#you'll probably have to right click the images into a new window after clicking them to see them properly X'D

[danthekickingman]

In which Dan finds out the gem on his forehead conducts magic straight into his head

[spacechild-glitchypix]

So how did you get the character files of the ol2 characters? I'm really bad with computer stuff and have no idea how to get them, lol. If you don't want to explain it that's ok, I just thought I'd ask!

You know what, sure. I can give a tutorial on that.

For those reading without context, anon here is asking where I got the sprite files needed for this tutorial. This is also essentially just a basic "how to decompile most Ren'py games" tutorial, just swap out all mentions of OL2 with any ren'py game of choice and it should work (within limits, there are some games where this won't work. But it works for both Our Life games)

This tutorial also requires a computer or laptop running Windows. There might be ways to decompile ren'py games from Mac but I'm not certain and that's not what this tutorial is going to focus on. Android users are just shit out of luck though, sorry.

Step 1: Open the folder containing the game's .exe file

This part differs depending on where you downloaded OL2 from.

If you downloaded OL2 from Steam: Right-click on OL2 in your Steam library, hover your mouse over the manage submenu and then clock "Browse Local Files"

If you downloaded OL2 from Itch.io: Find where you extracted the game to. If you're unsure, the folder name should look something like "OurLifeNF-[X.X.X]-pc" but with '[X.X.X]' substituted with the version number of your game (for example "OurLifeNF-1.3.5-pc"). Once you find it, double click on the folder to open it

Once you've done either of those things, you should have a window explorer window up that looks something like this

(If you have files that aren't in this screenshot, that's normal, this is just what the folder looks like when you haven't opened the game)

Step 2: Grabbing the archive.rpa file

This is the file that contains all the game's data

From the window you opened up from the last step, double click on the folder labelled 'game'. In that folder, there will be a file titled archive.rpa. Copy that file (don't cut it or drag it out of the game folder, the original file needs to stay in there or your game won't run)

(You can also use the shortcut ctrl + c to copy)

Create a folder somewhere else on your computer, preferably somewhere like Documents, Downloads or Desktop where you can easily access it (to create a folder, right click inside whichever place on your computer you want to create a folder, then hover over the "new" submenu and then click folder). Then paste the archive.rpa file into that folder

Step 3: Download RPA Extract

RPA Extract by iwanPlays is the software we're using to decompile the files. Click the link above, click 'No thanks, just take me to the downloads' (or you can give the developer money if you have the means to and want to show them support) and then click 'Dowload' on the first option in the list and download it to the same folder you copied the archive.rpa file to

Step 4: Decompiling the game

Next, drag the archive.rpa file to rpaExtract.exe. You'll probably get this window that pops up.

Click "More Info" and then, at the bottom, click on the "Run Anyway" button that shows up

After that, a command window will show up with all the files being decompiled. Just wait until its down and then exit out of it.

Ta-da, you've got the decompiled files! The sprite files are in the Characters folder which is in the images folder. Have fun!

[payidaresque]

Photoshopping/giffing tips and tricks pt. 2

[in addition to this post i previously made]. Before we start, I want to say that i’m no expert in any way, and everyone should work in ways they're most comfortable with, i just want to share some knowledge i collected over the years with everyone who might find it useful and maybe improve their skills in making content. So, let’s get started! WARNING: IMAGE/GIF HEAVY!

Save workspaces.  You can have multiple workspaces for different needs. For example, i’m making gifs more often, but sometimes i make edits as well, so having to switch the timeline panel off when it gets in a way, then go back to the view menu, then bringing it back again... idk, call me lazy, but it seems like a few extra clicks for me 💀 What you can do instead is save your current workspace and easily switch between them any time you want. To do that, align all your tools and menus as you want, then find this icon at the top right corner

Scroll down to New Workspace, and this window will pop up

Name your workspace however you want, and chose what you want to save. You can save keyboard shortcuts, menus and tools. When you click save and change your layout, nothing will happen. That is because you need to reset your Essentials workspace first (the one that’s usually the default). Now when you switch between your workspaces (if you saved multiple) everything should work as expected

How to change the speed of gif without converting to frame animation (PS 2021 and above). THANK GOD Adobe fixed the glitch where the frame rate gets all messed up when you switch to video timeline, so i would suggest upgrading whatever version of PS you currently have if you can, working with timeline is MUCH easier in my opinion. To change the speed, after you imported the video (photoshop reads only .mp4’s btw, so be sure to check if you have the correct format), click the little play button 

and type in whatever number you want: 25% — the lowest value, but you can also speed the gif up by  entering a number higher than 100%. Remember to do that BEFORE you convert your gif to a smart object (& before resizing it, bc after applying the changes video automatically converts into a smart object), because once you convert it, the speed can’t be changed without going back a few steps). When you slow a gif down, photoshop “eats” some parts of it (usually towards the end), so you need to extend the gif by dragging it to the right until you reach the end of your scene to fix that Normal speed

Slowed down to 60%. Sometimes slowed down gifs may look choppy, i explained the trick on how to fix it in pt. 1 (click the first link in the post).

Use plugins. There are so many great ones! For example, i found this plugin called Better Grids: it creates grids and converts them into shapes or frames AUTOMATICALLY based on the numbers you set within the plugin. It’s a lifesaver for me when it comes to photosets! DL (Google drive. M1 Mac users: for the plugin to work, you need to run Photoshop under Rosetta mode first. To do that, right-click the app, go to get Info and check Open using Rosetta if you have that option available)

If your disk space allows, do not convert media. It’s time consuming, messes up the original quality, and usually extremely hard on processors, especially not very powerful ones. Instead, just change the container to open your file in photoshop, It’s faster & less power consuming. I use Subler (mac) and Avidemux (mac & windows) to change the container to mp4, bc for me it’s the simplest ones to use

Handy thansform tool trick. When you try to fit your image into a certain sized canvas, this is probably what you’ll caught yourself doing

there's actually a much faster and easier way to resize stuff. when you activate transform tool, you'll see these boxes with numbers in the top panel

watch what happens when i change one of the numbers

isn't that neat? (make sure that little chain button is checked to mantain proportions. x and y values are for stretching the image horizontally or vertically)

Save document presets. In new document window, type in your desired dimmensions, then click "Save Preset", choose which options you want to save, name it however you want, click ok and you're done — congrats, now you have a saved canvas preset for further use!

So, i hope these little tips were useful. Have fun creating guys 🌸

[corvuscorona]

do u have any advice for switching to linux? im admittedly intimidated but so tired of windows ads.. and i've had to reinstall windows 3 times this year because updates have just. broke. so i'm done w all that.

takes your hand. the first step is getting so fed up with microsoft's bull shit that you start thinking to yourself "fuck, maybe I DO want to see what linux is about actually". and you are already there.

I typed a lot again but let me boil it down real quick so you know what you're getting into:

A "linux distribution" is an operating system, basically

Most of the common ones are easy to use now, tho ymmv with the Software You Need and what you use computers for

Start with a virtual machine; troubleshoot until delighted; install

Back your files up regularly so you can un-fuck-up if needed (<- general life advice, but very helpful here for peace of mind)

Windows : IKEA :: Linux : wood + hardware + tools. kinda.

here are 3 other things:

I'm not an expert I'm a very lost new user with a chainsaw and a can-do attitude

Experts don't generally keep the "new user" feeling close to their heart so what the fuck do they know about anything anyway

I don't know what you know so, like, bear with me.

...but also if you have more specific questions I'm around and hate my day job so feel extremely free to jump back into my inbox and be like "hey what the fuck is up with ___". or not. I typed so much.

anyway here's some stuff that would've helped me :3

ime, the most Intimidating thing about going from "god I hate the accursed Window" to "linux desktop user" is wrapping your head around what distros are. I overcame this hurdle by recklessly abusing duckduckgo and youtube, but you don't have to.

think of a "linux distribution" as an "operating system". there are one morbillion of them, but if you pick one out of the Big Fucking Pile you can download it, and it will be one (1) file that you can put on a USB drive, and then you can plug that USB drive into your Windows Machine and make the file install itself, and then the machine will have a new operating system. and if you don't like that one you can pick out a different one. off the pile. simple.

now that I have established this: you will have to Choose A Distribution. I have advice on this topic.

it is way easier to make the INSTALLING LINUX ON YOUR WHOLE COMPUTER jump if you use it in a virtual machine first. probably what this will teach you is that it mostly works like you expect a computer to work, but if you encounter any Problems, you can deal with them in your own time because your existing operating system is still right there. this tutorial will get you there. do not use ubuntu, though; use MX Linux. it is better. instead of "download an ubuntu image," go here and download one of these two mx linux images:

standard one (red) if your computer is old, or

"ahs" (blue) if your computer is not very old.

use your judgment. then proceed according to the tutorial, basically.

