#throw in dan who maybe travels for work

[little-pondhead]

man i'm on a roll tonight

DP x DC idea:

Bruce Wayne has somehow managed to become the unofficial guardian of at least two more kids. Maybe three. He's not sure yet. Various members of the Batfamily have made new friends recently and have been having them hang out at Wayne manor for extensive periods of time. Now only if he could actually meet the rascals face-to-face, maybe he could adopt them for real.

or

Danny, Elle, and Jazz have all made friends with different Wayne kids at different times from different places. Damian met Elle at school, Danny met Tim while working at a coffee shop, and Jazz met Cass outside the local theater. All three visit the manor separately, and no one communicates that they've befriended people from the same family. Eventually, however, their hangout sessions accidentally overlap and the Waynes have to deal with the excitement of three Fentons under a single roof.

Let's just say there's a reason the three of them live separately.

#pondhead blurbs #danny phantom #the three aren't mad at each other or anything #it's just no house other than their parent's can withstand more than one Fenton at a time #So Elle is enrolled in school and stays with sam above this nice flower shop that has carnivorous plants #danny is working towards his GED and working at a coffee shop on the side and lives with tucker #jazz got emancipated and had technus fuck with her records so she could get her own apartment near the iceberg lounge #which she works at part time as a performer maybe #why is everyone in gotham? idk #either all five of them got sucked into a portal to another dimension #or you can go the angst route and have a bad reveal au #so everyone just picks up their lives and moves with danny #throw in dan who maybe travels for work #or he's wormed his way into vlad's life and becomes heir to vladco instead of danny in an attempt of weird revenge #but everyone is like 'this is for the better' and now dan is stuck in corporate meetings all because he wanted to steal what was danny's #dpxdc

[jobean12-blog]

Play To Win

Pairing: Javier Peña x female reader

Word Count: 2,714

Summary: When you walk into your favorite bar for a regular night of fun, you never expect to meet a man that changes everything.

Author's Note: Honestly, if I met this man in a bar I'd be a goner from the moment I laid on eyes on him...so yep. HAHA! Thank you all so much for reading! Much love always! ❤️❤️❤️Divider by the sweet @firefly-graphics thank you Daisy! 🥰

Warnings: lots of fun flirting, banter, tension, a curse or two, Javi is bold and doesn't hold back, reader is sassy herself, thigh riding (bc I love his legs so much)

Pedro Pascal Character Masterlist

It’s hard to hear over the loud chatter of the crowded bar and when Steve and Javi share a brief look of irritation the third agent sitting at the table, Dan, repeats his question, raising expectant eyebrows at the two other men.

“I asked gentlemen, what’s your type?” 

Steve snorts into his drink. “Type? I like them all.”  

Javi nods in agreement, but still doesn’t answer Dan’s question. He keeps his focus on his drink, pressing his lips to the cool glass to down the rest of the amber liquid.

Dan is undeterred.

“Come on Peña? You must have a type…”

Javi sets his drink down, ready to deliver some cheeky answer to interrupt Dan’s repeated annoyance, when you walk in. His original thought dies on his lips, to be immediately replaced with, “Her. She’s my type.”

He watches as you gracefully weave your way through the crowd, politely excusing yourself to squeeze between the several men who stare. As if sensing Javi’s gaze following you around the bar, your eyes flash in his direction as you pass him by.

It hits him like a punch to the gut.

Steve leans back against the bar and a smirk plays on his lips.

“Guess we have your answer then,” Steve quips.

Dan lets out a low whistle and continues to stare in your direction.

Javi ignores them both and instead follows your progress toward the end of the bar. After warmly greeting the bar tender and offering him a hug you set your things down and weave back the way you came, sidling up on the stool next to Javi.

“So brown eyes. Why don’t you stop staring and buy me a drink? I might dehydrate before you work up the nerve.”

Javi can’t hide the way your boldness affects him and the corner of his mouth twitches with a lopsided smile.

He aimlessly twirls his empty glass between his long fingers and responds with, “Ask nicely, and maybe I’ll think about it.”

You still, your lips pressing together firmly.

“Now where’s the fun in that?” you ask when you turn to face him.

“I’m not really in the mood for fun,” he counters.

“That’s too bad,” you hum. I’m just full of good fun.”

Javi’s clever eyes scan the seedy bar, assessing every access point, escape route and person nearby.

“If you’re looking for fun, I’m not sure this is the right place gorgeous.”

Amusement flashes across your face, at his endearment or his warning he’s not sure.

“You think so?” you ask, crossing your arms and leaning against the bar. “I’ve had a lot of fun in this bar.”

“Is that because you’re all cozy with the bartender?” he asks.

Javi’s eyes drift toward the bartender who is watching your exchange and when Javi looks back to you, you’re smiling widely at him.

“Jealous already?” you purr. “You haven’t even gotten me my drink yet! Should I ask one of your friends instead?”

You glance over his shoulder to see Steve and Dan dip their heads in greeting. You give them a little wave.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you gorgeous.”

“Then maybe you should be a little more friendly.”

“Now where’ the fun in that?”

At having your words thrown back at you, your eyes sparkle and you throw your head back with a laugh. Javi’s eyes travel down the column of your neck, his fingers twitching against his thigh with his need to reach out and feel your soft skin.

“I’ll tell you what…”

“Javier Peña. But you can call me Javi.”

“Javi,” you repeat.

The sound of his name falling from your lips makes his pants tighten around his crotch and he quickly shifts on the stool.

You motion to the opposite wall where an old dart board hangs.

“Let’s play a game of darts. If I win, you buy me a drink. Fair?”

Leaning back and spreading his legs wider, he considers you.

“And if you lose?”

You don’t answer, merely sending him a wink and sliding off the stool to saunter toward the dart board. You collect the darts and wait for him with a crook of your finger.

Not wanting to let you out of his sight he quickly gets up and joins you, taking the darts you hold out and gesturing for you to throw first.

He stands close. Too close. You can feel the heat from his body, smell his spiciness and it’s starting to throw you off.

With a deep inhale you slowly let the breath out and focus on your shot, lining it up before letting the dart sail. It lands just outside the bullseye.

Javi raises an impressed brow and steps into the spot you just vacated, readying his throw.

He lets the dart go and you watch it land just a bit further out from where yours is.

He’s better than you thought.

You throw your next dart and hit the center, smiling sweetly as you step out of the way so he can go.

The next few rounds are all in your favor and just before you’re about to make your final throw and win the game, you say over your shoulder, “you can go ahead and order me a martini. This will be over in a minute.”

For the first time he smiles fully, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and you suck in a little gasp of air at how unbelievably sexy he is.

As he turns to signal for the bartender, you lean forward and take your last shot, sinking the dart into the outer rim of the bullseye circle.

“You’re not bad honey. Wanna play me?”

You spin around at the sound of an unfamiliar voice and take in the man standing in front of you, not hiding your unenthused expression.

Before you can answer, Javi reappears with your drink and slides up next to you.

“She’s busy,” Javi says, handing you the martini. “We were just about to enjoy our drinks.”

His words are smooth and good-natured but you can hear the underlying steel in his tone as he addresses the random guy.

The man looks like he wants to argue but when Javi silently edges around to stand in front of you, he thinks better of it, tossing Javi a disgruntled look before walking away.

“What if I wanted to play with that guy?” you ask as you sip your drink. “He might be a lot of fun.”

“You didn’t want to,” Javi replies. “And no he isn’t.”

You purse your lips. “Like you would know anything about fun.”

He smiles over his drink.

“So are you going to tell me about the bartender?” he asks.

“You’ve got a lot of concerns and questions for a first date.” 

“You call this a date?”

His tone is incredulous.

You meet his gaze head-on, appreciating once again how incredibly handsome he is.

“Since you bought me a drink and I’m planning to kiss you, then yes. I think this qualifies as a date.”

His eyes drop to your mouth and you can’t stop yourself from running your tongue along your lips. If the atmosphere weren’t so loud, you know you’d have heard his groan.

“Sorry, I can’t kiss you.”

As embarrassment starts to heat your skin you finish the rest of your drink, and say, “No kissing, no fun, had to win a drink out of you. I’m starting to forget why I was interested.”

Before you can blink, he slips behind you, crowding you against the edge of the bar and laying his hands on either side, blocking any escape.

When he speaks, you feel every word.

“You think I could stop at kissing?”

A shiver runs down your spine at his tone.

“What else did you have in mind?”

“Do you really want to know?” He asks. “Think very carefully before you give me an answer gorgeous.”

You audibly swallow, breathing out, “Tell me.”

He moves closer, his chest brushing your back, just a tease, but it makes you want to lean into him. His lips hover just above your ear when he murmurs, “I have a lot of things on my mind when it comes to you.”

One hand leaves the bar and he brushes it along your hip and you can’t stop yourself from backing up and pressing into him.

He hums as if satisfied by your need.

“I want to hike that skirt up over your hips and rock you over my thigh until you come apart for me.”

Heat covers your entre body and settles between your legs and you can hear your quick intakes of breath.

“I didn’t say you could touch me.”

You want him to touch you. Everywhere.

“Do you want me to stop?”

One calloused fingertip traces the hem of your skirt, slowly, invitingly.

“No,” you whisper.

“Good. Then come home with me. Let me take you for a ride.”

You try to regain some of your composure, remembering that you barely know this man and he’s talking to you in a way that should feel wrong. Except it doesn’t. You feel coveted. Safe. You know he would never do anything without your clear consent. But still…

You push off the bar and move away from him, already regretting the loss of contact.

“I’m not going home with you.”

You glance over his shoulder at the bartender.

“Are you going home with him?” he asks, growling out the words.

“No,” you say immediately. “We’re just friends. Always have been.

“But I know for fact there are several women here that would love for you to take them home.”

He shook his head once. “I’m not interested in any other women.”

Frowning, you study his expression and find nothing but honesty.

With a jolt of surprise you realize you want to go home with him…to see exactly what it would feel like for him to worship you.

“It’s getting late…I should start heading to the train station.”

He scoffed.

“You’re not taking the train this late. It’s after one in the morning.”

“I’ll be just fine, thank you. I’ve gotten myself home before!”

He studies you for a moment then shrugs. “Fine. I’ll take the train with you, make sure you get to your door safely. Then leave.”

“Why go to all the trouble Javi?”

In a single step he’s in your space, promptly muddling your coherent thoughts with his proximity.

“It’s either that or you let me drive you home gorgeous.”

There’s one part of you that wants to turn on your heel and march out the door but another part of you doesn’t want to say goodnight just yet.

Or ever.

You both stand still, eyeballing each other.

“Fine,” you concede.

He smiles and starts to pull his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans. You catch a flash of shiny metal and grab his hand.

“You’re an agent?”

“DEA agent, yes.”

“I should have known,” you smirk.

“Why’s that?” he asks as he drops cash onto the bar.

“You’re not afraid of a challenge and you go for what you want.”

“I know exactly what I want,” he adds as his eyes darken.

He holds out his hand and you take it, letting him tuck you into his side as he give his friends a curt nod and walks you toward the door.  

As he’s reaching for the handle, a young woman dancing nearby twirls herself into Javi and spills most of her fruity drink on his shirt.

The woman’s eyes go wide and she starts to sputter out an apology, quickly lifting her hands to press them to Javi’s chest. Without thinking you move to block her, smiling as sweetly as you can and letting her know you’ll take care of it.

Javi’s lips turn up into a smirk and when your eyes meet he says, “jealous gorgeous?”

“You should talk!” you hiss. “At least no one tried to grope me tonight.”

‘Everyone wanted to though,” he grunts as you grab some napkins and start to pat his shirt dry.

The more you try to dry his shirt the more it sticks to his tan skin, the damp material revealing the hard planes of his chest beneath.

With your bottom lip caught between your teeth you give him one last pat, reluctant to remove your hands.

“I don’t think it’s going to get any better than this. I can give you a shirt when you drop me off?”

The question hangs in the air for a moment before he agrees and takes your hand again.

He pulls up outside your building and cuts the engine, exiting the car to open your door. The ride to your floor is silent but the atmosphere feels charged.

Javi stares straight ahead at the double doors with his jaw flexing and you stare at him so when the elevator dings the sound startles you.

“Your shirt really is soaked,” you state as you walk toward the door.

“And sticky too,” he adds in a huff.

You unlock your apartment and walk through the door, dropping your bag to the floor and kicking off your shoes. You can feel his eyes on you, watching from just inside your door.

The silence between you seems to grow thicker with each passing minute. Anticipation thrums along your skin and when you reappear from your bedroom holding one of your favorite over sized tee shirts you find Javi working on the button of his shirt.

You stop walking and linger in the doorway of your room.

He looks up, distracted by your presence, his fingers fumbling with the buttons. With tentative steps you reach him and push his hands away, slowly unbuttoning finishing the task. Your eyes stay focused on the buttons but his eyes never leave your face.

Warmth spreads through you at the heat and intensity of his gaze.

“Should I get you a towel?” you ask, just as you get to the last few buttons and reveal the dark trail of hair that disappears into his pants.

Your fingers press against his skin, lightly tracing the outline of hair and when you meet his eyes his lips are parted and his hands are fisted at his sides.

“Javi?” you whisper.

“The things I want to do to you…”

You feel defenseless under his heated regard, his sensuality making your resolve and capacity to think clearly slip away.

He moves closer, backing you up until you bump into the wall. His eyelashes lower as his gaze drops to your thighs and his fingers trace the edge of your skirt. He starts to lift the fabric, so slowly you wonder if you’re imagining it but when he looks up, his eyes pleading with a silent request you breathe out his name.

His eyes stay on yours until he has the fabric up and over your hips then you have the satisfaction of watching his jaw loosen and his eyes glaze as they dip to the soft fabric between your legs, damp and sticking to your skin.

With a hiss of approval he lifts one large hand to frame your jaw, tracing his lips along yours before capturing them in a demanding kiss.

He pushes you into the wall, wedging his thick thigh between your legs. Digging desperate hands into his hair, you pull him closer, begging him to deepen the kiss…to move his thigh.

He obliges in both, pressing his muscular thigh higher and tighter against you. The insistent pressure makes you roll your hips, creating friction that’s just right.

“Would you like to come now, gorgeous?”

Your answer is a breathless whine as your head falls back along the wall, exposing your neck. His lips find your throat and he scrapes his teeth gently along your skin, sending a tremble through your body.

“Say please, baby.”

“Please Javi,” you moan.

“Fuck I love hearing my name on your lips.”

You come hard, shaking against him and dragging your fingers down his chest. His mouth covers yours, absorbing your chants of pleasure.

He groans your name, releasing you for air and cursing again when he takes in your blissfully recked expression.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck. I can’t wait to see how gorgeous you look coming on my cock.”

@lizette50 @littleseasiren @hiddles-rose @lorilane33 @kmc1989

#pedro pascal #pedro pascal narcos #javier peña #javier pena x reader #javier peña x reader #javier peña fanfiction #javier peña x you #javier peña narcos #javier pena x female reader #javier pena imagine #pedro pascal x reader #narcos

[hockeyshmockey]

FEA- Daniel Ricciardo

summary: in which daniel's return to the redbull family brings her back into his life too

warnings: none other than some cursing

“Did you hear?” Max asked her casually in between interviews, the Dutchman trying to be nonchalant but failing epically.

“Hear what?” Shay asked the driver as she looked up from her phone with squinted eyes.

“Mclaren dropped Daniel,” Max revealed with a frown, making Shay's jaw drop.

Rewind to 2016.

Shay, a young assistant media manager had been called by a frantic Stella, who was the head of Red Bull F1 PR at the time. One of the two media managers had come down with pneumonia and been unable to travel to Melbourne for the first race of the season.

It was that moment that Shay had been thrown head first into her role she held now. Stella had told her that Shay was now the Media Manager for hot shot Daniel Ricciardo until told otherwise. The moment the Aussie and the girl from Cambridge started working together began what many called two years of pain.

Professionally, Shay and Daniel were a dream pairing. The two had a rapport many other drivers tried to have with their media managers. There had to be a delicate balance of friendship and work, which Shay was able to achieve with the never ending enigma that was Daniel. She never hesitated to joke around with him, but was also able to bring him back to earth and out of the slumps that became more common further on in their partnership.

Personally, Shay and Daniel were the biggest “will they won’t they” the paddock may have ever seen. Shay had blushed around Daniel their first few weeks working together non stop. Daniel would never hesitate to flirt with Shay, smirking when eventually the girl learned to give it back just as good as she got.

