstore a few blocks down, I got this damn mold book earlier and saw a shit ton of cookbooks. You should check it out." She sent him a tight smile and turned her back to him. "Thanks Chef."

-

You had just finished restocking the shelves for the day when the little bell above the door rang. You went behind the desk and called out, "Welcome to The Book Worm, If you need anything let me know!"

You heard no response so you just busied yourself cleaning up the case that was behind the checkout, it housed all your special edition signed or first edition copies of books. It needed to be dusted pretty often because you wanted to keep the quality of the books at their highest, just in case anyone would ever want to purchase one.

You heard a thud come from behind you, and turning around you looked down at the counter. There was a stack of six cookbooks placed on the counter in front of you. Looking up you saw one of the most beautiful women you had ever seen since you had moved in to the city. Her hair was long and perfectly braided, her eyes a beautiful shade of umber catching the light in a hypnotic way. She had a grimace on her face, yet still looked stunning. You had no idea how to react, so instinctively you started to enter the books into the register as you made some small talk,

"So how has your day been," She sighed and looked up to meet your gaze, "If I'm being honest, shitty. My fucking partner wouldn't respond to my messages and when I went to talk to him he had is phone in his hand about to call someone. So yeah really fucking shitty." You looked back down at the book at disappointment, of course she had a partner and of course she was straight.

Awkwardly smiling you tried to think of a good response"Oh, um, wow. That's pretty shitty I'm sorry." She seemed to sense your disappointment, trying to save the conversation, "Shit uh, my business partner I mean, he's a little bitch sometimes. We're uh, opening a business- or I should say um," She rubbed the back of her neck, "We're kinda rebranding his brother's old restaurant, its a lot." You had finished entering all the books into the system, your chest had filled with warmth when she rushed to clarify that he was her business partner. You thought that maybe, just maybe it might be because she wanted to make sure you knew she was single, and not exactly straight.

"I guess that explains the cookbooks then," You looked at her, she had been staring at you in a flustered state of shock. "What, oh, uh, yeah! I'm kinda stuck making the menu so wanted to get some inspiration."

Sharing an understanding smile, you read her total out to her. She grabbed her wallet and pulled out some cash, as she handed it to you her fingers brushed along yours. It sent chills down your spine, no matter how cliche it might be, you knew that she was someone to keep close. Your face flushed red as you took the cash and put it into the register, printing her receipt and giving her any change she needed back.

You decided that since she got so many books you would give her a free tote bag, just so she could carry all the books out of the shop. You pulled one off of a hook behind you and started to put the books into a bag. You decided to quietly slip a business card with your cell number and a little note into a book so she could find it and contact you. A subtle way of screaming, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen I want to spend the rest of my life with you, without being too forward. As you finished packing the bag, the two of you both happened to say something at the same time.

"Do you wanna come see my restu-"

"Do you work at the restura-"

You flushed

"No you can go-"

"No you can go - sorry um. Do you want to come to the opening of the restaurant. It's uh, the one down the street, we're not opening for a while but, if you want to come to the friends and fam-"

You cut her off, wanting her to know you really wanted to go to her restaurant, "I would love to go... what was your name?"

"Sydney, It's uh Sydney" Her face got hot, nervous about the fascinating bookseller she just had the pleasure of meeting.

"Well Sydney, I would love to go. Just let me know the details," You softly smiled as you gave her the bag filled with books. She looked to you and grabbed a bookmark you had as a display that happened to have the shop's phone number on it. "I'll call you, um when we get closer to the open date, promise." You smiled, hoping that she would get in contact with you sooner than she expected to. She turned to leave.

"Thanks for coming in, really good to meet you Sydney." The door rang again and she sent you a wave through the glass, walking away quickly.

You were frozen, you had just given a random girl you just met your number, and had openly flirted with her for all the world to see. You crouched down onto the small stool you had behind the desk, tucked your head into your knees and screamed. You were feeling rushes of emotion and didn't think you would ever recover from that interaction. The bell rang again just as you finished screaming, you shot up and saw a group of teenagers heading to the new books you had just set out.

"Welcome to The Book Worm, If you need anything just holler!"

-

Sydney rushed back to The Bear, she was so utterly mortified, she had never seen someone so radiant and in their element. The chef couldn't contain her emotions as she stormed into the restaurant, Richie was the first person she saw, he started to say something,

"Not right now Richie I swear to God" The tall man was taken aback but threw his hands up in surrender, not wanting to get involved.

She might as well have ran into the office at the speed she was going, throwin the bag of cookbooks on the ground and closing the door, sliding down the back of the door she groaned,

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck, fucking, fuck," dragging out the last word as she hit the floor.

Carmy stared at her from the floor a few feet away, "Yo Syd what happened to you? Looks like you just ran a marathon." He chuckled at the expression on her face.

"I just met the most beautiful girl and totally fucked up my chances with her cause I left so quickly." Sydney put her hands into her face and just sat there marinating in her embarrassment.

Carmy had some strong suits, his attention to detail one of them. He noticed something poking out of one of the books. He grabbed it, hoping that it was something that would change Sydney's mood before he had to work with her for more hours than they could count. He grinned taking the note out of the book and reading it,

"Hey Syd," He reached out to give her the note.

She looked up from behind her fingers, "What?"

He shook his hand, implying he wanted her to take the note from his grip. She groaned, then leaned forward to forcefully take it out of his hand.

She read the note, and smiled. Thank God you slipped her this note.

cookbook girl -

i hope you enjoy your SIX cookbooks, i have some more you could borrow for some inspiration. text me

Sydney's face heated up as she leaned back into door and scoffed.

Carmy had saved the day, one again.

[astoopidfool]

Expanding Chapter 2 - Beginning

a Buck and Tommy teen adoptee fanfic

Rated: T | Words: 4,017 | CW: Mentions of abuse | On Ao3 |

| Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 |

Buck

Their first meeting goes well. Branson is, not unexpectedly, subdued. He sits on the couch in Emira’s office with his hands in his sweatshirt pocket, and hardly spares Buck or Tommy a glance. He keeps his head at a forty-five degree angle and seems to dissociate as he stares out at the LA skyline. Emira’s office is wall to wall windows, giving him the perfect real world TV. He doesn’t acknowledge their presence at all.

Buck doesn’t take it personally. He’s heard more about Branson in the two months since he and Tommy decided that he was going to be theirs. He hasn’t led the best life, even more so since he was torn from a family steeped in drugs and domestic violence, and as a foster kid, he was bounced from location to location, never finding a place to truly set down roots. Buck understands what that’s like, more than he cares to admit. He’s not going to fault someone for growing up in a fucked up environment and responding to it in an expected way.

Finally, though, today is the day that Branson comes home. Or, at least they hope. At the very least, it’s Branson’s official home visit with Emira, and Buck hopes that Emira decides that it’s an acceptable place for him to stay. Since last month, Buck and Tommy have spent every spare moment they had cleaning out their second bedroom space, which had become the place where unwanted things went to die. They bought a brand new bedroom set, including a queen sized mattress, and an L desk that fit cozily in the back corner. They went back and forth on whether they should buy a desktop or a laptop for him, and ended up buying the desktop but then a tablet as well. If Branson needed a laptop for some reason, though they talked to the local school district and learned that each student was provided one, they would cross that bridge when they got to it.

