#You just KNOW he was the worst most deadbeat piece of shit | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

thenightgazer · 3 years

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A Long Way Home

While still trapped in the Underworld, Dante and Vergil have to resolve their family issue. One that can't be solved only by swords and guns.

It's been two years since Red Grave incident, one week after Christmas, and still no news about Dante and Vergil. That leaves Nero terribly upset, but little did he know that miracle will come to him very soon.

Merry Christmas @nibbbs! Surprise surprise, I’m your secret santa from @dmcsecretsanta! Hopefully you enjoy the gift I wrote for you! Happy reading and happy holiday!

You can also read it on my AO3!

~~~

The Underworld has never been this quiet before.

That forsaken place is the real no man’s land; always boisterous with fights between demons to take over the throne of the Underworld. Be it a slaughter between lower demons or higher demons, they couldn’t care less. Their primal instinct is just craving more power and of course, human flesh. But since the portal to cross into the human world isn’t always unfolded, cannibalism is ineluctable. It’s either eat or be eaten. It’s bound to happen and demons don’t have any choices but to yield to the Underworld’s natural law. Surviving and escaping the Underworld seems like an absurd fantasy for humans, even for demons as well.

Which is why voluntarily jumping into the depth of the Underworld to save the world is considered to be a valiant and honorable act, yet also frivolously lunatic.

Well, for Dante, lunatic sounds like his middle name, if he ever had one.

He chuckles by the thought of that.

“What are you laughing at?” Dante’s problematic twin brother Vergil snarls.

“Nothing,” Dante closes his eyes. “Just having a weird thought.”

Vergil replies nothing. He shows no interest in Dante's daydream, but that’s just probably because he’s too tired to even think of a reply. The twins couldn’t count how many days have passed since they cut the Qliphoth tree down. They spared and killed any demons nearby, exploring other regions of the Underworld simply because they are bored and need some time to rebound their lost time as brothers. Now, exhaustion forces them to take some rest. They lean side by side on the scorched desert, staring at the perpetual black sky while restoring their energy.

Dante can sense a demon’s presence not too far from where he is right now, but that presence fades eventually. “You feel that too, Verge?”

“I do,” Vergil murmurs. “The words have been spoken, I presume. That they better not to disturb us if they still want to live.”

“Well, once we recover, they’re going to die anyway.”

Vergil’s short hum speaks of his concurrence.

Dante shifts his hands under his head as he glances to his brother. Vergil stiffly lies on the ground with Yamato on his chest while his hands gripping on it. He might close his eyes but Dante knows his brother can still attack his opponent while closing his eyes. As hard as a steel, this old bastard, Dante amuses at his idea. “Rest means relaxing, bro. You don’t have to be on guard all the time.”

“I’m preparing for any attack.”

“It’s not like there is a demon near us at this moment.”

“Have some self-consciousness, Dante. You could attack me at any time, given a chance.”

Dante wakes up straight away. “Why would I wanna attack you?!”

“There’s always a possibility.”

“Says the guy who always has the intention to kill me, huh,” Dante lies back again. “Seriously, Verge. Just for five minutes, stop thinking and go to sleep. Bet it’s been a while since you have a proper sleep, right?”

Neither show any agreement or disagreement, Vergil turns his head to Dante. “Why are you still awake then?”

“Huh? To keep an eye on you, of course. Who knows you’d do some weird shit outta there again.”

Vergil curves a smirk, then turns his eyes to the dark sky again. “I see. You are also scared of me attacking you while you’re asleep, aren’t you? We’re twins, after all.”

“I don’t-” Dante almost bite his mouth.. “Man, you’re as sharp and annoying as you always have been.”

“I take that as a compliment.”

“Yeah right.”

And there’s silence again. It’s been days, or weeks, since the last time Dante hears any demonic voices around him. To be honest, he kind of expects their appearance. He likes talking to Vergil, but the older brother has an issue in healthy communication. Hell, Vergil is a difficult person and Dante wonders if the eldest children around the world are always like this. But Dante realizes he is also no expert in social interaction, and fighting is also the only thing they both are good at. Vergil would talk a little bit much when fighting, even if it’s mostly taunting and mocking Dante, yet it’s better than having Vergil succumb to the dark side again.

“By the way,” Dante breaks the ice. “Are you ready now to tell me who’s the lucky girl a.k.a Nero’s mom?”

Vergil draws the Yamato above Dante’s throat. “One more word, and I’ll cut you into pieces.”

“C’moooon! I’m curious!”

The Yamato is now touching Dante’s skin. “Final warning, Dante.”

Dante flicks the Yamato’s blade. “Fine. Whenever you’re ready, bro. You might not want to tell me, but you owe that to Nero. He’s your son. He deserves to know.”

Vergil sheathes Yamato, scoffing at Dante’s warning. “It’s not like I’m going back to the human world.”

“Well, we HAVE to!”

“Pray tell why I should agree with you.”

“I have a shop to run and there’s a new menu at my favorite pizza parlor. You should try it, by the way. And you got a lot to explain to Nero. You don’t wanna be a deadbeat like Father, right? Though you kinda already are all this time.”

“You know it better than anyone else that I didn’t know Nero’s existence until you told me so.”

“Which is more reason why you have to come back to the human world soon. You can say you don’t need to catch up with Nero but I know you want it. You left him your frigging book; the same one you didn’t allow me to borrow. Dear ol’ Vergil got some soft spots for his son, huh?”

Vergil turns his back from Dante like a sulking child, ignoring his younger twin’s laughter. As expected from a cold man like him, he won’t ever admit that every single of Dante’s words is true. Again, a long and neglected fear consumes him. What’s fatherhood for a man who ran out of place and time like him anyway? Is there any chance for him to fix his family? Getting back in terms with Dante is one thing, but with Nero, the son he had never met before his escapement from the Underworld? Does he even have a right to call him his son after all he had done to him?

After quite long of silence and battle with himself, Vergil murmurs a question to Dante. “How old is he?”

Dante almost squealed if only he didn’t remember not to ruin Vergil’s mood or else they won’t have any friendly conversation anymore. “Nero? Twenty-something, I guess. Haven’t asked him myself.”

“How did you meet each other?”

“Long short story, some weird-ass cult that worshipped our father as a god turned out evil and wanted to use our father’s power to rule the world-”

“The Order of the Sword?”

“Right! You did your research! Nero was one of them but rebelled after they kidnapped his girlfriend and killed her brother. I came to Fortuna to retrieve the Sparda sword and apparently your kid was able to summon the Yamato and I got the picture already. He got white hair, he summoned Yamato, tried to kill me repeatedly, stab me with Rebellion and Yamato, craving for more power to save his beloved. I wondered where he got that from, by the way~”

A hint of smirk curves in Vergil’s mouth.

“Then we worked together to save Fortuna from a pope who was obsessed with our Father and destroyed the island. We succeeded and brought peace. Nero got his girlfriend back, and we established the branch of Devil May Cry in Fortuna. The end.”

“A heartwarming, and very unoriginal story.”

“You think I made up that story?”

“Didn’t say that. I am merely implying that I heard stories similar to your experience.”

“Hell knows you are the coldest person alive, but you are a terrible liar. You are a man of pride, after all. Lying doesn’t suit you.”

“I can tell thousands of lies as I please, if only that’s necessary,” Vergil takes a brief look at Dante’s mischievous face. “But I won’t, if it’s concerning my son.”

Is this really the Vergil I used to know? Dante can’t hold his grin while elbowing his brother. “Starting to feel like a real dad, huh?”

“Silence.”

“Admitting that you love your son won’t do any harm, Verge.”

“I-” Vergil stumbles upon his own words. He growls impatiently, hurrying himself to get up and sit down as he wipes his face frustratedly. “We’re not having this conversation anymore.”

“Why? Just because you can’t admit that you grew care for your son?”

“Because I’m a terrible person!”

That was the most honest words that came from Vergil, if anything, ever. When was the last time he showed his vulnerable side like this? Even as V, crumbling and dying slowly, he didn’t even spare Dante any sign of defeat and regret. Dante gets up, clapping Vergil’s shoulder. “Only if you still want to destroy the world and kill your own family, then maybe I’d call you the worst shit in the world too.”

Vergil shakes his head. “If only…”

“Huh?”

“Had I known I have a son back then…” Vergil says bitterly. “I would never leave him. I would never go pursuing power or raising that foolish tower and this ridiculous tree…” he points to the remains of Qliphoth tree with his sword. “I would have a better chance to be… a good father for him…”

Regret always comes late, isn’t it? The ‘if onlys’ never come at the front of the mind, merely whispering behind the head but never appearing into the surface before regret comes. Vergil knows that, but never really understands it until Dante tells him that Nero- the very man whose arm was ripped by him and still willing to help him in every way- is his own flesh and blood. His priority was to seal the gate of the Underworld and cut the Qliphoth tree, so that Nero and the rest of the human world are safe and sound. He will stay in the Underworld to redeem himself, for he thinks he has no place in the human world for all he has done. He planned to create a portal to the human world after he fixed things up with Dante to kick him out from the Hell with force, because he knows Dante won’t leave him alone again and will do anything to drag Vergil out from the Underworld. The plan is simple. It should have been easy to execute.

Yet ever since Vergil landed at this hellhole, his steps are getting heavier as time goes on. A haunting voice inside his head kept telling him to come back to Nero as soon as he finished his job cutting Qliphoth roots. Another sound tells him he should stay longer here with Dante to catch up with their sibling bound. The third sound, more demanding and urging, tells him to stay in the Underworld forever as a redemption.

“Y’know, bro,” Dante folds his legs as he seizes the Yamato from Vergil’s hand and puts it on the ground, which dismays Vergil. “Gotta admit that I wanted to kill you because I wanted to free you from evil, and get rid of Nero’s burden of having you as his father. Though he proved to us that we are just a bunch of nonsensical idiots who got unsolved sibling problems between us-”

“I am not an idiot!”

“You might have scored higher on the Math test than me but you’re still an idiot!” Dante barks. “Anyway that’s not my point! What I mean to say is, as much as I hate your dumb-as-rock head, you’re still my brother. And it’s never too late to fix things up.”

Vergil scoffs and takes his sword back to his embrace again. “How can you be so sure?”

“I blamed you, y’know, for that day” Dante admits, his eyes getting darker and the carefree vibe in his voice is gradually gone. “For not rescuing me and Mother.”

Vergil streaked at that confession. “What do you mean?”

“You thought Mother only saved me and left you behind while she died searching for you,” Dante woefully chuckles. “But for me, on that day, I thought you would come to rescue us.”

“I was planning to-”

“She could have hid with me in the closet until you come to save us. That’s what I thought back then when she died, and you never came back. I thought you left us, before I heard one of them say they had you killed. There I was; frightened and thinking that I was alone. My mother and brother died. No one could save me but myself. I was blaming you for running away that day. If you didn’t, we could have defeated them all and protected our home.”

“Or, we could have died. All of us.”

“Exactly. Instead of blaming you, I blamed myself for picking a fight with you. Should’ve left you and your book alone,” Dante stands up, spinning the Ivory before shooting a flying demon that approaches them. “I lived by loathing myself, until I met you again in that cursed church, remember? I was genuinely happy to see you.”

“I remember,” Vergil nods slowly, recalling a blurry picture of their younger selves. “You said you are a devil hunter and will be filthy rich someday.”

“Still waiting for that day, actually. Yet you fucker started being a dick, saying shits about power and stuff,” Dante’s harsh voice trembles slightly. “I thought we could start over as a family, but you decided to fucking stay in the Underworld. I couldn’t save you at the gate of the Underworld. I couldn’t save you at Mallet Island. I could save everyone else, but not my own family.”

Vergil raises up. His arm is reaching Dante’s shoulder, but it never touches him. His hesitation is rational, for he knows words can’t describe how Dante must have felt towards Vergil. Hatred might be the wrong word; it sounds too soft. Too lenient, too merciful.

One could tell it’s disappointment, Vergil gets his answer as Dante turns over to face him. The mischievous little brother side of Dante has gone as he aims his gun at Vergil. It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend. Let alone a family.

Dante wails horridly. “Always the quiet one, ain’t cha? Remember how our parents always told me to be quiet like you? ‘Why can’t you just behave like Vergil?’ Guess what? At least I’m not the one who fucked the world up and ripped off my son’s arm-”

“Dante-”

“Shut the fuck up!” Dante’s grip on Ivory is slightly trembling as he snaps. “I’ve been through shits too, Vergil. I missed Father and Mother. I missed you, for fuck sake! After all this time I believed I killed you in Mallet Island, then you came out of nowhere to destroy the world. I came out with the conclusion that you didn’t even change a bit, just an egomaniacal who thinks the world only revolves around him. I needed to kill you again because I don’t want my nephew to kill his own father. Don’t you fucking realize how maddening was that?!”

A bullet passes through Vergil’s head. The older hybrid stands still without any intention to return the attack, only wiping the blood from his forehead. I don’t have the right to be irritated, he reminds himself while his mouth forms a bitter grimace as Dante puts the gun on Vergil’s forehead, ready to pull the trigger anytime soon. For a second Vergil can sense Dante is going to lose his temper as he catches a glimpse of red flash in Dante’s eyes. Ever since they were kids, Vergil was always aware that Dante in his total wrath is dangerous. A ticking bomb , Vergil recalls what their father said about Dante’s anger as he watches the raging fire in Dante’s eyes ignite until it’s slowly fading.

“But I changed my mind again,” Dante continues. “Instead of blaming you and carrying on the bad blood, I choose to start over. And that’s how I can be sure,” he pokes Vergil’s head with the gun before putting it back into his coat. “That everyone deserves a second chance and it’s never too late to fix what you have done.”

The red devil yawns as he slams himself on the ground again, stretching his hands before he closes his eyes. “Sorry for raising my voice. It’s just impossible to use soft words whenever I’m talking to a stubborn jackass like you.”

