#working here did kinda rock but like what the fuck is up with the cosmos on my last two days like damn

[famouslysleepy]

this is such bullshit my glasses decide to disappear into thin air right as my uber drives up to pick me up

and now i’m gonna work my final day WITHOUT my glasses god damn of all days like come the fuck on man

[inconmess]

As a result of a conversation with @gyorklady, here's another tiny Candela snippet.

Cosmo walked into the Glass Cat, taking in the crowd of the place before letting out a sigh of relief. Today seemed like a slow day, which meant he could catch up with Madam Glask today.

"Evening, Mr. Grimm. I would assume you would like to meet up with the Madam today?"

"Ah... Good evening to you too, Mr. Trills. I see you are back from wherever you were called off to. I hope that it was an eventful visit?"

"As eventful as it could be, Cosmo. As eventful as it could be. Should I inform her about your arrival?"

"Ah, she knows about my arrival. She will be by to meet me soon. But, if you don't mind, Mr. Trills. I would love to have a chat with you."

"Oh, alright. By the way, what happened to Oscar? Haven't seen him around in a while. Got into the slammer again?"

"No, no. Oscar's fine. Just running a few errands for me out of town, you see. I am not able enough to travel anymore and my grandson helps me way more than he should." Cosmo smiled, his eyes crinkling at it.

"But I do want to ask you a question. How is Grimoria doing? You know, the ward of the Foggs? I have been meaning to check upon her but it has been a little rough the past few days."

Malcolm immediately straightened at that question, eyes narrowing in suspicion. Grimoria had been included in their circle barely a couple of weeks ago and while she was way too young to be an operative in the field, the Lightkeeper insisted, for some reason. No one knows about her so how did he know?

"How do you know her?"

"I run an antiques shop, Mr. Trills. Of course I know of the Foggs and her ward. How is she doing?"

Before he could give a reply though the door opened and Madam Glask entered the room, giving a slight nod to Malcolm.

"Good day to you, Mr. Grimm, I will be taking my leave now."

"Meet again, Mr. Trills. Take care of her. She is a good one."

<Later at Leo's place>

"You seem tense, Malcolm, is something wrong?" Edgar asked as he leaned forward slightly.

"Leo, who the fuck is Cosmo and how the fuck does he know Mori is with us?"

"Cosmo who?"

"Cosmo Grimm. He frequents the Glass Cat frequently and talks with Madam Glask. You know, the one in the wheelchair, runs the Antiquarian?"

"You met Cosmo Grimm?" Leo blinked twice, astonishment colouring his voice.

"Yeah, I mean, I suppose the lady and he are friends."

"He and his grandson are fucking shrouded in gossip that I am surprised that you haven't heard of any of them yet?! Have you been living under a rock?" Leo flays his hands around as he flops back onto a chair.

"Technically I was out in war and all I know about Oscar is that he also works with the security and has visited the slammer more than humanly possible. Still doesn't answer my question of how does he know that Grimoria is known to us. She started working with us barely a couple of weeks ago!"

"The old man is a part of Candela, duh." Malcolm blinks.

"He's... a lightkeeper, right?"

"Nope, still goes out on the field. Rumours are that he refuses to take up a spot of a lightkeeper despite Candela insisting on it."

"He's on a freaking wheelchair?"

"He's a stubborn one, I give you that." Edgar says quietly as he took a sip of his tea. "Man is a legend in Candela. I am surprised you haven't heard the stories yet."

"Him being a legend at Candela still doesn't give me answers about how he knows Grimoria." Malcolm groaned in frustration.

"He knows me because he was the one who kinda introduced me to Candela. Kind of. More like he gave me refuge and Candela dug me out during one of the visits to the Foggs. Sorry about the delay, by the way, had to make another sales today."

[alldayangst]

gold rush (Tom Holland)

All of my fics are LGBT and PoC friendly. Inspired by gold rush by Taylor Swift. Everybody wants Tom, but you don’t like a gold rush. WC: 2.7K words. 

“Y/N, I just wanted to say again, thank you for coming in today and doing this for us.” Tom’s dad, Dominic, said as he displaced papers across desks, earl grey swaying like an angry lake in his mug. Approaching footsteps hinted that the star of the show was soon to be hold. In other words, Tom was running behind.

The door creaked and light from the corridor crept through like Sun peeping through curtains of the Night. It refusing to shut after Tom budged and pushed was maybe divine punishment for him being so late, and maybe provided the bit of laughter you needed after rolling out of bed at 6am for this, for him. When the door eventually did close, Tom turned around and saw you in all your glory; much taller than he remembered, more assured than he’d imagined, and more gorgeous than drowned out and half forgotten memories of you could ever fabricate.

You and Tom ran in the same social circles, but hadn’t seen each other since Tom’s career imploded when you were both nineteen. As much as Tom felt he owed his heart and soul to the UK, he maintained an almost permanent fixture on the States. It started to feel like his trips back to England were in fact actual holiday. At one point, you were in love with Tom, but meeting became a constant battle of ‘here, not there’ and your heart grew tired of the duck and goose chase. The gravity of the situation was too much for you, whom hadn’t even tasted their twenties yet. 

“Y/N!” Tom launched at you and held you in tight embrace. You let go of the hug, but he didn’t. And his dad watched on in momentary awe as you wrapped your arms around Tom once again, who breathed in every part of you with unwavering adoration.

“Tom!” You rubbed along his back as he hummed. “When I was told we were gonna have a ghost writer, I had no idea it was gonna be you.”

Tom and his dad (being an author) were collaborating on a book, a million dollar idea that’d been years in the making. Tom had stalled it, his dad told you out of simple insecurity. Now that the world was a stage, he was worried people would criticise his dyslexia with every line he wrote, that every stroke of his pen would reveal him as a rare type of monster that lacked intellect, he pondered that he wasn’t insightful enough in some way. His dad may have written a book about Tom outfaming him, but Tom felt like he’d always live in Dom’s shadow in this respect. Fresh from Oxford with an English Bachelor’s degree, Dom employed you to get grease on the gears to commence writing. Tom had always come out of his shell when you were around.

Your writing session lasted from 8 til noon, when Tom had promo with LadBible or Entertainment Weekly or whoever had bid the highest from his presence that day.

The door swung open and three men in all black and mics saddled around their waists called for and led Tom out of the room.

“Tom, session’s over. We need to get you to your BBC promo in 30 and we’re already running behind schedule.’ One cloaked Tom in a jacket you were sure was more expensive than your own home and another whispered something into a walkie talkie: “Holland is on the move. Check the back entrance is clear.” With that, Tom rose to his feet and left completely opposite of the way you came in. Without a word, no goodbye.

You and Dom left the building together around ten minutes later, where ten men with large cameras stood, lenses focused on you, glaring at you, not sure what to make of you. One of the men screams “Hey! You dating Tom Holland” and after that all you hear is clicks and all you see is bright flashing lights and Dom clenches your hand and leads you to your taxi cab.

The next time you see Tom is sooner than expected. The Hollands were hosting a last minute dinner party and you found yourself sitting opposite Tom, feeling his hard, hot and heavy gaze on you. The tension in the room was so thick not even a chainsaw cut through.

“Next topic,” You picked up a card from the deck and read it aloud. “Politics!” You said devilishly as you sip on what was left of the white wine in your cup, and now that your thought process is blurred; Tom’s longing gaze puts you at dismay.

“Fuck!” Harry exploded, and you hear their mother hiss. “Fuck I hate politics, there’s no making it out alive!” he remarked as he drummed on the table cloth, drunken excitement brewing a new energy in the room.

You go on like this for hours until dinner party is dinner party no more. And while Dom, Nikki and all of Tom’s siblings have chosen to exit stage left, it’s 1am and you and Tom have yet to leave the scene.

Tom sets down your deck of debate cards in favour of a genuine moment.

“What are you doing these days, Y/N?” Tom’s not looking at you, he’s looking at your knee as he rubs circles on it. You want to look down there too, see what he finds so intriguing; but you decide against it in fear you might spontaneously combust. You don’t know if this moment’s supposed to be intimate or innocent and you’re not sure if you want to find out.

So you put up a wall.

“I should be asking you the same thing, Holland.” You say sarcastically. “What have you been doing these days? I haven’t seen you around.” Your eyebrows scrunched up together but you’ve got a big, idiot grin on your face that’s more than telling. Tom giggles at your facetiousness.

Tom scratches his head in mock thought. He never clocks out, always putting on a show. “I don’t know - uh.” You’re laughing before Tom has even told the punchline, ‘cause I guess anything’s funny when it’s said by the one you love.”I’m kind of -” He snatches an old Spiderman comic off the floor. “I’m kinda doing this acting thing at the moment. Playing, y’know, this guy.”

“Well I wish you better luck in the future.” Tom has stopped rubbing circles but instead places his two hands on your knees as you rock back in laughter.

“I’m serious, Y/N. What do you do now?”

“Um.” You suddenly forgot your entire career as Tom, with no shade of subtlety, stares right into your soul. “I got my degree. I write like little stories, y’know? Have you ever heard of folklore?”

Tom shook his head.

“They’re like these little, old beautiful myths. And I write them for a living. And if I’m lucky, they get published in The Times. If I’m even luckier, I get to work with my old best friend - ” You feel your world stop temporarily as you call Tom your ‘best friend’ and you pause for all of 0.3 seconds to register Tom’s reaction but his face doesn’t flinch. “-Writing a book with him and his dad.” And that makes Tom smile. So he doesn’t have to tell you he missed you, you just know.

‘Undivided appearance’ and ‘undivided attention’ don’t necessarily mean the same thing in Hollywood as they do in real life, and you learn that the hard way in your writing session.

Tom may have been sat right next to you, but he was miles away. He was doing press with Cosmo, who hadn’t stopped tagging him with blue hearts on his Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat stories, causing his phone to go off every two seconds. You looked at the phone and then at him who then got the hint and put it on silent. Then there was a knock on the door. Tom rushed to open it, expecting that Dom had sent down a food delivery to egg you on finishing this chapter. You rehashed his childhood like a million times - in fact, you were part of it - so when it came to writing the parts that hurt, where you took a more supporting role in his life, you needed his help. The fact is, the knock at the door had come from one of Tom’s men (Tom liked to call him Man In Black no. 3) who hadn’t said as much as a ‘hi’ before he made his announcement. “Tom, you’re on the line with Cosmo in 10.” The man stepped back and pulled out his walkie talkie, “Holland knows he’s on the line with Cosmo at 10.” And then continued to pace around the hallway.

Cosmo called as he said they would and you almost felt for. second like tom might enjoy an entertainment magazine’s company more than yours. The interviewer made glaring comments and passive flirts at Tom who just blushed and chuckled and sipped his water like the woman on the phone calling him ‘hot’ was just too much to handle. At one point, she says: “What must it be like to grow up that beautiful, Tom? With your hair falling into place like dominoes.” You’re not expecting it when Tom tilts the phone so you’re in view. “Well I’m with the most beautiful being on Earth right now so..” Tom looks at you as if to ask ‘is this okay?” and you know it’s too late for these kind of questions, because that moment is headline fodder, so you smile not to make him feel bad for opening Pandora’s box. But Tom is merciless and likes to rub salt in the wound. “This is Y/N! Y/N’s helping me write the book with my Dad! We go way back.” He covers his mouth as soon as he says it. “Shit! They’re not supposed to know about the book yet.”

This is the moment, you think, where you believe when they say your first love is the one you never let go.

And you can’t think of anything purer than the love you have for him.

Tom thinks being on land is boring. He likes being strung from chords 30 feet in the air, and drowning in despair through scenes of emotional turmoil. You want to tell him you’re an arrow from Cupid’s bow about to reach him, but you couldn’t recover from the splinters if Tom shut you down. After all, Tom was a gold rush. A treasure that everyone had discovered but nobody owned. How precious is a jewel that anybody could take home with them?

Tom had invited you to a visit to Brighton with him, a city near the coast, for some inspiration on writing his section of the book. 

You accepted. And because you did, you found yourself at the beginning of the end, on Tom’s boat in Brighton. “We don’t have to talk about the book right now.” Tom throws a stack of blue tinted paper on the floor. His dyslexia meant that spelling and reading was so much easier when done on blue pages, and you could only guess that was the reason the body of water around you brought him so much peace. So when you saw that something might compromise your best boy’s happiness, you point it out. To give Tom a little bit of time to exit before things got ugly.

“Tom, I see someone in the bushes.”

“Yeah. It’s a pap.” Tom mumbled nonchalantly. 

“They’re here to get pictures of me,” He turned to face you. “and you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, the fans ship us. Think we’d be a good couple after that Cosmo stunt. We would have been a good couple when we were like, 18.” He laughs.

“Huh, yeah.” You look down.

“The best one around.” And you can’t tell if he’s serious.

You rip off one of his blue sheets. “I’m coming. I got hit with inspo.” And you trail to a different section of the boat. A very obvious click of the camera from a shrub nearby coaxes your pen to write without a second thought, How is he so accustomed to this? Fake private moments, protected by sheer glass curtains?

You scrunched your paper, well his paper, into a ball. 

Your mind had turned his life into folklore. You weren’t sure if that was crossing a line, so you just put the ball into your bag and hide it until he hits you with the spark again.

“Let me see it.” Tom says.

“No.”

“You ran off to write it and won’t let me see it?” 

You held your bag at your hip in defence. “No, Tom. Drop it.” 

Tom’s face drops a little bit, but then he reaches into his own bag and reveals a deck of your debate cards. “I know what will cheer you up, good ol’ Y/N.” He sets a card on the wooden table between you two. 

“Do you believe in a higher power?”

You toyed with the pendant around your neck which revealed your faith. “Do you?”

“I don’t. But I believe in soulmates.”

You look to the left to really ponder on what Tom is saying, and a paparazzis captures another photo of you in the corner of your eye.

“And you don’t think there’s a higher power that manufactures our souls to make our soulmates?”

Tom feigns a scowl. “That’s ridiculous.”

You scoffed. “How very contrarian of you.”

“What the fuck does that mean.”

“It means you contradict yourself, Thomas.” You laugh as he holds his chest in fake hurt.

“Are you implying I’m anything less than perfect?”

“Never.”

Never. Because you didn’t believe that to be true. 

“Good. Cause you’d have to be punished.” Tom picks you up and throws you in the water below before jumping in with you.

On your way home you stop at the yours and Tom’s writing booth, scavenging through your bag to drop off Tom’s notepad, some scrunched up blue and white papers you and Tom thought could still help you write his book. You’d made an addition to your love-hazed scribblings about Tom and reckon you’d die if he found it. You managed to throw the other in the water, excusing yourself with “It’s utterly awful.”, to which you and Tom agreed you wouldn’t throw any more paper in the ocean cause the poor fish already had it hard enough.

You and Tom had a session the next day. Tom was excited for the day, and you could tell because he’d given his phone to one of his big babysitters for the time he had you.

“I think that’s all of yours.” You and Tom made a business out of unscrunching your paper balls to see if they had any useful ideas. You were certain you reached the end of Tom’s. All of his notes had ‘T.H’ written on the back in big and were scribed on blue paper. When it came to your little ‘secret admirer’ notes you weren’t worried - you had an English degree and were quick to think on your feet and was ready to make something up when it came to opening it. 

“No, this one’s mine.” He’s confident, so you let him have it. He goes to pick up your tea and then realises it’s nowhere near warm, and was the one you made for yourself when you crept in yesterday evening. Tom has a smile on his face, and then he doesn’t. Before he goes to read it aloud, his eyes tell you he’s reading it again and again and again. “At dinner parties, I’ll call you out on your contrarian shit, and the coastal towns we wondered round will never see a love as pure as it.”

The look on Tom’s face gives you the splinters. He tries to look at you but you know he can’t. You don’t blame him. You can’t look at him either. “I really thought this was a good friendship.”

You hum and nod your head in agreement, pull your lips into a thin straight line as streaks of tears abandon your eyes. This was worse than Tom rubbing salt in your wounds. He’s rubbing dirt in your painful fucking gashes and you are reminded of why this didn’t work before, why it will never be.

And you wouldn’t dare to dream about him anymore.

Masterlist

Upcoming Works

[es05l2k5sl]

I'll never understand why WB had to redesign the Batcast for the new Bat adventures. Some characters took getting used to. But as for the villains, I'm roasting they asses cus they're ugly. Can't change my mind.

These Oswalds together look like 2 different people bruh. But we're here to talk about new Oswald. This Wimpy x Olive Oyl fusion snoody looking ass bitch. I'd like his outfit if it didn't have that lazy drawned bow tie looking like 2 triangles glued together & those fake ass MJ gloves. Also when tf did he have 10 fingers in dis universe? Also fuck that hair. Rocking a balding Mullet like ponytail before. Now it's just a boring cut down. Got dat snooty ass bitch look on face like his bird shit don't be stinking. I'll rock tf out u. Lookin like a whole ass Looney character or sum mf from the 30s.

Wot da fuck dey got Selena wearing here? Sis looking like a whole ass alien. Kid vs Kat looking ass bish. And her skin white af too? Did sis fall in some damn Joker acid too? Sis whole lower face is white as shit! Dat shit paler than crack. Like sis got the white slapped outta her and she just turned whiter. Das probably what happened. Her ass probably got on my mans Bruce last nerves one night and got da shit backslapped out her ass.

So my dude Matthew got turned a different color pal & got his neck privileges revoked? Lazy af but not the worst revamp.

You kno that meme: "upgrade, upgrade, FUCK GO BACK!"? Dis pre much sums up Jonathan here. My mans jus looks so dirty here. Looking straight outta da trash bin. Like literally dirty. Nasty ass teeth probably got dat hot ass breath blowing thru them bitches. Das a real fear toxin right there. Long ass black as shit dirty ass hair. Tryna copy off my girl from the ring w dat shit. Need to take dat dirty ass wig and mask and Amish hat tf off my dude. It is not rocking you. Dat whole worn out trashy ass outfit ain't working for you either hoe. You need to take yo ass a bath bitch cus your arms looking brown and ashy as a bitch. You can not even THINK about borrowing anything from me w yo dirty creepy stalker lookin ass. If you don't put down that damn stick like yo ass need help walking and shit I oughtta bitch ya ass with the shit fo going around dressed like dis. Take that damn rope off your neck bitch fo I do something Bruce won't do.

Bruh, you can not go up to my face and tell me these niggas are the same person in the same mofucking universe! Jervis What da fuck did they DO TO YOU MY N**GA?? N**ga looking like a damn leprechaun with special needs and shit. Rocking all dat dookie green swag but you got no swag anymore my dude. It's shit like you clothes and yo breath! Yo shits wasn't perfect and white before but them hoes looking hella worse now. What you get drinking all that damn tea my n**ga. Ol Tiny ass n**ga. Like wot. HOW?! HOW TF DID YO ASS SHRINK??? LIKE SOMEBODY TOSSED YOU ASS IN A LAUNDRY DRYER AND PROBABLY FORGOT TO TAKE YO STUPID ASS OUT. PROBABLY WHY YO HAIR WHITE AND SMALL AS SHIT YA UGLY ASS LUCKY CHARMS LOOKING ASS CRACK FEENY. If you don't hop yo ass back under a rainbow with dem skinny ass broken heel lookin ass tap dancing shoes.