Wanting Branson to decorate how he wants to, hopefully showing off his personality, they kept the decor to the minimum. They bought plain, white sheets but a deep red quilt set that came with one square solid red accent pillow, and one yellow and white checkered long accent pillow. They placed a few stock paintings up on the walls, which they decided to leave off-white to make it easier to paint over should Branson decide that’s what he wants later on, and they lay out a sort of fluffy grey rug under the bed that peeks out and sort of fills in the empty floor space between it and the desk. On the bed is a basket filled with some basic necessities that Maddie helped pick out - some shampoo and bodywash, a loofah and three grey and white rags in a diamond pattern, a shiny new shaving kit that even includes a nice zippered bag to store it in, and a few other little things. Again, they didn’t want to presume Branson’s preferences, so they started with the little things.

They cleared out the bathroom across the hall as well, putting in some new bath mats and simple shower curtain.The filled the cabinet under the vanity with some cleaning supplies, and of course more toilet paper, as well as a stack of fluffy towels just for their new son. The space was small, but cozy, and included a tub if Branson was ever interested in taking a bath versus a shower. Buck feels proud of what they did, and hopes that the moody teen will like what he sees, and if he doesn’t, Buck hopes he’ll feel comfortable enough to speak up.

When the doorbell rings just after noon, Buck is vibrating with excitement. Unable to wait for his husband, who’s sitting next to him on the couch, he bounds to the door and pulls it open. Branson stands outside with a small black bag in one hand, and a surly expression on his face. Emira stands behind him, grinning as always. “Evan!” She greets him, setting a hand on Branson’s shoulder. “Lovely to see you.”

“You too.” He eagerly agrees. “C’mon in. Can I get you guys anything to drink? Water, tea, coffee…?” He steps back, bumping into Tommy’s chest, not having even noticed the man slide in behind him. Tommy sets a warm hand at his waist and squeezes gently. “Oh, I have a few cans of soda if you’d prefer.”

Emira nudges the teen inside and directs him to set his bag down in the front entry for the moment as she says, “If you have bottled water, that would be great.”

“Sure thing.” Tommy says, returning the warm smile. “Branson, anything for you, bud?”

“Don’t call me that.” It’s the first thing he’s said to them since their first meeting and Buck has to hold in a little happy dance. Branson’s voice is smooth and a little bit on the higher side; pleasant to listen to over all.

“No problem, kiddo.” There’s a twinkle in Tommy’s eye when Buck turns an exasperated look on his husband. Taunting the kid was no way to start their relationship… Or maybe it was? Break the ice early? It didn’t matter because Branson just rolls his eyes and crosses his arms defensively over his chest. “Alrighty then, water for you too since you seem to be feeling a little bit salty. Evan can give you the tour if you’d like or you can make yourselves comfortable on the couch and kick your feet up for a minute. Whatever floats your boat.” Tommy plants a quick kiss to his temple before disappearing into the kitchen. Buck hears the fridge open a moment later.

As they stand there, Buck swears he hears Branson mutter “gross” but chooses to pretend he doesn’t. Knowing the environment the kid grew up in, Branson probably hasn’t had much exposure to anything except macho straight guys and so this was a whole new experience for him. Buck isn’t going to hold it against him. How can he? Anyway… “So, Branson. Let me give you the tour since Emira has already seen the place.” Buck holds an arm out into the expanse of the house, ushering the teen forward. He huffs, again, but reluctantly shuffles on. Placing a hand lightly on one shoulder, not knowing how Branson feels about being touched, Buck guides him through the house, pointing out rooms. “To the right is the kitchen. To the left is what I guess you would call the sitting or gathering room. Through the archway is the living room. The TV is in there along with all of the game stations. Do you play?” Branson shakes his head, eyes cast downwards. “Nothing wrong with that. Maybe I’ll make you a gamer yet.”

Carefully he leads them down the L shaped hallway, Emira following a few steps behind him. Stopping at the first door on the right, he swings it open revealing Branson’s room. “This will be your room. If there’s anything you don’t like about it - I do mean literally anything - just let us know. We didn’t really know what you were into so we tried to keep it basic. Obviously the door has a lock on it that you’re more than welcome to use any time you want. You have a full bathroom to yourself just a little down the hall on the left.” He steers him that way, popping that door open and turning on the light. “Your towels and stuff are under the sink right now, but there’s a linen closet that’s only partially used if you’d prefer to keep them there, or you can keep them in your room. That’s up to you. Those towels are for you and you only. Tommy and I have our own.”

They walk the few short steps to the bend in the hallway where Buck gestures to his and Tommy’s room. “That’s our room. We have our own en suite bathroom, so like I said, that one’s all for you.” He flailed in the direction of Branson’s bathroom. “If you ever need something, don’t hesitate to come find us.” After they finish, Buck leads him to the door that leads out to the detached garage, motioning to the basketball hoop Tommy mounted over it a few months after they moved in, and then showed him to the small mudroom they’d added on to the house just a few months ago so they could have the washer and dryer there rather than in the double closet in the hallway. They repurposed it into the aforementioned linen closet.

At some point Tommy shows up with their guests' water bottles and joins the tour, silent as a ghost. He keeps a few fingertips pressed to Buck’s lower back, as though needing the contact for a bit of comfort. Buck doesn’t mind at all. Finally, after showing them the backyard, they reconvene back in the living room where Branson and Emira take the couch, Buck takes the armchair, and Tommy leans against the archway, arms crossed lightly over his chest and one foot crossing over the other ankle. Buck shakes with nervous energy, hoping that Branson wants to stay. That Emira feels comfortable leaving him here. “So. What do you think, Branson?”

Emira settles a small hand on Branson’s knee, facing him with a gentle quirk of the lips and a raised eyebrow, staying silent. Clearly she’s trying not to influence his decision. Not that it matters because, in typical teen fashion, Branson just shrugs. “I’s fine. I guess.” He’s picking at his nails, not looking at any of them. There’s tension in his shoulders and he seems uncomfortable. Buck knows that he shouldn’t take it personally, but it’s hard not to. He wonders what he can do to make Branson feel more welcome. Lost in thought, Buck almost doesn’t hear the muttered, “It’s not like I’m gonna be here long, anyway.”

Buck wonders if everyone can hear his heart breaking in that moment. This boy was so hurt. So lost. So alone. He’s beginning to wonder if he and Tommy can help him heal. Clearing his throat, Buck asks, pretending he didn’t hear those earth shattering words, “Do you think you’d like to try staying here… with us?” He’s not sure what he’ll do if Branson says no. To his frustration, the teen just shrugs again. Taking a deep breath, Buck wills away the irritation. “Obviously, both my husband and I want you to stay. We would love for you to become a part of our family. But I understand if this isn’t right for you.”

Emira nods. “You don’t have to stay, Branson. If you don’t like it, we can bring you right back to your room at the group home. Your bed is still there for you if you’re not ready.”

The nail picking gets worse and his leg starts to bounce. His anxiety is mounting which only breeds Buck’s own. Tommy seems to notice because he swoops in to squeeze Buck’s neck; something about Tommy’s big, warm, hand wrapped around him calms him like nothing else can. The silence is oppressive, but none of the adults speak, letting Branson stew in his own thoughts while he contemplates. Eventually Branson huffs and capitulates. “Fine. I’ll stay.”

Buck exhales sharply, his shoulders dropping from around his ears where he hadn’t even noticed they’d climbed. Branson is staying. Their new life is beginning. “H-hey, that’s great news.”

“Wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Branson scoffs, falling back into the couch as he swats away Emira’s hands, wrapping his arms around himself while his leg continues to bounce.

“Branson.” Emira chides sharply. “That’s enough.” She stares him down until he nods and mutters an insincere apology. Shaking her head, Emira turns to them with a somewhat forced smile. “Well then, let’s hash out a few more details before I head out.” Buck nods.

