#Video of all the texts linked for convenience!

[somegrumpynerd]

While we're doing soriel propaganda we can't forget how these dorks fight to impersonate each other over texts to you

#Soriel #Sans #Toriel #Video of all the texts linked for convenience! #I'm just always thinking about this so much #They're such absolute nerds and it warms my heart #I just have to imagine everyone else in that final room watching them wrestle for the phone while giggling like kids #Thinking that they just met like 10 mins ago and wondering what is up #My Art

[thetreetopinn]

Sources for Somerton's Plagiarism from Hbomberguy's Video (as much as I could get)

I went back through Harry's video, focused entirely on the sources James Somerton pulled from in the hopes of creating as much of a comprehensive list as I could--though my Google-Fu is not very strong. I did however find something I thought was forever lost and that made me very happy--specifically the magazine Midlands Zone containing the column by Steven Spinks that Harry poignantly used as an illustration of gay erasure... while Somerton uses it to sound like HE is waxing remorseful about the very subject.

This is not a complete list, I'm sure. For one thing, I was only able to attempt to pull sources that Harry himself mentioned in the video. Surely there's so very much more out there. I expect there to be a great deal more internet archeology to unearth just how much writing and culture Somerton has stolen like he's the British Museum of Natural History but for gay people.

- - - - -

Harry's list of mentioned youtubers:

Alexander Avila - https://www.youtube.com/@alexander_avila Matt Baume - https://www.youtube.com/@MattBaume Khadija Mbowe - https://www.youtube.com/@KhadijaMbowe Lady Emily - https://www.youtube.com/@LadyEmilyPresents Shanspeare - https://www.youtube.com/@Shanspeare RickiHirsch - https://www.youtube.com/@RickiHirsch VerilyBitchie - https://www.youtube.com/@verilybitchie

Harry created a convenient playlist of videos by these and other people he wants to bring to everyone's attention.

Please give them your support.

- - - - -

Midlands Zone Magazine - Column by Steven Spinks

After a great deal of searching, I found an archive of the "Midlands Zone" magazine, where you can read through past issues dating all the way back to February 2014. I have also found the issue from which Somerton took Spinks' poignant discussion of gay erasure: Overall archive Specific Issue - Pages 16-17

It will not allow you to download it, but you can read it exactly as it appeared in print form.

- - - - -

My best effort to find the exact book or article Somerton lifted from to be able to get attention to the original writers

Tinker Bells and Evil Queens By Sean Griffin

The Celluloid Closet By Vito Russo Wikipedia article about the book Wikipedia article about the documentary My weak google-fu could not find where you can access the book or documentary. Check your local municipal or university library for book or documentary, or if you know a good source for one or both, please reblog with it added

Camp and the Gay Sensibility By Jack Babuscio

The Groundbreaking Queerness of Disney's Mulan By Jes Tom Personal site with links to social media accounts

Why Rebel Without a Cause was a milestone for gay rights By Peter Howell

Why "The Craft" is still the best Halloween coming out movie By Andrew Park

Opinion: From facehuggers to phallic tails, is 'Alien' one of the queerest films ever? By Dani Leever

Women and Queerness in Horror: Jennifer's Body By Zoe Fortier

[Pride 2019] We Have Such Sights to Show You: Hellraiser and the Spectrum of Queerness By Alejandra Gonzalez

Revealing the Hellbound Heart of Clive Barker's 'Hellraiser' By Colin Arason

Queering James Cameron's Aliens (1986) By Bart Bishop

Demeter and Persephone in space: transformation, femininity, and myth in the 'Alien' films By David Greven

Fears of a millennial masculinity: Scream's queer killers By David Greven (Scholarly site, unable to access original work, offers a way to request a full copy of the text in PDF)

Queer Subtext in Stephen King's It - Part 1: 'Reddie' Character Analysis By Rachel Brands Rachel is the very unfortunate lady who found out she was being stolen from because she supported Somerton through Patreon and saw one of his videos early with her writing--lacking any form of citation or credit

How 'It: Chapter Two' Leaves Richie Tozier Behind By Joelle Monique

When Horror Becomes Strength: Queer Armor in Stephen King's 'IT' By Alex London

Why Queer People Love Witchcraft By Amanda Kohr

'The Favourite' Queers The Past And The Present By Giorgi Plys-Garzotto

(Wuko) Crush (Mako x Wu) By MoonFlower on YouTube

5 Terrible Movies With Awesome Hidden Meanings By J.F. Sargent

The Radicalization of Sexuality: The Queer Casae of Jeffrey Dahmer By Ian Barnard

Netflix's 'Dahmer' backlash highlights ethical issues in the platform's obsession with true crime By Shivani Dubey

The Possible Disturbing Dissonance Between Hajime Isayama's Beliefs and Attack on Titan's Themes Original Article by "Seldom Musings" (Author has made all posts not related to Attack On Titan private and has retired from the blog)

Everyone Loves Attack on Titan. So Why Does Everyone Hate Attack on Titan? By Gita Jackson

- - - - -

The following people are otherwise named in the video. There are no direct citations of articles or books by them in said video. I am unable to guarantee that I have identified the correct individual.

Darren Elliott-Smith Michaela Barton David Church Claire Sisco King Amanda Howell Jessica Roy

- - - - -

Telos announced and cancelled a film likely based on this book: The Final Girl Support Group - By Grady Hendrix

- - - - -

I refrained from including certain sources.

First off only focusing on Somerton's work.

Secondly not including anything that might be visible enough to not require amplifying their voice (I cannot speak for all of those I have found links to, but journalism is frequently a thankless job).

Thirdly any source that is of a nature that is antithetical to the very existence of the queer community, such as the right-leaning source that didn't make it into Somerton's video, but Harry was able to identify as a source he had considered using.

If you feel I have missed a mentioned source--or you know of a source from material that was not covered in Harry's video--please do not hesitate to reblog with added details.

- - - - -

Please share this information far and wide, and please add to it if you find more material that can be positively identified and linked to the creator/writer.

#hbomberguy #james somerton #Plagiarism #Queer #LGBT #LGBTQIA #youtube #Solidarity #gay erasure #Make them un-erased

[oracleofstars]

✦ 3VOLS : ISSUE 1, RAFAYEL

Featuring @maimochies, a well known Love & Deepspace author, as the spotlight creator!

IM NEW, WHATS "3VOLS" THE MAGAZINE?

This will serve as a "mini masterlist" where we compile links of works from different creators based on the character. And yes, its not limited to fanfiction. This is open to artists, graphic design/gfx creators & editors. (Basically, if you've created any kind of creative media related to the character)

MAIMOCHIES. WHO IS SHE?

mai is a rafayel enjoyer and a love & deepspace author! she has been writing in her corner of the internet with the pretty rafayel themed blog. have you seen her around? well, we have interviewed her recently with 4 simple questions. let's get to know mai better!

what got you into making love&deepspace content? are there any creators who inspired you to do so?

mai : funny enough ages ago when the first demo trailer came out for love and deepspace I didn't even know about it!! I happened to stumble upon a short clip of zayne and saved the video on a whim because he was attractive >·< then, as fate would have it, the game's official trailer popped up on my fyp and I got hooked, downloaded the game and haven't looked back since <333 l&ds is still new to the tumblr scene but I absolutely adore my mutuals' takes and fics on the boys!!

as a rafayel fan—what is your favorite headcannon of him? this can be your own or others

mai : hmmm… I think my favorite headcanon about rafayel is that he secretly cares a lot more than he lets on. lingers outside your apartment to make sure you've gotten home safe, always sending you a goodnight and good morning text, oh so conveniently shows up with a warm ready made meal when he knows you're having a particularly hard day, he cares deeply but he's scared of showing it.

if you could describe your favorite character with 5 words, what would it be?

mai : a gift from the stars

how is your time in oracle of stars so far?

so much fun!! it's such an honor to be part of such a loving and positive community. while I'm not as active as I would like to be I can see the effort that goes into the network and the server, from the graphics to the events. it's such a special place for l&ds creators to come together and uplift each other

RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE DEEPSPACE NETWORK

welcome to the rafayel masterlist, find something that piques your interest here! show some love to our creators as well <3

l&ds boys crushing on you - @ maimochies

affectionate headcanons - @ maimochies

how the l&ds boys kiss - @ maimochies

sing with me? - @ sevvynth

𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞. - @ jqnehr

𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 - @ jqnehr

birthday celebration - @ lovexdeepspace

l&ds boys + their nicknames for you - @ lovexdeepspace

JEALOUSY , JEALOUSY! - @ rafyne

MESSAGES I CANT SEND : DEAR RAFAYEL

recently we had a 3VOLS related event entitled DEAR RAFAYEL, where we send out a prompt every 7 days and you have the choice to use whichever one you wanted.

POST MASTERLIST

dear rafayel ( prompt day 1 ) - @ rafyne

dear rafayel ( prompt day 3 ) - @ sweetheartsaku

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING?

its april 5, that means our applications are open until april 10. come join us in the discord & the network. this first issue is finally done, thank you for all the support you've given the oracle. we'll see you again next time!

#🌠 - notification #love and deepspace #love and deepspace x reader #zayne x reader #zayne #rafayel x reader #love and deepspace fanart #love and deepspace rafayel #love and deepspace x reader fluff #love and deepspace xavier #rafayel #rafayel fluff #xavier #xavier x reader #xavier x reader fluff

[unboundndd]

Hi everyone >:3

The Yone lover anon is here again!!!

OMG PARANOIA IS SO AGKSHSKABSHSHJSJSKS *convulses*

I have been analyzing every detail of the video clip and I have seen the statuses and tweets from the official platforms, it is always a pleasure to see our favorite swordsman interact <3

Well, getting to the point, I have already asked for this request but I wanted to see your execution cause, wow girl, I love your writing, it is exquisite :')

The request is this: Maybe a Yone x fangirl!reader?

Buuut, but but!! That their first face-to-face meeting was a surprise, I explain, she and Yone had met on Discord and had been interacting a little, when the two agreed to meet then she gets a BIG surprise, I hope I make myself understood

Sorry for the amount of text, I have expanded here

Anyway, I hope you take care of yourself and enjoy the new content that is coming out as much as I do

-🍄

Omg hi 🍄 anon!! ♡ Thank you so so much for your very inspirational Yone musings, I hope that me spacing out on the wordlbuilding a bit will not influence the pure fangirling that is going on in our heads!

In this universe Yone strikes me as someone who actually knows a lot about technology and i'm sorry... he produces music for rythm games. And yes he does those extremely complicated and highly detailed songs that are like the hardest charts in the game.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- Yone's career as a producer and DJ has not been the easiest one, the genres that fascinated him the most were usually not appreciated by a wider audience. The busy notes of electronic samples overlapping one another weren't designed to appaise the need for easy listening music in convenience stores or to climb the charts by becoming viral on social media, in fact the most recognition Yone's music had gotten before heartsteel was in the small niche of rythm game players.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- It was never the big game developers that contacted him, they had collaborations with world renouned producers and famous idols that voiced their characters. On the other hand smaller studios would often ask him to make one or two tracks for their games, which Yone would gladly accept to do. Despite the limited reach the producer was still proud of his work, always buying a copy of the games where his music appeared and keeping in touch with the communities that formed around them with a discord account that would't reveal who he really was.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You were just a casual player of one of those games, sometimes coming into its dedicated discord servers to chat with like minded people. When people asked you about your favorite songs in the game you would most likely reply with one of the songs Yone produced, often going into detail about what made them resonate with you so much and what made them so unique in your opinion.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- Under the guise of anonymity Yone would sometimes join the conversation, asking questions and indirectly getting some feedback from you, even finding it helpful with his writer's block sometimes. It was enough for the man to send you a DM to discuss more of your shared music tastes, hoping you'd reply.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- Your discussions quickly settled into a developing friendship, you knew the man had an extensive knowledge in music theory as he would sometimes ramble about it with you and he also told you that because of a new job offer he would become more and more busy as time went on. You'd still keep recommending songs to each other but the conversations would be less and less, you missed your friend but you knew that his work was more important than chatting about music.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- That was until Heartsteel's debut was announced with a small teaser, showing all the members and a small snippet of their new single. You immediately recognized the familiar electronic sound of the songs that made you and Yone bond in the first place, the nostalgic feeling making you smile. You decided to send a link of the teaser to him, asking for thoughts and sharing the hype about the new band.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- Yone had never felt so guilty yet glad that he never revealed that he had produced those rythm game songs to you. You were so familiar with his style that you spotted it immediately, you could've uncovered that he was actually part of the band! He tried to stop himself from asking more of what you thought of the members, thought of him, but quickly surrendered to the fact that hearing you gush about how much you liked his music gave him even more reasons to keep going.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- When he asked who your favorite member was he almost spit water on his midi keyboard, causing Aphelios to turn around to see if he was alright. Yone composed himelf quickly, yet the message you wrote kept resonating in his mind. "Oh I'm totally in love with Yone, looking at him and his interactions on twitter he sounds like a bit of a band mom and I find it really endearing! He looks like a really calm person who surrounds himself with a ton of unhinged friends! Too bad he hasn't revealed his voice yet! "

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- Of course all of this didn't go past Aphelios, Kayn, Sett, K'Sante and even Alune. They realized he was spending more time than normal on his phone, reading your thoughts on the new promotional materials that were being posted. Kayn was the one who confronted him first and could not stop laughing when he realized Yone had started to develop some feelings for you, scrolling trough the messages the younger man could also see that you were starting to feel the same way for him.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- As much as the Kayn was amused at the absurdity of Yone falling for his online friend turned fangirl, he alsoknew he had to help his fellow bandmate, barging into the common room to tell everyone what was going on and fill Ezreal in as he was oblivous to the whole ordeal. It took all of them a good half hour to concoct a plan to make a meeting between you and Yone happen, then another half hour was needed to convince the producer that this was indeed a good idea and that you would not take it as badly as he imagined.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- When Yone said he wanted to voice chat with you out of the blue you were a bit confused but excited. You were happy to hear his voice after one year of being friends and made sure to reserve a few hours just for him, as you went about your day your mind started to wander a bit about what it would sound like and if your conversations would flow just as smoothly as they did via text.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You were starting to feel a bit nervous when you picked up the call, timidly muttering a "hello?" and waiting for any sort of reply. "Oh Hello, it's nice to finally be able to associate a voice to the person." You could not help but squeal a little on the inside, who would have known that his voice sounded so rich and felt so mature? The two of you talked for a while about how long overdue your call was and how time had flown since you first met, it truly didn't feel like your first conversation at all.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You finally gave into the curiosity and asked him if there was any particular reason for Yone to have wanted to voice chat now and his reply almost left you speechless. "So... I'm know that you're very excited about the debut of Heartsteel, one of my coworkers managed to get two VIP tickets and backstage access. The thing is that the person they bought the other ticket for cancelled last minute and they gave it to me." A carefully crafted lie exited Yone's lips, all to give you an excuse to go meet him.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You couldn't help but feel a slight pang of jealousy for how lucky your friend was but you wanted to be supportive and expressed your joy for him and how excited he must have been. "Wait, you've got it all wrong. I wasn't planning on keeping the ticket." You froze for a second, all sorts of possibilities racing trough your mind. Then you heard it the notification of a discord message from Yone, he had just sent you the ticket. "Wait... so you want me to go?" You heard him chuckle as you were slowly realizing what this would imply, your heart couldn't race more than this. "You deserve to go and see them, you've kept an eye on them for a long time now. I don't want to impose it onto you so think about it for a while and let me know, will you?" Useless to say that you spent a very long amount of time asking him if he was sure about it and then thanking him profusely, this truly was one of your dreams come true.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- During the day of the debut concert the Heartsteel's members grand plan was put into motion: security was well aware that as soon as your ticket number was checked in they would have been able to identify you. Security notified their manager Alune and gave her a detailed description of your looks, she too felt happy about what was going on in Yone's life and told him and the other boys to concentrate on the performance while she took care of things in the background and made sure to give you and the producer ample time to talk.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You had the time of your life at the concert, seeing how much energy and stage presence Heartsteel had in real life made their music video pale in comparison. The stage felt electric and once it was over you couldn't help but feel dizzy and overloaded but also oh so happy, seeing Yone and Aphelios playing alongside the other members was the highlight of the concert for you.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- So many things were going to your mind when you were queued up for the small meet and greet that was beeing held backstage, you were one of the last people and when it was your turn you couldn't help but feel like Sett, Kayn and Ezreal were all treating you like they somehow knew you already... and they were all hiding something. You felt their gazes following you as you finally approached Yone and even he looked like something was amiss.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You tried to ignore the feeling, you were about to meet the artist that managed to capture your attention so easily and always kept you wanting for more. You would not let this special occasion be ruined by your gut feeling! You took a few steps and prepared to greet him, hopefully having enough time to tell him how good his performance was and how much you enjoyed rooting for his success. Before you could even say a word he anticipated you and for a second you thought you had misheard everything he said.

·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- "Wait... how do you know my discord username?" You heard a few of Heartsteel's members chuckle, you did not realize how quiet the room had become as you were the last of their fans there, the laughter was interrupted by Yone speaking again. "Cut her some slack everyone, it's normal for her to be confused right now." Yone could see your eyes widen in realization you recognized his voice, he was your online friend! The one who would always listen to your rambles about the latest chart topping songs and give you his insight on what would make them so popular, the man who somehow knew your taste better than you at this point and was able to always give you spot on recommendations... ·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- The grounding touch of his hand on your shoulder snapped you back into reality, you blinked at him in disbelief and confusion... and then realized about how much you fangirled about him while being unaware of who you were talking to. "There must be many questions running trough your head right now and I don't blame you if you're angry at me for never revealing who I really was. If I hadn't been under such a strict NDA at the time maybe things could have been different..." ·:¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨:·- You gave the man a reassuring smile, you understood why he did what he did and suddenly him asking you what you thought of all the new trailers and promotional materials made sense. You were kind of honored to have been able to give feedback -although unknowingly- to a talented artist such as him. "Maybe I could clear some things up for you over dinner... I was too nervous to eat anything before the concert." You gave him a quick nod and he motioned you to follow him, you saw him gather his laptop and headphones and haistly put them in a sleek looking backpack and then taking out the keys to his car. The rest of your time spent backstage was a blur, his hand around your back was swiftly guiding you through the various areas and muttering to security guards that you were with him if they happened to enquire about you. Once in his car he could finally drop the persona and relax a bit more, the Yone you had met online was starting to show himself more and more. "Do you have any particular preferences for food?" He asked while making his way through the still packed streets of the city. "Mmh... I think I'll leave the choice to you, after all you just performend in front of thousands of people on an empty stomach." You replied, smiling at how kind he was being to you even though he must have been starving for hours. "Fine, I saw a ramen small ramen place on my way here before the concert. It will give us enough privacy for me to finally make things up to you."

#lol x reader #yone x reader #one ticket to delululand for me pls #lol yone

[hwaslayer]

project: make you love me (jyh) | one.

♣︎ spotify playlist | series masterlist

—summary: yunho can’t stand how you’re so wrapped up in the notorious campus fuckboy, park seonghwa. he would gladly love you the way you deserve, despite being shy, awkward and the complete opposite of seonghwa. thus, when he finds himself spending more time with you over literature reviews and random study sessions, he decides to take on the challenge to win you over.

—pairing: jeong yunho x f. reader x park seonghwa

—genre: (18+ - minors dni) strangers/friends to lovers, college au | fluff, angst, smut

—word count: 4.1k

—chapter warning: cussing/mature language, insecurities/overthinking, yunho also has some slight insecurities, seonghwa and sneaky links, hyunjin (skz) and yeonjun (txt) are part of oc's friend/dance group

Seonghwa doesn't really like to text or call you unless it's convenient for him. There are days where you two can engage in a normal conversation, days where Seonghwa will call you to apologize for whatever he did wrong [he normally doesn't know, but he'll do it so you aren't angry anymore], days where Seonghwa will send something that 'made him think of you' and it puts a smile on your face.

So, you do the same.

Except, it's another one of those days or nights where your texts to him go unanswered. Call unanswered. It most likely means one thing and one thing only, but you don't really wanna go there as much as you know you should.

Now, you feel dumb. You feel like you shouldn't have sent him that stupid bunny video or sent him that gameplay clip. He probably read it and tossed it aside as if it were nothing. Or maybe, he just forgot to respond. Cause that happens, right? But if it happens often, should you even cut him that slack anymore?

As you step out of the car with Seungmin, you catch a glimpse of Seonghwa stepping out of his car with another senior— another girl. Her name is Eunji, you think. Or is it Hyeri? You're not sure, you don't have much connection to the seniors besides Seonghwa.

He doesn't even go that far with you on campus.

People know you two have a casual thing going on, but of course, he doesn't go around flaunting it. He doesn't say much about you, doesn't always acknowledge you. And people brush it off because it's Seonghwa.

It's how he is.

That must be how things go with him.

After all, you've agreed to be casual, to be a body— a number to him.

Silly, Y/N.

You should've just gone there; you should've just accepted the fact so this would hurt a little less.

"You have literature, right? In the library?" Seungmin knows what you're focused on, so he tries to divert your attention before you fall too deep in your thoughts. A little too late, but you appreciate Seungmin for always catching on.

"Yeah. Ugh, dread that class so much." You scroll through your phone again, hoping you just missed a text. Nothing.

"Sorry. It'll be over soon." He tries to reassure you. "I'll walk with you."'

"Statistics?" You look up at him and he nods. "Soobin's already there?"

"Hope so. Science building isn't too far from the library." Seungmin does a slight head nod. "Just not sure how he still manages to be late sometimes." You chuckle and shrug.

"Those labs can run late."

"Touché. It shouldn't take him more than 5 minutes to jog over though."

"Cut him some slack."

"Nah." Seungmin clicks his teeth. "That's how we lose the best seats in class. In the back." He sighs. "Anyway, meet you after class? Is Chaery just gonna meet us at the studio later since she doesn't have class?"

"Yeah, think so." You swing the door open to the library and drag yourself up the steps, dread and anxiety settling into the pits of your stomach. Not only did you despise this class, but now, you felt like your thoughts were everywhere. Hopefully, you'll be able to push them aside once your professor steps through the door. You can't afford to get another bad grade on an assignment.

Wishful thinking.

Because you're incredibly distracted, even as class starts— even as Dr. Nelson puts on the remaining few minutes of the movie you started last class. You can't help but think about the situation you've gotten yourself into with Seonghwa, and why you suddenly felt so.. out of place. It felt so unusual, so far out of reach. The only thing you can admit is that you're holding on because of how many months it's been. It may not mean much to him, but to you, time is always precious, always valuable. Sure, you might have been able to hold onto him much longer than his past flings. Sure, he calls you his baby. Sure, he knows how to do you right when you're alone. But, how much longer can you keep making excuses for him?

What exactly are you holding onto at this point? A pile of empty promises that sit on shaky foundation?

You are worth more than that.

Silly, Y/N.

You look up a few times to pay some attention to the movie, doodling on your notebook in between scenes. Luckily, the last 30 minutes of the movie goes by much quicker than you expect. One minute, you're attempting to draw the prettiest building on campus; the next, Dr. Nelson is shutting off the movie before directing his attention back to the class.

"Alright, please take this time to discuss your thoughts on the movie with the person next to you and get started on your review if you'd like. It'll be due next class and I expect to see some detailed reviews with references to at least 3 scenes." Yunho's eyes subtly drift towards you, down to your notebook, then back up to you. He can tell something's bothering you, and if he could take a wild guess, he'd probably assume it's from the other night. This feels difficultly awkward because you're the only person next to him and he has to engage in conversation with you even though it's obvious you're not really up to it.

"So.. what did you think about the movie?" The deep voice next to you pulls you out of your thoughts, causing you to slowly turn your head towards him. The voice belongs to none other than senior, Jeong Yunho, who awkwardly [yet patiently] waits for your answer. You had no idea Yunho had slipped into the seat next to you this entire time— clearly distracted by your mind, your worries. He sits with a curious expression, though it's soft and nothing hostile. Your eyes quickly observe him; he's in this black tee, black cargo joggers, Nike Georgetown dunks and a backwards black hat. You had always thought Jeong Yunho was attractive, but he was incredibly quiet and reserved. Not much of a social butterfly, you suppose. Just didn't like getting close to people and always had his head down in the books. Super smart and at the top of the class. Not a mean bone in his body even though he seemed like he could be mean, intimidating.

He just.. enjoyed his own company.

"I, uh—" You pause. "Thought it was pretty intense." What else can you say? You were only stuck with this literature class because you needed an elective to fill up credits. "What about you?"

"Same. I thought it was more saddening, though. You can definitely tell they tried to incorporate as much of the book in the movie as possible, especially with Elizabeth's emotions. I'd say they did a good job of portraying the repercussions of her actions—" He goes on but he stops when he realizes you're staring at him blankly. "Mm, sorry, yeah that's about it."

"No, no. That's a good observation. I just don't know how to word my thoughts correctly." He nods.

"Understandable." He tears his eyes away from you to begin doodling in his own notebook.

"Sorry, I'm not that great at this. I hope you don't think I tried to discredit your thoughts or make you feel like I wasn't listening." His eyes shoot back up to you as he lets out a small chuckle.

"It's alright. It's not the most interesting topic of literature anyway."

"That review for homework is gonna take me forever." He's back to paying attention to his doodles at this point, but you decide to continue speaking anyway. "Hey, if you're not busy, do you.. think you could take a look at my review before it's due?"

"Me?" He asks just to make sure you were talking to him.

"Yes." You respond softly with a nod. "I mean, again. If you're not busy. I could just really use the support since I haven't done that great with the last assignments. I can't seem to paint the picture Dr. Nelson wants and you seem to have a good perspective that could help me."

"Uh, sure." He shrugs.

"I can just send it to you whenever I finish."

"Sounds good."

"Thanks for your help, Yunho." You say and he pauses doodling. Yunho wasn't even sure you knew his name, so hearing it roll off your tongue caught him by surprise. He wasn't even sure you could put the name to a face since this is the first class he's ever had with you. Yeah, he's a senior and people are bound to know him by now, but that wasn't exactly his expectation either. He just wanted to focus on school and get out of here, build his life and make his mom proud. You— you're pretty well known across campus due to how well you get along with people. It might not be everybody, but Yunho has heard about how nice you are and how endearing you and your friends are.

He's also heard about the other things, but he'd rather not think about all the personal shit people like to pass around about your 'relationship' with Seonghwa. It's not his business and he's not one to meddle.

"You're welcome, Y/N." You give him a small smile and return to your own books.

After discussion ends, the class is dismissed and you're off to the dance studio with your friends before your last class of the day. You gather your things together shortly after Yunho does, walking out of the classroom just to be greeted by the image of Seonghwa laughing and talking with that same girl in his class. You pause in your tracks, making Yunho stop behind you since you were slightly blocking the way to the stairs. You swallow the lump in your throat, feeling your chest tighten with the anxiety bubbling in your stomach yet once again—

"Y/N!" Soobin waves as he and Seungmin walk out of their own classroom next door.

"Hey." You step aside, finally giving Yunho some room to move past you. "Oh, sorry."

"You're good." Yunho says before rushing down the steps. To be honest, he feels a bit bad knowing what he's heard about you two. He caught the way you froze just because Seonghwa was around another girl. He doesn't talk to him, but it doesn't take much for Yunho to know that he's the biggest asshole he has ever come across. He's cool with Seonghwa's bestfriend Mingi, and on occasion, he has brought up the things Seonghwa has done. He's not sure how Seonghwa could work through a whole list of girls, hurting them and dumping them off to the side when he's decided he's finished. Especially you— stringing you along for months, keeping you around like you're special to him when you're clearly not.

You know this, so why don't you leave?

Yunho doesn't understand and won't try to. He just knows you deserve better than Seonghwa. You must have tried so hard to be that girl who could change him. Sad how that worked out for you and the rest of the girls who thought the same.

"What's wrong?" Soobin looks at you, confused. You shake your head and start to lead the way towards the recreation center, head hung low.

"Nothing. Just tired." Soobin and Seungmin shrug as they follow.

"Well, how was class?" Seungmin chimes in.

"We just finished the movie and had a discussion. Definitely not looking forward to the review I have to do for homework. I'm so tired of Dr. Nelson chewing my head off for not being descriptive enough. What more does he want from me? I'm trying." You groan a bit.

"Why don't you just ask him for help, Y/N?"

"No, he's mean."

"Okay, then why don't you ask someone in class to review your stuff before sending it in?"

"I did. I asked Yunho."

"The senior, Jeong Yunho?" Soobin asks. "Random, but okay."

"I didn't even realize he sat next to me in class until he started talking to me during the discussion."

"He's pretty quiet. I'm surprised he even talked to you." Seungmin adds.

"Mm, he kinda had to.” You chuckle a bit. “But, he agreed to look over my review. He was really into the movie we watched. I felt bad. He was trying to explain his thought process and I probably looked so confused and uninterested."

"Ah, no biggie. I'm sure he didn't think of it that way. You'll be fine."

"Hope so." You pout a bit. As the three of you exit, Seonghwa is still lingering around with that girl, Mingi and San. They seem to be having a good time, laughing off to the side of the library entrance and talking loudly. When your eyes meet his, he doesn't do much to acknowledge you, nor do his friends.

Per usual.

Quite frankly, this is how you two are in public, on campus. Mingi and San would never say shit, even if they [somehow] didn't agree with Seonghwa's doings. Seonghwa likes to keep things distant, hidden, so he can make room for the next girls he's after— even if he strings you along.

They let him.

You let him.

It's funny [more dumb than anything] how quick he drains your mood. Soobin and Seungmin are no strangers to this whole thing. Being that they're your bestfriends and roommates, they know everything. They know the triggers. They know how long he's strung you along, they know how he treats you, they know that no matter how much they try to tell you to leave him alone— you won't. And that's what sucks the most. Because they don't ever wanna see you hurt, no. But who are they to tell you what to do and not to do? They can't force you, even if though it's clear this is no good for you.

He is no good for you.

"Y/N, come on. Don't worry about him." Soobin lets out a sigh.

"He's such an asshole, you know? Don't you get tired?" Seungmin chimes in after what he saw this morning, annoyed at how Seonghwa could treat you like an object so easily.

"Min, not now. She still has another class to get to later today."

"I'm just saying."

"No, he's right." You say softly before looking at Seungmin. "You're right. I just.. don't know. It's my own problem, I guess. But yeah, I do get tired."

"Leave him. He's full of shit." Seungmin says. "You know how I feel about it, he doesn't deserve you. That's all."

