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lisbeth-kk · 5 months

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December moments

Prompts used in this chapter: stuck at home - season's greetings - baby please come home

If Sherlock ever gets jealous? Oh, yes! Normally he stares down or gives a venomous deduction to anyone who dares letting their eyes linger inappropriately on his John, but when John willingly contacts an old friend, Sherlock knows he needs to control his jealousy.

December 16

My fever has vanished when I wake, but I’m terribly thirsty. Even before I’ve considered calling John, he emerges in the doorway to the bedroom with a large glass of cold water. I try to speak, but he urges me to drink first.

“Thank you, John,” I say when I’ve emptied half the glass.

My voice is deeper than normal, and still hoarse. He greets me softly and places a palm on my forehead to check my temperature.

“Feeling better today?” he asks.

I nod, take his hand, places it on my cheek and lean into his palm. He bends down and kisses the top of my head. He refuses to bestow me with a kiss to my lips when I’m still ill. I huff my complaint and he pets my hair to make up for it.

***

I’m obviously stuck at home for another day or two, which is fine, because I’m in no state to do much else than use the bathroom, make tea and doze on the sofa anyway.

John’s writing his annual season’s greetings to major Sholto, and I can only grit my teeth and soldier on. I hate that John still corresponds with his former superior officer, despite it only happens once a year. It’s of course childish of me to be jealous of a relationship that was nowhere near what John and I have, but I can’t help the gnawing feeling in my gut.

“Right, I’ll just pop out to post this and then I’m off to Barts to help Mike with a medical report he wanted my opinion on. He’s supposed to deliver it tomorrow. You’ll be alright now, I think. The fever is all but gone,” he says and cups my face, scanning my eyes while stroking my cheekbones.

I close my eyes and revel in the proximity, humming appreciatively when I feel warm lips on my forehead.

“Try to get some sleep, yeah,” John murmurs.

The warmth I felt just now is gone within seconds of his departure. I try to sleep, I really do, but images of Sholto and John in their uniforms kissing in the Afghan desert, makes me nauseous. John is right, I do act like a child sometimes. In my defence, my brain seems to be filled with wool at the moment, and I’m unable to think rational about the matter.

I turn on the telly, but everything reminds me of John, so I turn it off. After I’ve drunk a cup of tea, I try to enter my mind palace, but to no avail. Music, then. Since I’m too weak to play myself, I find a playlist John’s put together. It contains both classical and pop music. The classical pieces are soothing, and I must’ve dozed off, because when I wake it’s considerably darker outside.

John’s still out and I feel sorry for myself. It doesn’t get any better when one of this Mariah Carey’s Christmas songs plays from my phone on the table. Baby please come home. What a fitting song for my mood. I reach out to skip it, but then she sings: you should be here with me, and I break down, sobbing like a child.

And that’s the state John finds me in mere minutes later. Normally I would’ve been embarrassed, but I’m beyond that and clings to him when he takes me in his arms and rocks me, whispering soothing words into my hair.

“Shh. I’m back now. I’ll always come back to you, you know that, right? You’re my sweetheart, my good boy. How about some mulled wine to cheer you up? Would you like that?”

I love it when he does this, even if I shouldn’t. It makes me appear like a big child, but I need it. Desperately. John knows this. Knows how I crave being attended to when I’m in this vulnerable state. And there isn’t another person in the world I would want to see me in such a condition, who I can trust like I can trust John. He’s my rock, and knight in shining armour. My savour and the man I want to share the rest of my life with, whether it’ll be long or short.

He holds me close when we go to bed, kissing and petting my hair until I fall asleep in his arms.

Read it on AO3

@totallysilvergirl @keirgreeneyes @calaisreno @a-victorian-girl @phoenix27884 @safedistancefrombeingsmart @helloliriels @gregorovitchworld @sabsi221b @topsyturvy-turtely @peanitbear @raina-at

#December ficlet prompts #sherlock fandom #sherlock #john watson #johnlock #sherlock fanfic #bbc sherlock #ao3 fanfic #december moments #respite in december

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vveakfish · 6 months

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do you have any thoughts about the core four whose gender(s) are basically just a trans fruit cocktail that you would like to talk about? because I would love to listen

oh boy DO I !!!

I have So Many thoughts about them Anon, so thank you for giving me an excuse to try and put it into words beyond “Damn, these bitches trans! Good for them.”

Honestly, there are so many different ways to explore these characters genders based on how you choose to interpret their life experiences, and their aesthetic changes, and their relationships with each other. I am of the belief that any of them could be trans in any direction

But, that said, I Do have particular gender headcanons for YJ that i am very fond of, so thats what I’ll be talking about today.

(Small disclaimer. I have not finished all of the comics referenced in this. I am using the information i have to inform these, but you know, i might come back to this post at some point in the future and look at it like “wow, i don’t agree with any of this anymore.” And i think thats okay.

I’m just here to have fun, and i thoroughly enjoy these little guys, and think abt them alot, so enjoy

(also if you dont want to read 4.1k words of blorbo gender analysis, or would like to avoid spoilers for Superboy (1993), Young Justice (1998) & (2019), and Red Robin (2009) in varying degrees of detail, or you just want to see what lables i assigned them, scroll down to the bottom <3))

lets get started.

Bart:

Bart's gender is the most complex, but his thought process about it is also the most simple. I think his view of gender would be very much influenced by the fact that he grew up in VR in the future like…

A body is just an avatar, do what ever the fuck you want with it.

That said, the lil guy has always given me transmasc vibes. These vibes, however, are by no means binary.

He understands that in the 21st century a lot of people do not have his sort of “throw things at the wall and see what sticks” approach to gender, so he’s okay with being put in the box of Boy™. But his gender is a lot more * hand waves vaguely *

Clothes don’t have gender in his eyes, they’re fabric you put on your body. Wear what ever you want forever!

Bart in skirts is something i have seen many people draw/talk about before, and its something i agree with wholeheartedly. He likes hair clips, and like, those loud (actually loud and visually loud) beaded bracelet type things that ravers wear. He like nail polish. He doesn’t grow facial hair, but he wouldn’t care if he did. He’s not on hormones, but he definitely considered it for the bit. “Gotta drink my boy juice” Kind of vibes.

For him gender has Nothing to do with performance, its all about comfort. About wearing what feels right, regardless of whether or not he’s adhering to expectations of masculinity.

Yes, he Will wear that god awful outfit out of the house, haters can die mad

Cassie:

Anon, I need you to understand how much i love early yj98 cass. She is everything to me — her process of coming to terms with herself, and being able to watch her start to feel at home in her own skin. It makes me absolutely feral.

lets see if i can explain why… succinctly

When we first meet her in yj98, her identity as “Wonder Girl” is this sort of amalgamation of What it Means To Be A Hero in her eyes. She has her party city blunt bob wig (Because Diana is who she looks up to), the gloves, leather jacket, goggles combo (that so clearly take inspiration from Kon).

At this point in her life Wonder Girl is not really her. Its very clearly a mask she’s putting on. which is what makes it the perfect avenue for her to explore gender expression without it having to actually be about her gender.

I think the part that specifically makes me feral though is her… we’ll call it admiration of Kon.