Tommy lets go and turns to their kid (their kid!) and offers, “Why don’t we go get you settled in your room while they finish up? Unless you’d prefer to stay.” Branson gives him a wicked side eye but stands slowly. Tommy ushers him out of the room, leaving Emira and Buck to settle whatever is left.

x-x-x

Branson

Entering the room, Branson throws his singular bag into a corner before turning and plopping down on the edge of the bed. The older man, Tommy, stands in his doorway with his hands shoved into his pockets, eyebrows raised to his hairline. “Well, this is awkward.” He tries joking, but Branson isn’t having it. He hates this. Why can’t he just stay in the group home until he ages out like all the other older teens before him.

His parents are useless pieces of trash so why should he be any different? Once he ages out, he can prowl the streets just like they do and pray that he gets picked up one day for something petty and can then spend the rest of his days behind bars. Sure, he may go crazy from boredom, and the food may be worse than horse shit, but at least he’ll get three square meals a day and he’ll be exercised like the dog he is. He’ll even have a bed to sleep in and if he’s lucky, he’ll get hooked on the hard stuff and find a prison bitch who will keep him hooked up. Branson can’t help snorting at the thought but the man thinks he’s laughing at him. Whatever. As long as he leaves.

Instead, he enters the room and goes to the desk where a brand new desktop sits. That’s some damn trust these two morons have in a foster kid. They’ve been warned about his “behavioral issues” and they still thought to buy him something that expensive? Maybe he’ll sell it for parts at school. If he does it fast enough, he can be back at the group home before these homo’s can adopt him. He won’t be subject to their perversions more than he already has been. His eyes follow Tommy across the small space, watching as he picks up something small, and rectangular. Actually, it looks like two things.

Approaching him, Tommy holds them out to him but he doesn’t take them. Instead, Branson looks up into his eyes, glaring. There’s a phone and a tablet in the man’s hand. There’s no way he’s taking those. If he takes them, then he’s likely to owe them favors and he doesn’t want to know what those favors might look like here. “I don’t want them.” He says stubbornly, backing away like they’re on fire. He’d rather die of boredom than take something that he’ll either have to pay them back for or that he’ll lose when they decide that he’s too much and send him back like all the others.

None of the other foster “parents” had even bothered trying to pretend. They all treated him like the pariah he clearly is. That was fine. It just means he’s mostly left alone. It didn’t bother him. Not at all.

Smirking, Tommy shrugs and sets them down on the bed next to him. “Well, if you change your mind, they should both be charged and I already put in the wifi password. The phone has some mobile data but unfortunately it’s not unlimited, so try to stay connected when you’re in the house or somewhere that has wifi. I know that you’re just loving all this attention, but I’m going to leave and let you settle in. If you need anything, holler. And if you think you plan to stay awhile, maybe take a minute to unpack your bag, yeah? The closet has hangers if you prefer to hang your clothes.” As he exits the room he turns and says, “Feel free to lock the door if you’d prefer. This room is yours. If you don’t want us in there, we’re not going to force our way in.” Then he’s gone and Branson is left feeling a little shell shocked. The other one… Buck? Evan? Really meant that he has a choice to lock them out.

Either these guys were way too trusting or their heads were in the clouds.

Harrumphing, Branson carefully moves the welcome basket in the middle of his bed to the floor before he flops back and throws a hand over his eyes, not even bothering to turn off the overly bright overhead light. Not like he ever had a choice before.

He falls asleep because he’s pulled from a dreamless state by a knock at the door. From outside, the older man says, “Branson, dinner is almost ready. You don’t have to come out to eat, but Evan is one hell of a great cook and you’ll be missing out if you don’t.” Then silence.

Clearly he didn’t expect a response because heavy footsteps retreated back down the hall. Furrowing his brow, Branson glares at the door and tries to decide. After a few minutes, the smell of something downright mouthwatering hits his nose and his stomach lets out a loud gurgle, reminding him that he hasn’t actually eaten since the shitty lunch at the group home. Grumbling, he pulls himself to his feet and ambles down the hall towards where the kitchen and dining room are. When he enters, he sneers. Tommy is pressed into Evan’s back, head tilted towards him as he whispers in his ear. Fucking queers. Just another reason to pray they kick him out sooner rather than later.

As soon as the younger one notices him enter the room, Buck bats Tommy away and chirps, “Take a seat, kid. There’s a couple minutes left and it’ll be ready. What do you want to drink?”

“Water.” He states. Not like they’ll actually give him anything else, anyway, so why set himself up for disappointment. Oh well. As long as whatever is cooking tastes as good as it smells.

Tommy gets him a glass of water from the filter in the fridge and sets it in front of one of the places on the table before sitting down at one end. Figuring that’s where he was to sit, Branson sits. God he hates this. Hates how awkward it always is. Small talk is stupid and he just knows that they’ll force him to answer a bunch of stupid questions they don’t really want the answers to. At least they don’t seem to be doing it for the government paycheck like the last two families. He’s tugged from his ruminations as Buck reaches out and sets down a platter of what looks to be homemade lasagna. Saliva instantly coats the inside of his mouth and he swallows. Hard. A basket of garlic bread follows as well as a bowl of mixed greens coated in what smells like a balsamic vinaigrette. Homemade? Possibly.

Once Buck sits, Branson expects them to hold out their hands to say grace. But no. Buck picks up his plate and asks, “How much do you want? It’s got some spice to it so hopefully you’ll be okay with it.” Spice? Does the man recognize how white he is compared to Branson? Yeah, no. He’s not worried at all about spiciness.

Shrugging, he makes a modest rectangle with his fingers and balks when his plate comes back with a serving at least one and half times larger than what he asked for. Do they not ration food? And they served him first. What the hell is going on? Maybe they’re lulling him into a false sense of security. He’s not going to fall for it. So he patiently waits for the two men to begin eating before he picks up his fork and digs in. The flavor that hits his tongue is indescribable and the spice level is no white people spicy. Without a hint of decorum, he devours the entire piece, licking his lips as he finishes. When he’s handed a piece of garlic bread, he takes it wordlessly and tears into it. Tommy fills a small bowl with salad and sets it in front of him saying, “Slow down, Branson. There’s plenty.” But he’s not listening. For the first time in what feels like forever, his stomach is almost at capacity. No one ever feeds a nearly eighteen year old boy enough, but he’s never allowed to complain. Tonight, he may not even have to try to.

Better yet, Buck and Tommy don’t seem to care that he doesn’t want to talk. After asking a few questions and getting nothing but grunts in response, they turn the conversation between them. They mostly talk about work and things that need to get done around the house. Tommy talks about some game he watched recently on TV. Branson can tell Buck doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about, but he looks stupidly happy just listening. What is this shit?

As they near the end of the meal, Branson blurts out, “So… are both of you f-... gay?” The question has been niggling at the back of his mind all day. He needs to know if he should be looking out for his virtue. They didn’t give off creeper vibes but wasn’t Jeffery Dahmer super charming?

Tommy snorts and begins laughing. “How long have you been holding on to that question, kid? No. I’m gay. He’s bi.” He gestures at his husband. “I promise you that we’re happily committed to each other, so you don’t need to clutch your pearls too hard.” Buck glares at him, clearly seeming to think that Tommy said something wrong.

“Sorry.” He says it reflexively, even though he doesn’t mean it. “Also, what the f-.... Heck… is pearl clutching? And what does it have to do with asking you if you’re gay?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Buck says. “He’s being an asshole. Also, you don’t need to censor yourself, Branson. You’re almost an adult. I promise you that we’ve both heard, and said, a whole hell of a lot worse. Anyway, have you gotten enough to eat?” He nods dazedly. Who were these people? Nothing makes sense and he’s feeling light headed.

