#whump triangle

[hereissomething]

ah yes, the toxic hate triangle

[xiaobaosnoona]

[eirenical]

Oooo whump ask! How about hypothermia for Xiaoge?

...I really wanted this to be whump for you, @fixaidea, but somehow it turned into fluff? Oops? XD

[if anyone else would like to spin the wheel and send me a prompt, here's the post!]

"Xiaoge! Xiaoge, your hands! What happened?"

Zhang Qiling let himself be led into the house, Wu Xie's worried tones following him into that badly needed warmth. It was far from normal to have snow this late in the spring, but it wasn't unheard of. He would have been fine on his own, would have known what to do to keep himself warm through the night and make his way back in the morning. But he couldn't take that chance. He could have survived... but they couldn't.

Zhang Qiling slowly shifted his arms out away from his body as it began to shiver, then just as slowly pointed towards his midsection. From inside his jacket, wrapped in his mittens, his scarf, and every spare article of clothing he could wrap around them, came several tiny, high pitched mewls.

Pangzi guided Zhang Qiling to sit on the couch, wrapped him in layers of blankets warm from the drier and a warm wool cap, then placed a cup of warm tea in his hands and ordered him to drink. Wu Xie fished through the layers at his waist, and with each layer he pealed away, the mews turned more and more strident, but strong for all their unhappiness. As he pealed away the last later, two VERY vocal kittens tumbled out into Xiaoge's lap and immediately began exploring.

Wu Xie put a hand over his face as Pangzi began laughing above them.

"You... you risked hypothermia to save a pair of kittens? Xiaoge... don't we have enough?"

One of the kittens had wormed its way back into Zhang Qiling's jacket as Wu Xie spoke, and the other now climbed up to curl up in the crook of his neck. He simply stared back at Wu Xie, a soft smile drifting across his face as the kittens began to purr. As expected, Wu Xie's face relaxed into a matching smile barely a few seconds later. "All right, all right, what's two more, I guess?"

Zhang Qiling let himself be tucked in on the couch after that, more warm blankets piled up over him and the kittens purring away, as his body temperature rose back to a more normal range.

It was a strange thing, to have a home, to have people who cared not only that he was physically able to do his job, but that he was comfortable... that he was happy. Some days it still felt like a dream. But Wu Xie was sitting by his head now, gently stroking it as he dozed, and Pangzi was tucking little warming packets in various places around the pile of blankets, and there were kitten purrs in his ear, and if this was a dream, then it was one he never wanted to wake up from.

[mirensiart]

Youve got MY brain churning now >:D

With regards to the lu x kiznaiver au, if someone is in so much pain that they pass out, do the remaining Links get an instant reprieve? The panic that would seep thru the chain if so- especially the first time it happenssss oohohoho

Im also watching the anime with a friend next week, ty for the unintentional recommendation 😂

It's such a fun concept, the brainrot is real lol!

And ooh, I would think so! Like when u pass out cause of pain, it's because the brain wants to shield u of it, so I would assume that if one of them passes out the rest would stop feeling that link's pain 🤔

The potential hurt/comfort though... you're cooking!

I actually want to rewatch the anime now too! I've watched it twice, but the last time I did was in 2017 so it's been A While lol

It's a short but fun watch, i liked the concept a lot, and I believe there's so many ways to explore it outside of what the anime did !!

I hope u enjoy it! I do remember the cast being very lovable hehe

[cutter-kirby]

actually I’m obsessed with gravity falls malevolent crossover. like for a variety of reasons but I think it’s extremely funny that both ford and arthur (both very aromantic to me) manage to garner so much homoerotic tension from both normal repressed men (fiddleford, oscar) and also from The Creature (bill, kayne… the list goes on for artie)

[sullyywrites]

Attention Readers:

Are you looking for a fantasy book to read with the found family trope?

- Do you love world building, epic adventures, and magic?

- Do you like relatable stories with mature themes?