The girl is a self proclaimed Superboy stan + theres all the weird not-drama between Cassie and Cissie over wanting attention from Kon. (And i say Not Drama bc its like… Kon flirting with cissie (which like… have you met 90’s Kon?? he flirts with everything that moves) and Cassie being upset that he’s Not flirting with her. and cissie is just along for the ride. She’s not quite as much of a flirt as kon is, but she has her moments)

All of this to say i feel like its impossible to have a conversation about Cassie’s gender without also talking about her experiences with comphet and lesbianism.

At the beginning, Cassie sees Kon — this cocksure, conventionally attractive boy with powers that (at first glance) seem very similar to hers, and felt something about it. And, in the way of teen girls who have been told since grade school that they’re supposed to like boys, Cassie comes to the conclusion that what she feels for Kon must be romantic in nature, right?.

All of this, the jealousy over Kon and Cissie flirting, basing her costume off Superboy’s (intentionally or otherwise), the fact that she wont let her team see her without the wig and goggles at all for so much of yj98. To me it all reads as the tangled mix of undiscovered lesbianism and gender dysphoria that the poor girl simply doesn’t have the words to define yet.

So, then what IS cassie’s deal with gender???

i am so very glad you asked.

She, too, is a transmasc of the nonbinary variety.

I think her relationship to femininity is complex, and ever changing. She doesn’t feel comfortable performing femininity the way the world expects her to, but she is also part Amazon. And i think having a relationship with both Diana and Donna would greatly influence how she felt about femininity as a whole.

The Amazons are strong, their femininity isn’t about beauty, or being soft spoken — it isn’t about Men at all. On Themyscira, to be a Woman is about bravery, honor, skill, and in some ways, divinity. Getting closer with her Amazonian sisters would change her relationship to womanhood immensely.

But it still wouldn’t feel Right. She would be able to see that womanhood can be defined differently, but that wouldn’t change the connotations that womanhood had as she was growing up. She’d never be able to lean into it the way Diana or Donna do — they both grew up only having woman defined as strong and brave and confident. Their experiences are not analogous.

The baggage of growing up a girl under the patriarchy wouldn’t just… vanish because she sees that it Doesn’t have to be that way. In some ways, the knowledge that it didn’t have to be that way could make her dysphoria all that stronger (especially if she hasn’t quite deciphered that dysphoria is what she’s feeling).

but i think there would be a point where two things sharpen into focus for her.

fiirstly she has a big fat crush on cissie king-jones.

and second (which would only come AFTER realizing her feelings for cissie) is that what she feels for Kon is Not the same as what she feels for Ciss.

She didn’t want to be with Kon romantically, she just wanted his gender.

I could see her experimenting with wearing a binder, liking that she can get rid of her boobs if she isn’t feeling them that day.

She already has her short hair, and her leather jacket and jeans, and shes big and buff and strong (because she deserves to be butch!!! okay???).

I still think she would use she/her pronouns, but she wouldn’t be picky ab it (if she gets called sir while at the pizza place, she’s not going to correct them.)

But here’s the kicker — I think leaning hard into her masculinity would be EXACTLY what she needs in order to actually ENJOY expressing femininity again.

When putting on the mask that is ‘womanhood’ becomes something that she can Choose to do, rather than something that is being forced on her, it can be pleasant. Like playing dress up.

She has a new appreciation for it, especially since her friends respect her gender, and she knows at the end of the day, when she takes the makeup, the clothes, and the wig off, underneath it all she’s just her.

(Small addendum re: TT’03 Cassie’s fem phase. I have Many thoughts about this as well, and while they end up in roughly the same place, i exploring her experience with comphet and her decision to dress in a more traditionally feminine in that run is something id like to explore in another post (once i’ve actually read the run too.)

Cissie (bonus):

This one should be shorter than Cassies, mainly because my reasoning for it is much simpler.

YJ'98 (#11)

She lists all these names, all of them feminine except for Fucking Ralph. “One weird phase” she calls it.

To me, Cissie is a transgirl through and through. She has this huge list of femme names she tried on while she tried to find the one that fit best. She mentions ralph in this off handed way, as if its not important, and i think thats just her way of dismissing her deadname as something of little consequence.

(that said, i think there’s lots of fun to be had with transmasc cissie, or tried transing-her-gender and realized it wasn’t for her Cissie. But as a transfemme, tgirl cissie is So important to me <3)

Kon:

other people on here have made posts about Kon’s gender that are much more coherent than this will be, but i’m putting the words down anyway. bear with me.

Kon’s experience with identity (especially in his earlier years) is almost entirely about the external rather than the internal.

Kon has his whole life planned out for him from the moment he opens his eyes. It’s simple really — become Superman.

So you have this freshly hatched teenage boy, saving the world as Superman (not the Only one, but definitely the coolest one (Kon would argue)). All eyes on him, all the time. In some ways, performance is inseparable from who he is. From the very beginning, everything he does is on display.

He starts his life with a Name (Superman), a life path (…again, Superman), and all the confidence of a sixteen year old jock with nothing but wins under his belt. then it all gets taken away.

Turns out Clark ISNT dead, and the world doesn’t need its pint sized superman anymore now that its got the real thing.

enter Superboy

Kon’s entire identity, his whole purpose for being alive, was to step into the shoes of a dead man who is no longer dead. So where does that leave our genetically engineered test tube baby?

lost, and extremely confused.

But he’s good at using his charisma as a shield, and even better at keeping himself busy. His problems aren’t there if he doesn’t have the time to think about them, right?

and i think that’s true about his gender as well.

Similar to Cassie, his discovery and exploration of his gender feels incredibly tied to his sexuality (to me). If you’ve read sb93, you know Kon’s deal with women. He is cute & conventionally attractive & he's like superman with a fashion sense, so of course there are people fawning over him.

And he loves the attention. He likes that people want him, or that they are looking at him. The issue is he doesn’t have the life experience to realize that their reasons for paying attention to him are often very shallow, manipulative, or selfish.

He isn’t treated as a person very often. He’s a brand, a product, a tool, a weapon. He’s arm candy, he’s a photo op, he’s a headline, he’s a paycheck. And it takes him a long time to be able to tell the difference between someone Liking Him & someone Using Him.

For the longest Time, Superboy is all he is. He doesn’t have a name outside of that identity (except for the various pet names the women in his life give him (kid & pup, mainly)).

And even when Clark does give him his real name, Kon-El, its still Attatched to his identity as Superboy.

I dont think that he would really even be able to start dissecting how HE feels about his identity until he’s much older.

Part of this would come from the space to be someone else that gaining a civilian identity would give him. As Superboy, the goal has always been to stand out, to be seen, to shine like the sun.

As Conner Kent, he has to blend in. He doesnt want to draw attention to himself, or the Kents, or Clark. He has to fit in, which was never something he had to do as Kon. And i think it would kind of chafe at him — but he wouldn’t really know why.

I think he’d chalk it up to how different of an experience it is. Not being loud, having to be normal™. And so i think he’d just… continue to play the part. For a while anyway.

And like, part of being Normalest Boy Conner Kent would also involve actively un-queer coding himself for the sake of fitting into the ecosystem of Smallville High. and its like…

Young Justice, as a friend group, is SOOO queerplatonic. The lines between romantic and platonic intimacy are so blurred, and Prior to Kon’s YJ days he he was also like… living with these woman who he had complicated relationships with that also blurred the lines between platonic, romantic, and sexual (…looking at you, Knockout).

So learning where the line is when it comes to how he can acceptably interact with his civilian friends (particularly the boys) would Really open his eyes to just how close he is with Bart and Tim, and how similar his feelings for them are to his feelings for… lets say, Simon Valentine.