“Sounds good. Well, we’re going to clean up so you can go do… whatever it is you want to do I guess. You’re enrolled at the high school just down the road but we were given special permission to keep you out tomorrow so you can adjust. You’ll go back on Monday. So, enjoy the evening.”

“Don’t I need to help clean up?” He squirms uncomfortably in his chair. They’re nice. Too nice. So far they haven’t done a single thing he expects and it’s throwing him off. No one is this nice to virtual strangers. They’re going to expect something from him, he just knows it. He would rather they just get it over with and ask instead of making him worry about when they’d strike.

“Nah. We got it. It’s your first day here and I know that you’re probably exhausted, at least mentally. You won’t have the opportunity to skip out on dish duty forever so take the opportunity while you can.” Buck winks at him as he begins bringing dishes to the sink. Tommy helps as Branson sits there for a moment in shock.

“Um. Guess I’ll go back to… my room.” The words are foreign on his tongue; heavy and uncomfortable. Nothing in this world is free, so he just needs to wait for the other shoe to drop.

“Sure thing, Branson. We’ll be up for a few hours if you need anything.” Buck waves dismissively so Branson stands and shuffles back to the room they call his. Once inside, he pulls back the covers and climbs in. Drawing them over his head, he curls into a ball and prays for sleep to come. At least once he’s asleep, he won’t have to think; to wonder; to worry.

Within minutes sleep takes him and he’s allowed to forget his situation, at least for the next however many hours.

[envihellbender]

Gertrude and Gerry pass through Ormond on their ritual stopping road trip, not expecting four teenagers well on their way to starting a Slaughter ritual

Rating: Mature (gore)

Fandom: The Magnus Archives x Dead by Dayight

Characters: Gerard Keay, Gertrude Robinson, The Legion (Frank, Susie, Joey, Jules)

Content: The Slaughter avatar, Legion the Slaughter Avatar, gore, death, Gerry and Gertrude road trip

Gerry kicked the snow with his heavy black combat boot, he knew he’d spotted something off from the road. He looked back at the car where Gertrude was sat watching him, then back to the hilltop he found himself on. The ground was pink, at first he’d wondered if he had a migraine coming on but the music in the air when he got out of the car told him everything. He took out his walkie-talkie, the only thing that worked this high up.

“Grandma Death this is Scream Bloody Gore, Over,” Gerry said into the radio repressing a giggle, one he let splutter out when he heard the crackling noise signifying the reply.

“I didn’t not approve of that call sign, Gerard,” Gertrude responded curtly like a schoolteacher with a perpetual stick up their backside.

“Grandma Death, that call sign is not recognised, Over.”

“Just get on with it. What have you found?”

“Well. The snow’s pink out here, and listen to this-” Gerry lifted his radio into the air. Angry, punk music travelling in the wind towards him.

“We walk the streets at night

We go where eagles dare

They pick up every movement

They pick up every loser

With jaded eyes and features

You think they really care?”

“Hm.” Gertrude paused, causing the radio to crackle. “That is peculiar. What do you think it is?”

“Dunno. How’s your belly feeling?” Gerard asked, he supposed he was grateful the noise didn’t affect him but it made spotting it difficult sometimes.

“Wretched. And the disorientation is kicking in.” Gertrude sighed which caused a strange feedback on the machine. “But normally with this sort of thing we’d be looking at more traditional music.”

“I mean, Grifter’s Bone’s a punk band,” Gerry pointed out. “Although, this isn’t original music. Using another track and using it to spread their angry killing ways is new.”

“Go see what you can find out,” Gertrude commanded, causing Gerard to feel a little bit annoyed. They were supposed to be in an even playing field, but she treated him like a good little soldier.

“Gotcha Grandma Death, Over.” Gerard put his walkie-talkie into his pocket and wrapped his large, heavy black jacket around him as he kicked the snow balls. “I ain’t no goddamn son of a bitch…” He hummed to himself as he continued up the hill towards the abandoned ski resort.

Gerard found a small cabin on the outside of the lodge, the moment he started to see the scattered chunks of bone, limbs, muscle, fat, and brain tissue that were surrounding the building he knew he had to find somewhere to watch in secret. The piles of human remains grew larger the closer he got to the house, bodies were hanging by the neck on either side of every doorway. There were spikes with heads on them lining the outside walls, and the snow went from being pink to be a deep, deep red. He hid inside the cabin in safety with a pair of binoculars. He frowned and tried to focus, normally the Slaughter had a large group but he could only see four scraggly teenagers. The sort he’d see at metal shows, the kind who were still at school and Gerry would keep an eye on in case some creep tried to give them a hard time. The surroundings certainly seemed to fit with what he knew of the Slaughter, but a teenage girl with braces in a cat hoodie, another teen with thick eyeliner and spots on their cheeks, a teenage boy in a Resident Evil hoodie, and another teenage boy with stick and poke tattoos and a Slipknot t-shirt. They all seemed rather tame and young to be involved with any of the Entities… but the carnage that littered their home spoke for itself. It looked like every single person in Ormond had been slaughtered.

“Grandma Death, calling from the Ormond Abattoir, Over,” Gerry said into the radio, a little more frightened than he cared to admit.

“What have you found?” Gertrude said with in irritated groan.

“They all fancy themselves a bit of a Vlad the Impaler type. Got the place decked out in rotting corpses. So many the snows stained red.” Gerry had attempted to hide his fear with humour but his anxiety cracked through in his voice.

“How many are there?”

“That’s the weird thing. There’s only four of them. Teenagers.”

“Hm. That’s… Strange. Anything else?”

“Well,” Gerry paused and squinted into his binoculars. “They’ve a bonfire type thing in the centre of the room, and … Something in the centre.” He went quiet, he paled and his eyes widened as he felt his insides run cold as he saw what was in the centre. “Shit, Grandma Death-”

“Don’t call me-” Gertrude began. Gerry didn’t have time for this.

“It’s Nemesis.” He interrupted. “They have Nemesis. Tied up to a load of C4. Where the hell did they get that?”

“Gerard. Come back now. We need to plan a method of attack.”

“Copy that, Grandma Death.” Gerry put his radio back into his pocket and ducked underneath the doorway. He hoped his markings would keep him out of sight.

[justanothervigalanty]

when I found my love ❤️🖤🤍 (Jason Todd x fem! Reader)

Jason Todd. But you always new him as jay. You were around 10 when you saw a small boy around 11 steeling tires of an old car in the dump. “Hay! You, this is my place back off!” You say to him “ho sorry kid but I need these if I want to eat tonight” the strange boy said picking up the tires. “It will cost you!” You say just as he is about to walk off. “Yeah, ok fair point. What you need kid?” He asked walking towards you. “I can’t give you money though! I have a cigarette?” He said jokingly. “I’m 10 and a half! Plus I don’t want money.” You say with a hand on your hip. “So what do yo-I need something to eat!” You cut him off. “Oh um ok I normally get a sandwich from a soup kitchen but they shut down” he signed putting down a tier and holding out his hand for you to shake. “I’ll share what I can get from this. Ok?” He asked “yes! Oh I’m y/n, y/n L/n” you say “nice to meet you y/n I’m Jason Todd but…around here I go by jay, you should figure out a new name as well it’s safer like idk umm maybe Jen ?” “Ok sure jen and jay sounds cool!”