On celebration nights, Daniel and Shay were almost always found together in a dark corner leaning in close and sipping their drinks. The two spent time together away from the track, Shay meeting his family and Daniel going on vacation with Shay and her brothers one summer break. When Daniel was on the podium, Shay was on the barrier waiting with a hug.

When Max joined Red Bull, even as tensions within the team rose, the Dutchman never failed to tease Daniel about Shay. When the time came for Daniel to announce his move to Renault, most of the Red Bull staff expected him to announce at the same time he and Shay were in love and she was heading across the paddock with him.

Little did they know, Shay heard about Daniels departure at the group meeting with everyone else.

Things after that were tense. Daniel spent the rest of the season soaking up his last moments with the team, but things with Shay were off. He understood he had hurt her, but her never realized how badly until she iced him out. The last five races of the season, there was none of the banter that their relationship thrived on. Shay was all work while Daniel tried to revert back to their normal.

The last race of the season ended with a party in a club. And instead of hanging out in a corner, Shay and Daniel were in a screaming match that ended with Shay in tears and leaving and Daniel pounding beers till he couldn't see straight.

The next four years, Shay and Daniel kept their distance. They nodded to each other across the paddock, but there was no chats. They usually ended up having polite conversation when Max would force them together. But overall, Daniel's handling of his departure from Red Bull had clearly damaged their relationship.

"God, what is he going to do?" Shay was unable to keep the concern out of her voice as she looked at Max.

"I don't know yet," Max shrugged. "Theres some options, but I'm sure they aren't ideal for him. I'm sure Blake is working in overtime."

"God," Shay shook her head. "I really thought after all the comments made about his contract, Mclaren would've been smarter than this. Dan better get his money out of that one."

"Maybe you should reach out," Max said lightly, throwing his hands up in surrender when Shay whipped around to glare at him.

unknown

fuck em all. show them what they've lost

daniel

did you literally change your number to ignore me?

shay

and now im going to do it again

shay

I was trying to be nice but nvm

daniel

no no. I appreciate it

daniel

FEA

"Hello?" Shay asked with stuttered breath as she answered her phone. Her chest had gotten tight as soon as she saw the caller ID.

"Hi Shay," Daniel sighed into the receiver. "I'm sorry to call out of the blue. Do you have a sec?"

"Yeah Dan," she smiled slightly as she leaned on her desk in the Red Bull F1 office. "What's going on?"

"I just," he sighed. "I want you to know I understand that the blame of how things went down between us is on me. I should've-."

"No Dan," she cut him off. "It's not all on you. I reacted poorly. I knew you were struggling and I could've cut you some slack, but I let my hurt cloud everything. I could've been a bit more forgiving."

"Well, thank you for saying that," he smiled to himself. "I do regret things. And thats why I wanted to be the one to tell you this. Christian wants me to come on as the third driver. And as long as you and I are good, I want to say yes."

"Oh Dan," Shay beamed. "You are so fucking back baby."

And so the game began again. Daniel was back with Red Bull and in the garage, and though Shay was Max's Media Manager this time around, it just meant the three of them were attached at the hip. But the Daniel and Shay betting pool had absolutely been restarted.

The energy in Red Bull was at an all time high. The team doing so well, and having Daniel back was like a double boost in morale. Daniel's reputation within Red Bull was excellent, clearly so since Christian had jumped at the chance to bring the Aussie back.

The team though had a lot of new faces since Daniel had left. And so he was learning a lot of new names and team members. And he already had a few to keep his eye on based on the way they acted with Shay.

"Have you not shut that down?" Daniel asked Max quietly as the two stood in the garage and watched as one of the newer mechanics put his hand on Shay's shoulder as the two spoke.

"Mate," Max laughed. "No. She's my friend, I don't care if she dates a mechanic."

"She's too good for them," Daniel frowned. "I always gave my boys the shovel talk back then."

"Dan, you did that because you wanted to be the one dating her," Max said dead pan. "You gave me the shovel talk too. Everyone knows why you're doing it."

"Do you think she knows?" Daniel asked with a panic, running after Max's retreating form

*

"You okay?" Shay asked as she peaked into the drivers room in Alpha Tauri where a down trodden honey badger resided.

"Think it's broken," Daniel said with a sad smile. He had been racing for three weekends before it was ripped away again.

"Okay, we can work with that!" Shay tried to encourage as she went as sat next to him, resting her hand on his thigh. "You'll see a doctor, and then we can get a treatment plan in place and-"

"You know I'm in love with you right?" Daniel interrupted, watching Shay's face as his comment sunk in.

"I mean I love you too bud," she laughed nervously.

"No, like, I'm in love with you," Daniel said assuredly. "I think we're meant to be together. And today, flying toward that barrier, I couldn't help but think that I didn't want to go another day without saying it."

"Daniel," Shay murmured as she looked into his brown eyes for a moment before smirking. "Come here you idiot," she grabbed a hold of his collar and yanked him in for their first kiss of many.

*

Christian and Gerri split the multi thousand dollar pot, compiled over years of betting with attendees across the paddock. A phone tree had to be used to inform everyone that the bet terms had been met. Retired drivers, old team principals, and even ex partners had to be called to let everyone know that Daniel and Shay were finally, Daniel and Shay.

#daniel ricciardo x oc #fluff #f1 #formula one imagine #formula one #f1 imagine #f1 driver #f1 driver imagine #formula 1 imagine #formula 1 driver #imagine #daniel ricciardo imagine #daniel ricciardo

[hayleysayshay]

Okay what r ur thoughts on Percy and vexs kids i must know

Omg anon thanxxxx I have many thoughts. I don't know why i gave a few sentences for the de rolo siblings but for the kids you're getting a good chunky boi lol.

One thing is that I keep flip flopping whether or not they’re half-elves or quarter elves (as Vex has the blood of a full elf in her, they could be half elves in an interpretation of lore). I tend to just prefer half-elves so I know they’ll outlive Vex tbh though I am not wedded to the idea.

Vesper: She is the oldest child and acts like the oldest child. She loves Whitestone and as soon as she turns into a teenager she wants to rule. She feels a bond with Pelor as she's plane touched, and will often pray for her family's sake when they're going through difficult times, especially when her parents and aunt seem sad, lost, stuck in grief and trauma. She differs with Percy on this a lot, but she gets along well with both her parents, other than matters of Whitestone. She gets along well with Cassandra, who does eventually cut through to Vesper that she can't just give her whole life up to Whitestone at a young age, so I like to think she agrees and Vesper spends time in other cities learning and studying for a year or so, keeping close to Pelor's temples, but just feels homesick for Whitestone so would never leave long-term. Enjoys riding but doesn't enjoy the outdoors much and never liked hunting or anything to do with the grey hunt as a special force, and isn't physically inclined and only knows 'a few' offensive cleric spells. Men and women throw themselves at her feet with marriage proposals, not sure if she'd ever accept any.

Wolfe: Slightly older than Leona and proud of it. He is a smarmy lil boy who think he's the absolute shit, and think he's more charismatic than he actually is. Of all the siblings he wants the glory of being a hero like Vox Machina the most, and becomes a fairly good all-rounded fighter. However, despite being a bit of an apparent fuck-boi, he has a childhood sweetheart he marries early on.

Leona: More level-headed than her brother. She's less of adventurer and has Percy's tinkering spirit. Unlike Percy, she sits and talks his ear off when she's tinkering. She is very chatty and friendly. She loves building things mechanically but doesn't have the aversion to magic her father does. Bit more of a flirt than Wolfe, string of broken hearts behind her. I could see her moving away to help continue with the rebuilding of Emon when she's in her twenties.

Wolfe and Leona: Vex notes how as the pair are twins they're close, but they don't have that intense, dependent bond that she and Vax had, which is probably a good thing becaue these two grew up not needing to depend on each other. Unlike Vesper, both enjoyed the outdoors, exploring, the grey hunt. Both are far more extraverted. When they're adults, they decide to travel, and Leona keeps Wolfe in check. They join an adventuring party and do some good deeds (far more minor) EDIT AS I AM WRITING THIS WHAT IF THEY JOINED THE DARRINGTON BRIGADE??? like they become loyal members throughout their lives, they sometimes just join an adventure as a twin bonding exercise despite living apart.

Vax'ildan: They call him 'Dan.' A mumma's boy when he's young. Good with animals, the grey hunt makes him cry, and he becomes a vegetarian (at least for a period of time). Close with Auntie Keyleth and enjoys Zeprah a lot, I could see him joining the Ashari as a druidy boy. I think when he's young, because he's so close with Vex he just doesn't see much of his father. But as he gets older, he likes taking his textbooks on animals and nature into his father's workshop and quietly reading whilst his father works, enjoying the background noise his father makes whilst he creates. Both get that the other needs space (this quiet time is sometimes ruined by Leona, who eventually realises that she should maybe leave them alone), and Dan is close with both.

Gwendolyn: A little angel girl who just happens to look like a devil. When she's a baby she cries a lot and Percy soothes her better, I think because he had the pact with Ipkesh. Vex and Percy are honest with Gwen and the children (as their other kids could have a tiefling because of Percy) that Percy is the reason they have a tiefling BUT with the rest of Whitestone and visiting parties Vex is like 'yeah?? maybe it was me??? what of it??'. Whitestone accepts Gwendolyn as she is (said before but I think after everything that happened in whitestone, the people of whitestone would be quick to realise that tieflings are not a cause of evil or pain) and Gwen has a very peaceful, loving childhood. Still daddy's little girl growing up, but as she get's older she enjoys the grey hunt with her mother, and I just picture Gwen with a full body camoflage outfit on with only her eyes visible to give her the ability to blend in. She does enjoy combat sports a little, but is mostly 'dainty' and charming and friendly, Whitestone adore her. People start proposing marriage to her as well. Maybe she's a little chaotic and accepts a few, before ending them shortly after, but she would settle down and be adored by a loving partner. I think she could rule Whitestone in Cassandra's place on the council with Vesper--- I think Gwen would be a little naïve/easily swayed on her own, but would be a very dedicated ruler for the people and adored.

#vox machina #de rolo kids #de rolo family #percy de rolo #vex'ahlia #perc'ahlia #gwendolyn de rolo #critical role #vesper elaina de rolo #maybe i just want a tiefling ruler okay #like honestly i have no sexuality hc's for these characters so imagine who you want #but now im imaginging wolfe's childhood sweetheart to be a boy and im in love so #i have been waiting for so long for someone to ask me cr headcanons #thank you #i mean ill dump them at some point anyway but

[dansfm]

[ jacob anderson, cis man, he/him ] — whoa! DANIEL SUTTON just stole my cab! not cool, but maybe they needed it more. they have lived in the city for NINE YEARS, working as an EMERGENCY NURSE PRACTITIONER. that can’t be easy, especially at only 33 YEARS OLD. some people say they can be a little bit BASHFUL and INDECISIVE, but i know them to be DEPENDABLE and COMPASSIONATE. whatever. i guess i’ll catch the next cab. hope they like the ride back to QUEENS! — (penny, 24, gmt, she/her, none)

fullname:  daniel rené sutton. nickname(s): danny ( his preferred choice ), dan. age:  thirty-three. birthday: november 12th. gender / pronouns:  cis man ,  he / him. orientation:  bisexual / biromantic. place of birth: new orleans, louisiana current residence: queens, new york. languages: english, french, spanish & asl. height: 5'8. personality: loyal, empathetic, obsessive, stubborn.

( tw ; car accident, drunk driver, injury, depression & ptsd. )

born in new orleans, daniel was primarily raised by his mother ( originally from baton rouge ) and sister, as his father ( originally from queens ) travelled a lot for work.

his kind-hearted nature and seemingly tireless desire to help people made of his choice of nursing for a career unsurprising. daniel graduated at the top of his class in his bsn and started work in nola as soon as he could.

the relocation to queens around a year later was the first and really only truly impulsive decision danny ever made. he'd been thinking about moving out of louisiana whilst still studying, but figured he'd never be brave enough to do it. he'd joke the endless teasing from his sister about it was the motivator.

he settled in queens, discovering he loved it more than he could ever dream of. with the goal of becoming a nurse practitioner in mind and the solidification of his love for emergency medicine, he took the exam to become a certified emergency nurse and a handful of other certifications. maybe not a necessary step, but one he enjoyed doing -- it felt like progress.

the next step was to get his msn, something he opted to do online. ( TW ) was cycling home from a night shift one morning when he was hit by a drunk driver at a crossing. he woke a couple of days later to a shock ( and thinking that it was funny that someone who worked in emergency medicine would be surprised by his injuries ). daniel had been lucky, really. at least, that's what people said -- at the time he could only think that was an unbelievably cruel thing to say. his right leg had been amputated ; initially below the knee but complications arose and so he ended up an above knee amputee. otherwise, he was pretty much unscathed. a smattering of scars here and there the only other thing to show for his ordeal.

not unexpectedly, daniel was diagnosed with ptsd and had fallen into depression immediately following the accident and suffered during much of his recovery. he refused to even think about his life beyond, let alone work ; his msn was paused and he insisted he would never go back to it for a while. eventually and no doubt entirely thanks to the efforts of friends, family & the professionals around him daniel came round.

by no means have either of those things become a non-issue in his life ( the level of pain he's in & the prevalence of depression are inextricably linked ), but they have dissipated significantly and well, when all else fails… there’s always throwing yourself into work or looking after someone else when you don't want to deal with your own problems. ( TW END )

since the accident just over a year and a half ago, daniel has completed his msn and settled into his role as an enp and overjoyed with the achievement of his goal.

headcanons

definitely the black cat to @jackfm's golden retriever. speaking of cats, daniel has an orange cat called sidney ( sid ) who is a rescue and probably his best bud.

accent is kind of mess. the nola tinge ( non-rhotic, th = d pronunciation) ) is definitely at the forefront, but it's also influenced by the accents of his family from other areas of louisiana and queens. danny is very soft-spoken, borderline mumbly ( kinda will lamontagne-esque if ur familiar with criminal minds asdfak ) but also very aware that this can make him even more difficult to understand so he def has a 'phone / work voice ' he uses to be clearer.

big good samaritan vibes. he has a particular set of skills and Will show up with an advanced medical kit ready to fix anything he can if need be. also BIG into music. plays piano & guitar ( mostly acoustic bc that's his personal preference ) and secretly has a very nice voice but he'd probably actually drop dead if someone ever mentioned that.

probably an ambivert, but also shy as hell. he's definitely got a lot less shy since starting work just out of necessity but still prefers to blend into the background at social events and with people he doesn't know. it's something he's trying to work on. has a massive heart, his friendship is not hard to win but damn near impossible to shake off ( not least bc he knows he was sometimes an A+ asshole in recovery and anyone who stuck around through that deserves at least the same energy from him. )

wanted connections

literally everything pls. best friend, good friends, a bad / good influence who encourages him to socialise & get out of his comfort zone more, ex & present day crushes / flings, neighbours, flirtationship, exes & co workers.

#boroughs.intro #back at it again w the gibberish #throws up peace sign

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Monthly Follower Recs

Monthly follower recommendations for the month of October 2022

A Modern-Day Meet Cute (ao3) - auroraphilealis (peachrosepetals), peachrosepetals

Summary: Finding someone to date in the 21st century was hard. You’d think the internet would have helped things along, but Phil wasn’t completely sold on the idea of a dating app. Until he downloaded one and met Dan.

Bardic Inspiration (ao3) - dickiegreenleaf

Summary: Dan is a travelling bard looking for a safe place for him and his beloved horse to spend the night. Thankfully, the local tavern owner, Phil, can offer him one.

Dogs - dans-awkward-phanfics

Summary: Phil’s dog has the habit of getting him into bad situations and Dan is Phil’s next door neighbour that seems to hate him and his dog. Oddly enough, their dogs like each other. Really like each other.

easy for you to say (ao3) - phantasticworks

Summary: Phil tries to convince Dan to throw away the grey shirt. Dan can’t do it.

Graveyard (ao3) - Numberonephanboy

Summary: "You're bringing me lunch in a graveyard?"

"Sounded more romantic in my head."

Hated You From Hello (ao3) - irphanfic

Summary: Dan and Phil started working at the same company two years ago, and after a bad start they have arguments almost every day. What will happen when something horrible happens to one of them?

Let's see where this goes (ao3) - RyRyCaptain

Summary: Dan and Phil go to the same high school, with Phil a year older than Dan. Phil’s aesthetic is more 80’s/retro, whereas Dan’s is a grunge e-girl aesthetic with makeup. Ever since Dan’s freshman year, Phil admired him for embracing individuality and slowly started to fall for him. However, they never talked except for Phil being nervous and clumsy around Dan. Little did he know that Phil had feelings for him but didn’t show it.