- Do you love tropes like friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, whump, multiple point of views, pirates, love triangles, and hurt comfort?

- Do you love books like Six of Crows, Throne of Glass, and The Cruel Prince?

If you love all of those things, check out my fantasy novel, The Queen of Golden Flame! It is a completed book I’ve been working on for the past four years and love dearly. If you find yourself interested in all of the things above, please check it out in the link below! Would love to hear some feedback!🩷

[popcorn-plots]

Medwhump Day 1 (finally lmao): under anesthesia

Summary: Years after Tony finds the cure and watches the man he loves marry the Sorcerer Supreme, Stephen decides to get the Reactor out. Tony and Wong watch him go under. Wong, stoic as always, doesn't say a word and Tony deals with his thoughts.

[Set in the Master Stark AU, where Tony Stark is a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, and a Master of the Mystic Arts. He also ruined his hands in a lab accident. Stephen only became a Master because he was so bored at Kamar-Taj waiting for Tony to create Badassium that he read nearly every book in the Kamar-Taj library, tagged along for a few classes, and became a Master around the same time Tony did. Fate says Tony and Stephen end up together, but Stephen has other plans. Tony falls in love with Stephen, Stephen falls in love with Wong and they get married. Tony and Stephen still remain friends, despite the unrequited love triangle that Stephen does not know about. Because he's an idiot and so is Tony.]

~

Today was the day. Stephen wasn't allowed to eat for the last 24 hours and, in solidarity, both Wong and Tony shared his fast. Now, he was scrubbing up for surgery -- as the patient, rather than the surgeon.

Tony stood outside the operating room. Stephen lay there, his legs and waist covered in a surgical drape, his head supported by the table, his arms spread out.

Stephen glanced at Tony, giving him a small smile and a thumbs up. Tony snorted, glancing away as the anesthesiologist fit the mask over Stephen's face.

Slowly, Stephen's eyes slipped closed as his breathing evened and his body relaxed. Tony folded his arms, clenching his fists. He grimaced slightly at the wave of pain from the action but didn't stop.

Wong glanced at him, but didn't say anything. He turned back to the doctors, watching them silently as they hooked Stephen up to various machines.

Tony turned away. He figured Wong would want some space with his husband in the last few seconds before he went under. Tony left the room and blinked away a tear, glancing at the wedding ring on Wong's finger.

Walking away, he couldn't help but feel like he belonged with Stephen. He wasn't a jealous man -- but sometimes... he wished things were different.

[poughkeepsies]

RAKUTEN VIKI RELEASED ALL 81 EPISODES OF JUMONG MY TIME HAS COME

[the-bar-sinister]

"People mostly write and read very character driven, specific ship focused fic, because what most people want out of fanfiction is to focus on the romance between characters they're not getting in canon so they can soak in the vibes."

Yes, absolutely. And thank hell for all the authors who write character-driven, ship focused fic for us to soak in the vibes to.

But also…

thank hell for all the authors who write angst, whump, and hurt no comfort, for us to luxuriate in blorbo's hurt and pain and cry or cackle.

thank hell for all the authors who write cheating, love triangles and affairs for us to consume large quantities of popcorn to and yell 'oh no, they didn't'.

thank hell for all the authors who write case fic, mission fic, and intricate, plot-driven stories to replicate the feel of canon, when canon has stopped or gone wrong.

thank hell for all the authors who write 'fix it' fics when canon has betrayed us with bad vibes, plot holes and deaths.

thank hell for all the authors who write poly ships when what we need is just for everyone to get along and screw instead of screw up.

thank hell for all the authors who write gen fic when we're not interested in romance.

thank hell for all the authors in fandom, and all the wonderful, different kinds of fanfiction they write for us.