Victor, bruh, they dem did yo ass so dirty in the new adventures. I ain't gonna lie that new suit kinda ok. But you looking like a whole skeleton and shit. Lookin like a young Palpatine & shit. Ol Frisky dingo looking ass! Need to put those goggles back on. The least yo (spoiler) 2003 Baxter Stockman ass can do now.

Yo ass probably looking mad as shit cus ya can't jack it no more n**ga. Dats all gon now. Long with yo unloyal ass wife. How tf she gon bounce on you after everything you did for her? After all the years and bull you had to put up with & she leave yo cold ass for another nibba? Fuck DCAU Nora. Just fuck her.

Scarface lookin like a damn Fanboy & Chum Chum character & his boy over here lookin like Chode. Next.

UUUUUUUUUUGGGHHHHHGG.

Just. UAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHH. Bruh I will never understand who tf thought this shit was a good idea?! Like who the fuck, was drawing dis nigga. Drew DIS Sus af shit. LOOKED at dis shit. And said to deyself: "Yeah dats da Riddler aight". HELL TO THE NAH DAT AIN'T NO DAMN DAS A (dick) FIDDLER! HE LOOKIN SUS AS FUCK NOW WITH THEM TIGHT AS GREEN SPANDEX AND THAT DARK AS HELL EYELINER. Looking like gay Christmas elf! Looking like a gay ass ballay dancer with them Spider Gwen ballerina shoes. You can't dance for shit nigga! Yo shit is SOOO DAMN TIGHT like I can get a good sight and shape picture of yo "Question mark" I'm telling y'all. sSSSUUUSSSSSSS. Looking like a bigasss lima bean. Skinny ass Jack skeleton moFucka. Like. They did my boy Eddy so freakin dirty with this. My mans had class, style, a nice look, HAIR. Now he. Whateverthelivingfuckdisbaldasspeterpanlookinmofuckasupposestobe. And i hate how that's how he did be lookin in almost every new Batverse when why tho? Nigg(m)a look stupid as hell. How tf he expect to be tooken seriously dressed and lookin like dis ? If I saw dis fucker in real life and he threatens me, imma laugh at his ass and beat him with his cane. Get ya Richard from Allen Gregory looking ass away from me. I can't!

Bruh it don't look that much but they did my mans Harvey dirty too. LOOK AT MY MANS FACE. good half i mean. Yall nigs kno. THESE MUHFUCKERS STRIPPED HIM OF HIS PRETTYNESS! Man. Dis version of Harvey was a pretty muhfucka. You can't deny dat shit

Even when he became Two-Face he still got dat 1 side of pretty.  And that deep af panty soaking voice to go along w it. He dat half and half package. 

Now HE LOOK LIKE DIS

WHOEVER TF DID DIS NEED DEY ASS WHOOPED! SQUARE TF UP NOW. NIGGA LOOKS LIKE EYEBROWLESS VERSION OF DOC FROM SECRET SATURDAYS. FAT ASS BLOCK NOSE MUH FUCKA.  His eye looks like traingle with a Nike logo on top of it. Lookin like a poorly drawn Dwayne The Rock Johnson. And ya other half ain't lookin that good either. Dat 1 eyebrow putting Helga Pataki to shame! I mean the shit didn't look good before but it was somewhat tamed, now the shit looking like full grownass caterpillar. And that lip black as hell. Kno that side dirty as fuuhck!

I don't even know what tf I'm sposed to say about DIS except (kinky..)

Angelica pickles looking ass. Bigass blonde captain coconut looking ass hairstyle. Looking like a blonde creepy ass Wednesday Adams. Dem black as fuck Kim possible lips. She actually looking like a family guy character with that bigass head and small body. I SWEAR she ded looking like one of Stewie's ex's right now my dude! Got  tiny ass flat ass guitar chip shoes. Looks like sis wearing fucking Zippers as shoes. Sis got that "i got something planned fo yo ass" smile. Sis look like she plotting something or did some evil shit already.

. . .

Bros I'm sorry but I'm just as confused as you like. I can't find a single thing different about Harley. Like literally nothing. Her makeup at night be looking blue sometimes, looking like a fakeass Livewire, but nah. They didn't even touch homegirl. Why tf is Harley the only character that stayed the same?????! Niggas was playing favorites. They had plans for that ass since day one. They was probs like: "Aye y'all. DO NOT TOUCH HARLEY. SHE STAYS THE SAME!" "why?" "JUST LISTEN TO ME BITCH!" "Wha bout her mans?" "Oh hell yeah fuck his shit up!" ...sigh.. Yep. It's that time...

UaaaaaaAAAAAAAHHH what else is dere to be said about dis ugly ass nigga? Dis nigga look like Yakko Warner & Freakazoid's love child! Dis nigga look like a random Tiny toons or Animaniac character! With that dookie green shirt and flower. You and Riddler's gay ass both matching them Dexter's laboratory Gloves. Why tf yo eyes eyes black as fuck tho?! How tf does one do that to theyself?! Yo ass probably snorted some shit and ya shits expanded and that's prolly yo pupils with ya cracked out ass. Nigga don't even look like a clown no more. Hell Jared Leto Joker atleast had the lipstick down. Dis nigga got dem ashy ass lips hanging out. Nigga think he owning too. Nigga you don't own shit! Broke as hell now. And yo design broke too. Joker? Man more like Broker. Got dat fairly odd parents hair. Got that Cosmo and Wanda in one. Like bitch if you don't. Just like Riddler i can not take yo animaniac looking ass serious. You do not scare me bitch! Bye!

Now see dis? DIS is Aight! A lot more fitting and & faithful to the character. No over the fucking top redesign, you can actually tell it's the same damn character as before, a little bit of swag for personality

So that's the tea. Ivy & Croc are the only good rogue redesigns in the whole series, evBody else ugly as shit.

[pokeverse-amethyst]

Sooooo… this is gonna be a long one, strap in. What follows is a metric ton of HCs about every single evil team and how they have worked themselves into every aspect of daily life, as to make them way more difficult to get rid off than just with a couple of arrests. Timeline wonkiness when trying to explain what likely happened first is to be expected, I’m playing fast and loose with all of this stuff. I might be way off topic in some regards but HECK HERE GOES. ~~~

TEAM ROCKET: This is pretty much of a no-brainer. What we have here is a classical mafia structure, and you just need to look at countries with extensive mafia presence to know that they are baked into every single fucking thing. Giovanni has worked years upon years to cement himself straight into Kanto and Johto, consequently making it impossible for any of the other teams to even THINK about gaining a foothold there. No further explanations necessary. ~~~ TEAM AQUA / TEAM MAGMA: This one is a bit of a more difficult one. But then again, let’s presume that most of the teams recruit a mixture of people who fully believe in the team’s message, who misunderstand the team’s message, and who see themselves in the team, but not necessarily in the message (so just looking for somewhere to belong and to gain some kind of direction). Oh, and monetary gain. Can’t forget that. So in the case of both Aqua and Magma? I like to believe it started out with Maxie and Archie working together on a plan to give nature back to Pokémon. Like, with trying to get more protected zones established, kinda like Fiore has them? But they were hitting resistance too often. Now I’m not saying that they were on the wrong track from the start or developed into what is basically eco-terrorists, but… they probably saw way too much bad shit happening to Pokémon around them. Maybe they heard what Team Rocket was doing to Pokémon in Johto and Kanto. Maybe they heard rumors about what Cyrus nearly accomplished, what Lysandre almost triggered, what Ghetsis managed to fuck up with his whole power play madness (TWICE, too!), what the Aether foundation might have had triggered if not for the intervention of a Legendary, what Rose made possible in the GALAR REGION of all places… Suffice to say, they probably felt like they needed to seriously up their game… to make sure that the other teams didn’t fuck up the world beyond repair before THEY could make the world a better place. The only thing that finally broke Archie and Maxie up though, was an inability to settle on what would be better. More landmass, more sea? What would be the gentler way of resetting humanity? Suffice to say, their vision might have attracted way too many who nudged them along. So TLDR: Archie and Maxie mostly reacted to what the other Team Bosses were doing and were helped along by Grunts/Admins that were way too into the whole “we will be the only humans deserving this new, shiny world”. They were numerous enough and determined enough to turn into a slightly terroristic group, but until the ultimate use of Kyogre/Groudon, they never really registered that much on Interpol’s radar. And when Interpol learned of them stealing a whole ass sub? It was already too late stopping them in their tracks in time. After all, Interpol had all the other regions to monitor as well… ~~~ TEAM GALACTIC: So. Charon doesn’t need much of a head canon fuckery. He just did it for the money, that much he stated openly. And Jupiter, Mars and Saturn? They all admitted openly to being along for the ride because they believed in Cyrus and the world being fucked up beyond repair, thus needing a good ol’ divine intervention from the whole-ass creation trio. But I don’t think any single one of them fully understood what Cyrus’s goal was. The commanders (that are not Charon) squarely fall into the category of “misunderstanding the ultimate purpose of the team”, as do all the Grunts. And as mentioned above with Team Aqua and Magma, Galactic probably saw some of the stuff that was happening around them and ultimately decided (and this is mostly for the Grunts and the Commanders) that Cyrus probably wasn’t so far off with the human spirit being incomplete. But they made one crucial mistake (pretty much the whole team, even Charon). They thought that Cyrus’s assertion over the incomplete nature of the human spirit was a reason for the man to believe in a world that should be made whole, not in wiping the whole fucking slate clean and going Tabula Rasa on the whole of creation. Much to the annoyance of everyone involved (and with that I mean the Creation Trio and the big boss of them), he actually went far enough to step on everything just to gain the power to control the legendaries. Also, time to unearth an already yoinked HC of mine that Giratina mostly retreated into the Distortion World to get some good alone time in, only to be disrupted by Cyrus bursting in. On that point also: time not really working all that clearly in the Distortion World. Kinda like Narnia rules, in as there is no fixed constant for time moving forward in either one or the other extreme. Sometimes, time will move forward extremely fast, other times, you spend years and years in the Distortion World and only a few seconds passed. After all, everything gets a bit… wobbly in there. But around the time Cyrus entered, Distortion World time became… more orderly. And that was what prompted Giratina to go VERY UNAMUSED ON HIS ASS. Think of it as time being influenced by what is thrown into the Distortion World. BACK to the Team, though. Galactic honest to Arceus believed that what they were doing would give the world a much needed boost… and were unpleasantly surprised when they were later on all shown that Cyrus wanted to go destruction and rebirth on the world. But that is not to say everyone was unhappy about this revelation. ~~~ TEAM PLASMA & NEO PLASMA: What easier time to convince disparate beliefs than with the apparent reason that they were just helping Pokémon that would have been unhappy in the care of their trainers? Wether the Grunts believed that the Pokémon should then consequently be released back into the wild or that they THEMSELVES deserved the Pokémon way more than others? What easier way to convince them of Plasma’s ideals? And there was no real discussion amongst the Grunts over this dichotomy. Sure, a few were disputing the one or the other stance, but most were still agreeing that the trainers they took the Pokémon from did NOT deserve them. No matter how pure their reasoning was. No matter how reality really looked like. Sure, they were removing Pokémon from some really nasty trainers? But on the greater scale of things, they mostly took Pokémon from trainers who they loved being with. And Ghetsis had his thumb on this a lot. See, Ghetsis didn’t want N to sway too much, before he finally met the protagonist. So Ghetsis made sure that only obviously abused Pokémon removed from trainers were brought to N. …why, no, this doesn’t mean at all that they were usually just from the outside. Ya think Ghetsis only had his main team? Dream on. ~~~ TEAM FLARE: What is there to say about Team Flare? They are basically a mix of the worst of the self-viewed elite of the region. There is entitlement to being viewed as the best of the best (and you can’t tell ‘em otherwise), there is doomsday fans who would do the whole shit with bunkering down and then fighting in an apocalyptic wasteland and fancying themselves new leaders in that changed world, there’s the ones who just think they will be able to surpass even Lysandre… What about the Admins of Flare? They half share Lysandre’s views of beauty. But mostly, they are in too deep to quit, and also half about relishing the fact that they get to work on something truly unique and devastating. They want this whole power thing to work out for them because some time in their lives, they might have felt like they were owed power and didn’t receive it. They were owed recognition and didn’t receive it. They want to be the new top of Kalos without working TOO hard for it. Without anything laying rocks in their path. Without any obstacles telling them that, no. They fucked up. ~~~ AETHER FOUNDATION: The moment Lusamine found out about the Ultra Dimension, she ostensibly was lost to her goal of getting her hands on the power to change the face of the world. And to preserve beauty. In many ways, her goal was similar to Lysandre… to a degree. The Aether Foundation is half staffed by people who truly believe that conservation work is the most important factor in the Pokémon World, to preserve some of the more endangered species around the world, and half staffed by people who truly believe that the Ultra Dimension holds answers to problems humanity might not even have recognized as such. This latter half was unpleasantly surprised when they started to learn the truth from the Ultra Dimension researchers. Finding out that Necrozma had destroyed the natural light of that world and was now the only source of more light for the city? That was a shock. But that didn’t necessarily mean that the Aether Foundation would have been broken up by that. Because honestly? The part of the conservation enthusiasts who were not deterred by the Ultra Dimension incident made the Foundation bloom beyond what it was possible to become. So in short: this foundation survived its leader far better than many others, and actually managed to get accepted. ~~~ MACRO COSMOS: This is the team that shocked their region with just how far their influence had gone. And that is to say that they existed at all, right under the noses of the region. Rose’s whole deal is a big part why Leon would later be plunged into a crisis of conscience, despite everyone assuring him that he had no way of knowing just how far Rose was willing to go to show the region how wrong it was to not immediately acquiesce to all that he envisioned for the future. The mere fact Rose was UNWILLING to wait what would at most have been half a day for Leon, to celebrate with the others after another big Champion Tournament? That was what sat so ill with many in the region. It wasn’t so much the message that Rose felt everyone had missed (that was actually just his version of events - most of the Macro Cosmos Grunts were attached to him solely for the reason of having privileges that none other had, and when they saw how he was acting, only the most dedicated few could ignore what was going on). So we are dealing with another team that was shocked how far the leader would go, but even more so than the Aether Foundation, the members scattered when Rose enacted the Darkest Day right out of nowhere. There is still worries that remains of Macro Cosmos could be out there, trying to bust Oleana and Rose out of prison and actually finding another way with which to scare Galar into complicity. How well that would even go is a whole different question… because the new champ is even stronger than Leon, and THAT is real fucking bad news for anyone who would want to establish themselves.

[farjadedragon-art]

The Mute Banjo

The warning siren blared in my ear while I hastily put on my gear. The lights above flickered as another impact rocked the ship, zsending me staggering.

My air tank is only half-filled. I’d forgotten to fill it when I left the station, like an idiot. You’d think I’d check that before I go this far away from HQ.

Stumbling down the length of my ship and strapping myself into the chair of the cockpit, I veered to the left managing to steer past an asteroid that was heading straight towards me. That was way too close of a call for my comfort.

I’m supposed to be gathering minerals, but the guys back at HQ didn’t even bother telling me about the damn asteroids currently trying to crush me. They said I’d be gathering from rocks, so I assumed it was a moon or something. But nope! Fucking asteroids.

From the cockpit, I can see remains of another ship that was unfortunate enough to pass through here. I know I should be surprised there’s no SOS signal coming from what looked like the remains of a large ship, but I don’t think the crew even had the time—

Another asteroid was hurtling towards me, but this time I didn’t have time to turn. It tore off my starboard wing, sending me spiraling.

I’m spinning now. Prices of my precious ship were torn off like the flesh of a deer carcass thrown into a lake of piranhas. My other wing flew into a nearby asteroid, my window cracked, my windshield cracked, everything cracked and splintered and shattered as I flew uncontrollably towards a huge asteroid in front of me. I can’t turn, I can’t save myself, I’m doomed.

What about my family? Will HQ tell them what happened? Does HQ even care? Probably not.

Margret, my dear wife, I’ll miss you. I’ll miss you very much—

-

I’m alive.

Where am I? It’s too dark to see.

Can I still move? Yes. My helmet visor is cracked, but I can move. At least the flashlight still works.

Reaching into my pocket, I could feel a roll of duct tape. I used that to patch up the hole on my visor, temporarily. It works for everything else around here, so I’m sure it’ll work on glass.

My ship is totaled. Sparks flew from exposed wires and circuitry. Gaping holes filled the chassis, and both wings are gone. I’d worry about the fuel igniting if the fuel tank was still nearby, but it’s gone. It probably went to go hang out with the corpse of the other ship.

Heading out of one of the holes, I stepped out onto solid ground. I appear to be on an asteroid. Specifically, really big. Honestly, is it was orbiting a planet rather than a binary star, I’d be considered a small moon.

Wait, there’s someone else here. I can see the glint of their helmet from where I am. Can they help? Are they stuck here too? They could be, or they could be hostile and ready to attack. Despite our efforts, not every alien race wants to work together.

Well, I guess I’m stuck here either way, son I might as well say hello.

Approaching the figure cautiously, I could see they were sitting near a rock, face hidden behind their dark, badly cracked visor. They were bipedal, and seemed to have a lower-tech spacesuit than what I’m used to; it lacks the protective shell around the chest and still had the backpack that some races like to use to save mobility at the cost of weight.

However, despite my best efforts, I can’t tell who or what they are. They’re using a mass-produced, multi-species suit. Swen onto the shoulder was a patch of one of the many shipping companies in the galaxy.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the one I worked under. In fact, the company was in direct competition with mine. Me, being a low-level employee, could care less, but it does mean that, for “security reasons” as they called it, our radios operate on different channels. We can’t talk to each other to figure out a way out of here. Maybe we can figure something else out.

Oh, I think they’re staring at me. It’s hard to tell behind the darkened visor, but they definitely shifted towards me.

They’re just… staring. Slowly, they reached up and tapped their shoulder, where their patch was, then made a telephone-like movement with their fingers. I turned to show them the patch on my shoulder. They put their hand back down and nodded in understanding.

Well, since we can’t talk to each other, maybe I can just point at things and they’ll get the message?

I pointed at my ship. They just glanced up at me, not moving from their sitting position. They stared for a while, then slowly pointed at the shattered remains of the ship I saw earlier grimly. Then they just sort of hugged their knees.

They’re ship is shattered. Not out of fuel, not a little bit broken, just completely and utterly destroyed. No wonder they seem so depressed.

Sitting down in front of them, I started to think. My fuel tank is gone, my wings are gone, and my ship is probably irreparable.

Are we stuck here? We can’t be. I have a family to get back too, and I’m sure they do too. We have to get out of here.

Maybe we can radio for help! I’m sure there’s a ship nearby, somewhere. This is a pretty common trade route, although most ships tend to avoid the asteroid field if they can help it.

I stood up, then motioned for them to follow me to my ship. They stared a moment, tilting their helmet, then got the message and stood up to follow.

Turning on my flashlight, I headed towards my cockpit, with them ducking under the sparking wires and following closely behind.

My cockpit has a radio. It’s broken, but maybe serviceable. If I can just fix a few wires here…

They were watching with interest. While they kept a fair distance from me, they still seemed interested in what I was doing. They peered over my shoulder, watching me tinker with the wires.

Unfortunately, there’s no power. No power means no radio. No radio means no call for help. I’d look for an SOS signal generator, but I think I left it back at the hanger.

Okay, so the radio’s out, and my oxygen is down to a quarter of a tank.

I’m going to die here.

No, I’m not. I just have to find some way to get out of here.

I walked out of my ship, and they followed slowly. Why are they so slow? Are they injured? They aren’t. If they are, I can’t tell.