I am giving you direct instructions instead of general advice because linux is a vast landscape of choice paralysis, which is also one of the things that has tripped me up before. once you have Used Some Linux, you'll start to Learn which things you want to have be different, and once you have some Preferences you can start tailoring your whole situation. unlike the accursed Window, where you can think "I kind of hate windows explorer" and then spend all afternoon on reddit learning that other file explorers for windows TECHNICALLY EXIST but none of them do the stuff you want. anyway.

once you have a working VM of mx linux, here's some stuff to think about or do:

+ what's your impression of the desktop immediately after installing? click stuff and see if you hate anything or can't figure out how to do something simple you can just Do on windows. then go into the settings and see if you can change something you hate, or open firefox and look up how to do the thing you can't do. rinse repeat.

+ tbh maybe this is me being a little freak but I spent like hours collectively in the settings just messing around. there's a new thing in MX tools where you can change the colors of your folder icons to literally whatever color you want; click that. enjoy the unadulterated aesthetic power.

+ log into your mozilla account on firefox. if you don't have a mozilla account, make one and then log into it. if you're on chrome, import all your chrome shit into firefox and attach it to a mozilla account and then log into it on your regular OS and in the VM. now you can blog from linux.

+ (you can also install chrome if you want (I have it in case a website belligerently doesn't want to work on firefox + have had to use it for, like, bills or whatever once in a blue moon). or any other browser. set up your preferred stuff everywhere!! go download a desktop wallpaper!! download these images and put them on there. home sweet home.)

+ you will encounter inconveniences as you try to use the VM for your Everyday Computing Experience, mostly because all your shit is already set up and stored on your windows computer and you're gonna be like "fuck I need [file]" and it's kind of a pain in the ass to directly get files from a host onto a VM and cloud storage sucks and none of your stuff is where you expect it to be on the desktop etc etc etc. deal with this as it comes. idk, write stuff down. solve 1 problem at a time when you have spare time. your goal at this point should be "I can use the VM instead of my actual computer for everyday tasks". but you can get there slow.

+ if you run into something that you USE on windows and CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO USE OR REPLACE on linux, now you are asking the big questions. go down a research rabbithole about it.

here is where I start saying generalizations again:

linux will teach you to Find Solutions For Stuff. the difference btwn windows and desktop linux is that windows will be like "here's how it is. don't worry about it" and you can either go "okay <3 yay <3" or you can get pissed off and go see what linux is about. and linux will be like "well here's like the entire breadth of human UX proclivities and a lot of power tools; I'll be on the forums if you need me; good luck, champ" AND THAT'S AWESOME. p.s. keep the forums for your distro close at hand when troubleshooting. they do good work in there.

uh basically my advice is: step up to it. do not stop trying stuff. become a gun that's full of bullets that are questions, and eventually you WILL be A Linux User. also, write down any command line stuff you learn in like a notebook or whatever so you can remember it without looking it up again next time you need it.

here's one: "./filename.whatever" runs the file. this is useful for when you download something that's not in your distro's package manager and have to run it like it's an exe or something and there's just a .sh file in there and you don't know what that means. it means "right click the folder -> 'open terminal here' -> type './filename.sh' -> program is now running". here's another one: "~/" stands for your home folder. which is where all your stuff lives. on mx linux I can hit f4 to bring up the dropdown terminal, type "featherpad ~/Documents/linuxes\ advice.txt" and it'll open this document in the default text editor. the \ is an escape character so it knows you mean the space is part of the filename. now you're 1337 :)

finally: if and when you reach a point where you can do all your normal computer stuff on your virtual machine, back up ur files off your windows machine and do one of the following:

take a new image of your working copy of mx linux (mx tools can help you do this) and install that on The Real Machine

get a clean .iso of mx linux and install it and re-set it up from scratch. pg 17 of the user manual, "2.2.3 Create LiveMedium", will tell you how to set up the USB drive, btw.

pick a different distribution and install that.

if you are 100% happy with mx, fuck yeah keep it. if you want something shinier, may I suggest Garuda? I fucking love Garuda Linux with my life.

SECTION FOR IF YOU PLAY GAMES ON YOUR COMPUTER BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT TO SAY ABOUT THIS:

if you play games, during your "what do I do with this VM" phase, go get them + try to run them. if you play games via steam, the store page for a game will have a "system requirements" field for linux if the game runs natively on linux. it usually says "ubuntu" but that doesn't actually mean you have to be running ubuntu; try it anyway. if the game does not run natively on linux, you can go into the game's settings and go to compatibility and "force the use of a compatibility tool" and a lot of the time that will just work ("proton experimental" is fine, or whatever the newest one is). if you have trouble, go protondb you and see what people have said about running the game. IF A GAME HAS MULTIPLAYER MAYBE GO TO PROTONDB FIRST and check to see whether anyone says anything about anticheat; this is the only thing that can have actual permanent consequences (sometimes anticheats will trigger if you try to use workarounds that let you run a game on linux). you can also look up a specific game on the r/linux_gaming subreddit; they are very helpful sometimes.

I'm officially out of arguably relevant sentences now, but I hope this helps some. Linux is fun + I like it a lot; you should try it !!!

[hydrus]

Version 572

windows

zip

exe

macOS

app

linux

tar.zst

I had a good simple week mostly doing just one thing: overhauling the 'share' menu.

Note: If you are updating from v570 or earlier and you use the Windows or Linux .zip or .tar.zst 'Extract' releases, you have to do a clean install one time to get v571 or later! (https://github.com/hydrusnetwork/hydrus/releases/tag/v571, https://hydrusnetwork.github.io/hydrus/getting_started_installing.html#clean_installs). If you are a Windows installer/macOS App/source user, you do not need to do a clean install to get over the v570->v571 bump; just update as normal.

full changelog

share menu

Like the 'open' menu a couple of weeks ago, the 'share' submenu you see off of the thumbnail or media viewer right-click menu has been given a full pass. The layout is clearer, and exactly the same in all locations, and everything it does is now mappable in the shortcuts system.

Also, you can now copy files' thumbnails as bitmaps from this menu. Should let you do saucenao style lookups on unusual filetypes that have a thumb but no normal image.

The shortcuts here are a bit smarter, too--like with the 'open similar files in a new page', I collapsed the four 'copy xxx hashes' commands down to one command with a dropdown (which has options for blurhash/pixel_hash, if you need them); and the three 'copy xxx bitmap' commands are now one with a dropdown that also has the new 'copy thumbnail bitmap' option. Most of the shortcuts also have a choice between 'do the focused file' vs 'do all selected files', if that is important (existing shortcuts will default to the latter, which was previous behaviour for stuff like 'copy sha256 hashes').

Note: I have removed the 'share on the local booru' command. The Local Booru (an optional way to share files with friends using hydrus) was a fun experiment, but I have decided to finally retire it. I never found enough time to dev it properly (I don't think I've touched it in at least five years), and there are many better ways to share files online, be that a third-party host you simply drag and drop to or a clever Client API solution. So, it is gone from the menu today, and I'll slowly dismantle it over the next few weeks until it is completely removed.

couple other things

There's a new checkbox under ''options->files and trash'' that adjusts the 'remove processed files after an archive/delete filter' to also remove the stuff you skipped.

Also, thanks to a user, there's a new 'e621' themed stylesheet under ''options->style''. Users who run from source who want to try this probably have an extra step to make sure this works--check the changelog/options panel help text.

next week

I've been thinking of adding a new tab to the autocomplete dropdown that will show children of the current context (e.g. you are looking at something with 'evangelion', in that tab you'll see 'asuka', 'rei', etc.. for quick selection). I think I will play with that idea and do some more misc small jobs.

[new-york-manga]

Into The Puppet's Circus

Ahem! Tonight...