[andtheny]

[destieltropecollection]

Destiel Trope Collection 2024 Masterlist

Thank you to everyone who joined in this year; there was a total of 236 fics this year which is a great result! Remember to kudo and comment where you can and show our authors some love ♥

Day 1 | Angst with Happy Ending Day 2 | Idiots in Love Day 3 | Friends to Lovers Day 4 | Hurt/Comfort Day 5 | Touch-Starved Day 6 | Canon Divergent Day 7 | Bed Sharing Day 8 | Fake Married for a Case Day 9 | Empty Rescue Day 10 | Wing Fic Day 11 | Enemies to Lovers Day 12 | Fake Dating Day 13 | Case Fic Day 14 | Soulmates Day 15 | Witch Magic or Curses Day 16 | Secret Relationship Day 17 | Roommates Day 18 | Amnesia Day 19 | Two-Person Love Triangle Day 20 | Canon Compliant Day 21 | Cowboy!AU/Ranch Day 22 | Omegaverse Day 23 | Established Relationship Day 24 | Fluff Day 25 | Firsts Day 26 | BDSM Day 27 | Single parent AU Day 28 | Coffee Shop AU Day 29 | Murder Husbands Day 30 | Whump Day 31 | Cabin Fic

[matcha-milkies]

LIKE AN OLEANDER

Summary: Bill Cipher needs a footstool and a thoroughly Stockholmed Ford is happy to oblige.

Relationships: Bill Cipher & Ford Pines, Pyronica is there too

Content Warnings: Abuse, Master/Pet, Psychological Torture/Horror/Trauma, Stockholm Syndrome, Victim Blaming, Sensory Deprivation

Tags: Triangle Bill, Canon Divergence - Weirdmageddon, Bill Cipher Wins, Collars, Chains, Whump, Hurt No Comfort, Bill Cipher is a Jerk

Word Count: 1,306

Link to AO3: Here

A/N: Based on @jellyskink’s immaculate Domesticated Ford AU, in which Bill mentally breaks Ford in the 1980s and brainwashes him into an obedient and fawning pet. Weirdmageddon started early, and over time the weirdness bubble surrounding Gravity Falls naturally expanded to contain both California and Oregon. If you want to learn more, there’s a lot more tidbits on their blog, though fair warning it’s a pretty dark and sad AU.

Thank you, jellyskink, for giving me the green light to write a fic for this!

I saw someone say this au is “all pain, no sex” which is really at the heart of what I look for in fics, but is so painstakingly absent in most fandoms, so this is a godsend •⩊•

If you haven’t listened to “Oleander” by Mother Mother what are you even doing with your life /lh

Bill Cipher is in a particularly good mood today. He and Pyronica probably broke a record for largest bonfire in California, even counting all their previous antics over the years. Not the dream demon’s most creative endeavor by a long shot, but hey, sometimes you just gotta start a blazing inferno to let off some steam. Nothing wrong with a bit of simple, straightforward arson now and then.

It’s only when he returns to the Fearamid, practically glowing, buzzing and high off the screams of the innocent, that he remembers the state he left Sixer in.

The man is in a kneeling position, collared by the neck. His hair, fluffy and disheveled, feathers down to around his shoulders, brushing against the cruel blue metal. His twelve fingers twitch and grasp at nothing, futilely, as though groping for purchase on a rugged cliffside. His purple sweater is rumpled in places, like he had pulled and grabbed at that too, to no evident avail. He’s whimpering to himself, words that are at first indiscernible as Bill enters the massive chamber.

The scientist is tethered to a ring near the base of the Throne of Frozen Human Agony, staring vacantly into the middle space, unseeing. It’s not his fault. Bill severed all input from his optic nerves, so he literally can’t see. Or hear. Or feel. Yeah, he cut off those nerves too. It was supposed to be a punishment that lasted a few hours. And then Bill had left and gotten carried away with his fun, and well, it had been an entire day.

Whoops.

Make no mistake, he doesn’t feel bad about it. If anything, it’s kind of funny, like forgetting to feed your dog! Wait. Humans don’t find that funny. Well, who can expect them to understand the emotions of an all-powerful chaos god? He draws closer, and the previously indiscernible words sharpen into clarity.