Maybe I can use one of the asteroids as a ship? Maybe I can somehow use the gravity of the binary star to slingshot ya out of the asteroid field and hope we don’t get crushed. If it works, we might run into a ship! Or pirates. We could run into pirates too. Fuck.

Are we really stuck? I can’t think of any way we could reasonably get out of this situation. Maybe I could if they’d just talk to me, but since we’re from different companies, we can’t. All we can do is stare at each other from our one-way visors in utter silence.

God, I’m really going to die here aren’t I? I can’t escape! I’m stuck! Margret is going to become a widow and it’s all my fault! Why did I leave the SOS machine back there? Why did I not fill up my oxygen tank? There’s nobody there! It’s just radio silence! Pure, unfiltered silence.

They’re sitting down on the ground again. Why aren’t they scared? How long have they been here? Do they even care? Why aren’t they panicking? Why can’t we just fucking talk to each other!?

I buried my face into my hands and just… cried. Well, I tried to bury my face, but the visor kinda blocked it. What else can I do? I’m doomed! I’m going to die and there’s nothing I can do here. I feel so… helpless.

I sat down in front of them. All I want is to just talk. Maybe that would help. Maybe we’d figure something out. Maybe we could help each other not be so scared, but because we’re from different companies, we can’t.

Wait, what are they doing?

Slowly, they reached into their backpack and pulled out what looked like a banjo. Carved out of cedar, it looked to be in pretty good shape aside from a dent on the side and a snapped string.

They started to play, plucking the strings with very inexperienced fingers. They plucked and strummed, the notes falling on the deaf ears of the cosmos. Do they know sound can’t travel through space?

Regardless of what they knew, they continued to play the mute banjo against the cold air of the asteroid, making music only thy could imagine.

Why are they playing? Are they just as scared as I am? They obviously don’t know how to play any songs, so it might just be some weird thing they do to keep calm.

Or, maybe, they figured out I’m a human somehow, and decided to use whatever knowledge they have about us to make me feel better? I mean, they have pamphlets about how other species behave to help reduce conflict, and I remember the human one saying something about music, so it might be something like that.

Whatever reason they did it, it’s still sort of nice. We’re stuck here, and we can’t talk to each other, but we’re not alone. We won’t die alone.

Suddenly, their fingers froze mid-strum. They sat across from me, ridged and shaking ever so slightly. Their banjo clattered to the ground as they grasped at their neck, desperately and fruitlessly seeking air. They choked, nearly tearing off their suit in a desperate attempt to breathe.

Then, all at once, they stopped. For a moment they stood frozen, the duel suns and the sky reflecting off of their visor. Then, they slumped to the ground, revealing a split air tank in their backpack. It must’ve been damaged already for it to split that much…

Silence filled the air. Well, no. It wasn’t silence. That was already there. This is loneliness. A crushing, unfathomable loneliness. This person I never spoke a word too had just suffocated in front of me, and I’m going to only be a a minute behind them.

I’m truly alone now.

I’d only known them for an hour or so, but it still hurts.

The banjo lays in front of me, a second string out of its four broken. I picked it up, cradling it in my lap as I sunk to the ground, hugging it.

Maybe it’s the beginning stages of oxygen deprivation beginning to sink in, but the banjo is sort of comforting.

I strummed it once. Of course, no sound came out, and even if it did I doubt it would be any good with my inexperience, but for a split second everything felt okay.

I strummed again. It’s relaxing, strumming the instrument. Hopefully whatever poor soul stumbled upon our bodies will at least be able to keep the banjo. Might help them a bit.

I can’t breathe, but it’s okay. It’s okay. Everything will be okay. Margret will be okay without me, right?

My vision’s blurring and my lungs burn, begging for air I can’t give them. But I can keep strumming.

I can keep strumming, although no-one will hear.

[holidaywishes]

Trying to Change

  Requested: 👍

  Summary/Request: Anything Seggy please. Always love stories with him. Maybe that he's trying to persuade a girl to date him and admits his playboy ways but wants to prove he's crazy about her

  Author’s Note: So, I don’t know if this is exactly what the anon was looking for but when I saw the request this GIF immediately came to mind and I needed to write something around it. I also wrote this in the middle of my World War I lecture so... my attention was split -- hopefully there’s no war talk in here...

  P.S. Just so no one gets confused, Y/H/C is your hair colour; I’m pretty sure every one knows all the abbreviations but I always like to put disclaimers in here if I use something other than the typical ones..

  P.P.S If y’all haven’t tried it, download the InteractiveFics on Google Chrome and you can enter in your name -- it’s kinda fun!

  Warning: none? fluff, Tyler being a playboy

  masterlist

Tyler’s P.O.V

  You were over Sophie’s shit. She had invited herself out with you and Rads, making sure to wear a revealing outfit. It was fine at first but when every girl thought she was your girlfriend because of how closely she was sticking to you, you felt like you were going to scream.

  “Just fuck off for a second!” you yelled at her and she raised her hands, her jaw dropping at your tone and you noticed Rads drop his head and laugh.

  “Fine... jeez, you don’t have to yell” she whined. You finally had a chance to work the crowd, searching through hundreds of platinum blondes to find the one you wanted to waste your time with tonight, dancing with one here and there or a group of girls when you were alone for too long on the dance floor. But none of them really did anything for you. You didn’t want to indulge your playboy reputation anymore than you already had and you figured the only girls that would approach you tonight would want that reputation. So, you left the dance floor to grab a drink and watch the crowd.

  That’s when you saw her. She stepped in front of her group of friends with a smile so bright it almost blinded you and you tried not to lose her in the crowd.

  “Seggy...” Rads called from beside you, trying to grab your attention but your eyes stayed focused on the smile of the (Y/H/C) stranger you’d never seen before. You watched as she made her way to the middle of the dance floor, encouraging her friends to dance with her as the music changed and she twirled, “Tyler!” Rads stepped in front of you and you raced to move him out of the way but it was too late, she disappeared somehow.

  “Shit..” you whispered, “where did she go?”

  “Who? Sophie?” he smiled, “Dude that chick left as soon as you shrugged her off...”

  “What-- No not her, the girl...” you gestured to the dance floor where you last saw her, “the girl with the hair and the smile and the eyes...”

  “I have no idea who you’re talking about, take a shot and then you can look for her.” He pulled you over to the bar and you sighed, still searching the crowd for this girl you couldn’t get out of your head, even with the multiple busty blondes that Rads had wrangled up for you.

  “Excuse me! Hi!” you heard a soft voice yell at the other end of the bar, “Can I get a Vodka Cranberry! Thank you Cutie!” You looked to see the face that matched the voice, not knowing who to expect when you saw a smiley redhead who looked vaguely familiar. You kept your eyes on her to see if you could recognize any of her group and your eyes grew wide when you saw the (Y/H/C) girl from before, her smile still as blinding as before and you tried to catch her attention; failing and deciding to send the group shots instead. When the bartender directed their eyes to you, you locked eyes with her and you felt your stomach flutter and then abruptly fall when she immediately looked away.

  Fuck...

  “Oh my gosh!” your friend Cecilia said, brushing her bright red hair off her shoulder, “I think Tyler Seguin just sent us shots”

  “Yeah right..” you rolled your eyes

  “No seriously, look...” she pointed in the direction the Bartender showed you the drinks came from. You followed her finger and caught his eyes before feeling your cheeks flush with heat and you lowered your gaze,

  “Ooh someone’s blushing! Go over there and thank him for the shot!”

  “Stop Benny” you said to your friend pointing out your embarrassment, “I’m definitely not going over there... seriously look at all the girls he’s surrounded by. Why would he send us shots?”

  “Maybe he wants to be surrounded by more girls?” Cecilia replied and you scowled slightly

  “I’m not interested“

  “Bullshit,” Benny shouted before you told him to quiet down, “you’re not interested? I don’t believe you for a second!”

  “You think I want to waste my time trying to get a guy’s attention who clearly doesn’t give a shit about women unless they’re half-naked and feeding his ego... or sucking his dick?” you said bluntly, raising your right eyebrow, “no thanks. I’ll take my chances with the creeps and weirdos on the dance floor”

  “Oh come on!” Cecilia added

  “No guys, seriously. Yeah, sure, fine, okay. He’s attractive,” you admitted and your friends nodded heavily in agreement, “but he’s not looking for anything other than a hook up. Even if by some random chance he sent us shots, he’s not thinking about anything serious and I’m sorry. I’m not wasting my time with someone who isn’t going to respect me. I deserve better than that...”

  “Oh babe, of course you do! We didn’t think you’d get this defensive...” Benny said, rubbing your arm

  “I’m sorry,” you whined, “I just wanna dance.. let’s dance!!” It only took one big pout to convince them to follow you into the middle of the dance floor before you felt a light tug on the train you had created; you continued anyway, not thinking that it was anything to worry about. When it was just you and Cecilia on the dance floor, however, you found yourself searching for Benny -- whom you found talking with Tyler Seguin.

  “What?” Cecilia said, following your eye line, “oh shit! What do you think he’s saying?”

  “I swear to god Cece, if he tries to bring him over here I will slap both of you...”

  “What did I do?!”

  “You encouraged him!”

  “Whatever, just dance. Let loose!” You stopped dancing for just a second before giggling at Cecilia’s terrible dance moves and continued bopping along to the music. Sure enough, though, Benny came over with Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov in tow.

  “(Y/N), Cece, this is Tyler and Alex,” he said, introducing everyone, “Tyler, Alex this is (Y/N) and Cece...”

  “Nice to meet you” Cecilia outstretched her hand to the two men in front of you, clearly waiting for Tyler to shake her hand but his eyes were trained on you, even though you were looking elsewhere

  “It’s nice to meet you..” he called out to you and suddenly you were snapped back into the conversation, “(Y/N)...” You smiled politely before attempting to dismiss yourself

  “It’s nice to meet you both as well... I’ll be right back. Entertain these two won’t you?” you said gesturing to your friends as you ran toward the restroom, sending a quick text to Benny.

  “I hate you and I’m leaving”

  “Don’t leave (Y/N), they’re actually really nice...”

  “I don’t care. This was supposed to be a fun night out to celebrate the end of the shit show that was this semester. Finals are done, school’s out, vacation started five hours ago”

  “We can still celebrate! This way we’ll just get free drinks...”

  “No boys remember...”

  “I know babe but just, come back. Cece and I will make sure there’s always someone between you and Tyler if that’s your worry...”

  “😒”

  “Don’t be rude...”

  “🤨” He sent you a few GIFs in response until you finally agreed to meet him back where you left everyone. But now you were faced with the fact that you had ran away from Tyler Seguin, which made you look extremely pathetic...

  “She’s back!” Cecilia greeted you with a hug so she could whisper in your ear, “what the hell?”

  “Yeah, she’s back! And she wants a drink!...” you squealed back, skipping past everyone to head to the bar. Once you were there, you waited for the bartender to come your way when Tyler whistled to grab her attention

  “Wow...” you said under your breath

  “What can I getcha Ty?” she flirted and he gestured to you

  “No no I think she was asking what you wanted,” you said snidely, squinting your eyes, “I’ll wait...”

  “Let’s see if I can guess...” the bartender said, leaning in toward Tyler. Oh this should be good, you thought to yourself, “you look young... and a little unsure of your choices. So I’m gonna say something sweet and easy. Like a Cosmo...” you fake laughed at her response before you finally decided to order a drink yourself

  “I’ll take a Jameson on the rocks please. Three fingers, no ice, a splash of water...” She took a step back before looking at Tyler and preparing your drink, handing it to you shortly after with a scowl on her face. You brought out your wallet to pay but Tyler stopped you

  “Put it on my tab, Erin, thanks...” You rolled your eyes at his gesture and went to find your friends with Tyler right on your heels, “you don’t like me do you?”

  “I don’t like people who whistle at bartenders”

  “She’s a friend”

  “I’m sure she is...”

  “Dance with me”

  “No thanks. I’m not here for that...”

  “What’s your deal?”

  “My deal?”

  “Why won’t you give me a chance.. I’m a nice guy.” You looked him over once which he clearly took notice of, stepping back as if to give you a better view

  “Hmm nope. I’ll just be taking Cece and Benny now...”

  “Hold on,” he said, grabbing your arm gently, “one dance, that’s it. If it doesn’t go well, I’ll leave you alone. Hell, I’ll even tell Erin to make you all pay for your drinks if that’s bothering you. Just dance with me...” You reluctantly agreed and he tried his best to get you to smile with some really awful dance moves, it almost worked until a tall, platinum blonde came up to Tyler and whined that he was ignoring her.

  “What are you talking about Sophie?” his voice was agitated but she didn’t seem to notice

  “Can you take me home...?” she whined and pouted at him as he stood in front of you

  “No, Sophie, I can’t take you home. There are cabs outside...” he tried but she continued to whine and you couldn’t handle it, so you turned away, “no (Y/N) wait.” You heard him tell this girl to go home and then tried to grab your attention back

  “I’m gonna head out,” you said, kissing Benny and Cecilia on the cheek before turning to Tyler, “you tried...” You smiled at Tyler before shrugging and turning to walk away

  “Wait...” Tyler called out to you, running in front of you, “you don’t understand. She’s not wi-- we’re not together...”

  “It’s not my problem, thank you for the drinks”

  “Can I get your number?”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes”

  “Why are you trying so hard?”

  “I don’t know...”

  “Wow.. great response”

  “You’re different, I guess. You don’t... cater to me”

  “And you’re not used to it?”

  “Not one bit”

  “I know your type and I’m not into it. You tried your best but it didn’t work. Now I’m leaving...” you rolled your eyes and shifted your body from side to side in annoyance

  “Just.. please, give me one chance... have dinner or lunch,” he emphasized when you started walking away, “with me. Please.”

  “Why?” you said skeptically

  “Because I don’t want to let you leave without at least trying...”

  “My friends have my number...” was all you said before turning on your heels and leaving the club; completely unsure of everything that just happened.

Tyler’s P.O.V 

  You tried not to call her right away. After you got her number from her friends, you didn’t want to come on too strong, so you made a contact for her and just stared at her name in your phone the next day until your eyes practically lost all moisture.

  “Fuck it, I’m calling her” you said to yourself

  “Go for it dude,” Jamie replied, thinking you were talking to him, “be bold...” You laughed sarcastically as he mocked you from the couch

  “Shut up! It’s ringing...” you yelled and Jamie laughed

  “Hello?” (Y/N)’s voice chimed from the other end of the phone

  “Hi” was all you could muster

  “Hi... sorry who is this?”

  “Tyler.. Seguin.. we met last night...”

  “Right. So my friends ended up giving you my number I take it...”

  “They did... Are you free for lunch?”

  “What, like right now?”

  “I could come pick you up or meet you somewhere...”

  “Uhm.. I don’t--”

  “Please?” you pleaded, noticing Jamie’s eyebrows raising at your tone

  “Can you give me like 15 minutes? I’m just in the middle of something.”

  “15 minutes is perfect, text me your address and I’ll pick you up!” Your smile stretched clean across your face when she gave you her address and your heart began to race after you hung up the phone

  “Ty?” Jamie asked, “you okay?” You raced around your closet, trying to decide what to wear before Jamie came to where you were and leaned against the door frame

  “It’s just a lunch date, dude, relax...”

  “I’m just so nervous.. From the second she walked into that club last night, I was hypnotized or something”

  “Fine, just don’t try too hard. Just wear some jeans and be nice to her...”

  “It’s not like I’m gonna be a dick to her”

  “I don’t know how you are on dates...” Jamie teased and you laughed, before quickly fixing your hair and changing out of your sweatpants. You hopped in your car and turned on some music while you drove to pick up (Y/N), trying to tell yourself to calm down -- it was just lunch. It would be fine. When you pulled up in front of her apartment building, you sent her a text and she replied with a wink emoji before saying she’d be right out. She walked out and it was like the sun was drawn to her; her hair glowed, the short little summer dress she wore tangled with the wind and her smile shone through everything else; you couldn’t stop staring even after she opened the passenger door.

  “How’s it going?” she said melodically, raising her eyebrows and widening her eyes when you didn’t answer

  “Good, good,” you turned forward, “where should we go?”

  “I thought you were the man with the plan?”

  “You want me to choose?”

  “I thought you would’ve already chosen...” she laughed

  “I know exactly where to go then.” You took off to one of your favourite lunch spots, stealing glances at her throughout the ride but neither of you spoke. You had never been in a more awkward situation but not want to get out of it.

  What the fuck was this? you thought to yourself. Why is he just sitting there not talking to me? The car ride was bad enough but you’re at his favourite restaurant and it’s relatively quiet and he’s still got nothing to say?

  “So.. uhm..” you started, “why this place? What makes it your favourite?”

  “It’s got a great atmosphere!” he mused, “and it’s not insanely crowded all the time, which is a huge plus...”

  “Yeah, I can see that”

  “Are you from Dallas?”

  “No, I grew up in Victoria but I was born in Chicago”

  “Oh, that’s... not what I was expecting“

  “What were you expecting?”

  “I’m not sure, it just seems a little strange. What were your folks doing in Chicago?”

  “My Dad is from there, so his work and everything was in Chicago. But when he met my Mom, they planned to move to BC so they could go somewhere a little quieter I guess?” you said, raising your voice at the end, “and then I came along and they had to put moving on hold while they figured out some of the details.” You laughed as you told your little story about your parents. From there, the conversation really started to pick up. He told you about his family and where he grew up. You asked him what he’d be doing if he wasn’t a professional athlete, he asked you if you thought you were where you thought you’d be at this point in your life, you said no not at all but mostly because you weren’t sure where you thought you’d be at this point. You essentially played 20 questions that turned into 50 questions which turned into you gushing about your life story; leading him to gush about his life story. When he started talking about Boston, you suddenly straightened your posture and snapped yourself back into defense mode.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked and you furrowed your brow

  “What do you mean?”

  “You seem tense all of a sudden...”

  “I just...” you sighed, “I guess I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop you know...”

  “No, I don’t know actually,” he sat back in his chair, visually frustrated, “why don’t you tell me.” You lifted your eyebrows once before leaning back in your own chair, mirroring Tyler’s position.

  “I know what kind of guy you are, I know your type,” you said, “snapback, tattoos, nice car, dimples, and a little more money than you probably need. Pair that with the fact that you know you’re attractive and you’re just a massive douche...”

  “Wow... you really got burned by someone didn’t you?”

  “What? No!”

  “I think that means yes...”

  “No, a yes would’ve meant yes”

  “We were having such a good time. What changed? Why start acting like a bitch now?”

  “I told you. I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop, for you to tell me what kind of game you’re playing; what’s the bet?”

  “I think you’ve seen too many movies.” You rolled your eyes and prepared yourself to leave

  “Thank you.. for lunch and for picking me up and for.. making me laugh for a bit. But I should probably get going”

  “Wait! That’s it?” he tried, “you’re just giving up? God damn it, why do I have to try so hard with you?”

  “That sounds like a you question”

  “Just sit down”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Sit. Down.” He said firmly and you obliged, though you weren’t sure why, “just hear me out for a sec okay?” you nodded shyly and you watched as he thought about what to say; like he was searching for the perfect words to say.

  “Are you okay?”