He opens one of his eyes to see what Vergil would react. His older brother sighs heavily, sitting beside Dante’s lying body and puts his katana on the ground. For a man with a soul of a true warrior like Vergil, putting weapons down on the ground is a sign of defeat. Which is the reason why he was slightly aggravated when Dante seized the Yamato and put it on the ground as if he told Vergil to surrender. It should be a humiliating act, but for once Vergil throws his pride away.

Because you are right, Dante.

“Dante,” he calls his brother. This time there’s no hostility in his voice, only sincerity and repentance. “I am ever so sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” Dante smirks playfully. “Why do you think I’m here if I still hold a grudge against you?”

“I mean it,” Vergil emphasizes. “Truthfully. For everything I have done… and my sincere gratitude for taking good care of my son while I wasn’t there for him.”

“Honestly, Verge. Forget it. I only do what I have to do.”

Watching his little brother finally howls in laughter, a surge of warmth fills Vergil’s veins as he joins the laughter. It’s comforting, since they can’t remember the last time they laugh together without any fight and bad blood. I barely remember how it feels like to have a family, Vergil chuckles while Dante kicks Vergil’s knee mischievously. Was it always this… warm?

“Dante.”

“Yup?”

“I think we should go back to the human world now.”

Dante whistles in joy. “Ready to meet your grandkids?”

“Do tell me the truth,” Vergil growls, impetuously tugs Dante’s collar. “Are you serious about grandchildren or you just make it up?”

“For fuck sake, Verge! Didn’t you know that already when you ripped your son’s arm?”

“I didn’t pay much attention... I can only recall a voice of woman called Nero for dinner- not the voice of that mouthful friend of Nero-”

“Yeah that was Kyrie. Your soon-to-be daughter in law. Anyway they adopted kids called Carlo, Kyle, and Julio,” Dante pats Vergil’s shoulder with pride and teasing manner. “Congratulations, you’re officially a grandpa! What a fine day for revelation!”

As if my life could get any worse, Vergil grinds his teeth in frustration as he releases Dante from his grip. “How unfortunate.”

“C’mon, swing that flimsy sword of yours and make a portal to the human world. We got plenty of things to do! I gotta pay those bills, refurbish my shop, return Kalina Ann to Lady, and buy a birthday present for Patty.”

“Rather a cumbersome list you got there, Dante.”

“What can I say? I’m a busy man! Now get your ass up, old man! Nero’s waiting!”

---

It’s already two fucking years.

Nero was never a believer. There’s no such thing as a miracle, he told himself. Protecting Kyrie and the kids is an endless responsibility that bestowed upon him. There’s nothing he won’t do for their happiness and safety, even if it means to cost his own well-being. He relies on nobody but himself. He doesn’t pray. He never tries to exceed any expectation, because hope is a dangerous and fragile thing. Hope bothers him, and he hates to be bothered.

Yet, lately, he almost surrendered by the temptation to hold some hope.

What hope? Nero rejects his own thought. For those douchebags to return safely? Gimme a break.

Sitting in his garage and polishing the Red Queen, Nero takes a brief look at the snowy ground outside of the house where the children are building a snowman. He grins at Kyle who waves at him; the youngest from the three children he adopted, who’s now taller and braver than he used to be when he found the little boy searching for some scraps at Fortuna’s slum. Nero chuckles when a glimpse of a picture of Vergil meeting Kyrie and the boys pops out from his head. Would they be pleased to meet him? Would Vergil be pleased to meet them? Would he himself be pleased to meet Vergil again? There’s no fucking way for them to coming back, Nero slaps himself. They either die or shit themselves in the Underworld. Probably fucking fighting again like toddlers.

Still, the thought of his father and uncle somehow return and meeting his little family is overwhelming. Nero can’t even hide his smile anymore. He throws away the rug he uses to wipe the blade and hangs the Red Queen on the wall.

Come to think of it, that fucker ripped off my arm in this garage too.

He lays a hard punch on the wall.

“Keep punchin’ the wall, and ya would destroy the house.”

Nero glances at his friend and partner in crime, Nico, who rests her back on the van and lights her cigarette. He still finds it strange to witness Nico in her winter outfit, a contrast to her usual tanktop and shorts she used to wear before winter comes. "How many times have I told you to smoke outside the house?”

“Ya blind or what? It’s cold outside!”

“Darn it, Nico! Then don’t smoke!”

“Too late~” Nico barks a laugh while blowing a smoke. “Anyway, why did you punch the wall like a madman?”

Nero shrugs nonchalantly. “Nothing. Just feeling like punching something.”

“Cut the bullshit. Ya missed yer old man, ain’t cha?”

“Buzz off, Nico.”

“Aaaaw, don’t be so meanie~”

“Seriously, Nico. Go bugger off someone else. I’m not in the mood for having a chit-chat.”

“Everyone’s worried, ya know,” Nico exhales exaggeratedly, pointing at the children outside. “Those lil’ brats asked me if somethin’ pissed ya off because ya look like ya wanted to punch someone in the face since the Christmas party last week.”

“I indeed want to punch a certain person,” Nero lets out a cackle. “But he’s not available at the moment.”

“Y’know, I’m not an expert of daddy and son shits, and yer dad is obviously not an ideal father, but it’s totally okay for ya to miss him. The jackass did save the world, at least.”

“Thanks, Nico. That’s so motivational. I’m deeply touched- ouch !” Nero swears when a sturdy plug lands on his head. “What the fuck Nico?!”

“Talk to Kyrie,” Nico lowers her voice. Her brash mouth always sounds kinder and empathetic when she talks about Kyrie. “Ya locked yerself in this garage the whole day! You’re making her worried, ya know?”

“I think you should double your eyeglasses. I didn’t lock myself. See that door? It’s unhinged, because I need to make sure the kids are alright.”

“Yeaaah whatever. Go talk to her, pretty boy. I’ll watch over the brats.”

“Fine…” Nero scratches his nape as he walks away from the garage. “Don’t let the kids go anywhere near my weapons!”

“Gotcha~!”

Nero never meant to worry anyone, of course. He lives a happy life; he married the love of his life, adopted a bunch of orphans whom he loved and took care of equally, and ran a business with his best friend whom he considered a big sister. The world is currently safe from danger. So what's to worry about?

His confusion disappears when he sees Kyrie’s figure covered in a thick blanket at the terrace. She smiles happily as the snow continues to fall and catches a drop on her palm. Nero feels like he could melt anytime he sees Kyrie’s soothing smile. He takes his time to watch her catching snow as he leans against the door, ignoring the cold breeze that sneaks inside his body. It doesn’t take a long time for Kyrie to be aware of Nero’s presence as she asks him to join her at the terrace.

“You should put your coat on, Nero. It’s cold here.” Kyrie speaks her concern while she wraps him with her blanket.

“Chill out. I’m fine,” Nero gives her a light peck on the forehead. His right hand envelopes Kyrie’s waist to give her a sense of comfort. “The kids are building snowmans back there. Been hours and who knows when they will stop.”

Kyrie giggles. “The more they grow up the more energetic they become! At least we don’t need to worry about how to get them to sleep on time. I believe they’ll get exhausted after play and filling their stomachs with delicious dinner would quicken their way to sleep!”

“You’re right.”

Kyrie looks up at her lover’s tensed face. She brushes the tip of Nero’s nose slightly to make him smile. That little maneuver always succeeded to cheer him up. Kyrie rests her head on Nero’s chest. “Are you not happy with the Christmas party last week? I know you hated surprises but-”

“No- I liked it! Really! You know we rarely celebrate things lately and last week was one of the best days in my life! How could I hate that?” Nero tightens his grip on Kyrie’s waist, gazing at Kyrie’s eyes deeply. “I’m happy, Kyrie. I’m happy here with our little family.”

“Then it must have something to do with your father and uncle, is it?”

“That obvious, huh?” Nero smirks bitterly. “I just… I don’t know. You know how Dante is. To think that he’s actually my uncle is… weird. Then I found out the man who screwed up Red Grave was his brother. My father. Vergil, he left me when I was a child… as V, he manipulated me to do his agenda. He reemerged and left me again. And Dante didn't even bother to tell me the fact before Vergil was back. That made me feel… kinda betrayed. It still doesn’t make any sense to me. I got a pair of dysfunctional family members and I don’t know what I should do if they come back. I just can’t stop thinking about it.”

The only parental figure Nero ever had was just Kyrie and Credo’s parents, and they didn’t even live that long to give little Nero more love and parental advice. Kyrie truly understands Nero’s struggle to accept his heritage and keep holding on his humanity. “Nero… do you forgive your father?”

“What?”

“I don’t mean to bring it up again, but after all the ill he caused to you, do you forgive him?”

The memory of him and Vergil on the top of the Qliphoth tree rises again. He succeeded in bringing some sense back to his father and the old man entrusted him his precious book- the one which Nero kept safely on the shelf- before jumping to Hell and finishing what he started. Vergil didn’t say much, but his promise… his damn promise!

“I won’t lose next time. Hold onto that until then.”

“I forgive him,” Nero admits. “I think… I just miss him. And Dante. I really want us to be a proper family. That's all.”

“Just as I thought,” Kyrie cups Nero’s jaw with her hands. “I’m glad that you’re honest with yourself. There’s nothing wrong with missing them. They might be flawed, but they are your family."

Nero carefully caresses his beloved hands as if he's afraid of hurting her. "I'm sorry I keep putting you to my demon lineage problem…"

"Hey, we talked about this. Demon or human, it's you I want to be with…" she kisses him on the lips. "I love you, Nero."

"I love you too." He returns the kiss deeper.

Nero wraps her around his arms, seeking comfort and warmth from her presence. Kyrie's words succeed in getting his head together. He can feel a degree of burden has left his shoulders as he finds himself finally letting go his worries. Kyrie is right. There's nothing wrong with missing those douchebags. They're my family-

"NERO!"

Nico appears out of nowhere at the terrace, panting and panicking like she ran for her life. Every single nerve inside Nero's body tells him that something wrong is happening, but the sassy smirk on Nico's face while she tries to breathe normally tells another thing. "You're not gonna believe me if I told you this-"

"Are the kids safe?" Kyrie asks anxiously.

"Yeah they're fine. They have company."

What the fuck? "Company? What are you talking about?!"

Nico rolls her eyes as she grabs both of Nero and Kyrie's hands. "Just follow me quickly!"

Nico seems excited… if it wasn't a danger, then what?

The children are giggling and shouting happily at something Nero can't see yet. But as soon as Nico delivers them in the backyard, he spots two familiar figures among the kids. The red-coated man joins them to decorate the snowman as he helps them crafting the pile of snow with stones and branches. He summons a cowboy hat and a shiny red scarf from thin air- which excites the kids- before he puts the hat on the snowman's head and wraps its neck with the scarf as the last touch. The children are applauding and hugging him, saying their gratitude and bombing him with questions on how he could summon stuff only from thin air. The cocky red man barks in laughter and tells them that he learns some magic tricks.

In a contrast to the red man, the blue-coated man stands a bit far from the crowd, facepalming and reluctant to do anything despite the children's curiosity as they glance at him and whisper their surprise on how similar his face is with the red man. Carlo states that the blue man is scary, and quickly hides behind the red man when the blue man hears his mutter and glares at the poor kid.

"C'mon, Verge, stop glaring at the kids! You're scaring them!" The red man chuckles.

Dante?

Vergil?

How-? Since when…?

"You…" Nero breathes heavily, barely trusts his vision. "You guys are alive…"

Dante grins and waves a salute at Nero. "Heya, kid! Miss me? I know we're late, but Merry Christmas!"

Kyrie holds her giggle when she catches Nero's dumbstruck face. She grips his hand and whispers him a word of advice. "Time to let your doubts go, Nero. They are here, at last."

Nero gives a nod, but his mouth isn't capable of forming any words. He reluctantly approaches Vergil, who seems nonchalant about his surroundings, if only Nero failed to catch his father's warm gaze as he stands before Vergil. A minute has passed and none of them say anything. Words cannot describe how they feel towards each other.

But Nero decides to solve the problem in Sparda's family old-fashioned style: punching his father hard right in the face.

There echoes Dante and Nico's laughter as Vergil's body lands violently on the ground, covered with snow.

The older son of Sparda can taste a metallic scent liquid dripping from his lips.

"That hurts," he murmurs and proceeds to get up as he wipes the blood from his mouth. "Two years and still have no manners, I see."

"Fuck you, old man!" Nero spats angrily.

Dante, still laughing at the picture of his brother getting sucker-punched by Nero, sloppily walks to approach them. He pats Nero's shoulder in pride. "You're doing the right thing, Nero. You gave him the right Christmas present-"

The legendary devil hunter gets a very lethal slap from his nephew before he finishes his sentence.

"And that's a present for you, deadweight!" The young devil hunter shouts.

The view of Dante and Vergil getting slammed by Nero only increases Nico's laughter.

"Why did Nero punch Mr. Dante and Mr. Vergil?" Carlo asks Kyrie. "Nero always punches bad people. Are they bad people?"

"Well… no, they are good people! Mr. Vergil is Nero's father and Mr. Dante is Nero's uncle," Kyrie chuckles to hide her worry and struggles to find the correct way to explain the situation. "They haven't met for a very long time. Nero misses them so much that he… doesn't know what to do anymore. But punching people doesn't solve problems, so don't ever do that, okay?"

The kids nod obediently despite not completely understanding the circumstances.

"Can we stop Nero from punching them, Kyrie?" asks Julio, the oldest one from the three. "Family doesn't hurt each other, right?"

"Nah, don't worry. They will stop soon," Nico says as he points at the three hybrids. "Let 'em get the reunion they deserve."

They become calm and smiling at the sight of Nero bringing his father and uncle in a tight embrace together as the young man lets out a cry.