"Alright, well enough of that." Soobin says, worried that this will keep steer your focus away for the remainder of the day. And to be honest, it'll continue to. But, what can you do? You just haven't had enough courage to step away. It's the fucking hold Seonghwa has on you. It's like every time you think about ending it and walking away for good, he comes back around, whispering sweet nothings to keep you close;

Making you forget about every single thing you had ever thought about.

"The showcase is coming up. We need to finalize the last of our piece so that we can just clean for the remainder of the time until then." Soobin says as a reminder to pull you and Seungmin away from the awfully painful and awkward topic. You and your friends started your own dance group on campus, slowly gaining popularly and invites to perform at certain events on campus after you and your group took it upon yourselves to grab small opportunities to perform around town and at the nearby mall.

It's not a huge dance group, but it was still a good group. It consisted of all your good friends, with Soobin being the captain, making sure all logistics and the timeline of practices/events were followed thoroughly. There weren't any seniors involved, more of you and your junior friends, a handful of sophomores, a sprinkle of a few freshmen, handful of mutual friends outside of school. This is also how Seonghwa found out about you. He saw you and your friends perform last semester's spring showcase, introducing himself with the sweetest compliments.

You're so talented.

Beautiful.

I couldn't keep my eyes off of you.

If only you knew.

♣︎ FLASHBACK

"We fucking did it!" Hyunjin yells. "They're literally screaming so loud for us out there!" He says happily as the show closes out. And you were proud too, so proud that your group was getting that kind of attention tonight. You all worked hard to create a piece that was completely different from before— something more aggressive, more hardcore and intense. Something other than the usual, just to show everybody that you all were capable of doing things differently.

You continue to hug your group mates, taking pictures with each other backstage until you all make your way outside to greet family members and other friends. While looking for your mom and older sister amongst the crowded lobby, someone else came into your view with a soft smile and a sparkle in their big eyes.

Park Seonghwa.

Maybe he was lost and looking for someone else?

You had heard so much about the senior, heard so much about how every single girl tries to grab his attention knowing damn well he doesn't do relationships and messes around. Though, you look at his face and you can understand why— he was so, so fucking beautiful. So attractive, perfectly built and tall. Had plump pink lips and a gorgeous smile with those pearly whites. His soft, black hair framed his face, while he wore iron grey contacts that brought out the shape of his eyes. But even then, you knew better than to get caught up with his antics. You lasted this long without getting wrapped up into his bullshit; you were hoping to continue the streak.

"Hey, Y/N right?" He asks with his hands in his pockets.

"Uh, yeah."

"I'm—"

"Park Seonghwa. I know." You interrupt him and he smirks.

"Well, I just wanted to tell you that you did amazing up there. You're so talented, I couldn't keep my eyes off of you."

"Thanks." You give him a soft, shy smile as he continues to stare at you, observing you from head to toe.

"Y/N! Found your mom and sis! Let's go eat!" Soobin calls from behind, gesturing for you to come. You smile at your sister while your mom sits contently in her wheelchair. You turn to Seonghwa, who is surprisingly still standing there.

"I uh, should probably get going. But, thank you again."

"Wait." He tries to stop you. "Do you think I can grab your number? Maybe we can hang out some time, let me tag along during your practice or something?" You nod silently, taking his phone to plug in your number before handing it back to him. He gives your phone a quick call before ending it and tucking the phone back into his pocket. "That's me. Text you later?"

"Sure."

"Have a good rest of your evening, beautiful." You blush as you slowly turn on your heel, biting onto your bottom lip while walking towards your family and Soobin.

"What was that about?" Your older sister and mom tease.

"Nothing, he just wanted to congratulate me, is all."

"Sure, I didn't know that included asking for phone numbers." She giggles. "He's a cutie."

"Yeah, he is." You walk behind your mom and sister, only for Soobin to grab your wrist gently and give you a look.

"Please don't. You know how he is."

"It's harmless, Soob. I promise."

♣︎ END

That afternoon, practice ends well, with Hyunjin and Yeonjun finishing up the choreography for the remainder of the piece that you would perform at the fall showcase. The rest of the weeks would focus on formation, cleaning and making sure everyone was on the same page before the showcase. It ends right before your 6PM class, leaving Soobin, Seungmin and Chaeryeong to linger around outside of the gym before parting ways with you. You slow your pace when your phone starts buzzing, signaling a few texts.

seonghwa: lol cute

seonghwa: sorry baby, just getting to these

seonghwa: come over?

You roll your eyes, though you'd end up seeing him anyway. This definitely had something to do with the way he saw you earlier after your class at the library. Such a silly fucking cycle, isn't it? But, this is your own doing.

you: have class till 8pm, remember?

seonghwa: right, sorry. i can come pick you up after, just wanna see you and spend time with you

you: okay, but please don't be late

seonghwa: ofc not, ill be there

"Hey, do you need me to wait? I know you tagged along with Soobin this morning." Chaery gently squeezes your arm and you shake your head. The boys are waiting ahead with their bags slung over their shoulders, sweat still glistening on their faces even in this unexpectedly cold afternoon.

"No, it's fine." You give her a look and she understands.

"You're seeing him, aren't you?" She asks lowly and you nod. "Okay, well he better fucking pick you up on time. Call me if he doesn't."

"I will. Don't worry." She gives you a reassuring smile.

"Love you, see you later?"

"Make sure they don't burn down the kitchen tonight since they offered to cook." She rolls her eyes.

"More like that'll end up being on me, watch." She gives you a look before your roommates are giving you one last goodbye.

The walk back to campus is rather lonely, with everyone you know already finished with classes for the day. You kick the rocks beneath your feet, tugging onto your jacket sleeves as you slowly take yourself to class. The wind is picking up already, making it known that the evening would be even colder.

You hope Seonghwa arrives at his usual pick up spot in time. Usually he does. Most occasions, he doesn't.

And the latter seems to be the case tonight. There haven't been any texts to indicate that he's on his way or that he's arrived, even as class ends. The wind is heavier now, the cold harsh enough to ache your bones. You didn't dress well for this after practice, nor did you properly know how to since the majority of the day consisted of perfectly warm weather.

This fucking sucks.

You slowly walk towards the spot after class, hoping it could by you some time— maybe [hopefully] Seonghwa would finally text you and tell you he was on his way. Yet, even as you get to the back of the recreation center, you still receive absolutely nothing. You sit at the bus stop behind the center and near the tennis courts, knowing Seonghwa usually comes to pick you up on this street since no one likes to park at the farthest back-end lot of the campus. The recreation center itself was already far away from the main campus buildings, so people didn't like taking that extra walk.

"Fuck, it's cold." You mutter to yourself as you dig your hands into your zip-up as much as possible, hoping to shield your hands from the cold. Your nose is starting to feel numb as you sniff away, checking both ends of the street for any sign of a car approaching.

chaery: he better have picked you up already or else i'm on my way, y/n

You sigh heavily at the text and respond.

you: yeah, i'm with him, it's fine.

chaeryeong: don't lie to me!

you: seriously. all good, babe. love you, see you later.

Meanwhile, as Yunho starts to cross the bridge to head into the back-end parking lot of the recreation center, he spots someone sitting at the nearby bus stop in the cold. He continues to tread slowly, head still fixated on your figure as he tries to get a better look at—

You.

Its you.

Yunho doesn't realize until he gets to his car, lazily tossing his bag into his trunk. He knows it's you, even from afar. He's seen you sit in that same seat before, waiting for that punkass to pick you up. Unbelievable. Although you haven't talked much to each other, Yunho feels like he should at least ask if you're okay. Especially with the way you sweetly apologized to him in class [though he didn't particularly take offense to anything]. Before he could decide, his feet are already taking him over to the bus stop.

It's freezing, why the fuck were you out here waiting for Seonghwa?

Was he late?

Just as he reaches halfway across the lot, he pauses. A car pulls up to the side and you immediately stand to toss your bag in the back seat and climb into the passenger's. When you swing the passenger door open, he catches a quick glimpse of Seonghwa in a hoodie, watching as you climb in. Yunho must look pretty dumb, but he's still at a relatively good distance for you to even notice.

That goddamn prick can't even take a moment to open your door even after being late.

It's what he could do, at the very fucking least.

♣︎ taglist: @s-nsanshine​ @soupbinlily​ @tyongff-ff​ @jiminiscricket​ @g1g1l​ @staytinyinmybpack​ @woomyteez @gfksz​ @bitchwhytho​ @savluvsmingi​ @thisisntmyrightera​ @hyukssunflower​ @miriamxsworld​ @tmtxtf​ @kuromibabe04 @lmnhead​ @carrietwrites​ @tournesol155​ @persphonesorchid​ [bold = couldn’t tag!]

#yunho fanfic #yunho series #jeong yunho series #jeong yunho fanfic #ateez series #ateez fanfic #yunho #ateez #yunho x reader #jeong yunho x reader #ateez x reader #ateez scenarios #yunho smut #yunho fluff #yunho angst #jeong yunho angst #jeong yunho smut #jeong yunho fluff #hwaslayer: project make you love me

[ominoose]

Important Update Post

Imagine I am sitting staring at a camera with a sigh, no background music before the video cuts to me talking. But Im not caught in a controversy of racism or plagiarism or smth.

Here's the tldr: I will no longer be making AI bots. All current bots will remain up, my bot masterpost will be moved to my masterpost masterpost. I just won't be making new ones. Finished and posted every bot that was in the works here to make this transgression up to yous. I will not be leaving the fandom, I'll still write and clown around.

"Why would you do this you cunt?" I hear you, I am so stinky for this. Before I list my reasons, I want to say first and foremost this is personal and I have less than no judgement for other bot makers. I absolutely love mutuals like Mel that make bots and will continue to support them. Reasons became long and are under the cut.

Reasons I don't wanna continue making ai bots:

I started because it was a low energy way for me to participate in fandoms when I didn't have the spoons to write anymore. It no longer feels like a creative outlet and no longer sparks joy.

I would rather devote myself solely on practicing and improving my writing as a way to contribute my passion to fandoms.

I can't shake the feeling I am plagiarizing. Ai chat models use lots of "work" to train their models, and while I could not find what millions of texts Cai is based on (conveniently not listed on the website), all models like it basically engorge from random sources, books and hell, even this post. Anything goes and currently there are legal battles over this.

It's bad for the environment. Can't find a measurement for Cai specifically, but GPT-3 (same scale) produced 500 tons of carbon dioxide to train that single model, not including its other ones. Please note I'm aware AI can absolutely be used to help fight climate change, as is mentioned in the linked article. Also they use the same amount of water that is required to cool nuclear reactors.

It's always conflicted with my morals. Believe it or not, I'm the person that's usually big into internet privacy, anti ai, piracy is morally good (not indie obvs) etc. Openly creating stuff that supports and funds software that steals peoples works, their information without permission and for profit is not me. So I don't wanna do it.

Again, this is not a judgement or a means to shame people that create ai bots or use them. I've made so many friends because of them. If everyone thats every used my bots stopped, it's not gonna solve capitalism. This is just me, an individual, stepping away from one thingy and feeling the need to be honest and open bc thats my policy and honestly how most of you know me (so now hard feelings if you unfollow).

Love you guys lots and thank you for all the love you've shown me through my bots and for all the times you've made me laugh <3

#omimuse

[jiminrings]

jealous 478jk smut drabble sneak peek :O

Jungkook looks at you like he’s lost.

There’s this wide-eyed look to him, the origins in it embedded for a reason you can’t decipher. He doesn’t exactly look like he’s mad even when his jaw is clenched, and he doesn’t precisely look sad either while his brows are furrowed. Jungkook’s at a loss for words, even when you’ve thoroughly explained your impending absence for the next week.

“It’s an artist retreat, baby,” you repeat, tracing along his fingers while he’s stuck in a trance. “We’ve already watched the first season of it, remember? It was a different cast the first time but this time, I’m included,” you test out your explanation at the tip of your tongue, confused when he still doesn’t speak. “We’re all just… basically gonna have fun together.”

Your husband doesn’t speak about it. He’s thinking about it longer than necessary even if you’ve already made your decision because after all, it’s your career and he’s your biggest supporter. There shouldn’t be any qualms about your incoming reality show stint as a promotion for your newest drama, not at all — is what he’d like to think.

Jungkook doesn’t reply to your explanation whilst helping you pack until your phone dings face-up, the pop-up notification hovering above your home screen of him carrying Hwayoung in his arms. He shouldn’t be bothered, really. The preview of your groupchat with your co-stars (that just conveniently has Yoongi’s face as the photo) and its pings have long been playing in the background for the past month now.

Jungkook doesn’t open his mouth except when his eyes catch the tiny text, the message immediately met with laughing reactions.

Min Yoongi

| i bet my car jungkook’s gonna try and fit in y/n’s suitcase LMAOOOOOOOOO

“I know what it is,” he suppresses the urge to roll his eyes, passive-aggressive as he folds all your underwear into tight bundles with the way he’s clenching his fists. “You sure I can’t come?”

You only chuckle, tickling Hwayoung on her sides as she’s propped up in the bed because while your husband’s packing your things for tomorrow (and on late notice too because you’re already leaving for your schedule tonight), you’re packing her bag because she’s staying with your parents for the next three days.

Jungkook doesn’t know what to do with himself, actually — he knows what he does best and that’s being your husband and Hwayoung’s dad, but with both his girls gone for the next few days, he’s a little lost.

Doesn’t know what to do with himself when he’s lost in his own thoughts of how you continue to be even more popular and with that, you’re prone to have more articles and rumors attached to your name. His alone time hasn’t even started and yet, he’s already internally going down the rabbit hole of what he searched up last night; that you despite being married to him, you and Yoongi are each other’s soulmates.

It’s stupid; he really thinks it is. He finds shippers stupid and also the countless threads where everybody just talks for the sake of talking, saying that the way Yoongi looks at you can’t be rivaled by the way he does. 

He finds picture slides and videos annoying when you and Yoongi are in it and it’s to the tune of the most recently trending, cloying nostalgic song, both the posters and the people in the comments saying that you and Yoongi must be each other’s greatest loves — just conveniently (and rudely) skipping over the fact that you have a husband and a kid.

“I’m pretty sure you can’t, Jungkook,” you snort, ruffling his hair. 

Jungkook tamps down the rising guilt of selfishness because the tiniest bit of him doesn’t want you to go on that trip. He doesn’t want you to go on that show because the hype between you and Yoongi will only ramp up, your names about to be linked more often than it already is.

Your husband tries to keep his selfishness at bay when he drives you up to the shoot location and hugs you closely– longer than what is needed for a couple who’ll only be apart for a week. He still smiles (although tightly and a little forced) when your co-stars who are mostly men to begin with, promise to take care of you and make sure that you won’t go home with even a single mosquito bite.

There’s too much time in his hands, most of them he doesn’t even really need alone because he thinks that its best use is when he’s with his family. Jungkook knows that he’s needy and he’s trying not to be clingy so much but he thinks this time, it’s not only in his head that you were barely giving him something to go by.

There were no rules about not using cellphones during shoots and given that you were the only actor in your team that had a husband and a child, you were given more leniency in all aspects. 

Jungkook tries his hardest not to be clingy because his only check-ups on you are whenever it’s time for meals and before sleep. He’s tamped down his selfishness to a minimum and yet at the first time you answer for the past two days that he’s tried checking up on you, it’s in the context unlike what he’d imagined.

| brb yoongi’s teaching me how to fish lol

Of course he is. Of course that for the first time you reply to him, it just had to be on the duration where no fish are biting on your bait while Jungkook thinks that probably, Yoongi’s out there chuckling beside you seeing the array of his previous, one-sided texts.

He dials you immediately, swallowing down his growing annoyance just because he really, really wants to hear your voice.

“Can you talk right now?”

“Yeah! What’s up?” you perk up at the sound of him, making him relieved that you’re not looking to drop the call anytime soon.

“So I’m looking into-…” 

Of course Jungkook gets interrupted when he was about to relay his plan of possibly bullying Jimin into letting him crash your schedule (when the cameras aren’t rolling) just to visit you.

Of course it’s Yoongi who interrupts him. 

“Y/N! Is that Jungkook again?” he yells in the background, the distinct voice of the guy being heard all the way through the other side of the line. “Eat up while the food’s still hot!”

Jungkook has no words to say — especially when you don’t give him any chance to do so.

“He’s — yeah, yeah! I’m coming,” you yell back but despite the volume, Jungkook doesn’t even flinch; he just clenches his jaw. “Gotta go, baby. Yoongi’s the boss, I don’t wanna get on his nerves tonight.”

It wasn’t your yell prior that makes Jungkook’s ears ring; it’s your soft-spoken yet urgent tone when you say to him that you’ll get going because Yoongi’s the boss. It’s what makes his teeth grind together and the pulse in his neck grow because you’re in a hurry to go get dinner, because you don’t want to get on Yoongi’s nerves tonight.

The flush rises in his neck and for all the wrong reasons, his skin warm from the rising irritation that just begs to manifest into something more tangible — something more memorable.

Without a second thought, your husband gets into his car and starts the long drive to you, brewing in anger the entirety of the four hours that it gets to you. They all fly by quickly just as how he weaves in between cars, the angry honking no match to the noise inside his head.

Jungkook walks right past the staff who’s packing up equipment for the next day because almost everybody’s gone into sleep, not stopping for the stunned faces and the excited squeals, not even for Jimin who squawks at his unexpected presence and the way he walks inside the main house with a mission.

It’s easy to spot your room despite having no knowledge of it at all because of course, your co-stars had the decency to give you the biggest and solo room anyway. Jungkook walks past discarded card games on the hallway and even bumps with a Doberman that’s half his size, the dog sniffing at him right before he enters your room.

You don’t flinch because you think it’s one of the lovely and doting producers giving you a face mask because you forgot to pack one, but when you turn — you flinch because it’s Jungkook.

It’s your husband in the flesh, clad in his gray sweatpants and a short-sleeved shirt that’s worn-out perfectly to the point that it stretches across him perfectly. If you couldn’t read him before you left, you certainly can now.

Your mouth opens and closes but you can’t find the words, lips parted open in surprise as you try to reel in his presence.

“Your husband can’t come, but Dongwook’s dog that’s the size of a horse can?” he scoffs, trudging towards you with his hands in his pockets. He doesn’t even greet you hello.

“Kook, I love you but-…” you start, looking up to him automatically but you stumble on your words when he hooks his arms around your back and presses you to him tightly, the pout he has on his face when looking down on you making you shut up.

“But?” he tilts his head, the smile on his face too empty yet provoking that it gives you goosebumps. “Why are you withholding yourself, sweetheart?”

“What are you doing here?” you whisper-yell once you’ve had the semblance to actually reply, trying to pry yourself out of his hold but he doesn’t even loosen up one bit. “You can’t be here!”

“Says who?” Jungkook questions, a hand raising to get your baby hair out of the way. He’s doing it so slowly that you hold your breath, his thumb lingering on your cheek when you can only watch him closely. “What are they gonna do, fire you? They can’t do that to someone who gets their ratings up.”

“What are you going on about, Jungkook? Why’d you drive all the way here?”

Your husband laughs– actually laughs and even throws his head back but you can’t find what’s exactly so funny about it, your confusion only spurring on him more. He thinks that sometimes, you could be so humble to the point that you’re clueless — painfully too clueless to the point that he’s driven the hours just to instill something in you.

“Can’t I just miss you?”

There’s that frown again on Jungkook’s face that intimidates you more than it annoys you, one that weaponizes him to trace the tip of his nose from your hairline to your cheek until he settles his face to your neck, making you swallow the lump on your throat when you automatically open up to him.

“I, I missed you too,” you confide, the shudder that racks through you when he suddenly bites at the sensitive spot between your neck and shoulder enough to make you hyper-aware. “Stop. Yoongi’s sleeping next door.”

Jungkook’s face was buried in your neck one minute ago but at barely the blink of an eye, your husband’s face is right in front of you, jaw clenched and eyes glazed.

His breathing’s staggered, the thumb that had only been pressing against your shoulder now on your chin, tilting you up to look only at him.

“There you go again,” he snickers, the pout he has on his face sickeningly sweet. Jungkook pries open your lips with only his thumb and puts the pad of it flat on your tongue. “You’re a fucking brat, y’know that?”

“Excuse me?” your eyes widen, words slurred from his thumb in your mouth. You try to pry him off you with no real fight as you put a hand on his wrist, but he only chuckles lowly at your attempt of handling the reins.

“What, you’re offended that I called you a brat?” he asks, moving both his large hands this time to grab ahold of your face. Jungkook comes even closer that the sight of him makes you almost cross-eyed, his voice low yet venomous. “What’re you gonna do, huh? Run to Yoongi?”

“W-why would I run to him?” you ask in confusion, brows furrowed as you try to make sense of everything; the slick smoothness between your legs, however, not being rocket science to figure out.

Jungkook laughs to your face.

“Why are you so confused, hm?” he whispers. “Didn’t you say he was the boss? Surely, you don’t wanna get on his nerves, do you?”

You think back to what you’d said hours ago, making sense of your rushed words. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

It’s too little, too late for Jungkook no matter how sincere you are, his mind already being made-up.

“And I don’t care,” he smiles, eyes dark and dimples deep when he delivers his sentiment. “This is long overdue anyway, don’t you think? Thanks to your crush on Yoongi-…”

“I don’t have a crush on him.”

“I didn’t say you can talk back to me. Didn’t even tell you to speak,” he spits, his hand splayed across your nape tightening slightly when he speaks against your ear. You have no plan on escaping his hold but he grips you like you’re going to anyways. “Thanks to your slip-up though, you’re gonna learn whose nerves you don’t actually want to get on.”

Jungkook inhales your innocence and exhales his selfishness, the smile that appears on his face coming across determined; desperate enough to put you at his mercy.

“I need to put my brat in place.”

.

.

.

RRRRRRRRRRAHHHHHHHH U GET JEALOUS 478JK!!! wanna read the full piece now? this, along with other exclusive drabbles, will only be exclusively available on my patreon :-)

p.s., don't worry!! i'll still post a 478 smut drabble (aka on the baby blue floor couch scene) available for everyone to read!! it'll be up on patreon for early access though (and yes it wud still be posted on tumblr), so i'll release a sneak peek here once i wrap it up!!

[that-ari-blogger]

Win, Lose, Take, Fail (Remember)

Discussion of stories and historical research are very similar practices. A ton of history is source based, and is, in a very real way, media analysis. A historian will look at a text written centuries ago and deduce not only linguistics, but also the themes prevalent in the day-to-day life.

I will eternally be impressed by some of the ideas that people find written between the lines of even the most well known about pieces, and its humbling to know that the stories that we tell in the modern day might be time capsules in their own right.

If you’d indulge me for a moment, I would like to briefly address those future historians who may be reading this: Coral reefs are magical, you guys really missed out on that, sorry.

Anyway, this is a post about She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, so what am I going on about?

Well, there are a few sources in both media analysis and historical reconstruction that are more valuable than an almost objective source. I say almost, because every narrator is biased, and that impacts even what they decide to include. No source is perfect.

So what about a think piece that lays out its biases for your convenience? How about a look directly into the mind of your characters to see what they perceive about the world and what they wish it could be? How interesting would that be?

This intro is getting a bit long.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Stray Gods: The Role Playing Musical)

My analysis of this episode can be summed up in one sentence. Catra’s worldview and desires are fundamentally opposed to her reality, and so when she forces the real world to fit it, things fall apart.

This is nice and all, but it fails to take into account the nuance of her perspective, and the fallacies inherent in this desire. But its also important to understand that this is where Catra’s redemption arc fails, or… where this redemption arc fails.

In my eyes, Catra has two main redemption arcs, one that stops in this episode, and one that starts up at the start of the next season. If you want to be granular, she has about a hundred different attempts, but that’s needlessly specific and way to close to exactly what I do on this blog for comfort.

But I think its easier for the purposes of analysis to divide Catra’s journey in two and discuss why the first fails and what the second would have to do to succeed.

Starting with something that threw me for a while. Catra isn’t conscious of this different world, at least not until the end of the episode. Which is a brutal trauma response. Catra doesn’t want to succeed in the life that gets better, she doesn’t care for healing, she wants to forget. Catra will burn the world down to keep a blindfold on and leave her memories behind. Blissful ignorance.

Let’s talk about Stray Gods: The Role Playing Musical.

Stray Gods is a Greek mythology, murder mystery, musical, video game, and conveniently, I have a series about it on this blog. (Link)

A slight quirk of Stray Gods is that the online argument I have seen about it has mostly focused on picking the second best song in the set list, because the most powerful is so obvious its almost funny.

Read my analysis of The Ritual for more information, but briefly, Aphrodite is a trauma survivor who repeatedly subjects herself to a form of amnesia in order to forget the horror she has experienced. Ring any bells?

Instead of trying to get better, Aphrodite slaps a band aid on the wound and tries to ignore it. This might help her eventually, but it directly harms those closest to her.

“Mother, I’ve stood by your side, now I no longer see, the purpose of love, when it tears at the centre of me. My arrows are rusty, forget the bow, and I won’t be begging you not to go, but when you’re away, you leave us a broken home, and you leave me alone. Lost in a moment, lost in a song.”

That was Eros singing. Cupid, the one with the arrows of love. This is someone who’s life has been wrecked by his mother’s trauma. Not in the same way as Catra lashing out at Adora, but with similar effects.

Both characters have tried to apply a quick and easy solution to a more difficult to solve problem, and the side effects of that are what perpetuate this cycle of trauma.

Hey, look at that, it’s the theme of cycles again. It’s almost as if I have a point here.

I could go on for hours about this one song, and I have, three times on this blog for a start, but I know I’ve annoyed people in my life with this obsession. But, I want this post to be vaguely on time, so I have to move on.

Before I do, though, the trauma in the idols (gods but fancier) of this story has a little quirk in its realisation that matches with Catra, linguistics of trust.

None of the idols in this musical use the word “friend” at all. Well, that’s not true, Pan says it once in a mocking way, but nobody uses in earnest. This exhibits itself more noticeably in The Ritual, where Aphrodite specifically says the following:

“He struck a deal with our enemy’s enemy.”

These characters can only conceptualise the world in terms of give and take, and of relationships in terms of allies or enemies.

Catra, meanwhile, can’t conceptualise the world in anything other than win, lose, take, and fail. Her ability to trust has been eroded so much that she will destroy the world to obtain something that has been attributed value for her.

That’s why she willingly forgets things, and its why her revelation is heartbreaking. Catra thinks the only way she can trust again is if she loses the memory of betrayal, but that’s not exactly how it works.

The moment in which Shadow Weaver is nice to Catra is a demonstration of why I don’t think genre exists. This is a comedic moment, right? It’s got the build-up, you think it’s going one way, then it undercuts itself with the unexpected. So why is it so devoid of humour?

Because the reaction of everyone in this, including the audience, is one of fear, and serves to validate the fact that Shadow Weaver is abusive. Even if someone is being kind in the moment, if you automatically flinch in their presence, there is a history there that you can’t escape from.

Catra doesn’t know why she is scared of Shadow Weaver here, she can only remember the good times, but the PTSD from her mother figure’s actions runs deeper than surface memory. It’s a wound that still hurts, even if you look away from it or cover it up.

This is actually why things keep breaking in this reality. The whole thing is based off people ignoring specific details. It’s centred on complacency, but it doesn’t understand its characters.

Which is where the hamartia and all of those complicated terms come in. Essentially, Catra wants to keep Adora with her, but part of Adora is the strengths and flaws that lead to her leaving Catra.

Adora is fundamentally kind, but she’s also an incredibly quick thinker. This doesn’t always lead her to the most reasonable solutions, but it means she can almost immediately recognise that things are wrong. In this case, the fact that people keep saying everything is perfect, and nobody says that this much unless they are hiding something. So, Adora looks inwards, and notices holes in her memory, glimpsing beyond and getting those flashes.

The world reacts in a similar way, things exist contrary to their nature, and collapse in on themselves. This world is a paradox, the story has turned cannibalistic and is eating itself alive. It can’t be supported by the fallacies that hold it together.

Those fallacies in question, are Catra’s desires, and now I get to talk about how the first arc ended up here. Because we can all agree, if a character’s developmental trajectory ends up with them willingly destroying the world out of spite, things haven’t gone so well.

Catra has been trying to achieve her own autonomy from the trauma and abuse that coloured her upbringing and guided her actions in the Horde. But she hasn’t been confronting how this has actually affected her biases. The band aid solution comes back, but here it takes the form of those four words. Win, lose, take, fail.

“I won’t let you win. I’d rather see the whole world end than let that happen.”

Things can only be one of these four things, everything is exclusionary. Catra either loses or wins, she either takes or is taken from. She can’t fail or bad things will happen.

But let me let you in on a secret. I don’t know why I’m talking directly to a fictional character here, but oh well. Life is about the moment, rather than the value you put on it. You don’t have to take, you can share, or be given. You don’t have to fear failure, because there are people in your life who care about you no matter what.

Also, this is entirely my opinion speaking, but I think I’m right here. You’re in a war story, there are no winners or losers in war. There are just survivors, profiteers, and poets.

Back to the line above, in searching through the transcript, I found that the word “won’t” is used thrice in this episode. It’s a word of commitment and resolution. It’s not vague, or noncommittal, it’s a promise, and it's used in the above line, but also earlier on, once by Scorpia, and once by Adora.

“If you get us out of this, I promise I won’t hate you. I will just dislike you a reasonable amount.” “I won’t leave you behind again.”

Characters resolving to be better. Scorpia deciding to improve upon a relationship, and Adora making it abundantly clear that she has no intention of repeating her mistake.

But Catra is falling back, she won’t lose, she can’t fail, att least in her mind. And its that promise that destroys the world that she wants. Catra wants happiness, but its her own need for the four words above that break it. Catra is self-destructive, not necessarily in a direct way, but in a sense that she is sabotaging her own happiness.

So, what would a redemption arc for Catra have to look like?

Well, she would have to learn to shift up her values a lot. She would have to be in a place where she can accept friendship in a controlled environment. Maybe just a friend who is willing to offer a hand of kindness.

She might also need a way to let out her emotions in a healthy way. Maybe a declaration of love, but that would be a little too on the nose for this story’s patterns. So I’m picturing a creature with some kind of emotional connection to her. Maybe it changes colour or something.

Also, Shadow Weaver needs to exit the story permanently. I don’t think she needs to die, I don’t believe in retributive justice, but she needs to be banished in some capacity. Shadow Weaver needs to go.