Metamorphosis (ao3) - auroraphilealis (peachrosepetals)

Summary: Once upon a time, Dan Howell and Phil Lester were best friends. They did everything together, from hanging out at each other’s house, to sitting next to each other at school - but one day, Dan was torn away from Phil by none other than Phil himself. Five years on, and Dan still doesn’t know why his best friend threw Dan away. Was it the fault of the bullies who relentlessly picked on Phil, or was it Dan himself? Dan just didn’t know. So when a chance to protect Phil and get his best friend back arises, Dan jumps on it in a heartbeat, and uses his own confidence to boost Phil’s just enough to make the bullies back away.

One For the Road - danalingphil-fics

Summary: Has anyone done the trapped in a car in a storm snow one yet i really want that even though its really cliche

Out of My League (ao3) - orphan_account

Summary: Dan thinks Phil is out of his league.

Seaside Confessions - grraciela

Summary: Dan has been dealing with new feelings for his best friend that he never thought he would have to face.

snails kissing (ao3) - cloud_gays

Summary: Phil wants to be smooched and Dan wants to rescue snails.

Also called: Dan: the snail saviour; and Phil: the “maybe the real snails saved were the cuties we met along the way” guy.

the truth is rarely pure and never simple (ao3) - ZozeeWrites

Summary: dan is natural athlete, the top player on his college ice hockey team. no one knows that he is actually really smart and is transferred into the Honours Literature class. that is when he meets a literature nerd, phil, who just might be able to give his life a little more importance.

#phanfictioncatalogue #phan #phanfic #phanfiction #masterlists #followerrecs #recs

[actual-lea]

I HAVE RETURNED with another chapter of this thing PLEASE ENJOY

AO3 | First chapter

“No, no, but that's not how it works at all.”

Desmond responds with a shrug and a laugh. “'S how it worked for me.”

“That's different, though,” Daniel says, gesturing with the bottle in his hand. “Seeing a 'flash' of something, whether it's some kind of premonition or just, like, weird deja vu, is not the same as it having already happened.”

“Then where'd the flashes come from?”

“I don't know, I'm... I'm a physicist, not a parapsychologist.” He sips his beer thoughtfully. “Maybe, some... Some alternate reality, a universe where things could have happened differently.”

“So then, I changed over to this reality.”

“No.” He points an emphatic finger. “That's my point, you didn't change anything, because that's not how time works.”

“Let's just say I beg to differ, then,” Desmond says with a shrug.

“No, listen,” Dan begins, not willing to let it go. “Time is like– it's like...” He extends a hand toward the dark waves surrounding the boat. “Imagine a creek, okay, running water. You toss a rock into that creek, what happens?”

Another shrug. “I don't know, what happens?”

“Nothing.” He punctuates the word with a hand on the seat, a bit too hard, and the laugh Desmond lets out is contagious; Dan can't help cracking a smile, but he continues anyway, “Alright? That's my point, you– you can't change anything, the water will just wash over it regardless.”

Desmond nods thoughtfully and throws back another drink of his own beer. “Well, what if you use a bigger rock?”

“Doesn't matter. Everything's still gonna wash right over.”

“Alright, bigger, then.” He spreads his arms wide to illustrate. “A boulder.”

Dan chuckles. “Well, you– you can't.”  

“But let's say, somehow, you could,” Desmond presses with a teasing grin. “What would happen then?”

“It doesn't matter, because it's not possible.” Daniel pauses to take another drink. “Any variations that we could cause would just be... They'd be negligible, at best. I mean, humans, we're... We're barely even pebbles.”

“Then what would it take? To actually change the future?”

“Are you still talking about this?”

The two of them look up as Penny approaches from the cockpit, pulling on a jacket to shield against the unseasonably cool night air.

“Care to join?” Desmond says warmly. She plops down beside him with a sigh, and he wraps an arm around her shoulders. “Charlie finally out?”

“Finally,” she confirms, stealing a drink of Desmond's beer. “Only took three bloody bedtime stories. Next time, I'll bring him out here and have him listen to you both debating the mysteries of the universe,” she adds, grinning. “Put him out like a light.”

“Oh, come on, this is fascinating stuff.” He gestures to Daniel. “Dan here was just about to explain how time works. Again.”

Dan responds with a shrug and “Would it help if I use smaller words?” Penny snorts at that, and he takes a quick sip of his drink to cover his own laugh.

Desmond chuckles. “Mighty bold talk for someone who's only time-traveled once.”

“Experience does not equal understanding,” Daniel argues, and then he grins. “I mean, obviously, or we wouldn't be having this conversation again.”

“Or maybe this is the first time we're having it, and the rest is all time fuckery.”

“Desmond.” Dan sighs and sets down his drink to gesture with both hands as he tries to get back on track. “All kidding aside, the fact is that you can't change the past, or the future. Whatever happened, happened. It's like– like a street, right?”

“I thought it was like a creek,” Desmond interrupts with a smirk.

Penny gives him a small shove. “Let him be.”

“What?” He holds up his hands in mock innocence and turns back to Dan with a smile. “Look, I am but a humble student. I only wanna know the answer to my question.”

“But there isn't an answer, that's what I'm–” Desmond’s grin doesn’t change, and Daniel sighs in defeat. “Fine, yeah, okay, let's say that you somehow did manage to modify the outcome of an event. And, again, I cannot stress enough how impossible that is, I mean, it– The sheer amount of energy that would be required for something like that, it would be...” He shakes his head. “Right. Theoretically... Yeah, you might be able to alter the flow. Slightly.” He holds up a hand and adds, before Desmond can declare victory, “But even then, the change would... It would level out, basically.”

“What d'you mean?”

“Even if you were able to take a different street somehow, you would still end up at the same destination.”

Desmond stares back at him blankly, and he sighs, frustrated with his inability to explain.

“Think of it like...”  He gestures vaguely toward the sky. “The universe, it– it wants things.”

“It can get in line.” Penny grabs Desmond's beer and throws back another quick drink before returning it to him with a mischievous smile.

“It wants things to be a certain way,” Dan continues, undeterred, “And so the events that are supposed to happen, that have happened, will always have happened, no matter what we do. The universe, it– It has a way of...” He pauses to search for the right word, “Of course-correcting, basically.”

Desmond's grin disappears. He leans forward, a strange expression on his face. “What...did you just say?”

Daniel blinks. “Which... Which part?”

“I...” He laughs, but still looks uncomfortable. “I've just got the strangest deja vu.”

------

Of all the places where Daniel thought he might spend his last few hours alive, locked in the basement of a library at the University of Michigan would never have made the list.

And yet, here he is, sweating in the stale air and the too-thick fabric of his work clothes, his fingers going numb and his head still throbbing in tiny pulses from the bump at the back of his skull.

“So that's it,” Leon says, leaning against the wall across from him. “You want me to believe that you came all this way, got a maintenance job under a fake name and scrubbed toilets for two months, just to take a peek at a bunch of old records, all on the off chance that you might be able to find some buried scraps about DHARMA?”

“That's...a bit of an oversimplification, but yeah.” He fidgets with the tail of one of the zipties. “And, I mean, it– It worked, right?” he adds with a bit of a nervous laugh, nodding to the DHARMA logo on the box beside Leon’s feet.

Leon glances down at it, then back to Dan. “Give me one good reason why I should believe you.”

He lets out a frustrated sigh. “Okay, if– If I was here to kill you, wouldn't I have a weapon of some kind?” He holds out his empty hands. “You can search me, or look through my pack, I'm– I'm unarmed.”

“Yeah, I noticed that.” Leon bends down to pick up the backpack and starts to dig through it.

Daniel rubs his eyes. The pounding in his head still hasn’t stopped. Neither has the twisting in his stomach, though he’s not sure how much of that is simply psychological.

“Why do you have this, then?”

He looks up to see Leon holding out a familiar black vest. Charlotte’s vest. “It…belonged to a friend of mine,” he explains quietly. In all honesty, he’s not sure why he kept it all this time. Maybe as a promise, a tangible reminder that he'll one day return it to her. He shakes his head; this is no time to get sentimental. “And she– She's still there, and so are a couple dozen other people, and that's– That's why I'm trying to get back, that's why I'm here.”

“You wanna go back there?”

He gives a hesitant nod. “Yeah. I thought that… Isn’t that what you’re doing here, too?”

Leon scoffs. “No way. I've had enough of that place for a lifetime.”

“You've been there before, too, then.” Daniel shifts his weight to lean against the pipe he's tied to. “How... When did you...”

Another scoff, and Leon sinks into a sitting position, shaking his head. “My mom,” he begins softly, staring at his hands. “She was a scientist. Botany, horticulture, that kind of thing. She had a great job at Oklahoma State, but one year, she did a bunch of interviews with this guy who offered her an even better one. Only thing was, we'd have to relocate. Somewhere way out west,” he makes sarcastic air quotes, “Or so they told her. All expenses were paid, though. I mean, research grants, housing, school tuition all included. Too good to be true, right?”

Daniel gives a sympathetic nod and waits for the rest of the story, resting his aching head against the wall.

“So, we moved. Packed everything up and joined this overly ambitious research organization that no one had ever heard of.” He taps a finger on the box. “DHARMA was gonna change the world. Or save the world. Something like that,” he says with a shrug. “We moved at the end of the summer, right when school was about to start, and all that really mattered to me was how short the school days were on this island. Classes were done at noon, and then we'd have the rest of the day off. Sure, we didn't have cable or MTV or anything, but there was still so much to do. I got to hang out at the beach every single day.” He sighs. “I remember thinking it was paradise. That lasted for about three months.”

“What happened?” Daniel prompts when he doesn't say anything else.

“The hostiles happened.” Leon's hands clench into fists. “I went to school one day, just like normal, only about halfway through the morning, the teacher gets this weird look in her eyes. Says we're going on a field trip. Which doesn't make any sense, 'cause we're on an island, right? But she piles all the kids into one of the DHARMA vans and sits up front with this guy that nobody recognizes, and away we go.” He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before continuing. “Didn't realize what was happening, not even when they started handing out the gas masks. Wasn't until that evening, when they finally brought us back home, that we figured out the truth.” He looks up at Dan, pure rage burning behind his eyes. “They were hostiles. All along, the woman who stood in that classroom teaching math to a bunch of kids... She was one of the people plotting to kill all of our parents. Every single person that wasn't secretly one of them in disguise, died that day. Some of the younger kids didn't really understand, but I did.” He swallows hard. “I was eight.”

Dan exhales. “I'm...sorry,” he says quietly, not sure what else to say.

Leon huffs out a humorless laugh. “The best part was, they expected some of us to join them after that. I guess they thought that since they were merciful enough to not murder a bunch of children, that we'd be grateful enough to do whatever they said,” he spits. “I never found out what happened to most of the kids I knew. Supposedly, everybody that wasn't on their little recruitment list got shipped back to the mainland on a sub. Nobody ever heard from them again.” He shakes his head. “I didn't want to disappear, so I fell in with their little cult and did what they told me to. For fourteen years, I did what they told me to. I pretended to be one of them, just waiting for a chance to get the fuck out of there, and then, finally, I got sent to the mainland on an assignment. They were trying to recruit some doctor in Miami, and so, the second that I had the opportunity, I ran.” He pauses to take another deep breath and lets it out with a small shrug. “That's what I've been doing ever since, really, just trying to stay alive long enough to figure out what the hell happened to the rest of the people from the DHARMA Initiative – everyone still on the mainland when the Purge happened. Supposedly, DHARMA was headquartered here, in Ann Arbor. But whoever those people are, the hostiles, they've got good connections. I've never been able to find any existing records, any concrete evidence that DHARMA even existed in the first place.” He places a possessive hand on the box. “Until now.”

“That's why I'm here too.” The words are out of Daniel's mouth before he even realizes he's speaking aloud, and Leon fixes him with a suspicious glare. “I mean, I'm– You already knew that part, right? That's why you and I are here, in the first place, because we were both looking for information on DHARMA, and...” He lets out a nervous laugh. “I know that I probably sounded like some kind of...crazy conspiracy theorist, asking you about all this in the first place. But neither of us would have found anything on our own, and now...” He gestures toward the box, a bit awkwardly with his hands still bound. “Now we have something, so why– Why wouldn't we help each other?”

“How do I know I can trust you?” Leon says. “You haven't exactly been telling the truth, Daniel.”

He winces. “I'm sorry that I lied about my name. But...you're probably doing the same thing, right?” he guesses, and a slight shift in Leon's posture tells him that he's right. “You have to understand, that I'm– I, uh...” He hesitates and finally settles on, “There are people out there that I'm trying to avoid, too.”

Leon nods thoughtfully. “That's why you faked your death?”

Daniel blinks. “Wh... What?”

Leon's surprised expression mirrors his own. “You didn't know?” He stands and steps through the doorway into the next room, leaving Daniel alone for a few seconds before returning with a creased piece of paper in one hand. “You're dead,” he states, holding it out for Dan to see.

It's his name, alright, printed in impersonal black and white atop a Certificate of Death from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Daniel Faraday, 27 years old, dead as of December 8, 2005, informant... “What the hell?”

Informant: Eloise Hawking, mother of the deceased. Her signature fills the box neatly, not a penstroke out of place, above a handwritten address in Los Angeles that he's never seen before.

“This doesn’t…make any sense,” he breathes, around the lead weight that's settled in his chest. “Why would… I haven’t…” He tries to reach for the certificate, forgetting for a moment that he’s still ziptied to a pipe.

“This wasn’t you, then?” Leon turns it toward himself to read it with a frown. “Weird.”

“Yeah.” The word comes out like a weak laugh. Daniel shakes his head and clears his throat to regain Leon’s attention before trying again, “Listen, I’m sorry that I lied, okay? But I swear to you, I'm not a murderer. I'm a scientist. I don't want anyone to get hurt.” He swallows and shifts his weight and adds, nervously, “In...cluding me.”

Leon stares at him for a long moment. “It doesn't make sense.” Then, finally, he sighs, “And the weirdest part is, I believe you.”

Cautious hope blooms in Dan's chest. “You do?”

He nods. “You're a little too incompetent to be an assassin, I think.”

Daniel lets himself laugh at that, slumping against the wall in relief. “Thank you.”

“I'm not sure what to do now, though.” Leon crosses his arms. “I did kinda give you a concussion.”

“It– It's alright,” Dan stammers out quickly, shaking his head. “I'm not, uh, the kind of person to hold a grudge, if– if that helps,” he offers, and Leon doesn't look entirely convinced but nods anyway. “So, if– If you wouldn't mind,” he adds after a moment, holding up his hands, “Could you...cut me loose, now? So that we can, uh. Figure out where to go from here?”

Leon doesn't move. “No hard feelings?”

He shakes his head again. “None, whatsoever.”

It's the truth, for the most part, and it seems to be good enough for Leon; he steps forward to retrieve a pair of scissors from the cart.

The sound of a door opening, somewhere in the next room, makes him freeze. He turns toward the noise, his eyes wide and focused on something around the corner that Dan can't see. “What–”

A deafening crack splits through the stale air; a gunshot, Dan realizes in horror, when Leon stumbles back a single step and topples to the floor, one hand over the dark red stain spreading outward from his chest.

(next chapter)

#lost #fanfiction #daniel faraday #lost show #abc lost #hi hello have i mentioned lately how proud i am of this story/where this story is going

[melukonova]

hey besti, drop some answers to mis preguntas tanks

1. you or cloud has a nightmare, how does one comfort?

2. what video games to you make iwa play? is he willing?

3. favorite date with iwa-chan so far?

4. has dango read to help you sleep before?

5. zack takes you to the beach, what’s the schedule?

6. favorite spot that iwa-chan has taken you?

7. neuvillette takes you to another nation! where and why?

8. this can uh be a free space too.. okok have fun

hi wifey<3 i see we copied my idea of sending questions!!! teasing, i love these and being asked them makes me feel sm better<333

1. kurasora (sky means sora in japanese, this ship name sounds better imo if anybody is stalking this post):

for cloud, i’m assuming either he’s still recovering from trauma or that sephiroth has invaded his brain. i feel like he just could use some warmth so i would definitely hold him and tell him that no matter what happened, it was never his fault and that it’s okay to still have nightmares. i’d probably soothe him by making him some tea mostly or even just running my hands in his chocobo-like hair. for myself, cloud would also do similar except he lets his actions do the talking instead of his words so he’s definitely hold me tight — rather rare since it’s harder for him to show affection since he doesn’t want to get too attached but he’ll do his best in order to comfort.

