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#i think it'll be 4 parts total
hold-him-down · 8 months
Note
🚑 Rushed to the hospital
✥ The Hospital Arc - Part 1 ✥ 
Notes: ~ 18 months in, just a little introduction to a long awaited mini-arc.
Trigger Warnings: Med Whump, Panic Attacks, Hyperventilation, Medical Restraints, Needle Mention, Institutionalized Slavery
✥ ✥ ✥ 
It was supposed to be a simple enough task. Go to the grocery store. Get the things on the list. Go home and get back to his books and cook dinner and watch the sun set and, if it’s a very good day, once Luke gets home they can watch a movie in Luke’s bed and maybe Luke will hold him, even if just for a little bit.
But it’s not a simple task. Anxiety builds in Leo’s peripheries as he weaves through the aisles, hyper-aware of every person he encounters. It’s busier here than he’s comfortable with, and the noises and the lights and the narrow walkways put him on edge. He urges himself, not for the first time that day, to pull himself together.
Still, he selects items almost carelessly, checking off his mental list as quickly as he can. 
It’s because he’s moving too quickly, and he’s too jumpy, and everything is too much, that he makes the mistake. He rounds the corner to the cashier, and his cart nearly collides with someone else’s. He dodges it, issuing an anxious, “I’m sorry,” and tries to keep his head down.
He knows the moment that he sees the scrub bottoms, though, that he’s in trouble. Handler, his mind screams at him. He tries to quiet that voice.
He closes his eyes, taking a breath. Another. Another. The sounds of the store grow distorted, far away and warbly and almost silent against the ringing in his ears.
It’s just a doctor or a nurse. The hospital is nearby. It is not a handler. It’s just a doctor. Maybe it’s Rob. Maybe it’s Luke. It is not a handler. Rationally, Leo knows that the nearest site is over an hour away, and no handler would still be in their scrubs after their shift. Leo’s not thinking rationally, though. 
He struggles to pull in air as he forces his eyes open. 
The man is staring at him. Does he look angry? He’s speaking to him, he thinks, but he can’t make out the words.
I’m sorry, he tries to say again, but isn’t sure if the words come out.
He takes a step back, raising his hands in apology, and tries to draw in another breath. He’s hyperventilating. His fingers shake as he reaches toward his pocket. If he can call… if he can call Luke, Luke can explain. If he can get home, he has medicine in the pantry he can take, and he can… he can hide somewhere until Luke gets home and helps him. He can… he needs to get home, he tries to say. 
The man takes a step toward him, his hands up, mirroring Leo’s. Leo’s eyes dart around the store, but he processes none of what he sees. 
He can hear voices behind him, telling the man to back off, he thinks. 
“I’m sorry,” he chokes out. “I–” He wants to tell them he’s allowed to be here. That he’s under contract, and that Luke told him to come here. He wants to tell them not to touch him, that if they touch him right now, it’ll be so much worse. He wants to tell them he’s going to be sick. He wants to tell them he can’t breathe. 
But all that comes out is another apology, choked off with a sob.
He’s going to black out. He reaches for his wallet, for his phone, for anything. He grasps at whatever memories of Luke’s voice he can find, clutching onto the sound and the words with every piece of rational thought that he has left. 
From behind him, he feels hands on his shoulders, and almost instantly, he’s back in training. The handlers are shouting at him, the handlers are holding him down. He’s crying, he’s begging them to let him go. He’ll do better, he cries. He’s so, so, sorry. 
✥ ✥ ✥ 
There are hands on him when things come into focus. There are fingers pressing into his neck, there’s a mask over his mouth and nose. Breaths don’t come easily, but they come, chased by a burning pain. 
He feels a jolt, and forces his eyes open; he’s in an ambulance, he thinks. He reaches up to take off the mask, to tell the man who’s holding him that he’s okay, to beg him to call Luke and to tell him that Luke will help him. His hands won’t work, though. 
“It’s alright,” the man says. “Take it easy.” 
Do they know he’s a worker? Do they kn… do they know he’s under contract? He tries to ask them if they’re taking him back to a DLS site, but he can’t. He feels tears pooling in his eyes; he tries to lift his hands again, but canvas straps dig into his wrists at the movement.
He sobs, while a desperate plea that probably isn’t understandable to the man works its way out of his chest. The mask muffles the sound, and the man looks concerned, so Leo lets himself hope that maybe… maybe he’ll listen.
Focusing is difficult. Producing words is even harder. 
“Let him talk,” another EMT says, nodding.
The first, the man at his head, says, “Stay calm and breathe, okay? You’re gonna be alright.”
The man is obvious with his movements as his hand closes in on Leo’s face, and Leo shrinks into himself.  The moment he’s free from the mask, Leo immediately whispers, “I’m s-sorry,” broken by a kind of panicky gasping.
“It’s okay,” the man responds. Leo’s not unaware of how closely he’s watching him, “You’re not in any trouble. They’ll get everything sorted out at the hospital, you’ll be out of there in no time.”
“C-Can you call Luke?” He swallows, forcing as much air into his lungs as he can. It’s not enough. “B-Bennett,” he whispers. “He’s my… he holds my c-c-c-” His whole body is shaking, and the man puts the mask back over his mouth.
“Your contract,” the other EMT says. She squeezes his hand, eying the strap holding it in place. “They’ll call him as soon as you get checked out,” she continues. “There’s… protocol, we need to follow, with people in the system.”
Luke will come, he tries to tell them. More importantly, he tries to make himself believe it. The world is spotting, though. The handlers’ voices are back in his head. Every time his eyes close, images of restraints, of hands on him, of laughter, of his collar, of tubes and white coats and bright lights and scrubs and pain, force their way to the front.
He can’t quite parse out what’s real and what’s in his head, so he sucks in breath after breath, tears streaming in waves down his cheeks as two hands turn into four hands turn into so many hands, and he's too scared to open his eyes and he's too scared to speak and all he can think of, over and over, is that Luke will come for him. He just needs to be good, and Luke will come for him.
FIGHTER TAG LIST: @whump-cravings , @afabulousmrtake @crystalquartzwhump @maracujatangerine @pumpkin-spice-whump @distinctlywhumpthing @thecyrulik @highwaywhump @batfacedliar-yetagain @finder-of-rings @dont-touch-my-soup @skyhawkwolf @suspicious-whumping-egg @also-finder-of-rings @whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump @prodigal-zoe, @peachy-panic @melancholy-in-the-morning @urban-dark @nicolepascaline @quietly-by-myself @pigeonwhumps @whump-blog @seasaltandcopper @angstyaches @i-msonotcreative @mylifeisonthebookshelf @anonintrovert @whump-world @squishablesunbeam @considerablecolors @whumpcereal @whumperfully @pirefyrelight @whumpsday @whumplr-reader @lonesome--hunter @darkthingshappen
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mishkakagehishka · 1 year
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With the language speaking poll, it varies from country (and state/county in the US)
In my area you're required 2 years of a language course
Most kids take it but do the bare minimum or just don't remember it. Usually you grow up knowing that language/being taught it young. Sometimes we learn jt in school and remember enough to keep taking to learn and remember. We usually offer use it or lose it languages, which most kids don't use it and then they lose it and then no one speaks other languages
Huh! That makes sense, actually, i feel like 2 years is not nearly enough to retain enough knowledge, and not even enough to learn a lot. I think when i started studying italian in 4th grade, we didn't even get to subjunctives by the time i was 8th grade, and subjunctives are a surprisingly common form. At least to the way I speak. And even among those who took the elective third language, i know a lot of folks who don't remember a thing about it, i'm assuming because even four years of a once-per-week class isn't enough for retention.
Well, it's sad, at least to me who is linguistically inclined. Quot linguas calles tot homines vales is something i take personally lololol but right! I guess it's the sort of inertion that happens to speakers of a lingua franca, there's no "need" to learn a foreign language, so even those who are talented for languages might never find out :/
Well, I hope thanks to globalisation, at least those who like foreign languages can find ways to learn even outside of formal schooling :>
#i think you'll notice easily that i'm a bit in love with foreign languages and really defend languages as a subject in school with my life#i once saw (a native eng speaker) call foreign language subjects joke classes and useless and i felt like maiming lmao#but i feel like i totally understand what you mean#it's one thing with english - it's a mandatory 2nd language from 1st to 12th grade in my country#which means that it's standardised and you're always learning more and more and more and thanks to media#you're bound to retain it. i even had it in preschool !#and a related digression but it also depends on the age you give students a foreign language - the older we get the harder it is to learn#a language. not impossible but just more difficult. i think a huge part of the reason why i'm fluent is because of the fact that i started#learning when i was 4 years old. the third language is an elective in most 4th-8th grade classes and kids get to choose#between italian and german usually (a friend of mine took french tho) and despite the fact that they're languages we do get exposed to#but i tell you most kids i know don't remember anything. depending on the high school you either get a mandatory 3rd language or a#mandatory 3rd and 4th. again italian and/or german. but those tortured souls in classic gymnasiums had latin and ancient greek </3#even from my hs class i don't know many folks who remember much italian. it's dependant on the kid's will to learn when there's not as much#time or focus on the class bc yknow. we took the same classes yet i'm quite comfortable majoring in a language my friends can barely#introduce themselves in. such is life. i'd love languages to be more focused on especially in these times of globalisation but well#i guess it'll just always be harder to implement a focus on anything non-english#bc it's considered one of the only useful language there's the inertion in anglo countries#and the unwillingness to bother in non-anglo countries#at least in mine where kids have like 17 other subjects i can see why they'd to the bare minimum for 3rd language#even i - linguistically inclined as i am - passed on the opportunity to take french in hs because i just had enough on my plate#asks
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scribblesofagoonerr · 3 months
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Don't give up yet, I'm not letting you | Inner Demons
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⟫ Alphabet Challenge, D- Don't give up yet, I'm not letting you.
Pairings: leah williamson x teen reader, arsenal wfc x teen reader
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Back again with another part, I've had a really shitty day if I'm honest and so, umm, writing this now has sort of helped, I guess?