after around three years you got to know him better and became his closest friend and had maybe kissed once or twice. But then he disappeared. Vanished. Like he was never there. Only a week after Jason’s disappearance you were descoverd and put into foster homes but avenchualy you met the Kent’s. Thay already had a son Conner and he instantly saw you as his baby sister. When you found out that your foster father was the superman you begged him to let you train to become his sidekick along side Conner! And one day he agreed! You were over the moon you may not of had powers but you were one heck of an engineer you had made rocket boots so you could keep up with your brother and dad and not to mention a total badass when it came to hand to hand combat. You were 14 when Bruce Wayne came to your home to ask you to enter the titans who really needed an engineer. “Can I? Please dad please?!” You practically begged him “oh god fine but Bruce if I come round and see her with a fucking stab wound, she comes home!” Clark made it very clear on that but the next thing you know you’re in the elevator with your dad and Bruce by your sides. When you step out every one is in the living room watching some murder mystery movie or something like that. “Everyone I would like you to meet y/n L/n - Kent.” Bruce said as he patted your shoulder. “Ok I got to go be careful n/n” Clark said as he kissed your forehead before leaving. “Hi everyone I’m your new engineer.” You say as everyone comes to meet you expect one a black haired blue eyed teen still sat watching the tv. “Omg hi I’m Rachael finally more teenage girls!” You smile at the girl and everyone comes to say hi and greets you. “Jason.” Bruce calls out “come and introduce yourself”. “No I’m good thanks B much rather be here right now there about to enter crime alley!” Said the boy. You recognise the name Jason and his attitude towards everyone it was all familiar like you knew him from your childhood but didn’t know were. Dick when over and turned of the Tv to get Jason’s attention “what the hell dickhead!?” He said standing up. “Jason we all know you like crime alley but come meet new kid” they both walked over “hi I’m y/n L/n - Kent nice to meet you” you said “Jason Todd good to meet-wait L/n?” He asked you like he had remembered something. “Um yeah that’s me formally L/n now L/n - Kent” you said trying to explain you weren’t born a Kent. “No you’re what…Jen? That’s your nickname right? Jen?” He asked “yes it is- holy shit jay!?” You responded as he pulled you into a hug “I never thought I’d see you again!” Jason said still hugging you “um what is going on?” Asked gar “yeah not trying to reck the mood but do you know echother?” Kory asked “um yeah we dated in crime alley… speaking of which” you said pushing Jason off you. “Where the hell did you go? You just left me i when to bye us some sandwiches and when I get back you we’re gone!” You said still holding his shoulder’s “I know I know Ieft you and I’m so sorry but um can we talk about this somewhere that isn’t in font of my dad?” He said with that stupid voice he used when you argued back a crime alley.

When everyone was getting ready for bed later you Hurd somebody knock on your door you opened it to see Jason “hay babe can we talk?” You pulled him in pining him against the wall. “Don’t you ‘babe’ me, you left that is by far the opposite of being a good boyfriend!”you said you were about to carry on yelling at Jason but just as you opened your mouth he kissed you and you couldn’t help but kiss him back because in all truth no matter how angry you were at him you couldn’t help but miss how he kissed you, how he used to play with your hair after you had nightmares or when he would play a old music tape on his VHS player that you when both dance and sing along to you had missed everything about him and in all honesty so did he.

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

Ugh, everything you’re writing right now is so good. Here’s an ask for when you want to sit down and pound out some holiday misery:

🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓🐓

- Sarah

THANK YOU!

135 or 1k for 🐓:

---

He gets home in the middle of the night or the very, very early morning. Another sleepless night for Buck. Merry fucking Christmas. He sleeps for as long as he can, waking somewhere around nine in the morning. At which point, he takes a long shower, dresses in nice clothing, and then calls Bobby. 

“Buck?” Bobby answers the phone after a few rings. 

The minute he hears his voice, Buck starts to cry. Ugly, pathetic crying. He feels like a total idiot. 

“Buck? Hey, are you okay?” 

“No,” Buck blubbers. “No, I’m… I’m not. You were right. I should have listened to you.”

“Oh, boy. I’m sorry to hear that, Buck. What’s happening now?”

“I’m home. I flew home.”

“Okay. Then you’re coming for dinner, alright? We’ll talk about it.”

“Are you sure? I’ve hardly slept in two days and I keep crying.”

“I’m sure. Come early. Okay, come whenever you want.”

Buck takes a deep breath.

“Thank you, Bobby.”

“Anytime, kid.” 

➡️

Eddie wakes up Christmas morning feeling so anxious he could puke. What the fuck had he been thinking last night? Getting high and calling Buck and asking… Well, what he’d asked. Sober, but mouth still feeling cottony, Eddie can’t even let himself think the word. Words, maybe. He literally does not have time to process this this morning.

“Adriana,” he calls, exiting his small bedroom and finding her slumped on the couch. He’d offered her Christopher’s bed - the one he hasn’t used - but she was apparently too gone to make it there. 

“Mm?” She responds, without opening her eyes or moving her head. 

“What did you do to me?” He demands. “You gave me drugs and made me… Uh…”

“One, I offered you drugs,” Adriana says, still not even looking at him. “You did not have to take them, adult older brother. And, two, if you suggest I made you gay, I’m going to kick your ass and remind you of your extensive Kurt Russell movie phase.”

Eddie scoffs a little. “You’re… You got mean.”

“You went to war and left me with Mom and Sophia. I had to.”

“Fair enough,” Eddie agrees. 

“What time is it?” Adriana asks. “And have you heard from Buck about the disaster you unleashed on his life last night?”

He’s going to kill her. 

“Eight. And no,” he says through gritted teeth.

“When do we have to be at Mom and Dad’s?” She asks.

“Eight.”

“Oh, fuck.”

“Yeah. Get off the couch and let’s go.”

➡️

They make it by quarter after. Do they look their best? No. Are they fully energetic and present. Also no. But can anyone but Sophia tell they were stoned? No! So Eddie will call it a win. 

But it’s not just Eddie’s sexuality crisis and night of intoxication that has him anxious. It’s also this. This day. Christmas. His parents. His son. The whole thing is full of landmines and Chris is already pissed at him. 

Adriana watched him tense as he parks the truck in his parents’ driveway. She squeezes his arm. 

“You’ve got me, okay?” She says. 

He takes a steadying breath. 

“Thanks, Adri.”

He appreciates it. He really does. He just doesn’t know how she can help him at all when the problem is him. 

➡️

“You’re both late,” Helena sighs when she sees them. She has a pinched, stressed look on her face. Like it’s a grand performance in front of a sold out theatre, not a breakfast with family. 

“My fault,” Adriana says. “I kept Eddie up too late, chatting his ear off.”

Helena purses her lips and hums, discontented. 

“Well, luckily for you both we’re running a bit behind anyway,” she says. “Someone wasn’t eager to wake up this morning. 

Christopher. She’s talking about Christopher. 

“I mean this is practically the middle of the night for a teen, right?” Adriana says. 

“Where is Chris, anyway?” Eddie asks. 

“Getting dressed,” Helena answers. 

Right. Because at home, with Eddie, pajamas were more than fine. Not today. 

“Okay… I guess I’ll just… Wait for him,” Eddie mumbles. He’s come with quite a few gifts. They feel like bribes. Especially after yesterday. Their fight. Like he’s saying, please love me again. At least one of the gifts is for his future niece or nephew. That makes it marginally less pathetic. He hopes. 

“We’re opening gifts after we eat, anyway, Eddie,” his mother reminds him.

“Right,” he mutters. 

“Hey, how was the big guy?” Adriana asks, trying to draw the conversation away from Eddie and Chris.

“Santa?” Their mother asks, frowning. “We didn’t do that this year, Adriana. He’s fourteen.”

“I meant God,” Adriana shrugs. “But, yeah. I know. You stopped Santa for me when I was seven, so I figured.”

“Ugh,” Helena rolls her eyes. She walks off into the kitchen, without even acknowledging the original question.