Today is my birthday, a campfire was set up for my two friends and me so we can tell ghost stories at midnight. I didn't tell my dads that we'd be playing our Mario fangame instead, but I don't think they'll mind it.

"Yo Ann! When we gonna get to that castle ya built?" asked Dan who was impatiently skipping through the levels instead of analyzing them like I asked him to.

"Relax, you'll get there at the speed your deciding to speedrun at mach five" I taunted at him, fixing my strawberry blond space buns.

"You could slow down and enjoy the game instead" said Mike, fixing his glasses innocently.

Dan finally started to slow down his own pace and sat the computer to his side before facing himself forwards toward the screen. At that moment, my dads walked out of the house with the Marshmallows and sticks.

"I thought you kids'd be screamin' Bloody Mary by now." said Pappa.

"Not until I get to your daughter's castle" exclaimed Dan who was still focused on the game.

"Oh? And how many world's left do you have 'til you reach her 'secret' world?" asked Daddy.

That confused Dan while it made me blush in embarrassment.

"They haven't even reached eighteen yet Carol! Let 'em be kids. Besides, for all we know he probably hasn't completed world one." said Papa, handing me the marshmallows and sticks.

"Alright, alright. My bad. Just makin' sure nothing funny happens" said Daddy while being guided back into the house.

"You kids take care" said Papa waving back at us before they both walked inside.

"Ann, why is the game reseting every time I reach one dash four?" asked Dan, turning the computer to me.

I handed Mike the sticks while holding the bag in my mouth before kneeling both to play the game myself, assuming it was just glitching out.

Once I completed the four levels the game did reset, so I went back to quickly fix the code.

" 'Aight, it should be fixed now" I said, turning the computer back to Dan.

I sat right next to him as he played through all four levels, only for the game to reset again.

"Are you kidding me?" I shouted at the game.

Eventually, after multiple attempts of repeating my steps, the game just crashed every time I tried to open it.

"Man, I'm sorry." said Dan.

"No, it's not your fault. My game was working fine this morning. Just go home and get some sleep and I'll call you guys when I fix it." I explained, tears running down my Cheeks.

Dan walk in front of me and then gently lifted my head up. His expression was clearly embarrassed to be face to face with me, but his eye were looking into mine.

"It's gonna be a great game! Don't overwork yourself. 'Aight?" said Dan.

He and Mike then waved back as they walked down the street to their houses.

After putting out the fire and then walking the unopened bag of marshmallows back into a kitchen cabinet, I went to pick up my computer.

Against Dan's comment, I went back into my room to fix the code of my game.

As I open up the file, a random pop-up asked if I wanted to make changes to my computer. Thinking that I simply forgot to update my hardware I quickly clicked yes while laying lazily on my bed. The next image that appeared was of a criminal page. I had lent Daddy the computer for his case since the killer, whose face was on my screen, kicked his into a wall before being shot at.

"Jacklyn the Butcher" read the picture.

I simply closed the tab before my game finally booted up again. But as I took a look at the titlescreen, I noticed it wasn't my game. The sky was pitch black...

Or at least of what I could see from the windows of Peach's Castle. I had originally designed my game to be a 3D collectathon before I made it linear, so I then assumed my game got corrupted by Dan's speedrun.

"Thanks Danny Boy" I mumbled.

I started the game to my playable Bowser. His new moveset was still present so I was able to get moving pretty quickly. While circling around like an idiot, I noticed that I was already inside Peach's Castle. Moving the camera, I eventually spotted a Jack in the Box that resembled a smiling Peach. No eyes, her face slit in half until the crack reached her mouth that had an opening similar to a nutcracker.

It waved at me when I used the first person view. And then it closed its eyes and giggled at me before suddenly snapping my arms to my bed without touching me.

Two Toads sprung out of the floor to cover my screams. Despite that, I could still hear the slamming of the door to my room as my dads tried their best to open it. They had ran up the stairs too late late as my bed started to levitate towards the slowling opening closet that had become a darkened door to the puppet's hidden face.

"Do you hear your parents?" It asked me, looking deep into my eyes as it's mouth raised up and down to the sound of its own words.

"They already took me to my own personal little hell, why don't you join me?" after her last phrase, she lunged straight at me before I kicked her back into the closet from where she came. I then ripped both Toads off of me one by one before throwing them back into that "little hell" with her. My dads finally broke down the door to rush me out of my own room, but not before she came back out to grab Daddy to drag him into the closet. Both Papa and I grasped his arms as she hopped onto his back.

"Ready for my next trick?" she winked at us and giggled as he proceeded to pull him in half, organs flying in her direction.

She then jumped to Papa.

"Run!" He screamed while being torn in half the same way Daddy had died. She quickly cleaned up the bodies an then her face with a napkin before grabbing onto my leg and dragging me into the closet door and then throwing me onto the floor.

"Such a delicate little face. You will make a glorious little toy." she said, gently lifting my head with tears running down my cheeks.

She then rose into the top floor, opening a second closet door and then setting me on the bad.

"Now that your in my world we will get to play an eternal game of hide and seek!"

You will eventually learn to enjoy our little game." she closed her eyes and then slammed the closet shut. When I hurriedly crawled to the door and then opened it, all I could find was a globe playing lullaby music with a clock whose hour hand was moving ever so slowly to the next midnight.

[brandinotbroke]

Hi! Idk about the anon who actually asked for the default numbers, but I was just wondering about how I could swap a defaulted version of an item for another. I have a dress defaulted for two different things and I kinda like both, but there's one recolor of that dress that repeats itself (I hope that makes sense)

Okay, I'll try to explain it using my own default of tfsnowboard. Let's say I want to keep the default but I don't like the pink recolour - instead, I want a green one. You'll need: 1) the default file that you want to change (in this case my default) 2) the custom CC file that is used in the default (in this case platasp's conversion) 3) SimPE with the DDS extension (I will not explain how to do that here, there are tutorials online) You can click on screenshots to enlarge them.

Step 1: Open the custom CC file with the recolour that you want in SimPE. I want to use green, so I will open number 7 in PlatAsp's files. It will open a list. Click on the TXTR file and you will see the recolour at the bottom. Now right click on the recolour picture, click "Export..." and save the file somewhere you can remember.

Now close the file because we don't need it anymore.

Step 2: Open your default file in SimPE. If the default has several recolours, you will see several TXTR files in the list. Click through them until you find the one that you want to replace - in my case, I need to find the pink one. Again, right click on the recolour picture at the bottom, but this time choose "Build DXT...". A new window will pop up.

Step 3: In the new window, click on "open Image" on the left and navigate to the green recolour that we saved in the first step. After that, you need to choose "none" in the list next to "sharpen". Then click on "build".

Step 4: To save your changes, click on "commit" on the right over your recolour. Then click on "save" in the top left of SimPE.

And that's it! The default is still intact and working, but instead of a pink default, I now have a green one! It probably looks a lot more complicated than it is, but it really only takes 3 minutes tops. Hope that helps.

[aetheternity]

I'll admit it's exciting. (Armin x reader)

Synopsis: Being your professor's dirty little secret. His pet.. Sounded too good to refuse.

Warning: Smut in the later chapters! 18+ only

"Good girl.." Your lip tucked itself beneath your tooth. Spine tingling at the intoxicating scent surrounding you.

You coaxed a breath off your lips as the almost inaudible creak of the desk under your professors weight made you sit up straight. His arms locking you in place.

You looked into his soft blue eyes feeling a tinge of entrapment at the way he had you locked in.

"Do you understand now?" His surprisingly large hands caressed your shoulder.

"Y-yeah." If you could see your own face you'd probably be embarrassed but you were currently helpless to the tiny bits of touch he allowed you.

Your elbows pushed you up just a little bit closer to his chest. His touch disappearing too soon.