  “My reputation sucks. I know that. I was a kid though, when I got into the league, and I tried to act like nothing affected me or that I was a tough guy -- because I was a Bruin, it was the gig -- but after I was traded my rep beat me to Dallas and I was being ‘chased’ by girls everywhere I went and it was nice for a little. I like the attention... but once the hookup was done, they’d move on and so would I. It was pretty miserable but it was what I was dealing with and then I got into a relationship and it was intense but it wasn’t gonna last. After a while I realized being single was better than being... I don’t know, vulnerable I guess...” he stopped to take a breath, leaning his arms on the table and resting his head there for a second before continuing, “when I saw you last night, I couldn’t get you out of my head. I didn’t want to lose you from my sight. When I did, even for a minute, I went crazy and then there you were at the bar and I was like.. ‘I need to do something. I need to get her to look at me...’ and then you did but you didn’t seem interested and I gotta tell you, my heart sank. And I had to work so hard for you to even consider dancing with me. So I did.. but it was like one thing after the other and I --”

  “Okay, calm down.. just.. breathe” you said, reaching out your hand to calm his nerves by placing it on his arm

  “You were just so beautiful. And your smile was the most intoxicating thing in that club and the light seemed to follow you everywhere you went. I knew if I didn’t try, I’d never meet you. I’d never know you and my life would be completely wasted if that happened. So, when you looked at me with those big, (Y/E/C), almost Disney Princess eyes, I knew I was in trouble. I knew I’d never get you out of my head...” 

  “And then I said ‘no...’”

  “Yeah, a bunch of times, and I knew that you knew about my reputation and I needed to prove to you, show you, that I’m not that guy. I don’t care what Instagram thinks about me or what the girls of Dallas think of me, I’m not that guy and the people I surround myself with know that I’m different than I was. I only let people see this side of me if I want them in my life...”

  “You want me in your life? You barely know me”

  “Then let me get to know you,” he pleaded, grabbing your hand with both of his, “I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way about anyone, or at least not for a long time...” You looked at him, holding your hand, eyes begging for an answer and you thought about it all for a minute. It was a lot and you couldn’t say that you weren’t flattered but you also couldn’t say that you weren’t hesitant. The last thing you needed was to let yourself feel something for Tyler Seguin for it all to have been some excruciatingly long joke.

  “How do I know that this is... real?”

  “I promise you, I’m trying to change.. I’m not perfect but I’m trying...” You squinted slightly at his answer and he tried to reassure you, “I want you. I know you know that I could probably go into a random bar and hook up with the first girl I meet but I don’t want that. I don’t want meaningless.. anything anymore. I want someone I can talk to for hours, someone I can share my insecurities and my vulnerabilities with. I want this. I want you.”

  “You’re very convincing..” you smiled

  “I’m serious” he said as he walked over to your side of the table

  “I still don’t know...” you followed his eyes as his head fell, “maybe we can take it one step at a time. Nothing too fast. Nothing too serious. Just step by step, day by day, minute by minute if we have to...”

  “Okay!” he exclaimed, standing up so quickly he reminded you of Tigger, “that’s just fine by me!”

  “Okay.. good. Because I make no guarantees that I’m actually any good at this...”

  “Too late.. I’m hooked.” He smiled and leaned in to press a light kiss your lips; you slowly returned the kiss before almost evaporating into it.

[punkscowardschampions]

Lux & Dash

Lux: Good pilgrim, praytell Lux: is your hair just like that or do you have a routine Lux: I must know Dash: what's yours naturally trying to hang like? I'll hit you with what's outta this world 🐤 Lux: full samara, senpai Lux: turn off the tube QUICK 🙄 Dash: 🤣 bummer Dash: 🥥 oil is far out on all hair types even 🔪🔪🔪 Dash: aloe vera will make her 💪 Dash: lemme 🤔🤔.... Dash: do you fuck with 🐣?? Lux 🙇 down at your feet, oh lord is the most high place! 🙌 Lux: the chooks here lay too many for us non-strict-vegans to get through Lux: save my hair AND cut down on our foodwaste? Lux: I will be ♕ and you will be ♚ Dash: 2 🥄 🥑 oil, same of 🥥 & aloe vera gel Dash: 2 raw 🥚 Dash: heat it & leave that baby on for time Dash: 30 mins ++++ Dash: 🚿 with whoever Lux: the CP of my hair is gonna rival Rapunzels Lux: 💃💃💃 Lux: I promise to never ever clock you with a 🍳 Dash: 💛👼👑 Dash: you'd be choice with her 🌺🌺🌺  look Lux: 😘 plant 🌱 for every 🌺 and compliment you gimme then we can talk about april showers coming earlier than anticipated☔️ Dash: right on Lux: Is your full name Dashiell/ can I call you that anyway Lux: because its really fitting and if you care to know I shall tell you for why Dash: it's not but if you're down I can be down too Lux: SO; here was my thought 🚄 climb aboard and ride the rails with me for a sec here Lux: Dash ➼ Dashiell ➼ meaning page boy ➼ page boy = ring bearer ➼ ring bearers of the One Ring ➼ Samwise Gamgee = you AM I RIGHT OR AM I RIGHT Dash: 🤯🤯👍 Lux: I know, allow me to scoop up the remainder your 🧠 from the ceiling and put it into a handwoven jute tote for you to take home Lux: I been knew you love food as much as him, its like 1845-49 up in here after you've come around 🥔💀 Dash: tight gestures like those 👐 gotta keep you in the groove here 🥰 Dash: trust you to pick up on a royal appetite Lux: I'm the holy daughter returned, boy Lux: only eating manna from heaven, though if anyone in this place could make a 😋 cake like back home, I'd let them eat it Dash: set to call you that when I fall in with my 🎺 but do you go by anything shorter on top? Lux: Hebrews 13:2!!! Lux: so that explains where you come from Lux: more in a cloud of smoke than holy light but they could only get so many details dead on in the good book Lux: I'm Lux, of course, X if the mood takes you but I can't make it any easier for you Dash: here to make us 👀 the light, yeah? righteous 👼 Lux: The mission of making my parents proud of me again is not one I am currently embarked upon but service to God and all his creations was always their jam Lux: supposedly Lux: but if you're here to get me to renounce my sex, along with the devil and all his works (duh), oh angelic messenger, I still have to decline Dash: aere perennius is the vibe I'm picking up from you, Lux Dash: it'd be a heavy mission Lux: You owe the world a forest for that one because words like that evoke so many cardinal sins within me Dash: do you know about 🎋? Lux: Tell me Dash: it's a tanabata tree, for wishes Dash: they set the bamboo afloat on the river or on 🔥 after the festival Lux: We must participate here Lux: and one day I will go to where the festival is meant to be and you must come because you introduced me to the magic Dash: we can go to Japan, Sao Paolo or LA, they all have 'em Lux: Of course Lux: I seem to have traveled in the wrong direction Lux: to the wrong coast and onwards Dash: at least you ain't separated from your lover by a 🌌 Dash: that's the legend that goes with the festival Lux: oh Lux: how heartbreakingly beautiful Dash: but they are allowed to meet once a year on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month Dash: it's not a total downer Lux: so young Dashiell believes it is better to taste heaven but the once than to never know it at all Lux: good Lux: I like you Dash: I try & get my kicks tasting as much as I can as often as I can Dash: though yeah, once over never Lux: can't take on the 🌌 Lux: though perhaps you can, with a name like a superhero Dash: no sweat 💪 Dash: if I don't ✂ my hair off 😏 Lux: 😱 Lux: I do have weak ankles! Lux: you avoid barbers and I'll avoid heels that are taller than... Lux: five Lux: no six inches Dash: 👌👌 Dash: if you avoid any heel I'll be able to reach you way out though Dash: no 🛹 jumps 💫 Lux: YET Lux: until you remember where you parked your chariot of fire, you give me reason to kick off my heels, and I'll happily do it Dash: 💃? Lux: Both in worn levis, both in torn T-shirts Lux: of course, that's the only way Dash: there's a tanabata song, I could sing it for you Dash: the translation at least Lux: 😻🙏 Dash: it'll be a blast Lux: 🚀🌠 Dash: have you 👀🎸? Dash: mine's MIA Lux: you can borrow my girl Lux: for one song Dash: I won't hog her like a flake, digging the trust too much Lux: you can abuse my trust just go easy on Dolores Lux: she's a folksy kinda gal, if you kick it punk rock she'll 😳😩 Dash: she'll stay 🍒💖 I'm about a gentle touch Dash: what kind are you? the words are the festival's but I don't know the 🎶 Dash: I'll make it yours, like Lux: as angelic as you look Lux: a sinner can only but hope not Lux: how about you sing it for me but play it like its yours Dash: cool with me Lux: then the song can be ours Dash: I think you're unreal Dash: the most Lux: Oh, because I am Lux: and you are perfect because you know that's a compliment Dash: this fly by of yours is gonna last some time, yeah? Lux: though not compelled by God or a power higher than my own Lux: this is where I'm meant to be Dash: me too Lux: I know Lux: I divined you out of 🌟✨☀️🌌 Dash: we planting that forest to grow together or on opposite sides? Lux: one 🌎 one 💓 Dash: roots are gonna get tangled if you keep laying down your 💓 next to mine Lux: I can grow anywhere Lux: you don't need to worry about me Dash: 🌻 Dash: you're gonna make this place better, I feel it Lux: you have family here? Lux: in the commune Dash: yeah Lux: do you like it here Dash: I love it Lux: I do too Lux: its Lux: loving Dash: when did you come through? have you met every 🐤 & 🐈? cos you should meet everyone Dash: feel all the love Lux: I've been in Dublin about... a month, two Lux: feels like forever Lux: but here I'm a total 🍒 Lux: I met Hazel completely by fate at a women's health drop-in she was running a few weeks ago, told her my story and here I am Dash: farm tour 1st 🍀 tour 2nd Lux: Coming Lux: 🎸 in tow Dash: safe Lux: and sound Lux: I'm just tryna catch a mirror moment Lux: not enough, if I had any complaints but 🤫 Dash: which room's yours? I'll make space to hang another one near Dash: then the 🌙 Lux: we'll end the tour there Lux: my contribution Dash: now that's sound Lux: Do you know about me? Dash: what about you? Lux: That I don't have girl parts Lux: I won't be accused of that kind of trickery Dash: I won't accuse you of any Lux: ☺ Dash: you set the pace, I'm in it Lux: You're keeping up spectacularly Lux: now, where does my tour start? Dash: orchard Lux: 🍏🍎🍐🍊🍋🍇🍈🍒🍑🥭 Dash: there's the best 🍏🍎 tree, easy to climb whatever shoes you're wearing Dash: you can see the whole farm from the top Lux: [Show up honey] Dash: [😍 at her we all know] Lux: [dressed hyper-femme as always and way more dressy than most here we know, doing a curtsey like 🤭] Dash: [holds out a 🍎 like he's the 🐍 & she's Eve, looking cute and tempting] Lux: [obviously taking it and taking a sassy bite] Dash: [into it obviously hand holding through this orchard tour for Winnie's sake] Lux: [gonna climb this tree] Dash: [do it kids] Lux: [gonna have to help her even though she's left the heels behind] Dash: [thankfully he's not that much of a dick that he won't, imagine just like byeeee] Lux: [😂 no one needs anyone falling out of a tree rn] Dash: [we aren't killing either of you off so just enjoy the view] Lux: ['it looks so big from up here, when you're in it, it feels...close'] Dash: ['it's big but the fam's bigger' gives her a look like you'll see, genuinely buzzing cos does love it here] Lux: [the biggest smile 'why don't you live here?'] Dash: ['my mum & dad don't, & that's their biggest drag, they ain't hip but they ain't real hassle' casually don't mention that Cosmo exists okay then] Lux: [nods 'everyone should get as much family as they can'] Dash: ['you can meet 'em too, it's cool'] Lux: [excited puppy look like really?!] Dash: ['my mum used to be a rad skater & now she sits around bench racing at her own bone yard, it's a good space to hang loose'] Lux: [just listening like no way! 'what about your dad?'] Dash: ['he's more easily bugged, we don't always vibe, but shit stays chill'] Lux: ['yeah but what did he used to be? before he got old and boring too'] Dash: ['he played football' with a shrug cos so uninterested we know] Lux: ['ooh, was he famous?'] Dash: ['not really'] Lux: ['bummer'] Dash: ['you wanna be famous?'] Lux: [is thinking like hmm 'I don't NOT want it but its not my number one all-time dream...not even top ten'] Dash: ['what is?'] Lux: [puts her index fingers to the corners of his mouth to make him smile] Dash: [laughs] Lux: ['you?'] Dash: ['I'm thinking we should start a band' shout out to Ali your lowkey grandma] Lux: [a look like um yes, how have you not and putting three fingers up to let him know its made the list] Dash: [starts to climb down like come on, so much to see] Lux: ['don't ditch me!' and running after him] Dash: [takes her all around the vegetable patches next, introducing her to any peeps they come across] Lux: [living laughing loving honestly we can skip] Dash: [imagine all the cute animals they would have, I hope none of them die in the fire I'll cry] Lux: [lmao animals usually bolt when fire so they should be fine, unless they then get hit by cars or some shit] Dash: [I'm saying they are all A okay bitch] Dash: [post tour skip] Dash: gotta hit home Dash: later? Lux: Undoubtedly 😊 Dash: we'll jam Dash: 🤔 band names Lux: I'll throw it out there Lux: I wonder if anyone can drum drum Lux: not just drum circle Lux: I'll ask that too Dash: I'm jazzed Lux: 🎺 Dash: you play the harp 👼? Lux: ☺😋💕 Lux: If only Lux: there are bass' and banjos and plenty of acoustics Lux: I'll go thrifting and see if I can find one Dash: wait for me Lux: we should see how many wild instruments we can find Lux: one for everyone Dash: your 🧠⚙️ is far out Lux: but not far enough you can't reach me Dash: 🌌 can't stop me, yeah? Lux: nope Lux: not as long as you got that hair Dash: [selfie like it's still there] Lux: Thank God Lux: don't need to 😢 today Dash: you don't need to cry any day baby Lux: Keep me smiling Dash: I've got you Dash: we all have Lux: 💕 Lux: I really thought I knew family and community before this, you know Lux: but I was wrong then and this is better Dash: right on Lux: You're adorable Dash: I've got 👀 for you too Lux: I know Lux: your 👀 are like Lux: coffee Dash: 🧠⚙💖 Dash: yours are like jumping into a river Dash: they get bluer the deeper you go Lux: oh Lux: I think I want you back here now Lux: where did you go again Dash: 🛹🗲 Dash: my parents place Dash: you wanna meet me there? Lux: I'm not in the mood to meet your parents right this second, forgive me Lux: but by the time I've finished dinner here and 🚲 over Lux: sounds good Dash: idk if they're there cos I'm not yet Lux: so we can be alone alone Lux: that'd be novel Dash: yeah Dash: it feels like so much empty space Dash: for the number of bodies who live in it Lux: do you feel lonely there Dash: nah, it's got a good feel Dash: I grew up in it Lux: That's a feel you can't buy Dash: I'll show you my 👶📸 Dash: they're wild Lux: you musta been so cute Lux: your face is still 👶 now Dash: no ✂ then either Lux: so mowgli Dash: oh no, is this a trippy topic for you? Dash: I didn't think Lux: it's okay, I like hearing about happy kids Lux: its a sin to be envious of or covet other people's happiness Dash: Lux Lux: 😊? Dash: I don't think I believe in sin Dash: so if you wanna harsh on my good vibes, you know, I won't be 😡 Lux: Oh, sin is very real, its just whether you believe you'll be punished for the sins that are written about Lux: I appreciate you but I've got nothing to be 😡 about either Lux: 🤞 Dash: you can hit me with a shut up any time Dash: I'll still dig you Lux: I enjoy our conversations Dash: yeah? Lux: absolutely Lux: you're a beautiful 🐺 boy Dash: you're the most beautiful 🦊 Lux: never stone cold Dash: nah, the hottest Lux: I feel it Dash: 👍 it's the mood you gotta stay in Lux: with you around, that shouldn't be a problem Dash: we'll keep vibing Lux: did you like it Dash: you want me to say what I know you could tell Dash: I'll write you a 🎶 Lux: First hit for the band? Lux: I'll be famous after-all Dash: I've been listening Dash: I understand what you want Lux: and you're gonna give it to me Dash: that's my action for sure Lux: roll 20 please Dash: come be alone with me Lux: dash dash dash Lux: you're so pretty and fun and cool and I want you again Dash: [sends her the deets to where his house is] Lux: so far Lux: I must like you huh 😏 Dash: yeah it's a drag where I live Dash: but it's new heights that you like me Dash: 🚀💕 Lux: why wouldn't I? Dash: idk Dash: do you know about me? Lux: I know enough to like you Lux: what do you think would make me unlike you Lux: let's compare Dash: it's not all laid back the shit that other girls say Lux: you're a 💔 Dash: I'm not out here making a game of it like that Dash: but it's happened for real Lux: Oh dear Dashiell Lux: my heart was broken long before I got here Lux: and I've had to severe and untangle roots so much deeper than yours could ever be Lux: I told you, there's no need to worry about me, you can't hurt me Dash: that's fucked up Lux: Perhaps Dash: can I make it any better? Lux: no Lux: but that's okay Lux: now is better, there's no need to fix what's been Dash: I wasn't being plastic before, you're home now Lux: I feel it Lux: I have no choice but to give up my old definition but I'm less scared and 😢 at the prospect of the redefinition now, forced though it was Dash: it'll be okay Dash: we'll make it happen that it's only that Dash: or like better Lux: you're not a bad person Lux: I can tell Dash: if I'm someone you like, I'm cool with it Lux: good Lux: I need people right now, you know Dash: everyone at the farm, they'll be what you need Dash: they are for me Lux: what do you need them for? Dash: a blast Dash: my other fam want me to change some shit I do Lux: 🚀👌 Lux: I get that Lux: is it stuff you can't change or don't wanna Dash: idk if I recognise the difference Lux: sounds like a can't, then Dash: stepping into new 👟 feels like a bad scene Dash: I fuck with the ones I've worn in Lux: That's up to you Lux: I like new shoes Lux: maybe they're just worried your feet are getting all scrunched outta place Dash: yours are groovy though Dash: not handed down Dash: they fit you Lux: I had to steal 'em though Lux: and when my dad found 'em they sent me away Dash: a 🦊 like I said Lux: have you seen the fox and the hound? Dash: nah Dash: it's disney yeah? Lux: Yep Lux: I'm gonna make you watch it Dash: I'm about netflix & chill Lux: We'll chill first Lux: its real sad Lux: 😭 Dash: I be trying to chill with you nonstop though Dash: how bad do you want me to 👀 at things other than you Lux: 🤭 Lux: maybe your cinematic education can wait Lux: if we're truly to make the most of alone alone time Dash: lay it on me that I'm an ugly crier another day Dash: we're making beautiful things happen Lux: you're Lux: just like Lux: seraphic Dash: around you, I gotta be Lux: nu-uh Lux: I can't tell Lux: I fell out of God's favour like a long time ago Dash: you can tell Dash: you're still 👼 Dash: the fallen ones were the most beautiful anyway, yeah? Dash: god's a jealous 🐈 Lux: All angels are beautifulc Lux: and genderless actually, like God Lux: beyond our limited understanding, better Dash: cool Lux: for them Lux: its self-idolatry if you want it for yourself Lux: 🚫 Dash: if I want you for myself, what sin is that? Lux: you actually wanna know? 'cos I've always thought this particular subset of sins sounds unintentionally hot Dash: I'm listening intently Lux: peccata clamantia Lux: The sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance 🤤 Lux: they're the ones that God will deliver his justice upon, lots of people only know about the seven deadly Lux: but they're the least serious, actually Dash: shit Lux: guess that's why it feels so good Lux: shall we? Dash: 🌌 & god trying to stop us but I'm 💪 Lux: you want me Dash: yeah Lux: then you can have me Dash: show up Lux: I am Lux: ⏲ Dash: right now though Lux: if only my bike had wings Dash: that can be your festival wish Dash: mine too cos I've waited fucked up amounts of time for you Lux: 💡 Lux: your mind, boy Lux: though patience is evidently not your virtue, I'm not mad about it Lux: at all Dash: idc about virtues if you're a sin Lux: you're making me all pink Dash: it's a beautiful colour for you Lux: you're the loveliest 🐺 I've ever known Dash: I wanna be Lux: you are baby Dash: you're like a song I can't get out of my head Dash: & it's the most Dash: I'm so connected to every word Lux: You make me feel really...high but it that warm, soft focus way where there's no bad thoughts or feelings at all, no doubt or regret or shame creeping in, just the good washing over you again and again, like that split-second after you cum but Lux: prolonged Lux: its crazy, you're crazy Dash: we can live in it Lux: lets Dash: I'm in Lux: 🎡🎢🎠 Dash: 🎪🤹 Lux: 🤡 Dash: 🦁🐯 Lux: 🐘 Dash: 🍿 Lux: 🥜 Dash: 🐿️ Lux: 😱 Lux: how could you Mr Squirell Dash: he's gotta eat Lux: He could've just asked Dash: he don't know you like that Dash: thought you'd say nah Dash: I tried to persuade him he wasn't right on & you're 👍 but I must not 🗨🐿 Lux: 😂 Lux: he's more than likely from my homeland, I'll speak to him Lux: can't understand your accent Dash: gabh mo leithscéal Lux: 🤗 what did you say?! Dash: pardon me Dash: is 🗨🍀 on your list? Lux: I've always wanted to Lux: no one at my father's church really spoke it Lux: or would teach me if they did Lux: will you? Dash: my mum taught me Dash: hers never spoke it either Dash: your turn to bring me an 🍎 Dash: but yeah Lux: 😣 damn Lux: someone else here might, I've heard loads of languages flying about Dash: eu também sei português Dash: also from that side of the fam Lux: I 👀 that Dash: Arlo & his brother & sisters are my cousins Lux: Ahh Lux: that's cool Lux: they're so cute Dash: there's many more but they don't live at the farm Dash: you have to catch 'em when they fly by Lux: I'll be sure to do that Lux: do they all have lots of kids, how are there so many Lux: no offense Dash: started with 11 Dash: & most of 'em had 👶s Lux: ELEVEN Lux: 🤔💡 Lux: are you mormons? Dash: 🌼 children ☮ Dash: it was a big-ish fam before that though 👵 had 8 Dash: & she's no hippie Lux: why are you an only-child? Dash: I'm not Dash: I've got an older brother Lux: oh, me too! Lux: he's 13 years older Lux: I was a miracle mistake baby Lux: where's yours Dash: at ⚽ training I think Dash: that's his bag Lux: oh he's not 👴 Lux: you didn't mention him before Dash: he's 18 months + on me Dash: but we're in different 🌌 Lux: I feel you Lux: it musta been nice when you were kids though Lux: I loved when there were kids in the congregation but people always moved on, from God or physically Dash: nah, it's been hassle from the jump Dash: he's 🏆🥇💪 Dash: I'm 💫🚀👀 Lux: you don't like him huh Dash: he's a drag Dash: we're usually jiving 🥊 there's no ☮ & 💓 Dash: messes with my equilibrium Lux: You gotta protect yourself Lux: I get it Dash: I knew you would Lux: 'course Lux: its the same with my brother and my mom Lux: they still 💓 me but they can't see me Dash: do you 💓 'em? Lux: oh of course Lux: they're my family Dash: do you wish you could see 'em? Lux: I wish I still lived with them Lux: but I understand why I can't Dash: do you get to 🗨? Lux: no Dash: can't you? if your dad didn't find out? Lux: No Lux: not unless I'm going to make efforts, make changes Lux: and I can't and that's two eternal sins Lux: at least Lux: could make a case for 3 Lux: so they have to turn away, you see Lux: they all love me but there's nothing they can do until I do Dash: I'm sorry Dash: that everything's so heavy for you Lux: you don't need to be sorry Lux: not your transgressions Dash: but I don't want you to change Dash: & idc if it's a sin Lux: you're sweet Lux: they just want to save me from hell Dash: we're gonna have to live forever Dash: to save you Lux: We better find the philosopher's stone Lux: or the fountain of youth Dash: the 🐿 will help Dash: he digs you now Lux: he's a wizard Lux: knew it 😏 Dash: most animals have magic Lux: true facts Dash: 🦊s who are unreal 👼s especially Lux: you're such a flirt Lux: 😋 Dash: yeah 😏 Dash: that's my magic 😍💖 Lux: I can't disagree Dash: 💭😘 Lux: you can dream 'til I get there Dash: I'm 👀 for your 🚲 Lux: I'm meant to be up on the balcony, not you Lux: love some role reversal Dash: yo don't be on the rebound, Romeo 💔 Lux: awh you jealous Dash: 🤣 Dash: of someone you forget at the start of the play as soon as you 🕰 me? nah baby Dash: but it's salty to the other 💘 Lux: It saves her life Lux: she's fine, honestly, thriving Dash: okay then yeah, I am jealous Dash: of her thrive Lux: poor boy Dash: it's no bummer, like Dash: she ain't gonna be immortal, that's me & you Dash: our fam Lux: there's only so much magic to go around Dash: however much there is, we gotta use it right Lux: 🎺 that's holy decree Dash: & royal 👑 Lux: okay sweet prince Lux: 🤭 Dash: if I go solo from the band, there's an outta sight name Lux: you could do so many covers 💜 Dash: it'd be groovy Dash: but I ain't leaving the group Lux: not before its started Lux: have some loyalty, boy Dash: yo not ever Lux: we gonna do a blood oath Dash: use your hair as a 🔪 before the 🥑 & 🥥 hits Dash: or the ✂ I don't Lux: 😂 you're horrible Lux: and its far too limp for that Dash: nah your hair is 💣 Lux: ☺ Lux: really Dash: yeah Lux: it grew quite fast Dash: 🔮✨ Lux: I'm gonna grow it as long as I can Dash: there might be a better recipe Dash: I'll 🗨 to every 🐤 on the farm Lux: I wish I had curls like them too Lux: most of them Lux: alas Dash: you can borrow mine Lux: you're the bestest friend in the whole 🌌 Dash: 🤞🤝👐 Lux: let down your long hair then Lux: I think I've arrived Dash: [let her in and give her a house tour boy] Lux: [we clearly need Cosmo to come back like Dash did in that convo jussayin] Dash: [payback tbh so yeah we do] Lux: [she'd just be chatting up a storm, awks] Dash: [casually steer her to your room as fast as you can like] Lux: [just being like wanna come watch fox and the hound lmao] Dash: [she's so cute bye] Lux: [at least Cosmo won't be rude to you, even if he is like umm] Dash: [just thinks she's high probably] Lux: [most likely] Dash: [rude but fair] Lux: [when is your brother not as far as you're concerned] Dash: [exactly dr phil] Lux: [anything else we wanna though?] Dash: [we know what's up I think we can post it]