“I love you, my muse. I love you.”

Repeated ad nauseam to the uncaring void.

“Aww,” Bill clasps his hands together and brings them closer to his eye. “He’s so pathetic!” Pyronica, who came in with him, nods her agreement and laughs along. This must be what it’s like to catch your puppy mid-dream, its little tongue lolling and leg kicking at nothing.

He can’t remember whether he instructed his pet to repeat those words or not. Honestly, it’s anyone’s guess. Bill’s will and Ford’s are so inextricable at this point that Ford often does things without needing to be told. Of course, they’re not entirely on the same wavelength, or else punishment wouldn’t be required in the first place.

“Eh, remind me to snap him out of it in another half an hour,” Bill says, settling himself on the throne. With a wave of an arm he summons a martini glass. “I’m gonna have myself a drink.”

“Sure thing, boss.” He summons a glass for her too, and hipshot, she accepts. “Hey, you think we should’ve put the fire out before we left?”

They both share a hearty chuckle over that. “Would be a shame if it all burned down!” Bill sighs as the laughter dies down. “Nah, but seriously. California will still be there for us to play with tomorrow. And if it isn’t, we can always just rebuild it! In my image! Ha!”

“Yeah. Technically the fires are my image though.”

“Touché!”

They talk for a while, maybe 20 minutes or so in this fashion, casually sipping time punch and discussing unnatural disasters like they’re music festivals. Ford goes completely untouched and unnoticed, until suddenly Bill returns his attention to the human, and a light bulb goes off next to his hat.

“Wait. Do you wanna see something hysterical? I have the best idea.”

Every sensation returns to Ford at once in a flood of color, touch and sound. Sometimes, when Bill is feeling merciful, he eases him back into it, but his merciful moods are few and far between. More commonly, he likes to toss the scientist in the deep end and watch him flounder, tears quickly beading at the corners of Ford’s eyes and spilling fatly over his cheeks. His body convulses in a singular, broken sob, and before he can finish another apologetic, “I love you,” Bill hits him with a hard command.

“Stanford! I need a footstool!” The demon extends his legs and wiggles his feet a little. He whistles as though beckoning a dog. “Come ‘ere!”

Despite his disorientation, Ford rushes to obey, lurching in the direction of Bill’s voice and falling flat on his face. Shakenly, he picks himself off the ground, letting loose a singular groan.

“I’m still waiting!” Bill sings, swinging his legs a little for effect. Pyronica snickers. Ford tries again, following the sound of his muse’s voice, although he is quickly dismayed to find that he’s already reached the end of his chain. He falls just short of Bill’s feet, and no matter how he chokes himself, no matter how hard he tugs at the collar or the chain attached, he can’t go any further than this. His distress is evident in the way he keens.

“What are you doing?” Bill demands, rolling his eye. “All I asked for was a simple footstool and you can’t even do that? Bad! Bad dog!” Ford sobs.

“I-I’m sorry, my muse!” he rasps, the cold metal of the collar pressing in on his windpipe as he strains to obey. “I’m so sorry!”

Pyronica is practically in stitches at this point, and Bill is a showman, a class clown ever chasing the next laugh. “Are you really though?” His eye wanes to an amused crescent. “Do you even love me, if you can’t even follow a command as simple as this?”

“Yes!” Ford insists with a cry. “Yes, my muse, I love you! I’m sorry that I’m so useless… Please, please forgive me…”

“Why should I? Do you think you deserve forgiveness?”

“N- No,” Ford sniffs, “but—”

“Alright, alright. Since I’m in such a good mood, I’ll give you a hand.” Bill waves his hand in a circle and the chain elongates, allowing just enough slack for Ford to crawl under his waiting feet. Bill settles them heavily on top of Ford’s back and sighs. “Ahh, that’s better.” The man shakes under the weight.