"You both are full of shits and stinky… like a scavenger…" Nero sobs, his teeth grinding hard. "At least take a shower before you show up, dumbass…!"

Dante sneers as he taps Nero’s back. “Yeah, I miss you too.”

The red devil glares at his twin. Say something to your son!

Vergil, unmoved and stiff, doesn’t know how to react from this awkward embrace. He feels uncomfortable, yet finds himself melting between this fuzzy feeling. “Nero…”

“Shut up,” Nero interrupts while breaking his embrace and burying his teary eyes on his palm. “Just fucking shut up.”

“Forgive me,” the blue devil insists to continue. “For leaving you again.”

“Yeah yeah, just shut up...”

Nero jolts by the unexpected weight on his head; Vergil’s hand ruffles his hair as he curves a very subtle smile.

“I’m proud of you, son.”

Oh how Nero wanted to punch him again, if only he could bring himself to.

“Uhm…” Kyrie comes to Nero’s rescue as she smiles politely to the twins. “I’m sorry to interrupt this reunion. It’s dinner time and… we would be very happy if the two of you join us for supper.”

“We’d be glad!” Dante accepts cheerfully. “Nero once told me you cook the best meal in Fortuna!”

“Shut up, Dante!” Nero grunts. He remembers he hasn’t told the twins that Kyrie and him are married. He pulls Kyrie closer and holds her hand firmly. “Anyway, Father. This is my wife, Kyrie. Kyrie, this is Vergil. My father.”

Kyrie smiles warmly at Vergil. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Vergil.”

Vergil appreciates Kyrie’s bravery and gives his sincerest nod of approval. There is not a single hint of fright from Kyrie as he recalls how people tend to tremble and stutter in fear whenever they talk to him. He can see why Nero loves her and is very protective towards her. “Thank you for taking good care for my son all this time.”

“Sorry for missing your wedding party, babe. We’ve been busy cleaning up Hell,” Dante grins at Kyrie. “Congratulations. My nephew is lucky to have you as his wife.”

“Can you shut up already?” spats Nero, feeling terribly embarrassed.

“I’m hungry~!” Nico shouts mischievously. “Let’s continue inside! It’s damn freezin’ out here!”

Kyrie gives the twins a final nod as she invites them to come inside the house. She runs to the kitchen with Nico while Nero gathers the kids to enter the house. Dante chuckles like a cocky cool uncle when Julio asks him to do another magic trick, and the little chuckle turns into a bigger laughter when he sees Vergil’s hand tucked in Kyle’s hand as the youngest child calls him Grandpa Vergil.

“Grandpa’s hand is cold!” Kyle says, unaware of Vergil’s death glare. “Once you eat Kyrie’s food, you’ll be warm in no time!”

“Let go of my hand, little rascal.” Vergil scoffs, uncomfortable by the strange kindness from the little child.

Kyle laughs and keeps guiding him to the kitchen. The food is prepared and everyone is about to get their seats. Carlo drags a chair beside Dante’s seat and shyly asks Vergil to sit there, which Vergil accepts.

“Starting to feel like coming back home?” Dante asks his brother.

“This is not bad.”

“I’ve contacted Lady and Trish. They will be here soon,” Nico says as she puts the cigarette on the ashtray. “Lady said something about returning her Kalina Ann. Trish gave her regards, and said that ya need to pay the rent as soon as possible.”

“Damn… those devilish ladies…” Dante buries his face on the table.

“Your office looks like shit without you.” Nero sneers at Dante.

Further family resolvement can wait. Now let them enjoy their first family dinner for the first time. Christmas might have passed a week ago, but Nero thinks his most valuable present had just arrived today. He still wants to beat the shit out of his father and uncle for some unknown reasons, but it can wait for later. His eyes meet Vergil’s, and his father forms a warm smile to him. He never says much, Nero knows that, but he can give him time to adjust in the human world.

Amidst the chants and chatter in the house, unbeknownst to each other, the three descendants of Sparda secretly hope that this rare moment can last forever.

#dmcsecretsanta #dmc #devil may cry #dante #vergil #nero #kyrie #nico #nero x kyrie #night writes #nibbbs

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pankows-girl · 4 years

Text

What Happens When Pogues Mack Ch.1 - JJ Maybank

Summary: Y/N finds out she’s pregnant.

Word Count: 2.4K

Warnings: Cursing, pregnancy, angst

Requested: Yes

A/N: i tried to make this as angsty as possible. i hope its somewhat decent because i kept rewriting certain areas. also as usual i was kinda too lazy to go through and edit so there might be a few mistakes. more jj fics to come soon! Part 2 maybe?

[Ch.1] [Ch.2] [Ch.3]

“Wake up, Sleeping Beauty!” You heard right before getting smacked in the face with a pillow. Kie laughed above you, bouncing on the bed next to you.

You groaned in annoyance, grabbing the pillow and throwing it at her. She dodged it and plopped down next to you. “I am never sleeping over at your house again,” You scowled at her jokingly. Kid smiled in response, poking you in the side.

Suddenly your stomach churned and your scowled contorted into a grimace. Kie watched concerned as you jumped off the bed, cradling your stomach and covering your mouth as you ran to the bathroom and lifted the toilet seat before emptying the contents of your stomach in it. Your eyes water and you use one of you hands to hold back your hair and the other to support yourself.

This was the third morning in a row that you woke up sick and you thought it was just the flu or something but now you weren’t so sure. You tried to remember the last time you had gotten your period and came up empty. You were definitely late for it and a million thoughts crossed your mind before you called out for Kie.

“Are you ok, Y/N?” She questioned.

“Shit,” you breathed out beginning to panic. “Kie! Get it here now! Please!”

Kie ran into the bathroom as fast as she could, accidentally kicking the door frame with her foot. “Fuck, shit!” She cried out. “What’s wrong?”

“Kie, I think I might be pregnant,” You said, voice quivering slightly.

She froze in place, whipping her head around to stare at you. Her eyes looked like they were ready to pop out of her head in shock. You looked away from her scrutinizing gaze, feeling ashamed of yourself.

“Ok, don’t freak out. We’ll go get a test so we can be positive. Well hopefully not positive ‘cause you know…” Kie trailed off. You would have laughed at her awkwardness had you not been freaking out.

The two of you rushed to the shop and back to Kiara’s house as fast as possible. You went to the bathroom, holding the bag with the pregnancy test in hand and closed the door behind you for some privacy. You took the box out and opened it.

You stared at the test for a minute before you worked up the courage to get down to business. You pulled down your pants and sat in the toilet ready to pee on the stick and get this whole thing over with. After you finish you wash your hands and set a timer in your phone until the results are ready. You let Kie into the bathroom to wait with you.

The timer went off and your eyes were filled with unshed tears at this point, threatening to spill over at any given moment. You almost couldn’t bring yourself to look, too scared of what the result would be. You stared down at the pregnancy test in your hand. It showed two thin lines that took your breath away and not in a good way. You felt like you were gonna be sick again. Shakily, you passed it to Kie to examine.

Kie took the test in her hands, eyes widening as she looked at the results. “Y/N… It’s positive,” She said, giving you a look of sympathy.

You shook your head, tears in your eyes. You. How could you take care of a baby when you could barely take care of yourself? You started to cry, feeling overwhelmed by the situation. Kie set the test on the counter and pulled you into her arms as tears streamed down your face.

“How are you gonna tell JJ?” Kie asked carefully, knowing the two of you had been ‘sneaking around.’ It wasn’t really a secret between the Pogues that you and JJ were together. They didn’t seem to mind either, despite it breaking the rule of no pogues macking on other pogues, because they knew how much you liked each other and were good for one another.

You sobered up, freezing in Kiara’s embrace. You had no idea how you were going to tell him or how he would react to you being pregnant with his child. You were just kids and could barely even take care of yourselves let alone a baby. JJ already had enough on his plate having to pay off his restitution and avoid his dad's wrath, you were worried how he would take the news.

“I don’t know, Kie,” You sighed. “What if I tell him and he freaks out?”

Kie bites her lip. JJ has never been known to act rationally when it came to such serious things but she also knew how he felt about you. He loved you, anyone could see that. And she just hoped that JJ’s reaction proved it.

Later that day Kiara dropped you off at home and you texted JJ to meet you there. You flopped down on your bed waiting for him to arrive. You and Kiara both agreed that you should tell JJ the news straight up no matter what. There was no point in beating around the bush, especially since soon you wouldn’t be able to hide it after your baby bump started to show.

You were snapped out of your thoughts when you heard tapping on your window. You roll out of bed when you see it's just JJ. You told him to go through the front door since no one else was home but like usual he didn’t listen. His hand brushes against yours as he climbs inside your room and your heart starts to beat so loudly in your chest you’re sure JJ can hear it too.

“Why didn’t you use the door?”

“Sneaking in through your window makes me feel like a badass,” JJ said laughing. He sat down on your bed, patting the seat next to him. “So, you said you had something important to tell me or did you just miss me?”

You ignored his invitation to sit down, biting your lip as you practiced what you were about to say in your head.

“Y/N?” JJ said when you didn’t respond.

“JJ, I’m pregnant.”

You stared at the floor, unable to meet his eyes. He didn’t say anything and you wondered if he had disappeared into thin air. You wished a hold would open up underneath you and swallow you whole or maybe even for another store to come and wash everything away because anything would be better than JJ’s silence.

“Are you sure?” He asks hesitantly and you nod, still not having the courage to look at him. “Fuck. What are we gonna do? We’re just a couple of Pogues who don’t know shit about taking care of a kid.” JJ hopped off the bed and began pacing.

“JJ, hey,” You said, trying to get him to look at you. “It’s fine. We'll be fine.”

“I’m not ready to be a dad, I can’t.” He declared, finally looking at you for the first time since you told him you were pregnant.

“You think that I’m ready to be a mom? Hell no, but it doesn’t mean I can’t do this,” You said hoping to get through to him. “I’m keeping the Baby, JJ.”

“No, no. I can’t do this with you right now. I’m sorry but I have to go.”

You watched JJ as he dashed out of your room. “You’re just gonna walk away like that?” You yelled at his back. “Well fuck you then! I don’t need you!”

He did walk away just like that, slamming your front door behind him. You scoffed, now he wanted to use the fucking door. You heard the door open a moment later and you ran out of your room hoping JJ changed his mind and came back. Instead you saw your mom and younger sister, faces filled with confusion. You didn’t even notice you were crying until your mother had her arms around you, wiping your fallen tears away.

You hugged her back tightly. Your heart was broken into a million pieces, your worst fear had come true when JJ walked out on you. Ever since your dad left you mom for some rich kook woman you had been afraid of the same thing happening to you. JJ knew that too and he still left. Maybe that’s what hurt the most.

“Mom, I’m so sorry,” You cried out. “I didn’t mean to, I swear and h-he, JJ, got upset and he left. Oh my god, he just left.” You cried some more as your mom comforted you. You felt like your throat was closing as you choked on your tears.

“Go get your sister some water,” Your mom told you little sister. “It’s ok, baby. I got you.”

Your sister returned with the water and you drank it all within a matter of seconds as your mother guided you back to your room. She crawled on the bed with you, placing the blanket over you and stroked your hair.

“Mommy, I’m pregnant,” You whispered. You expected her to get mad like JJ did but she didn’t. Instead she wrapped your arms around you and whispered reassurances to you. She said that JJ would come around and it might take some time but to trust him. You really hoped that she was right because you didn’t know what you would do without him.

You cried yourself to sleep that night, grateful for your mom who never left your side until the morning. She gave you some tips on how to help with morning sickness and went to make breakfast for the family. You didn’t feel like getting out of bed or even eating but you forced yourself to get ready for the day. You opened your window, hoping a little fresh air would help get you out of your slump.

You took a quick shower, most of which you spent feeling your tummy, unable to imagine a tiny baby growing inside of you. The hot water felt good on your skin and you wished you never had to get out but of course you did. You threw on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt of JJ’s that he had left over one night. It still smelled like him and it made you want to cry.

When you walked back in your room you saw JJ trying to sneak into your room through the window and it scared the shit out of you. “What the fuck, JJ?”

“Y/N, please hear me out,” JJ pleaded, staring at you. His eyes were filled with determination and you knew he wouldn’t give up without a fight. You crossed your arms in response. “I’m so sorry for how I reacted. I was being fucking stupid and I was scared. You’ve seen how my dad is and I guess I was just afraid I’d end up just like him. I never want my kid to grow up with a deadbeat dad like I did. I wanna be here for you. For our baby.”

Your lip quivered at his confession, feeling heartbroken at the truth about how he felt. From the moment you met JJ you knew he was special and for him to think he could ever be like his father was a punch to the gut. He was the sweetest, kindest person you ever had the pleasure of knowing and you knew with your whole heart that JJ would ever end up like that monster.

“Don’t ever think that of yourself again. You’re going to be a great father,” You sniffled, clutching the material of his shirt in your hand before pulling him into your arms. You clung to him like a baby, your tears wetting his lips as you pulled him into a kiss. JJ had a few tears of his own streaming down his cheeks and you wiped them away, holding JJ’s chin in your hand and turned his face to look at you. “I love you, JJ. I’m so happy you came back.”

“I’m never leaving you again, pretty girl.” JJ murmured. “It was the biggest mistake of my life.”

Your bedroom door creaked open and your mom stuck her head in. “Breakfast is ready if you-,” She started but stopped when she saw JJ. She smiled at you both before giving JJ a look that said ‘you better not hurt my daughter again,’ and closing the door on her way out. She was happy to see the two of you making up. JJ was a good kid and she knew you loved each other very much so for now she would let you be and save the safe sex lecture for later even though now it was far too late for that.

“Does your mom know?” JJ asked nervously.

“Why? Thinking about backing out again?” You teased.