“Jesus,” Eddie mutters. 

“You’re welcome,” she says. “Let’s go find Soph.”

Their sister and her husband, Jordan, are sitting in the living room, chatting with Abuela. They say their hellos and Merry Christmases and then sit down. Eddie lets himself fade into the background of the conversation, while Abuela barrages Adriana with a bunch of well-meaning questions about college. She’s doing her Master’s now. Environmental science. Eddie isn’t sure how much of that is in an attempt to piss off their dad.

When Chris finally comes down the stairs, his face is completely neutral. Blank, like he doesn’t care to be here. Eddie wants to cry. It’s Christmas. Chris loves Christmas. He used to love Christmas, anyway. What the hell happened? Is this the result of his parents’ rigidity about the holiday, or Eddie’s own failings? Is it just his age? 

[graysonshmayson]

FAQ- OP has offered the following info for context:

Ok part of me wanted to let this all slide, but I think some more context could be helpful!

Please take yourself and everyone else in your family to therapy?

Oh trust me, this is our behavior as medicated, therapy-going individuals, although my dad hasn’t gone to therapy consistently since he was young. Getting J to do anything that involves talking about how he feels usually involves threats of violence. 

Why is NO ONE ELSE helping your dad? 

No one can. He doesn’t really form close relationships. His closest friendships are his coworkers and he still keeps them at arm's length when it comes to personal things. SUPER hard boundaries, and he can be really scary so it's impossible to push it. Other than that, he has no family and lives alone now except for 2 of us kids and our grandpa. Our grandpa is an angel and tries to help him but ultimately my dad is so stubborn it's hard. He’s a lifesaver though, and helps a lot in connecting us to our dad and putting him in his place when he needs it. 

How many kids does your dad need? And why are they working in the company?

Well, his only biological kid is D! But there’s a lot of us and the official count is 6. He really has a soft spot for helping kids, though, because of his own experiences and so we’re kind of a haven for wayward teens. He mentors a lot of people, and they idolize him and want to help out. If he didn’t let them, they would try anyway, and that would be dangerous for everyone. Our family doesn’t end or start with blood. 

How the hell did T get involved at 14?

There’s not much of a way to say this that doesn’t sound weird, but he just started hanging around him until he got the position. I’m not going to take any slander when it comes to this, my dad is absolutely not a creep, T was just incredibly stubborn. He was getting in harm's way, so my dad decided to employ him so he was at least in charge. T’s dad was involved in an accident, and my dad took pity on him and got more involved. They were a good team. When T’s dad died, it only made sense to adopt him. 

Why not get custody of D?

I had quite a few people ask me this, and the short answer is that I didn’t want to. I have no interest in taking D away from his father, even if I disagree with his parenting sometimes. D has lost enough family, and it would only serve to destroy my relationship with both of them. My grandfather had custody of D, but he was getting up there in age, so I stepped in to help. 

Why didn’t your dad adopt you?

This was a resounding response to all of my posts, saying that I don’t owe him anything and have no legal ties to the family, so I should get out of there while I still can. The truth is, I was furious after my parents died. Even when my dad took me in, I ran away all the time, I got into fights, and I didn’t want him controlling me. I was spiraling, and I didn’t like being spoken down to, especially by him because he was absent due to his work. He thought that if he treated me as an equal instead of a child, I would respond to him better, which isn’t super wrong. Me working in the company helped us bond, and develop a mutual respect. I think he was afraid of ruining that and I know he was afraid of asserting himself as a father. When I was younger, it felt like he just didn’t want to be my dad. Sometimes I felt like I was a charity case he took on for himself, more than for me. I asked him why when I grew up, and he told me that he didn’t want to look like he was trying to replace my parents. He wanted to respect their place in my life and told me that it never meant he didn’t see me as his son. He didn’t want to come on too strong, and was too emotionally constipated to ask me how I felt about it. He recognized his mistake and fixed it, but I was too old to be legally adopted by then. I don’t even call him Dad most of the time (pretty much none of us do), but we still see him that way. 

How did J come back to life?

Basically we didn’t have the right body, and it turned out he survived and was hanging out with some shady circles for years before he came back. Probably plotting his revenge considering how dramatic he was when he came back. He’s pretty much fine, now though. Still a little shady but not committing as many crimes. He’s a good person when it comes down to it, just angry.

[sanyu-thewitch05]

Hunter's daughter doing the loli dance trend

She became an internet sensation in a night and Hunter is gonna go hunting down the predators

He's making sure if his daughter becomes a child star, she'll have the best protection

A/N: Sorry, this took so long to answer. College is pilling up on me again. Also, I made Hunter's daughter a teen (15 going on 16) in this because I don't know how to write children who are really young.

"You did what?!" Hunter shrieks, waking you up.

"Hunter, what are you fussing about now?" You ask, getting off the couch.

"Come see what your daughter has danced to on that clock app!" Hunter yells, making their preteen daughter, Melody go into the kitchen.

You look at Lauren dancing and are slightly impressed she can dance so well.

"She got my moves," You say, smirking until you see Hunter's face."But, of course, the lyrics of the song are very inappropriate."

"Mom! That's so unfair! You've danced to much more inappropriate songs when you were on the majorette team when you were my age," Lauren whines, making you go still.

"Oh...true," You mumble, looking away from your eldest daughter.

"Don't use your mother's past against her. You're not going to dance to songs with lyrics like this on the internet for who knows what to save and view. In fact, I'm going to Henry to completely wipe this from the internet," Hunter says, storming out of the house.

You and Lauren look at each other and then laugh.

"How about I cut you a deal? You can still dance, but you join my old majorette team?" You offer, passing your daughter her phone.

"Deal!" Lauren exclaims, hugging you. "I wonder how long it's going to take for Dad to realize that the video of me doing the loli dance trend was in my drafts?"

"Oh, probably a while. Despite your father's job, he's not very smart. I remember when we were dating, I asked Hunter to get me a B-cup bra. He brought me a literal bra with bees on it. I laughed so hard that water spurt out of my nose. The best part was that the bra was an A-cup!" You laugh, making Lauren burst into laughter. "Oh, and then there was the time at our high school graduation, Hunter nearly fell off the front of the stage!"

You and your eldest daughter crack up and eventually stop.

"Mommy, what are we going to do for food?" Melody asks, tugging on your sleeve.

"Hmmm...how about GIRL DINNER!" You scream, making all of your daughters shriek with delight.

You give them your phone and they order their favorite dishes from their favorite restaurants. You pay for the order with Hunter's debit card and go into your room for face masks and salon care.

"Ugh! What does Elliot want now?" Lauren groans, flopping onto the bed. "Oh, Dad wants to know why there were four transactions on his debit card."

You had almost forgotten Henry has children. Elliot VanHelding, the eldest of Henry's children, goes to the same school as Lauren, and Delilah. Not only that, but he seems to fancy Lauren, which makes you worried.

"Just tell him we decided to take a girl's day off," You respond, sipping a strawberry lemonade margarita from the fridge.

"Ok, mom!" Lauren says, high-fiving you.

Hunter receives the text message and smiles a little.

"So, is the video deleted?" Hunter asks Elliot, crouching next to him as his friend's son does his magic.

"Yep! Completely erased from her drafts!" Elliot says, turning around to face Hunter.

"Drafts? So it was never published?"

"Nope."

"I've got to get back to my house."

By the time Hunter had gotten back, you, Lauren, Delilah, and Melody had locked every door, entrance, and window.

"Honey, this isn't funny! Open the door!" Hunter yells, pounding on the door.

"Sorry, babe! It's girl's night now!" You exclaim, shutting the curtains.