Once again nothing has been proof-read so yeah, it won't make any sense maybe and this ones' a bit longer than the rest but once I get carried away I just can't stop so this is definitely going to have a few more parts to this one. I just don't know how many that will be, so I guess we'll see what happens.
Thank you each and every single one of you for the response to this small fic series so far, I'm so glad that people are liking it so much.
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The confession you have made leaves the room feeling a tense atmosphere, the girls will not let you give up so easily so they make a decision on your behalf to help you on the right path to get better.
tw: heavy angst, mentions of SH, MH, suicide and death.
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"What... What does that even mean?" Katie furrows her eyebrows as she looks at you for a more logical answer.
"I'm tired, I'm so tired and I can't keep on fighting this battle anymore" You speak quietly, afraid to meet their eyes.
Each one of them really did mean so much to you, they all look heart broken with the what you had confessed.
Steph, the Aussie girl that made you feel so loved
Kim, your captain who always talked sense into you
Jen, the brave Scots' woman who you can rely on
Caitlin, the second Aussie that you love despite how annoying she is
Katie, the Irish girl who acts all tough but is a total softie
Beth, the blonde who gives great advice when you need it
Viv, the dutch who you cheers you up when she sneaks you ice cream
Lia, the swiss girl that gives you the best hugs sometimes
& Leah, the one who stuck around and made you feel at home
Your family, you would really miss them all.
However, you knew it was time.
It was the only way, you couldn't do it any longer.
The battle was too hard, it needed to end.
"Y/N, you're awake!" Vic burst into the room and broke the sudden silence before she spins and looks back towards the door. "Less! Kyra! Lotte! Laura! Y/N/N is awake!" she shouts loud enough to get the attention of the three remaining girls not in the room.
As right on queue, the rest of the girls all run in and smile widely when they see you awake and sat up in the hospital bed.
"Y/N/N, you're awake!" Laura says as she grins at you before she walks over and hugs you.
"Hi Y/N/N!" Alessia smiles brightly, glad to see you're awake.
"Y/N/N!" Kyra shouted aloud, right down the blondes' ear beside her.
"Ow, Kyra. That was right down my ear" Alessia grumbles as she glares at the Aussie girl before she shakes her head and walks over to your beside to exchange a hug with you.
"Glad that you're awake, Y/N. You gave us all a scare" Lotte came over and gave you a gentle hug before she ruffles your hair.
None of them 4 girls had caught the glum expressions on the older girls' faces.
"So how long do you think it'll be before your back on the pitch and we can prank everyone?" Kyra questions taking it upon herself to plop herself down on the end of the bed.
"Hopefully not too long" You take the chance to put a front on in front of the girls in the room. "I'll be back before you know it and thrashing you out there!" you give her a grin to hide the deep pain inside.
"How're you feelin' kid?" Lotte glances at you concerned.
"Oh you know, fabulous. Just had the best 24 hour nap" You can't help but joke with the girls even with them all looking so distraught. "Ah come on girls, cheer up. I'm not dead yet, you know?" You tell them.
"I'm sorry no I can't do this. I can't sit here and pretend that everything is okay and fine, when it's not... It's far from okay" Leah spoke up as she goes to move off the bed from where she sat beside you.
"What's going on?" Vic asks confused, having not been in the room previously.
"Y/N/N is tired of life, she wants to give up on it" Leah tells them as her bottom lip wobbles at she tells the rest of the girls what you had said.
"W... What do you mean?" Laura asks, confused and not understanding what the blonde means.
"Y/N wants to die" Leah drops the bombshell before she presses a kiss that lasts longer than usual and then starts to walk away.
"What?" Alessia gasps as her eyes widen in shock as she looks at you.
"Wait, Le... No!" You shot up as you try and latch onto her arm. "Le, don't leave me... I need you-- Please, come back!" you shout aloud as you thrash your arms around.
"I'll go and find her" Lia is quick to follow her, leaving the rest of the girls all still staring at you.
"Y/N, you need to be careful of your bandages or there'll rip" Steph says gently as she looks concerned about your well-being now while she moves to stand by your beside.
"I don't care, I don't... I don't care! Leah! Don't go, come back!" You continue to put up a fight to get out of the hospital bed. "Please, please, c... come back!" you scream at the top of your voice.
What have you done? You made her so upset.
You've made them all so upset, your a horrible person.
Why did you have to blurt it out like that? Your so stupid.
Stupid, selfish... You're nothing but a huge let down.
The voices inside your head was taunting you, you just needed them to stop.
Watching the one person that's always stuck by your side, walk away, it hurts you more that you realise.
More than any pain you currently feel, why did you go and say that?
"Calm down Y/N/N. You'll make yourself sick if your not careful" Beth tells you as she moves to stand on the other side of the bed as she pulls you into her arms for a hug as you just break down into sobs.
"I... I don't care, I don't... Leah! Come back!" Your now sobbing as you still try and do your best to get out of bed to go after the blonde, although it wasn't any good when you had so many different wires and monitors attached to you. "Le, please... please, don't leave me!"
Why did it hurt so much for her to walk away like that? You really were so selflish.
"Deep breaths, Y/N. Just keep on taking deep breaths" Steph adds in, trying to make it to the point where you didn't get yourself too upset that you were physically hurting yourself again.
"I'll be back" Kim eyes you wearily as she exhales a sigh before she also leaves the room to go and find the two girls.
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"Leah?" Lia found Leah sat slouched down against one of the walls outside of your hospital room.
Leah peers up to look at the Swiss women, "I can't be in there right now" she mumbles quietly. " I... I just can't do it, I can't sit there and listen to crack jokes about death and be so optemistic when she... when she said something like that, I just can't" she explains to the older girl.
"I know" Lia replies in agreement and moves sit beside her.
"She said that she wants to die, Wally" Leah states as she stares straight out in front of her.
"I... I know" Lia repeats as she exhales a sigh and wraps her free arm around the blonde.
"She said she wants out of life... I... I-- Why?" Leah asks in disbelief as the tears threaten to spill.
"I don't know, Le" Lia mumbles and bits her bottom slightly.
"S...She said she wants to die, Wally" Leah voice quiviers as she repeats what they heard. "She's a teenage girl, s... she has so much more to achieve, so much more-- H... How can she be so depressed about life that she would rather be dead instead?" she questions distraught.
"She's suffering Le" Lia swallows the lump that forms in her throat as she hugs the blonde in her arms. "She's been suffering for a long time and we just didn't know, but we can help now" she tries to speak positive about it all.
"I... I thought she was doing better, she... she was doing better. I don't get it, what happened that made her do this?" Leah wonders numbly as she roughly wipes the tears away and shakes her head. "We can't let her die, we can't let her give up just so easily. She needs to fight... She has to fight!" she adds in.
"We will help her, we won't let her suffer in silence anymore" Kim speaks up as she joins the two of them as she exhales a shaky breath. "Y/N is one of our own, we'll be there for her and she'll get better" she tells them honestly.
"But how can we do that when she doesn't even want the help?" Leah questions as she shakes her head in disagreement. "You heard her in there, Kim! You heard what she said, she doesn't want to live anymore, she did what she did on purpose. H... How can we help her?" she questions as her voice breaks even more.
"We need to make a plan, we can come up with a way to help her... Even if she doesn't want the help" Kim declares with determination in her voice.
"But how do we do that? We can't keep an eye on her 24/7, when we have training and stuff, can we?" Lia glances at the Scots' woman in confusion.
"We keep her in hospital where she'll be safe" Kim tells the two of them.
"And how do we do that? I imagine as soon as she gets the chance then she'll bolt out of here" Leah scoffs and shakes her head, knowing you all too well and you were stubborn when it come to some things.
"We don't let her have the chance to do that then, still is still a minor remember? Technically that means, that you, Leah, since you're her guardian so too speak, you can make that decision for her and notify the doctors of your concern for her own welfare" Kim explains to the blonde, which was somewhat true now since you had moved in with her.
"Keeping her here against her own will? She'd hate me then for sure" Leah mutters as she rubs her hands down her face, feeling the stress of everything even more when the decision was resting on her shoulders.
"She might do at first, but soon enough she'll realise that you're only doing this to help her because you love her just like we all do" Kim gives the blonde a sympathetic smile.
"Kim is right Leah, this will be the best thing for Y/N" Lia speaks up after she had been quiet for a bit.
Leah glances between the two girls that she is sat with. "Is it, really?" she asks, still unsure about it all.
"You know it is Le" Lia states, knowingly.
Okay, maybe Kim has a point there then.
This would be the best decision to make right now.
"Alright, but how do we get here to stay here?" Leah asks, not knowing how to even go about this.
"First things first, we-- you speak to the doctors, you tell them that she cut herself and has admitted that she intended to do it. That's validation for the doctors to detain her for up to 72 hours at least" Kim explains the logical side of it all.
"That is something that I don't think she will like very much" Lia frowns, shaking her head as she listens to the older women.
Leah frowns and shakes her head. "A psych hold? I don't think she'll like that very much" The Swiss women tells her captain
"No, she won't but she won't have much choice if the doctors believe she's at risk of hurting herself again" Kim confesses to them as she exhales a deep sigh. "The doctors will run further assessment to determine whether they need to keep her in for longer and in the mean time, it gives us chance to talk to Jonas and the medical staff, fill them in what's happened and create a proper plan going forward" she adds in.
"And what if you determine that she needs to stay for longer than 72 hours?" Lia questions the Scots' woman.
"Then we cross that bridge when we come to it" Kim replies to the blonde as she moves to crouch down beside her.
"I know that it'll hurt to walk away and leave her here in the hospital Le, but you know as well that this is the right way, it's the only way for her to get better" Lia says honestly.
"Remember that Y/N is our family and we will always be there for her even if she will be mad at us about this" Kim adds in.
"Oh yeah, she is definitely going to be super mad about this" Leah chuckles in realisation about it.
Sure enough you would probably be mad with her, but Leah wasn't going to let you try and kill yourself again, not on her watch.
You were her family even if you were a complete pain is the ass sometimes, but you were her pain in the ass to deal with.
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No Regrets - Part One
Content Warning: mentions of main character deaths but these are temporary because this is a time travel two-to-four-shot and so, they start dead but then get better :3 Also maybe a whiplash warning? In that it starts off kind of dark for a story that's pretty light-hearted in the end.