But i dont think That is what would actually tip the scale. I think realizing that these feelings for his friends aren’t considered ‘normal’ would make him shove them down deeper. As ‘Conner’ anyway.

from here it could go two ways, right?

Either we get Teen Titans ‘03 t-shirt Kon, who sheds his GNC 90s swag in exchange for adhering closer to traditional (read; boring) masculine gender roles.

or we get a Kon who leans Harder into his punk roots, but its a conscious choice now.

(this isn’t even digging into how he would feel once Jon comes into the picture, because while Kon cares for that boy Deeply, his feelings abt the new kiddo in the family could also be very complicated. But that’s a post for another time.)

Personally i prefer the second one.

Kon has always been a curious kid, i love the way he makes pop culture references, and how he bases his behavior off of 90’s teen tropes that he Most Definitely learned from TV. In his early days this wasn’t done in a research way necessarily, but he Did want to learn what it was like to Be a Teen™, and TV was the easiest way to figure that out.

(and, playing in the space of Kon adaptations, his love of media/pop culture, and just over all thirst for knowledge, are present both in the Reign of the Supermen Movie, and in his iteration during the n52 (which is one of the few things i personally have internalized from reading n52 Superboy/Teen Titans)).

But post gay awakening, i feel liked he’d be interested not just in behaviors, but also the context of them. Digging into punk as a subculture rather than as an aesthetic. Learning about its connections to queerness, and community, and self expression. And i think this would be extremely freeing for him. (especially if this were around the time of Jon becoming Superboy v.3, but again, not the point of this post.)

this all culminates in Kon being like yk? gender just… isnt for me. Like, it takes im a long time to get to this point, but realizing that the path that was set out for him is just one of the potential paths he can take, and while he might not know where this new path will take him, its his, that that matters.

And also like, Because his friends are who they are, he’s seen different versions of queerness, and transness, but i think it would take him a bit to see himself as someone who Isn’t Cis bc like… he doesnt have dysphoria in the traditional sense.

He’s still the beefcake he’s always been, but i think he’d start playing with makeup when he realizes it makes him feel good (he shows up the the cave one day with smudgy eye liner and Cissie is immediately like a) you look so good and b) can i Please do your makeup? (and then she does it, and he looks so pretty, and he gets these weird giddy feelings that he doesn’t realize is gender euphoria until his friends start talking abt gender euphoria)

His uniform starts to get more personalized too, like the designs where he has knee patches, and all his little belts, and stuff. maybe he starts experimenting with showing skin. bc he deserves it

(’its for maximum sun exposure!!!’ is the what he tells clark… he’s not sure if clark bought it or not)

And hey, exploring gender presentation more as Superboy might help him do the same as Conner. Cassie will take him thrifting, he’ll try of a flowy skirt or a sun dress or something and then its Over. Gender euphoria part two, electric boogagloo.

In the end, its about realizing that adhering gender roles (and truthfully, any socially imposed ‘rule’ about self expression) is something he can simply Choose not to do. And i think this freedom would be something that benefits him in his civilian life as well.

His gender is: literally what ever, man.

Tim:

Ok, here’s the thing about Tim and gender, right? I think he’s kind of just comfortable as he is. He’s good at playing the roles he needs to in what ever situation hes thrown into. ‘Robin’ and ‘Tim Drake’ (and even ‘Tim Drake-Wayne’ if you want to split hairs) might be masks he wears, but that doesn’t mean they’re any less him. if that makes sense. like…

Lets look at the differences between Bruce (or Brucie) and Batman for a second. They really are different people. Batman is who bruce is at his core, ‘bruce’ is this sort of liminal space between the cowl and his public persona, and then theres Brucie™, and well, you know how he is. These are personas that Bruce puts on.

With Tim its like he just highlights different aspects of himself when a situation requires it. (oh no, the autistic!Tim head canons are being loud today.) But like, he’s Always been masking. And i think this is something he would look at as like… getting a good grade in adapting. or something. He’s comfortable, all the roles he plays are ones he’s familiar with, and he doesn’t really question who he is outside of who he needs to be.

That is, until Caroline Hill makes an appearance.

I feel that the decision to go undercover as a woman was a wholly practical decision in the moment. It’s what the mission required, and therefore tim stepped up. Its just another mask, right? Surely this wont awaken anything in him…right?

But this is an entirely new mask. And i think it might like… shift the way he looks at/thinks about the other masks he puts on. He was able to step into a role that was very foreign to him, and it Worked. (and he felt pretty, which like… woah, thats a new feeling. and he kinda liked it? file that under ‘thoughts he doesn’t have the bandwidth to process right now.’ Bruce needs him back at the cave! its time to debreif! and he has a biology test tmrw! no time for gender scaries!!!).

I think it would take a while for him to be able to admit it to himself though. Because like… hes Not uncomfortable with his body, but he also keeps thinking about how good he felt dressed up femininely, and how he felt powerful, in a way. That putting on that mask felt just as good as putting on his domino.

Personally, i think itd be funny if instead of coming out right away, Tim doing undercover missions essentially in drag becomes a recurring thing. And i imagine some people give him a hard time. (not in a transphobic way or anything, i just mean like, teasing him fondly or what ever.) (Also, i like to imagine that when cissie Did kons makeup, bart and Tim jumped in there too bc like hey why not, and hoooooo boy, if Tims egg hadn’t cracked before then, it sure would have cracked after.)

The thing about him is, i’m not sure if he’d come to the realization himself. You know, that he would like to present femme sometimes, in a situation that has Nothing to do with a mission.

I could see Tim convincing himself that its a pointless or frivolous desire, which is Why he relegates his time presenting femme to when he can prove that it’s useful.

but i have this image in my mind, right? Of him, taking his makeup and wig off, and hes chatting with whoever is in the room with him (literally anyone else mentioned above… or Dick). And Tim’s just talking about how he wishes he could present this way in situations other than missions.

and the other person in the room is just like… i mean, you literally can.

and hes just like…. shit you’re right. i Can :0

I could probably go further into depth abt this, but i think this just frees him to start playing with gender more as Tim. and start to recognize when he’s feeling more masculine, more feminine, or somewhere in between.

His gender isn’t consistent, its this thing he’s constantly listening to, and trying to understand. but in the mean time, he can paint his face, and wear pretty clothes, or dress like just Some Guy, or be a hedgehog dressed in traffic light colors, or what ever his heart desires.

As far as like… how He describes his gender, i think he’d say something corny like bi^2 (bi of both the sexual and the gendered varieties). Or shrug, handwave, generally give a non-helpful vague description. Or tell who evers asking to buzz off.

(small addendum wrt Kon and Cassie in TT’03. I haven’t read this run yet, so i didn’t really include it in this post. But i Do have thoughts about what might cause the two of them (my gnc besties from my comics books) to lean sooooo hard into traditional gender roles after being So Queercoded in their other appearences. Before i talk abt that though, i want to read the comic. So, that will have to be a post for another time)

ANYWAY, heres that TL;DR i promised.

Bart: NB Transmasc Cassie: NB Lesbian (of the transmasc variety) Kon: Agender Tim: Fluid (bi-gender) + Cissie: Transgirl

Thank you soooooo much for giving me the opporrtunity to ramble abt the silles and how Not Cis i think they are. Love you forever.