“Thank you, my muse,” he says. Normally, he would be a lot happier about serving Bill like this, but he’s clearly still torn up over his recent punishment and failures. “Thank you so much.”

“Don’t mention it, kid!” Bill rests his hands behind his ‘head,’ or rather, the tip of his topmost vertex. “Maybe after this, if you’re good, you can have a treat.”

“R- Really? Oh, thank you so much, my muse. I promise I’ll be good.” His voice is still wavery from the earlier-shed tears, but his cheer seems to be returning. It’s not difficult to keep the man happy when he’s so thoroughly and hopelessly smitten with his muse. Bill could have Pyronica drop-kick Ford off the top of the Fearamid right now and when he reached the bottom he would find a way to smile and thank Bill, no matter how many broken pieces he was in.

“Yeah. Now shut up while I get some reading in. Hasn’t anyone ever told you footstools don’t talk? Sheesh.” With a sigh, Bill summons an extradimensional magazine and floats it in front of his eye, every so often flipping through the pages. Pyronica says she’s off to see what Teeth and Keyhole are up to, and Bill acknowledges her departure with a little grunt and wave. Ford stifles a whimper. His back has already been giving him issues lately, and this definitely isn’t helping matters, but he soldiers through it for his muse. He’s determined not to mess up again. He’s determined to be a good footstool.

A/N: This is my first time writing from Bill’s perspective! I don’t usually write him this cruel, so it was a fun change of pace to lean full force into that side of him. Thanks again, jellyskink, I hope you liked this little installment!

[hils79]

Hils Watches Tibetan Sea Flower - Ep 1

Yeah, sorry to The Spirealm but I've been very upfront about my intention to drop everything as soon as Tibetan Sea Flower came out.

I wasn't expecting it to drop overnight while I was asleep with zero warning but here we are. The DMBJ fandom is the embodiment of chaos and that extends to the way they release things too.

Also apologies to Choi San. I was going to gif you today but, well, see the above.

Apparently the official English title for this is Adventures Behind the Bronze Door but we've all been calling it Tibetan Sea Flower forever and that's also the title of the novella so I'm using that for my liveblogs. I'll use both titles in the tags.

Right, I've rambled enough. I'm going in.

Oh, god, I'm not ready.

Okay, first of all OMG LOOK AT HIS CUTE LITTLE FACE! But, also, I love that this flashback has him still looking older than he does in the retirement era movies

I mean he is not a skilled tomb raider, this is true. That doesn't stop him from trying though

Wait, that's the baby triangle! Are you telling me a 27 year old and a 44 year old are playing a character at the same age? I know I shouldn't expect logic from DMBJ but come on

Wait, is this a completely different actor? At first I thought they'd just used special effects to make Zhang Luyi look younger but I don't think that's actually him at all

Aww it's nice to see Wang Bowen back too. I do enjoy his Pangzi

Okay, but why is Young Pangzi being played by the same person who played retirement age Pangzi in the movies. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE!

I don't know who this is because the drama doesn't even had a MDL page yet but I like him. He's a good baby Wu Xie. Look at his little face when Pangzi says they need to go and see if Xiaoge is still alive or not

There's our special boy!

Starting with the whump early. Love to see it.

Only 20 mins into the first episode and Pangzi is crying because he thinks he found Xiaoge's body. I'm fine. This is fine.

FFS I know he's not dead and this is still devastating

Take a drink! It's the standard DMBJ hallucination!

Oh, not even that! It was all a dream!

Bleeding himself to lower his heart rate enough to fake being dead is definitely a very Xiaoge thing to do

I guess that's one way of describing what happened

Is he...using his architecture skills to map out the Zhang ancestral home that he went to? IS HE DOING ACTUAL ARCHITECTURE?

And wipe out an entire family so it was safe for Xiaoge when he got out, but we don't need to mention that small detail

I do like that this one shot shows you how obsessed and unhinged Wu Xie was during the time Xiaoge was gone

AH HAH! Now he's Zhang Luyi!