Here's the first part of the threatened season 4 AU time travel fic where Steve gets thrown back to the moment in family video when Dustin and Max show up demanding the phones. Previously he was 5 years into a grueling apocalypse.
Part One🦇 Part Two🦇Part Three🦇Part Four🦇Part Five🦇Part Six
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Steve has lived his life in regret. Replaying scenarios in his head over and over late at night when sleep eludes him. And sleep is always eluding him these days, weeks, past five years. Steve hasn't known a day without regret since the day they failed to kill Vecna, the day Max almost died. The day Eddie did.
It's five years to the day today.
Steve spends endless nights thinking about how he'd change that spring break. It was the start of the end of everything. Eddie's death wasn't world ending for Steve. It was the end of a what-if. A maybe. But for Dustin. Oh God, Dustin. Who had blamed himself for Eddie's death, who was broken and then never able to get time to recover. To grieve.
Dustin, who pulled away from everyone, from Steve, because of it.
He's not dead, Steve knows, because he still hears his voice on the radio. Separated from the group but vital to their survival. He spread intel on Demo-creature movements, where safe spaces are, news from across the broken and destroyed America, and how to survive the hellscape.
There have been losses. Terrible, tragic losses.
Murray Baughman. Lucas Sinclair. Karen and Holly Wheeler. Will Byers. And those are just the ones he knows. A lot of people scattered to the wind when Hawkins became overran with the Upside Down and its creatures.
He's still two days out on this supply run. Two more days and he'll get to know who is still around. Who they lost this time. It's not always someone they know, but the horrors never cease, and Steve's been gone a total of three weeks.
"Hey," Robin breaks him from his thoughts as she leans over to whisper in his ear, "since you're gonna daydream, you might as well actually dream. Scouts say it'll be a while before we can continue moving."
"I'm not daydreaming, I'm thinking."
"Well, be sleeping instead. You'll be more useful with some rest," Robin pats her shoulder, inviting him to lean his head against it.
"Don't use my weakness against me. You know I love being useful," Steve sighs as he drops his head onto her shoulder.
"I know. It makes you easy to manipulate," Robin teases. He can hear the smile in her voice. "Now, shut up and sleep."
Steve grumbles under his breath. No real words, just grumpy noises as he does shift and get as comfortable as he can leaned against Robin. He is tired, and with nothing else he can be doing, he won't feel too guilty about it.
He closes his eyes.
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He opens his eyes, blinking rapidly at the sudden brightness of the sun shining through the glass storefront of Family Video. Usually when he dreams of the past, the sun's never this bright. It's been years since he's seen the sun at all, with the red-black sky of the Upside Down looming above them constantly.
He takes a deep breath, basking in the fresh(ish) air of Family Video. How long has it been since he's taken a breath without his mouth covered by a mask, bandana, some cloth or another? Well, he's not really breathing without a mask on, his conscious self has one on, but it still feels good to fill his lungs and release. He has half a mind to jump the counter and go outside to repeat that; see if his unconscious mind will provide a difference in the air, if it remembers enough to do so.
"Hey Steve," Dustin says as he is stepping through the doors with Max at his side. It's then that Steve takes in where the dream has started. The doors have just opened, and Steve's looking partially over his shoulder, towards the doors instead of the TV as it plays the news of Chrissy's death on the screen. The world fades back into motion, instead of the slowness the beginning of his dream started as Dustin finishes his question, "how many phones do you have?"
"Are you seeing this?" Steve asks on autopilot, playing out the scene he knows, but he holds off from stating the someone was murdered part. He's tired of saying it.
"How many phones do you have?" Dustin asks with more urgency.
Steve takes in Dustin and Max while Robin explains the phone situation. It's been so fucking long since he's seen Dustin. Since Max was able to see him. God. He can't let this play out like normal. It's not going to fix reality, he knows that logically, but what would it hurt to live out his fantasy of getting a re-do while he dreams? Wasn't that what he was thinking about while awake?
He tunes back into the conversation when Dustin shoves his backpack across the counter, and then himself. Instead of whining about the tapes, he reaches for the pen and notepad they keep close to the till. "Hey, what's this about?"
"Max, fill them in while I do this," Dustin replies.
Max turns to him and Robin, who is eyeing both Steve and Max but listening. Max explains what Steve already knows. The lights going crazy, Eddie fleeing his own home, and that it might be Upside Down related.
There's a script here. Responses he has memorized because of how often he dreams this moment over and over. An answer Steve usually gives, but this time he finds he can hold his tongue. He doesn't have to speak. Doesn't have to follow the script.
"Okay," Steve says instead. "Dustin, what's the number for the Byers now?
Surprisingly, that actually pulls Dustin from the computer. He spins on the stool to give Steve a confused look. "What? Why?"
If he's being honest with himself, he's never really had this much control over his dreams before. Having this control makes him want to do all the things he's daydreamed about. To change the choices that fill him with regret and guilt. "I want to leave a message for Jonathan," Steve lies, "or talk to him if he's home. Give him a heads up that Upside Down shit might be going on again."
Dustin narrows his eyes at Steve, suspicious, "Jonathan?"
"Yeah. Jonathan," Steve says in his bitchiest voice. "Number, dude."
He can tell Dustin doesn't fully believe the lie, but he recites the number anyway.
"Thanks," Steve says as he scoots around Robin and heads to Keith's office to use the phone there. The first thing he does is call the police station and let them know that he saw Eddie Munson at Rick Lipton's place, up by Lover's Lake on Holland Road. The lady who answered starts to ask questions, Steve just says he recognized the trailer on TV as the Munson's and hangs up. He'll swing by later once everyone else has pieced together the Rick Lipton part of this all themselves. If Eddie's still there, he'll drag him to the station himself.
'Cause the thing is, Steve has thought of many scenarios. So many. And even if nothing else changes, this is the bit that will. Eddie cannot be killed in the Upside Down if he is in a jail cell instead. And if the police do follow up on his tip, then they'll take Eddie in for questioning before Fred dies. And that's.
Well.
Steve's living through the end of the world and that changes people. It's changed Steve. Once there would have been a time when allowing someone to die, knowing it was going to happen and not stopping it, would have filled Steve with guilt, regret, maybe even some self-loathing. But Steve's made enough sacrifices for this town. Lost enough of the people he loves to be jaded. Maybe even cruel. If Fred has to die to prove that Eddie didn't do it, then that's what will happen.
His next step is to call the Byers. It surprises him that Joyce actually answers with a hesitant hello. That never happens in the dreams.
"Joyce. I mean, Ms. Byers. It's Steve. Uhh, Steve Harrington," he says.
"Oh. Hello Steve. What, uh, what can I do for you?" Joyce's voice is still hesitant.
"Listen, the Upside Down is back. Or, like, it was never gone? I don't know. But I needed to tell you."
"Oh my God," Joyce sounds horrified, and Steve can hear Murray in the background asking questions. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. Vec- sorry, it has already killed a girl. Max was a witness. Well, of the aftermath. But that's not important. What I need is for you to tell El that she's never been a monster and never will be. That everything has been the fault of One. And I think you should tell her Hopper is alive and you're going to rescue him."
There's not an immediate answer. A rustling sound and then faint voices he can't make out. She must be covering the phone with her hand as she and Murray talk. Or argue, knowing Murray. After a moment, Murray's voice comes through the line, "How do we know you are who you say you are?"
It's followed by Joyce shouting, "How do you know about Hopper?" and Murray quickly shushing her and some shuffling noises before Joyce says, "Okay. We're both listening."
"Look, I know you have no reason to believe me so I'll give you something that might serve as proof that I know things I shouldn't. When everyone gets back from the roller rink, be there for El. She's going to- to have a bad night, because of a girl that's been, like, bullying her at school. Then, I need you to get them headed this way tomorrow morning, because you gotta be gone then, too, but like. Be there for El tonight. There will be an incident involving a roller skate. So, if you believe me, call me back after that."
"How do we know you're who you claim to be, Steve?" Murray questions again, while Joyce says, horrified, "El's been being bullied?"
"I can't exactly prove I'm me. But call my house tonight after you've spoken to El and I'll answer. That's the best I can do. I... I don't know if Jonathan or Mike have my number, but Mike can call home and get my number from Nancy. That'll be proof, right? Or Will can get it from Dustin. Whichever."
"And how do you know about something happening tonight at the roller rink?" Joyce demands.
"I know more than I should. So, if the roller rink thing holds up, and you decide to at least hear me all the way out, call my house," Steve hangs up then, not wanting to get into a loop of explanation.
"Steve! Hurry up and come help people while I help Thing One and Thing Two!" Robin calls through the door and Steve takes a step towards the closed door to comply but he stops, hand hanging just above the doorknob. That's how the dream goes. That's what 19-year-old Steve would have done.
But that's a Steve that died five years ago, when the world ended, when the apocalypse started. Steve's not 19 anymore, though he must look it, a master of his own puppet. He's never sought himself out in a mirror when he dreams; he's too busy taking in everyone who has been lost to him in his waking life to bother with himself.
What does he want to do this time?
What does he want to do right now?
He leaves Keith's office to beeline to Dustin, pausing only to pat Robin on the shoulder. He slides around Max and comes to a stop beside Dustin.
"I already told you, I need this for-" Dustin starts to speak but cuts off with a squawk that sounds like a mixture of indignation and confusion as Steve just reaching out and bodily turns Dustin towards him. "Steve, this is important!"
"I know," Steve says and then hugs Dustin. Dustin doesn't hug back, but neither does he pull away. Steve knows he's missed Dustin, felt his loss for many years now, but holding Dustin now, feeling him solid and here feels Steve what he can only equate to grief.
Dustin lets himself be hugged for what is, undoubtedly, an awkward amount of time for him before he thumps Steve's back twice and says, "okay... You can stop now."
Steve lets go and turns to Max, who immediately puts her hands up, "No. Absolutely not."
He chuckles and steps around her. He won't force his affection on her.
Then he takes off the family video vest and sets it on the counter.
"Steve?" Robin asks.