2. iwasky:

hajime is RELUCTANT but he tries to play final fantasy with me cause i told him i’m in the game (he regrets it because he knew i am not). he ends up liking aerith because he sees me somewhat and he gets annoyed since i said he’s basically cloud with the way he acts (his amazon cart has the cosplay already in it). another game is smash bros but he likes that more cause then he can get payback against me, his main is cloud (he also regrets this for like 0.2 seconds but he likes his playstyle) since i get distract and ultimately, he wins. i tried to get him into genshin, honkai star rail, and fate grand order but he said no cause he doesn’t want to go broke for pixels.

3. iwasky:

my favorite date is probably our first date since he was flustered and probably went for the most casual thing he could think of, an amusement park to which he won me a giant gible plushie and he was able to protect me from my fear of heights. he did NOT pick this idea, tooru did and he hatecrimed tooru because i looked miserable on every ride to which tooru texted back, “it’s okay, you’re protect her, iwa-chan! 😋🫶✨‼️” the arcade was fun as well as the food. bonus if it’s disneyland because star wars land is the BEST.

4. skyheng:

i mean honestly, yes. dan heng and i definitely enjoy just being next to each other so i believe quality time is a great one. he probably works on the data bank while i sleep since i sleep so much and he ends up reading it out loud to me to check for grammatical mistakes but also since i’m curious about his adventures since leaving the luofu. i’m sure it was relaxing for the most part to speak about his adventures and just makes me wish to travel more so maybe one day we could take our own little adventure outside of my dreams<3

5. skyzak:

i feel like this was inspired by a certain conversation… but anyway! love this one AHAHAHAHAH! anyway zack is the type to not have an iternary because he’s just bouncing off the walls which who blames him?? ITS BEACH TIME!! but i digress, a beach day is definitely a fun day! (provided that costa del sol isn’t also giving monsters a vacation as well, ahem anyway…) but definitely he’d grab me and throw me into the water as soon as we got to the beach, he’d make sure it’s safe but he’s also SUCH a tease. though, he’d realize we forgot sun screen so he waits about 20 minutes before throwing me in again. we also would have a picnic on the beach honestly, the resort provides the food though. he’s like 23 at this point so he’s a bit more mature but still has that childish glow. i’d try to teach him beach volleyball too, he’s so bad unless he’s serving overhand LOL. overall, a fun day without the monsters as we play in the water, perhaps building sandcastles and teaching each other small things about ourselves :)

6. iwasky:

iwaizumi hajime does not neglect great date SPOTS. he definitely does just silly little things like errands but sometimes he’ll trick me and just take me on a long drive!! my favorite time that he did this is when he took me up high on a mountain and overlooked the whole city as well as all of the lights below. he claims it’s because i needed to get out of bed more but i know he’s dying to take me. what’s even better is that along that, there’s an observatory at the top of the mountain and there’s a planetarium since he knows i like the stars but all he sees is his star while he smiles brightly at how happy i am, looking down below.

7. neuvisky:

neuvillette definitely seems like the type to be mr. worldwide SOLELY FOR THAT FACT that the water is delicious. i believe he would want the journey to be as short as possible though for work… unfortunately. he and i are both glad he could make the time though. we’d definitely go to the new area that released!! he probably likes it because there’s so much water there so it’s similar to what he’s used to and cause it’s closer than the rest. it was a small date for the two of us but it’s definitely nice to see how much neuvillette knows everything and explain the difference between waters<33

8. obesky / skylusiné:

q: your trope with them & why?

oberon and i would definitely fit enemies to lovers because he would hate my guts and be all tsundere but it’d be cute. or even sunshine x grumpy cause he is such a bum and claims he almost ruled the world if it weren’t for ritsuka and co. (he’s my perfect mothman)

melusiné & i would have the “i hate everybody but her” and the “who did this???” tropes because she loves with all of her heart and sacrifices for those she loves. i don’t believe i could like anybody else if she wasn’t there to fill me with the joy that she does every time i open fgo… i know miss dragon would lose herself if somebody were to hurt me though — she gets protective and possessive easily.

#lore (🪷) #kurasora(♡) #iwasky(♡) #neuvisky(♡) #obesky(♡) #skylusiné(♡) #skyzak(♡) #skyheng(♡) #ellie🫶

[legends-of-time]

Thorn Bush (Doctor Who Story)

Chapter 24: War of the Sontarans

Masterlist

The Crimea war begins and Kathy finds herself near the battlefield helping the Mary Seacole at her British Hotel hospital. Mrs Seacole was very happy to let her join.

Kathy emerges onto the battlefield with Mary, walking along the desolate ground with the dead littered everywhere but a lack of enemy bodies. And that's the thing, Kathy's experience of the Crimean war has gone completely different to how she had imagined and known. Time seems to be almost distorted, changed, and she doesn't know why. If this is part of an episode, it's clearly aired after Kathy travelled to this universe. She hopes it's still Thirteen, at least a Doctor she knows.

It is then that Kathy hears what sounds like the TARDIS' Cloister Bell tolling and, while she knows that means bad news, she perks up and runs in that direction though it is difficult to do in her period-appropriate attire. She feels the familiar faint pull of the mental link she shares with the Doctor snap into place. Kathy then hears three voices which sound familiar.

"Yaz. Is Dan with you?" The Doctor is yelling.

"I'm here. I just blacked out." Dan calls. "Last thing I remember, we were on your TARDIS, that Flux thing was coming at us, and then... nothing."

Dan... a companion she's not so familiar with. For all she knows this could be after or before the Sea Devils fiasco.

"Me too. I think. I was on the ground over there. We must've been thrown out." Yaz adds.

"Must have been. Where are we?" The Doctor is scanning a body in a red military jacket as Kathy nears them.

"Maybe I can help?" Kathy calls to them. She receives two greeting smiles and one baffled one. Maybe before the Sea Devils.

"Kathy! Brilliant!" The Doctor exclaims, running over to her as best she can over the difficult terrain. "I'm assuming we're on earth?"

Kathy frowns. What happened? "Yes, didn't you know?"

"The TARDIS seems to have taken a hit with the Flux." Yaz replies breezily.

Before Kathy can ask what the hell she's going on about, Dan blurts, "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Kathy." She introduces herself with a kind smile.

"A friend. A good friend." The Doctor adds.

"Looks like we're in the middle of a battlefield." Yaz observes.

"Hey!" Kathy jumps at the sound of Mary's voice yelling towards them. "Ms Davis, what are those people doing near that man's body?!" She cries as she approaches. Yaz, Dan and the Doctor jump away from the man. "They didn't steal anything did they?" Mary questions as she comes to stand next to Kathy.

"Uh, no I don't think so. I hadn't che—" She'd been a bit too excited at seeing the Doctor and the companions with them.

Mary ignores her and turns to the trio in front of them. "Well, come on then! Show me your hands. What did you take? Show me."

"Better do what she says." Kathy adds. She had learnt that very quickly when it comes to Mary Seacole.

The trio abruptly throw up their hands as Dan complains that they hadn't taken anything.

"I know what goes on out here. Vultures emptying the pockets of the dead." Mary accuses. She frowns, taking them in. "What...? Who are you? Where you from?"

While her hands are still in the air, the Doctor introduces them all, "I'm the Doctor. This is Yaz. This is Dan. Nice to meet you." She brings down her hands and Yaz and Dan do the same. "We were tracking for signs of life."

"Sure. Doctor is a man's term." Mary scoffs.

The Doctor shrugs. "It's fluid."

Kathy smiles slightly at those words.

Mary crouches next to the man's dead body. "Sentry patrol. All of them dead. It's too late for medical aid." She explains. "But you're too close to the front to be with Mrs Nightingale. She won't come this close to Sebastopol. How long have you been here?"

The realisation begins to dawn on the Doctor's face as she works through the information she's given. "Sebastopol. 1850s. Orientated. I know where we are. Crimean War, 1855, Ottoman Empire weakening, British soldiers fighting Russians."

Kathy winces and glances at Mary Seacole's confused expression. Yeah, Russians.

"We're in the middle of the Crimean War?" Dan complains.

"It could be worse." Kathy remarks.

"How?!"

Kathy's reply is cut off by the Doctor's gasp of realisation. "But that would make you Mary Seacole. Are you? You are, aren't you? Kathy, you've met Mary Seacole!"

"Ms Davis and Mrs Seacole to you. Doctress to the fallen." Mary corrects.

"Everybody, shh, shh." Yaz interrupts. It is then Kathy hears the familiar marching sound as Yaz murmurs, "Listen."

"It's enemy soldiers. Back up, back up." Mary says hurriedly.

They all take cover behind some earth as the marching gets closer.

"Where in the battle are we? How many Russian troops are the British fighting? What's happening in Sebastopol?" The Doctor questions Kathy and Mary.

"What's this word you keep using? Russians. They're not fighting Russians." As Mary explains, a Sontaran appears on the back of a horse with many others following. The Doctor's expression morphs into horror. "They're fighting Sontarans."

The leader removes his helmet. "Taste the victory, my soldiers. Breathe in the rotting stench of our vanquished foes. Onwards, to domination. Sontar-Ha!"

"Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha!"

——

"Thank you for getting us out of there safely, Mrs Seacole." The Doctor says after they have escaped the battlefield and are reaching camp.

"Ms Davis and I know every safe avenue on and off of this battlefield. We have to stay alive if we're going to nurse these men back to health." Mary replies.

"You're army nurses?" Dan asks.

Kathy smiles at him over her shoulder. "No, Ms Seacole works for herself and I work for her. We're the closest nurses to the front."

"And this is your hospital?" Yaz asks as they approach the wooden structure.

"This is much more than a hospital, child." Mary retorts. "This is my British Hotel."

Kathy grins at her words. The fact she had helped in creating this historical structure fills her with pride. Mary walks on into the hospital while Kathy lingers with the Doctor, Yaz and Dan, hoping for some answers.

Dan looks at them in bafflement. "So let me just get this straight. She's like a real person from history?"

"You just talked to her, didn't you?" The Doctor quips.

"And those Sontaran things, they're not part of history, were they?"

"No. That's what's been confusing me for a while." Kathy replies. "This isn't the history that I know."

"Could this be connected to the Flux? Is history being rewritten?" Yaz theorises.

Again, this word. "The what?" Kathy blurts.

The Doctor opens her mouth to reply but is cut off when they all notice Dan's right hand glowing light blue. "Dan, are you okay?"

"Are you seeing that?" Dan asks as he raises his hand to stare at it.

"It's hard to miss mate." Kathy wonders if she's using sarcasm to cover up the panic and confusion of not knowing what's happening.

"Stay still, Dan." The Doctor warns, scanning him with her sonic.

Now all of Dan is glowing and he's beginning to fade. "What's happening to me?"

"Ah! Dan!" Kathy cries as she leaps forward but he vanishes.

Before Kathy can recover from the shock of Dan disappearing like that, Yaz calls to them, "Doctor, Kathy! You're fading." Kathy's eyes widen in alarm as Yaz starts to glow.

"No Yaz. You are." Kathy replies as the glow covers Yaz's body.

"A collision between Flux and Vortex energy. You're falling through Space and Time." The Doctor realises. Yaz looks at her in alarm as she too begins to fade. "Yaz, stay calm. I will find you."

"Promise?"

"I promise!"

Yaz vanishes.

The Doctor suddenly whips around to face Kathy. "Kathy, will I find her? You need to tell me?!" She yells frantically, the oncoming storm raging in her eyes.

Kathy flinches. Her mind goes back to how this Doctor had yelled at her during the battle against the Lone Cyberman. "I-I don't—"

"What?!"

"I don't know!" Kathy retorts, deciding she's not going to just take any blame or fury thrown at her by the Doctor. "This is part of your timeline where I don't know what happens."

The Doctor calms marginally. "So you don't know what the Flux is or where Yaz and Dan are?"

Kathy shakes her head before realising something. "I have met Dan though, you and Yaz were there, he'd already met me and since this is the first time he's met me..."

The Doctor's eyes widen when she realises what Kathy is saying. "Then I'll find them, they'll be okay."

"The question is, what's the Flux?" Kathy asks.

"I don't know, some force destroying the universe." The Doctor shrugs. "Got some Lupari ships to protect earth but something's gone wrong."

Kathy smiles, happy that they're back on track. "Then what are we waiting for? TARDIS?"

"TARDIS."

——

As they hurry across the battlefield, Kathy turns to the Doctor. "So, how did you meet Dan? Why's he on the TARDIS team?"

The Doctor looks at her incredulously. "You're asking now?!"

Kathy shrugs. "A good a time as any as you like to say!"

"Accidentally caused his house to miniaturise—" The Doctor begins to say but Kathy cuts her off.

"You what?!" She exclaims.

"An accident and not my fault!" The Doctor defends. Kathy throws a sceptical eyebrow in her direction. "Well... anyway! Then we saved him from the Lupari that was actually saving him."

"Wait, is it that Lupari dog aliens that have a human thing?" Kathy asks. She had heard of them but never realised that they'd come from the show.

"Yep!"

They reach the TARDIS and run faster as the Cloister Bell is still tolling, but as they run around the TARDIS, they begin to realise something's off.

"Where's the door? I need the door!" The Doctor cries loudly.

"Doctor!" Kathy hisses, worrying that the Sontarans will hear them but it's too late.

"Over there, Commander." One calls. "A voice. Another soldier waiting to be obliterated."

The Doctor turns to the TARDIS, begging, "Let me in. I have to find them."

"Spread out and locate the human scum." A Sontaran replies.

"Doctor!" Kathy begs. They're clearly not getting into the TARDIS so they need to get out now.

The Doctor turns to her. "There was something you said, Kathy. That this isn't the history buoy know. Has something else happened?"

Kathy sighs and nods. "Maybe it's time I showed you something, Doctor." She grabs the Doctor's hand and they run.

——

The Doctor and Kathy enter the British Hotel. Kathy can see that Lieutenant General Logan has helpfully helped himself to some rum as he gleans over a map. Great.

"Good evening." Mary greets them. She turns to the Doctor. "Where are your friends?"

"They were called away, while I'm remaining here for now. Apparently." The Doctor replies.

"Well, then, you are most welcome to the British Hotel." Mary cheerfully replies. Kathy smiles at her warmly.

"New arrival, Mrs Seacole, Ms Davis?" The Lieutenant General asks.

Kathy wrinkles her nose at the man who'd thankfully not looked up. "Yes, met on the battlefield." Kathy turns to the Doctor and gestures towards him. "This is Lieutenant General Logan of the Light Division." She lowers her voice. "And a great lover of our rum."

"I'm the Doctor." The Time Lord introduces as the man stands.

"Oh." The Lieutenant General almost scoffs in disbelief. "Mrs Seacole and Ms Davis could certainly do with your assistance. Our advance tomorrow is not without risk." He sits down again.

The Doctor walks over to the other side of the table he sits at as she speaks, "Please tell me you're not about to engage Sontarans in battle."

"That is why we're here." Comes the reply.

The Doctor breathes deeply as if to contain her irritation with the man. "You don't understand. I've fought Sontarans before."

"Somehow I doubt that." The Lieutenant General remarks. Kathy rolls her eyes at the man as she moves over to them.

"Sontarans live for war. They're a clone race. It's what they're bred for. It's their entire history. And they're very, very good at it. They also have weapons beyond your imagination. So, even if you do have numerical advantage, I advise, at all costs, do not engage." The Doctor pleads.

"Then it's fortunate that I command these divisions of Her Majesty's Army, and you do not." The Lieutenant General dismisses.

"How long have they been here, the Sontarans?" The Doctor questions.

"Outside Sebastopol?" Mary asks, walking over.

"No, on Earth."

"They have always been here." Says the Lieutenant General.

"And you both think that's normal." The Doctor realises.

"War is the opposite of normal." Mary retorts.

The Doctor turns to Kathy, desperate. "Kathy? Surely..."

Kathy frowns as she ponders for a moment. "It's funny, I remember a world where they've always been here and one where they haven't."

"But what about Russia?"

"A thing happened."

"What thing?" The Doctor questions.

Kathy grabs the map the Lieutenant General is leaning over.

"Madam, I am at work." The Lieutenant General protests.

"I know, I can smell the rum." Kathy retorts. She spreads out the map for the Doctor. "Everything is what it should be except..." She points to where instead of saying Russia, the country is labelled as Sontar and China has seemingly disappeared.

"What?!" The Doctor exclaims in shock.

"Yeah, like I said, a thing happened."

"That word you used... Russia. Where have I heard that before?" The Lieutenant General asks, his brow furrowed.

"She said it earlier. I thought the same. I heard it before, in the past." Mary adds.

"Like a memory. An echo of another time." The Doctor realises.

"Yes." The Lieutenant General and Mary say simultaneously.