Hunter sees you wearing a fake scarf with cheap star-shaped sunglasses and hides a smile. Hunter grabs a pillow and blanket from the trunk and makes a bed for himself in the backseat of his car. He takes in the smell of the blanket and takes comfort in knowing that it smells like your perfume from when you went to the beach with Hunter for the summer before your senior year in college. His mind fills with summer memories, and they carry him to sleep.

[rahleeyah]

Hey Leah,

Just curious about what you think of Elliot’s reactions to both of the Eli news?

The one to Eli wanting to go to the academy was reminiscent of Dickie wanting to join the military back on SVU. Elliot knows the dangers of it and conveyed it. A bit rude of people to assume he wasn’t being supportive when he didn’t outright say Eli can’t join. Elliot did gag Eli when the latter complain about Elliot leaving for the job by saying “that’s part of the job”.

Don’t know what to think about the pregnancy one. He didn’t seem too upset about it which is a bit surprising given that his own teen pregnancy is what had him doing the things he done. And that’s what he wanted his kids to avoid. It’s great that he is supportive and is going to help, as is the rest of the family, but I thought he would be a bit more upset when voicing his knowing of it. I mean is he resign that history is about to repeat itself? Maybe.

I think both reactions work really well for him in character. Why should he be supportive of Eli joining the police academy? Has Eli ever expressed any interest in this before? Hasn't Eli been complaining about how much he hates his father's job for years? Didn't the job come between Elliot and his family? And isn't Elliot right, that making that choice in 2024 is very different from making it in 1987? He's just been blindsided by a very big, very scary piece of news that doesn't make sense, and like you said it's very reminiscent of his response to Dickie; it's anger disguised as fear. It's also a knee jerk reaction; he's had zero time to process this news.

The reaction to the pregnancy works for me on so many levels. Number one he's already figured it out himself so he's had a moment to try to think about how he wants to respond, what he thinks Eli needs from him in that moment, instead of just reacting. Number two, this is a baby, and to Elliot a baby is always a blessing, even when it isn't, even when the timing is for shit and he wants better for his son. And number three, Elliot knows intimately the heartbreak of finding out that he's going to have a child and having everyone around him react with horror. That is devastating. I was talking recently to a friend who first got pregnant at seventeen, got married, and then had two more unplanned pregnancies they couldn't really afford. She said to me "I've never been able to be excited about a pregnancy." She always had a reason to feel guilty or worried, didn't get to experience just plain joy without those other more complicated emotions, and she just sounded so fucking sad. That's not a feeling Elliot is going to have forgotten.

So he's angry about a decision Eli can change; he's not supportive of the police academy but that's not set in stone yet, there's still time for Eli to make a better decision. He's gentle about the pregnancy, bc there is no taking that back now, bc he knows exactly how Eli is feeling and wants to care for his son, doesn't want to make this baby into a source of shame.

I love both of those beats for him as a character and a father

[we-love-morioh-cho]

Theory - Usagi Is Meryl Mei's Son

From the first or second chapter of The Jojolands, I have had a theory that Usagi will be revealed as Meryl Mei's son. For the record, some of this could be me overthinking it BUT, just for fun, I thought I should compile my 'evidence'.

I should say that I don't follow the fandom much outside of Tumblr so idk if other people have thought of this.

Spoilers for the first 7 chapters of The Jojolands under the cut. Heads up that this post got kinda long and dense.

Visual Similarities

I want to start off with some visual similarities between these two. While some of this could just be stylistic trends in Araki's art, I want to point out the general shape of their jawlines and their eyes. I think Usagi is meant to have a fuller face then the other teens but this is shaky. It does look similar to Meryl Mei's face shape though. I also see similarities in their noses and eyebrows BUT I do attribute that mostly to Araki's style given how similar a lot of his noses and eyebrows are. While Usagi is sometimes drawn with wider and rounder eyes, generally they seem to be more pointed/angular and (with the 'winged eyeliner' thing he has) they resemble Meryl Mei's eyes more than the other protagonists. Below I've put a photo of his eyes alongside Dragona's and Rohan's just to help illustrate this as best as I can.

(This is a dumb point but while collecting photos I noticed Usagi and Meryl Mei both had ponytails which.... is probably nothing but I thought it was so cute.)

She Has A Mysterious Family

When we first meet Meryl Mei in Chapter 1, we get a description of her from Jodio. While Jodio does emphasise how mysterious and weird she is, one thing he mentions hearing a rumour about is her having a husband and child (as far as I can tell the sex of the child isn't specified). While this is just a rumour, I guarantee there will be some sort of follow-up to this. Early on, it introduces the idea that Meryl Mei has family that even her employees don't know about - I don't think it's too crazy to say she could have them in her business. Again, it could point to something else but it feels very early to be dropping info like that.

Introductory Scenes

A very small thing but right after Usagi's introduction, like the very next panel, is when we first see Meryl Mei at the school. This would be a classic way of hinting at some connection between these two, but I actually want to go into the previous scene on the bus.

So the first scene we see of Usagi is him asking Jodio on the bus for drugs. Jodio is alarmed by this since they are surrounded by other students and responds by bashing Usagi. When they get off the bus though, Jodio and Paco do their routine to exchange Usagi's money for some drugs. While it's suggested Usagi is an addict, I think in hindsight it's clear that he isn't. Usagi is set up to be a fool but is then shown to be intelligent. He 'betrays' the gang but then comes back and proves his loyalty and 5000 IQ. I don't think it's crazy to say that the gang's assessment of him as an addict is inaccurate too, there's more to this but I'll get into it later.

My theory is that this scene isn't an addict asking for drugs on the bus randomly, I think this is some sort of test. Jodio is the youngest of the gang and, as shown in Chapter 2, his naivety and inexperience could cause problems for Meryl Mei. With the diamond heist coming up, as well as us hearing that Meryl Mei wants to expand her business, I think it's possible she got Usagi to ask him for drugs in a public space to see if Jodio would slip up. Just to make sure he has enough common sense and discretion to not reveal any info BUT that he still manages to make the transaction afterwards. Otherwise, it's just weird in hindsight that Usagi would do this.

EDIT: Didn't think of this until a few days after initially making this post, but if the bus scene was a test, it could be a parallel to the undercover cop scene in Chapter 2. He's being tested and lied to by both sides of the crime struggle and maybe his initial failure with the female cop is what prompted Meryl Mei's test (I think the undercover cop scene is a flashback but correct me if I'm wrong). Jodio's ego and self-worth seem like they'll be explored this part so maybe this reveal would be a bit of a blow to his confidence?

Usagi Joining The Mission

So.... there obviously has to be something going on here right? Meryl Mei somehow knows about Usagi and trusts him! (Also I completely missed that she says here he isn't an addict!!! Paco still thinks he is one in Chapter 2 but come on now). She wants him to specifically go on this extremely important heist even though the others barely know him. There has to be something going on here, and I think that him being her son would be a good explanation! She would obviously know him, his abilities, and would trust him. It would almost be like having her own set of eyes on the group to make sure the mission goes well. I don't know if any relationship between the two could garner more trust than a parent and child. And given that Meryl Mei literally sells drugs to children, I don't think she'd hesitate to involve her child in the business and send him into danger tbh.

Before I move on, I quickly wanna mention 2 small things that I noticed but seriously doubt are intentional. First is that there is a rabbit-inspired outfit design behind Meryl Mei in one panel and Usagi means 'rabbit' in Japanese. (Remember how The Jojolands was first teased with the rabbit image?) It also happens to be right beside the panel mentioning her child BUT I'LL STOP.