JJ shook his head. “No, not by choice at least. Just want to make sure your mom doesn’t murder. Did you see the death stare she gave me?”

“You’ll be fine,” You laughed, patting his chest.

“I can’t believe we’re gonna have a baby! Our own baby Pogue!” JJ chortled, spinning you around the room. He pulled you into a kiss and you both laughed in excitement.

The next few days that followed consisted of you and JJ telling the rest of the Pogues besides Kiara, who already knew, that you were pregnant. They took it surprisingly well and you figured Kiara might have let something slip so that they had some time to process you and JJ together before freaking out when you told them.

JJ also would not stop saying “damn my baby momma is fine!” any chance he got. He felt immense pride knowing you were carrying his child and he would let the whole world know if he could. He loved you with his whole being and he would continue to for the rest of his life. Not only you, but your child as well. JJ realized that he finally had the chance at the family he always wanted and he knew would do anything he had to make it work. He thought back to when you and him started sneaking around. He was the one who initiated the relationship, breaking the no pogues macking on other pogues rule, not caring about the consequences. He surely didn’t think it was you pregnant but now that he knew what happens when pogues mack, he still didn’t regret a single thing. He was finally happy.

Tag List: @roguesjj @1-800-imagines @givejjmaybankahug @jesssuperwholock03 @omgdani17 @styles-xoxo @katherine097 @anxiouslesbiansblog

#jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank x you #jj maybank fanfiction #jj maybank oneshots #jj maybank obx #obx jj maybank #obx netflix #obx jj #obx one shots #rudy pankow #jj obx #obx fanfiction

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ilkkawhat · 3 years

Note

For the SOULMATE Alphabet prompt, can I ask E or ESP for Jack Dalton/Angus MacGyver please? All these prompts sound like so much fun!

[be gentle with me it’s been like. years since i’ve written these two. i’m being dramatic it’s only been three months.]

There’s one reason and one reason only Jack and Mac would allow themselves to be apart for long times at long distances, and that reason was something that even all of the infinite science in Mac’s brain, all of the infinite wisdom in Jack’s heart couldn’t even explain.

They figured it out when they had parted ways after Lake Como. Both had been too injured to realize that the pain they were feeling—on top of what they were already feeling—was each other’s. Mac thought the pain in his head was his mind overworking itself trying to reconcile Nikki’s (supposed) death. Jack thought the pain in his chest was the early signs of a heart attack, not uncommon in his family.

They hadn’t seen each other in nearly a month. Mac was finally out of the hospital, Jack was at his apartment. Jack didn’t quite know what to do, give the kid space or hover over him as an emotional Overwatch support, but he ultimately figured that Bozer would tend to him and that he would just pop by for a visit—which never happened because every time he thought of going, there was a forcefield of guilt that kept him from passing through the unlocked threshold to Mac’s house.

Mac, meanwhile, thought it was bad enough that he lost Nikki, he didn’t want to lose Jack, too. His fingers would constantly key over Jack’s number in his phone that he had memorized forwards and backwards. But he didn’t want to bother him. Figured that he was busy with a new job cause the older man was always working non-stop, as much as he would “complain” about the mundaneness of a nine-to-five job; all the paperwork and meetings and lack of an appropriate amount of sick days or whining for a raise, he knew that really Jack just wanted to keep himself busy, occupied.

Or otherwise he’d end up where Mac thought he was in that moment, on a couch, wrapped up in a bathrobe.

“Jack?” Mac gasped himself awake from an almost-nap. He sat up and threw his hand to his side, expecting it to land on Jack’s shoulder, or knee, or just any part of his body that would elicit some witty remark, “the lights go out in those bright eyes of yours, hoss?”

His hand didn’t touch anything. But he definitely felt Jack there with him, on his couch. Smelled him, too. And he was overcome with some strange...sadness. Remorse. It wasn’t a foreign emotion to him at the time, so he had sort of shrugged it off, thinking his mind was playing tricks on him, that the pain meds were too strong.

And then Jack woke him up with a phone call.

“Were you just at my house?” his tone was laced with the usual paranoia that came when anything was out of place at his apartment, but there was an odd sort of seriousness and urgency that Mac felt, too.

“No. Did you come here?”

“No, not since I drove by last night to drop off some pizza and beer.”

“That was you? Why didn’t you come in?”

“Boze said you were sleepin’ and I didn’t wanna wake you.”

“Well...you woke me up now,” Mac smiled though he knew Jack couldn’t see it.

Yet in a way, he could.

“What is going on here, hoss? It-it’s like you’re sitting right in front of me.”

“I don’t know. You wanna come over? Maybe we can sit by the fire and try to figure it out together.”

“Aight. Be there in ten.”

Jack lived fifteen minutes away.

They sat by the fire and once they passed by the awkward small talk they were able to properly catch up; though Mac didn’t have much to offer with the bed rest he had been sentenced to, but was pleased to announce that he would be beginning his rehab. Jack, meanwhile, got a gig being a stunt coordinator—disguising the fact with a cough that he was also partaking in some of the more dangerous stunts himself.

It was good that it happened, a brief reunion before a more permanent one that came months later when they got to go back to work together, the small steps leading to a true recovery of a slightly tarnished friendship in the face of a failed mission.

It wouldn’t be the last time.

They don’t feel anything unexpected, again, thinking it was just their own emotions they were waving through and the yearning for each other’s presence, but one of the first times they were separated, it was stronger than ever before.

And it wasn’t even that big of a separation. Just a few feet. A couple more feet. Maybe the length of a basketball court, at most. Mac moving backwards. Jack standing still. Jack could feel the panic rising within Mac as he scrambled to defuse the bomb Jack was standing on. Mac could feel the sheer dread and terror pouring out of the sweat beads on Jack’s skin.

The stakes hadn’t been so high since Mac had to disarm a bomb within an impossible amount of seconds back at the sandbox—and in hindsight, he can’t help but wonder if that’s when they had formed this new sort of...bond.

Jack must have figured it out too, because the next time it happened, just a week or so later, it came after Mac had been taken and drugged by the cartel. Jack was in full on rescue mode, dressed from head to toe in tactical gear—but he had to remove the helmet when he felt like he had some sort of mask smothered on top of his face. And then he felt lightheaded. And then he felt...woozy.

He pushed through it to save Mac—and in seeing Mac the odd sensation had washed away but when Mac told him that’s exactly what he felt when he was put under, the pieces were put together in Jack’s head.

“What kind of Vulcan mind-meld shit is this!?”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s like we’re getting into each other’s heads, a-and feeling each other when we’re apart.”

“You can admit it Jack, you just miss seein’ your sunshine boy,” Mac had waved him off with a poor imitation of his accent.

“I’m serious, buddy this is...this is real. I-I don’t know how to explain it but it’s like we’re...we’re…”

“Soulmates?”

“Yeah! That’s the word.”

“How romantic.”

Jack couldn’t help but feel slightly hurt by Mac’s downplay of his emotions, their emotions over their new transcended level of connection he never thought he would have with another man, let alone another person in his life.

But Mac would soften when his emotions got cranked to eleven.

It was their first real argument since the Sandbox. Jack tracking Mac down to Paris—which, with this new sixth sense of being able to feel Mac wherever he was when he wasn’t with Jack, he didn’t need to work as hard but he still explained how easy it was to track him down, even without their newfound “special powers,” as Jack claimed them to be—and beyond the confusion he was secretly pleased to have such an ability, harkening back to his childhood days of reading comic books and jumping off couches with a bedsheet cape on his back.

They both felt each other’s resentment, each other’s anger, until Jack calmed down when Mac called an apologized. He let Mac’s voice go to voicemail, but followed his call like he was lured by a siren.

Even though he tried to joke about a “groveling apology” that he knew Mac wasn’t actually going to give him despite the actual upset he had felt and truly wanted to apologize for to Jack, Jack entered the house knowing something was wrong.

Because he couldn’t feel Mac at all. Couldn’t feel him joking around with Bozer. Couldn’t feel him lost and searching for a deadbeat father who abandoned him—a sensation Jack didn’t quite understand until he felt Mac reliving it in his worst nights. Couldn’t feel him happy to be with the Phoenix family.

Mac’s house was as empty as Jack felt, and he was on the verge of losing it like never before—until he felt a cold shiver creep through is body. Felt a sharp prick, felt like his body was being pumped and drained at the same time.

Felt fear mixed with anger mixed with...vague...intrigue and the last time he felt it, Jack was at the mercy of a small red dot boring into his chest while Mac played the most dangerous game of cat and mouse.

And this time, he was the mouse.

“My spidey-senses are all telling me the same thing...It’s Murdoc.”

He hoped and prayed that he could somehow ease Mac’s terror with his own determination to find him. He swallowed down his tears, swallowed down his guilt for the sake of giving the kid some sort of hope with a forced sense of confidence that he would find him in no time.

And no time is exactly what he felt. What they both felt. Jack’s confidence turned to confusion when Mac no longer felt trapped, but instead...lost. And paranoid. Even more paranoid than Jack himself.

So lost that even when they physically found each other, it still seemed like forever until they emotionally found each other again, with more and more separations, more victimizations on their more deadly missions with gunshots and electrocutions and gas chambers. Fits of inexplicable rage and jealousy as they explored other interests besides each other. Odd sensations of loneliness when they weren’t working together.

Even when they were actually trapped together in Mac’s house, sitting on another bomb, it took them a whole episode of reminiscing how they got together in the first place that made them realize how no matter how often they would be lost from one another, they would always find each other, even in their worst moments.

And it was after that near miss they both exchanged real apologies. Mac admitted that perhaps this “mind meld” was real after all. Jack said “having you stuck with me ain’t so bad after all. Toldja I’m never gonna leave you, there’s definitely no getting rid of me now.”

“But...what’s going to happen when...one of us dies?” Mac didn’t even want to ask it. Didn’t actually even say the words.

Jack asked the same thing when he was prematurely laid to rest in a burning coffin, descending into hell and screaming for Mac both in the literal sense and the emotional sense—so much so that Mac could hardly take it—he felt like he was on fire and oh god, he actually was as he put his hands on the burning wood and freed Jack from inferno.

“Being burned alive...was always curious,” Jack breathed, putting a hand that oddly felt ablaze on his chest, while Mac danced on figurative hot coals.

“You’re insane, man.”

“I don’t think death is the end,” Jack answered him finally, when they were being wrapped up by the paramedics.

“How much smoke did you inhale?” Mac almost laughed, confused as to what he was referring to, thinking he had some sort of existential realization on the precipice of death.

“But wh-what if when one of us dies...the other will too? Kaboom-kaboom,” Mac continued the conversation after a particularly rough day spent in the war room with a beaten, sunken black eye while Jack ran around pretending to be a lone wolf yet he was wrangling up the pack and doing a favor by helping out his daughter’s real father, the conflicting emotions of which didn’t ease Mac’s troubles, either.

“Told ya, that won’t be it. There’s gonna be something after kaboom. For both of us.”

“Then why do you always fight so hard for us not to explode?”

“Cause I can’t let you have too much fun when you’re dropping those improv-bombs to get us out of sticky situations. There’s still a few things I wanna do before I move on from this world.”

“Right, your bucket list,” Mac smiled.

“Exactly, hoss. And what’s say...we cross another one off now?”

They were interrupted, as always, by an emergency call that revealed the truth about Mac’s father, and a falsification of how they had been brought together.

“Who do you think pulled the strings to pair you two together in Afghanistan?”

Bullshit. And Jack made a point of pointing that out, and how dare he even make the implication that even if things didn’t work out between Jack and Mac, that there would just be another Overwatch put in his place, and another, until Oversight saw fit that his son would be taken care of like he never had done for him before?

Needless to say, there were a lot of emotions, conflicting ones at that—even Jack himself was torn between sucking up to the boss but also wanting to punch him in the face, and do minor things like refuse handshakes, accidentally trip him, anything to just...annoy him without a fireable offense, per se.

But when Mac left the Phoenix, he may as well have gone, too.

He still doesn’t know why he didn’t. Was it some sense of duty to protect the remainder of the pack? Was it the same hesitation he had when Mac took his leave of absence after Nikki’s death, wanting to give him space but still wanting to suffocate him at the same time?

Was it fear that one day, Mac would walk away from him, too?

While the separation was brief, only a few months though it felt like years—especially when Jack felt the length of Mac’s hair on his own chin that allowed him to measure the actual length of time that had elapsed, when they came face to face again it still felt like they were worlds apart.

Because Mac abandoned his family.

Mac abandoned Jack.

And in what godforsaken world would that happen?

The same world where Jack would do the same almost half a year later.

“NO!” Mac shouted, rising from another cold-sweat nightmare.

Jack laid beside him, startled awake.

“Everything okay, hoss?” Jack whispered.

“Just...just...had a bad dream,” Mac whispered back.

They would keep their voices low, but their emotions high. There were certain things that just had to be said to be understood as felt between them.

“I missed you,” Mac gulped.

“You know I’m right here, don’t ya?” Jack laughed from his own bed, Mac felt a gentle scratching at the back of his head.

“I know. I know you’re here, it’s just…”

He turned his head, he didn’t even know why he was whispering, the house had never been so silent before. No snoring Bozer. No Jack strumming the guitar on a restless night. No keys clicking beneath the speed of Riley’s rapid fingers. No phonecalls from Matty.

“You’re not. Not even alive.”

“Who in the hell told you that?”

“The...the army.”

Mac’s phone rang, he answered without even looking at the number. The ring was for a video call, so he lazily pulled the string of his bedside lamp.

Jack was on the other side, soft fauxhawk and subtle stubble tracing the start of a beard on his face.

“My God, what fucked up dream did you have, man?”

“The kind that lasts forever,” Mac mumbled. “That felt...too real…”

“I turned down the Kovac mission, you remember that, right? The image was fake. Just a taunt. The broadcast orchestrated by Murdoc just to dick around with us again.”