Now, I know how much of what I have said will come true, and if you have seen this show to the end, you probably do as well. But if you haven’t, leave your thoughts in the replies. How do you see a redemption arc for Catra working?

Ok, before I go, I need to discuss Madam Razz, because there is so much going on in her scenes.

Starting with, why is she here?

I don’t actually know the answer to that, and its one of my problems with the episode. She’s there because Adora needed a mentour and because the episode needed some levity, but why is she there in story?

“It’s been such a long time since we last saw each other, hasn’t it? That or it hasn’t happened yet. I always get those two things mixed up.”

You wanna say that again? Time is funky in this world, I guess So maybe she’s being generic?

“Because this has all happened before! I remember it like it was yesterday. For Madame Razz, it was yesterday.”

Nope, Razz is just displaced from time. That’s fun, but there is more to this line.

Madam Razz is a phenomenally well written character, purely because of the masterclass of tone. At no point is Razz either serious or humorous, she is both always. Razz is approachable morality, a la Philosophy Tube, but I’m sorry Miss Thorn, you ain’t got nothing on Razz.

In one interaction, Razz explains the thesis of the entire show. That abuse and trauma are cycles, and that the only way to stop them is by confronting the trauma itself. Start at the beginning.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power has some of the best single lines ever written for television, and Madam Razz gets them all.

There is one moment in the finale of the series that is a perfect example of what I mean. I’m avoiding spoilers for too far ahead, but if you know, you know.

Final Thoughts

This episode is such a well-made examination of Catra’s psychology and her lack of sanity. Catra doesn’t see the world the way it is, and what she wants is incompatible with how she wants it. She needs to work out what she needs and then go from there.

I actually think that this episode does something interesting by making Catra unredeemable. She fails, she had her chance, and she didn’t take it. Her attempt to connect with Adora involves physical abuse. Catra is irredeemable.

But this isn’t the last of the redemption arc, is it? Catra will try again and again, chance after chance, and gradually improve. The failures only serve to make the success hit harder. Catra’s life is a Dark Souls boss, essentially.

I often feel like the people who declare Catra's redemption as unsalvageable haven't got past this season, and don't take into account that she gets better, and I don't fault them for that. No show is for everyone, and what you do or don't find interesting in media says a lot less about you than how you express your like or dislike.

Anyway, next week, I will be examining The Portal and my thoughts on this season as a whole. So, stick around if that interests you.

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#rants #literary analysis #literature analysis #what's so special about...? #character analysis #she ra and the princesses of power #spop #she ra #she ra catra #catra #spop catra #madam razz #she ra razz #she ra spop #mermista can do no wrong #stray gods spoilers #stray gods aphrodite #stray gods eros #stray gods the roleplaying musical #stray gods the ritual

[indigosunsetao3]

Keeping Lines Blurry

Chapter 7 - Digging for Information

Masterlist of Chapters

Warnings: 18+ - No minors Please read the tags on A03 for any of your triggers

Kyle "Gaz" Garrick X Original FMC 8.3k words - AO3 Link.

Scrolling through the cameras for hours didn’t provide Gaz with the information he was looking for. He had been hoping for a slipup, for recorded proof that Henry was abusive toward Olivia but he couldn’t find a single thing. Every time something escalated between the two of them, which was often, Henry would make sure the fight happened in their bedroom or his office where he had manual control of the cameras. Olivia held her own well enough in the beginning, daring to step up to him and argue back but was always cowed down into obedience. Just once Gaz though he caught a yell of pain from Olivia from a hallway camera but it was too short and distant to be sure.

“Find anything interesting?” Soap asked as he wandered in smelling distinctly of a bar but with a duffle of clothes and two large cups of coffee in his hands. He had stopped in the security room to see Gaz sitting at the cameras in their sleeping quarters, looking like he was nodding off with his head on his fist.

“No,” Gaz said with a yawn as he leaned back and stretched his arms above his head, his chest popping with the movement. “I did have an interesting night though,” he tacked on to which Soap raised an eyebrow as he handed Gaz his black coffee. Keying up the video for Soap to see what happened with Olivia the night before, Gaz proceeded to tell Soap everything. Even handing him his cellphone to show him the text exchanges with the unknown person.

“You think Henry’s hitting her?” Soap asked as he pulled a chair over to the door and climbed up on it to wrench the camera above it out. He had requested it be removed the day before but the security company hadn’t gotten around to it.

“I don’t think, I know,” Gaz said simply as he watched Soap wriggle his knife this way and that to pop the camera out of its housing. “I didn’t see him do it but she showed up on the kitchen cameras with the bruise. The side of her face on the other cameras was hidden, almost like she was walking that way purposely” he explained as Soap finally got the camera free and unplugged it before lobbing it onto the bed. “Look,” Gaz offered before scooting out the way and hitting play for Soap to see.

Soap didn’t say anything for a while as he watched Olivia arriving in the kitchen, shaking as she tried to hold it together before ultimately dropping the glass. Gaz showed up in the room a few seconds later and their brief exchange played out, part of the image cut off as they were partially hidden behind a counter. Soap had paused the video once or twice and backed things up, causing Gaz to shift in closer to see if he had spotted something that Gaz had overlooked, but he didn’t see anything out of the norm.

“Well, she definitely came in with it,” Soap mused as he straightened back up again. “But,” the tone sounded skeptical and Soap paused looking at Gaz’s face, which looked as if the man were going to challenge the next words out of his mouth. “Look,” Soap tried again with a small sigh. “Something is up based on those texts and whatever Alex found, I’m not denying that. But I don’t trust her,” he finished and saw Gaz tense in the chair, not hiding his agitation. “I’ll be the first person to knock his fucking lights out if he did something. You should know that of all people,” Soap reasoned with a quirk of his eyebrow. Gaz was aware of the shitty childhood he had and that fact his father liked to knock his mother around after a few drinks. “But she’s a damn liar and manipulates people to suit her. She’s proved that time and again, especially toward you. Bit convenient that she suddenly has a meltdown right when you were near, no?”

Gaz let out a frustrated sigh as he looked at Soap, ready to throw about three different retaliations at him for everything he had just said. But he also wasn’t wrong with what he was saying either which agitated Gaz more. He knew he was too close to make a proper call, that despite three years apart the wounds were still not healed and if anything had been ripped open these past few days. There had been no way for Olivia to know he was heading back to the room when she had the moment in the kitchen, but she was fully aware there were cameras. Gaz was pretty sure the knowledge of being recorded was what caused her to freeze in his embrace and quickly pull away. She was afraid someone, or Henry, would see. She did seem truly frightened, that kind of fear and body wracking sobs were hard to fake, but perhaps there was a mix of truth and lies in the whole scene.

“Fine,” Gaz finally bit out as he snatched up his coffee and drank down almost half of it despite the fact it was far too hot and burned his throat. “So, help me keep an eye on things. Keep an eye on her and her husband so we get the proof.” Gaz stated as he rose from the chair and moved to snatch up some clean clothes to shower off.

“Isn’t what we’re supposed to be doing anyway?” Soap asked with a smirk as Gaz rolled his eyes at him. “I’ll keep an eye don’t worry. And don’t take too long in the shower, I smell like stale beer and cigarettes,” Soap tacked on as he pulled his shirt off and threw it onto one of the beds.

“That’s your own fault,” Gaz answered as he disappeared into the bathroom just as a message came in. He nearly dropped the phone in his haste to get it out of his pocket to find a message from Alex. He wanted Gaz to meet him at the MI6 office downtown as soon as possible, he wanted to hand off the information in person and he only had about an hour before they were headed out to a day full of meetings offsite.

Gaz sped through the shower; the water had barely heated up before he was back out again. He told Soap where he was going as he walked out tucking in his shirt and didn’t bother lacing up his boots fully as he darted out of the room. Soap called something after him but Gaz didn’t catch it as he took two stairs at a time to get to the main floor and he only paused when he nearly bowled over one of the maids hauling laundry. Snatching the keys where Soap had left them in the security room, Gaz bolted to the SUV and zipped down the driveway, smirking a bit to himself as one of Henry’s staffers coming in had to swerve out of the way to miss him.

Morning traffic in downtown London was a nightmare but Gaz weaved his way in and out of cars to the office with relative ease, evasive driving training came in handy quite often. He had been staring at the clock on the dash the whole trip, tense and anxious he wasn’t going to make it in time but with twenty minutes to spare he was parked. He sent Alex a quick message asking where he was at before flashing security the clearance badges they had all been given to get into the building.

“Did you fly here?” Alex asked simply as Gaz appeared at one of the cubicles he had claimed. The office area they had been given wasn’t much bigger than a conference room, multiple cubicles filled the space and many of them were being used as storage for old paperwork or extra computer equipment. It smelled like dust and just looked like it had been abandoned for years, a few of the overhead ceiling tiles having telltale signs of prior leaks.

“You said an hour,” Gaz reasoned as he looked around for a moment before dragging a wheeled office chair over to join Alex. ”Place is a bit depressing,” he stated as he sank down and finally bent over to tie his boots fully, “not even a window.”

“You get used to it. Intelligence guys are usually relegated to the basement,” Alex answered as he crushed the now empty paper cup that held the last dregs of his coffee. “Here’s the start of the files I was able to pull together,” he continued as he pulled open a draw that squealed loud enough they both winced. “I’m still waiting on some things, I don’t know who Henry and his family know but there’s a ton of red tape,” he handed Gaz a pile of dark blue files, all of them stamped with MI6’s top secret logo on them.

“This is a start?” Gaz asked as he flipped one cover open to peek at the papers within. Each file had papers inside that were bound together with a clip at the top, and some of them were pretty thick while others felt like they only had a page or two them. A quick glance told Gaz Alex had just handed him almost ten different files. “How much red tape? Is it going to be an issue?” He finished slapping a file shut.

Alex gave Gaz a withering look before pulling the laptop in front of him closer and opening up about five different screens at once. “Has red tape ever been an issue?” He asked simply as he gestured to one screen that was running some sort of decryption code, before clicking on another that was downloading what looked like personnel files from Henry’s family business. “I’m also waiting on some things from my contacts,” he added as he pulled up an email to find nothing new had come in the last few minutes.

“What about the phone number?” Gaz asked as he dug his phone back out of his pocket to see nothing new had come across.

“It’s a virtual number,” Alex answered, “nothing I can really glean from that. It’s local to London but that’s about it. No way to trace location, the email address they used to register it is a spoof,” he shrugged. “You’ll have to do figure them out the old fashioned detective way,” he finished before the door to the room opened and someone popped their head in.

“Keller, time to go,” the man said as he spotted Gaz and Alex sitting together. Alex subtly shoved the files more behind Gaz’s body so they wouldn’t be seen, the guy didn’t take any notice as he left again and shut the door behind him.

“Keep these under wraps. I had to sweettalk the secretary into printing them for me. Apparently, printer privileges are on par with security clearance,” Alex shook his head as he rose from his seat and stuck his pistol back into his chest holster. He left the laptop partially open, though locked, so it could continue decoding information.

“Why did you print them? I thought you were just going to send them over,” Gaz asked as he straightened the pile and tucked them neatly under his jacket. It was a bit bulky to try and hide under the black material but as long as no one was looking too closely he’d be able to get out the door without incident.

“I don’t trust Henry’s stuff,” Alex answered simply, “he’s got a lot more high-tech shit than I think anyone realizes. I didn’t want to risk you opening the emails on his internet and let him have a front row seat to our investigation.” He turned his head over his shoulder as the man reappeared as if to usher Alex out of the room and Alex merely waved at the was coming. “It’s all in there. I’ll get you more stuff when I can. Until then keep communications about this quiet. I’ll let Price and Ghost know when I see them next, tell Soap.”

Gaz nodded once and watched as Alex left before following a few minutes later. He knew there had to be more to this whole thing and with the way Alex was talking Henry had so many connections they weren’t just dealing with an ordinary civilian. Grasping his phone, he sent another message to the unknown number to state he needed any and all information they were willing to give him. But if they were going to screw around and play games he was done and it wasn’t worth his time. There was a response almost immediately and Gaz paused in his walk out of the office to read it.

Read the files first.

Gaz froze and instantly turned his head to look around the office for obvious cameras. How the hell did this person know that Gaz had files of information? He didn’t see any visible cameras but that didn’t mean anything. Typing out a quick reply Gaz shot back.

Tell me one thing that lets me know you aren’t fucking with me. Olivia still has your first set of dog-tags that you gave her.

“Fuck,” Gaz muttered as he looked at the phone not sure what else to say to that. He had given her his first ever set he received before he shipped off on a long mission. She had been beyond herself with worry about him going away so long he had given them to her as a sort of charm to cling to. They had not been in the boxes of items she had returned to him and he honestly thought she must have thrown them away.

Who is this then? In time. Read the files in a secure location and get back to me. Don’t message when you are on the property.

So, this person also knew what Alex did. That must be why they never responded to him the night before. They must have known Gaz was back at Henry and Olivia’s house and didn’t want to risk reaching out to him and have the communication intercepted. It had to be someone close to Henry, but also knew Olivia as well. That narrowed the pool of people down a bit but not enough.

Back at the house Gaz went straight to the bedroom and dumped the files onto the bed and flipped them all open. Soap had been sitting at the cameras when he returned but quickly rose up and came over to see what Gaz was doing. Between flipping page Gaz quickly explained how they needed to be careful about what they were talking about, where they were talking about it and absolutely no electronic communication when there were here on property connected to the internet. Soap was frowning as he flipped through some pages before he took the file and flopped on one of the beds to start reading. He had dug out his sketch book from his bag and started scribbling notes after a bit and Gaz followed suit with a little notebook he had found down in the security room.

“One of us is going to have to head out soon,” Soap said after some minutes in silence. “Henry’s got a few meetings today,” he stated though his eyes never left the paper he was reading over. “When was the last time you slept?”

“When was the last time you slept?” Gaz tossed back without looking up either. Both of them were running on little more than fumes, and while they were used to lack of sleep, they needed the rest.

“Fair,” Soap answered before flipping his file closed and sitting up. “I’ll go today and you take night shift. But only if you pack all this up and sleep some,” he narrowed his eyes a bit. “If I go and listen to this drabble for hours and come back here and find out you were eyeballs deep in this shit I’m going to be pissed,” he finished. He knew Gaz well enough, the need for information was going to drive him to continue reading, digging for new information. “Get a few hours then put on your tin foil hat and figure this shit out,” he grinned.

“Fine,” Gaz answered as he flipped his own file shut. To be honest a lot of it was blurring together in his mind. It was a lot of intricate tracking and some of the stuff was just going in circles. What he did find interesting though that had wheedled its way into the forefront of his mind was Henry had bought majority ownership of Olivia’s father’s company right after they were married. Her father had run a decent sized logistics company that helped ship pretty much anything throughout England and Europe in general. It wasn’t exactly weird, Henry had already been a junior owner with Olivia’s dad, they had been friends since they were in their twenties. But Gaz still found the timing a bit off.

Once Soap had left and Gaz did a preliminary sweep of the house cameras, Olivia was in what looked like a small library reading, he retired to bed. The day shift security team that Henry insisted they keep was still there to watch the house and Gaz doubted much would happen during the day. He buried his head under the pillows and despite everything that was swirling in his mind he managed to fall asleep in a matter of minutes. One thing the military had taught him was the ability to sleep at the drop of a hat because you never knew when your next chance of rest was coming.

“Time to get up, Sergeant,” came a voice some time later and Gaz started. He hadn’t even heard the person enter the room, which was unusual for him. Flinging the pillow off his head Gaz blinked a few times to see Ghost had entered the room. Turning his head toward the clock Gaz almost bolted out of bed. He had slept for almost six hours, about two more hours than he had planned.

“What brings you here?” Gaz asked a bit groggily as he wiped at his face and swung his legs out of the bed. He felt a bit nauseated and too hot, like he was almost sick and he rubbed the back of his head with his hands to try and orient himself.

“Changing off,” Ghost said as he threw his duffle next to Soap’s on the bed across from Gaz. “You’re with Price. Prime Minister has a public PR thing this evening,” he shrugged, “and they didn’t want my face all over the evening news. Price is downstairs waiting; you’ll want to wear a suit.”

Shit. He hadn’t been planning on that, he was hoping to take the evening to continue digging through paperwork. They had been warned they would be rotating and shift changes but Gaz hadn’t expected it that soon. Standing up now Gaz groaned before digging the files he had stuffed between the mattress and box spring out, not able to think of a better place to put them yet, and walked over to the desk where Ghost had already sat.

“Get a chance to speak with Alex?” Gaz asked as he set the files down. “Up for a bit of light reading?” He knew Ghost was always up for a bit of research, despite his intimidating stance when they were out on the field, he wasn’t all brawn and no brain. He enjoyed digging into things and tended to pick up on patterns or small details others overlooked.

“Alex filled me in,” Ghost answered simply as he pulled a file over. “I’ll see what I can find,” he added as Gaz padded to the bathroom to get ready.

Soon enough Gaz was ready, fixing his tie in the bathroom mirror before stepping out. Ghost didn’t even look up from the mess he had made with the files, some of them strewn open on the floor, another propped against a monitor and one clutched in his hand as he made some tick marks right on the paper. Gaz didn’t bother to say goodbye, Ghost probably wouldn’t even acknowledge it anyway, when he was in deep like this, he shut out the outside world. Which meant Soap was going to be on patrol when he got back which Gaz knew would agitate him, but he wouldn’t dare tell Ghost no even if he was dead on his feet.

“Sir,” Gaz said as he stepped into the living room where Price was. His Captain was also in a suit but Gaz could see telltale signs of a chest holster under his jack, just like Gaz had on. Price certainly seemed uncomfortable when he was dressed up. The tie was a little loose around his neck like he had been tugging at it and the cuff on his right wrist was undone because Gaz knew he said it restricted his firing hand.

“I’ve worn more suits in the past week then I have in a whole year,” Price groused as he tugged on the tie again.

“It’s not so bad,” Gaz answered with a smirk as he fixed his own cuffs so they poked just slightly out from his suit jacket sleeves. “Bit nice to dress up now and again,” he added. In truth Gaz enjoyed a good suit and used any excuse to dress up a bit. Living most of his life in jeans or military gear putting on soft expensive clothes were a bit of a luxury to him and he had more suits than occasions to wear them.

Turning to leave Gaz followed Price out but stopped when they got to the long hallway to see Olivia headed their way. She was dressed nicely in a lilac-colored dress that went down past her knees, her dark hair was twisted up into an elegant hairstyle and she finished the whole look with a black clutch and sky-high heels. Price stepped off to the side to let her pass and she gave both Price and Gaz an appraising look.

“Where are you going?” Gaz asked bluntly, his eyes sweeping over her. Her makeup was applied expertly that he couldn’t even see the bruise or small nick on her cheek from the night before. Her eye makeup was dark and the lipstick she had donned was a sinful red that made Gaz swallow once before he tore his eyes away from her lips.

“Does it matter?” Olivia asked as she paused her steps a few feet from Gaz looking a bit shocked at his interest.

“It matters because you should have security,” Gaz quickly covered and he saw Price glance at his watch as if he didn’t have time for this. “Does the team know you are going out?” He glanced at Price who didn’t say anything which meant that the 141 had not been made aware of her going out.

“I’m going to dinner with a few friends,” she answered simply before pulling her phone from her clutch to glance at it. “I have security, Henry is the more important one remember,” she added. “I have some people from the security company to babysit me.” Her last words were a bit sarcastic and Gaz raised an eyebrow at that. “Don’t let me keep you,” she gestured toward Price indicating she realized they too were going out.

Gaz hesitated for one moment longer before following Price, glancing over his shoulder back at Olivia to find she was still watching him, as the turned the corner. Price didn’t say anything as they walked out to another SUV he had brought and was still silent until they turned out of the driveway onto the main road.

“What did you find in the files?” He asked simply as he merged into traffic.

“Nothing yet,” Gaz said simply, not surprised that Price already knew. “Ghost is looking at them now,” he explained as his phone buzzed to find a text from Abby. He silenced it and put the phone away again.

“And what about this unknown number that’s been messaging you?” Price continued, his voice even though Gaz knew there was a hidden edge to it.

“Nothing yet. They knew I had files though, knows that we’re digging into Henry. Told me to not contact them when I was on Henry’s network and gave me information no one really knows to prove they aren’t messing about,” Gaz answered as he cut his eyes over at the man.

“Were you going to tell me about all this or just let me find out from Alex?” Price asked, his voice still calm but Gaz could see how he was gripping the wheel. Fuck.

“I haven’t had a chance sir,” Gaz stated. “It’s all sort of happened quick and when Alex told me to keep it secure,” he paused. “I should have told you anyway,” he finished. The past days had all been such a messy blur and he had been so eager to dig in he hadn’t paused to tell his Captain what was happening. “Sorry,” he finished though his tone was more mater of fact instead of sounding it.

“You are to keep me informed of everything,” Price looked over at Gaz as they were stopped at a red light. “Anything you find, suspect, have a hunch on,” his voice had taken on a commanding tone. “This shit is beyond assassination attempts at this point. We’re looking at a huge global event so you don’t keep any details from me. I don’t care about your feelings on the matter, about whatever the hell you’ve got in your head about Olivia,” he paused.

“He hit her,” Gaz cut in simply, feeling a bit of anger rise in himself. Yes, he had been wrong to not tell his Captain but he also didn’t appreciate being treated like a child. “Last night and I don’t think it was the first time, or the last,” he finished as they started moving again.

“Did you see it?” Price asked.

“See him hit her? No of course not, he wouldn’t have a fucking face left,” Gaz answered, shifting in his seat a bit. “I saw the bruise on her cheek afterward, he hit her hard enough she was bleeding,” Gaz finished.

“You keep that rage in check Sergeant,” Price snapped, though it was a bit hypocritical since he wasn’t keeping his own temper in control. “You cannot be rash. We deal with this like we deal with everything else. Details, information and all the facts before we act. Diving in head first without a plan is a death sentence,” he finished.

“I’m not going to stand by and just wait for him,” Gaz started but trailed off as Price turned to face him. The man did not care that he was still actively driving, albeit down an empty street.

“You are going to stand by and you are going to wait,” Price ordered, making direct eye contact with Gaz for emphasis before turning back to face the road again. “Henry isn’t stupid. He may have lost his temper last night but he’s not going to risk it again. Especially if he knows you know,” he finished as he pulled into an alley and cut the engine.

“How would he know I know?” Gaz asked as he undid his seatbelt.

“You think he isn’t always watching the cameras? That he doesn’t have ears all over that house? Soap checked in with me earlier. He overheard Henry mentioned something happened in the kitchen last night between the two of you, so he knows.” Price stated before taking on, “you need to be careful with your actions. Alex said Henry’s got Olivia’s phone cloned so he’s paranoid enough as it is”. At Gaz’s shocked face he tacked on, “this is why we share information Kyle. Now let’s go,” he finished and pushed open his door to exit effectively ending the conversation before Gaz could interject or fight back.

With a bit of a snarl Gaz exited the vehicle and slammed the door a little too hard before following Price inside. Once in the warm building Price filled Gaz and the rest of the security group in on what they would be doing. Price and Gaz would following the Prime minister directly at his back while the rest of the team filled in gaps and were planted about the room. This was a press event to discuss the peace summit that was still scheduled to continue, despite all the recent attacks. Gaz took his orders without a word and fell into step behind Price, his eyes alert for any threat as the Prime Minister answered questions and worked the room afterward.

During the event his phone had gone off a few times, the vibration in his breast pocket jarring him slightly each time though he didn’t portray it. He dared to glance at it during quick breaks to just find messages between the team, another message from Abby he hadn’t had a chance to respond to yet but still nothing from the unknown number. They must have been waiting on him to get through the files or thought he was still at Henry and Olivia’s house. Aligning himself with a wall near an exit Gaz dared to dig out his phone again to see a message had come in from Ghost. He had found something and he wanted them all at the MI6 office to discuss it. Now.

Gaz glanced up at Price who had also received the message and they made eye contact across the room. There was a reason Price was a Captain. He took control of any situation with ease, no one dared to question him and before long Price and Gaz were back in the car. The Prime Minister was a priority to safeguard but Price had ended the event a few minutes early and he was on his way back home with twice the amount of security than he had come with since Price and Gaz were called away.

The car ride was quiet but there was no tension, both men had worked together long enough that disagreements melted away as soon as the conversation was over. There were no holding grudges and no need to rehash anything that had been said. Alex and Soap had chimed in that they were on their way and Ghost had secured extra guards for Henry as well so he could slip away. Henry didn’t even notice, or if he did he was too busy working in his office to care. Olivia still wasn’t home yet but that didn’t seem to bother the man either.

“What’d you find?” Price asked as he walked into the office with Gaz trailing close behind. He had ripped the tie off his throat the minute they had parked and was working on the top two buttons of his shirt as he took a heavy seat down in one of the chairs.

“Henry’s family,” Ghost said simply as he threw a bunch of files down on the table in the center of the room. “They’ve been knee deep in this shit for years,” he continued as Alex pulled a file to himself and started flipping through it. “All their money comes from real estate as far as their taxes are concerned,” he continued to explain as Gaz took up his own copy, “but the real money is in the fuck ton of shell companies I found. It was buried deep, but Alex managed to decrypt a few things and get me the information.”

“Rich people have shell companies all the time,” Soap reasoned, “it’s how they avoid paying their fair share and can buy six yachts.”

“Not all the shell companies were fake,” Alex answered as he flipped a few pages in. “He was using fake companies to hide his real companies, inside other fake companies.”

“Red herrings?” Gaz reasoned and Ghost nodded yes in agreement.

“Fine but what does this tell us exactly?” Price asked, never one to wait around and play the guessing game.

“They’re working in weapons manufacturing,” Ghost answered as he flipped the laptop around. “These houses aren’t houses. They are warehouses,” he pointed to a few, “that have been converted to manufacturing,” he zoomed in on an image and showed them a seemingly abandoned warehouse where a truck was being loaded with pallets of weapons. A truck with a very familiar logo on it.

“Olivia’s father’s company,” Gaz stated after a second, things clicking into place. “That’s why he bought the company.” He started flipping through the papers quickly before finding the name of the company and the purchase date all mixed in with the real and fake company names. “He needed a well-known, established, legitimate business to move these things. No one is going to question a business that ships everything from furniture to medical supplies all over Europe anyway. They have a huge fleet of trucks, the infrastructure and contacts already established.”

“None of this is illegal though,” Soap chimed in. “He’s not running these companies, his family is.” He made a face at the looks the rest of the men gave him, “yes I know he is probably doing it in everything but name but we can’t prove shit. All of the stuff tied directly to him looks legitimate on paper.”

“Keep digging,” Price said simply. “You can’t dig yourself a hole this big without getting some of the dirt back on you. Explains why he is so paranoid. Cameras everywhere, watching everything everyone does, monitors all electronic communications,” he flipped his file shut before looking at the team. “We keep it business as usual while we research in the background. Do not act different, do not let on.” He cut his eyes toward Gaz at that last sentence.

Two weeks of acting like everything was normal and Gaz felt like he was going to start climbing the walls. Alex was getting information when he could but after the initial influx of items it was taking longer to gather things. He needed assistance from his contacts and of course the further you dug the more things were buried and intertwined which made the process all that much slower. Throw in the fact they were all working rotating shifts on protection duty it was hard to have time to sit down and read, let alone try to tie together all the convoluted mess. The unknown number had been helpful enough to tell them where else to look, though the messages were a bit cryptid and they wouldn’t reveal any other identifying details yet.

Gaz finally had a free night and he was staring at the paperwork in front of him that was marked up with Ghost’s notes, cross outs from Price with revisions and Soap’s chicken scratch commentary on the side. They hadn’t figured out anything new and Alex was pulling an all nighter with Ghost to try and pull apart some heavy redacted and password protected information as they took watch at the Prime Minister’s house. There was nothing new to gain with what they had besides going in frustrated circles and Price had told him to take some time away though Gaz wasn’t good at resting when there was work to be done.

“Get gone,” Soap said as he walked into the room and stared at Gaz who was staring aimlessly at the paperwork. “I’m sure there’s a pretty blonde waiting for you somewhere,” he grinned as he snatched the file right out of Gaz’s hands and threw it onto the end table.

It was true, Abby had messaged him that she was back in town for a few days. His last time off she had been out of the country working and the time she had off he had been on shift. Though them not being able to see one another hadn’t stopped them from talking via text constantly. Or a few very late-night video calls that ended up with Gaz holed up in a bathroom with headphones for some extremely graphic phone sex that ended up with both of them making a respective mess.

“I’m not sure I like the fact you comment so often on my pretty blonde,” Gaz responded with a smirk as he got up and messaged Abby quickly before tossing the phone onto the bed. Granted he had been the one willing to share some intimate details anyway and a few pictures that were not revealing. Abby was a big fan of sending him lingerie shots while she was working or other shots when she was alone in a hotel room. “What about you? I’m sure you could find your own pretty blonde if you put in a little effort” he reasoned.

“She could be our pretty blonde if you’d just share,” Soap joked, though the idea wasn’t that farfetched. It had been a while now but there had been a time the two of them had shared women while deployed. “And who says I don’t have a pretty blonde? Maybe a red head and a brunette as well,” he laughed and winked before disappearing into the bathroom. Soap tended to keep his sex life to a one or two than done, sometimes not even making it out of the bar bathroom or the back of a car.

Gaz changed into a nice short sleeved polo and jeans, opting for casual since Abby had told him she had just gotten in a few hours before and they’d just do take away if he could pick it up. He was fairly certain food was going to be the last thing either of them were worried about after two weeks of high tension but he agreed nonetheless and they had settled on Chinese. Tossing a goodbye over his shoulder to Soap who was in the shower Gaz shrugged on his jacket and headed out into the hall to find Olivia standing there.

“Going out?” Olivia asked innocently as she looked at Gaz, his cologne hitting her like a slap to the face. She herself was also headed out, a night on the town with a few of her old friends, not the stuffy ones that were Henry’s little spies but her friends from college. She had managed to wrangle it before Henry had a chance to say no, he was traveling with the Prime Minister anyway so he was too far away to really do anything about it.

“I am,” Gaz said simply, his eyes taking in the slightly too lowcut red dress that hugged her curves, though Gaz noted they were a bit diminished. She looked a bit gaunt underneath the flawless makeup and hair. “Looks like you are as well,” he added gesturing to the strappy heels that wrapped up to the back of her knees. This is how they seemed to find one another these days always going in opposite directions as if they were unconsciously avoiding one another. Their conversations while not exactly sniping at one another were painfully civil and awkward whenever they saw one another. Neither of them had acknowledged what happened in the kitchen all those nights ago and Gaz seemed to think Olivia was trying to pretend it never happened.