#𓆟 #𓆟 | 📨#anon #disclaimer: this all for fun! i love these kiddos & am working on reading more of their comics #And my thoughts here are based on things that i have extrapolated from what they have gone through in canon & how that might influence #their relationships to their own genders #Core Four #Young Just Us #Bart Allen #Cassie Sandsmark #Cissie King Jones #Kon-El #Tim Drake #LOL will Tumblr let me post this now?#(i spent like... 15 minutes futzing with the formatting just for it to go 'srry cant post this hehe'

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crowned-aeris · 3 months

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WIP | Timkon sicfic ft. damian

This takes place in the Benign feathers verse, bcs i’m absolutely normal about my own au 👍🏼

===

He gasped, clenching his teeth as his dislocated wing was jostled. Tim limped along, forcing open the window to his safehouse before slipping inside.

A low whimper of pain stuttered through his throat as sweat beaded along his skin. His claws dug into the thick material of his pants, and he pressed his forehead against the cool, wooden floor. A feverish haze flitted through his mind, and Tim cursed himself for going while sick. Duke had said he'd take over for Tim, but past-Tim had been an idiot and insisted on going out as Wraith.

The falcon whimpered again, the pain throbbing uncomfortably in time with his heartbeat.

"Wraith!" someone's voice filtered through Tim's ears. Did he forget to disconnect his comm? "Wraith, what's wrong? What happened? Where are you?"

He quivered weakly. Pained chirps and calls for help escaped his lips as his trembling fingers refused to detach from his pants. Tim could hear the voice continue to call for him, but none of the words seemed to register.

There was a whooshing sound followed by something opening and closing. Tim twitched, but he couldn't lift his head from the floor. His chest felt tight, but the falcon couldn't breathe. Where did all the oxygen go?

"What happened, Birdie?" a familiar voice sighed. Dry hands gently lifted Tim's face from the floor and brushed back the sweat-slick hair that clung to his face. The cool skin pressed against his forehead, draining away the heat and peeling off the damp and uncomfortable mask.

Tim chirped weakly, his eyes still closed as he leaned into the person's touch. His claws remain fisted in his pants, and Tim doesn't think he'll be able to let go soon.

"Yeah, his right wing is dislocated, and he's running a pretty high fever," the person said. Tim whimpered at their disapproving tone, tears springing to his eyes as his grip tightened. "No, sweetheart, I'm not mad at you."

Careful fingers tugged through Tim's hair, brushing the strands, untangling the knots, and lightly scratching his scalp.

"Yeah, he's really out of it. I don't think I'll be able to pop his wing back in while he's like this. Can you send Seraph? Yeah, he'll be fine- I need whoever's closest... Okay, thank you," the hands shifted, and Tim was pulled closer into the person's embrace. The movement jostled his wing, and Tim couldn't help the pained gasp.

"I'm sorry. I know it hurts, Tim, I know. It's gonna be okay. You're gonna be alright. Your brother's coming over to help pop your wing in, and you'll be all better. I know you hate it when he finds your safehouses, but I can't fix you up like this. Honestly, this is your fault. Why did you have to go out?" the person sighed, their tone incredibly fond yet equally exasperated. Tim burrowed his face into the crook of their neck, the words passing through his ears like salt through a net.

"You just had to go out patrolling today, didn't you? You know, when we first met, I thought you were gonna be an asshole like all of those other rich Gotham people. You already knew who I was back then, didn't you?

If someone had told little me that I would fall for you of all people, then I would've called them crazy! But... when you died, when I heard your heart stop... God, I think a part of me died with you. Bart just... stopped, and Cassie didn't speak at all afterward. I'm so glad you're back, Tim, and I know I don't tell you this enough, but-"

"Clone."

"... Reaper," the person's tone shifted, and Tim whined and pressed his cheek against the person's.

"Hand him over."

"I… don't think he'd like that very much."

"...Fine. Hold Timothy steady, I don't want him to jerk around and make things worse."

"Will do," they said, and Tim felt a familiar sensation spread across him. It felt similar to a comforting blanket.

Hands grabbed onto his wing, sending a shock of pain through his entire body. But before Tim could react, his wing was popped back into his socket, and he screamed.

"It's okay," the person breathed, their voice close to Tim's ear lips against the strands of his hair as the falcon sobbed, "You're okay, Tim, you're okay."

"Kon," he sobbed, "Conner, Kon- Kon."

The name tasted like a plea and a prayer on Tim's tongue as the tactile telekinesis faded from his skin.

"I'm here," The Kryptonian held him close, and Tim's talons reached up to cling to Kon's back. Tears ran rivers and trails down his face, dampening Kon's shoulders as Tim sobbed and blubbered, "I'm here- I'm here."

"He's running a fever," the other voice commented with disdain, "and delirious."

"You're just jealous that he's clinging onto me instead of you," Kon huffed, his voice bordering on smug under the worry.

"Silence yourself; you are the most inferior Kryptonian I have ever met."

"And you are the most jealous Bat I have ever met," Conner returned as he braced Tim against his hip; the alien was strong enough to carry the vigilante anyway.

Tim leaned back and rubbed his cheek against Kon's face, sighing as his feverish skin cooled slightly. A happy chirp fell from his lip as Kon pressed back, his instincts crowing in glee at the physical contact.

"You are so fortunate that I am susucceptible to diseases."

The vague cotton that stuffed his brain quickly cleared to reveal a bright recognition. Tim blinked open his eyes, wincing at the bright light before peering past Kon's shoulder to see Damian rummaging around the kitchen.

"Tt. Timothy's kitchen is so... bare."

"This isn't his main safe house," Kon said, "I'll try and get him to change into something else. Can you go and grab some medicine or something? Anything to lower his fever before it gets worse."

There was a vague hum before they were moving. Tim's eyes had slipped shut again, and he returned to his boneless state within Kon's arms.

"You're really out of it, aren't you?" Kon mused as he tried to peel a clingy Tim off of him.

He whined, pouting up at Kon when he finally managed to detangle Tim's limbs from his own, a fond smile on his face. "Come back."

"Wow, so demanding," Kon rolled his eyes, "not even a please?"

Tim pouted, "Please?"

"... Okay, that's not fair in the slightest........ Alright fine. C'mon, you shady bird, arms up!"

He grumbled but complied, sighing as Kon carefully tugged the suit off him, and the cool air graced his too-warm skin.

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meetinginsamarra · 1 year

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Green

for today’s prompt “Green” by @notjustamumj

thanks for tagging me @calaisreno @raina-at @lisbeth-kk

-----

Green

“The garden gets so green so quickly this time of year.” John looked enraptured at the abundance of blossoms in the flower beds that seemed to have all popped up over night. “I love May.”

“Hmm, yes. May is the time when the garden has come back to life. A time for renewal and a promise for things to come.” Sherlock looked up from the book he was balancing on his lap. He took off his reading glasses to get a focused look at his long-time husband.

“You’re still such a romantic.” John smiled at him, the same loving smile he only ever gave to Sherlock.

John was still very handsome even now in his mid 70’s. He had aged well, his hair was a bit thinner and had turned all silvery white but so had Sherlock’s curls.

“I’ve stopped denying this a long time ago, as you well know.”

“Only teasing you, darling.”

John was slowly walking closer. Sherlock could see that the knee troubled him him today, in fact it did so every day when it was damp after a heavy spring shower. He leant heavily on his cane, just like the day when they had met at Bart’s lab, only these days he really needed it. But despite his bad knee, John was tending the garden together with Sherlock every day.