[cap-samwilson]

guardian angel

don’t ask me where this came from. this is a mess of lore, ideas, probable typos, and feelings that came out in about a few hours of furiously pounding on my keyboard. i hope reading it makes someone happy somewhere. heavily inspired by this by @persehpone and this by @mechinaries.

“sam, i’m coming in.” 

it’s the result of his failed attempts to prevent steve from opening the door - first by nonchalantly trying to brush off the light coming from under the bedroom door as a faulty fixture, then by frantically shouting “no” as the door knob began to turn. if he had been in a better state of mind, perhaps he could’ve had some kind of persuasion push through. but the fact was that living as a full-time avenger and avenging angel drained a guy, especially when his power had to be muted to keep him on earth and not burning people’s eyes out at the sight of him in the first place. 

so, the door opens. and there he is, in all of his glory, the signature brow furrow by captain america himself startled off of his face as he looks at wings that fill the damn room, white as hell and still itchy from being kept hidden for so long. 

sam huffs, and it’s not a blush on his cheeks, because angels don’t blush. they aren’t flustered. it’s more a... frustrated tinge of color as a result of being flummoxed by steve rogers’ stubbornness. 

“well, are you going to stand there with the door wide open where anyone can see or are you gonna come in, dammit?” 

-

sam wilson is made before the beginning of time itself, and knows that worlds that spin on an axis tend to be born, live, and then die. there’s a beginning for them, and sometimes he envies that - being able to start from scratch is a blessing that none of his kind get. they were made. by something, by nothing they were breathed into the air, perhaps. gone one moment and there the next. which moment? it’s... uncertain. fully formed, though, they are, and then the rest of the cosmos come and go in a flash around them, whirling in spirals of color and stars until something new comes from them. something like life.

space, power, reality, time, they unfold like a map before all of them, him and his siblings. the first cries of life echo through the emptiness and something answers back. souls are molded, 

these things grow. they evolve, become better. faster, stronger, smarter. there’s beauty in all of it, watching the skrulls begin to shapeshift on their own, or the klyntar learn to bond to their host. these things don’t come all at once, y’know, something had to do it first. 

except, sometimes, they need a little help. 

because when worlds come and go, you see a lot of endings. see a lot of implosion as well as explosion, an entire species, or planet, or fucking galaxy coming to an end in a spectacular display or... or dying out with a whimper. those are the ones that hurt, that have sam sobbing in his rooms on earth at night. when you dream you see those endings, hear them like a ghost. 

but not all endings have to be bad. sometimes with a world, hurtling toward destruction, a simple push toward the right direction can right its course. turn the tide. 

not all, of course. some set their paths from their first step, and the angels try to ease their pain before they go. but others, it just takes a little nudge, and... well. 

that nudge is sam’s whole job. 

-

“so you’re... an angel?” steve asks, and sam is stopped in his weaving of the tale. it sends him hurtling back to reality, this reality, where he’s sitting on a bed with his wings reaching wall to wall, with steve rogers sitting in front of him. he looks pale, but his jaw is set. as if he’s determined to listen to the end of this story before waking up from whatever dream he’s sure he’s in. 

his mind has never been the clearest when he’s in a form like this, so sam takes a moment to answer, his hand lowering from where it was dramatically raised to frame the ceiling in his mind’s eye - seeing beyond it to where the galaxies he’s describing rest. 

“i... guess that’s what you’d call me, yes,” sam answers, and his voice comes off a little petulant before he can stop it. it’s... more than that, but he knows it’s the nature of the beast. they’ve been around for forever, and so their mark is left on civilizations all over. but here and now. wings, slight glow, coming from above - just go with it, wilson. “called different things, to different peoples, but, yes. to you, or at least a lot of humans, an angel.” 

“are you a fallen angel?” steve asks next. his voice is a little warmer, now, almost joking, and sam snorts a bit. 

“not exactly. i mean, i didn’t fall to get here.” 

- 

well. he kinda did. 

sam feels the planet called earth by its residents, midgard by others, terran by others still - a species all their own, and he feels them all. feels their struggles as they build great cities and the walls come crumbling around them, their joys as they bring new life where they can with crops and bountiful harvests. 

he takes an interest in them. why? maybe it’s their smiles. the way they walk. the odd songs they sing. earth isn’t particular special, but. there’s something about them that he’s drawn to. 

so when he goes to observe the rest of the cosmos, dances from place to place, sometimes its an earth song in his ear. his siblings tease him for it, but they all have their favorites. they’re not perfect. 

perhaps that’s what has him visiting the first time. asking around for a way to walk along their streets. just for a moment. 

that first moment ends up being a century. and it takes a lot out of him. the first time he attempted, the ground was scorched, and he learned his lesson about announcing his presence due to the faces that melted at the sight of him. 

- 

“wait, wait, wait. like that movie?” 

“what movie?” 

“raiders of the lost ark. the one we watched with tony. their faces, the nazis, melted off at the sight of the inside of the ark of the covenant. like that?”

“i... guess. kind of.” 

“that’s... kind of gross.” 

“you know that i can melt faces and you’re insulting me?”

“it’s not an insult. just an observation that it’s kind of disgusting.” 

“turning it into a movie reference like that spider-kid does not make it any less offensive.” 

“or less gross.” 

“you gonna shut up and let me finish?” 

-

he visits more often. fine tunes what he can and can’t reveal. and slowly there’s an attachment that can’t be shaken. no matter where he is, his heart longs to be back, to walk with them once again. the teasing from his siblings turns into cruel truths, reminders of what happens to those they choose to watch from above. 

they die. 

all of them. eventually. even the ones that live the longest eventually fall. it is only angels that can withstand, and that immortality comes at a price all its own. 

but even when he sees it up close, weeps with them, there is no changing the heart. the soul. 

his light grows a little dimmer than his siblings. the glow a little less sharp. but even through his pain, he can’t change his compassion. the fact that since the beginning his steps walked him toward those that needed him the most, from planet to planet, people to people. 

so, he makes a career out of it, you could say. come in, fix things, and get out. the ultimate game-changer. the key part being leaving. eventually, he rises up above them once again. there is only so much a being can do, even a celestial one, and... sometimes they don’t follow his advice. but he always has to leave eventually. because in the end, he doesn’t belong. he is not one of them. no matter where he goes, his siblings remain in the sky. some join his noble quest. others don’t, but they all have a home far above the ground. 

until... 

- 

he pauses. 

steve’s walking close to him now. they’d moved since they started talking, as the hour got late and sam’s wings folded up once again. the pair of ‘em had vanished with a blink, and watching steve almost fall over at the sudden shift had sam laughing loud enough that jarvis politely requested they quiet. 

he remembers where they are, of course. a tower, with more than just the two of them. so sam urges the two of them to take their conversation outside, into the trees in central park, where the cameras end, the surveillance equipment cease. 

a little help from sam makes it so. 

it’s a long way. but they both make it eventually, and sam takes the time to think about his next step. does he tell all he’s done? what he’s changed?

but, too soon, they’re seated again, sharing a log that had fallen where no one could hear, and steve looks to him expectantly. 

“until what, sam?” 

- 

until the earth screams. 

it happens over and over again, and that’s the only way sam can describe it. a call for help across the universe, and he answers. 

his hands are messy at this point, with earth’s blood. but that only means he stumbles with them as they pull themselves back to their feet. he is in the ears of prophets, of leaders, of generals. he finds himself working to save those he knows he can’t. his fate and this puny world’s are so intertwined, he no longer hears from his siblings anymore. can barely make out their words over the cries of a rock in the middle of ths solar system. 

but there’s something here that calls to him, even if he can’t discern it, yet. more than just the people, the animals, the trees, the waters. there’s power here. and it will rock the heavens with its might. 

it ebbs and flows, sam’s touch. sometimes he pulls back enough that he can almost see the heavens once again. but before long, he gets dragged back into the depths, saving lives, touching hearts, looking for what can chill the blood of an angel. 

and then. 

steve rogers aims to bury the nose of a giant flying ship into the northern oceans. 

it’s before sam can even think that he’s back at earth again, watching from his view from above with a proverbial hand against the glass. something about this scene has his heart racing, his body thrumming, the world calling out to him, begging for the turn of the tide. 

steve rogers crashes into the waves, and sam feels it. what shook him to his core. and before he can think, his hand reaches out, and the waters freeze, and for a moment he is there, alone. a heart beating beneath the ice. and... something else. 

- 

“the tessaract.” 

“yes.” 

- 

this is a journey that sam has never seen. a path that sam has never dared to take. but this path wasn’t one of his design, of course. no, chance rolls the die, and the earth suffers for it. 

-

the night air is quiet. it’s early morning, before the sun even thinks to rise, and sam has told it all. how much this “something else” scared him. how much power it held, how little this tiny world could handle. how his hand reached out to try and protect the earth and ended up hurting as well as helping. 

but he had done his best, with the time he had. found people on this planet who could turn the tide. there’s something in all of them, something selfless, and he dares to make their steps turn together. steve rogers freezes. natasha romanoff escapes. thor odinson steps onto this world and sam corrals him into a corner, makes him care for those lesser than he. tony stark survives. again and again, he survives, he perseveres, and clint barton sees things where no one else dares to look. bruce banner’s anger becomes a force for good, and soon they’re walking together, the walls of the tower thick with their laughter. sam feels their lives weaving a tapestry, thick and colorful, and before he can force himself to stop his own existence becomes a piece of the puzzle. it’s a family, he realizes, a little too late, when he’s looking over a glass of wine at the merry band of misfits he’s collected. 

one he’d hate to lose. 

there are others. around the world, who will be urged, he’s sure. but for now, this is who he has. and he looks at their faces, and realizes that he’s scared. 

“there’s something big coming, steve,” he whispers. his breath comes out as steam. the future makes his hands tremble, like nothing else has dared to do. “you’ve heard it from tony stark, in his own way. and now you’re hearing it from me. there’s something big, and... i don’t know if we can stop it.” 

but of course, it’s steve rogers. that only seems to make his brow furrow once more, and he tells him how they’ll face it together, like they do now. 

“everything we do, we do together,” he insists, and it makes sam’s heart pound in his chest. 

“and if i’m wrong?” sam challenged, standing suddenly, his collar tight. there’s a glow coming from him, unbidden, and the air warms around them. “if i did this for nothing? if i can’t protect you guys? never mind that i know i’ll watch it all fall apart eventually. if i can’t save you... i’ll go on living and knowing that i failed you. all of you.” 

there are tears, he’s realizing, as they drip into the grass. they shine before a moment before disappearing into the earth. he sniffs, and wipes them away as best he can, and when he turns to look at steve his smile is shaky. a strange creature luxury, to cry. 

“this is my home, now,” the angel whispers, and he shakes with that truth. feels his bond to the heavens ache with the stretch, feels his feet plant on the firmament beneath him. this little planet, and all its people, and the lives that are sleeping in that damn tower, ready to save it. “you guys are my home.” 

steve is standing close, now. sam’s surprised his brows haven’t singed. there are hands on his shoulders, and surely they are burning, but he doesn’t even flinch. 

“it’s mine, too,” steve tells him. “and tony’s, and nat’s. it’s bruce’s and clint’s and even thor’s, in his own way. it’s our home, and... well. if i’m to believe a guy with wings, it’s all thanks to him.” that’s said with a little grin, one that means joking and teasing, and sam manages a laugh through the sniffles, his wings flutter, too, breaking the illusion of vanishing, and steve doesn’t even flinch this time. 

“not all of it,” sam manages, shrugging. “i didn’t make you guys who you are. i just... made sure the way forward was a little more clear than it might’ve been.”

steve laughs again, a little softer. and his hands squeeze tight. “you really trying to be humble, right now? this is a pep talk, okay?” 

“well, i’m waiting for the pep,” he intones drily. 