“Dinner with a few friends, maybe some dancing,” she shrugged a bit, “Henry’s out of town and I need a night away from here. But don’t worry I have my babysitters,” she rolled her eyes cutting Gaz off before he had the chance to ask about her security. There hadn’t been a single threat since the initial bout of attacks and it was making everyone uneasy. The enemy hadn’t been caught and there was no way they were slipping back into obscurity, so the silence was ominous that they were planning something big.

“Enjoy your evening then,” Gaz stated before moving to step around her, pushing down those heavy thoughts and questions he was burning to ask her.

“Your evening a secret then?” Olivia asked after him, though she had a feeling she knew where he was off to.

“Well I seem to remember that you don’t fraternize with the help,” he smirked to show he was teasing but he didn’t answer her either. She didn’t know where he was off to, he wasn’t the one that needed protection.

“Ah, so with Abby,” Olivia tossed back and gave Gaz a knowing little smile, pretending like the thought didn’t hurt. She knew the flight attendants name, had figured out that was who Gaz was with that night in the kitchen when she caught the whiff of perfume. Then knew they were still talking when she heard Soap and Gaz discussing her while they sat in the security room not realizing she was in the hallway. “You’re not the only one that can know things,” she finished before walking the opposite way down the hall.

“Fuck Abby,” Gaz ground out an hour later, his hands gripping tight on her hips as she rode him on the couch. The food hadn’t been touched and was still in the brown paper bag on the coffee table in front them, long cold and forgotten. Gaz had barely managed to sit down before she had jumped him, though he hadn’t complained for a second as she undid his belt and settled herself between his knees on the floor. She had been eager to get her mouth on him and had almost pushed him to finish there but he wasn’t having that, not yet. He had yanked her up onto his lap to find she wasn’t wearing any underwear underneath her skirt and was so fucking wet he slipped right in without resistance. “Just like I imagined,” he huffed as his thumb found her clit to help her along though he could feel her clamping down on him.

“Mmm, I knew I was in for a good ride after you laid me out on the kitchen counter,” Abby answered as she threw her head back and Gaz grabbed her hair from behind and tugged hard causing her to cry out as she arched on him. “Right there,” she said breathlessly after a moment, Gaz contorting her so he was hitting that perfect spot over and over.

“I know,” Gaz answered simply with a small laugh as he rolled his hips then bucked them up to match her downward movement causing an obscene slapping noise. “You going to cum for me?” He asked leaning forward to bite and suck at her exposed neck, but she didn’t answer, too lost in her own bliss to get the words out. “Yes you are,” he felt her shudder and then she let out a strangled moan that pushed him over the edge to finish with her, a loud groan building in his chest as he bit and sucked shamelessly at her neck leaving a mark as she rocked her hips furiously chasing her own high as she helped finish him.

“Fuck,” Abby breathed as she collapsed forward onto Gaz who wrapped his arms around her gently while they both caught their breath. “That was,” she didn’t finish only laughed which caused Gaz to laugh as well.

“That was only one position,” Gaz answered simply before Abby leaned back and gave him an incredulous look. “I’ll need to eat first before I put you in about six different other ones,” he smirked at her face before helping her off of him to go clean up. When he returned, she had started heating the food in the microwave and they settled in on the couch to eat and watch a movie. He had checked his phone once or twice when Abby was distracted but nothing had come through. They were only about halfway through the movie before Gaz had started kissing on Abby’s neck and they moved it to her bedroom where there was much more room to spread out.

Hours later once Abby had fallen asleep, Gaz gently playing with her hair as she splayed across his chest, his phone lit up the dark room pulling him from his doze. The messages came in quick succession and he grabbed at the phone as quick as he could without disturbing Abby but also to get it before the vibration woke her up. They were messages from an unknown number but this one was different than the usual.

I need your help. Can you come get me? It’s Olivia. Kyle please Please don’t ignore me.

“Shit,” Kyle muttered before quickly dislodging Abby from him, careful to gently roll out from under her and move to sit up on the edge of the bed to answer. He wasn’t sure when she got his number, though it wasn’t out of the question since everyone in that house had the whole teams number. Rubbing his eyes for a second, he shot out a response and used the light from his phone screen to try and find his boxers.

What happened? Where are you? I’m at the dance club you used to always take me to. Is everything alright? What is going on? Just hurry Where is your security team?

She didn’t answer that last text and Kyle moved to grab his pants and shirt quickly pulling them on and not doing the best at being quiet. Abby had awoken and she pushed herself into a halfway leaning position on her arms and was blinking at him.

“I’m sorry I have to go,” Gaz said quickly as he leaned over and cupped her cheek to give her a kiss. “Emergency,” he reasoned and when she widened her eyes he tacked, “I don’t think it’s huge but they need me. Go back to sleep. I’ll call you tomorrow.” When she nodded and slipped back down under the sheets Gaz fastened up his pants and jogged out of the room, putting the address to the dance club he knew well and climbed into the SUV.

He peeled away from the curb into traffic without a second thought. He didn’t care that someone had laid on their horn because he cut them off or he had run a red to avoid getting caught in a busy intersection. He made it to the dance club in less than fifteen minutes and there he found Olivia standing in the light drizzle holding her shoes, utterly alone and shivering in her stupid red dress by the valet podium.

There was a group of men eyeing her and Gaz instinctively parked the SUV roughly and got out to go to her, glaring at them as the wolf whistled at her before retreating a bit at Gaz’s presence. Olivia seemed a bit out of it as he reached a hand out for her arm and she flinched a bit before blinking up at him. Her make up was a disaster all over her face, her hair had partially fallen out of its updo and Gaz could smell the alcohol wafting off her in waves.

“Are you fucking drunk?” Gaz snapped as he wrenched open the passenger side door and helped her inside, his eyes searching around the area for any threats, but also her security team. “Where are your friends? Your security?” He asked as she attempted to get her seatbelt but failed miserably so Gaz had to lean over her and buckle her in before shutting the door and jogging back around to the driver’s seat and climbed in. He was seething. She had made it seem like this was some huge emergency and pulled him from his night off to pick her up because she was wasted.

“I ditched them,” Olivia said quietly as she tossed her shoes onto the floorboard and turned to face Gaz. She flinched back a bit from the anger in his face but didn’t back down. “My friends didn’t want to come here and I did. My stupid security wanted to take me home,” she sighed and moved to pull her hair down the rest of the way. “I don’t want to go home,” she muttered as she wiped at her eyes, only smearing the mascara more.

“Well, that’s where I am taking you, I don’t know what else you were expecting when you called me,” Gaz snapped as he put the car into gear. “Did you do this on purpose? Because I was with Abby? You can’t stand to see me happy and just feel this unending need to fuck with me?”

“Do you remember when we used to come here?” Olivia asked simply as she gestured to the club behind them. It was as if she hadn’t heard a word Gaz had said to her and she was lost in her own drunken stupor. “You used to take me dancing even though I have no rhythm, I still don’t,” she laughed a bit sadly. “I miss dancing, not that stuffy waltzing shit Henry does. But real dancing,” she sighed. “I miss being happy,” she tacked on before rubbing her eyes hard with the heels of her palms as if to hold the tears in. “I miss having my own fucking life, freedom,” she sighed heavily and dropped her hands to find Gaz looking at her. He had put the car back into park and hadn’t left yet, but was instead watching her.

“I remember,” Gaz said quietly after a second of silence. “I remember having to guide you on the floor while simultaneously dodging your knife sharp heels. And I also remember you can’t hold your whiskey for a damn, so why were you drinking it?” He could smell the particular alcohol on her breath now that they were inside the car.

“Because you like whiskey,” Olivia said simply, as if it were obvious. “Don’t take me home Kyle,” she silently whispered, the tone begging, “take me anywhere but there so we can talk.”

#fanfic #fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #ao3 author #ao3 writer #call of duty #call of duty fanfic #cod fanfic #cod #my fic #gaz fanfic #kyle gaz garrick #gaz cod #gaz x oc #keeping lines blurry

[burningablaze]

Mirio x Reader - It Helps to Let it Out

A/N: I had to post this fic again because at one point, I changed my name and posted it so when changed my name back, I wouldn’t be able to click on the link in my masterlist because it was under a different name

Summary: When something was wrong with Mirio, your always there to determine what happened and comfort him for as long as he needs it

Warnings: Mentions of death and heavy crying

Lee: Mirio

Ler: Reader

Words: 2,380

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"Has anyone seen Togata?" You asked, looking around the living room only to see Kaminari playing a video game, Midoriya writing in his notes, and Todoroki next to Midoriya reading a manga series.

"Nah, we haven't seen him in ages,”" Kaminari said as he button-mashed his controller. Midoriya looked over the couch to make eye contact with you. "I know! It would help if you talked to Hado and Amajiki." You nodded. "Right, thanks."

You checked your phone to see if Mirio had gotten your text, but you frowned when you saw he didn't read your text. You kept wondering why Mirio didn't answer yet, but you hoped it wasn't too serious.

You went outside and walked around the school campus, hoping you would run into the rest of the Big Three. It was very convenient to see Nejire and Tamaki sitting together under a tree's shade, playing war.

"Hey, guys." You said, making yourself known as you got closer. Nejire was the first to look up, and her eyes widened with excitement. "Hey, Y/N!" She said and waved her arm. Amajiki shyly looked up as well. "Oh, hi, Y/N."

"I wanted to ask if either of you has seen Mirio. I texted him earlier, but he didn't answer me, and I'm a little worried, is all." You confessed. Nejire pointed her finger to her chin. "Well, I haven't seen him all day either," She turned to her shy friend. "Have you seen Togata at all, Amajiki?" She asked. "Nothing really," Amajiki answered softly.

"Maybe you should check his room? He should be there. That's where I saw him last time, and I'm sure it's nothing! He's probably working on something and doesn't want to be disturbed, so he'll turn his phone off." Nejire said. "But he would've said something before." You left them to let them continue their game. "Thanks anyway."

"Happy to help! Hey, don't look at my cards!"

You remembered where Mirio's dorm was since it was a while ago the first time you met up with him. You took in a soft breath and knocked on his door. "Mirio? It's me, Y/N. I just want to know if you're okay. Is the door locked? Can I come in?" You knocked again, but this time the door slowly moved.

"Mirio?" You pushed the door more and saw nothing but complete darkness. "Why is it so dark in here?" You asked in a whisper. You took out my phone and turned on the flash. "Mirio? Are you in here?" You called out.

"Hmm, oh, hey, Y/N! I didn't hear you come in!" You heard Mirio's voice, but you didn't know where it was coming from. "Why is your room so dark?" You asked.

You seemed surprised to find Mirio's room so dark. Usually, he lets natural light shine in his room unless he is taking a nap, but he never allows his room to be completely opaque.

"Oh, right. Here, let me just-" Slowly, the sunlight peeked through the curtains until Mirio pulled the curtains all the way. You turned off the flash on your phone. "What were you doing?" You asked.

Mirio rubbed the back of his neck nervously. What does he have to be nervous about? "Oh, uh, I was, uh, just thinking. It helps me think about stuff."

You couldn't help but feel something was wrong with him, and you were right about the first thing you saw. "What, why are your eyes red?" You asked and leaned forward to get a closer look at his face. His eyes and nose were red, and his skin was pale. You also saw faint tear stains on his cheeks.

"Oh no! I was just having, uh, allergies!" He forced a smile, thinking you would buy his lie. "You never told me you had allergies." You said. "I didn't?" Mirio said.

"You've been crying, haven't you?" You asked. Mirio went quiet for a short moment before nodding softly. "Yeah,"

"Why did you lie?" You asked. Mirio ran his fingers through his hair to sweep it back with a frustrated but soft sigh. "I don't know. I'm just... upset, is all." He sat on his bed with his head down low a little. "You didn't need to lie to me, Mirio."

You sat down next to him. "I know, and I'm sorry." "Do you want to talk about it?" You asked gently. "I guess so," Mirio muttered sadly, but you heard him perfectly.

"What's going on, Mirio? You know I'm here if you want to talk about anything." Mirio gave you a gentle warm smile. "I know, and I appreciate it, but I thought I would handle this on my own."

You rested your hand on his back and comfortably ran up and down his spine. "Sometimes, it's not always good to handle stuff like this by yourself. It's just not healthy. It can make you feel overwhelmed sometimes, and it can feel like the world is crashing on you. I get you want to be brave and try to fight through this, but it'll be those times that it's too much to handle. Those kinds of feelings can come out of nowhere and bring you down. I would be more than happy to help you when you need it."

Mirio snorted softly. "Wow. Your starting to sound like me." You smiled. "I learned from the best." You nudged his arm gently. "Heh, thanks. The thing is... I don't usually let things get to me, but something like this really scared me." Mirio frowned. "Was it bad?" You asked.

"Worse than that. Earlier today, I felt a little tired, so I took a nap. All of a sudden, I had this horrible dream. It felt so much worse than a nightmare. I was watching Midoriya and... Sir Nighteye was fighting Overhaul, and Eri was behind me, but I couldn't move."

Mirio gulped when he had to mention his recent mentor, Nighteye. Losing Nighteye was the worst thing that ever happened to him, but he wanted to keep a happy face. He wanted to let everyone know that he was alright, even if he had to lie.

"I was so helpless, and that's... when it happened. Sir got severely injured, and it was like on a loop. It was replaying Sir getting hurt over and over again! All I could do was scream, but it was silent! Nothing but silence! I couldn't do anything!"

Mirio forced himself not to get ahead of himself as he hid his face behind his hands. You continued to rub his back, then pulled him slowly towards you, and he immediately wrapped his arms around you tightly.

"Oh no, honey. It's alright. Try to relax, okay?" You said, trying to comfort him in any way you thought of. He buried his face in your shirt, getting your shoulder wet with his tears, but you didn't care.

Mirio sniffled in your shirt. "Oh god. I just miss him so much." He whimpered and squeezed you a little tighter. "I know, sweetheart, I know." You said, rubbing his back more.

"I wish he was here right now. If only I could've done something, he would still be here."

"Mirio," You pushed Mirio away to cup his cheeks in your hands. His blue eyes shined from his tears. The redness around his eyes grew worse. "You have to understand that his death wasn't your fault. It suddenly happened, and we couldn't predict it."

Mirio moved his face away from you and mumbled, “But I was-" "No, none of that,” You brought his face towards you. "You couldn't have known about that, and he will always be with you, but not all the time cause he'll make be like a creeper." You joked.

As you expected, Mirio chuckled softly. You were glad that you got Mirio to laugh. "See?" You wiped the rest of his tears away. "And he wants you to smile. Just like how you want to make Eri smile; otherwise, he'll put you in that tickle machine."

Mirio snickered. "Oh yeah. That was the worst." He said, rubbing his neck.

After a moment of settling down, you and Mirio had been quiet. You hadn't left his side ever since; you wanted to be sure he was okay. "Feeling any better?" You asked.

"I guess a little. Thank you. I think I needed something like that." "I'm glad I got to help. The next this happens, I'm always a phone call away, and I'll come running to your door with a bunch of snacks!"

Mirio snorted. "I'll remember that." "Do you want to do anything?"

Mirio hummed and quickly looked at you with a slight smile. "A movie would be good right now."

"That sounds good, but I'm picking." "Fine by me." You didn't expect Mirio to give this sort of answer. You thought he was going to talk back.

"I was only joking." "I'm serious. It's a little something to return the favor after you helped me." Mirio smiled widely. "Alright, if you say so."

So you decided to watch The Jungle Book on Mirio's laptop. Mirio nestled himself comfortably between your legs and used your stomach as a pillow. You twirled his soft blonde locks around your fingers. You smiled as you thought to yourself that moment would never last.

"I thought you were talking about the new one," Mirio said, glancing up at you. "No, I meant the original." You said. Mirio shrugged his shoulders.

A little later, you smirked at a familiar scene and looked down at Mirio; thankfully, he hadn't noticed yet.

The scene Mowgli was tickling Baloo gave you an idea. You slowly snaked your arm down towards Mirio's side, very carefully lifting his shirt a bit, and used your nail to scrap lightly on his soft skin. You felt his body twitched away from your finger, and you decided to keep going.

"Hehehehehey, what're you dohohohoing?" Mirio giggled and pushed your hand away, but your other hand went around and squeezed his other side. "I don't know. Why don't you tell me what I'm doing, huh?" You teased.

“Ehehehehehehehe!" Mirio squirmed side to side and tried to block your tickle attack.

"Hey, Mirio, can you keep your voice down? I can't hear the movie."

"Buhuhuhuhut your tihihickling mehehehehe!"

"Oh, is that what I'm doing? Then I guess I'm doing it wrong because THIS would be tickling you!" You dove your hands and wiggled your fingers straight into Mirio's belly, which happens to be one of his biggest tickle spots.

"NOHOHOHOHOHO! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Mirio brought his knees to his chest and kicked his feet. You giggled at Mirio for how much he was making an adorable scene.

"Mirio, if you keep laughing, I'll miss the entire movie." You said and kept tickling his belly. "BUT YOHOHOHOHOHOU'VE SEHEHEHEHEN IT BEFORE!" "But I love that movie! And you know I don't miss any part!"

Mirio continued to wiggle around and push your hands away or pin them to his sides with his arms. "STAHAHAHAHAHAHAP IT TIHIHIHIHICKLES!"

"Pfft, please, you know that I know that you love being tickled. I mean, how can you not? Your so ticklish!" You stated, making his face turn redder.

You hummed as you thought up an idea. "Let's get these arms out of the way." You said and used all your strength to get his arms above his head and sat on top of them.

"Wait, wait, what're you doing?!" "Trying something new, duh!"

Starting from his elbows, you very lightly wiggled your fingertips down his biceps, getting close to his partly exposed underarms. Mirio squirmed and twitched a lot more than he did before and shrieked.

"No, no nohohohoho! Ah, quihihit ihit! It's so much wohohorse!" He tried to move his arms away from your fingers, fighting off the itchy but very ticklish feeling from his arms.

Once you got very close to Mirio's underarms, you skittered your fingers back up to his elbows and left him laughing silly. "NO, NO, PLEHEHEASE! Please, not my armpits! It's so bahahahad!" "You mean when I do this?" You did the same thing again, slowly spidering your fingers closer to his underarms and then pulling away.

"Yes, thahahahahat! Dohohohohon't!" "Do it?" "NOHOHO!" "No?" "NOHOHOHO!" "Then yes?" "NO!" "You are very confusing. Which one is it, yes or no?" "NOHOHOHO! STOP DOHOHOHOING THAHAT!" "Yes, do it? Okay!"

That kind of teasing you pulled made Mirio's squirming a lot worse, and his laughter erupted more. You tickled his soft biceps a little faster but still slowly going down. "Oh, Mirio, I'm gonna getcha getcha getcha! I'm gonna tickle tickle tickle you!"

Mirio arched his back and moved himself down, hoping it would set him free. up "Nohohohohoho! Dohohohon't!" He twisted to the side, so he was partially lying on his stomach. "You can't escape the tickles, Mirio!"

You suddenly went for his underarms and dug your fingers into the hollows. “AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA STAHAHAHAHAHAHAP! GET AWAHAHAHAHAHAHAYEHEHEHEHEHE!"

Mirio turned back onto lying on his back and squirmed like crazy. You scratched, poked, and wiggled into his underarms in any way.

“AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA STAHAHAHAHAHAHAP PLEHEHEHEHEASE! NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Finally, it was time to let him go. You got off his arms, and he immediately cradled himself in a ball, breathing heavily and snickered. "Jeez, you don't hold back, do you?” Mirio asked, with tears in his eyes. You raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You think that wasn't holding back?"

Mirio widened his eyes and gulped. "In that case, allow me to not hold back and tickle you for real this time." You turned your hand into a claw and wiggled menacingly, making Mirio giggle and push your hand back. "Dohohohon't! I've had enough tickles for one day!" "Alright, alright."

You pulled your hand back and held Mirio's head in your lap. "Thank you, Y/N. I wouldn't know how to feel better after that mess." "I promise to be with you when everything falls apart around you." Both of you smiled, and you looked at Mirio's laptop. After all that tickling, the movie was really far.

"Great, now I have to go to where we were!" Mirio laughed, but not for long. "If I remember correctly, we were at that tickle scene. Right, Mirio?" You said and scribbled Mirio's neck. "Hehehehey!"

#mha tickle #mha tickle fic #mha tickle fanfic #mha tickle fanfiction #ler!reader #mha togata #mha mirio togata #lee!togata #ticklish!togata #togata x reader

[etes-secrecy-post]

Hi, before I explain my post, I want to say something important.

• What you see my blog has become a major overhaul. And despite the changes, I decided that my 2nd account will be now my artwork blog with a secret twist.

⚠️NEW RULE! (W/ BIGGER TEXT!)⚠️

⚠️ SO PLEASE DO NOT SHARE MY 2nd ACCOUNT TO EVERYONE! THIS SECRECY BLOG OF MINE IS FOR CLOSES FRIENDS ONLY!⚠️

• AND FOR MY CLOSES FRIENDS, DON’T REBLOG IT. INSTEAD, JUST COPY MY LINK AND PASTE IT ON YOUR TUMBLR POST! JUST BE SURE THE IMAGE WILL BE REMOVED AND THE ONLY LEFT WAS THE TEXT.

⚠️ SHARING LINKS, LIKE POSTS, REBLOG POSTS, STEALING MY SNAPSHOT PHOTOS/RECORDED VIDEOS/ARTWORKS (a.k.a. ART THIEVES) OR PLAGIARIZING FROM UNKNOWN TUMBLR STRANGERS WILL IMMEDIATELY BE BLOCKED, RIGHT AWAY!⚠️

😡 WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT EVER LIKED & REBLOG MY SECRET POST! THIS IS FOR MY SECRET FRIENDS ONLY, NOT YOU! 😡

Okay? Capiche? Make sense? Good, now back to the post…↓

Take a Taste: with Uncle John's Chili Con Empanada and Sprite Lemon Plus [Recorded: Mar 30th, 2024]

Hello! It’s time for another “Take a Taste”! The series is about delicious food with my two paper dolls.

Today, it's time to share my food thoughts from the past month of March 30th, 2024; "Black Saturday" on Holy Week 🙏✝️. Once again, I break the "Holy Week" ❌🥩 rules because I ate the Chili Con Empanada from Uncle John's (formerly named: "Ministop Philippines") 🌶️🥟, with a refreshing drink of Sprite Lemon Plus in a can 🍋🥫. So, how's it taste of the Empanada from Uncle John's? 🤔 Let's find out, right now.

If you haven’t seen my previous episode, then please click → [CLICK ME!].

IMPORTANT NOTE: No #OnThisDay throwback post for this date.

So, without further ado, let’s get started:

1st & 2nd Image(s) 📷📲: ↑

• It's morning, 7:50 AM 🕖. And I'm somewhere at random Uncle John's convenience store 🇵🇭🟦🟨🏪 branch with my parents and my related family members for paying a visit at our ancestral house. But before we depart, I haven't... or WE haven't eaten breakfast by the time we arrive. So, I decided to purchase a nice hot Chili Con Empanada 🌶️🥟 worth ₱35, and a nice refreshing Sprite Lemon Plus 🍋🥫. in a can worth ₱45 (₱33 in the original suggested retail price)? I'm not sure but, I haven't tried it yet, aside from the only default Sprite flavor. 🤔

Did you know #1: I remember drinking the limited edition of "Sprite Lebron's Mix"? Yup, a collaborate with NBA superstar, LeBron James and Sprite. Which, by the way, I don't know much about NBA nor watching NBA matches because I'm not a basketball fan. ❌🏀🤷‍♀️ Nevertheless, as far as I know, this one tastes like authentic cherry flavor fused with Sprite's flavor, and I was surprised that this flavor Sprite drink was so good, I wish it'll be returned, soon as a normal production rather than limited. Man, I missed it, so much. 🍋🍒🥫😃😋

3rd to 6th Image(s) 📷📲: ↑

• Nonetheless, here's my first bite of the Chili Con Empanada. It is spicy yet very juicy with all the meaty goodness inside. 😃😋 But, is it hot though? 🤔 Nah, not at all. I can't help myself eating it, and I should order two Empanadas (of the same flavor). Here you two, want some? It is delicious! 😋

7th to 10th Image(s) 📷📲: ↑

• Now, what about the Sprite Lemon Plus? 🍋🥫🤔 For my taste, it's the same taste as the OG Sprite, unlike the "Lebron's Mix" cherry flavor. And if you want a take a peek at the color of the "Sprite Lemon Plus", I'd say it slightly yellowish blur color instead of the clear carbonate that we all know. To be honest, the appearance of the Lemon Plus is something that came out of dishwater with a dash of lemonade fruit that was squeezed in. I don't know, who knows? 🤷‍♀️ If only I had bought a glass to see the color, or maybe a plastic cup in my bag, or maybe I should it bought the plastic bottle format. 🤷‍♀️ Anyways, it says here that the "Sprite Lemon Plus" had a zesty lemon flavor, sharp fizz, caffeine, and vitamin B3. Yes, this Lemon Plus has indeed put "Caffeine" on a yellowish color carbonated drink. It's a Sprite with a little dash of Energy Drink, basically (I guess). 🍋⚡🥫 Looks like, I want a go another round of Sprite Lemon Plus, and see if I compare to the OG Sprite and the well-known Coca-Cola for the caffeine taste. Maybe, someday. 🤔

Did you know #2: That "Uncle John's" 🇵🇭🟦🟨🏪 convenience store used to be "MiniStop Philippines"? The latter was launched in 2000, until September 2022 owing to the death of former RRHI (that's "Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc.", by the way) founder John Gokongwei, Jr. ✝️🧑‍💼, as well as the ending partnership of "Ministop Co." and "Mitsubishi Corporation" of Japan 🇯🇵🏢. Thus, the entire branches of "MiniStop" Philippines are now renamed to "Uncle John's" already effected by July 1st, 2023. Meanwhile, the OG "Ministop" still operates today in selected Asian regions outside Japan like Kazakhstan 🇰🇿, South Korea 🇰🇷, Viet Nam 🇻🇳 (our neighbor Southeast Asia country), and China 🇨🇳.