The years of running after suspects, getting into dangerous situations and confronting dangerous people had passed already a decade ago. But neither Sherlock nor John missed it. They had retired and were happily spending their days in their own little paradise in the Sussex Downs. An ancient but comfy cottage surrounded by a lovely garden.

“Sit down, love.” Sherlock made space on the broad wrought-iron garden bench they had placed in the shade under a huge Bramley apple tree. A gigantic colourful quilt was draped across the bench and its backrest and several cushions made of flowery fabrics provided soft support for their aching bones.

They loved this place best because of the fantastic view of the cottage, the flower beds and the hazy hills in the distance. In warm afternoons like today, they could watch the swallows flying around, performing amazing manoeuvres to catch insects in fast flight.

Behind them the bees of Sherlock’s hives buzzed around, gathering pollen from the apple orchard. Their constant hum often lulled Sherlock into sleep and John would have to wake him carefully when it was time for the afternoon tea. Sherlock slept a lot these days, he had acknowledged the needs of his body that was no longer just a transport and respected its quirks.

John sat down beside Sherlock, stiffly and sank with a sigh onto the cushion Sherlock had shoved under him.

“Whose turn is it this year? I’m afraid I forgot.” John asked, looking sheepish.

“Yours. But if your knee bothers you too much we could just switch places.”

John adamantly shook his head. “No. No need. I’ll manage. Just lend me a hand, will you?” With Sherlock’s help, John got down onto his good knee in front of the bench.

“Sherlock, will you marry me again, this year?”

“Yes, John, I will.”

Then they spoke their marriage vows, like they had done on this day so many years ago, renewing their promise to stay together for the years to come.

----

First retirementlock I wrote. I like the idea that they would renew their vows in the cottage garden on the same day they married a long time ago, taking turns who has to kneel.

#my Sherlock ficlets #notjustamumj #green

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transfemme-shelterdog · 25 days

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Timothy Francis LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have had an insurmountable impact on modern Christianity, and some of you aren't ready to have this conversation.

For those who aren't aware, these two men are the authors of the Left Behind series of books, which has 16 books, 5 movies, and a children's book series, that follows a group of people from the Rapture, onto the end of the Tribulation period, where Jesus comes back for a mighty war to wipe out the forces of Satan.

This book series was arguably the next most popular book, next to the Bible, and still is, for many Christians. Enter any thrift shop, and you're guaranteed to find at least a few of these books in the used books section.

These books are essentially AO3 fan-fiction where the authors took vague symbolism from AD 81–96, and applied it to modern geo-politics, and invented a whole storyline to fit the two author's views on things such as Judaism, Catholicism, the United Nations, Liberal Secularism, and other concepts that are either not in the Bible, or are completely different from our modern understanding of it (Judaism has evolved from the times of Jesus for example).

This book series took what was essentially a fringe view from the 1800s, that's not even held by a lot of denominations today, and made it mainstream and easy to market through average level prose.

So, how has one series that is really only known for shitty Nick Cage films, and books that aren't really seen outside of church libraries affected non-Christians globally?

Well, global warming for example. Many, many, people think that because "Jesus is coming back soon" that we don't need to do anything to prevent the destruction of the world we live in, because it's all going to be gone in a few years anyways, so why should I care?

They often cite the book of Genesis, where God pledges to never kill the world again with water, and by their logic, the ice caps can't be melting because God promised to never flood the world again.

Many policy decisions also center around this, such as global support for Israel by Conservative and Liberal (yes, even Liberals, who are often Christian too) parties, as there's this ongoing belief that one must support Israel, as they're a vital part in "End Time's Prophecy", and that any day now, the Anti-Christ will arise in the Middle East, preform miracles, and be declared the Messiah (falsely), which then starts the war of Gog and Magog, with Russia, Syria, and other countries around the globe partaking in it.

Name any modern shitty policy, and it can be traced back to the concept of the Rapture. Abortion? Anti-Trans/Gay laws? Gun control? All of these have links to Pre-Millennial Dispensationalism.

Some scholars have written on this, such as Bart Ehrman when he wrote the book Armageddon, but I have yet to see any scholar write about the more nitty gritty stuff that you see from pastors and random schmucks on YouTube, that I've seen growing up in a family that believes in this stuff.

Hard to believe that a letter written about a conspiracy theory back ~1950 years ago, is being used to backslide human rights and throw gas on the extinction of life on the planet.

Thanks John Nelson Darby!

#.txt #theology #christianity #politics

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wolfverse-stories · 7 months

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It's the end of the world as we know it (And I'm not fine)

(Reverse Robins / Zombie au)

Chapter 6

"Cass help me block the windows" Damian ordered laying Wally on the couch "Brown make sure the rest of The house is secure"

"On it!" Steph called rushing down the hallway.

"What can I do?" Dick asked following his older brother.

"Go look for anything that can be used as a weapon" Damian ordered pushing a dress in front of the window.

Meanwhile

"You guys ready to go?" Tim asked gathering his.

"Yep!" Bart zipped in front in front of him.

"Slow down" Tim warned "I got enough superfood to keep you from passing out not enough for you to use your speed"

"Yes sir" Bart smiled.

"It's such a shame to leave all these books" Jason frowned.

"We have every book you could ever want downloaded to the computer in the watch tower" Tim reminded him.

"Yeah, but it's not the same" Jason pouted.

"Fine one book but hurry it up" Tim urged. Jason quickly grabbed a book off the top of the stack and ran over to join them.

Meanwhile

Everyone sat quietly listening as the growling noise got softer and softer until it was gone.

"Sounds like the coast is clear," Steph said getting up off the floor.

"We'll stay put for a few days just to be sure besides West needs to rest" Damian nodded ever to the couch.

"I'm fine" Wally argued trying to set up only for his arms to give out under him.

"Oh really now?"Damian asked raising an eyebrow.

"What about the others, they're supposed to meet us at the bus lot" Steph frowned.

"Tim is a good leader I'm sure they'll go on ahead" Damian reassured her "but right now I have to take care of this group"

"I help" Cass offered.

"Thank you" Damian nodded "Right now we need to get West in bed so he can get some rest" Wally did not look pleased about that idea.

Meanwhile

"So what's the plan?" Jason asked, hopping into the car.

"Drive until we run out of gas then get another car," Tim said turning on the car "Keep doing that until we reach the bus lot"

"Do you think the others will still be there?" Bart asked leaning over the seat.

"Not sure" Tim shrugged "But we need to make sure they don't just keep waiting for us"

Timeskip

Damian sat across the room keeping an eye on Wally, who was sitting up in bed going on about crazy SpongeBob theories.

"I'm just saying Krabby patty is a pretty suspicious name," Wally said crossing his arms.

"West it's a kid's show for goodness' sake" Damian rolled his eyes.

"Knock Knock," Steph said opening the door.

"Was that really necessary?" Damian asked turning to her.

"Man you are a grumpy bird today" she joked "I'm here to take over"

"I'm perfectly capable" Damian glared crossing his arms.

"You need sleep" Steph pointed out.

"Go on it's not like I'm going to fall apart as soon as you leave" Wally teased.

"Fine" Damian grunted getting up "Wake me up if anything happens"

"Of course" Steph nodded. As soon as he left the room Wally fell back against the bed breathing heavily "Are you okay?"