"Sorry, Robs, I can't stay and help customers. I have some things I got to do."
"Steve, you cannot abandon me on a Saturday!"
He can't quite bring himself to feel bad for abandoning her. It is a shit thing to do but right now saving Eddie and Max from Vecna is more important. He's already wasting daylight, so instead of answering his gives her his best 'I'm so sorry' face and bolts out the door. All three of them shout after him but he doesn't slow.
He's got a list of regrets to change.
-
Tagging the besties and all the people that expressed interest when I posted the lil blurb about this. Sorry if I missed you!
@i-less-than-three-you @nburkhardt @afewproblems @skepsiss @music9009 @apomaro-mellow @soaringornithopter @reighnofdreams @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @sirsnacksalot @livelifeliketheresnotomorow @sageclipse @schnukiputz @mbloggotdeletedsothisismybackup @lumoschildextra @vampirestevie @alex-axolotl @juleswashere3 @yet-still-more-banched
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intimacyequalsdeath · 7 months
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Bubz's Slasher Fictober: Day 3 Poly Ghostface Part 1 (Billy and Stu) (Apple Cider)
Day 4! If it isn't obvious by now I wrote like most of these in September so I could post them way easier when October is here so shout out to past me for planning ahead.
Part 2 to this fic here
Notes: Minors DNI, Suggestive themes, Gender neutral reader, no specific pronouns. This is a poly relationship fic so if you aren't into it then this is not the fic for you.
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"Stu that's insane" You said as he leaned against the locker next to yours, He laughed.
"Oh come on babe, Billy doesn't have to know anything"
"And you'd really think we'd be able to get away with it?" You asked incredulously, To try and do something behind Billy's back was a risk.
"Yeah babe totally. Me and you, in and out, and good ole Billy would be none the wiser" You closed your locker and leaned against it looking at him.
"Fine, If you really think we'll get away with this, But I swear Stu if Billy finds out-" Stu grabbed your shoulders.
"He won't babe, Stu's got you"
Before third period Stu had approached you with an idea, Billy had some things to take care of and wouldn't be able to do the boys usual Ghostface schtick that him and Stu usually manned. So Stu had come to you, their precious significant other, to help stalk out the next victim.
Billy had always been very much so against you EVER joining them on their excursions ever since they had come clean that they were the Ghostface. Stu had always agreed to keep Billy quiet but he had teased and propositioned you in what you thought was a joking way before until this time around.
The two of you knew that if Billy found out Stu had even so much as thought to invite you to join him while Billy was off doing other things that there would be hell to pay. But it was just a stake out to choose the next victim they wanted to go after, Stu figured it wouldn't be that bad.
"I'll do it then, If you promise Billy won't find out then fine let's do it" You told him, A wicked grin spread across his face.
"Oh babe! I knew you'd say yes!" Stu brought you into a hug and kissed the side of your head "I'll pick you up later tonight and you can even pick who it is!". If Stu Macher was anything, it was enthusiastic.
================================================
Later that night Stu arrived at your house as promised. You left your house through your window as usual and got in the passenger seat of Stu's parents car.
"It's time baby! You're gonna love it I promise" Stu said as you opened the door to get in.
"Sure Stu, I'm more so just interested to see what my boys do when I'm not around" Which was the truth, You'd always wanted to see just how the Ghostface attacks went down and how they singled out who they went after.
"One day maybe it'll be me, you and Billy, Like one big happy family, You pick the victims, me and Billy go after them. It'll be great!" Stu said as he pulled away from your house and heading towards the destination to stake out.
"You know that would take a lot of convincing on Billy's part though"
"That's why we start here, and one day we tell Billy about this and show him how good you did! Then he won't be able to deny how much of a natural you are"
"Stu it's just a stakeout I thought? Like all we're doing is picking one of these sorry pieces of shit to go after" Stu nodded.
"It is, but this is a gateway into your life of the Ghostface, and here we are!"
You looked at the window and noticed you and Stu were pulled off into a shadowy part of the backroad down the road from a house you recognized from a few parties you had went to with the boys.
It was about ten at night at this point and you knew the black car would be almost impossible to see behind the trees you were covered by so you and Stu would be impossible to see.
"Now I do have to warn you this is the boring part, We need to make sure we know when their gonna be home and when they aren't so we know when to strike" Stu told you.
You and Stu then sat in silence for about an hour just watching the house and the people who lives there coming home for the night. You were startled out of the silence by your cellphone ringing.
"It's Billy" You told Stu starting to get nervous, Stu sighed
"Just tell him your sick at home doing homework or something" Stu told you, you shakily answered.
"Hello?" You answered the phone softly.
"Hey baby" Billy's voice poured down the phone like honey.
"What's up?" You asked him "Did you get your shit done?"
"Yeah baby I did, What are you up too?" You froze then remembered what Stu told you to say.
"Oh I'm just laying down and all, I didn't feel so hot after school"
"Really?" Billy asked
"Yeah my stomach started feeling upset" You heard Billy sigh then pause for a second through the phone.
"Well see baby that actually funny, you know why?" Shit.
"Why Billy?" You asked, still hoping to play innocent.
"Well it's funny cause I'm standing in your room right now and you aren't fucking here" You turned your head and frantically tapped Stu on the shoulder to get his attention.
"Billy" You said at a loss for what else to say.
"Don't give me that shit, where the fuck are you?" Billy was angry, You could almost feel the anger through the phone.
Stu now obviously listening in to the call started the car and then grabbed the phone from you.
"Hey Billy man why don't you meet us at my house, We'll see you then, bye!" and then he hung up.
"STU! why would you hang up !?" You knew that would've pushed Billy passed the point of being furious.
"Relax babe just let Stu handle this"
A few minutes late the two of you had pulled into Stu's driveway, his parents way on another trip to some other country. Stu brought you to his room to sit on his bed and wait for Billy to arrive.
A little while later after many hushed words trying to calm you down from Stu, The two of you heard the front door slam open then shut once again, and angry hurried footsteps run up the stairs.
As soon as Stu's bedroom door opened Billy started yelling.
'What in the fuck do you two think your doing?"
"Billy It's not-" Billy didn't stop.
"No, you're gonna wait a second, I fucking told the two of you I didn't want you to be involved in mine and Stu's shit"
"Billy it wasn't all that, It was just a stakeout" Stu piped up. Billy's head snapped to look at Stu.
"Billy c'mon, don't be mad, like Stu said it wasn't all that. I was never in any danger or anything. We kept it from you cause we knew you were gonna be mad" You explained trying to diffuse any confrontation between your two boys before it started.
'That's not the point and you know it, the three of us agreed that you would never be involved at all. The two of you went behind my fucking back and violated something I only put in place to fucking protect you" Billy's anger wasn't dissipating but at least he wasn't yelling anymore.
Billy exhaled and sat next to you on the bed, you wrapped your arm around his shoulders in an attempt to start calming him down.
"Billy we're sorry, we knew you were gonna be mad and still did it, but do you really think Stu would've let me go along if I was actually going to be in any real danger"
Stu appeared on the opposite side of you as you spoke.
"Yeah man, you know I love Y/n as much as you do, If I thought things were gonna get hairy I wouldn't of even thought about the two of us going, especially not without you"
Billy sighed once again but you felt some of the tension leaving his body. You rubbed his shoulder willing him to speak what was on his mind.
"It's not just about dangerous shit like that though, It's also about if for some fucking reason we ever get caught. I want you to have no ties to it at all. You aren't apart of it and you don't know anything"
You nodded in understanding, that anger wasn't cause Billy was actually mad he was just scared. Billy continued.
"When I got to your house and went through your window expecting you to be there only to see that you weren't, I got I don't know, I got really fucking scared. Even though my brain knew you were probably with Stu knowing what we do and what danger you could really be in scared the shit out of me."
Stu scooted closer and wrapped his arm around your shoulders as you brought Billy closer to lean against you as you leaned back into Stu.
"We're sorry we scared you Honey, we honestly just thought it would be a help for me to fill in since you had shit to do tonight and couldn't. Sure we thought you were gonna be mad if you found out but we didn't mean to scare you"
"Yeah man, the last thing we wanted to do was that. I wasn't thinking shit through and thought it would be fun if maybe one day it was the three of us together instead of just me and you"
"I guess it would be nice but I still stand by what I said, for now at least please, I don't want you apart of it" Bill said looking at you, you smiled and nodded before leaning over and placing your lips on his frown.
You felt Stu's hands run up your sides, and tug at your shirt, You playfully rolled your eyes before letting him take your shirt off. Billy let out a laugh before connecting your lips once more.
Stu's lips attached themselves to your neck and Billy's hands made their way down to your pants to unbutton them and move them down your legs. Billy tossed your pants to the floor as you got up onto your knees on the bed in front of him.
Stu wrapped his arms around your middle and placed his chin on your shoulder with a smirk.
"Maybe if I dressed like this you'd let me come with you guys?" You teased.
"Certainly babe" Stu said, Billy shook his head.
"You two spend too much time around each other" he said, placing his hands underneath Stu's on your hips.
"Maybe you should spend some time with us and show us what we're missing" You smirked at him.
"Maybe I will"
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Brother's Keeper AU Story Post 12 (Part 2)
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AU MASTER POST
BEGINNING | PREVIOUS | NEXT
[Image ID under the cut]
[IMAGE ID: Three pages of a black and white comic.
PAGE ONE
PANEL 1: Perry Porter continues his news report. "Further investigation," he says, "reveals that this human has been the subject of sightings in Bonesborough for a few weeks now, and is the cause of a recent disturbance at Hexside School. For further comment, here is my own son, Augustus." PANEL 2: Perry interviews Gus, who is grinning with excitement. "Augustus, is it true you've encountered this human before?" "Yeah!" exclaims Gus, "She snuck into the school and now she's my friend! Her name is Luz!" PANEL 3: "Now that they're together, I can see…" says Belos. "It's them." With a point of his finger, he conjures hologram-like illusions of Luz and Lillith, who stand in the throne room facing them, with their names above their heads. "I don't understand," says Caleb. PANEL 4: The illusions have transformed into Luz and Lilith in their disguises from "Elsewhere and Elsewhen." The names over their heads have changed to "Luzura" and "Aunt Dirtrude." "I had to consult memory magic to be sure," Belos says, "but I was correct." Caleb reads the names out loud: "Luzura and--" PANEL 5: He points, laughing. "Wait, is that the witch who broke your nose?" "They're the two who helped me find the Collector," Belos grumbles. "I did always have questions about them. Clearly there was time magic involved."