SURPRISE JI XIAOBING XIAO HUA????

A NEW XIUXIU??? Everything happens so much!

Baby, do you know what franchise you're in?

So weird seeing Xiaoge without his hood

Well, that was a lot. And I still have another 2 episodes to watch. Good thing it's a bank holiday here today

[alienoresimagines]

In honor of reaching 1000 fics on the Clegan AO3 tag, here's a list of all the answers I got for "What tropes/hc would you like to see more of in Clegan fics?" 😊

1,000 fics is huuuge, and they're all so amazing so congrats to us 🥰 I'm proud to have contributed for 9 fics and hopefully many more in the future ❤️ But, as it is a huge number, it can be a bit daunting to write something that has never been written before, or that doesn't seem as popular. Is this story worth being written? Will people read it? The answer to these two questions is YES, ABSOLUTELY 🥹❤️ There will always be people to read the fics you write, even if it's a trope/storyline you haven't seen before 🥹 Write that story! Create that AU! Launch a new rarepair! 💕

Things you'd like to see more of in Clegan fics :

Ideas and HCs :

Fics set in Flight School

More friendships between the Buckies and the other guys (i.e. Gale and Rosie)

Competent!Gale

Romantic clichés

(Pathetic) Love triangles

Gale Whump

Gale's guilt at leaving John behind during the march and John comforting him

Gale breaking down/John taking care of him

Exploration of the Buckies navigating the return to civilian life with unhealthy coping mechanisms and PTSD, but slowly healing together and realizing that as long as they have the other, everything is worth it

Post-war fluff

The Buckies adopting/taking care of a child post-war

Smut where one of them is inexperienced and the other guides/teaches him

Mentions of bodyhair during smut, especially for Gale

AUs :

College AU

Coffeeshop AU

Tropes :

Enemies to Lovers Trope

Only One Bed Trope

Mutual pining

I hope it can inspire some writers to write the stories they've always thought about but have never written because they thought nobody would be interested, or merely inspire someone looking for an idea 🥰

My askbox is always open if you want to send more of these, I'll update the list asap ❤️ Check the reblogs for edit!

What are some tropes/hc you'd like to see more of in Clegan fics?

[nivasichakano]

✶ BG3 Fic Roundup ✶

Here's a rundown of my BG3 stories on AO3:

Driven: My latest completed (🥹) Bloodweave modern AU where Gale and Astarion are rival Formula 1 drivers who get paired up on the same team.

Read if you like: bloodweave :), angst, enemies to friends, enemies to friends to lovers, slow burn, Formula 1

Hustle: A completed Bloodweave fic set in a modern magic AU, where Gale and Astarion are rival YouTubers and (unbeknownst to Astarion) also internet besties on the subreddit r/galehaters.

Read if you like: bloodweave :), internet troll Astarion, cringegale, professor Gale, slow burn, enemies to friends to lovers, humor, eventual smut, eventual fluff

What Friends Are For: A completed Bloodweave fic that sees a post-game Gale going through a difficult divorce and an Astarion who's reluctantly agreed to keep an eye on him.

Read if you like: bloodweave :) , ADHDAstarion, sweet Gale but also a bit naughty Gale, humor, light smut, angst, hurt/comfort, eventual fluff

Hiraeth: A completed isekai long fic about Kish, a BG3 player who gets sucked into the events of the game. As she meets all the characters she knows so well, she finds herself in the middle of a complicated triangle involving a wizard and a vampire — and learns that this might not be the first time she's been in Baldur's Gate.

Read if you like: soft Astarion, traditional fantasy, romance, angst, fluff, humor, bittersweet endings

Bring Me To Heal: A completed medium-length fic that follows Fiain, a widow of the Battle of Baldur's Gate, and the irritating vampire who keeps seducing his clients in her tavern.