"Yeah... just hurts...a lot" Wally clenched his chest squeezing his eyes shut.

"I know" Steph whispered gently taking his other hand "It's going to be okay"

Prev. / Next

#batfam #zombies #damian wayne #tim drake #jason todd #reverse robins #ao3 #fanfic #batman

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bluejaysandblackbats · 20 days

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Titans Academy

Fandom: DC Comics, Titans, Arrowfam

Summary: Grant struggles to accept his new reality when Roy takes him in and enrolls him in Titans Academy. He must adjust to life at a boarding school and life with his new foster family (Roy and Lian). Can he learn to trust the people who claim to care about him? Or will he shut himself off from love altogether?

Chapters: 8/?

Characters: Grant Emerson, Roy Harper, Bart Allen, Toni Monetti, Cody Driscoll, Lian Harper, Jade Nguyen, Audrey Spears, Tommy Blake Jr.

Additional Tags: Father-Son Relationship, Boarding School AU, No Powers AU, Found Family, Second Chances, Roy Harper is a Legal Guardian, Roy Harper is a Father, POV First Person, Grant Emerson POV, Autistic Bart Allen

Chapter Eight: School Breakfast

I woke at four and dressed for school when I was well enough. I helped Lian tie her shoes and did chores with Roy. So, all the tasks students had were assigned by the week. If I had the stables one week, I had kitchen duty the next week, trash duty, and classroom cleaning, and then we would start over. Kitchen duty was intense. I started at five in the morning with Roy and Donna. They wanted me to help make breakfast. I had to make waffle batter for over a hundred kids. Four different ways. Roy sat Tommy in a high chair, and Lian refilled the napkins. "Thank you, Lian," Roy smiled. Lian nodded and stood beside me on a stool.

"You're doing a good job," Lian reassured me. I relaxed my shoulders and smiled. "Daddy's gonna be so proud of you."

"Thanks, Lian. That makes me feel good," I replied honestly.

"That's how you deserve to feel," Lian grinned. My throat went dry, and I teared up. It was the first time I'd wanted to cry since I was a kid. I hadn't cried in so long, but that did something to me. Roy picked up on it immediately.

"Hey, Grant, can you help me with one of the sign-in charts for the lunchroom?" Roy asked. I nodded and followed him to the lunchroom entrance while Donna finished making the waffles. "You alright?"

I shut my eyes until they stopped watering. "Uh-huh... Yeah... I felt weird for a second, but I'm okay now," I replied.

"What happened?" Roy asked. His voice was painfully gentle.

"Nothing... I mean... I'm not used to feeling special," I replied, "I don't know... What she said back there-. I got choked up for a second."

"Thanks for sharing that with me. I think I understand. Are you really okay, though?" Roy questioned. I nodded. "Kitchen duty kicking your backside yet?"

"I never had to cook back home. I had-. They were traditional," I replied, "So this is all new to me..."

Roy named the kids that came in, and I checked their names on the clipboard list. Bart ran straight into me, and he stopped in his tracks. "What's the matter?" Roy asked.

"I couldn't sleep. My uncle didn't call last night," Bart replied, "And I still don't know who's picking me up for the family week."

Roy looked Bart in the eye and took the clipboard from me. He flipped to the last page and wrote something down before handing the piece of paper to Bart. "But I can-."

"It's okay, Bart. If anyone needs a soft day, it's you," Roy replied, "I'll bring you your breakfast."

Bart nodded and left the cafeteria. "What's a soft day?" I asked.

"It's basically a mental health day. We all take them sometimes," Roy answered, "This school is here to build you guys up, not force you to put on smiles and pretend things are fine when they're not."

"No kiddin'... You really care about kids, don't you?" I whispered. I didn't mean to say that out loud, but I'm a dork like that.

"I care about everybody," Roy replied, "Cody, what are you doing here?"

"Got switched back to kitchen duty because some kid lost their kitchen privileges," Cody replied, "Are you supervising here today?"

"Mhm, know what that means? Wanna turn on the radio and show Grant how to set the table?" Roy asked.

"Waffles today?" Cody asked.

"Yup," Roy replied.

Cody led me back to the kitchen and turned on the radio. "So, you live with Roy and not in the dorms?" Cody asked. I nodded. "You're gonna fill the shakers for the tables with cinnamon sugar. The little kids like sprinkles, so we fill shakers with sprinkles too. I'll do the sprinkles."

Cody set out the shakers and the cinnamon sugar. "What are the dorms like?" Grant asked.

"It sucks when your roommate moves out, especially if you get along with them. I got a new roommate, but we don't talk much. People say I'm hard to get along with because I can be a jerk sometimes," Cody replied. I shrugged it off and filled the shakers. "Sorry about the other day."

"It's nothin'," I replied.

"You like living with Roy?" Cody asked. He filled the sprinkles jars so fast it made my head spin. "You'll catch up."

"It's okay... Everybody likes him here, or they're acting like it-."

"Oh no, he's as cool as everyone says," Cody replied, "He cares... I got here the same week as two other kids. Then another girl showed up a little while after. He treated us like we were his kids. He still checks in with all of us."

"And you've been here how long?" I asked.

Cody loaded all the full shakers onto two trays. "A couple of months before you. We're gonna put two of each on the table. Let me get the first table to show you," Cody explained. I followed him around and set the shakers out. Once we finished setting them out, Cody gestured for me to follow him. "We're front of the line for breakfast." I stood in line behind him, and we got the same stuff. Waffles, strawberries, sausage, and syrup. The bell rang, and kids started pouring in from all directions. A girl sat next to Cody, and she whispered something to him. He grinned.

"What?" I asked.

"She wanted to know if you were cool," Cody replied, "Audrey, this is Grant. Grant, this is Audrey... Audrey, where's Toni?"

"Caught up cleaning one of the classrooms probably... I bet you they stuck her in Health again," Audrey replied. Audrey. What a babe! But I think she had her sights set on Cody. I could tell by the way she looked at him. I don't think he saw her that way, though. I could tell by the way he looked through her when she talked. Still, I thought she was cute. "Hi, Grant. Nice to meet you," Audrey smiled as she reached to shake my hand.

"Wayyy nicer to meet you, Audrey," I grinned. Hey. Don't blame a guy for trying. Audrey dumped her container of whipped cream on her waffles and covered them in sprinkles.

"Are you staying here during family week?" Audrey asked. I nodded. "Me too. Donna's my dorm parent. It's not so bad staying here during family week. The school's like family anyway."

Cody picked over his waffles. "I said you could come home with my mom and me," Cody muttered.

"Wouldn't that be weird?" Audrey asked.

"My mom knows about you. She said it'd be okay... If it's too short notice, though, you can still come to stay with us, Driscolls, for winter break," Cody offered. Audrey smiled and nodded.

Yeah, there was no way I had a chance with her. Cody had somewhere to go. Lian put a cushion down and sat next to me. Roy put her tray down and asked me to help her while he checked in with some of the kids. "Morning, Lian," Audrey smiled.

"Good morning! Hi, Cody," Lian greeted them. I opened her butter and syrup, and she ate her fruit while I cut up her waffles into bite-sized pieces.

"How's your mom, Lian?" Cody asked.

"She went to D.C.," Lian replied, "Mommy has a big test to take."

"I hope she passes," Cody smiled.

Lian thanked him and ate her breakfast. I liked the meals. It was probably my favorite thing about the school. It wasn't quite family, but it felt pretty close.