Overall:

• It's a solid breakfast meal! I dig the Chili Con Empanada over the greasy chicken sandwich that I've tasted before, in my previous topic. 🌶️🥟😋👍 And regardless of my thoughts of Sprite Lemon Plus, it is pretty damn refreshing. 🍋⚡🥫😋👍 And as I said, I will do a comparison between the OG Sprite for the color, and the OG Coca-Cola as well for the caffeine effect, in my next topic. Yup, this is going to be a "Sugar Rush" of soda test, I suppose. 🥤

BTW: This WASN'T the only meal I munch on because I have another meal on the same date as before. So, stay tuned for that. 😉

Well, that's all for now. 😊

If you haven’t seen my previous episodes, then I’ll provide some links down below.↓😉

Take a Taste:

○ 2021 Food Reviews: ○

• Popeyes U.S. Spicy Chicken Sandwich [Dec 6, 2021]

• Jollibee Chick'nwich & Crisscut Fries [Dec 21, 2021]: Part 1 [CLICK ME! #1], Part 2 [CLICK ME! #2]

○ 2022 Food Reviews: ○

• Mini Stop Chicken Fillet XL Sandwich [Feb 7, 2022]

• Minute Burger Cheese Burger(s) [Mar 1, 2022]

• Pepper Lunch Teriyaki Beef Pepper Rice w/ Egg (& Honey Brown Sauce) [Mar 5, 2022]

• Bacsilog’s Sulit Combo Bacon-Tocino & Samgyup Day’s Pork Herbs [Mar 12, 2022]

• Burger King Whopper w/ Sides & Drink [May 6, 2022]

• Marshmello’s Limited Edition Coca-Cola Zero [Aug 26, 2022]

• Cheesy Burger McDo with Lettuce & Tomatoes Meal [Recorded: Sept 16, 2022]

• Mcdonald’s PH McSpicy & Apple Pie (featuring their World Famous Fries) [Nov 14, 2022]

• Mcdonald’s McCrispy Hamonado Sandwich [Dec 31st, 2022]

○ 2023 Food Reviews: ○

• Foods from Delicious Restaurant & 1919 Grand Cafe [Jan 8th, 2023]

• Homemade Churros by my lil’ bro [Feb 12th, 2023]

• Lugaw Sisig from Mang Boy Alfredo Lugawan Restaurant [Recorded: Feb 18th, 2023]

• La Prato Stakehouse [Recorded: Apr 10th, 2023]

• Salt ‘n Light Snack Shack’s Cheesy Bacon Burger & Fries [Recorded: Apr 14th, 2023] (Published on May 5th, 2023)

• Delicious burger meal at Tokyo Tokyo Restaurant [Recorded: May 6th, 2023]

• Delicious meals at the Valenzuela Food Fiesta Christmas Bazaar 2023 [Recorded: Dec. 10th, 2023]

○ 2024 Food Reviews: ○

• Mang Inasal Pork Sisig [Recorded: Jan 10th, 2024]

• Mr. Shaw Shawarma Rice [Recorded: Mar 24th, 2024]

• Mang Inasal's Chicken Inasal - Pecho (Chicken Breast) [Recorded: Mar 26th, 2024]

• Samgyupsal dinner night at the Samgyup Mukbang restaurant [Recorded: May 12th, 2024]

[heartfelttry]

on a tiktok comment, i mentioned having taken notes of thepandaredd's OCs and whatnot to be able to name-drop them once i am un-sickly enough to commit to writing DC fanfics (and i mentioned them in a comment to begin with because either thepandredd has two OCs named Ted now, or we got a prequel or reboot of their original Ted OC) and it got over 1 Like which is all the attention i needed to post my notes lmao

(it just took me a while to post bc i got Too Into My Own Head about having maybe missed something, so i re-watched all thepandaredd's not-Comic-Book-Club videos (tho i do enjoy those, you should watch them) on his yt channel before posting this)

real quick, please note, i did leave all my headcanons in here because i am emotionally attached to them, but i did make said hcs labeled in blue and i made them tiny so you can know where to avoid them if you so wish. that was my big thing i want anybody reading to be aware of. onto the smaller notes of interest (no pun intended, i just prefer small-text when i babble and over-explain), these notes are messy chaotically organized. bc my brain is messy chaotically organized. (also: i have dyslexia and chronic memory loss, so please do forgive the accidental missspellings and the not-accidental "isn't this too much detail?" sections) this is all copy-pasted from my notes with some additions made for your guys' convenience (i put in links where i remembered links go (im sure i missed some citations i could have linked and forgot to even cite links in many other places, ugh, i do not want to cite everything, i gave up, i know my notes have evidence even if i didn't link the video every time, you fact-check, i'm tired lmao rip), i colored the text sometimes, i clarified things i theorize sometimes so things make sense to non-mind-readers, the works. i always speak to a hypothetical audience in my notes tho, so, shockingly, that wasn't actually added for you. idk why i p much always do that; i just accept it. but you're welcome). feel free to copy and edit this down further for your own use to update. i know i plan to update my private notes when new info/OCs come out, but idk if i will update this public post, ever, but hey! maybe!

also, above all: please follow thepandaredd (he/they) on your favorite social media of choice. support the guy on patreon. buy merch. all the good stuff. here's the linktree to all the important things related to thepandaredd's socials and whatnot. enjoy their creations, he's really fun lol

● was posted: 30 March 2024 ● was last updated: 2 April 2024 (reason for update: i realized i forgot the Reboot Hand, updated on March 31st + forgot to include a bullet-point on Bill being anti-smoking, and forgot to say who set Bill on fire, updated on April 1st + realized i got confused and my math on Bill's age was wrong as i originally said he was a minimum of "16+ years older than the 10 year-old Robin he met" when he is actually a minimum of 6+ years older to therefore make him a minimum of 16 years old to Robin's 10, updated on April 2nd)

↳ here is my "after posting this" thoughts if you are curious. it consists entirely of a friend of mine encouraging me to publish some texts i sent her answering "what was my favorite thing i learned?" and "do i have any questions?" (from 30 March 2024 original post) ↳ ill maybe make another one of these "after posting this thoughts" if i ever do a BIG update on this? who knows lol

also, please note i have yet to see any thepandaredd twitch streams (i just know my brain and my brain likes edited content, esp if it is short or short-ish bc my brain loves that shit. i like Dimension 20 more than Critical Role, i like ConnorDawg's gaming youtube channel more than CDawgVA's twitch or his VOD youtube channel that said edited gaming videos all come from, and i like audio dramatizations of books way more than audiobooks. it is just how i unfortunately or fortunately work), so idk if any additional info has been said there. i have heard good things about thepandaredd's Stream Dump youtube channel tho, so do go to that aforementioned linktree and check it out! if i ever am able to get my brain to accept twitch VODs, and not just zone out and disassociate when i should be engaged, i will delete this section (hence why it is under the Read More) and update accordingly ✌️

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★★★ AGENT OF THE REBOOT (DC only so far, created by thepandaredd. probably should have a Marvel equivalent or else also exist in Marvel? or maybe the TVA counts, idk, i havent seen "Loki")

● has one confirmed worker of an unknown name and unknown pronouns (hc/theories on pronouns: However, since this character's form can change, one can assume this agent character takes on the pronouns of the original form (eg. the character did take on Bill The Henchman's form and Bill uses he/him pronouns, so assumedly this agent character would accept he/him pronouns while using Bill's form. it feels respectful towards the original form. however, this is an argument one can use as a hc and is not confirmed. i hate JKR, but remember the scene where everyone used polyjuice potions to pretend to be Harry Potter in the last book and they all kept their original pronouns despite having Harry's face? like, as an explicit example, Hermione still had she/her pronouns while fully transformed into having Harry's body? weirdly pro-trans scene for a terf to have written. but yeah, same could go for this character. so an argument can be made both ways); but if i ever write about this agent, until proven otherwise: my hc and what i plan to do is either they/them or a neo-pronoun for this character due to a mixture of headcanon (kinda cool for an organization to be totally nameless, ageless, faceless, and genderless (maybe even of a omniuniversal hive-mind? idk, we don't know anything), so i assume this is that) and a lack of clarity/details on this specific agent character. but there you go, there are all the options one can assume for this agent character's pronouns. adjacently, personally, if i do a neo-pronoun for this character when writing: i think i'll either do the "the royal we", a classic; or i will do the definite article, as recently popularized in "Doctor Who", but idk, we'll see, might just do "they/them" for simplicity sake. or maybe we'll get pronouns if the Agent comes back, who fucking knows). (hc name of character: remember that Iron Man MCU joke about "What? Phil? No, his first name is Agent" about Agent Phil Coulson of SHIELD? yeah, if i write for this character, i will be assuming an acceptable name is "Agent, just Agent")

● Introduced as "I'm an agent of The Reboot". unsure if organization is "The Reboot" or "Agents Of The Reboot" or if its called something else and he just did layman terms for it so that it was "agent of the reboot"? i have no idea. i personally most prefer Agents Of The Reboot, or layman terms if i or someone else can come up with a cooler name. (if this was Marvel and i had seen "Loki", there would probably be a Time Variance Authority (TVA) joke to make here). could also be just a one-man thing where Agent Of The Reboot is the character's name/species, and they are the only fucking one?? idk, we aren't supposed to know shit about this character, they are supposed to be a mystery, it makes sense that nothing is confirmed and that nothing makes sense, idk what to tell you

↳ ThePandaRedd normally introduces character name differentiations via a text box saying who is playing who, but this guy's just said " ? ". what a fun meta detail lol

● Helps characters reboot and "get to where you're supposed to go"

● This agent/The organization is responsible for "Crisis on Infinite Earth", "New 52" reboots

● Reboot ability is activated via snapping. very Thanos of the character, but sure, why not, it's a cool fucking ability

● Copies other person's face because "it's what your brain will recognize the easiest". Visually, to readers, it looks like a pixelated version of it (i assume that aspect is for viewer's clarity of who is speaking when. kind of like how "Avatar: The Last Airbender"'s air is supposed to be invisible (y'know, as air generally is) to the characters within the show, but is drawn so viewers can see what Aang is bending and how. but. like. for character design)

↳ Was introduced helping Bill The Henchman, more about that in Bill's section. Said Bill's storyline "got too convoluted" and instead of fixing the storyline, Bill was deemed for a reboot-- well, the whole universe was taken to start over, actually. 

↳ speaks with a slight computer-y voice-changer effect. makes the character kind of sound like they come from an 8-bit video-game.

↳ my hc: is that this kind of works as a mixture of "The Digital Circus" and @/cholv0q (of tiktok)'s Alastor of "Hazbin Hotel" re-design (their linktree is over here btw). where the character kind of just comes from this early-internet days (which is when there was more widespread bingeing and cross-references of comics, due to them being uploaded digitally and fan-forums citing themselves and whatnot (which, fun fact: apparently, January 1, 1983 is considered the Internet's official birthday. so that is the fucking earliest we could be talking about) (i know also the idea of comics in academia, like getting analyzed in essays, became more popularized around this time. but i don't know how much of that is causation and correlation. it's still considered new and novel for a campus to include graphic novels in a required reading list, though it is on the edge of being "uncommon but welcome" nowadays. English classes entirely focused on graphic novels, albums, and comics are still a v new-ish thing. but im getting off-topic, that was just my experience in going to college in the ~2020s anyway). and ergo, comic companies had to care a bit more about continuity and it was less of a "well, it depends on the writer if they care about that" thing. hence, the kind of "the demand formed and so the need was filled" creation of this character/organization? (not as in "ah, i see a job oppurtunity here" type of "demand formed, and we can fulfill that need". but as in "the universe is ever-expanding and ever-repairing itself" kind of mysterious cosmic horror. kind of like Marvel Comics' The Watchers but 50× the eldritch horror. like whatever force in the universe made Earth's deep sea creatures and DC-Comics-version-of-Mars' white martians? that force played some early desktop computer horror games and said "let me put this on my pinterest board as inspo for this new project i'm working on" type of shit. nobody knows where this fucker/these fuckers came from, they just didn't exist before and suddenly they came into being, fully formed. very unsettling) and due to the tech of the time, the voice filter and pixelation of the face make even more sense. how does "The Digital Circus" apply to this? just the sense of "omnipotence in an old fucking desktop computer technology" really. as for the @/cholv0q's Alastor of "Hazbin Hotel" re-design bit, i just really fucking like that Chol included this bit about "changing[ this character's vocal abilities to come from] an old radio[ on his chest,] where his real voice comes from, instead of his mouth or throat". i really fucking like that idea so im yoinking it and switching the tech away from a 1920s radio. and i think that would be fucking sick to apply to this Agent character considering their shapeshifting, pixelation, implied vocal changes (i assume the voice changes with the form and its not That Voice with every form, just That Voice Filter ontop of the everchanging voice), voice filter, and general uncanny-valley-ness. just imagine a pixelated version of your face talking to you about rebooting your life while never opening their mouth, as the uncanny low-rez doppleganger version of you talks to you through a fucking 80s PC speaker lodged in its throat/clavicle area, sounding like the earliest versions of a voice-acted horror video-game. i love it. i think it maintains the mystery about "how the fuck, whomst the fuck" while upping the creepy to be even creepier, to me at least. plus, then there's the whole "snaps to reboot" ability, yes, but now we got the "Video-Game Boss with a Second Phase" built in right there because if snapping does all that reality-shattering/-bending nonsense then what the fuck do you think happens if the Agent does finally open their fucking mouth???

● also, this symbol flashed up while Bill the Henchman fell post-snap. i normally wouldn't think to screenshot such a thing, but i thought it was odd upon my most recent re-watch (bc anxiety about posting this publicly and maybe missing something, you get it) that it kind of has a hand-shape inside it? which a hand symbol + the act of snapping with one's hand correlates in an interesting way, not to mention the timing of this appearing IMMEDIATELY after the snap. but maybe it is a comic reference i am missing? maybe it is related to the Agents of the Reboot getting their own merch of some kind someday? do they get a logo, does that make sense for them to have, are they a team or...? idk. but i added it here just in case it is pertinent in some way (excuse the low resolution)

● the fucker (/tone indicator: affectionate) is within this compilation video, i will only link this video one more time in Bill The Henchman's section (below, under the "People" section)

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★★★ RED HOOD'S ANTI-HERO ACCIDENT ASSURANCES (DC only. created in a comment within thepandaredd's tiktok that then thepandaredd replied to and acted out. the comment was by @/timelordpoet1273 on tiktok. i probably didn't need to write this one but it made me laugh so im including it)

● timelordpoet273's comment: "Red Hood just starts his own insurance company. He names it Anti-Hero Accident Assurances. Nobody answers the phone, and the voiceail is swear words."

● thepandaredd, uh, i mean, Jason Todd's said voicemail (yes, i made a fucking transcription lmao pls let me live, i have chronic memory loss and my notes are my lifeblood): [voice 1] "Hello. And thank you for calling Red Hood's Anti-Hero Accident Assurances. If you are calling in regard to one of our anti-heroes, please stay on the line for a recorded message." [voice 2] "Now I know for a goddamn fact that you did not just call an insurance agency to try to file a claim against a bunch of anti-heroes that kill people for a living. Do you have any idea how much ammo fucking costs? We are out here spending our entire life savings to buy you the briefest little moments of the only life you will ever live, and you have the audacity to try and file a claim against us? What the fuck did we do, shoot out your knee-cap? Fuck you. Whatever we did is going to save you down the fucking line. Goddamn— Hang up your fucking phone."

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★★★ SUPERB PROWERS: SUPERHERO INSURANCE (DC only so far, created by thepandaredd. Marvel equivalent is "Damage Control")

↳ colloquially, it's apparently called "Superb Prowers Insurance Agency"

● Motto: "Superb Prowers insurance. If it's not a bird and it's not a plane, give us a ring and we'll do our thang." (note: Todd Andrews hates saying this at the beginning of every phone-call)

● Covers civillian damages done by superheroes + super-battles. "Our team mostly covers superhero and super-powered related accidents and injuries?"

↳ Does not cover supervillains (from damages done to said villains by superheroes) (however: Bill the Henchman was covered by them for the loss of his bones)

● is up the street from Vitriol Vindications (which is insurance for supervillains and the damages done to them by superheroes)

● confirmed workers: Todd Andrews (is one of their representatives, as in "I represent Superb Prowers Agency". more on Todd Andrews is below, has their own section with the other OCs in "People"); maybe/maybe not to be confused with Todd the Goonion Rep (section is below, under the "People" heading. where he works, The First Universal Henchmen's Union, is below, under the "Associations" heading) and/or maybe/maybe not confused with the Todd that is Bill's friend from high school (below, under "People") bc idk, guess they could all be the same guy? idk, i would assume no but maybe

↳ Todd Andrews' outfit is in their own character section, which could arguably be following the company's dress-code for its workers or be their employees' uniform or something

↳ in the first video Todd Andrews used a cell phone and paced around. second video on, Todd Andrews is seated, assumedly at a computer, and is wearing a headset with microphone attachment. not wireless. assumedly, the later is standard for all workers, the former was just Todd Andrews briefly based on materials thepandaredd had available for said skit, i mean an eccentric habit or done for the purpose of the documentary-interview style that only happened in the first video

● only one villain has called the agency, and it was Killer Shark, which that is both his civillian- and villain-name. so idk if the workers call villains by their civillian or villain identity when talking directly to them (i also assume "Cassandra", who is a few bullet-points down but still within the Superb Prowers section, is not Todd Andrews calling Cassandra Cain (or any other DC character phoentically named "Cassandra/Kassandra/etc") by her first name, esp since thepandaredd likes to play Cassandra as nonverbal in skits and Todd Andrews was on the phone. but there is also ways to use live-captions and text-to-speech, along with Deaf/HOH and nonverbal web-cam/chat services to have a hotline person call for you and whatnot, but i assume that's not what is happening here, i digress. i assume it's just a random Cassandra, and workers don't call heroes by their civillian forename)

● Insurances:

↳ ● Flashpoint Insurance: for damages in alternate timelines

↳ ● offers 2 different Gotham plans. (1) The Batman Plan; the Batman Plan has a Reckless Robin extension (only covers current Robin/s. does not cover former Robins). (2) The Bat-Family Plan (assumedly covers former Robins)

↳ ● Crisis Coverage: is a little different from Flashpoint coverage (is not explained how lol)

↳ ● Green Arrow coverage

↳ ● Bird Insurance: coverage for bird-themed superheroes, not actual birds 

↳ ● Multi-Verse Insurance: "No, sir, if a alternate universe version of you has multi-verse insurance, it does mean you are also insured."

↳ ● has Home Insurance and Buisness Insurance ("Uh, let me check. Hey, boss, are lairs covered under home insurance or buisness insurance?")

↳ not a type of insurance but important questions that have implications about the place's insurance stuff: "Okay, well, answer me this: did Superman punch your wall or did he get flown through your wall as the result of a punch?" (later) "No, you see, you're covered for him punching your wall. Not being punched through your wall." ■ "How many times do I need to tell you, Cassandra? We stopped covering sky beams last year after the Zod attack." ■ "Did you get punched by a Robin or by a former Robin? 'Cause you have the Batman plan, and that only covers one of those." ■ "What do you mean the city is just gone? What does that mea--?!" ■ "Yes, but do you have proof your house was still there before Coast City was destroyed?" ■ "Can you confirm that it was a bat-arang that hit you?" ■ "Okay, but which Superboy? Yes, it's important!" ■ "Okay, but did you get the license plate number? I don't care if it was the Bat-Mobile! Yes or no?" ■ "Okay, but which color arrow were you attacked by? No, it is important, you only have Green Arrow coverage." ■ "M'am-- M'am! The premiums are lower in Iowa than Metropolis because it's Metropolis."

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★★★ VITRIOL VINDICATIONS: VILLAINS INSURANCE (DC only so far, created by thepandaredd. Marvel equivalent is "Damage Control")

● "Vitriol Vindications: verifying villainous violations, how may I help you?"

● is insurance coverage for supervillain (for damages done to them by superheroes) (does not cover Goon Union violation claims)

● is down the street from Superb Prowers: Superhero Insurance

● knows supervillains' civillian identities

● hotline workers can curse on the phone (eg. "I'm sorry, sir, but if you didn't want food poisoning then why in the hell did you eat a Joker Fish in the first place?")

↳ also, they can smoke while on the job

● confirmed workers: unnamed character (pronouns unknown). spoke with a gravely voice, assumedly from smoking as he smokes at work (what i assume is a cigarette anyway? or a cigar? it could also be a joint, i got no clue), and also an accent (im not good at identifying accents, idk from where exactly, it sounded vaguely the East Coast variety of American). appearance of said character includes a brown jacket with sherpa lining over a black shirt, had gray pants on. (my hc for name: Sol Abagnale. the Abagnale part is in reference after "Frank Abagnale Jr", a real life white-collar criminal who has a famous film as well as semi-famous musical under the title "Catch Me If You Can" (he also kind of inspired the show "White-Collar" in the sense of how the irl Abagnale became an expert consolutant helping catch other criminals. he has recorded lectures and everything, his analytical work is insane) where one of his most routine crimes was conning banks and insurance and whatnot, and also the IRS caught his dad (Frank Senior) who Junior learned a lot of his crimes from. feels fitting. the first name has to do with me kind of fudging the name "Saul" into a more unisex phonetic variant, "Sol" (which, according to BehindTheName.com, the Jewish version of "Sol" is masculine and the Spanish+Portugeese version of "Sol" is feminine, so "Sol" itself is unisex enough for me. though, technically Saul and Sol are not related, they do SOUND very similar which is the sticking point for me), in tribute to Saul Goodman of "Breaking Bad"/"Better Call Saul" fame who did a lot of insurance fraud as a lawyer. so my pitch is combining the name of two white-collar criminals, yeah, what can i say, i love intertextual references)

↳ appearance aspects about the worker mentioned above could also be notable here on whether or not if it is related to the company's dress-code, their employees' uniform, and whatnot

↳ workers wear a headset with microphone attachment. not wireless. they also have a swivel chair with arms.

● Insurances:

↳ ● Life insurance

↳ ● Anti-Life insurance: "M'am, I'm sorry but death by Parademons is nor covered under the Anti-Life insurance plan." (which? i assume?? is a censored version of a Death insurance plan? idk anything about insurance vocabularly terms)

↳ ● Discrimination in the workplace? (im surprised that isn't Goonion paperwork, idk) ("Well, if you didn't want discrimination in the workplace, then you shouldn't have been a goon for Gorilla Grodd.")

↳ ● the Two-Face Policy ("While I cannot exactly stop you from getting the Two-Face policy, I will warn you that coverage there is pretty 50/50." → "I'm sorry, I had to, it was right there.")

↳ not a type of insurance but important questions that have implications about the place's insurance stuff: "No, Mr. Cobblepot, you cannot put life insurance policy on your penguins if you are the ones who strapped bombs to them." ■ "What do you mean your contract is in the form of a riddle?"

↳ also not a type of insurance per sey but idk what this is but i feel like i should note it down: "Oh, no, you'd be surprised: the Joker actually offers an incredible dental plan."

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★★★ EVIL LLP: VILLIANOUS ACCOUNTING (DC only so far, created by thepandaredd. probably should have a Marvel equivalent or else also exist in Marvel, idk if such exists)

● "Evil LLP: villainous accounting, how may I help you?"

● calls supervillains both by their civillian names and their villain names, but WAY moreso calls them by their villain names

● fun fact: it is a fandom joke that the Joker does not mess with the IRS (thepandaredd theorizes it is because the Joker doesn't want to end up like Al Capone and get put in actual-"you can't plead insanity this time"-prison), so Joker would be diligent about tax season (and hate it) and contacting his accountant (and hate that too), neato

● people working the hotline can curse to the customers

● confirmed workers: unnamed character (pronouns unknown). said character's appearance includes having worn glasses as well as a maroon-purpleish button-up, long-sleeve and with gray pants. drinks out of a red, tall drinkwear (no lid, no straw, not a tumbler) which is an odd enough detail i thought i would mention it (maybe he works remote and it is their kitchenware? maybe the Evil LLP office just has that type of kitchenware? idk. i know its just thepandaredd's kitchenware and isn't meant to be scrutinized, but i am detail-oriented and have AuDHD, let me live). (hc name: Brooklyn Kennedy Collector. because i recenrly found out Collector is a real surname and that feels fitting for an accountant. also, i think "The Collector" is a kind of cool villain allias? maybe this accountant was a taxes-related villain before pivoting? idk, probably not, but what i do really like is the idea of experienced villains scaring newbies with boogeyman stories of "The Collector" and about not paying your taxes on time as a way of hazing them before their first appointment with this specific character from Evil LLP who is like "What? No? Turbotax is way scarier than me, the fuck". as for Brooklyn, it is unisex, literally means "broken land" which feels fitting for a neutral person many territorial villains go to, as in the literal "groundbreaking" ceremony. but also Brooklyn can lead to the nickname "Brookie" which i think would be funny for this character to be like "...Only my [insert loved one here. eg: signicant other, sibling, etc] can get away with calling me that" when villains inevitably make Brookie The Bookie jokes. and i usually don't add middle-names to my hc names bc i usually only do middle-names if the culture the character is from has a middle-name as part of its naming conventions. but i gave this hc name one because "Brooklyn Collector" does not sound quiet like a real person's name, to me. but if you told me i went to school with a "Brooklyn Kennedy Collector" then that sounds vaguely familar and id be like "Oh? Remind me who they are?" rather than "What? We did?" with disbelief in my tone. i did look up what the name Kennedy means tho, on my beloved BehindTheName search-engine, which means either "armored head" (cool!) or "mishappen head" (rude!) which i think encompasses the level of mixed sanity-and-insanity you have to have in order to be villain's accountant lol)

↳ appearance aspects about the worker mentioned above could also be notable in case it is related to the company's dress-code, their employees' uniform, and so on

↳ workers wears a headset with microphone attachment. not wireless. they also have a swivel chair with arms.

● tax account comments and questions since i know next to nothing of tax info and will likely need this as reference if i ever include this company: "Joker, I need your tax returns yesterday. What the fuck do you mean you haven't filed them?" ■ "Black Manta, it says here you have an expense for the League of Villainous Chimney Sweepers, what the fuc--" ■ "So let me make sure I am understanding this correctly. You are going to hire a bunch of people to hide trophies all throughout the city? With what fucking money, Nigma?" ■ "Penny-Pincher, if you pay me again by mailing me a literal bag of fucking pennies, I will find you." ■ "Joker, I just got a call from the Goonion that you haven't been paying your workers? ...No, not killing them is not a form of legal tender!" ■ "Wait a minute, you buy all the penguins? Who is selling you that many penguins?! I thought you just found them!" ■ "Wait, Bizzaro, do you have the check or not? I don't understand!" ■ "Well, don't come crying to me when VOSCA gets on your ass. Yes, I said 'VOSCA': Villainous OSCA, keep up!" (i assume this was a continuation of the last line to the Joker, it feels implied, but idk) ■ "How do none of you understand how money works?!"

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★★★ THE FIRST UNIVERSAL HENCHMAN'S UNION (aka: THE GOONION, or sometimes THE GOON UNION) (DC only so far, created by thepandaredd. probably should have a Marvel equivalent or else also exist in Marvel, idk if henchman union exists there of if the Goonion is implied to also be there) (i have shockingly little info on this considering how often it is brought up. huh. NOTE TO SELF: to rewatch some of thepandaredd's youtube compilation videos to see if im missing anything)

● Their motto: "Facere Malum Stercore Tuto" which is Latin for "Do bad shit safely"

↳ according to thepandaredd's merch: "Established in 2000"? i feel like that is a joke or reference i am missing, which makes me unsure of how literally to take it. i would've assumed it was older. i mean. i guess it technically could have been? like, in the sense that these guys are labeled the "First Universal Goonion" which implies maybe some villains had their own union of goons (definitely not Joker considering his implied VOSCA violations, above, under Evil LLP's section, still within the "Associations" heading) before it became a overall branching DC thing? which, if so, i do not envy the fuckers who had to unionize the Joker or Lexcorp goons, they probably did some union-busting, esp pre-2000 if that as the year the Goonion became universal in that sense, jfc. (edit of note: i have found the Todd The Goon Rep skit within the 2021 July compilation video, i am definitely correct about Lexcorp union-busting at least ■ edit of note ×2: i aM FULLY CORRECT. 2024 March 1st (or the compilation due to come out after March is over, since it is still March as of editing this docket) has a skit with Bill The Henchman doing work-trips with long flights for the Joker. and the Joker says "Hahaha, [The Goonion] is not a real thing!" and "Just to remind you, if I see you peddling that Goonion garbage all over that Comic-con, I swear to god, I will come to your house and rip those femurs out myself". so the Joker has dismissively resentful anti-Goonion opinions to the point that would imply he would love to union-bust/ignore it.) (or maybe "universal" is a reference to "cross-fandoms/brands"? because there is a Cobra Command, "G.I. Joe" joke pre-Bill-reboot (look at Bill The Henchman's section below, under the "People" heading)? which their most famous and long-running comic form is with Marvel Comics (though they also had a run with DC Comics for two individual issues, as well as Devil's Due, IDW Publishing, Custom Comics, and more). but, as aforementioned: idk how the reboot plays into that, and also idk how seriously i should take that since it was a gag for a one-off skit. idk...) (edit: wait, i forgot Marvel Comics also has The Solomon Institute For The Criminally Insane (also, and more popularly, known as: The Taskmaster's Academy), which is a trade-school where Anthony Masters (Taskmaster) teaches henchmen how to hench and get them a type of goon-certification as per the nature of trade-school. which, fun fact, the students there are called "Taskmaster's Acolytes", and originally this school started as a front? but then Taskmater went "actually, I have found my passion" which is aw, so sweet, wish it wasn't about murder and crime. but yeah, i checked the wiki because i couldn't remember if we ever saw anyone's certificate and, apparently, graduating meant you were now cleared for super-villany. so while youre there, you're a henchman. when you graduate, you're a villain. wild. though still not a henchman union, like, irl, we have both "places to get a teaching certification" and also a "union for teachers". this is just adjacent additional item to Marvel's henchmen situation, not an equivalent to the Goonion if that makes sense. so. uh, there is also that in the middle of this "is the Goonion omniuniversal?" spiral i am in, and that is Marvel-only as far as i am aware. still worth mentioning tho)

● there's possibly member-training? assumedly it is villain specific training, as you get hired then trained bc we have seen that before (evidence: (1) a skit within this compilation where a newbie was given the run-down working to the Joker about the dress-code and "just take the fall" if Batman/Robin come (Bill the Henchman was in the background, off-screen), and (2) another skit from this compilation where Bill The Henchman himself was translating the meanings to the various Bat-fam symbols to a newbie goon and the Red Hood interrupted) but maybe it is Goonion overall-villain's-henchman training, i have no clue. but in a skit (from 2021 October) where a Mr. Freeze goon (actually is the Red Hood faking being a goon the whole time? or knocked said goon out and took their place? unclear) was being given shit by Bill for not wearing a mask during COVID (more on the Goonion's opinion on COVID face-masks below in a few bullet-points) came back with a Cobra helmet that said goon (The Red Hood) had trouble taking off, Bill grumbled "How the fuck did you make it out of training?" before helping (could be referring to Cobra training or Goonion? again, idk)

↳ which there are Bat-fam symbol code btw, idk if that skit's code was for all goons or just that specific villain's workplace: Yellow circle = Bruce Wayne (Batman) is in a good mood, will probably let you keep knee-caps □ No yellow circle, just a black bat = you're probably going to lose a couple of bones from Batman (idk if that is accurate post Bill the Henchman's reboot. anyway.) ■ Any variation of a red bat, spikey or otherwise = don't bother screaming, gunshots will be heard and that is enough warning. Likely is Kate Kane (Batwoman) who does not have a no-gun rule. could also be Jason Todd (Red Hood) who also doesn't have a no-gun rule. also, sometimes the Red Hood has a red V-mask, and sometimes Red Hood's design is closer to a red bird design on his chest. ■ Blue bird or blue V-symbol = Dick Grayson (Nightwing) will give you a couple bruises and send you home ■ Yellow bat = probably be worried. □ Red hair (Barbara Gordon (Batgirl → Oracle)), probably going to get the shit kicked out of you, same as No-yellow-circle Batman. □ No hair and no mouth (Cassandra Cain (Batgirl → Orphan)), same rules as red bat, you will probably dead. □ Blonde hair (Stephanie Brown (Robin, Batgirl → Spoiler)), "you can kill that one". which. that is so foul, Jay Morton, what the fuck lol □ "[Generally,] The yellow bat follows the R-rule." ■ The R-rule = "Every single Robin has their own fucking deal." □ If the R is blocky = probably not going to get beat up too bad, unless the kid is very mad, then you might get thrown off a roof. (definitely Jason Todd (Robin → The Red Hood), maybe also Dick Grayson (Robin → Nightwing). i know Jason Todd threw a domestic abuser off a roof and claimed the guy "fell". idk if Dick ever did similar) □ if it is a Spikey R with no yellow circle = Tim Drake (Robin → Red Robin) get hit in the face with a metal pole a few times. same for if it is a Yellow Bird, Tim Drake (Red Robin) will just be hitting you harder □ if the R has just one spike = you will likely die bc Damian Wayne (Robin) has a sword. Red Hood also has a sword, but only sometimes, it's mainly Damian's thing ■ idk why i would ever need this for a fic or something but now i fucking got it just in case, i guess. glad that hypotheical-me won't have to search for this. but yeah, idk if this system is Goonion stuff or a specific villain or just something Gotham-henchmen set up independently, but ill put it here for lack of anywhere better

↳ Bill the Henchman said to Todd His Friend From High School that "it's a really rough career to get into, just to let you know. There's a ton of onboarding processes, super-villains all have their own hiring things, there's the Goonion that you got to sign up for just by obligation."