“I know, I know it just...I can’t help but wonder what could have...could have happened if you…”

“You gotta stop beating yourself up so much, kid. I’ve told you, over and over, this ain’t one of those ‘you hurt me, so I’mma hurt you’ sort of games. We don’t do that manipulative shit.”

“Jack, I left you—”

“You left the Phoenix. I stayed. My choice.”

Jack suddenly felt the corners of his eyes burn. The corner of Mac’s eyes burn.

“I wanted you to come with me.”

“I know. And I wanted to.”

“I know,” Mac swallowed. “I...I felt that you did but...why didn’t you?”

“You walked away that day but you didn’t walk alone. I was there with you the entire time. You know that.”

“But you weren’t!”

“You’re right. You’re right,” Jack shook his head, squeezing his face. He waved his tongue over his lips, Mac suddenly felt freshness over the chapped flesh that was trembling as he held the tiny screen of Jack in between his hands.

“I...I knew how you felt, being abandoned by your Dad...Cause I did that to Riley.”

“You didn’t...abandon her—”

“Then what would you have called it?”

It was a question Mac didn’t have an answer to.

“Regardless, I think it’s safe to say that you’re not the only one with abandonment issues, I’m just...on the other side of the spectrum. Worlds apart from the pain you musta felt when dear ol’ Dad leftcha and I shouldn’ta tried to push you back together without thinking how you might have felt—”

“Jack, Jack, it’s fine. I-I know you just...you had good intentions. Cause of what happened to your Dad.”

Jack nodded, wiped a hand over the running nose that Mac felt, though his was dry.

“And anyway, I just. I was scared, I guess. Didn’t know what to do. Hadn’t been on that side of the coin before. It may have hurt you but it...it hurt me, too.”

“I know it did. And I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry, too.”

“So...where do we go from here?” Mac asked, clearing his throat.

“Doesn’t matter, really. Cause no matter where you go, where I go, where we both go...We have each other.”

Mac felt Jack’s touch, though it was a poor substitute for the real deal, as he closed his eyes and envisioned him sitting next to him, his arms wrapped around him, hugging him to his chest.

“Forever,” Mac sighed, and Jack smiled as he felt the reassurance that while it had been stretched and twisted and tested, their bond would never be broken.

Not even in a death that Jack oddly felt he had just narrowly missed by some sort of guardian angel watching over him.

#nonny #macgyver fic #macdalton #angus macgyver #jack dalton #mk.op #mk.fic #ya know if a certain thing didn't happen in canon this fic would have ended a lot differently but i just #i couldn't #only happy endings for jack from now on i don't make the rules #though i know i really have no right to be here anymore lol

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vagrantblvrd · 5 years

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That Kind of Comfortable (1/1)

Summary: Geoff likes to think he’s done his time, put in his dues.

Likes to think he’s suffered enough in life, and if the universe at large would just give him a fucking break any time now, that would be great.

Notes: Felt like writing something a little different. Set in the GTA V FAHC AU, but different. Because reasons. /o\

(Read on AO3)

Geoff likes to think he’s done his time, put in his dues.

Likes to think he’s suffered enough in life, and if the universe at large would just give him a fucking break any time now, that would be great.

But no, no.

Because there the Vagabond is on his doorstep, bloodied up and looking like hell like it’s not the middle of the night and also storming out and there’s sure to be at least one more murder on the news in the morning.

“Hey, asshole,” Geoff says, tired and put upon and joints aching like hell because he’s an old fuck and the weather does a doozy on him. “Do anything interesting lately?”

The Vagabond sighs. Big heavy thing like Geoff is the one always trying his patience.

“Oh, not much,” he says, light and airy, tiniest hint of strain to it as he plays along. “I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop by.”

Geoff should slam the door in his the asshole’s face and call the cops. Let them know about the whole Vagabond visiting him in the middle of the night (again) business, but -

“Yeah?” Geoff says, undoing the chain and opening his door wider. “You look like you’ve had a rough night, buddy.”

The Vagabond hums, waggles his head like Geoff might have a point about that.

“Eh,” he says. “About the usual.”

That...that’s kind of the problem.

Geoff stares at the Vagabond for a long moment. Takes note of the blood on his mask, tear on the sleeve of his jacket that looks like someone with a knife got lucky. The way he’s doing his best not to favor his side and tries very hard not to sigh. (He doesn’t succeed, but damn does he try.)

“You know where the medical supplies are,” he says, and lets one of the most notorious men in Los Santos int his home instead of calling the police like he should.

========

Geoff isn’t what you’d call an upstanding citizen.

He’s got infractions under his belt. Small things like traffic tickets and parking violations. A few drunk and disorderly offenses back when he was younger and stupider, before he got his life figured out – or what passes for it these days.

And even with all of that hanging around him, the Army still took him. Snapped up the idiot kid he’d been and did its best to make something of him, the way the recruiter claimed it would. After that he managed to trick the police department into giving him a chance, and they had a good run of it for a while there.

Geoff out protecting and serving and putting assholes and scumbags behind bars where they belonged, but then there’s been the Mitchel case and things had gone to hell. The job lost its shine and even with his captain backing him, there were too many reasons not to stick around. (Never knowing when he’d get a bullet in his back from people he was meant to trust was a major one.)

So going from that to whatever he is now -

Well.

It’s a hell of a thing, is what it is.

Has his own little business as a private investigator (not much else he could think of doing with his particular skill-set, and also it had seemed funny at the time).

It’s a sweet gig, really.

Geoff gets to make his own hours. No dress-code, which is great because no boss breathing down his neck and side-eyeing him when he gets the itch for a new tattoo.

Not much like the television shows he used to watch growing up, All conspiracy after conspiracy brought to him by a client scared to go the cops. No murder mystery after murder mystery and flashy car chase scenes and back alley shootouts.

No, Geoff mostly gets the wives of cheating husbands and estranged family members hoping to track down some deadbeat relative for legal matters. The occasional creep thinking he wouldn’t pick up on their shitty stalking by proxy and other shit like that.

Which makes the fact that he’s somehow got people like the Vagabond dropping in and out of his life a little surreal.

========

“You know,” Geoff says, swinging his feet as he watches the Vagabond stitch himself up. “A few years ago and I’d have arrested you by now.”

The Vagabond looks up from his work, and even though the mask in the way Geoff knows he’s getting a raised eyebrow.

“You would have tried,” the Vagabond says, nice and level like they both know Geoff would have gotten his dumb ass dead in the attempt.

Geoff makes a face at that because he’s not wrong about that.

The Vagabond isn’t someone he’d like to run into in a dark alley, or even a well-lit street.

Someone like him, the terror of Los Santos to go by the rumors floating around the city?

Yeah, no. Hard pass on that one.

Geoff’s an idiot, sure, but even he’s not that stupid.

The Vagabond snorts and goes back to piecing himself together while Geoff watches. (Hands curled tight on the edge of the bathroom counter he’s sitting on because the asshole is stubborn. Won’t let Geoff help even though there’s a slight tremor in his hand and his stitches are coming out uneven as hell.)

========

Trevor’s watching the news when Geoff gets to his office the next morning.

Something about something and a hell of a lot of police cars and emergency vehicles on the scene while the reporter offers what they know about the situation. Speculation and guesswork based on what the police shared with them, the way the city works.

Unhelpful as hell because all it does is stir up fear and paranoia in an already paranoid city.

Trevor glances up when he sees Geoff, smile curling the corners of his mouth because the kid’s an asshole.

“There’s been another murder,” he says, thick southern accent and this laughter to it that ruins the effect he’s going for.

Geoff...he sighs.

Does a lot of that in his life these days.

Assholes like the Vagabond and Trevor bring it out in him.

“Color me surprised,” Geoff mutters, and takes a hefty swig of the coffee he picked up on the way to the office.

Trevor cocks his head, narrows his eyes.

Takes a good look at Geoff in all his sleep-deprived glory and puts the pieces together. (Clusterfuck of a crime scene on the news and Geoff looking like death warmed over?)

“Trouble sleeping?” Trevor asks, all sweetness and light and too smart for his own good. “Is it that stray you picked up again?”

Geoff bites back another sigh.

He regrets hiring the little shit sometimes, but he needed someone to keep his files organized. Keep him organized and figured since Trevor was the one least likely to run screaming when things got weird – they always do – he was the right guy for the job.

“You know what?” Geoff says, because it’s too damn early in the day to deal with Trevor’s nonsense. “Yeah. Yeah it was.”

Just about the best way to describe the whole Vagabond Situation when he thinks about it.

========

Geoff’s day isn’t very productive.

He makes a few calls, follows up on a few leads. Reassures his current client he’s doing what he can, but trying to find someone in a city as big as Los Santos when they don’t want to be found is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Trevor’s some help there, has contacts Geoff doesn’t and offers to make a few calls of his own to help even though it’s not in his job description.

“Silly Geoff,” he says - pshaws - “I’d like to get paid too, you know.”

There’s that, too.

Geoff’s private investigator business, employee count two. (Technically.)

Not quite raking in the money, but that’s never what it’s been about.

Just Geoff and a shitty city and the thought maybe, possibly, he could do some good out there for someone.

He stops by the corner grocery store on his way home, picks up things for dinner and has a nice little chat with the little old lady who runs the place.

Sharp-eyed biddy with a sweet face and one hell of an arm on here, even now. (Cold-cocked a robber with a can of spaghetti sauce once.)

She smiles sweet as anything at him when she notices he’s buying enough for two - “Is it that stray of yours again, young man? - and throws in a freshly baked pie for free of charge despite his protests.

“You can’t keep doing this Maddy,” he says, but it’s a token effort. Hard to argue with a woman as stubborn as she is.

Maddy laughs like she thinks he’s adorable and sends him on his way with a cheery wave and admonition to bring his nice young man by again sometime.

========

The Vagabond’s long gone by the time Geoff gets home, no sign he was ever there which is great for the whole plausible deniability thing Geoff likes to pretend he has.

He puts the groceries away and goes to take stock of his medical kit to see what he needs to replenish and take a moment to ask himself what the hell he thinks he’s doing.

Los Santos is a dangerous city, all kinds of weirdos and nutjobs out there. (The Vagabond, for one.)

Not the safest place for someone like him, always poking his nose in other people’s business. Picking up secrets here and there he really shouldn’t know, and yet -

He likes it here for whatever damn reason. Likes the energy the city has to it, the way life just happens here. (Good and the bad and everything in between.)

People who end up here doing the best they can how they can. (Ones like him who don’t have anywhere else to be, no rush to leave even though they should.)

Geoff putters around for a while, checks missed calls and texts while he was shopping and goes through his mail. Tosses the junk mail and flyers into the recycling and sorts the rest by priority before shoving it all in a desk drawer to deal with later. (Part of the reason he needed someone like Trevor for his business.)

When he’s done his stomach is grumbling, so he gets up to make dinner. Hesitates when he opens the fridge because he’s never sure when that stray of his will show up, but figures if worse comes to worst he’ll have dinner for tomorrow night already made.

He’s just starting on the sides when his doorbell rings and has to laugh a little at the timing.

Taking the pan off the stove, he goes to answer it and feels his mouth stretch into a smile when he sees who it is.

“Hey, buddy,” he says, “long time no see.”

Ryan huffs, like he thinks Geoff’s ridiculous.

“Well you know,” he says, and shrugs. “I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop by.”

He looks tired, and there’s this pinched look around his eyes. Wearing long sleeves even though they’re in the middle of one of the hottest summer’s Los Santos has seen in years and -

“You’ve got something there,” Geoff says, and reaches up to wipe a dark smudge away from Ryan’s face, and tries not to smirk when his hand comes away with a smear of black on his fingers.

Face paint.

“Huh,” Ryan says, like they both don’t know about his little secret. “New make-up artist.”

Geoff doesn’t roll his eyes, just nods and plays along with Ryan and his whole...modeling thing. (It’s not a complete lie. Geoff’s found photos from past shoots, and every so often he’ll see a billboard with the smug asshole’s face on it.)

Still.

“Oh, yeah,” Geoff says. “I know how it is.”

He lets in Ryan in and tells him to make himself at home the way he always does and doesn't sigh when the asshole helps him finish making dinner instead.

“Hey, no,” Geoff says, lightly slapping Ryan’s hand away from the pie on the counter when the asshole makes a go at it when he thinks Geoff’s not looking. “Pies are for dessert, asshole.”

Ryan, a fully grown adult pouts at him, rubbing the back of his hand like Geoff took a bat to it and gives him these truly pathetic puppy-dog eyes.

“But Geoff,” he says, all woeful and sad, poor little orphan all alone in this cold and cruel world. “Pie.”

Geoff, heartless bastard that he is, hip checks Ryan away from the pie and towards the cutting board to finish chopping up the salad he insisted on helping with.

“Suck it up, buttercup. You’re just going to have wait until dinner’s over.”

Somehow the pout intensifies, but Geoff’s a stone-cold bastard who doesn’t budge. (Knows if he does Ryan will be even more insufferable than usual.)

Geoff keeps an eye on him, because Ryan’s the stubborn sort. Runs himself into the ground and forgets to look after his own well-being, runs himself into the ground time and time again.

Which is fine, because Geoff is more than willing to do that for him, when Ryan will let him.

It’s taken some doing, getting through that thick skull of his, but Geoff’s learned the best things are worth the effort.

“So,” Ryan says, sliding a look at Geoff. “Anything interesting happen recently?”

Ryan’s been gone, you see.

Off on a photo shoot somewhere or other and out of town and far away from any goings on here in Los Santos.

Geoff slides a look right back at Ryan, sees that annoying little smirk of his.