"Doctor... why are they fighting Sontarans? What's happened to time?" Kathy questions the Time Lord.

"Time is being disrupted. But if you're still retaining those memories of the truth, then the disruption must be recent. But how? Fallout from the Flux? Yeah, but that wouldn't be enough. I mean, Sontarans are embedded in maps all of a sudden." The Doctor rambles.

While Kathy feels like she's getting what the Doctor is saying, Mary Seacole and the Lieutenant General are baffled.

"Are you expecting a response to your musings?" The Lieutenant General asks.

"How far away is their encampment?" The Doctor instead questions. The Lieutenant General looks down and doesn't reply. "You've gone very quiet, General."

"The soldiers appear from directions unknown." The Lieutenant General reluctantly admits.

"See? They're doing the basics, and you're already on the back foot." The Doctor warns. "You will lose every man if you face them in the battlefield tomorrow. You need my help."

"I have Queen and Country on my side. That is all the help I need." The Lieutenant General retorts.

"Is she here with you, then, the Queen?"

"Obviously not."

"Then her influence may be limited." The Doctor sarcastically remarks.

"Mrs Seacole, your new assistant is putting me off my task." The Lieutenant General avoids.

"You want to be helpful, Doctor? Nursing rounds." Mary pulls the Doctor away and Kathy follows.

"You have to get the General to listen to me." The Doctor pleads.

"We will, but there's something else you need to see." Kathy says as they move through the building to the back where a section of it is covered by a curtain.

"What?"

"Something the General does not approve." Mary admits. She pulls back the curtain.

Behind the curtain is a wounded Sontaran, shackled. "More of you. More to destroy when I free myself. Which will be soon." He growls.

"This is a surprise. No wonder the General doesn't approve." The Doctor remarks darkly.

"All life is sacred to me. I use my remedies to help whoever is in need." Mary says.

"Just as you did the Russian soldiers." The Doctor murmurs.

"Although this one has refused all treatment and healed himself." Mary says, sounding like an irritated mother. "He takes his rest in a regular rhythm. Seven and a half minutes every 27 hours. I recorded it."

"I shall massacre you for revealing privileged military information." The Sontaran declares.

Kathy rolls her eyes, typical. "The rest of the time, he yells."

"No wonder you're angry. Capture, the ultimate shame for any Sontaran." The Doctor snarks. "How did it come to this?"

"I was dispatched by my commanding officer to assess the laughable strength of the weak and pathetic human resistance, and was ambushed by a circular propellant." The Sontaran explains.

At the Doctor's look of confusion, Kathy explains, "Cannon ball in the back."

"Oh. I bet that hurt." The Doctor remarks snidely.

"There is no such thing as pain." The Sontaran spits before quietly admitting, "A little."

"You're lucky you survived at all."

"You call this luck?" The Sontaran growls. "The gloried embrace of death would have been luck."

"I have questions for you, soldier." The Doctor states, seemingly irritated with the Sontaran's behaviour. Kathy gets it. This species is just filled with whining children.

"I will answer nothing. I am trained to resist all interrogation."

The Doctor ignores his statement. "Where's your encampment?"

"I assert my rights to silence under section Cyan K-Z Nine Slothback of the Shadow Proclamation." The Sontaran declares.

"Oh, you do, do you?" The Doctor remarks smugly. "But what if I have valuable battle information for your Commander?"

"What sort of information?"

"The Doctor." The Sontaran recoils at her words. "Vanquisher and sworn enemy of the Sontarans, former President of Gallifrey, is in the Crimea."

"Where? Show me. I will vanquish our despised nemesis with my bare hands. Where is the Doctor?" The Sontaran demands to know.

Kathy smirks. "Closer than you could possibly imagine. They're very close by."

"But how can he have heard of...?" Mary tries to ask. Kathy quickly shushes her.

The Doctor continues, "I'd be prepared to give your Commander information on the Doctor's whereabouts, should he agree to parlay on my signal. Now, if we release you... will you relay this information?"

"I accept your offer," The Sontaran reluctantly accepts before hissing, "and pledge to end your life with maximum suffering at our next encounter."

"I'd expect no less." The Doctor sonics off his shackles.

"May death rain down on you all."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, too." The Doctor sarcastically remarks. "Hurry along."

The Sontaran marches out through the main section of the hotel. "Human scum. You will be stamped beneath the boot of Sontar at a future point to be determined."

The Lieutenant General draws his pistol as the Sontaran barges past him.

"Do not shoot." The Doctor yells as the door opens and closes.

"You allowed an enemy combatant to escape!" The Lieutenant General cries indignantly.

"I discharged my patient." Mary says. "The British Hotel is my establishment, General, and you are my guest."

"Mrs Seacole, Ms Davis, may I suggest an evening constitutional? Come along." The Doctor walks off with Kathy and Mary following. The former throws a smirk in the Lieutenant General's direction.

——

The trio follow the Sontaran across the battlefield at a distance.

"What are we doing?" Mary questions.

"The thing about Sontaran soldiers is they're not very bright. But that means you can take advantage." The Doctor explains. "M'laddo's got a message for his General. With any luck, he's going to lead us right to the location of the Sontaran base camp. Pretty simple, right?"

"Wait." Mary pulls on the Doctor's arm to stop her. "Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Mary Seacole's assistant." The Doctor replies.

They keep following the Sontaran and watch as he vanishes into a rock face.

"Guys..." Kathy murmurs. She and the Doctor run towards it while Mary splutters behind them.

"Where...? Where did he go?" Mary questions.

"See, Mary?" Kathy says.

"No."

"Exactly." The Doctor puts her hand through a hologram of a rock face.

"A conjuring trick?"

"In a way. It's a basic camouflage shield." Kathy replies having a touch of the false rock face herself. "But if you don't know it's there, it's impossible to spot."

"Want to give it a go with us?" The Doctor asks. Mary nods and the three of them step through, holding hands.

"Where are we now?" Mary questions.

There's what looks like a crater or something so the group crouch and hurries over to it. Down below them are multiple Sontaran ships with multiple Sontarans. They'd emerged just above the Sontaran camp.

"Soldiers, marching duty until sunrise. Strategic base construction troops report to Commander Strevs. Security patrols must execute any intruders on sight." One is ordering.

"There's so many of them." Mary observes.

"Yes, there are." The Doctor resolves herself into planning mode. "Mary, you're good at keeping observation records, right?"

"Of course."

"And you can survive on very little sleep, I imagine."

It's then Kathy clicks what the Doctor is doing.

"What are you asking of me?" Mary asks.

"Monitor this encampment. Keep a note of everything that happens, but stay out of sight." The Doctor explains.

"I can do that."

"Kathy, with me." The Doctor grabs Kathy's hand and pulls her after her. Kathy looks back to give the unsure looking woman an encouraging smile.

——

The next morning, the Doctor uses her sonic screwdriver to create the sound of a 'change of shift' siren to signal parlay. To be honest, even after all this time, Kathy just thinks of pirates when she hears that word.

Kathy watches from nearby as the Doctor meets with the Commander on the battlefield.

"Take your hat off, mate." The Doctor remarks and the Sontaran does so. Kathy and the Doctor simultaneously grimace at the sight. Let's just say the alien's appearance is very Classic Who and more urghhh...

"Urgh. On second thoughts, put it back on." The Doctor comments in disgust.

The Sontaran ignores her. "You have information regarding the treacherous vermin known as the Doctor."

"You're talking to her." The Doctor says smugly.

"What? You deceived my soldier." The Sontaran growls.

"It weren't difficult."

"It is regrettable that our Flux strategy did not foresee your presence, but we shall not falter." The Sontaran says.

"You knew the Flux was coming? So, what caused it? Is it you lot? Are the Sontarans behind the Flux?" The Doctor questions in rapid succession, almost as if her thoughts are spilling out of her. Despite this openness, Kathy knows that this Doctor hardly ever explains anything to her companions.

"The Flux is neither of our making or our control, but our Psychic Command foresaw it. We timed our attack on this feeble rock in the fractions before the Lupari Shield took effect." The Sontaran smugly explains.

Interesting... Kathy had doubted the Sontarans could be behind it but this just confirms it. So, who is behind the Flux?

"While we were all looking the other way. You must be very proud." The Doctor says snidely.

"This planet has defied us ever since the great Commander Linx first staked his claim in the ground of its feeble soil. We now assert that claim. Earth shall be an outpost of the Sontaran Empire." The Sontaran declares.

"No, it won't. But why here? Why Sebastopol?"

"The Crimean skirmish seems the perfect place to start. So much conflict. So much opportunity. And also..." the Sontaran pauses before admitting, "I wanted to ride a horse."

Kathy has to hold in a laugh at that admission. Of course...

"Leave this planet now and you get to leave alive." The Doctor warns.

The Sontaran laughs, and the Doctor winces. Kathy doesn't blame her; it looks disgusting to watch. "You think your puny words will stand me down?"

"There will be no battle. I speak on behalf of all of humanity." The Doctor declares.

Suddenly, the Lieutenant General appears out of the mist with soldiers following. "No, Doctor. You do not." He aims his pistol at her head.

Kathy runs over, alarmed at the gun pointing at the Doctor's head. "What are you doing?!"

The Lieutenant General ignores this and turns to the Sontaran. "This woman does not speak for the British Army. We are ready."

"I speak for more people than you could possibly imagine. Don't be a fool." The Doctor warns.

"Call me that again, Doctor, and see if you survive."

"This is good sports." The Sontaran almost compliments, which is never a good sign.

"Soldier," a young soldier steps forward to stand next to his general, "escort this doctress and her companion back to the encampment. Keep your weapon on them at all times."

"Don't do this." The Doctor pleads.

"It's done! Raise your arms above your head or be shot as a traitor immediately. Go." The Lieutenant General cries. The Doctor and Kathy reluctantly lift their arms up.

"You speak for no one, Doctor. Not even your pitiful self." The Sontaran taunts. Kathy glares at the Sontaran before she and the Doctor are led away. She hears the Sontaran remark, "I accept your offer of a massacre. Your blood shall soak our uniforms. Your bodies shall soften our steps." Those words fill her with dread.

As they walk along, the sounds of the battle reach their ears. The young soldier looks terrified and the Doctor notices this.

"Yes, it's as devastating as you're imagining. Be grateful you aren't there. And I'm sorry." She knocks the young soldier out with a fingertip to his jawline.

"Nice." Kathy comments.

"Thanks." The Doctor says over her soldier before turning back to the soldier. "Have a kip, it'll wear off in six hours. And you'll still be alive." She turns to Kathy. "Options blocked off. It's time to recalibrate."

"Then let's do this." Kathy declares. It's this time Kathy grabs the Doctor's hand and drags her towards the Sontaran camp to find Mary.

——

They reach the spot above the Sontaran camp to still find Mary sitting there but with a notebook and pen.

"You're still here, on your watch. Thank you. Mary Seacole." The Doctor greets her.

"What happened?" Mary questions hopefully.

"I couldn't stop them. Now soldiers are dying. You're going to be very busy by day's end. I'm sorry." The Doctor apologises.

Mary takes in her words before handing over her notebook. "I noted everything. It's deserted down there now."

"Great work, Mrs Seacole. It's not a surprise that all the Sontarans have run off to battle. It's their first love." Kathy comments.

"Now, given their absence, it would be churlish not to take advantage, don't you think?" The Doctor passes back to the notebook and leaps up. "Come on."

"Where are we going?" Mary questions while Kathy simply gets up to follow.

The Doctor pauses. "Half a league onward."

——

They enter the main section of the Sontaran camp and slip inside a Sontaran ship.

"They built all of this?" Mary questions in amazement.

"I mean, it's good, but it's no British Hotel." The Doctor remarks.

"Too right." Kathy agrees haughtily with a smirk on her face.

"Here we are." The Doctor says as they reach a door that has the three-finger handprint security pad next to it. The Doctor simply splits her fingers into three and opens the door.

There's a Sontaran on guard standing there with its back to them. Kathy and the Doctor quickly drag Mary behind the corner. Kathy pulls out a catapult and shows it to the Doctor, who nods with a grin. Kathy silently steps back into the room and uses the catapult to knock out the Sontaran.

"Double top. Get in." The Doctor compliments, giving Kathy an excited nudge before the three of them step into the room.

The Doctor steps up to the control panel. "Now, Mrs Seacole, with your records, and this data, let's see what's really going on."

Suddenly Dan appears on one of the screens and is in the middle of saying, "...or let everybody know that I'm here."

Kathy's eyes widen in surprise but also relief. Thank God she was right. Dan is alive though she wonders where Yaz is.

"Dan! Dan! Dan! Dan, it's me." The Doctor cries.

"Doctor. Kathy." The companion says with a relieved smile.

"Where are you?" The Doctor and Dan ask simultaneously.

"Still in the Crimea." The Doctor says as Dan at the same time replies, "I'm in Liverpool."

"Where's Yaz? I don't know. You speak first." They both say at the same time. Kathy raises an amused eyebrow to Mary who smiles despite her obvious confusion at what's happening.

"How are you on a Sontaran ship?" The Doctor decides to ask.

"I'm back home. They've took over Liverpool Docks. They're building spaceships, hundreds of them, all along the Mersey." Dan explains. So at least he was transported somewhere safe. Ish.

"They're not just in the Crimea." The Doctor realises.

"And why Liverpool?" Kathy asks. "Of all places..."

"Oi!" Dan exclaims before continuing. "And they've got this obsession with Japanese food. I heard one of the big chief potato heads talking about Tempura Command. Tempura Offensive. What's that all about?"

Kathy tries to hold in a smile when she realises what's happened. "Could it have been Temporal Command? Temporal as in time?" She suggests.

"Oh yeah. That makes more sense." Dan remarks. "Hey, I've been filming everything, if that helps."

"Oh, good lad. Very nice." The Doctor compliments. "Hold your phone close to the screens." Dan does so and the Doctor scans it with her sonic. "I can access the Sontaran data banks plus everything that's on your phone."

Dan looks alarmed. "What, including me photos?"

Kathy smirks. "Hope you haven't got anything to hide Dan."

The Doctor ignores them and puts up the video from Dan's phone, showing the ships all over the docks just as he said. "Oh, of course. Temporal Offensive. They're just about to launch a huge wave of attacks throughout Time. They've been building Time ships so they can invade Earth's history. And the Crimea is the pilot scheme. Earth will become a Sontaran outpost from the dawn of time. The whole history, erased."

To her credit, Mary takes this on and turns to the Doctor in alarm. "Well, you better make sure you stop it."

"Now!" Kathy adds.

Dan takes notice of their companion. "Is that Mary Seacole? Hey, Mary." He gives her a wave.

Mary waves back. "Oh. Hello, dear. I don't understand any of this."

"We have to get the Sontarans out of the Crimea." The Doctor turns to Dan. "But the rest is on you, Dan."

"I was worried you were going to say that."

"The first wave of ships in the Sontaran Temporal Offensive are about to launch. You have to stop those ships leaving." The Doctor tells him.

"How's he meant to do that?" Kathy asks. Dan is clearly only just joined and it's a lot to put on his shoulders without much experience with these things.

"What resources do you have?" The Doctor asks Dan.

"A wok."

"I'm sorry, what? Why have you got a wok?"

Dan raises the saucepan to show them what he meant. "It's me Mam's. For hitting them on the probic thingy."

A Sontaran appears on the screen along with Dan. "Tracing rogue transmissions. Who is using this frequency? Security detail..."

Kathy panics. "Dan, get out of there now!"

"What about the plan?"

"And execute all rogue transmitters." The Sontaran finishes his threat.

"Doctor! Kathy!" Dan cries before disappearing.

"Good luck, Dan. Right, Kathy, Mrs Seacole. We both have a lot of work to do." The Doctor declares.

——

The trio return to the British hotel and immediately set to work treating the many injured from the battle.

"So many wounded. We won't save them all. All of the casualties were ours." Mary observes.

"Soldiers pay the price for their commanders' mistakes." The Doctor snipes.

The Lieutenant General steps inside looking worse for wear. "They'll attack again at first light. I don't know what to do. Help me." He begs tearfully.

"I'm going to need a pointy stick." The Doctor declares.

Kathy raises an eyebrow. "Do you?"

Turns out it is helpful to have one as the Doctor stands in front of a board with sketches pinned up on it and the Lieutenant General, Mary and Kathy sit in front of her. The Doctor had asked if Kathy wanted to help but Kathy doesn't have that much experience with them compared to the Doctor and had declined.

The Doctor begins to speak. "Sontarans. Project - Crimean Eviction. Right, pay attention, sit up, back straight, hand on heads. Actually, forget about that last one." Kathy glances amusedly at the Lieutenant General who had actually followed that last order.