“and here it is,” steve returns, without missing a beat. “this is our home, okay? all of us. and we’re gonna protect it. no matter what. it’s that simple. no matter what happens, no matter what portal or doorways or... tessaracts come to find us, we’ll save the world again and again and again. together. that’s a promise, sam. you hear me? together.” 

the world is quiet. the future is uncertain. but sam looks up at steve, his eyes wide and still and little shiny, and he knows. 

it’s a promise he’s gonna keep. 

with another sniffle, sam pulls steve close enough that he can bury himself in him. they grip each other in the light of the morning sun. its rays are warm, the dew forming like it does with each new day. it rises past the horizon and shines on their skin, and they’re still in yesterday’s clothes. soon their feet move toward the tower again, and the central park authorities are none the wiser. 

together. all of them. 

and sam’s gonna make sure it happens. 

fin.

[istheresomebodywhocanimagine]

Pavlov’s Dog

anonymous said: I see you are a fellow Brian girl hehehehehehe. I would like to request a Brian x psychologist!reader who just fucks around with her “magical psychology Jedi mind tricks” (but in actuality this is absolutely not a skill or a thing real psych peeps have!). Kinda based the question on the fic you did with the weird reader. Loved it btw!

“But it smells so good,” Roger complained, staring longingly back at the food cart that was standing on the corner of the sidewalk near the library. “Besides, I haven’t got to study. I’ll pass.”

You raised an eyebrow, clinging your books to your chest with one arm while dragging Roger along with the other. “You promised we’d meet one of your friends for a little study triple date, and you just ate with me not even two hours ago, you lard.”

“Lard! That’s rich of you, Y/N - you’re the one who had two plates!” Roger protested, stumbling after you and begrudgingly walking up the stairs to the door. With one sad glance back at the food he was missing out on, he started to walk in slowly while you held the door open for him. As he passed you, he gave you a dirty look and sniffled, clearly upset that he wasn’t getting his way for once. You’d learned to ignore his little moods, however, and you had no problem ushering him inside while blocking out his muttered protests.

You found a quiet corner with the least people in it, but still in view of the door, and sat down so you were facing away from the door. You didn’t need any more distractions than Roger already was, and he was proving difficult enough as he sat as far away from you at the 4 person table as possible. “Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” you sneered, spreading your books out and pulling out a small tin of mints, tossing him one. “Suck on that.”

“I’m so upset that ‘suck on that’ wasn’t even funny to me.” Roger pouted as he slumped down in the chair, still opting to suck on the mint instead of starving to death. He only got a moment to feel sorry for himself, though, because a tall, gangly looking man approached the table, catching Roger’s attention.

“You alright, Rog?” the man asked. You assumed this was his friend, so you watched the two and waited to be introduced to the man behind the curly mass of hair. Roger looked up at him, crossing his arms, then looked back at you.

“I’m being held against my will, in fact,” Roger lamented, scooting in his chair so his friend could shuffle behind him and sit in the chair across from you. As the stranger sat, he held out his hand to you.

“Brian May,” he offered, shaking your hand when you reciprocated the action.

You smiled affably and shook his hand in return. “Y/N. Sorry Roger doesn’t have manners today, I seem to have hit a nerve.”

“Oh, that’s far too easy to do. Roger’s a bundle of nerves waiting to be struck,” Brian joked, letting go of your hand and starting to get out his things. Roger made a noise of protest, but quieted when someone on the other side of a stack of books shushed him. He made a face instead and flicked you off before begrudgingly opening his textbook.

You all began to study after a bit of small talk, but you found yourself bored with your work after a couple hours, so you sat back for a mental break, looking around idly and playing with your hair. Roger was already asleep in his book, long past bored, and Brian was beginning to slow down on his incessant writing and diagramming. You looked over at his books, noticing all kinds of mumbo jumbo about the cosmos. It was too confusing for you, which made your face go slightly screwy as you pursed your lips and tried to make sense of whatever he was doing.

“What major are you?” Brian asked suddenly, aware that you were staring at his book. You jumped a bit, which made him laugh, but he just repeated the question after a few seconds of you looking at him like a deer in the headlights.

Shaking your head, you ran a hand back through your hair and took a deep breath, then sat forward a bit. “I’m a psychology major. Hoping to go into I/O psych, just want to keep my options open right now.”

Brian made a noise of appreciation at this, setting his pencil down and resting his head on one arm that was currently propped up on the table. “Psychology, cool stuff. So you’re telling me you can do fancy mind tricks and the likes?”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes, but you smiled nonetheless. “You know, psychology doesn’t always mean that I’m able to manipulate your mind. I just study it. Not everything’s a mind game, silly.”

“The key words there are ‘doesn’t always’.” You had to admit, he made a fair point. And he knew it too, which gave him a smug little grin that did nothing but poke and prod at the slight annoyance he’d already instilled in you. “Don’t be shy, show me a mind trick or two,” he added, egging you on.

You mulled over the ludicrous idea of it all, but you did remember a few little tricks that your primary school teacher had shown you years ago. After a few more seconds, you sighed melodramatically and scooted forward in your chair a bit, nodding. “I guess I can let you in on a few secrets. After all, you’re….. what major are you again?”

He chuckled, sitting up and holding up one of his books. “Astrophysics. I’m getting my PhD.”

You raised an eyebrow. “You’re studying the great unknown of space… and you want me to show you a dumb mind trick?”

He shrugged in response, scooting forward in his chair a bit. You almost rolled your eyes again, sitting back in your chair and pushing your hair behind your ears. Reaching into your coat pocket, you pulled out the tin of mints and offered him one, which he accepted.

“So how did you meet Roger?” you asked, letting him go off on a small tangent about how they met through Smile earlier that year. A few times throughout the story, you’d sit back and push your hair behind your ears again, then offer him a mint soon after. He always accepted, and when he finished up talking about some new songs they’d been working on, he asked you how you met Roger.

“Oh, I met him through a friend of mine who went on and off with him. We don’t really speak to her anymore, but I thought he was funny and a good time so I ended up spending more time with him than she did. I suppose that’s probably what ticked her off so much she cut off the friendship.” You thought about it for a second, then pushed your hair behind your ears again as you sat back. “Want another mint?” you asked, noticing he almost held out his hand before you said it, which was what you’d been going for this whole time. Next time, you’d hold back. You gave him the mint this time, though, then questioned him about Smile some more.

About 5 minutes later, you sat back and pushed your hair behind your ears again, but you didn’t offer a mint. However, his hand went out as he continued speaking, and it took about 10 seconds of you staring at his hand with a blank expression before he realized what happened. A slow grin crept up on his face as his sentence faltered. “You sly dog,” he murmured after a moment, retreating his hand back to his side of the table. “And you said you don’t have any mind tricks.”

You giggled softly, tossing him the last of your mints and putting the tin in the front of your bag. “That isn’t a mind trick, it’s classical conditioning. Elementary psychology, Pavlov’s dog.”

“Sneaky girl,” he restated, shaking his head and sitting back. “I want to see another trick.”

You decided you’d just try and trigger his defense mechanism next, so you held out both of your hands for a match of rock paper scissors. “Best 2 out of 3?”

Brian’s eyebrow’s furrowed. “What does the winner get?”

You knew you’d most likely be the winner, so you decided to throw out something tempting. “A free meal from the loser. And I make a mean… okay, I’ll just take you somewhere you like, I really can’t cook much besides pasta.” Less tempting than you’d planned, but he’d already made up his mind, taking the challenge.

“Alright, it’s 1, 2, 3, shoot, and you go on shoot, okay? I’ll let you count, so you have the advantage.” He agreed to your terms, and you both got ready. As he began counting, you spoke, “Roger said you were vegetarian?” On shoot, he threw down a scissors, as you expected. At the same time, you threw down rock. Unaware of the defense mechanism you’d just triggered, he cursed quietly under his breath and looked at you.

“Yes, I’m vegetarian. I also don’t smoke, unlike Roger here.” He shook his head, mumbling, “2 out of 3. You got this next one, Bri.”

You held back a grin, and got ready again. As he began counting again, you interrupted again, this time closer to three. “What restaurant are you taking me to?” you asked cheekily, getting a frustrated groan from Brian as he realized he’d used scissors again, and once again lost to your rock.

“Does that even count as psychology?” he whined, pouting a bit as he sat back in his chair, defeated.

“Not really, or at least not advanced, anyways,” you replied, shrugging and grinning a bit. “Just something my teacher showed me. People always use scissors when their defense mechanism is triggered, even by small questions. But you never answered my last one?”

Brian couldn’t help but smile a bit as he picked up on the subtle flirting, and despite his sorrow over losing a bet, he sighed and sat forward again. “I suppose we’ll just have to see what you’re in the mood for?” You pursed your lips, thinking, but you were interrupted by a loud snore from Roger, who was almost falling out of his chair at this point. The sight made you giggle and shake your head.

“You want one last trick? I’m assuming we’re not going to get any more studying done, not with our vocalist over here.” Brian chuckled at that one, then nodded and shut his books.

“Blow me away.” You stacked your books to the side, then turned to face him again.

“How old are you, Brian?” you asked, wildly off topic, which threw him off a bit.

“Well,” he said, crossing his arms and smiling slightly. “Is this part of the trick. I’m 21, thank you for asking. Is it appropriate for me to ask how old you are?”

You laughed, shaking your head. “Besides the point. Anyways, I bet you a pint that I can make you say your age, 21.”

“Easy money, I just have to avoid saying it, right?”

“Yes, that’s it.” You cleared your throat, then said, “What’s 2 + 2?”

Brian made a face, then said four.

“Alright, add 1.” He said five. “Now multiply that by 2.” Of course, he says ten. “And add 3 to that.” Thirteen. “Add 5.” Eighteen. “Subtract 2.” Sixteen. “Add 6.”

“Twenty-two. What are we getting at here?”

“What are you talking about? Add 4.”

“Twenty-six. Seriously, what are you trying to do?”

“Subtract 6. I don’t know what you’re talking about, Brian.”

He was getting mildly frustrated. Good. “Twenty! I don’t understand this game. You’ve gone loopy, psychology major.”

“Add 3,” you said, looking at him pointedly.

“Twenty-fucking-three! Are you mad? Are we just going round in circles here!”

“Ha!” You pointed at him, grinning widely. “I got you to say it. You weren’t supposed to say 23!”

“That’s rubbish and you know it!” he said defiantly, leaning over the table. “I wasn’t supposed to say 21, not 23.” As soon as he said it, his face dropped. You started laughing as he groaned and sank back in his chair, covering his face.

“Are we going for a bite and a pint tonight, or do you want to take a rain check on that?” you teased, standing up and pulling your bag over your shoulder, gathering up your books. You walked around the table as Brian wallowed in embarrassment, stopping to give Roger a gentle shake.

“What?” Roger groaned as he slowly woke from his slumber, unable to raise his head off the book. “Five more minutes, please.”

“Brian and I are going to go out for a bite, we’ll meet you at the pub later.” Roger waved his hand lazily in acknowledgement, and Brian stared dumbfoundedly for a moment before gathering his things and following you out onto the sidewalk. You stopped at the bottom of the steps and turned to face him. He had an amused look on his face, and he turned to face you as well, speaking first.

“So, Mind Commandant, where to now?”

-

hi it’s me

happy holidays i didnt get brian may for christmas but it was OKAY i guess

okay now that this is finished taco bell or kfc :| im hongry

-w

[wardencommanderrodimiss]

I'm making my way through the last case of DD again, and I wanted to rant to somebody, it is such a frustrating experience. Precious space artifacts do not deserve to be treated this way, especially as the setting is based on a real life space mission, and JAXA had enough issues, so to take one of the few precious successes they did have and to make a mockery of it is offensive on every level... *ahem* Anyway, I know you didn't care about Fulbright during your playthrough, (p1)

but I'm curious what you thought of his actions in that last case - because they never made sense to me. He had no reason to incriminate himself by presenting a real murder weapon. He had no reason to frame Athena specifically. I mean, most murderers in AA would have gotten away with everything if it wasn't for their actions, but this seems particularly egregious. Was he explicitly trying to get caught? Was he doing it for Simon's sake, to help with the retrial?

That is the only way I could ever comprehend his actions.... Dammit, him being the phantom isn't really foreshadowed at all in the game, no matter how frequently I revisit it, and it is frustrating that he wouldn't appear again, because I did enjoy him as a detective. I do find it interesting, though that in the latest chapter, Apollo suspects everyone and everything of not being human, except Fulbright.

Honestly, no matter how much I know there are plenty of references to real space stuff, especially with character names both original and localized, my brain violently refuses to actually consider GYAXA and the Cosmos Space Center in terms of any real life anything because it’s all so patently absurd.

Metis gets hold of a piece of precious, priceless, valuable scientific space rock and turns it into jewelry for her daughter. Athena lives in the fucking center and has run of the place. So do Clay and Apollo, unaffiliated high school students, who are able to just get in and meet the astronauts and everyone. In present day, Aura is building a giant death robot in her lab and nobody cares. The director’s solution to the government not caring about the threat is to have one of his astronauts drug the other and then fake the launch. Clay goes along with it!

And this place is allegedly so important and influential that some nebulous foreign foe has an incredible superspy sent in to sabotage them! What the fuck are any of you doing! 

It’s kinda like the issue with Fulbright, in that he’s supposed to be some cool collected superspy but then bungles the coverup the same way every AA killer bungles it, but it’s noticeable with him because it’s just so egregious with the character they tried to present. With GYAXA they’re supposed to be, you know, a functioning space program, but everyone is either quirky or incompetent, as everyone else in AA, but it’s noticeable because like. How did you guys actually get anything into space. Aura’s building a giant death robot. 

I want an Office/Parks and Rec style sitcom about this place, honestly, but I cannot equate it to anything that could actually exist in the real world because it’s so......so. I can suspend disbelief for spirit mediums and Gramarye bracelets and Athena’s hearing and Widget way sooner than I can believe that anyone cared enough about GYAXA to sabotage them. -ahem- Clearly I needed to rant, too.

Ah, Fulbright. Now what do we do with him, too.

I thought he was framing Athena because there was the security footage of her leaving the space museum and he realized he could point to that as “well, if they’re proving Starbuck couldn’t have done it, then she‘s the other option.” But yeah he makes some ridiculous choices there, which everyone in AA does, but as I said before, superspy. Capcom trying to up the ante and raise the stakes just makes everything that much harder to actually take seriously.

I’ve seen that posited, yeah, that perhaps he had become somewhat fond of Simon and wanted to see justice properly served. Or maybe, I suppose, as I’m pondering this myself, becoming Fulbright felt like such a lower stakes assignment that he wanted to be done with it all, hoped to get back the evidence of his identity and then quietly disappear. And when that didn’t happen he decided he’d rather fall on the mercy of Simon and Edgeworth and the like, as opposed to his employers, who’ll maybe kill him, he totally knows that, he knows there’s that chance, but he’ll try it anyway. He’s fuckin tired. Wear a mask for too long and your face grows to fit it. In justice we trust.

What I like about the phantom twist isn’t really so much the actual twist but the conceptual horror of the thing. Not to self-plug, but like, in Swan Song I had Kay freak out about it because she had worked with Fulbright both before and after the real Fulbright had been killed and the phantom took his place and she didn’t notice a difference. Like that’s some real horror shit, something else taking your coworker’s place face and you don’t notice. Nobody notices. How bad do you think that has to fuck up everyone who even tangentially knew and worked with Fulbright.

(That concept, incidentally, of someone being swapped out for something else and nobody notices, is a particularly fae kind of horror. Which means that no matter how much of an unnecessarily high-stakes mess this plot is, and everything I might’ve ranted about the Space Center, I’m excited about it.

Poor Apollo. He’s so suspicious of everyone but the person he most needs to be suspicious of. He’s got enough trust issues and then after all this he’s just gonna be like. He’s gonna snap and assume no one is human and just have an iron fire poker on hand to hit everyone new he meets with. Hey. Hey, Nahyuta. Get over here. Get in swinging range, bro.)

[arkus-rhapsode]

I was wondering if you were planning on doing EZ reviews. I personally think if you get past the Erza clone and the similarities in looks with some characters that the story is very well and actually has a better plot than FT did.

So I’m going to give my surface level response on this and I will be fair on my stance like I usually try to. In the most general term, I don’t really review a series I don’t care about. If you notice I haven’t done a review of Black Clover in a while, its mainly cause this current arc is something I don’t really care about and it would feel like a drain on both me and my audience to here that each week. I’m sure my audience and EZ fans probably don’t wanna hear me belly ache about the series week to week.

This series really does show me that its made for people who like Hiro Mashima’s work. And if you do, more power to you, but your probably not going to enjoy my usually dissecting review style.

So right here I’m going to give my thoughts on the series to this point, and I wanna start positively. I do agree that the plot to Eden’s Zero is much better structured than FT’s once you get past the Elsie stuff. The four star shine robots plot to get to Mother actually seems like a good plotting out of how to take this story. It really reminds me of finding the four rave’s.

I also think I’ve mentioned this back in my former reviews, but the setting to is also interesting too, and forces world building. Though, I’d like them to experience the world rather than Witch just read of a synopsis of the world. Yeah having an internet in the world does kinda kill the sense of adventure.

And I will also say that I’m happy that most the cast has motivation unlike most of FT.

And with that we lead into my problems with the  story. First as I mentioned, the the plot does have better structure once you get past the Elsie stuff, the problem is that before that the pacing and plot seems really really slow, very confused, and then introduces such a high concept like time being eaten and going to other worlds in the past. While I do appreciate Hiro trying for a slower pace in the beginning, he’s doesn’t use it interestingly. He could take this time to explain the government or how these cosmos work? Is there king of space? Could the cosmos be cut up like the blues in One Piece? Or how about my biggest question, WHAT THE FUCK IS ETHER GEAR?! No we need more time travel and friendship!

Then there’s the first arc with this whole sister stuff. I will give credit that Rogue Out as villains aren’t too bad. Jin is obviously the best because he might heel turn, the sumo looking guy isn’t overtly evil, which was nice, and I could kinda get into Sister’s whole thing of just doing what she is paid to do as a motivation. But all villains except them are the usual Hiro Mashima bland weirdos with no characterization.

This Illega guy, I was expecting maybe a twist with him and why he has a collection of girls was maybe something subversive. Maybe he is trying to bring back tourism to his planet and by kidnapping B-cubers he was going to make them make the planet more entertaining, I mean Rebecca had a whole chapter praising them as coming up with fun things to do. Maybe he has a child who has an ether gear that made them look human and left him after the planet got closed off saying they’ll become a B-cuber, so he’s kid napping B-cubers to see if that one is her and that stuff that makes them stone should make his child reveal her true form.

No, he’s just a creep who likes turning women into furniture. Because… And that guy Wise’s intro arc who is just a common thug with his leg fetish brothers.

So I can’t call that story well done. If it takes till the Elsie arc to actually get to the plot actually moving forward and that this current arc is this bland and boring arc with everything being in the morally black, its not interesting.

How about the characters? Well, Shiki I’ll at least be fair, is actually gotten better than Natsu mainly cause he’s trying to be proactive. I’ll even give his gravity power at least seems to have more creativity than the generic fire dragon magic. But he’s such a confused and bland character. I mentioned this in my review chapter 1, Shiki’s strongest aspect is his social awkwardness and how that related to being raised around machines in a fantasy park. But he wants Shiki to be like your usual big damn hero whenever the time comes for him to look cool.