One day, Geoff knows, trouble will come knocking at his door and it won’t be wearing a skull mask or sheepish little grin, but for now?

Well, he’s pretty good at handling what comes his way.

“Eh,” Geoff says, because this is a game they’ve been playing for a while now, stupid as it is. “About the usual.”

#ramwood #ragehappy #something soft because reasons #???#vagrant fic

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divainity-a3 · 4 years

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annnndddd onnnnnn this episode of: r.iverdale is fucking stupid and disrespectful of every character trait reggie has and makes raven wanna pull out their fucking hair: this fugly scene!

( TW: ABUSE, ABUSE MENTION, PARENTAL ABUSE )

you might think: wow maybe raven likes this! it seems accurate to their headcanons about richard’s abuse n how reggie feels about it and they’ve often written threads where reggie does have a black eye because of his father!. maybe. but the way it’s presented and the way reggie’s communicating it? the fact that he IS communicating it period? nah.

1st of all, archie is the LAST PERSON REGGIE WOULD EVER CONFIDE IN ABOUT SHIT LIKE THIS. he even SAYS it in the fucking scene: you had everything i didn’t. why the fUCK would reggie cry to archie when archie is a constant reminder of the loving family he never had and never will have. why would he be openly vulnerable about that shit with the person who made him cynical and hateful of his parents in the first place? and WHY, please god tell me WHY would he take the time to answer the question calmly and not lash out in anyway.

second of all can you PLEASE tell me why ch.arles fucking m.elton, the UGLIEST man i have ever seen, is SMILING ??? WHILE HE SAYS THIS SHIT???? HUH??? im sorry is abuse FUNNY to the riverdale writers? if reggie were to even talk about it period he’d be closed off, upset, and extremely distant. im sorry but i said what i said: charl.es me.lton is the worst actor ive had the DISPLEASURE of seeing on any screen.

let’s go line by line so you can really understand where this is coming from:

“what do you want me to say? that my dad hits me? that he beats the crap out of me over the stupidest things?”

everyone knows im not team richard but richard has extremely valid reasons to be upset w/reggie. not to beat him, but be upset with him. why do i know this? because reggie goes OUT OF HIS WAY to infuriate his parents, not so they can beat him, but so he can have some kind of power in the dynamic. in the household. richard doesn’t escalate to hitting reggie unless he has a pretty good reason, which reggie is usually there to give, is what im trying to say. there is no ‘random outburst’ from richard, it happens and it’s wrong that it happens period.

“that he’s been doing it for as long as i can remember?”

just a horrible piece of written dialogue period but this just isn’t something he’d say. for the most part richard isn’t even around most of the time to do this and yes while it has gone on very long, it has never escalated to this level of visible and long-lasting injury until reggie grew up and “became a man,” a pivotal moment where richard decided he COULD hit reggie harder simply because he was older. which must mean he can take it, right? wrong so the ‘black eye’ shit wasn’t happening for ‘as long as he could remember’ because it wasn’t always this bad. it’s just gotten worse over the years.

“i was always jealous of the relationship you had with your dad.”

he wouldn’t openly admit that, he’s too prideful. why would he ever tell archie that he has something he wants because he runs on the fact that he wants NOTHING that archie has and is therefore superior. this wouldn’t happen. instead he’d call archie out on his privilege for not being able to fathom that his father hit him because his life is so picture perfect. also there’s something to be said about poc families beating their kids and white families babying them but that’s a whole other thing—

“no matter what you wanted to do, he always stood by you. i don’t know what that feels like.”

the core issue with reg and richard is that richard literally just hates reggie. period. richard talks SHIT with his coworkers about his deadbeat son. how much of a pest he is and how much he wishes he could have another son that wasn’t so disappointing and awful. furthermore, it’s not that reggie wants to do things that richard doesn’t like, it’s that he doesn’t want to do ANYTHING with his life and perpetually acts like a teenager as if he’ll be one forever. the IMMATURITY is the issue not what reggie “””wants to do””” because reggie doesn’t WANT to do anything.

“and when your dad died, all i could think was ‘what if it had been my old man instead?’”

i’ve said this before and i’ll say it again: reggie wouldnt give a fuck if his dad dropped dead. he’d be GRATEFUL, jesus christ— you really think reggies around here moping like ‘uGh i kNoW my dAd liTerally bEAts tHe sHit ouT Of mE but wHat iF He DiEd i’D bE sO saD i’d RaThEr hAvE hiM aLiVe aNd aBuSiVe tHaN DeAd— NO. reg! has wished! his dad! would just die! since he was old enough to understand what that meant. abuse made him cold and bitter and you can’t! blame him! fuck outta here with that ‘aW bUT i StIlL lOvE hiM hE’S mY dAd— if anyone understands what it means to say that ‘just because you’re related doesn’t mean you love each other’ it is REGGIE MANTLE in this ESSAY I WILL—

#I. ❰ HEADCANONS / METAS. ❱#abuse tw #parental abuse tw /#abuse ment #.... so anyway

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purplesurveys · 4 years

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692

How old were you when you had your first crush? The first crush I had that wasn’t a celebrity or a teacher was when I was 12. If you're a girl, how old were you when you started your period? It was a month after I turned 10. By that time I was just entering Grade 4 and when we were asked who had already gotten theirs, only a handful of hands shot up haha. I was an early bird for sure. What is your worst period story? Pretty obvious TMI warning here. Happened last December. I was visiting a photo studio to test if they were going to be suitable for my college batch’s grad shoot and unfortunately my period started in the middle of the trip. Even more unfortunately the trip was all the way in fucking BINANGONAN, which meant I couldn’t have access to napkins for the entire drive. I had to cross my legs real tight to avoid any leakage but at the time we got to the studio, my crotch area was soaked nonetheless. I had to ask for napkins from the studio staff, but thank god they were the nicest people ever and didn’t hesitate to hand me one. Does anyone else know who your first crush was besides you? Gabie knows. I think she’s the only one who knows, but I also think Pia asked me at one point too, so maybe her as well. What was your most embarrassing moment? I have at least one everyday.

What are your worst cramps like? Leg cramps that wake me up at 4 AM, without a doubt. Those always end me in tears no matter how old I am. What is the most physically painful thing you have ever experienced? Either my foot infection back in ‘09 or the toothache I had a few months back. I had no idea a TOOTH could send me crying almost every night or wake me up in the middle of the night just from being so painful. Oh and the time I ripped my ear piercing off. What are you allergic to? I’m not allergic to anything... at least I haven’t encountered anything I turned out to be allergic to. Have you ever wanted to be someone else? I’ve never seriously wanted to be a particular person, but I’ve found myself fantasizing about if I were richer. Have you ever been jealous of someone? Sure. Have you ever been jealous of a friend? Yeah. Just mostly high school stuff though, like the time Erk kept getting Gabie away from me and I got super fed up about it at one point that I stopped talking to Gab for like a month lmao. Do you feel shy around someone when you are first getting to know them? Yeah of course. Aren’t most of us? Do you feel shy around a crush? I get both shy and distant. What color hair did your first crush have? Black. Do you ever cry in public unwillingly, or are you able to hold it in? I’m able to hold it in because I hate making a scene. I just keep swallowing the lump in my throat and try to blink less. Do you throw up involuntarily when you have to, or can you swallow it down? I also can swallow it down as long as I have to. But if I really need to throw up I run to the nearest toilet. What's one near-embarrassing moment you had? Uhh idk. If I can tell something is going to be embarrassing I usually already feel pretty embarrassed about it, regardless if I’m saved from the embarrassment or not. Do you ever call yourself stupid? Yeah. Just yesterday BoJack Horseman’s “You’re a stupid piece of shit" kept replaying in my head all afternoon and evening. What was the name of your first imaginary friend? Katrina. She was my first and last. What's one weird habit you have? When I get my usual drink at Starbucks, my first sip has to be a long one and I usually savor it by closing my eyes and letting out a contented sigh haha. Only then can I start working. Are you more of an open or a private person? I’m a bit of both, if that makes sense? I keep my shit private when they aren’t being raised, but when someone asks me about them I have no problem being an open book. Do you wish you could be more open with others? No, I already am. Do you feel ashamed? Not permanently lmao, but I feel it every now and then. Do you get embarrassed easily? Yes. Do you have regrets? Some. Have you ever fallen asleep in class? Never. I feel like – aside from being disrespectful – it’s an embarrassing thing to happen, especially if you’re caught and get scolded for it, so I make it a point not to let it happen to me. What was the hardest thing you've ever had to forgive? [Big trigger warning: Domestic violence] The day my grandpa said sorry to each of us in the family for beating up my baby cousin in a drunken stupor. After that he left the house for the week, presumably out of shame, then he came back to ask for forgiveness from each of us. I was desensitized to all of the violence I’ve seen at that point, so my 9 year old self gave him a shrug. Is there anyone you hate? No, not hate. Is there anything or anyone you're angry at, that you haven't forgiven yet? I don’t plan on forgiving my deadbeat uncle or my brother anytime soon. List five of your biggest bullies. A lot of people bullied me for my name and looks when I was younger, but they’re all irrelevant in my life now and I’ve forgotten all of them save for two – Kaira (who’s my friend now) and Sophia (who I don’t like just as much as when I was 4). Have you ever plotted revenge against someone? I’ve fantasized about revenge but never plotted anything. Have you ever done anything to get revenge against someone? Nope. ^If so, do you regret it, and did you apologize later? Have you ever had a friend crush (i.e., you really wanted to be their friend)? Yeah I remember being like this with Macy. She’s changed quite a bit these days and we don’t talk anymore, which I find sad considering what we’ve gone through in the last couple of years. What is the greatest longing of your heart? Money. The rest of my desires - happiness, contentment, the material things I want - comes after I have money lol. Who was your first love? Gabie. What was the last thing someone said that warmed your heart? Chesca said something very sweet to me and it was something I needed to hear, but explaining it would need too much background context so suffice it to say, she reassured me when I needed it most. Do you pray regularly? Nope. ^If so, to whom? Do you love Jesus? What church do you go to? I’m not religious but my mom is, and she drags the entire family to church every Sunday. That said we go to a specific parish within our area, because that’s what we’re a part of. What denomination is your church (if you go)? Catholic. What was the first year you voted in a presidential election? 2016. How old were you when the year changed to 2000? At exactly January 1? I was a year old, but I was turning 2 that year. Have you ever been afraid of the world ending? Not really, but it certainly has felt like the end of the world these days. This is the kind of shit you only ever get to read about in textbooks, so it’s feeling a little surreal. Do you enjoy public speaking? If I’m prepared for it and/or I enjoy what it is I have to talk about. What food makes you gag? Pineapple, raisins, or ice cream with nuts. Who was your first celebrity crush? Ashley Tisdale when she was Maddie in Suite Life of Zack & Cody. I also lowkey liked the mom, hahaha. What show did you want to be on when you were younger? Hi-5 when I was extremely younger; the kiddie crowds looked so lit 😩 Hahaha but when I got a bit older, I wanted to be in Legends of the Hidden Temple or be one of the people splashed with slime at the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards. Looking at my answer I could now tell I was definitely a Nickelodeon kid. What was your childhood dream? To be an astronaut, to be a wrestler, and to have a big house with a swimming pool. Did you ever fulfill your childhood dream? I have 0/3 achieved, but it’s okay. My wants have mostly changed. What is your dream now? I still want a big house with a pool for sure lmao, but I mostly just dream of having enough money all my life and never having to worry about finances or having to ask people. What is your passion? History has always been my biggest one. Are you living your dream? Not yet. Do you receive insults or compliments more? Compliments, but that’s because I don’t let myself thrive in an environment where I’d get insults more because yanno, self-care? Lol. What is unfair about your life? Bad past presidents and how it’s led our country to be in the miserable state it’s in today, whereas I have to see other countries flourish in their unbelievably competent governments and see how these countries have public parks, libraries, playgrounds, etc. I don’t know what I did in my past life to have to end up in the Philippines hahahahaha, but here we are today. What about your life would you change? I wish my dog can stay with me forever. Did you write love poems when you were younger? Nope. Who are you jealous of and why? I’m not really feeling jealousy at the moment. When someone hurts you, do you start to feel jealous of them? No? Why would that happen? Name five people you know who have everything handed to them. Idkkkkk. I don’t wanna namedrop anyone for something like this lol. Name one person you know who is spoiled rotten. Boomers? Name one person you know who seems stuck-up. I know someone but I’m not naming him on here lmao. Name a church that just wants money. All of them? LOL at least all the Catholic ones, I can’t speak for the other denominations. What is your least favorite chore? I really hate folding clothes. Have you ever had an account of yours hacked? Yeah but like by a virus or something, not a person. Have you ever been a victim of police misconduct? Nah. But traffic enforcers have been incredibly rude to me before. Do you keep a diary? This one. What color is the diary you are currently using? It doesn’t really come with a color... Do you actually write "Dear Diary"? Only in the diaries I kept as a kid, because it’s what I saw in cartoons. When was the last time you wrote and sent someone a letter? December. I included a handwritten letter in my Christmas gifts for Gab. Do you write in cursive or print more? Print. Have you ever self-harmed? Duh.

#survey #surveys

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kob131 · 5 years

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https://rwdestuffs.tumblr.com/post/185845690162/taiyang-is-not-the-best-dad

Dudeblade, stop pretending you’re being critical.

I’m not here to say that Taiyang is abusive. Far from it.

I’m here to say that he’s neglectful.

Issue is that you’re gonna treat ‘neglectful’ as ‘abusive’ so this is just technicalities you’re hiding behind.

Because of things that are tangentially related to Taiyang but are actually more indicative of yourself.

“He was depressed.”

Yang and Ruby just lost their mother. What about them?- They need as much emotional support as possible, and if what Yang says is accurate, then Tai put his own trauma and issues ahead of his kids.

You know Dudeblade, you bitch about Taiyang talking about how PTSD despite not knowing it-

And yet here you are, talking about depression despite not knowing a thing, seeing as depressed people breakdown UNWILLINGLY due to stress.