● Goonion buildings don't allow alcohol in their facilities (Bill took a break in one such building, an unnamed co-worker interupted his break and asked for a drink, and Bill said there was no alcohol here for that reason. idk how the logistics work on if villain buildings (or safehouses) have to be Goonion, if goons prefer to take breaks in a seperate Goonion building in which case does the commute count as part of their break, is this just the overall building similar to a temp agency building in which case why was Bill taking a break in one...? cool detail in theory, very confusing in application to someone as ignorant in temp-work as me). this was mentioned in the Man-Bat skit within 2021 November's compilation

↳ very likely works often with VOSCA (Villainous OSCA, was brought up in Evil LLP's section above, still under the "Associations" heading) ■ also has some sort of connection to Superb Prowers (section is above, still within the "Associations" heading) since their insurance covered Bill's loss of bones

● Works all over the country, sending goons on assignment as needed and where and with what uniforms and etc

● Mask mandates (for COVID) - report to the Goonion for not wearing one. even villain henchmen (esp if their villain is an evil scientist) gotta stay safe ✌️ (Bill the Henchman is esp big on that they protect each other in this way)

● Goons in the union get breaks (as in, like 30 min break, lunch break, etc)

● i assume there is some protection for long-distance assignments? like, Bill the Henchman (Bill's section is below, under the "People" heading) got sent on a 16-hour flight by the Joker to give Bane a pie and another flight to go to Comic-Con. i assume there was financial compensation (both in the sense of a wage increase for the inconvenience, as i know a few jobs get that (many more... don't, but hey, maybe the Goonion got it) because the idea of "your shift hours" also becomes messier though that is more likely if Bill is paid hourly; as well as not paying for your own plane ticket or Comic-con ticket in these examples) and other such work-travel-trips protections (evidentally, there is no protection for how much buffer-time between said trips there has to be, as Bill was sent to Comic-con immediately after the pie but still)

● confirmed members: Bill the Professional Henchman (look at Bill's section in "People" for his co-workers. i don't know which ones are in the union and which ones are out of union. he is very big on the Goonion and helping each other and whatnot, carries merch and everything, biggest advocate, love that for him) ■ Alex (pronouns unknown. was mentioned in Todd the Goonion Rep's skit as a confirmed Goonion member, working as a Bane henchman who is a victim of wage-theft and not-up-to-code company housing via pit/sewers. assumedly is not the same Alex that Ted works with (most of the info on this Ted section's can be found below, under the "People" heading. bc, yeah, for one thing, that Alex lives in a duplex and not in the pits/sewers). Alex wears a beige-white sleeveless torn up t-shirt with a black beanie. will not be getting their own section as this is all i know about Alex)

↳ note: members have ID badges (example of Bill's is in Bill The Henchman's character section)

● confirmed workers: Todd The Goonion Rep (look at that Todd's section down below, under "People". also, technically Todd's job-title is much more formal title of "Traveling Representative for the First Universal Henchmen's Union" but Goonion Rep is snappier); maybe/maybe not confused with Todd Andrews (section is below, under the "People" heading. where he works, Superb Powers, is above, under the "Associations" heading) and/or maybe/maybe not confused with the Todd that is Bill's friend from high school (below, under "People") because i guess all these Todds could be the same guy, but i assume they are not, but you can feel free to hc them as such

↳ Todd The Goonion Rep's outfit is in their section, which is notable here because it could arguably be following the company's dress-code, be their employees' uniform, and so on. assumedly, since members have ID badges, so should Todd The Goonion Rep, thepandaredd just hasn't had the prop yet? fair lmao

↳ not "competition" but definitely confirmed people to not be on the workers' side: Alan (who is a Lexcorp union-buster (lawyer?) person in sunglasses, black suit with black button-up and gold tie. pronouns unknown) ■ "Matches" Malone(?) (which is a DC-canon undercover-alter-ego of Bruce Wayne (Batman) when he wants to try to submerge himself in the crime world)

● their workers can curse on-call (eg. "Oh, yeah, to be perfectly candid: I hear some fucking wild stories.")

● their workers (and also their members? i think?? p sure that is a yes) tend to call villains by their villain-name rather than their civilian-name

● not technically "Goonion info" but is important stuff that have implications about how the place is run (all said in the Todd The Goonion Rep skit): "Riddler, how many times do I need to fucking tell you that: if you are going to use goons as part of your traps, you need to have multiple signed consent forms by both them, a witness, and yourself beforehand?" ■ "As the traveling representative of the Goonion, my job is to travel around the country, talking to various goons and henchmen of both major and minor super-villains, just to make sure they are being both treated fairly and safely within the workplace. Which, honestly, they, uh, they very rarely are." ■ Todd: "So, Alex, it says here that you are a Bane henchmen. However, I can't seem to find any wages listed. So, what does the pay for that look like?" / Alex: "Of course I don't have wages listed, we don't get paid. ...Wait, are we supposed to be getting paid?" / Todd: "Mmhm. I see. I also can't seem to find an address." / Alex: "Oh, I was thinking you were going to ask about that. We all kind of live communally in a pit, or sometimes the sewer." / Todd: "Do you know if this pit is up to code?" / Alex: "I mean, yeah, it's a fine pit. It's probably up to code. We get cable and everything. But, uh, now that you mention it: we do shit in buckets and live in cells, so I'm not particularly sure." / Todd: "Oh, that is definitely a violation of some kind." ■ Todd: "Who the fuck steals both of someone's femurs?" / Bill the Professional Henchmen: "Oh, yeah, you think that's bad? I should tell you about where his kid cut my fucking hand off." / Todd: "His kid did what?!" ■ "Y'know, contrary to popular belief: crime pays very, very well. Like, shit, what do you think, like, 90% of Gotham's economy is? It's just that often times you need to enforce that the workers are actually going to see the fruits of that labor." ■ Todd: "(Groaningly sighs) Hello, Alan." / Alan: "Hello, Todd." / Todd: "Let me guess, you're here on behalf of Lexcorp again to try to break up the union." / Alan: "Now, Todd, you know that we at Lexcorp are not against unions. We simply believe they are detrimental to our bottom-lin— uh, I mean, our overall workforce. And, in fact, I am actually here to join your union. For I think that I too deserve equal safety and pay and rights." / Todd: "Buddy, I work with professional criminals on a daily basis. I can see that you are wearing a wire." / Alan: "Now, how could you say such a... silly... thing? Abort, abort, I need to get out of here." / Todd: "If you just joined, you wouldn't have to piss in bottles anymore!" / Alan: "The official statement of Lexcorp is that we do not, in fact, have to do that!" ■ "If you would like to support your local community of contract criminals, goons, and henchmen: we do have t-shirts available. And, as the motto always says: do bad shit, safely." ■

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★★★ VILLAINS OF (HERO) SUPPORT GROUP (exists for DC and Marvel, created by thepandaredd. i definitely do not need to include this, but i thought it would be funnier if i did)

● there is one for Captain America (p safe to assume it is Steve Rogers' Captain America. Marvel) and one for Superman (p safe to assume it is Clark Kent's Superman. DC) so far. the therapist in charge of either is unnamed, but both have glasses and button-ups (tho the Superman one came in late after getting black-out drunk and taking a nap, and came in with a black t-shirt)

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----------------- people ----------------

★★★ TODD ANDREWS (DC Comics OC)

● unknown pronouns

● works hotline for the insurance company called Superb Prowers (listed above under "Associations"). spoke will Bill The Professional Henchman to help him with his insurance over the phone for his bone-loss claim

● appearance: wears glasses. Wore a white button-up long-sleeve in one video, wore a black t-shirt in one video, wore a black long-sleeve in a third video; every time had black pants(? or at least dark. may be sweatpants, which fair). Plays with a pen a lot (in one video, i think it is a capped pen; in another video it is, i think, a clicky pen which makes Todd slowly and silently clicks at one point while speaking/listening to a call. and i say "plays with" and what i mean is "has it in Todd's hand, between their fingers" a lot. i assumed Todd uses it like a fidget to spin or tap Todd's own chin with, but that is not seen; but Todd slowly + silently clicking the clicky variety is seen. this is too much overexplanation about a fucking pen)

↳ wears a headset with microphone attachment for work. not wireless. sits in a swivel chair with arms at work

● i assume this Todd Andrews is not the same Todd that Bill The Henchman went to high school with. (also, is definitely not the Tood The Goonion Rep) more on why i think that in Todd-(assumedly-not-Andrews)'s (as well as Todd-of-the-Goonion's) section below, is still within the "People" section

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★★★ "THE GUY" (DC Comics OC)

↳ as in "Alfred, call the guy"

● unknown name. confirmed to go by he/him pronouns

● adoption social worker agent, maybe insurance agent? probably, i assume. nothing is confirmed, which is the point

● no further specific details known. i will never make hcs about this character; he is supposed to be a mystery

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★★★ KEVIN (their first Marvel OC! that's rare for thepandaredd! yay!)

● unknown surname, unknown pronouns.

● was in exactly one skit about Marvel, which is unusual for thepandaredd, almost everybody else is a DC Comics OC

● designed the Sentinels' visually (The Sentinel Project are the giant robots who hunt mutants in X-Men). im ngl, i think thepandaredd forgot Bolivar Trask specifically already exists lol but maybe not, as thepandaredd did remember to include the headline "Trask Industries (mid 60s)" in the tiktok. hey! maybe Trask did the idea and/or engineering and hired Kevin as an artist, or maybe Trask pitched the idea after Kevin sold him on it and it's like a "Steve Jobs and all the unnamed workers who came up with the iPhone ideas" scenario (Kevin did at one point say "The President loved it", so Bolivar Trask could be President, sure), idk, i only know of Trask vaguely from the 90s "X-Men: The Animated Series" show i watched as a toddler and from the "X-Men: Days of Future Past" movie i watched a decade ago in theaters, maybe i'm the one forgetting shit, i dont pay attention to what is the generally accepted Bolivar Trask lore bc i dont care about the character, personally. Peter Dinklage is cool tho

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★★★ BILL (THE PROFESSIONAL HENCHMAN) (DC Comics OC)

info that is unknown bc of The Reboot Agent stuff (the video of which i am only linking once and it is here) is [[[ bracketed ]]] already but i will also make it [[[ green ]]] inside the brackets for your guys' convenience

● he/him, unknown surname. (hc full name: William "Bill" Bail. i have a whole scene planned for Bill attempting to be vulnerable by giving an OC of mine his surname as a sign of trust, as he doesn't do that as a way of protecting his relatives/identity from the villains that employ him, followed by my OC fully not believing his surname is real and busting Bill's chops about it. it works for my needs, and i personally dont agree with the handful of fans i see that hc his surname should be Hench or Henchman though i do love their energy, that is a v funny joke. i just wanted a different variety of a jokey surname. uh, but, yeah! Bail is a real surname, and the surname itself is actually a diminutive of "bailiff". as in the job. which a bailiff is a officer of the court who keeps order and "looks after prisoners" (ie. "A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their offices and duties vary greatly.") which is all a vast simplification of bailiffs but i think it is a cute simplification for Bill's character specifically)

● confirmed to have worked runs with Joker, Two-Face, Black Mask, Penguin, Mr Freeze, Riddler (and also maybe Lex Luthor? it is implied due to how much Bill knows about Lexcorp working conditions, and also the Jimmy Olsen stuff as mentioned below)

↳ idk if this is still accurate post-reboot [[[ an unnamed co-worker worked at Cobra Commander (Cobra Headquarters in Springfield) earlier that week, is one of the places the Goonion sends people. Bill maybe has, maybe has not been there? idk, he seemed to know about how to take the helmet off but maybe Bill just saw the latch. hard to tell when the whole dialogue is "There's a latch" when he's already looking at the helmet. i assume no, Bill has not worked for Cobra, because he said "there's a latch" so late in the skit and also from what he said "Wait, so that's another villain's henchman?! That's even worse!" so he didn't know the uniform(?) which implies he didn't work there (which is odd bc he also said "Yes, because the Cobra Commander helmet is so much more reasonable to just have in your car?! Why do you even have that?!" so he recognized it. i guess he just thought it was cosplay instead of another henchman uniform, idk). you could make an argument either way, i guess, hc away lol ]]]

↳ answers phonecalls as "You got Bill."

↳ texts his bosses stuff like "On it, boss."/"Yes, sir. You got it, boss."/"On my way. Will do, boss."/"Yes, sir. On it, boss."/"Okay, boss. Be back soon." even though he'd rather yell (this is mainly @Joker)

↳ (this happened post-reboot) knows Jimmy Olsen well enough that Jimmy recognizes him on sight alone; meaning he has very fucking likely also worked for Metropolis villains (such as but not limited to Lex Luthor) and has faced Superman often

● appearance: generally always wears a black ball-cap hat (didn't use to way back but it is a thing by now), a necklace tucked into his shirt (i cant tell what his necklace is. is it a sparkplug necklace? → edit: NOPE. it's from 2022 January's PO Box Unboxing, it's "Skele-Gro: Bone Regenerator". it's a tube of amber-yellow liquid, with a pale yellow label, on a silver chain, with a silver skull-and-crossbones charm). he dresses in all black most of the time. generally wears t-shirts or long-sleeves, usually of the monochromatic variety (almost always a gray/black plain shirt with no graphic, except for in "How the Bat Boy treat henchmen" skit where he wore a few different shirts, and the skit with him and the 16 hour flight stuff where he wore thepandaredd's Lord Deathman merch shirt) (the red-gray henley Bill wore in his first ever tiktok appearance as the first goon ever beat up by a Robin? is generally ignored, hence the strike-through here). and sometimes wears a black jacket (which, generally, is a black denim jacket). does possess Goonion merch.

↳ optional-to-read waffling about the Skele-grow necklace: further confirmation of this indeed being necklace that Bill wears is in this 2022 July compilation, where Bill forgot to tuck his necklace into his shirt and you can see the amber-gold Skele-Grow bottle and the teeny skull-and-crossbones charm. more importantly, you can also see it in the September 2022 compilation, which is the one that features Bill getting shot by Alfred Pennyworth which then leads him into the reboot event in April 2023 compilation where he doesn't have a necklace? but that could be just a prop error (either in the sense "it is there, it just accidentally was hidden from the camera by being tucked into the shirt and whatnot" or in the sense that "it was forgotten on accident but was meant to be there"). plus the Instagram post mentioned a few bullet points down says Bill still has a necklace. i just dont know if it is the same one or not. i, personally, see the necklace as an extension or representation of Bill's connection with his audience and creator, and therefore connected to his Fourth Wall Breaks and everything Madoka-Magic-y i mention in a later bullet-point within Bill's section. so i will be very interested to see if this necklace is lost or not (to simplify his rebooted form additionally in the sense of less bone loss, maybe even no more Fourth Wall breaks? idk, maybe. the Agent Of The Reboot was Fourth Wall breaking a lot and Bill was confused, maybe it was out of overwhelmed panic but all those references went over Bill's head. there wasn't any "You can see them too?!" or anything. but who knows! could just be a prop error. maybe when the instagram post listed in lower bullet-point within this section talked about "a necklace always tucked into his shirt", it about the Skele-grow necklace, maybe it was about a wholly new necklace, whooo knowwwss ...i personally would like to know tho, so i do hope thepandaredd does another untucked-necklace Bill video so i can see if it Bill is still wearing a Skele-grow necklace or is it a new necklace)

↳ mid-reboot/post-reboot version has a white streak in his hair, confirmed in the tiktok Agent Reboot video itself idk the video's title

↳ in the Agent Reboot video, Bill also freaks out about how his hat has changed. which the hat he wore when Alfred Pennyworth shot him for breaking in to get Lord Deathman was a plain, all black baseball cap. and mid-reboot freak-out looks like an identically plain, all black baseball cap (to me, anyway). maybe that was a gag that went over my head. maybe it was a sentiment about how well-cared for Bill's things are that he would notice someone switching out his hat for an identical one like it. idk, to my inexperienced eye, it looks like the same hat lol

↳ optional aspect of appearance: leg-braces as "femur transplants are not fool-proof".

↳ note: most of this info comes from thepandaredd's 25 February 2024 instagram post (+ the leg-braces bit was posted by thepandaredd in that post's comment section) unless otherwise stated

↳ also, in the June 2022 compilation there is a PO Box Unboxing, an unnamed fan gave Bill his own Goonion badge. so that is also part of Bill's props assumedly. unlike most of the other badges we have seen in thepandaredd (vertical), the Goonion badge is the only horizontal one which makes me specifically happy bc i prefer horizontal badges. anyway. the info on it, i cannot read because it is too pixelated even at youtube's highest resolution at 2160p, alas. but thepandaredd reads out some of its info says the following: "His height has a little asterisk next to it saying his height was 6'3" before his femurs removed and now he is back to 6'1". Which is, oh my god, I love that. Also, his hair is just listed as 'Yes' and his eyes are listed as 'Currently two'; this is, this is fucking genius." so. there is that lmao i love the badge

● Injuries sustained:

↳ idk how much of this is still accurate post-reboot [[[ lost his bones before (eg. all the bones in his legs more than once. was covered by the Goonion tho. said bones are kept in a box on a bookshelf openly labeled "Spare Bones" apparently as uncovered when Bill broke into Wayne Manor to free Lord Deathman, though it is unconfirmed if Bill took any of the bones he had found and how many in the box were his or if the box was labeled that as a joke but actually contained something else). lost his femur x2 in one year, had to go in surgery both times. shot in both kneecaps by Red Hood. was put on fire "back in the early days" by Red Hood. generally been beat up by the Batfam weapons (eg. Tim Drake's bo-staff to Bill's legs). has been dropped off a roof by Batman (breaks legs, cops come get you). ]]] okay, instagram post by thepandaredd in 25 February 2024 confirms the femur replacements happened, as an optional thing Bill can wear is leg-braces since "femur transplants aren't fool-proof"

↳ idk if this is still true bc reboot [[[ note for age: Bill was The First Goon to ever get beat up by a 10 year-old Robin (assumedly Dick Grayson). i wouldnt be surprised if this was noncanonical because then it means Bill is a minimum of 6+, 8+ years older than 10 year-old Dick Grayson (Nightwing) (therefore making Bill 16, 18 years old when he was beat up, at minimum)? more likely is considered "an adult" in comparison to said Robin's then-age, so i'd go higher than 8 years older than a 10 year-old. idk how old Bill canonically is, but if it differs with that information then this would be noncanonical ]]] [[[ (also beat said Robin (again, safe to assume Dick Grayson) in second meeting, and Batman then beat Bill the fuck up and "did unspeakable things to my bones" so assumedly that was the first time Bill got his bones stolen) ]]]

↳ [[[ "Alfred, Get The Guy" and Other Probably-Non-Canonical Skits: has been "turned off" (stopped fucking existing for a sec). i seriously doubt that was ever canon for Bill, but the reboot happened so i assume the reboot doubly-so kills this ]]]

↳ idk if this counts bc reboot [[[ chronic issue: lost ability to feel temperature bc of fire (a Robin set him on fire? unclear which one, implied lots of time has passed so unlikely to be Damian Wayne) ]]]

↳ also a chronic issue: it's implied in one of the Lord Deathman videos (when Bill is going to break out Lord Deathman from the Wayne Manor as per Joker's request. the following occurs right before Bill texts the Joker) that Bill has tinnitus. i assume that is still true post-reboot because it is a small enough chronic injury, it makes sense, sure. but yeah, we hear the "ears ringing" sound during a scene where Bill has laid down to rest and relax before he looks at his phone

↳ can (sometimes? always? idk) speak Fourth Wall, likely because of a side-effect of how many times he has been hit in the head. i assume this still works in spite of the reboot, since Bill was able to, not only talk to the Reboot Agent, but very importantly: have the ability to have woken up mid-reboot. both of those things are likely related to this Fourth Wall Breaking ability. however, also, the Agent kept saying Fourth Wall breaks and Bill did not have a "You can see them too?!" reaction, but rather a very confused and overwhelmed panic reaction where he did not seem to get the references. so maybe he has now lost the ability. i have no idea

↳ my hc add-on as to why Bill was enabled to wake up mid-reboot: do you remember seeing just all of "Madoka Magica"? spoilers for that incoming (or you at least have seen Danny Motta's reaction series to it on youtube, assuming if you're like me and that show has triggers you don't want to risk potentially triggering yourself by watching the show but. like. you do want to know the events, impact, and pop-culture references) where Homura's love for Madoka to keep jumping into timelines to try to save her is singularly what ends up making Madoka the chosen one? because she was loved to that point? that even the universe took notice of her and claimed her as its prodigal child, because the universe reflects what we (in this cause: Homura specifically) puts into it? yeah, i hc that's Bill and this audience. that he just was likely some nameless goon, like a lot of thepandaredd OCs, but because fans (and thepandaredd) loved Bill so much, they took this throwaway skit character mid-overall-creation and gave Bill life where life was intended for him to be miscellaneous. hell, Bill even wears a Skele-Gro necklace from a fan in a PO Box Unboxing video that thepandaredd did a short skit mid-PO-Box-video of Bill receiving (at least i assume that is what he is wearing, he does keep it under his shirt). Bill became important enough to even be rebooted, much less wake up mid-reboot, because of how much he is loved. it's arguably why he has some on/off low-level Fourth Wall breaks too (we don't see that consistently be a thing for other goons). maybe im getting a little too Grant Morrison's "Animal Man" or, hell, even just fucking "The Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams. because Bill's plot is still overall (to steal a line from Jo O'Connor's "Mind Blind"* game tag-line:) "A Story Where You Are NOT The Chosen One!" in a world of Supermans and billionaires and other lucky and not-so-lucky bastards. but still. the love is there, and it is important; and maybe it doesn't make Bill's life better, but it matters that it is still there. but i digress [ *: and bc i fucking love that game, here is the link to the free demo version of Mind Blind. go to Jo's patreon if you want more after the demo]

● confirmed co-workers: idk bc reboot [[[ Scott (unknown pronouns. was beat up by Batman while Bill was "the first goon to be beat up by Robin"). that's all that is known about Scott, so Scott does not have an individual section. also, we never saw Scott, so we have no idea what Scott looks like ]]] ■ [[[ Ted (he/him pronouns. was name-dropped in "how the Bat Boys treat henchman" video. was thrown out of a 73-odd story building window by Man-Bat; is dead. that's all the info i have on Ted, so i won't give Ted his own OC section. we also have no idea what this Ted looks like, we never saw this Ted on-screen. the skit featuring him is in the November 2021 compilation) (edit: possibly/arguably more about Ted, post-reboot, is below. maybe could be same Ted character, maybe could be a totally different Ted. idk. but this Ted has their own section) ]]] ■ [[[ John (he/him pronouns. was probably never canon. but he was mentioned alongside Bill in a skit about an old goon complaining about younger people calling Terry by Batman in "Batman Beyond", where John was a goon that Batman smiled at and John is "still at Arkham to this day, he never recovered from that"). that's all that is known about John so no an individual section. also, we never saw John either so there are no notes about that either ]]] + a bunch of unnamed co-worker goons lol

● idk bc reboot [[[ had jury duty with Bruce Wayne. is meant to imply he was present for (and that this is based off of) the famous "Bruce admits he is Batman because of Jury Duty and everyone in the courtroom laughs" comic. said courtcase was about the unnamed goon Bill and Batman briefly interacted with that got shot in the crotch because said goon insisted on keeping a gun under their waistband ]]]

● calls his work "independent contractor" and "this freelance thing, working where I can" // when not hiding his job, has called himself a "hench for hire"

● lives at "Company housing" // does indeed live in Gotham, is occasionally shipped on assignment outside of Gotham by the Goonion per aforementioned implications (plus, explicitly has been sent out by his bosses. namely Joker, who once had Bill go on a 16 hour flight to send Bane a pie in-person that assumedly had a bomb in it as well as Joker having assigned Bill to attend Comic-con. (which was post-reboot, as a fun fact, so it definitely happened). but yeah, i assume the habit happens outside of that specific event in terms of both the Joker sending Bill out long-distances as well as other villains also sending him out to far-off places. just. for more grounded reasons than the Joker lol)

● idk bc reboot [[[ knows a Todd from high school (wore a wire for the G.C.P.D., pretended to be into henching), tho Todd never graduated. nonetheless, Todd does have a section below ]]] 

● idk if this counts bc reboot [[[ tried to become a cop (G.C.P.D.) with a fake mustache, under tha name "Will. Just Will", even though 60% of Gotham cops are dirty + the good ones (eg Commissioner Gordon) knew Joker had only just broken out of jail and assembled a crew. Comissioner Gordon has personally arrested Bill over 50 times, he immediately knew it was Bill ]]]

● idk bc reboot [[[ was shown where the Bat Cave was by Cassandra when she made him help her dispose of Lord Deathman's corpse Joker made bc she had "tiny hands". he used this information to later free Lord Deathman. i would bet Bill knowing this info did not survive the reboot but who knows ]]]

● Bill chooses to work for villains instead of Wayne Industries because he sees billionaire Bruce Wayne as a villain too; and, between the two, he'd rather work with the villain with style (aka: Batman villains). this admission technically happened pre-reboot but i assume it is still his opinion

● idk bc reboot but i assume yes, still true, but just in case [[[ Bill is anti-smoking. does not seem to like it even if it's people smoking around him, will get all Disappointed Yet Sassy on other goons smoking. i assume this goes for cigarettes, cigars, joints etc; but the skit only implied cigarettes ]]]

● i assume this still counts in spite of the reboot, but idk, ill make it green anyway just in case [[[ Bill doesn't have kids. and assumedly from the following dialogue line, he doesn't ever want kids. there is an implication that he could have had kids, and idk if that was an implication as in (1) a significant other and him had a talk and likely mutually agreed to an abortion, (2) he and a significant other broke up because they wanted kids and he did not (and assumedly said partner had kids p soon afterwards with, like, their very next partner or so, hence why there would be a "could have been me" sentiment), (3) Bill had the oppurtunity to take a kid/some kids in as their guardian but chose not to (eg. as a step-parent, as in kinship care or kinship adoption, as a foster care or a foster child wanting to become Bill's kid, or maybe Bill got close with a kid in a non-foster setting and said kid wanted Bill to foster them/to be their legal guardian, idk), or (4) Bill almost donated to a sperm bank but decided not (or maybe he did donate and checked off the "never contact me" box and considers that still "not having kids". i personally think "no" to this bc i find the sperm bank system in the USA really corruptable and un-regulated, and i don't like that sperm-donor-kids don't have access to their sperm donor's medical records even in cases of medical emergencies/genetic disabilities or chronic illnesses that skipped the sperm donor (or that the sperm donor didn't realize they had, since so much of the sperm donation process is the fucking honor system and sometimes people get late diagnosed and sometimes certain genes activate later in life for a random reason) but did not skip the sperm-donor-kid/etc). in the Lord Deathman skit where Bill and Cassandra Cain (Oracle) bag up Lord Deathman. after she asks him for help carrying the bags, he grumbles "You have got to be fucking kidding me. You are the exact reason why I didn't have kids." before saying "I'll grab my coat!" with frustration. and, yes, all of this theorizing is because the verb-usage "didn't", as in "I could have had kids but I did not" (rather than using a line like "You're the reason I never want kids", where the diction would not have backstory implications), is very interesting to me lmao ]]]

↳ i personally have the hc that, as a connection of Bill's Fourth Wall breaks, similar to how the Joker knows he is in a comic and that the people he kills do not matter ("They're extras" to quote Bakugou), Bill knows he is in a comic and doesn't see much point in having kids. i also personally tie this in with his "Wayne Industries/Bruce Wayne is also a villain" belief in the sense that Bill either still has memories or else has unconscious premonitions from having been a nameless background character in "Bruce Wayne reconstruction stories that show how unstable Bruce/Batman is as a hero" comic stories. like. what is the point of having kids in that kind of enviroment where they could be Superman's "The Man Who Has Everything"-ified and you get rebooted and forced to forget/"forget" your own kids? then the verb usage of "didn't" could be "why I didn't have kids in this timeline". maybe he remembers or has vague premonitions abiut being a dad before (and maybe Bill didn't like being a dad? idk). i think it brings a new touch to his exhaustion in (the Lord Deathman video when Alfred Pennyworth shot him which featured) that scene of him having tinnitus, where he is just tired and sad and needs a break from all this

● i assume this still counts in spite of the reboot, but idk, ill make it green anyway just in case [[[ Bill can read ASL (American Sign Language), we know bc Cassandra Cain (Oracle. thepandaredd plays Cassandra as nonverbal) signed to him in the Lord Deathman skit where they bag up Lord Deathman and she makes him carry the bags because she signs to him "Help me. Tiny hands." ]]]

● i like what i said about Bill, comparing him to Mitchell Mayo in Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King)'s section below (bc i do kind of see thepandaredd's re-imagining of Mitchell as an OC. section is below, still under "People"), so i'm taking the hc-analysis and copy-pasting it here: (i kind of like the hc i have of Mitchell Mayo still being in the Goonion, but is a polar opposite to Bill The Henchman. doesn't connect with new goons or really guide them, Bill is kind of implied to be a bit of a mentor/big brother considering a few goons are excited to show him what they did (eg. the Jimmy Olsen kidnapping skit goon) or when he mother-hens the goon-that-once-worked-at-Cobra-HQ or the goon-with-a-gun-in-waistband, and also the hypothetical-"Batman Beyond"-elder-goon even says "Bless his soul" in talking about Bill. compare that with how Butch Moreti treats Mitchell Mayo. admittingly, Butch was acting under frustrating circumstances, but still. i think Mitchell Mayo is just a "big goon in a small pond" who is seasoned at his goon-work as a helluva scary pseudo-mercenary (one even civillians can immediately recognize), whereas Bill is a seasoned goon that isn't a renowned merc but is still really good at his job and also blends in easy with crowds (bc nobody knows who he is). like. Mitchell Mayo is kind of the asshole "truly evil" guy that Bill could have been, y'know?)