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dominantmasculine · 3 months

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Cheesecake factory

Recently I heard about this lady, who was apparently asked out on a date by a gentleman. He picked her up in his car, drove to the place, got out of his door, walked over to the other side to open her door. Except, that she shut the door and locked it, and refused to go out.

Why? Because the place he had chosen for the date happened to be Cheesecake Factory. Yeah, really.

Now I dont know what standards this lady had in fancy dinner dates, but let me tell you a story.

There was a time, over a decade ago, when I used to be a simple grad student at Berkeley. I didnt have much money, I would just make it from month to month. But once in a rare while, I would get on the BART from Downtown Berkeley, ride it all the way to Powell Street, walk up to Union Square, all the way to the top floor of Macy's, and have a solo dinner at the Cheesecake factory. The ambience was warm, the servers were friendly, there was such a large choice (the menu is famously like a book), and the portions were large.

And while I would eat, I would always think, one day I will not have to be so careful to go out like this. One day, such things will come easier. One day I will ask a beautiful girl to come with me here and tell her how it was back in the day.

Today I make 10x the money I used to have as a grad student. But the last time I went to SF, I ate at that same Cheesecake Factory 3 times. It would have felt silly but it didnt, because of all those memories.

So yeah, I dont know if Cheesecake Factory is a date worthy place these days or not. But I would only tell the lady this.

"I am sorry that you could not share in something that had a very special and intimate place in my heart. And that you think fanciness matters more than these stories says all I needed to know about you. Thank you, and goodbye."

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thorin-baby-bear · 1 year

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Play Day

A Dead Poet’s Society agere fic :3

Word count: 1619

CW: Crying, Rug Burns

Requested: No

On Saturday morning, Charlie was awoken early by a knock on his door. He blinked groggily, propping himself up and yawning as Cameron groaned from across the room. “Get the door, Charlie.” He mumbled into his pillow. Charlie sighed and hoisted himself out of bed, stumbling towards the door as the knocking continued. “Yeah, hold your horses I’m coming!” He called. Opening the door, Charlie squinted tiredly at the two boys in front of him. Neil looked back at him with equally tired eyes as he carried the other boy (who Charlie assumed was Todd) like a koala.

“Hey.” Neil said.

“Hi?” Charlie said, very confused.

Todd whined and Neil bounced him up and down gently. Charlie mouthed a quiet oh and stepped out of his room, making sure to shut the door quietly behind him. “What’s up?” He whispered, checking his watch. 6:30. “I promised Todd we could have a little day today, but my dad called last night to say he was picking me up to meet some ‘work friends’” Neil sighed, rubbing Todd’s back. Charlie nodded, leaning against the door in anticipation. “So… You want me to watch him?” Neil nodded. “If it’s not too much trouble, that’d be great!”

Charlie bit his lip in consideration. He had already told Meeks and Pitts that he would take care of them while they have a little day, could he really take care of another kiddo? But then he looked at Todd, whose face was pressed into Neil’s shoulder, and knew that he could. He smiled at Neil and nodded, chuckling at his sigh of relief. After a moment of fussing, Neil was able to put Neil down in front of Charlie. “Alright bub, Uncle Charlie’s going to take care of you today, so I need you to be extra good, okay?” He said gently. Todd sniffled and nodded, rubbing his runny nose with his sleeve. “Be back soon?” Todd whispered, looking nervously towards Charlie. Neil hesitated before pulling Todd into a big hug. “I will be back as soon as I can, baby.”

“Promise?” Todd sniffles.

“I promise.” Neil said, ruffling his baby’s hair.

After getting everything situated (they decided to use Neil and Todd’s room so as not to disturb Cameron), Charlie pulled Neil to the side. “Would it be alright if Meeks and Pitts joined us? I kind of told them we could have a regression day as well.” Neil tilted his head thoughtfully. “I don’t have an issue with it, but let Todd know first, he doesn’t do well when plans change so suddenly.” Charlie made a noise of understanding and walked over to sit next to Todd, who was currently playing with a red stuffed dragon on the floor. “Hey bud,” he said gently, “that’s a pretty neat stuffy!” Todd nodded shyly, making the dragon fly up and down between him and Charlie. “His name’s Bart.” He mumbled. Charlie nodded, reaching out to pat the dragon.

“Hey, Todd? How would you feel about having a playdate with Meeks and Pittsy today? I know it’s a bit short notice, but I’m sure they would love to play with ya!” Charlie said, smiling as Todd perked up and looked at Neil.” It’s okay buddy, whatever you choose.” Neil said. Todd looked back down at his dragon quietly. “Ummm… they wanna?” He asked, looking slightly skeptical. Charlie chuckled. “Of course, bud, they love playing with others!” Todd gave a small smile, rocking and forth while he thought. “Mmm, okay!” He said. Charlie ruffled his hair and Neil smiled down at him. “Thank you bud.” Charlie said. “I am so proud of you honey.” Neil chuckled, kneeling down and holding his arms out for a hug, which Todd gratefully gave.

“Well, I think my dad should be getting here soon.” Neil sighed, giving Todd one last squeeze. Charlie nodded and stood up. “You want us to walk you out?” He asked. Neil shook his head, frowning at his watch. “Naw, it’s probably for the best only I go, I don't want my dad to ask questions.” Todd huffed, folding his arms over his chest and frowning. “Hey, that’s alright,” Charlie said, patting Todd’s shoulder softly, “we can watch from the window, right Todd?”

Todd shrugged, looking down at the floor and shuffling his feet.

Then a horn sounded outside, and Neil cringed. “That would be my dad. You guys got everything you need? Toys? Clothes? Snacks?” Charlie nodded, looking at the bin at the end of Todd’s bed. “I think so, you go have as fun a time as you can with the old man and we’ll see you tonight, yeah?” Neil smiled at Charlie and ruffled Todd’s hair before heading out the door. Immediately, Todd was at the window, watching the car speed off with Neil in it.

Charlie sighed, going to the window and pretending not to notice Todd’s tears. “Hey, we’re going to have a great day today, alright?” Todd nodded quickly, wiping his eyes and leaning against Charlie, who wrapped a protective arm around his shoulder. “Da best day…” He whispered.

Soon, Charlie took Todd to wake up Meeks and Pitts, who were more than happy to let Todd tag along on their little day. Meeks even offered some of his animal crackers to Todd, who had been hiding quietly behind Charlie ever since Neil left. At the mention of animal crackers however, his eye lit up and he creeped out from behind Charlie reaching his hand out carefully and taking the treat. After that, the two were fast friends. Pitts however was a different story. Since both boys were so shy, getting the two to play with each other proved a difficult task, one that Charlie wasn’t sure he was going to be able to accomplish until they ended up solving it on their own.

It was early afternoon. They had all had some lunch and were playing quietly in Todd’s room, Meeks and Todd with their stuffys and Pitts toddling about with his stuffed bear as Charlie finished up some homework. Suddenly, Pitts tripped over a wooden block, tumbling roughly across the carpeted floor and hitting his head against one of the beds. All went quiet. Then Pitts started crying, quietly at first but then louder, sobbing into the floor as Charlie rushed to his side and helped him sit up. Meeks was by his side almost as fast as Charlie, watching as Pitts tried to sign something (he usually went nonverbal when regressed) and then giving him a big hug.