"I think you'll be ready for the test in a couple days." And suddenly every bit of him was walking away and back to sit at his desk. "You should still study though. This stuff has been difficult for you."

~~~~

"Y/N."

The tip of your nail stayed fidgeting between your lips.

"Y/N."

Words flew through your brain but it all continued to just be flushed straight out again.

"Y/N!" The book flew from your grasp landing with a clatter that attracted glances from all angles.

"Are you alright Y/N?" Eren asked, concern etched into his deep sapphire eyes.

You let out a harsh exhale. "I was, until Sasha stopped my heart." You held a palm up to your chest, glaring over at Sasha.

Mikasa blinked boredom sunk into her features. Her cheeks forced into the palms of her hands as her elbows stayed firmly planted into the table. "New class?"

You nodded, shutting your binder before promptly flipping it open again.

"You'll be fine." She muttered, staring at you with her own version of concern.

"How can you say that? I had to transfer from a different class a month after the semester already started. You know how much stuff I've already missed! Not to mention I had originally thought this class was gonna be next semester me's problem." With a groan you let your head flop harshly onto the mildly sticky table in front of you.

"I think what Mikasa was trying to suggest was that Mr. Arlert has always been said to be a very gentle and caring professor." Sasha said

"You can always take office hours if you really have a hard time." Eren suggested

"Thanks Eren, but I think you're forgetting that I hate doing anything outside of class that won't immediately get me a passing grade."

Eren just shrugged, moving to stuff his notebooks into his own bag. All of them genuinely looking as though he'd just reused them from high school. Each one with a rip in the first page or the spiral unraveling.

"Welp it's 2:00." Sasha reminded you. And you groaned so loud you could practically feel the stares from other tables touching your soul.

"Maybe I'll fall down the stairs and break my ankle before I get up there." You slung your bag onto your shoulder hanging your head as you walked off.

"I'll have your favorite donuts in my room after you get out!" Sasha called

"You should've started with that!"

You made the walk so much longer by dragging your feet up every stair individually and rubbing a finger to your temple. So much so that it surprised you when you walked into the classroom and no one was in there except..

"Oh hello."

Hot..

So so very hot..

His smile sparkled only futher brightened by his deep blue eyes. His short blond hair parted slightly over his forehead. His blue button up was cuffed up against his forearms revealing a very slender but still fairly muscular set of hands. He probably had a nice chest too.

"You must be Y/N." He chuckled and before you could reassociate he was giving you a whole new list of things to think about as he bent over his desk to retrieve a piece of paper.

"Here's the syllabus. You're starting kinda late so it will be helpful to you to come to office hours. My office hours are at the bottom here." When he reached forward to point his scent caught you by surprise. A sweet almost fruit like smell wafted up your nose. "I hope you'll catch on quickly. Sit wherever you'd like."

His remark barely registered in your mind, your mouth hung open immediately slamming shut as the class quickly began to fill.

Before you could get swept up by the people flooding into the room you made your way to the front plopping down into the seat closest to the window. When you looked up again from where you'd yanked your binder almost haphazardly out of your bag, you caught the quickest wink you'd ever seen in your entire life.

Or maybe it was your imagination.

But the way he leaned a little closer when he approached you wasn't.

"Front row? Good choice."

Regardless of the heart problems he'd recently caused you he was moving on. Quickly silencing the class and starting the lesson.

Hot.

The only thought racing through your head.

Hot. Hot. Hot..

He was pretty! When he turned off the light his eyes didn't dull in the almost blinding way in which they shone. His hair fluttered over his forehead and ears and his shirt seemed to hug his chest tighter every time he reached up to turn off the projector or even just to reach a high spot on the board.

You already knew everything from today was going in one ear and out the other but it was really hard to give a damn when your professor's pants cupped his ass they way they did. His dark shoes clicked across the floor and-

"Do you understand any of it? I know it's your first day."

You blinked up at him hoping your eyes weren't as wide as they felt or that you weren't popping your mouth open and close like a suffocating fish.

He smiled, flipping the paper on the desk around till it faced him. "Can I?" He reached for the tip of your pen and as you let it go your fingers brushed in probably the strongest current of static that had ever touched your body.

"Don't worry ok this is just a practice test I wanna see what you know." He said, leaving a couple marks on the paper. He then pointed to the two empty test questions. "Don't leave anything blank ok."

This time when he walked away you were without a doubt certain he'd winked. When you looked down at your paper again you could see 3 checks on the paper in the light blue ink you were using and a little smiley face in the corner.

Your chest honestly had no right fluttering the way it did over something so trivial.

The class was only an hour and forty minutes but when it was over you felt like you'd only been seated there for ten minutes. When you handed the test paper back he sent you one final wink that made your knees buckle.

"See you next time." He said and you had to forcibly stop yourself from shuttering.

You half speed walked half ran out of there as soon as his classroom door had shut behind you. All the way to Sasha's dorm room.

You slammed it open already knowing Sasha only kept it locked when she wasn't in there. Your chest was heaving and you held onto the door frame for support. Noticing the immediate and visible flinch from Eren and Sasha.

"He's. Hot!!" You gasped for air before walking in and sinking to the floor in front of Sasha. She didn't budge as you fell against her shoulder just wrapped an arm around your shoulders hugging your back. "Oh god he's so hot.." You breathed into Sasha's collarbone.

"Looks like she did learn something." Eren muttered

"No! You don't understand he's like so pretty!"

Mikasa didn't even try to hide the way she rolled her eyes and Eren just sighed.

"Aww you've got a crush on your professor that's adorable." Sasha said, reaching into the box next to her, grabbing your favorite donut she pushed it into your open mouth pulling it back slightly to allow you to chew.

You sobbed a little before sighing and falling back into Sasha's neck. "What the hell am I gonna do?" You sighed

"Focus on passing the class is probably the first step." Eren replied

"Now you're just being silly." You replied, rubbing your fingers into the floor.

Sasha brought the donut back up to your lips smiling as you took another bite. "I wanna see him now! Isn't he the really young professor? Like he's supposedly only twenty five as of recently and got hired less than a year ago."

"Yeah.." You quickly put your password into your phone, turning the screen so Sasha could see.

Mikasa and Eren scooted closer as Sasha took a closer look. "He is pretty." Mikasa was the first to speak.

"Why do you just have his picture pulled up? How're you already being creepy?" Eren questioned

You scoffed, "I just happened to be looking on Instagram during a quick bathroom trip.. and I just so happened to look for him.. it's his fault for making it easy." You snatched the donut from Sasha taking a bigger bite.

"Yeah no I agree with Eren this is cree- AW HE HAS A DOG!" Sasha snatched the phone zooming in on the puppy in his lap.

"Actually it's his family's dog. Her name's Pumpkin and he goes home as often as possible to see her. A small two hour train ride to be exact." You sigh briefly "I've never really liked Terriers as a dog breed but that one's so cute.."

"Is the dog cute or is it the guy holding her?" Mikasa questioned with a little smirk.

"Not helping Mikasa.." Eren interjected "What are you even thinking? No matter if you like professor Arlert or not he has to keep it professional and so do you."

"Eren, look at the puppy." You took your phone from Sasha turning the screen back to face him.

He glanced down at the image then back into your eyes with a raised eyebrow.

"Puppy!"

"Creepy!" He pressed the power button on your phone and you deflated against Sasha's legs letting your phone turn over onto its face.

"I'll never understand why you don't go for a degree in hacking or something the way you always manage to pull up information on people." Mikasa shook her head.

"Probably going to be stuck with more math classes for one and secondly when I become a supervillain I don't need everyone knowing it was apart of my major." You replied, with an exaggerated eye roll.

Sasha shrugged, "If it was your major I'm pretty sure everyone would understand your descent into madness."

"I can't believe you just said that.." Eren groaned, squeezing the bridge of his nose.

"Me or her?" You asked

"Yes!"

~~~~

Thursday came too soon. Or maybe you should say, finally Thursday is here! You jumped back and forth between the two but by the time you slid into the honestly uncomfortable classroom seat and placed your bag between your legs you knew exactly what you felt.

"Professor!" A female's voice caught your attention and you turned slightly to see a short brown haired girl running into the classroom.

"You were right about what I was missing! Once I applied what we talked about in office hours it became so simple."

"That's what I like to hear Petra." He winked as he flipped through a stack of papers on his desk.

Wait, had he always done that to all the students or had you just not noticed last time? You felt your shoulders hunch but they were instantly picking back up again as he slid a piece of paper onto your desk.

"You did pretty well on that practice test. Seems like you'll be up to speed in no time." He smiled, a deep warm smile that made your stomach squeeze.

Your lips curled upwards and you quickly moved to hide it behind your paper as he walked away.

"You too huh?"

You felt your skin practically vibrate but you hoped and prayed it wasn't too noticeable.