Read if you like: little shit Astarion, humor, hurt/comfort, angst, a bit of whump and trauma, fluff, tooth-rottingly happy endings

[pigeonwhumps]

Courtroom

MD-264N masterlist

So um. You may notice this is not my Whumptober story. This is bc my brain decided it would only write this today. But enjoy anyway! At least I'm writing more than a sentence or two again!

Taglist: @wolfeyedwitch @den-of-evil @dustypinetree @cardboardarsonist @skittles-the-whumpee

@whatwhumpcomments @whump-tr0pes @snakebites-and-ink @painful-pooch @i-eat-worlds

@a-funeral-romance @rainydaywhump

An AU of MD-264N based on this prompt by @lumpywhump. Morgan goes on trial.

1.4k

CWs: living weapon whumpee, minor whump (discussed), past minor whump, meltdown, unintentional attempted self-harm (head banging), guns, gunshots

"I do solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

Asha glances across at Morgan worriedly. This is the make-or-break evidence of the trial, she's sure of it, she hasn't seen what Blue has to present but she's seen the medical aftermath of it, and she's seen Blue's reaction (she knows exactly when he cracked the files because that's when he brought her the widened cutlery for them, visibly seething). The problem is that Morgan hasn't visibly reacted to anything so far today, and Asha doesn't think that'll help in the eyes of the judges.

Also, against all medical advice, Morgan is standing for the trial. It's standard. They shouldn't be, not on that ankle, not if they don't want to make the permanent damage worse. They didn't even walk here, but apparently weapons don't get seating if they're being reprimanded, so they won't sit now.

But it's been hours, and Asha is really worried about that ankle.

Blue clears his throat and Asha snaps her attention back to him.

"As you all know, Morgan has been with the Regime's Ministry of Defence since they were eight. Within their file was video and written evidence dating back to then. Your Honours, you have the written reports in your evidence packs, but there's videos that I am going to show you chronologically." He clicks a remote control and the screen changes to the hallway of a normal-seeming family home, books and toys scattered around. The 'play' triangle is superimposed over it. "Morgan's parents were well-documented protesters, though by the time they were eight they'd both stepped back from the movement to raise their child. Morgan had several disabilities and powers, both of which put them in danger. They were known as Lili then, and this video, of their... I suppose you could say recruitment, if you want to follow the government's euphemisms, is the last evidence we have of them having a name rather than a serial number until Rhian Williams named them Morgan upon their arrival here. If I may play the video, Your Honour?"

The head judge nods, and the video starts.

There's a high-pitched giggle off-screen, and then a kid charges into view, holding a battered notebook with sticky bookmarks sticking out of the side.

Asha's breath hitches. This must be Morgan. They don't look eight. They're so small.

"Hey!"

Morgan – Lili? – giggles again. A woman runs in, grabbing Morgan around the middle and lifting them into the air. Their long brown hair flies around them, mixing with her light hair.

"Got you! Now give me my notes back!"

There's a movement in the courtroom and Asha glances over. Morgan's dropped to the floor. At first Asha thinks it's just their ankle, but then they get up, clawing at the thin wooden rail attached to the plexiglass sides. Their eyes are fixed on the screen, and at first they look no more emotional than before, but tears stream down their cheeks, and their hands tremble.

"No!"

The woman smiles and snatches the notebook. "Too late. Let's see what you've given me."

As the woman flips through the pages, Asha notices the subtitles for the first time and her breath catches in her throat. She was focused so much on Morgan she didn't notice the language switch – she's not sure how that happened. But Welsh. Morgan's Welsh. A different part of Wales to herself, it sounds like more of a borders accent to Asha's north Wales, but they're Welsh. Can they still speak it? Would it help them if she did? Make them feel less alone?

The woman's eyes widen. "Baby, you–"

A door latch clicks off-screen. "Honey, I'm home!"

Morgan grins and scrambles off the woman, running for the edge of the screen. "Tad!"

Their dad enters the video, catching Morgan around the waist and spinning them in a circle. "Hey little monster. How was your day?"

"I decorated mam's notebook! And I've been practicing my writing!"