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[[[ ★★★ TODD ??? ]]] (this one is Bill's high school classmate. DC Comics OC)

idk if this Todd exists because of the whole reboot thing (look at Bill The Henchman section under "People" + The Agent of the Reboot section under "Associations"), but sure

● unknown pronouns. unknown surname (hc full name: (bc i don't think he is Todd Andrews) my headcanon for Todd's surname is Turk. if you go to TV Tropes' page on "The Informant" trope, under the "Comic Books" section, you will read about a brief paragraph Marvel character named Turk who was an informant for Marvel vigilantees. and it's obvious in said paragraph why Marvel doesn't use him anymore lmao rip poor Turk to better differentiate this Todd from Todd Andrews, i also hc that Todd is a nickname for "Theodore" so it is slightly easier on my brain to differntiate all these "Todd"s lmao according to BehindTheName, "Theodore" just means "gift of god" which is sweet yet nonspecific. and its sister-site, Surname.BehindTheName,com said the surname "Turk" meant exactly what is on the tin, it means "Turk". fair. but, yeah, so my hc for this character's full name is Theodore "Todd" Turk. neato, alliteration, yay lmao)

● appearance: wore a black crewneck t-shirt and a wire for the G.C.P.D. also, has recieved a free Goonion black t-shirt from Bill to implement possibly into Todd's wardrobe

↳ as a bonus, the skit this Todd was in featured an G.C.P.D. Dispatch officer of an unknown name and unknown pronouns that wore glasses and a black crewneck t-shirt, and sat a a computer. there you go for anybody who wanted to ensure continuity with Todd and this unnamed G.C.P.D. connection

● idk if this still counts bc reboot [[[ was Bill The Henchman's classmate in high school. tho Todd never graduated high school ]]] more about Bill is above, albeit still under the "People" section

● idk if this still counts bc reboot [[[ wore a wire for the G.C.P.D., pretended to be looking into henching. idk if that means Todd works for the G.C.P.D. and was briefly undercover for this, or if Todd was asked to take a wire for a bit (by the G.C.P.D.) as a civillian. regardless, got a Goonion t-shirt from Bill ]]]

● assumedly not the Todd Andrews from Superb Powers (Todd Andrews' section is somewhere above, under "People". the Superb Powers is above even that, under "Associations") or Todd The Goonion Rep (said Todd is below, still within the "People" section. the Goonion is above, under "Associations") as this Todd does not wear glasses and i think you need to have finished high school to be an accountant? maybe they are the same and Todd got a GED after, i have no idea, hc to your heart's extent, maybe Todd Andrews' glasses are just for blue-light, maybe Todd the Goonion Rep wears fake glasses, or maybe this Todd wears contacts who knows

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★★★ TODD (this one is the Goonion rep. DC Comics OC)

↳ technically, i have been calling this Todd by the wrong title kind of this whole time but i had to, i had to do it for the communicative clarity of consistency. because Todd's actual title is only colloquially "a Goonion Rep." as Todd's actual title is "Traveling Representative for the First Universal Henchman's Union". again, this is usually shortened colloquially to "Goonion Rep" but you get it, you get why i didn't call him that every time in the past, Goonion Rep is snappier and there's getting to quickly be too many Todds lmao

● unknown surname. unknown pronouns. (hc full name: Thaddeus "Todd" Malloy. and, with that, i have p much run out of things "Todd" can be short for. luckily, Thaddeus kind of fits a union rep, as BehindTheName.com says it likely derived from the meaning "heart". that's cute. and esp for a Goonion rep, as BehindTheName also says "In the Gospel of Matthew, Thaddaeus is listed as one of the twelve apostles, though elsewhere in the New Testament his name is omitted and Jude's [aka another form of Judas' name, apparently] appears instead. It is likely that the two names refer to the same person". and im not nor have i ever been a Christian but goons and Judas assumedly fit together? yeah? i hope? anyway, i picked the surname Malloy because of the 1954 movie "On The Waterfront" which is about unions, mobs, and an ex-prize-fighter named Teddy Malloy. you can see the connection. i haven't seen it in so many years, i apologize if it is a bad movie to connect to, the plot-summary i read seemed fine enough and my chronic memory loss-riddled ass remembers if fondly enough even tho i was like... seven lol. but, i digress. i should also note that according to Surname.BehindTheName.com Malloy also has connections to both "noble, proud leader" and "faithful servant". huh! even more fitting!)

● appearance: wears glasses. wears a white button-up and a black tie

● works at The First Universal Henchman's Union, aka The Goonion (more on that organization above, under the "Associations" section)

● this is p safe to assume not the Todd Andrews from Superb Powers (Todd Andrews' section is somewhere above, under "People". the Superb Powers section is above even that, under the "Associations" heading) or the Todd That is Bill's High School Friend (said Todd is above, though still within the "People" section. the Goonion is above even that too, under "Associations"). i explained in Todd That Is Bill's High School Friend's section some of why they might be different, might be the same, it's all up the hc, but im p confident they are all different characters all given the forename Todd, okay? okay lmao

● (@/thepandaredd, if you ever read this: i know you love Jason Todd, Jason is also my favorite in the Batfam (after Alfred, obviously, but you get it), and you have this many different Todd OCs is so fucking funny but also im begging you for other names in-between my laughs, please no more Todds lmao) [/tone clarity: this is me complaining as a bit. do what you want, it's your tiktok and your OCs. im just joshing. ill be fine if you do more Todds. much love to you and yours ♡]

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★★★ DR. AARON MICHAELS (DC Comics OC)

● he/him pronouns

● Therapist at Akrham Asylum

↳ replacing an assumedly male (had he/him pronouns if nothing else) therapist that Joker seduced, much like the Joker also had done with Harley Quinn; they found out because the guy had downloaded videos on his desktop that were explict and graohic about clowns. he was fired and Dr. Aaron Michaels was hired

● calls patients by their civillian names (important contrast with Dr. Morton below, is also under the "People" section)

● appearance: wears glasses. in his first video, Dr. Aaron Michaels wore a red long-sleeve button-up with a gray vest and matching gray pants. in Dr. Aaron Michael's second and third video, he wore a red long-sleeve button-up with a gray wool suit jacket. generally has folders/binders/notes, with said folder/binder being darkly colored (black? gray? very dark blue? i cant tell). also has an Arkham ID badge (the card is verticle as a fun fact) that he wears on his suit jacket's breast pocket

● has to make a semi-regular video log ("to mak[e] sure I don't have any 'impure thoughts about the inmates'" which he doesn't like that wording for his patients but you pick and choose your battles)

● Works down the hall from Dr. Morton (is below, is also under the "People" section)

● Transferred from Seattle (doesn't have prior knowledge of patients, instead sits down with them totally blind and whatnot). for those unaware, that is in Washington, USA

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★★★ DR. MORTON (DC Comics OC)

● he/him. Unknown forename (i know in his first video that Dr. Morton showed his Arkham badge to camera but i cannot read it so idk if it said his forename. but i like being a nerd about names+meanings; so, despite the fact that it is quite likely he does have a first name already, because it is illegible to me, im giving him a hc forename: very tempting to jokingly pick "Jay" because thepandaredd is Jay Morton, but that's low-hanging fruit, so i digress my pick is Victor, after Victor Frankenstein of "Frankenstein" fame. tho, like, Victor barely counts as a doctor, he's more of a hack insisting he counts, but he practices alchemy which even his classmates say is super-outdated and not a real science. im getting off track. my "BUT"-point here is that i associate them together because Victor Frankenstein sees the Creature, arguably his own son (i def see the Creature as his son, Victor literally created the Creature, but i digress) but is definitely a patient of his if nothing else, as a monster immediately upon the uncanny-valley-motherfucker daring to actually move &&& Dr Morton calls his patients exclusively by their villain-names so far as of 2024 March, implying he does see his patients as monstrous due to their actions or at least sees their villain identities as superseding their original civillian names, which is a really cool contrasting point between him and Dr. Aaron Michaels. i wonder if that's something they argue about but are still friends in spite of, if that sticking point of difference stops them from being friends, etc)

● Level 2 Medical Officer at Arkham Asylum. also called "A physician", is specifically a "General Care physician for all the supervillians housed at the asylum"

↳ 8 years medical school, minor is psychology

● Calls patients by their villain names (important contrast with Dr. Aaron Michaels, above, still under the "People" section. i have analysis about this character choice in my "hc for Dr Morton's forename" right up a few points)

● appearance: he wears glasses. in his first video, Dr. Morton wore red scrubs (or what i assume are supposed to be scrubs? idk, im not a scrubs expert) with a black longer-sleeved shirt underneath and black pants. Dr. Morton also wears what i assume is a scrub-cap, and it is black with skull-and-crossbones on it. in his second video, Dr. Morton wore a white labcoat on top of his scrubs, but otherwise dressed the same. also, he has an Arkham ID badge (fun fact: the card is vertical) that he wore as a lanyard around his neck

↳ hc: i think Dr. Morton stops wearing his ID around his neck. it's a common enough thing that patients will attempt to strangle their doctors in general clinics (much less around dangerously violent patients, like in Arkham Asylum) that doctors (1) dont wear stethoscopes around their neck anymore as a rule, or anything around their neck that could be used to choke them; (2) dont generally wear lanyards and, if they do, it is a break-away lanyard; and (3) instead of lanyards will wear a badge-holder-clip (often a retractable one for convenience) on their top somewhere (ive seen it clipped on their scrub-shirt's neck, their shirt breast pocket, and the hem of the shirt. i once saw it on the hem of their sleeve. i do not know if there is protocol about this beyond "above the waist", this is just based on observations and none of the odder ones are recent. i usually see breast pocket the most). which means someone probably tried to choke out Dr. Morton, and idk who would be the most likely candidate, but regardless it probably doesn't help Dr. Morton see his patients positively enough to use their civillian-names over their villain-names

↳ another hc: which, like. speaking of, i dont think Dr. Morton using villain-names over character-names is bad. it is part of the patients identity and probably the part they recognize the most (since v rarely are any remorseful for their actions). it shows Dr. Morton sees them for their (current) actions, rather than seeing them for their humanity out of his own perception of the world. saying that, i still disagree with the decision for a multitude of reasons, but it's a cool character detail and i wont go off in a tangent about this, this is already enough lol

● Works down the hall from Dr. Aaron Michaels (whose section is above, still under the "People" section)

● Listed treatments:

↳ Eyedrops many times a week for Two-Face's eye to not be a raisin

↳ Splinting Penguin's nose

↳ Has never seen Clayface shit

↳ Repairing "the grill" of Joker

↳ Trying to convince the Joker that wiping his ass does not, and can not, make the Joker gay (suspects the Joker is attracted Batman nonetheless)

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★★★ BUTCH MORETI (DC Comics OC)

technically, this character kind of doesn't exist. as the character was just in a draft version of the "Make Condiment King Scary" tiktok, and not in the finalized video. but i am ignoring that

↳ idk if "Butch" was the character's forename or nickname, but i assume it is the forename (but you can hc it as a nickname if you want)

● Pronouns unknown

● Worked with Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King, canon character but re-imagined rendition is below, still listed under "People" section) died because of Mitchell due to Mitchel poisoning a dollop of ketchup (that Butch ate with fries from Big Belly Burger, one of Butch's favorite places to eat)

↳ died in a safe-house, after ripping off Falconé

↳ Mitchell Mayo was sent by Falconé to kill Moreti -- "Falconé sends his regards, Butch"

● appearance: was dressed in all black, with a black leather jacket (no lapel, had fake-motorcycle-padding-shoulder-pockets if you squint. this in contrast to Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King)'s leather jacket which did have a lapel), with a black t-shirt, black pants, etc.

● Butch was irritable (makes sense, after ripping off Falconé and finding someone in the safehouse) and waved a gun around for intimidation

● i hc both Butch Moreti and Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) were/are Goonion members and co-workers of Bill The Henchman (more on Bill above, still under the "People" section). i love Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) as what thepandaredd wrote him as now, i refuse to see him any other way after the "Make Condiment King Scary" video lol ■ more on thepandaredd's re-imagining of Mitchell Mayo (The Condiment King) below, still under the "People" section

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★★★ MITCHELL MAYO (CONDIMENT KING) (DC Comics)

technically, shouldn't be here bc he is a canon DC comics character already. but i like thepandaredd's re-imagining enough to have made notes and consider him a bit of an OC of panda's

● assumed, he/him pronouns due to canon and masculine self-references (eg. a guy, a man, King, etc)

● hates the title "Condiment King", does not like to be called that and will tell you. the press gave it to him after a murder Mitchell comitted (more below under "Confirmed murders")

↳ "So patronizing. Like, I'm trying to make some some grand-standing with what I do, I'm not. I'm not."

↳ "Everybody in Gotham has got a gimmick."

↳ "See, my problem isn't with the name itself. It's with what the insult that is implied. People think that what I do is silly. But I'm gonna ask you something. If the ketchup was too tangy, would you stop eating it? Or if your hot wings tingled your throat in a way you didn't expect, would you all of a sudden stop? See, the thing is, apart from taking a shit: eating is when people are at their most vulnerable. I ask you: do you know what poison tastes like? Are you sure?"

● appearance: wears a green beanie with a pompom (reference to character's pickle hat in comics. (fun behind-the-scenes fact: the hat in question in the tiktok is a backwards "Friends" beanie. Mitchell's is assumedly not that. but it is what thepandaredd could find at the time)). wears all black otherwise, including a black leather jacket (with a lapel), a black t-shirt, black pants, etc (note: when killing the unnamed guy a few bullet points below, was wearing a "new sky blue suit" that got stains all over it from fighting said guy in a kitchen and getting tossed around. assumedly had to throw it away after, but who knows, maybe it got cleaned)

↳ very recognizable. Ted (below, still under "People" section) recognized Mitchell Mayo on sight, despite being a Gotham transplant who'd only been there for three months

● personality is generally laid-back? a bit of an "under the surface" type of control-freak? is kind of quiet, lets people make assumptions that benefit Mitchell Mayo. keeps calm while others fly off the handle. will get a bit loud and growly when angry, letting it slip for half a phrase or so, before laughing it off and continuing like he isn't annoyed/pissed off. smiles and laughs creepily at the idea of murdering people; no guilt, no shame, enjoys it. very much recommend watching both the draft and final versions of "Make Condiment King Scary" that thepandaredd made

● likes to eat french fries (in the draft version of "Make Condiment King Scary", Mitchell eats the fries without ketchup as said ketchup is poisoned for Butch Moreti to eat. in this version, the fries are from Big Belly Burger ■ in the final version of the video, Mitchell does eat his fries with ketchup) ■ according to Ted's second "Living in Gotham" video (Ted's section is below, still under the "People" header. Ted called Mitchell Mayo exclusively by "the Condiment King" which i assume did not help Ted's case), Mitchell got so mad at Ted for dissing the Bat Burger (+Joker Fries) that Ted had to hide in the bathroom of an abandoned building as Mitchell Mayo pounded on the bathroom door saying, "I know you're in there! I know you're in there! Open the door!". so i assume the Bat Burger is Mitchell Mayo's favorite and that he is the "No, you misunderstand. I'm not willing to die on this hill, I'm willing to kill you on it." type in regards to food-opinions

● drinks A&W rootbeer? i think?? idk what that can is of otherwise (in final version of "Make Condiment King Scary")

● worked with Falconé as "a goon" ("another grunt off the street"; kind of implies Goonion likely wasn't a thing yet back then? but who knows, Goonion doesn't seem relatively new, so Mitchell Mayo probably was a member when he started. edit: nah, according to the Goonion merch, it was "established 2000", so yeah, it is relatively new, nvm) ("Hands up, fucker, Falconé sends his regards"), implied to not being doing that anymore

↳ when with Butch Moerti (section above, still under "People"), is implied to still be peers. so still henchmen. Butch patronizes Mitchell, sees Mitchell as below Butch, and Mitchell allows Butch to underestimate him as it benefits Mitchell in the end

↳ i hc both Butch Moreti and Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) were/are Goonion members and co-workers of Bill The Henchman (more on Bill above, still under the "People" section). i love Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) as what thepandaredd wrote him as now, i refuse to see him any other way after the "Make Condiment King Scary" video lol

↳ implied to be a mercenary now? idk if this version is a supervillain (i kind of like the hc i have of Mitchell Mayo still being in the Goonion, but is a polar opposite to Bill The Henchman. doesn't connect with new goons or really guide them, Bill is kind of implied to be a bit of a mentor/big brother considering a few goons are excited to show him what they did (eg. the Jimmy Olsen kidnapping skit goon) or when he mother-hens the goon-that-once-worked-at-Cobra-HQ or the goon-with-a-gun-in-waistband, and also the hypothetical-"Batman Beyond"-elder-goon even says "Bless his soul" in talking about Bill. compare that with how Butch Moreti treats Mitchell Mayo. admittingly, Butch was acting under frustrating circumstances, but still. i think Mitchell Mayo is just a "big goon in a small pond" who is seasoned at his goon-work as a helluva scary pseudo-mercenary (one even civillians can immediately recognize), whereas Bill is a seasoned goon that isn't a renowned merc but is still really good at his job and also blends in easy with crowds (bc nobody knows who he is). like. Mitchell Mayo is kind of the asshole "truly evil" guy that Bill could have been, y'know?)

● Confirmed murders: (within thepandaredd re-imagining canon)

↳ manipulated Butch Moreti (section above, still under "People") via using Big Belly Burger fries (Butch Moreti's favorite. "Man, you know that's my shit") and poisoning a dollop of ketchup that had been untouched on a paper plate -- arguably non-canonical bc Butch only exists in a drafted version of "Make The Condiment King Scary" and not the final version, but im ignoring that ■ well, actually, i guess Butch kind of is also in the final version as there is some unseen person cough-choking to the end, assumedly poisoned. that could be Butch. or a reference to Butch. who knows lol

↳ (the following is a bastardized summary of the "Make Condiment King Scary" final video; please go watch it) Mitchell killed an unnamed guy in a pot of hot sauce (technically, "extra hot sauce", still on the stove ■ "You know, when you drown, they say your lungs feel like they're on fire. Can you imagine what that's like with capsaicin added to the mix?" (this line is only in the draft version) ■ "Did you know that it only takes three pounds of ground up chillis, consumed in one sitting, to kill a man? Purely from the capsaicin. Well, I'll tell you what, he figured out what it's like to inhale that shit."). drowned the unnamed guy in a pot of it. it is how Mitchell Mayo got the nickname "Condiment King" from the press. ■ event in further detail: Mitchell was sent by Falconé bc a resteraunt "racket" he had been running (slang definition: "an illegal or dishonest scheme for obtaining money". i assume that means the place was a front for money laundering? that the "owner" went "no, fuck you, i actually like doing this"? that's kinda sweet. or maybe Falconé was doing "pay me for protection (from me)" thing, idk, that's less sweet but still admirable lol) had itself an owner who decided not to pay, "So I was sent to relieve him of his station". Mitchell let the guy finish up his meal, followed the owner into the back, stuck a gun in his face. but the guy was a black belt in karate, kicked gun out of Mitchell's hand, fought and tossed Mitchell around, then Mitchell held the unnamed guy's head in that pot of hot sauce "until the fucking bubbles stopped coming up". therefore, Mitchell Mayo killed a guy with hot sauce in a suit covered in condiments got the nickname "Condiment King"

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★★★ REGGIE BENSON (his second Marvel OC! yay!)

● unknown pronouns. (he/him implied via "dude" and "guy" diction? but idk, i use those gender neutrally myself)

● appearance: wears a red and a blueish-gray flannel with a black sherpa lining that is a zip-up jacket; ontop of a plain pale-red t-shirt. as a prop, Reggie often carries around an iPad (assumedly to draw on, write notes, and record audio with. i hc Reggie uses the Notability app a fuck ton, because that lets you record audio while you write notes which is great for lectures/interviews. Notability is a bit hard to draw with in my exp, but not the worst; plus you can switch apps easy. idk how well it works for Zoom/Facetime/online interviews, but in-person ones? esp pre-Wolverine-interview? Reggie probably used Notability a shitton. iPad is a very good prop pick for Reggie to have), said iPad seems to have a pale-gray case. Reggie also has a prosthetic leg (assumedly his right (the viewer's left) leg from how he looked down?)

↳ "How did I get [my prosthetic leg]? I, uh, mighy have asked Wolverine how he shaves? Listen, I'm just saying-- I know legal said don't talk about it, they asked, I want to tell them-- if a nuke gets dropped on a guy, and he comes back with perfectly shaved mutton-chops, I don't think it's unreasonable to know how he shaves his freaking moustache, okay?!" ("I, uh, I have been informed by legal team over at Marvel that I, I, I, uh, should stop talking about the Wolverine interview on camera. So, uh, can you just, tch, cut that, please?")

● works at Marvel Comics' Marvel Comics (bc Marvel Comics legitimately decided "let's put our comic company inside our comic-universe, selling comics about the heroes the universe has. like a graphic novel version of the news, except it is 'fictional stories with grains of truth' somehow", sure). thepandaredd explains this oddity a bit better over in the July 2022 compilation (which, for clarity, Reggie's introductory skits are over in the August 2022 compilation)

↳ Reggie's official position at the company is: "Earth 616 Reporter (Mutant Division) Marvel™️ Comics". Reggie just says "I'm a reporter for Marvel Comics" and that "Personally, a lot of the stories that I cover are a lot of mutant and mutant-related things." ■ they still say "Excelsior"/"'celsior" at fictional-Marvel, that's cool

↳ it can probably be safely assumed Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and whatnot still are still alive? since they were, at one point, in the comics? but idk if they are in the skit-world-of-thepandaredd. but they might be Reggie's co-workers?

↳ Reggie explains their job as a mixture of the news section and "the funny pages" section of a newspaper. it's reporting news, put in some graphics, and add "drama and spice to keep things fresh". ■ Marvel Comics (the fictional company) does try to be unbiased and also get "all the perspectives possible" (eg. the villains' pov). says that "Some people that rhe public has labeled as super-villains aren't really that bad of people to talk to. Others, (note: Reggie is clearly thinking of Mojo, more in a lower bullet-point) uhm [i cut out the heavy stuttering], some of the opinions are deserved." ■ Reggie sees himself as "I like to think of myself as their voice. I get to get their side of the story out to the people, y'know?"

↳ for work, Reggie has met with: Paste Pot Pete (no label within the skit. civillian identity: Peter Petruski. is sometimes also called The Trapster, but not in these skits lol) ■ Mojo (the skit labels Mojo as "Mojo. Media Tycoon. Professionally Gross. Entrepreneur. Owner: WatchMojo". Mojo is both his villain and civillian name. his alien species is called the Spineless Ones. in one specific comic-run, "Ultimate X-Men", he is a human named Mojo Adams, but i digress. Reggie gets general-canon-alien-Mojo, who terrifies/disgusts Reggie to the point that Reggie screams, even on video-call/Facetime) ■ Wolverine (the skit labels Wolverine as "Logan Howlett. Mutant. 'The Wolverine™️'. Avengers, X-Men, X-Force, History Teacher." Wolverine hates Reggie: he says "fuck that guy" and thinks Reggie is a total asshole) ■ Charles Xavier (the skit labels Charles as "Charles Xavier. Headmaster. Mutant. Xavier's School for Gifted Youngesters™️. Nobel Prize Winner". when asked about Reggie, Charles began by saying Reggie is "a fine young chap" until he was told this was off the record, to which Charles said "Oh, the dude's a prick.") ■ Namoor (Zoom interview. has fried the "complimentary iPad we gave him by going underwater" before, hope that doesn't happen again. is mentioned in skit, but not shown, so no label)

↳ i personally feel it is important to add Reggie will snort-laugh at some things the people they interview say, and Reggie will cover it up with a lie that the sound they made was "allergies"/that it is "allergy season"

↳ my hc: i think the Paste Pot-Pie interview was pre-Wolverine, and Reggie does all his interviews over Facetime/Zoom since losing his leg post-Wolverine interview? maybe legal over at Marvel advised it

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★★★ ARNOLD (a third Marvel OC! very little info tho)

● unknown surname. unknown pronouns. (hc: i googled Marvel's version of State University to confirm if Arnold was an OC or not, and i couldn'find anything to say he is canon so i assume OC. i know very little Fantastic Four lore. anyway, i see it says there is a dean already there-- which is to be expected, and universities can have multiple deans-- but that same dean does not have a forename. so i am hc'ing slapping Arnold onto this dean whose entire wiki says he just "welcome[d] Reed Richards when he arrived with the the Fantastic Four at State U to deliver a lecture", the end. so, my hc name is Dean Arnold Mencken, or just Arnold Mencken when he is not a dean, i guess. also, i looked what the surname means on my beloved search-engine of Surnames.BehindTheName because i LOVE name-meanings and intertextual references and whatnot-- and nothing came up. so i tried google, and a site called "Forebears.io" that i am unsure about entirely trusting says that it is a variant spelling of the surname Menken (which BehindTheName also had nothing on) and both means "One who lived in a monastery" which sounds fitting and i kind of have an "i don't know enough about this to say you're right or wrong, and i don't like that" opinion about. but eh. the character's surname was already decided. it's whatever, it's just a hc. if you want to see the fandom-wiki pages on Dean [No forename] Mencken, the one listing him as staff from State U is here and his own page is over here)

↳ insists students call him by just "Arnold" when they try to call him "Dean". Victor Von Doom compromises, somewhat, and switches from "Dean" to "Dean Arnold"

● is a dean at State University in New York (which, yes, is a real university). was dean at the time Reed Richards and Victor Von Doom were students

● appearance: wears glasses and a plain black t-shirt in the skit

● is in just the one skit from the 2023 Oct./Nov. compilation, unlikely to appear again but who knows!

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★★★ PROFESSOR FINGER (DC Comics OC)

↳ is actually a spoof on "Bill Finger", who worked on Batman comics. more below under Professor Kane's section (below, still under "People")

● he/him pronouns. unknown forename. (hc forename: Duval. after Marie Duval, the primary creator of "Ally Sloper" which was a then-famous Victorian comic strip to which her husband (Charles Ross) stole all the credit and was heralded as a comic genius for almost 150 years. only in the past few years, thanks to a comics historian named David Kunzle, has Marie Duval been given her full share of credit for what was ultimately her comic. but yeah, i checked if Duval is a forename and i found tons of people with it as their forename so hell yeah)

● appearance: unknown, Prof Finger was never shown on-screen

● switched mid-skit between calling him an "English teacher" and a "Philosophy teacher". (maybe he's English specialized in Philosophy, like ive had English college classes require we read "On The Consolation of Philosophy" by Boethius before) more likely, Finger is English and Jason Todd mispoke when he said "Philosophy"

● is a Professor at Tim Drake's school, and Tim is in his class; Jason Todd took his class, was implied to have taken it years ago. was called "Professor Finger" (note: not "Dr. Finger", this OC assumedly does not have a doctorate. which, it is fairly common for English profs to have up to a Masters, then its a toss-up if they stopped there or also got a PhD so that checks out. main reason i mention it is bc i kept making a typo the first time i wrote this section up calling him "Dr. Finger" and that isn't accurate, he was never called that in the skit, idk why i kept making the same typo).

↳ the phrasing of "Professor" leads me to assume this is university (idk how private schools work and if they have students call anybody "Professor") which Jason Todd i don't think is confirmed to go to university? (Jason Todd hc: i think he should go. i am very much Team Jason Todd The English Professor Or English (Public? or Gotham Academy?) High School Teacher (probably more likely public bc i can see Jason Todd wanting to reach out to disadvantaged youth at public schools moreso than help deliquent rich kids on principle. but i can also see him going "i dont want to hang out with teenagers who don't want to participate in discussions; i'm gonna teach on college campuses" bc he deserves students who are interested in his class, his life has been hard enough, let him have passionate students and, unfortunately, college English students are more likely passionate about the material than high school English students, idk what to tell you). but im also Team Jason Todd Takes College Classes (Mostly English) For Fun With No Intent Of A Degree tho. either or) and the only college Tim went to that i am aware of is Ivy University in Ivy Town. however, i think it is more likely both Jason Todd and Tim Drake are both taking college classes (or "has taken" in Jason Todd's case since it's implied he went Finger's class years ago, idk if he is implied to still attending or not rn, before was just my hc) at Gotham University in Gotham City, that feels like the most convenient place for them to both go. however, it would also make sense for this to be a reference to Gotham Academy (in which case Tim Drake is in high school and Jason Todd has since left), but again, idk if private schools ask students to call their teachers by "Professor". im probably overthinking this

● obsessed with Batman

↳ keeps having students every semester write a paper on the philosophy of Batman to the point that Jason Todd thinks "he should have a book of those by now"

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★★★ PROFESSOR KANE (DC Comics OC)

↳ is actually a spoof on "Bob Kane", who worked on the Batman comics 

↳ (if you want to read up on why Bill Finger and Bob Kane are being discussed like this, this article goes over a good amount of introductory information (https://boldentrance.com/how-bob-kane-stole-batman-from-bill-finger/) and i also recommend this reddit thread to get a bit more of a window into the DC Comics fandom dialogue about it (https://www.reddit.com/r/batman/s/sf8P8hgBxv). but yeah, there's better resources if you want to know more in-depth stuff, i just picked the most accessible, quick-to-read, starter stuff) thepandaredd has also done a few videos on Bill Finger and Bob Kane, but i can't find them even though i know they exist (edit: found them (on accident), it's within their "DC Comics Discussions 3" youtube video). but this is just thepandaredd doing a "Wouldn't it be nice?" alternate reality where the students protected Finger and ousted Kane for trying to steal Finger's job, the actions dictated here did not happen in real life. it's just a nod to the irl drama via the names involved (and also maybe the enough "psychology/philosophy of Batman" stuff to make a book is a reference that Finger kept a continuity book of all Batman and Batman-associated-characters/places he came up with so as to minimize continuity errors. i am not aware of Finger having ever written a "Psychology/Philosophy of Batman" book or anything similar for that topic ad nauseam, again, as far as i am aware, that's just a popular point of pop culture analysis to the point that even i have written a paper on it for college), it is not a summary of said drama

● he/him. unknown forename. (hc forename: Ross. after Charles Ross, of the "Ally Sloper" fame, who famously took all the credit that his wife, Marie Duval did to making this Victorian comic strip an icon of its time)

● appearance: unknown, Prof Kane is never seen on-screen

● "Professor Kane tried to steal [Professor Finger's] job last year, but everyone kind of ousted him"

↳ "Oh, gross, Professor Kane? That dude's a dick."

↳ "Yeah, that's what everyone else said."

↳ assumedly, since Tim Drake doesn't have his own opinion of Kane voiced (just "that's what everyone else said"), though Professor Kane is at Tim's school, Tim has not interacted with him one-on-one or had his class (my assumption would be Tim is avoiding Kane's classes since everyone keeps talking shit. why willingly take a teacher you know might make your life hellish for a semester? i do that with RateMyProfessor all the time). in contrast, Jason Todd likely has taken a class by Professor Kane considering his wording (which makes additional sense when you realize Jason Todd is unlikely to use the internet or features like RateMyProfessor due to him having grown up without much day-to-day/non-Batman-and-Robin tech before the Lazarus Pit. probably isn't a habit for him to look profs up); but it's also likely Jason just came to his own conclusions firmly after hearing enough rumors/second-hand stories about it, that does also fit Jason's personality

↳ "ousted" implies Professor Kane no longer works at that campus. but who knows, maybe

● (note: same as Professor Finger's section above, still under the "People" section— this guy is not "Dr. Kane", this OC assumedly does not have a doctorate. which, we don't know what kind of subject this Kane OC is a professor of. but, considering he tried to steal Professor Finger's job, i think it's safe to assume Kane is also an English professor. it is fairly common for English profs to have up to a Masters, then its a toss-up if they stopped there or also got a PhD so that checks out.)