"Wh-what?" You glanced over at the girl Petra who sat only one desk away from you. Her features flat and her eyes dark in the middle an almost scary contrast from earlier.

"You're into him too?" She muttered

Was it that obvious? Stupid question. How could you be so obvious?

"I don't think you'll win out." She continued and before you could question it, she pointed to the back row.

It seemed almost like a tussle as Mr. Arlert was being held hostage by another young female holding his hand. He smiled mildly awkwardly as he spoke with her, nodding his head to everything her and the other girls surrounding her said. The first girl running a thumb over the back of his hand.

You felt your skin prickle and you exhaled loudly. "So.. I'm guessing you too.."

Petra blinked at you then quickly shifted around in her seat. Mr. Arlert quickly approached the front of the room clapping to get the classes attention. And with that the lesson was beginning.

You noticed from the clap at the beginning of class to the last word uttered that not one word in Mr. Arlert's lesson had actually registered in your mind. Your thoughts too full of Petra's words, her blank almost villainous expression as she'd talked.

And that girl's hand. That annoying girl in the back row. You peeked your head back there looking at the now empty chair. In fact the entire classroom was empty and had been for at least 15 minutes since you continued to struggle with stuffing your binder back into your apparently shrunken bag.

"Need help?"

You bit your lip and looked away as he came closer. You weren't really standing up straight but you immediately noticed the way he towered over you. His fingers so delicate in the way they brushed over yours sliding the irritating object into the confines of your bag.

"Thank you.." You whispered

He chuckled, "No problem, happy to help."

His eyes didn't leave yours for an almost uncomfortable amount of time so you shifted your feet backing away a little. He seemed to notice and placed a hand on the back of his neck, backing up himself.

Oh no. Now he was getting uncomfortable.

He made his way back over to his desk but not before you'd slipped in something to ease the tension. "Sorry for over staying my welcome.."

He let out a soft chuckle. "You're not bothering me plus there are no classes in here for two hours after mine on Thursday. You can stay as long as you'd like."

"O-oh." You face palmed internally at your stupid reply. "So.." You began again. "Do you mind if I asked you how you're such a young professor.."

His eyes flickered up from the work he'd been filling out. "Well, I skipped a couple grades and I was in college by 15. I'm actually still in college now but I was an assistant teacher at 18 for about three years for a high school a couple blocks from here before I became a full fledged teacher and then I worked at the same school as a teacher for three more years before I finally left and started teaching here."

It should've been obvious from the start that he'd worked tireless hours of school to get here at such a young age. Not to mention probably having worked just as hard in the gym. He'd only leaned back a little bit in his chair but it was enough for you to have a perfect mental image.

Your eyes flicked up to his much softer more.. Arlert like smile? Maybe? It just felt like the kind of smile he'd give a friend and less like the smile he used in the classroom. Not that that one felt fake, just.. different.

"Do you.. I mean.. have you always had girls?.." His eyebrows scrunched as you spoke. You pointed to the back of the classroom. "You're young I mean, do girls always touch you like that?"

He blinked up at the ceiling then back down to you. Your breath hitched as he pulled himself up from the desk walking closer to you.

"As soon as they find out I'm not that much older than them? Yeah."

You probably should've stopped but your brain was suddenly working independently. "Does it?.. Do you like that kind of attention?"

He sat down on the desk crossing his arms over his chest and his leg over his knee. He spoke his head. "Not normally no."

"Normally?"

He stood again but this time he stopped directly in front of you. Sharp blue eyes cold and yet warm and vibrant. The desk creaked under your weight as you leaned back into it. His hands at your sides, his breath tickling your upper lip.

His thumb came up to graze your cheek but was quickly removed and planted back on the desk. "Can I kiss you?"

You nodded way too eagerly and-

So so so much softer than you'd even thought imaginable. His nose rubbed against yours and he was pulling away. Too soon.

You grabbed the back of his neck, yanking him back to you. Immediately delighted by the warm touch of his pretty pink lips.

He pulled back and you yanked him forward. Over and over again with soft peppered kisses. And then one slightly longer one where he was comfortably mushing his lips against yours.

[l-wannabe-l]

Short Circuit

Chapter 1: First Impressions

During the events of T2 John's half-sister, Aria catches the attention of the T-1000. Having failed a second time Skynet starts targeting the people who will one day fight beside John.

T-1000/Austin x OC

This first chapter will follow the movie but it will start diverging soon. I'm still new to fanfic writing so feel free to leave a comment.

It was gone.

Not in my closet or my drawers or under the bed.

It was gone.

The little money maker that I made and the little brat took it. I grab my cardigan and make my way out into the hallway. He's probably made it to the mall already (and he didn't even think to invite me), spending money that's not his. I mean it's not mine either but that's not the part I'm upset about. Knowing the way he drives on his bike I'll be lucky if the atm card is still working when I get it back. As I looked for my keys, they were RIGHT HERE I SWEAR, the doorbell rings. Seeing as it's not my house I don't go to answer. I hear the door open accompanied by a tired sigh.

Todd must've gotten it.

"Are you the legal guardian of John Connor?'

That's never a good question. I take a peek around the corner to glance at the man at the door. The first thing I notice is that he's wearing a police uniform. Yup, not good.

"That's right, officer. What's he done now?" A very valid question that the officer ignores as he seems to scan the house, pausing briefly as he spots me before turning his attention back to Todd.

"Could I speak with him please?"

"Could if he were here. Took off on his bike this morning so he could be anywhere." Todd answers with a shrug, clearly not giving two shits as Janelle joins him at the door.

"Do you have a photograph of John?"

"Yeah sure, hold on." She turns to grab her wallet and sees me hiding behind the corner. She looks at me expectedly probably thinking I know what's going on. I just shake my head. Like I would tell her even if I did know.

"You gonna tell me what this is about?" Todd tries asking again as Janelle rejoins them, handing off the picture.

"Just need to ask him a few questions. He's a good-looking boy. Do you mind if I keep this picture?" He asks as he studies the image.

"No, go on. There was a guy here this morning looking for him too." Janelle offers. This gets the officer's attention as I see him still and look back up. This surprises me too as I wasn't here in the morning and my foster parents apparently didn't think to tell me about some stranger looking for my little brother.

"Yeah, a big guy on a bike. That got something to do with this?" Todd adds. Dear God John, who are you getting involved with? The officer pauses for a moment before responding.

"No. I wouldn't worry about him. Thanks for your cooperation." He takes one last glance up in my direction. Our eyes meet. Only for a second before he's gone. But it's long enough to send a chill down my spine. Police officer or not that man is dangerous and he's heading straight for John. When John fails to answer his phone, that I got him by the way, I hurry to find my keys and make my way outside. The cop had left. He'll have to ask around to find John which should buy me some time.

It's a bit of a distance to get to the mall and the traffic of a Saturday afternoon doesn't help but I make it. I head towards the arcade on the second floor but have to backtrack around a corner when I spot the officer from earlier talking to some kids.

Christ, he works fast. This man really takes his job seriously.

The kids seem not to know anything as the man continues on and out of sight… in the direction of the arcade. DAMN IT. I hurry after hoping he'd walk past it which he does. I slow down to look through the windows hoping to catch a glimpse of John.

"Excuse me, have you seen…"

Stopped by the entrance I turn to look at the speaker realizing too late my mistake as I'm face to face with the very man I was avoiding. Because of the close proximity, I notice he's tall, and with a square jaw, bright blue eyes, and soft-looking light brown hair, he's handsome too. This is bad for me, because tall and handsome have gotten me in trouble before and I will not let it do so again. But he's staring, obviously recognizing me from not even an hour ago, so I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

"Lo siento señor no hablo ingles."

His brow furrowed in confusion which I take as my cue to leave. So with an "Adios!" I duck into the arcade, send a quick thank you to my high school Spanish classes, and hide behind the first big machine I find. From there I see him enter the arcade looking left and right, scanning as he did earlier, before turning to a pair of girls by a pinball machine. I turn away to go find John eventually finding him playing Afterburner.

"JOHN!"

"AAHH!"

"A cop is looking for you, what did you do?" He spares me a glance before returning to his game.

"... Is this because I took the card machine? Listen Aria, I'm sorry but mine broke."

"I am pissed about that but no."