"Here, have a look," says Morgan's mam, passing the notebook over with a smile. Their dad's grin widens.

"You wrote your name? And a whole sentence?"

Morgan nods enthusiastically.

"She did indeed. She also coloured in my notes at the same time, but I'm sure my professor won't mind too much."

Morgan's dad ruffles their hair. "Well, I think this calls for celebratory pancakes. Why don't you go and pick out the mould?"

Morgan nods and charges off-screen. Morgan's dad wilts and he runs a hand through his hair. Their mam kisses him.

"Hard day at work?"

"No kidding. I got the number for that specialist, but we don't have long. If anyone catches wind of Lili..."

"We don't have long. But let's leave today for celebrating Lili. 50p she chooses the Archimedes mould?"

"I'd be a fool to take that bet." He puts an arm around her shoulders and they wander off-screen. There's nothing for a minute, just a blank hallway with no sound. Whatever camera bug this is by the former regime, it's good quality.

"Hey baby, what'd you choose?"

"Archimedes!"

"Your favourite. Come and help me with–"

There's a fast, loud banging on a door. "Ministry of Defence! Open up!"

Someone curses. Morgan yelps.

"Lili, I will always love you. Now run. Just like we practiced."

"Mam? Tad? What's–"

"Go! We'll catch you up."

A running child's footsteps. Morgan's dad strides into the hallway and takes down a framed painting, unlocking the safe beneath it and passing a gun to their mum.

She cocks it. Was it already loaded in there? Who were Morgan's parents?

"I love you."

"And I you."

The door crashes in. The sound of gunshots fills the room, and not just from Morgan's parents. They–

"No!"

The scream is strangled and wet. Asha glances around to see Morgan on their knees, their head in their hands, rocking. They look devastated.

The video doesn't end there, as Morgan's dragged on-screen, kicking and screaming, smacked around the head until she stops, and all of this over her parents' bodies, splayed out on the wood, blood pooling around them.

There's a makeshift height chart just visible in the last shot, the pencil marks on the wallpaper sprayed with blood.

This video ends here, with Morgan's removal, but it's not the only one. Asha doesn't know how Blue can stand there and present these so calmly. There's one very soon after, with Morgan's head newly-shaved, a shock harness and mittens freshly fitted, and they look so cold. They're in shock, they're an orphan, but they're not allowed to grieve, the attitudes of the handlers makes that clear. They don't understand but nobody's giving them a chance to do so.

And so it continues. And so Morgan grows up. Never spoken of as a person, never given an inch, locked into the tiniest room, shocked until they stop moving, stop speaking. Stop resisting. Trained, punished. Taught to kill, punished when they resist, hesitate, react violently to the harsh sounds and movements and actions. Hurt until they stop hesitating, forget that they can, perhaps forget that they were ever anything but a weapon, forged in the fires of pain and desperation, purged of everything they don't actively need in an effort to survive.

But the nightmares never stop. They still haven't, Asha knows. She just didn't have the context until now.

Meanwhile, present-day Morgan is getting worse with every piece of evidence. Scrambling back when certain people come on screen, and freezing, and pleading with the videos when they think they're going to be punished. Their face is blotchy with silent tears, and they keen, rocking back and forth in distress from the latest video (active mission testing).

And then they start trying to bash their head against the plexiglass, and one of their guards has to restrain them. Asha should be there, she's their doctor, but she tries to stand and someone official shakes their head at her. It's not fair, she knows she's part of the trial, but she– she–

"They've survived worse, they'll be okay," whispers Rhian hoarsely. Asha nods, unable to speak. She should still be there.

She aches to go to them. She knew it was bad – only a fool would see a young person wearing an electroshock harness and think it wasn't – but she didn't realise it was this bad.

But she can't. She's not allowed, she can't risk the trial, they won't let her. All she can do is sit here and watch uselessly as Morgan's heart is ripped wide open, all over the very public courtroom floor.