I recently watched an interesting piece on how My Hero’s Deku and Black Clover’s Asta represented two different types of shounen protagonists and ways to take a story. With Deku being a representation of the protagonist who needs to grow physically and emotionally into the pillar of his world that can inspire and fufil his dream, while Asta already is the pillar of his world who already can inspire and needs to earn recognition. Both of these types of protagonist are fine, but Shiki is trying to be both of them and it results in none of them. He seemingly needs to grow into a person who can actually get a ton of friends, but he also is apparently the kid who will rock the universe. It just results in a confused character, why does he act like such an idiot when he’s completely competent in action scenes?

And what makes him endearing? Say robots have a heart? Dude all the robots in this series have shown the ability to make expression and have emotion. We saw an android walk the street in chapter 2! Why do machines act like Shiki just told them the word of god after he says they have a heart, they all emote. Look at Pino and especially Witch, they’re displaying a range of emotion. Its not like they look like a cyberman who talks mechanically.

He’s just confused and unfortunately falls always back into that friendship shit as his only motivator instead of possibly addressing the trauma or adding a layer on how he won’t lose other people and what that feels like for him. The only time it really felt like he was living up to that emotionally stunned guy, was when he was beating the shit out of Illega to the point that Pino needed to shut him off, because I’m sure this kid can’t handle the emotion of anger quite yet in this situation.

Rebecca I think is worse though. I don’t know why people like her other than her design. Her personality is essentially jelly that can be morphed into whatever you want to fit the situation. She’s perverted in some scenes, but then doesn’t like perversion? I mean, she gets two guns in her hands and looks like a moron shooting randomly. Like is that badass? Is this what a female character has to do to be considered cool now?

I don’t consider her a rip off of Lucy, because Lucy actually had a character. Had a personality. No she is more a rip off of Elie from Rave, right down to the shooting shit up part. Only Elie made sense cause she was actually really unhinged thanks to the fact that she had no memories. But she got over it! She developed. Outside of her one past flashback with Happy, nothing about her is that interesting. I’ll also give her that she now just gets ether gear and its something she clearly can’t control yet, so there is room for improvement.

Wise, is actually an okay character. He’s got a cool concept of a guy from the past who is an inventor living in the future. I think his only weakness is that his ether gear is stupidly OP.

Pino is… Just and ornament that looks cute. You want your daughteru character to latch onto Shiki, here. Hell, I have bet going with a friend of mine that Pino will get some upgrade and she’ll have the body of a hot teenage girl. Its not that I hate here idea of having her memory erased, but the more I see of her and to more I hear about this robots have a heart makes me wish Michael came along.

Yeah, missed opportunity, cause Michael is not only a foil to Shiki and his adoptive brother, but he also doesn’t have a humanoid face. Meaning he doesn’t get convey true emotion so he actually seems like a robot. He actually seems like he’d have a character arc about discovering wanting to be more and more human. People would call Shiki weird calling a robot his “brother” and Michael never thought about it and we know there are multiple models of Michael. Imagine how fucking devastating it would be to see yourself mass produced. Imagine he actually gets to the point that he wants a humanoid face, because he wants to emote.

No we get Pino, who basically is Carla, but lacks any of thee enjoyable sass. Because we didn’t have enough sidekicks on this cast. Also we learn EMP is how to shut off ether gear, great, this is like if Usopp just had sea-prism stone on him at all times.

Then there’s Homura, she’s awful too. I’ll at least give Rebecca that she’s likable, but Homura she is personalitiy-less and has the worse character gimmick I think I’ve seen. Its not funny, its dumb. She can also use this ether gear too, and its a sword that was apparently passed down-its fucking 10 commandments. She also just walked into this story, like wha…? I’d be fine if she was like hunting the Eden’s Zero ship and watched it take off on Bluegarden, but no, Homura just came along cause she conveniently met Wise.

I’ll give her credit that the sword fighting looks cool, and I understand why people might like her cause that actually seems like something badass, but as a character she just feels tacked on.

Then there’s witch who is basically just the older sister character.

Elsie is not awful actually. She actually is a lot different from Erza and I actually would like to follow the space pirates more than I would want these random travelers. Also quick question, why do they still have the Eden’s Zero looking like a pirate ship? I mean, it looks cool, but these fuckers are not pirates, not even close. Oh wait, I know! We needed to rip off captain Harlock some more.

I’m not going to even talk about the potential love square with Shiki, Rebecca and Lavilla/Labilla, possibly Esie and Homura (?) cause one credit to FT was it wasn’t a harem, and Rave used a character like Celia and Beruka to more add an extra layer to the relationship of Elie and Haru. SO hoping Hiro avoids that.

So yeah if this rant has probably showed you, I don’t think EZ is all that great. But if you like it, fine I get that. I just have no interest in really talking about it week to week as even though I got down on FT, the beginning of the series was still something I enjoyed and I wanted to talk about how the current stuff had turned out. But EZ has no, beginning I liked. So I just don’t feel like I should be talking about it week to week.

[ugly-crying-over-bucky-barnes]

Tearing Down Sandcastles

Summary: Sofia feels stuck in life and has for the better part of two decades. Now she’s nearing her 30th birthday and her luck begins to change when a handsome actor accidentally destroys her niece’s sandcastle. 

Warnings: 

           There were a few places I didn’t want to be when I turned thirty. I didn’t want to be working the same dead-end job that barely paid the bills. I didn’t want to be stuck in my younger sister’s shadow. I didn’t want to be alone every night. I didn’t want to be in the constant state of anxiety.

           But here I was, four months away from turning thirty and things weren’t magically changing like I thought they would. And I was sure Cosmo was wrong when they said thirty was the new twenty-five. But at least I was somewhere warm for the week.

           My sister had invited me on vacation with her and her family to St. Martin. In the back of my mind, I knew it was because my mother was worried about me. She said the cold dreariness of New York was starting to affect my brain just like it did every year. But I ignored that small fact. I was up for a free beach vacation any day of the week.

           My twenty-seven-year old sister had it all. She was an accomplished movie director, had a handsome husband who was a model, had money to spare, and a beautiful little girl. I loved my sister and was her number one fan. But there was always something in the back of my mind that reminded me she was better.

           St. Martin was a good place to ignore all of my struggles. I could sit on the beach with the sun on my face and the warm breeze enveloping me. I didn’t even want to think about New York.

           “Auntie Sofie, we hafta hurry!” Adriana, my four-year-old niece brought me back to the present.

           “Okay, okay, I’m hurrying.” I continued to help her dig out a moat in front of her sandcastle. “Why don’t you go and…”

           Out of nowhere, someone ran backwards right into my niece’s sandcastle, crushing it in seconds. She gasped and I stood up, ready to chew out whoever decided to ruin my precious niece’s creation.

           “Oh my God, I’m so sorry.”

           I came face to face with blue-gray eyes, dark hair, chiseled jaw, and a look of puppy dog horror. “I uh…”

           “I wasn’t looking where I was going, that’s my fault. Jesus, I’m so sorry.”

           I was pretty sure I’d met him before. Did I meet him? Or was he a model that I’ve seen pictures of? Was he an angel that had visited my dreams before? I definitely knew him. “No… don't apologize I uh…that’s okay.”

           “S’not okay, you hafta help make it again!” My firecracker of a niece put her hands on her hips and glared down the tall man. “Mama says if you break something you hafta fix it!”

           “Ana, no, that’s not how we talk to…”

           “That’s okay, I’ll take the punishment.” He grinned and knelt down in the sand. “Alright, let’s clear out this wall and rebuild it.”

           I felt like I had too much to drink and was imagining a brighter future. I slowly sat down on the sand again next to this perfect specimen of a man. Adriana grabbed her bucket and ran to the edge of the ocean to collect more water.

           “I’m Sebastian, by the way.” He smiled as he began to smooth down the sand he had stepped in.

           “Sofia.” I tried to return the smile but felt like my brain had forgotten how to move my facial muscles.

           “Is she yours?” He wondered.

           “No, she’s my sister’s. I’m just tagging along on their vacation.” I admitted. “Do you have kids? You seem good with them.”

           “No. I’m pretty sure I need to be in a relationship longer than a few months to actually have kids.” He laughed.

           I tried not to meet his eyes. I was afraid that if I looked at him for too long, I’d blurt out something embarrassing or my face would turn a few different shades of red. “Yeah, I can empathize with that.”

           “Really? You’re beautiful, I assumed you were taken already.”

           “Uh…” The part of my brain that formed coherent sentences experienced a severe malfunction. It was like all the cells were scrambling to put the pieces back in place so I could actually speak.

           “Sorry.” He paused from forming the sandcastle wall. “That was super forward.” He glanced over at me.

           “No, it’s okay. Thank you” I swallowed and allowed myself to lock eyes with him. It seemed like he got more attractive the more I looked. His skin was tanned, probably from being on vacation, he had a good nature about him, and his eyes seemed to smile.

           “So where’re you from?” He formed a little doorway in the sandcastle.

           “New York.” I picked up a few shells Adriana had collected and pressed them into the walls.

           “No kidding, me too. I feel like whenever I travel I meet someone who lives like twenty minutes away from me.” He chuckled. “Or it’s some sort of fate.”

           I wasn’t sure why, but my chest tightened up when he said those words. It was as if the stars were aligning and for a brief moment I could see a brighter future for me. Fuck, I really was lonely.

           “There.” Sebastian brushed the sand off his hands, rocking back on his heels to observe his creation. “Kinda looks like no one ever stepped on it. Think I’ll be forgiven?”

           I smiled and shook my head. “She’s a perfectionist like her mother so probably not. We might be here all afternoon.”

           “I actually wouldn’t mind that, I couldn’t tell you the last time I actually made a sandcastle.” He used another bucket to make an annex to the castle. The sun caught in his hair and revealed soft chocolate highlights.

           It made me melt.

           Adriana ran back over with a full bucket. Saltwater sloshed around as she set the bucket down. “I wanna make the biggest sandcastle in the world!” She exclaimed and plopped down next to me.

           “Let’s do it then.”

===============

           Sebastian was a great sport even when Adriana bossed us around like we were her construction crew and she was the architect. As time wore on, my sister called Adriana back over to the beach chairs. I knew they would be heading back to the rooms to get ready for dinner soon.

           “A hard day’s work but I think it paid off.” Sebastian stood up and offered a hand to me.

           I accepted his hand and felt a little lighter as he helped me stand up. “Yeah, Chateau Adriana is complete.” I reached down to wipe sand off my arms and legs. “Ready to be destroyed by the ocean in an hour.”

           He chuckled and ran a hand through his windswept hair. “So uh, I’m sure you’re going to go have dinner with your family but if you wanted, we could go grab drinks afterward.” He suggested shyly. It seemed out of character for such a well-built guy. I was sure he had no problems getting women to go out with him. If anything I was sure he had a hard time getting women to stop hitting on him. I was sure if I weren’t as introverted I would’ve made several passes at him.

           “Yeah, okay.” I nodded. The response set off a few chain reactions in my head. First, it was excitement, anxiety, and suddenly dread. Did I have an outfit nice enough to go out with a guy like him? Wasn’t I boring to him? Surely he’s had girlfriends far prettier than I was. I tried to stamp out every bad thought.

           He smiled and I was sure I’d never seen such a genuine look of happiness on another person before. “Alright, cool. So want to meet up at say…ten?”

           “Sounds good, I’ll be there.”

===============

           “Was that guy’s name Sebastian?”

           I was staring at my choice of outfits laid out on my bed. “Hm?” I glanced over my shoulder as my sister walked into the room. She’d booked a suite for the four of us. I offered to pay a portion of it but she refused. We both knew I could pay my rent but when it came to other things in life, I was struggling. The city was just too expensive and I didn’t make enough money as an office administrator by day and a bartender by night.

           “That guy that was with you on the beach.” She paused by the mirror to put in her earrings.

           “Yeah, his name was Sebastian. Why?” I wondered, not thinking too much of it.

           “I thought he looked familiar. He worked on one of my friend’s movies.” She explained.

           It wasn’t too strange to hear. A lot of the guests at the exclusive resort were wealthy people from Hollywood. Erica knew a few people who we ran into. It seemed they all ran in the same circles.

           “What does he do?”

           “He’s an actor, a pretty good one as far as I’ve heard. He’s playing Tonya Harding’s husband in that new movie.”

           My sister’s nonchalant answer made me freeze up. “What?”

           “He’s handsome isn’t he?”

           “’Rica did you just say he was an actor? I agreed to get drinks with an actor?” The stakes were suddenly raised much higher.

           “You’re getting drinks with him?” She clapped her hands together and squealed. “You’re not going to be single the rest of your life!”

           I was in too much of a state of shock to respond to her jab. “Dammit, I’m going to make a complete idiot out of myself.”

           “No, you’re not.” Erica sighed and walked over to me. “You just need some self-confidence.”

           “Great thanks.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ll pick some up at the bullshit store before I go.”

           “Sofia,” She gave me the same stern look my mother did. “You’re beautiful, you know that. He’s interested in you for a reason. You need to show him he was right. Everyone loves you once you start to open up to them.”

           I swallowed and looked down at the bed again. “I have nothing to wear.” I whimpered like a teenager.

           “I’ve got just the dress to knock his socks off,” Erica smirked.

note: I think this is super boring but I’m going to try to make it a little more exciting moving forward. Or I’ll just give up...haven’t decided yet.

[nethersphereadventure]

Day 1182

Okay so I already done fucked this so let's go again here reee to deleting things.

It's been 3 1/4 years since I started this and so much has changed. Let's start at the beginning shall we. Last time we were here I was stressing about exam results and my place in the world. Here's my thoughts kinda ordered but also really not.

Leaving home; Well, the first and biggest event was leaving home to go live w my dad. Tbh I think the less said the better

Relationship; My longtime crush asked my out and I was crazy enough to not initially accept him! We all went together as family members to go see Cosmo Sheldrake which was incredible multigenerational experience even if I was exhausted

Swimming; This was not the greatest of days. I was so overwhelmed that I couldn't even get out of bed to go on a day I'd really looked forward to with my 2 best friends. I think I worried them but just ghosting out but I was really touched how they completely turned my day around. It was also during that period which we absolutely abused free cinema tickets to go see mamma Mia 2 and into the fade (weird German movie)

We got Harry and Peter

Prom, picnic: I'd had my hair and nails done with mog and it was insanely hot. well it all started with morrigan and finn coming over to watch the handmaiden. They stayed the night and it was lovely but I felt like absolute garbage the next day, which was when we were supposed to go on a picnic but I ended up on my dad's bathroom floor for most of the day. I still felt a bit woozy the day after for prom but I just had to keep drinking and I was okay despite nearly flashing many people including my tutor and head of year. I stayed at mogs but didn't go to the after party bc of the obvious shiteness. I had a lovely or not so lovely chat with finn on the floor. We all eventually passed out in a spoon train only to be awoken by Joanna throwing malteasers at us through the window.

Budapest; this meant I ended up going to London twice in about 3 days. The first trip was with finn and Dom to go see flight of the conchords. It was fantastic. Then came the trip to buda. We travelled to Lucy's House where we had amazing pizza and a fitful night's sleep. Then caught a taxi and an insanely early bus to Heathrow. We made it and the ended up having to pelt across Munich. When we arrived in buda the first mishap was Radley getting yeeted off of the bus by the driver and they had to sneak back on. Then we went to our lovely apartment and then did all the usual things of sightseeing, looking at museums, going to the baths and ruin bars as well as cat cafes. The house of terror and the hospital in the rock were really amazing experiences. Also surprisingly there were some really cool thrift stores! Then we came back and ended up getting stuck at Heathrow by missing our bus by like 2 minutes. Luckily radleys dad picked us up for the long journey back home.

Our birthday happened at some point maybe hereish?

Exam results; I was insanely stressed about these. I couldn't sleep the night before. Morrigan messaged me in the morning to say she'd gotten her results before ucas was technically supposed to open so of course I checked. I was able to tell my dad before we even left the house and he cried. We met my mum down at school to collect my actual results and then went for tea. I got a monkey card which was honestly the most exciting thing.

Greenman; we actually had tent poles this time and I married an alien.

Camping; we met up with some people we haven't met up with for ages and we basically had freedom to fuck around in Lyme Regis and the surrounding areas. I got a load of cool free badges from a vintage shop owner because I helped him sort them. There were so many other cursed shops it was great especially the penny arcade where we spent a lot of our time. Also I lost the end of my toe to a wall in Lyme Regis which was real exciting. On our way back the worst happened and I had to pee in someone's driveway.

Greenbelt; I've already kinda talked about this but I've never been to a place where I know so many artists. It was so nice to be independent but also have a great time with my dad and rest of the family. It was the first time we'd been there alone for a very very long time.

Uni prep; this was wild and I couldn't do it and kinda had a breakdown which included spreading my stuff all over the living room. Finn came over and calmed me down so much.

Coming to uni; my dad brought me up here to Manchester with all my badly packed stuff. We moved in and he gave me this real cute necklace and painting which made me cry which set him off. We set up my room and he left. I just sat down and didn't know what to do with myself. So I did the thing only a normal person would do and knock on every single door in my block in the hope that someone would answer and one person did! It was Emily. I felt so awkward the first time just like sat with her. Luckily I encouraged her to go around again and I met more people. When my family came up to see me we even dragged Dan and Albert out with us.

Freshers; this was incredible. I met so many people at jcr events in Vickies. It was so sweaty and crowded. There were two biggish events for me. The first one was the palaver of deansgate takeover. I forgot my ID. I tried to take the bus back but it took me to the wrong accommodation. Then found somebody willing to buy me an uber and come to my accommodation where we luckily picked up chloe as well. We then finally made it in. This was the night I met Gabriel. Secondly was the night I boycott the festival and met up with randoms in Plymouth . It was great fun even if we don't really talk. However this was all a little marred by Finns breakdown at freshers. We were all so worried.

First semester was just a time of getting familiar with everything and messing around, learning how uni and essays worked. I went to Swansea to surprise Finns for the weekend and he almost cried. Also travelling back from mogs at 2am we just got left by the bus driver which was interesting to say the least.

Christmas and New year: this was a crazy time, we had a really nice few Christmas days. The first actual one was with mum. We basically just ate and watched TV throughout the day. Then there was one where we met up with the cousins which was indeed lovely. Grandma went into hospital on new year's eve, we kinda knew it was the beginning of the end. This meant my entire new year's was nervous but I felt surrounded by friends still.

Now. The here and now. Everything this still crazy. I feel a load closer with my flatmates. We've laughed, cried and gotten drunk. We've danced all night and done all manners of dumb shit. There's been love and slightly less anger. We had an amazing dinner dance the other night and it was truly fantastic to be there with people. After was a also really good fun and we cuddled together until about 7am. Beside my flatmates I've met many great people through our Friday drinks. Aurora, zillion, luke, Danny, jess, gabby and karin etc. I've also got to see kash, aoife and phoebe again. Finn came to see me in Manchester for an entire week so he also met them. It snowed loads and was wonderful. We cooked, slept, messed around, watched films whatever and it was great.

The future-- for me in the short term its relatively simple. I just need to write essays and pass my classes and it's all gucci. However the day after tomorrow is brexit and the who really knows?

[thorne93]

Aftermath (Part 5)

Prompt: After the events in Infinity War, you’re compelled to take action – any action, no matter the cost.

Word Count: 921

Warnings: language, angst, violence,…. (It’s involving Infinity War, pretty sure you can figure this out…)

Notes: ****THIS CONTAINS INFINITY WAR SPOILERS. THIS IS NOT SPOILER FREE. I REPEAT, NOT SPOILER FREE.****** This is meant to heal our hearts after what happened in IW. I’m not here to make the loss worse. Beta’d by my boo @carryonmyswansong. Also, tis a Bucky x Reader fic…It’s also got a crossover!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Landing on a grassy island, a sea breeze hitting your face, you felt an odd serenity fall over you. Maybe it was the landscape, maybe it was the fact that you might be dying soon and your subconscious was accepting it. Whatever the reason, it was about to shatter around you.