"So, here we go. Sontarans need a rest cycle of 7.5 minutes, every 27 hours, as detailed by Mrs Seacole in her observations here and at the Sontaran encampment. During said rest cycle, they all go back into their ships. Why?"

"Er..." the Lieutenant General stutters.

"I'll tell you why. Because they cannot cope with Earth's atmosphere over an extended period. That's why they wear the protective armoured suits. The suits filter out harmful Earth gases and substitute them with chemicals and nutrients from their home planet. But the suits only have a limited capacity. They have to be refilled."

"From their ships." Mary suggests.

"Gold star and a sticker for Mrs Seacole. Keep up, Lieutenant General." The Doctor compliments/insults. "The ships aren't just transport. They hold their supplies. So, for precisely 7.5 minutes, every 27 hours, the Sontarans top up their suits by the probic vent in the back of their necks, resting and refuelling like cars refilling their petrol tanks."

"Maybe not Doctor..." Kathy suggests, glancing at the confused expressions of the two people next to her.

"Right, yes. Erm... like horses replenishing their nose bags." That receives two nods of understanding. "Right. So, what we're going to do is empty their ships of those supplies, forcing a retreat out of the Crimea back to the 21st century where my best person will be there to deal with them. Hopefully."

"Did you just say 21st century?" The Lieutenant General asks.

"Sssh. She's talking." Kathy quietens him.

"Now, if they're on the same timetable every day, which I bet they are, in 38 minutes' time, they will all enter their ships simultaneously. While they're inside, we will have exactly 7.5 minutes to drain their supplies. Might need some of your men to help."

——

With the addition of soldiers, they all reach the Sontaran camp to enact the plan. They walk up to a spaceship.

The Doctor takes off a handy head-height panel and begins to demonstrate what they need to do while explaining. "Come on. Ah. Right, remember what I taught you. Divert this gas into this chamber... and it will render their supply feed inert, and harmless to humans. Then. rip off... oh, this, and let it all leak out into the air. Got it? Come on, General, next ship, 6.9 minutes left."

Everyone departs to do exactly that. After a short while, alarms start ringing out from the ships. After the Sontarans reluctantly agree to a 'strategical withdrawal', Kathy, Mary, the Doctor and the Lieutenant General watch from above the Sontaran camp as the Sontaran ships are powering up to leave.

"Oh my. It worked. They're leaving." Mary murmurs in amazement.

"And with no further bloodshed." The Doctor says.

"I must disabuse you of that." The Lieutenant General interrupts. Kathy watches in horror as he strikes a match and drops it onto the end of a trail of gunpowder, which ignites despite the rain.

"What have you done?!" She cries.

"I recommend you run." Is his response.

Mary is quick on her feet, calling for Kathy and the Doctor to run. They all run just as piles of gunpowder barrels under each spaceship explode, knocking them to the ground with the force of the blast.

"They were retreating!" The Doctor snaps. "It was done."

"That was for the men I lost today." The Lieutenant General argues. Kathy shakes her head in disgust at him before turning to watch the blaze, actually feeling sorry for the loss of life on both sides.

"For your guilt you mean. Sometimes men like you make me wonder why I bother with humanity." The Doctor growls.

"I... I am grateful that you do." Mary steps forward. "Whoever you are, Doctor."

Kathy smiles softly. "I agree. I wonder what we'd do without you."

The sounds of the TARDIS engines stuttering are heard. Kathy turns to see it fading in and out as the ship tries to land.

"I have to go and find my friends. I hope we meet again, Mrs Seacole. Till the next time, Kathy." The Doctor begins to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Mary calls after her but the Doctor keeps walking. The Doctor goes to the TARDIS. She has a door now.

"Doctor!" Kathy yells as she runs to her. "Shouldn't I come with you?"

The Doctor smiles and shakes her head. "No, I think it's best you stay here and keep an eye on that General and I don't want to take you from Ashildr and Carlyle any more than I do."

"It's fine."

"No, it's important you stay. You have an important adventure to embark on soon." The Doctor smiles knowingly.

"With you?" Kathy asks.

"I remember it well." And with that, the Doctor steps inside the TARDIS and it begins to dematerialise.

Kathy watches as the ship leaves, lingering even after she had fully dematerialised. Kathy hears footsteps and turns to see Mary coming to stand next to her.

"You do realise you have a lot of explaining to do, Ms Davis." The nurse remarks.

Kathy chuckles slightly.

——

A/N: Please leave comments on how you're enjoying this story and what you think.

#doctor who

[johnhardinsawyer]

Living Mercy

John Sawyer

Bedford Presbyterian Church

8 / 20 / 23 – 12th Sunday after Pentecost/Proper 15

Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32

Genesis 45:1-15

“Living Mercy”

(Moral Courage and Holy Mystery)

Brothers are supposed to get along – at least that’s what I’ve been told.  Brothers are supposed to get along, but they don’t always.  

I was in the eleventh grade.  My little brother was in the fifth grade.  We had just moved to a new town, didn’t know many people, and didn’t have anywhere to go (and no car to go anywhere in, anyway).  It was raining outside.  Both of our parents were at work.  We had one grainy working channel on our ancient TV, we had each other, and we had all day. . .  stuck in the house. . . together.  We also had access to our dad’s collection of rubber bands, of which my brother availed himself and began to shoot at me with his finger.  He was a pretty good shot.  I was annoyed, so I went to my room to read a book.  I locked the door, but that only gave my brother a chance to knock on it repeatedly and wiggle his fingers underneath until I got mad and chased him around.  The final straw came when I needed to use the bathroom and my brother locked me out of the part of the house with the bathrooms.  I yelled something like, “Open this door or else!”  “Or else what?!?” my brother yelled back.  And then I kicked the door – busting it open and leaving a big dent in it.  The look of shock on my brother’s face was priceless.  He didn’t mess with me after that.  In fact, it took some time, but all these years later, my brother and I are pretty much best friends.  

In today’s story from the Book of Genesis, we find a story about some brothers.  Just in case you’re not familiar with the story of Joseph and his brothers, you might remember that we have spent some time this summer with the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Abraham has one son, Isaac.  Isaac has two sons, Jacob and Esau.  And Jacob?  Well, Jacob ends up having twelve sons:  Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin.  Out of all of his sons, Jacob loves Joseph the most, so he gives Joseph a colorful robe with sleeves.  This special attention goes to Joseph’s head and he starts to annoy his ten older brothers.  Eventually, they get fed up with Joseph and they beat him up, throw him in a pit, and sell him to some traveling merchants who are going down to Egypt.  

The story of Joseph is long and detailed, but here are the highlights:  Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery.  But God is mysteriously at work in Joseph’s life, lifting him up from slavery and imprisonment to become second only to the Pharaoh – the king of Egypt.  When there is a famine, Joseph uses his God-given administrative skills to avert a crisis in Egypt.  There is enough food for everyone and they even have some food left over to sell to foreigners, including Joseph’s hungry brothers who have traveled down to Egypt to find food.  Of course, all these years after Joseph was beaten and sold by his brothers, they don’t even recognize their younger brother as this rich and powerful person who has had them arrested and brought before him.  

Put yourself in Joseph’s shoes:  the people who did you wrong, the people for whom you have been carrying a grudge all these years are right there in front of you.  You have the power not just to kick the door in on them, but absolutely destroy them.  What do you do?  I mean, brothers are supposed to get along, but sometimes they don’t.  People are supposed to get along, but sometimes we don’t.

Of course, it might seem old fashioned, or wishful thinking on my part, or maybe even counter-cultural to say that “people are supposed to get along,” because I’m under the impression that there are plenty of people who seem to be okay with not getting along.  In a recent article in The Atlantic magazine, called “How America Got Mean,” David Brooks writes that the stories we tell ourselves as to why our culture is “mean,” is that social media, or the rise of despair and hatred, or economic inequality, or social isolation are each to blame.  And, yes, each of these has had an effect on us.  But, as Brooks writes, 

The most important story about why Americans have become sad and alienated and rude, I believe, is also the simplest: We inhabit a society in which people are no longer trained in how to treat others with kindness and consideration. Our society has become one in which people feel licensed to give their selfishness free rein. The story I’m going to tell is about morals. In a healthy society, a web of institutions — families, schools, religious groups, community organizations, and workplaces — helps form people into kind and responsible citizens, the sort of people who show up for one another. We live in a society that’s terrible at moral formation.[1]

Now, before you say, “Duh, John, tell us something we don’t know!”  I want to remind you where we are:  a little church on a hill – a place that for nearly 275 years has had, as one of its goals, some kind of moral formation.  I’m talking about the morals that we find in the ancient words of scripture, in the life and example of Jesus Christ, and in the centuries of moral formation that the historic church has sought to provide.  Yes, the church has had an influence on culture, but Brooks is clear that religion – or religious moral teaching – is not always a cure-all for what ails us.  As Brooks writes, 

. . . the emphasis on morality didn’t produce perfect people. Moral formation doesn’t succeed in making people angels — it tries to make them better than they otherwise might be. Furthermore, we would never want to go back to the training methods that prevailed for so long, rooted in so many thou shall nots and so much shaming, and riddled with so much racism and sexism. Yet a wise accounting should acknowledge that emphasizing moral formation meant focusing on an important question — what is life for? — and teaching people how to bear up under inevitable difficulties. A culture invested in shaping character helped make people resilient by giving them ideals to cling to when times got hard.[2] 

Times had been hard for Joseph, and yet he somehow still clung to a Holy and merciful ideal instead of clinging to resentment. 

Just so you know, the story of Joseph takes place before the arrival of the 10 Commandments – God’s holy list of “thou shall nots.”  And surely there must have been some kind of rule in that day and age – spoken or unspoken – that “thou shall not beat up your own brother, steal his colorful robe, sell him into slavery in Egypt, and go home holding the robe stained with animal blood, telling your father that your younger brother Joseph is dead.”[3]  It was wrong what they did to Joseph and he knows this (and, deep down, they know it, too).  But somehow, Joseph also knows that it would be wrong for him to destroy his brothers.  Somehow, he still has some higher ideals to which he has been clinging ever since that awful act in his past.  In the moment, his brothers don’t recognize him and have no idea the rage and fury that this fancy Egyptian-looking person can bring down upon them.  If he calls for the guards and if he says the word, his brothers could all be killed.  But Joseph chooses mercy and as he reintroduces himself to his brothers, he brings God into the story, as Eugene Peterson translates:  

I am Joseph your brother whom you sold into Egypt. But don’t feel badly, don’t blame yourselves for selling me. God was behind it. God sent me here ahead of you to save lives. There has been a famine in the land now for two years; the famine will continue for five more years—neither plowing nor harvesting. God sent me on ahead to pave the way and make sure there was a remnant in the land, to save your lives in an amazing act of deliverance. So you see, it wasn’t you who sent me here but God. He set me in place as a father to Pharaoh, put me in charge of his personal affairs, and made me ruler of all Egypt.[4]

In other words, “It might sound crazy, but God was part of it all – at work for good.  Somehow, God made something good out of this awful thing that you did that most people would never forget or forgive.  I don’t blame you, though, because God did something amazing – turning this whole awful mess around.”

For the record, this is one of the amazing things that God always seems to be doing – taking some awful mess and turning it around.  Time and time again in the Bible, there are so many stories of redemption, and reversal, and even resurrection in which God chooses blessing over cursing, life over death, and mercy over condemnation.  

Contrary to what you may have heard, our God is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.”[5]  This ancient description of God appears multiple times in the Hebrew Bible.  And in the New Testament, we see Jesus Christ as the incarnation – the merciful, and gracious, and slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love embodiment of these words.  

We see this idea in today’s reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans.  Paul, who is descended from Benjamin, Joseph’s younger brother, writes,  “All have been imprisoned in disobedience so that God may be merciful to all.” (Romans 11:32). Or, again, as Eugene Peterson translates, 

God makes sure that we all experience what it means to be outside so that he can personally open the door and welcome us back in.  Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom?  It’s way over our heads.  We’ll never figure it out. Is there anyone around who can explain God?  Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?  Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice?  Everything comes from him; Everything happens through him; Everything ends up in him.  Always glory! Always praise!   Yes. Yes. Yes.[6]

To put it another way, “We all know how it feels to be on the outside, but God – in God’s inexplicable mercy – graciously opens the door and welcomes us in.  Why?  How?  We’ll never figure it out, we’ll never fully deserve it, but God is merciful. . .  Yes.  Yes.  Yes.”

So, what about us?  If mercy is one of the calling cards of the God we believe in, what is the church to do?  What sort of moral example is God giving us and calling us to emulate. . . to live?  If we supposedly live in a society that is terrible at moral formation then what if we began with mercy – living some of the mercy that we have been given?  

What sort of moral courage does it take to show mercy in this world?  As David Brooks writes, 

Look, I understand why people don’t want to get all moralistic in public. Many of those who do are self-righteous prigs, or rank hypocrites. And all of this is only a start. But healthy moral ecologies don’t just happen. They have to be seeded and tended by people who think and talk in moral terms, who try to model and inculcate moral behavior, who understand that we have to build moral communities because on our own, we are all selfish and flawed. Moral formation is best when it’s humble. It means giving people the skills and habits that will help them be considerate to others in the complex situations of life. It means helping people behave in ways that make other people feel included, seen, and respected. That’s very different from how we treat people now—in ways that make them feel sad and lonely, and that make them grow unkind.[7]

In other words, moral formation humbly begins with mercy.  For far too long, the message that our culture has received from the not-so-humble loudest voices who call themselves Christian is that the Christian message is not one of mercy.  This could not be farther from the truth of who God is, though, and who we are called to be.  And, while it may be old-fashioned, or wishful thinking, or countercultural, having moral courage begins with living lives of mercy.  

Church, if we are to have any relevance, any impact – and, perhaps, any future – may we be known by the mercy we live, clinging to mercy even when it’s hard, even if we see little to no reward, even if we feel we have nothing to gain.  The mercy we offer our enemies, and one another, and even ourselves is an amazing and Holy act of deliverance from the harsh reality of what is to the gracious blessing of what God intends for us and for all the world. 

So, friends, give mercy. . . live mercy.  And may your mercy – which is really God’s mercy at work in and through you – be a blessing. 

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.  

--------

[1] https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2023/09/us-culture-moral-education-formation/674765/.

[2] David Brooks, ibid.

[3] See Genesis 37.

[4] Eugene Peterson, The Message: Numbered Edition (Colorado Springs: NAV Press, 2002) 73.  Genesis 45:4-8.

[5] See Psalm 86:15, Exodus 33:19, Exodus 34:6, Numbers 14:10, Psalm 103:8, Psalm 145:8.

[6] Eugene Peterson, 1556-1557.

[7] David Brooks, ibid.  

[queerofcups]

dann what do you think dan should do next? or like what would be your ideal? just pure curious

I think Dan is a good writer who can’t help but slip into his/a Youtuber/role model persona in his writing. I’d be curious what that looks like when writing on a team or perhaps writing fiction with an editor to tell him when some shit is corny (or, try on YA where corniness is less of a sin). But also, maybe its something totally different and away from making media. Idk, anon you didn’t ask for this, but I recently left the job I had for most of my twenties and am still marveling at how *much* there is outside of what I already knew I could do well. I’m curious what it’d be like to watch Dan experience that. 

I would *love* it if Dan followed Anthony’s example (maybe...without the somewhat manic energy) and just kind of...tried stuff and figured out who he was without the looming shadow of either a corporate overlord or a tour that he has to make work.

But also, if I was waving my wand and developing a project for him, I’d have him do something similar to Richard Ayoade’s Travel Man series. Quick, someone throw together a Dan Career Fair fic fest.

#ask me a thing

[achairwithapandaonit]

maybe i should make an ongoing wip post and pin it like aoba has!! :3 (aoba i’m copying youuuu)

AO3 ART WRITING

posted wips:

The Shounen Tantei-dan vs A Dangerous Organisation: DCMK, mystery fic, a Super Serious TM fic (meaning it’s not really that serious) where haibara and conan have been kidnapped by the black org told from the shounen tantei-dan’s pov as they work the case of yeah where are our friends. starring subaru okiya (resident lying liar who lies), kobayashi-sensei (she deserves a raise), the kudous (minus shinichi-niichan), and probably everyone else tbh. except for amuro tooru, who is Not A Real Person.