PAGE TWO
PANEL 1: A profile view of Caleb, quietly sad. "I see," he says. "And this human attacked a witch in a duel." PANEL 2: But then he turns and brings a hand to his chin in thought. "But… the boy called her his friend?" "Either a cunning ploy, or she is… struggling to find her way," responds Belos. "Either way, she isn't ready to face a witch." PANEL 3: A view of footage from the news report, projected by the crystal ball. In a moment from the episode "Convention," Eda exposes the power glyph used on Amity while Luz looks on in surprise. Belos continues to speak off screen. "If it wasn't for the Owl Lady's intervention, she would have sorely lost." "The Owl Lady protected her?" Caleb asks. "Yes, it appears my suspicions were correct." PANEL 4: "The portal door has reappeared, in the hands of another one of your blasted Clawthornes." A close-up of Belos against a totally black background, his face shadowed. One hateful eye gleams from behind his mask. PANEL 5: A close-up of Caleb staring up at him, also shadowed against black. His face is lined, his single pupil a pinprick. His expression is schooled neutral. "And just as before," Belos continues off screen, "the witch has taken advantage to claim a human soul." PANEL 6: "No wonder the child came to me for help. If not for Lilith, perhaps I could have aided her back then." He stands in front of the projection, watching the newscast, his back to Caleb. "I should order her collected and brought here. Shield her from further corruption. If only the Owl Lady wasn't guarding her." PANEL 7: A close up of Caleb jolting forward, fearful. "NO!" he bursts out.
PAGE THREE
PANEL 1: A close-up of Belos glowering dangerously over his shoulder, lit by the broadcast from behind. "No?" PANEL 2: Caleb sweats. "I mean. Philip, don't you think it'll look suspicious to show too much interest in a human?" PANEL 3: Caleb takes Belos hand, clutching him imploringly. "Not to mention the possibilities of meddling in the time-line. It's too risky." Belos isn't looking at him anymore. He looks ahead at the illusion of Luz, whose back is to us in the foreground. His expression is unreadable. PANEL 4: A high angle shot of Belos and Caleb watching Luz's illusion. Caleb still clings to Belos. Luz's illusion is alone now, staring at them blankly as she stands at the far end of the throne room. "Yes," Belos agrees, "I fear it's too early to intervene. It seems the Lord is testing her." PANEL 5: "For now," he continues off screen, "she will have to face the temptations of this realm on her own." A close-up of Caleb, letting out a breath of relief. PANEL 6: Caleb's eyes snap open. Belos' hand has come up to brush his cheek. PANEL 7: Belos pulls Caleb into a hug. Caleb's face over Belos' shoulder is drawn in supressed, silent horror, cast in deep shadows, as Belos murmurs to him reassuringly. "Don't worry, Caleb. The Owl Lady will be taken care of. And then the portal to the human realm will be in safe hands." PANEL 8: Belos and Caleb in profile against a black background, casting long shadows on the ground. Belos hunches over Caleb, one arm around his back and the other hand on the back of his head, pressing him close. Caleb dangles limply, face towards the ceiling, pulled halfway out of his wheelchair. Belos murmurs into Caleb's hair. "I won't let history repeat."
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palettepainter · 3 months
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EDIT: So I totally forgot about the line where Vox is like "And hey, you still have him under contract" Sooo this entire idea is false. But the idea of Vox saying Angel quit is still an interesting one, since it implies there is a possibility sinners can "quit" in some way from a contract
So two things real quick: I know I've been talking about Hazbin a lot, but tbh If I were to do anything with that fandom it would be with my OC's/NG's, I'm still not crazy over the main cast (besides the potential dynamic between Vox and Angel, and Fizz x Ozzie from Helluva Boss, the characters don't grab me as much as characters in other fandoms do)
And second thing is I do wanna bring up an interesting point I don't think anyone else has mentioned yet
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Vox specifically says "Oh Angel quit?". Obviously this happens in ep 2, but by ep 4 we know Valentino has Angel under contract, Valentino even says "I own you (Angel)". While we don't know a great deal of lore about how contracts work in Hell, I think it's a given to assume they're a big deal. More so, they're not something you can just "quit" and move on from
I just find it really interesting how Vox asks if Angel "quit" rather than saying something like "Oh you fired him?" to Val.
Is Vox even aware that Valentino has Angel under contract?? His brighter mood when he asks if Angel "quit" could be because, for all he knows, Angel is somebody who causes Val to loose his cool, somebody Val chooses to keep around, which causes problems that he ultimately has to sort out. Indirectly, Angel causes problems for Vox (I assume the reason Vox pulls out his phone while Valentino is ranting is because it's likely he's done this song and dance a hundred dozen times and doesn't take it all that seriously anymore).
And if Vox doesn't know about Angel's contract, he's left to believe that Angel is causing problems on purpose. It's probably likely Vox knows Angel is important to Val because of the money he makes him, but he also probably knows that Valentino is a literal tyrant and employs dozens of people who, all together, make him a lot of money
I think the idea of Vox perhaps not being aware of Angel's contract is further supported when he turns to Val later in the episode, when the V's are discussing about having somebody infiltrate the hotel, and asks "Do you think Angel would do it?". He phrases the question casually, like there's a chance Angel could say no, phrasing it a way that makes Angel the one who decides
Alternatively, he could have said "Can you (Valentino) get Angel to do it?" or "Can't you (Valentino) make Angel do it?"
It's very possible that this is just me thinking too deeply into stuff. While I do want this show to do good for the animation world overall, praying it'll draw more attention to other Indie Animated projects (cuz god knows Disney isn't pushing out good movies like it used to-) the writing in some episodes - looking at episode 3 and parts of episode 1 - isn't brilliant. Plus with how some of the writing is in Helluva Boss also I don't have a lot of hope that THIS much thought went into the script for the show.
It's very likely that Vox isn't written this deeply, but if it turns out I'm right and some of what I've discussed does end up being true though trust me I have my doubts, I'll be surprised
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wolfjackle-creates · 1 year
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Ghost!Robin Part 4
Here's your next part of the Ghost!Robin fic for WIP Wednesday. I'm gonna start putting fic designation in the title field rather than WIP Wednesday because I think it makes it easier to read.
Also, everyone came out in numbers for last week's segment! Damn! Thank you and I'm glad so many of you are enjoying this little fic of mine. We'll probably get one more week of this before I go back to Bring Me Home, but it'll depend what I feel like. I want to rework some of what I have written next.
First, Previous
1.1k words + a 464 word Omake (cut scene)
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Tim asked more details on the specs of the PDA which Danny happily answered. The things he built with Tucker were always his favorite inventions.
“So are you in school to become an engineer or something?” asked Dick who’d gotten Damian calmed down and sitting. The boy had gotten his knife back and was spinning it in his hands. Bruce seemed to be fondly exacerbated by the scene. Robin had pulled out a ghostly weapon and was trying to copy Damian’s movements, though he wasn’t quite as adept.
Danny shook his head to Dick’s question. “Nah. Hard to get into engineering school when you fail high school.” Danny narrowed his eyes as Damian’s mouth opened, but Dick whispered in his ear again and the boy didn’t say anything.
“I ended up dropping out of high school and getting a GED,” said Tim. “It can work just as well.”
Robin was nodding along and pointing at himself, too. Had he died before he could complete his schooling, too?
“I’m sure. It’s just not a priority for me right now. I don’t need one for my job and I can’t become an astronaut because of my accident when I was fourteen.”
Dick was nodding, but Tim looked confused and asked, “Fourteen? I thought you had your accident when you were older?”
“Why would you think that?” Had he or Jazz made any reference to when his accident was? “No, it happened when I was fourteen. A few weeks before I started my freshman year of high school.
Before Tim could ask anything else, Steph called out from the other side of the room. “Did you say you wanted to be an astronaut? Totally awesome. What made you pick that?”
“I honestly don’t know why everyone doesn’t want to be astronauts! Space is so cool. We can learn so much about the universe by studying it in closer detail. And with how many aliens are now living at least part time on Earth, it only makes sense to explore and see what else might be out there.”
Bruce nodded at him. “I am sorry you aren’t able to become one.”
Danny just waved a hand in the air. “I came to terms with it a long time ago. And my current job is fine. Might not be what I would’ve chosen, but I’ve made it work for me.” Deciding he should change the subject before someone had the brilliant idea to ask more about his accident or job, he asked, “So what is for dinner, anyway? You’ve all talked about how amazing the food is, but what are we having?”
Someone tried to speak up, but Jason held up a hand. “I’m the one who helped Alfie cook. Demon-brat is vegetarian so we have a vegetarian curry. If you like meat, there’s a prime rib roast. Then a half dozen different sides—vegetables, rice, potatoes. Huge salad with all the fixings and a dozen different dressings to choose from. And dessert after.”
“Damn, that sounds amazing. I haven’t had a good home cooked meal in ages, so I’ve been looking forward to this.”
“Has your Grandpa been keeping you that busy?” asked Jazz.
“That, but also getting things in order to take this evening off. There’s just been a lot. I’m spending the night at yours, by the way.”
“I’d be offended if you didn’t.”
Danny knew he could rely on Jazz.
“Ooh, do you have any good stories about Jazz as a kid?” asked Jason.
Laughing, Danny said, “So many! But I don’t think we’ll be able to get to those tonight. I’ve a feeling you’ll be interested in other things by that point.” At his words, Robin grinned and pointed at himself. Danny gave him a slight nod to confirm that yes, they’d be talking about him.
Before Jason could ask for clarification, Alfred came in to announce dinner was ready.
Robin cheered and flew over to sit on Alfred’s shoulders, hand extended, to lead the way to the dinning room. Danny couldn’t hold back the chuckle and Jazz shot him a look which he ignored.