And yet you think it’s okay for you to do it.

There’s very little indication that Tai got a sitter, especially with what Yang says later in Volume 5.

So we’re also suppose to think Summer willingly died to get away from Yang, considering that her phrasing Summer’s death portrays it as such?

Better start bitching at Yang then.

The fact of the matter is that Taiyang isn’t a great dad. He’s not the worst (That (dis)honor goes to jacques), but the way people think that he can do no wrong.

Numerous people have pointed out how flawed his advice to Yang was. How he projected Raven onto Yang, how he called the manifestation of Yang’s soul a temper tantrum, and how he used the “What if you miss” argument as to why Yang shouldn’t use her semblance.

On top of all of that, Yang clearly doesn’t feel comfortable in confiding him with her nightmares at all. If Taiyang had actually reestablished himself as someone Yang could trust and depend on, then she would have talked to him about her nightmares.

Taiyang still laughs about how he tricked an immigrant into cross-dressing with the Beacon professors as if he were still a frat boy. The Braincells joke was something that Yang should have countered with an equally scathing joke if that was really “how they functioned” as so many taiyang stans keep screetching out.

A. And yet, if we look BEFORE Volume 3, we see people PARROTING WHAT TAIYANG SAID. And considering these people all also happen to portray Yang as her worst flaw being ‘she’s too nice’ (AKA see her as a Mary Sue): it’s more indicative of your confirmation bias.

B. Again, from people who took Taiyang criticizing Yang personally and idolize her.

C. Yeah and yet you call me a whiny fanboy despite me and Yang having similar personalities. Bet you wouldn’t hesitate to call my Semblance a temper tantrum.

D. ‘Taiyang: Because not everyone else's is basically a temper tantrum. (laughing and crouching by her side) I'm serious! Once you take damage, you can dish it back twice as hard, but that doesn't make you invincible! It's great when you're in a bind, but what happens if you miss? What happens if they're stronger? What then? Now you're just weak and tired! You've always been one to burn brighter than everyone else, whether it was with your smile, or, well, I remember your first haircut.’

We call that cherry picking.

E. She directly went to where she heard her father was after having her only on screen nightmare. That makes no sense.

F. ‘Port: And, and, and then, in comes Qrow, wearing a skirt! I was just a TA, I-I didn't know what to do, so I just... I just left the room to laugh! Yang comes to the kitchen door while the three laugh. Taiyang: We told him it was a kilt! He'd never worn a uniform before, so he didn't know! Oobleck: That is terrible! What is wrong with you!? Taiyang: Hey! The girls all said he had nice legs! I did that jerk a favor! Besides, that's not even the best part! See, then we- ‘

Not only was it NOT just Taiyang but the laughter comes from how he BACKFIRED.

G. ‘Yang: You... jerk!

Yang playfully punches Taiyang, and the father and daughter laugh together. ‘

And in the same scene:

‘Yang: What is that supposed to mean? Do you want me to just pretend like nothing happened? I lost a part of me. A piece of me is gone. And it's never coming back. Taiyang: You're right. It's not coming back. But that doesn't have to stop you from becoming who you wanna be. You're Yang Xiao Long, my sunny little dragon. Taiyang puts his hand on his daughter's shoulder. Taiyang: You can do whatever you put your mind to. So whenever you're ready to stop moping, and get back out there, I'll be there for you. ‘

Mind you, she acted like her twice widowed, four time abandoned father who, if we’re just gonna take abstances as proof, has never shown to have his own parents around. And his response was ‘you’re so great.’

Your arguments fail when you actually KNOW what happened.

‘Ghira is a better dad.

“OH! BuT gHiRa LeT bLaKe JoIn ThE wHiTe FaNg!” I hear taiyang stans screaming and typing.

And Tai let his five-year old daughter go out and nearly get herself and Ruby killed by grimm.

If you’re going to use that “Blake joined the WF” argument as to why Ghira isn’t a good dad, then tai stans are banned from trying to refute the “Tai let Yang go out with Ruby to look for Raven” argument forever.

Hmm...

‘ Yang: (off-screen) I waited for Dad to leave the house, put Ruby in a wagon, and headed out. I must've walked for hours. I had cuts and bruises, I was totally exhausted, but I wasn't gonna let anything stop me. When we finally got there, I could barely stand, but I didn't care; I had made it. And then I saw them. Those burning red eyes... ‘

Nope, by your own standards Ghira still sucks. In fact, considering Ghira had ONE kid, had his WIFE around and yet he, by your standards, let Blake into rallies that could have gotten her killed, let her be near a psycho like Adam and manipulated by Sienna.

I mean, we could use context to logically justify that-

But you don’t do that for Taiyang so I have no obligation.

Again: This isn’t to say that Tai is a bad dad. But if we’re supposed to say that “He’s trying, and that’s what makes him a good dad” then that’s a pretty low bar for fictional dads everywhere.

More like “Yang and Ruby are the most well adjusted members of Team RWBY even though both Blake and Weiss had both their parents. And speaking of said parents: All Jacques has done on screen is control Weiss and Ghira had every advantage that Taiyang did and yet Blake was worse off while the twice widowed, single father who had to raise two kids while providing for them have come out with the least amount of issues.”

That’s actually a pretty fucking high bar, especially since the usual bar for fictional dads is ‘joke of a parent, abusive, dead, deadbeat or evil’.

Next thing you know, they’ll be using the “Jacques was at least there for his kids, which makes him better than Raven.” argument.

Speaking of the Bird Bitch-

How come you don’t shit on her? She did everything Taiyang did but worse while also taking a leaf of Jacques’ ‘Parental and Emotional abuse’ to the SAME KID and is even the root of the issues Taiyang did.

‘But people don’t treat her as a good mom!’ Says the guy with the ‘Savivor Mom Raven’ series.

Issue is Dudeblade-

Look, I still stand by my standing that if Tai really cared, he wouldn’t call Yang a “Thing he has to take care of.”

My mother calls me “a Thing” and I don’t like it. I can’t say that everyone is resentful when their own parents call them “a thing” but mine does it in a way that basically says, “Hey you! Yeah, you! You’re being a burden on my life.”

This is what you said the second time addressing this topic.

You are directly biased here Dudeblade.

Meanwhile, numerous OTHER people in the same situation as Yang proclaim Taiyang as a good father. People who should have a WORSE bias than you.

Combine this with your misandric tendencies and it’s clear why you spout this shit. And it has NOTHING to actually do with Taiyang.

#dudeblade

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andromath-old2 · 5 years

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Iron Stepson AU! Prank-bonding

So this was inspired by a gifset I saw in which Peter was Pepper’s son, which I can no longer find (I swear it was on @tempestaurora‘s page but apparently it wasn’t? I think I’m going insane)

Premise: Peter is a normal kid and didn't become spider-man, and is Pepper's son. He struggles to bond with his soon-to-be stepfather.

Tony accepts that before Afghanistan, he wasn't a good person. He was selfish, and if something didn't involve him, he kinda zoned out. He did care deeply, but he purposefully forced himself to act and be a certain way. His fucked up way of rebellion against the world that produced his own deadbeat dad.

But his all time low was not realizing that Pepper had a son.

When he sold his tower to Stark Industries and moved upstate, he was on a break with Pepper. Getting away was good for both of them. Pepper needed to stay in the City to run the company. Tony needed to get away with all the stress after his disagreement with Cap.

Once they got back together though, that distance became a problem. So he made a conscious effort to go into the City to see her. Unfortunately, that usually meant actually attending all the boring meetings Pepper always wanted him to attend.

It was when he finally got out of one of those meetings when it happened.

He was sitting in Pepper's waiting room, waiting for her to be free when he sees some random teenager just walk through the desks toward Pepper's office. He passes Tony, giving him a dirty look, and just walks right into Pepper's office like its no big deal.

Like Tony, her fiance, doesn't even get the special privilege of just waltzing in and has to wait for her assistant to let her in.

So of course Tony asked him his secret afterwards, nobody just walks in on Pepper Potts. But the kid, Peter, didn't like him very much and they may have had a tiny argument.

That Pepper had to break up.

Which is how he learned Pepper had a son. Peter. 15. Goes to a private boarding school in Geneva, which had many CERN scientists as professors.

Not great boyfriending, especially since as she chastised him in her (formerly his) office, he starts noticing things. Like the pictures of her and the kid on the walls, which he hadn't looked at since at since Pepper started moving in.

Or remembering how almost 16 years ago, he had to deal with the worst assistant of his life because Pepper took a sabbatical. Which only know he realizes was Maternity leave.

Or when Pepper asked him if he knew any good private schools specializing in science and engineering a few years ago. He thought it was for a charity donation.

Or that Pepper had a standing appointment, every day at 6:30, when she would have a private call. Tony knows for a fact she ended a conference call with the President once to make that phone call.

He was only drawn out of his musing when he noticed the room was quiet. Pepper was staring at him her patently 'Tired of Tony's Shit' glare. So had noticed he wasn't paying attention.

Tony would like it on the record they had a serious adult discussion. Pepper admitted she purposefully didn't mention Peter in front of Tony. At first, it was because she thought Tony was a terrible influence and wanted to keep her sweet, innocent son away. After becoming Iron Man, she was going to introduce them. She even brought him to the Stark Expo.

Which promptly got blown up by Hammer's drones.

Understandably, in Tony's opinion, she didn't want her son to be around after he almost got shot for wearing an Iron Mask.

After, when they got together and engaged, she planned on telling Tony. That was what Peter and Pepper were talking about earlier. The problem was that Peter despised Tony Stark.

Apparently when someone's reckless behavior almost kills your mother, several times, you grow a bit of a grudge.

After finding out about what Barnes did to Tony's mother, the rage he felt, he really can't blame the kid.

But for better or worse, he is going to marry Pepper. Which means he will be Peter's step-dad. He promises he will try to bond with the kid, and he does try.

Peter doesn't make it easy though.

The kid just started his summer vacation, and Pepper arranges for him to stay at the Compound for a bit so they can bond.

The kid is a science nerd, top of his class and Pepper says several Ivy League colleges are already trying to get him to enroll with him. So Tony figures it should be easy to dazzle him with Avengers technology.

It works, and Tony thinks maybe Pepper was exaggerating about Peter's hatred of Tony.

She wasn't.

The next day FRIDAY notifies him that he has made the headline of every media tabloid. Someone, and FRIDAY is unable to determine who, hacked into her and entered Tony's bathroom.

They posted several pictures of Tony's extensive beauty products on Tony's twitter account. The tagline was the brand and colour of Tony's hair dye. The kid started a war.

Tony couldn't prove it was the kid, he tried though. Even dusted for fingerprints, but the kid covered all his bases. So Tony struck back.

First, he replaced all the kid's clothes with Iron Man merchandise. Then, before the kid could find something else to wear, dragged him into the City. They were going to a good old fashioned baseball game.

Tony knew that Peter would act like they weren't together. He planned on it, on Peter being embarrassed and acting like Tony was a stranger.

So by the end of the day, the internet exploded about the "Iron Man Super-fan that was lucky enough to have seats right next to Tony Stark". The kid was not happy.

Tony had been expecting retaliation, but he never expected what the kid did next. Tony woke up two days later to find FRIDAY out of commission.

Instead, Peter had installed a new AI in her place. A temperamental and agitated AI, called KAREN. She wouldn't even unlock his door and let him out of his room. She played Taylor Swift over the speakers.

She turned off the hot water mid-shower.

Tony had to crawl through the vents to get out of his room. He needed to get to the AI data-bank to get FRIDAY back online, which normally wasn't hard.

Except the kid had laid booby traps throughout the halls, locked doors in the way, and made what was normally a 3 minute walk from his room in the Compound turned into a 45 minute trench run from hell.

In the end, when FRIDAY was restored, he thought that was the end of it. He went back to his room to wash off the glitter, slime and a white substance he hoped was flour.

He never suspected the hair dye in his shampoo. It was the oldest and most cliched prank. Which is exactly why Peter distracted him with bigger pranks first.

Tony doesn't think he ever saw Pepper laugh as much as when she saw him drag Peter to her office, hair and goatee bright pink. He expected Pepper to punish the kid, instead she gave him a raise of his allowance.

So Tony bought Peter's school, and plastered his name all over it. Peter would be getting his degree from the "Tony Stark School for the Scientifically Gifted...and Peter".

Unfortunately Stark Industries PR team put a stop to that, apparently it opened them up to bad press to mock the CEO's underage son. But he did get his name on the school, so Peter would have to live with that.

Tony was also prepared to buy a significant portion of whichever University Peter went to. But that is when things got better.

Or well... got worse and then got better.

Peter and Pepper were out to Lunch, a rooftop cafe in Queens, when a Pepper was kidnapped. A flying weirdo with metal wings, who was angry about a recent Stark Industries decision not to use his construction company for a big project. Turns out, he had been stealing pieces of alien tech and decided to test out a suit he made from it.

Peter could do nothing but stand and watch as the man lifted his mother into the sky, before dropping her.

Until an Iron Man suit showed up. Only... it wasn't an Iron Man suit. It had a different body shape. Peter watched as it wrapped itself around his mother and she began to fly as well.

Peter watched Pepper Rescue herself. Watched her shoot down the Vulture and come make sure she was okay.

After that, Peter seemed to warm up to Tony, whose had known Pepper would be a target again and made an Iron Man suit for her. They spoke civilly. Tony and Peter starting doing projects together in Tony's labs. Things were looking up.

And if Peter broke into Tony's lab, made himself an Iron Man suit and started going out as a vigilante named "Iron Lad"...

Well Tony was proud, even if Pepper grounded Peter for the next 30 years.