Who Are You When There Aren’t Any Walls: Avatar, basically zuko succeeds in capturing the avatar in the second episode, only for zhao to lie and say yeah zuko and the avatar are working together. now zuko and the avatar are stuck together travelling across the earth kingdom while katara, sokka, and appa do all the Important Plot Things. updates whenever i start hyperfixating on atla apparently

There are other posted wips but they’re not ones i’m working on rn.

wips hidden in my google docs for no one to see:

The Villainization of Edogawa Conan: DCMK/BNHA, a crossover wip with @aobawilliams in which haibara, conan, and kaitou KID get yeeted into the bnha universe. we’re at the planning stage and that’s very slow going. conan basically ends up being given to tomura as a Responsibility. they both hate this. kaito ends up under aizawa’s guardianship. they both hate this. haibara is a vigilante who throws bento boxes at mr toshinori yagi and tells him to take better care of himself. i know nothing about vigilantes but aoba does

ATLA/DCMK crossover: a fun idea that i took too seriously, so now it’s gonna end up BIG. conan and kaitou KID end up in the ATLA universe. includes murder magnet edogawa conan who can’t go two steps without running into a crime scene, kaitou KID who is most definitely still conducting heists in this universe, the gaang who are becoming Great Detectives thank u very much, and zuko who had his hand kissed by kaitou KID once and then immediately turned into a gay disaster who can’t catch avatars because avatars hang out with kaitou KIDs and do u know how distracting that is. akako is there sometimes but their magical zoom calls keep getting interfered by dimensional interference 

conan is a holiday au: DCMK, shinichi decides the media attention sucks tbh so when he becomes conan he treats it like a holiday

EDIT: 11/02/2022

Imposter Syndrome: BNHA. The truth is out. A villain with a shape-shifting quirk replaced All Might a month ago and the only hope to locate the number one hero is to capture him and his accomplices. The only problem is that Yagi Toshinori has no shape-shifting quirk and has always been All Might. Meanwhile, something suspicious is happening behind the scenes of the HPSC...

#yes u can talk to me about them!! i'm going insane not having anyone come to talk to me about dcmk #please always talk to me about my wips if u like them #because it HELPS keep motivation up

[awigglycultist]

Okay hatchetfield zombie apocalypse au bc why not ("but tgwdlm is a zombie apocalypse" shh no that's an alien musical apotheosis and also this is won't be the exact same as tgwdlm)

This ended up being way longer than I thought it would and also kinda ramblely (is that a word??) oops. So read the rest under the cut

Okay this takes place in 2019

Emma and Paul are together, emam ofc suggests they going to her cooky reclusive biology professor

This isn't the apocalypse Henry excepted and he doesn't like that, but hey he still prepped for an apocalypse so he's safe

Since this isn't a musical apocalypse and it'd probably be pretty hard to get money off of someone during a zombie apocalypse, so he's currently not trying to murder anyone

He let's Emma and Paul stay with him

But then Emma is like "hey you have room do you think my nephew, brother in law and his gf could stay with us? The gf's a nurse she could be helpful!!"

He eventually agrees

Then Paul's like "hey my coworkers are kid dumb asses there's know way they're surviving an apocalypse on their own can they stay with us? And also one of them has daughter and the other has a little brother (cough cough HCB) them too?"

And then Hidgens ends up agreeing to that, and then Alice and HCB are ofc both like "wait hold on our friends-" (ie: Deb, Ziggs, Grace Chasity (this would be HCB's friends not Alice's ofc), Cineplex kid (because I said so) Ethan (also Tony, my beloved) Lex and Hannah (once again, because I said so, do we seem them interact? No, but they're friends now)

And Hidgens at this point is like "well fucking fine I guess so! Bring em here we have a bunch of ppl already so why not!!"

All of these people, living under one roof (albeit a very big roof) is ofc chaos!

I'd imagine ppl kinda stay in groups a bit tho. Like the teens stay with each other for the most part. CCRP gang hangs out together most. Ect.

Still, very chaotic. The teens (really mostly Deb, Ethan and Lex) causing plenty of trouble. The adults all being dumb asses. Plenty of arguments between Bill and Ted ofc. And probably several arguments between the nerdy prudes (grace, hcb and cineplex) and the other teens. Probably one fight between Alice and Ziggs but it gets settled quickly and they figure everything out and clear the air and become good friends.

I mean you think this amount of ppl, particularly this certain group of ppl, are going to be well organized durning the apocalypse? Hell no!

Hidgens is the only one that actually understands shit about apocalypse, he's the one who prepared! (once again: although for the wrong one) so he's constantly having to be like "no we can't do that that's dangerous!!" Emma, Alice and Lex are the only other really competent ones.

Hidgens ofc spends his time trying to find a cure, Emma helps him. If life ever goes back to normal she has an automatic A in his class for the rest of college just for going through this shit and helping him.

Tom, Bill, and Tony are the dads. They're obviously dealing with the kids. But the do mainly try and focus on their own kid because... That their kid ofc they care about them the most. But they try to take care of the other kids too.

Bill has a rough time connecting with anyone besides Alice. But Grace was always nice to him church so there's that. And ofc Alice has gf, a gf he doesn't like a ton but now he's very much stuck with so he might as well try and get along with. They eventually do.

Tom ofc like I said cares most about Tim. But after him the next he cares most about are CaliforMIA gang. Lex and Ethan were his students (I know it's not confirmed that Ethan was one of students but he is now bc I want him to be), probably his favorite students, and that Lex's little sister who's only a few years older than Tim, ofc he's also gonna care a lot about them.

Tony also cares alot about Lex and Hannah, that's his son's gf and her little sister, once again, ofc he'll care about them alot too.

Becky absolutely cares about all the kids a ton!! She's a nurse who works with kids, she's very nurturing and mother like. She cares for and about them all fairly equally but Tim is her favorite because... Well that's her bf's son and she's known him the longest out of any of the kids ofc. Lex and Hannah end up loving Becky alot because she's so much kinder and sweet than their biological mother.

Before the apocalypse Ted took care of HCB, now he's still taking care of him ofc. Ted doesn't want to be taking care of any of the kids besides his brother. He wants to drink and party and stuff. I mean it's the apocalypse so why not? But he ends up taking care of Grace and Cineplex quite a bit too. This happens not bc others aren't taking care of them, they are being taken by the other plenty well (like I said the dads and Becky all care for all the kids they just have favorites) but because they see HCB going to Ted for almost everything and Ted doing stuff for/helping out HCB so they're like "well okay guess we'll go to him too" He's not happy about it. He already has to deal with his obnoxious little nerdy prude bother and now there's two more? But part of them reminds him a lot of himself when he was younger. Maybe that's why he doesn't like them, or also maybe that's why secretly likes them a ton?

Hidgens, Emma, Ted, Tom and Lex are the ones that go out most often because they're the only who are really able to fight off the zombies and stay safe a stuff (okay Ted not so much as the others but they bring him anwyay cause Henry's like "he looks like he can use gun or something" and Emma, Paul, Bill and Charlotte are all like "this is a horrible idea don't bring him" but they do anwyay. He doesn't kill any of the others so hey why not keep bringing him? Besides if something goes wrong they can use him as bait or throw him to the zombies to get them off the rest of the group /hj)

Other ppl in Hatchetfield exist of course and are out they're trying to survive. Sam and Pamela are some of the first to die that's karma bitch

Lex and Hannah were living with Pamela ofc when the apocalypse hit, the girls wanted to go somewhere safer but Pam wouldn't let them, then one day she went out and got turned into a Zombie, the girls quickly took that as their chance to escape and they went to Tony and Ethan and then ofc ended up at Hidgens'

Charlotte was with Sam before he turned into a Zombie and then when he did she ran to Ted & HCB and stayed with them before they ended up at Hidgens'

Gary and MIAH are together and trying to survive on they're own. Sylvia, Melissa, and Greenpeace Girl end up meeting each other and decide to gang up together and they're badasses. Dan and Donna are two focused on the news and finding out if Peanuts is surving (which yes, Peanuts, (as well as Papa Ed.. At least for a while) are doing fine) and they die pretty quickly. Holloway and Duke are doing great, Holloway's a witch so yeah she's good and ofc Duke is with her so he's good too.

Lucy is in Hatchetfield and she's already in the woods vibing with Chumby before the apocalypse hits (THAM doesn't happen in this universe and instead Lucy ends up finding Chumby own her own because uh??? Reasons??? Idk bc I said so) the two of them have no idea there's a zombie apocalypse. The Paul clones take this apocalypse as they're chance to escape, Paul23 leading the uprising ofc, they don't kill Paul and take his place tho, instead it's more like "there's a zombie apocalypse? Oh fuck yeah!" *escapes* "oh theres a zombie apocalypse oh no-" some try to stay in a group and live together, some try to go out their own. There's now a bunch of random Pauls and Paul zombies around town. The main gang do end up seeing the clones and they're all just kind like "uhhh wtf???" except Paul, he's absolutely freaking out, the clones kinda are just "uhh haha how do we explain this".

Spoiler alert: the world isn't destroyed. How? Not totally sure yet but probably through Hidgens managing to find a cure and time travel. Emdriod has traveled back in time to replace Emma, but oopsie she didn't travel back far enough so she can't kill Emma in Guatemala, so she goes to Hatchetfield in hopes she can kill Emma when no ones looking and just replace her then, but oh no there's apocalypse so thats a much bigger issue. She survives easily, she's strong af, doesn't need food, all that jazz. She and Emma do meet each other and it's another "wtf?" "how do I explain this?" situation. But Emdriod lies ofc and kinda explains what happened but said that she accidentally time travelled and leaves out the whole wanted to kill her part. Now the Emdriod has found Emma she does try to kill her, that's awfully hard to do tho considering Emma is literally always with a group of people, and Emdriod doesn't want to just kill Emma right in front of everyone bc then they'll all hate her and her goal isn't to just kill Emma it's too replace her. She end up giving up and she runs into Paul 23 and they bond of my doubles of someone and wanted to kill that somoen at first and then fall in love and kill zombies together :)

Ohh uhh other ships: Paulkins, Lexthan, Barneston, Potseed (Alice x Deb) ofc. Charted, Obnoxious Teens (HCB x Cineplex Kid) oh and ofc Holloduke. Uhh Bill x being okay for once, Ted x probably not dying for once (not too sure about that one yet) Hidgens x not actually trying to murder someone for once

Wait wait I just got idea: the zombie apocalypse occurs BECAUSE of Hidgens, he tries too bring back the working boys (remember his original backstory with accidentally killing them and stuff??)

Okay I think that's all I got for now

#starkid #hatchetfield #tgwdlm #black friday #nightmare time

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Fic Titles Based On Common Sayings Masterlist

a game of chance (ao3) - danhoweiis

Summary: Phil worked at Chance and Counters, a board game cafe in North East London. One definite perk of the last few weeks had been the guy who Phil was now delivering a coffee too. Phil had been smitten from the second he stepped through the door which was something he now wished he hadn’t told his friend and manger Nate, so he could have saved himself being teased every time Cute Dan (as Phil had affectionately called him after overhearing someone say his name) came in

A Price To Pay - placingglaciers

Summary: In which Phil has a massive cliché crush on his writing tutor, the most popular guy at college, and gets invited to one of his legendary parties. One requirement though: Phil needs a plus one.

All the Time in the World (ao3) - inchresting_ideas

Summary: Dan's immortal and Phil's a time traveler. Wherever Phil jumps, he keeps seeing Dan. How unlucky considering the pair hate each other.

Brick By Brick - auroraphilealis

Summary: No one said having an unmated Alpha and an unmated Omega living under the same roof was going to be easy, but add in a mess of feelings and desire, and things go from bad to worse. When Phil Lester asked his best friend, Dan Howell, to move in with him, he thought he could ignore his feelings and refrain from submitting, but with an oblivious Dan scenting him every other day, he decides he has to put a stop to it. Jealousy and misunderstandings collide to throw their lives into chaos, forcing both men to reconsider their relationship. Will they ever get their happy ending, or will prevalent sexism force them apart?

Drunk Words Are Sober Thoughts - danhasacrushonphil

Summary:  The opportunity of a life time comes in the form of Phil Lester actually showing up at a party, all tattoos and bright blue eyes. Dan's been crushing on him for far too long, so getting the chance to play Never Have I Ever with his crush? Yeah, he can't pass that one up. What could go wrong?

Easy Does It (ao3) - intoapuddle

Summary: Maybe, somehow, sex can be... cute.

Half-Assing It (ao3) - americanphancakes

Summary: Dan's brain decides it's sick of this gray-beige life, and it takes him out of his comfort zone.

Kick Me While I'm Down (ao3) - jerseker

Summary: Dan and Phil meet in an adult kickball league. Phil is just there to make friends. Dan is - not.

Like Father, Like Son (ao3) - INeverHadMyInternetPhase (BirbWatcher)

Summary: Phil is a good teacher, he is. He just can’t control Samuel Howell. And turns out he can’t control Samuel Howell’s single dad, either. (Or, the one where Dan's a single dad and a bad influence, and Phil's the teacher who has to deal with the consequences)

Looks Can Be Deceiving (ao3) - Phanfictionhoe

Summary: The new kid that scares everyone because of his looks teaches Dan that you really shouldn't judge a book by its cover.

Never Judge A Book By Its Cover - dxnhowell

Summary: Dan thinks Phil is a snobby, popular kid who cares too much about his reputation. Dan and Phil bump into each other while they’re out and Phil’s with his Grandma. His Grandma tells Dan how much Phil talks about him and Dan finds it cute. Dan and Phil start talking and get to know each other, and Dan realizes how wrong he was about Phil.

no place like home (ao3) - dizzy

Summary: Dan and Phil have a stop to make after they're finished filming for Hometown Showdown in Winnersh.

on cloud nine (ao3) - outphan

Summary: Sometimes they have great sex. Sometimes they have not-so-great sex. Sometimes they have sex that accidentally gets live streamed to 12k people.

Opposites Attract - dxnhowell

Summary: Dan is the school’s bad boy while Phil is the shy nerd who likes to wear flower crowns, and things take a turn when they both end up in detention.

Plenty of Fish in the Sea (ao3) - Portia331

Summary: Phil has another great idea, and spends some time in the sunshine with his bestie.

silver and gold (ao3) - happy_endings15

Summary: At twelve years old, all Phil wants is someone who really gets him. That and a chance to go to Manchester without his mum and dad for once.

Little does he know, the best things in life are right around the corner. Phil just has to be patient.

Sparks Fly (ao3) - counting2fifteen

Summary: Dan and Phil’s vacation after Vidcon is going well, until a mistake from Phil sets the whole thing up in flames.

Stranger Danger (ao3) - intoapuddle

Summary: Dan thinks he's the most awkward guy on the tube until he spots a guy that seems to be in an even worse condition than himself.

Take a Picture (It'll Last Longer) (ao3) - phantasticworks

Summary: Dan and Phil meet at 2 a.m. in a coffee shop. Phil is a photographer looking for a model, and Dan can't say no to pretty boys.

The Cat’s Out Of The Bag - adayinthelifeofphan

Summary: Cat uploads a video without realizing Dan and Phil are kissing in the background, which pushes them to make an announcement video (little angst/fluff)

third times the charm (ao3) - jestbee

Summary: Phil doesn't get sick in Japan, Dan worries anyway.

What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas (ao3) - seagurl

Summary: "Guess who's married!" Dan shouted at the camera, a small white veil on his head. "These gaylords!" --- There's just something about Vegas air that makes you think everything sounds like a smashing idea. Even getting married. Completely smashed.

#phanfictioncatalogue #phan #phanfic #phanfiction #dan and phil #masterlists #fictitles masterlist #fictitles

[mysterious-prophetess]

Thanks to there being something of a resurrection of the Phandom on my dash, I’d like to share an AU concept I’ve come up with.

I call it “Fenton’s Inferno.

The rest will be below the read more

Danny died mere days before the Portal accident was supposed to half-kill him.

This has set all sorts of timelines into disarray.

Maddie Fenton, reeling from her son’s death throws herself into her work double-checking everything and finding the ‘On/Off’ switch was INSIDE the portal so she made sure it was unplugged flicked it on and once they’d done more of their due diligence, the Fentons fired up the Portal.

Shortly after, they use their Specter Speeder to go into the zone and find the Ghost Zone is nothing like they’d imagined. 

As Jack is blathering about the data, Maddie’s eye is caught by strange doors in front of strange pockets. 

One in particular seems to be a door that looks uncannily like the one to their ghost zone and it’s in front of what looks like Cape Canaveral crossed with the Moon. They enter it after a moment.

There, with a sort of blue-white skin tone, white hair, and glowing green eyes floating in front of a space telescope was Danny.

“Mom? Dad!?”

His retaining of his sentience and memories was a shock.

“Is it really you, Dan-o?” Jack asked.