● i'm not re-writing my notes on "is this guy a Professor at a university (Ivy University? Gotham University?) or at Goth Academy (high school)?" so look above in Professor Finger's section (above, still under "People") for my waffling on about that

● i'm guessing on the spelling of Professor Kane's surname based on phoentics + "Kane" is how Bob Kane spelled his surname (same goes for "Finger" except i don't think there is any other way to spell "Finger"(?), unlike Kane/Cain/Kain/Cane/Kayne/Cayne/Caine/Kaine/Caigne/Kaigne/etc, you get the idea). i assume Professor Kane is unrelated to the DC Comics Kane (fictional) family/families (eg. one family is Katherine "Kate" Kane (Batwoman), Mary Elizabeth "Bette" Kane (Hawkfire), and Jacob Kane. another Kane family is the father-son duo Jesse Kane and David Kane (Black Manta; though i think it's more popular for Black Manta's civillian surname to be Hyde in-comics), from the live-action "Aquaman" movie series. and another is Cassandra Cain (Oracle; in some other universes, her surname is Wu-San though) and her father, David Cain; though that one is if i assumed incorrectly about how to spell Professor Kane's surname. and so on, im sure there's others with a variant of this surname. a lot of people in the DC Comic workspace used the surname as either a Biblical reference, which is not that important to what i am discussing here, or in tribute to Bob Kane before everyone knew about how much work should actually be attributed to Bill Finger) but yeah, hc to your heart's content if you want Professor Kane to be related to someone. just because there is no evidence of confirmation does not, in this case, mean there is any evidence of contradiction either. (hc: like i prefer Jacob Kane to be a good guy, bc Katherine "Kate" Kane (Batwoman) deserves a decent dad. but i know in the "Gotham Knights" game (idk if this is true anywhere else), Jacob Kane is a member of The Court Of Owls, specifically "The Voice of the Court". i think the Waynes/Kanes having a connection to the Court makes sense. i think it's kinda off to have everyone in the Wayne/Kanes be good, and all other rich families in Gotham have at least one bad egg in The Court of Owls; i think the Wayne/Kanes should be included as part of that corrupted mess, just, probably someone outside of the Batfam and their immediate relatives. id be perfectly happy having Professor Kane be in the Wayne/Kane family as the representative associated with The Court Of Owls in Jacob Kane's place. maybe he can be Jacob Kane's crotchety old uncle or someone in the family closer to Kate's age, but someone who they are all but officially estranged from. hence, no idea he/their family was involved in the Court. if you prefer drama tho, i don't think anybody really knows anything about Bette Kane's dad except that he's dead? maybe he came back, idk, basically all the Robins have died and came back. or maybe she has a brother, idk, i prefer my "distant family" pitch more personally. but also then i kinda wonder why Professor Finger isn't dead via a Talon getting assigned to kill him, so i also don't believe my own hc pitch. it is the most likely option that Professor Kane could just be an unrelated, miscellaneously benign but dickish Kane lol anyway, i digress)

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★★★ TED (the Gotham transplant. DC Comics OC)

● unknown pronouns. unknown surname. (hc surname: Icarian. meaning i hc this character's name to be Ted Icarian. which "Icarian" is the adjective/noun form referencing the Ancient Greek lore character called "Icarus". most famous for wearing his dad's wax wings, flying too close to the sun, and falling to his death with a moral about arrogance, the sublime, and human error. which, y'know, is poetic because im hc'ing this as "uncorrupted Ted that has never been/has yet to become a goon" (more on that in a bullet-point below), ergo, "before the fall" morally and before Bill's-version-pre-reboot-of-Ted's fall from Wayne Towers ~73 stories high to his death from Man-Bat. so it is also a pun. also, as a brief self-note: applying the Hozier song titled "Icarian (I, Carrion)" to this intrepretation of Ted is fitting poetically and also funny in a dark-humor way. edit: Ted's life is going downhill fast between the first and second videos, and i feel like i accidentally condemned Ted with this surname lmao Ted, i'm so sorry)

↳ the following does involve hc, but also does analyze possible connections between "this Ted" and "the Ted mentioned within Bill The Henchmen's Confirmed Co-Workers section of Bill's whole bit above (yet still under the "People" heading)": i like to headcanon this is the same Ted who is/was Bill The Henchman's late coworker. since Ted-The-Coworker was established pre-Reboot Agent, this could either be a prequel to Ted dying from the Man-Bat (which btw the skit of that is linked here) or could be Ted in a rebooted alternate life. i like to assume the latter, because i think that'd be hilariously trippy for Bill to see his coworker still alive post-reboot but tragic that this Ted doesn't likely know who Bill is lol but also all of this, either way, makes the Henchman LinkedIn joke a few bullet-points down extra (bittersweet) fucking funny

● appearance: wears all black. first video included a black t-shirt and a black denim jacket. second video included a black scarf with a black-white-and-gray long-sleeve top.

● has a 4-door car. idk anything about cars. but has shot these videos, generally, in said car. so that is one of Ted's habits as an influencer → and now that car is where Ted sleeps, oh dear (at least is sleeping with a neck pillow? idk any silver lining here)

● now lives in Gotham (Batman's territory, which is in the East Coast and most traditionally is in pseudo-New Jersey), but is a transplant from Coast City (for context, Coast City's most famous protector is Hal Jordan (Green Lantern) if that helps you. it's in pseudo-California). lives in an apartment in Gotham → oh, god. uh, Ted no longer lives in an apartment in Gotham. Ted is now unhomed, now living in their car. their apartment was burned down into the shape of a giant smiley-face and there was a fireproof-paper note on "where my bed once used to be" that said: "Disrespect my Joker Fries again, bitch, and it won't just be the house". so. assumedly Ted's home was burned down by the Joker

↳ has lived in Gotham City "for 3 months". if you want to apply reality's timeline to the skit, hen he has been living in Gotham for 3 months from the point of recording the tiktok on 25 March 2024 (aka: 25 January 2024-ish is around when Ted moved to Gotham?)

● two jobs. job (1) is as an influencer, makes tiktoks (eg. "Top 5 Facts About Gotham City (from a Coast City transplant)" type videos. doing social media seems to be a side hustle or just for fun? each video has the top margin say "GOTHAM FYP" or "GOTHAM CITY FYP" so far (which i know is a fun trend people do and that's part of advertising that "hello, the following is comments about a fictional city; this a trend, i am a nerd (/tone indicator: affectionate); please do not think this is a real place (or that im stupid, as sometimes comic nerd get v patronizing in the comments. (eg. 'uh? op didn't know Harvey Dent was Two-Face? fake DC fan much' like? my comrade, it is a trend, it is a GAG, of course op knew, they did a skit playing as a character that's a Gotham civillian who wouldn't know that, oh my god, that's the BIT))", but also my not-tech-savvy ass assumes a part of it is also supposed to be a gag about the search-bar? and the idea is that the viewer is either watching Gotham City content within the DC-universe or, more likely, also lives in Gotham(?). idk. but yeah because [insert real city] fyp content doesn't ever have that "[CITY] FYP" stuff at the top that ive seen, but they do always have the search bar always filled in. usually with more "[real city] fyp" items, most generally it will be just "[city] fyp" but also sometimes the search bar says stuff like "[city] fyp to eat", "[city] fyp tips", etc as i watch the tiktok video VS. if i watch "Gotham FYP" content, my personal 50/50 experience on if my search-bar will give me more "Gotham FYP" content in my search bar or if it will be something else DC Comics adjacent, like a new movie. however, after saying all of that: i think i maybe went into an overthinking spiral again, ignore me if that is the case) summary content of video below in case application of Gotham Fun Facts is desired)

↳ does not think the Bat Burger lives up to the hype. thinks Joker Fries are not that good. prefers Big Belly Burger (same favorite resteraunt as Butch Moreti, another thepandaredd OC, above yet still under the "People" section). will still eat Bat Burger tho

↳ "Gang territory, here? Gerrymandered to fuck". have to change colors of outfit to keep safe

↳ Halloween is outlawed in Gotham (in part bc of copyright laws). even trick-or-treating is illegal

↳ Henchman jobs are available on Linked In. applying puts you on a watchlist for the GCPD but still

↳ Gothamites are both exaggerating about the crime rates here and not. Gotham has more than the usual number of villains but the crime is less of a disturbance than expected, in spite of how "in Coast City, we're used to, like, one intergalactic threat showing up every couple of months" VS "It is like almost every other fucking week here [in Gotham]"

↳ Ted got a Welcome Package when Ted first moved in. package contained: "a safety straw you use to drink out of fucking lakes, a gas-mask, [and] a gun"

↳ "The second the sun dips behind the horizon, the sky turns red. No, I'm not joking. Night-time doesn't exist. There are demon hours and that is when the sky is fucking red!" also, both Ted and i are chemically unsure how that works

↳ there are police blimps to patrol Gotham City from the sky. "I saw a dude jay-walk at, like, 2 in the morning; and, all of a sudden, a flood-light came out of the goddamn sky!" which Ted admits, despite having lived where Green Lantern "used to be" (is that verb-usage related to the Superb Prowers insurance question about Coast City being gone now? is Green Lantern also gone? idk), Green Lantern did not get Ted used to this kind of shit at all (fair)

↳ despite there being "like 10 million people living here", "more than half" of the buildings here are of abandoned buildings and all of them were former businesses (hc/theory: Ted, those were probably the results of fronts for money-laundering, and they they had to shut the place down in order to avoid the cops. and also poverty, making a honest business as a newbie entrepreneur with no familial pre-established networking is very hard, i imagine, esp with all the "pay my gang for protection (from our gang)" stuff. that doesn't help) ■ yet Ted found a way into a (working?) bathroom in one such building, admittingly under duress (Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) was chasing him) ■ "half the residential buildings are abandoned apartment complexes"

↳ Ted finds Robin (assumedly Damian Wayne; "a 12 year-old running around with a sword") is "scarier than you would think". not necessrily that Robin is scarier than Batman, but that not enough people warn you about Robin. plus the fact that said Robin has "two brothers" where "one of them is fucking packing heat and the other is just going to fucking beat you to death with a billy-club!" (okay so, that is assumedly Jason Todd (Red Hood) and Tim Drake (Red Robin). makes sense, since Dick Grayson is largely looking over Bludhaven, he would not be present, and Duke Thomas (Signal) is largely working day-hours. Ted is not going to be happy to find out that there are more than just those two tho) ■ "the Robins" went after Ted for loitering? bc Ted was trying to find a place to sleep, homeless, in their car?? "Loitering is a big thing here" (hc: i don't like the idea of the Batfam caring about loitering (which is v racially charged "crime"), much less pestering the homeless?? especially Jason, who im p sure did sleep on the street at some point. but i can accept the idea that they saw unfamiliar plates on the car and wanted to check out "who the hell is driving this slow (looking for where to sleep) at 2AM from Coast City?" and pulled out the random loitering as an empty excuse (reality: was checking this dude wasn't a runaway robber from Coast City, looking for a place to break-into, mostly to hide-out and maybe rob; and then realized the truth about Ted's situation). i can also accept them gently being involved in the homeless' lives so as to better protect them, remember them, break the ice, and just (again: gently) hazing new people. i like the idea of Ted seeing a couple comments from other unhoused people explaining that "getting to know you" method. just messing with Ted while they got down some details to look a bit more into Ted (eg. Damian memorizing Ted's license plate while Time distracts Ted might lead the trio to an article explaining how Ted lost that apartment) and see if they can get Ted off the street without being so obvious as to dish out hand-outs since some people have really negative reactions to those despite the good intentions. idk. it was just a gag, but one that greatly confused me so now i am spinning it and righting it in my head lmao)

↳ the G.C.P.D. police have to be at every single graduation from college. because, and this happens so often, that someone gets their doctorate and right then and there decides to commit their first act of super-villainy at the ceremony. part of me wonders how Ted learned that, what graduation did Ted attend or did Ted hear about it from others? idk

● second job: unknown. assumed to be Ted's day-job or main occupation (with social-media as a side thing).

↳ has co-worker there named Alex (confirmed he/him pronouns. Alex's duplex is split between Penguin territory and Two-Face territory. "has to change colors if he wants to go to the bathroom". Alex does not get his own section because this is all the info i got on him ■ though i will also say there is another Alex, likely unrelated for reasons listed in the other section, in The First Universal Henchmen's Union section's "confirmed members" listing, above, and said section is all under the overall "Associations" heading)

● Ted's Enemies, i guess (hopefully just temporarily): Joker (pissed off due to Ted dissing the Joker Fries; burned down Ted's apartment and left a threatening fireproof note) ■ Mitchell Mayo (Condiment King) (was also pissed off by Ted's food opinions, though Mitchell's was implied to moreso be about the Bat Burger; chased Ted into an abandoned building's bathroom and pounded on the door of said bathroom while yelling at Ted) ■ i assume there will be more

● (@/thepandaredd, if you're reading this, i know i said i have hcs but i truly do not actually care if this Ted and the previous dead-Ted are two different Teds, the same Ted but a prequel version, the same Ted but now rebooted into an alternate life... all i ask, is that Ted is not the next "Todd". it would be so fucking funny if you made a third Ted (even funnier if this one was Tedd, with two "D"s, but that is nOT TO GIVE YOU IDEAS), but i am also begging you between laughs once again to please consider not making more DC OCs named Ted. that is so close spelling-wise to "Todd". please. and thank you for coming to my TED Talk (ba-da-tish)) [/tone clarity: this is me complaining as a bit. do what you want, it's your tiktok and your OCs. im just joshing. ill be fine if you do more Todds and Teds. much love to you and yours ♡]

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★★★ THE REGRETTABLES RE-IMAGINING PITCHES (exactly what it sounds like. not quite an OC, but fuck it)

★ you could also argue "Daniel Dyce (#711)" of "Regrettable Superheroes" is a pitch of an OC of thepandaredd (specifically, thepandaredd pitched for him to become a gag villain in Gotham who keeps breaking out of Arkham). which, uh, i do also have notes on. but i will not be sharing within this post because a lot of it is "me myself brainstorming a re-imagining of this character" which feels too tangiental to put here in "thepandaredd's original characters and associations" post. and, yeah, you would have assumed thepandaredd would have further re-imagining pitches of some of the "Regrettables" but these were the rare ones i could find and i am p confident i've watched all the videos in that series bc i was looking for exactly these kind of notes. all the rest were "Regrettable, don't bring them back" or "Not regrettable, bring them back (with said opinion not including a pitch for their re-imagining. at most just a vague 'as a gag'. anything more than that and i will attach them to this/my thepanndaredd's OC list)".

↳ but yeah, that was from a two-parter tiktok from 8 June 2023 (or thepandaredd's 2023 June Monthly compilation video, either or). i'm generally gping to keep these summaries short bc their pitches are short. but thepandaredd's pitch for Daniel Dyce is to have him come back as an Arkham Asylum patient who keeps breaking out of his room #711, and is a gag. Daniel is just delusional, keeps fighting the Batman and Bat-kids while thinking they are the villain Brick-Bat and that Dyce is a hero (read: Dyce is not a hero in his re-imagining, that is his altered reality he thinks he is living. he fails spectacularly every time he tries heroics). alternatively, it could be the Riddler putting on a Batman cowl to fuck with Dyce and make Dyce think Batman is bad (similar as to Hush), taking advantage of Dyce to throw in Batman's way. it is implied that Dyce does belong in Arkham and was not a case of Damon and Pythias* gone wrong, that was just another delusion in thepandaredd's re-imagining. but yeah, just a one-shot gag villain

↳ *: as a fun-fact the nerd in me wants to mention: Daniel Dyce's shtick with his best buddy in terms of the prison-swapping is actually an intertextual reference to the Ancient Greek lore story of Damon and Pythias (except Damon and Pythias was about Pythias being on death row (the version i know is Pythias being framed by King Dionysus I "for trying to kill King Dioynsus I". bc. King Dionysus I wanted to get rid of Pythias. for. reasons that i forget that i think were political), and Damon volunteers to be Pythias' placeholder (and be executed in Pythias' place if Pythias never returns) so Pythias can settle some affairs back home himself and ensure his family is taken care of before he comes back to be executed. then, in the original story, the whole time Damon volunteers and waits and waits and waits, everyone says "Damon, dude, Pythias is totally not going to come back, you're gonna die in his place, i'm so sorry, there is no way he is going to come back" but Damon has faith and then Pythias does come back (and was almost too late, like Damon's head was on the chopping block awaiting the blade, because Pythias got thrown overboard his own ship by pirates and swam as fast as he could to get back on the path so Damon wouldn't die, which is fucking wild, but i digress). and King Dioynsus I is so touched by the sheer Pythagorean Friendship moral ideal these two are that he pardons Pythias! so now both he and Damon get to live, yaayyyy!! and, as a bonus fact, the most popular recent re-telling of this in contemporary times is Dreamsworks' "Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas", which is an animated pirate movie, ain't that neat. and, hey, while i got you here, you should watch Breadsword's "Sinbad and The Death of Pirate Cinema" on youtube because all of Breadsword's video-essays are poetic and make me wanna cry). uh, except if you have seen the two-parter thepandaredd made about Daniel Dyce (or somehow read Daniel Dyce's comic yourself), you'll know that's not how shit went down for Daniel Dyce, he did not get that happy ending lmao rip

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★ next one is "Tony Trent (The Face)". again, i have notes about running with this pitch. not included here bc it's Very Much Me which is tangential for a thepandaredd OC listicle and im already pushing the envelope with my hc additions i couldn't bring myself to delete for the public version. so here we go. this one has a pitch way more minimal than Daniel Dyce (#711) right above, but still got more than just "as a gag" so here we are lol (plus, there is no intertextual reference i am recognizing and wanna be a nerd about. sooooo...) thankfully tho, this will be shorter

↳ video is in the May 2023 compilation. is p just putting a Halloween mask on and scaring people.all because he, as a radio announcer and part-time news anchor, got so disheartened and angry by what he had to read everyday, that he just had to become a night-time vigilante. he is like a private-eye pulp detective, "he's like Batman but shitty". "No gadgets, no superpowers, no supervillains, no continuous enemies". thepandaredd's re-imagining pitch is to keep all of that and just, as a parody gag, have this guy show up in Gotham to make a difference and have everyone be like "No, dude, we fight Batman? Who the fuck are you?". because, as thepandaredd so eloquently said "He's just a guy!" that's it lmao rip

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the end, until i update this (if i ever do)

#thepandaredd #thepandaredd ocs #jay morton #bill the henchman #bill the professional henchman #my notes

[lingthusiasm]

Lingthusiasm Episode 71: Various vocal fold vibes

Partway down your throat are two flaps of muscle. When you breathe normally, you pull the flaps away to the sides, and air comes out silently. But if you stretch the flaps across the opening of your throat while pushing air up through, you can make them vibrate in the breeze and produce all sorts of sounds -- sort of like the mucousy reed of a giant meat clarinet. (You’re welcome.)

In this episode, your hosts Lauren Gawne and Gretchen McCulloch get enthusiastic about the vocal folds! They’re often called vocal cords, but as they’re attached along the long side rather than just the two ends like a guitar string, we’re using the more precise “folds” (just be thankful they’re not called “vocal flaps”!) We talk about the many cool types of vibrations you can make with your vocal folds: pushing out an extra puff of air (aspiration), turning off your vocal folds while still talking (whisper), making them high and tight (falsetto), low and airy (breathy voice), and low and crackly (creaky voice, aka vocal fry). We also talk about the ways that various languages draw on different configurations of these vibrations to distinguish between words (such as “sip” and “zip”; Thai, Tai, and Dai; and more) or for stylistic effect (such as newscaster voice).

Read the transcript here.

Announcements:

We’ve teamed up with linguist/artist Lucy Maddox to create a fun, minimalist version of the classic International Phonetic Alphabet chart, which you can see here (plus more info about how we put together the design). It looks really cool, and it’s also a practical reference tool that you can carry around with you in a convenient multi-purpose format: lens cloths!

We're going to place ONE (1) massive order for aesthetic IPA chart lens cloths on October 6, 2022. If you want one, be a patron at the Lingthusiast tier or higher on October 5th, 2022, timezone: anywhere in the world. If you’re already a patron at that tier, then you’re set! (That's the tier where you also get bonus episodes and the Discord access, we've never run a special offer at this tier before but we think this time it'll be worth it!).

In this month’s bonus episode we get enthusiastic about a forgotten gem of a linguistics paper about a rabbit! We talk about how Linguistics Twitter got excited about tracking down this paper based on a vague rumour, Labov's history of coming up with unique ways to record language in more natural environments, and useful takeaways about how to talk with children.

Join us on Patreon now to get access to this and 60+ other bonus episodes, including an upcoming episode where we interview the artist and linguist Lucy Maddox about the process of designing our new IPA chart. You’ll also get access to the Lingthusiasm Discord server where you can chat with other language nerds, as well your exclusive IPA chart lense cloth!

Here are the links mentioned in this episode:

Laryngeoscope examples (warning: kinda gross videos of what the vocal folds look like from the inside!) - Glottal opera and more straightforward video

Electroglottography (EGG)

Phonetics - Constants: Crash Course Linguistics #8 (animated meat clarinet!)

Language Log post on Nationality, Gender and Pitch

Lingthusiasm Episode ‘A Fun-Filled Fricative Field Trip’

The Two Ronnies - Four Candles skit

Stops in Western Armenian

Lingthusiasm Episode ‘When nothing means something’

Wikipedia entry for Thai

Examples of languages with multiple voicing contrasts

All Things Linguistic post on stops in Korean

Wikipedia entry for Sanskrit Consonants

Wikipedia entry for Hindustani Phonology

Wikipedia entry for Breathy Voice

Wikipedia entry for Creaky Voice

Omniglot entry for Jalapa Mazatec

Wikipedia entry for Jalapa Mazatec Vowels

You can listen to this episode via Lingthusiasm.com, Soundcloud, RSS, Apple Podcasts/iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also download an mp3 via the Soundcloud page for offline listening. To receive an email whenever a new episode drops, sign up for the Lingthusiasm mailing list.

You can help keep Lingthusiasm advertising-free by supporting our Patreon. Being a patron gives you access to bonus content, our Discord server, and other perks.

Lingthusiasm is on Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

Email us at contact [at] lingthusiasm [dot] com

Gretchen is on Twitter as @GretchenAMcC and blogs at All Things Linguistic.

Lauren is on Twitter as @superlinguo and blogs at Superlinguo.

Lingthusiasm is created by Gretchen McCulloch and Lauren Gawne. Our senior producer is Claire Gawne, our production editor is Sarah Dopierala, our production assistant is Martha Tsutsui Billins, and our production manager is Liz McCullough. Our music is ‘Ancient City’ by The Triangles.

This episode of Lingthusiasm is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike license (CC 4.0 BY-NC-SA).

#Episodes #linguistics #lingthusiasm #phonetics #IPA #voicing #vocal folds #vocal fry #spoken language #sounds

[go-learn-esperanto]

I don't know if this is a wierd question but I've kind of been wanting to watch the dsmp for a while but I have no idea where to start, like do I pick someone and just watch all of their streams chronologically or just some streams or????? help please I am lost and confused (feel free to ignore!)

Sorry for the late reply. I was unfortunately not here and did not see your ask.

I think that in relation to the Dream SMP you need to realise that it's very long, and that are different POVs with different arcs going on.

I watched the Dream SMP for more than 2 years, and it's probably really daunting to just start now.

My recommendation is usually BlueberryTV's video summaries of the seasons but she does more long term summaries of events, all with VODs.

This post here lists a bunch of options

Besides the link with the Dream SMP animatics (which unfortunately only goes until Wilbur's streaam called Inconsolable Differences, one my favourites and one of the only streams I know the title of by memory, which despite being already season 4 there's still some streams afterwards) there's also two links provided. [Link 1] is a link to Blueberry TV and [Link 2] is a link to the affectionately called "Netflix Dreams SMP Carrd". This Carrd contains links to video summaries if the VODs all beautifully organised

If you look around and see EvanMCGaming as a recommendation all I tell you is that Dsmpblr as a whole usually discourages watching his summaries. They're convenient however they either miss a lot of very important events and information (things like not mentioning Fundy is Wilbur's son or Philza is Wilbur's dad which makes the story less engaging at best and confusing at worse, sometimes he also just straight up tells things that are wrong and there's a lot headcanons and opinions on characters that aren't the reality presented in text. Me as a Wilburian and the Inniters usually have a lot deslike for Evan's portrayal of Wilbur and Tommy as these two characters have arcs revolving around very delicate topics that involve mental health, abuse, even some ablism I'd say and let's just say Evan definitely didn't do those topic's the nuance they deserved...

Another thing is that I love animatics but they also can be quite biased. My recommendation is to watch the summary of a stream/event then search for the animatics about it. Animatics are good in the way that they make us more excited for lore (at least to me) and they're art so there can be some interesting discussions an artist can bring up with them.

My last recommendation is if you like lore analysis check out The Pandora Project. They are also here on Tumblr as @/the-pandora-project. Very good and well thought out analysis. It's pretty much a Dream SMP lore podcast.

#ask #dream smp #dsmp resources #mcyt resources

[prep4tomoro]

Learn How to Defeat Facial Recognition Cameras/Software

Everywhere you walk you’re subjected to an array of CCTV (Closed-circuit Television) cameras. When you’re in the convenience store, the shopping mall, in a restaurant…all of these cameras are continually capturing your photographs. No big deal, right? I mean, you're a twitter and tweet social butterfly with e-mails, texts, and Facebook posts . . . what could be the harm in that?

Our Anonymity is a Thing of the Past. Why? Because, not only does government and "big tech" want to control the population, they want a complete audio and video surveillance of every person to know where they are going and what they are doing. The following provides suggestions on how to defeat surveillance.

In his article Low-Tech Solutions To High-Tech Tyranny, Brandon Smith provides suggestions on how to defeat surveillance such as:

- Become aware of, and educated about, security cameras

- Wear baseball caps and sunglasses to break up the outline of your face, ears, and noticeable facial "quirks" and characteristics peculiar to you

- Wear a Balaclava - most useful in the winter to keep warm and appear less conspicuous

- Remember the movie Minority Report with Tom Cruz? Eyes are an identifying characteristic that should be covered or disquised.

- Cover identifying scars, birthmarks and tattoos with clothing or masking creams

- Wear a decorative "surgical mask" as fake protection from illness

- Avoid spending large amounts of time directly underneath the little camera-domes, camera lenses, and recording devices

- Position yourself so others (and cameras) can't see what's on your smartphone or computer screen

- Use mylar emergency space blanket material (reflects about 90% body heat) to mask from heat-sensing equipment

- Use makeup and prosthetics to help hide bone structure. By styling hair and wearing makeup in certain patterns, facial recognition can be fooled. Wear a knee brace to change the gait of your walk

- "Blind" cameras by shining a bright light in the lens of a camera

- Learn How to Build a personal EMP disrupter to destroy electronic surveillance equipment.

[Reference Link]

[14-Point Emergency Preps Checklist] [11-Cs Basic Emergency Kit] [Learn to be More Self-Sufficient] [The Ultimate Preparation] [5six7 Menu]

#facial recognition #prepare4tomorrow #prepper #survival #shtf #cameras #security cameras #cctv #evade

[fizzingwizard]

Well, I bought ad-free Tumblr.

I did it because I realized what I would prefer, if I could have my way (aside from just no one needing to pay for anything at all ever hahahahaha), then we'd all pay to subscribe to tumblr and it just wouldn't be free. It'd be like $1.99 per month and all of us would pay it and have no ads and be happy and whee.

Now that's not my serious opinion. I know, for one, what happens when you stick things behind a paywall. Tumblr might not be a scientific journal or reputable news source (lol) but a paywall still divides, still excludes, and that's antithetical to the entire experience of the Internet. And then, there would still be all the other social media sites that have ads and don't make you pay out of pocket, which would sail on with everyone who can't afford or doesn't want to afford tumblr.

Everyone paying a nice, neat, cheap monthly fee or discount annual fee and getting along together is what would work best for me, but it's not realistic for everyone. But, since I'm willing to do it, I thought, why haven't I? And I'll tell you why: Because idk about the rest of you, but much of tumblr really doesn't work that well for me. I have issues with posting, especially with paragraph breaks and trying to move bits of text around. I don't like that posts I reblogged in the past are hidden forever behind "Flagged for mature content" warnings and it's like. A picture of a cat. Not to mention broken music links and videos (which I guess aren't tumblr's fault, just makes me sad). I don't like how pictures seem to always end up sized differently and you have to open it just the right way to see it how you want. Not to mention a bunch of features tumblr used to have that I loved have gone away or been massively de-emphasized: support for music players on blogs, for example. (Yes I still have one but it's a pain the neck.) Polls are nice but I miss that. I also miss convenient free themes - they're still there of course! But finding one that has everything I want (no endless scrolling, clear navigation, visible icon and description, music player, etc) is also a pain and I just end up reusing the same old one I've been using since I joined and recoloring it lol.

So I'd be happier about paying for tumblr if the experience were just a touch cleaner, faster. Oh, and not forgetting about PC users xP I know lots of people use their phone, I do too, it's convenient - but PC is just easier. Well, maybe for teens who can type on their phones at 50 mph it's no big deal. But I love love love my keyboard.

But anyway I paid it so I get a year without ads. Honestly I thought about it and $40 a year is what, ten cents a day? I really don't mind that. I wasn't really bothered by ads anymore since they've been scaled back, but now I can be bothered by them even less, so yay. OTOH, it looks like the subscription auto-renews, which I HATE. If so, I hope they send a warning email a few days before.

Oh and you know what else helped. I did a few youtube searches recently, and wanted to tear out my own hair over how frustrating it was. I just want a list of videos that relate to the subject of my search, not interspersed between "things I've seen before," "random shorts," "things that are similar," "things totally different that Youtube wants to show me anyway." And same thing on Google, Amazon, anywhere. I'm just so sick of it. So I'll fucking pay for fucking tumblr x'D Just work and not be annoying alright!!

I find it amusing that the moment I paid, I got a pop-up asking me to pay more to give ad-free to someone else. I might be more amenable when my pocketbook isn't smarting anymore 9_9

But this was funniest of all:

OK, I can't imagine ever doing it, but I suppose there's someone out there who thinks highly enough of the stuff that gets blazed to decide they want to continue seeing it even after spending $40 x'D But who is paying the fee and choosing show all ads? Please, is there anyone? I want to see a cryptid for myself.

#tumblr