“There better be a place setting for you, Alfie!” called Jason as they followed.
“You made your opinion quite clear, Master Jason. And as I wish to meet your young lady and her brother as well, I have set myself a plate at the main table.”
Tim leaned over to whisper to Danny. “Alfred considers his role as butler very important. He rarely eats with the rest of us unless we join him in the kitchen.”
Danny nodded to show he understood, but had no idea how to actually reply to that. It seemed needlessly complicated.
Once they made it to the dining room, Danny grinned as Robin did a flip off of Alfred’s shoulders and landed sitting down on one of the place settings facing the associated chair. He bit his cheek to keep from laughing as Jason sat down at that same place. Jazz took a seat next to him and Danny sat to her other side. Dick ended up sitting next to him.
The scents of all the food wafting off the table made his mouth water and he closed his eyes just to breathe it in. “This smells amazing. Thanks Alfred. And Jason.”
Even Robin had moved to look over every dish, reaching out a hand to try and take something and sighing when he just phased through it.
Even Jazz looked a bit overwhelmed at the quantity of food. “This is so much effort. You didn’t have to do all this just for Danny and me.”
Bruce smiled at her. “It is so rare for all of us to be together for dinner so we make a spectacle of it any time it happens. And this is the first time Jason has ever brought anyone with him which makes it an even bigger event.”
Danny nudged her. “So, Jazz, what’s it like living with someone who can cook?”
Jason laughed. “Jazz isn’t allowed in the kitchen. You know, I caught her grabbing my chef’s knife before going into the fridge the other day!”
Danny furrowed his brow. “Of course she did. It’s a fridge.”
“Wait, is that a family trait? Why do you grab a knife to open the fridge? There’s gotta be a good story behind that.”
Before Danny could make the obvious statement regarding attacking food, Jazz elbowed him. “We’ll tell you later. It has to do with our parents and that’s a large topic and not one we should get into now.”
Before Danny could ask any questions about what the big deal was, Dick nudged him. “Which do you want—curry or beef?”
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Omake
Ignoring all of it, Danny shook his head and answered Dick. “Nah. Hard to get into college when you fail high school and are legally dead.”
Multiple people, including Jason, exclaimed at that statement and he looked to Jazz.
“Did Jazz not tell you about that? Our parents swear they saw my ghost and had me declared legally dead. I was missing at the time so the coroner agreed. Sighting the ghost of a missing person is all you need to confirm death in Amity.”
Under her breath, Jazz added, “You were only missing because they had you.”
Danny elbowed her and quietly chirped a Safe now.
Bruce was no longer smiling and was looking at Danny with narrowed eyes. “Your parents had you declared dead.”
“Yeah. It’s fine, though. I’ve an amazing doctor if I get into trouble. My grandfather is watching out for me. I’m financially stable. My partners are able to rent an apartment large enough for all three of us. I have other places to stay when I’m traveling. Honestly, it doesn’t impact my life all that much. Just means I’m not gonna go to college. And only reason I wanted to go to college was to be an astronaut, but my health makes that impossible.”
“Hn…” Bruce hummed.
And Danny had no idea what that meant, but Robin was now laughing, and Dick was exchanging grins with Tim, and Steph and Cass were whispering together. Damian was glaring at him even harder, blade hilt gripped in his hand. These people were strange.
Danny looked over at Jazz who shrugged. Jason was glaring at Bruce and said, “Don’t you dare.”
“Look, it’s really not a big deal. I know it’s kinda a messed up situation, but ghosts are generally treated really well in Amity. As well as any living human, at least. So long as you avoid the Guys in White and my parents that is. So outside of interactions with them, nothing has changed.”
“If you are ever in need of a place to stay or a meal or anything, you’ll have a room here,” offered Bruce.
Robin landed on Danny’s shoulders and was sending out happy-celebrate feelings. Steph handed Cass a few bills. Tim and Dick mimed giving each other fist bumps. Jason put his head in his hands and groaned. Duke was grinning at them all.
Damian half stood and said, “Father—!”
But Dick was at his side and pulling him back down to the couch with an arm around his shoulders, hand over his mouth, and whispering into his ear before he could do more than say the one word.
“Seriously, it’s not a big deal.” Trying to think of anyway to change the subject, he asked, “So what’s for dinner, anyway?”
And for the Tag List! (Which absolutely exploded this week. Holy shit.)
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@addie-lover-of-stories, @justwannabecat, @gin2212, @amercurio, @regonold, @overtherose, @readerzj, @sjrose1216, @echoednonny, @deeterzz, @blu-lilac, @number-one-jew, @rowanaway-fromthisbs, @vythika96, @tired-yet-awaken, @themirrorghost, @all-mights-asscheeks, @darkhinauniverse, @blep-23, @phandomhyperfixationblog, @larkcoe1, @thegatorsgoose, @job-ross-the-second, @britcision, @lenacraft, @bubblemixer, @androgynouslordofescapism, @purefrickingspite, @leftmiraclechaos, @lizisipancardo, @starlight-sparks, @miraculousandmore, @gildedphoenix, @sometimesthingsfallapart, @letmesayfuxk, @phoenixcatch7, @skulld3mort-1fan, @abaowo, @dhampir-princess, @idkmrpianoman, @sarina-elais, @ballzfrog-blog, @undead-essence, @spookytragedyshark, @emeraldcorpral
The celebration post for 100 followers will be going out in another day or two! I've just had a really busy few weeks and didn't do as much writing as I was hoping for. But I hope to finish writing today and then I'll just take a few hours to edit.
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adi-azzz · 2 months
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Rating Hazbin Hotel Ships
!!! THIS IS MY OPINION !!!
Huskerdust : 100/10 absolutely love. i rlly think angel could use someone who is good to him and for him. I rlly like the idea that they'll be super sweet and not rush into anything. I rlly hope husk has a part in freeing angel from vals control if that even happens later in the show!
radiohusk : -1000/10 i rlly dont like alastor ships (for more info on why read last post.) if its platonic then sure but romantic -or god forbin sexual- no.
radiodust : -1010/10 i like this one even less. we know alastor has no interes in anyone, let alone angel (as shown in episode one angel talks about filming him and al going at it as the hotel ad and al laughs and says it'll never happen)
radiostatic : -1,000,000/10 it would be so one sided like omgg. like vox obsessed with al and al being repulsed by him. that is a horrible relationship for voxs mental health.
radioapple : 0/10 could be worse. i get people like enemies to lovers but brah they arent lovers and never will be. like platonic divorsed dads for charlie is fine but people writing about/drawing them going at it like rabbits is just 😬🫣
adams apple : 4/10 not my fav but i can def see where people are coming from. Like in the fight when luci says "im gonna fuck you" he totally could have ment that as "i got both your wives and now i want you." if adam is even in season 2 (tries to get redemed after he died ends up in hell) i wouldnt be too horribly surprised if they end up having a fling or a possible relationship of some kind. still suprised but not too bad
appledust : 3/10 i like them platonically. like they gossip abt the guys/girls they like, talk shit abt val and alastor, vent to each other, cry together, laugh together, and try and get one another with who ever they want (i.e angel w/ husk and luci w/ whoever he might want so like adam if a fling does happen)
chaggie : 10/10 i LOVE them i just want them to have more flavor. i need their relationship to get fleshed out more. like we had one little fight and a sweet like 1 min song. I WANT MORE from the only lesbian couple in that damn show.
sir pen x cherri : 7/10 i love the dynamic despite how little of it we got in the show. like hes hopeless and she that bitch. i rlly hope cherri ends up trying to redeem herself to meet pen in heaven.
cherri x angel : 2/10 platonic is cool but romantic jusy doesnt seem right to me since angel is gay. i honestly dont know how i feel abt their friendship long term because cherri doesnt seem like too great of an influence on him.
adam x lute : 4/10 probably just one sided as fuck. like no way lute didnt have feelings for adam. he made her and she was his favorite ofc she was going to fall in love but i dont think he liked her back man.
lucifer x lilith : 2/10. all im sayin is they divorsed for a reason :/
LMK IF I MISSED ANY ^_^
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zepskies · 3 months
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hiiiii!! rumour has it u do requests!! n I'd luv if u wrote a lil tinee small sumthin about how soldier boy would react to you having nightmares 🥺 ig roughly translated i just need sb 2 comfort me u knooo 🩷✨ tysm I hope this request is ok 4 u n u totally dont have to do it if ur not feelin it ofc!! 🐰✨
Sorry, hun, I know it's been a while since you requested this but I was finally able to get to it!
I know you didn't ask for this specifically, but I think this is a great Soldier Boy x Reader prompt for the BMD-verse.
Coming soon this Saturday...
"In the Dark"
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Pairing: Soldier Boy (Ben) x F. Reader
Summary: You and Ben have tackled the insurmountable together, but no one said the recovery would be easy.
It'll be set shortly after Break Me Down Part 17 (or sometime before the Epilogue). 💚
👀 Sneak Peek:
“…ake up.”
Words that just barely registered as you sucked in shallow breaths.
A solid pair of arms were caging you, and you instinctively fought the hold, uttering a whimper.
“Hey,” he said firmly. “It’s me.”
You let out a gasp and finally found Ben’s face in the dark of the room. Your chest heaved as you stared up at him.
Despite your relief, tears brimmed in your eyes...
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whimsicalpoet44 · 1 year
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Observations about 12th House Stelliums (From a 12th House Stellium that knows a lot of 12th House Stellliums)
I swear, us 12th house stelliums flock to one another. I think it's because of the unique perspective on life we have.
The 12th house rules the unseen, the subconscious, dreams, secrets, fears, our psyche, intuition, healing, and more. Many think it's the house of self-undoing and hidden enemies, which it can be. But I find there are also a lot of benefits to being a 12th houser.
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**This is solely my observations and personal experiences from reading charts and interacting with others. If this doesn't fit you, that's totally okay!**
They make excellent artists/poets/writers/musicians/creatives.
CONSTANT struggle trying to figure out if your emotions are your own. They can get confused with the person who is immediately around you, the collectives, family or friends, or any other spiritual attachments you might have with others. You're like a energetic sponge, always absorbing energy. Energetic protections can help. Your mood can shift at the snap of a finger and it's always very very confusing. (This can cause identity crises in some)
You just know things. You have no explanation for it. You just know stuff before it happens, before your told, or even if someone is lying. It may freak others out at times.