“In the…ectoplasm,” Danny said awkwardly.

“What is this?”

“It’s my lair! All Ghosts have them, or so my mentor says!”

“Mentor?”

“Yeah, like a ghost that guides you through being dead?”

“But you weren’t supposed to die that day,” Maddie said suddnely. And in her heart she somehow knew that to be true.

“I’m not even the youngest ghost here,” Danny said rubbing the back of his neck.

“Aren’t you mad you’re dead?” Jack asked.

“Disappointed maybe? There was so much I wanted to do but I’m ok. It wasn’t your fault,” Danny said.

“Then come back with us to the human world.”

“Can’t do that. Ghosts belong in the ghost zone,” Danny said.

“Has anyone ever tried to fix death?” Maddie asked.

“Way too many and it doesn’t end up well,” Danny said. 

He paused and floated over to a corner of the lair and came back with something.

“My…mentor ghost. He…he doesn’t think I should have died either. Take this. I have a spare.” 

It was a cog-shaped medallion with “CW” on it.

“Talk to him.”

——————— ———————

Him turned out to be a powerful entity called Clockwork.  He agrees with Maddie.

Danny should not be dead.(fully)

Danny’s premature full death has royally screwed up the timelines and mostly in negative manners.

“Though, should we bring him back? He seemed happy in that lair,” Maddie said.

“But he wasn’t. Maddie, he was only tying to make us feel better so we could move on.”

“That’s precisely what he was doing. Your son has a remarkable capacity for helping others.”

“How can we bring him back? You’re the master of all time? Can’t we time travel back to when he died?”

“Afraid not in this case. A couple of near-sighted eyes are keeping too close a watch on me to simply allow humans through.”

“Then what can we do?”

“There is a way to restore your son’s human existence, something only a human can do. Follow me.”

———————————— —————————

Clockwork leads Maddie and Jack to a part of the Ghostzone that feels both empty yet filled with…something

“This is as far as I can go. Within you’ll face many trials. Life is not cheap. To restore your son, you will need to pay a hefty price.”

“Name any price and I’ll pay it!” Jack said.

“Even your own life?”

“If that’s all it takes, you can have it!”

“Good. Keep that passion. You’re going to need it and this: good luck.”

——————————— ———————

From here the idea is Jack and Maddie have to face different trials based on their own lives, fears, and ambitions all while passing lower and lower into this strange dungeon like building.

Unfortunately for them, they’ve had a stalker: Skulker.

He reports them to Vlad who first barges into Danny’s lair to meet “the little badger”

He’s shocked that Danny’s lair is so complex when Danny’s only been a ghost for a month.

It’s my personal HC that Danny would have always been a powerful ghost and Full Ghost!Danny’s powers are celestial based and he’d, eventually, be strong enough to challenge Pariah Dark but the Observants don’t care that Vlad’s actions would cause wide-scale death and destruction in the human world by the time Full Ghost! Danny had grown powerful enough to take on the Ghost King and take his place.

As far as the observants are concerned, Clockwork merely needs to groom Danny into a good future Ghost King and keep him safe during Pariah’s rampage.

So Vlad tries schmoozing up to Danny realizing this ghost would eventually be powerful and offers him protection.

Danny declines and taps his medallion.

Vlad can’t exactly top Clockwork in power level and he knows it.

So he finds the Descent with Skulker’s help

Vlad being a halfa can, of course, enter but Skulker cannot.

But Vlad’s ghost powers are on the fritz.

So now it’s a race between the Fentons and Vlad to get to the bottom and bring Danny back.

Vlad, so he can have Maddie and Danny in his debt.

The Fentons because they love their son

——————— —————

That, so far, is all I have for this AU.

BTW the reason Jack and Maddie aren’t trying to rip ghosts apart  “Molecule by molecule” is Grief. They’re not their usual selves.

#danny phantom #danny phantom AU

[orangeoctopi7]

All of Your So-Called Problems

[AO3 link]

Stan was trying to find room for the leftover Mac and Cheese in the fridge when he heard the doorbell. He grumbled a few obscenities under his breath as he trudged towards the door. He was NOT in the mood for visitors tonight, even if they might be paying customers. The fact that a demon was trying to break into the house to steal some world-ending piece of junk from Ford didn’t help.

"We're closed!" He shouted before he even peeked out the window. He pulled back the blinds just enough to glare at whoever thought it was a good idea to drop by this late, and his eyebrows raised nearly to his receding hairline when he saw who it was.

"Wendy!? Since when do you knock?" Stan couldn't think of a single time she hadn't just come in and made herself at home since she'd started working at the Shack.

"Since Dipper told me you answered the door with a loaded gun earlier today." The teen answered as Stan opened the door.

"Gonna have to have a talk with that runt about blabbing." Stan rolled his eyes. "What, you having a movie night with the kids?"

"Not exactly." The teen jerked a thumb over her shoulder, and Stan finally noticed the rest of the Corduroy family standing just behind her, right off the porch. They were all carrying sleeping bags and pillows.

"...Wha?" Stan could only utter a surprised grunt as his brain tried to piece together why it looked like the entire Corduroy family was here for a sleepover. 

"Dipper called me and said we could stay here until your brother puts up a barrier around our house." Wendy explained, noticing her boss's confusion. "...Aaand he never even told you anything about it, did he?"

"He sure didn't." Stan deadpanned.

As if on cue, Dipper and Ford both stepped into the entryway.

"Oh, Wendy, you're here already!" Dipper said, voice dripping with faked surprise. "I forgot to ask Grunkle Stan if it was ok for you guys to stay the night. But gosh, since you're already here, I guess we can't turn you away!"

"You can drop the act, bucko, I wrote the book on It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission." Stan folded his arms disapprovingly. "The answer's still no. We're already putting up one freeloader."

"I'm the one who said they could stay." Ford said firmly.

Stan turned his glare to his brother. "This isn't a safehouse, genius!"

"It's my house, Stanley!"

"Where are they even gonna sleep!?"

"Well, perhaps we'd have some place to put up guests if you hadn't turned the two largest rooms into a tourist trap!"

"Oh, like you kept the place ready for company when you lived here!" Stan countered. "These rooms were both filled to the brim with your weird experiments when I got here!"

“Hey, we can sleep outside like men, if it’s too much trouble to put us up!” Manly Dan interrupted the brothers’ argument.

“Unfortunately, that’s not an option.” Ford shook his head. “The barrier barely extends past the front porch.” 

Ford quickly took a mental survey of where there might be extra room. The basement lab was out. He’d finished dismantling the portal, but he was storing the rift down there for now. His secret study was supposed to be a secret, and he still needed to clear out all that old Bill memorabilia. The attic was already taken by Dipper and Mabel. Stanley still had the main bedroom, and Fiddleford was currently sleeping on the couch in the upstairs study. That left the den, which might be large enough for one or two people, but certainly not a family of five. If only Stan hadn’t filled his old experiment and specimen rooms with useless junk! Sure, the rooms hadn’t exactly been empty before, but Ford at least would have known what things could be moved where to make room for their guests. Even his old thinking parlor was… wait…

“What about the parlor?” The old researcher asked.

Stan shrugged. “I kinda use it as a space for rotating exhibits, or whatever else I need at the time. Pretty sure it’s still full of leftover campaigning junk.”

“So, nothing we can’t throw out then.”

“Not so fast, genius, I still haven’t agreed to letting anyone stay here.”

“This is an emergency, Stanley!” Ford fumed. “And besides, it’s not your decision to make!”

Stan regarded the Corduroy family still standing awkwardly on his porch, and tried to imagine Manly Dan with those disturbing yellow eyes he’d seen on that time traveler earlier. He tried to picture the hulking lumberjack acting like that erratic demon. It was not a pleasant thought.

“Alright, fine.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “But only because I don’t want any of these ax-weidling giants possessed by a triangular serial-killer. And don’t expect me to provide any bedding or food!”

“Yeah, we can probably snare ourselves a few squirrels or something.” Wendy’s oldest brother assured Stan.

Stan grimaced. “On second thought, help yourselves to some canned meat. Only the stuff that’s expired though!”

“Thanks Stan.” Wendy said. “For giving us a place to stay until this blows over, not for the expired meat.”

“What? They pad that date out by at least a year. As long as it smells fine, it’s good to eat.” Stan defended himself.

The teen rolled her eyes but stepped into the Shack, followed by her family.

Ford observed them all carefully as they entered. No hesitation or sign of even noticing it as they crossed over the barrier. So they definitely weren’t possessed now. He would have to keep a close eye on them while they stayed. He knew that Dipper trusted Wendy, and that was good enough for him, for now, but the others? Ford vaguely remembered Dan from when he’d been a young man, building this very cabin for him. He’d been friendly, loud, and boisterous. It appeared his sons were cut from the same cloth. But it was hard to say whether or not Bill could convince any of them to try and smash the rift.

“So Wendy, did you manage to get more unicorn hair?” Dipper asked as he helped her lay out a sleeping bag in the parlor.

“Oh yeah. I just snuck into that glade again with a pair of shears and a tranq dart. Works just as well as fairy dust.” She handed a grocery bag full of rainbow hair to Ford.

Ford made a mental note to add that tidbit to the Journal 1 entry on unicorns later. “I’ll get started on it first thing tomorrow.”

Mabel came downstairs to help just a minute later. After a lot of rearranging of campaign signs and novelty phones, everyone had a sleeping space set out. Dan took Stan’s recliner in the den, and his youngest son set out a sleeping bag at his feet. The oldest three children laid out their sleeping bags between the piles of junk in the parlor. 

“Ohmigosh, Dipper, we should pull our mattresses down here and have a mega-sleepover!” Mabel gasped as she pushed the last of the campaign signs into a corner.

“What was the point of clearing out all this junk if we aren’t even gonna sleep in our own beds?” Dipper asked tiredly.

“Hmm, good point. Maybe Barry and Stuart can sleep in our beds, and we can sleep down here with Wendy!”

Dipper and Wendy’s middle brother both blushed beet red.

“Uh… I mean… I, uh, I don’t think Wendy would want to sleep with me--US! With us!” Dipper stammered.

“M-me? Sleep in a g-girl’s room? Like a room that a girl sleeps in?” The middle brother gulped.

“Yyyeah, I think we’re good where we are.” Wendy said cooly, trying to diffuse the awkward tension in the room.

“Aw man!” Mabel pouted, but she didn’t put up any other protest than that. Dipper suspected she was still pretty worn out from the rescue mission this morning.

Eventually, everyone got settled down and the children all fell asleep. The elder Pines twins moved back to the living room to check on Dan one more time.

"Hey, now that the kids are asleep, I've been meaning to ask you something." The lumberjack said in a low rumble that was probably his version of a whisper. "How long have there been two of you?"

"Hooboy…" Stan pinched the bridge of his nose. He really didn't want to retread this again.

"I'm Stanford. I'm the one you first met when you built this place for me. My brother Stanley has been living here under my name for the last 30 years." Ford summarized tiredly. Apparently he wasn't in the mood to make a big deal out of it right now either.

Stan could practically see the gears turning in Manly Dan's head. Eventually the grizzled lumberjack nodded. "Yeah, that adds up."

With that, he turned over and went to sleep. Stan was a little surprised that the guy accepted their explanation just like that. But then again, Dan had lived in Gravity Falls his whole life.

Ford grabbed a folding chair from the card table and carried it out into the giftshop.

"Are you seriously gonna stay up and keep watch over that snowglobe thing all night?" Stan asked incredulously.

"My usual sleeping place is already occupied, I may as well." 

"Y’know, operating on so little sleep just makes you more likely to screw up.”

“Don’t worry. I’m well accustomed to it.”

“Not reassuring.” Stan said flatly, turning and climbing the stairs up to his room. If he was being perfectly honest with himself, he probably wouldn’t sleep a wink tonight either. But at least he was going to try. Ford was going to run himself ragged if he kept up this pace.

- - -

Nights in prison were the worst part of the whole ordeal, in Gideon's opinion. At least during the day, he was able to sway the other inmates to do what he wanted. There was a sort of mob mentality that he could take control of. But at night, it was just Gideon and his cell-mate, and there was nothing the boy could do to stop the hulking man from taking his pillow and doing whatever he wanted with it. 

Last week, the convicted felon had staged a wedding in their cell. He’d made a veil out of toilet paper and hummed “Here Comes the Bride” and everything. Tonight, he seemed to be discussing the possibility of children with his new “wife”.

“But Tessa, your mother and your aunt both died in childbirth! I’m just worried about you, honey!” He paused for whatever imagined reply the pillow gave. “Adoption, you say? I’ll admit, I had not considered it.”

Gideon groaned. He couldn’t even put a pillow over his ears to try and block out the nonsense! He’d tried to persuade the warden to let him switch cell mates so he could room with Ghost Eyes, but apparently they were “both instigators” and putting them both in the same cell would be “asking for a prison riot”.

The boy’s eyes flicked with annoyance to the cat poster still hiding his last attempt to summon Bill Cipher. The triangle had appeared and promised he was working on something, but so far Bill had failed to deliver.

“Stupid useless demon!” Gideon muttered under his breath. He rolled over, expecting another sleepless night.

Well, it did turn out to be sleepless, but not for the reason he’d anticipated.

It was a little past 10 PM when Gideon heard the familiar sound of an old van’s engine revving. He’d heard it many times on his father’s used car lot, but what on earth would one of those junkers be doing here?

That’s when he heard the unmistakable sound of a van crashing through a wall. Followed by the even more unmistakable sound of a machine gun.

“Heavens to Betsy, what was that!?” Gideon ran to his barred window just in time to see a pudgy man with a machine gun walk away from the wreckage of where a large van had burst through the prison wall. His maniacal laughter sounded familiar.

“Well whaddya know? Bill came through!” Gideon said in a hushed whisper. 

He dove away from the window with a yelp a second later when the machine gun started firing in his direction. A few seconds later there was a much quieter bang as a tall ladder hit the wall just outside the window. 

“HEY GIDEON, I HEARD YOU WERE GETTING TIRED OF YOUR PRISON AND WANT TO FIND SOMEPLACE NEW TO PARTY?”

“Bill!?”

“THE ONE AND ONLY!”

“Are you trying to kill me, you maniac!?” 

“YEESH, YOU FLESH-SACKS ARE SO SENSITIVE! YOU’RE FINE. BESIDES, I NEEDED TO LOOSEN THESE BARS!” He ripped out the bars on the window with ease. They’d already been loosened by the machine gun fire. “YOU COMING OR NOT? I NEED YOUR HELP STAGING A LITTLE PRISON BREAK OF MY OWN.”

Gideon pouted and followed the demon down the ladder, grumbling the whole way.

“... You know what, Tessa? I don’t think I want kids after all.” Gideon’s cowering cell mate said after they left. 

Bill kept the guards off them with plenty of machine gun fire, but he had little regard for who he was shooting at, guard or prisoner. He even narrowly missed Gideon on a few occasions.

“Oooh, I hope Killbone’s foot will be ok.” The boy hissed sympathetically as he saw one of his inmate friends go down.

“NAH, HE’S CRIPPLED FOR LIFE!”

They finally made it to the van, and Gideon climbed into the passenger-side door. Bill followed after him.

“A-aren’t you gonna drive?” The boy asked.

“TCH, FUNNY! I JUST RAMMED THIS THING THROUGH THREE WALLS OF CONCRETE; YOU THINK THE MEASLY COMBUSTION ENGINE STILL WORKS?” He flicked a lighter on and dropped it down between the driver’s seat and the steering wheel. Gideon could smell the gasoline. This thing was going to blow any second. He scampered over the benches and out the back door. Bill followed casually behind him.

“Then how are we supposed to get away!?” Gideon demanded as he sprinted to put distance between himself and the burning van.

“RELAX, SHORT-STACK, I’VE GOT A SECOND GET-AWAY CAR RIGHT HERE!” Bill pointed out a small black Audi parked behind a tall tree.

“Then why did you set the van on fire?” Gideon asked in confusion.

“BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT’D BE FUN.” Bill grinned as the van blew up behind them. Gideon screamed and ducked to avoid fiery flying debris. “AND I WAS RIGHT!”

Gideon got into Bill’s car. There was no child’s car seat. “You better drive careful.” He warned the demon.

“AHAHAHAHA, OH GIDEON, YOU’RE ALWAYS A RIOT!” Bill struggled to shift the car into drive, and Gideon had just enough time to realize with horror that the demon didn’t really know how to operate a human vehicle before it sped off through the trees.

#Gravity Falls #Fanfiction #Stanford Pines #Stanley Pines #Gideon Gleeful #Bill Cipher #My Writing