"Is it cause I didn't invite you? In my defense, you weren't home."

"John..." I begin when Tim, John's buddy, slides up to us.

"John, hey there's this cop scoping for you, check it out." That got his attention, and let me be upset for a second as he takes a look around Tim and the machine to see the officer questioning another kid who points in our direction. John grabs his backpack, I grab John and we both head towards the employee door briefly looking back to see the officer pushing kids aside to catch up. I open the door and push John ahead of me, both of us running.

"So you'll listen to Tim but not to me?"

"Tim never messed with me about surprise police inspections." Ever since we were young mom drilled into us that the police were bad news and, like the caring and protective big sister that I am, I decided to add to this training. Suffice to say John tends to double guess me now and then.

"That's fair." Turning the corner we surprise a worker who yells at us and who we ignore as we push through the exit doors. That's when we turn to see a large man in a leather jacket and sunglasses and I freeze up as he opens the box to pull out a shotgun the roses he was carrying crushed beneath him as he advances. John pulls me back the way we came, the man following as we try the other doors.

Locked.

Trapped.

I chance a glance back to see he’s caught up with us. Another look forward reveals the officer appearing through the doorway, with a glare almost as menacing as the gun. I hear a click and a look back shows the shotgun has been leveled at us.

“Get down.”

What?

"ARIA!"

Lucky for me John has the good sense to listen to the man as he ducks down pulling me with him. I cover him as gunshots ring above us. I look up to see the officer blasted back a few inches, silver wounds appearing where red ones should be. The man in leather grabs us, spinning to cover us as the cop starts emptying his clip at us. I hear the poor employee from earlier scream in pain as he gets caught in the crossfire.

John and I scream, fear gripping us.

The bullet fire pauses for a moment giving our (definitely not) human shield the opportunity to bust open the door to our left and push us in. He turns away just in time for the officer to finish reloading but is undeterred by the bullets finding a home in his torso as he continues his march forward. He levels his own gun, shotgun shells flying as he blasts one after another pushing the smaller man back until he falls and our savior is allowed to reload. As he does so the silver gaps fill in and the man rises from where he lay grabbing the gun and catching the bigger man off guard as he tries and fails to gain back control. So instead he moves to grab the cop but is instead thrown into one wall then another. Cement and plaster alike collapsing in their struggle until they both disappear through a wall.

Despite the obvious difference in size, the larger man is the one being thrown around like a ragdoll which spells bad news for us. So I grab John again, pulling him behind me as I head towards the door that leads to a staircase. We head down until we reach ground level, the parking lot, we run over to John’s bike, an old thing that was mine before I handed it down when I got a new one. Trying to start it up now I remember why I upgraded.

“John, your bike is a hunk of junk!”

“It was your bike first! Just start it already!” The engine finally starts running just as the doors burst open. The cop racing after us on foot as we speed off.

[black-streak]

Saturday night's alright for fighting (but Sundays are meant for rest) - Curious New Hobbies

Part 11!

My god this took a while to write! Special thanks to @st0rmy-w1th1n and @mysnis (hope this is your correct Tumblr) for bouncing ideas with me and @kceedraws for giving permission to use her breakdancing au as inspiration for this!

Tagsss: @persephonebutkore @emjrabbitwolf @mystery-5-5 @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @fandomkitty8 @dast218 @silvergold-swirl @shizukiryuu . @my-name-is-michell @kurogaya913 @elspethshadow @thecatnipmademedoit @shamefullove @ladylucina28 @crazylittlemunchkin @rayray384 @cassiejaydee @yuulxd @ladysblackcat @naclychilli @caffeinetheory

~---~

They had meant to go the arcade for their date tonight. In fact, they'd even walked in and started scoping out games to play, but alas it wasn't to be.

Within moments of arriving, who else but Damian would single Mari out and immediately tell them to leave.

And of course she protested. In response, Damian only pointed at Jon over at the pacman machine (how dare he, that's the game Marinette was searching for!) and mentioned his lack of ability to keep secrets and suddenly she turned and dragged Tim right back out the door.

Walking down the sidewalk, he side eyed her, considering the best way to start his interrogation.

"So. You trying to keep me secret then?"

"No! Of course not. Just might've forgotten to mention something like… over a month ago."

"And it involves not letting Jon know we were there?"

"Only because he's a nark who would've ruined the fun. And heaven knows Damian and I wouldn't be satisfied with a void bet."

"You made a bet about our relationship with Damian?"

"About your family," she partially corrected.

"Do I even want to know."

"Was supposed to tell you a bit ago so you wouldn't ruin the stakes, so probably not, but im telling you anyways."

Sighing with false exasperation, he gestured for her to continue.

"We have an ongoing bet over how long it'll take everyone to figure out that you and I are together and not Dami and me."

With that, she relayed all the details of their bet and his part in it, manic grin spread across her face as her gait gained a small skip to it. Tim couldn't help but shake his head at her antics, amused despite an itch in the back of his mind saying this wouldn't end well.

"Alright, I'll play along. Honestly, I think you'll both lose. Your predictions are too specific. Too many potential outlying factors."

"True, but we did give set time frames. So at least one part of the bet will absolutely be clear on who won. Plus, I find victory in the fact that Damian didn't think of that possibility. That we'd both be wrong."

"On another note, we need to find a plan b. Anything in mind?" He asked, reaching out and snagging her hand to draw her closer. 

Shrugging, she looked about them, seeing if anything caught the eye. Suddenly Tim stopped, accidentally yanking her back when she kept walking. She let out a sound of protest only to see his eyes locked on the building across the way with a considering look. 

The building was gray brick with no windows, however a neon purple sign to the right of the black wood door declared it "The Underground", a well known club amongst Gotham dancers and while neither were necessarily that, word had gotten around enough for both to have heard of the place before from word of mouth.

"How do you feel about checking it out?" Tim asked, a curious look about his eyes, studying her.

"I'm not opposed to the idea. Little surprised you're interested though," she commented, letting him lead the way inside.

A quick ID check and they were in, the room dark with neon tube lights flashing across different surfaces and strategic spotlights placed to bring attention to the various raised platforms. It was strange actually. The wall directly to the left of the hall they entered from held the bar on a raised level only to slide into a ground level dance floor which was normal enough, however in the opposite corner was a raised platform where different people would hop up to take advantage of the spacing to show off both freestyle and blatantly choreographed moves. Another few spotlight platforms raised up randomly in the floor, but the main focus was a rather large circular one in the center of the place, raised just enough to make it easy to see from anywhere in the place, but not so high as to block the view across the way. These places were the most lit up, allowing the anonymity to the dancers below while allotting the attention to those who choose to step up. Beyond that, there were many crevices and alcoves holding tables into the walls and a small hallway across the way presumably heading to the bathrooms. An upper balcony held only the DJ.

While Mari took in her surroundings, she felt Tim lead her out into the crowds, before turning back to her with a questioning look. Leaning in she spoke into his ear, a spark gleaning her eyes, "You've been before, haven't you?"

"A few times. It's the perfect place to destress without the nonsense of keeping an image. As long as you stay in the crowd, no one cares who you are," he replied, spinning her around before stepping in so her back pressed to his chest.  His hands ghosted down her sides to grasp her hips, starting to guide her into the beat.

For a while, they stayed like that, separating slightly and coming back together to follow different dances as the music flowed and changed around them. Turns out Tim was a surprisingly good dancer. 

Cheers broke out as a new song turned over, the first beats of Bum Bum Tam Tam coming over the speakers drawing attention towards the main platform as a pair jumped up, starting to get into the beat, working around each other only to burst into perfectly synced choreography at the first breakdown, resulting in more cheers. The two dancers would break away after that into a more freestyle, only to flow back into more rehearsed moves once more.

"Wait is that," she trailed off to a groan pressed to her shoulder.

"Yeah. That's them. Didn't know they came here."

As the song came to an end and the two on the platform jumped down, they could only stare as none other than Dick and Kori unknowingly made their way towards them. Tim pulled back from Mari subconsciously, not quite comfortable being so fully on display in front of people who actually knew them. Which made exactly zero sense when considering how much they cuddled in the manor. 

Finally the two spotted them, their grins widening and a new energy emerging as they rushed over. 

"Timothy! Starshine! You guys are here!" Came Kori's exuberant greeting, grabbing them both up in a hug.