You struggle to show others who you truly are. Wherever your 12th house placements are, you may safeguard that area of your life. (i.e. Venus=private love life, Mars=internalized anger that no one else can pick up on, Jupiter=your beliefs, etc). There may be fear of letting others into that part of your life because it's yours. Sharing it with others may make you feel like it'll be taken away from you. For example, if you're a writer, you may be fantastic at it and have tons of completed manuscripts. But you struggle to submit them to publishers or literary agents, because then the world you created is no longer "yours." The characters become everyones.
You learn to love being by yourself. In fact, alone time is necessary. You could feel like you're the only one who knows you, and you don't have to put on an act for anyone. Others can take offense to this, but it truly has nothing to do with anyone but yourself. You NEED it to recharge. Besides, being alone gives you time to research all of the random or eccentric hyper-fixations you have without comment or judgement from others.
You're comfortable with emotional pain. It may have been a struggle earlier in life, but there's beauty to pain. You may value each and every emotion and believe they all serve their purpose. You could even purposefully make yourself sad to tap into the poetic and artistic side of yourself (think enneagram number 4). Don't worry, you are also probably good at pulling yourself out of it once it has served its purpose.
You're probably really good at self analyzing and can self analyze others. You may even know how they feel before they know, which can cause some resentment if you vocalize this to them if they're in a place where they aren't ready to receive it. People don't like knowing that others can see straight through them.
Secret talents galore. You may be naturally good at things, but you don't share this often. You're the type of person to sit at a piano at a friend's house and play the most bafflingly beautiful piece and your friends are left flabbergasted.
12th house synastry is frowned upon, but I find that 12th house individuals get a long great with other 12th housers. I think it can become catastrophic if one of the people hasn't done any healing work. Otherwise, I find these relationships to be mutually beneficial and helpful.
You may have a life long struggle with mental illness (not always, but it's common). This can be due to the likely childhood trauma one endures with heavy 12th house placements, or it can be due to a tendency to overthink. Either way, intervention from a psychotherapist or trusted healer may be necessary in order to work through these issues. It could also be related to generational trauma.
Maladaptive daydreaming is common. It can be a useful coping skill, but if you find that you're disassociating all of the time, mental health intervention may be necessary.
12th house suns probably had an absent father figure due to death or detachment.
Like those in the 8th house, the occult and spirituality is a point of fascination for you. You may even lean heavily onto your beliefs to manage stress. Many go through periods of deconstruction of old belief systems to find the one that fits. This is because the 12th house rules the things unseen. You could even have psychic gifts that showed themselves in childhood. Out of fear you could've suppressed them, but come back to them in adulthood.
Natural astral travelers. You probably have prophetic dreams. You may not intend to astral travel, but you do. A lot of dream work may be beneficial for you.
Your life could be described by the term "duality." Like Persephone, you may find that you're the ruler of spring/flowers and hell all at once. You probably have more than one aesthetic and your mood/season of your life determines which one you choose for the moment.
Past life energies/lessons/gifts can carry over into this life.
You're full of fantastic ideas, but others can be slow to catch up. They often judge you for your ideas, but a year later, will be endorsing it when it gains popularity.
Oddly specific, but just about every 12th houser I know has had an experience with some sort of spiritual symbology. For example, my friend was often given a statue/picture/figurines of a particular saint to protect her, even though her family wasn't religious. My parents used to say I was their "angel baby" and I was often given angel figurines out of no where that would disappear and reappear from my room. (Same thing would happen to my friend with the saint statue). Others I know have a similar experience, whether it be saints, angels, doves, yin/yang symbols, crosses, gods or goddesses, a particular type of crystal or stone, flowers, trees, etc. And it usually aligned with whatever religion their family practiced, but was somehow still applicable if they deconstructed (not all did, but for those that took that path) from that religion. (i.e. archangels or saints are still prevalent in other religious practices and beliefs)
You have a way with words and know just what to say. You're also a great listener. You could have hyper-fixated on words, because a lot of the times, 12th housers struggle to express themselves verbally. It is possible you read the dictionary as a child to attempt to find the words to convey how you were feeling to an authority figure. Almost every 12th houser I know went through a phase like this. And we all laughed when we figured it out because we attempted to hide it (of course).
12th housers also are really particular about aesthetics because they may be prone to sensory overload. Soft lighting is everything.
They can lack boundaries. Please, for the love of all that is sacred, remember that you don't have to heal everyone. That is not your job. Not everyone is your responsibility.
I'll probably do the signs/planets in the 12th in a future post!
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mollyjames · 7 months
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Sonny Boy is a really interesting to pick apart because it's one of those shows where you feel kinda dumb for not following what's happening, but everybody is saying things that sound confident and correct so you just kinda assume that you missed something, only to go back later and realize "oh, we're just bullshitting this, huh?" I think it's extra sneaky because the first few episodes are actually very good at setting up some weird sci-fi scenarios, and it's a fun puzzle to try and figure out what's happening, and all of the rules make a kind of cosmic sense in the same way that good Doctor Who is able to construct an episode around completely made up alien timey wimey nonsense but it all works because we can follow the explanation and it matches up with what we've watched. It's only about halfway through the show's plot folds into itself and collapses under the weight of its own silly nonsense- like bad Doctor Who.
I find this a lot more forgivable though because, for one, it's only 12 episodes, so the relative fallout really only impacts like... 3 and a half episodes. Maybe 4 total, if you add it all up. For another, at a certain point, Sonny Boy doesn't really care. It makes a token effort to continue the narrative, but it's really at its best when it gives up on explaining things and just... is. When it realizes that none of that really matters. And that lets it push its premise to its logical extreme and takes the show much much farther than you would expect for only 12 episodes.
It helps that I really like the ending. Sonny Boy is an isekai, of sorts, but I think it falls better into an older niche category called Portal Fiction. Classically, this is where you get stuff like The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Alice In Wonderland, The Wizard Of Oz, etc... I read a lot of Portal Fiction as a kid. It was my favorite genre, but my favorite part, the part that really got my brain bubbling, was the ending. See, one of the enduring qualities of Portal Fiction and isekai to an extent, is that it is transparent about the fact it is telling a story. We get engrossed in those stories in the same way the characters do, and at the end of the story the characters return to the Real World, and we are returned to real life. What the characters do at the end of the Portal Fiction informs what we were meant to take from it, but it's also the point where the characters feel the most real, the most complete. It never feels like it lasts long enough. It's what makes the last episode of Sonny Boy so brutal at first, and also so special. I finally got what I wanted.
There's more I want to talk about here... honestly if anything ever gets me to finally make the dreaded Video Essay (tm) it'll be this. I also think my own personal experience contributed a lot to my enjoyment. Confession time: I never vibed with FLCL. I've watched it through a few times; it just doesn't line up with my experience growing up, or what I was dealing with. Sonny Boy does. If there's one takeaway here, I guess it's go watch Sonny Boy. It's really shot up to being one of my favorite anime of all time. It's not gonna be for everyone, but I think the people who like it will really like it. And uh... don't feel like you have to understand it to get it.
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newvegascowboy · 1 year
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Proposal based on your food post and some things in Fallout.
:readmore:
Homemade sodas and sweet drinks are incredibly common based on home recipes passed down through the generations.
In Fallout new Vegas, and in Fallout 4 you can make drinks such as Nuka-Cola.
Filtering water and making it drinkable will be a big priority wherever you go. But making it palatable will also be a big goal.
Local settlements will probably mix sweeteners like syrup, juices, or even honey to mix it in the water.
Tea will be very popular too with all kinds of local teas made from local plants, sweetened with local sweeteners, and traded or even sold to each other.
Tea has the advantage of being boiled, filtered, and flavored making it a popular drink with massive variants between region to region and even settlement to settlement.
Brahmin milk will have a lot of nutrients and apparently good for treating radiation so odds are its also used as a medicine and a big part of a lot of diets.
Some rare drinks may still be possible but take a lot of work such as coffee, and ice cream.
Coffee needs specific growth and a lot of space to grow. So maybe it'll grow in small quantities.
There's ways to make ice cream without machines but it takes a lot of salt, ice, and milk. So you'd have to be very wealthy or very well located to have it
Shaved ice with simple syrups and fruits may make good treats in areas where there's a lot of ice
I fully agree with all of this! Not including it was probably a bit of an oversight on my part, but this is exactly the kind of extrapolation and worldbuilding I was aiming for.
Soda was invented in the mid 1800s, so I don't think it's beyond the realm of possibility for people to have reinvented soft drinks. Originally, the water was taken from springs that were naturally carbonated and today, we can do it at home with compressed CO2. Even if the drinks aren't carbonated, I totally believe and agree with the idea that they're making sweet drinks.
I was going to mention in the original post and forgot, but lemons? Those things totally still exist. Citrus is too much of a botanical freak not to have survived. It might not be lemons (or limes, or oranges) as we know them, but they are OUT THERE and that means lemonade is real.
Tea is canon within the realm of fallout because you can brew several different varieties in 76. Also, hot drinks are comforting, especially in the winter and I think it's totally reasonable to think that new brews have popped up with the addition Coffee grows in Mexico at a similar latitude to Florida and parts of the southern united states, so I think you could claim that certain strains have been cultivated and grown in those areas, though it might be rare and extremely expensive.
Ice cream's origins are known to reach back as far as the second century B.C., although no specific date of origin nor inventor has been undisputably credited with its discovery. We know that Alexander the Great enjoyed snow and ice flavored with honey and nectar. Biblical references also show that King Solomon was fond of iced drinks during harvesting. During the Roman Empire, Nero Claudius Caesar (A.D. 54-86) frequently sent runners into the mountains for snow, which was then flavored with fruits and juices.