“Ah, come back for more?” Thanos asked evenly as he stood on your left, from inside a hut.

“I’m here to make you pay,” you vowed, backing away slowly. It didn’t go unnoticed that his arm was starting to wither.

“Pay? Pay for what? Saving your planet? You should be thanking me.”

“Okay, Jim Jones, sell your crackpot kool-aid somewhere else. I’m not buying.”

“You’re a mouthy one,” he noted but you just narrowed your gaze on him.

“Look, I’m going to give you one chance. One chance to give up the Gauntlet.”

He laughed. “Or what? You’ll talk it off me?”

“I’ll make you wish your raisin ass never came down here.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“Have it your way,” you said before thinking quickly who might have the best power to use.

Scott.

You opened your eyes and aimed the red beams at Thanos but he held up his arm, blocking it. You tried to push harder, but it didn’t seem to phase him. He went to reach towards you but you dropped Scott’s mind and jumped to Kurt, teleporting behind Thanos.

You rapidly thought of who you might be able to hit him with when you decided on Thor. Tapping into the Asgardian’s mind, you began blasting him from behind with lightning. Within a second, Thanos turned, his arm already reeled back. You jumped to Steve’s mind, using his reflexes and backflipped out of the way, but Thanos’s hand was bigger than you had anticipated. His hand clipped you mid flip and you landed hard on your stomach.

Logan.

You jumped inside his mind and pulled his self-healing, allowing you to stand up quickly.

“You’re determined,” Thanos remarked as you stared him down.

“You’re not the only one with a mission, purple dick.”

He went to aim his glove at you but you accessed Jean’s telekinesis and picked up the entire hut beside you and slammed it into him. The blow did knock him back a few steps, giving you an ounce more of confidence.

As soon as he cleared the debris from his face, he glared at you.

“You’re not playing nice.”

“Playing nice?” you spat, taking one step closer to him. “You killed my family! My friends! You took everyone from me!”

You knocked some rock loose from a cliff far behind you and launched them at him, but he used one of the Stones and it just phased through him.

The Stones. You had to get that Gauntlet away from him.

You tapped Magneto’s power and tried to wrench the glove from his grimey hand, but he realized what you were doing and he clenched his fist tighter around the glove.

“Ah, ah. You can’t take what you didn’t earn!” he bellowed before swinging at you.

The action was too quick and you couldn’t siphon Steve’s reflexes fast enough so his giant fist collided with your entire body, knocking you into the ground. You saw black, a blinding pain exploding in the left side of your body, particularly your face.

You tried to get up, but even raising your head seemed impossible. Your vision blurred as Thanos seemed to get closer to your face. You moaned, you were trying to tell him to stay the hell away from you, but all you could do was groan.

Suddenly, your vision went all black, then white…. A blurred figure was walking toward you.

“Y/N...Y/N…” the most familiar voice in the world cooed softly.

“Bucky?” you weakly responded.

“Hey, doll, it’s me,” he softly said as he got closer to you, his form getting clearer every second.

“Bucky….I...I miss you so much,” you said.

“I know you do,” he gently responded as his hand came up and cupped your cheek. “I miss you too. I am so proud of you for taking him on.”

“But I’m losing.”

He gave you a soft, knowing smile. “Yeah, you kinda are.”

Depressingly, you said, “Thanks for the confidence.”

“He’s not here for confidence,” Wanda suddenly said from your left. You turned and saw her and your arms immediately wrapped around her, tears in your eyes.

“Wanda,” you cried, your body heaving with sobs. “Oh my God.”

Everyone was there. Sam, T’Challa, Bucky, Wanda, Vision, Peter -- oh God, Peter. The poor kid… and some others you’d never seen before. You weren’t sure if you were in Heaven, dreaming, or some other sort of realm where everyone had gone.

“We’re here to give you confidence, Y/N. All of us,” Wanda said.

“I don’t know if I can do this. I’m just dancing circles around the jackass. I need him weak so Charles can get in there--” You were nearly hysteric.  

“Y/N,” Bucky said softly as he got closer to you. He put his hands on your shoulders. “You can do this. We’re all here for you,” he promised, that twinkling light in his eyes as he peered at you.

Your eyes touched on all of your friends, your loved ones, even the ones you hadn’t met. “I love you,” you breathed before crying again.

“I love you,” Bucky echoed, and as quickly as they were there, they were gone.

Your eyes fluttered open and you were still in pain. Thanos was still bending over you. You must’ve been out for half a second.

Bucky was right. All of them needed you. They deserved their justice. You couldn’t let them down. Not now.

Immediately, your mind went into overdrive. You accessed Logan - healed. You accessed Steve - jumping up and away from Thanos. Kurt - teleporting behind him. Scott - shooting Thanos in the back. Jean - throwing objects at him again and again. He obliterated them.

“I’m tiring of this, aren’t you?” he asked as he stepped closer and closer to you. He punched at you, but you grabbed the Gauntlet, siphoning from Thor and Steve simultaneously. You used Magento and Jean then to push him back from you.

“I’m just getting started,” you threatened.

“Alright. That’s it. Time for you to go.”

He started to raise his hand, his hand about to curl into a fist, when it suddenly hit you.

Him. He’s all you needed.

You could use him against himself.

“Y/N, I know what you’re about to do. I would not do that,” Charles suddenly advised inside your mind.

“I have to.”

“Please, you could die. I’ve been in your mind and you’ve never accessed anyone as strong as him or held this sort of power before. It could kill you. Do you realize that?”

“Yes,” you softly responded, Bucky’s face in the forefront of your mind.

“I am begging you. Please. Just a few more hits and I am sure I can get inside his head.”

“No. I can do this. It’s the only way. I have to try. If worst comes to worst, get inside his mind by any means necessary.”

“Y/N,” he warned again.

“Charles! We don’t have time to debate this! He’s killed millions. He took everything from me. Please,” you pleaded internally.

You felt Charles pressure on your mind release and you let go of everyone else you’d tapped into. You concentrated on Grimace the big dumbass in front of you, his eyes narrowing slightly, wondering what you were doing.

You tapped into his mind -- you felt as if you were looking into an endless cosmos. There was so much in there it would take a long time to access it. Too long.

No. You had to find it and you had to find it now. Pushing yourself harder than you ever had before, you swept through his mind quickly, searching…searching...

And there it was -- his abilities. His strength.

You breathed out audibly, your muscles relaxing. You marched up to him, your arm reeling back, and then you punched - really. Fucking. Hard.

In fact, you hit him with equal the strength of his own. It felt like ten thousand strong men had just landed a blow to Thanos and he stumbled backwards. The look on his face was priceless.

He stood back up, gripping his jaw, eyeing you incredulously.

You took his confusion as an advantage and quickly kept the attack coming. You ran at him, launching into the air, throwing punch after punch at him. His own strength was killing him. You’d abandon Thanos’s power for a moment to grab Kurt’s ability to teleport all around him to smash his legs, to pulverize his head. Finally, he seemed dizzy enough and you landed one more overpowering blow to his face and he fell on his side.

“Now, Y/N, now!” Charles shouted inside your head. “I can’t hold him forever!”

Quickly, you siphoned Magento’s power and yanked the Gauntlet off his hand. Jumping from Magneto to Jean, you plucked the gems off of the Gauntlet one by one, using her power. They circled slowly in front of you, almost as if framing your body.

Thanos looked up from where he was lying on the ground. He quickly jumped to his feet.

“What are you doing? If you touch those, they’ll kill you, you can’t use them,” he said.

“No...But you can,” you responded with a wicked grin. You dove inside his mind again, and grabbed his superhuman strength to hold the Stones. First, you held Power Stone, which along with having Thanos’ power coursing through your body, granted you immunization from the others.

“No!” He started to dive at you, but Charles was inside his mind. You could feel him inside there with you.

“Oh no you don’t,” Charles resonated inside his mind. A satisfied grin planted on your face. Thanos was losing - finally. Charles paralyzed him as you continued your work.

“Here goes nothing,” you said, taking a deep breath. Accessing the part of Thanos that understood these Stones, you unlocked the Time Stone, understanding how to delicately back up time.

You prayed, deep within your bones, that this would work. You selected the parts of the time-space continuum you wanted to retract. Your eyes glazed over as you began turning back time, delicately.

Vision -- Vision had returned. You knew this because the Mind Stone had disappeared from your collection. A joyous grin appeared on your face as you felt some of the hole in your heart be refilled.

“What are you doing?!” he bellowed as he glared viciously at you. You knew if he could get away, he would have your head on a stake.

“You want to know what’s wrong with the Universe? You. I’m going to make sure you watch your failure, you giant piece of purple shit,” you vowed as you stared him down.

Time had been turned back by a few hours, yet you didn’t see anyone who had vaporized. Then you saw it, glistening, like a small beam of orange sunshine.

The Soul Stone. That was it.

Snaking your way through Thanos’s mind, you tapped into that part of his brain quickly. You reached out and grabbed the orange gem in your hand. Holding it tight in your palm, you closed your eyes and concentrated. Your vision flashed white as thousands of souls were in your face.

According to Thanos’ mind, anyone who had a bright aura was new to the Stone. Quickly, you sorted through everyone you could, releasing them all back into the world.

“No...No...No!” Thanos roared when you were finished, your eyes no longer glazed over as you let the Soul Stone go.

“Man, you are such a sore loser,” you mocked. Next, you needed to see what Thanos had done recently. You jumped into Charles’ mind and stole his ability for a moment. With his power, you waltzed into Thanos’ brain and access his memories.

“Been busy?” you noted as you looked around in his head. “My my...You killed your daughter Gamora....And--”

Your breathing halted as you laid eyes on him.

“And Loki, Thor’s brother.” Grief for your dear friend washed over you for an instant. Diving deeper into the memory you saw that Loki had been brainwashed by Thanos himself. The attack on New York wasn’t Loki’s idea at all. Instantly, you forgave him. Not to mention, ready to give Thor his brother back.

You took the Time Stone and turned it back even further, granting Gamora life again, as well as Loki and the rest of the Asgardians that Thanos’ dipshit crew had killed.

“While I’m in here,” you mused as you danced through his mind. You were going to find his worst fear and make him relive it again and again. And you found it. It was of his people dying off.

Oh, how sad, you thought callously.

Grabbing the Reality Stone, you bent it to your will, getting ready to show Thanos his torture.

“That’s too good for you,” you mused, hate still filling your veins. “But it’ll do for now.”

You aimed the Reality Stone at Thanos while you used Charles’ ability and started shutting down parts of his brain. Enough so that he could relive the emotional torture, but not enough to fight back. You grabbed Thanos, disgusted to even touch him, but used Kurt’s abilities to teleport both of you back to where it had all gone so wrong just a few hours ago.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Forever Tags: @cocosierra94 @essie1876 @magpiegirl80 @letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @iamwarrenspeace @marvel-imagines-yes-please @superwholocked527 @missinstantgratification @thejemersoninferno @rda1989 @munlis @thefridgeismybestie @bubblyanarocks3 @igiveupicantthinkofausername @kaliforniacoastalteens @feelmyroarrrr @kaeling @friendlyneighbourhoodweirdo @damalseer @heyitscam99 @yknott81 @sorryimacrapwriter

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Aftermath: @glitterquadricorn

[f4liveblogarchives]

Fantastic Four Vol. 1 #48

Fri Nov 7 2016 [19:28:26] <Wackd> Okay so [19:28:40] <Wackd> Turns out Maximus' Destory All Humans machine didn't work [19:28:48] <Wackd> Because he set it not to destroy Inhumans [19:28:53] <Wackd> But Inhumans are also humans [19:28:56] <Wackd> Therefore no one died [19:29:17] <Wackd> And since Maximus' anti-human rhetoric is predicated on humans and Inhumans being different races [19:29:24] <Wackd> He's basically got no leg left to stand on [19:31:18] <Wackd> HOLY SHIT MAXIMUS' BACKUP PLAN [19:31:28] <Wackd> MAXIMUS JUST CREATED THE FUCKING NEGATIVE ZONE [19:31:33] <Bocaj> ! [19:31:36] <Wackd> AND TRAPPED ALL THE INHUMANS IN IT WITH HIM [19:31:40] <MousaThe14> Nope [19:31:55] <Wackd> ...nope? [19:32:05] <MousaThe14> I will never be called the negative zone again [19:32:07] <Mukora> You heard him [19:32:15] <Wackd> That's weird [19:32:17] <Wackd> But okay [19:32:19] <Mukora> Positive Zone from now on [19:32:23] <MousaThe14> It's not the actual negative zone we know about [19:32:26] <Bocaj> Hrm [19:32:33] <Wackd> Sure [19:32:34] <MousaThe14> With Annihilus and whatnot. [19:32:36] <maxwellelvis> That doesn't come up until "This Man, This Monster", right? [19:32:56] <Wackd> Anyway that's the Inhumans all squared away [19:33:04] <Wackd> Kinda weird to resolve a plot halfway through the issue like that [19:33:07] <Wackd> But sure [19:33:17] <Wackd> Reed's just like "well there's nothing we can do about THAT" [19:33:36] <maxwellelvis> "Well, that's the end of that, I guess. Who wants chili dogs?" [19:33:52] <Wackd> Johnny is of course distraught [19:33:55] <Wackd> But whatever [19:34:15] <maxwellelvis> "But Crystal's in there!" "CHILI DOGS!" [19:34:25] <Wackd> Nah it's not that harsh [19:34:30] <Wackd> Everyone's trying to console him [19:34:40] <Wackd> And thinking "man, he's...actually being kind of mature about this?" [19:35:13] <Mukora> Wait the Inhumans are a thing already? It feels like the X-Men were introduced like. Two issues ago. Unless I've missed liveblogging sessions [19:35:24] <Wackd> You may have [19:35:39] <Wackd> But I'm only like four years into FF [19:35:47] <Wackd> So yeah it's still shockingly early [19:36:05] <Wackd> "Somewhere in the deep vastness of outer space, an incredible figure hurtles through the cosmos! A being whom we shall call the SILVER SURFER, for want of a better name!" [19:36:15] <MousaThe14> 48 issues, of approximately monthly comics, I think we're in year uh... what, 4 of the Lee-Kirby run? [19:36:16] <Wackd> meanwhile in the bullpen jack flips stan off [19:36:51] <Wackd> Yeah this is issue #48 [19:36:55] <Wackd> So exactly four years in [19:36:58] <maxwellelvis> Stan does the "crank-the-bird" gesture back at him. [19:37:07] <MousaThe14> Besties [19:37:13] <Wackd> "Sorry, I didn't...I didn't know how this machine works" [19:37:41] <Bocaj> Its not discussed quite yet but Stan and Jack had wildly different ideas for the Surfer's origin. Jack wanted the Silver Surfer to be someone that Galactus created from nothing. So he would discover humanity on Earth. Stan decided instead that he sacrificed his autonomy to save his home planet and only rediscovered his humanity on Earth [19:38:06] <Wackd> I mean. Both are good [19:38:14] <Bocaj> Yeah [19:38:24] <Wackd> I do think it's maybe sadder if Surfer had a home he had to abandon [19:38:29] <Wackd> Stan's got a decent eye for drama [19:38:46] <Bocaj> Zenn-La has given a lot of good mileage, story wise [19:39:09] <Wackd> The Skrulls see the Surfer flying by and are like "oh shit" [19:39:23] <Wackd> "Black out the planet black out the ENTIRE FUCKING PLANET. HIDE. FUCKING HIDE" [19:39:36] <Bocaj> Fuckin skrulls [19:39:44] <Wackd> Which is a good way of establishing exactly what level of menace we're dealing with here [19:39:46] <Wackd> I like that a lot [19:40:11] <maxwellelvis> That's a good variation on having your previous big bad getting worfed by the new one [19:40:24] <maxwellelvis> this one man on a board has an interstellar empire running scared. [19:41:01] <Wackd> I mean I like it better than Worfing because it's scarier if the existing threat knows they'd lose [19:41:07] <MousaThe14> @Wack'd his eye for drama is part of what made this all popular regardless of his other qualities [19:41:14] <maxwellelvis> True [19:41:22] <maxwellelvis> To you both. [19:41:24] <Wackd> It's honestly scarier than the big dude charging into battle and immediately getting his ass whooped, because you can chalk that up to bad tactics [19:41:45] <maxwellelvis> I'm trying to think of some other time it happened. [19:41:47] <MousaThe14> Perfect way to establish threat level [19:42:12] <MousaThe14> I can't help but find it funny and frightening that the Skrull's first response is "TURN IT OFF! TURN IT ALL OFF!" [19:44:24] <Wackd> Johnny is getting beat up because people think he set the sky on fire [19:44:35] <Wackd> So Ben did the Superman flick on one of Johnny's assailants [19:44:38] <Wackd> That's pretty great [19:44:43] <Mukora> Wait sorry [19:44:48] <Mukora> Set the sky. On fire [19:45:20] <Wackd> Yeah Mukora the sky is just filled with fucking fire [19:45:26] <Wackd> It's a miracle people aren't melting in the streets [19:45:29] <Wackd> But yeah [19:45:35] <Bocaj> Does the sky fill with rocks? [19:45:40] <maxwellelvis> The Surfer's coming. [19:46:09] <Wackd> YEP [19:46:14] <Wackd> THERE ARE THE SKY ROCKS [19:46:26] <Bocaj> WHATS NEXT? SKY WATER? SKY AIR? ... wait [19:46:57] <Wackd> GALACTUS: why the fuck did you set the planet on fire and cover it in boulders [19:47:04] <Wackd> SURFER: i thought it'd be fancier this way [19:47:13] <Bocaj> SURFER: #aesthetic [19:47:26] <Wackd> GALACTUS: well nope it's ruined *scrapes earth off his plate into the garbage* [19:47:35] <Bocaj> hah [19:47:37] <MousaThe14> SURFER: Well HOW ELSE were they supposed to know the world was ending? I couldn't just go down there and tell them individually! [19:48:53] <Wackd> Sue is getting increasingly frustrated with Reed not taking care of himself and so barges in on him [19:48:59] <Wackd> Only to find the Watcher's stopped by [19:49:21] <Wackd> Turns out the fire and the sky holders are NOT Surfer’s doing [19:49:42] <Wackd> Watcher is trying to shield the Earth from Galactus [19:49:50] <Wackd> He turned off the fire because it was freaking everyone out [19:50:12] <Wackd> And replaced it with space rocks [19:51:21] <Wackd> Watcher is afraid Galactus is more powerful than him [19:51:24] <Wackd> And he's right [19:51:31] <Wackd> Surfer penetrates the shields with incredible ease [19:51:55] <Wackd> Anyway then Thing punches him in the face and knocks him off a building, thus beginning a rivalry that will last for decades [19:51:58] <Mukora> Please tell me he uses the pointy end of his surfboard to do it [19:52:14] <Wackd> His surfboard doesnt have a pointy end [19:52:49] <Mukora> What the fuck is even the point then [19:54:20] <Wackd> And so our issue ends with a hearty HO HO HO! MEEEEERRY CHRISTMAS! [19:54:43] <MousaThe14> Merry ol' Saint Galactus