"Hey, Mar, Damian not like dancing enough? Had to drag Timmy out?" Dick teased.

"Dami's at the arcade with Jon. And actually, coming here was Tim's idea," she answered amicably, conforming to the rules of the bet and not correcting Dick's obvious assumptions. "That was amazing by the way. You two looked great up there!"

Tim smirked down at her, seeing through her antics, especially now that she'd let him in on the rules of her game. Doesn't mean he couldn't play into it himself, he thought as he wrapped an arm around her waist and placed his chin atop her head.

"She's a great dance partner," Tim mentioned after both Kori and Dick had thanked and waved off Mari's compliments. "Considering learning something more structured with her, myself. Maybe give you two a run for your money."

"You definitely should! I can help with figuring out a style for you two if you'd like!" Kori offered immediately as Marinette turned to look at him in excitement.

"She has to agree first. Who knows, maybe this was a fluke and Mari will never dance with me again," he sighed in defeat.

Marinette turned, practically bouncing in anticipation, "Are you kidding? I'd love to! I want to come here again too."

"Even if you don't take my help with the dancing, I can record you two so you can look back and see for any needed improvements? That's what Richard and I do," Kori further offered up, Dick jumping back in right after.

"Oh yeah, it helps immensely. Especially if you were wanting to perform it on the platforms here."

Tim and Mari met eyes, before coming to an agreement, "Yeah, we'd appreciate that actually."

"Great! We'll set up some time here soon. In the meantime, I could definitely use a drink," Dick stated, looking back towards where he'd originally been headed. Kori grabbed onto Marinette instead, leading her back into the fray of dancers.

"We should invite Stephanie next. She would make a most interesting dance partner," Kori rattled on, suggesting a girls night that Mari agreed to immediately before getting back into the music with her new dance partner of the moment, Tim and Dick rejoining them shortly after. 

The night continued on this way, the four trading off between them, two not aware that it'd become a double date by this point. Eventually parting ways from the two, Tim and Mari made their way back towards his apartment, breathless and happy despite the unexpected interruptions to their night.

"How come we never end up at your place?" He asked suddenly.

"Because my apartment has become workzone number 2. Seriously, the place has essentially become a studio for my work that just so happens to have a kitchen and bedroom. Among other secrets not meant to be divulged… yet."

"Is that pertaining to the mystery of your magic."

"Perhaps."

"Mmm, whenever you're ready, I'll be happy to keep them for you. Though I can't imagine anything bigger than holding two technical gods in your pockets at all times."

"Shhh, don't let them hear you say that!"

He only chuckled, leading her into the complex and up to his penthouse. Silence overtaking them until the door had clicked shut.

"You staying the night, sweetheart?" Tim asked, toeing off his shoes and walking towards his room to get changed.

"Mm, think I might," she replied, following him in and stealing a shirt before wandering into the bathroom to get first dibs on a shower. She still found it lucky that while he might be the shortest of his brothers, she was still small enough to be buried in his clothes. Made it easier for night like these.

Finishing up, she plopped herself on his bad as he went to shower as well. 

Eventually, the door reopened, Tim entering in only pajama bottoms, hair still damp and in his face. She hummed her appreciation, enjoying the view and reaching out to tug him closer.

"Is it weird how comfortable we've become in so little time?" 

"Only if you're uncomfortable with it."

"I'm not."

"Good."

With the affirmation, he picked her up only to lay her out further up the bed. Stretching out at her side, he pressed kisses to her cheek and down her neck, hand trailing against exposed skin, clearly enjoying having her in his home, in his bed, in his shirt.

'Hmm, what were two raging insomniacs to do with the rest of their night?'

… 

Bonus:

Not a week later, after a long discussion with Damian to ensure that Kori was not included in the bet and swearing the alien to secrecy, they asked her to film something for them. A dance they had come with that was just for them. Not anything that could be performed in a club or for anyone to see. Maybe one day they'd post it somewhere or show Dick, but for now, it was theirs alone.

[witness-protection-official]

Warning! Lots more cussing this time, mention of doing drugs, and god tier acting from both parties

Also very long this time I spent a sold three hours writing this

Witness Protection - An Eyeless Jack x Female Reader Fanfiction

Chapter 3

You felt as though you were going insane. The man hadn't said a single word to you since the weird field area. Only lord knew if the ancient vehicle you sat in had a working radio. Asking was out of the question, you still had tape over your mouth. Couldn't check, you had tape gloves that went all the way up your arms, rendering them useless. With half lidded eyes, you stare at your disheveled figure in the side mirror. Dear god, you looked like shit. The blood on the side of your face had caked into a gross brown and was beginning to flake off, leaving you looking like you were a burn victim. You wince internally. You had mangled hair, with strands sticking every which way. Bags under the eyes displayed your lack of sleep and slowly depleting sanity. With a nearly inaudible groan, you tap your head against the glass. 'Can't he just kill me and get this over with? I don't know how much sitting in dead silence I'm going to be able to handle.' You slouch heavily, slowly sinking to the floor of the truck.

"You'll hurt your back sitting like that," his monotone voice stated off handedly. You huff and remain there. He sighs and grabs the back of your shirt, tugging you up to sit properly. You groan. Apparently sitting weirdly isn't even an option. He remains facing foward, not even glancing in your direction. Unable to spit insults at him, you level a heated glare at instead. He either doesn't notice or doesn't care. Maybe a good mix of both. It wasn't easy to tell how long you sat there, giving a dirty look to a man that probably couldn't even see you past the hood he had been wearing this entire time, but you assumed it had been about ten minutes or so. The truck suddenly stopped. You break out of your hate filled trance and look around. Why did he park in an actual parking lot? Was he going to let you go? The thought filled your heart with hope. He popped open the center console and pulled out a large bottle of what sounded like pills. Christ, was he about do just pop a few pills to deal with your bullshit? He pulled his mask off, placing it in the back seat. The cap popped off and he dumped a few out, throwing them into his mouth and closing the bottle. He pulled the hood down, giving you a clear view of the side of his head. You voice your distress at his appearance in muffled screams. He sighs heavily, leaning his head back against his seat, not seeming bothered. The screaming grew louder as his features shifted.

He opened his eyes and glanced at you, letting you get a clear view of his eyes. The screaming ceased in shock. How had you not seen them under his mask? With how bright the blue of his iris was, one would think they would glow in the dark. He pulled the visor down to examine his face in the small mirror embedded inside. He licked his teeth, turned his face from side to side. It finally clicked why he sounded familiar. He was the weird guy that had been staring at you when you changed out shifts with a coworker. You sigh internally. No point in thinking about it now, you guessed. He had murdered someone and kidnapped you, you had bigger things to worry about. His buckle clicked and you snapped out of your thoughts.

"I'll be back," he said simply, clicking something on the side of the door and closing it. Did- did that fucker just turn the child lock on?! Where the fuck were you gonna go in blood soaked clothes and taped up arms?! You send a hateful glare at his retreating form. He went into a store. A very large store. The fuck was he doing?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

He bit the inside of his cheek as he entered the store. Did she really have to scream like that? Probably, not everyday you see a man with grey skin. And it's also not everyday you see him suddenly become a shape shifter after popping some pills. Either way, it really wasn't a boost of confidence for his already weak self esteem. Whatever. He had a reputation to uphold, and that meant keeping his cool, constantly. He'd already almost lost it on her while she was being annoying the night before. No point in risking it now. Jack sighed and rubbed his eyes. He began his journey towards the clothes section of the store before he paused. He forgot to ask what her sizes were. He facepalmed. And she had been wearing heels too. He grumbled, figuring it'd be easier to deal with that later. Right now he had to focus on getting her clothes that weren't stained with blood. He debated on heading to the woman's section, guess her size. No, bad idea. Someone is bound to try to talk to him. He was a tall man, he had no reason to be in the woman's section, and people were bound to wonder. Both his pride and crippling social anxiety told him to not risk it. Avoid talking with people was a priority. With a deep breath, he swiveled on his heel, headed towards the mens. He'd just grab some smaller sized jeans or something. There was a time where baggy jeans were popular right? He furrowed his brows as he thought, as he did a lot. His mind continued to wander until he reached the clothes. He eyed the jeans and opted to grab a pair of skinny jeans, in a random size that looked like they would fit her. He wasn't exactly staring at her legs, so he hoped that brief mental image he had in his mind was enough. He turned to the shirts. Any of them would work, they just couldn't be too big. He really wasn't in the mood to listen to her bitch and whine about him being a 'pervert' because it dipped too low and showed her bra.