#tony stark #pepper potts #peter parker #irondad #spiderson #mcu #marvel #iron stepdad #mcu prank wars #Also once again no dialogue #I know how to do dialogue #its just I don't want to write monster fics and this format is lets me summarize an idea #I mean #this was supposed to be pepper centric #so really this was just supposed to be the prologue but it became wayyyyy too big #Which is why I kinda just summarized the Pepper part into a few paragraphs #my fic

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crossyourheartspreparetodie · 5 years

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12, 18 and 35

Canon Cross:

12: One of the worst memories of my life? Kind of a tough question. I would have to say it would be a tie somewhat between becoming entangled with Nea’s bull shit and becoming an exorcist. The memories, the needless deaths, the bloodshed and heartache after those two things…I can never seem to drink enough to fully forget them. It’s kind of funny how just one little thing happens so conveniently in your life and suddenly it spirals down into such a shit storm. I wish I could go into more detail…but it’s actually kind of hard for me to think about and I should at least be considerate and keep myself relatively sober until night fall.18: One person that I can’t stand to see hurt above all others? Usually I would say my mistresses…but if I’m being completely honest here. It would be Allen. I’m not talking about the little scrapes and cuts that happens throughout life, I’m talking about his life as a whole which is basically a fucking lie. I still wish to this day that Nea had picked someone else. Some fucking deadbeat…like that Cosimo character. Instead he chose a fucking kid that life was already beating the shit out of. Not only that but I am one of the pieces to that fucked up chaotic puzzle. I may not be the most gentle, caring, type guy out there, but it turns my stomach sometimes thinking that I had a part to play in some kid’s eventual demise. On the one hand I like to see the kid happy and enjoying what little time he has left…on the other hand I hate it because it feels like he’s mocking me.

35: Writing a letter to one person before my death, what would I write and to whom? Well, my usual bullshit answer would be to Lvellie and to tell him to eat shit. If I was being serious. Once again. Allen. The recording I left in Tim was done in a situation that was already tense so it was shorter than I originally wanted it be and I focused more on motivating the kid rather than expressing any kind of remorse.. I don’t feel like I had enough time to say what I needed to say, you know? I would’ve told him I’m sorry. I know I already told him…well sort of that day before I ‘died’ but it didn’t feel…put together you know? There was just so much bull shit going on and I didn’t have a whole lot of time…if I had more time I feel like…I would’ve liked to try to express my feelings more (god that sounds gross coming from me. What the fuck am I? Tiedoll?). I don’t know if that makes sense. I’m not drunk enough for this bull shit.

Edit:

My version Modern AU! Cross:

12: My worst memory was when Allen had to be torn away from me for awhile because his birth parents wanted him back. The fear and uncertainty in his eyes still haunt me to this day…and the look of betrayal he had when I said I couldn’t do anything about it.

18: Allen. God he’s such an unlucky kid. I mean at least he’s trying to live like a normal kid, but with every step forward it seems we take two steps back. He’s getting better though.

35: My dad to gloat about how I’m being a better father than he ever was to me. Fuck yeah.(Sorry I don’t have this bit of Cross fully fleshed out yet. It’s mostly Allen that’s been fleshed out, but Cross will get there eventually. He’s just withholding information from me lol).

#wasn't specified so I did both #manadcampbellrpblog #cross marian

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rwdestuffs · 6 years

Text

Done dirty: Team STRQ

I’m having way too much fun with these screenshot openers.

Team STRQ is one of the most interesting things about the show, and at the same time, the most boring things about the show.

Each character listed above has been done dirty in some way, either by the writers, the narrative, other characters, the audience, or other such circumstances.

One of the things is that we don’t know whose partner is whose. It would be interesting to find out who ended up partnering with whom, but that’s another story all together.

Let’s start with the dead bitch. You know her. She’s super-mom: Slayer of monsters, baker of cookies (At least, according to Yang). So, obviously, she has a lot of time dedicated to her, and how big of an influence she was on Yang and Ruby, right?

NOPE! But, if there’s literally anything I could give this show over Soul Eater, it would be that at least we know what Ruby’s mom looks like, and her name. We don’t get that for Maka’s mom. But then again, Soul Eater also didn’t make a big deal about Mama Albarn. Off-Topic tangent aside, Yang says that Summer never came back from a mission. Implying that she died.

Now, this wouldn’t be much of a problem if we didn’t see a grimm being beaten by a corgi.

(Look forward to a done dirty on the grimm in the near future).

So, unless it was a member of Salem’s faction (which it might be, as it was Hazel who mentioned that they had ‘taken care of’ Silver-eyed warriors in the past), it feels really unlikely that Summer died on a hunt.

And speaking of Silver Eyes, that causes another problem due to how they work.

If they’re supposed to be destined for the life of a warrior, then you’d think that Summer wouldn’t have gone down so easily. Summer got done dirty because despite how important she is to other characters, she is hardly a character herself. In fact, by the sounds of the commentary, she seems to just be a copy/paste of Ruby’s character.

Also, isn’t it nice that Yang no longer considers “Super-Mom” to be her mom, and then refers to her as “Ruby’s mom”?

Seriously. Summer’s influence needs to have a bigger impact on the characters. Sure, her ‘leaving’ made an impact on Yang, but Ruby rarely talks about her, and only really visits her gravestone twice in the same volume. Yang, on the other hand, has mentioned Summer different times in different volumes. Which seems to indicate that Summer’s supposed death had a bigger impact on Yang than it did Ruby, but the fact that she seems to be more willing to call the woman who abandoned her ‘mom’ it just seems like… Yang’s being ungrateful, or that she’s having feelings of inadequacy.

And with Ruby rarely mentioning Summer at all, it just shows that the creators had Summer leave their lives too early. Maybe Ruby had no real choice in the matter of becoming a huntress, and it was the way of the Silver Eyed Warrior that compelled her to do so, but it says a lot when Summer isn’t important enough to Ruby for her to mention her often.

And again, Summer sounding like a copy/paste of Ruby feels like one is being robbed of a fleshed-out character that left an impact on others.

At least we know how Tai reacted- Speaking of which…

Next up is the insensitive bitch, Taiyang. Now, I’m sure that if anyone knows me, they know my… thoughts and opinions on Taiyang “Imma call the manifestation of my daughter’s soul a temper tantrum” Xiao Long isn’t really positive saying the least.

It’s no secret that I don’t like this guy, so please excuse any comments that make me seem like I’m making him out to be the devil incarnate. I have a hard time with this, and I also project my mother’s shitty attitude onto him, so I have issues. Regardless, I am going to try to be as civil as possible when discussing Taiyang. Though, as a warning: It may not last. Scroll past to the deadbeat bitch if you want to skip me being overly critical of Tai, and how he was portrayed and received by the audience.

I don’t care what the writers do, this line is never going to fly if they also want to say that Tai was a “Super caring and supportive father.” Tai being too depressed to take care of his kids is an explanation for this behavior. Not an excuse.

I don’t know what the writers are trying to pull here, but trying to say that Tai is a good dad while also having these lines of dialogue exist isn’t going to fly. It’s like trying to have Batman tell someone off for teaching an orphan martial arts and having them beat up dangerous criminals- It’s just going to come off as something really empty.

Tai’s comments about wanting to go out and look for Ruby also come off as empty as well. The next time we see him, he’s gardening. If him staying behind was so important, you’d think that the writers would have him teaching at Signal, or helping out in the Vale effort. But no. Tai is just gardening. Because that was more important that going out and looking for Ruby.

Tai fails here, because the narrative (and the writers) refuse to acknowledge the fact that he fucked up. Tai had one job as a parent, and do you know what that job was?

But no. Tai up and decides to fuck. up.

If the writers wanted me to believe that Tai didn’t end up giving the job of parenting to Yang?- Then they shouldn’t have had Yang explicitly say that she was alone in picking up the pieces and in keeping things together

For God’s sake, if the narrative and writers were trying to make me think that he wasn’t an asshole, I have only one grade to give them:

And the absolute worst part is that his fucking stans keep touting him as “father of the year.” as if Ghira didn’t exist or something.

No. Tai isn’t a perfect dad, nor is he a horrible one. But the mere fact that he didn’t even get a sitter for Yang and Ruby is very telling. And I still need to reiterate:

Despite wanting to go out and look for Ruby (and inadvertently blaming Yang for his inability to do so), once Yang is ‘armed and ready,’ he opts to…

Garden.

He’s not protecting Vale, he’s not teaching the next generation… the writers thought that showing him gardening would be an important scene.

Let’s move on to the deadbeat. The bitch who couldn’t be bothered to raise her own kid.

Admittedly, Raven was a real big enigma back in volumes two and three. She was a big deal.

She was shrouded in mystery, and there were a lot of theories going around. She was working for the bad guys, she was working for Salem, I remember maybe one where she was using Sienna Khan as an alias. Raven was a big deal. And her uncaring nature came into question when we got the Raven stinger in Volume 2.

And when we found out that Raven was the leader of a tribe of bandits, there was some more intrigue. She was now, all of a sudden, a powerful force to be reckoned with. She could intimidate opponents far out of the protagonist teams’ reach. She was in charge of a group of people who could decimate an entire village in a matter of minutes.

She took Weiss hostage, and she was a woman with a plan.

And then…

youtube

Raven’s bandits are taken down really easily. By her daughter. Who was in physical therapy for a few months. And only recently got back into fighting.

You see where the problem is?

Raven isn’t intimidating in this scene. And her conversation with Yang and Weiss leaves us with no reason to distrust Ozpin. Raven had one job in that scene. That job was to give Yang and Weiss (and by extension, the audience), a reason to believe that Ozpin is not to be trusted.

But instead, she turns into a bird, and then turns back.

Because for some reason, that is supposed to convey to the audience that Ozpin is not to be trusted.

Raven doesn’t really do much after sending Yang and Weiss to Qrow, so let’s move on to her plan of double-crossing Cinder.

Which, is arguably, the best thing she has done as a character. She sets everything up, and we also get a fairly decent fight scene with Cinder too.

But, we run into a few issues here.

Like how Raven killed the Spring Maiden and took her power. Which is an underwhelming way to display the character being cunning.

Had Raven been given the powers by OG Spring as a means of spite, Raven wouldn’t be an idiot for taking the powers when she wants to stay out of the Ozpin vs. Salem war.

Not to mention that she seems to want to play the sympathy card for killing OG Spring.

Raven doesn’t really earn any sympathy points. She does earn some idiot points for thinking that taking the relic would keep Salem and Ozpin off her back, though.

Overall, Raven, despite being the most human character of her team, fails at being an interesting or compelling character due to the sheer idiocy of her actions, and the lack of being able to accomplish the one job she had of instilling distrust in Oz to the audience.

Finally at the end, and now we deal with the drunk.

See, Qrow fails at a lot of things. Most notably, not being a condescending piece of shit towards guys like Ironwood. Qrow blames Ironwood for not keeping in contact with him… when Qrow is the scout, and he should be the one to report in. This is like a doctor being mad at their patient when the patient doesn’t take their medication, when the doctor never prescribed it.

Qrow also wants to be such an edgelord too.

Here, we see Qrow bemoaning that his semblance, stating that it is “Always there” whether he likes it or not.

Then the writers said this:

Now, whether they needed to clarify what they meant or if this was a retcon, the choice of words made it pretty clear that Qrow’s semblance was out of control, and the line of “It’s always there” implied that it was constantly running.

There is a difference between “out of control” and “always there.” The writers should know the importance of word choice, and should have simply said “out of control.” Then again, they would run into the same problem if they had then clarified that he can amplify it in a fight, implying that he can control it, but they would also have to clarify that it’s to a certain degree.

But they didn’t. Not only does this imply a retcon, but it also makes Qrow out to be a melodramatic edgelord. He bemoans his semblance, but it’s not as bad as it seems since it’s actually not “always there, whether he likes it or not” so his sob story gets ruined.

Not to mention that he falls into the designated hero trope pretty often. He starts the fight with Winter, and for some reason, he is not punished for it outside of a talking to by Oz. His plans of getting Haven’s relic involves kidnapping the Spring Maiden from Raven’s camp, and forcing her to help them. He also berates his niece for daring to question Ozpin, and sees no issue with Oz drafting a fourteen-year old into a war.

Overall, Qrow’s questionable actions have yet to be called out. He is constantly defended, and the one time he isn’t defended is a time in which Jaune calls him out for giving Pyrrha that ultimatum. And even then, Ruby (Y’know, the girl who was rooting for her uncle when he started that fight with Winter) doesn’t even jump to his defense.

It’s very telling that the only character to call Qrow out on his actions is the creator’s pet, and not……… literally anyone else.

Not to mention that he’s just Ozpin’s yes-man. Because how dare Yang question him. How dare Raven not trust Ozpin. How dare anyone believe that the guy who is possessing a fourteen-year-old kid be questioned in any way.

At this rate, Ozpin could literally kill a baby, and Qrow would just say “Well, it’s probably because that baby was an agent of Salem. So Oz did us all a favor by killing it preemptively.”

To which Ozpin would reply “Yes. That. It had absolutely nothing to do with that baby spilling my coffee.”

Overall, the biggest theme with Team STRQ seems to be a pretty common one:

A lack of sympathy.

These characters are hard to sympathize for. Even Summer. Summer was a huntress, and despite knowing that she had two young daughters, she decided to go on a dangerous mission anyways. These characters end up lacking anything that would make them sympathetic, and the one that would be the most sympathetic is dead.

And if Summer isn’t dead, then why doesn’t she try to go back to her kids?- Unless she’s captured or has amnesia, Summer is in no position to not be trying her damnedest to try to return home if she’s still alive.

Tai fails at being a sympathetic dad due to Yang explicitly saying that she was alone in keeping things together. Raven fails at being sympathetic due to her idiotic and contradictory tactics. And Qrow fails at being sympathetic because of how his semblance got explained, and his own actions.

#rwde #summer crit #taiyang crit #raven crit #qrow crit #done dirty

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