“ S’okay, Pit, s’okay.” Meeks said. Todd stood back awkwardly, watching as Charlie checked the boo boos and tried to make sure his head was okay. Pitts wrapped tightly to Meeks, just like Todd had wrapped around Neil earlier, and Todd started to worry his bottom lip in concern. What could he do? Pitts was crying, and at this rate Meeks would soon follow. Charlie was looking around for the band aids and trying to keep everyone calm at the same time, but it was pretty clear that he was struggling, and if they didn’t stop the crying soon someone would be sure to come check on them. So Todd made up his mind, walked towards his bin, and pulled out a small lunch box. Carefully, with his dragon and lunch box in hand, he walked over to the others. He tugged on Charlie’s sleeve and offered up the lunch box, smiling at Charlie’s sigh of relief when he opened it to see an assortment of first aid items. Then, he walked over to Pitts and Meeks and tapped the crying boy on the shoulder. Pitts looked up in confusion, his eyes red and puffy as he stared at the other boy.

Slowly, Todd held out his dragon. Pitts looked between the stuffy and Todd, his sobs changing to small snuffles as the dragon “flew” closer to him. After a moment's hesitation, Pitts unwrapped himself from Meeks, reached out and grabbed the dragon, holding it close and looking into its face as Charlie began to patch up his knees. The older boy looked over to Todd and smiled. “Thanks Toddy, that was really cool of you.” Todd smiled bashfully and went back to his bin, pulling out a different dragon, this one green with purple spots, and sitting down.

After Pitts was all fixed up, he and Meeks toddled back over to where Todd was sitting, and Pitts handed Meeks the dragon so that he could sign. Play together? He asked. Todd nodded excitedly and pulled out one more dragon, all golden, and offered it up to the others. Charlie chuckled and watched for a moment before going back to his homework and listening to the boy’s roar and make flying sounds.

As the day turned to night, and the little ones got sleepier and sleepier, Neil returned from his day out, thoroughly burnt out. As he made his way to his room, he heard the sound of laughter and roaring coming from inside and smiled, pushing open the door and stifling a laugh at what he saw. There was Charlie, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders like wings and a cone of paper on his head, chasing the boys, who all had little sticks Neil assumed were swords, around the room. As soon as the door opened, they all froze, turning to stare at Neil, before Todd squealed and ran to him. “Dada!” He shouted, hugging him tightly as Meeks and Pitts turned back to fight the “dragon”. “HI baby!” Neil laughed, kissing the top of Todd’s head gently. “Did you have a good day?”

“Ya!” Todd said, turning to look at his friends with a smile, “Da best!”

A/N: Was there any demand for this? No. Was it so so much fun? Yup!!

#agere #agere fic #dead poets society #agere writing #dead poets society agere #Todd Anderson agere #Stephen Meeks agere #Gerard Pitts agere #todd anderson #stephen meeks #gerard pitts #neil perry #charlie dalton #sfw littlespace #sfw agere

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renee-writer · 1 year

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Call Me Josh Chapter 23

“Something must be done!” Rabbi Leary thunders to the group of Rabbis with him. They come from all over the country to meet and discuss the ‘Joshua situation '. “He eats with sinners and gentiles. He welcomes those who are unclean. His speeches are drawing bigger and bigger crowds. The people love him. Soon he will be untouchable.”

“He heals the sick.” One of the younger rabbi’s offers. They are meeting in the rabbi’s huge synagogue. He calls it Temple Beth Israel. It is luxurious, the biggest synagogue in the country.

Rabbi Leary sneers. “A parlor trick.”

“We need to go see him, in person. Find the crack in his amour. He can’t be as perfect as he seems.” Another offers.

“No that is a good idea.” He starts to pace around the room, from the stand, gold plated, to the back of the room and the wall with gold accents. “Where is he?”

Someone looks it up online. “He is scheduled to be at the hospital this afternoon.”

“Then we will be too. Let’s go men. We must protect Judaism from any who wish to change her.”

The youngest rabbi, Rabbi Nicklaus, thinks, “And your profit from it.” As he follows them out.

He walks through the hospital with his followers, Peter, John, Judas, Tomas, James, Andrew, Matt, Jude, Bart, Phil, Simon, and Jim. These twelve are his closest. Marta, Maria, and Larry, Margret, also stay close to him. Today they are joined by a group of Rabbis.

“Hello men, have you came to do a mitzvah for the needy here? Have you come to show compassion to those less fortunate then yourselves?” He then turns to his disciples. “You see, they speak of compassion, but it is reserved for those of their same social standing. To get their hands dirty doing real missionary work, to touch the unclean, that is beneath them.”

“How dare you say such to me?” Rabbi Leary hisses.

“Have I said anything that wasn’t true? Show me I am wrong Rabbi Leary, Rabbi Nicklaus,” he nods to the youngest. “Words you have a plenty, with your flowing prayers and long recitations from Torah. Actions speak louder though. We are going to the AIDS ward. Will you join us?” He looks sternly into each of their eyes before starting towards the elevators. He looks back with sadness at their frozen forms.

They take hands, say prayers. They wipe sweaty brows. One young man stares at him. “You, your Joshua. I saw you on the television. You could heal me, if you wished.”

Joshua smiles at him. “I wish.” He touches him and looks up to heaven, “My Father I thank You for using me to heal our son.” He looks down and meets his eyes. “You are well. Go and sin no more.” The man jumps from his bed, grabbing the back of his gown as not to expose himself, and starts to dance around the room. The commotion brings several nurses in.

“What is all this?” One sternly asks.

“I am healed! Joshua healed me!”

The doctor is called in. Test show this man, who’s white blood cells were so low they barely registered, now has a normal level. Are his opportunistic infections are gone! He really is completely healthy.

After, as they are preparing to leave the hospital, a group of friends, pushing another in a wheelchair, stop him. The Rabbi’s have rejoined them.

“Please sir, will you heal our friend. He was born unable to walk.” He looks back at the rabbi’s and, moved by their faith says,

“Your sins are forgiven.” To the young man in the wheelchair. An outcry from the rabbi’s.

“Who do you think you are? Only God has the power to forgive sins!”

“Which is easier to say, your sins are forgiven or,” He turns back to the man, “Arise and walk.” He takes his hand and lifts him to his feet. They watch as his crooked legs are straightened. As he stands on his feet for the first time in his life.

The man stares down at them and then over to the man that has healed him. “I can walk?” His friends watch, hands over their mouths, tears running down their eyes.

“Walk, skip, jump, run, anything you wish.” Joshua replies, a twinkle in his eye.

The man takes a step, then another. He is laughing and crying as a crowd gathers. He calls out, “Joshua, the miracle man, he brought life to my legs and my soul.” He runs around the lobby as the onlookers clap and cheer. With a scowl, the rabbi’s leave. Joshua watches them. Rabbi Nicklaus stops.

“I would like to know more about your work. May we meet somewhere?”

“The park tonight.” He nods and hurries to catch up with the others.

The sit on a park bench alone. “You want to know about the coming kingdom.” Joshua states. Nicklaus nods. “How to enter it?”

“Yes, I know you are from God.”

“You must be born again.”

The other man frowns. “How is that possible? A person can’t reenter their mother and be reborn.”

“There are two births. One physical, the other spiritual. God is Spirit, so those that wish to enter His Kingdom must be born anew in the Spirit. Be transformed from the inside out. Living a life fully devoted to and honoring God.”

#my wriitng #nano 2022 #call me josh #chapter 23 #896

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