He grabbed a basic black tee, looking to be maybe a size smaller than he got his own shirts. That'll do. He got a second pair of pants and a second shirt, just for good measure. He bit his tongue. He knew a little bit about the hygenic needs of a woman, but he hadn't smelled any blood or hormonal spike on her, so he figured she'd be fine for now. As he made his way to a different part of the store, he passed a shelf of hoodies. He backed up. Should he get her a hoodie? That would be awfully nice of him. She had done nothing to deserve any form of kindness from Jack. Letting her live was the extent of his mercy for her. 'But if she isn't cold that's less things she'll have to bitch about…' he mulled it over in his head before deciding. He'd get another hoodie for himself and let her wear it passively. 'What a fucking genius you are, Jack, absolute genius' he congratulated himself, grabbing a dark colored hoodie that was in his size. He nodded, satisfied and went to get a few more items.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You had been pretty confident he up and died in that store, he took so long. But alas, he had to return. You watched his form make it's way to your side of the truck and reflexively shifted away. He swung it open, placing the bags he held ontot he ground while he stood onto the step to reach your seatbelt clip. He tore off the tape, unclipping the restraint. The tape on your mouth went next.

"Spit an insult at me and I'll cut off your tongue," he quipped. You closed your mouth. "Good girl," he himself seemed to cringe at what he just said, judging by the sigh he released. You scrutinized his face as he worked on the tape on your arms with intense concentration. He had tiny freckles all over his face. They were so small it was impossible to see them from a distance, but they were everywhere. His nose, his cheeks, even the top of his neck and between his eyes. You would've found him attractive if you didnt know it wasn't what he actually looked like. Tanned skin and soft looking auburn hair helped him sell the whole 'fucking gorgeous' thing.

"What's with the whole 'pretty boy' get up?" you murmur. He pauses and looks up at you, confused. "why did you choose this look to be normal?" He searched her face for any underlying intentions. When he found none, he shrugged.

"Didn't get a choice," He finally managed to get the tape off of your hands and arms.

"You got damn lucky with it then, you coulda been ugly," you shrugged. He took a deep breath and didn't respond, instead reaching into the bag and pulling out a package of what appeared to be baby wipes. "I'm not a baby,"

"I noticed," he opened the package and pulled out a wipe. He gripped your jaw and turned your head to the side.

"I can do this myself,"

"Don't trust you," as usual, his response was simple. He wiped the dried blood off of your face rather harshly.

"Hey, hey! Be gentler! I'm not dead yet!" He growled lowly and held your face tighter in his hand, wiping the rest of the blood off of any currently visible skin. He took another wipe and used it to wipe off any tape or dirt residue off of you. "What gives with the mini bath?"

"You'll see," He pushed your head down, bending you so that your chest was pressed tightly against your thighs. He threw what you assumed to be the wipes into the back before letting you sit up again. He picked up the bag from off of the pavement and handed it to you. "Change," he closed the truck door. He must've gotten you clothes so you wouldnt be covered in blood constantly. You pull out a pair of jeans and a shirt, followed by an extremely oversized hoodie. You quirk a brow but peek out the window. The man was scrolling on his phone, back pressed against the car door. You deemed it safe to change and stripped down, pulling the new, clean clothes on. You rummaged through the bag some more and came across a hair brush, dry shampoo, and deodorant. Questionable items, but you put them to use. You felt like a human again. A soft knock on the window startled you. There he was. You blink dumbly at him. He points down. You look down. You had locked the door. With a sigh, you unlocked the door and he opened it.

"You didn't stare at me while I was changing, did you?" you narrow your eyes in suspicion.

"I've got no reason to," he took the hoodie out of the bag and threw it at you. "Wear it if you want," he threw the bag in the backseat. You huff and pull the sweater over your head. He closed the door and moved to the drivers side. He strapped in and started the truck.

"Why'd you make me freshen up and stuff?"

"You need food. I don't know what you want," He made the short drive to a gas station that was only about five minutes up the road. He unstrapped and went to your side, opening the door. "Out," You unstrapped and slipped out of the truck, a little wobbly from not standing for so long. The heels didn't help.

"You're coming in with me?"

"I'm the one with money,"

"There's another reason, isn't there,"

"That one is obvious. Now listen. You go in there, grab anything you need, and if anyone asks, I'm your boyfriend," he briefed.

"Why do I have to say you're my boyfriend?"

"You won't have to if you don't act suspicious, now lets go, I've spoken to much,"

"You got a word limit or something?"

"Mentally," he ushered you inside.

"You gonna act all boyfriendy?"

"Boyfriendy?"

"Are you gonna act like my boyfriend?"

"Yes, and you'll have to deal,"

"Ew, but why,"

"There won't be any kissing," he rolled his eyes.

"What if you need to?"

"I won't" he guided you to the hot foods area. "Now get your food," He stayed close as you grabbed two slices of pizza and a hot dog, putting them in mini bags. "Its a long drive, go get yourself some snacks," you nod and sort of hand him your hot food, which he holds with no complaint. His eyes hold a glimmer of warning, telling you not to do anything stupid.

You're examining the chips on the different shelves when some girl about your age comes up to you.

"Did you hear?" She leans in close.

"Hear what?" you tilt your head.

"About the murder at that hotel. Apparently the murderer took a hostage with them, one of the staff," you pretend to be shocked and that the hostage was 100% not you.

"Really?" top tier lying this was. You just hoped it was believable. She nodded.

"By the way that guy has kind of been staring you down this entire time," she whispered. "Hey, creep! Why don't you go bother some other chick-!"

"Wait! It's ok," you subtly gulp and turn to your kidnapper, acting as natural as possible. "Babe, are you gonna keep standing there like a stalker?" He shook his head.

"S-sorry," he chuckled awkwardly, moving to stand next to you. He somehow managed to look bashful, blush and all. His posture was slouched to look more weak and not as standoffish. He probably took an acting class at some point.

"Oh, you're dating," she seemed relieved. You nod. "Can I have proof?"

"Why- why do you need proof that we're dating?"

"With the whole hostage thing I just wanna make sure he isn't the murderer, or you aren't, you never know,"

"It does make a bit of sense," your abductor agreed, somehow flying through this whole interaction look weak and pathetic, and making it look like he was completely off the list of possible suspects. She raised her eyebrows, waiting. He looks down at you and you look up at him, seeming to have the same idea. He lean down and you meet him halfway in a short kiss. The taste of iron and blood you expected never showed up. When you two pulled away from each other, the woman visibly relaxed.

"Alright, sorry for being weird. Have a nice day!" she waved. You waved along with the man. He grabs your hand.

"She made a scene, we gotta keep up the appearance," he whispered as he leaned down, followed by a kiss on the cheek to cover it up. You notice some people were definitely staring.

"Got it," you whisper back. Pulling your hand away from his you grab a bag of chips. "Do we wanna get chips or something else for the trip?"

"You'll be eating them more than me,"

"Yeah but I don't want you to think I'm greedy for eating them all,"

"I won't think you're greedy,"

"Yes you will," you put the chips back.

"You can get the chips, babe," You whine.

"But-!"

"You're fine," he took the chips off of the shelf and placed them in your hands. He mouthed something to you. 'Jack'. You assumed that was his name.

"You sure, Jackie? You're 100% sure?"

"Yes," You shrug and grab the collar of his hoodie and yank him down, planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you," you coo. He hums and pecks your lips. The line is fairly short as you two go to pay. Jack pays and before you leave the guy manning the register bids you farewell.

"Be safe, you two lovebirds,"

"We will, have a nice day!" The moment you're both in the car you place the bag down and go to fetch the wet wipes to wipe your mouth off. They wer to far back and you sighed. "You're a really good actor," you comment. "Your affection felt real," he hums.

"Likewise," he seemed greatly uncomfortable, and it made you wonder what he meant by metal word limit. Either that or he just really did not like pretending to be dating his hostage. You shrug. Best to ask once you've eaten. You unwrap your hotdog and take a bite.