Ice cream is one HUNDRED percent a thing in the wasteland. The milk and cream is easy to source from Brahmin milk. Cane sugar can be grown in Florida and Louisiana, so it's not unreasonable to think that that's another rare and expensive import. It would be easier and cheaper to get your sugar from tree sap or malt grain or reduced fruits, but cane sugar is out there. Making ice cream is a pretty popular thing for kids to do -- put some rock salt and ice in a bag with cream, sugar, and vanilla, and shake it until it freezes. On the coast, salt is probably pretty abundant, even if it's time consuming to harvest, but vanilla is probably one spice that nobody has access to in the wasteland.
Ice houses and cold cellars are probably pretty common in the wasteland, so ice could be available all year round. Plus, refrigeration is useful in the process of preserving foods rather than canning or bottling.
I think it's important to keep in mind that people are smart, and just because the bombs dropped, we didn't revert back to the stone age. The knowledge of canning, bottling, making jams and preserves, cold storage, curing meat, making cheese -- all that knowledge is old. Just because modern technology makes it easier doesn't mean people couldn't do it two hundred years ago. If the knowledge is lost, logic and human ingenuity will rediscover it eventually.
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I think.. Ruin is innocent only as long as Eclipse is suspicious of him. Cos of narrative tropes, you know?
While Moon was the most suspicious, there was definitely an angle of 'aha! my paranoia was justified!' that could be taken.
With Eclipse being the most suspicious of Ruin, Ruin has to be innocent. Because Eclipse is a 'not-exactly-retired-but-currently-on-hold' antagonist. As an antagonist, Eclipse cannot be allowed to be right. Because if he's right, it means that the good guys are wrong, and good guys can't be wrong even when they are the narrative just ignores it i will never get over the fucking time out box i will never get over the fight.
So pretty much the moment Eclipse figures out someone else to hound, its gonna be like 'ah, yeah, it's Ruin'.
(Anyway the idea of it actually being Ruin makes me a little sad, even though your points are exhaustive AND excellent, I'd recently found out about the spell copying myself-- but like. This fandom decided KC was a dad and that Lunar and Eclipse secretly miss having a sibling relationship, I am more than capable of tossing a blanket over Ruin being the culprit and going 'nope! 8D' for fanwork purposes XDDD)
I mean you're totally valid.
And I think it'll be actually interesting for the heroes to be wrong.
Right now the track record is really bad with Lunar killing Eclipse.
(Although I will cry about KC's missed potential forever. KC had no reason to NOT fight and had no reason to disown BM so hardily. )
Although. Eclipse never said he hated Lunar.
Eclipsev3 wanting to use Lunar as a battery came at him because a Directive put it in his head to do it. That's why he was talking to himself and seeing hallucinations of himself. He was losing it (and he'll lose it more) But Eclipse never said he hated Lunar. Eclipsev2 also never killed him. He left him alive intentionally. He was all powerful. He knew he left a nanobot alive. He wanted to kill part of himself.
Lunar said a deep desperate part of him wants to go crawling back to Eclipse. (said in LAES when Moon and Lunar had their therapy talk with Earth.)
However. Ruin has just lied about everything. I do not trust him as far as I can throw him.
And we sadly already know what Cured Ruin Sounds like....... And The Ruin that we have now... DOES NOT sound like that.
Davis was clearly channeling Fnaf Canon Eclipse for Ruin during the small times he broke through with his "help me"s.
And the Ruin we have today certainly just sounds the exact same as Virus Ruin, just more timid and less crazy.
Also... Eclipse V2 before he died said some interesting things THAT HAVE ALL COME TRUE SO FAR.
Star beings that are coming, Lunar being the key to set things in motion.... All of Eclipsev2's predations before his death came true.
Evil!Sun says that he knows who Made Eclipsev3-4. He also told Moon to listen to Eclipse.
So far. Eclipsev3's number one suspect is Ruin.
Evil!Sun basically told Moon like "I know who it is. Listen to the crazy person who is hacking out a lung to talk to you."
So for me personally, I think it's explicitly confirmed who made him at this point.
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unecoccinellenoire · 6 months
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4 +30 gabenath
"Hey," Nathalie's hair tickles his face, and he opens his eyes to his lover looking down at him, "it's time for you to go Betterfly. I'm usually the first one up in this house, but Gabriel gets these random spurts of inspiration at any time of the day. We can't risk him finding you."
Guilt squrims in his stomach the way it always does when he's reminded his assistant has no idea she's sleeping with the man she's so worried about finding him.
"You don't have to wory about that."
"I really do. If I lose this job I'll have to find somewhere to live. Even if I get another job my disposable income will be way down with rental prices."
"I'd look after you."
"You always tell me it's not safe for me to know who you are and now you're suggesting that as if we can move in togehter."
"Nathalie let me up."
She does, resting her weight down so she's sat beside him as he sits up.
"It's time for me to tell you something I should have told you long ago," He says.
"Oh my god," Nathalie says, "you're married."
"What? No- I mean I was, but no- not anymore."
"Divorced?"
"Widowed."
"Oh. Is that why you're so worried about the Supreme targeting me?"
"Part of it. But I've already made you a target. Revealing my identity so we can date in the open might actually help. It'll remove changes to you to seen with Betterfly."
"You want to reveal your identity."
"I don't think I can do otherwise." Nerves almost get the better of him but, "Light wings fall."
When the glow of his transformation falls Nathalie is staring at him, her eyes seeming impossibly large.
"Oh my god." She says.
"Ah. You had no suspicions then."
"Gabriel Agreste," she yelps, "you- why?"
"That's-"
"No no no no no," she pulls at the roots of her hair.
"Is it that bad?"
"Bad? It's a nightmare! I've been sleeping with my boss, and said boss whom I'm meant to be keeping alive despite his total lack of self-preservation is Betterfly which means that The Supreme is currently targeting them, and Adrien is gong to lose another parent, and oh god Adrien- I told him not to think anything of you flirting with people, that you were just doing what the brand needed and that you'd never replace his mother and I was sleeping with you all that time. He's going to hate me. More than he already does."
"I don't think that-"
"And now I can't even be cross at you when you disappear anymore because I know what you're doing and it is important after all."
"But- aside from that, are you alright with it? It being me."
Nathalie makes a gesture with her hand, "you're asking that now?"
"In my defence. You did agree to date a man in a mask knowing I could be anyone."
"Yes. But funnily enough my boss who could literally have asked me out anytime wasn't on that list."
"Would you have said yes?"
"What do you think idiot? It's not like you and Betterfly are exactly oppostes in...anything is it?"
"Oh."
"I'm joining your Resistance thing by the way. Someone has to stop you from getting yourself killed."
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Now I'm curious, how would you rank the batfam based on how you'd get along irl??
In a scenario where I know their secret identities, and there’s a professional, almost co-workers-like dynamic, I think it'd varie greatly from one wherein which vigilante roles are completely absent. Among those I'd resonate with most (in the event I was born in their world) are Stephanie Brown, Duke Thomas, and Jason Todd. It's mainly due to shared backgrounds and similar upbringings, I think. Conversely, interactions with Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, and Damian Wayne might be more difficult for me. Strained, even, due to differences in ethical frameworks, perspectives, class understanding and overall core values. So there's two ratings; one where I'm in their AU and one where they're in mine.
Alfred Pennyworth: 4/10 - He might perceive some of my approaches as unorthodox, but I believe he would grasp the reasoning behind them. Our interactions would be limited primarily to joint missions. We wouldn't be close. | 6/10 In my world about 60% of elderly people seem drawn to recounting their youth to me, perhaps due to my perceived trustworthiness, and I like to think he'd be part of that demographic.
Bruce Wayne: 2/10 - Disagreements on methodology would likely hinder rapport, especially given my skepticism toward billionaires, which might result in minimal interactions outside of vigilante duties. | 1/10. I'd see him as a man-whore.
Dick Grayson: 3/10 - Our interactions would likely be brief and casual, without the potential for friendship. His typical millennial demeanor might clash with my sense of humor. But he reminds me of my older sister, so I can't rate him lower than a 2. The age gap might lead him to treat me like a younger sibling, which I'd find condescending. Certainly not someone I would befriend. | 2/10 My personal envy would breed hostility, resulting in a reciprocal cycle of unkindness between us.
Jason Todd: 8/10 - Especially in a context where we were familiar with each other before his whole "being-adopted-by-Batman" thing. He'd likely resonate with my approach to tasks and comprehend the motivations driving my actions. We're not THAT far apart in age so he'd get my humor, I think. | 4/10 In my world however, because I'd be nervous and there would be a lack of common ground between us without vigilantism.
Cassandra Cain: 2/10 - It would unsettle me to realize she can discern my emotions merely by observing me. While I'm generally transparent, this level of insight would make me uneasy, prompting me to steer clear of her. | 7/10 She shares some personality traits of one of my closest friends. Given my penchant for chatter and her inclination to listen, we'd likely complement each other well and have a harmonious friendship.
Tim Drake: 1/10- He wouldn't understand why I dislike him. And I wouldn't have an explanation. | 0/10. Earth isn't big enough for the both of us (completely one sided beef).
Stephanie Brown: 6/10 - She'd get how I roll, but Tim might have complained to her about me not being nice, so she'd be protective of him. | 10/10 We'd be the kind of girls who were super close in middle school, maybe even a bit too much. We'd drift apart in high school or college but still think about each other now and then, though not enough to reach out and become friends again.
Damian Wayne: 1/10 - Likely would perceive me negatively, interactions would be minimal. | 0/10 I just don't see us getting along.
Duke Thomas: 9/10 - He'd totally get my approach and might even be up for joining in (Bruce would see me as a bad influence). We'd both be game for pursuing each other's not-so-great ideas. Would have tons of fun but also engage in meaningful discussions about race, religion, politics, economics, society, art and allat. | 7/10 I can’t see myself being 100% comfortable around a man despite that, so that's how far it'll get, sue me !
Barbara Gordon: 4/10 - Like Dick, she'd likely see me as a kid, which would irk me because I'd want to be seen as an equal. However, since she's a woman, it'd feels a tad less patronizing and more maternal, so she gets one extra point in my book. | 6/10 She's that nice employee at the bookstore who takes my search for a specific book I don’t remember the name of super seriously. But we would not be friends.
To @voiddaisy who asked me a similar question, this is for you too ! Thanks for the ask !
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