The second dumb thing in this scene I noticed is how Usagi suddenly shows up at the very end of the rundown of the mission. We get a panel specifically showing Dragona locking the front door after the customers leave, but then Usagi gets in somehow? Was he hiding inside already for the reveal? Also, he would've missed the briefing but doesn't seem confused and instead already seems to know what's going on? Possibly just Jojo logic though but I wanted to mention it.

Weird Texting And Delay

Not much to this, could just be a funny gag about Usagi being sillycore but I wonder if he could've been texting Meryl Mei here? Maybe with an update on the mission? I have no idea what the delay could've been about, we do find out later he got hamburgers at the airport (hence the bag) so maybe it's hinting at that instead? Idk to be honest, just think it's noteworthy.

The Car Place

I forgot about this, but Usagi must be experienced at this sort of thing. How does he know about this criminal-safe car rental place? Was the texting maybe him getting this info from someone? It's also strange to me HE was in charge of getting the car - I doubt the other teens would've given him that responsibility so was that an order from Meryl Mei? That's super speculative though.

(Tiny thing since you can see it clearly in the panel above - is the weird logo on his shoulder meant to be model legs??? Like women's legs in underwear and high heels???? I have no idea if that's what it is and what it could mean but Meryl Mei is in the fashion industry *shrug*. My partner thinks they could be his stands' arms instead but we're not sure. I kinda doubt this point for the record, but it doesn't hurt to mention plus I'm interested in what others think the symbol is.)

Figuring Out The Cat Stand

Another thing which at least points to Usagi being more experienced than the others despite his age and demeanor - Usagi is the first to figure out that the string attack is a stand specifically. He also suspects the cats sooner than the others, Paco angrily insists the strings are some sort of security system (???????) but Usagi knows. It's not like the others don't know about stands, maybe Usagi has dealt with stand users on missions before? Also, goes without mentioning, but his 7D chess-level plan to defeat the cats later on is very impressive but maybe suspicious.

Quickly, other examples of Usagi's intelligence/possible experience are; going straight to cutting the painting in Rohan's house, scientific knowledge with the beakers and flasks, knows about birds in the local forest, also talks about the cat plan as an 'experiment' - could his scientific knowledge tie into being involved in the illegal drug business? They do compare Rohan's science set-up to drug making. Think 'Breaking Bad' essentially.

King Crimson Parallel

So, full credit for this final point goes to @/pandoragigi who pointed this out on a previous post I made.

They pretty much summarised it better then I ever could, this idea kinda blew my mind when they mentioned it. Sometimes it seems like Araki chooses song references randomly, but this could be a possibility. I don't have much to add besides the fact that 'Matte Kudasai' is a melancholic song which seems odd for Usagi, so maybe it has deeper meaning to his character.

To be clear, I'm not necessarily insisting with this theory that Meryl Mei or Usagi are gonna be villains. I think they could be mother and son and not be antagonists at all. I think it's unlikely Usagi is the traitor after already having a fake-out betrayal - but I do think Meryl Mei could be the traitor Rohan warned about. So if Meryl Mei is a villain then the possible parallel between Usagi and Trish could mean he remains loyal to the gang. Of course, it could also end up like Araki's initial plans for Fugo :( It's still too early to know where this story is going but I like to speculate and overthink things.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the next chapter could instantly disprove everything here. Araki has an... interesting track record with solving mysteries and reincorporating cool little details and I know theorising on this series can be pointless. I may in fact be Boo Boo the Fool for this making post :( But I'm having fun thinking about this and would personally be very excited if it came true! I have so many self-indulgent thoughts about angst possibilities and narrative parallels you could draw between Usagi+Meryl Mei and Jodio+Barbara Ann!!!! I think in a hypothetical evil!Usagi route, he could also be a great foil to Jodio. Also, what about the husband Meryl Mei is also rumoured to have? Will he appear and be relevant? But that type of speculating got things way too off-track so I cut them and might post them later. I feel like I could talk about the possible implications if this theory was true all day, but I'll cut it off here. All in all -

Thanks for reading :)

[milkywaystarboy]

for the prompts, if you are willing: Turin and Beleg and "the shadows grew long in the forest"

thank you for the prompt!!! i didn't expect to get one which is why this took me a while, but i hope it doesn't disappoint. (link to silmarillion prompts post)

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túrin stood just inside the treeline, where the slender birch trunks rose from the forest floor to reach towards the stars. he did not lean on one of them, as he might’ve when he was younger; instead his back was straight, gaze fixed westward. beleg wondered if he thought to pierce the girdle of melian with sight alone, to once again behold the home he’d left.

“the king truly does miss you,” the elf says softly, his steps soundless as he approaches his friend. “surely you miss him as well?” beleg had known túrin for most of the man’s life - how like a drop in a vast river that time feels to him, though no less precious for it - and knows his mind better than most. he watched him grow from recalcitrant child to restless teen to… well, there were too many words to describe his friend as an adult. bull-headed might be one of them. he had wondered how much of túrin’s refusal in the hidden halls of amon rûdh had been due to the fact of their audience, his gathered outlaws. so here, he hoped, the mask might fall.

the man didn’t respond, for so long that any other might think the question had gone unheard, but beleg knew better. and in his own time, túrin responded, “i did, once. when first i fled and still roamed the forest on my own, oft i would find my thoughts straying back to menegroth. i would wonder if there might be a chance to explain my actions, or if i would even be heard out. i remembered the warm meals around the table, when my belly would growl with hunger. and many times did i find myself recalling king thingol’s wisdom when talking with strangers, or your teachings as i hunted for my next meal.” he shook his head, finally turning to look at his friend. “but it faded, beleg. truth be told, i hadn’t thought of the king or menegroth for over a year when you arrived.”

his hand clenched, the only outward sign of túrin’s internal struggle. how could he forget? thingol, who had taken him in as a child and raised him as his own son. his heart ached to remember the peace he’d felt in his younger years, tinged with the grief of leaving his mother - but that too had faded, hadn’t it? was that all his life was? a series of connections, forgotten as soon as he was separated from them for long enough. even now, he wasn’t sure if he could pick his mother out of a crowd. and even beleg…

túrin looked up, and found the question he expected shining as a star in his friend’s eye. “yes, beleg,” he murmured, looking away in shame. “even you.” i forgot the shine of sunlight in your hair, he thought, daring not to betray his own heart even now. i forgot the way the muscles of your back shifted as you bent a bow; forgot the way your smile lifted my heart. 

beleg was also quiet, the sun starting to set and painting the trees and his hair with golden-red light. it stung to know he had been forgotten, in the time that túrin was gone, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected. he’d been the one to bear witness as a freshly fifteen-summers túrin tore himself apart for forgetting the paths he’d walked as a young child, the sound of his mother’s voice, his father’s presence. he’d wondered then if the tendency to forget after so short a period of time was simply a part of being adan; now he believed it simply to be some unique characteristic of túrin specifically.

“i understand,” he said at last, closing the distance between himself and his friend to place a hand upon his arm. “i did not come here to force you to return, for i know your mind rebels at demands. the king wished you to know that you are welcome home, and now you do.” túrin looked at him, brows raised slightly with surprise at being so understood; beleg placed a hand at the nape of túrin’s neck to bring their foreheads together. “be well, aa'menealle nauva calen ar' malta.”

túrin’s eyes closed at the farewell, and though he leaned forward to meet the pressing of skin to skin, he was still as beleg pulled away and began to make his way westward. the shadows grew long in the forest when he opened his eyes again, watching the wind blow through the trees and ruffle the elf’s cloak. “cormamin niuve tenna' ta elea lle au'.” túrin spoke the words quietly, and the leaves caught them to make them silent.